Yesterday we talked about the books we added to our shelves in January, so now it’s time to talk about what we read. How did our reading year start off? Did we discover any new favorites? Keep on reading for our January wrap up to find out!

Candyce

January was quite the month and even though I barely read anything for a week, I still ended up reading 19 books (6 paperbacks, 6 audiobooks, 3 eARCs, 2 ebooks, 1 hardcover, and 1 manga) and I had 1 DNF. So I can’t complain about how my reading started off well in 2024. Here’s to hoping I keep this reading energy going.

The Hobbit – J.R.R. Tolkien

The Hobbit was my in person book club read. Of course I’ve seen the movies, but I had never read the book. I enjoyed this one a lot more than I thought I would. While I read this I listened to the audiobook. It was a fun experience. I’m glad I read The Hobbit.

Yellowface – R.F. Kuang

I’ve been putting this book on my TBR for quite a few months, but I finally read Yellowface. This was an interesting book and I loved the take on the publishing world explored in the story. The middle was a bit slow for me, but all in all I enjoyed Yellowface.

Bonesmith – Nicki Pau Preto

Bonesmith was a book I’ve been curious about since I heard about it. I was sucked into this book from the start. I loved the characters, magic, world, the dash of romance, and the ending left me wanting the sequel immediately. Bonesmith was definitely my favorite book of the month.

Fly with Me – Andie Burke

Fly with Me caught my eye at first because of its stunning cover. When I heard it had fake dating, I knew I wanted to read it even more, haha. I flew through this book and really enjoyed Olive and Stella’s story. I do wish we had gotten Stella’s POV though.

Done and Dusted – Lyla Sage

Cowboy romances aren’t something I’ve read a lot of, but after Flawless I’ve been excited to try some more. Done and Dusted was such a fun story that I read in one sitting. Emmy and Luke’s romance had me smiling, because they slowly started to get to know each other. This was a brother’s best friend romance and I enjoyed myself. I grew attached to this family and I’ll be counting down to the next book releasing in March.

Wildfire – Hannah Grace

Icebreaker was a sports romance I really enjoyed, so Wildfire was added to my TBR when I heard about it. The camp setting was a lot of fun and I loved the slow burn between Russ and Aurora. There were a few things that bugged me, but all in all it was a lot of fun.

Betting on You – Lynn Painter

Lynn Painter is an auto-buy author for me and again she didn’t disappoint. Betting on You was a fun romance and our main character had a lot of change to deal with as well. I really appreciated this book having a dual POV. I’m always sad when I get to the ending of one of Lynn Painter’s books.

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A Sign of Affection Vol. 1 – Suu Morishita

I heard about A Sign of Affection after seeing it on TikTok. This manga was so good and I’m excited to continue. Our main character is Deaf and besides a possible budding romance, she’s trying to expand her world. At the moment I’m also watching the anime with my boyfriend.

Same Time Next Year – Tessa Bailey

I started off my reading year with Same Time Next Year. This is actually a novella, but it was a cute one. On New Year’s Eve Britta agrees to marry Sumner for his green card. She’s not looking for a relationship, but he’s been in love with her. I’m sure you can tell where this was going. My only complaint is that I wish it was more than a novella.

Let’s Get Quizzical – Kelly Ohlert

Let’s Get Quizzical is another book I was drawn to because of the game show. I have to say I learned a lot of random facts while reading this one. This book started off really strong for me and I loved Charlotte and Eli. Charlotte honestly started annoying me near the end and the ending was a bit too rushed for my liking.

Dungeons and Drama – Kristy Boyce

I’ve played Dungeons and Dragons before and I love seeing it mixed into books. This wasn’t only that though, but our main character started learning more about herself and her Dad. Add a touch of romance and this was an enjoyable YA contemporary.

That’s Not My Name – Megan Lally

After That’s Not My Name released at the end of 2023, I kept seeing it on bookstagram. When the audiobook was added to Storytel, I had to give it a go. I was hooked from the start. We get a dual POV and every time I thought I had it figured it, I was wrong. The ending definitely went differently than I expected. I’m glad I read this!

Before the Coffee Gets Cold – Toshikazu Kwawguchi

Before the Coffee Gets Cold is a book I’ve seen a lot and hear people talk about all the time. Short stories aren’t something I normally gravitate towards, but I was intrigued. This was a set of emotional stories. The concept was very interesting and I’ll definitely be continuing this series. I may read them physically though instead of listening to the audiobook.

The (Fake) Dating Game – Timothy Janovsky

If I hear fake dating, I add a book to my TBR, haha. The fact that a game show was incorporated in this one. I flew through this book and enjoyed the story, but I was kind of sad that the actual game show wasn’t a bigger part of the book.

Love, Hate & Clickbait – Liz Bowery

Clay and Thom are kind of enemies and end up having to fake date to try and save their boss’ campaign. I really though I would love this book, but it just didn’t pull me in. I wasn’t connecting with the characters and some of the plot just felt to be a bit too much and maybe even ridiculous? I guess it just wasn’t for me.

Love, Me – Jessica Saunders

Can you imagine that one afternoon your private letters and pictures between you and your ex go viral (because your ex is a famous movie star)? I know I can’t! How these were sent out into the world was really messed up and definitely turned Rachel’s life upside down. I enjoyed the switch between past and present and our main character really exploring what everything meant to her.

My Fair Brady – Brian D. Kennedy

I was really curious about My Fair Brady, because it’s described as My Fair Lady meets She’s All That. Seeing how She’s All That is one of my favorite movies, I had to read this. I was pleasantly surprised by this book and I loved both characters. At some moments it was pretty predictable, but that didn’t make me enjoy it any less.

Good Game – Madison Fox

Madison is a booktuber I’ve been following for a few years and I was excited to see what she would do with her own book. Stevie and Blade’s romance was everything I could’ve asked for and I can’t wait for the next book in this trilogy.

‘Tis the Damn Season – Kimi Freeman

If you’ve been following our blog, you know I love holiday reads. ‘Tis the Damn Season sounded like one I was going to love. Unfortunately at the 51% mark I decided to DNF this book. I tried with this story, but I feel like nothing has happened? The story stays very much on the surface and we’ve barely touched anything romance wise or career wise. I don’t like DNFing, but I find myself not wanting to pick it back up.

Totally Pucked – Lauren Blakely

I downloaded this novella on my Kindle when it was free and decided to give it a go. At 52 pages, I was done in no time. Totally Pucked was a cute friends to lovers romance. The characters were a lot of fun, so I was kind of sad that this wasn’t a novel. I will be reading this series though.

 

Isabelle

I didn’t have a great start of my reading year unfortunately. This month I’ve only read two books, but they were enjoyable! Let’s take a look.

A Master of Djinn – P. Djeli Clark

I listened to the audiobook for this one and I’m so glad I finally picked it up. There are 3 short stories/novella’s in this world and they are amazing. I love this world and these characters and the full length novel did not disappoint!

House of Sky and Breath – Sarah J. Maas

This was a reread and I was almost on time for the release of House of Flame and Shadow haha. But I did finish it and loved rereading it. It was nice to have everything fresh in my mind again so I can fully understand everything is House of Flame and Shadow.

So that’s our January wrap up! How did your reading year start? Did you find any new favorites? Let us know in the comments. We’d love to hear from you.