Phew, I thought January would never end! But if there is one upside to the endless days, it’s that I actually got a lot of reading in, and I thought I’d share what I read and loved over the month. Also, as a reminder, in an effort to spread my online presence around and build a platform in places not controlled by our new tech oligarchs, I am reviving not just this blog but my newsletter! The newsletter will be pretty low-key, just big bookish updates and my monthly reading round ups. If you want to sign up, you can do so here.

Now, let’s get into the books!

The Wedding People by Alison Espach

I listened to everyone rave about this book for the back half of 2024 and finally my library hold came in and all I can say is holy crap, you all were right. Not to be obnoxious, but this is defintiely a book that you want to go into knowing as little as possible, although I will give one big heads up for suicide ideation (and to a lesser extent, pet death, infertility, and grief). It’s about a woman who, in the wake of her divorce, goes to a beautiful Newport, RI hotel suite for a night and discovers that she’s the only one at this hotel that’s not there for a weeklong wedding, and is further shocked by an unconventional connection to the bride. The characters were all brilliantly rendered, and I just could not stop listening. 

A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher

I’m a huge Kingfisher fan, mainly of her adult horror novels, but this lower YA fantasy standalone has a lot of the same wit and action as the adult novels I love. It’s about a world where some people have magic, but their magic is limited to very specific medium or skill. For our protagonist, its dough–which is convenient as she’s a baker’s apprentice. But when other magic wielders start disappearing and she becoms a target of a murderous villain known as the Spring Green Man, she finds herself on the run and soon her city’s only hope against an enemy that would destroy everything she loves. I adore the humor and the voice, and I really liked that this was a book about how one young person can make a huge difference–through their actions, yes, but also just by being brave enough to stand up for what’s right. 

Just Do This One Thing For Me by Laura Zimmerman

Go with me on this for a second, but I think if you’ve ever craved a YA book that feels like Fargo, this is it. (Maybe I am the only one who has ever craved this? Let’s not dwell.) Drew is the responsible oldest daughter to an irresponsible con woman. She’s the one who makes sure her little brother eats right and get to school, and that her younger sister doesn’t get into too much trouble. She’s always reluctantly going along with her mom’s schemes, but when her mom takes off impulsively to Mexico for New Year’s and doesn’t return, Drew suddenly has to figure out not only how to keep her family together, but also keep anyone from finding out that her mom is gone lest her siblings be separated by social services…and that’s easier said than done considering her mom’s biggest con is about to blow up in their faces. There was so much I liked about this one: The chilly, northern Wisconsin winter setting, the very Midwestern-ness of the book, and Drew’s love for her family. The plot was also really compelling as more and more bad things happen. So yes, the Fargo vibes are there, but considerably less violent. (Although there is somewhat organized crime and a body, you’ve been warned.) I can’t think of much in YA that’s like it, but I was super into it!

Monday’s Not Coming by Tiffany D. Jackson

I finally read this book, which has been on my TBR for years, and I kicked myself for not getting to it sooner. Claudia has just come back from spending the summer with her grandma and she’s a bit upset that her best friend, Monday, never wrote to her while she was away. But as school starts and Claudia gets back into her routine, she’s alarmed to find that Monday remains missing. And it doesn’t matter how many questions she asks or who she goes to, no one seems to know where she is, and what’s worse, no one is as alarmed as Claudia about her absence. This book is a long one (over 400 pages) but the chapters flew by because Jackson is so good at unspooling the story and amping up the tension. It’s clear something isn’t quite right, and since it’s Jackson writing, you can expect a big twist. I found this book as compelling as it was heartbreaking.

Live Laugh Kidnap by Gaby Noone

In the tiny town of Violet, Montana, a megachurch rules all and three teenage girls feel stuck. Genesis is a member of a commune that was in the news fifteen years ago for being a cult (they’ve since rebranded). Zoe grew up in Violet, and she’s working to get out of her hyper-Christian, hyper-conservative community so she can live freely with her girlfriend. Holly has been sent to Violet to live with her dad for the summer after getting in trouble back in LA. When the three girls’ lives collide, they come up with an audacious plan: They’ll kidnap the son of the megachurch’s pastor and use the ransom money to get out of dodge. But they’re wholly unprepared for the consequences of this plan. This is just zany enough of a premise (with a hilarious title) that I knew I’d love the book, and I was so right. I really like how different the three protagonists are and how they become friends despite these differences. I also appreciate that while this book is highly critical of megachurches that exploit its members and purity culture in general, it’s actually very sensitive and nuanced when it comes to believing in God–one of the protagonists is an earnest believer, and it provided a nice balance. 

The Agathas by Kathleen Glasgow and Liz Lawson

I finally got a copy of this mystery from the library, and I really loved it. It’s about two very different girls on the social spectrum living in the California beach town of Castle Cove, and it has definite Veronica Mars vibes–the setting has a social scene that’s highly stratified and there are dark things happening beneath the moneyed surface. Alice Ogilvie is a rich girl who disappeared without a trace the previous summer before showing up again, just like her favorite author, Agatha Christie. But ever since she’s been back, she’s been ostracized. Iris Adams is one of the working class locals, haunted by a recent trauma. She wants nothing more than to make enough money so she and her mom can leave Castle Cove for good. So Iris takes the duty of tutoring Alice because the money is too good…only Alice is more interested in investigating the recent disappearance of her former best friend instead of hitting the books. Glasgow and Lawson do such a great job of creating a really believable world in Castle Cove with a wide cast of characters, and I really enjoyed Alice and Iris’s unconventional friendship. I’m listening to the sequel now!

Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe

Margo is nineteen when she sleeps with her English professor and winds up pregnant. She decides to keep the baby despite having no safety net to speak of, and soon finds herself in way over her head with a newborn. Fired from her job, she’s feeling desperate and so she decides on a whim to start an OnlyFans. But finding financial success on the internet is not easy, so she soon turns to her dad, a retired pro wrestler, down on his luck and living with her and the baby. She applies the same principles of professional wrestling fame to her approach to her OnlyFans and is shocked when it works. But with more money comes more trouble. I really loved this novel. The characterization is brilliant, and Thorpe did some interesting things with POV, which I thought was clever. This was an empowering and deeply empathetic book, and I couldn’t help but root for Margo even throughout her naivete and her missteps. I also listened to this one in about a day, so know it was super compelling!

What did you read and love this month? Any recommendations for February?

I’ve been meaning to share my favorite books of the year and I figure I better do so before we get too ridiculously deep into 2025. I read just over 80 books last year, which is low for me, but I had so many favorites and books that I just really, really enjoyed so I can hardly complain.

My caveats for this list are, 1) these are my favorite books I read in a year, not the “best” because who am I to decide what is a best book when what I love you might hate, and vice versa and 2) I don’t limit myself to any particular number because why do so when it comes to books? Also, it’s my list, and I make the rules!

I read a lot more adult books than YA books, which is a little unusual for me, so this list skews a bit older. That said, some of the YA books this year are mega favorites and will probably end up being “foundational, re-read every few years” kind of books.

I also thought I’d share my percentage breakdown of genres–this is my favorite part of tracking my reading each year! I’ve tried to go back over 6+ years of reading to get a feel for patterns, but really my genre reading shifts so much I never know where it’ll land. Mystery is always a big genre for me, but fantasy and romance are up there too!

Okay, now on to the books!

This book follows Skye, a thirty-something woman who almost forgot that she once donated her eggs to a once-close friend some years earlier and has since gone on her merry way, living life to the fullest by running a travel company and avoiding her roots. But when she’s home for a bit and a pre-teen girl crashes a party to inform Skye she is the result of the egg, Skye is suddenly faced with the reality of this long-ago decision. Meeting her offspring  is a huge shock, even more so when she realizes the girl’s aunt and guardian is the woman she unsuccessfully hit on recently. This was a really tender but also bitingly hilarious book about Skye attempting, for the first time in her life, to be responsible and realizing that she has to face the parts of herself she’s been running from along the way.

The Blonde Identity by Ally Carter

I believe that as a reader of Gallagher Girls who is now grown up and someone whose father owned a DVD of The Bourne Identity that was on heavy rotation in the early aughts, I am the target audience for this book! It opens with a woman waking up in Paris with a throbbing headache and someone who is apparently trying to kill her. This little problem sends her right in the arms of a hot spy guy, who thinks she is her twin sister (who is a real spy!) and the action does not let up from there as they are pursued across Europe. Our protagonist has to try and unravel the secrets of her past while learning who to trust…and trying not to fall for the hot guy. It’s hilarious and a bit absurd, but probably the most fun I had reading in 2024.

The Silent Stars Go By by Sally Nicholls

Look, I loved this book so much that I read it twice in 2024 and I can envision this one going into regular rotation. It’s about Margot, a young woman in 1919 who has returned home to her small English village for Christmas. It’s the first proper Christmas since the war, with the boys back home, including Margot’s fiance, whom she thought dead. This should be a joyous time, but it’s not–because Margot has a secret. She was pregnant when her fiance went to the front, and she had the baby, who is now being raised by her parents as her brother. The shame and anguish of this situation is killing her, and Margot is afraid to tell him the truth…but now that everyone is home, it might be unavoidable. This book is so bittersweet and beautifully, simply written. I inhaled it, both times I read it.

Killer House Party by Lily Anderson

I’m a huge Lily Anderson fan, and this book was yet another fantastic YA novel that takes a genre or trope and challenges readers to really think while also being super fun at the same time. Mia has found out that her real estate parents, who’ve just divorced, have squandered her college savings on buying a mansion in her hometown that they intend to flip. Without a lot of options and in need of raising $15,000 quickly, she decides to throw a graduation party in said mansion and charge her fellow students to raise the funds. But things go horribly awry when the mansion doors close and Mia realizes that the house has no intention of letting them out alive.

All This & More by Peng Shepherd

This book is like what you’d get if Black Mirror and Choose Your Adventure novels had a baby! Mallow is chosen to go on a new reality TV series that allows the star to go back to pivotal moments in their lives and choose differently. But of course, things aren’t always as straightforward, especially when no one really knows who is responsible for the show or the technology it uses, nor do they understand precisely how it works. I had such a hard time choosing when it came time for the story to branch off in part because the writing was so good, I wanted to see where both directions led. (And I did end up re-reading a big chunk of the book to see where all those threads went!) Bonus, I got to do an event with Peng this summer and actually chat with her about the book, and how it blew my mind.

Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell

This book is full of yearning and love and regret and second chances and I could not put it down! When they were teens, Shiloh and Cary were friends who always seemed to be teetering towards something more…but there was always something standing in their way. Then, they went their separate ways after high school and haven’t seen each other until now. At 33, Shiloh is a single mom who can’t help but feel like she’s backsliding in life, but reconnecting with Cary alights something inside her that can’t be denied. This book doesn’t have an explosive plot or major twists, and yet the tension is exquisite!

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna

Mika is a witch, but she’s always hidden her powers and lived alone, for it’s believed that too much magic in one place can draw the wrong sort of attention. But when her online videos of simple magic attract the attention of someone who knows magic is real, Mika is surprised when she’s offered a job: tutor three young witches who haven’t yet mastered their own magic. Intrigued, Mika moves to a house by the sea where she meets the girls and their eclectic caretakers, and finds her entire life changed for the better. This is such a warm hug of a book, with a really sweet romance and a golden retriever. If you love The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune, this book is for you!

The Hunter by Tana French

This is technically a sequel to French’s previous novel, The Searcher, although I think you could dive in and not know anything about the characters. It follows a retired American detective named Cal living in the Irish countryside. His life is quiet, spent woodworking and mentoring Trey, a young teen who has her own scars. When Trey’s good-for-nothing father returns to the county, he rbings with him trouble, and it’ll take everything Cal has to keep Trey from getting drawn into a dark scheme. One of the things I love the most about French’s writing is she writes settings that you can just sink into and this book is no exception.

Come & Get It by Kiley Reid

I loved Reid’s debut, Such a Fun Age, and I thought this one was equally thought-provoking and absorbing. It follows an interesting assortment of characters on the University of Arkansas campus: a writer and visiting professor conducting some dubious research, a super-senior RA with a very specific goal, and an assortment of young women living and clashing in a suite. A series of events brings all of them in each other’s orbit, setting off a string of unstoppable events. (Be warned, if you work in higher ed this book will give you a small heart attack but it’s VERY entertaining.)

Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa

Unsurprisingly, I love a good Austen retelling, especially one that offers a unique lens on the classic story. And does this one deliver–Gabe recasts Elizabeth Bennet as Oliver, a trans boy who is looking to forge his own path. Falling in love is beyond his wildest dreams, and Mr. Darcy certainly wouldn’t be his first choice, either, but the mor4e often he keeps running into him, the more Oliver begins to fall. I loved that Gabe kept the Regency setting (queer people have always existed!) and I so enjoyed seeing how he used the classic plot points to tell a truly fresh story!

Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiny

I wanted to pick up this book forever because it’s Very Michigan–it’s set in Boyne City, which I’m familiar with. It’s about Jane, who moved to Boyne City to take a teaching job and quickly falls in love with Duncan. Duncan knows everything–and he’s had a lot of exes–but despite his charm and his adoration of Jane, he’s not interested in marriage. However, when a terrible accident alters both Jane and Duncan’s lives forever, they find that life has a funny way of leading them down paths they least expect. I really adored this book, and the shoutouts to the best ice cream place, Kilwin’s.

The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older

Lesbians solving crimes in space, what more could you ask for? Mossa is an investigator searching for a missing man, and her hunt leads her to an outpost on Jupiter where no one but scientists dwell. This unlikely place is where she ends up running into Pleiti, an old girlfriend, and they team up to solve the mystery while rekindling their romance. I really enjoyed this novella and I need to grab the sequel(s)!

A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher

I love that T. Kingfisher writes fantastic horror novels that are also funny. (The Twisted Ones is one of my favorites!) In this book, Sam is an archeaologist on an extended visit back home, where her mom lives in their family home, inherited from Sam’s grandma. Sam is looking forward to a fun and relaxed visit but she’s not home a day before she realizes that something is really wrong with her mother, who is jumpy and ill at ease, and the house is sterile and decorated in her long-dead grandmother’s style. The more Sam digs into the past, the closer she gets to digging up some truly horrifying secrets.

Uprooted by Naomi Novik

This book has been on my TBR forever, and I loved this book so much. It follows Agnieszka, a young woman in a magical wood where every ten years, a girl is sent to live in a tower with the Dragon, a wizard of formidable power. Agnieszka is stunned when she is chosen but it’s not long after moving to her strange new home that she discovers the woods beyond her village harbors a menacing force and he has a fledgling magic within her to fight it. The best thing I can say about this book is if you love Howl’s Moving Castle, this is a grown-up book for you.

Brooms by Jasmine Walls and Teo Duvall

This is a fantastic graphic novel that follows a group of young women living in an alternate 1930’s MIssissippi, where magic exists but is outlawed for people of color and Native people. When two young Native women are at risk of being sent away for their magic, they join a broom racing team in the hopes of winning enough money to head west, where they can live and practice magic freely. But broom racing is not only dangerou–it’s illegal. I loved the colorful and energetic illustrations, and the author and illustrator do such a great job of juggling a large cast of diverse characters. 

Christmas Is All Around by Martha Waters

I love Christmas, but my favorite genre of Christmas media is “Christmas is the best but also the worst, why does everyone go totally bonkers this time of year?” and this book is just perfectly that. Charlotte is a former child actor in a very famous Love Actually-esque Christmas movie, but now as an adult, Christmas is just annoying and she has no interest in starring in the rumored reboot of the movie. She flees to London to spend the holidays with her sister where she meets Graham, whose family owns an estate that was a filming location of the movie. Charlotte reluctantly agrees to help him try to get more visitors to save the floundering estate, all the while trying and failing to ignore the attraction that is shaping up to be the perfect Christmas romance. 

At Her Service by Amy Spalding

This is the second Out in Hollywood romance novel (you don’t have to read them in order but I recommend For Her Consideration!) and it follows Max, a twenty-something who excels at her job but feels like she’s floundering in life. She can’t even admit she has a crush on Sadie, the bartender at her favorite dive bar. When her roommate convinces her to try a new self-actualization app, Max finds herself winning in all aspects of life and getting the girl…but when social media interferes, Max will have to stand up for what she wants and make her own moves. This was such a delightful book, and I can’t wait for the next in the series.

Rainbow Black by Maggie Thrash

Lacey is thirteen when Satanic Panic in her small New Hampshire town tears her family apart. Years later, she’s a lawyer in Canada and working for a judge when her past catches up with her, and she finds herself facing her many questionable decisions, as well as the family she hasn’t seen in years. Honestly, this book made me so uncomfortable (in a good way?) and I could not tear myself away from it. 

Divine Rivals and Ruthless Vows by Rebecca Ross

I finally picked up these books in early 2024 after so many recommendations and had to dash out of my house in between a snowstorm and an actual blizzard to grab the second book because I was so hooked! In a fantasy world that draws from WWI England, Iris is missing her brother, who has gone to war. She writes him letters and when they disappear, she has no way to know they’re ending up in the hands of Roman, her wealthy rival at the newspaper they work at. When Iris, desperate for information about her brother, heads to the frontlines, Roman goes after her. There, they find the war is far more dangerous than they could have imagined and encroaching ever closer. The writing in these two books is absolutely gorgeous, and I was thoroughly enchanted by the world and the magic and romance. 

Long Bright River by Liz Moore

I actually picked up this book before Liz’s new release (see below) because it’s been on my radar forever. It’s about a woman who is a single mom and police officer who, one day, finds the body of a woman and it reminds her a little too much of her estranged sister, who is struggling with addiction. When she tries to find her sister, she’s unnerved to find that no one has seen her, and sets out to try and track her down when it is becoming clear that someone is killing women on the streets. This isn’t a thriller, although it has some thrilling moments, but a really sensitive portrayal of what it’s like to have family members you love but don’t have an active relationship with at the moment, and the setting (Philadelphia) is really brilliantly rendered. If you liked Mare of Eastown, you’ll like this book.

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore

Surprise surprise, this is one of my favorite books of the year along with every other reader who picked up this brilliant novel. One thing to know about it is that it’s nearly 600 pages long and I read it in two days–I was hooked. It’s about a teenage girl who goes missing from a summer camp some years after her older brother also went missing. The ensuing investigation dredges up family secrets and a large cast of characters peels back the layers of the complicated cases that are separated by many years but are absolutely connected. Gorgeous writing, compelling characters, a riveting premise…I could easily see this becoming a limited run series.

The Phoenix Crown by Kate Quinn and Jane Chiang

I’m a huge Kate QUinn fangirl–after The Huntress, I’ll read anything she writes–so naturally I picked up this novel, co-written with Jane Chiang, whose work I was unfamiliar with. This novel follows three very different women in San Francisco in 1906–an opera singer, a scientist, and an embroidery designer who find their paths tangling with a very powerful man during the earthquake. They escape (barely) with their lives, but years later they track down this man and one of them decides she wants revenge. It’ll take call on their friendship once more if they’re to survive a second time. I enjoy Kate Quinn’s WWII and adjacent settings, but it was fun to go to a different time period here, and as always, I appreciate that some of these characters are queer. (More queer people in historical fiction, yay!)

The Briar Club by Kate Quinn

Kate Quinn was busy this year! She also released this novel, which takes place in Washington D.C., post WWII. It follows the eclectic group of women who live in a boarding house and how they exist separately, but slowly build a community with each other (some are more willing than others). But the charming and enigmatic woman who brings them all together has a secret. The structure of this book had me uncertain at first, but as soon as I gave myself over to it, I was totally sucked in! (The house has some POV chapters!) I did not guess the twist and I was delighted and fascinated when it was revealed. As always, Kate Quinn really brings history to life.

Let me know what your favorite books of the year were!