I hit the ground running with my reading goal for 2023 and I’ve already made a significant dent in my TBR. Here is a list of everything I read this month.
The Good
Band Sinister by K.J. Charles
Huge shoutout to the Fated Mates podcast for making me pick this one up. They dedicated an episode to it and my reading experience was just as lovely as my listening experience. The story is lighthearted without feeling trivial and the cast of characters is diverse and entertaining. The prose is dense at times so it took some getting used to, but once I was acclimated I really enjoyed it. My only complaint is that I wish I could have read more.
Rating: 5/5
The Key to My Heart by Lia Louis
This book turned me into an emotional mess. It has all of the characteristics I’ve come to expect in a Lia Louis novel: coincidence/serendipity, cozy vibes, warm and friendly characters, and emotional depth. There is a scene at the end of this book that is so ridiculously romantic that upon reading it I whispered “what the fuck” and then ugly cried.
Rating: 5/5
Good Girl Fail by Roni Loren
I had some doubts when I first heard the premise of this story but once I got to reading they were entirely wiped away. Roni Loren has a singular talent for combining steamy romance with emotional depth and character growth. I have learned not to question her ideas because I always love her books in the end. I’ll read whatever she writes.
Rating: 4/5
This Is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel
I’ll start off by saying there’s a lot to love in this book. Namely the fact that it’s an LGBTQ+ story that doesn’t end in tragedy. I like the majority of the characters and the book’s ultimate message. That said, the prose choices really took me out of the story. The writing has a very casual quality to it and at points is intentionally aping fairy tale language. I get why Frankel chose to do so but it didn’t work for me at all. That said, I did find the story to be incredibly kind and thought provoking.
Rating: 4/5
The Bad
Always Only You by Chloe Liese
I’m deeply sad to report that I don’t think I like Chloe Liese’s writing. I had high hopes for this one after truly enjoying Everything for You. Unfortunately, I think the only parts of that book that ended up working for me were the parts ripped off from Ted Lasso. I found the writing to be trite and silly. It’s too bad because Liese has a great cast of characters who are let down by the immature tone of her prose.
Rating: 2/5
Dusk and Other Stories by James Salter
I’m on a short story kick lately but I did not like this collection at all. I found the writing to be predominantly spare which people have praised but in actuality comes across as cold. It’s also incredibly misogynistic. The only reason this collection gets two stars instead of one is because of the story “Twenty Minutes.” Just read that story and skip the rest.
Rating: 2/5
A Very Merry Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams
Unfortunately this wasn’t my favorite installment in the bromance series. There were a lot of things that rubbed me the wrong way. For starters, I couldn’t connect with the heroine at all. I love the idea of taking the grumpy sunshine trope and switching it up so that the grump is our heroine and the sunshine our hero. Sadly, she just came across as mean and cold. Her family was also a bit over the top in their villainy. Finally, the hero basically coerces/blackmails her into going out with him and I prefer enthusiastic consent in my love stories. It’s still a fun read because we love the characters from earlier books in the series.
Rating: 2.75/5
Return to Cherry Blossom Way by Jeannie Chin
This was another book that I had high hopes for only to be bitterly disappointed. It’s not a bad book if you know what to expect. Think Hallmark Channel Christmas movie meets foodie festival. I had a hard time moving past how everyone from the MC’s small town was mad at her for leaving when she experienced racist bullying throughout her childhood there. Also the love interest wanted her to give up her dreams and education to live in a small town forever. Hard pass. The writing is solid even if I never personally bought into the chemistry between the two leads. I think small town romance fans will inevitably find more enjoyment in this book than I did.
Rating: 2.5/3
The Mediocre
Locklands by Robert Jackson Bennett
Full disclosure I listened to this one on audio. In fact, I listened to the entire series on audio so I wanted to remain consistent. The series as a whole is quite imaginative but I think this book ultimately lets the characters down as the conclusion. There is so much attention given to the past so we can understand what’s currently happening that I found myself being taken out a bit. The book also feels slightly disconnected from the two that came before it.
Rating: 3/5
Bliss Montage by Ling Ma
I read and loved Ling Ma’s debut novel, Severance, so I had high hopes for her collection of short stories. Unfortunately, they didn’t quite deliver. Ling Ma is deeply imaginative and some of the stories were truly interesting but some of them left me feeling a bit flat. I think I just wanted more out of each one. If you were put off by the ending of Severance as I know many were, I don’t think you’ll find satisfaction here.
Rating: 3/5
Partners in Crime by Alisha Rai
I think the theme of this January is books letting me down. Again there was so much potential here: one crazy night, heists and hijinks, poc characters I genuinely want to root for, etc. But it all felt trivial in the end. Even the love scene we finally get during the last quarter of the book is lackluster. Alisha Rai is capable of so much more than this. It’s not a bad book but it could have been so much better.
Rating: 3/5
A Restless Truth by Freya Marske
This series is a lot of fun. Not everything about it works for me, especially the slower pacing, but I like the characters a lot. Their adventures are exciting to read about even when they undergo a defeat or two. I do feel that this one suffers a bit from middle book syndrome towards the end. The story is clearly doing a lot of work to set up the series finale which I’m sure will be great.
Rating: 3.5/5
Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang
I found this short story collection to be somewhat of a mixed bag but I blame my own expectations. I really enjoyed the 2016 film Arrival, based on the title story in this collection and was of course left wanting by the original text. I also read and loved Chiang’s follow up, “Exhalation” and can see how he perfected his craft there. That said, this book contains a few truly fascinating and thought provoking stories, particularly at the end.
Rating: 3.5/5
DNF
Better Than Fiction by Alexa Martin
My first DNF of the year and I’m sad because I’ve liked Martin’s previous romance stories. There were a lot of elements in this book that could have worked for me. I was intrigued by the main character’s attempt to forge a relationship with her half sister and I liked the Colorado setting and her photography aspirations. Other than that nothing else worked. The writing is basic, the romance is forced, and the heroine is fickle and immature. Here’s the line that caused me to give up on the book completely.
“Wow.” I use every ounce of self-control I have to pry my eyes away from his exposed chest and back up to his eyes. “Serving some Harry Styles realness, are we?”
He nods, and his smile changes in a way I may not understand but do like. “Just hoping for a little watermelon sugar.”
The actual definition of cringe. I’m sorry but I can’t with this one.
A Queen in Hiding by Sarah Kozloff
This is perhaps my biggest disappointment of the month. I was hoping for a fun epic fantasy series that I could binge (all of the books were published one after the other in 2020) and I got a somewhat dull prequel novel that sets up what could maybe be a decent plot in the hands of a better writer. There are so many elements that this book has going for it: a royal in hiding, pirates and sea-faring battles, palace intrigue, scholar turned rebel resistance leader, etc. Yet the characters all feel superficial and one-note and the writing is the epitome of telling rather than showing. I had hoped that the rest of the series would get better but based on reviews I don’t think I’ll even bother with it.
The Future
Next month I’m hoping to tackle Leigh Bardugo’s Ninth House follow up, Hell Bent. I’m also crossing my fingers that I finally get off the wait list for my library’s copy of Leviathan Wakes, the first novel in The Expanse series. I’ve placed holds for some exciting February new releases like Stone Blind and I Have Some Questions for You.
What did you read this month?