I’m a huge mood reader – I never plan out what I’m going to read next, but just pick up whatever sounds good to me at the time. In February, that meant a lot of romances, because I love reading them always, but Valentine’s Day gives me the push I need to read more than usual! I also definitely found myself escaping into books last month to get a little break from reality. But it’s okay, because a lot of them were really great escapes! Here’s everything I read in February.

The Bright Sword by Lev Grossman

I love The Magicians (both the book and TV series!) so I was very excited to read this new book by the same author. It’s a take on the Arthurian legend, which I honestly don’t know much about at all, so it was all pretty new to me. But you actually don’t need to know much about the legends to appreciate this – it follows Collum, a knight who shows up to Camelot only to find out Arthur was bested two weeks ago, and some of the lesser-known Knights of the Round Table, who work together to try to discover what happened to King Arthur and who will rule next. It’s plot is broken up by chapters with the history of each of the knights, but it all comes together really nicely in the end. It’s a modern, irreverent, and diverse take on the Arthurian legend, and I really enjoyed it.

Last Summer on State Street by Toya Wolfe

This YA coming-of-age story was a hard to read at times, because it was a lot of heartbreaking things happening. Fe Fe lives with her mom and her older teenage brother in one of the apartment complexes in Chicago that are part of the “projects.” The building next door is about to be torn down and residents relocated, and gang violence is all around her. When she welcomes a new friend into her group, things start to shift, and her eyes are opened to things going on around her. Fe Fe looks back on her life from a decade later, looking at how the choices she made led to her where she is now. The story has so many beautiful teenage growing-up moments, but surrounded by so much pain, too.

Done and Dusted by Lyla Sage

I kept seeing this book all over my Instagram, and I had to see what the fuss was about! It wasn’t bad, but I should’ve stuck with my intuition that cowboy/cowgirl romances are just not my thing! Emmy is back home after a barrel racing accident has her afraid to get back in the saddle (literally and metaphorically). Luke is her older brother’s friend who spent a lot of time with the family growing up, but who she hasn’t thought of in years… until she walks back into his bar and his life! Both of them start seeing each other with new eyes, and they just can’t seem to stay away from each other. I did really appreciate the ADHD representation in this book! But I don’t think I’ll be reading another cowboy romance anytime soon.

The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

(I got an ARC of this – thank you NetGalley and Del Rey Publishing – and it will be out on July 15.) I normally try to wait until a little bit closer to the publication date to read advance copies I get, but I genuinely could not wait to read this one, because I love everything that Silvia Moreno-Garcia writes so much. Minerva is a graduate student focusing her thesis on a little-known horror author who attended the same school Minerva did. She learns that the author’s work is actually based on something that happened to a friend of hers… and Minerva thinks that history might be repeating itself again, as she starts to notice strange things happening around her. This is a multigenerational witchy horror story, but more of a dark, moody psychological vibe than scary horror. I loved how everything came together at the end – it was so satisfying!

First-Time Caller by B.K. Borison

This is very loosely based on Sleepless in Seattle – Lucie’s daughter wants to help her find love, so she calls in to the Aiden Valentine, the host of a love advice show on the radio in Baltimore. Lucie finds her making the call, and chats with Aiden for a few minutes – the chemistry is so electric that listeners want to hear more, so Lucie agrees to join Aiden for a segment on the show to help her find love. I bet you can guess where the story is going, but it’s an extremely cute read! I didn’t want to put it down; it’s just a really sweet story about opening yourself up to possibilities after being closed off for a long time to protect yourself.

Christodora by Tim Murphy

This story is set at the Christodora apartment complex in New York City, and focuses on the AIDS crisis, but spans decades and points-of-view. A cast of interconnected characters are all impacted in different ways – some infected by AIDS, some work in the city government as the crisis is just beginning, some have lost parents, some are activists speaking out for more research and recognition, and some are all of the above. Honestly, a lot of the characters are frustrating, but in a way that feels real. It took me a bit to really keep all of the characters and timelines straight, but by the end it really came together beautifully and was so poignant and powerful.

Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett

All of the Emily Wilde books are lovely cozy fantasy, where the first two thirds move pretty slowly, and the final third has the action (and, of course, the resolution). Emily and Wendell have finally made it back to his kingdom in Faerie, but of course there’s still more work to be done as he attempts to reclaim his throne, and Emily adjusts to living in a completely new world. While I wouldn’t really call this romantasy necessarily, the relationship between Emily and Wendell is very sweet. This book was a very fitting end to their story, and felt like a nice way to close it out.

Deep End by Ali Hazelwood

(Thanks to Libro.fm for this audiobook!) I think the nice thing about Ali Hazelwood books are that while the setting changes, the characters are very similar from book to book, so you always know what you’re getting into. Deep End is set at a college, where Scarlett is a student-athlete diver and Lukas is a student athlete and Olympic medalist swimmer. The two run in the same circles but don’t know each other well until Lukas’ ex-girlfriend lets it slip that he has certain preferences in the bedroom, and it turns out Scarlett does, too… so they decide to explore them together. It’s probably the spiciest of Ali’s books so far! It was fun and a quick read for me.

Out on a Limb by Hannah Bonam-Young

I feel like I’ve already talked about how much I love this book a few times now, but wow I really loved this romance! Win and Bo meet at a Halloween party where they’re both wearing the same pirate costume… Win with a hook hand because she has a limb difference, and Bo with his prosthesis to look like a peg leg. The two have what they think is a casual hook up, except it has some not-so-casual repercussions. I don’t always love this trope, but the way it was written here didn’t bother me at all. I loved how real and authentic the disability representation was in this story, and loved that the story was one of romantic love, but also of self-love and acceptance and embracing all the parts of your identity.

Not Another Love Song by Julie Soto

I sped through this romance in a day, because the tension was so good that I did not want to put it down!! Gwen and Xander both play for the Manhattan pops, but have very different styles and upbringings. But when the two happen to run into each other at a wedding (Gwen working, Xander as a guest), he suddenly starts popping up everywhere Gwen is. The two seem to find themselves pulled toward each other, with off-the-charts personal chemistry, but musical chemistry as well. I wanted to buy a ticket for the symphony immediately after finishing this book – it made classical music seem so sexy! I’ll definitely be reading more from Julie Soto.

Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao

This was such a beautiful fantasy story – both the plot and the prose really did feel like the flowed like water. Hana inherits a pawnshop, but it’s not a regular one – anyone who finds the pawnshop can make the choice to trade away their biggest regret. Her first day on the job, though, she finds that her father has disappeared, and a man walks into the shop and offers to help Hana find him. The story takes so many twists and turns – I was never quite sure where it was going to go next – but it brought it all together nicely in the end. Also, I love that the hardback of this comes with a removable dust jacket and instructions on how to turn it into origami of your own!