Before we get into any “Best of 2025” type of content, I need to wrap up December! The month started out very strong for me reading wise, and then I started reading Rachel Reid’s Game Changer books, and they put me in a bit of a slump because all I wanted to do was read more about Shane and Ilya. It’s a new month, though, and I’m slowly getting out of my slump. But for now, here’s everything I read last month.
What Kind of Paradise by Janelle Brown
This is part thriller, part coming-of-age story, and had me completely engrossed until the very end. Jane grows up extremely sheltered – basically living off-the-grid, only knowing that her mother died in a car accident when she was younger and her dad moved them to the middle of nowhere to keep them safe. As she gets older, though, she begins to push at the constraints of her isolation a bit… and also wonder how much of what her dad has told her is true. But when her dad allows her to join him on a trip away from their cabin, her reality is shattered when she learns what he has really been up to. She decides to do whatever it takes to find out the real truth about her mother and her own past, and that takes her on a wild adventure. This kept me on the edge of my seat – not necessarily because it was unpredictable, but because I wanted to see how the inevitable was going to happen.
Buy the book: Bookshop.org | Libro.fm | Amazon.com
Funny You Should Ask by Elissa Sussman
I’ve been meaning to read this for a while, and have been trying to utilize my library more for some backlist reads like this one.Twenty years ago, Chani had a too good to be true weekend spent interviewing Hollywood heartthrob Gabe, where the line of professionalism got blurred. Present day, Chani has gone through major personal and professional changes since that life-changing weekend that skyrocketed her career, yet when she’s given a chance to have a do-over interview with Gabe, she finds that she can’t say no. It’s a second-chance romance of sorts – I had a lot of fun reading it. It wasn’t my absolute favorite celebrity-normal person romance, but I enjoyed it.
Buy the book: Bookshop.org | Libro.fm | Amazon.com
The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
I listened to this one on audio, and I highly recommend it that way. It’s completely told via letters and e-mails, and the audiobook has a full cast recording, so it felt really immersive. Through the letters that Sybil sits down to write every morning, we get a peek into her life – what is happening with her family, memories that bubble up, plans that are being made, things that are bothering her. One or two letters, in particular, force her to revisit her past and make decisions about her future that end up having reaches far beyond what she could have imagined at her age. At times, I worried this was going to verge a little too treacle-y, but it did a pretty good job at staying away from being overly saccharine.
Buy the book: Bookshop.org | Libro.fm | Amazon.com
Heart the Lover by Lily King
This was absolutely beautiful and devastating, and definitely one of my favorite books of last year. Jordan is in her senior year of college, and meets two best friends who are living at a professor’s house while he’s on sabbatical. She feels a bit like she’s been let into a new, secret world, and falls for the boys one after the other. She and Yash, the second boy she falls for, seems like they are destined to be together, but when Yash breaks her heart she puts him, and that part of her life, behind her. Years later, when Jordan is married with kids, Yash reappears, and Jordan is thrown back into memories and recollections and choices made decades ago. I’m finding it really hard to describe this book, but wow I just loved it so much. The writing is beautiful and the story broke my heart in the best way.
Buy the book: Bookshop.org | Libro.fm | Amazon.com
Game Changers series by Rachel Reid
After watching two episodes of the Heated Rivalry tv show, I immediately knew that I needed to immerse myself in this world as much as possible, so I sped through all six books in the Game Changers series while I waited for episode three to be released. I am who I am! Each book centers on a different queer man who plays or played on a hockey team, and each is set in a world where gay hockey stars are allowed to have their happily ever afters with other men. My personal ranking of the series is 2, 6, 5, 3, 1, 4 – I’d say the writing improves pretty dramatically between books 1 and 2, but it’s important to read the first book because it really sets up the whole series. These books are not shy on the smut, but they are FUN and full of joy.
Buy Game Changer: Bookshop.org | Libro.fm | Amazon.com
Buy Heated Rivalry: Bookshop.org | Libro.fm | Amazon.com
Buy Tough Guy: Bookshop.org | Libro.fm | Amazon.com
Buy Common Goal: Bookshop.org | Libro.fm | Amazon.com
Buy Role Model: Bookshop.org | Libro.fm | Amazon.com
Buy The Long Game: Bookshop.org | Libro.fm | Amazon.com
The Heir Apparent by Rebecca Armitage
I love a good royal-inspired story! Lexi is a reluctant royal – she has been living away from the royal family in Australia, where she’s enrolled in medical school and hopes to become a working doctor when she finishes. When tragedy strikes, though, extremely unlikely circumstances align and leave Lexi next in line for the throne. She’s hastily tracked down and flown across the globe back to England, where she’s given a deadline of a year to decide if she wants to return to her life in Australia, or agree to be the Heir Apparent. Estranged from her family in recent years, she’s forced to confront ghosts and figure out what she really wants from her life. I think I was hoping for a bit more from the plot from this, but I still enjoyed!
Buy the book: Bookshop.org | Libro.fm | Amazon.com
