Books Read in December: 36 This was the most books I read any month this year!
Books Read for the Year: 332/200
Topical Books/Monthly Goal Books:
When Crickets Cry, by Charles Martin (TBR). Apparently I’d read this before, although I didn’t remember it. Loved this!
Little Men, by Louisa May Alcott (classic re-read). I love this almost as much as Little Women
Redeeming Love, by Francine Rivers (TBR). This is such a powerful story
The Yada Yada Prayer Group Gets Caught, by Neta Jackson (TBR). Still loving this series
Dangerous Prayers, by Craig Groeschel (spiritual). Powerful.
Praying with Jane, by Rachel Dodge (TBR/spiritual). This was lovely!
For Review:
The Princess and the Rogue, by Kate Bateman. I enjoyed this romance with a princess in disguise and a man who thinks he’ll never fall in love.
Boone, by Emily March. Boone was a little bit too good to be true to be believable.
Fairy Godmothers, Inc., by Saranna DeWylde. This was almost a farce to me, frankly. The whole premise wasn’t believable, the horrible incident from the past was ridiculous, and when the characters would randomly cuss, it just felt wrong, like it was out-of-character. Nope.
Wrong Alibi, by Christina Dodd. I was solidly invested in this tale of a woman wrongly convicted of murder 10 years before who is trying to find the man who framed her…until 75% of the way through when she met the guy whose family she supposedly killed and with basically no transition he decided she wasn’t the killer, they hopped into bed, and were infatuated with each other. What? I didn’t realize this was a romance. Add that to a conspiracy that had never been hinted at before, and I lost all faith in this author.
Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder, by T.A. Willberg. This was a decent read, but it felt very slow.
You Have a Match, by Emma Lord (review forthcoming). I enjoyed this updated riff on The Parent Trap. It was a fun read with a lot of character growth.
One of the Good Ones, by Maika Moulite (review forthcoming). This is another case of me thinking I was reading a certain genre of book and finding out 75% of the way through that the author had different ideas. An incredibly powerful story and writing, but when that twist came, it negated that for me.
Roman and Jewell, by Dana L. Davis (review forthcoming). I enjoyed this quick read. It was diverse and didn’t go for the easy cliche.
The Other Mother, by Matthew Dicks (review forthcoming). Though this novel takes place over the course of two days, it felt like a lot happened! A solid read about a boy dealing with a scary syndrome.
Minus Me, by Mameve Medwed (review forthcoming). Eh, I really didn’t care for either of the MCs, so that made this only a so-so read for me.
The Lost Manuscript, by Cathy Bonidan (review forthcoming). I ended up enjoying this novel told in letters very much! Love the characters!
Aftershock, by Judy Melinke and T.J. Mitchell (review forthcoming). The second solid book in this series. Although the MC makes some…questionable…decisions, I enjoyed the read.
What’s Worth Keeping, by Kaya McLaren (review forthcoming). Loved this!
Shipped by Angie Hockman (review forthcoming). This was a fun read and would be excellent as a beach or vacation read.
At the Edge of the Haight, by Katherine Seligman (review forthcoming). The blurb made this sound like it was about a homeless teenager helping to find the person who killed a boy…but it wasn’t. Not at all.
Everything I Thought I Knew, by Shannon Takaoka (review forthcoming). I really liked this, until the twist came at about 80% through. And that ruined the entire book for me.
Deep Into the Dark, by P. J. Tracy (review forthcoming). This was an excellent thriller. I’m not usually a fan of unreliable narrators, but it totally worked for this story.
A Pairing to Die For, by Kate Lansing (review forthcoming). This was a quick, fun read, but it wasn’t totally believable because the police made an arrest within a few hours of the murder…on minimal evidence.
The Knockout, by Sajni Patel (review forthcoming). I LOVED this read! It deals with cultural issues and sexism as a girl struggles to embrace her identity in the midst of expectations.
The Girl from the Channel Islands, by Jenny Lecoat (review forthcoming). This was a good read. I don’t think I’d read anything before set in the Channel Islands during WWII or with a German soldier who wasn’t a Nazi.
Undercover Kitty, by Sofie Ryan (review forthcoming). I hadn’t read any of this series, but I enjoyed this. Elvis the cat is perfect!
Crime of the Ancient Marinara, by Stephanie Cole (review forthcoming).. This wasn’t bad, but it didn’t really work for me.
Capturing the Earl, by A.S. Fenichel (review forthcoming). I’ve thoroughly enjoyed this entire series, and this was another good read. My favorite MC so far!
Happy Singles Day, by Ann Marie Walker (review forthcoming). I thought this was a pretty standard romance. Nothing bad, but no unexpected surprises, either.
Just Because:
Tipping Point, by Jimmy Evans. Yes, this is the second time in the last six months I’ve read this.
Who is Jesus?, by Paul Kent.
Mortal Arts, A Grave Matter, A Study in Death, and A Pressing Engagement, by Anna Lee Huber. I read the first book in this series some time ago. Now I’m binging the rest of it because I love them so much!
Yearly Reads:
I read the Bible and Live in Grace, Walk in Love, by Bob Goff over the course of the entire year as well.
Tomorrow Is Another Day 
I loved When Crickets Cry. It was my first Charles Martin novel and I have since read 4 or 5 and plan on reading a few more this year.
here are my 2020 favorites, if interested! https://elle-alice.blogspot.com/2021/01/favorite-books-of-2020.html
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