Category: Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten 2024 Releases I Was Excited to Read but Still Haven’t (YET)

Posted February 3, 2025 by Jana in Top Ten Tuesday / 24 Comments

Welcome to another TTT! This week I’m looking forward and backwards at the same time. lol. I have such lofty goals and such a long TBR that I will not ever come even close to reading everything I want to read in my lifetime. BUT there are still quite a few books from last year (and so many years before… oh my gosh I can’t even think about the mountain of books I’m lying beneath) that I want to prioritize this year. Here’s the ones I’m hoping to read soon!

When the Moon Hatched by Sarah A. Parker
A Tribute of Fire by Sariah Wilson
The Booklover’s Library by Madeline Martin
Viscount in Love by Eloisa James
The Art of Catching Feelings by Alicia Thompson
A Letter to the Luminous Deep by Sylvie Cathrall
The Kiss Countdown by Etta Easton
Empire of Shadows by Jacquelyn Benson
Kilt Trip by Alexandra Kiley
My Lucky Charm by Courtney Walsh

Have you read any of these? What did you think?
Which should I read first?
What’s one 2024 release you were really excited to read but haven’t gotten around to yet?


Top Ten New-to-Me Authors I Discovered in 2024

Posted January 27, 2025 by Jana in Top Ten Tuesday / 16 Comments

Welcome to another TTT! This is the last for the 2024 reflection posts, and it features new-to-me authors I read in 2024! I am always trying to explore new authors and expand my list of favorites, and I read books by 32 new-to-me authors last year. These ten were my favorites (in no particular order)! I’m sharing their names and the names of their book I read.

Joanna BarkerThe Two Bells of Christmas
Kristen BaileyWe Three Kings
Joanna Shupe Miracle on Ladies’ Mile
Sarah Beth DurstThe Spellshop
A.J. LancasterThe Lord of Stariel
Lindsay LoviseNever Blow a Kiss
Betty Cayouette One Last Shot
Sarah ReadyFrench Holiday
Clarissa HarwoodThe Curse of Morton Abbey
Which authors did you discover in 2024? Which of their books did you read?


The Ten Most Recent Additions to My Book Collection

Posted January 20, 2025 by Jana in Top Ten Tuesday / 41 Comments

Welcome to another TTT! Christmas was not even a month ago, even though it feels like ages (anyone else feel like this?), so I thought it would be fun to share the ten most recent additions to my bookshelves. Some of these are Christmas gifts, and some are things I bought with money or credit after Christmas! I’m not including review books. I’m excited to see your haul!

The Bridge Kingdom, The Traitor Queen, and The Inadequate Heir by Danielle L. Jensen
I love this series, but had not gotten them for my collection because the covers kept changing and I didn’t like any of them. But they got some beautiful covers when they were bought up and re-released by Del Rey and I immediately added them to my wish Christmas wish list as soon as I saw the announcement. My Secret Santa got me the first one and my mom got me the second two! They’re so sparkly and shiny in person! I just love them.

The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst
This was my favorite read in 2024, and I’m so excited to have the pretty hardback with the purple sprayed edges!

Desert Island Duke by Kate Bateman
I’m not usually one to buy novellas in physical form, but look at how stunning that cover is! I’m also obsessed with this book and am so happy to have it on my shelf so I can stare at it.

Mixed Signals by B.K. Borison
I love this series and am so happy to have another one to add to my collection!

The Ornithologist’s Field Guide to Love by India Holton
Another book from my Secret Santa. I can’t wait to read this one!

One Last Shot by Betty Cayouette
If you couldn’t tell, I tend to reserve my shelf space for books I love and would be happy to re-read, and this was another favorite of 2024!

The Only One Left by Riley Sager
I am obsessed with this mystery. It’s so, so good.

Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros
This one is being delivered to my kindle (the hardback is coming later this afternoon/evening) as this post goes live, and I have been waiting so long for this!! I am so, so excited! Anyone else planning to dive in immediately?

Have you read any of these?
What’s your most recent book acquisition?


My Top Ten Bookish Goals for 2025

Posted January 13, 2025 by Jana in About Me, Top Ten Tuesday / 64 Comments


Welcome to another TTT! Are you getting back into the swing of things now that we’re into the second week of 2025? I still want to write 2024 all the time, and it’s going to be a fun month trying to get used to this. LOL. Looking ahead, what are you hoping to accomplish in your bookish life this year? I try not to put undue pressure on myself and just come up with some fun hopes and wishes to help guide my reading when I’m in a slump or not sure what to read. I’m excited to lurk on some blogs this week and see what you inspire me to do!

1. Read 52 (or more) books. 
Back when I read YA, I was reading 70+ books each year but the books were shorter than the adult novels I read now! One book a week seems like a sustainable goal for me. Last year I read 53 pretty easily, so I’m going to stick with that goal and not push myself to read too quickly. I also want time to do other things!

2. Work on that Netgalley ratio!!
Friends, I am struggling with this. I know I’ve said this before, but back in the olden days this ratio didn’t exist and, as a baby blogger who was excited to review books, I requested everything I thought I might like (not expecting to be approved for them all). But I was. lol. I dug myself into a huge hole that I’ve been spending years trying to climb out of. I’m hoping this is the year I hit the recommended 80% (although, if I’m being realistic maybe 60% would be enough to make me feel better this year).

3. Request and accept fewer books for review.
This kind of goes hand in hand with #2. I don’t want to fill my plate so full that I can’t enjoy my Kindle Unlimited and Audible memberships, my library, and the books I already have on my shelves or receive as gifts. For years, I exclusively read review copies and missed out on a lot of other titles I was super excited about.

4. Read more backlist titles.
Being a slower reader means I don’t get to all the books I want to read the year they come out. And then I get bogged down in all the shiny new books the next year and forget about the ones that I was dying for before their releases.

5. Write more reviews, even if they’re tiny. 
I put a lot of pressure on myself to write long, detailed reviews, but sometimes I’m not in the right head space for that! But even just a short paragraph would be worth blogging, right? Would you be happy to read a to-the-point, paragraph-long review or would you skip past it and look for a longer one from someone else?

6. Read more physical books from my shelves.
I’ve got a lot of books on my shelves that get ignored because a Kindle is easier. I want to read my physical books, see if I love them, and donate them if I don’t so I have room for more!

7. Embrace whatever mood I’m in.
This goes for books as well as how I choose to spend my time. If I’m in the mood for a month of thrillers, I need to do it. If I’m reading a book and find I’m not in the mood for it, I need to set it aside or DNF it and find a book I am in the mood for. And if I;m not in the mood to read because I want to binge watch Friends or play a game on my Nintendo Switch, that’s ok too!

8. Re-read more. 
I never used to re-read, but I’ve started doing it more lately and I didn’t realize how much I’d still love my favorite books the second time around! I always worried that I’d get tired of them or decide I don’t like them, but so far re-reading has only brought more joy. And I need all the joy.

9. Prioritize the books I’m most excited about no matter when they come/came out.
Being a mood reader means grabbing what I want when I want it. Reading is not my job. It’s not school. I’m in charge and nobody else. If I want to start a book tonight that has a release date in October, I’m starting it tonight anyway! And if I’m super excited to start a book that came out 50 years ago, that’s fine too. I don’t always have to be reading the latest trending books.

10. Be ruthless with the DNF. 
I own or have access to more books that I will be able to read in my lifetime. So I need to DNF more and find the very best of the best. Life is too short for books I’m not enjoying!

What are some of your reading goals this year?
How many books are you hoping to read in 2025?


My Top Ten Most Anticipated Books Releasing in the First Half of 2025

Posted January 6, 2025 by Jana in Top Ten Tuesday / 17 Comments

Happy New Year!! And welcome to another TTT! Life is slowing down and settling back into business as usual for me after the holidays, so I finally had a chance to sit and look ahead at all the things I’m looking forward to in 2025! Books are a big part of that, and there are some I’m really really looking forward to over the next six months! It’s hard to narrow it down to ten, but here we go!

1. The Lodge by Kayla Olson (January 7, 2025)

Alix Morgan just got her big break as the ghostwriter of a memoir by Sebastian Green, a former member of the boy band True North. And when he offers her a penthouse at a luxurious resort in Vermont, she jumps at the chance to work far away from her noisy, cramped apartment.

Her career as an entertainment journalist has been building toward this dream job—after all, she used to cover True North and was one of the last people to interview former front man Jett Beckett before he disappeared. As she combs through her client’s voice memos, the specter of the missing lead singer remains, and fans are desperate to know the full story.

But Alix also has time for some fun at this glamorous resort, where she begins ski lessons with a handsome instructor named Tyler. As Alix and Tyler fall in love on the slopes, Alix’s work takes a complicated turn—and the mystery of True North’s downfall may be hers to solve.

2. The Starlight Heir by Amalie Howard (January 7, 2025)

A bladesmith blessed by the stars. A prince with a dangerous secret. A god bound in shadows. From USA Today bestselling author Amalie Howard comes a scorching new romantasy that will leave you spellbound.

“His Imperial Majesty King Zarek requests your presence as his esteemed guest.”

When the gold-dusted court invitation arrives at Suraya Saab’s forge, she believes it’s a joke. Nobles might seek her skills as a bladesmith—one of few who can imbue her work with precious jadu, the last source of magic in the realm—but she has no qualifications as a potential bride for the crown prince. Still, the invitation is the chance at adventure, and the means to finally visit the capital city her late mother loved.

But what awaits her in Kaldari is nothing she could have imagined—and fraught with danger. It’s not the crown prince, but his impossibly handsome, illegitimate half-brother, Roshan, who captures her interest…and her ire. The invitation isn’t a quest to find a suitable bride, but a veiled hunt for the Starkeeper—a girl rumored to hold the magic of the stars in her blood. And across the city, unrest is brewing between the noble houses and the rebel militia.

When the rebels attack, Suraya and Roshan find themselves on the run, trying to deny their simmering attraction and the knowledge that Suraya herself might be the Starkeeper. But Roshan is guarding secrets of his own. And with no control over the power stirring within her, Suraya has drawn the attention of a dark god, an immortal whose interest might be the biggest threat of all.

3. Work in Progress by Kat Mackenzie (January 14, 2025)

A warm, sexy, laugh-out-loud rom-com about a woman who, desperate for a fresh start, books a literary bus tour across the UK that consists of a lively group of elderly ladies plus one infuriatingly handsome Scottish driver.

Falling in Love was not on her to-do list.

The last six months of Alice Cooper’s life have been, in her own words, “a poop tornado.” So, in a desperate attempt to pull herself out of the emotional quicksand threatening to swallow her whole, she books a three-week bus tour of literary and historical British sites.

Alice arrives in Edinburgh after a hellish trip involving multiple layovers, crushed luggage, and an epic row with an insolent Scotsman at the lost baggage counter. After a mad dash to catch the tour bus, she discovers that instead of globe-trotting thirtysomethings, the bus is?full of cheerful octogenarians, and that the aforementioned arrogant Scot is the bus driver. Alice is sure he will make the nonrefundable trip a misery.

He is arrogant and rude. He also has beautiful blue eyes and dotes on his elderly charges. The ladies are vivacious and full of stories. The historical sites are entrancing. The book club chat is on fire. And, it’s possible that Alice’s battered heart is starting to beat again.

Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros (January 21, 2025)

YESSSSSS. I am SO excited!!!

After nearly eighteen months at Basgiath War College, Violet Sorrengail knows there’s no more time for lessons. No more time for uncertainty.

Because the battle has truly begun, and with enemies closing in from outside their walls and within their ranks, it’s impossible to know who to trust.

Now Violet must journey beyond the failing Aretian wards to seek allies from unfamiliar lands to stand with Navarre. The trip will test every bit of her wit, luck, and strength, but she will do anything to save what she loves―her dragons, her family, her home, and him.

Even if it means keeping a secret so big, it could destroy everything.

They need an army. They need power. They need magic. And they need the one thing only Violet can find―the truth.

But a storm is coming…and not everyone can survive its wrath.

Never Gamble Your Heart by Lindsay Lovise (February 4, 2025)

To find her missing sister, an unconventional governess must infiltrate an infamous gambling den owned by a devilishly handsome rake.

Frankie Turner should be the perfect she’s genteelly born, impoverished, and owns a pair of ugly oversized spectacles. Now if only she didn’t have an alarming tendency to forget her charges while contemplating mathematics principles…

When Frankie’s impulsive younger sister goes missing, Frankie has no idea where to begin the search to find her. But when she discovers hasty marriages materializing between “troublemaking” women and men who don’t deserve them—she knows her sister is somehow involved. The only thread connecting the groomsmen is a membership to Rockford’s, an exclusive gambling hell owned by the devilish Jasper Jones. And it just so happens that Jasper has recently become the guardian of a sullen fifteen-year-old.

Jasper suspects his new governess has an ulterior motive for being in his household, but he can hardly find the time to uncover it when his life is in a constant uproar. First, Frankie teaches his niece how to count cards and then she tries to break into his study. When he finally learns Frankie’s true reason for being there, he agrees to help the brilliant mathematician find her missing sister, even if it means giving her a fake dowry and watching men trip over themselves in her presence. As he and Frankie work together to dismantle a nefarious scheme, Jasper realizes that for the first time in his life, he’s gambled his heart—and possibly lost it.

First-Time Caller by B.K. Borison (February 11, 2025)

A hopeless romantic meets a jaded radio host in this cozy, Sleepless in Seattle-inspired love story from beloved author B.K. Borison.

Aiden Valentine has a secret: he’s fallen out of love with love. And as the host of Baltimore’s romance hotline, that’s a bit of a problem. But when a young girl calls in to the station asking for dating advice for her mom, the interview goes viral, thrusting Aiden and Heartstrings into the limelight.

Lucie Stone thought she was doing just fine. She has a good job; an incredible family; and a smart, slightly devious kid. But when all of Baltimore is suddenly scrutinizing her love life-or lack thereof—she begins to question if she’s as happy as she thought. Maybe a little more romance wouldn’t be such a bad thing.

Everyone wants Lucie to find her happy ending… even the handsome, temperamental man calling the shots. But when sparks start to fly behind the scenes, Lucie must make the final call between the radio-sponsored happily ever after or the man in the headphones next to her.

While the Duke Was Sleeping by Samara Parish (February 25, 2025)

In this whirlwind regency romance, a woman with a secret identity and a rakish bachelor find themselves unable to resist each other.

When Adelaide Rosebourne must impersonate her mistress for a few days, it doesn’t seem like it’ll be a difficult task, even if her mistress’s supposed fiancé is in a coma. All she has to do is wait until he wakes up and then convince him to retract the proposal—thereby securing a tidy reward. What she doesn’t count on is the arrival of the duke’s brother and his damned inconvenient interest in her affairs. But does it really matter? She’ll be gone before he finds out the truth.

Rhett Montgomery knows two things—that he is woefully unprepared to take over the dukedom, and that the woman who claims to be his brother’s betrothed is not who she says she is. No debutante swears so fiercely or kisses with such recklessness. Investigating is what any good brother would do, isn’t it? As long as he doesn’t start falling for her charms as well.

Swept Away by Beth O’Leary (April 1, 2025)

Lost at sea . . . with your one-night stand

Lexi is looking for no-strings-attached fun with a stranger. She deserves one night for herself, doesn’t she?

Zeke is looking for love. But for one night with a woman like Lexi, he’ll break his rules . . .

Sparks fly at the pub, one passionate kiss leads to another and they end up stumbling home to the marina together.

The next morning, hungover and shaken by an amazing night together, Lexi is more than ready for Zeke to leave. There’s just one small problem . . . the houseboat they stayed on has been swept out to sea.

As their supplies start to run dangerously low, and the waves pick up, Zeke and Lexi soon realise there’s much more on the line than their new relationship.

How long can they really survive on a drifting houseboat in the North Sea? Will search and rescue find them? And who will they be if they both make it back to dry land?

The Love Haters by Katherine Center (May 20, 2025)

It’s a thin line between love and love-hating.

Katie Vaughn has been burned by love in the past—now she may be lighting her career on fire. She has two choices: wait to get laid off from her job as a video producer or, at her coworker Cole’s request, take a career-making gig profiling Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West.

The catch? Katie’s not exactly qualified. She can’t swim—but fakes it that she can.

Plus: Cole is Hutch’s brother. And they don’t get along. Next stop paradise!

But paradise is messier than it seems. As Katie gets entangled with Hutch (the most scientifically good looking man she has ever seen . . . but also a bit of a love hater), along with his colorful Aunt Rue and his rescue Great Dane, she gets trapped in a lie. Or two.

Swim lessons, helicopter flights, conga lines, drinking contests, hurricanes, and stolen kisses ensue—along with chances to tell the truth, to face old fears, and to be truly brave at last.

The Ripple Effect by Maggie North (June 17, 2025)

A grumpy burnt out physician and a sunshine psychologist must fake an engagement to save his whitewater canoeing/ relationship therapy startup in Maggie North’s sparkling second novel about starting over.

Burned-out former ER doc Stellar J Byrd can solve any crisis except her own life. But with her financial prospects dwindling, she’d do anything to stay in her beloved, pricey wilderness town—even take a job as a camp physician at The Love Boat, an unspeakably touchy-feely whitewater canoeing/ relationship therapy startup. If there are sing-alongs, she’s calling in sick.

What’s worse? The founder is Lyle “McHuge” McHugh, the sunshiny psychologist she’s masterfully avoided since their disastrous hookup last year. Hardheaded relationship bean-counter Stellar plans to dodge his pathological generosity from now until September, but after a scathing article puts McHuge’s credibility into question, the two are forced into a fake engagement to salvage the camp’s crumbling public image. It’s strictly business . . . but the more closely they work together, the more Stellar realizes her feelings for Lyle are anything but professional.

This summer is nothing like Stellar expected, but could it be exactly what she needed? With a colorful cast of camp-goers, including a journalist intent on bringing The Love Boat down and an estranged celebrity sibling, plus a dash of corporate espionage, Maggie North’s signature heart and heat shine in The Ripple Effect.

Are you looking forward to any of these books?
What’s your number one, most-anticipated book that’s coming out this year?