Welcome to another TTT! Winter officially begins on Sunday here in the Northern Hemisphere, but it’ll be summer for many of you as well so please adapt this week’s topic for whichever season you’re in! I love seasonal TBR posts, and sometimes I actually stick to them! My winter to-read list is filled with some titles that sound cozy and fun for the snowy months (although, we’re unfortunately having one of the warmest Decembers on record)! Some of them are older releases, and some are upcoming releases that I’ve received for review. Can’t wait to grow my never-ending TBR this week!
What the River Knows by Isabel Ibañez
The Mummy meets Death on the Nile in What the River Knows, Isabel Ibañez’s lush, immersive historical fantasy set in Egypt and filled with adventure, a rivals-to-lovers romance, and a dangerous race.
Bolivian-Argentinian Inez Olivera belongs to the glittering upper society of nineteenth century Buenos Aires, and like the rest of the world, the town is steeped in old world magic that’s been largely left behind or forgotten. Inez has everything a girl might want, except for the one thing she yearns the most: her globetrotting parents-who frequently leave her behind.
When she receives word of their tragic deaths, Inez inherits their massive fortune and a mysterious guardian, an archeologist in partnership with his Egyptian brother-in-law. Yearning for answers, Inez sails to Cairo, bringing her sketch pads and a golden ring her father sent to her for safekeeping before he died. But upon her arrival, the old world magic tethered to the ring pulls her down a path where she soon discovers there’s more to her parent’s disappearance than what her guardian led her to believe.
With her guardian’s infuriatingly handsome assistant thwarting her at every turn, Inez must rely on ancient magic to uncover the truth about her parent’s disappearance-or risk becoming a pawn in a larger game that will kill her.
Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett
A curmudgeonly professor journeys to a small town in the far north to study faerie folklore and discovers dark fae magic, friendship, and love in the start of a heartwarming and enchanting new fantasy series.
Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world’s first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. She could never make small talk at a party–or even get invited to one. And she prefers the company of her books, her dog, Shadow, and the Fair Folk to other people.
So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hrafnsvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the gruff townsfolk. Nor does she care to spend time with another new arrival: her dashing and insufferably handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby, who manages to charm the townsfolk, get in the middle of Emily’s research, and utterly confound and frustrate her.
But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones–the most elusive of all faeries–lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she’ll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all–her own heart.
Alchemy of Secrets by Stephanie Garber
It starts with a class in an old movie theater.
Folklore 517: Local Legends and Urban Myths, taught by a woman called the Professor. Most students believe the Professor’s stories are just fiction, but Holland St. James has always been convinced that magic is real. When she tracks down a local legend named the Watch Man, who can supposedly tell you when you’ll die, the world finally makes sense. Except that the Watch Man tells her she will die at midnight tomorrow unless she finds an ancient object called the Alchemical Heart.
With the clock ticking, Holland is pulled deeper into this magical world in the heart of Los Angeles—and into the path of a magnetic stranger. Everything about him feels like a bad idea, but he promises Holland that her sister sent him to protect her. As they chase clues and stories that take them closer to the Alchemical Heart, Holland realizes everyone in this intoxicating new world is lying to her, even this stranger. And if she can’t figure out whom to trust, not even the Alchemical Heart will save her.
Of Flame and Fury by Mikayla Bridge
On an island built from ash and shrouded in fire, phoenix racing is a sport just as profitable as it is deadly.
Kel Varra and her team of underdogs, the Crimson Howlers, are desperate to win the annual races and the fortune that comes with it. But the Howlers need a new rider, which leads Kel to join forces with Warren “Coup” Coupers – an arrogant rival she can’t get out of her head.
As tensions rise on and off the track, Kel accepts a job from a mysterious tech mogul who shows an unsettling interest in her phoenix, Savita. This thrusts Kel into a conspiracy that endangers everyone she cares about, especially Coup, as her resentment ignites into something dangerously new.
Heart-pounding pages full of a fiery, slow-burn romance, jaw-dropping confessions, political scheming, and volatile phoenix magic culminate in a final battle that none may survive. Don’t miss this exhilarating young adult fantasy by debut author Mikayla Bridge — perfect for fans of Formula 1!
Hail Marry by Martha Keyes
His ‘hail marry’ proposal to a stranger might be the wildest play of his entire career.
LUCA
One enormous detail stands between me and my dream of being drafted to the NFL: a valid visa. With my student visa expiring and a past, unfortunate run-in with the law disqualifying me from the one I need, I’ve run out of options.
Then fate hands me a wild card: saving a stranger from a speeding truck.
TORI
When someone saves your life, a “thank you” card doesn’t quite cut it. So, when I find out Luca’s only path to the NFL finding a wife, how can I not offer? It’s only a formality anyway.
But paperwork turns out to be just the beginning of it. Playing pretend leads through a maze of immigration scrutiny and a lot more time together than either of us planned on. And keeping my heart out of the game? That might be the biggest challenge of all.
Hail Marry is the final story in the Sheppards in Love series. It’s a closed-door marriage of convenience, free of steamy scenes and swearing but with all of the swoon and laughs you could ask for!
No Place Like You by Jillian Meadows
Childhood friends turned high school rivals fall into a small-town fake dating scheme in this sweet, spicy, and utterly irresistible romance from the author of Give Me Butterflies.
Fable Oaks never planned to return to Fern River. But after a string of failures, here she is, living in her parents’ backyard, watching her beloved late grandfather’s A-frame crumble around her. She can’t seem to find her direction, and to make matters worse, Theo Nikolaou, her ex-best friend, has also resurfaced, distracting dimples and charming grin in tow.
Theo knew it was only a matter of time before he came back. The demons of his past once drove him to leave, but Fern River always seemed meant to be. So, when Theo’s boss, Arthur, announces he is selling his veterinary practice, it feels like the perfect opportunity. He just needs to show Arthur he’s sticking around for good. And when Fable—Fable, with her smart mouth and sexy curls—quite literally falls into Theo’s lap, an idea forms.
If they can convince the town that they’re madly in love, it could solve all their problems. Theo can prove to Arthur he’s settling down, and Fable can get some much-needed help fixing up the A-frame, a task she is determined to see through.
The only problem is, the more time they spend together, the blurrier the line gets between fake dating and falling hard.
She’s lost her way. He’s finding his path. Together, they might discover there’s no place like home.
Within the Space of a Second by Elise Helliwell
A slow-burn, swoon-worthy love story about two people separated by time and the dangerous secrets that threaten to tear them apart. A debut time travel romance for fans of The Seven Year Slip, Divine Rivalsand A Discovery of Witches.
Limited copies with sprayed edges available for pre-order!
Every morning, Mariella Adams wakes with a strange electrical energy buzzing beneath her skin. Terrified she has inherited her late mother’s mental illness, she tells no one. But when Mariella discovers her mother’s lost journals with an entry dated after her death, she’s desperate for answers.
The mystery only deepens when Mariella is approached by two strangers, Rose and Parker, who claim to be time travelers from the future. They say that interfering with the past – and Mariella – is forbidden, but they need her help to restore Parker’s ability to time travel before they’re caught in Mariella’s timeline.
Shocked, Mariella agrees to help them. After all, they might hold the answers she’s looking for. And the more time she spends with them, the more she finds herself drawn to Parker. As she fights to uncover the mysteries of her past and the secrets of his future, will Mariella discover the truth before time runs out – and Parker disappears forever?
Magic and Mischief at the Wayside Hotel by Elizabeth Everett
When a magical hotel appears smack-dab in the middle of the most unmagical of worlds, the last thing the residents expect is to fall in love.
Manager of the Number Five Wayside Inn and World Travel Hub, Pax Nomen has one of the easiest jobs in all the known universes, unless you count the occasional plumbing disaster. When Number Five Wayside gets stranded on a non-magical world, even Pax’s trusty Wayside Handbook can’t help him. How is he going to “reboot” the hotel and keep it on its magical journey?
Josie LaChusia is a single mom experiencing debt, having parenting doubts, and tipping dangerously toward depression when an ad pops up on her phone that an apartment is available in a building she’s never seen before.
Pax needs a new guest to restart his hotel, and Josie needs a nudge to restart her life. In a building occupied by faeries, gargoyles, and a gnome with a bad attitude, two souls from very different places come together to create a home like no other.
And Now, Back to You by B.K. Borison
Two competing meteorologists are forced to find common ground in this opposites attract, When Harry Met Sally inspired romance, from New York Times bestselling author B.K. Borison.
Jackson Clark and Delilah Stewart have had their fair share of run-ins over the years, often ending in disaster. While Jackson thrives on routine and organization from the comfort of his radio booth, Delilah loves the spontaneity and adventure out in the field. When they’re partnered against their will to cover the snowstorm of the century, they find themselves scrambling to figure out how to work together.
Eager to be taken seriously as a journalist, Delilah offers Jackson a deal. If he can help her ace this assignment, she’ll help him rediscover his long-lost fun side. With an undiscovered chemistry burning beneath their clashes, the unlikely partnership quickly tumbles into an easy and surprising friendship.
But when other feelings start to enter the equation, can Jackson and Delilah withstand the storm? Or does what happens in the mountains, stay in the mountains?
The Astral Library by Kate Quinn
From New York Times bestselling author Kate Quinn comes a gorgeously written fantastical adventure which poses the question: Have you ever wished you could live inside a book? Welcome to the Astral Library, where books are not just objects, but doors to new worlds, new lives, and new futures.
Alexandria “Alix” Watson has learned one lesson from her barren childhood in the foster-care system: unlike people, books will never let you down. Working three dead-end jobs to make ends meet and knowing college is a pipe dream, Alix takes nightly refuge in the high-vaulted reading room at the Boston Public Library, escaping into her favorite fantasy novels and dreaming of far-off lands. Until the day she stumbles through a hidden door and meets the Librarian: the ageless, acerbic guardian of a hidden library where the desperate and the lost escape to new lives…inside their favorite books.
The Librarian takes a dazzled Alix under her wing, but before she can escape into the pages of her new life, a shadowy enemy emerges to threaten everyone the Astral Library has ever helped protect. Aided by a dashing costume-shop owner, Alix and the Librarian flee through the Regency drawing rooms of Jane Austen to the back alleys of Sherlock Holmes and the champagne-soaked parties of The Great Gatsby as danger draws inexorably closer. But who does their enemy really wish to destroy—Alix, the Librarian, or the Library itself?
Have you read any of these?
Do we have any picks in common?
About Last Christmas
The Cornish Christmas Book Club
Merry Little Kissmas
