Thursday, December 30, 2021

the books I read in December

 


This was definitely my favorite view of the whole Christmas season. It felt decadent to sit here by the light of the tree and read all the Christmas books I could get my hands on. I'm including a picture and link for each book. You can access the link by clicking on each picture and you'll be redirected to Amazon in a new window.

My first book was The Christmas Swap by Melody Carlson.

This was a great Hallmark-y book about two families that swap homes for the holidays—one family goes to Colorado and the other goes to Arizona. There's an incident with the owner of the Colorado home though and he gets stuck there for the duration of the family's stay. 

Next up was Dear Santa, by the queen of Christmas herself, Debbie Macomber. 

Nobody does a Christmas book quite like Debbie Macomber and this one does not disappoint. Without giving anything away, Lindy decides to go home for Christmas and is feeling a little sad and disappointed with her life. At her mom's urging, she starts reading the letters to Santa she wrote as a young girl and sees a pattern—for each request she made, Santa delivered. She decides to write another letter this particular year just to see what happens....

I never like to tell too much information on these bookish posts!

Next was Christmas Haven by Cindy Woodsmall. 

This was my first Amish Christmas book and I wasn't sure what to think for the first three quarters of it, but it took a turn and I ended up enjoying it, even though I may not read another one like this. This was about a man who leaves home with his younger sister to get her medical care and a safe place to deliver the baby she's due to have by Christmas. He leaves his Amish home for another Amish community in the Pennsylvania area and is pleasantly surprised that their way of living isn't as wrong as he was taught to think. 

Next was Christmas in Peachtree Bluff by Kristy Woodson Harvey.

I read all the Peachtree Bluff books this summer and loved them! They were my favorite until I read a series by another author that took over that spot, but I still love this author and the series this book is in. This is about a family on the coast of Georgia who are facing an impending hurricane. Each of the family members takes a chapter and describes what is going on at that present time, but it starts with them before Thanksgiving and ends at the new year. I always love books packed with family drama and this one didn't disappoint. I paid full price for both this book and Dear Santa by Debbie Macomber and they were both worth every penny.

Next up was Jingle Bell Jam by Pamela Kelley.

I love this author! Her books feel like coming home, her writing is familiar and cozy. She writes about family, friends, traditions and good food. All those are my favorite things, so you see why I love her so much. This book is about a man who is told by his doctor he needs to lose a little weight and exercise, so he starts a daily workout regimen with a physical therapist and personal trainer. He never expected to like her and for her to like him back...

This was a book in a series, but this is the only book I've read in the series so far. I think in her books, it really doesn't matter. 

Next up was In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren. 

(This one was a bit more rated R than I'm used to, but I still read it and enjoyed how it ended.) Maisie's "family" of long time friends of her parents go to the same cabin in Park City, Utah every year for Christmas and do all the same things each year. On the day they leave, December 26, an announcement is made regarding this beloved tradition and cabin and Maisie is reeling from the news all the way to the airport...but they never make it to the airport because they're in a wreck. When she wakes up, it's December 20 again and she'll relive that week three more times. (Groundhog Day, anyone?) Each time she starts back on December 20, she learns something new and changes her perspective and even challenges why they do certain traditions each year when nobody enjoys them. She even decides to take a chance and tells Andrew her true feelings about him since she was a teenager...she has nothing to lose, right? 

Finally, I read Winter in Ireland by Pamela Kelley.

Jen is a writer and she decides to spend a couple of months in Ireland doing some research for the book she is writing. She's staying with her friend's aunt and she has a son that she keeps trying to match her up with...will her diligence pay off? 

And finally, I finished this today!


And I absolutely include this in my list of books, because I read each day's entry all throughout and that is hours' worth of time. I like to read the Bible every year, because as much as I like to read and spend time on that hobby, I always have to make time for this most important book of all. I'm reading chronologically again in 2022 and I'm excited about starting over! 

I read total of eighty books in 2021 and I'm excited to read even more in 2022. My reading game changed when Todd bought me a Kindle over the summer and I started reading about twice as much as before because I didn't have to wait between books or for good lighting. I'm excited to see how much I read in 2022 with using only the Kindle. I'm hoping it will be even more! I set one goal for 2021 and that was to read more. I'm happy to say that I succeeded in that goal. 

For all the other books I read this year, you can go to these monthly posts listed below.

January

February

March

I'm not sure why I left off April and May.

June

July

August

September

October

November 

Thanks for reading my blog, friends! If you want to find me on GoodReads, you can click here. Love to all! 

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