My December 2022 Reading Wrap-Up
Welcome!
I hope you all enjoyed the holidays and are looking forward to another wonderful bookish year!
Thanks to my aversion towards most Christmas stories, December is usually my least productive reading month. Not this year. This year I went in with a plan: Avoid the romance novels and stick with the murder and mayhem.
It worked like a charm.
I guess it just proves that readers can always find a way to love what they’re reading.
Speaking of.. there are some fantastic books below.
Check them out, snag a few for your TBR, and don’t be surprised if you find your next favorite book.
Enjoy!
(Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. Any purchases made through my links may earn me a small commission at no cost to you.)
Books I’ve read:
The Neighbour’s Cat by J. S. Ellis
The Girl Who Ruined Christmas by Cindy Callaghan
(No blood or gore here. This is a surprisingly fun, lovable, and heartwarming Christmas story.)
Twelve Days by Paul Williams
What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher
What I’m currently reading:
The Diary of a Serial Killer’s Daughter by L.A. Detwiler
Publication date: March 12, 2020
Pages: 261
Genre: Psychological Fiction, Thriller
Standalone
If you knew your father’s darkest secret, would you turn him in? What if his secret was connected to you?
Ruby Marlowe’s always been a daddy’s girl. Her mother died when she was two, and her single father has ensured she has everything she needs. However, everyone has dark secrets, and Ruby’s father is no exception…
When she’s young, she doesn’t understand the weight of her father’s killing game. However, as she ages, she realizes her obsessive tendencies aren’t the only elements that separate her from her peers.
After she begins to investigate her mother’s life and death, Ruby starts to believe there are some secrets even she doesn’t know about the serial killer she calls Daddy. As her father’s killing grows rampant, the secrets get harder and harder to hide—and she fears it will all come crashing down.
Will Ruby seek a different life for herself and betray the only person who has ever loved her, or will she get wrapped up in his sinister path?
What I hope to read next:
The Invite by A.J. McDine
Scot Free by Greg Moriarty
Monstress by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda
ARCs I’ve recieved:
Ascension by Nicholas Binge
Publication date: April 25, 2023
Pages: 352
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Literary Fiction, Science Fiction, Horror
Standalone
A mind-bending speculative thriller in which the sudden appearance of a mountain in the middle of the Pacific Ocean leads a group of scientists to a series of jaw-dropping revelations that challenge the notion of what it means to be human
An enormous snow-covered mountain has appeared in the Pacific Ocean. No one knows when exactly it showed up, precisely how big it might be, or how to explain its existence. When Harold Tunmore, a scientist of mysterious phenomena, is contacted by a shadowy organization to help investigate, he has no idea what he is getting into as he and his team set out for the mountain.
The higher Harold’s team ascends, the less things make sense. Time moves differently, turning minutes into hours, and hours into days. Amid the whipping cold of higher elevation, the climbers’ limbs numb and memories of their lives before the mountain begin to fade. Paranoia quickly turns to violence among the crew, and slithering, ancient creatures pursue them in the snow. Still, as the dangers increase, the mystery of the mountain compels them to its peak, where they are certain they will find their answers. Have they stumbled upon the greatest scientific discovery known to man or the seeds of their own demise?
The Rescue by T. Jefferson Parker
Publication date: April 25, 2023
Pages: 352
Genre: Crime Thriller, Suspense, Mystery
Standalone
While reporting on a Tijuana animal shelter, journalist Bettina Blazak falls in love with one of her story’s subjects—an adorable Mexican street dog who is being treated for a mysterious gunshot wound. Bettina impulsively adopts the dog, who she names Felix after the veterinarian who saved him.
In investigating Felix’s past, Bettina discovers that his life is nothing like what she assumed. For one thing, he’s not a Mexican street dog at all. A former DEA drug-sniffing dog, Felix has led a very colorful, dangerous, and profitable life. With Bettina’s story going viral, some interesting people are looking for Felix, making him a target—again.
Bettina soon finds herself drawn into a deadly criminal underworld from which she and her beloved dog may not return.
That’s a wrap!
Thank you for stopping by!
Did any of these books catch your interest?
Many prayers for your good health, peaceful moments, and happy reading this new year.
Stay safe and be well!
My huge regret is missing out on What Moves the Dead last year. Still have plans on fitting it in this year!
You’re going to love it! It’s dark, it’s gothic, it’s strange.. Kingfisher did a brilliant job.