What I Read in January 2022
January was a good reading month for me. Winter in NY can be brutal, and there isn’t much else that I enjoy doing BUT reading this time of year. After reading a lot of flops in December, I am happy to report that this month’s reads were fantastic. I continued my love affair with A Court of Thorns of Roses (if you don’t know about this, just check out my book highlight on instagram), and completed two more books in the series. I also read a debut novel (also early release!) and two books from multiple 2021 best seller lists.
I am going to try to chronicle my reading journey on my blog, and I am so EXCITED about this. Reading has always been such an important part of my life, and until recently I did not think it had a place in my blog. I was so wrong, and I have been thoroughly enjoying all of the conversations I have been having on instagram about…books! Here is what I read this month…
A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas 5/5
I don’t really know what to say to express how good this book is. It is the second book in the A Court of Thorns and Roses series, which many of you know is my current book obsession. I won’t say too much because so many of you have started reading this and I don’t want to spoil it for you. Let me just say this, this book is probably my favorite book of all time. It is a story about life, love, finding happiness, and sacrifice. There are so many layers to this story, and it will take you a while to emotionally unpack each one of them. Like many other fantasy books, the world building can be intense but hang in there, the last half of this book is just incredible. Personally, it took me several days to get over my emotional hangover from this book and I am STILL thinking about it. I will continue to recommend this series to everyone I know.
Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson 4/5
I grabbed this book as my January Book of The Month pick (you can get your first month for $5 here!). It is a debut novel for Charmaine Wilkerson, and it did not disappoint. The story is centered around two estranged siblings, Benny and Byron, who recently lost their mother and they are now discovering the truth about her past. This book has family secrets, parents dealing with regret on how they handled their child’s most personal revelations, siblings trying to find their way back to each other, and some food metaphors. When I finished this book, I realized it covers A LOT, but never seems forced. Bravo, Wilkerson!
The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah 4/5
This book was on many ‘best of’ lists last year and I never got around to reading it in 2021. My book club picked this out for the month, which gave me the perfect excuse to start it. The story takes place during the Great Depression/Dust Bowl era. The main character, Elsa, and her family are stuck in hard times and they decide to travel west to California in hopes for a better life. This book was a slow burn for me, but once I got to the second half I was looking for any excuse to keep listening to it. Kristin Hannah offers a powerful illustration of poverty in the 1930s. Although this fictional story is set 80 years in the past, I found myself drawing a lot of parallels to some of the political and economic struggles that Americans find themselves dealing with today. If you like any of Kristin Hannah’s books, you will enjoy this.
A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas 5/5
I wanted to wait and drag out this series because I don’t want it to end, but after finishing ACOMAF, I had to know what happened next. Again, I don’t want to spoil the plot for those of you still reading, but it was another 5 star read for me. Nothing will beat the second book in the series, but I really enjoyed learning more about the other characters in the series beside Feyre.
I am now officially part of the Sarah J. Maas fanclub. Also, we share the same last name so in my mind that makes it more likely that we will become best friends. Do you think she will go live with me on Instagram so we can all ask her HOW she came up with such a fantastic series? A girl can dream.
Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby 4/5
This book was also on many book of the year lists in 2021, so I decided to choose it for my Book of the Month pick last month. The two main characters, Ike and Buddy Lee, are two ex-convicts that band together to find justice for their sons who have recently been murdered. They are an unlikely pair and together they navigate their own guilt regarding their past, as well as their prejudices against each other and their sons. It is a gritty, provocative story and it is violent at times. There are some trigger warnings I recommend googling before you decide to read it. Some of the violence was tough for me to get through, but it is well balanced with humor. Overall, I really enjoyed this one and it was an ‘out of the box’ read for me that I am glad I took a risk on.
