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Wednesday, November 18, 2020

We Love Lists: Books Rose Red Wants to Read Before It's 2021

I don't know about you all but 2020 has been a weird and stressful year with the pandemic, going online for school, and a presidential election. I found myself turning to reading to deal with all the crazy. I've read a lot of books this year but a significant amount of my reading have been comfort rereads. Because of that I'm behind on ARCs and new releases. Honestly, I don't regret my reading year so far. 

That being said, it's that time of year again where I try to be realistic and figure out just how many books I can read before the end of the year. Which books out of the hundreds I own do I want to prioritize for the rest of 2020?

This is hard question because 2020 has been a hard year. I have so many books that I've looked forward to all year but just wasn't in the mood to read them when I received the ARC or when they released. I could make a list several pages long of books I would love to read in the next couple of months. I'm going to keep this list small because who knows what my reading mood is going to be in the next month and a half. These are the books I'm hoping to read by the time it's 2021.


The Midnight Bargain by C.L. Polk 

 If you didn't know, C.L. Polk has quickly become one of my favorite authors with her Kingston Cycle series that I adore so much! I want to read everything she writes so I have been looking forward to her standalone fantasy novel since she announced it over a year ago. The premise of the book is fascinating where the heroine has to choose between her family and the man she loves and her magic and her dreams of becoming a Magus. I blame 2020 on why I haven't read this one yet even though I received an ARC of it this summer. I hope that this is one of the books I'll read by the end of the year.

Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse

Rebecca Roanhorse is another author who has quickly become a favorite. I love her urban fantasy series so I am so excited to start her new epic fantasy series. Black Sun is a fantasy series that was, to quote part of description, "inspired by the civilizations of the Pre-Columbian Americas and woven into a tale of celestial prophecies, political intrigue, and forbidden magic". I've always been fascinated by the Mayans, Aztecs, and Incas and what we've discovered about their cultures since I've been a pre-teen so I am so here for this series.

  

Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur 

One of my goals I made for myself this year was to read more sapphic romances and I've done okay with it. One of the books I've had on my list to get my hands on was Written in the Stars which is has been billed as a queer rom-com with a fake dating scenario between an astrologer and an actuary. All the early buzz has indicated that it has some Pride and Prejudice vibes so combine that with a fake relationship and I'm here for this book. I think this is one that I'm definitely going to get to in the next few weeks.

Bonds of Brass by Emily Skrutskie

This book is definitely the tragedy of my 2020 reading year. I got this book right as we went into lock down for the pandemic and the timing was just not in this book's favor. I never picked it up because at the time I didn't have the brain space for anything that wasn't a reread of an old favorite. I still want to read this one because I was promised a queer space opera with #stormpilot vibes. I've heard so many great things about this book. If I don't get this one read by the end of the year, I'm definitely planning on reading it before book two comes out next May.

Treasured by S.J. Himes

This year I discovered the wonderful Beacon Hill Sorcerer series by S.J. Himes and quickly fell in love with Himes's writing. The thing is that I would have never picked those books up if I hadn't read the fourth volume of the Heart2Heart Charity Anthology this summer. My favorite story from that collection was Himes's story "The Caller from Montreal" and what has lead to me binging a good portion of their backlist. Himes is releasing an extended version of that short story this month and I need it in my life! I have it pre-ordered and I can't wait for it to hit my kindle!

Daring and the Duke by Sarah MacLean

 This book was another victim of my pandemic lock down reading mood. I actually kind of forgot I had bought this book until I found it when I was cleaning up and putting away the book piles in my room last week. I'm intrigued to see how MacLean finishes out this trilogy because I'm not sure how Ewan can be redeemed to be honest. Most of my friends who have read this loved it and think that MacLean nailed it. I can't wait to see how this plays out.

The Duke and I by Julia Quinn

 I joined a book club at school some of the other teachers started during quarantine and they all want to start The Duke and I next month so they can all watch the upcoming Bridgertons series on Netflix. I'm intrigued to read the series because it is so loved by so many in the online romance book community. I've heard some things about the book that I'm probably not going to like but I'm intrigued to read it to form my own my opinions.

As for what else I'm going to read between now and January 1st, I'm only 10 books away from finishing both of my boards for Romanceopoly so a lot of the books I'm going to read for the rest of the year will be to complete those challenges. Most of the books I've listed above will fulfill some of those. Some of the books I'm thinking of picking up to finish my boards are the following:

What books are you hoping to read by the end of the year?


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