LIFE'S A PEARL

Winter reading is upon us! This means it’s time for a whole new seasonal reading line up.

If you’re curious about what I mean by seasonal reading, check out this post, Is Seasonal Reading a Thing?

I have dabbled in creating seasonal TBRs for years. I love finding simple ways of embracing the current season! Doing this within my reading life just adds another layer of flavor and fun to the seasonal experience.

This past year I followed through on my goal of making a TBR for each season. I loved this entire process! From the planning and selecting to the actual reading to the reflection process of what worked for me, what didn’t, and what I can tweak for future reading lists (more on that below) to better support my current reading tastes.

It’s a way of intentionally experimenting with my reading life that I find both fun and informative.

Some people will feel seen by this and some people will think I’m crazy lol. That’s totally ok. Our reading lives are all different and what is most important is finding what works for you!

With that in mind I’d love to hear in the comments how you approach seasonal reading: Is seasonal reading even a thing for you? Are there certain genres or elements to a story that add to your winter experience? Do you focus on books that are releasing in that season rather than the vibes of the season? 

If winter reading is something you’re curious about, read on to see my round up of the holiday books and winter reads I want to tackle this season.

What I’m Looking for in my Winter Reading this Year

Holiday Specific

First up in winter reading is jumping into the holiday season! I love including 5 or 6 books that I want to enjoy in the month of December to embrace the spirit of the holidays. In our family, we celebrate Christmas and New Year’s.

This year my holiday reads are all romance. Though I am on a very long waiting list with the library for a mystery/thriller – The Christmas Guest by Peter Swanson. I didn’t include it since it’s unlikely I’ll get it in time. This is where planning ahead can come in handy for those library holds.

Winter Vibes

This winter I’m looking for many of the same categories as I did in last winter’s TBR. Many of those elements worked for me, I’m just tweaking things a little bit for my current reading tastes.

I want to continue the cozy, sometimes slightly eerie, vibes into winter. Romance is working really well for my reading life right now so I’m leaning hard into romance and its sub genres with this TBR.

For my regular winter reads I looked to romantic suspense in place of thrillers. Sadly many of my thriller choices missed the mark for me this fall so I’m mixing it up and looking to romantic suspense instead.

Nothing beats reading about a snowy setting in the winter so I grabbed at least one snowed in romance. I believe this element is in a few of my other books choices too. I can’t wait to find out!

So many readers turn to fantasy series in the wintertime. I put a couple of cozy fantasies on the list that I’ve been meaning to read for far too long. This winter it’s also time for me to try a fantasy romance.

I missed being able to deep dive into series that strike my fancy this fall with my large TBR. So I added the second books in a few cozy series to continue. They are all very different – small town family, paranormal, and post-apocalyptic – but they all feel cozy in their own ways.

I combined my winter love for books about books with that New Year’s energy of learning from nonfiction and added a couple of nonfiction books that are all about romance novels!

I am so excited for this TBR!

My 2023 Holiday TBR:

*available on Kindle Unlimited

Holiday Romance

• Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh*
• Christmas in Quincy by Devney Perry*
• The Mistletoe Motive by Chloe Liese
• Tis the Season for Revenge by Morgan Elizabeth*
• Homecoming King by Penny Reid
• Kiss Her Once for Me by Alison Cochrun

My 2024 Winter TBR:

*available on Kindle Unlimited

Romantic Suspense

• Tattered Stars by Catherine Cowles*
• Here with Me by Samantha Young*
• Whiteout by Adriana Anders (snowy setting)*

Snowed In

• Storm by Carian Cole*

Fantasy Romance

• Daughter of No Worlds by Carissa Broadbent*

Cozy Series to Continue

• Don’t Hex and Drive by Juliette Cross*
• Ever Mine by Laura Pavlov*
• Last Light by Claire Kent*

Cozy Fantasy

• Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree
• The House in the Cerulean Sea by T. J. Klune

Nonfiction Books about Books

• Everything I Know About Love I Learned From Romance Novels by Sarah Wendell
• Dangerous Books for Girls by Maya Rodale

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Don’t forget to share how you approach seasonal reading. What titles are on your winter reading list? Which winter holidays do you celebrate? Do you have a holiday TBR alongside a winter one for after the New Year?