December 2023 TBR

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells. Jingle all the way. It’s officially the start of the Christmas season and it’s time for my December 2023 tbr. Let’s get this festive tbr started.

Iron Flame

Synopsis:

Everyone expected Violet Sorrengail to die during her first year at Basgiath War College—Violet included. But Threshing was only the first impossible test meant to weed out the weak-willed, the unworthy, and the unlucky.

Now the real training begins, and Violet’s already wondering how she’ll get through. It’s not just that it’s grueling and maliciously brutal, or even that it’s designed to stretch the riders’ capacity for pain beyond endurance. It’s the new vice commandant, who’s made it his personal mission to teach Violet exactly how powerless she is–unless she betrays the man she loves.

Although Violet’s body might be weaker and frailer than everyone else’s, she still has her wits—and a will of iron. And leadership is forgetting the most important lesson Basgiath has taught her: Dragon riders make their own rules.

But a determination to survive won’t be enough this year.

Because Violet knows the real secret hidden for centuries at Basgiath War College—and nothing, not even dragon fire, may be enough to save them in the end.

I expected to get to this in November, but I got caught up in reading Warbreaker. It took me longer to finish it than I expected. But now Iron Flame is at the top of my tbr. And I’m so excited to give it a read.

Christmas Bedtime Stories

Synopsis:

A wonderful whimsical collection of Christmas stories that will enchant and delight young readers. Here are heartwarming stories of courage and commitment, humor and fantasy, family love and loyalty. Filled with memorable scenes and wonderful characters, these superb stories make for special bedtime reading for a special time of year!

I had this storybook when I was little, and I’ve been feeling nostalgic recently. I’d like to give it a reread this Christmas season.

Bright Lights, Big Christmas

Synopsis:

When fall rolls around, it’s time for Kerry Tolliver to leave her family’s Christmas tree farm in the mountains of North Carolina for the wilds of New York City to help her gruff older brother & his dog, Queenie, sell the trees at the family stand on a corner in Greenwich Village. Sharing a tiny vintage camper and experiencing Manhattan for the first time, Kerry’s ready to try to carve out a new corner for herself.

In the weeks leading into Christmas, Kerry quickly becomes close with the charming neighbors who live near their stand. When an elderly neighbor goes missing, Kerry will need to combine her country know-how with her newly acquired New York knowledge to protect the new friends she’s come to think of as family,

And complicating everything is Patrick, a single dad raising his adorable, dragon-loving son Austin on this quirky block. Kerry and Patrick’s chemistry is undeniable, but what chance does this holiday romance really have?

I’ve only heard good things about Bright Lights, Big Christmas. I’m hoping it gives me all the cozy Christmas feelings that I’m looking for. This is a little bit out of my genre comfort zone, but I’ve been drawn to it.

Redawn

Synopsis:

“Don’t trust their lies. Don’t trust their false peace.” That is the warning that Alanik of the planet ReDawn gave the human pilot Spensa after Alanik’s ship crash-landed on Detritus. While accepting an invitation to meet with her people’s enemy, the Galactic Superiority, Alanik heard Spensa’s cry for help across the vastness of space, and she used her cytonic powers to hyperjump her ship to the source of that cry. What she found there was a shock—a whole planet of free humans fighting against the Superiority. Were they the allies her people desperately needed?
 
When she recovered from her injuries and met the friendly humans Jorgen and FM of Skyward Flight, she found that her warning to Spensa had gone unheeded by the government of Detritus, and they were considering a peace overture from the Superiority. Now having returned to ReDawn, Alanik is dismayed to learn that her own people are falling into the exact same trap.
 
The faction in ReDawn’s government that wants to appease the Superiority has gained the upper hand. With Alanik’s mentor, Renakin captured, she has no one to turn to but Jorgen, FM, and their friend Rig. An ancient technology may have the power to save both of their planets from disaster, but can they discover its secrets before it’s too late?

I don’t really know why I keep putting off this series. I really just don’t want it to end. But since the last book is out, I really need to read Redawn so I can move on to Cytonic and then Defiant.

So that’s my December 2023 tbr. I don’t know if I will complete them. We’re going to be super busy, but here’s hoping, hahaha.

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