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“Uh oh, I’m falling in love,” Taylor Swift sang as she performed Labyrinth at her Night 1 show in Argentina this past weekend (before the next night performing End Game, changing the lyrics to Karma and running into Travis Kelce’s arms.)
Did I watch literal hours of TikTok videos the next day covering the concert from every possible angle? You should know me well enough to know the answer to that question is an obvious yes. Travis holding a “we will stay” sign during The Archer damn near broke me.
And with the release of Iron Flame this past week — the sequel to Rebecca Yarros’ epically popular Fourth Wing fantasy romance — love* is most definitely in the air. So to keep these good vibes going, I’ve got some Holiday Romance Read Recommendations for you! Get ready to sing “oh no, I’m falling in love (with fictional characters) again.”
Reading Lately
Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros
First off, we need to talk about Iron Flame. This is a spoiler free zone, especially given the book came out less than a week ago. But I finished it yesterday, and I have thoughts, questions, and concerns. Like… *can we call what Xaden and Violet have love? It feels v controlling and toxic TO ME. Their relationship is definitely hot, no arguing there, and perhaps that’s the best we can hope for at Basgiath War College for dragon riders.
But I saw a lot of people on BookTok saying they cried when they finished the book, and I — a VERY emotional reader — felt mostly frustration at the author upon completion of book two. Not a tear in sight.
I want to be clear that I thoroughly enjoyed the book, but the whole thing — again TO ME — felt disjointed and chaotic. Like, jumping locations and battles and scenes with next to no transitions. And call me crazy, but I think transitions are good, even necessary, in book over 600 pages in length. But don’t yell at me! I liked it, I swear! If you have finished Iron Flame already, let me know your thoughts!
Wreck the Halls by Tessa Bailey
Avon Books sent me a copy of Wreck the Halls a few months ago, but I’ve been waiting until at least after Halloween to give it a read. Now that it’s dark before 5pm, it felt like the right time.
Immediately its become one of my favorite romance reads of the year! In the vaguest sense, it’s about the adult children of two former rock stars who team up to convince their estranged mothers to play a Christmas Eve concert.
It’s spicy — like…I threw my pen down and gasped while reading spicy— but also heart warming and endlessly entertaining. I could not put it down, and if you ask me for a romance recommendation anytime between now and the end of the year, I’m going to tell you to read this.
Holiday Romances to Add to Your TBR
A lottttt of strong contenders for favorite holiday Book Boyfriend in this list...
One Night on The Island by Josie Silver
The Mistletoe Motive by Chloe Liese
The Key to My Heart by Lia Louis
Love & Other Words by Christina Lauren (if memory serves me this is more a NYE read, but STILL that’s a holiday romance IMO)
One Day in December by Josie Silver
Other Books on my TBR for this holiday season
I’ve got these 4 books ready to go on my kindle, shelf, and libby app!
Always, In December by Emily Stone
A Winter in New York by Josie Silver
A Merry Little Meet Cute by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone
Love, Holly by Emily Stone