I completely forgot about what I read in December, friends. Not the books that I read, but to write the blog post! I read some great books, including starting a series that I will absolutely devour in 2023.

Looking for any books to read in the new year? Try some of these awesome reads. And as always, let me know what you read so I can read some of your recommendations!

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The Deal by Elle Kennedy

I fell in love with this book. I was quite literally gripping the pages by the end of this book. (Okay, not actually, though.) This book is an addicting hockey romance that everyone who reads romance novels needs to pick up. The book follows Hannah and Garrett, both college students at the fictional Briar University. Hannah is a music major who has an upcoming showcase at the end of the semester. Garrett is Briar University’s hockey team captain who is looking to go pro after college. When Garrett, along with the rest of his and Hannah’s class fails the midterm, Hannah offers to tutor Garrett for an upcoming make-up exam (because she obviously passed). In return, Garrett offers to “date” Hannah to make Hannah’s crush jealous. Well, with fake dating and a little forced proximity, what can happen? What do you think will happen? Obviously, I loved every page of this book. This is a very beloved #BookTok book and I have to say … it lived up to its hype. I absolutely will be picking up the rest of the series (see next review) in 2023.

Rating: 5/5

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The Mistake by Elle Kennedy

I ran to the bookstore as soon I finished The Deal and so I picked up the next book in the Briar U off-campus series. This book follows Garrett’s best friend, Logan (John Logan to you) and Grace. Logan is hopelessly in love with Garrett’s girlfriend, Hannah, from the previous book. He distracts himself (because he would never steal his best friend’s girl) with random hookups. Until he meets freshman Grace, who is still a virgin and thinking about swiping her V card this year. When an almost hookup happens, well, it doesn’t happen, and Grace doesn’t talk to Logan … until next year, and Logan is on his way to woo Grace until she falls for him. This one wasn’t as good as the first, but it was still just as good. I think I like Grace, but she was a tad boring at times compared to Hannah. There was a tad bit of forced banter between the two, Logan and Grace. But overall, I’d recommend. The writing flowed easily and naturally.

Rating: 4/5

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The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams

I finally read this off my TBR and I thought it was very cute! This was a classic friends-to-lovers trope and definitely closed-door romance, meaning no steam whatsoever. (Maybe a few kissing scenes, but that’s it.) The book follows Bree and Nathan, two best friends from high school who grew apart in college due to an accident but then reignited their friendship post-college when they moved to Los Angeles for work. Bree is a former ballerina who now owns a dance studio, and Nathan is a quarterback in the NFL. Bree is hopelessly in love with Nathan, but will never confess her feelings for him because she doesn’t want to ruin the friendship. But she doesn’t know that Nathan has some feelings of his own. When Bree drunkenly—and mistakenly—reveals her feelings for Nathan to a reporter, they do damage control and decide to fake a relationship for publicity. But will Nathan convince Bree that they are a good match? This sports romance was a good friends-to-lovers and one of those slow burns with “why won’t they kiss already?” It frustrated me to no end, but it also was such a delight. No bad things to say about this book.

Rating: 3.5/5

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Mr. Perfect on Paper by Jean Meltzer

I read The Matzah Ball by this author earlier in 2022 and I rated it three stars (out of five), but this book by her was definitely a four out of five stars. I looooooooved the main character Dara and how the author described her generalized anxiety disorder and panic attacks on the book. Especially when Dara was going through this entire “live dating show” that the book’s main plot centered on. The book follows Dara, a Jewish matchmaker in New York City (well, Dara lived in Hoboken but the book is set in NYC) and the CEO of Jewish dating app. She appears on live television, Good Day New York, hosted by Chris Steadfast, with her bubbe, Miriam, to promote the app. But Miriam spices things up and brings out Dara’s “Mr. Perfect on Paper” list. Now the whole world is watching Dara find her Mr. Perfect on Paper, with the help of Good Day New York, and the host, Chris Steadfast, who is nowhere near Dara’s Mr. Perfect on Paper, but Dara finds herself growing attracted to the more she spends time with him. Chris is a single, widowed father from Virginia and the host of a national news broadcast—and not Jewish. Dara is looking for a handsome, Jewish doctor or lawyer (doctor is preferred) with no previous marriages or children. The question is … will Dara choose her mate for love or practicality? Honestly, I picked this one up because I thought it was a cute Hanukkah romance, and it is! But you can read this book all-year round. Highly recommend.

Rating: 4/5

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Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry

I’m a huge fan of Friends. I even started re-watching it while I was listening to this book on audio (narrated by Matthew Perry himself). I know this hasn’t gotten great reviews. It’s pretty intense, but I think that’s the point. He’s sharing his life story, which isn’t that great, and his trauma and how that led to this “big terrible thing.” His life story and traumas aren’t an excuse for that “big terrible thing,” but rather him just sharing his story. He’s not looking for justification, but rather a place to share his story. Yeah, I didn’t like how he said it was “nice to look at Rachel’s face every day,” or talked about his very famous ex-girlfriends (Julia Roberts). He was a tad abrasive. But I did like the emotional honesty and realness he brought. This wasn’t a fluffy memoir (I don’t think anyone was expecting that anyway) and tbh, I still don’t know how I really feel about it.

I also liked how he embodied Chandler as he spoke in this book. There were a lot of elements of Matthew’s personality put into Chandler’s character, as he explained, which explains a lot. Would I recommend? Probably not, if you want something fun to read. But if you were a fan of Friends, I do recommend picking up this book because a lot of his “big terrible thing” happened during his time on the show, and a whole lot of before and after, and we get to hear his story.

Rating: 3.5/5

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Find Your People by Jennie Allen

My last book of 2022 did not disappoint! I loved her first book, Get Out Of Your Head, because even though it’s under the Christian Living genre, Jennie uses scientific research and real life stories for her books. This book about loneliness and finding your community (or people, per the title) definitely hit home for me. Jennie doesn’t just write, “go out and make friends because it’s important.” Rather, she actually relates and says that it’s hard to do that especially in a world with delivery apps and our independent lives. Her words have definitely pushed me and inspired me to pursue deeper connections and find those intimate friendships. I didn’t pick this one up for a long time because I thought it was going to say the same thing as every Christian book would say. But as I was reading this, I couldn’t help but wonder that even those who aren’t Christian could pick up this book. Yes, in almost every chapter, she references Scripture and talks about Jesus, so maybe read with caution if you’re not a believer. But this was so much more than the average Christian book. I loved every page.

Rating: 5/5

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My January TBR:

• The Score by Elle Kennedy

• People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry

• Crescent City: House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas

• A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

• Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid

• How to Fight Racism by Jemar Tisby