Last year, a friend sent me an entire mystery series her mother was letting go of. I think I read something like 37 books in two weeks, because I decided I wasn’t getting off the couch or doing anything domestic until I’d read at least one book. Also, I’d taken two weeks off. That helps.
That is not the December I had in 2021. I haven’t really had enough brain cells to read new things, although that hasn’t stopped me from buying lots of books. I’m working all month. Mostly I’m trying to recover some sanity and wherewithal. So there are no new books on the list, and not that many re-reads, all things considered.
Books
A Princess For Christmas
Jenny Holiday
Contemporary, m/f
A NYC cabdriver attempting to raise his little sister gets coerced into picking up an Eldovian princess — and opposites attract. I’m a sucker for a good worlds-colliding book, and this one is very deft in describing both Leo and Marie’s worlds. Also, there’s found family, fairy-tale cottages, and everything you’d want in a Hallmark movie.
Duke, Actually
Jenny Holiday
Contemporary, m/f
A sequel to A Princess for Christmas. Leo’s best friend (and kinda family) is recovering from a very public broken heart, while Marie’s best friend, an inveterate aristocratic playboy, is trying to avoid his family and figure out what to do with his life. Dani and Max become best friends while negotiating their own rules, lists of “never will I ever,” and the desire not to mess up this precious thing they’ve discovered. Also, there’s a dog. The third book in the series will be out next year.
Movies
The Hating Game
Amazon Prime
I was really excited about this, because I really loved the book and Lucy Hale is a snack. And it wasn’t bad, at all — it hit a lot of the high notes of the book, and the changes it made made sense for the movie. But the book is deeply, entirely inside Lucy’s head, and that’s part of the pleasure of it — and something the movie couldn’t quite capture. Totally worth seeing, but I won’t be buying it.
Single All the Way
Netflix
I’ve been waiting a long time for a cute, queer romcom that isn’t about coming out, doesn’t involve navigating homophobia, and is actually, you know, queer, not queer-written-by-straight-people. This is it, friends, and may it spawn a dozen more. Peter and Nick are best friends visiting Peter’s family for the holidays, and Peter’s family wants nothing more than for him to find his person — and they think it’s Nick. We’ve watched it probably half a dozen times already.
Television
Wheel of Time, Season 1
Amazon Prime
I read these books a zillion years ago, before the series was finished, and I’ll admit up front that I never did manage to finish the whole thing. I got bogged down in one of those doorstop books that cover like four days. But the show, oh, the show. It takes what was compelling about the books, speeds it up, and has a beautiful, diverse cast who are 100% in for the ride. We have a tendency to start shows and then get distracted, but we were waiting for Fridays and the next installation. We’ll be highly impatient for season 2.
Rereads
The Beekeeper’s Apprentice
Laurie R. King
Historical mystery
I’ve been telling my wife about this series for a half-dozen years now at least, and when we finished our last audiobook and she suggested we listen to this, I jumped on it. Feminist, teenaged bluestocking Mary Russell becomes the friend and apprentice of a not-quite-retired Sherlock Holmes.
Justice Hall
Laurie R. King
Historical mystery
Russell and Holmes investigate a WW1 battlefield execution in an effort to release a friend from an unwanted obligation. One of my favorites of the series. I probably learned as much or more about WW1 history from this book than I did in the actual history classes I took.
The Game
Laurie R. King
Historical mystery
Russell and Holmes investigate the disappearance of a British agent in colonial India. Not one of the ones I return to over and over, but King’s habit of adding existing fictional characters — in this case, Kipling’s Kim — is delightful.
The Hating Game
Sally Thorne
Contemporary romance, m/f
Lucy and Josh are coworkers and rivals. Their hate is legendary, and it only gets ramped up when they compete for the same promotion. Only the competition doesn’t go as planned.
Red, White, & Royal Blue
Casey McQuiston
Contemporary romance, m/m
When the son of the first female president of the United States falls in love with an heir to the throne of the British crown, things get complicated.