I am considering refusing the ignore that November is over. It’s been another long year, and yet it somehow sped by without me accomplishing most of the things I wanted to.

Shockingly, more than half the books I read were new releases, and two of those were November releases.

And some of those were very good!

Going in I didn’t remember much about A Restless Truth by Freya Marske, but luckily it didn’t matter. One heroine is the sister of one of the main characters in the first book, but it wasn’t a problem, so you could read this book without having read the first–with the exception that you won’t get an in-depth explanation of magic here, which may or may not matter to you.

Although I had put off reading it, as it started a new series that’s a spin-off from her previous one, I very much enjoyed Allie Therin‘s Proper Scoundrels. I really like the world-building she’s done, and I very much like the characters–one of whom is badly damaged by his past (Michelle catnip).

There should be another book to follow this one, and I look forward to it.

I normally try to highlight only my favorite books in this roundups, however, I want to note Alexis Hall‘s newest romance, Paris Daillencourt Is About to Crumble. It is being touted as a rom com, but it really isn’t. That’s not to say there aren’t funny bits, because of course there are, but the main thrust of the story was watching the main character spiral out of control until he has a panic attack and passes out on the street. This book was extremely difficult for me to read, because I was not in a place where I could read about someone having a mental breakdown and not have it be deeply upsetting.

This is not to say it isn’t a good book, because it was well done. But… if you have issues with anxiety you might want to consider skipping this one.

After reading Paris, I ended up going deep into some comfort reads. Happy stories that feel like being wrapped in a warm blanket on a cold and rainy day. So of course I recommend all those as well.

Fantasy

A Restless Truth (2022) Freya Marske (Last Binding) 8.5/10

Proper Scoundrels (2021) Allie Therin (Roaring Twenties Magic) 8/10

Good Enough to Eat (2015) Alison Grey & Jae (The Vampire Diet) 7/10

The Doctor (2022) C.S. Poe (Magic & Steam) 6/10

Romance

Loud and Clear (2016) Aidan Wayne 9/10

Jericho Candelario’s Gay Debut (2018) R. Cooper 9/10

Garnet Run Roan Parrish : The Pride of Garnet Run (2022) 7.5/10, The Rivals of Casper Road (2022) 7.5/10

Paris Daillencourt Is About to Crumble (2022) Alexis Hall (Winner Bakes All) NR

Mystery

Miss Marple Agatha Christie: Murder Is Announced (1050) 8.5/10, They Do It With Mirrors (1952) 7/10, A Pocket Full of Rye (1953) 8/10, 4:50 from Paddington (1957) 9/10, The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side (1962) 9/10, Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories (1985) 8/10

Crown Court Killer (2022) Dahlia Donovan (London Podcast Mystery) 6/10

Miss Vee and the Lecherous Lawyer (2020) Delilah Knight 5/10

Audio Books

Stiletto, Audio Edition (2016) Daniel O’Malley narrated by Moira Quirk (Checquy Files) 9.5/10

London Falling, Audio Book (2014) Paul Cornell narrated by Damian Lynch (The Shadow Police) 9/10

Amongst Our Weapons, Audio Edition (2022) Ben Aaronovitch narrated by Kobna Holdbrook-Smith (Rivers of London) 8.5/10

I’m currently at 226 books for the year, so I won’t be breaking 300 this year, which is ok! I read plenty, and I have enjoyed most of what I’ve read, which is all I care about.

And I’ve already started drafting my yearly reading round-up, and as usual am enjoying getting in the weeds.