Hello fellow readers! Welcome to the Winter 2025/2026 Wrap-Up. I typically read quite a few books during this season so let’s get into all of them.

If It Makes You Happy by Julie Olivia -2025 was my Gilmore Girls year. I watched the show for the first time and became OBSESSED with it. I had hardly finished the series before I heard about this romance that takes place in 1997. Taking place in a small town, big city girl Michelle arrives to temporarily take over running an inn that is owned by her parents. Unfortunately, her mother has just passed and Michelle’s father can’t handle running the place in wake of his wife’s death. Michelle has hardly taken over the inn before she meets the handsome single father next door, thus embarking on a fun, cozy adventure. This was a solid romance book that would have scored a perfect five stars with me if it was shorter. At almost 500 pages, I felt that the story was stretched out way too long and could have been wrapped up way earlier.

Good Spirits by B. K. Borison – It’s Christmas time and small business owner Harriet York has just discovered that she is being haunted, by the very attractive Ghost of Christmas Past – Nolan. Both are confused by the situation. Harriet is a people pleaser to a fault and Nolan can’t seem to find any memories from Harriet’s path that suggests she needs to change her ways. As the two work together to find out why they have been paired together a romance begins to blossom that might jeopardize everything. This was such an adorable, sweet holiday romance that is perfect for the season but doesn’t do anything too ground breaking. I would be open to continuing the series but don’t expect the second book to do anything too out of the box.

The Christmas Cure by Kristine Winters – Perhaps my favorite seasonal favorite of the season, this romance also takes place in a small town when ER physician Libby returns home to be at her sister’s wedding. But when a freak accident causes Libby to travel back in time to last Christmas she must decide if she wants to repeat the past or forge a whole new identity. From the summary, this book is very similar plot wise to In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren but I actually found myself preferring this book instead. Considering I have barely heard anyone discuss this book this season I would say this is an underrated gem and should be on your reading list next holiday season.

A Winter in New York by Josie Silver – An unfortunate DNF, I didn’t get too far into this wintry romance before I decided not to continue. The vibes weren’t right and I didn’t become invested in the characters at all.

Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys – With the end of the holidays I decided to shift gears to historical fiction. A reading goal of mine for 2026 is to get back in historical fiction. To get this started I decided to pick this World War Two story from Ruta Sepetys. I previously read I Must Betray You from this author which I enjoyed and this one seemed to be right up my ally. Following the perspectives of four characters, the reader witnesses the end of the war through these various characters’ eyes as they attempt to flee the advancing Red Army, ending up on the ill-fated Wilhelm Gustloff. A Killing Cold by Kate Alice Marshall – Turning back to thrillers, Kate Alice Marshall has become an author I look out for. This 2025 novel centers around a woman who joins her fiancé in visiting his family at their secluded winter home. But the longer she stays the more she begins to think she has been there before. This was a fairly run of the mill thriller that I don’t have much else to say.

The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon – One of my anticipated reads of this year was this historical fiction/mystery that everyone seems to have picked up within the last year. Set in the years after the American Revolution, the reader follows Martha Ballard, a midwife who believes the suspicious death of one of the town’s doctors isn’t a coincidence. Inspired by a true story, this was an interesting story to follow but I believe there wasn’t much of a mystery aspect to the story. It is more of a historical fiction that anything else which is fine but I thought I was misled about it.

Voices in the Snow by Darcy Coates – Last winter I read my first Darcy Coates, Dead of Winter. I loved it and included it in my top 10 best books of 2025 so I was eager to return to her this winter season. This book, the first in a series, follows Clare who, while driving through a snowstorm, gets into an accident. She is saved by a handsome stranger who brings her to his family’s secluded home but as Clare begins to recover she begins seeing strange monsters and begins to wonder what her savior is hiding. This was a very readable thriller that had me hooked. I will be picking up book two.

Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell – My second DNF of the season. This historical retelling of the relationship between William Shakespeare and his wife had me struggling from almost the first chapter. The writing style wasn’t really my taste and after reading three chapters I was thoroughly confused. Maybe the film adaptation will be a bit easier to follow.

Morbidly Yours by Ivy Fairbanks – Winter was a big season of romance for me and the next one to fall into that category is Morbidly Yours. Taking place in Galway, we follow a funeral director and a spunky American illustrator who try to be just friends but end up being much more. I don’t have a whole lot to say about this book. It was cute, had some fun stuff in it but overall not overly impressive.

I’m Thinking of Ending Things by Iain Reid – My third DNF of the season was this psychological horror by Iain Reid. It centers on an unnamed female narrator who is thinking of ending her relationship with her boyfriend. But instead of actually doing that she joins him on a road trip to meet his parents. I can’t say what else happens as I couldn’t read more after that. Most of the story is dialogue between the narrator and the boyfriend, none of which is actually interesting and page turning worthy. I tried to watch the movie, thinking it would be easier, but I gave up on that as well. Just not the story for me.

Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice by Elle Cosimano – Moving on to a book that met my expectations. Finlay Donovan is back in this fourth installment and while I won’t reveal anything about the plot to avoid spoilers, I will say that if you were iffy about continuing with the story after the slightly disappointing book three I am here to say you should continue you. Book four felt like a call back to the first two books in the series and the antics Finlay and Vero find themselves in are hilarious. It takes the place as my highest rated book of 2026 so far at 4.5 stars.

The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy – Another goal I have for 2026 is to read more classics. Aiding in this is a classics book club I joined back in the fall that meets once a quarter and for the winter season they chose this adventure novel. To be completely honest, I had never heard of this book until it was chosen for the book club and, quite frankly, I can see why. The story moves slow, the characters are hardly interesting, and I lost interest in a lot spots (not to mention some of the antisemitic parts). That being said, quite a few of the people in my book club enjoyed it so perhaps I’m not the best person to listen to on this but all I can say is I’m not interested in continuing on with the other books.

What Happens in Amsterdam by Rachel Lynn Solomon – Needing something a bit lighter I returned to romance. Taking place in Amsterdam we fall a couple who enter a fake marriage to keep her in the country and allowing him to inherit a family property. While I don’t necessarily have an issue with this trope, I do have an issue with a couple who sucks at communication. So many of the issues the main characters deal with could be fixed with basic communication and that really hurt to the story to me. I would definitely skip this one and find another one where the love interests know how to express their concerns and feelings.

The Love of My Afterlife by Kirsty Greenwood – My final book from the winter season is this cute and sweet romance that follows Delphie, a woman who ends up in the afterlife and falls madly in love with a stranger. But when he is sent back to Earth, Delphie makes a deal that allows her to return to Earth for ten days in hopes of finding the handsome stranger. While the concept is not new, Ms. Greenwood was able to breath fresh life into the story and make it highly enjoyable. The ending got a bit messy for my taste but I would still recommend this one if you love a feel good romance.