December was a month of good reading.  I didn’t read six books as I did last month, but I still was able to fit four books in which is perfectly okay with me.  What’s even more okay with me is that they were all Christmas themed books that I read.

Three of the books I read were by Richard Paul Evans.  I read his Mistletoe series (though none of the books are related to each other).  I started with his newest book, The Mistletoe Secret, since it had just been released in November and we got it in right as we reopened from construction.  It was an interesting story to follow, and I did enjoy Alex’s character.  There were a few times I laughed out loud due to perfectly placed sarcastic remarks in the story.

(Unfortunately, I forgot to take a photo of this book before I returned it.)

I then followed with The Mistletoe Inn, which was another cute story.  I enjoyed the setting of it – in Vermont at a writer’s conference – which just had a nice wintery feel that related to my actual setting where I live.  I noticed within this book that Evans likes to make certain aspects of the story obvious, then throws a curveball at you and make you question everything about what you’re reading… only to to find out you were right in the first place.

The Mistletoe Promise was my favorite of all three Mistletoe books.  It had past tragedies mixed with love and forgiveness which made it a story that can only warm your heart.  I was also happy to find that it was made into a Hallmark movie, so after I read the book my mom and I watched it. The movie literally only kept the gist of the plot, as well as the names and occupations of the characters the same.  Surprisingly, it was still good.  As much as I’d recommend the book to my fellow readers, I’d recommend the movie to those who love Christmas movies.

I ended the month, and subsequently the year, with The Twelve Days of Dash & Lily.  No, I have not read Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares, but that didn’t stop me (I’m such a rebel).  I can’t say it was book of the year, but it wasn’t terrible either.  I definitely like the character of Dash (who doesn’t love a guy who loves to read?) and the banter between him and Langston.  After reading this book I definitely want to read it’s predecessor; I only decided to read this one because it was Christmas themed and well, I was on a roll.

Even though I had finished the Dash & Lily book a few days ago, I decided against starting a new one right away.  I needed some time to get some posts written up (like this one) and finalize my goals for the new year before it actually begins.  Speaking of, I crushed my Goodreads reading goal of 25 books by reading 35, and that was with not reading any books in June or July.

Next year, I’m shooting for 40!

What did you read this past month?