New Year = New Book Goals!

 On New Year's Eve 2021, I set the following goals for 2022:

• Read 50 books.
• Read the books in my TBR stack. (I think I have about ten books in my nightstand that need to be read!)
• Write one hour each week for pleasure (52 hours for the year). This could be a blog post, story ideas, journaling, etc. 

Here's what I accomplished in 2022:

• I read 81 books.
• I read some of the books in my TBR stack... and I added some books to it, too!
• I wrote more through journaling and brainstorming book ideas. I wrote my book autobiography back in the summer, too! 

As I was reflecting on the books I read over the course of this year, I noticed some patterns. Many of the books I read were about summer and even had the word summer in the title. Summer is my favorite season, so, of course, I love escaping to summer when I read. I also noticed that most of the audiobooks I listened to were nonfiction books. Nonfiction is more challenging for me to read, so this makes sense! I often found myself in a bit of a reading rut this year, so I called on one of my favorite strategies to increase the volume of reading - jumping into the first book in a series. I devoured The Summer I Turned Pretty and the two books that followed as well as the Hopeless series. This took some of the "think work" out of choosing my next book. I just started another series by Colleen Hoover, Maybe Someday. Operation: Read all Colleen Hoover books - almost complete!

Throughout the year, I had multiple conversations with a bookish friends about what makes a five star book. Through these conversations, I realized that I often give a great book a five star review, even though it may not be a true five star book. When I think of the ultimate five star book, I think about books like The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah, The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid, or Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand. I'm learning that many of the books I love are really four star books. In my opinion, here are the true five star books I read this year:

Meant to Be by Emily Giffin

Every Summer After by Carley Fortune

Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen

Home Front by Kristin Hannah

Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka

Night Road by Kristin Hannah

Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica

Atlas of the Heart by Brene Brown

Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers

My favorite fiction book of the year was Night Road. This book had me sobbing before I was halfway through! This book might hit a little harder if you have children who are approaching their teenage years. This book has a great mix of romance and intensity. Kristin Hannah has a beautiful way of bringing characters to life and leaves readers investing their emotions in the story while also rethinking real life issues.

Local Woman Missing was the best thriller I read in 2022. If you like books that are told through multiple perspectives, then you'll love this one. The story unfolds slowly, piecing the tragic events together. Everyone I know who read this book has loved it as much as I did. Add this thriller to your TBR list!

While I didn't read many historical fiction books this year, I absolutely loved Carrie Soto is Back. I'm finding that I really enjoy historical fiction books that are set in the recent past; this book was set in the 1990s. Carrie Soto's return to tennis coupled with the bond she shares with her father-coach pulled me in from the first page. Carrie's hard exterior and drive for achievement was relatable for me. Watching her overcome hardship felt victorious! Tennis jargon is threaded throughout his book, but it doesn't take from this incredible story of love and loss. 

Goals for 2023:

• Read 60 books.
• Gift the books in my TBR stack after reading them.
• Write! Use this creative outlet to keep calm and share ideas with others. 

I'm often asked about how much money I spend on books. Isn't reading a pricey habit? Well, not for me! Many of the books I read are ebooks on loan from the library. You just need a library card to set this up. Each month I download a free book from Amazon First Reads. The books are often from up and coming authors, and they're pretty good! If you have an Amazon Prime account, you can get a free book each month, too! And guess what? Some months, you can get TWO books for free! (If you are just learning about this, go grab a December book now and get another free book for January tomorrow!) This year, I subscribed to Kindle Unlimited for access to so many books! It's $9.99 per month, and I was able to get four months for free. Totally worth it! Of course, I will buy a book if it's a new release, and I really want to read it. Plus, it helps that my friends and family know to buy me Barnes & Noble or Amazon gift cards which quickly turn into books for me!

Now I'm off to finish my first book of 2023, Radically Content, start book number two, Lessons in Chemistry, and stay up until midnight so I can download my free Amazon First Reads book... yeah, whatever!