Top Ten Tuesday: Books on My Winter 2025-2025 to-Read List

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Artsy Reader where each week they post a new top ten list and ask fellow bookish folk to share their lists on that topic.

This week the theme is: Books on My Winter 2025-2026 to-Read List:

(Click on cover for Goodreads link)

Make it Out Alive (Quinn & Costa #7) by Allison Brennan

Release date: 1/27/26

Inside Man (Head Cases #2) by John McMahon

Release date: 1/13/26

First Sign of Danger (Haven's Rock #4) by Kelley Armstrong

Release date: 2/17/26

Antihero (Orphan X #11) by Gregg Hurwitz

Release date: 2/10/26

It's Not Her by Mary Kubica

Release date: 2/3/26

Dear Debbie by Freida McFadden

Release date: 1/27/26

Remember That Day (Ravenswood #5) by Mary Balogh

Release date: 1/6/26

A Box Full of Darkness by Simone St. James

Release date: 1/20/26

Bloodlust by Sandra Brown

Release date 3/17/26

Carl's Doomsday Scenario (Dungeon Crawler Carl #2) by Matt Dinniman

Release date: 1/6/21

What books are on your Winter 2025-26 TBR?

Sunday Post #319

 

The Sunday Post is hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated reviewer book blog, and is a post to recap my bookish and non-bookish things from the last week. I'm also linking up to The Sunday Salon hosted by Deb Nance @Readerbuzz.

Happy Sunday!

I've had the week off from work which is a good thing since my shoulder continues to bother me, but not as bad as the previous week. I've been doing my PT exercises and other workouts, raked a ton of leaves (not great for the shoulder) and trimmed back a bunch of thorny blackberry bushes that are growing out of control. 

Today (Saturday) my husband and I went to lunch, Home Depot and the garden center to buy cyclamen and pansies. I planted them and then we made dinner. I've been listening to Dungeon Crawler Carl on and off all day and it's hilarious!

The weather's been unseasonably warm here in the mid to high 60s, but we're about to drop down to normal temps and we have a bunch of rain in the forecast. 

We've seen a coyote on our cameras walking through the property twice in the last two weeks during the night, so we've made sure the cats are in right at dusk. The racoons have been showing up (three of them) and unfortunately I forgot to bring in the dish of dry cat food one night so they had a meal which means they'll be showing up for a while to see if they get lucky again.

Last of my roses from the garden

Flowers on my walk: Red Hot Poker 

1000 Piece Puzzle: Valley Farm Street by Buffalo Games

Read:

Earl Crush (Belvoir's Library #2) by Alexandra Vasti

Everything's Coming Up Rosie by Courtney Walsh

For some reason I didn't get much reading done, but I did enjoy both books!

Received:

Seeing Other People by Emily Wibberley & Austin Siegemund-Broka

Dear Debbie by Freida McFadden

Thank you to Berkley and Poisoned Pen Press!

How was your week?

Audiobook Review: Everything's Coming Up Rosie by Courtney Walsh

 

Everything's Coming Up Rosie by Courtney Walsh

Publication Date: June 10th 2025 by Thomas Nelson

Pages: 353

Audio Book Length: 11hrs 10min

Narrator: Jorjeana Marie

Source: Publisher

Rating: ★★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Libro.fm | Audible | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Rosie’s dream of becoming an actor has been worn down by years of trying to catch a break only to land bit roles and suffer rejection. Desperate for a job and money, Rosie sends out dozens of resumes and lands a creative director position in Door County, Wisconsin. However, Rosie fails to read the job offer over carefully and so she’s shocked to discover that the theatre is in a retirement community and her actors are all seniors. Little does she know that the job she didn’t realize she applied for is about to change her life in the most profound and wonderful way!

 

There’s a whole collection of interesting characters: the varied group of seniors cast in her play, an ornery stage manager, and surly teenager Rosie enlists as a volunteer.  Most notably, however, is Booker, the handsome physical therapist! He’s a sweetheart, listening without judgement and always there when Rosie needs him! Their friendship turned into a romance that was everything!

 

I absolutely loved Everything’s Coming Up Rosie! Found family, romance, and finding happiness where you’d least expect it! Such an inspirational, feel-good story!

 

I also loved the author’s note where she talked about her dreams, (similar to Rosie’s) and how coming to realize your dream can shift and pivot without meaning you’ve given up.

 

I listened to the audio version narrated by Jorgeana Marie and it was perfection! She performed male and female in a wide range of ages seamlessly! Definitely enhanced this heartwarming story!

5 Stars

Book Description:

Sometimes what you think you want and what you actually want turn out to be different things . . 

Rosie Waterman has one to become a working actor. But lately, that hasn't been working out. When she loses her apartment and her job on the same day, she does what she always does--puts herself out there, ready to find the next big thing. But a trip home makes her realize that while she's been struggling to make this dream come true, all her friends have become real adults with careers and weddings and babies on the way. Rosie's been at this for years, and she has nothing to show for it. But how does she simply let go of her dream?

When she's offered a job as the director of a regional theatre's production of Cinderella, she jumps at the chance--even though she's only directed in college and the job is in Door County, Wisconsin, and not in New York. She has no other offers, and at least she'll be getting paid to do something theatrical. But when she arrives, she quickly realizes that the "regional theatre" is actually in a retirement community, and the "actors" are actually senior citizens with no acting experience whatsoever.

Working on the show presents new challenges, forcing Rosie to learn how to step up and be the leader this fledgling theatre troupe needs. The more time she spends with her new cast, the more she begins to rethink what it means to dream big, especially when that big dream hasn't turned out to be at all what she thought it would be. It's not at all what she expected, but could it be exactly what she needs?

Review: Violet Thistlewaite is Not a Villain Anymore by Emily Krempholtz

 

Violet Thistlewaite is Not a Villain Anymore by Emily Krempholtz

Publication Date: November 18th 2025 by Ace

Pages: 368

Source: Publisher 

Rating: ★★★½

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Libro.fm | Audible | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Violet’s childhood was stolen by Guy Shadowfade, a dark sorcerer who exploited her rare gift for plant magic. Forced to obey his commands, she became known as the dreaded Thornwitch. Now, with Shadowfade gone, Violet longs for a gentler life, one filled with kindness, beauty, and the quiet joy of tending flowers in her shop at Dragon’s Rest. All she needs is to keep her past buried.

 

Nathanial, however, isn’t so easily convinced. Prickly and protective, he resents his sister’s decision to rent out the cottage to Violet and distrusts her from the start. With his alchemy shop inconveniently next door, avoiding her is impossible.

 

But when a mysterious blight begins to spread across Dragon’s Rest, threatening crops and livelihoods, Violet and Nate must set aside suspicion and work together.

 

Violet keeping her identity secret for so long was distressing, since I knew it’d come out eventually, but I did enjoy this fun, cozy mystery!  I love gardening and flowers, so Violet’s powers appealed to me. What resonated most, though, was the theme of redemption: Violet’s guilt over her past deeds and Nate’s regret for his family’s struggles gave the story emotional weight. Together, their journey felt like a hopeful reminder that healing and renewal are always possible.

3.5 Stars

Book Description:

A powerful plant witch and a grumpy alchemist must work together to save their quiet town from a magical plague in this debut cozy fantasy romance about starting over, redemption, and what it really means to be a good person.

Guy Shadowfade is dead, and after a lifetime as the dark sorcerer’s right-hand, Violet Thistlewaite is determined to start over—not as the fearsome Thornwitch, but as someone kind. Someone better. Someone good.

The quaint town of Dragon’s Rest, Violet decides, will be her second chance—she’ll set down roots, open a flower shop, keep her sentient (mildly homicidal) houseplant in check, and prune dark magic from the twisted boughs of her life.

Violet’s vibrant bouquets and cheerful enchantments soon charm the welcoming townsfolk, though nothing seems to impress the prickly yet dashingly handsome Nathaniel Marsh, an alchemist sharing her greenhouse. With a struggling business and his own second chance seemingly out of reach, Nathaniel has no time for flowers or frippery—and certainly none for the intriguing witch next door.

When a mysterious blight threatens every living plant in Dragon’s Rest, Violet and Nathaniel must work together through their fears, pasts, and growing feelings for one another to save their community. But with a figure from her past knocking at her door and her secrets threatening to uproot everything she’s worked so hard to grow, Violet can’t help but wonder…does a former villain truly deserve a happily-ever-after?

 

Top Ten Tuesday: Books Set in Snowy Places

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Artsy Reader where each week they post a new top ten list and ask fellow bookish folk to share their lists on that topic.

This week the theme is a Books Set in a Snowy Place. 

I'm posting a varied list of ten I've rated 5 stars:

Mean Streak by Sandra Brown

My all-time favorite by Sandra Brown!

The Christmas Escape by Sarah Morgan

Heartwarming and dreamy!

The Gamble (Colorado Mountain #1) by Kristen Ashley

Classic Kristen Ashley with a hot Alpha male and sassy heroine!

Uncharted (Survival Instincts #2) by Adriana Anders

Action-paced romantic suspense!

A Christmas Courtship (Berlin Bookmobile #3) by Shelley Shepard Gray

One of my favorite Amish romances!

Her Christmas Cowboy (The Wyoming Cowboy #5) by Jessica Clare

Sweet romance with a bit of suspense! "Sleeping With the Enemy" vibes!

A Touch of Forever (Cowboys of Colorado #3) by Jo Goodman

Old West setting, suspense, slow burn romance with a depth of emotion!

Cold as Hell (Haven's Rock #3) by Kelley Armstrong

One of my favorite mystery/thriller series. A real nail-biter! Start with the Rockton series first.

Winter Lost (Mercy Thompson #14) by Patricia Briggs

My favorite urban fantasy series! Start from the beginning! This installment is set in a brutal Montana snow storm!

North of Nowhere by Allison Brennan

Starts off with a bang! Thrilling and action-packed 'til the end!

Have you read any of these? What are your snowy book recommendations?

Sunday Post #318

 

The Sunday Post is hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated reviewer book blog, and is a post to recap my bookish and non-bookish things from the last week. I'm also linking up to The Sunday Salon hosted by Deb Nance @Readerbuzz.

Happy Sunday!

Nothing terribly exciting going on here other than my shoulder and neck being out of whack from work. I worked on Monday, did a bunch of my PT exercises on Tuesday and then it really hurt! I thought I'd have a few days off to let it calm down, but my manager begged me to come in on Thursday to cover someone out sick. I initially told her no because of the pain, but she offered to take me off of Saturday in exchange for Thursday and give me the lighter schedule and then I wouldn't be working two days in a row since I was scheduled to work both Saturday and Sunday.  At any rate I babied my shoulder, but I still came home in a lot of pain that led to a raging migraine on Thursday night, the pain so bad I was nauseous! My husband massaged my neck and back that night, I took one Tylenol and one Advil and went to bed early. Thankfully, the migraine was gone in the morning. I work tomorrow, so we'll see what happens. I have the whole week off after to rest it. I'll try some light stretching to loosen things up instead of going all out on my PT exercises for a bit.

The weather has been damp and cold, but no rain. We've been below freezing most nights and mid 50s in the day. 

Full moon was more impressive in person than in this photo

Stock from Trader Joe's. They smell wonderful!

500 Piece Puzzle: Bookshelf from Rife Paper Co.

The puzzle comes in this neat box!:

Read:

The Place Where They Buried Your Heart by Christina Henry-2 Stars

The Kill Clause by Lisa Unger-3.5 Stars

Violet Thistlewaite is Not a Villain Anymore by Emily Krempholtz-3.5 Stars

Blind Date with a Werewolf by Patricia Briggs-5 Stars

An okay reading week. My favorite was a re-read by audio of Blind Date with a Werewolf.

Received:

Photograph by Brian Freeman

My Husband's Wife by Alice Feeney

The Mating Game by Lana Ferguson

The Shop on Hidden Lane by Jayne Ann Krentz

Thank you to Blackstone Publishing, Libro.fm, Macmillan Audio and Berkley!

Instagram:

A giveaway I'm running that ends on Thursday.

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How was your week?