Happy New Year! I'm thrilled you're stopping by for Thinking Out Loud Thursday. This is where I share what's on my mind and invite you to join in and do the same. On the first Thursday of each month, I recap what I read the month before. Let's dive into my December reads!
In December, our book club read The Christmas Pearl. Most members enjoyed it, though some felt it leaned a bit too much toward a Hallmark vibe. Personally, I adored it! It was a beautifully heartwarming story, perfect for the holiday season. Here’s a brief summary:
Still spry at ninety-three, Theodora has lived long enough to see her family grow into an insufferable bunch of truculent knuckleheads. Having finally gathered the whole bickering brood together for the holidays at her South Carolina home, the grand matriarch pines wistfully for those extravagant, homey Christmases of her childhood. How she misses the tables groaning with home-cooked goodies, the over-the-top decorations, those long, lovely fireside chats with Pearl, her grandmother's beloved housekeeper and closest confidante. These days, where is the love and the joy . . . and the peace?
But this is, after all, a magical time. Someone very special has heard Theodora's plea—and is about to arrive at her door with pockets full of Gullah magic and enough common sense to transform this Christmas into the miracle it's truly meant to be.
I had heard so much chatter from people reading The Pumpkin Spice Cafe that I had to give it a read. It was surprisingly spicy! This is the first book of five and I definitely like it enough to want to read the others. Here's the summary ~
When Jeanie’s aunt gifts her the beloved Pumpkin Spice Café in the small town of Dream Harbor, Jeanie jumps at the chance for a fresh start away from her very dull desk job.
Logan is a local farmer who avoids Dream Harbor’s gossip at all costs. But Jeanie’s arrival disrupts Logan’s routine and he wants nothing to do with the irritatingly upbeat new girl, except that he finds himself inexplicably drawn to her.
Will Jeanie’s happy-go-lucky attitude win over the grumpy-but-gorgeous Logan, or has this city girl found the one person in town who won’t fall for her charm, or her pumpkin spice lattes…
Mary Kay Andrews books are usually fun and entertaining. Bright Lights, Big Christmas was just that! It was a fun book to read in December and it was especially fun because the storyline revolves around a Christmas tree stand in New York. While reading this book, I was also planning to trip to New York and it was so fun on our first walk about in the city we can into a tree stand! Here's the summary ~
When fall rolls around, it’s time for Kerry Tolliver to leave her family’s Christmas tree farm in the mountains of North Carolina for the wilds of New York City to help her gruff older brother & his dog, Queenie, sell the trees at the family stand on a corner in Greenwich Village. Sharing a tiny vintage camper and experiencing Manhattan for the first time, Kerry’s ready to try to carve out a new corner for herself.
In the weeks leading into Christmas, Kerry quickly becomes close with the charming neighbors who live near their stand. When an elderly neighbor goes missing, Kerry will need to combine her country know-how with her newly acquired New York knowledge to protect the new friends she’s come to think of as family,
And complicating everything is Patrick, a single dad raising his adorable, dragon-loving son Austin on this quirky block. Kerry and Patrick’s chemistry is undeniable, but what chance does this holiday romance really have?
Filled with family ties, both rekindled and new, and sparkling with Christmas magic, BRIGHT LIGHTS, BIG CHRISTMAS delivers everything Mary Kay Andrews fans adore, all tied up in a hilarious, romantic gem of a novel.
Typically, books by Emily Giffin are some of my favorites. The Summer Pact fell a little short for me. Maybe it was because I was reading it during the time I was trying to get ready for Christmas causing me to be a but preoccupied, but this one just didn't grab me like some of her other books had.
Four freshmen arrive at college from completely different worlds: Lainey, a California party girl with a flair for drama; Tyson, a brilliant scholar and aspiring lawyer from Washington, D.C.; Summer, an ambitious, recruited athlete from the Midwest; and Hannah, a mild-mannered southerner who is content to quietly round out the circle of big personalities. Soon after arriving on campus, they strike up a conversation in their shared dorm, and the seeds of friendship are planted.
As their college years fly by, their bond intensifies and the four become inseparable. But as graduation nears, their lives are forever changed after a desperate act leads to tragic consequences. Stunned and heartbroken, they make a pact, promising to always be there for one another, no matter how separated they may become by circumstances or distance.
Ten years later, Hannah is anticipating what should be one of the happiest moments of her life when everything is suddenly turned upside down. Calling on her closest friends, it soon becomes clear that they are all facing their own crossroads. True to their promise, they agree to take a time out from lives headed in wrong directions and embark on a shared journey of self-discovery, forgiveness, and acceptance.
In this tender portrayal of grief, love, and hope, Emily Giffin asks: When things fall apart, who will be at our sides, helping us pick up the pieces?
I was hopeful that The Year of Less would jumpstart my goal to buy less and declutter in 2025. Honestly, it didn't do it for me. The author, Cait Flanders, talks a lot about herself, which didn't really motivate me to do much. It's a short book, so I didn't feel like it was a total waste of time. If I do make strides at buying less and decluttering in 2025, I'm not going to give this book any of the credit.
In her late twenties, Cait Flanders found herself stuck in the consumerism cycle that grips so many of us: earn more, buy more, want more, rinse, repeat. Even after she worked her way out of nearly $30,000 of consumer debt, her old habits took hold again. When she realized that nothing she was doing or buying was making her happy—only keeping her from meeting her goals—she decided to set herself a challenge: she would not shop for an entire year.
The Year of Less documents Cait’s life for twelve months during which she bought only consumables: groceries, toiletries, gas for her car. Along the way, she challenged herself to consume less of many other things besides shopping. She decluttered her apartment and got rid of 70 percent of her belongings; learned how to fix things rather than throw them away; researched the zero waste movement; and completed a television ban. At every stage, she learned that the less she consumed, the more fulfilled she felt.
The challenge became a lifeline when, in the course of the year, Cait found herself in situations that turned her life upside down. In the face of hardship, she realized why she had always turned to shopping, alcohol, and food—and what it had cost her. Unable to reach for any of her usual vices, she changed habits she’d spent years perfecting and discovered what truly mattered to her.
Blending Cait’s compelling story with inspiring insight and practical guidance, The Year of Less will leave you questioning what you’re holding on to in your own life—and, quite possibly, lead you to find your own path of less.
I enjoyed The Pumpkin Spice Cafe too and just bought that book this week to gift to my mom for her birthday. I've since read the second book in the series and liked that just as much.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read The Christmas Pearl but I have always liked Dorothea Benton Frank's books. Her daughter came to a club here this year and spoke. A fun event!
ReplyDeleteThe Year of Less sounds very intriguing! It would be an interesting book to begin the new year with.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with you about Emily Giffin! I was a little disappointed. The Year of Less sounds like a good read to start the new year!
ReplyDeleteI'm always up for a book that leans toward a Hallmark vibe!
ReplyDeleteNice reading list. Happy New Year to you and your family.
ReplyDelete