01.31.2026 | January WRAP-UP

Hello, beasties!

Holy guacamole! I truly surprised myself with my total reads. I really wasn't paying a whole lot of attention to my total reads until about halfway through the month. Then, I took a look, and I had to pause for a second. The realization of how many books I had already read shocked me!

I got through 20 books this month! That's my second-highest number of books in a month. My current record is 22, but that was also including rereading my favorite book series, Lore Olympus. Which my boyfriend teases me about, saying, "That's cheating." Haha! So, arguably, this is my new record? What do you think?

Apart from my total reads, I'm also very happy with the number of books I've checked off my backlist! 13 of the books I've picked up this month were part of my backlist, either physical or NetGalley. Which makes me so happy! Though, of course, I was saddened by my NetGalley ratio only going up like 1%. I'll get there though! Haha!

So what did I read this month?

I finished the following books:

5⭐

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

Stuck with You by Ali Hazelwood

NOS4A2 by Joe Hill

4.5⭐

A Promise of Fire by Amanda Bouchet

Tourist Season by Brynne Weaver

Tender Cruelty by Katee Robert

4⭐

Little Death by Nicole Blanchard

If a Poem Could Live and Breathe by Mary Calvi

Soul of a Gentleman Witch by David Ferraro

Mayhem on the Marzipan Express by Rebecca Connolly

The Crime Brulee Bake Off by Rebecca Connolly

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera

Love & Other Killers by Brynne Weaver

Under One Roof by Ali Hazelwood

Unhinged by Vera Valentine

3.5 ⭐

A New Lease on Death by Olivia Blacke

3⭐

The Mysterious Case of the Missing Crime Writer by Ragnar Jónasson

The Widowmaker by Hannah Morrissey

You Make It Feel Like Christmas by Sophie Sullivan

2⭐

The Best Friend by Jessica Fellowes

Unfortunately, I did also have 2 DNFs this month:

Death at the Door by Olivia Blacke

Locust Lane by Stephen Amidon

I’m currently reading:

Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman

11/22/63 by Stephen King

Manacled by SenLinYu

After an amazing start to the year, I'm so excited to see what I'll get through next. I'm also very eager to start off fresh for February! I have a fun little reading challenge for next month!

Check back tomorrow!

Check out my last journal from January 1.2026 entry here!