I've already written my favorite books of 2025 post (that's over here), but I wanted to share some books I read in December too, as I usually share a monthly reading post. I mostly read holiday themed books—some rereads of favorites, some that I started but weren't working for me, and some new books that I enjoyed:
Foxglove by Adalyn Grace (M/F gothic fantasy romance): Foxglove is the sequel to Belladonna, which I read back in November after having it on by TBR for far too long. I enjoyed the first book so much that I dove right into the second as soon as I finished. This book furthers Signa's relationship with Death and gives her another mystery to solve, complicated by the presence of Fate, Death's scheming brother, who hates him. It also sets up the third book in the series, which looks to center Fate and Signa's cousin Blythe. (I took a bit of a break for holiday reading, but I already started the third book in the new year!) Start with Belladonna as these books don't stand alone.
On Dancer by Annabeth Albert (M/M contemporary romance): I was excited to read this book as soon as I saw it revolved around a production of The Nutcracker—I'm a ballet fan and a former dancer, and The Nutcracker was the first ballet I saw, like so many others I'm sure. And I very much enjoyed the story, though it did make me miss ballet so much! Rudy is assisting with the production at a small town dance company/school, and he also has had a huge crush on Alexander, now a famous dancer but once a student at the school, who is in town staying with family while healing from an injury. Alexander is persuaded to dance in the production, throwing him and Rudy together. This was lots of fun.
Under Gorse and Stone by Lily Morton (M/M fantasy romance): I knew I would read this as soon as I saw it was a dragon shifter Christmas book! When Cary is dumped by his boyfriend on a holiday in Cornwall right before Christmas, he finds himself drawn to a secluded beach and the mysterious man he finds there. It turns out the man is a dragon and Cary is his mate, but Cary doesn't know that yet, or even that magic exists. This story is delightful. Cary jumps into the world of magic with utter wonder and excitement as he and Sigurd fall in love. The story is also woven through with Cornish folklore and Arthurian legend, which I loved. While it's set in the days leading up to Christmas and has some festive trappings, it's not too Christmas-y, if that makes sense.
Just for the Holidays... by Adriana Herrera (M/F contemporary romance): Perla is a casting director who knows actor Gael would be perfect for the lead role in her studio's new project, but he also broke her heart back in college—he dumped her years ago when his career was beginning to take off. Putting aside the personal, she goes his family home to bring him the script and ends up snowed in over the holidays. If you like a tropey holiday romance, you might enjoy this—it's second chance romance, fake dating, and snowed in together all rolled into one. It's the second book in the series, but I haven't read the first yet and had no trouble following along.
What have you read and loved lately?
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