I have once again reached that point in the year where I have somehow accumulated more books than I could realistically read in the remaining months, and yet I'm still adding more to the list.
The slightly concerning part is that I've set myself a goal of reading 100 books this year and I'm currently sitting at 72.
Which means I have 28 books to read before the end of December.
Twenty eight.
At this point, I should probably stop adding books to my TBR and start actually reading the ones already on it.
Naturally, I've done neither.
Instead, I've put together a list of the books I want to read before Christmas. Some are continuations of series I'm already invested in, one is a prequel to a series I absolutely loved, and one follows a novella I've recently read and immediately decided I needed more of.
So, with autumn creeping in, darker evenings on the horizon and a fairly substantial reading target still to hit, here's what I'm hoping to get through before the festive season arrives.
Lion in the Library - Amy Award
First up is Lion in the Library by Amy Award, which I'm particularly excited about because it's a prequel to the Cocky Kingsman series - a series I absolutely loved.
I've already got a soft spot for the Cocky Kingsman men, so getting to go back and read the story that came before the series feels like exactly the sort of thing I'm going to enjoy.
It's also always a little dangerous reading a prequel after you've already fallen for a series, because I already know I'm going to be looking for all the little connections and trying to spot anything that links back to the books I've already read.
Basically, I loved the Cocky Kingsman series, so obviously my solution was to go backwards and read more of it.
Makes perfect sense to me.
The Reunion - Meghan Quinn
This one is here because I recently read The One Night, the short novella that comes before The Reunion, and apparently that was enough to make me impatient for the full story.
I love it when a novella does exactly what it's supposed to do: gives you just enough of a story to get invested, whilst simultaneously making you want considerably more.
So now I'm very much ready for the extended story.
I already know I'm invested in these characters, which means I'm expecting this to be one of those books that I absolutely fly through once I finally pick it up.
The only question is whether I can resist immediately disappearing down another Meghan Quinn rabbit hole afterwards.
The Rest of the Wells Ranch Series - Bailey Hannah
After reading Alive and Wells, the first book in the Wells Ranch series by Bailey Hannah, I knew I wasn't going to stop there.
There's always a slight danger with starting a series that you end up enjoying the first book enough to immediately commit yourself to however many books come afterwards.
And here we are.
I'm planning to work my way through the rest of the Wells Ranch series before Christmas, because apparently I have decided that adding several books to an already ambitious TBR is a sensible thing to do.
I enjoyed Alive and Wells enough to want to carry on with the series, so I'm looking forward to seeing where the rest of the characters and stories take me.
Although, technically, saying I have five books on my Christmas TBR is slightly misleading when one of those entries is actually an entire chunk of a series.
We'll gloss over that.
None of Your Business - Laura Ashley Gallagher
Next is None of Your Business by Laura Ashley Gallagher, which continues the Apparently It's Love series.
I've already started investing in this series, so naturally I'm now at the point where I need to know what happens next.
There's something I really enjoy about reading interconnected series because once you've already spent time with the characters and their world, picking up the next book feels a little like going back somewhere you already know.
I'm hoping this one gives me the same feeling and makes me want to immediately carry on with the series afterwards.
Because apparently I haven't learned my lesson from Wells Ranch.
Lowering His Guard - D.E. Haggerty
And finally, Lowering His Guard by D.E. Haggerty, which is another continuation of a series I'm already invested in.
At this point, I'm clearly incapable of starting a book series casually. I read one book, get invested in the characters, and suddenly my TBR has gained another three or four books.
But that's exactly why this one has made the list. I already know the world and characters, so I'm looking forward to getting back into the series and seeing what happens next.
There's something particularly satisfying about working through a series when you're already invested in it - although it does make the TBR grow at a slightly alarming rate.
Can I Get From 72 to 100?
This is the real question.
I've got 28 books left to read to hit my 100-book target for the year, which sounded like a perfectly reasonable goal when I set it.
It sounds slightly more ambitious when I'm sitting here in September with 72 ticked off.
So, whilst these are the books I'm particularly keen to read before Christmas, I'm making no promises that this will be the complete list. There are almost certainly going to be a few impulse Kindle purchases, books from my existing TBR that suddenly look more appealing and at least one book that completely derails whatever reading order I've convinced myself I'm following.
But that's half the fun.
For now, I'm embracing the darker evenings, getting my Kindle charged and attempting to get my read on.
28 books.
Wish me luck.
Molly
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