December was a fairly good reading month for me. I read several Christmas books. I also finished a couple of books that I had been reading for a while, including several Christmas devotionals.
Books Read In December 2022
Mrs. Sherlock Holmes by Bread Ricca. This nonfiction book is about a female detective in New York in the early 1900s. I had mixed thoughts on this one so I will share a full review soon.
Once Upon A Wardrobe by Patti Callahan. This historical fiction book is perfect for winter. It is about a brother and sister who are on a mission to find out where Narnia came from.
The Christmas Dress by Courtney Cole. This book is a Hallmark Movie in book form. In fact, this book could totally be made into a Christmas movie. This was a fun easy Christmas read about Meg, who returns to her hometown of Chicago when she inherits an apartment building. It is a little bit unrealistic but overall I enjoyed it.
The First Songs of Christmas by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth. I started this in November and finished it in December because I had multiple Christmas devotionals going at the same time. I enjoyed this look at the songs of Christmas because they are not the traditional songs that we sing but the songs from Luke 1 and 2.
Gifts of Grace by Jared C. Wilson. This is another Christmas devotional that I read in December. I also enjoyed this one. This was a good reminder to focus on internal things during this busy time of year. Each devotional is a couple of pages long, so it is longer than many books like this, but I really enjoyed it.
All is Mary and Bright by Kasey Stockton. I listened to this one on audio when I was working around the house and preparing for our office Christmas party. I am not sure where I heard about it, but it was a clean Christmas romance. Not a super deep storyline, but I enjoyed it.
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. This nonfiction book has been on my to be read list for a long time. This is the story of Henrietta Lacks and how she changed medicine and the medical world. This is a fascinating look at the world of medicine, medical ethics, and more.
The Christmas We Didn’t Expect by David Mathis. This was one of several devotionals that I read in the last two months. I enjoyed this one. It looks at the surprising twists and turns that the birth of Jesus brought.
A Castaway In Cornwall by Julie Klassen. I have read quite a few books by Julie Klassen. I enjoy her books when I need a clean easy to read romance. I started this book on audio through Scribd while I was cleaning around the house. I was enjoying the book, but did not love the narrator, so about halfway through I switched to reading it. I love that you can easily switch like this on Scribd. I liked this book, but didn’t love it. Although this wasn’t my favorite book by her, you like Julie Klassen books, I think you will enjoy this one.
Winterland by Rea Meadows. I picked this book up after hearing an interview with the author. I was fascinated by the theme of the book, gymnastics and Russia during the the 1970s and 1980s. I grew up watching both gymnastics and ice skating in the Olympics. I remember well the Russian dominance of those years, so I found this book really interesting. The Russian athletes gave up their life, and often their health, for Russia. The author did a good job taking you to the world of Russian gymnastics. Overall I enjoyed this one although there were one or two storylines that I thought took away from the story instead of adding to it. If you remember watching gymnastics during the 1970s and 1980s you will probably like this one.