My Favorite Books of January

I started my reading year with a bang! As you may have read, my 2023 reading challenge is to read 200 books. It’s more than I’ve ever read before in a single year, so I’m worried I’ve set myself up to fail. If January is a reflection on how the rest of my reading year is going to go, I should be just fine.

My 6 Favorite Books of January

I read 21 books in January. I’m not sure I’ve ever read that many books in a month. If I have, it’s been awhile. Of those, I gave six books perfect grades. The books constitute one stand-alone read and a five-book series. My reviews are below.

Do You Remember?

I read and loved the stand-alone book Do You Remember by Freida McFadden. McFadden is an interesting author for me. I either love her books and give them an A, or they’re just mediocre, and I give them a C. There’s no in-between for me. This book fell on the A list, but I wasn’t sure it would. I was a bit concerned when I started reading that it was like so many books I’ve read recently with a female character who can’t remember anything.

Tess Strebel wakes up every morning unable to remember anything that’s happened to her in the last decade. She thinks she’s still engaged and on the brink of a new life, but wakes up each day to find she’s married to a different man who is running her spa care empire. Luckily, she wrote herself a letter to explain it all because she’s not sure she believes her husband. It seems that Tess was a car wreck that left her without memory and prone to blackouts. Her husband took over her business and hired a woman who is essentially a nanny to stay with Tess while he works each day.

Tess only remembers her life from before the accident, but she has the note in her own handwriting, and no reason to think what her husband and caregiver are telling her isn’t true… until she does.

The Mindf*ck Series

I also read the five short books in S.T. Abby’s Mindf*ck series. I’d seen women raving about the series in some book groups on Twitter, but the name kinda turned me away. I finally went to find them on Amazon and see what they were all about. I’m so glad I did! 

I gave all five of the books As, although I liked some slightly more than others. The story builds on itself, so you have to read them all, but it’s easy because they’re all free on Kindle Unlimited.

The series is about Lana, a revenge serial killer, who meets and falls in love with an FBI profile. Of course, Logan’s team is looking for Lana, but he doesn’t even think the killer he’s looking for is female. Hence, the mindf*ck. 

The books had a Criminal Minds feel to me as Lana kills the small-town men who raped her and murdered her brother. At various times while I was reading, I even imagined some of the characters as the agents on the show. Parts of the books were pretty graphic, and the sex scenes were steamy, but I thought the whole concept was excellent. I read each book in a day. It’s always a fun twist when you want the “bad character” to get away with it.

Happy Reading!

There they are! My favorite books of January. The list is briefer than usual, but hopefully, you can still find something to read and love.

What have you enjoyed reading lately? Drop your recommendations in the comments. I always want them!

As always, happy reading!