Hi! A new month means a new TBR from me! Although I didn’t really stick to randomly drawing my TBR from a jar last month, I’m going to try it again. I’ve got a different set of five books, and I’ll write their titles down and put them in my little mug. Whichever one I draw out will be my next read! Of course, I’ll have a couple other books not listed on here that will go into the jar, but that’s to keep things interesting. Let’s get into it!

Lovely War by Julie Berry

Genre: Historical Fiction/Greek Mythology/Romance

Synopsis: It’s 1917, and World War I is at its zenith when Hazel and James first catch sight of each other at a London party. She’s a shy and talented pianist; he’s a newly minted soldier with dreams of becoming an architect. When they fall in love, it’s immediate and deep–and cut short when James is shipped off to the killing fields.

Aubrey Edwards is also headed toward the trenches. A gifted musician who’s played Carnegie Hall, he’s a member of the 15th New York Infantry, an all-African-American regiment being sent to Europe to help end the Great War. Love is the last thing on his mind. But that’s before he meets Colette Fournier, a Belgian chanteuse who’s already survived unspeakable tragedy at the hands of the Germans.

Thirty years after these four lovers’ fates collide, the Greek goddess Aphrodite tells their stories to her husband, Hephaestus, and her lover, Ares, in a luxe Manhattan hotel room at the height of World War II. She seeks to answer the age-old question: Why are Love and War eternally drawn to one another? But her quest for a conclusion that will satisfy her jealous husband uncovers a multi-threaded tale of prejudice, trauma, and music and reveals that War is no match for the power of Love.

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I read this back in 2021 and LOVED it! It was an instant 5 star read, and I just knew I would come back to it eventually (because that’s what readers do…they keep reading books they’ve already read instead of tending to their giant TBR pile…). I’m excited to read it again and hoping to do a little annotating on it!

Beach Read by Emily Henry

Genre: Romance

Synopsis: A romance writer who no longer believes in love and a literary writer stuck in a rut engage in a summer-long challenge that may just upend everything they believe about happily ever afters.

Augustus Everett is an acclaimed author of literary fiction. January Andrews writes bestselling romance. When she pens a happily ever after, he kills off his entire cast.

They’re polar opposites.

In fact, the only thing they have in common is that for the next three months, they’re living in neighboring beach houses, broke, and bogged down with writer’s block.

Until, one hazy evening, one thing leads to another and they strike a deal designed to force them out of their creative ruts: Augustus will spend the summer writing something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel. She’ll take him on field trips worthy of any rom-com montage, and he’ll take her to interview surviving members of a backwoods death cult (obviously). Everyone will finish a book and no one will fall in love. Really.

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Emily Henry has been really hyped up, and I think it’s about time I get into her books. I’ve heard excellent things about all of her romances, but I decided to start with this one since it’s been nagging me the longest. I’m interested in the fact that the two main characters are writers! I like it when I can relate to a character in that way! Also, I’ve been wanting to read a good romance, so I’m hoping this lives up to the hype!

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Genre: Fantasy/Romance

Synopsis: The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

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You would not believe how long this has been on my shelf. It’s kind of embarrassing. I hear really mixed opinions on this book. It seems like you either love it or hate it (there’s literally no in between that I have witnessed), so I’ve been hesitant to get into it. I actually tried reading A Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern years ago, and DNFed it because I couldn’t get into it. Maybe I’ll have better luck with this one? Maybe???

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

Genre: Fantasy

Synopsis: Scarlett Dragna has never left the tiny island where she and her sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval—the faraway, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show—are over.

But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.

Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. Nevertheless she becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic. And whether Caraval is real or not, Scarlett must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over or a dangerous domino effect of consequences will be set off, and her beloved sister will disappear forever.

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I have major respect for Stephanie Garber even though I’ve never actually read one of her books. I know she’s getting a lot of hype with her Once Upon A Broken Heart series, which is actually what made me want to read her books. I decided to start with Caraval, of course, and work my way from there. But yeah, nothing but respect for this lady. She literally was rejected so many times, and I found her story when I was going through a hard time with my own writing, so ever since then I’ve wanted to read her books. I can’t wait to start!

The Giant Killer by A. L. O. E.

Genre: Allegory

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A big thank you to Kay Adelin for getting me this book for Christmas! She’s always sending me good books, so I really appreciate it (everyone knows books are the way to my heart. Books and video games (and let’s be real, candy, too)). She’s told me a bit about this one, and it sounds interesting, so hopefully I can get to it soon!

That’s all of them! I’m looking forward to which one I’ll draw out first! What will you be reading this month? Let me know in the comments below! And as always, God bless y’all and have a wonderful rest of the week!

Synopses taken from Goodreads.