2025 Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge

 

 I loved participating in this challenge last year so I'll be continuing participation in The Alphabet Soup challenge hosted by Dollycas in 2025.

You can sign up and find all of the info on Dollycas' blog post here.  Like last year I'll be posting updates as I finish titles.  I always try to plan out my books in advance, but if the Popsugar and Book Riot reading challenges have taught me anything, it is that I almost never read what is on the plan.  Anything with a link has a review posted, so feel free to check out my thoughts.

Link to my google spreadsheet or join me on Storygraph

Books Read

Letter	Title	Author
A	Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear	Seanan McGuire
B	Breath of the Dragon	Shannon Lee & Fonda Lee
C	The Crescent Moon Tearoom	Stacy Sivinski
D	A Dragon of Black Glass	James Rollins
E	Elevation	Stephen King
F	Freaking Romance vol 2	Snailords
G	Get Lost with You	Sophie Sullivan
H	Heartwood	Amity Gaige
I	In the Veins of Drowning	Katie Cassidy
J	Journey to the Center of the Earth	Jules Verne
K	The Kiss Lottery	Ilsa Madden-Mills
L	Lightfall	Ed Crocker
M	The Merger	Adriana Locke
N	Not for the Faint of Heart	Lex Croucher
O	Our Infinite Fates	Laura Stevens
P	The Prince Without Sorrow	Maithree Wijesekara
Q	The Queens of Crime	Marie Benedict
R	Rebel Witch	Kristen Ciccarelli
S	Spied	JM Miller
T	Transmentation Transience	Darkly Lem
U	Under the Same Stars	Libba Bray
V	The Vine Witch	Luanne G. Smith
W	Wash Day Diaries	Jamila Rowser
X	Xolo	Donna Barbara Higuera
Y	Yellowface	R.F. Kuang
Z	Zombie Apocalypse Running Club	Carrie Mac

Monthly Mini Challenges

Month	Prompt	Title	Author
January	You are dropped on a deserted island for 7 days with water, flint to make a fire, and a tarp. You are allowed to bring 3 personal items. Choose your items and then find one of those items in the title of a book and read it to complete the challenge.
February	Read a book with a word in the title from a Taylor Swift song title.	The Kiss Lottery	Ilsa Madden-Mills
March	read a book with UP - DOWN - HIGH or LOW in the title.	Coming Up Roses	Staci Hart
April	read a book with MURDER in the title. Homicide- Death - Kill are acceptable too	Board to Death	CJ Connor
May	a book with something SWEET in the title	Sweet Escape	Meredith Wild and Jillian Liota
June	read a book with a PREPOSITION in the title	A Fate Forged in Fire	Hazel McBride
July	Read a book with 7 or more works in the title	The World's Greatest Detective and Her Just Okay Assistant	Liza Tully
August	read a book with a COLOR in the title	Hemlock & Silver	T. Kingfisher
September	read a book with a person, place, or thing you would find in or at a school in the title	An Introvert's Guide to Life and Love	Lauren Appelbaum
October	read a book with something or someone you would find in a Church or Cemetery in the title	The River Has Roots	Amal El-Mohtar
November	read a book with the word Wonderful or a synonym of Wonderful it the title
December	Read a Book with something Christmassy in the title

2025 Alphabet Soup – Author Edition Reading Challenge

   

I participated in this challenge last year and it was really fun to see how many of the books I read fit into the challenges.

You can sign up and find all of the info on Dollycas' blog post here.  

I'll be posting updates as I finish titles.  I always try to plan out my books in advance, but if the Popsugar and Book Riot reading challenges have taught me anything, it is that I almost never read what is on the plan.  Anything with a link has a review posted, so feel free to check out my thoughts.

Books Read

Letter	Title	Author
A	The Fourth Consort	Edward Ashton
B	Let's Call a Truce	Amy Buchanan
C	Babylonia	Costanza Cosati
D	The Best Medicine	Krysta Dearson
E	The River Has Roots	Amal El-Mohtar
F	The Great Gatsby	F. Scott Fitzgerald
G	Tequila Wars	Ted Genoways
H	An Academy for Liars	Alexis Henderson
I	Attack on Titan Volume 21	Hajime Isayame
J	How Long 'til Black Future Month?	N.K. Jemisin
K	Penitence	Kristin Koval
L	The Quarry Girls	Jess Lourey
M	The Soccer of Success: How the Beautiful Game Can Help You Achieve Goals in Business	Ciarán McArdle
N	The Man Made of Smoke	Alex North
O	A Song for You and I	K. O'Neill
P	The Deathly Grimm	Kathryn Purdie
Q	The Briar Club	Kate Quinn
R	Arch-Conspirator	Veronica Roth
S	This Wild Heart	Karla Sorensen
T	The Arrival	Shaun Tan
U	House of Crows Collection	Lisa Unger
V	Space Opera	Catherynne M. Valente
W	A Language of Dragons	SF Williamson
X	Heavenly Tyrant	Xiran Jay Zhao
Y	Onyx Storm	Rebecca Yarros
Z	The Shadow of the Wind	Carlos Ruiz Zafón

2025 Netgalley and Edelweiss Reading Challenge

 

I participated in this challenge in 2023 and 2024 and plan to do it again in 2025.  It is being hosted by Socrates Book Reviews.  I was able to review 94 books in 2024 between Netgalley and Edelweiss and this challenge is always great way to keep myself accountable and on top of reviews.

I currently have 40 outstanding ARCs on my TBR right now, 14 of those are 2025 releases.  

I'm going to shoot for Platinum again this year.  I haven't been able to get to 100 Netgalley reviews in a year quite yet.  I do review for other sources but they aren't all on Netgalley and Edelweiss.

I'll link my reviews below as I post.  To keep myself accountable, I'll be posting my tentative TBR based on release dates and approvals as the year goes on.

January - Link up to see what everyone else read and reviewed

1. A Monsoon Rising by Thea Guanzon (12/10/24)
2. Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear by Seanan McGuire (1/7/24)
3. Breath of the Dragon by Shannon Lee and Fonda Lee (1/7/25)
4. Let's Call a Truce by Amy Buchanan (1/14/25)
5. Vow of the Shadow King by Sylvia Mercedes (1/14/25)
6. Not for the Faint of Heart by Lex Croucher (11/26/24)
7. A Language of Dragons by S.F. Williamson (1/7/25)
8. Babylonia by Costanza Casati (1/14/25)
9. An Academy for Liars by Alexis Henderson (9/17/24)
10. The Soccer of Success by Ciaran McArdle (1/28/25)
11. Lightfall by Ed Crocker (1/14/25)
12. Penitence by Kristin Koval (1/28/25)
13. Under the Same Stars by Libba Bray (2/4/25)

February Link up to see what everyone else read and reviewed

1. The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict (2/11/25)
2. The Kiss Lottery by Ilsa Madden-Mills (2/11/25)
3. Get Lost With You by Sophie Sullivan (2/11/25)
4. Servant of Earth by Sarah Hawley (11/12/24)
5. A Dragon of Black Glass by James Rollins (2/18/25)
6. The Fourth Consort by Edward Ashton (2/25/25)
7. Our Infinite Fates by Laura Steven (3/4/5)
8. Heart of the Shadow King by Sylvia Mercedes (2/25/25)

March Link up to see what everyone else read and reviewed

1. Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy (3/4/25)
2. The Knight and the Butcherbird by Alix E. Harrow (3/11/25)
3. Transmentation Transience by Darkly Lem (3/18/25)
4. The Deathly Grimm by Kathryn Purdie (3/25/25)
5. The Prince Without Sorrow by Maithree Wijesekara (3/18/25)
6. A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett (4/1/25)

April Link up to see what everyone else read and reviewed

1. Where Shadows Meet by Patrice Caldwell (4/1/25)
2. The Quarry Girls by Jess Lourey (11/1/22)
3. Their Monstrous Hearts by Yigit Turhan (4/8/25)
4. Heartwood by Amity Gage (4/1/25)
5. Dream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (3/4/25)
6. The Notorious Virtues by Alwyn Hamilton (4/1/25)
7. Bat Eater and other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee Baker (4/29/25)

May Link up to see what everyone else read and reviewed

1. My Grandma and Grandpa Rock! by Pat Benetar and Neil Giraldo (9/9/25)
2. Big Dumb Eyes by Nate Bargatze (5/6/25)
3. Tequila Wars by Ted Genoways (5/6/25)
4. The Keeper of Enchanted Rooms by Charlie N. Holmberg (11/1/22)
5. The Man Made of Smoke by Alex North (5/13/25)
6. A Quantum Love Story by Mike Chen (1/30/24)
7. Lessons in Heartbreak by Karla Sorensen (5/20/25)
8. Hidden Nature by Nora Roberts (5/27/25)

June Link up to see what everyone else read and reviewed

1. A Fate Forged in Fire by Hazel McBride (5/27/25)
2. Sunshine and Spice by Aurora Palit (9/10/24)
3. The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark (6/3/25)
4. Cosmic Love at the Multiverse Hair Salon by Annie Mare (6/3/25)
5. Pretty Good Science Jokes by Steve Mockus (8/26/25)

July Link up to see what everyone else read and reviewed

1. An Irish Summer by Alexandra Paige (7/1/25)
2. A Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna (7/15/25)
3. The Code for Love by Anne Marsh (7/29/25)
4. Of Flame and Fury by Mikayla Bridge (7/15/25)
5. In the Veins of Drowning by Kalie Cassidy (7/15/25)
6. The Golden Age of Magic by Luanne G. Smith (7/1/25)
7. The Library at Hellebore by Cassandra Khaw (7/22/25)
8. Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz (
9. The World's Greatest Detective and Her Just Okay Assistant by Liza Tully (7/8/25)

August Link up to see what everyone else read and reviewed

1. Angel Down by Daniel Kraus 7/29/25
2. The Locked Ward by Sarah Pekkanen (8/5/25)
3. The Witch's Orchard by Archer Sullivan (8/12/25)
4. Mistress of Bones by Maria Z. Medina (8/5/25)
5. Woven from Clay by Jenny Birch (8/12/25)
6. Hemlock & Silver by T. Kingfisher (8/19/25)
7. Break Me Down by Anna Downes (8/19/25)
8. The Executioners Three by Susan Dennard (8/26/25)

September Link up to see what everyone else read and reviewed

1. Sisters in the Wind by Angeline Boulley (9/2/25)
2. The Summer War by Naomi Novik (9/16/25)
3. To Clutch a Razor by Veronica Roth (9/16/25)
4. The Maiden and her Monster by Maddie Martinez (9/9/25)
5. An Introvert's Guide to Life and Love by Lauren Applebaum (9/16/25)
6. The Austen Affair by Madeline Bell (9/16/25)
7. Wild Reverence by Rebecca Ross (9/2/25)

October Link up to see what everyone else read and reviewed

1. What Stalks the Deep by T. Kingfisher (9/30/25)
2. A Steeping of Blood by Hafsah Faizal (9/23/25)
3. Daedalus is Dead by Seamus Sullivan (9/30/25)
4. The Irish Goodbye by Heather Aimee O'Neill (9/30/25)
5. Mirage City by Lev AC Rosen (10/7/25)
6. The Hitchhikers by Chevy Stevens (10/7/25)
7. The Witching Moon Manor by Stacy Sivinski (10/7/25)
8. The Genius Bat by Yossi Yovel (10/7/25)
9. Red City by Marie Lu (10/14/25)
10. The Keeper of Magical Things by Julie Leong (10/14/25)
11. Same by Hannah Rosenberg (10/21/25)
12. The Crimson Throne by Sara Raasch and Beth Revis (10/7/25)

November Link up to see what everyone else read and reviewed

1. Fallen City by Adrienne Young (11/4/25)
2. Witchlight (sample) by Susan Dennard (11/4/25) 
3. Brigands & Breadknives by Travis Baldree (11/11/25)
4. Break Wide the Sea by Sara Holland (11/11/25)
5. Gemini: Stepping Stone to the Moon, the Untold Story by Jeffery Kluger (11/11/25)
6. Single Dad Dilemma by Karla Sorensen (11/18/25)
7. The Bookshop Below by Georgia Summers (11/18/25)
8. I Know I Should Exercise, But...: 44 Reasons We Don't Move and How to Get Over Them by Diana Hill and Katy  Bowman
9. The Moorwitch by Jessica Khoury

December  Link up to see what everyone else read and reviewed

1. Snake-Eater by T. Kingfisher (12/1/25)
2. Tailored Realities by Brandon Sanderson (12/9/25)
3. The Twin Paradox by Charles Wachter (8/23/20)
4. Through the Gates of Garnet and Gold by Seanan McGuire (1/6/26)
5. The Swan's Daughter by Roshani Chokshi (1/6/26)

12/26/25 Update:

I've successfully reviewed all of my 2025 Netgalley ARCs!!! I don't think I've ever done that before.  I even caught up on a few backlog items and got in one for next year.  I might be able to squeeze in one more 2026 ARC before the end of the year but I'm reading and listening to non-ARCs right now for other reading challenge prompts.

It looks like I'm at 95 Netgalley titles for 2025, but some of the books I reviewed were for both the ARC and ALC version so I posted over 100 actual reviews on Netgalley.  

Review: The Jewel of the Isle by Kerry Rea

The Jewel of the Isle by Kerry Rea
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was provided an ARC of this book via Netgalley and the Berkley Besties program.

Emily is not an outdoorsy person.  She loves her creature comforts, but her father was an adventurer at heart and loved exploring.  He had a bucket list of places to visit, and he wanted his daughters to experience them with him.  Life and anxiety got in the way, but his untimely passing has Emily determined to visit some of the places he wanted to see and face some of her fears.  Ryder is also not and outdoors expert, he is more of the behind the scenes marketing guy.  He co-owned an adventure company with his beloved older brother Caleb, but when he was left to run the business alone after a horrible accident Ryder is crippled by his grief and the business is failing.  In an attempt to save Caleb's beloved boat from being sold, Ryder takes on Emily as a client and agrees to guide her through Isle Royale National Park, but it quickly becomes apparent that they both don't have a clue what they are doing.  They also get caught up in an Indiana Jones type of archaeologist jewel hunt and murder situation that leaves them running through the park for their lives.  Armed with a compass they can barely use and some protein bars, they have to learn to work together to escape with their lives.

This had some really  great discussions about anxiety, paranoia, grief, guilt, and loss of a loved one.  I thought the author captured the adventure and action parts well.  There were some humorous moments threaded throughout the book, but given how often our main characters were stumbling around with their lack of outdoorsmanship and the frequent mention of glow-in-the-dark toilet paper (I didn't know that existed and I've been tent camping all my life), I expected more of a laugh out loud book from start to finish.  I wanted a bit more comedy given all of the ridiculous situations our characters are put in in this romcom.  

Overall this was a fun book.  If you like opposites attract, adventure style romances with a bit of comedy, give this a go.  

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Review: Her Knight at the Museum by Bryn Donovan

Her Knight at the Museum by Bryn Donovan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was provided an ARC of this book via Netgalley and the Berkley Besties program, all opinions are my own.

This was a fun romcom with a historical twist. It was a bit cheesy at times, but it was perfect for this time of year when everything is chaotic around the holidays and in our house it is the height of basketball season so it is extra busy. This has great humor, some decent spice, and fun characters.

This follows Emily, a art conservator who is restoring a medieval statue. She gets a vibe from the statue that there is more to his story than just the rock that he is made of. When she starts hearing voices and having dreams about the knight, things start to get a little strange. Sir Griffin de Beauford was cursed into the statue Emily is restoring several centuries ago. He can see and hear what is going on around him, and he can visit his owners in their dreams. For some reason he can connect with Emily while she is awake as well. Emily takes a chance to break the curse while working on Griffin's statue, and to her surprise it works making her prime suspect #1 in an art heist investigation. She can't exactly explain what happened without looking crazy. She has to help her knight in shining armor navigate current day Chicago and everything that has changed since he was in the flesh last. He learns quickly and most people find his old fashioned speech and behavior charming.

I enjoyed getting to know Griffin and Emily. They don't jump right into a relationship, despite a very spicy scene in the beginning. They do eventually develop a romantic relationship, and more spicy scenes ensue. Griffin doesn't understand much about the current times and there are some misunderstandings, which adds to the comedy of the book. Emily is patient and understanding with him, it helps that she appreciates the history of his time due to her knowledge of art. Emily's lack of stress about being the suspect of the art theft was a bit unbelievable, so there is a bit of suspension of disbelief needed for part of the plot, but that's also what adds to the comedy aspect of the plot and what makes this book so fun. I mean you have a cursed statue come to life, so there are going to be some unbelievable things going on. I also enjoyed getting to hang out in Chicago with our characters, I haven't been there before other than inside the airport, but I thought the author did a good job describing the city.

Overall, I thought this was a really fun, cozy book. If you are in the mood for a romcom with a little bit of history give this one a chance.

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RELEASE BLITZ: Between Now and Forever by Adriana Locke

 

Between Now and Forever by Adriana Locke is now live! 

Neighbors to lovers can be a risky proposition in this funny, sexy, and swoony romantic comedy between a single mother and the grumpy man next door by USA Today bestselling author Adriana Locke.

When Gabrielle Solomon falls, she falls hard. Even if that means literally toppling over a porch railing in nothing but a flimsy towel—right in front of her sexy new neighbor.

Jay Stetson is 100 percent hero material with those arms, that chest, and his deliciously oh-so-sexy smirk. The chiseled hunk in flannel has an irresistible off-limits attitude while plucking Gabrielle out of the bushes and saving her from a snake. Unfortunately, he’s not indulging in what Gabrielle is offering—not with his emotional train wreck of a past.

Just neighbors. Just friends. Or so he says.

Secretly, he’s smitten with the single, fierce mama bear of two who plays Miss Fix-It at the house next door. He doesn’t even really mind the noise or the chaos her young sons cause. What he does mind is how his lonely heart races when looking into her emerald-colored eyes.

Can Jay let his painful memories go, or will he let the woman of his dreams slip between his fingers?

  Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3NjPdPn

Amazon Worldwide: https://mybook.to/BNandF

     

Audible: https://bit.ly/4fZY5G7

Narrated by: Rachel Vivette & Oliver Clarke

Add to Goodreads: https://bit.ly/4eENe4k

Meet Adriana

USA Today and Amazon Charts Bestselling author, Adriana Locke, writes contemporary romances about the two things she knows best—big families and small towns. Her stories are about ordinary people finding extraordinary love with the perfect combination of heart, heat, and humor.

She loves connecting with readers, fall weather, football, reading alpha heroes, everything pumpkin, and pretending to garden.

Hailing from a tiny town in the Midwest, Adriana spends her free time with her high school sweetheart (who she married over twenty years ago) and their four sons (who truly are her best work). Her kitchen may be a perpetual disaster, and if all else fails, there is always pizza.

 

Connect with Adriana 

Website: www.adrianalocke.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8379774.Adriana_Locke

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Adriana-Locke/author/B00NPBY8FE/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authoradrianalocke

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/booksbyadrianalocke

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authoradrianalocke

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/authoralocke

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@adrianalockewrites 

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/adriana-locke

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/authoradrianalo

Other: https://www.youtube.com/adrianalocke

Verve: https://ververomance.com/app/adrianalocke

Review: Between Now and Forever by Adriana Locke

Between Now and Forever by Adriana Locke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was provided  both an ARC an ALC of this book via the author and Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

This is a complete standalone and doesn't connect with any of Adriana's prior series.  If you are a fan of hers you know she is well known for her interconnected family series.  She also has some excellent standalones, and this one is amazing!  I wouldn't be surprised if we get spinoffs from this one for the friends in the future.

This follows single mom Gabrielle, who has just moved back to her hometown from Boston.  Her new neighbor is a grumpy carpenter, but he is nice to look at.  They have an interesting first meeting, and he does not want to get involved.  Since Gabrielle likes to do DIY projects and her house needs some TLC, and Jay just happens to fix houses for a living, he finds himself offering to help her out more often than he probably should.  They quickly develop and attraction to one another, and he quickly becomes invested in the lives of her two boys.

Both Jay and Gabrielle have some hang ups when it comes to relationships, and neither one of them want to hurt the two boys who are still grieving the loss of their dad and trying to settle in their new town.  Jay and Gabrielle fall for each other fairly quickly, but we get alot of sweet moments between the two of them and alot of good conversations about hard topics like relationships, family, grief, and more in the short time they get to know each other.  Gabrielle also has some great friends in her corner who are hilarious and she is a wonderful mom who like all moms is asking if she is doing the right thing or did she just screw up royally.  I really enjoyed Jay's interactions with Dylan and Carter, the sons, they were genuine and realistic.  This is on the shorter side, so if you are looking for a grumpy sunshine romcom that you can get through pretty quickly this is a great one to pick up.

The narrators were excellent.  They both did great handling the various characters within their chapters and I really enjoyed how they brought Gabrielle and Jay to life.  There are some really emotional scenes and some great comedic scenes and I thought they both did a good job with the emotional side of the narration.

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