just finished: Wreck the Halls, and I did not see that ending coming. I mean, the end ending I did, but there was a point earlier in the ending that I did not. If that makes sense? Anyway, it was a delightful, super spicy holiday rom com with lots of feelings and surprises and really interesting characters. There’s still time before Christmas to pick this one up for yourself or for a gift.

up next: I’m really not sure. With the craziness of the holiday season and the work deadlines, I will be squeaking by for another week or two. But I did start listening to a Christmas classic, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, which I remember reading when I was a kid. Gotta love those Herdmans!

And I feel very lucky to have gotten some early bookish Christmas presents, of my very favorite kind: cookbooks! This is one, the latest from the very talented Italian chef Lidia Bastianich. I am so looking forward to diving in and reading, cooking, and eating.

As 2023 winds down and we get geared up for the books of 2024, I just want to say thank you to all of you who pay attention my reviews, either here or on Goodreads or on Amazon. Please keep reading good books. Support writers, support publishers, drink in the words, and let yourself live a thousand lives through the pages of a good book. Or a bad book. Or a moderately adequate book. Just keep reading.