Something I learned about myself this month is that my preferences trend towards books that have a solid supporting cast and are surrounded by a world that interests me. This is something that absolutely drives my interests—I read a lot of books where I really enjoyed the characterization or the chemistry between the leads, but find myself wishing for more worldbuilding or more detail on a throwaway line about a character's background.
With that in mind, here are my top reads from this month, with links to more in-depth reviews on Goodreads!
The Secret is the third installment in Archer's "Love in O'Leary" series, and it really filled several niches for me: my perpetual longing for secret relationship/relationship reveal stories and my love of more in-depth worldbuilding. The interlinked community with multiple couples who each get a book is a staple in the romance genre, and in this series I really liked how the timelines overlap so you get a sense of what the supporting cast of each story is thinking about what happens in the other stories. It really matches the small-town setting and the cozy vibes of the series. Still, this one was my favorite for the relationship dynamic and the way family dynamics tied into that.
Season's Change follows two hockey players on the same team who begin as reluctant roommates, then friends, and then become more in a bi awakening story. This is another one that really felt anchored in the world it was set in. Both main characters go through struggles with their families and their pasts, and while they provide each other comfort, they also have things they need to overcome individually. The rest of the team they were on also felt like real characters who were part of the story. There was a lot of angst and pining, and I could have done with a slightly longer end to bask in the resolution, but it was overall a great read and the relationship between Olly and Benji was wonderful to read about, both as a friendship and then later as more.
The link leads to the first book in the series, but I loved the whole thing. This is a five-part series with a second series following a different character that has just begun, and the first five books all follow the same characters: Cooper and Park. Cooper is an FBI agent working on werewolf-related cases, Park is a werewolf with insight into the community. They meet solving a missing person's case and become partners. What I really love about this series is...well, a lot of things. The later parts really explore Cooper and Park in an established relationship and how they work at it to stay a solid couple and cross different milestones as a couple, which I adore. Romance often only covers the get-together, not the being together, and this has some great sections especially about Cooper learning what it means to be open with someone. The mysteries are all really interesting and well-done, and the werewolf aspects are uncovered slowly since we read through Cooper's eyes as an outsider who is slowly learning more. Sometimes I did wish Park would tell him more, but on the whole, I highly recommend this entire series.
I feel like I have already talked about this one WAY too much, but I did read it in January and it has stuck with me so much. Strong worldbuilding, great characters, heavy angst leading to a wonderful resolution. Something I really like is that the book isn't just over the second the two leads reconcile but rather it follows their relationship rebuild and also them both tackling the outside issues that led to them falling apart. Interesting and well-done ace representation...I could go on. This one is just really good.
Honorable mentions to:
If you're reading for an ace awakening and a strong couple, I highly recommend - this was one where the only thing missing for me was more about the world around them and the couple's family background, which as I said above is a personal preference.
This entire series is very low angst, high hijinks. It's cute and sexy and a lot of fun to read. This was my favorite (to be fair I think the third one has the strongest story, but the relationship dynamic of himbo 4 himbo really captured me.
Jax Calder's Sporting Series is about rugby players falling in love. It's set in New Zealand, which is great—I love getting settings that aren't American. All three books in the series are highly enjoyable and feature some of the following: good minor characters, sweet portrayals of single parents, great chemistry between leads. This was my favorite because I love a good pining story.
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