February Reading Wrap-up

February is Black History Month, and while I try to read diversely year round, I wanted to intentionally prioritize books by Black authors this month. I didn’t get through as many books as I hoped, but such is life. I’m really happy with the books I did get through and will be ranking them below. But first, stats:

Books read: 4
Reading formats: 2 digital, 1 audio, 1 physical
Pages read: 1,642
Hours listened to: 11 hours and 41 minutes
Average rating:  4 deer-stars

4. The Throne of Broken Gods by Amber V. Nicole

I gotta say, I was disappointed with this one, and I feel like that’s a hot take. I’m never against a long book, but it has to justify its length, and I don’t think this one did. The same formula was followed for what felt like 400 pages, and it started to drag for me. Once the plot finally began to shift, I found myself much more engaged.

I will finish the series, but I’m not necessarily eager to pick up book three anytime soon.

As always, Samkiel has my heart.

 3. Order of Swans by Jude Deveraux

I stumbled upon this book while scrolling through Hoopla looking for something to listen to while cleaning. The cover intrigued me. The two swans were very pretty and captivating, and I realized I hadn’t read many, if any, books centered around swans before, which pulled me in even more.

The story follows a young woman who studies folklore and fairytales and ends up traveling to a different planet where none of the fairytales she knows on Earth exist. Instead, the stories she recognizes are actively unfolding there, and she may be the only one who can stop them from coming true. Kaley also has a secret purpose on this planet that only one person knows, and she’s desperate to uncover it.

I really enjoyed my time listening to this book. It was fun and easy to get swept up in. I actually wanted to pick up the second book right away, but I decided to focus on other reads for the month. I’ll definitely be finishing this duology in March!

(Jude Deveraux isn’t a Black author, but I started this book at the end of January and finished it on February 1.)

 2. Legendborn by Tracy Deonn

This was a highly anticipated read for me. It’s very well-loved on BookTok, and now I completely understand why. I was immediately hooked from the prologue.

I really enjoyed the story, but I can’t lie, I was confused at times. I knew going in that this was a King Arthur–inspired story, but I quickly realized my knowledge of that legend was… very limited. There was a lot to take in, and at times I felt like I was trying to piece everything together while still keeping up with the plot. I avoided Googling anything because I was worried about spoilers.

Even with that confusion, I had a great time reading this and will definitely be continuing the series.

1. The Neighbor Favor by Kristina Forest

What an unexpectedly great read this was! I love New York City, which is where the book is set, and I felt like I could relate to the main character in a lot of ways. I really enjoyed the direction the story took, and the romance was cute, soft, and genuinely swoon-worthy.

Overall, this was just such a fun and satisfying reading experience. It’s part of a series of interconnected standalones, but I don’t think I’ll be continuing with the other sisters’ books. Still, this one was a standout for me and easily my favorite read of the month.

If you’d like to support The Reading Deer, I’ve included links where you can purchase the books at no extra charge to you.