Wow, January is finally over! Does anyone else ever feel like it lasts 84 years? So I didn’t finish or get to all of the books I had set out to read last month, which is fine, but I decided I’m still going to make a TBR to at least talk about the books I’m interested in reading and hopefully will get to.

As February is also Black History Month, I also want to be intentional with my choices and read books by black authors. This choice isn’t going to start and stop in February, though, as I will continue to read books by black authors throughout the year and beyond. This will continue for other months in which heritages and identities are recognized, as I want to continue to diversify my reading and broaden my horizons.

The Sword of Kaigen by M.L. Wang – This book is one from my TBR last month and is the book I’m currently reading, so I want to finish it before moving on to another book. I’m only about 80 pages into it, but it’s an interesting read so far! I’m excited to see where it goes.

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn – This was another book on my TBR last month, but as I didn’t get to it, I’m slotting it over into February. This book is an Arthurian retelling, which I’ve never read about before, and so I’m definitely intrigued to read about it and see how I like it.

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler – Now I’ve heard amazing things about Butler for a long time, but I’ve never picked up one of her books before. This one takes place in 2024, and it’s about climate change and the effects of how economic strife can be so harmful to everyone and everything around it.

The Fifth Season by N.K. Jeminsin – This start to a fantasy trilogy has been on my shelf for years (well, the whole trilogy) and I haven’t started it, BUT I’m going to rectify that this year and actually do it! It’s a critically acclaimed and award winning book, so I’m a bit intimidated by that, however I hear fantastic things about it. Just reading the synopsis alone has me dying for more, so I can’t wait to get to this.

The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed – I’m trying to bring in more contemporary reads into my life, as most of my focus is on fantasy, so I figured this would be a good one to add! It centers a young black girl in high school and protesting and riots after officers from the LAPD are acquitted after beating a black man half to death. It sounds very hard hitting, and very important, too.

Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan – I’ve seen this pop up around TikTok a lot lately, and after reading the synopsis (and wanting more contemporary in my reading), I think this would be a fun, dramatic, and spicy read. It’s like a second chance romance between a once husband and wife pair, so I’m definitely interested to see how it plays out.

---

Now, will I get to all of these books? I hope so honestly. Trying to get back into reading after the hard time I’ve had with it for years is already a challenge, and I’m further challenging myself by listing all of these books that I’m interested in as part of my TBR. I do hope to get to all of them, though, but if I don’t I’ll probably do the same thing as last time and push one or two I’m interested in into the next month.

What’re you reading currently or planning to read this month? Any recommendations you have that you think I might like to try out for myself? Let me know!