With the onset of a new year, our minds naturally seem to turn to thoughts of clean slates, fresh starts, and new beginnings. We contemplate what we want to accomplish in the next 365 days and what mini steps we need to follow to get us there. Not surprisingly, today's prompt for Top Ten Tuesday (hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl) is along these same lines: Top Ten Bookish Goals for 2025. 

Although I love to make ambitious goals and resolutions every year, I've actually made very few bookish ones for 2025. I'm pretty happy with how I'm reading and blogging right now, so I mostly want to keep doing what I'm doing. I couldn't come up with ten goals, but I did think of a few.

1. Read at least 215 books. I've read 200+ books for the past several years and in 2024, I read 230, so I upped my Goodreads Reading Challenge goal from my usual 200 to 215. Shouldn't be too hard to reach.

2. Review more books on my blog. Since I've only posted a handful of reviews here at BBB over the past couple years, this one won't be difficult to improve! Ha ha. I do review every book I read on Goodreads as soon as I finish it, but I also want to post longer, more in-depth reviews on my blog like I used to. 

3. Read more of the physical books I already own. I have hundreds of physical books and my bookshelves are already double and triple-stacked. I need to read more of my own books and slow down on buying more. Easier said than done.

4. Enjoy my reading challenges and finish them if I can. I've taken on a bunch of reading challenges for 2025. Although I never take them too seriously, I do enjoy the feeling of accomplishment I get when I complete them. We'll see how I do this year. So far, so good.

5. Try to read more clean, uplifting books. I tend to be drawn to darker books, but so much heaviness in my reading has started to feel weighty on my mood and soul. I'm not going to give up my murder mysteries, but I would like to focus more this year on the genre's lighter side—cozy mysteries, historical mysteries, classic mysteries, light-hearted mysteries, etc. I'll also be on the lookout for reads that are lighter and less depressing than my usual fare. Any recommendations?

That's about all I can come up with for this list. How about you? What are your bookish goals for the new year? I'd truly love to know. Leave me a comment on this post and I will gladly return the favor on your blog.

Even though Isabel in Bloom by Mae Respicio is more of a Spring/Summer read than a Fall/Winter one, I loved the infusion of sunshine it gave my end-of-the-year reading. Its hopeful, life-affirming message is uplifting no matter what the season! 

Written in verse, this middle-grade novel concerns a 12-year-old girl from the Philippines who has just moved to California to live with her mother. She has been raised by her grandparents for most of her life while her single mother worked in the U.S., visiting her native country only occasionally. Isabel is nervous not only about relocating to a foreign place, but also about living with a woman she barely knows. In the Philippines, she has her friends, her beloved grandparents, the lush garden she helps care for, and the sights, sounds, and tastes she's used to. What is there for her in America? 

Just as Isabel feared, she feels like a complete outsider in San Francisco. When she discovers a neglected garden at her school, though, she sees a glimmer of hope. Could resurrecting the Garden Club be the key to finding belonging in her strange new life? Or will her efforts be shut down before she—and the garden—really gets the chance to blossom?

Isabel in Bloom addresses some serious issues, including Asian hate, but overall, it's a sweet, wholesome novel with a happy ending (that comes too easily, but still...). It provided a perfect palate cleanser for me after a series of darker reads. Isabel is a sympathetic character. Even if we've never had to start over in a new place, all of us have been the "new kid" in one situation or another. It's easy to empathize with Isabel as she navigates life in a foreign environment, tackles homesickness, and learns to trust a parent she hardly knows. I loved watching our heroine use her unique talents and skills to not just find belonging for herself but also to inspire her classmates to help others in their community. Her story is inspiring, teaching valuable lessons about teamwork, speaking up about things that are important, the power of the natural world to bring people together, service to others, etc. Because I lived in the Philippines briefly as a teenager and it still holds a special place in my heart, my favorite part of Isabel in Bloom is the descriptions of life in that country. Reading about the smell of sampaguita flowers, the taste of bibingka cakes, the mano po gesture used to show respect to the elderly, and more brought back happy memories of things I'd almost forgotten. For all these reasons, I very much enjoyed this nostalgic, edifying read.

(Readalikes: Reminds me a bit of Blackbird Fly by Erin Estrada Kelly and New From Here by Kelly Yang)

To the FTC, with love: I received a finished copy of Isabel in Bloom from Cindy over at Kiss the Book, who got it free from an American Library Association conference. Thank you!

Happy New Year! I hope 2025 is off to a good start for everyone. My first week of the year has mostly been spent in packing away Christmas decorations, cleaning my house, and trying to get myself organized for the year to come. The beginning of a new year always feels like a fresh start full of possibilities. We'll see what the year brings.

The first TTT prompt of the year is all about new releases we're excited about: Top Ten Most Anticipated Books Releasing in the First Half of 2025. There are a lot of great-looking books coming out and, honestly, I could have done a whole list of just those coming out in January. Or just sequels. I decided to leave out the sequels and choose a variety of titles I haven't talked about before that have been or will be released between January and May.

As always, Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the lovely Jana over at That Artsy Reader Girl.

1. Radiant by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson (published January 7)—Set in 1963, this middle-grade verse novel is about a young Black girl who's navigating life in a predominantly white Pennsylvania community. Amid Beatlemania, race riots, and the assassination of JFK, she struggles to find herself and her place in a confusing, chaotic world.

2. Freeze by Chris Priestley (available January 14)—Another middle-grade title, this one is a spooky tale about a girl whose class is given the assignment to write shivery stories with a winter theme. At first, it's fun to hear everyone's creepy ideas read aloud, but when Maya realizes that she features in all of them, she starts to feel a little...uneasy. As snow piles up outside the school, it becomes increasingly obvious that she and her classmates are going to be trapped inside for the forseeable future. Why does it suddenly seem like she's the star of a terrifying horror flick?

3. Mask of the Deer Woman by Laurie L. Dove (available January 21)—Carrie Starr, formerly a Chicago detective, fell apart after her daughter was murdered. In search of purpose, she accepts a job as the tribal marshal on the reservation where her father was raised. An unnerving amount of young women have disappeared from the rez and Carrie is tasked with finding the latest one. The investigation is taking its toll on the still-fragile detective, especially when she sees a mythological creature she recognizes from her father's fantastical tales. Either she's going crazy or something truly unimaginable is happening in her new home.

4. The Crash by Freida McFadden (available January 28)—All the mystery/thriller lovers I know seem to be raving about McFadden's books. I haven't tried her out yet, but her upcoming novel definitely sounds intriguing. The story revolves around a woman who is eight months pregnant and desperate to start a new life. She's driving to Maine to stay with her brother while she figures things out when she's trapped by a surprise blizzard. When a couple offers her a place to stay while she rides out the storm, she thinks she's saved. Then, things take a dangerous turn that will put both her life and that of her unborn child at grave risk.

5. The Frozen People by Elly Griffiths (available February 13)—The first in a new series, this novel stars police officer Ali Dawson, who works on cases so cold, they're practically frozen. Unbeknownst to most, Ali's team is able to travel back in time to investigate old mysteries. When Ali is tasked with clearing the name of an eccentric old man in Victorian England, she finds herself investigating a woman's murder. Things get complicated when Ali gets stuck in the 1850s with no way to get home.

6. Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister (available February 25)—McAllister's newest mystery/thriller has a simple, but very intriguing premise. A literary agent wakes up on the morning she's supposed to return to work after months of maternity leave only to find her husband gone, with only a cryptic note left in his place. Breaking news informs her that her missing spouse is involved in an escalating hostage situation—as the gunman.

7. The Lost Passenger by Frances Quinn (available February 27)—This historical novel is about a wealthy English woman trapped in a loveless marriage, who is pushed into letting her young son be raised mostly by a nanny. When she is gifted tickets to sail to America onboard the Titanic, she jumps at the chance to get away with her son. The ship's sinking gives her a chance to shed her identity, fleeing a life she doesn't want. With nothing to her name but another woman's identity papers, can she survive on the streets of New York City? What will she do when someone threatens to expose her secret to her husband in England?

8. The Filling Station by Vanessa Miller (available March 11)—In the 1920s, there are few places Black Americans can safely stop to gas up while traveling. The Threatt Filling Station is one of them. It's not just a place to fill up on fuel, but a place to gather for support, community, and strength. After the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, it's where two sisters find refuge. What they really need is the courage to return to their hometown and rebuild their lives. Can they find what they need at the filling station?

9. Rebellion 1776 by Laurie Halse Anderson (available April 1)—Anderson's newest is a middle-grade historical novel centering around Elspeth Culpepper, a 13-year-old who's desperate to avoid being sent to an orphanage after her father disappears. Alone and scared, the young woman must deal with not just the Siege of Boston but also a smallpox outbreak that has the city in a panic. Can Elspeth safely navigate the chaos to find her missing father?

10. The River Knows Your Name by Kelly Mustian (available April 1)—I loved Mustian's debut novel, The Girls in the Stilt House, so I'm eager to read her second book. It concerns 42-year-old Nell, who was raised, along with her younger sister, by a reclusive mother who never spoke about her past. Nell promised her sister she wouldn't confront their mother about the birth certificate they found—the one that identifies a different woman as Evie's mother—but Nell can't shake the disturbing memories that still linger in her memory that hint at long-buried secrets and dangerous lies. 

11. Death in the Cards by Mia P. Manansala (available May 13)—Manansala's YA debut, this mystery stars Danika Dizon, a mystery lover who runs a tarot card reading business between classes. When one of her clients disappears after receiving a death card, Danika takes on the case, eager to prove to her parents that she deserves to be part of her family's detective agency. The more she digs into the missing girl's background, though, the darker—and more dangerous—the case becomes.

There you go, eleven upcoming releases I'm excited to read. How about you? Which 2025 books are you looking forward to? I'd love to know. Leave me a comment on this post and I'll gladly return the favor on your blog.

Welcome to the 2025 Bookish Books Reading Challenge! I'm so glad that you've decided to join me for this fun, totally laidback challenge. All you have to do is enjoy bookish books. Easy peasy. You do not have to post reviews, but it's great if you do. I always like seeing what others are reading and getting recommendations on bookish books that shouldn't be missed. Every month, I will make a post like this one with a Mr. Linky widget for reviews. I also like to yap a bit about the bookish books I think I may read during the current month. 

With a fresh new month and a brand new year ahead of me, I have no real idea of what I want to read next. I'm thinking these three are the next bookish books I'll read, whether it's in January or later. 

The Bookshop: A History of the American Bookstore by Evan Friss—I've mentioned this one before because it sounds super fascinating to me. I've even got it checked out from the library right now, so I have no excuses. It's about, well, exactly what the title says it's about. Imagine that!

The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict—This historical novel is about a group of famous female crime writers banding together to solve a real mystery. Inspired by true events, it stars Dorothy L. Sayers, Agatha Christie, Baroness Emma Orczy, and more.

The Boxcar Librarian by Brianna Labuskes—Another historical novel, this one is about a disgraced editor who is sent off to Montana to work with a Works Progress Administration (WPA) campaign designed to help unemployed writers get back to work. There, she discovers a mystery revolving around a small town librarian and her colleauge, who hasn't been seen since she ventured into the countryside to deliver books to men working at the area's mining camps.