After a crazy year of reading in 2025, this year has started off with a bang! January set a strong tone for my 2026 reading year, with a heavy focus on romance series, character-driven stories, and immersive world-building. Rather than reading mostly standalones, I gravitated toward multi-book arcs that allowed for deeper character development and emotional continuity.
Scotland-inspired romance
- Scotch on the Rocks — 🌶️🌶️🌶️.5
- Whisky Business — 🌶️🌶️🌶️.5
These contemporary romances delivered strong banter, engaging chemistry, and lighthearted conflict. The balance of humor and heat made them enjoyable, accessible reads to begin the year.
Miles High Club series — T.L. Swan
- The Stopover — 🌶️🌶️🌶️
- The Takeover — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- The Casanova — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- The Do-Over — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Miles Ever After — 🌶️🌶️🌶️
This series offered interconnected stories centered on a tight-knit group of characters, blending romance, humor, and emotional growth. The middle books carried the most explicit content, while the final installment leaned more toward resolution and relationship development.
Dance with My Demons series — Steph Macca
- Unhinged — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Echoes — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Ravage — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Exile — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
A darker, more intense series featuring secret societies, morally complex characters, and a “why choose” dynamic. The books are high on suspense and explicit content, making them best suited for readers who enjoy edgy, high-stakes romance.
Fantasy shift
- Powerful — 🌶️🌶️
This novel provided a tonal change from contemporary romance, emphasizing plot, stakes, and worldbuilding over explicit scenes. The romantic tension is present but develops gradually.
Tessa Bailey trio
- Fangirl Down — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- The Au Pair Affair — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Dream Girl Drama — 🌶️🌶️🌶️
These books offered lighthearted, character-driven romance with strong chemistry and emotional depth. The first two titles leaned slightly spicier, while the third focused more on relationship dynamics.
Sports romance
- Snow — 🌶️🌶️🌶️.5
An age-gap hockey romance that balanced tension, humor, and emotional connection. The story blended sports elements with personal growth and romantic development.
The Weston Group series — Marni Mann
- The Arrogant One — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- The Wildest One — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- The Mysterious One — 🌶️🌶️🌶️
A cohesive trilogy featuring interconnected characters and themes of power, vulnerability, and trust. The first two books delivered more explicit content, while the third emphasized emotional resolution.
End-of-month reads
- What Next — 🌶️🌶️
- What Now — 🌶️🌶️
These titles provided a reflective conclusion to the month, centering on relationships, personal growth, and second chances rather than high drama or explicit content.
January was defined by immersive series, strong romantic chemistry, and a mix of lighthearted and darker storytelling. The reading selection set an engaging foundation for the year ahead.
FEBRUARY
SUBSTACK VERSION (Chatty / Personal)
What I Read in February
February… things escalated quickly.
What started as a normal reading month turned into:
- cowboys
- hockey players (still)
- and morally gray men who absolutely ruined my emotional stability
And honestly? I leaned all the way in.
Cowboy Romance Era 🤠
Rebel Blue Ranch — Lyla Sage
- Done and Dusted — 🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Swift and Saddled — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Wild and Wrangled — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Lost and Lassoed — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
This series was everything I didn’t know I needed.
Small town, found family, emotionally available (!!!) cowboys — I absolutely flew through these. Cozy but still spicy, which is honestly the perfect combo.
Hockey… Still Has Me 🏒
- If You Keep Me — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
And then:
Glendale Magic — Mary Warren
- Cash — 🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Taylor — 🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Sven — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Murphy — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
At this point, hockey romance is no longer a phase — it’s just part of my personality.
Quick, Fun Reads
- Accidentally Yours — 🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Valentine’s Slay — 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Short, flirty, easy reads that were perfect between heavier books.
Enter: My Villain Era 🖤
- The Sweetest Oblivion — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- The Maddest Obsession — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Untamed Vixen — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Villain Era — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
This is where February fully lost the plot (in the best way).
Dark, obsessive, high-stakes, and very spicy.
The Maddest Obsession?? Still thinking about it.
February Vibe Check
🤠 Cowboys had a moment
🏒 Hockey remained elite
🖤 Morally gray men took over
A chaotic, spicy, slightly unhinged month — exactly how I like it.
MARCH
SUBSTACK VERSION (Chatty / Personal)
What I Read in March
March felt like a reset — but like, a very on-brand reset.
After February’s chaos, I leaned back into:
- hockey romance (obviously)
- flirty, banter-filled reads
- and stories that felt a little lighter… but still spicy
Hockey Romance (Because Always) 🏒
- In Her Own League — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Right Your Wrongs — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- The Wild Card — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
And yes… another series binge:
Colorado Storm — Hailey Rodger
- Seal The Deal — 🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Make The Play — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Break The Ice — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Over The Line — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
I truly never get tired of this genre.
Rom-Com Energy 💘
- Just Breaking the Rules — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- The Rival Upgrade — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- In Your Dreams — 🌶️🌶️🌶️
These were fun, flirty, and super bingeable — the kind of books you fly through in a day.
A Little Bit of Emotion
- Hale Yes — 🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Hale No — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Within Range — 🌶️🌶️🌶️
- Whirlwind — 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Still bringing some angst, some tension, and just enough emotional depth to keep things interesting.
March Vibe Check
🏒 Sports romance comfort zone
💘 Flirty + fast-paced reads
🔥 Balanced spice, easy bingeability
A fun, steady reading month that felt like settling into exactly what I love.
