Top Ten Tuesday: Books on My Winter To-Read List

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

This week's topic is Books on My Winter 2022-2023 To-Read List, so I thought I'd share some of the books that I have that I'm hoping to read this winter. Some are new or upcoming releases while others have been on my TBR list for a while. 

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The Sound of Light by Sarah Sundin

I have an ARC of this one and am so excited to read it. Nobody does WWII fiction like Sundin. I've LOVED everything I've read by hers and expect to love this one as well.

About the Book

When the Germans march into Denmark, Baron Henrik Ahlefeldt exchanges his nobility for anonymity, assuming a new identity so he can secretly row messages for the Danish Resistance across the waters to Sweden.

American physicist Dr. Else Jensen refuses to leave Copenhagen and abandon her research--her life's dream. While printing resistance newspapers, she hears stories of the movement's legendary Havmand--the merman--and wonders if the mysterious and silent shipyard worker living in the same boardinghouse has something to hide.

When the Occupation cracks down on the Danes, these two passionate people will discover if there is more power in speech . . . or in silence. Bestselling author of more than a dozen WWII novels, Sarah Sundin offers pens another story of ordinary people responding to extraordinary circumstances with faith, fortitude, and hope for a brighter future.

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Hearts of Steel by Elizabeth Camden

I have an ARC for this one as well. I've really been enjoying this series and am excited that Liam finally gets his own story.

About the Book

Maggie Molinaro survived a hardscrabble childhood in the downtrodden streets of Manhattan to become a successful businesswoman. After a decade of sacrifice, she now owns a celebrated ice cream company, but when she offends a corrupt banker, she unwittingly sets off a series of calamities that threaten to destroy her life's work.

Liam Blackstone is a charismatic steel magnate committed to overhauling factory conditions for the steelworkers of America. Standing in his way is the same villain determined to ruin Maggie. What begins as a practical alliance to defeat a common enemy soon evolves into a romance between two wounded people determined to beat the odds.

A spiraling circle of treachery grows increasingly dangerous as Liam and Maggie risk their lives and fortune for the good of the city. It will require all their wit and ingenuity to navigate the dangerous waters ahead, but their crusade could cost them everything.

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Yesterday's Tides by Roseanna M. White

Here's another one that I have an ARC for. It's been a while since I've read a Roseanna White book, and I have no idea why, lol. I always love her books and this one sounds really interesting. A dual timeline featuring WWI and WWII? Yep, sign me up!

About the Book

In 1942, Evie Farrow is used to life on Ocracoke Island, where every day is the same--until the German U-boats haunting their waters begin to wreak havoc. And when special agent Sterling Bertrand is washed ashore at Evie's inn, her life is turned upside down. While Sterling's injuries keep him inn-bound for weeks, making him even more anxious about the man he's tracking, he becomes increasingly intrigued by Evie, who seems to be hiding secrets of her own.

Decades earlier, in 1914, Englishman Remington Culbreth arrives at the Ocracoke Inn for the summer, but he doesn't count on falling in love with Louisa Adair, the innkeeper's daughter. When war breaks out in Europe, and their relationship is put in jeopardy, will their love survive?

As Evie and Sterling work to track down an elusive German agent, they unravel mysteries that go back a generation. The ripples from the Great War are still rocking their lives, and it seems yesterday's tides may sweep them all into danger again today.

Bestselling and award-winning author Roseanna M. White whisks you away to two periods fraught with peril in this sweeping and romantic dual-time tale.

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The Extraordinary Deaths of Mrs. Kip by Sara Brunsvold

I've been hearing wonderful things about this book and I was finally able to grab myself a copy!

About the Book

Aidyn Kelley is talented, ambitious, and ready for a more serious assignment than the fluff pieces she's been getting as a cub reporter for the Kansas City Star. In her eagerness, she pushes too hard, earning herself the menial task of writing an obituary for an unremarkable woman who's just entered hospice care.

But there's more to Clara Kip than meets the eye. The spirited septuagenarian may be dying, but she's not quite ready to cash it in yet. Never one to shy away from an assignment herself, she can see that God brought the young reporter into her life for a reason. And if it's a story Aidyn Kelley wants, that's just what Mrs. Kip will give her--but she's going to have to work for it.

Debut author Sara Brunsvold delights with this emotional multigenerational story that shows that the very best life is made up of thousands of little deaths to self. You'll want to be just like Mrs. Kip when you grow up!

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Beneath His Silence by Hannah Linder

I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway. It sounds so good! A Gothic-style regency? Yes, please!

About the Book

Will Seeking Justice Lead to Her Own Demise?

A Gothic-Style Regency Romance from a Promising Young Author

Second daughter of a baron—and a little on the mischievous side—Ella Pemberton is no governess. But the pretense is a necessity if she ever wishes to get inside of Wyckhorn Manor and attain the truth. Exposing the man who killed her sister is all that matters.

Lord Sedgewick knows there’s blood on his hands. Lies have been conceived, then more lies, but the price of truth would be too great. All he has left now is his son—and his hatred. Yet as the charming governess invades his home, his safe cocoon of bitterness begins to tear away.

Could Ella, despite the lingering questions of his guilt, fall in love with such a man? Or is she falling prey to him—just as her dead sister?

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Proposing Mischief (The Joplin Chronicles #2) by Regina Jennings

I loved the first book in this series. The Kentworth family was a hoot, and I can't wait to see what antics they get up to next.

About the Book

Only one person can give her the freedom she seeks--but is it worth the risk?

Maisie Kentworth is being forced to stay on her parents' ranch. After a short-lived relationship with the wrong man, she's worried about inflaming things further between her former beau and her protective family. Left to rue her mistakes, she keeps busy exploring the idle mine at the edge of their property, where she discovers a great treasure.

Boone Bragg is also stuck. With his parents on vacation, the management of Bragg Mining falls on him, and one of his advisors wants him as a son-in-law. One wrong move, and Boone will end up either offending an associate or marrying a woman he can't endure.

While closing up a spent mine, Boone gets two surprises. One is a spitfire farm girl who's trespassing with a pickax, and the other is the amazing crystal cavern that she's discovered. Suddenly Boone sees a way to overhaul the family business. With part of the cavern on Kentworth land, Boone makes Maisie a proposal that he hopes will solve all of their problems. Instead it throws Joplin into chaos, and it will take all of Maisie's gumption to set things right.

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Seven Deadly Sequins (Bonnie & Clyde Mysteries #2) by Julie Anne Lindsey

The first mystery was so charming. Bonnie and Clyde make quite the duo and I'm excited to see them solve another crime.

About the Book

Bonnie & Clyde are at it again!

When the death of a local baker threatens to shred the fabric of their lovely town, this dynamic sleuthing duo bolts into action. The results will leave you in stitches.

It’s summertime in beautiful Bliss, Georgia, and while second chance dress shop owner, Bonnie Balfour, would prefer to spend her time redesigning gowns for the upcoming Founder’s Day parade, her grandma, Gigi, is too hot under the collar to concentrate. It seems Gigi’s former friend is using her recipe to sell cobbler at the local festivities, and she’s claiming Gigi’s treat as her own!

Things go from uncomfortable to downright ugly when Gigi confronts her friend publicly about the unseamly pattern of behavior, only to later find the woman dead! With Gigi’s prints on the murder weapon, and dozens of material witnesses to their earlier scrap, Gigi cuts straight to the top of Sheriff Wright’s suspect list.

Now, Bonnie and her kitty companion, Clyde, must don their sleuthing hats once more.

To mend Gigi’s reputation and deliver justice for the victim, Bonnie must lace together a string of clues about what really happened that night. Will she wind up on the killer’s cutting board in the process?

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Flight (Collective Underground #3) by Kristen Young

This is the last book in the series, and while I'm sad to see it end, I'm eager to find out how this dystopia concludes.

About the Book

The fight for what is right is also a fight to survive

On the cusp of graduation, Cadence is finally feeling in control. She’s about to become one of the prestigious Elites working in the Hall of Love. Plus, she can take her place as a full member of the underground Sirens who meet secretly in Love City. She’ll finally be able to use her memory skills for good, instead of reporting people as a Watcher.

But a dangerous trap is set, throwing Cadence into unwelcome and unfamiliar territory. Someone in the Collective remembers things that could very well get her killed. The Muse is by her side, after all, but will she be protected when someone powerful wants her dead?

Cadence just wants to be normal, free from politics or squad intimidation. Will she be able to achieve her Elite dreams, or will sinister forces leave her running for her life?

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Aberration (Children of the Consortium #2) by Cathy McCrumb

The first book, Recorder, is one of the best sci-fi books I've ever read, so this sequel has been high on my most anticipated list ever since I finished it. 

About the Book

Freedom Awaits, but the Consortium is Watching

When rogue drones threaten citizens and the ship’s crew falls ill, the Recorder answers their call for help, once again drawing scrutiny from the Consortium.

With no other option and under an Elder’s overbearing watch, she returns to Pallas Station where she nearly lost her life in the hope of finding something—anything—to save her friends and countless others. Her friends are determined to keep her safe, but for the Recorder, saving others comes first, no matter the cost.

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The Wonderland Trials (The Curious Realities #1) by Sara Ella

I'm always on the lookout for good fairy tale retellings, especially Alice in Wonderland ones. This one sounds really good and so unique. I preordered it, but just haven't had the time to get to it. I'm hoping to soon though.

About the Book

Solve the clues. Face your fears. Survive the Trials.

All Alice Liddell wants is to escape her Normal life in Oxford and find the parents who abandoned her ten years ago. But she gets more than she bargained for when her older sister Charlotte is arrested for having the infamous Wonder Gene—the key to unlocking the curious Wonderland Reality.

Soon, Alice receives a rather cryptic invitation to play for Team Heart in this year’s annual—and often deadly—Wonderland Trials. Now she has less than twenty-four hours to find her way into Wonderland where nothing is impossible . . . or what it seems.

The stakes are raised when she discovers players go missing during the Trials each year. Will she and her team solve the clues and find the missing players? Or will betrayal and distrust win, leaving Alice alone in a world of her own? Follow the White Rabbit into this topsy-turvy fantasy where players become prey, a sip of the wrong tea might as well be poison, and a queen’s ways do not always lead one where they ought to go.

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Have you read any of these books? If so, what did you think? If not, what books are you hoping to read this winter?