Must-Have January Releases

Happy almost-January! Here is my list of the books that release in the coming month that I am most excited for!

Amish Weddings

Will love be enough to fix what tragedy threatens?

Gregarious Rose Lehman, who’s always the life of the Amish youth singings, is determined to marry the bishop’s son, Reuben Byler—until the handsome Army buddy of her future brother-in-law shows up in Lancaster County. In comparison to Trevor, Reuben seems downright boring. Trevor shares Rose’s sense of fun and adventure, and her easygoing disposition.

When her sister Lila is injured in a devastating accident, Rose finds herself with more freedom than she’s ever experienced in her life. Only Reuben seems to notice, but he never voices his concerns. Part of her relishes the freedom she’s found with Trevor, but the other part wishes Reuben would finally express his love and “fight” for her. Have her choices ruined her best chance at love, or is there another path to happiness she just hasn’t seen yet?

Amish Weddings is the third book in Leslie Gould’s Neighbors of Lancaster County series, coming after Amish Promises and Amish Sweethearts. Although I haven’t read the first book, I did read the second, and it was pretty good! It wasn’t my favorite book in the world, but it did have a good storyline, and I’m hopeful this one will be better!!

In the Shadow of Denali

Cassidy Ivanoff and her father, John, work at the new and prestigious Curry Hotel outside Mt. McKinley. While John will be expedition and wilderness exploration guide for the wealthy tourists, Cassidy has signed on as a cook’s assistant. Both are busy as the hotel prepares to welcome the president of the United States on his way to drive in the golden spike to officially complete the railroad.

Allan Brennan travels to the Curry Hotel to be an apprentice of a seasoned Alaska mountain guide. Ever since his father’s death climbing Mt. McKinley, he’s worked to earn enough money to make the trek to the Alaska territory himself. His father’s partner blames their guide for the death of his father, but Allan wants to find the truth for himself. He finds an unlikely ally in Cassidy, and as the two begin to looking into the mystery, they suddenly find that things are much less clear, and much more dangerous, than either could ever imagine.

In the Shadow of Denali is the first book in Tracie Peterson and Kimberly Woodhouse’s The Heart of Alaska series, and is the first book I’ve ever read by the two of them, though I have read some of Tracie’s other books. Tracie is really talented, so I’m sure that this novel will be fantastic!

The Mark of the King

After being imprisoned and branded for the death of her client, twenty-five-year-old midwife Julianne Chevalier trades her life sentence for exile to the fledgling 1720s French colony of Louisiana, where she hopes to be reunited with her brother, serving their as a soldier. To make the journey, though, women must be married, and Julianne is forced to wed a fellow convict.

When they arrive in New Orleans, there is no news of Benjamin, Julianne’s brother, and searching for answers proves dangerous. What is behind the mystery, and does military officer Marc-Paul Girard know more than he is letting on?

With her dreams of a new life shattered, Julianne must find her way in this dangerous, rugged land, despite never being able to escape the king’s mark on her shoulder that brands her a criminal beyond redemption.

Although I haven’t read anything by Jocelyn Green yet, The Mark of the King sounds fantastic, and I was actually given the opportunity to be an influencer for this novel, so I’m super excited to read it!!

A Moonbow Night

In an uncertain time, she faces a choice that will change her life forever.

After fleeing Virginia, Temperance Tucker and her family established an inn along the Shawnee River. It’s a welcome way station for settlers and frontiersmen traveling through the wild Cumberland region of Kentucke—men like Sion Morgan, a Virginia surveyor who arrives at the inn with his crew, looking for an experienced guide.

Though he balks when Tempe is appointed to lead his team through the wilderness, it isn’t long before Sion must admit that her abilities may outmatch his own. But can the tenuous tie they are forming survive the dangers waiting just around the bend?

Laura Frantz is one of my favorite authors of all time, so I’m super excited for A Moonbow Night to release!! It sounds so, so good, and I can’t wait to read it!! As you can probably guess, I’ve already preordered it, so look forward to my glowing review!

An Uncommon Courtship

Life for Lady Adelaide Bell was easier if she hid in her older sister’s shadow—which worked until her sister got married. Even with the pressure of her socially ambitious mother, the last thing she expected was a marriage of convenience to save her previously spotless reputation.

Lord Trent Hawthorne couldn’t be happier that he is not the duke in the family. He’s free to manage his small estate and take his time discovering the life he wants to lead, which includes grand plans of wooing and falling in love with the woman of his choice. When he finds himself honor bound to marry a woman he doesn’t know, his dream of a marriage like his parents’ seems lost forever.

Already starting their marriage on shaky ground, can Adelaide and Trent’s relationship survive the pressures of London society?

An Uncommon Courtship is the third book in Kristi Ann Hunter’s Hawthorne House series, coming after A Noble Masquerade and An Elegant Façade. I’ve read both of the previous books in this series and have absolutely loved every second of them!!! Clearly, I am so ready to read this novel as well, because I just know that it will be completely wonderful!!!

Never Forget

Will she betray his trust to stay on the island she loves?

Abbie Watson is content to spend her days clamming, crabbing, and tending Rose Island Lighthouse. Her grandpa is the head light keeper, but his senility may lead to their eviction. Since leaving the island would kill her beloved Gramps, Abbie will do anything to keep him in the one place he knows and loves.

Wealthy Nathaniel Winthrop III’s wild living has gained him a reputation as the ‘bad boy’ among the elite social circles of Newport. After a blow to the head in a yachting accident washes him up on Rose Island, Nathaniel has no memories of his past.

Abbie tends the wounded stranger in her home only to realize he assumes they’re married. Although she knows she needs to correct Nathaniel’s mistake, his presence calms Gramps and provides a way to prevent eviction from the lighthouse.

The longer the charade continues, the harder it gets for Abbie to tell Nathaniel the truth, more so as she begins to fall in love. Everyone she’s ever loved has abandoned her. Will Nathaniel leave her too, once he discovers he’s not really her husband?

Never Forget is the fifth book in Jody Hedlund’s Beacons of Hope series, coming after Love Unexpected, Hearts Made Whole, Undaunted Hope, and Forever Safe. I’ve only read the first two books in this series, but I really enjoyed both of them, so I’ve been looking forward to reading more, and this book looks like the perfect addition!

Because You’re Mine

Alanna has been plagued by tragedy. So it should come as no surprise that in the beauty that surrounds Charleston, all is not as it seems.

When her husband is killed by a car bomb while their band is on tour in Charleston, Alanna doesn’t know where to turn. Her father-in-law is threatening to take custody of the baby she carries, but the one things she knows for sure is that she can’t lose the last piece of Liam she has left.

Their manager offers her a marriage of convenience to gain her U. S. citizenship and allow her to escape her father-in-law’s control. It seems like the perfect solution…but her doubts begins almost as soon as she arrives at Barry’s family home, a decaying mansion surrounded by a swamp.

To make matters worse, Liam’s best friend survived the car bomb. She’s never really liked Jesse and now she can’t seem to get away from him. When he takes Liam’s place in their band, it’s almost more than she can bear.

But then things start happening. Things that could easily cost Alanna her life—or the life of her unborn child. Are they merely coincidences? Or is there something much more sinister at work?

Colleen Coble is an author I have been a fan of for quite some time, so I’m always excited when I hear she’s coming out with something new. This novel sounds super good and suspenseful, so I can’t wait to read it!

The Newcomer

In 1737, Anna Konig and her fellow church members stagger off a small wooden ship after ten weeks at sea, eager to start a new life in the vibrant but raw Pennsylvania frontier. On the docks of Port Philadelphia waits bishop Jacob Bauer, founder of the settlement and father to ship carpenter Bairn. It’s a time of new beginnings for the reunited Bauer family, and for Anna and Bairn’s shipboard romance to blossom.

But this perfect moment cannot last. As Bairn grasps the reality of what it means to be Amish in the New World—isolated, rigid with expectations, under the thumb of his domineering father—his enthusiasm evaporates. When a sea captain offers the chance to cross the ocean one more time, Bairn grabs it. Just one more crossing, he promises Anna. But will she wait for him?

When Henrik Newman joins the church just as it makes its way to the frontier, Anna is torn. He seems to be everything Bairn is not—bold, devoted, and delighted to vie for her heart. And the most dramatic difference? He is here; Bairn is not.

Far from the frontier, and unexpected turn of events weaves together the lives of Bairn, Anna, and Henrik. When a secret is revealed, which true love will emerge?

The Newcomer is the second book in Suzanne Woods Fisher’s Amish Beginnings series, coming after Anna’s Crossing. Although I haven’t read the first book, I have read some of Suzanne’s other books, and I really enjoyed them! Because of that, and because these two novels sound fantastic, I’m super excited to read them!

A Note Yet Unsung

A master violinist trained in Vienna, Rebekah Carrington manages to wheedle her way into an audition with the Maestro at the newly-formed Nashville Philharmonic. But women are “far too fragile and frail” for the rigors of an orchestra, and Rebekah’s hopes are swiftly dashed. Because the conductor—determined to leave his mark on the world of classical music—bows to public opinion. To make matters worse, Adelicia Acklen Cheatham, mistress of Belmont Mansion and Rebekah’s new employer, agrees with him.

Nationally-acclaimed conductor Nathaniel Tate Whitcomb is Nashville’s new orchestra leader. And despite a reluctant muse—and a strange buzzing and recurring pain in his head—he must finish composing his symphony before the grand opening of the city’s new opera hall. But far more pressing, he must finish it for the one who first inspired his love of music—his father, who is dying. But Tate’s aliment worsens. He knows Rebekah can help him finish his symphony. But how do you win back a woman’s trust when you’ve robbed her of her dream?

A Note Yet Unsung is the third book in Tamera Alexander’s Belmont Mansion series, coming after ALasting Impression and A Beauty So Rare. I absolutely loved the previous novels, so I’m extremely excited for this one! In fact, I’ve already preordered it, so look out for my review coming soon!

Rescue Me

When Deputy Sam Brooks commits to something, nothing can sway him—not just on the job as liaison between the Mercy Falls sheriff’s department and PEAK Rescue, but in his private life. He’s the one who stuck around to take care of his mother after his father’s accidental death. And he’s the one—perhaps the only one—who believes Sierra Rose is the perfect girl for him. Safe, practical, and organized, she’s nothing like her hippie, impulsive, bleeding heart sister, Willow.

Willow, however, has been in love with Sam Brooks for as long as she can remember. But she wants her sister to have a happy ending. Besides, Willow has other things to focus on—namely, nabbing the job as youth pastor for her small-town church. Best thing for her to do is to purge Sam from her heart.

Neither can predict the events that will bring them together in a fight for their lives in the forbidding wilderness of Glacier National Park. Stranded, injured, and with the winter weather closing in, Sam and Willow will have to work together to save a crew of terrified teenagers. As they fight to survive, they might just discover a new hope for love.

Rescue Me is the second book in Susan May Warren’s Montana Rescue series, coming after Wild Montana Skies. I’m a huge fan of Susan’s, and have in fact read many of her books, including the first novel in this series, so I’m super excited or this novel, and have preordered it as well!

Moving Target

Intensity. Skill. Tenacity. The bodyguards of Elite Guardians Agency have it all.

When Maddy McKay and Quinn Holcombe don’t show up for Quinn’s surprise birthday party, his friends know that something is very wrong. Their search turns up little beyond evidence that Quinn and Maddy just decided to take off for a long overdue vacation. But it soon becomes apparent that they did not leave of their own accord.

Maddy awakens in a cement room with no idea where she is. But it’s not long before she realizes she’s in the clutches of a madman exacting revenge by hunting. His prey of choice? Humans. Now Maddy and Quinn must run for their lives, hoping to find their killer before the next game begins. Because if they don’t win this game, they die.

Moving Target is the third book in Lynette Eason’s Elite Guardians series, coming after Always Watching and Without Warning. Although I didn’t get to read the second book, I did read the first, and I really enjoyed it! I really like suspenseful novels, and this book will most definitely fit into that category!

Those are the January releases I’m looking forward to! What about you? What are some new books you can’t wait to read?

Happy almost-January and happy reading!



(There is no linkup this week since Sarah and I have been too busy with Christmas, but we will be back soon and hope you are enjoying this Christmas season!)

To see where I’m linking up, check out my Where I Party page.

All credit for the italicized synopses goes to each author and their respective publishers.