Hello friends!

It has been a few months since I wrote my last Wrap Up post! I haven’t been reading in the last few months, but I’m slowly trying to get back to it, and I was able to finish some books in February… And now I have to tell you all about it. 🙂

You’ll see in a bit that this month, the focus was on dark stories, both romances and thrillers! I’m surprised that this kind of story is what is currently taking me out of my current reading slump. So I’m embracing the darkness, folks! And yes, the majority of the books on today’s list are on the darker side, but not all of them fit this style – again, you’ll see it in a second.

I think listening to my current mood is working out very well, and I’m starting to slowly get back to reading! Let’s take a look at the books I read in February:

This is the list I have to share with you today! Let’s take a closer look:

1. The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James: 4/5⭐

The first book I concluded in 2026! I’ve been wanting to read this book for a very long time, so it has been sitting on my TBR for years now… until this year! This murder mystery is a story that follows two timelines: one in the 80s, following Viv, a girl who disappeared while working in the Sun Down Motel, and the other in the present, 2017, of her niece trying to find out what happened to her aunt in the 80s.
The premise was very interesting and right up my alley because I love these kinds of dark setups and atmospheres mixed with murder mysteries. The writing was good, I really liked the dual POVs, but sometimes I had to reread some chapters just to make sure I was keeping up with the story and that I was not mixing the characters. I also loved both main characters and their connection, as well as the cop and the photographer!
I can’t say I was surprised with the ending (well, I was with one of the events only to be honest), and I craved more surprising and shocking moments. Still, it was a good, entertaining story!
The one thing I thought was kind of unnecessary was the ghost appearances. I personally think this creative choice was not great, but it is what it is. It’s only my opinion!

Synopsis

“The secrets lurking in a rundown roadside motel ensnare a young woman, just as they did her aunt thirty-five years before, in this new atmospheric suspense novel from the national bestselling and award-winning author of The Broken Girls.
Upstate NY, 1982. Every small town like Fell, New York, has a place like the Sun Down Motel. Some customers are from out of town, passing through on their way to someplace better. Some are locals, trying to hide their secrets. Viv Delaney works as the night clerk to pay for her move to New York City. But something isn’t right at the Sun Down, and before long she’s determined to uncover all of the secrets hidden…”

2. Valentine’s Slay by Navessa Allen: 4.5/5⭐

I’m starting to really love Navessa Allen’s books! I found this book, and I thought this would be perfect to read on Valentine’s Day… and so I did!
It’s a short story with a crazy plot (you can check it below), but I absolutely adored it, and I wish it was a full-length book! Loved the writing and the dual POVs, it was light and entertaining, perfect to binge. For the short amount of pages, we got a fun romance with smut, dark humour, drama, and action. Seriously, what more can a girl want? I will definitely read more from this author. I really like her style!

Synopsis

“Roses are red, violets are blue, Emma’s not dead, and her gravedigger’s hot too. This Valentine’s Day, love claws its way out of the grave in #1 New York Times bestselling author Navessa Allen’s steamy and hilariously dark rom-com.
Louisiana gravedigger Noah Evans’s Valentine’s night shift takes an unexpected turn when his high school crush starts screaming from her freshly dug grave. Whoever tried to bury Emma six feet under is in for a nasty surprise—they should have checked for a pulse because she’s got unfinished business, starting with the hot gravedigger who just saved her life. As they unearth a deadly family conspiracy, Noah and Emma discover that old flames burn even hotter the second time around—especially when someone’s trying to kill them.
Navessa Allen’s Valentine’s Slay is part of The Improbable Meet-Cute: Second Chances, stories for star-crossed lovers and hopeless romantics. They can be read or listened to in one sitting. Let’s do it again.”

1. Still Beating by Jennifer Hartmann: 4.5/5⭐

I was SO CLOSE to giving this book 5 stars. It started out very strong, but the story lost some power after the big events ended, so that’s why I couldn’t rate it higher. It was a very shocking and super dark read (I’m not saying this lightly), but it was exactly what I needed: a book that was very difficult to put down. I was stressed at times, but I honestly loved it! I really liked the characters and their strong connection. I don’t think I’ll ever forget this book if I’m being honest… it was insane! Of course, this is not a book for everyone, because there are a ton of triggers here, such as: kidnapping, rape (graphic), suicide, self-harm, and miscarriage. Please keep this in mind if you decide to read this book.

Synopsis

“He puts his hand against my chest. “It’s still beating,” he whispers, his words a soft kiss to my lips. “As long as it’s beating, you’re okay.”
When Cora Lawson attends her sister’s birthday party, she expects at most a hangover or a walk of shame by the end of it. She doesn’t anticipate a stolen wallet, leaving her stranded and dependent on her sister’s fiancé, Dean Asher―her archnemesis and perpetual thorn in her side.
And she really doesn’t anticipate getting knocked out and waking up chained in a madman’s basement, Dean in his own shackles beside her.
After fifteen years of teasing, insults, and never-ending pranks, the ultimate joke seems to be on them. The two people who always thought they’d end up killing each other must now work together if they want to survive long enough to escape.
But Cora and Dean don’t know that their abductor has a plan for them. A plan that will alter the course of their relationship, blur the line between hate and love, and shackle them to each other long after they are freed from their chains. They’re in this together―no matter what their unexpected bond might cost them.”

2. Sister Wife by Christine Brown Woolley: 5/5⭐

My first 5-star read of the year! One of my all-time guilty pleasures is to watch the show “Sister Wives”. In fact, I’ve been watching the show since it first aired on TLC more than a decade ago! So I’ve been following the Brown family for a very long time, and I’ve seen their struggles on screen to keep the family together. I wasn’t really shocked when Christine announced she was leaving Kody, but I was so amazed by her strength, hope, and courage, not knowing what the next chapter of her life would look like. I had no idea she had published this book; in fact, I only found out about it a few weeks ago, but I knew this would be on my “high-priority TBR”! I honestly loved this book and how she shared details the viewers couldn’t know about. I really liked to see her perspective on her marriage and family because it showed her true feelings off-camera… also, she did it in a very respectful way, in my opinion. She talked about her upbringing growing up in a polygamous family, her marriage to Kody, the challenges that came after Robyn joined the family, being a mother to so many kids, living with her sister wives, separating from Kody, and her life after the separation.
She is one of the most inspiring people I’ve came accross, and I’m so happy that she found the happily ever after. I’m just hoping Janelle will also share her story one day. I would love to read about it!

Synopsis

“From TLC’s Sister Wives star Christine Brown Woolley, a groundbreaking and heartfelt memoir about living in a family like no other and finding the strength to leave Mormonism—and the only life she’s known—behind.
Christine Brown Woolley had always dreamed of having a picture-perfect family—beautiful children, an adoring husband, and of course, a sisterhood of wives to share him with. Raised in Utah by practicing polygamists, Christine knew her life was less than normal, but that didn’t stop her from loving the full house of her childhood any less.
Becoming Kody Brown’s third wife in 1994, Christine finally found the big, happy family she had hoped for. When TLC’s hit show Sister Wives premiered in 2010, Christine knew it was her chance to shine a light on the brighter side of polygamy—the helping hands, the lively discussions, and their unmatched devotion to each other. But the cameras also revealed a much darker truth.
Now, in this candid tell-all, Christine shares for the first time the journey that led her away from the Morman church and the bold path she is carving to live apart from all she has ever known. Moving, genuine, and insightful, this is a uniquely powerful tour de force of Christine’s journey toward and beyond her time in the spotlight as a sister wife.”

As usual, I’ll be posting the reviews for these books soon if I haven’t already.

What about you guys? How was your reading month? Let me know in the comments! Thank you for reading friends!