the roundup 12.4
merry reads with Book of the Month, black friday splurges, and thanksgiving recaps
*NOTE: Some of the links in this roundup are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase — at no extra cost to you! Every product featured here is something I genuinely love and recommend!
Happy December, everyone. I’m easing back into the world after six quiet days at home — a small, necessary retreat from the noise of November and the dizzying maze of holiday sales that somehow felt both everywhere and nowhere this year. If you managed to find a deal worth celebrating, consider me impressed; my own carts stayed surprisingly light.
There’s a distinct shift that happens once December arrives — the calendar exhales, the pace softens, and suddenly the year feels like something you can hold in your hands. It’s the perfect moment to return to the intentions set months ago, including one that has followed me through the seasons: finishing my reading goal. Closing out the year with a book in hand feels like its own kind of reset, a quiet ritual before the page turns to January.
Which brings me to something I’m genuinely delighted to share: this month’s edition of The Roundup is sponsored by Book of the Month (ad). I worked with them earlier this fall, and partnering again feels especially fitting as we step into the final stretch of 2025. Their curated selections make choosing your next read feel effortless — a small luxury in a month that can feel anything but. And to make December even sweeter, they’re offering your first book for $5, plus a free gift, with the code HOLLY.
Thanks to a small mercy from the skies, I somehow made my 7 a.m. Thanksgiving flight—running on a heroic but questionable four hours of sleep stretched across two days. Armed only with a strawberry-banana smoothie and a just-pressed, still-steaming panini, I shuffled onto my plane bound for New Orleans.
My parents scooped me up at arrivals, and the drive back to Mississippi unfolded in that familiar mosaic of family catch-up: the who’s, what’s, when’s, and where’s tumbling over each other until the road finally led us home. West sprinted toward the truck the moment we pulled in, a blur of excitement and tail-wag energy in human form. And, confession: it’s the only picture I took all weekend—so consider this my gentle apology for the lack of festive proof.
After helping my mom slide the last dishes into the oven and catching the final hour of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV (still hoping next year is my in-person moment), I decided to give myself a rare gift: a mostly digital-free weekend. I let the deadlines loosen their grip, the projects hum quietly in the background, and the noise of the outside world fade.
In that quiet, I realized how deeply I needed the pause. It gave me space to feel fully, genuinely thankful—for the chaos, the calm, the growth, and especially for this community that lets me keep showing up, learning, shaping, and reshaping this newsletter as I go. A work in progress, yes. But a grateful one.
Black Friday may have dozed its way through this year—more “light sprinkle” than “seasonal storm”—but in the sea of meh markdowns, I did stumble across a few pieces I’ve had on my radar for a while. Not the best steals of the century, but the kind of thoughtful markdowns that finally tipped my internal scale from maybe later to okay, add to cart.
Good Spirits by B.K. Borison
Nolan Callahan, the Ghost of Christmas Past, expects his holiday haunting to be just another routine assignment—until he meets Harriet York, a kindhearted woman whose life he’s meant to observe. As they explore Harriet’s past together, Nolan realizes their connection might hold more than just spectral curiosity; it could point the way to their own futures. With Christmas Eve looming, both must confront what it truly means to move forward and whether their unexpected bond can guide them beyond the present moment.
Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino
Margo Miyake has spent over a year losing bidding wars for the perfect house in Washington, DC. When she finally learns about a hidden gem coming on the market, she becomes obsessed with securing it before anyone else. Her efforts quickly escalate from harmless research to trespassing and manipulation, testing the limits of morality—all in the name of reclaiming the life she feels slipping away with her marriage and dreams of starting a family. Even as her tactics grow extreme, readers can’t help but root for her relentless pursuit.
Dark Sisters by Kristi DeMeester
Spanning centuries, Dark Sisters intertwines horror and history through the lives of three women connected by a lingering curse. Anne Bolton, a healer accused of witchcraft, bargains with a dark force whose consequences echo through time. Mary Shephard navigates a forbidden romance in a repressive society, while Camilla Burson challenges strict religious expectations to discover hidden power. Each woman’s choices are bound by fate and desire, creating a haunting narrative about love, transgression, and the forces that shape generations.
Before I Forget by Tory Henwood Hoen
Cricket Campbell is at a crossroads, burdened by her father’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis and the unresolved grief of her past. Instead of sending him to a care facility, she returns home to care for him herself, hoping to rebuild their bond and find her own direction in life. As she settles into her childhood home, she discovers that her father’s deteriorating memory comes with an extraordinary gift: the ability to foresee the future. Facing these revelations forces Cricket to confront her own past and realize that healing often begins with remembering.
We Who Will Die by Stacia Stark
In the dangerous Thorn district, Arvelle is forced into a deadly mission: assassinate the emperor, a powerful vampire created by the god Umbros. To survive, she must enter the Sundering, a lethal arena where only the strongest endure, and navigate complex alliances with two vampires whose motives remain unclear. With her brothers’ lives at stake, Arvelle uncovers a conspiracy that challenges everything she knows about her abilities, her enemies, and her own destiny. Her journey is one of peril, power, and the relentless fight for survival.
Buckeye by Patrick Ryan
Set in post-World War II Ohio, Buckeye follows the intertwined lives of two families whose secrets and past passions ripple across generations. Cal Jenkins and Margaret Salt share a moment that changes everything, while Cal’s wife and Margaret’s absent husband navigate their own challenges and spiritual gifts. As the country moves into a period of transformation, the consequences of hidden actions and unspoken truths surface, prompting a profound exploration of love, family, and the human desire to reconcile the past with the future.
This month’s Shop the Stack is all about capturing the feeling each Book of the Month pick brings into the room. Some reads call for soft knits, others for something sharper — and together they form a wardrobe that mirrors the rhythm of winter reading. Consider these outfits your style companions for the stories you’re sinking into this month.
West! What. a. cutie. I love a book roundup and was so happy to see the news about the CFDA banning fur - it's overdue.
Thank you so much for sharing Taylor! So grateful ✨ Loving your Substack 🫶