We are in the midst of a deep freeze in Minnesota, with lots of snow, plummeting temperatures, and the lack of motivation to leave the house. I guess it’s okay that we have Valentine’s Day to look forward to for some romance time and hopefully lots of candy! And like always we have some new titles coming out this month that we can’t wait to read!
Serena’s Picks
Book: “Weavingshaw” by Heba Al-Wasity
Publication Date: February 26, 2024
Why I’m Interested: The cover alone, with all of its gothic-goodness, was enough to entice my interest in this one initially! And looking further, it seems that the story may also include much more than the standard spooky house with hidden secrets. For example, the main character can see ghosts and there sounds like there is a potential love interest who buys secrets for…reasons? Color me intrigued!
Book: “Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter” by Heather Fawcett
Publication Date: February 17, 2026
Why I’m Interested: So many reasons! Not least of which is the fact that the cover features not one, but many adorable cats! And, of course, the title itself promises a cat-centric story. Beyond that, its written by the same author as the “Emily Wilde” series, one of my favorite trilogies of the last few years, from start to finish. My only question has to do with the balance between “coziness” and plot, always a struggle point for me with this subgenre. But I have high hopes!
Book: “A Rose of Blood and Binding” by Claire Legrand
Publication Date: February 24, 2026
Why I’m Interested: Well, it’s the third and final book in this trilogy. And I have to say, my biggest emotion going in is probably trepidation. There were definite points I liked in the first two books, but I’ve also struggled a lot with the portrayal of the main characters, finding them more interesting as side characters, only to then get in their head and find a completely different person (both remarkably similar to one another, mostly fueled by some level of self-hatred). So, while I have really enjoyed what we’ve seen from Mara in other books, I’m also really worried that this will go the same route where an excellent character is watered down beneath layers of misery and gloom to the point that she’s no longer recognizable as the same person as the one in other books. We shall see!
Kate’s Picks
Book: “Trad Wife” by Saratoga Schaefer
Publication Date: February 10, 2026
Why I’m Interested: The trad wife/feminine alt right satire continues, and this time we are delving into pregnancy horror to go with the biting commentary! Camille is an up and coming trad wife influencer, though her engagement isn’t as high as she’d like and her husband isn’t as perfect as her social media implies. She tells herself that having a baby would be the perfect thing to fix their marriange and to boost her viewership, but conceiving isn’t coming as easily as she has hoped. So it must be divine intervention when she finds a weird old well in the woods behind her new house, and after wishing for a baby she finds herself pregnant after a very strange encounter with something otherworldly. Having a baby will surely fix all of her problems! Even if her pregnancy is weird and her urges are going to dark places… Sounds like a devilishly good time to me!
Book: “Maria the Wanted” by V. Castro
Publication Date: February 10, 2026
Why I’m Interested: Okay so admittedly Castro’s previous swing at vampire fiction felt pretty flat for me. But given that I have really enjoyed a lot of her other books I wanted to give her newest one a try, and now that the protagonist vampire is less erotic and more of an on the run thriller I’m more on board. Maria is trying to run away from some cartels that she ran afoul, but finds herself turned into a vampire whilst on the lam. Now she wants to find out what it means to be a vampire, and how she can survive in this new form. Especially since now some violent vampire thugs are on her tail as well. I have hopes that this vampire tale from V. Castro will work better and the description gives me hope.
Book: “Nowhere Burning” by Catriona Ward
Publication Date: February 24 2026
Why I’m Interested: I haven’t been as enthralled with Ward’s horror novels in the past, but I have told myself that after taking a break from the past couple I need to give it one more go in case a new premise just clicks for me. And the premise of this book is DEFINITELY interesting, feeling like a weird mix of Lost Boys and Charles Manson. Riley and her brother Oliver are running away from home, hoping to find a new home at Nowhere, a ranch once run by a strange movie star that is now a colony of feral, unrestricted children. It sounds like the freedom Riley is craving. But something else is on the ranch property, and the children who live at Nowhere are far more dangerous than Riley ever anticipated. It sounds culty and weird, and I am totally into it.
What books are you looking forward to this month? Let us know in the comments!
The Library Ladies 