In 2025… My Life in Books Tag

Dini @ dinipandareads4 Comments

I’m finally doing the “My Life In Books” tag at the right time this year and I’m excited to see how 2025 has gone according to the books I read. I had so much fun doing this tag for 2024 that I think I’m going to make sure I do this every year! How does it work? It’s easy: the only rule for this tag is that you must complete the prompts using titles from the books you read in 2025. On that note, let’s get to it!

This book tag was originally created by Book’d Out.

2025 was the Year of…

This Inevitable Ruin by Matt Dinniman

This is pretty depressing and negative, but I mean, I don’t find it to be untrue, lol. The cover of this book also seems to illustrate the year perfectly (meaning it was full chaos vibes)! 😂

In 2025, I wanted to be…

Partying with Pixies by Hazel Mack

In 2025, I was the…

Rebel Witch by Kristen Ciccarelli

In 2025, I gained…

The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman

In 2025, I lost…

You, With A View by Jessica Joyce

In 2025, I loved…

Sorcery and Small Magics by Maiga Doocy

In 2025, I hated…

The Thief of Farrowfell by Ravena Guron

(I didn’t hate the book, I hated the thief! Hehehe)

In 2025, I learned…

The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

In 2025, I was surprised by…

A Song for You and I by K. O’Neill

In 2025, I went…

Full Speed to a Crash Landing by Beth Revis

In 2025, I missed out on…

The Guy for Me by Marzy Opal

In 2025, my family were…

In A Rush by Kate Canterbary

In 2026, I hope it will be…

A Touch Wicked by Katrina Kendrick

And that it’s for my 2025 life in books! Wow, that was actually so much harder than the previous year, but I think that was also due to the quality of the books I read this year… Maybe? Anyway, I’m already keen to do this next year though! 🤭

Mini Book Reviews: Holiday Romance Edition

Dini @ dinipandareads4 Comments

🎄 Happy Christmas, everyone! 🎄

The Christmas List (Strawberry Hollow #3)
Pub Date: 25 November 2024
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Panda Rating:

(3.5 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

I love Christmas.
So much so that in my smalltown I’m known as The Queen of Christmas.
And no one knows holiday festivities quite like Strawberry Hollow.

Only this Christmas season delivers an unexpected twist in the form of Wyatt Owens.
The handsome single father of my new student…
Who just so happens to also be my first love.

The one who broke my heart all those years ago.

I haven’t seen Wyatt since he left our hometown behind, but a piece of my heart has always been his.
And all those old feelings come rushing back the moment we see each other again.
Only now the boy I once loved is a charming, delicious and intoxicating man.

One I’m not sure I can resist.

Especially when neither of us can deny his daughter Lucy’s holiday wish- for the three of us to compete together as a team in Strawberry Hollow’s Annual Christmas List tradition.

At first, he’s determined to win every festive challenge on the list but the more things we check off, the more it seems like he wants to win me instead.
Soon things are heating up between us, and suddenly I find myself at risk of falling… for my ex.

But I’m not sure I could survive the heartbreak of losing him again.
Is this just a holiday fling… Or is this the second chance I’ve always secretly hoped for?

The Christmas List was super sexy cute and the perfect addition to the Strawberry Hollow series of festive romances written by Moore. If you enjoy extremely Christmassy romances, the single parent and second-chance romance tropes, precocious kids, and no third act or miscommunication because they are Adults™️, then I’d recommend checking this out!

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Let’s Talk Bookish: Deciding 2026 Goals

Dini @ dinipandareads7 Comments

Sorry that this is going up a day late! I thought I had scheduled it before I was off but apparently, that was just in my head. 🤭 Happy holidays everyone!

✨ Welcome back to another week of LTB! ✨

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @Eternity Books and co-hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits and myself! In this discussion meme, participants get to talk about certain topics, share opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts! Learn more about LTB, past topics and future topics HERE.

This week’s topic is:

How do you decide your yearly reading goals?

Suggested by: Jillian @ Jillian the Bookish Butterfly
Prompts: Do you set annual reading and/or blogging goals? Have you decided on any bookish/blogging resolutions for 2026? How do you decide what goals you want to pursue for the year ahead?

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The Christmas Eve Book Tag!

Dini @ dinipandareads9 Comments

I’ve been kind of waffling on what tag to post because it’s been a minute but nothing has been striking my fancy. Then I was tagged by (the wonderful) Caro @Bookcheshirecat the other day to do The Christmas Eve Book Tag, and well, there’s no better time for it (even though it goes up Christmas Day, lol)! 🤭 Let’s just jump straight into it.

This tag was originally created by BookTuber: Sam’s Cozy Corner

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#WWWWednesday: 24 December 2025

Dini @ dinipandareads12 Comments

🎄 HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE! 🎄

Leslie and I are planning a group read for Dungeon Crawler Carl starting in January 2026! Find more details on Leslie’s page or at the end of this post!

Hello, hello and welcome back to another episode of WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:

  1. What did you read last?
  2. What are you currently reading?
  3. What will you read next?
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Book Review: Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid

Dini @ dinipandareads5 Comments

Heated Rivalry (Game Changers #2)
Publisher: Random House
Pub Date: 14 January 2025
Genre: Cosy Fantasy / Magical Realism

Panda Rating:

(5 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

Nothing interferes with Shane Hollander’s game—definitely not the sexy rival he loves to hate.

Pro hockey star Shane Hollander isn’t just crazy talented, he’s got a spotless reputation. Hockey is his life. Now that he’s captain of the Montreal Voyageurs, he won’t let anything jeopardize that, especially the sexy Russian whose hard body keeps him awake at night.

Boston Bears captain Ilya Rozanov is everything Shane’s not. The self-proclaimed king of the ice, he’s as cocky as he is talented. No one can beat him – except Shane. They’ve made a career on their legendary rivalry, but when the skates come off, the heat between them is undeniable. When Ilya realizes he wants more than a few secret hookups, he knows he must walk away. The risk is too great.

As their attraction intensifies, they struggle to keep their relationship out of the public eye. If the truth comes out, it could ruin them both. But when their need for each other rivals their ambition on the ice, secrecy is no longer an option…

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Homomisia, internalised homomisia & homomisic slurs, suicide, parent with alzheimers, death of parents mentioned (father in the present, mother in the past)

Yes yes, I’ve joined the hype train. While I may not have seen the screen adaptation yet, I’m so glad that the hype surrounding this book convinced me to finally pick this up after having it on my TBR for three years. It’s loved for a reason and I now understand it!

TL;DR: Heated Rivalry was a great tension-filled, angsty, and swoony MM sports romance. Shane and Ilya have such great chemistry—there’s a tension created by enmity and attraction from the very moment they meet each other and I loved the opposition of their characters. Shane and Ilya are fantastic characters and I loved watching their feelings grow and their romance develop over the years. I loved how we see the evolution of their connection and how much their character arcs do change over the years. Reid does a fantastic job bringing these characters to life and by the end, my heart felt like it was being squeeze with all the feelings I felt for them. This queer sports romance is the perfect one-sit binge and if you love the enemies-to-lovers trope (or even if you have yet to be convinced), stay seated for this because it’s probably one of the best books this trope has to offer—no lie!

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Sundays in Bed With… #MyWeeklyWrapUp [311]

Dini @ dinipandareads6 Comments

We’re back with another Sundays in Bed With… meme! This meme dares to ask you what book has been in your bed this morning and is hosted by Midnight Book Girl. Come share what book you’ve spent your time reading in bed or wish you had time to read today.

I’ve spent the majority of my Sunday sitting in a salon chair continuing Royal Assassin, and I think I’ll spend the rest of my Sunday night with it too! I’ve reached the halfway mark now and this has been a tougher read than the first book, but still good. It’s definitely a book I’m enjoying reading slowly, and what’s even better is how surprisingly easy I’ve been finding it to keep all the characters and events in order, when normally I would’ve forgotten half the details after not picking it up for so long. It’s a win in my book! 😂

What book are you spending your Sunday in bed with?

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