My Favorite Books of 2018

Last year, I did a post just like this.  And somehow, it's time to do another one?  Excuse me?  2018???

So I was looking on my Goodreads to try and plan ahead for this post and... uh... this is going to be hard.  I read a lot of really great books in 2018, and I mean. I read 104 books, there were bound to be some gems in there.  That and my average Goodreads rating for the year was 4.5.  So yeah, I found a few new faves.

(also 104 books, I'm pretty sure, is the most books I've ever EVER read in a year.  I am very happy.)

To keep this from completely exploding my head with indecision, I'm excluding re-reads, because I also re-read a LOT of books (PJO, HOO, HTTYD, The Underland Chronicles, and various children's classics, to name a few).  Let's get started!


January:
 
Starting off with a tie... this is not a good sign xD  I absolutely loved reading the "Guardians of Childhood" series for the first time between December of 2017 and January of 2018, so the top spot here has to go to books 3 and 4: Toothiana, Queen of the Tooth Fairy Armies and The Sandman and the War of Dreams.


February:

 

Another tie because I genuinely could not choose.  Both Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm and Breadcrumbs moved me deeply, in different ways, and I can't not hold them both up as favorites.  I want to re-read them both already.  So that says something. 


March:

Cute romances!  Small towns!  Childhood-friends-to-lovers!  Fish and chips!  As Easy as Riding a Bike has all of my favorite things!
{Honorable Mention: Dissemble}


April:

This book was everything I wanted and didn't know I needed.  You can find my full review of At Her Fingertips here!  An adorable romance with loveable characters and a heart-warming message.


May:

Big, magic-filled, ballgown-wearing fairytale retellings were basically all I read for a solid year and half of my life at one point.  I've since kind of fallen out of the genre, not because I don't love them (they were an important part of me becoming me, tbh) but because I struggle to find ones that are of good quality and genuinely surprise.  Entwined was such a pleasant surprise.  It was pure magic and like a trip back in time.  I loved it.
{Honorable Mentions: The Rebellion and Dagger's Sleep}


June:

Feelzy middle-grade packed with friendship, family relationships, and eggs?  Sign me up!  The Science of Breakable Things is a book I didn't expect to love as much as I did, and I can't wait to see what Tae Keller comes up with next.
{Honorable Mentions: Perfect Scoundrels, Kiera, and School of the Dead}


July:

Some of y'all probably know that Winnie-the-Pooh is my all-time favorite classic and one of my all-time favorite books, so when I saw Return to the Hundred Acre Wood for cheap at a library sale, I had to grab it.  What I found was absolutely everything I wanted.  More adventures with Pooh and the gang (plus some new friends), adorable illustrations (in color!), and endearing stories.  Fantastic.
{Honorable Mentions: Gentle's Holler and The Real Boy}


August:

A mystery set in steam-punk London, following the niece of Sherlock Holmes and the sister of Bram Stoker, plus a good-looking inspector and a few mysterious boys.  It's great.  I participated in a buddy-read for the first time with The Clockwork Scarab, and it was awesome, I really enjoyed it!
{Honorable Mention: Not if I Save You First}


September:

Um?  I'm emotionally destroyed?  But that was awesome?  So I'm not really mad I'm just conflicted?  I have a lot of emotions about The Burning Maze, okay?


October:
  
I CAN'T CHOOSE AND YOU CAN'T MAKE ME.  this is my blog post I do what I want.
No but genuinely, these were three of my absolute favorite books of the year, so I honestly don't think I can really pick.  October was my best reading month in 2018 in quality (if not quantity).  I really liked every book I read, but A Certain Sort of Madness, The Storm Runner, and Beyond Her Calling all now have proud places on my "absolute favorite books" list.
{Honorable Mentions: [see, I told you it was an amazing month] The Screaming Staircase and My Plain Jane}


November:
 
It's about time a Sarah Addison-Fox book showed up on this list, lol.  Discerned was so good!  Sad saying goodbye to my babies but a satisfying way to leave them.  And oh my gosh, y'all I started reading Blades of Acktar in November and Dare was amazing?  This whole series was amazing??  I loved it so much how have I not read it before now???


December:
 
Several absolutely incredible books came into my life in the last month of the year, and these two were the top of the line for me.  Blank Mastermind was everything I hoped it would be and more, and Deliver started out as my least favorite Acktar book and then skyrocketed to the top spot?  Dunno how that happened but here we are?  Both of these were just jam-packed with character development and healing and sass and I loved them.
{Honorable Mentions: A Christmas Carol and East}


And there you have it!  My favorite books of 2018.  What were your favorite books you discovered last year?  Any favorite re-reads?  Tell me all about it in the comments!

~ Abby

Retrieve Blog Tour {+ book review!}

Hi there, friends!  It's been awhile.  I got extremely busy around the holidays, and then I got my wisdom teeth taken out, so this week has been spent recovering and preparing to greet the new year with open arms.  And reading.  I've done a lot of reading.  Which leads me to today's post.

Because one of my favorite authors, Sarah Addison-Fox, has released a new book!

And I apologize in advance for any typos in this post, I'm kinda fangirling really hard right now, lol. 

Because Sarah is awesome, I get to give y'all my review of this awesome book, so let's get started!


Retrieve



Author: Sarah Addison-Fox
Genre: Fantasy adventure romance
Content: Violence, a few bad words sprinkled throughout, concern of what unsavory men will do to Hadley if she's found out.

Synopsis:
What if the job you took to stay alive might be what kills you?
Kade knows what it is to suffer. He knows what it's like to lose everything and everyone around him.
His job in a Stormer Unit guarantees not just his survival in the decimated country of Azetaria, but his sister Meg's. Even if it means facing the Numachi warriors baying for his blood, he'll do what it takes to keep her safe.
Hadley is alone and surviving the only way she knows how. By hiding where predators won't find her and scavenging enough just to keep her alive.
When desperation drives Hadley to search for her missing brother, she mistakenly accepts the offer of recruitment into the Stormer's camp, only to be partnered with Kade and sent as a scout into Numachi territory.
The intimidating young Stormer may just know where her brother has gone. But can they stay alive long enough to find him?

What I Thought:


This was AWESOME.  It was reminiscent of Blades of Acktar, in the best ways.  Hadley and Kade were amazing protagonists (both of whom I want to snuggle in a blanket and put them in the "safe character space" corner because please let them rest they're tired).  Knowing this was going to be a romance just meant that I shipped it immediately and while nothing really happens with it in this book (I'm sure it's going to get serious in the next ones), there were some really cute moments.  My shipper heart is happy.
But really it was also an awesome adventure that I could see as a movie, 100%.  Kade is a kick-butt boy who's secretly soft and sad and I love him.  Hadley is a scared girl who can climb really well and is generally distrustful but when she trusts she trusts completely and I love her.  I just love them both and love them together a lot okay there were a lot of cool fight scenes but also some good Soft scenes that I highly appreciated.  Gosh, I'm easy to please.  Give me a scene where one love interest falls asleep on the other's shoulder and I'm set. xD
Also THAT ENDING.  *screams for next book*
So yeah.  Highly recommend.

Overall rating: 4.5 awesome fight scenes out of 5

About the Author:
Sarah Addison-Fox is a New Zealand-born misfit who writes action-packed fantasy with a smattering of punch ups, mega amounts of romance and a dash of family values.

Follow Sarah!

Facebook: Instagram: Website: Twitter: @saddisonfox Facebook Fanpage:  Blog:

 You can add Retrieve to your Goodreads shelf here and pick up a copy on Amazon here!

And that's all for today's post!  Go check out "Retrieve" and all of Sarah's books! 

~ Abby

It's Christmas Day! + a look at my story - 12 Days of Christmas

Merriest of Christmases, my friends!!  I hope you're all having a wonderful day full of family, friends, food, and most of all, God's love!! 

I LOVE CHRISTMAS.  I just do!  I'm sad that the season has peaked and will start winding down, but it's been a great one, hasn't it?  I participated in 12DoC (and had a fantastic time!!), I got Christopher Robin Funko Pops from my amazing brother, I got to spend time with my family and friends, our church's annual drive-through nativity went really well, it's been really excellent. 

I thought today, for the final day of 12DoC, I'd let y'all into my stories a little bit.  I know I don't talk about them a ton on here but since it is Christmas (and I often wonder what my characters do this time of year), I'd like to share that with you!

I have a lot of story ideas whirling around in my head at any given time.  But right now, my main attention is on my untitled book which I refer to as Tasia's Story and I've been working on since January 1st of this year!  So it's almost a year old.  My little book baby is growing up. <3

The story centers around Tasia (obviously xD), her best friend Nigel, a princess named Katya, and her guard, Julian.  It's a tale of them becoming friends in spite of mob boss fathers, assassination plots, and very ugly cats.  And how do I think these kids would spend Christmas?

Well, in their world God is called Kaam, so it probably wouldn't be called Christmas.  It's... Kaammas… Kaamtide… idk I haven't decided what it's called yet, but it's basically the same thing.  People exchange gifts, time is spent with family, lots of food is eaten. 

Thing is, Tasia and Nigel don't have families, they've formed their own.  So they totally spend every holiday together, exchanging gifts they could get their hands on, which is usually something practical like socks or mittens (that they probably made because both of them can knit, my savvy little crafters).

Katya and Julian both have families (well... Katya has both parents and a little brother and Julian just has his dad but), so they spend the holidays with them.  Katya and Niko come bouncing in to their parents room, bursting with excitement and anticipation at what awaits them under the massive decorated tree in the entry hall of the palace.  Julian and his father probably have a rather formal exchange of gifts (all extremely practical) before Katya drags Julian into her celebration and showers him with baubles and generally useless things that he keeps on his one shelf of chaos in his otherwise pristine room. 

Once Tasia and Nigel join the palace staff, they find that the whole palace staff eats a massive meal all together, laughing and singing and being generally jolly.  Also they totally have a white elephant exchange.  And Nigel totally ends up with something completely ridiculous while Tasia gets a pair of socks.

And at the end of the day, they all go to sleep with happiness like they haven't had in a long time.  Which makes me happy too.


What do your characters do for Christmas (or the equivalent of Christmas)?  And what are YOU doing for Christmas? 

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!  MERRY CHRISTMAS!  JESUS IS BORN AND ALL THAT GOOD STUFF!!! 

(no but seriously, I hope that you have a very merry holiday and a wonderful new year.  Thanks for sticking around through these [less-than] 12 Days of Christmas, I had soooo much fun, and I already look forward to next year!)

Wishing His blessings for you and yours,
~ Abby

Favorite Underrated Christmas Hymns - 12 Days of Christmas

Welcome back to the 12 Days of Christmas!  We're talking about more music today because, let's be honest, do I ever talk about anything else?

Can y'all believe we're a day to Christmas?



I'm not freaking out.



Okay I might be freaking out just a little.


Anyway, today we're going to be looking at some of my favorite Christmas songs that are a bit underrated.  (I've put YouTube links to these songs if you want to give them a listen!)  Let me know if any of these are your favorites too! 


1. I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day
- my favorite version -
Yes, okay, I know the Casting Crowns version has a lot of fans (I like it a lot too), but the original melody is my favorite.  Steven Curtis Chapman has my favorite version that I've heard, but I'm sure there are others out there.  It's just so pretty and lilting and I love it a lot.


2. We Three Kings
- my favorite version -
Again, okay, this one isn't super underrated, but the not many people know the other verses.  And they are so. powerful.  Verse four gives me chills every time.  The Hound + The Fox has an absolutely gorgeous version.


3. Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus
- my favorite version -
(technically Laura Story adds a chorus, but I still love it)
This song has been in my life since I was a small child and learned it for children's choir, and I still love it.  It's just got such a fun feel to it, when so many songs of advent have a somber tone.  It's kind of lilting, very fun, and reminds of the joy that Christ's birth brought.


4. Infant Holy, Infant Lowly
I couldn't find a version of this that wasn't slow as all get out, so?  I've always sung it upbeat and peppy and all of these were slow.  Uh... no.  But I love this song, it just brings a smile to my face.  And my whole family knows the tune but not all the words so it just ends up being this fun "Infant HOLY, infant LOWLY, for his BED a cattle staaaall, la da bla bla ba ba da da…" etc.  xD


5. There's a Song in the Air
Again, couldn't find a version of this one.  Which tells you how underrated it is.  And it's so fun, too!  Another upbeat, happy song for Christmas that I absolutely love.  I mean, how can you not enjoy singing lyrics like, "Ay, the star rains it's fire while the beautiful sing for the manger of Bethlehem cradles a King!" 


6. The Birthday of a King
I'm sending you to Judy Garland for this one, because apparently this song used to be known and just isn't any longer.  And even though she says alleluia weird, it's not a bad version.  Basically this is my list of "someone please cover this song, I'm begging you" xD


And for a bonus underrated Christmas song that's not a hymn,
7. The Night Before Christmas - Steven Curtis Chapman
Guys.  This is quickly becoming one of my absolute favorite Christmas songs because oh my gosh it's gorgeous??  Listen to it now.  Do it.  It's amazing.  The lyrics!  The accompaniment!  The message!  It's perfect and beautiful and has been stuck in my head for a solid week but that's a-okay by me.


So that's my list!  Are some of these on your "would someone please make a good cover of this" list?  What's an under-appreciated hymn I need to listen to?

Happy Christmas Eve!!

~ Abby

Still Too Many - 12 Days of Christmas

Have you ever studied Judges?  I certainly hadn't... until 6 weeks ago.  Our youth group (that I've technically graduated out of but the college & career group scares me so here I stay) started a new group study.  On Judges.  Which I was equal parts wary of and excited for.  I mean, Judges doesn't have the greatest reputation.  It's the R-rated book of the Bible, the one we skim over other than picking out the best stories.  It's the one that has the story about Ehud, who stabbed a fat king, and Jael, who drove a tent spike through her enemy's skull.  Yeah, not exactly something we learned about in Sunday School as a kid.

And you're probably thinking, "Abby, why in the world are you talking about Judges in a 12DoC post?" 

(I don't blame you, I had to work my brain to figure out a connection, but boy howdy, I think God gave me a good one.)

Today, we're going to be talking about Gideon.  One of the few Judges stories I learned about as a kid.  Though, to be honest, I'm still unsure of how his story ends because we're taking a break from the study for Christmas and I haven't read ahead because I'm nervous - I'm pretty sure it ends badly, and I'm sad already.  But anyway. 

Gideon.  We tend to think of him through the lens of judge.  The warrior, the conqueror, the faithful.  But this guy was a coward. 

When we first encounter him in Judges, he's threshing wheat (or attempting to thresh wheat) in a wine press.  That's not really a great way to thresh wheat.  But he's down there because he's afraid of the Midianites, scared they'll take the grain he's trying to get.  And God sends an angel to him who says "The Lord is with you, mighty warrior."

Now, we might look at this situation much like Gideon did.  "Uh, I'm sorry?"  Glancing over his shoulder as if there could be anyone else hiding threshing wheat in this wine press.  Seriously, Gideon's response is "the Lord has abandoned us and handed us over to Midian." Meaning, "if God's calling me a mighty warrior, why am I so scared of the Midianites that I'm trying to thresh wheat in a wine press?" 

"Why is He just now coming to save us?"

"And, more importantly, why is He choosing me?"

And God just says, "Go in the strength you have and deliver Israel from the hand of Midian.  Am I not sending you?"

oh. snap.

(Anybody else reminded of Moses?)

And Gideon, like the little introvert he is, raises his hand and says, "Uh, God?  Yeah, uh, I'm just the youngest son from the weakest family in the weakest tribe... are you sure you have the right address?"

God, in His infinite patience, repeats His point - "I will be with you.  You will strike down Midian as if it were one man."

I mean... what a promise!  "Stop worrying, I've got this."

"Be still and know that I am God."

To make a long story short, it takes a lot of coaxing and quite a few miracles, but eventually Gideon goes.  He gathers what troops he can scrounge up and rallies them to prepare for battle.  30,000 men.  Not great odds against the 100,000-strong Midianite army.  That's 3-on-1, if they even make it that far.

And God says, "No, it's too many men.  Send some home."

Too many men?  Gideon's probably really confused.  "God, you know we're going up against one of the most powerful armies around, right?"

God's point in this is that if there are this many men who win the battle (that He's already given over to them, remember), they'll claim it was their own strength that saved them.  Even though that couldn't possibly be the case.  But man, we humans are masters of justifying things to ourselves.  They would take God out of picture entirely and take credit for their own salvation by saying that they were good enough on their own... sound familiar?

Anyway, Gideon sends two-thirds of the men home.  Now he's working with 10,000 and says to himself in a mildly panicked voice, "We can still do this... no problem... everything's totally fine."

And you know what God says?

Still too many.

"Still too many?  Now it's 10-on-1 and we're not trained to fight a professional army!"
- Gideon, probably

But he does what God asks, and ends up with 300 men.  Three. Hundred.  And then what's even more insane: they go to battle with a torch covered by a pot in one hand and a trumpet in the other.  Does that seem to leave any room for a sword-holding hand?

What is God doing?  This seems crazy by our human standards - no one goes up against 100,000 men with 300, especially without weapons.  But this isn't based on our standards (that's kind of the point).

God is setting up for a miracle. And of course, because He's God, it works.  The Israelites smash the pots and wave the flames and blow the trumpets, the Midianites freak out, thinking an army is surrounding them, and start to run, which turns into killing each other.  And this, God (through the Israelites) wins a battle with Midian without lifting a weapon against them.

Now, this has all been well and good, but I'm sure you're wondering: "Okay, Abby, great story... but what about Christmas?"

Well... don't you see the parallel?

I don't know about you, but the holidays are when I get the most stressed.  I do so much (or I try to, at least).  Between the parties and the church events and the presents and this blog and YouTube... it's a lot.  I'm sure you have the same struggle.

Yesterday, we started the final set up for our annual church's live nativity.  And guess what happened?  It rained.  Off and on, for the whole day.

It's hard to set scenes up when it's raining, let me tell you.  And the crew was getting a little frustrated.  Things have seemed to be going wrong the whole time - the animals weren't confirmed, the wind tore down some of the flats and scaffolding, and everything was falling apart despite our best efforts to keep it together.  Everyone was on edge because we didn't know why everything was going wrong.

And I heard a voice in my head say, "Still too many."  Shivers ran down my spine, y'all.  Because this phrase has been running through my mind for weeks now while I tried to piece together.  And here it was in front of me, laid out plain as day.  We were trying to do it in our own strength.

Obviously, you can't just drop everything and not move and expect God to miraculously make it happen.  You do have to keep striving to do the best you can do, but then you have to give God the rest. 

And hey, if you're getting overwhelmed, take a step back.  God didn't shove Gideon in unprepared or unproven.  He gave Gideon time to see His goodness and go into battle completely sure of God's faithfulness.  That's the beautiful message that keeps coming up in the Bible: God will fight for us and with us.

Ultimately, we can do nothing in our own strength, and that's what God was showing Gideon.  We have to be humble enough, small enough, to leave room for God to work. 

Hopefully this came across like I wanted it to.  Putting something in words that is so close to one's heart is hard.  And to be honest, it took a completely different turn than I assumed it would.  God's good like that, isn't He?  My hope in this is that you'll see that you don't have to struggle your way through this holiday season, you have a Righteous Avenger who fights for you.  *sends you all hugs and hot cocoa with extra marshmallows*

What's something that God's been showing you lately?

~ Abby

(Oh, and be sure to check out all the awesome 12DoC posts today!  Who else is having as much fun with this blog party as I am?)

The Best of Hallmark Christmas

Also known as, "Abby's favorite Hallmark Christmas movies"!

Who else loves a good Hallmark movie around the holidays?  (Or three or four... or many more than that xD)  Yes, they're cheesy.  Yes, they all have a very similar plot line.  But good grief, they're fun.

I'd like to say I'm not easy to please with these but to be honest, I get sucked into them way too easily.  Particularly the ones with princes.  I don't know why I love those so much...

ANYWAY let's not talk about my type in men and just talk about the movies, yes?  *tries to keep a straight face and dies laughing*


1. The Mistletoe Promise

(also can we talk about how cute this poster is?)
The first time I watched this one, I walked away thinking "Wow... that actually had an original story-line!" They've made like... fifteen more with the "fake dating" trope since then but this one still holds up.  Fake relationships that turn into real relationships are just the cutest, oh my word.


2. A Royal Christmas


(this is not the only time Lacey Chabert is on this list xD)
Remember that thing about princes?  This was the one that started that for me.  The relationship in this one is just so PURE.  Also this one starts with them already dating, so there isn't any insta-love.  Which I appreciate.


3. Switched for Christmas

This one was just so. much. fun.  Two handsome guys, misunderstandings, twins who trade lives, it's jam-packed with great things.


4. A Nutcracker Christmas

Ballet!  The Nutcracker!  Feels!  This one has it all!  Just for the dancing portions alone, I love it, but it comes with a truly heart-warming story-line as well.  And all the costumes are just *heart eyes*


5. A Crown for Christmas

Bonus points on the royal front - this one is about a king. xD  No but really, I love the ones that have to do with kids and this one was just so darn cute.  It's my absolute favorite when the kid of the love interest start to love the main character and that's when he starts to realize that he loves her too... GAH it just makes my heart so happyyyy.


6. Pride, Prejudice, and Mistletoe

(see, I told you she'd be back, lol)
This one is new this year and other than using my least favorite trope (guy overhears something he wasn't supposed to overhear but leaves right before she explains herself and then he's all sad *rolls eyes*), it was really great!  I loved all the references to P&P, though I don't think Luke is the greatest genderbent Lizzie Bennet name. (I would have gone for Eli)  It was really cute!


7. Christmas Joy

I didn't know how I was going to feel about this one but like... it's got cookies, childhood friends-to-lovers, and one of the cutest couples I've seen on Hallmark in awhile.  What's not to love?  (no but seriously, they're really cute.  and their banter!  is so good!)


8. A Shoe Addict's Christmas

Was this really cheesy and kind of ridiculous?  Yes.  Did I adore it anyway?  Also yes.  It was a Christmas Carol-esque plot with a heart-warming message and hey!  there's faith content in this one!  Which is really cool!!


And there's the list!  Sorry about the short post, but you know... holiday craziness. 

What's your favorite Hallmark movie?  Do you have a soft spot for the royal ones like I do?

~ Abby

My Favorite Christmas Albums - 12 Days of Christmas

Who's a fan of Christmas music?  I certainly am.  There are definitely other times of year where I still listen to Christmas music, it just makes me so happy.  It's not only full of cheer, but it often makes me think of the birth of my Savior, and I love that about it.

So for today's 12 Days of Christmas post, I'm going to share some of my favorite Christmas music albums so that you can get in the spirit with me!

(Just click on the album art to play it on Spotify!)

1. That's Christmas to Me - Pentatonix

Favorite tracks - Mary, Did You Know // Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy

If you haven't listened to Pentatonix Christmas album yet, what have you been doing?  xD  I remember the first year we got this, it was basically all we listened to.  Every track is just brilliant.


2. The Heart of Christmas - Matthew West

Favorite tracks - Leaving Heaven // Christmas Makes Me Cry // O Come, All Ye Faithful

This album is just plain fantastic.  I don't think there's a track I don't like.  It's really good.


3. All I Really Want for Christmas - Steven Curtis Chapman

Favorite tracks - I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day // The Miracle of Christmas // The Night Before Christmas

 

SCC is one of my favorite artists in general, but his Christmas albums are really great.  This one just has a sense of comfort for me. 

4. Christmas - Francesca Battistelli

Favorite tracks - Christmas Is // You're Here // Marshmallow World

This whole album is a lot of fun.  Francesca has a nice balance of fun, upbeat songs and slow, meaningful ones.  But that's true of most of her albums, lol.


5. Joy - Avalon

Favorite tracks - Joy (to the World) // Light a Candle // We Are the Reason

Y'all, this album is my JAM.  Joy (to the World) and Angels Medley are two of the Christmas songs that get me dancing the fastest.  I always end up jumping around and singing at the top of my lungs and I love it a lot.


6. All My Christmases - Jillian Edwards

Favorite tracks - (I mean, there's only 4 tracks but) Mary's Lullaby // O Holy Night

Jillian Edwards is one of my favorite artists in general (I love her voice so much oh my wooord) and her little Christmas EP is a really great one.  They've all got a great, lilting quality to them that make them really fun to sing along with.


7. Songs of Winter - The Hound + The Fox

Favorite tracks - What Child is This/Child of the Poor // We Three Kings // God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

This duo is new to me this year, and this album is completely new this year!  I love their whole vibe, it gives me much the same feelings as Jillian Edwards' music.  It's very folksy but not annoyingly so.  Great for chilling or going to sleep to.


8. The Spirit of the Season - Voctave

Favorite tracks - Mary, Did You Know // O Come, O Come, Emmanuel/The First Noel/I Wonder as I Wander

Voctave (also known as EPCOT's Voices of Liberty) is one of the most incredible acapella groups to ever grace anyone's ears ever.  Trust me on this and just click the link.


9. Home for Christmas - BarlowGirl

Favorite tracks - Carol of the Bells/Sing We Now of Christmas // Hallelujah (Light Has Come)

Anybody else remember BarlowGirl?  They were my sister's favorite band for awhile, and I still really enjoy their music.  Their voices lend perfectly to Christmas music.


10. Into the Silent Night - For King & Country

Favorite tracks - Glorious // Baby Boy

 

This is another EP (the extended edition that this links to has 6 songs) but it's a great little collection.  4K&C puts on an amazing Christmas show, I've been to it, and the album really captures the feeling of being there. 

Honorable Mention: Christmas is Here! - Pentatonix

Favorite tracks - Everything but "Sweater Weather", tbh.  (("Sweater Weather" is ewww))

HAVE Y'ALL HEARD THIS YET?? I didn't want to put two ptx albums on this list but they had to go and release an incredible new album and who am I to say no?  They continue to astound me with their arrangements.  How do they do it with only five voices??  HOW???


If you want to hear some of these albums shuffled together with my other faves, I have several Spotify playlists all about my favorite holiday!
what child is this {gentle lullabies and songs of the Savior}
jingle bell rock {bops, jams, and songs that make me want to dance}
light of the world {songs about the first Christmas}

So that's my list!  What would your list include?  Have you listened to any of these albums (or are you going to listen to them?)

Per the usual, be sure to check out everyone else's awesome 12DoC posts!

~ Abby