I finished Nora Robert’s The Becoming, the 2nd installment of the Dragon Heart Legacy. Picks up where the first book ended with Marco latching onto Breen’s hand as she jumped through the gate in Ireland. His fascination with Talamha and Breen’s world of magic and dragons enlivens the story and love the give and take between them. Watching the relationship between Breen and Keagan build as she learns to embrace her magic, her strengths and weaknesses before they have to battle the big bad. Not sure what I’m going to read next. Have to peruse the stacks. In the meantime I’ve bought way too many books. But I did find my next Haruki Murakimi read for January – Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage. And figured out where I left off with Qui Xiaolong’s Inspector Chen and got Hold Your Breath, China. At some point I'm going to do a reread of Jayne Castles Harmony's Ghost Hunter series and fill in the books I haven't read yet. Guild Boss # 15 in the Harmony series just came out. Hmm. I should probably read that one. LOL! Also discovered a bunch of broken links on the perpetual challenges on the blog so guess what I spent the day doing. Yep. Which of course is what lead to the book buying binge while I was at it. 🙃

Sounds like an interesting read as I don't know much about Hawking beyond what seen in the news. Added it to my wishlist. Sounds like one my hubby would enjoy. Love all the quotes and questions, and pretty much questions I ask hubby when he's railing about this or that. How are you personally affected and what can you personally control. Much of it also sounds close to how to deal with grief as well. Sounds like a wonderful book and added to my wishlist. Dang, no happy ending, I don't like books without a happy or satisfying ending. It's been on my wish list and I've been very tempted to get it several times but just haven't. Will have to think about it now.

I haven't read anything by Veronica Henry. Love the cover and will check her out. The first time I did a buying ban, I lasted all of one month. Each year I get a bit further, especially if I stick to physical books. With the Kindle, it's very tempting to add the next thing. Love the Ikea meme.

I’m enjoying Nora Robert’s fantasy The Becoming, the 2nd novel in her Dragon Heart Legacy series. It begins where “Awakening” left off and it took a few pages for me to remember what had happened in the first book. This will be a good series to reread when all are available. Still listening to Erin Morgenstern The Starless Sea and love the narrators. Two men, one narrating the backstory and another as the main character. I usually run for the book to read when I can’t listen, but not this time. The narrators make the story. It’s like listening to music and a bard telling a tale. I’ll wait to read the book later. We watched Jungle Cruise with Dwayne 'the rock' Johnson and Emma Blunt. Excellent Movie.

Link to week 48

Happy Sunday! As the year winds down, the best books of the year lists rise up with many books in common. Some I may have missed and others I may have deliberately missed on purpose. Some may not have been stories that enticed me into reading more... Yet. Some weren't my style, which can change from year to year. Different phases, different places, different mind set, or just not in the mood. But when I am in the mood, watch out. My TBR stack gets taller, while some books grow older and wait patiently, knowing that in time, I'll get to them. If you are like me, your book shelves may be filled to the brim with books double and triple parked. Every so often, I'll rearrange them, pulling stories and authors forward to sit front and center, pushing others to the back until it's their time to shine again. I really don't need to buy more books, but you know, you can never have enough. While the sleepy, dusty tome, bides its time, the shiny penny calls your name. While perusing the best of the best for 2021 the past few days, and adding a few to my virtual and physical stack as well as my wish list, I thought, wait.... What about 2022? All those shiny new pennies! Time to preorder a few before my book buying ban clicks in at the beginning of the year. Now I know why my stacks keep having babies and those babies have babies. LOL! I'm ever so grateful to the authors and their creativity who keep me entertained. And I love bringing you all along to play as well, so for your enjoyment, enlightenment, and edification, below are a few links to the best of the best for 2021 and the most anticipated for 2022. The Irish Times Best of fiction, biography, sport, and children's books Foreign Policy's the best books we read in 2021 The Manual: The men share the 20 Best Books of 2021 for your next read. Five Books Best of..... NPR's Book Concierge is now The Books We Love. I got lost in this one for quite a while. On to the new shiny pennies: Marie Claire's 2022 Book Releases to get excited about. Buzzfeed's 25 Of The Most Anticipated Books Coming Out Next Year, According To Book Lovers We are Bookish 24 Highly-Anticipated Books Hitting Shelves in 2022 The Bibliofile January 22 Most Anticipated New Book Releases Criminal Element's Most Anticipated Mysteries and Thrillers of 2022 Bibliolifestyle's Most Anticipated Winter 2022 Romance Novels and Historical Fiction You're welcome! P.S. In anticipation and preparation for next year, check out the 52 Books Blog which has been updated and includes four new challenges for 2022. Have fun following rabbit trails. I did. Link to week 47 Visit 52 Books in 52 Weeks where you can find all the information on the annual, mini and perpetual challenges.

Reading The Becoming and absolutely love this word of wisdom when character talks about losing time "Time's never lost, just spent on other matters." 😘

Yeah. My head didn't explode from all the number crunching. Done with submitting all paper work for both the Workers Comp audit, and SBA loan annual review. Now I can relax and enjoy our Thanksgiving holiday. We're having a quiet one to ourselves which means getting some honey do projects done. And because life is to short to read books that just don't hold my interest, I'm giving up on Wise Woman. Too depressing. I'm in more of a fluff mode at the moment. Finished Darynda Jones second book in her Sunshine Vicram series with A Good Day for Chardonnay. Why oh why though is it going to take a full year for the next installment to release? Oh well. Happy Dance.... Nora Roberts newest just came in - Becoming, #2 in her Dragon Heart Legacy series.

Gasp! What? No books. My guys got creative this year for my birthday and went to the local antique dealer down the street. Hubby cooked an awesome roast with yorkshire pudding. Had long chats with my dad and one of my sisters. Great day!

I have two new challenges finished for 2022 with a wild weekly challenge - A to Z - Z to A and our annual read an author and spelling challenge - Books about Books Bookology Books about Books Bookology Hosted by Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks Month Author Highlighted Book January Shion Miura The Great Passage February Umberto Eco Foucault’s Pendulum March Gabrielle Zevin Storied Life of A.J. Fikry April Arturo Perez Reverte The Club Dumas May Mindy Thompson The Bookshop of Dust and Dreams June Carlos Ruiz Zafon Cemetery of Lost Books series July Rachel Kadish The Weight of Ink August Erica Swyler The Book of Speculation September Michelle Gable The Booksellers Secret October Katherine Arden Small Spaces November Paul Collins Sixpence House: Lost in a Town of Books December Jenny Colgan Christmas Bookshop

Yep, same here. At the end of each year, I go through and uninstall all the books I don't think I'll read and leave downloaded a manageable (sort of) selection of books I think I'll read during the year. Sometimes it works and other times I think I want to read such and such, but don't exactly remember the title and have to search through the virtual pile.

Finally updated my books completed list and discovered my reading has fallen largely into three categories: romance, crime, and fantasy. However, I did split dragons/fantasy/Science Fiction into three different categories when it should have all been one. And a lot of the romance category included paranormal and urban fantasy. So, there’s been a lot of blending. I think my 10 x 10 was a failure this year. Think I’ll skip making 10 x 10 for 2022 and see what themes extemporaneously develop in the process. In progress: Hardback -- Wise Woman by Philippa Gregory, Audiobook –- Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern Ebook -- #2 in Sunshine Vicram trilogy by Darynda Jones A Good Day for Chardonnay We watched Red Notice tonight on Netflix with Dwayne 'rock' Johnson, Ryan Reynolds, and Gal Gadot which was very entertaining.

Link to week 47

Happy Sunday, my lovelies and Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate. Song of Thanksgiving (To the air - Portuguese Hymn) Poems for Young Americans By Will Carleton We thank thee, O Father, for all that is bright-- the gleam of the day and the stars of the night; The flowers of our youth, and the fruits of our prime, And blessings e'er marching the pathway of time. We thank thee, O Father, for all this is drear-- The sob of the tempest -- the flow of the tear; For never in blindness, and never in vain, Thy mercy permitted a sorrow or pain. We thank thee, O Father, for song and for feast-- The harvest that glowed, and the wealth that increased; For never a blessing encompassed thy child, But thou in thy mercy looked downward and smiled. We thank thee, O Father for all! for the power Of aiding each other in life's darkest hour; The generous heart, and the bountiful hand, And all the soul-help that sad souls understand. We thank thee, O Father--for days yet to be -- For hopes that our future will call us to thee: That all our eternity form, through thy love, One Thanksgiving Day in the mansions above. **Copyright 1910 Every Where Publishing. ************************* Count of Monte Cristo Chapter 115. Luigi Vampa’s Bill of Fare Chapter 116. The Pardon Chapter 117. The Fifth of October Link to week 46 Visit 52 Books in 52 Weeks where you can find all the information on the annual, mini and perpetual challenges.

Last Watch looks really good. Read the excerpt and added it to my B&N Pick up order for Monday. Thanks!

You all have talked up The Expanse series so much I finally had to check it out. Added Leviathan Wakes to my virtual stacks along with several other books in including Jo Walton's Among Others, Ann Perry's Face of a Stranger, and Willo Davis Roberts Girl with the Silver Eyes. A bunch more dragon and bookshop books. I see some themes evolving. I think I'm done buying books for the time being and will wait to see what my guys get me for my birthday and Christmas. The poor dears had to force themselves to go the store today because they missed the time window for Amazon to get here by Sunday, even though I gave them plenty of warning. It'll be a total surprise since neither one has any idea what to get and hubby always looks for the fattest book possible. 😁 Finished When Sorrow Comes and happy that October and Tybalt finally managed to get married. Gave up on 42nd Street Library for the moment, just couldn't get into his writing. Philippa Gregory's Wise Woman has captured my attention so far.

Audible told me I needed to use my credits or would lose one so ended up getting a few memoirs and also Erin Morgernstern's Starless Sea. In love with the narrator and the story. So very good. And in the midst of the story dropping easter eggs. Mentioned Sara Waters and Raymond Chandler. So I looked up all the books and authors mentioned in the Starless Sea. I found Related Reads which is awesome because most of them match with Bingo and other challenges for the year. Synchronicity. Several may work for our author bookology. 😃

Bingo for 2022 is ready. Here's a taste of what's on tap for next year.

Still reading Rilke’s Letters to a Young Poet. I came across this article Can Rilke Change Your Life in the New Yorker on Saturday which lead to me to a new edition of Letters which includes the missing letters of the young poet which weren’t included in the original edition. Maybe if I’m curious enough after finishing the edition I have, I may get it. Finished The Riviera House by Natasha Lester which was good, but I liked Kristin Hannah’s The Nightingale so much more. Ebook – started #15 in the October Daye series When Sorrows Come by Seanan McGuire and in hard cover – Philippa Gregory’s The Wise Woman.

Link to week 46

Happy Sunday, my lovelies. We're in the midst of planning our 2022 bookish adventures and having loads of fun with the bingo categories and coming up with new challenges. Meanwhile getting side tracked and adding to my TBR pile. So many good books. I went a little bit link happy while writing this week's post and figured out I need to have a better plan for actually reading all the books I've been acquiring. Which lead me to The Art of Manliness, which is actually a wonderful site to explore. I came across Why you need a Reading Plan detailing the importance of having a plan and sticking with it. I ditched my non fiction reading plan somewhere in the middle of the year and need to revise for 2022. I have a whole slew of nonfiction books on my shelves from memoirs like Trevor Noah's Born a Crime to Adam Savage's Every Tool's a Hammer to multiple writing books such as Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes by Maria Konnikova. Stumbled across their article on The Best of the Marine Corps’ Reading Lists with many books my hubby will enjoy reading. Unfortunately, it looks like The Art of War has been removed from the current list which is a must read for anyone. Caboodle lists it among the 10 non-fiction books that changed the world. Today is the 170th anniversary of when Moby Dick was published. If you haven't read it yet, maybe 2022 would be the perfect time. Why read Moby Dick? makes the case for why and In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex gives you the real story behind the fiction tale. Another seafaring tale that captured my attention is Hampton Side's In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette. Both Philbrick and Hampton make history come alive. Speaking of history and adventure, the Art of Manliness (A wonderful website to explore) lists The Essential Adventure Library: 50 Non-fiction Adventure Books. 15 Memoirs That Will Inspire You To Keep Writing That Book Food is Life! Foodie Memoirs to Enjoy 9 New Music Memoirs and Biographies for Rock and Blues Fans 9 of the Grittiest Music memoirs of all time 15 absorbing nonfiction books to inspire your inner scientist 5 Poignant Poetry Memoirs Non-Fiction Recommendations From Katherine Addison 15 of the Best Non Fiction Books in 2021 Have fun following rabbit trails! ************************ Count of Monte Cristo Chapter 112. The Departure Chapter 113. The Past Chapter 114. Peppino ******************************* Link to week 45 Visit 52 Books in 52 Weeks where you can find all the information on the annual, mini and perpetual challenges.

Love the cartoon. Made me giggle. Sounds like a delightful store and if I ever get a chance to go back to New York, will have to do a tour of book stores. Loved your reviews and highlights from How to Relax. Appreciate the present and live in the present are two very important things. I think that’s what my dream was telling me last night. One of those, trying to get back to where I started dreams, ignoring all around me in the effort to get there. It’s the journey, not the ending that matters. It's okay. I'm sure they understand. My hubby once gave me a 1200 page independently published snoozer and I read it. So I'm off the hook for have you read it yet with any of the other books he's given me. 😁 Sounds right up my alley. Will have to check it out. Oh! Sounds like an interesting book! Added the first book to my wishlist. Thanks for all the links!

Reading a new to me author – Natasha Lester’s The Riviera House which is set in two time frames and is about wwII and the French resistance. Combines history and art which are two things I love to read about. Enjoying it so far. “Paris, 1939: The Nazis think Éliane can’t understand German. They’re wrong. They think she’s merely cataloging art in the Louvre and unaware they’re stealing national treasures for their private collections. They have no idea she’s carefully decoding their notes and smuggling information to the Resistance. But Éliane is playing a dangerous game. Does she dare trust the man she once loved with her secrets, or will he only betray her once again? She has no way to know for certain . . . until a trip to a stunning home on the French Riviera brings a whole new level of peril. Present Day: Wanting to forget the tragedy that has left her life in shambles, Remy Lang heads to a home she’s mysteriously inherited on the Riviera. While working on her vintage fashion business, she discovers a catalog of the artworks stolen during World War II and is shocked to see a painting that hung on her childhood bedroom wall. Who is her family, really? And does the Riviera house hold more secrets than Remy is ready to face?” Read Kristin Hannah’s The Nightingale a few years back and that one was both haunting and beautiful and well worth reading.

@Lady Florida. Congratulations on finishing Count of Monte Cristo and glad you enjoyed it. I read Dune years and years ago and will probably read again with James at some point. Its good and hope you and hubby enjoy. I liked the movie version with Kyle Mclaughlin since it covered the whole movie. I heard the current Dune only covers the first half of the book and they will release the sequel with the remainder in 2023. And if I remember the story correctly, splitting it in two that way wouldn't have made sense to someone who has already read the book. James will be too excited to wait when it comes out in DVD, but since he hasn't read the book yet, won't make much difference. @Granny_WeatherwaxI'm in a bit of a flounder myself with books right now and need to sit and contemplate my shelves and figure out what I'm really in the mood for, besides rereading Nora.