I'd like to participate!

I just noticed this the other day. It really is a fun game!

@Kareni I found myself thinking the same thing. I didn't really know anything about him and was surprised to learn what an honorable man he was! Such a shame that he was killed.

Hi everyone! I have finished two books recently: Destiny of the Republic: a Tale of Madness, Medicine, and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard - great non-fiction book all about the ( very much unwanted by him) election of James A. Garfield to the presidency and his attempted assassination by a madman, and the sadly misguided beliefs of his doctors that ended up killing him. Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney - thriller with a very unexpected ending!

Hi everyone! I actually finished a book - it only took me 2 weeks, ha. Kissing the Gunner's Daughter by Ruth Rendell. This is book 15 in the Inspector Wexford series but the first I've read. It looks like my library has the series and several of those on audio so I will be reading more!

I never realized that - cool! The Talking Bread was one of our favorite RS stories.

Good morning! I finished a couple books last week: Strange Practice (Dr. Greta Helsing, #1) by Vivian Shaw. Dr. Greta Helsing is a doctor to vampires, werewolves, and other undead beings in modern-day London. A series of unusual murders within the paranormal community has her investigating the crimes. Interesting premise and I want to listen to the next one (there are 3 in the series so far). The Cabinets of Barnaby Mayne by Elsa Hart. Barnaby Mayne is a revered collector of scientific objects and curiosities living in 1703 London. Our protagonist, Lady Cecily Kay, is visiting him to consult on her botanical specimens when Sir Barnaby is murdered. I enjoyed the mystery and found it refreshing to read a story set in that time period.

I love Middlemarch! But I get it - the author does tend to go on and on about local politics and it's written in the local dialect and doesn't do much for the story, imo. If you promise not to tell anyone - I skim those parts! Also, the ending isn't quite satisfying. You might like the miniseries the BBC did in 1994 Middlemarch. A young Rufus Sewell plays Will Ladislaw and the other characters are cast well, too!

I'm so sorry to hear this. She will be missed.

I've started and given up on three books these past couple of weeks! One of them was The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule and I was about 100 pages in and found myself skimming. I think because I've watched a few documentaries about Ted Bundy, I know the story pretty well so it just isn't holding my interest. I've started two books, one audio and one hardback, fingers crossed that I will actually finish them both. Also @Laurel-in-CA - you can never buy too much yarn!

Good morning everyone! Great review, @Negin, I'm adding Lady in Waiting to my library list! I've read two of the true crime titles listed - Killers of the Flower Moon (which was great) and Devil in the White City (which was not great). I have The Stranger Beside Me on my bookcase right now so that will be my true crime read for this week!

We've enjoyed Kdramas for a few years now. Goblin is the one that hooked us! Reading through this thread has given me several new ones to watch - thank you! One that I've been liking is Move to Heaven - Working as trauma cleaners, both Gu-ru and Sang-gu uncover various stories of the deceased while experiencing different emotions and sentiments toward life, death and family.

Sounds like fun! Let us know if you win something!

Hi everyone! Thanks for the thread, Robin. I thought the audiobook of Ready Player One was terrific and hope you are enjoying it! Finished #10 in the Joe Pickett series, Nowhere to Run . Enjoyed it very much!

Love the poem, Robin! and I'll be looking for the Rosamund Pilcher book at my library, Negin, thank you! I listened to a short story collection called Murder Most Foul volume one - with stories from Wilkie Collins, Robert Barr, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Margery Allingham. The narrators were all excellent - one was Derek Jacobi (love him!) but I don't recognize the others.

Hi everyone! I read The Lioness by Chris Bohjalian last week. Set in 1960s Africa, a group of Americans goes on safari and bad things happen. This was a bit outside of my usual genre and I ended up really liking it. I am almost done with The Ruins by Scott Smith. I am just now realizing that this book has the same basic premise - a group of Americans goes to the Mexican jungle for a vacation and very bad things happen. This one, however, is brought on by this particular group of young, dumb college students being extra reckless and naive. It's a page-turner and I only have 50 or so more pages to go so I have to finish it even though most of me is doing this 😱 Thanks for the thread, Robin! I'm looking forward to perusing the links.

Cosmic Crisp are my favorite!!

Hi everyone! I just got back from a visit with my sister and her family in Montana. Coming from AZ and 100+ temps, to MT and lots of rain (and even a little snow!) was delightful! I didn't get much reading done. I gave up on the book I brought with me, HHhH by Laurent Binet, as I just couldn't get into the story because of his writing style. He meandered along and went back and forth in time and made things up, then told you he made them up and I was too annoyed to continue. From GR - HHhH: "Himmlers Hirn heisst Heydrich", or "Himmler's brain is called Heydrich". The most dangerous man in Hitler's cabinet, Reinhard Heydrich was known as the "Butcher of Prague." He was feared by all and loathed by most. With his cold Aryan features and implacable cruelty, Heydrich seemed indestructible―until two men, a Slovak and a Czech recruited by the British secret service, killed him in broad daylight on a bustling street in Prague, and thus changed the course of History. Sounds like a terrific read, right? Wrong. 🤨 -A seemingly effortlessly blend of historical truth, personal memory, and Laurent Binet's remarkable imagination, HHhH―an international bestseller and winner of the prestigious Prix Goncourt du Premier Roman―is a work at once thrilling and intellectually engrossing, a fast-paced novel of the Second World War that is also a profound meditation on the nature of writing and the debt we owe to history. I wasn't familiar with this story from WWII and even had to check and make sure it was true. It sounds fascinating so I'll be looking for more info on it. I have several books ready to go from the library so between those and hopefully finding one on Heydrich I'm sure to have plenty of good reading time. Thank you for the thread, Robin, and hope everyone has a good week.

I haven't finished anything since last week. I normally read at bedtime but lately have been falling asleep after one or two pages. I think I need to start reading earlier in the evening! Robin, I hope you will be feeling better soon!

I've had three of my daughters get married in the past year and each one did something different. First daughter had a fairly traditional wedding in my backyard. It went well but was fairly stressful for me (of course!) and the day before it took place the groom came to me and said, " If I would have known how much work this was all going to be, we would have just eloped." I had to count to ten before answering him. 😑 Second daughter had a courthouse ceremony with friends and family attending. The judge said some really nice words before the vows, we took pics of everyone together afterward, the bride and groom left for their honeymoon after that, and the rest of us all went out for dinner. BEST WEDDING EVER!! I highly recommend doing this. Third daughter had a traditional wedding at a 'specifically for weddings' venue. Groom is an only child and his mom really wanted a big do so his folks paid for a good chunk of it. It was lovely. So overall, I think people can do what ever they want nowadays. 🙂

I hope you feel better soon, Robin! Kareni, because of one of your posts a few weeks back, I started listening to the Strong Sense of Place podcast and am enjoying it very much. Thank you! The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey by Walter Mosley. This is a story of a 91 year old man in the early stages of dementia who gets his memory back for a short time and needs to sort out his memories and do what he can for his loved ones in the very little time he has left. I found the ending very satisfying and wholeheartedly recommend it!

Happy Mother's Day! My kids all came over to my house and made breakfast and brought flowers and we had a lovely morning together.🥰 Last week I finished A Dream of Death by Connie Berry. Contemporary murder mystery set on a tiny Scottish island. It's the first in a series and I'll probably look for the next one at the library. Love the pics @Negin and @Kareni!

I was in Seattle years ago and saw Casablanca with the symphony playing - it was wonderful! I took the quiz and I'm Chewbaca 😂

Hi everyone! I finished a re-listen of Desolation Island by Patrick O'Brian last week. I've been slowly going through the series again (maybe my third? fourth? time) and am enjoying it so much. I love an author who you can read and re-read and still find new meanings in their work. I also started A Dream of Death by Connie Berry. It is the first in a series and I'm a few chapters in but it is promising so far!

I am so sorry for your loss. ((hugs))