Book a Week 2020 - BW6: 52 Books Bingo - Whimsical and Humorous

[Violet Crown]

On 2/10/2020 at 10:15 AM, aggieamy said:

I would have guessed my reading is more male author heavy too but it appears it's not! Right now I'm at 50/50. That'll be a fun thing to track this year.

@Group - I'd love to know where everyone else falls. Do you tend to read more female or male authors? What about so far this year?

If I read Emma after Vidocq I'll be up to 1/8. In 2019 it was ... let's see ... 5/72. Isak Dinesen, Emma Tennant, Elaine Dundy, Emily Brontë, and St. Clare of Assisi. 

[Lori D.]

2 hours ago, aggieamy said:

@Violet Crown - What's your Emma schedule look like? I've attempted it a few years ago and can never get through. (I've had better luck with the movies which is a bizarre things for me to say since I'm generally TV-phobic.) I've downloaded an audiobook to try with the idea that it might go better. I'm really attempting to add some culture to my life but I still can't seem to get myself to start Emma again. 

I'm not Violet Crown, but I've been wanting to get to Emma at some point too... Looks like it will have to be this summer, though. But it looks like it is divided into 3 parts, each with 18 short chapters (well, last part has 19 chapters). So the way I'm looking at breaking it up is 5 chapters a day, over 11 days -- which gives me a few days of wiggle room if I want to read something else or if life circumstances interfere -- and I would complete it in 2 weeks. Which would also be at an easy enough pace for me to think about it as I read, or reflect on it after each short "chapter chunk" (lol). Just what I'm tentatively planning at this point.

[Pen]

On 2/10/2020 at 7:22 AM, aggieamy said:

Alexander McCall Smith is such a prolific writer. He's written over 100 books ... he's got to be writing two books a year. And he works as a professor. And travels. Impressive!

 

I saw a documentary related to #1 Ladies Detective filming.  I think he’s retired from professor work.  But McCall Smith was an amazing fast typist and every few minutes seemed to get an idea and would start typing away at a furious pace on his portable whatever it was (laptop probably)! 

I preferred his Emma to the original tbh😊@Lori D.

Edited February 12, 2020 by Pen

[Lori D.]

19 minutes ago, Pen said:

... I preferred his Emma to the original tbh

And I find that I prefer the high quality film versions to Austen's original novels, LOL -- heresy, I know! I just find that her writing is "too much telling, not enough showing" -- the opposite of the traditionally well-written work. I didn't enjoy how all the best bits of Pride & Prejudice were all seen second- and third-hand, rather than directly -- it loses a lot of power that way, for me. I get that there might be some subtleties of how these stories are through the women's eyes, and they lived mostly hearing about things second hand. But, it didn't work for me. Which is why the good films DO work for me. 🙂 

However, I set myself a goal several years back of reading through all of Austen's novels. I'm about halfway there, with Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, and Northanger Abbey (which I actually thought was a hoot -- my favorite so far). I have Emma, Sense & Sensibility, and Persuasion to go. (I'm not counting Lady Susan and the unfinished works into my goal 😉 )

19 minutes ago, Pen said:

I saw a documentary related to #1 Ladies Detective filming.  I think he’s retired from professor work.  But McCall Smith was an amazing fast typist and every few minutes seemed to get an idea and would start typing away at a furious pace on his portable whatever it was (laptop probably)!  ...

The keyboard must be smoking! 😄 I love McCall Smith's No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series. I haven't been able to warm up to his other few series...

Edited February 12, 2020 by Lori D.

[Laurel-in-CA]

Found a new favorite sword and sorcery series this week. It seems to be labeled YA, but I thought it was a great read, collision of four different cultures, a couple of different religious systems and kingdoms built very loosely around Greece/Asia Minor. This is the first book (6 in the series, so I'm still working on it).

https://www.amazon.com/Thief-Queens-Book-ebook/dp/B002OMZTY4/ref=sr_1_2?crid=22H1K760STH5F&keywords=megan+whalen+turner&qid=1581547604&s=digital-text&sprefix=megan+whela%2Cdigital-text%2C448&sr=1-2

For SF lovers, has anyone read MCA Hogarth? This is the first book I read by her and I thoroughly enjoyed the series. She has another series that is darker and more adult, too -- the covers are pretty clear so you can tell the more pastoral from the more adult titles. Lots of aliens and humanoids of various derivations.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CLMGIZQ/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i16

Meanwhile just babysitting the newly spayed, newly adopted dog after we had to put down our old guy last week. We're all missing his introverted presence, but the new extrovert is a lot more cuddly so that helps bridge the gap. 

[Lori D.]

3 hours ago, Laurel-in-CA said:

Found a new favorite sword and sorcery series this week. It seems to be labeled YA, but I thought it was a great read, collision of four different cultures, a couple of different religious systems and kingdoms built very loosely around Greece/Asia Minor. This is the first book (6 in the series, so I'm still working on it)...

Meanwhile just babysitting the newly spayed, newly adopted dog after we had to put down our old guy last week. We're all missing his introverted presence, but the new extrovert is a lot more cuddly so that helps bridge the gap. 

The Queen's Thief! A favorite series here! I can't WAIT for book 6 to be released in print -- it got bumped from a March to an August release, I see... 😫

Glad you have a new 4-footed family member... So sorry for the loss of your older guy. 😢

[vmsurbat1]

@Seasider @Kareni Thank you for your takes on "Adult" content.  Much appreciated.  

Here is my review for The Lost City of Z:

***************

While researching Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, author Grann stumbled across the amazing (if crazed) passion of explorer Percy Fawcett to find The Lost City of Z . Grann sets out to discover the truth behind the man, the mission, and the myth. 

Grann explores the background of Fawcett, his education, his place in Royal Geographical Society, his quests, his personal researches along with short snippets of Grann’s own preparations to visit the last known whereabouts of Fawcett. 

Given the extensive end notes and bibliography, Grann did an impressive amount of research to tell this tale. I learned a lot regarding the role and importance of the Royal Geographical Society in the late 1800/early 1900's, of Fawcett and his era, of the staggering beauty (and death) played out in the Amazon basin, plus I gained a new-found respect for the importance of Tropical Medicine as its own field. A worthwhile read. 

***************

Currently reading a Kindle Freebie, cozy mystery.  Nothing special but it was appropriate while ill, so I'm looking to wrap it up and find something less fluffy.

Edited February 13, 2020 by vmsurbat1
typo

[Kareni]

@Laurel-in-CA, the Queen's Thief series has been a longtime favorite of my (now adult) daughter. I should probably read it; after all, she was right about The Goblin Emperor!

18 hours ago, Laurel-in-CA said:

For SF lovers, has anyone read MCA Hogarth?

I've only read something short as I recall. I don't know if you saw this when I posted it previously, but the author has a book that is currently free for Kindle readers. I've seen it described as an asexual romance ~

M.C.A. Hogarth's  Mindtouch (The Dreamhealers Book 1)

 "Seersana University is worlds-renowned for its xenopsychology program, producing the Alliance's finest therapists, psychiatric nurses and alien researchers. When Jahir, one of the rare and reclusive Eldritch espers, arrives on campus, he's unprepared for the challenges of a vast and multicultural society... but fortunately, second-year student Vasiht'h is willing to take him under his wing. Will the two win past their troubles and doubts and see the potential for a once-in-a-lifetime partnership?"

 Regards,

Kareni

[Negin]

Kindle book on sale today (historical fiction). 

[aggieamy]

Finished:

Touch Not the Cat by Mary Stewart. Here's the deal. I really enjoy Mary Stewart books. Complete with the dated clothing and smoking. This one I couldn't really get lost in. The ESP thing was too bizarre. (Granted I tend to shy away from anything supernatural so ...) I'd recommend this one only if you're the Ppresident of your local Mary Stewart fan club chapter and you've already read all her other books twice. 

This is book 17 for me for the year. 

Guys.

I ONLY read 17 book last year. 

This year is looking better!

[aggieamy]

20 hours ago, Laurel-in-CA said:

Meanwhile just babysitting the newly spayed, newly adopted dog after we had to put down our old guy last week. We're all missing his introverted presence, but the new extrovert is a lot more cuddly so that helps bridge the gap. 

I'm glad you've got a new furry friend!

On 2/12/2020 at 1:14 PM, Lori D. said:

And I find that I prefer the high quality film versions to Austen's original novels, LOL -- heresy, I know! I just find that her writing is "too much telling, not enough showing" -- the opposite of the traditionally well-written work.

I'm rather relieved I'm not the only ones. I'll probably have to start ducking rotten fruit with my next sentence but since we're all friends I'll admit it out loud. I liked the BBC version of Little Women a couple of years ago more than I liked the book!

 

@vmsurbat1 - Glad to see you're feeling better!

[Kareni]

7 minutes ago, aggieamy said:

This is book 17 for me for the year. 

Guys.

I ONLY read 17 book last year. 

This year is looking better!

Yay! Happy reading!

36 minutes ago, Seasider too said:

On to the next in the stack, Year One by Nora Roberts. I added it to my library queue at the beginning of January, it’s on theme with another reading challenge group I’m in. I picked it up a few days ago and only just now read the back cover synopsis. I have a feeling it’s going to read more like a current event than science fiction.

Robin, mumto2, and I have all read that. Quite likely others here have, too.  You're sadly right about the current events feel, at least, initially. Then the book goes places that I hope will never happen in real life!

I'll be interested in hearing your thoughts. I read the trilogy, but it's not my favorite by the author.

Regards,

Kareni

[Kareni]

Some bookish posts ~

After the mention of Nora Roberts above....

5 things I learned from binge-reading a 50-book crime series by SOPHIA ROSENBAUM

8 GREAT META ROMANCE BOOKS FEATURING ROMANCE ABOUT ROMANCE by CASEY Stepaniuk

 Regards,

Kareni

[Pen]

1 hour ago, Negin said:

Kindle book on sale today (historical fiction). 

 

Omg!  I think my best friend in 9th grade introduced me to that book!  Or at least title sounded like that.

[Kareni]

I recently read/skimmed Paperbacks from Hell by Grady Hendrix. Horror is a genre that I generally avoid; however, I was doing gift giving research for a friend who does read horror. The book was quite enjoyable and not intrinsically scary; I learned quite a bit! At heart, it's a book about books which is something I do like.

"An affectionate, nostalgic, and unflinchingly funny celebration of the horror fiction boom of the 1970s and ’80s

 
Take a tour through the horror paperback novels of two iconic decades . . . if you dare. Page through dozens and dozens of amazing book covers featuring well-dressed skeletons, evil dolls, and knife-wielding killer crabs! Read shocking plot summaries that invoke devil worship, satanic children, and haunted real estate! Horror author and vintage paperback book collector Grady Hendrix offers killer commentary and witty insight on these trashy thrillers that tried so hard to be the next Exorcist or Rosemary’s Baby. Complete with story summaries and artist and author profiles, this unforgettable volume dishes on familiar authors like V. C. Andrews and R. L. Stine, plus many more who’ve faded into obscurity. Also included are recommendations for which of these forgotten treasures are well worth your reading time and which should stay buried. "

**

I also reread, with pleasure, two favorite novellas:

His Road Home by Anna Richland

and

The Governess Affair by Courtney Milan

The latter is currently free for Kindle readers. (Adult content)

**

I continue to make progress through my tome-ish book group book. I'm at page 414 now out of 716.

Regards,

Kareni

[Kareni]

13 minutes ago, Pen said:

Omg!  I think my best friend in 9th grade introduced me to that book!  Or at least title sounded like that.

Regarding the Bastard by John Jakes:

My parents, sister, and I all read the whole series that this book started. What do I remember of them? Nothing. They were hugely popular in the seventies.

You might recognize a cover here.

Regards,

Kareni

[Dicentra]

1 hour ago, Seasider too said:

I continue this week in my survey of short story with a collection by Alice Munro called Runaway. It contains 8 longer format short fiction pieces for a total 335 pages. 

I am making the uncharacteristic decision to stop halfway through. Her writing style is just not my cup of tea. I feel like I’ve learned from studying her work, but I have felt like a student reading an unpopular assignment for lit class (something I used to actually enjoy!). If any of you here are Alice Munro fans, please chime in and let me know what it is you do like about her work. I confess that part of it is the Canadian setting; I think it could be depicted in a more appealing way, but I found it to be drab and gray, and not much uplifting in the four stories I read. 

So do we count halfsies? 😂 I’ll put it on my list with a note I only  read 50%. 

On to the next in the stack, Year One by Nora Roberts. I added it to my library queue at the beginning of January, it’s on theme with another reading challenge group I’m in. I picked it up a few days ago and only just now read the back cover synopsis. I have a feeling it’s going to read more like a current event than science fiction.

I think Munro is more to be admired than loved. (I think I'm quoting Willoughby from the most recent screen adaptation of Sense and Sensibility. 😉 )  If you wanted to give her another try, pick up Lives of Girls and Women.  It's been awhile since I've read it but I remember it being more "readable" than some of her other stuff, if that makes sense.

If you're looking for other female Canadian authors who aren't Margaret Atwood (I love Atwood but it feels like pop culture is on an Atwood forced feast currently 😉 ), you could try Carol Shields.  I really liked Larry's Party - I think she does a fantastic job of writing from the view point of a man.

Edited February 13, 2020 by Dicentra

[Dicentra]

Still haven't finished any more books - but I've started a few more! 😄

I love the idea of a "sip read" - thanks, @Robin M!  I have a copy of A.C. Grayling's Ideas That Matter: The Concepts That Shape the 21st Century on my shelves so I picked it up last night, chose a topic, and read.  Most of his commentaries on each topic are no longer than a handful of pages - perfect sip reading!  I started with "Truth" as I'm meeting up with a few good friends for lunch tomorrow and we've decided that we're going to try to hold "Philosophical Phriday" 🙂 lunch discussions whenever we can.  I started posting "Philosophical Phriday" posts on my FB page a few months ago whenever I have the time and it's been great to discuss things with friends that I've recently reconnected with as well as current friends and family members.  It definitely makes for a wide variety of responses!  The lunch discussion tomorrow is in person - as great as social media can be for connecting across distances, there is something to be said for face to face discussions. 🙂

[Dicentra]

2 minutes ago, Seasider too said:

 

Thanks for the suggestions, I’ll look into them! I enjoyed the literary quality of these stories - Munro is a thoughtful writer - but it seems like she kept too many thoughts to herself. I had to work at filling gaps in the chronology of the stories I read, and had a difficult time understanding the motivations of one of the recurring characters. I’ll look into Munro’s other work. 

I could not agree more about Atwood! There’s a fanatic level these days. Personally, I think the film versions (and apparently an ongoing series?) somewhat dilutes the original message of The Handmaid’s Tale. I felt the novel was something that those from both within and without the church could actually learn from. But I suspect film adaptions have folks just pointing at the wrongs of the organized church. Just my pair o’ pennies. 

Confession - I've not seen the current series, either. 😉  I feel like, as a Canadian, I'm somehow letting down Canadians and the Canadian arts. 😄  It is probably true, though, that they've "shallow-ized" (I'm making that a new word 😉 ) the book for TV.  I feel like there is less and less space in pop culture for nuance - if issues aren't presented as black and white, people can't be bothered to watch and think about the grey.  But that's my pair o' pennies, for what they're worth.  (And we got rid of the penny in Canada a few years ago so it's hard to say what my two Canadian cents are worth!)

[Violet Crown]

2 hours ago, aggieamy said:

This is book 17 for me for the year. 

Guys.

I ONLY read 17 book last year. 

This year is looking better!

Congratulations! It's important to reset the bar from time to time. That's my goal this year. Some good thousand-pagers should help with that.

[Violet Crown]

Question: Is there anyone here who read Little Women, at any age, and liked it? All of it?

My mother forced me to read Little Women. Bought me a lovely hefty hardcover, nagged me until I trudged my way through. I avoided Bunyan for years just because the girls play "Pilgrim's Progress" in an early chapter. (Turns out I love Bunyan.)  When the wretched thing was at last finished, she told every relative we had that I'd loved Little Women and wanted nothing more for Christmas than the sequels. I got nothing that Christmas from my extended family except Little Women sequels. I refused to read any of them. Still bitter. Can you tell? :)

ETA: Oh dear, I may have uncovered the roots of my aversion to female authors.

Edited February 13, 2020 by Violet Crown

[Lori D.]

44 minutes ago, Violet Crown said:

Question: Is there anyone here who read Little Women, at any age, and liked it? All of it?

My mother forced me to read Little Women. Bought me a lovely hefty hardcover, nagged me until I trudged my way through. I avoided Bunyan for years just because the girls play "Pilgrim's Progress" in an early chapter. (Turns out I love Bunyan.)  When the wretched thing was at last finished, she told every relative we had that I'd loved Little Women and wanted nothing more for Christmas than the sequels. I got nothing that Christmas from my extended family except Little Women sequels. I refused to read any of them. Still bitter. Can you tell? 🙂

ETA: Oh dear, I may have uncovered the roots of my aversion to female authors.

Yikes! Sorry you had Little Women forced on you! 😫 

And... Contrary to my gripe above about Austen's writing style, I'm still enjoying reading her books (I just enjoy the films more). LOL. BUT -- Nope. Not a fan of Little Women. But I DO like the Brontes. 😄

And, I run about 50/50 on female/male authors. I like a wide range of fiction! 

[mumto2]

1 hour ago, Violet Crown said:

Question: Is there anyone here who read Little Women, at any age, and liked it? All of it?

My mother forced me to read Little Women. Bought me a lovely hefty hardcover, nagged me until I trudged my way through. I avoided Bunyan for years just because the girls play "Pilgrim's Progress" in an early chapter. (Turns out I love Bunyan.)  When the wretched thing was at last finished, she told every relative we had that I'd loved Little Women and wanted nothing more for Christmas than the sequels. I got nothing that Christmas from my extended family except Little Women sequels. I refused to read any of them. Still bitter. Can you tell? 🙂

ETA: Oh dear, I may have uncovered the roots of my aversion to female authors.

10 yo me-liked Little Women and all the sequels a whole lot.  My friends and I had  quite a time finding all the sequels and it was quite an event when someone found the last one at a grandparents house and was allowed to bring it back home to her friends!😉 with that kind of peer pressure I don’t think I had a choice in liking it but do remember Little Women fondly because it was such a group activity.

I have finished my first book in my Alfred Hitchcock 10x10 and am frankly doubting my desire to read 10.  I listened to Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith and disliked the narrator greatly.  The story went on forever........This was one of the books in the category I was looking forward to.  I have other category ideas so may just replace and give it up.

 

 

 

[Kareni]

46 minutes ago, mumto2 said:

I have finished my first book in my Alfred Hitchcock 10x10 and am frankly doubting my desire to read 10.  I listened to Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith and disliked the narrator greatly.  The story went on forever........This was one of the books in the category I was looking forward to.  I have other category ideas so may just replace and give it up.

Possible categories in which to place Strangers on a Train...

Unmet Expectations

Narrator Failure

Train to Nowhere

Regards,

Kareni

[aggieamy]

3 hours ago, Kareni said:

Possible categories in which to place Strangers on a Train...

Unmet Expectations

Narrator Failure

Train to Nowhere

Regards,

Kareni

Playing off Kareni's ideas ... you could do a 'Classic I wished I hadn't read' 10x10. Or a "Well, that was disappointing". Something like that you can't (don't) really want to plan for so you might need to keep it going for a year or three. 

Edited February 14, 2020 by aggieamy

[Pen]

I reread (listened) to Matt Haig’s The Humans , and now started on his Hhow to Stop Time

Edited February 14, 2020 by Pen

[Violet Crown]

16 hours ago, Lori D. said:

Yikes! Sorry you had Little Women forced on you! 😫 

Oh it's all right now. Every mother gets to impose some book she loves on her children; heaven knows I'm doing that for my own! (Here, dear; you'll love this little thing by Henry James. No, really, read it.) Anyway I get to tease her about it now!

I am glad to hear LW et seq. were not wasted on other young ladies. I've quite liked some of her other writings.

[Violet Crown]

Or "Train of Death"? I can think of three classics that involve death on (or under) a train. Though naming them would require plot spoilers. (I know Strangers doesn't actually have the death on the train.)

[Lady Florida.]

Confession time: I've never read Little Women and never wanted to. Even when I began, as an adult, to read the classics I didn't read at a younger age I still had no desire to read that one.

 

18 hours ago, Seasider too said:

 

 

I could not agree more about Atwood! There’s a fanatic level these days. Personally, I think the film versions (and apparently an ongoing series?) somewhat dilutes the original message of The Handmaid’s Tale. I felt the novel was something that those from both within and without the church could actually learn from. But I suspect film adaptions have folks just pointing at the wrongs of the organized church. Just my pair o’ pennies. 

I've read three Atwood novels and liked only one. I first read The Handmaid's Tale in the mid 2000s and both loved it and was afraid something like that could really happen. Someone at the time told me if I liked that one I should read Oryx and Crake. Meh. Didn't care for it. Last year I read The Testaments for book club and didn't like that one either. I think I posted here at the time that it felt like she wrote what fans wanted to read instead of what she wanted to write. She also admitted in the afterward that she was influenced by the series. I watched the first episode of the first season but just couldn't get into it. It probably doesn't help that neither dystopian nor speculative fiction are favorite genres of mine.

Edited February 14, 2020 by Lady Florida.

[mumto2]

Happy Valentine’s Day!

I have to share this with someone and since it affects my reading you all get to hear about my unique Valentine’s Day present........for years we have picked up carry out or gone out for a casual meal and called it good.  The plan had been Waffle House this year, ours is doing the table cloths, but we didn’t know about the reservations......very popular apparently.

Somehow my Dh stumbled onto a what to get your wife for Valentines Day website that suggested a Harlequin Book subscription..........my mom and I read these together for decades.  So he thought the idea was brilliant!   He was aware enough to remember we had bought though a used book store so he used EBay lots.  I now own a large Rubbermaid storage tub of Harlequin Blaze.....yes the helpful website recommended Blaze.  He remembered red covers.....I think Silhouette had a series with red covers.   So bought red covers!  So I now own 100 plus Blaze romances.........   Which we (mom and I ) thought were a bit too blush worthy, and the covers............        I just sorted and he somehow managed to buy only one duplicate.  He happily plans that I can supplement my reading with  2 or 3 a week.  He will notice..........So not sure what I am going to do with these and my count, anew shelf on Goodreads will be required ,  I do know that. 😂🥰 .       

Edited February 14, 2020 by mumto2

[RootAnn]

6 hours ago, Lady Florida. said:

Confession time: I've never read Little Women and never wanted to. Even when I began, as an adult, to read the classics I didn't read at a younger age I still had no desire to read that one.

Me, too. Or is it me neither?

My eldest read it, but I don't know what she thought of it. I know the basic plot & that is more than enough for me.

I'm currently listening to The Two Towers, the Audible freebie on Caffeine, and Rhys Bowen's Her Royal Spyness. I missed hearing Katherine Kellgren's voice (from many, many overhearing of her narration of a character in DD's Riordan binges). Never read any Bowen before, so I thought it might be a better pick than some of my other choices...

[Kareni]

This afternoon I finished a book that is a contemporary romance set in Australia; I enjoyed it. (Adult content)

Two Man Station by Lisa Henry

 "Gio Valeri is a big-city police officer who’s been transferred to the small outback town of Richmond with his professional reputation in tatters. His transfer is a punishment, and Gio just wants to keep his head down and survive the next two years. No more mistakes. No more complications.

Except Gio isn’t counting on Jason Quinn.

Jason Quinn, officer in charge of Richmond Station, is a single dad struggling with balancing the demands of shift work with the challenges of raising his son. The last thing he needs is a new senior constable with a history of destroying other people’s careers. But, like it or not, Jason has to work with Gio.

In a remote two-man station hours away from the next town, Gio and Jason have to learn to trust and rely on each another. Close quarters and a growing attraction mean that the lines between professional and personal are blurring. And even in Richmond, being a copper can be dangerous enough without risking their hearts as well."

 Regards,

Kareni

[Kareni]

3 hours ago, mumto2 said:

Somehow my Dh stumbled onto a what to get your wife for Valentines Day ....  I now own a large Rubbermaid storage tub of Harlequin Blaze........ So I now own 100 plus Blaze romances.........   Which we (mom and I ) thought were a bit too blush worthy, and the covers............   

So, a new category for you...

Red covers, red cheeks

What a thoughtful husband you have, mumto2. Gift giving is challenging!

Regards,

Kareni

[Lori D.]

19 hours ago, aggieamy said:

Playing off Kareni's ideas ... you could do a 'Classic I wished I hadn't read' 10x10. Or a "Well, that was disappointing". Something like that you can't (don't) really want to plan for so you might need to keep it going for a year or three. 

😂

[Pen]

2 hours ago, RootAnn said:

Me, too. Or is it me neither?

My eldest read it, but I don't know what she thought of it. I know the basic plot & that is more than enough for me.

I'm currently listening to The Two Towers, the Audible freebie on Caffeine, and Rhys Bowen's Her Royal Spyness. I missed hearing Katherine Kellgren's voice (from many, many overhearing of her narration of a character in DD's Riordan binges). Never read any Bowen before, so I thought it might be a better pick than some of my other choices...

 

I loved Rhys Bowen’s Evan Evans series, but could not seem to get into her others.  I’ve also got the Caffeine freebie, what do you think of it?

[Kareni]

Some currently free romances for Kindle readers ~

Have heard good things about:

Bewitching by Jill Barnett

Imagine by Jill Barnett

The Secret Heart by Erin Satie

The Tiger Catcher: The End of Forever Saga Paullina Simons
 

I liked all of these:

Bittersweet by Sarina Bowen

The Wild Child by Mary Jo Putney,

Concrete Evidence by Rachel Grant 

 

Plus a Victorian era mystery:  Murder at Mondial Castle by Issy Brook

Regards,

Kareni

[tuesdayschild]

On 2/12/2020 at 5:37 PM, mumto2 said:

So glad you enjoyed your first Mary Stewart experience.  I read most of her books as a teen and enjoyed DD’s binge reading them as a teen also.  I missed a few with her so will hopefully read some of those this month.   I picked up The Rose Cottage and The GabrielHounds the other day......no memories of either.

Sorry. My wording wasnt clear: 'Nine Coaches' was my first Stewart title for this challenge.... it is the second book I've read, ever, by Mary Stewart. My first book of hers, I read in Nov 2019,  Madam, Will You Talk?,  was okay but not as good as Nine Coaches.

 

 

Edited February 15, 2020 by tuesdayschild

[tuesdayschild]

On 2/11/2020 at 5:15 AM, aggieamy said:

I would have guessed my reading is more male author heavy too but it appears it's not! Right now I'm at 50/50. That'll be a fun thing to track this year.

@Group - I'd love to know where everyone else falls. Do you tend to read more female or male authors? What about so far this year?

Tracking that this year too then...

I dont know about usually, but this year, so far I'm about 50/50  ( and as no surprise to me,  most of the audiobooks I've selected have been narrated by men).

[vmsurbat1]

Being that I'm still (sadly) in recovery mode from this darn flu, I read two books:  A Miss Silver mystery by Wentworth and Winter's Secret by Lyn Cote.

I enjoyed The Watersplash by Wentworth.  Here's my Goodreads review:

A very enjoyable read. Miss Silver reminds me of a younger, more active Miss Marple with her gentle probing and insights into human nature. Thee author writes engagingly, and there is a sweet love interest to round out the mystery.

The other book, Winter's Secret was fairly forgettable which meant it was fine as a sickbed read..  I mean, I've read worse and at least it was edited, but overall it was too shallow--the characters, the plot, the writing itself.  I won't be looking for the next one but if I could pick it up for free, I might just to have it when sick or traveling and need something not too engaging to pass the time easily.

Currently reading On Spice by one of the Penzey (of The Spice House) grandchildren.  Part memoir, part spice lore, part spice info.  Just finished the first part on salts; still have quite a bit of the book left.

[Kareni]

Today only, free for Kindle readers ~

A Discourse on Inequality by Jean-Jacques Rousseau

"A fascinating examination of the relationship between civilization and inequality from one of history’s greatest minds
 
The first man to erect a fence around a piece of land and declare it his own founded civil society—and doomed mankind to millennia of war and famine. The dawn of modern civilization, argues Jean-Jacques Rousseau in this essential treatise on human nature, was also the beginning of inequality.
 
One of the great thinkers of the Enlightenment, Rousseau based his work in compassion for his fellow man. The great crime of despotism, he believed, was the raising of the cruel above the weak. In this landmark text, he spells out the antidote for man’s ills: a compassionate revolution to pull up the fences and restore the balance of mankind. "

Regards,

Kareni

[Liz CA]

Coming in at the very end of this thread. I was too sick to post last week.

Reading:

"Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie" - funny in a different kind of way. Flavia is a child who sees unerringly through the pretense of the adults in her life.

And I have "The Killing Tide" waiting for me next. Looking forward to this one.

Audiobook:

"Miss Julie rocks the cradle" I have enjoyed a few "Miss Julia" books but now she is starting to sound a little too selfish or too prim or something. 

Will be hunting for something different on audio.

[mumto2]

1 hour ago, Liz CA said:

Coming in at the very end of this thread. I was too sick to post last week.

Reading:

"Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie" - funny in a different kind of way. Flavia is a child who sees unerringly through the pretense of the adults in her life.

And I have "The Killing Tide" waiting for me next. Looking forward to this one.

Audiobook:

"Miss Julie rocks the cradle" I have enjoyed a few "Miss Julia" books but now she is starting to sound a little too selfish or too prim or something. 

Will be hunting for something different on audio.

Glad you are feeling better and enjoyed the Flavia!😀

Not sure if you have tried Charles Lenex on audio or not.    The traditional gateway to the series is https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1044816.A_Beautiful_Blue_Death?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=bTrYtmssu5&rank=1 but the author seems to be writing full length prequels......I am currently listening to the 0.1 Woman in the Water and enjoying a younger Charles. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34953108-the-woman-in-the-water  This is another series I listen to when available.😉

 

Edited February 15, 2020 by mumto2

[RootAnn]

@Pen re:  Caffeine Audible freebie

I am only about 30 minutes into it. Interesting but not interesting enough to hold my attention too long. Next time I'm baking I might finish it.

I enjoyed the James Taylor Breakshot freebie quite a bit as I've enjoyed his music for years & saw him in concert just last year.

Edited February 16, 2020 by RootAnn

[Pen]

So, week wrap up:

My Whimsical and Humorous for week was Matt Haig’s The Humans     It was a reread, and still enjoyable for time 2.  People who like books like Good Omens would, I think, be likely to like it.  5 stars. 

I also started and finished the Bernie Sanders book.   It was interesting particularly because he’s running for President.   I am liking getting more than little sound bites of politicians’ ideas and plan to continue to read books by candidates.  

I think maybe one of Sanders’ other books might be better as “a book”—the one I chose seemed almost like reading a website of a candidate’s position on various issues, but fleshed out more.  

 

I have a couple Mary Stewart audiobooks on holds on my overdrive, but it will be months probably for them to become available.  So Ill be out of sync on that. 

I am almost done with The Secret Teachings of Plants.  For me it is a 5 star book, but I expect it would be either a very special 5 star book or a “What is this bunk 1 star book” depending on how it reaches someone.  I have already been very “into” plants since childhood and have used other Buhner books related to Lyme disease and Antiviral Herbs etc. 

[Pen]

15 hours ago, RootAnn said:

@Pen re:  Caffeine Audible freebie

I am only about 30 minutes into it. Interesting but not interesting enough to hold my attention too long. Next time I'm baking I might finish it.

I enjoyed the James Taylor Breakshot freebie quite a bit as I've enjoyed his music for years & saw him in concert just last year.

 

I got the James Taylor too, but haven’t read it yet.

I have to decide now whether to continue my Audible membership or cancel for a while.  It reloads for a yearly in March.  

[Robin M]

Week 7 is live - please continue conversation in new thread