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Book a Week 2021 - BW17: Bookish Miscellanea

Robin M

By Robin M,
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Robin M

Robin M

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Happy Sunday!  Did you know today is World Penguin Day? My favorite documentary is March of the Penguins narrated by Morgan Freeman, and the movie Happy Feet always makes me want to dance and sing along with Mumble, and Mr. Poppers Penguins makes for a  charming, amusing read as well as a wonderful movie. 

This week's odd holidays include taking time out this week to eat a pretzel or a steak, tell a story, kiss your mate, read a poem or dance by the light of the moon, to the music of a sax or trombone, while the horses race a mile and we have fun with a new hairstyle.  I'm sure we can find a book theme in there somewhere.  And we segue from April's world of the poetry into May's land of mystery. 

Exciting Book Adaptations to Watch Out For

Playwrights, Magicians, and Zombies: 16 Fictional Shakespeares

The Creative Sherlock Holmes: Appreciating the Rational Thinker's Hidden Artistry

Chinese-Inspired Fantasy Books That Reframe Familiar Fairy Tales

Compiling the Canon

Five tourist trips in England inspired by classic novels

Terry Pratchett’s debut turns 50: ‘At 17 he showed promise of a brilliant mind’

18 YA Verse Novels To Pick Up During National Poetry Month

10 Unstoppable Women Detectives

Birthdays past and present:  Walter De La Mare,  James Fenton, Marcus Aurelius ,  Bernard Malamud, Jessie Fauset, Terry Pratchett,  Yusef Komunyakaa, Larry Niven, and Annie Dillard. 

 

Have fun following rabbit trails! 

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

 Count of Monte Cristo readalong 

Chapter 34. The Colosseum
Chapter 35. La Mazzolata
Chapter 36. The Carnival at Rome.

  

Link to week 16

Visit  52 Books in 52 Weeks where you can find all the information on the annual, mini and perpetual challenges, as well as share your book reviews with other readers around the globe.

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Robin M

Robin M

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The latest book in J.R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood has been released - Lover Unveiled. Have added it to my stacks to read soon.  While watching Ward's Facebook Virtual release day video, she very enthusiastically talked about Jennifer Armentrout's newest book in her Blood and Ash series - The Crown of Gilded Bones which also released on April 20th.   Which led me to picking up the first book From Blood and Ash since you know I'm a series gal and have to start all series at the beginning (most of the time).  I haven't been able to put it down since.  It's a unique perspective on vampires (vampyres) and werewolfs (wolven) and a maiden who has been isolated from a young age as the one who will save the world.  Plot twists, good versus evil, and of course romance plays a part.  So very good.  And back to Ward's video, she dropped a lot of author names including Christopher Rice (son of Anne and a few more I want to check out.   Far warning should you want to watch the video and aren't familiar with J.R. Ward, she drops the f bomb a lot however she's very amusing.  

"A Maiden…

Chosen from birth to usher in a new era, Poppy’s life has never been her own. The life of the Maiden is solitary. Never to be touched. Never to be looked upon. Never to be spoken to. Never to experience pleasure. Waiting for the day of her Ascension, she would rather be with the guards, fighting back the evil that took her family, than preparing to be found worthy by the gods. But the choice has never been hers.

A Duty…

The entire kingdom’s future rests on Poppy’s shoulders, something she’s not even quite sure she wants for herself. Because a Maiden has a heart. And a soul. And longing. And when Hawke, a golden-eyed guard honor bound to ensure her Ascension, enters her life, destiny and duty become tangled with desire and need. He incites her anger, makes her question everything she believes in, and tempts her with the forbidden.

A Kingdom…

Forsaken by the gods and feared by mortals, a fallen kingdom is rising once more, determined to take back what they believe is theirs through violence and vengeance. And as the shadow of those cursed draws closer, the line between what is forbidden and what is right becomes blurred. Poppy is not only on the verge of losing her heart and being found unworthy by the gods, but also her life when every blood-soaked thread that holds her world together begins to unravel."

 

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Kareni

Kareni

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Thank you, Robin!

**

Some bookish posts ~


The 5 Best Books to Read if You Love The Great British Bake Off

https://offtheshelf.com/2020/01/books-to-read-if-you-love-great-british-baking-show/

6 Stunning Fantasies for Nature Lovers

https://www.tor.com/2021/03/19/6-stunning-fantasies-for-nature-lovers/

TO REALLY UNDERSTAND AGATHA CHRISTIE, YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT POISONS

https://crimereads.com/to-really-understand-agatha-christie-you-need-to-know-about-poisons/

Regards,

Kareni

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AnneGG

AnneGG

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Just finished The Four Winds. I’m late to the party on this one and I’ve ignored all the chatter about it. I wish I would have at least read the back cover so I would’ve been somewhat prepared for the doom & gloom. The book left me in a serious mood. 
 

That brings my book total to 16. Finally catching up! I read most of the week away with the Past Forward collection on Kindle Unlimited. I liked it but the editing was a hot mess and parts were overly cheesy. Still a great “Hallmark” read. 

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Junie

Junie

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41 minutes ago, Robin M said:

Whoops! Thanks for letting me know. All fixed now. 

Thanks!  I actually thought that maybe I had accidentally gotten a week ahead, so I went back and checked last week's thread.

I'm enjoying the read-along. :)

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Kareni

Kareni

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Currently FREE for Kindle readers ~

Mademoiselle At Arms: A Georgian Romance by Elizabeth Bailey

 

Regards,

Kareni

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mumto2

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I finished Miss Julia Strikes Back on audio and really enjoyed it https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/187756.Miss_Julia_Strikes_Back I listened to the prior one in the series and thought the series had lost it’s charm for me but it’s back on target.

Like Robin, I am doing a reread of Nora Robert’s oldies. I needed an N for my Librarian Spelling Challenge and Nora is an easy N.😉. I picked out one I didn’t remember and gave it a try.  Tribute https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2003767.Tribute was entertaining but not her best even though it was quite a good read......I knew who did it as soon as the character was introduced and don’t thing I remembered it if I ever read it.   Probably why it wasn’t on my list of best ever Nora Roberts books which I was originally using to select my choices. 

 

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Kareni

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I finished my reread of the Touchstone series with In Arcadia and Snow Day by Andrea Höst. I enjoyed revisiting them.

**

I also read  In This Iron Ground by Marina Vivancos.

(Content warning for child abuse and adult content) The first Amazon review is titled "A fantastic story of recovery from abuse (oh, and it has werewolves)," and that's a good description. The book reminds me in part of TJ Klune's Wolfsong which is itself quite different from his more recent and better known  The House in the Cerulean Sea.  I think some readers might appreciate knowing that therapy is used to help the main character address repercussions from abuse. I would definitely read more from this author. The book blurb is deceptive as it pertains to the second half of the book.

"Damien might be sleeping with his best friend and werewolf, Hakan Salgado, but he knows deep down that he’s not good enough to ask for more.

Damien knows he’s defective, worthless—his foster carers made sure he learned that. Even when he discovers a world of shifters and magic within the Salgado pack, there’s no way he’s worthy of being part of their pack. Of calling Hakan his home.

But, at the end of the day, he’s too selfish to let go. He knows it’ll hurt him in the end, but he’ll hold onto this for as long as he can."

Regards,

Kareni

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Kareni

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Last night I finished an enjoyable romance with a strong time travel component. I hope to read on in the series. (Adult content)

"On the run from his former allies in 1943, Janos Nagy’s life is turned upside down when he stumbles through a mysterious doorway and finds himself in the hands of the Temporal Research Institute, a covert organization that verifies historical events through time travel.

The year, he is told, is 2041. Wounded, exhausted, and helpless, he’s in a time he doesn’t know and a world that has changed beyond his wildest imagination. Dieter Schmidt, one of the TRI linguists and historians, offers his aid in making sense of this strange new existence.

But Janos’s arrival has broken the TRI’s prime rule of non-interference. It’s not long until someone in the TRI decides that if the rule can be broken once…well, why not break it again?"

Regards,

Kareni

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tuesdayschild

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@Lady Florida.  agreeing with your comment in last weeks thread: our GR reviews do seem to be helping each other.  (So glad that  @Kareni  kept mentioning the Linesman series,  which I enjoyed on audio)     Adding here, I enjoyed reading The Goblin King and got to gift him with a kindness your audio/narrated experience doesn't appear to have gifted him with.

Thank you for crafting the thread each week for us @Robin M.    I can't always get here to chat but do try to read offline later, and see what you are each reading or link sharing.

Q:  One of my reading goals this year is to complete the A-Z challenge; and I was wondering this week if anyone else who has done, or are doing this challenge was loathe to include books in their final tally that they ended up really disliking?   😏    I think I’ve got about four letters to read, unless I change my mind again……

  

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tuesdayschild

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I’ve abandoned at least four books lately, one at half way through the book, and quite a few are garnering really low ratings this month:  I think I may need to indulge in a reading detox  - not sure what that looks like yet - so that I’m not continually starting out resistant to new books.  

Titles recently completed:

A Willful Grievance: The Lillie Mead Historical Mystery Series Bk2 ~ Lisa Zumpano, narrated by Claire Storey ,   I increased the speed to 1.4X  made for better listening. I definitely want to hear more in this series: easy listening, with an interesting mystery; and, thankfully no women are subjected to brutal misconduct after they are kidnapped.        Extra:  Some cursing and using God's name as an expletive. No f-bombs. Abandoned children, orphans, a policeman has O.C.D.

The Virgin in the Ice:  Chronicles of Brother Cadfael Bk6 ~ Ellis Peters,  narrated by Vanessa Benjamin.   I've listened to the dramatised version of this story, but never to the unabridged:  discounting the narrator who was just ‘okay’ to listen to, the unabridged version of the story is so much better than the dramatised audio.   Extra: a young nun is r*aped and murdered (the telling of these events is told euphemistically).

All the Tears in China:  Rowland Sinclair Bk9 ~ Sulari Gentill  (late night reading)  This book seemed to have more mystery in it than the others I’ve read so far, books 2-8, or perhaps it’s the person who ends up doing the murders that make it feel that way. I really enjoyed the mystery in this one and stayed up late to devour the last part of the book.         Extra: Brutality in prison, opium addiction, gang lifestyle, the discussion of bigotry/ racism/ racial prejudice,  an ex-boyfriend is an abusive, controlling manipulator and a stalker.

A Testament of Character: Rowland Sinclair Bk10 ~ Sulari Gentill (late night reading)  Others can love this edition in the series, sadly, I just cannot.   😔  Two scenarios the author 'gifted' to Rowly left me feeling really (!) sad - she and Edna, a character in the book,  have used him for their own ends and I closed the book wishing he’d find another girl as his muse and love. Poor Rowly.         Extra: distressing content (homophobia in the 1930’s) what they did to Daniel’s boyfriend was awful.  The bedroom door is open on  one scene (heterosexual),  kidnapping of a female.

Dark Threads the Weaver Needs: The Problem of Human Suffering ~ by Herbert Lockyer  (129pgs)  (CC) (4)  Though the book is slight, only 129 pages long, it was not a fast, nor easy read for me: time was needed to pause and reflect on so many portions.

The Adventures of Maud West, Lady Detective: Secrets and Lies in the Golden Age of Crime ~ Susannah Stapleton, narrated by Clare Wille.  The author’s sentence, in chapter five, “Could one ever trust a private detective?” is the driving thought she is writing from throughout the entire book.   I found this a negative toned read, with Stapleton trying to prove that Maud is a fake and a liar:  the later portion of the title is the clue, Secrets and Lies in the Golden Age of Crime with the main secret and lie in this book being Maud herself.    While some of the supporting historical details are interesting this is not a title I’ll be recommending to anyone.    I found the audio needed to be sped up as Clare Wille’s reading became rather slow and ponderous after a while.

This Time Next Year We'll Be Laughing ~ Jacqueline Winspear  (ebook) I rather enjoy Winspear's Maisie Dobbs series, the later books more than some of her early ones, and so was keen to read this memoir.  It’s not a favourite read for me and I gave it 2.5 stars on GR.   After reading the endnotes I could see why the book read as it did: this is a collection of stories melded together from, mostly, workshopping sessions.   It feels like more was missing from the book than was often being said - again that workshop feel to it - yet I'm pleased I read it, as it gave me an insight into the creator of Maisie Dobbs.

 

(ETA:  please excuse any typos in my posts, editing before hitting submit is not always an option if I want to get anything posted.)

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Junie

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4 hours ago, tuesdayschild said:

Dark Threads the Weaver Needs: The Problem of Human Suffering ~ by Herbert Lockyer  (129pgs)  (CC) (4)  Though the book is slight, only 129 pages long, it was not a fast, nor easy read for me: time was needed to pause and reflect on so many portions.

 

Yes!  I had to read this book in small chunks because it was so much to absorb.  But, it was so, so good!  I read it a few years ago and I should probably re-read it.

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tuesdayschild

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10 hours ago, Junie said:

Yes!  I had to read this book in small chunks because it was so much to absorb.  But, it was so, so good!  I read it a few years ago and I should probably re-read it.

Yes!  This exactly.  I highlighted so many portions. 

 ( I might revisit it again in a few years too )

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mumto2

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19 hours ago, tuesdayschild said:

Q:  One of my reading goals this year is to complete the A-Z challenge; and I was wondering this week if anyone else who has done, or are doing this challenge was loathe to include books in their final tally that they ended up really disliking?   😏    I think I’ve got about four letters to read, unless I change my mind again……

 

I will admit I just throw them on the list on Goodreads with a 1* and am grateful to be done.  I try really hard to not have to finish something I really dislike but the challenges sometimes force it.  For the monthly spelling one I am still doing I have started accumilating freebies with hard letters and scanning through those to pick one to finish the challenge with.

I still have 4 books in the Rowland Sinclair series to read.  I feel bad knowing the current last book isn’t great.....not your fault as I was starting to wonder if the series is deteriorating already.  I am having a hard time getting going on A Murder Unmentioned btw.  I need to get it finished as it will be taken away from me in a couple of days!  I didn’t like the scene where Rowland’s friends chased the potential fil away with nude portraits and communist party pins.  It was too overblown even if he wasn’t interested in the girl.  I tend to set series down for awhile and this might be the time for that series.

Right now I am hooked on Maisie Dobbs.🙂 I have sort of kept up for years but I didn’t want to read the one where she went to Germany so got behind.  Yesterday I finished one audiobook and started the next......Too Die but Once.  Hopefully I will finish tomorrow.  I might just go right into the next one.  I don’t do that very often!

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Kareni

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I recently finished two books ~

I enjoyed this contemporary romance. (Adult content)

"Griffin Beach has it all. Smoking-hot bod? House in the Hollywood Hills? A film role that’s about to launch him into box office superstardom? Check, check, and check.

When his dog sitter leaves him in the lurch, Griffin turns to Alice, the woman who’s never seemed to like him but LOVES his dog. Alice has her doubts about the womanizing actor, but with eviction imminent she can’t afford to reject Griffin’s offer to move in.

Attraction was never supposed to be part of the arrangement, but the gravitational pull between them proves too strong to resist.

Can Alice let her guard down and learn to trust again? Can Griffin stop trying to please everyone else long enough to show Alice how he feels? And when he’s forced to choose between Alice and his career, will he risk it all to keep her in his life?"

**

I enjoyed this book, too. (Adult content)

"Zacary Trevor is the love of Anya Alexander’s life. Their sometimes tumultuous marriage has survived ups, downs, and all the in-betweens. With successful careers, a lovely home, and a beautiful child, domestic bliss is a hard-earned reality for two people whose hedonistic days are in the not-so-distant past. They’re happy.

Enter Zac’s best friend, the deeply reserved Cal Keller. Zac’s friendship with Cal is the foundation of his career and—until Anya and their son came along—the most important relationship of his life. Cal’s a cipher, someone Anya can’t help but gravitate to, even if they don’t always get along. Even more, she’s drawn to the Zac she sees when he’s with Cal—a careful, cautious version of her husband, someone with hidden thoughts and desires kept secret even from her.

Inviting Cal into their home, deeper into their life, is a risk."

Regards,

Kareni

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tuesdayschild

tuesdayschild

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7 hours ago, mumto2 said:

I try really hard to not have to finish something I really dislike but the challenges sometimes force it.

This.  Some letters are hard to find a good book for ..... (do you count titles from a series if you're struggling: thinking of that tricky letter "u" )

7 hours ago, mumto2 said:

I still have 4 books in the Rowland Sinclair series to read.  I feel bad knowing the current last book isn’t great.....not your fault as I was starting to wonder if the series is deteriorating already.  I am having a hard time getting going on A Murder Unmentioned btw.  I need to get it finished as it will be taken away from me in a couple of days!  I didn’t like the scene where Rowland’s friends chased the potential fil away with nude portraits and communist party pins.  It was too overblown even if he wasn’t interested in the girl.  I tend to set series down for awhile and this might be the time for that series.

You may like the story in the last book - I seem to have slipped into a "grumpy reader" mood this year.    Nodding - I didn't like that portion either, the author rights the scales (her way)  over than incident ......      (Taking a rest during a series is a good reminder, I think I gobbled this one down too quickly.) 

7 hours ago, mumto2 said:

Right now I am hooked on Maisie Dobbs.🙂 I have sort of kept up for years but I didn’t want to read the one where she went to Germany so got behind.  Yesterday I finished one audiobook and started the next......Too Die but Once.  Hopefully I will finish tomorrow.  I might just go right into the next one.  I don’t do that very often!

Only two books after that one and you're 'caught up'. 😉

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mumto2

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6 hours ago, tuesdayschild said:

This.  Some letters are hard to find a good book for ..... (do you count titles from a series if you're struggling: thinking of that tricky letter "u" )

You may like the story in the last book - I seem to have slipped into a "grumpy reader" mood this year.    Nodding - I didn't like that portion either, the author rights the scales (her way)  over than incident ......      (Taking a rest during a series is a good reminder, I think I gobbled this one down too quickly.) 

Only two books after that one and you're 'caught up'. 😉

After I wrote my post I started reading A Murder Unmentioned again.  I got to the point where I knew the basic solve (the gardener  part was a surprise....but the rest I just knew) and couldn’t take it any longer.  I did something I never do with electronic books, I read the last 50 pages and consider myself done.  That one just irritated me!  I couldn’t stand watching them figure out what was obvious.......and having the abuse rehashed 10 more times.  Also the setting and historical facts that I normally enjoy in that series were absent.  Anyway that series is now on hiatus 😂 I will count that one as I read at least 200 pages!

As a side note N and R have become hard letters for me which is why I am rereading Nora Roberts.  Sort of the easy, enjoyable, solve to my problem.  I count everything as I list it all on Goodreads.......the Goodreads list is handy so I know what I have read in the historical and contemporary romance genres.

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Kareni

Kareni

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Currently FREE for Kindle readers ~

ETA two more:

A Proper Scandal: A Victorian Historical Romance by Esther Hatch

Girl's Guide to Witchcraft: 15th Anniversary Edition (Washington Witches Book 1) by Mindy Klasky
**

No News is Good News (Nicki Sosebee Book 1) by Jade C. Jamison
Bad News Travels Fast (Nicki Sosebee Book 2)
All the News (That's Fit to Print) (Nicki Sosebee Book 3)

Love According to Lily (Can This Be Love (American Heiress Spinoff) Book 1) by Julianne MacLean

Cold Hearted (Cold Justice Book 6) by Toni Anderson

Heaven Sent (Small Town Swains) by Pamela Morsi 

Regards,

Kareni

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Kareni

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I read and enjoyed The Cybernetic Tea Shop by Meredith Katz, a science fiction fantasy romance featuring a woman and an AI. 

"Clara Gutierrez is an AI repair technician and a wanderer. Her childhood with her migrant worker family has left her uncomfortable with lingering for too long, so she moves from place to place across retro-futuristic America.

Sal is a fully autonomous robot. Older than the law declaring her kind illegal due to ethical concerns, she is at best out of place in society and at worst vilified. She continues to run the tea shop previously owned by her long-dead master, lost in memories of the past, struggling to fulfill her master's dream for the shop while slowly breaking down.

They meet by chance, but as they begin to spend time together, they both start to wrestle with the concept of moving on..."

Regards,

Kareni

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Two more things to report ~

Read and enjoyed the contemporary romance Finders Keepers by N.R. Walker; I don't think though that this is a book I'll be likely to reread. (Adult content)

"Needing a change of scene, Griffin Burke moves from Brisbane to Coolum Beach to start a new job. The beautiful white sand, aqua-coloured ocean, blue skies, and summer breezes are everything he longs for. What he finds is a mud-covered dog, lost and hungry, with a nametag and a phone number.
Dane Hughes is stuck in Surfers Paradise at a week-long work conference when he gets a phone call from his distraught mother. His dog, his fur baby, Wicket, has run away. Unable to leave and feeling helpless and miserable, he gets a text from a guy. “I think I found your dog…”
Griffin and Dane start talking, and Griffin agrees to look after Wicket until Dane can collect him. With a few days left before his new job starts, Griffin takes Wicket on some coastal adventures and sends Dane photos of their fun, and so the start of something new and kind of wonderful begins.
Griffin might have moved to Coolum in search of a new life, but what he finds is so much more. What he gets to keep just might take some four-legged help."

**

I also read Silent Blade (The World of Kinsmen Book 1) by Ilona Andrews. This author pair (husband and wife) write books that are incredibly popular but most of them I read only once; in fact, I almost did not finish this novella. (The only Ilona Andrews books I've reread were a couple in The Edge series.) I do enjoy the blog that the female half of the duo keeps.

"Family is everything. Talent is power. And revenge is sweet.

In a distant, future world Kinsmen—small powerful groups of genetically and technologically advanced families—control vast financial empires. They are their own country, their own rulers, and their only limits are other Kinsmen. The struggle for power is a bloody, full-contact sport: in business, on the battlefield...and sometimes in the bedroom.

Old hatreds die hard. Old love dies harder.

On the planet Rada, Meli Galdes’ family is of minor rank, and were relying on her marriage to Celino, the razor-smart, ruthless leader of the powerful Carvanna empire. When he abruptly breaks their engagement, he ruins her family and guarantees that Meli will never marry, as no suitor will oppose the rich and influential Carvannas.

But Meli has a rare, secret, lethal—and valuable—talent. As a melder of energy, she’s capable of severing anything in her path. So she ‘leaves’ her family and trains to become one of the best and most lethal of assassins, all the while covertly guarding her family’s interests. Now she’s ready to quit; but she has one more assignment.

To kill the man who ruined her life."

Regards,

Kareni

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Robin M

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Arrggg! It ended in a cliff hanger. I immersed myself in Jennifer Armentrout's world in the Blood and Ash series.  Really fat books at 600 some odd pages each full of vampires, wolves, gods, deities, royalty and magic.  And of course, hot sex.  #1 From Blood and Ash, #2 A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire, and #3 The Crown of Gilded Bones which are all so very good but damn, now I have to wait until the next book comes out in a year or so probably. I really hate that.  But it just means I'll probably reread the series again when the new one is set to come out.   It's all J.R. Ward's fault since she talked up the books in her latest video and managed to distract me from reading her latest book in the Black Daggerhood Brother series.  It will be next once I've soothed my angst and book hangover with Nora Roberts and reading Dark Witch. 

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Robin M

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Thank you @Karenifor the links.  Added Isle of Blood and Stone to my stacks from the 6 Stunning Fantasies for nature lovers.  

 

 

On 4/25/2021 at 2:14 PM, AnneGG said:

Just finished The Four Winds. I’m late to the party on this one and I’ve ignored all the chatter about it. I wish I would have at least read the back cover so I would’ve been somewhat prepared for the doom & gloom. The book left me in a serious mood. 
 

Is that Kristin Hannah's book? I'm making my way slowly through all her novels and haven't read it yet. 

 

On 4/26/2021 at 8:57 PM, mumto2 said:

Like Robin, I am doing a reread of Nora Robert’s oldies. I needed an N for my Librarian Spelling Challenge and Nora is an easy N.😉. I picked out one I didn’t remember and gave it a try.  Tribute https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2003767.Tribute was entertaining but not her best even though it was quite a good read......I knew who did it as soon as the character was introduced and don’t thing I remembered it if I ever read it.   Probably why it wasn’t on my list of best ever Nora Roberts books which I was originally using to select my choices. 

I don't remember much of the stories except for Northern Lights which I've read several times and some of the McGregor stories so I'm  enjoying my reread.  

 

On 4/28/2021 at 10:19 PM, tuesdayschild said:

Q:  One of my reading goals this year is to complete the A-Z challenge; and I was wondering this week if anyone else who has done, or are doing this challenge was loathe to include books in their final tally that they ended up really disliking?   😏    I think I’ve got about four letters to read, unless I change my mind again……

Yes, I'm doing the A to Z and only include books that I've really enjoyed and new to me authors rather than any of my old favorites.  I say that now, but wait until the end of the year and I may relook at my list and change my mind.  LOL!

 

On 4/29/2021 at 2:27 AM, tuesdayschild said:

I’ve abandoned at least four books lately, one at half way through the book, and quite a few are garnering really low ratings this month:  I think I may need to indulge in a reading detox  - not sure what that looks like yet - so that I’m not continually starting out resistant to new books.

Detox for me is rereading one of my favorite authors, reading comfort reads.  One of my habits when picking out a new book is if the first page captures me and makes me want to keep reading, then choosing a random page in the mid section of the book  (hopefully one without a spoiler but its a gamble) and if I'm still wondering and captured, then I'll read the book.  Of course, it also depends on what mood I'm in.  One that may sound awful today, may sound great several months from now.    Thank you for your mini reviews. Gave me a good idea of what the stories are about. 

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AnneGG

AnneGG

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3 hours ago, Robin M said:

 

Is that Kristin Hannah's book? I'm making my way slowly through all her novels and haven't read it yet. 

 

It is. I haven’t read any of her other titles, so I can’t compare. The Four Winds is well written and captivating, but a depressing story.

I finally realized that Kristin Hannah and Kristin Harmel are two different people. 🙃 I’ve never read a Harmel I didn’t like. 

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