It’s winter here now! That’s not to say it won’t be summer again by Christmas. While it lasts I’m loving taking out my cozy walking gear.
I started a non-fiction book about Greenland today. It’s a little dry but the descriptions of the landscape are fitting my vibe. It’s called The Ice At The End Of The World.
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I have been having so much fun with October reading this year. I’ve read approximately 1,000 cozy mysteries, and a ton of short stories. I’ve also been binging on true crime podcasts. I love just wandering around listening to things this time of year.
Have a great week!
“To murder someone in another person’s house!
Emma threw up her hands.
It is the height of rudeness. Can you imagine?”
Delicates by Brenna Thummler -- I loved the first book in this series and am looking forward to getting cozy with the second.
Winward Heights by Maryse Conde -- So far so good with this retelling of Wuthering Heights set in the Caribbean.
Malorie by Josh Malerman -- Truth be told I started this last week, but it was really stressful! I’m going to try again this week.
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This post is linked to The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Reviewer.
It’s getting darker and darker when I walk, meaning I don’t have as many pictures. Check out the creepy friend I made on the metro the other morning though. Not exactly what you want to see when it’s 5:30 am and dark. I would love to know the story behind that thing.
I’ve been listening to another cozy - Clammed Up by Barbara Ross. If what you listen to while you’re exercising leads you to eat blueberry pie is that a problem?
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September was a good reading month for me. I enjoyed some end of summer reads, some middle grade, and, of course, Holly. It’s kind of funny now to think how hot it was when I read some of these books. So glad sweater weather is here. (You can tell it’s getting cooler because my two cats will actually spend a few hours sitting next to each other not fighting.)
Momentous Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling -- I‘m probably not the intended audience for these books, but I really like them. I love the characters and love cheering them on as they navigate teenage life.
Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club by J. Ryan Stradal -- I loved this book. It was so sad, but also so insightful. 5 stars. Perfect end of summer reading.
Holly by Stephen King -- Holly is such a great character, and I will read anything King writes about her. Great creepy story.
I do understand why some people complained about the politics. It didn‘t seem natural to me that people would bring it into conversation as soon as Holly met them.
Salt Houses by Hala Alyan -- Multi-generational books are my sweet spot. This book about a family over time and what home means was no exception.
Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk -- Listened to this MG coming of age story with my daughter and we loved it.
The Butterfly Effect by Rachel Mans McKenny -- I enjoyed this book about cranky mc Greta and her dumpster fire of a year. Grumpy ladies have feelings too. Thanks for the representation.
The Murder of Mr. Wickham by Claudia Gray -- This book was delightful. Gray brought so many characters together from Jane Austen‘s books for a murder mystery in a way that seemed authentic and humorous at the same time.
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This is linked to Quick Lit on Modern Mrs. Darcy.
I spent all day yesterday in bed, and wow did I need that. I don’t know why it’s been taking me so much longer than it used to in order to recover from everyday illnesses. Excuse me while I just spend the rest of cold and flu season in a bubble.
Have a great week!
“It was infuriating how many people got things wrong about you when you were a teenage girl,”
Hotel California (Mystery Anthology) -- I started this collection of short stories earlier in the month then put it down for no apparent reason. Hoping to pick it back up and finish it this week.
Going Zero by Anthony McCarten -- I saw a lot of good hype about this when it first came out. I want to say maybe Stephen King even recommended it? I finally got my library hold, and can’t wait to dive in.
The Last Ranger by Peter Heller -- Not my favorite Peter Heller so far, but that’s okay. It’s still Peter Heller.
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This post is linked to The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Reviewer.
Walks around the soccer field continue! Nights are darker and I’m enjoying bringing my colder weather gear out.
I’m about to finish listening to the cozy Leave No Scone Unturned. I’m flying through the cozies this month. Tis the season! (This was free on audible.)
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Can you even call it a weekend if you don’t spend at least four hours on the sidelines of a soccer field? Not in this family! This weekend my daughter is playing in a tournament so reading time is scarce. I’ve been finding minutes here and there to sneak a chapter in my car though!
Have a great week!
“Your tears come easy, when you’re young, and beginning the world. Your tears come easy, when you’re old, and leaving it. I burst out crying.”
The Broken Girls by Simone St. James -- Never got to this one last week. Hoping to start early this week!
The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins -- I decided to give this classical mystery a chance this spooky season. It’s free on Kindle Unlimited, but also a chunkster! I opted for the audiobook from my library.
A Place Called Winter by Patrick Gale -- A historical fiction group I participate in is reading about Canadian immigration this month, and several of us picked this book. I am loving it so far! (Booked in Time on Litsy.)
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This post is linked to The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Reviewer.
After a sick week I’m getting back in the swing of things. I’m looking forward to taking a night walk soon and peeping on my neighbor’s Halloween decorations.
I’ve been trying the classic detective novel The Moonstone this week. It’s a long one!
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Happy October! I’ve been sick all week, but I’m trying to regroup today for the best reading month of the year!
Have a great week!
“I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.”
The Broken Girls by Simone St. James -- I’ve never read anything by this author, and this seemed like a good place to start!
Four Leaf Cleaver by Maddie Day -- Not really seasonal, but I needed a book set in Indiana, and scribd had this one. It’s pretty good.
My Sister The Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite -- Food and Lit is Nigeria this month. Time to finally read this one. I started last night and am already halfway through.
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This post is linked to The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Reviewer.
It took the arrival of Tropical Storm Ophelia, but it finally feels like fall. Right on time since the Autumnal Equinox was September 23. That brought about one of my favorite traditions- Reading This Was Our Pact- a graphic novel set on the Equinox. It was so cozy reading under a blanket with the rain and the wind howling outside. It’s hard to believe I couldn’t go outside without melting at the beginning of this month.
Have a great week!
“We forgive the faults of those we love so often, so deeply, that we sometimes convince ourselves the faults do not exist. The rest of the world is not so easily persuaded.”
Graduates In Wonderland by Jessica Pan -- I haven’t started this yet, but am hoping to get through it for a book club.
What Happens In Dubai by Sophie Gravia -- I had this lurking on my Kindle and I figured it was worth a try for the setting.
The Butterfly Effect by Rachel Mans McKenny -- I have been wanting to read this for YEARS. Now is the time!
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This post is linked to The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Reviewer.
Fall weather is back and I have the step count to show it. It’s so nice to walk outside and not feel like the air is trying to kill you. Not something I take for granted these days!
This week I’m just finishing up The Wicked City by Beatriz Williams.
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This week passed in such a blur I couldn’t tell you what I’ve done. I just know all my food and gas are gone. I’m sure my kids had something to do with that.
Have a great week!
“Sometimes the universe throws you a rope.”
Holly by Stephen King -- I’ve been reading this all week and loving it, but am still only about 65% in. I hope I can finish this weekend. I NEED to know what happens!
Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor -- I’m reading this for #AuthorAMonth on Litsy. I always look forward to trying a new to me author.
The War I Finally Won by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley -- This is part two of a MG WWII series. I loved the first one.
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This post is linked to The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Reviewer.
August was not the greatest reading month for me. I was getting used to a new schedule and distracted. Looking back though I did have some good reads including some really memorable memoirs.
Here’s the best of the best from August.
Managing Expectations by Minnie Driver - Talk about managing expectations- this book blew mine out of the water. Even if you’re like me and haven’t seen Minnie Driver since Good Will Hunting you really should read this book, and go audio if you can. It was really, really good.
Mud Rocks Blazes by Heather "Anish" Anderson -- I usually really enjoy armchair hiking books and this one about setting the fastest known time on the Appalachian Trail was no exception. It was surprising that Anderson could complete such a goal while doubting herself the entire time. Just goes to show!
Poverty, By America by Matthew Desmond -- I have a feeling this book is only going to be read by people that already agree with Desmond, but I did appreciate the message.
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros -- I didn‘t love love this like so many others, but I did like it. The twist at the end (there‘s a book two you know there‘s going to be a twist) was not what I expected.
Dispatches From Pluto by Richard Grant -- An interesting book about a couple who fled New York City to seek a simpler life in the Mississippi Delta. It wasn‘t that simple after all, and I found Grant‘s treatment of the issues in the area to be nuanced. I wish there was an update.
Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld -- I didn’t love this book like I did some of her others, but it was a good enough read during a vacation. It’s interesting to see how authors are starting to work the pandemic into their books.
The Memory of Animals by Claire Fuller -- Another plague book. I was saying “huh??” through a lot of this, but liked it well enough in the end.
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This is linked to Quick Lit on Modern Mrs. Darcy.
Good morning! We had thunderstorms yesterday and overnight. Finally we got some rain! I’m really looking forward to getting some fall veggies into my garden over the next couple of days. Soccer games start this week as well, so its busy, but fun busy.
Have a great week!
“How unfortunate for public morals that being unladylike feels so...exciting.”
Holly by Stephen King -- I have been waiting for this for a long time, and now that it’s here I am loving it! I’m about 30% in.
Deadly Quiet City by Murong Xuecun -- I just started this book, but so far it’s fascinating. It’s a first hand look at early 2020 in Wuhan, China.
Bette and Joan by Shaun Considine -- This audiobook about the feud between Joan Crawford and Bette Davis is so fun. I loved this a few years ago when it first came out, so it was time for a re-listen.
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This post is linked to The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Reviewer.
I’m hoping this is the last really hot week in a summer of really hot weeks. Walking has been pretty miserable, and everything is looking kind of dead. Thank goodness for audiobooks!
This week I’ve been switching between Bette & Joan: The Divine Feud by Shaun Considine and Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk. Both are really good in different ways!
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“At funerals, people lie about the past. At weddings, they lie about the future.”
Every Summer After by Carly Fortune -- I just barely started this one last week and then got distracted. I have high hopes for this week.
The Dim Sum of All Fears by Vivien Chien -- This series is so fun.
Saturday Night At The Lakeside Supper Club by J. Ryan Stradal -- We once stumbled upon a supper club in Wisconsin where we ate and then watched a water skiing show as the sun set. I’m hoping this book brings back those vibes.
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This post is linked to The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Reviewer.
Another week of walks by the soccer field! I also started going back to the gym some mornings, but there’s nothing worth taking pictures of there.
My listen this week is Day of Fire: A Novel of Pompeii. It’s a bit out of my comfort zone, but I like that it’s written by six different authors.
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August wasn’t a great reading month for me. I had a few changes in schedule, and the weather was just terrible. All of that just left me super distracted and spending way too much time on social media. I’m hoping for better things in September.
Total TBR: 332
September Reading Focus: Reading USA, Reading Asia, catch up on ARCs, and read some of the many library books I have checked out
20 Books I Want To Read In September:
1) Bette & Joan: The Divine Feud by Shaun Considine
2) Fatal Fried Rice by Vivien Chien
3) Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor
4) Litsy Postal Markup bookclub book
5) Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club by J. Ryan Stradal
7) The War I Finally Won by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
10) Curse of the Pogo Stick by Colin Cotterill
11) What Happens in Dubai by Sophie Gravia
12) The Murder of Mr Wickham by Claudia Gray
13) Passage To India by E.M. Forrester
14) The Butterfly Effect by Rachel McKenny
15) Momentous Events In The Life Of A Cactus by Dusti Bowling
16) ARC
17) Deadly Quiet City by Murong Xuecon
18) The Bill of Obligations by Richard Haass
19) ARC
20) The Wicked City by Beatriz Williams
My most anticipated read is Holly by far!
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As of tomorrow I’ll have two kids back in school. Hooray! Love those kids, but teen and tween summers are a lot of work! There are so many cool camps for elementary school kids, but it seems like once they get to middle school the city just says raise yourself now.
I didn’t get much reading done last week, but I did spend some time pulling out books to read in October. I can’t wait for spooky reading season.
Have a great week everyone.
“If Lenore had been a country, I would have married North Korea...”
A Day of Fire by Kate Quinn, Stephanie Dray, Ben Kane, Eliza Knight, Sophie Perinot, and Vicky Alvear -- I’m reading this for a challenge, and I’m enjoying the different but related stories written by six authors set in the day or so before the Pompeii volcano explosion.
Every Summer After by Carley Fortune -- This came in from the library this morning, and I thought it looked like the perfect last week of unofficial summer read.
A Cook's Tour by Anthony Bourdain -- This is for a book club, and I must admit as a vegetarian I am a little worried about many descriptions of eating strange meat. I’ll give it a try though.
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This post is linked to The Sunday Post on Caffeinated Reviewer.
School is back in session, and a lot of my walks are now taking place during various sports practices. As the kids get older the practices get later, and that works so much better for my schedule. Who are the people available to drive across town to drop their kids at soccer at 4 pm on a random weekday?
I’ve been listening to Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. This book gets a lot of hype, but it’s a little long for my tastes. Grateful that my library had it on audio so I wasn’t tempted to buy it.
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