Top Ten Tuesday...

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly meme hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week's theme:  BOOKS I WAS READING ON THIS DAY THIS MONTH OVER THE LAST TEN YEARS. 

It was fun to look back each August over the last ten years to see what I was reading. Here are 10 of my favs:

2025:  Happy After All by Maisey Yates 

2024: Crow Talk by Eileen Garvin

2023:  The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams

2022:  Something Wilder by Christina Lauren

2021:  American Predator by Maureen Callahan

2020:  Mansfield Park by Jane Austen

2019:  Murder On Black Swan Lane by Andrea Penrose

2018:  The Winter Over by Matthew Iden

2017:  The Lying Game by Ruth Ware

2016:  Alice by Christina Henry

I know it's hard to tell much about a book just by its title, which is why I've included links to my reviews of each of these books...so if any sound interesting to you, check them out. They were all great reads.

Happy Reading!

Hudson Bay Bound by Natalie Warren

 "Sometimes a great adventure lands in your lap."

"...everything that happens, good or bad, is a story. And life is just a string of stories that we collect, over time, and we might as well make them good ones." 

This is a true adventure memoir about two women who are best friends and the two thousand mile canoe trip they take from Minneapolis to Hudson Bay the summer of 2011. What a journey! 

I love these kinds of stories: the challenges and life-changing moments they experience, the humorous camping incidents, and the descriptions that immersed me in parts of the country, the rivers and surrounding wilderness I will never get to see in real life. Plus, there's a very cute dog in it that they adopt at Norway house in Canada, along with some moose and polar bear sightings. It's an interesting and fun read. 

My rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!

Similar reads:

Mud, Rocks, Blazes by Heather Anderson

Force of Nature by Joan M. Griffon

The Twenty-Ninth Day by Alex Messenger

Top Ten Tuesday

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly meme hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week's theme is a COVER FREEBIE...

so I decided to go with 10 Fantasy Covers From Favorite Fantasy Reads. These 10 novels are some of my favorite fantasy reads.... and they are all books I really want to reread this year and next. 

The Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien

The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks

(I'd also really like to reread Wishsong of Shannara and The Druid of Shannara.)

The Green Rider by Kristen Britain

Time of the Twins by Weis and Hickman

(Along with the other two books in this fabulous trilogy!)

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The Bards of Bone Plain by Patricia A. McKillip

(Really I could happily reread ANY of her books.)

Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny

(One of the first adult fantasies I checked out of the library...I think I was 11 or 12.)

Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier

Summers at Castle Auburn by Sharon Shinn

Happy Reading (or in my case Rereading)!

Randomness...

 I can't believe it's already August. In just a few weeks I'll be back at work...and while I like my co-workers and all the kids in my many reading groups, I've really been enjoying my summer break. And I'm sad to see it coming to an end. 

July was full of fun family events and local excursions...as well as lots of days hunkering down inside where it was nice and cool. Or cooler anyway. 100+ days are not my favorite thing. And this July felt especially hot. 

I did a lot of reading though, and I have a new favorite series: Tim Sullivan's DS George Cross mysteries. I read the first two books in June and July and can't wait to check out the rest. George is on the autism spectrum and great at solving puzzles and focusing on all the small but important details of a crime, but he's not good at social interactions and has to be nudged by his longsuffering partner to remember the niceties. Even when he tries, he still comes across as abrupt, condescending and rude. But I like him. I've got the third book in this fun series sitting in my library bag by my bed, which I'm excited to start reading.

Happy Reading!

Haiku reviews...

 

Out of the Woods by Madison Wright

She never leaves home.

He never stays in one place. 

How can they fall in love?

Romance .... 362 pages .... 4/5 stars.

(Cute and clean.)

A Murder Most Camp by Nicolas Didomizio

Mikey, 29, must spend

the summer working at camp

with his 12-year-old aunt.

Mystery .... 350 pages .... 4/5 stars.

(Humorous mystery set at summer camp where Mikey and his aunt, Annabelle, try to solve a decade old cold case.)

Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monaghan

Dolly wants the best

for her son, brother, and dad.

But what does she want for herself?

Romance .... 360 pages .... 4.5/5 stars.

(Similar vibe to Nora Goes Off Script which I also loved.)

Happy Reading!

July's bookish art...

 

Augustus John -- A woman reading

"Once you have read a book you care about, some part of it is always with you."

--Louis L'Amour

Wisdom from the Prydain Chronicles...

     "Life is a forge!" cried the smith, as Taran, his brow streaming, beat at the strip of metal. "Yes, and hammer and anvil, too! You'll be roasted, smelted, and pounded, and you'll scarce know what's happening to you. But stand boldly to it! Metal's worthless till it's shaped and tempered."

    "Life's a forge, say I! Face the pounding; don't fear the proving; and you'll stand well against any hammer and anvil."

I've been rereading these classic fantasy novels this month and last, and while I didn't always remember the story line, I definitely remembered all of Lloyd Alexander's unforgettable characters: Taran, Eilonwy, Gurgi, Flewddur Fflam, Doli, Gwydion, Coll and Dalben. This quote is from Taran Wanderer, the 4th book in this series, which is probably my least favorite. But it's still good! It's been fun dipping back into these books that I read as a child. I'm thinking about rereading The Hobbit next. 

I'm home from Bryce Canyon, which was so fun, but still sort of on a blogging break. I'm reading lots and checking in on your blogs, but not doing much reviewing or posting. Which has been nice. Hope you are all enjoying your summer despite the hot weather, wildfires, and floods. 

Happy Reading!