Top Ten Tuesday

 

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

This week's theme is MAY FLOWERS. But since that's such a broad category, I decided to narrow my list down to books and titles with gardens in them. 

Enjoy!

Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

 

The Wishing Garden by Christy Yorke

The White Garden by Stephanie Barron

Wild Designs by Katie Fforde

The Gardener by Sarah Stewart

Murder at the Royal Botanic Gardens by Andrea Penrose

A Robot in the Garden by Deborah Install

The Kew Gardens Girls by Posy Lovell

The Last Garden in England by Julia Kelly

The Twilight Garden by Sara Nisha Adams

I've read the first seven books on this list, but not the last three. 

Those are on my TBR list however. 

Got any favorite "garden" books?

Happy Reading!

Ghost Station by S.A. Barnes

 

An abandoned planet.

An isolated crew.

Dark secrets.

Looming madness.

And unsettling horror.

My thoughts:  I don't even know how to begin to summarize this one without giving away any spoilers, so I'm not even going to try. I think it's best to just let this story unfold on its own. What I will say is that Barnes has once again written a very compelling and suspenseful science fiction novel with hints of mystery and horror in it. Her main character, Dr. Ophelia Bray, comes from a very prominent and rich family who have practically disowned her; she has some demons and secrets from her own traumatic childhood that make her a sympathetic character. I also loved the impending sense of doom that Barnes creates as the six-person team starts to explore the abandoned planetary station, and strange things start to happen to them. She keeps you guessing about the truth of it all right to the end. This one's creepy and atmospheric and it reads fast. An entertaining summer read (even though it's not quite summer yet). I gave it 4 stars.

Happy Reading! 

Previous S.A. Barnes' novel:  Dead Silence

Randomness...

I won another free book from Goodreads! This time I won a copy of A Pair of Wings by Carole Hopson. It's a historical fiction novel about pioneer aviatrix Bessie Coleman. And if you think it looks good, Goodreads has a second giveaway for it going on right now. I'm excited to read it because Coleman's life sounds fascinating. Plus, I always like reading about the early days of aviation.

What do you look for or like in a book review? Do you prefer a longer, more detailed summary of the plot? Or something short and sweet? Insightful thoughts on character and theme? Or the blogger's emotional reaction to the story? Do you appreciate a little literary analysis, or just a 1- to 5-star rating? Do you like quotes? First lines? Bullet points? Links to similar reads? 

For me, I like honesty and humor in a review. I also like to know if the ending is satisfying, or disappointing. And if the main characters are likable. I like to know if the pacing drags, or if it reads fast. And whether the story will make me laugh or cry. And I appreciate a content warning when the book is graphic--whether that's in violence and gore, or steamy sex scenes. 

What makes reading a review fun for you?

And here are a few of my recent 'glad' things:

• Lunch last week with a friend I hadn't seen in awhile...it was very fun to catch up with her and we even made hiking plans for June.
• I saw an excellent movie last month:  Escape From Germany. It's based on a true story, and the woman sitting next to me in the theater turned out to be the niece of one of the missionaries portrayed in the movie, which was a fun coincidence.
• New socks! I know this seems like a small thing, but I really needed new socks and I found some that are both colorful and comfortable, and I'm happy to have them. 
• My lilac bush is finally in bloom, which always makes me glad because I love the scent of lilacs!
• And I've got a lovely new stack of books from the library to read this month. Life is good.  

Holmes on the Range by Steven Hockensmith

 "Damn it, brother," I said. "You're a cowboy, not a detective."

1893, Montana.

Two red-headed cowboys:  Gustav Amlingmeyer (Old Red) and Otto Amlingmeyer (Big Red); both have a penchant for the stories of Sherlock Holmes, though it's Gustav who loves them best. But he can't read, so it's up to Otto to read them out loud to him. 

The Bar VR:  An isolated cattle ranch owned by an English Duke, but run by Uly McPherson, a man with a reputation for being hard-nosed, unethical, and violent.

There's something crooked going on at the Bar VR where Old Red and his brother have hired on to work. And when one murder is followed by a second, Old Red is determined to figure out what's going on. He even makes a bet with the Duke that he can 'deducify' the truth. 

"Some folks get religion. Gustav got Sherlock Holmes."

My thoughts:

I loved the blend of western and mystery in this book. Hockensmith's prose is clever and engaging. And Old Red (who's not really all that old), with his sharp eyes and keen deductive skills, is a great character. I really liked him and his younger brother, Big Red, who narrates the story with charm and humor. I enjoyed all the action, and I always love that Old West setting. This was a very fun read. I'm looking forward to reading Gustav's and Otto's next adventure which I think takes place aboard a train. 

Happy Reading! 

Need a laugh?

 

I love John Atkinson's cartoons! They're smart and clever and funny. And they always make me laugh. Like this one. Be sure to check out his website Wrong Hands to see more. It'll add a little happiness to your day. 

Haiku Reviews...

 

Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez

He's an introvert.

She doesn't trust men. Can these

two doctors find love?

Romance ... 387 pages .... 4.5/5 stars.

(There's so much to love about this one! And kind, quiet Jacob with his social anxiety tops the list.)

The Price You Pay (Peter Ash #8) by Nick Petrie

When Lewis's past

comes back to haunt him he turns

to Peter for help.

Action/Thriller .... 416 pages .... 4/5 stars.

(Action-packed, edge-of-your-seat thriller with lots of bad guys. But don't worry...the good guys win.)

Lost Girls by Angela Marsons

Two kidnapped girls. One

chance to bring them both home. Can

Kim Stone find them in time?

Mystery .... 431 pates .... 4/5 stars.

(Excellent investigative mystery with D.I. Stone and her team--set in England's Black Country.)

Happy Reading!

 

Some very sad news...

I learned yesterday that my sweet blogging friend and reading buddy, Melody Lee, passed away suddenly last month from a brain aneurysm. She was such a kindhearted, funny, and caring person. We started commenting on each other's blogs back in 2016, then did our first buddy read a year later. Over the last seven years we read 34 books together. And we had our next buddy read scheduled for next month. She was a dear friend, and I will miss her so much. Please keep her family in your hearts and prayers. 

A Groom of One's Own by Emma St. Clair

 

From the blurb: 

"He always dreamed of getting married--but for love, not to avoid deportation. Eli Hopkins has it all--almost. A hockey career with the wildly popular Appies. Teammates who are like brothers. The only thing he's missing is someone to share it all with. Oh--and correctly filed visa paperwork. Due to administrative error, Eli is about to lose everything. Unless he can find someone to marry him in the next thirty days. And he might have the perfect woman in mind. The only problem? He'd like to marry her for real, not simply for legal purposes. Now Eli faces the challenge of winning over a wife who thinks the marriage is in name only..."

What I loved about this book:

• Sweet, swoony and clean romance
• Handsome and outgoing hockey player
• Shy and sometimes awkward heroine
• Scene-stealing shelter dog named Doris
• Super loyal and supportive teammates
• Heartfelt kisses
• Humorous situations (like pajama bowling!)
• A very public proposal
• And their promise to be "awkward together"

Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Eli and Bailey made me happy. They're such a cute couple. I loved how Eli fell so hard for her and tried to always put her feelings first. And I loved their happy ending. Emma St. Clair has become one of my favorite authors. 

Happy Reading!

Other hockey romances with the Appies that I loved: 

Just Don't Fall by Emma St. Clair

Absolutely Not in Love by Jenny Proctor

Top Ten Tuesday...

 

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

This week's theme is supposed to be CHARACTERS I'D LIKE TO GO ON VACATION WITH. But I couldn't come up with anything creative or clever for that one. So I changed it up a little. Here's my list of 10 Vacations I'd Love to Take (and the book I'd bring along to read while on them).

1. I'd really love to go to Easter Island one day and see the Moai statues there. You have to fly there from Chile, so, of course, I'd also want to spend an extra week exploring parts of that country. And the perfect book to bring along on this trip:  The Moai Murders by Lyn Hamilton. 

2.  Death Valley is another place I'd really like to visit someday--see those rocks that seemingly move by themselves. I've heard it's very beautiful there. And the book I would take with me:  Wanderer of the Wasteland by Zane Grey.  (Because it's set in Death Valley, of course.) 

3.  There are some cool Dude Ranches in Wyoming and Colorado that have Girls' Only weeks where I could spend a week with my two sisters and cute niece just hanging out and riding horses. I would totally love to do that!  And of course, the perfect book to take along would be a cowboy romance like The Rough Rider by Maisey Yates.

4. I've never been to Yosemite National Park but I'd love to take a trip up there, stopping to see the Redwoods along the way.  And I would definitely bring along Trapped in Yosemite by Dana Mentink as my vacation read. 

5. For me, no vacation list is complete without Paris! It's such a beautiful and fun city. I've been there once, but I'd love to go back, revisit my favorite museums, buy some yummy crepes from the street vendors, stroll along the Seine and read a good book or two. Like The Paris Deception by Bryn Turnbull.

6. Who doesn't want to go to Hay-On-Wye--that town full of bookstores in Wales--at least once in their life? I'd love to spend an entire month in England exploring all those castles in Wales, visiting all the Jane Austen sights from Lyme Regis to Bath, checking out Highgate Cemetery in London, and dropping down to Cornwall to explore the towns and beaches there. And Sixpence House by Paul Collins would be a great book to bring along. (Though if I were gone for a month I'd have to bring a lot more books with me than just one!) 

7.  Venice, Florence, and Verona, Italy are all places I've always wanted to travel to...All of Italy really. And I've read A LOT of books set there, so it was a bit of a challenge to find a new book that I would want to take with me. I finally settled on John Berendt's The City of Falling Angels.

8. I am a birder and I love to go birdwatching. And ever since 2011 I've kept a life list of all the different birds I've seen. (It's currently at 207.) And I've always wanted to go birding in Texas because they get so many migrating birds and birds that don't come to Utah. I'd especially love to go to High Island during peak spring migration. And I can't think of a better book to bring with me on this trip than Chasing Birds Across Texas by Mark T. Adams.

9. A tour of Morocco is another trip I'd love to take someday. There are so many cool sights to see in that country: from the marketplace maze in the heart of Marrakech, to the ancient Roman ruins at Volubilis, to the city of Tangiers, not to mention Fez and Casablanca. I'd love to see it all! And In Arabian Nights by Tahir Shah would be the perfect bookish companion.  

10.  And just for laughs, I've always wanted to check out Roswell, New Mexico. They have a UFO festival in the summer that I think would be a blast. And while I'm down that way, I'd also stop by Santa Fe, and then make a side trip back to Chaco Canyon, which is one of my all-time favorite places. And The Road to Roswell by Connie Willis seems like the perfect book for this trip. 

So there you have it... 10 vacations I'd love to take someday. 

Happy traveling..and happy reading along the way!

An unplanned bookish chain...

 

I started off last week reading How to Dance by Jason B. Dutton. It's an imperfect but sweet romance. I really loved Nick Freeman; he's a math teacher, star of Friday night Karaoke, and all-around good guy. He also has cerebral palsy, needing a walker to help him stand, balance and walk. His character was so well developed. Probably because the author himself has cerebral palsy. His counterpart, Hayley Burke, is a graceful and lovely dancer with her own insecurities and struggles. I enjoyed seeing Nick and Hayley learn to dance with each other. 

After finishing How to Dance I started reading the American Mystery Classic Waltz Into Darkness by Cornell Woolrich, never even noticing the dance/waltz connection between the two titles until my mom remarked on it. (She always asks me about the books I'm reading.) But I thought it was a fun coincidence. 

What I loved most about this classic mystery is Woolrich's prose. There's brevity and poetry in his style of writing. Like when Louis Durand reads a telling letter about his new bride, Woolrich writes, "If dried ink on paper can be said to scream, it screamed up at him." 

This noir mystery is a haunting tale of doomed love with a beautiful woman and her web of lies and a man desperate for love at the center of it. It took a turn halfway through that I was not expecting, and I while I didn't love the second half as much as the first half, I did like this one overall and would definitely read this author again. 

Then, to finish off this unplanned chain of books, I went from reading Waltz Into Darkness to Some Choose Darkness by Charlie Donlea. That both titles have darkness in them was another nice coincidence.

This is a compelling psychological thriller. A little complicated and dark at the beginning, but very suspenseful at the end, even though I did guess two of the twists. I especially liked Rory Moore; she's a forensic reconstructionist, "her DNA programmed to see things others missed, to connect dots that looked scattered and incongruent to everyone else. Rory's uncanny mind would piece together bits of a puzzle everyone else's had deemed unsolvable until she had reconstructed the crime in its entirety." She's one of those characters you don't soon forget, and I look forward to reading Donlea's next book with her in it. 

So that's what I've been reading...my unexpected and unplanned chain of books. All different; all enjoyable. 

Happy Reading!

April's Bookish Art...

 

Edouard Gelhay - Elegant Women in a Library

"Always be reading. 

Go to the library.

There's magic in being surrounded by books."

--Austin Kleon

Just a Regular Boy by Catherine Ryan Hyde

 

First line:  Remy Blake was five years old when his father drove him away from Pocatello for the last time. 

The plot:  Raised in isolation by his survivalist father in the far northern woods of Idaho, Remy learns to hunt and fish, but not how to live in the real world. He's taught to fear it instead. Then his father dies, leaving him all alone in the wilderness. Only eight, Remy struggles to survive, but the threat of starvation finally forces him to seek out the nearest town for food. When authorities finally find him, he's badly injured, traumatized, half-starved, and mute. That's when Anne and her husband, Chris, enter the picture. They've already adopted two children. But Anne is determined to give Remy a safe home, too. No matter how difficult the next part of his journey may be. 

My thoughts:  My heart went out to Remy. He's one tough little boy. His narrative was my favorite part of this book. All of his struggles, both survial-wise and emotional, were so gripping.  His story alternates with Anne's narrative. Her struggles to be a good wife and mom weren't quite as compelling, but I still liked her, especially all her interactions with Remy, as she tried to help him work through his past traumas and validate his feelings. This book is both heartbreaking and heartwarming. And it raises some interesting questions about fear and how people choose to respond to it. All in all, this turned out to be a 4-star read for me. 

Happy Reading!

Similar read:

The Good Dream by Donna VanLiere

How to Walk Away by Katherine Center

 

Plot summary:  Margaret Jacobsen's life feels perfect. She has her MBA and the promise of a dream job. And her handsome boyfriend just proposed. Everything is falling into place. But then, on Valentine's Day, the unexpected happens and Margaret's life is changed forever, her future that seemed so bright suddenly gone. And everyone keeps telling her to be positive and smile...except for her physical therapist who barely talks to her; instead, he pushes her to try harder everyday. And her fiance? When he's not drunk he tells her he still loves her, but he never comes to visit her. Instead, it's her sister that shows up, the sister she's been estranged from for the past three years. Margaret's journey is one of pain and grief....and hope. And she learns some important truths along the way:

• Needing to find reasons to live had forced me to build a life worth living.
• The greater our capacity for sorrow becomes, the greater our capacity for joy.
• You have to live the life you have.
• When you don't know what to do for yourself, do something for somebody else.
• There are all kinds of happy endings. 

My thoughts:  This is one of those books that once I started reading it I couldn't put it down! Margaret's such a relatable character. Everything about her accident and recovery felt so real; I understood her moments of depression, cheered her resilience and moments of anger, and cried with her, too. And I loved her happy ending. Her sister, Kit, made me laugh; and I really liked Ian, her physical therapist. This book is so much more than a simple romance. It's amazing. And I loved it!

Happy Reading!

Other favorite Katherine Center books:

The Bodyguard

Things You Save in a Fire

Happiness for Beginners

Randomness....

I won another Goodreads giveaway! This time I got a free copy of The Stars Turned Inside Out by Nova Jacobs. It's a mystery that takes place in Geneva, Switzerland at CERN's Large Hadron Collider. I'm looking forward to reading it. 

What's your Goodreads 'Want to Read' number? At the beginning of the year mine was nearing 470 and I could see 500 rapidly approaching. And for me, that number is just too high. But for every book I read off my list, I seem to add 2 more...which doesn't feel like progress. So after some very focused reading and a lot of weeding, I managed to get the number down to 397. (Though it'll probably be back up over 400 before the end of the week.) And I'm not sure what to do about it. Because all the books on my list are ones I still want to read, but 400 titles still feels like way too many. How many book titles do you have on your 'Want to Read' list? And what do you do when it gets too high? I could use some advice.

My "glad" things for March: 

• Found an almost new copy of Nora Goes Off Script at the library book sale for only 10 cents! (This made me so happy because it's a book I really love.)
• Woke up to the cheerful "chirr-up, chirr-up" of robins outside my window...a sure sign it's finally spring.
• Celebrated Pi day with a yummy piece of Edwards' Chocolate Creme Pie.
• Got to see the new Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire movie over the weekend and it totally made me laugh. I especially loved all the little Stay Puft marshmallow guys.
• Best of all, my spring break starts today...I have one long, lovely week off to read, relax and have some fun. 

A Bookish Trio...

 

Deaf Utopia by Nyle DiMarco

Nyle DiMarco is a proud Deaf man. He is so eloquent and passionate about the Deaf world, it's culture and history, and the richness, beauty and expressiveness of ASL. It's such a fascinating language! I took a class in it once and loved how you can say so much with just one sign. I also loved reading Nyle's story. He chronicles his growing up years and later experiences with honesty and humor. And I really admire his mother for her strength and determined activism. She's a remarkable woman. And Deaf Utopia is an amazing book.  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Give Me A Sign by Anna Sortino

Lilah doesn't feel "deaf enough" to identify as Deaf--she isn't even fluent in ASL--but her hearing loss means she doesn't fit in the hearing world either; she always feels like "the odd one out, the one who always has to explain or adjust." Except when she's at Gray Wolf, a summer camp for the deaf and blind. And this year, she's not just a camper, she's a junior counselor. Sortino, who is deaf herself, has written a sweet coming-of-age story that explores the complexity and richness of being Deaf. It's a very engaging YA novel.   ⭐⭐⭐⭐

True Biz by Sara Novic

Immersive and impressive! I got caught up in the lives of Charlie (a deaf teenager with hearing parents; she has a cochlear implant that doesn't work very well and still hasn't learned ASL), and February (a CODA who's fluent in ASL and is headmistress of the River Valley School for the Deaf in Ohio). This book deals with the importance of ASL, Deaf schools, the tug-of-war between the hearing and Deaf, cochlear implants, and Deaf culture. I couldn't put it down; though I did think the ending was a little abrupt.  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading! 

What's up?

This post is supposed to be a review. At least that's how I planned it out in my head at the beginning of the month. But as you can see, I have no review to post today. The last book I finished was Dread Journey by Dorothy B. Hughes, which I loved, but I decided to write a haiku review for that one because it was easier.

I also recently finished The Love Plot by Samantha Young which is a sweet and steamy grumpy vs. sunshine fake-dating romance that I liked. So why didn't I review that one? *shrugs*  I guess I'm not feeling too motivated to write these days. But I am reading. 

Right now I'm in the middle of three books:  True Biz, Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries, and The Wind in the Willows. They're each unique and entertaining in their own way, and I'm enjoying all of them. Hopefully, I should have some short reviews ready to go for my next post. Until then...

Happy Reading!

Haiku reviews...

 

Fish Out of Water by Katie Ruggle

City girl blackmails

grumpy hermit to help her 

track down her sister.

Romance .... 311 pages .... 3/5 stars.

(Some plotting inconsistencies; and while I liked Dahlia and Winston, their relationship felt like a total repeat of Ruggle's characters George and Ellie from Gone Too Deep.)

Lone Wolf by Gregg Hurwitz

Evan Smoak's mission:

find a lost dog...and track a killer

before she kills him.

Thriller .... 383 pages .... 5/5 stars.

(Evan Smoak, otherwise known as Orphan X and The Nowhere Man, is still one of my all-time favorite characters. Another action-packed and suspenseful read.)

Dread Journey by Dorothy B. Hughes

Not everyone will

survive this train ride from 

Hollywood to New York.

Psychological suspense .... 181 pages .... 4/5 stars.

(Loved Hughes' writing as well as the cat-and-mouse game between the passengers.)

Happy Reading!

Top Ten Tuesday

 

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

This week's theme is BOOKS ON MY SPRING TBR LIST. 

The only trouble I had this week was limiting my choices to just 10. Here they are:

The War Magician by David Fisher

Vanishing Edge by Claire Kells

Holmes on the Range by Steve Hockensmith

The Final Twist by Jeffrey Deaver

Lost Girls by Angela Marsons

My Side of the River by Elizabeth Camarillo Gutierrez

Some Choose Darkness by Charlie Donlea

Just a Regular Boy by Catherine Ryan Hyde

Now You See Us by Balli Kaur Jaswal

What You Are Looking For is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama

I also plan on reading books by Catherine Cowles, Katherine Center, Abby Jimenez and K.A. Tucker this spring, but I haven't quite figured out which of their books I'm going to read first. Stay tuned...

Happy Reading!