I’m actually on my way to Columbus, Ohio, today to meet up with my sister. Then tomorrow, we’re flying to Washington, D.C. We’re going to see a play in Columbus tonight, “Daddy-Long-Legs”, and in D.C. we’re going to see “Chess” at the Kennedy Center.
So, I’m really not reading anything right now. I can tell you what books I’m taking with me, but I don’t know if I’ll get much reading done. I’ve packed Kelli Stanley’s latest Miranda Corbie mystery (due out in March), City of Sharks. And, I have Miranda James’ new Cat in the Stacks mystery, Claws for Concern.
I won’t get a chance to check here after about 11 am because I’ll be driving. Talk amongst yourself, and, if there’s anything I need to answer later in the day, I’ll try to answer on Friday. I’m still interested in what you’re reading or listening to. And, I know others are waiting. Thank you!
I finished Stolen Beauty by Laurie Lico Albanese earlier this week and liked it very much. I started The Mitford Murders by Jessica Fellows but could got get into it so it is on the library return pile. Now I am reading A Treacherous Curse by Deanna Raybourn. I am looking forward to the rainy afternoon to finish it. This one is great fun so far.
Safe travels to Columbus and enjoy the plays. Our play going experiences lately have been at Grove City's Little Theater Off Broadway.
Hope you and your sister have a great time, Lesa! I'm reading The Woman in the Window and trying to decide if I might have a clue what is happening. That's a big maybe. Ha! I'm also listening to The Wife Between Us. It's one of those that you start out thinking you know how the story is going and then it takes a big turn and then another. The narration is good on that one.
I'm thinking that I'll take a break from the psychological thriller type book next. Maybe read another on my Classics list or read something historical. Maybe both.
I finished Banana Whip Safari Trip (book 4) by Nancy McGovern
I am reading :
Pecan Flan Murder Plan (book 5) by Nancy McGovern
Too Late to Die by Bill Crider First Book I have ever read by Bill
Lesa, enjoy your self, be safe.
Keep a book close by.
📚📚📚📚📚📚📚
Sharon, I've started The Mitford Murders as well. I'll give it a little more time next week, but I'm about where you are with it. It hasn't excited me. I did enjoy A Treacherous Curse!
Kay, I'm just not a psychological thriller reader. I much prefer traditional mysteries. I think your taste is more eclectic than mine.
Charlotte, I hope you enjoy Bill's book. I always appreciate Sheriff Dan Rhodes and the humor.
Thanks, everyone, for the kind wishes!
Lesa, enjoy your trip.
I read WALKING WITH PEETY by Eric O’Grey. It’s an autobiographical book by a man who starts out at 340 lbs and how he looses the weight and gets healthy. It got a bit slow at one point but both my Mom and I enjoyed it.
FIRST DEGREE MUDDER and IN CAVE DANGER both by Kate Dyer-Seeley so I’m finally up to date on that mystery series.
JAYNE FROST BRAVES THE BLIZARD by Kristen Painter. It’s a paranormal series with a bit of mystery thrown in and a fun read. Another book that my Mom and I shared.
Not sure what I’m going to read next.
Have a great trip. As mentioned, we saw CHESS years ago in London.
I read the four books I mentioned last week. I'll list them when I go inside – we're sitting by the hotel pool – later.
Currently reading THE STORY OF CLASSIC CRIME IN 100 BOOK by Martin Edwards, where he chose 100 mysteries (mostly British) to represent the 1900-50 period. It looks like it will result in me buying more books.
Friends (Bill Crider among them) have recommended the books of Timothy Hallinan for years, and I finally downloaded CRASHED, his first about burglar Junior Bender. So far, so good.
I'm back to the first of three collections of horror/fantasy/science fiction stories by Fritz Leiber, THE BLACK GONDOLA, now that I finished the Simon R. Green collection. I'm more than halfway through it.
Also started the next Jonathan Quinn book by Brett Battles, THE DISCARDED,before putting it aside for the Hallinan.
Lesa, I saw Chess years ago, probably the 1980's, when my grandmother took me. I think I was in 7 or 8 grade. All the talk back then was how Chess was going to save Broadway…then the play disappeared for something like 25 years, and now it seems to enjoying a revival.
I read:
Dukkha The Suffering by Loren Christensen, a martial arts thriller with a more than usually inept protagonist. For some reason, practically all the heroes in these things are pretty inept, going back to Burns Bannion, who started the sub-genre.
The City of Endless Night, the latest Pendergast novel by Lincoln and Childs. Great stuff.
Concerning Blackshirt, a British Pulp from the 30's which was pretty exciting.
Death By Circumstance: A Trucker Mystery, Well, I'll say it's different, but I can't say it's very good.
Jeff Meyerson, when it comes to Hallinan, I like Simeon Grist more than Poke Rafferty, but YMMV.
Hello, all, and enjoy the shows, Lesa!
The Revenge of the Nerd by Curtis Armstrong (who played Booger in those movies) turned out to be enjoyable, especially when he described his years on Moonlighting–I loved that show, even though I knew Cybill Shepherd and Bruce Willis didn't exactly see eye to eye. I wasn't aware Curtis was a bibliophile, like us. The tone wasn't as light as some show biz autobiographies.
Still Me by Jojo Moyes is third in an amazing series.The first, Me Before You, about Louisa Clark, a young woman working as caregiver to a troubled disabled man, had a huge emotional impact. The second, After You, followed the young woman after. . . well, I won't spoil it if you haven't read it or seen the movie This one continues Lou's story as she moves to New York and becomes the companion/assistant of a woman who puts up with way too much to please her husband and his high-society friends. At the same time, Lou struggles to maintain her own unique personality and hang on to her EMT boyfriend back home. I enjoyed it but wouldn't rate is quite as high as the other two. I feel that anything by Moyes is worth reading and often excellent.
I was disappointed with The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin, which is being relentlessly hyped everywhere you look. The premise is that four siblings, age 7 to 13, are told the date of their death by a gypsy (how did they manage this without their mother finding out?), and we see how each coped. What initially sounded intriguing turned out to be rather ridiculous IMO, and I found what happened to each of the children too unlikely to be thought-provoking. It was just too joyless and far-fetched for me. I'm sure I'm in the minority, but I'm OK with that.
I was ready for something inspirational, and I found it in Christian pastor and writer Max Lucado's latest, Anxious for Nothing.
By the way, I have The Mitford Murders waiting for me at the library as well, and now I'm nervous about reading it. But you never know . . .
Reading Force of Nature by Jane Harper. I am enjoying it even more than The Dry. Read the 2nd book in the Ellie Stone series by James Zizkin, No Stone Unturned. Definitely worth your time. Up next will be Elane Viets Fire and Ashes.
Lesa, I enjoy your blog and love the weekly What are you reading comments.
I'm in the middle of a book I'm being asked to review and about to start on Boys on the Boat, a non fiction book my boss wants me to read. I am planning on taking a break from book reviews though and hoping to have time to read stuff I choose.
I finished reading The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher and am now working my way through Scarlet by Marissa Meyer. Looks like some good books you're taking with you. Hope you have fun on your trip.
Have fun on your trip!…Reading Going for Gold by Emma Lathen – the Olympics. Fifty Years of 60 Minutes by Jeffrey Fager. Double Take by Catherine Coulter. A Reckoning in the Back Country by Terry Shames.
Last night I finished "Midnight Line" by Lee Child. It's the usual Reacher book. I don't know why I keep reading them. They are so formulaic. I think it's the author's short sentence style – like clips of random thought. But they fascinate me.
Say hello to my sister in Columbus.
I just finished "White Chrysanthemum" by Mary Lynn Brandt. It's about two Korean sisters, one of whom was captured in WWII by the Japanese to be a "comfort woman." The story alternates between Hana in 1943 to younger sister Emi in 2011. Very well-written. Next up: "White Houses" by Amy Bloom, about Eleanor Roosevelt and Lorena Hitchcock…..Then I'll begin the ARCs from ALA Midwinter. Five of the six boxes I shipped back have arrived — #6 is due today.
@ Gram
I used to love Emma Lathen. Unfortunately my library doesn’t have the books anymore.