The Next Best Book Club discussion

I read Dear Mrs. Bird. 4 stars. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Catching Fire – Suzanne Collins – 2.5**
Book two in the Hunger Games trilogy. Fast-paced formula continues with the characters facing numerous challenges and struggling with whom to trust and which alliances to forge in order to survive and win. I thought Collins was stretching things out to fill the pages.
LINK to my review

The Way of Kings

I am reading Waistcoats and Weaponry by Gail Carriger. It is the third book in the Finishing School series

What a wonderful, convoluted mystery, and I enjoyed all seven!

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle 5★ by Stuart Turton
5★ https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I read Mad Boy. 3 stars . My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I've meant to read The Ballad of the Sad Café and Other Stories by Carson McCullers for many years and finally did.
Link to my review

My review for Before the Storm by Diane Chamberlain
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Ethan Frome – Edith Wharton – 4****
I love Edith Wharton’s writing. I love the way she explores relationships and unfulfilled desires. The tension is palpable, the yearning almost unendurable. The setting is Starkfield, Massachusetts, in winter; as if the reader needs a reminder of how depressing and lacking in color Ethan’s life is. Though I was reading in the midst of a summer heat wave, I felt chilled.
LINK to my review

Jackie wrote: "I thoroughly enjoyed that book, Karen, but I have to say I think I've enjoyed all her books!"

This was my first Jodi Picoult. Another, why did I wait so long to read this author???

After finishing The Storyteller and Wayward , I'm back to Agatha Raisin, The Blood of an Englishman.

I read The Emperor of Shoes. 4 stars . My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Days Without End – Sebastian Barry – 4****
Historical fiction that looks at America in the mid-19th century, through the eyes of Thomas McNulty, an Irish immigrant teenager. Beautiful, poetic, powerful writing that tugs at my heart and alternately disturbs me and cradles me in a loving embrace.
LINK to my review

I read The Wreckage of Eden. 4 stars. My review:https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I'm reading "Judas" by Amos Oz, the best-selling Israeli author. What a terrific book! His descriptions take me immediately into the setting--1950s Jersusalem--and his theological/political speculations, as seen through his characters, is fascinating.

Seventy years old next year. Scary how well George Orwell forecast in 1949 what might occur in 1984, some of which we deal with in 2018. Can't find any reference to Fake News, but the whole premise is based on continually rewriting history. This was a re-read for me, so I re-reviewed it.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I read The Lost Country. 4 stars. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Stunning and wintry. The Snow Child was a debut by Eowyn Ivey and was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize. No wonder!
5★ https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter – Erika L Sánchez – 4****
Fifteen-year-old Julia narrates this coming-of-age story set in Chicago. The novel opens shortly after her sister has died. Her mother and father are absorbed in their grief, and Julia feels smothered by their over-protectiveness. I really like Julia; she’s talented, bright, resourceful and tenacious. But she’s also a hurting teenager and risk for major depression.
LINK to my review

Another Mexican connection.
The Ballad of Huck and Miguel is a brave updating by Tim DeRoche of Mark Twain's American classic, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Easy reading, powerful linocut illustrations.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I read Our Homesick Songs. 5 stars. My review:https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I read Everything is Horrible and Wonderful: A Tragicomic Memoir of Genius, Heroin, Love and Loss by Stephanie Wittels Wachs. An incredibly important story on addiction.. please take the time to read my review. It can be found here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I was disappointed by the book I've just finished - The One by John Marrs.

Hopefully my next book - Anatomy of a Scandal by Sarah Vaughan - will be better 🤞🏻

Compelling true-crime. If it weren't so well-documented, it would be hard to believe.
Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann reads like a novel with an outrageous plot that will outrage YOU!
5★
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I finished Three Things About Elsie. 3.5 stars rounded up. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

A second look with the benefit of hindsight. Talented Aussie author Aoife Clifford has written her second book Second Sight. Lots of seconds there, but it's a first-rate read!
4.5★ Link to my review

I'm reading Keep Her Safe.

I read Silent Hearts. 4.5 stars. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I finished Catch Me If You Can: The True Story of a Real Fake by Frank W. Abagnale
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Terra-Cotta Dog – Andrea Camilleri – 3.5***
Book two in the Inspector Montalbano series has him solving a 50-year-old crime. Montalbano is a wonderful lead character. He doesn’t suffer fools gladly, nor sweat the small stuff. He’s intelligent, a loyal friend and is always ready to find the humor in a situation, no matter how dire. Camilleri populates the novel with an assortment of colorful characters that complicate Montalbano’s life. Interesting, engaging and entertaining. I’ll keep reading the series.
LINK to my review

Cute, inspiring children's book showing how young Fern finds a way to give Joy to her sad, stay-at-home Nanna. Recommended for all families!
5★ Link to my review

Just read The Keeper of Lost Things by Ruth Hogan, who has somehow managed to squeeze a bunch of stories together. I have to add that it’s one of the prettiest covers I’ve seen!
My review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Girl She Used To Be – David Cristofano – 2**
A young woman in Federal Witness Protection Program is surprised when a man calls her by her real name. On the positive side, Cristofano writes a fast-paced suspense filled story full of twists and turns. On the other hand … the plot stretches credulity too far and at the end I’m left just shaking my head and muttering “Huh?”
LINK to my review

Just finished: Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly. Five stars.
Click here for my review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I finished The Romanov Empress. 4 stars: My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Starting A Head Full of Ghosts tonight.

I started This Must Be the Place by Maggie O'Farrell today.

Jackie , Maggie O’Farrell is one of my favorites. Hope you enjoy this one.

I have now finished 44% of War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy, according to my kindle. An unforgettable book!

Call the Midwife – Jennifer Worth – 4****
Originally titled: The Midwife: A Memoir of Birth, Joy and Hard Times . This was renamed to coincide with the popular television series. I think Worth did a good job of honestly relaying her experiences during the 1950s, serving as a midwife in London’s East End. There are some graphic scenes, but I felt they were honestly portrayed.
LINK to my review

Hi Angela, I like her too. Her writing is great 😀

I read The Dying of the Light. 3+ stars . My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Angela M wrote: "Jackie , Maggie O’Farrell is one of my favorites. Hope you enjoy this one."

I’m another fan!

A bright red cover for an equally colourful history/mystery! I recommend Susan Orlean’s The Library Book to all book lovers.
5★ Link to my review

Bitter Grounds - Sandra Benítez – 4****
This is a sweeping historical epic covering three generations of two families in El Salvador: the wealthy land-owners, and the servants employed by them. Through these families the reader learns something of the history of El Salvador from about 1932 to 1975. I really enjoyed the way Benítez showed these two classes interacting. As much as they tried to remain separated, they were inextricably linked and their lives held many parallels. Winner of the American Book Award, 1998.
LINK to my review

I finished Ghosted. 2.5 rounded. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Just reviewed renowned Aussie mystery writer Michael Robotham's psychological thriller The Secrets She Keeps. It's a good stand-alone read!
4★ Link to my review

A cute book that encourages a bit of scrounging for rocket parts!
Astromouse by Steve Smallman will send kids to the kitchen looking for a funnel.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I finished The Lost Family. 3.5 stars. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Honeymoon With My Brother – Franz Wisner – 2**
When his fiancée dumped him five days before their wedding, Franz called on his brother Kurt to help him cancel the event. Nonrefundable airline tickets helped make the decision to take the honeymoon anyway. This should have been interesting, but I quickly grew bored. I found him self-absorbed and immature. His fiancée did the right thing when she bailed out.
LINK to my review

I finished Chariot on the Mountain. 4.5 stars . My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...