The Perks Of Being A Book Addict discussion

Harry Potter (Year 3), Safe Haven, Honey & Spice (might DNF)

It's impossible to figure out who all The Liars are in Aussie author Petronella McGovern's new small town mystery. From colonial crimes to more recent rapes and disappearances, it seems nobody is safe and anybody could be under suspicion.
3★ My review of The Liars

I wish all books written for young people were as appealing as Blueback is to readers of any age. Much-awarded Aussie author Tim Winton knows exactly how to talk to kids, without talking down, when describing his beloved coast and its precious underwater world.
5★ My review of Blueback

About to start 1Q84

reading Carrie Soto is back!! :)

My review of Devil's Bride by Stephanie Laurens

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Here is my 4.02 rounded to 4 stars review of A Death in Door County by Annelise Ryan.

My Review

Unique characters and an intriguing mystery made this a fun cozy mystery.

I finished my 69th book

I often think about boys like Paul, the ones with such strong desires but no idea of what it takes to fulfill them. Willa Cather's short story, Paul's Case, is unforgettable.

5★ My review with a link to the story online

Here is my 4.16 rounded to 4 stars review of The Winter Orphans by Kristin Beck.

My Review
This historical fiction novel is largely set in southern France between August 1942 and November 1943. Overall, this was an engaging and emotional story of hope, fear, and bravery in the face in adversity.

Patty - your link isn't working.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Oh I LOVED this one!!! Why haven't I read more books with a tennis setting? So good!

Currently reading The Last Heiress by Bertrice Small

My review of Aunt Bessie Joins by Diana Xarissa

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Kristie wrote: "Patty - your link isn't working."
OOPS! thanks, Kristie 😊

John Boyne finally wrote an adult sequel to his much-loved The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and it is terrific! All the Broken Places is older sister Gretel's 'autobiography' from when she was the 12-year-old daughter of a Nazi officer, then passing as French in Australia, and finally to the age of 92 in London. What a story!
5★ My review of All the Broken Places

Here is my 4.21 rounded to 4 stars review of The Shadow Murders by Jussi Adler-Olsen.

My Review

This police procedural is set in Copenhagen, Denmark and features the cold case division Department Q. Great characterization and a deeply involved plot kept me engaged throughout.

I finished my 70th book and I finished my 71st book

My review of Key of Light by Nora Roberts

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Hands is a moving short story from Sherwood Anderson's highly regarded collection, Winesburg, Ohio (1919). Wing Biddlebaum doesn't understand what is wrong with his hands, but it's obvious to the rest of us.
4★ My review of Hands with a link to where you can download the story

Elizabeth Strout's Lucy Barton returns in her new book, Lucy by the Sea, where ex-husband William takes her to Maine to escape the pandemic which has brought New York City to its knees. It's American, real and current, but the relationship strengths and strains go beyond geographical boundaries and times. Families are families. Neighbours are neighbours.
5★ My review of Lucy by the Sea

My review of The Half Life of Valery K by Natasha Pulley

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Listening to the second book in the MaddAddam series, The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood which I am enjoying far more than Oryx and Crake. I'm reading a ebook, A Tidy Ending by Joanna Cannon which is a little twisted.

My review of The Fish That Climbed a Tree by Kevin Ansbro.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Here is my 4.16 rounded to 4 stars review of Winter's End by Paige Shelton.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

This is the fourth book in the Alaska Wild series. It combines traditional police detective work and amateur sleuthing in a mystery with atmosphere and heart. Overall, this enjoyable mystery was engaging, suspenseful, intriguing, and compulsively readable.

My review of Chasing Cassandra by Lisa Kleypas

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

My 3.21 rounded to 3 stars review of The Witch and the Tsar by Olesya Salnikova Gilmore:

My Review

The author weaves a story of light versus darkness that highlights Russian history, mythology, and folktales. The country seemed to come to life in this descriptive tale that has excellent world-building. However, the pacing was slow at times. The narrative is rather straightforward and the plot didn’t have the twists and turns that I expected. However, the historical references to actual people and events added a significant layer of interest to the plot.

Here is my 3.86 rounded to 4 stars review of Mother Daughter Traitor Spy by Susan Elia MacNeal.

My Review

This standalone historical fiction spy novel is inspired by real people and events. Based on a real mother-daughter spy duo, Veronica and Violet are well-developed characters. They seem to be somewhat naïve, but definitely feel a duty to protect democracy and do what is right for the country. Overall, this story is inspiring, well-written, and well-researched and it is a story that will stay with me.

Finished reading The Last Heiress by Bertrice Small and starting to read The Queen's LadybyShannon Drake

I finished my 72nd book

Pre-teen (ALMOST 13!) Ricky Bird is struggling with parents' split, sick little brother, and moving to a different estate in another part of London. Aussie author Diane Connell's The Improbable Life of Ricky Bird deals with many difficult subjects. I think it would be a good YA read.
3★ My review

One should always pay attention to what the animals are doing. Jack London is well-known for his tales of the frozen north, and his short story, To Build a Fire, is colder and more desperate than most.
4★ My review of To Build a Fire

Started reading The Haunting of Coyote Island by Alexandria Clarke I read this on my kindle over a year ago and liked it so much I ordered the physical form.

How I could have missed C.S. Lewis's The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe in my childhood is beyond me. Surely someone should have directed me to it! It's still fun, of course. Better late, etc. 😊
5★ My review

On a completely different note, No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy is only for seasoned readers. Simple, direct, and violent, but thought-provokingly tender in places. Phenomenal writer.
5★ My review

I previously mentioned I was reading A Tidy Ending by Joanna Cannon and I said it was a little twisted. Correction, it was a lot twisted and just really something different.

I just finished reading a cute cozy, A Death in Door County by Annelise Ryan which I read in two days. A sign of how much I enjoyed reading it.

Now I'm reading Death by Scones by Jennifer Fischetto This is part of the Danger Cove Mystery series which is written by several different authors but all take place in a little seaside town called Danger Cove.,

Rainbow milk.

I'm reading The Lincoln Highway. I'm about halfway through and so far it's really good. I'm feeling a little anxious for a couple of the main characters.

I’m reading Fairy Tale by Stephen King and I’m worried about the dog in this book because in the book I just finished the dog dies.

Just finished All the Broken Places .
My review www.Goodreads.com/review/show/4991212218

Here is my 3.55 star rounded to 4 stars review of Because I Could Not Stop for Death by Amanda Flower,

My Review

This is somewhat darker than most of Amanda Flower's cozy mysteries. This one is a historical mystery that brings great characterization and world-building. Mixing real-life individuals like a young Emily Dickinson and her family with fictional characters such as Willa and Henry made this an engaging historical mystery.

I finished my 73rd book

Here is my 3.52 star rounded to 4 stars review of Hell's March by Taylor Anderson:

My Review

This is the second book in the Artillerymen series. It's a mash-up of an alternative earth science fiction historical military thriller. (1847, monstrous animals, Yucatan Peninsula, human sacrifices, war) The author brings amazing world-building and characterization to this action-packed novel.

Started reading The Haunting of Bregoli Estate Alexandria Clarke

My review of Desperation in Death by J.D. Robb

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

currently reading Dark Aemilia: A Novel of Shakespeare's Dark Lady by Sally O'Reilly and When We TouchShannon Drake

I've been reading some James Joyce stories and finding them easy to read, entertaining and thought-provoking. You don't need to be some kind of literary critic to enjoy them, although goodness knows they have been extensively studied (not by me 😊).

Araby is about a tongue-tied young boy's crush on his friend's sister. Delightful and bittersweet.
5★ My review of Araby

Another, longer James Joyce story is The Dead which takes place during Christmas/New Year's festivities in the early 1900s. Thought-provoking ending.
5★ My review of The Dead

I just finished Daisy Jones and The Six. I greatly enjoyed this read. It wasn’t a long one only took me about a day to really finish. I really enjoy Taylor Jenkins Reid’s writing style in both this novel and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. She tends to stick to the reality of life. Including a lot of the beautiful, romantic, and grand moments without forgetting the messiness, terribleness, and trying aspects of it. I rated it 5 stars for the absolute adoration I have for the book and it’s characters.

I finished my 74th book

Here is my 3.95 rounded to 4 stars review of Last Seen Alive by Carolyn Arnold.

My Review

This is the sixth book in the Detective Amanda Steele police procedural series. The prologue and first chapter are dramatic and immediately pulled me into the story.