2015 Snagged @ The Library Challenge discussion

First book of the month for me: Just finished The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan. Reading his books really helps me keep on point for writing my children's stories for work. And it's good entertainment besides. ;-)

Just finished "The Dress Shop of Dreams" by Menna Van Praag. I'm not quite sure how I feel about this book, I hover between, "It was OK" to "I liked it." I'm trying to expand my reading a little, I tend to read the same authors, usually series, all the time, so I'm reading a few new authors that I find recommended on different web sites. "The Dress Shop of Dreams" was one of the 4 books picked for Winter by SheReads.org. For me, the story was just ok, but the writing itself was wonderful! Early on, there was this description of the grandmother's shop. "Stepping through the door is like stepping back in time. 1,349 dresses in every style hang on racks, clustered together as if holding hands and gossiping among themselves. Sequins flash from sleeves, sparkling beads swish from hems, and every color that one could possibly imagine (and a good number that one couldn't) shimmer and twinkle like galaxies of stars bottled in jars." And I was drawn in and wanted to visit Etta's shop. Then there was this passage about Walt and his bookshop. "At night, after Walt flips over the "closed" sign on the front door, he sits back behind the counter and opens doors to other worlds: bookshelves transmute into swamp trees, floors into muddy marshes, the ceiling into a purple sky cracked with lightning as he floats down the Mississippi with Huck Finn. When he meets Robinson Crusoe, the trees become heavy with coconuts, the floorboards a barren desert of sand dunes whipped by screeching winds. When he fights pirates off the coasts of Treasure Island, the floors dip and heave, the salty splash of ocean waves stings his eyes and clouds of gunpowder stain the air." This description almost made me want to go grab these books and read them. This author is definitely worth a read.

Okay, I think I only signed up to read 12 books for this challenge, and so far, I've read 20, so I'm moving myself up to the Stalking the bookstacks category of 50+. I think that's doable by the end of the year.

I finished Blossom Street Brides by Debbie Macomber.
Heading to the library tomorrow.

Welp, I just had my first dnf of the challenge (and of 2015). I made it 240 through The Mirror of Her Dreams. I seriously wanted to throw the book across the room (all 600+ pages of it in hardback).

Elizabeth wrote: "Welp, I just had my first dnf of the challenge (and of 2015). I made it 240 through The Mirror of Her Dreams. I seriously wanted to throw the book across the room (all 600+ pages of..."

I'm curious. When you have a DNF, do you mark it as "read"? Do you count it as books completed? I'm always in a quandary what to do with the DNF. If I've put that much effort into one, and actually made a conscious decision not to finish, I feel like I should still get to mark it off of a list somewhere! I usually mark it as read, but I set the date odd so it doesn't count on my challenge for the year.

Read Julie Hyzy's "All the President's Menus." Another enjoyable read in this series. Chef Ollie and her friends provided another engaging White House Chef Mystery. There are very few cozies that I like, mainly because most of the ones I have read, I find myself yelling at the main character to "call the cops!" I throw the book across the room because they are so silly. What I like about Chef Ollie is that she doesn't set out to get involved in these mysteries, she is just really observant and picks up on things that sometimes even the Secret Service doesn't. The stories may not be believable, but at least she doesn't annoy me!

I listened to The Playboy by Carly Phillips and didn't really enjoy it. Part of the issue could be some skipping that seems to be happening when I plug my IPOD into my car. Not sure what is up with that! I did glance through reviews and didn't see a lot of positive ones for it, so maybe Phillips has matured as an author since this early series? The good news...I got this audio from the library so all it cost was my listening time!

I have also read Season for Love(think that's the one) it's the 6th book in the Gansett Island series by Marie Force. I paid for it, so it doesn't count for this challenge but I did finish it in April, so thought I'd toss it in here.

I'm currently reading The Night is Mine by M.L. Buchman. I did get this from the library and am really enjoying it! I am also listening to Heroes Are My Weakness by Susan Elizabeth Phillips another audio I got from the library.

Angel wrote: "I'm curious. When you have a DNF, do you mark it as "read"? Do you count it as books completed? ..."

I don't mark them as "read." I have a "did not finish" shelf (set-up per goodreads recommendations). DNF books used to be rare for me, but they are becoming a bit more common since I recently gave myself permission to not finish books I wasn't enjoying.

Usually I'll DNF a book within the first 50 pages. The book mentioned above is a bit of a different story since it was a book club pick and I was really trying to get through it, hence the 240 pages read. I'm not marking it as read or completed in my personal counts, but I did include it in my tracking list here since the amount I did read is about the length of a category romance novel. (Moderators, feel free to correct me if doing this is against the rules or even the spirit of the rules of the challenge.)

I completed The Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan last night. Another good read from him!

This puts me up to a total of 24--which was my original goal when I first signed up for this challenge! Goal #1, The Thrifty Reader...ACCOMPLISHED!

Finished reading Susan Mallery's newest, "The Girls of Mischief Bay" late last night (or early this morning). I thought this was a good start to a new series by this author. Not as lighthearted as her previous series but an enjoyable read. "The Girls" are Nicole, married with a 5-year-old, who owns an exercise studio/business, whose husband comes in one day and tells her he has quit his well-paying job and is going to write a screen play and proceeds to spend his days surfing "to clear his head", writing, and "taking meetings," as well as taking a writing class and going to a critique group. He pretty much leaves her to not only support them monetarily, but do most everything else to keep their lives on track. There is Shannon, single, almost 40 with a high paying job which takes much of her time who would like to "have it all" but finds that most men are intimidated by her job and dislike it when dates are interrupted by her work. Then there is Pam, married for 30-some years to a wonderful man with 3 grown kids, about to become a grandmother. These 3 women forge a strong bond of friendship and support through some tough times. Looking forward to the next in this series.

BJ, I also enjoyed The Girls of Mischief Bay. I have really gotten into Susan Mallery with the start of her Fools Gold Books.

Finished Stuart Woods' newest, "Hot Pursuit." A lot of people are saying this author should quit writing this series, that every book is the same, that the author has a formula that he follows for every book. I say, maybe that's true, but I have read every one of the 30-something books in this series so far and I am still enjoying them. I like the recurring characters, the settings from New York to California, to Connecticut and Maine, to England and France, and I like Stone. I also like the fact that these books are always easy, enjoyable reads. Nothing too dark or too scary, just fun with a little mystery, kind of James Bondish only a little lighter. I picked up this book at the library yesterday about 11 and finished the book at 3 a.m. and I worked an 8-hour shift in there also. Stone Barrington is just one of my guilty pleasures.

Sandi wrote: "BJ, I also enjoyed The Girls of Mischief Bay. I have really gotten into Susan Mallery with the start of her Fools Gold Books."

Sandi, I've read all the Fools Gold series, so far and am impatiently waiting for the next one. I think it comes out the end of this month.

I'm spreading out my reading this month--every day I read some from one novel, one poetry book, and one Shakespeare play. So it is taking longer to get through any one book.

I just completed The Gone and the Going Away by Maurice Manning. This is like adding extra veggies to your diet. Some of it was delish. Other parts was barely palatable. But hey, I've eaten my veggies, Mom! Can I have some dessert now? Like maybe a silly murder mystery?

BJ, don't hate me, but I've read Hold Me, and I'm now reading the one that comes out after that! I love Fool's Gold!

I finished listening to Heroes Are My Weakness by SEP. I actually missed a part, because somehow when Idownloaded from the library a part didn't download, and I didn't realize it until I was like huh? By then I was like oh well.

Then I get to what I think is the end only to find out it's not! I check it back out and find out that the last two parts didn't download either! Lesson learned...double check that you have all the parts downloaded and transferred before disconnecting the IPOD!

According to Audible it's $31.95, so that's a big savings!

It seems I'm finishing all my books at the same time! Just finished I, Saul by Jerry B Jenkins. Best book of the year, easily, for me! AH-MAY-ZING. Every time that guy puts out a new book, it is better than the last. Sequel comes out later this year. Hope it doesn't take long for the library to get it!

Sandi wrote: "BJ, don't hate me, but I've read Hold Me, and I'm now reading the one that comes out after that! I love Fool's Gold!

I finished listening to Heroes Are My Weakness by SEP. I actually missed a pa..."
Sandi - don't hate you, but I'm incredibly jealous!

Yesterday, I finally finished "The Life Intended" by Kristin Harmel. I had a bit of a hard time getting into this book, kept putting it down and starting other books. I loved "The Sweetness of Forgetting" by this author, this one was a little harder to get into. Part of it was my own personal bias. I really hate any type of time travel or "dream" book and in this one, the main character started having vivid dreams of a terribly realistic life she would have had with her husband, if he hadn't been killed 12 years ago. This starts to occur right after she has finally accepted the proposal of her current boyfriend. She starts to want to sleep all the time, so hopefully she will dream about her husband. The other thing is I couldn't wait for her to dump the current boyfriend/fiance, I hated him from day one. He treated her like she was either a child or stupid, but everyone else loved him. I especially disliked him when at the engagement party, her husband's mother comes in (they had remained close) and he asks her when she is going to stop that relationship. Later as I got deeper into the story, I realized why the author used the dream part of the story (but still didn't like it!) and ended up enjoying the book. The main character is a music therapist which is something I once considered, so really enjoyed the parts about her career. During the course of the book, because of the dreams, she starts learning ASL and begins to work with several hard of hearing children. I loved the book's ending, so despite the parts I didn't like, I ended up enjoying this book.

Finished reading "Compulsion" by Allison Brennan the day before yesterday. This is the second book in this new series by Allison Brennan and I love it! The main character, Maxine Revere, is an investigative journalist who looks at cold cases. She not only writes articles on them, but also has a John Walsh-type show that she does once a month called "Maximum Exposure" in which she follows whatever cold case she's been working on. In this one a several grown children contact her about their parents disappearance from Manhattan, so she gets involved and their disappearance ends up being related to a trial she is working on. I found this book to be suspenseful with lots of twists and turns and I kept reading because I wanted to find out what would happen next. Very enjoyable read.

I made a big oops! I didn't read The Night Is Mine by Bucmann. I read I Own The Dawn. If you haven't read this series I suggest giving it a whirl. I really like the plot twists he throws in, and the strong female characters.

Just finished "In for a Penny" by Kathryn R. Wall. I had never heard of this author before, but noticed it on one of my friend's lists here at Goodreads. It snagged my attention in that the main character was female and the setting was an East Coast Beach town, namely Hilton Head. Enough to pique my interest. The main character is Bay Tanner, a youngish Southern woman who has retreated to her beach house to grieve. About a year before this book opens, her husband was killed when his plane exploded right after takeoff. She has pretty much withdrawn from life and her friends and family are very concerned about her. In this book, she starts to come back to life, getting involved in a mystery which touches on the people she believes were responsible for the death of her husband. I have to say, I really enjoyed this first book in this series. I will definitely be reading on and thanks to the Goodreads' friend whose list I stole this from!

So I got a check mark on my bucket list. I read one complete work of Shakespeare. Admittedly it was this format: , but it was the full play and the original text. The graphic novel format just helped to follow along with what was going on.

Also, I read it aloud to help me follow along. My cat enjoyed it thoroughly. She is a big fan of Juliet, but has no use for Mercutio. I'm sure you think I'm making this up, but I promise it is true. I will be blogging this story later this weekend. In three acts, of course. ;-)

By the way, getting this kind of thing from the library is the ONLY way to read it. Because, really! I mean, WHO is gonna read THAT twice??

I just finished Guantanamo Diary - wow, it's intense. Hope to get to the library on Tuesday.

Today I finished listening to Girl on The Train by Paula Hawkins. I liked it, and have heard it compared to Gone Girl, but I liked it better.

Today I finished Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? for Overdrive.
Waiting for a zip book to be delivered: The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House

I finished listening to 2 Bodies for the Price of 1 by Stephanie Bond. It's the second book in her Body Mover series.

I read Driven for VF book club (May pick). It was a fun, futuristic romance that didn't require too much thinking. The writing was a bit clunky in places (especially the first half), but it was a quick read and I enjoyed it. Kind of like the Saturday matinee movies I used to watch on regular TV before I had cable channels.

Just finished reading "Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail" by Cheryl Strayed. For me it was just okay. Although, I felt sorry for Cheryl, I really never liked her very much. The hike along the trail was an interesting concept but I'm still not seeing how they would get anything but a boring movie from this story. For much of the book she was alone on the trail complaining about how hungry she was and how bad her feet hurt! I'm not sure even Reese Witherspoon could save the movie.

Today I finished listening to The Beach Club by Elin Hilderbrand. I really like Hilderbrand. If you're a women's fiction fan I strongly suggest checking her out!

In honor of National Poetry Month and in an effort to discipline my writing and thought processes a bit, I read three poetry books this month. Just completed the last one, which was Nine Horses by Billy Collins. I can see why Collins was named Poet Laureate twice and why he is often compared to Robert Frost. Although I'm not a huge fan of poetry, I've always found Frost to be accessible and entertaining, and I found Collins to be that as well. If you're looking for a good book of contemporary poetry that isn't too high-falutin' or full of itself, I'd recommend this one.