A good quick read. Second book I've read lately that revolve along the same type of plot line. It's getting a little been there...read that. Every mystery must have a big twist anymore...

A good quick read. This the second book I have read from this author--still like the first one best.

Who could resist a book with this kind of title...not me. I really liked it and will definitely read more from this author. A very interesting take on vampire slaying.

I loved this book. The author portrayed the character of Yale so convincingly that he became almost a real person (especially in my heart). Of course it is about the AIDS epidemic so... 

I wish the book had been just about Yale and his story but it was not and I didn't care as much for the storyline about the caregiving sister of Yale's best friend. 

2022

This book is modeled after one of my favorite books--Enchanted April. I liked it for what is was but it is a pale comparison to Elizabeth von Armin's classic.

2022

I am steadily making my way through my stack of aging and crumbly paperback books. A couple of decades ago I really loved this author but I just don't connect with her stories the way I once did which makes me sad.

2022

This book is going on my forever shelf. A seemingly simple tale of one family's yearly end of summer vacation to the shore. A turning of the tide for the whole family. I wil definitely read more by this author.

I am rather late to the party on this book. My mom gave me her copy and I finally sat down and read it. Very good book--definitely lives up to the hype. I hope to catch up with the movie one day.

I have a row of books that sit on a shelf beside my bed. I have stacks of unread books all over my home. Before I thought to read books by category, I would pick my next book by moving from stack to stack and reading the next one. A book by Jasper Fforde was at the beginning of the next stack, so I decided to combine practices and developed a category around the title. All these books surround characters who live very bookish lives.

Two books went on my shelf of favorites, that rarest of book--those that I would happily spend precious reading time to read again! These two books also happen to fall into my very favorite style of book--stories that are told through letters (84 Charing Cross Road and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society). 

Sometimes a category will develop a deeper level of connection, this one in particular shares much deeper connections. Three of the books share England, book stores, and letters. All the books have an abiding and deep love of literature and most of these selections add an element of mystery.  Two share the love of the all but forgotten author Charles Lamb, a quirky connection, but still. 

After finishing the category entitled "The Wives Between Us", I thought to entertain myself by adding a dash of the male perspective and came up with my next category--Mr. and Mrs. I started with the cleverly transitional title "Mr. Emerson's Wife". It was an ambitious reading list that started April 2019 and finally finished in August 2019. I probably would have finished earlier but I had three late additions and plumped up the total read to sixteen books. Not bad!

I would like sum up by sharing some of the unintentional commonalities of my choices. I enjoyed the Mrs. titles way more than the Mr.'s but I do consider this a category well read.

Six of my choices featured war as a backdrop. Both Mrs. Dalloway and A Star for Mrs. Blake examined life immediately following WWI albeit from completely different perspectives and the authors Richard Feynman IRL, Susan MacNeal, and AJ Pearce all took very different looks at WWII. There is an element of more recent American wars in My Mrs. Brown.

Four real life histories and at least six books took past history as a back drop for their stories. Several were written and set in past decades such as 60's era London and 90's era United States. Three books were blasts from my reading past with mixed results, some books became favorites but some genres are perhaps best left back in the past.

The books featured a range of characters--from those who ran at the upper stratosphere of their selected societies all the way to a fairly large group of characters who definitely spent their lives skirting on the fringes. 

War, death, murder, injury, poison, kidnapping, evil intent---all told violence in its many insidious forms was a near constant character in the vast majority of these reads. Indeed it is very hard to escape--it pervades society. 

SO PLEASE ALLOW ME TO INTRODUCE MR. AND MRS. ...

I treally liked this book, it had me hooked from beginning to end. I will definitely read more by this author.

I also loved it for providing this paragraph about why "I" read.

"Why do we read? In the beginning, as children, why do we love the books we love? For most, it's travel, a flight into adventure, into a dream that feels like our own. But for a few it is also escape, flight from boredom, unhappiness, loneliness, from where or who we can no longer bear to be. When I read, the words on the page replace the voice in my head and I cease, for a little while, to be me, or at least to be so painfully aware of being me. These are the real readers, the maniacs, the ones who dose themselves with fiction the way junkies get high..." David Gordon, The Serialist pg. 138.

I may not consider myself a junkie but I am a serial reader, soon as I finish one I pick up another...not to mention the fact that currently I am actually reading four.

A continuation of my 2020 reading arc. Emerging from the shadows and into the light. I will admit I hoped for perfect timing--reading Circling The Sun would coincide with the waning of COVID--silly silly me. Some very nice reading--time well spent.

At the end June (2022) I went to Florida to serve as a 24/7 caregiver to my husband, we have been married since 1985 but have lived separately for the last twelve years. He had developed a rare form of blood cancer and needed a stem cell transplant. Part of the treatment protocol is agreeing to a caregiver that is a family member for 90 days after release from hospital, and I was more than happy to step into this role--we might be separated but we are family and he makes it possible for me to live life as I like it. So what does this all have to do with this book you wonder...

I thought it was the perfect tongue in cheek choice to read as I started "living" with my husband again after all these years--we were both a little apprehensive but in the end we worked well as a team.

Okay, the book. I remember reading it...I remember liking it...but I am very vague on the details, see above, a lot going on in my life. i'm including this with the category Introducing Mr. & Mrs. because it is about marriage even though it doesn't quite meet the category parameters.

A category devoted to books about hypnotism and hypnotists.

I will admit to being a bit behind in entering the books I have read this year (2022) into the website, but in my defense it has been quite the year. This book is about young English women known as the "Fishing Fleet" who sailed to India during the colonial times in search of husbands. This was a very good read, way more complex of a story than the romantic blurb on the back described. I would read more of this author.

I really enjoyed reading this book. I definitely plan to read more by this author. A complex thriller.

2022

This is the second of Ms. Jio's books that I have read and I am likely to read more as her titles seem easy to worm into my existing categories. For the record, I figured out the big secret on page 186. Goodnight Moon a favorite of my child and the children to who I have been a Nanny. Will likely have to do a little more digging into the actual history of MWB and the writing of GM. It was a quick tear jerking read but.. A little too much name dropping, plus it was a like reading a Hallmark movie. Continues the theme--I need a man to fix me. Gag me.

I am a fan of this author and always enjoy reading her books. This one is no exception. 

This is the second book I have read by this author and while I find them speedy reads I find them just okay. Not sure I will spend more reading time with the author. 

The beginning of a series featuring Charlotte Holmes--a womanly take on Sherlock Holmes. I really enjoyed this book and will definitely be reading more. In fact I am piling up a "Conspiracy" category in honor of CH#2 A Conspiracy in Belgravia so do stay tuned in for more TBR  stacks.

2022

The title I picked for my May read as "May" books are difficult to find.

In quantum physics there is a theory that goes like this: Each decision you make springs off into a different dimension resulting in gazillions of different timelines/universes, whatever. In this instance the plot hinges on alternate decisions made by Hannah--does she leave the bar with her old flame, Ethan? OR, does she go home with her best friend Gabby? The chapters ping between the two in concurrent storylines. It was okay, I'm not much on romantic reading. Does one ALWAYS need a man to fix you? No you do not. 

Reading time well spent, as this is a very engrossing read, and an interesting take on a well-trod reading path. I will definitely read more from this author and the character, journalist, Kate Waters she is developing in further novels.

This is a category devoted to the reading of books with "Man" in the title. Currently I am reading through a stack that alternates between book titles that either start with "A Man" or "The Man". I have had a lot of thrilling reads thus far.

This was a nice quick read told in parallel storylines between the past and present and was definitely reading time well spent. I will read more of Ms. Tudor.

A police/mystery series with at least 15 titles set in Quebec that I have randomly read books out of order and while it makes me wish I had read all of them--there is enough backstory in each book to get by without confusion. I enjoyed the writing and the mystery and I will definitely read more of Ms. Penny. 

Talk about a book not being about what you expected it be about...well this one definitely was not what I expected. I was a little disappointed about that and that there seemed to be a few discrepancies in the writing but as it is a translation from Swedish to English maybe some threads got jumbled. Minor (incredibly nit-picky) and do not ruin the tale in the slightest and if anything I'm annoyed with myself for noticing. Not the crime procedural that I was expecting but instead something way more layered.

This is the first book by Mr. Le Carre that I have read--I seen a couple movies and TV adaptations. It was an interesting book and an interesting time to have it fall into my reading lap as Russia had just invaded the UKraine and the rest of the world speculates on WW3. You like to think that a lot of fiction is just that---but some like this book are just fictionilized versions of true things. As GOT fans are wont to say "The night is dark and full of terrors." And a sad truth is that the war on terror is often fought with the weapons of terror--no good men or bad men just gray men.

This was indeed reading time well spent-the premise and the characters were layered and interesting, I would have gladly spent more time with them. I will definitely read more by this author.

I loved this book. This is an author who has a way with words and fast witty repartee. Fast paced action from start to finish. I look forward to reading more of his books.

I believe this is the 3rd "Irene Huss Investigation" novel that I have read.  I am reading this series out of order but there always seems enough backstory to keep up to speed. This I believe is book 7 and involves sex trafficking. It was a good quick read---although I did wonder until the very end why it was entitled The Beige Man. I am glad I have a few more in other stacks of books lying around on my TBR shelves.

I very much enjoyed this book. Some of the twists I say coming but others I did not...I definitely will read more by this author and watch the Netflix series.

I really enjoyed this book. Sometimes a cozy English mystery set at a manor house in the English countryside in the 1950's is just the genteel cup of tea that one wishes to curl up with. It is reading time well spent.

A woman's name that found itself reserving a category all to itself--and yes perhaps I collected a couple too many books about Eleanor Roosevelt. I doubt it though.

One of the best websites that my Twitter feed ever brought to my attention is: fivebooks.com But user beware-- as it is highly addictive and will quickly suck you into a black hole, compelling a person into creating endless -to-be-read- lists, or #TBR as they are known on literary Twitter. In 2021 I decided to read a person's entire list, however, as you will quickly note, I made two deviations. 

1) A fivebooks.com list is normally generated by an author whose most recent work is noted in the introduction. I feel it is only fair to read their book as well so my lists are at least 6 books long.

2) If my selected fivebooks.com compliation consists of titles are deep in a series of books (in other words-I am late to the party) then I substitute in an early (or beginning) book.

I really enjoyed this book. It is reading time well spent. Hope this author writes another book soon.

This is the book by the author who gathered up this list of thrillers for Five Books so I felt it was only fair to read one of her books as well. It was an okay book but I won't be reading more of her books and this is despite that this one ended on a blatent cliff hanger.

Really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading his next book. I was shocked to realize that for some reason I figured out one of the culprits at the very beginning of the book.

I have been collecting books that contain names as part of their titles. I have found quite a few Edward's so he's getting a category of his own. 

A good well written page turner--swiftly plotted. A "good" man doing "bad" in the name of doing "right" by his family and then wondering why things don't work out as planned. I enjoyed the read just didn't have much sympathy or empathy for the man character.

A story about a twelve year old boy who is the sole survivor of a plane crash--his journey towards healing helps others heal as well. Reading time--very well spent.

A book that serves as a scholarly overview of the Eastern philosophies. I like that the author starts with the recognition that unlike Western Philosophy (which all seems to root itself in Ancient Greece) philosophy in the East can't be lumped in "eastern". The Eastern philosophies all have very different root sources. While this book is a simple dip of the toe--I walked away with new and greater understanding.

This was a very interesting take on writing a book about a serial killer. The perspective is written from various women who surround the killer, whose voices generally go unheard. It was very interesting and well written. I enjoyed how she wove many separate threads and many separate voices.  I will definitely be reading more from this author. 

The fivebooks.com list included Hi Five which is the fourth book in this series about the private investigator, Isaiah Quintabe, so I elected to start at the beginning with IQ #1. It was a fairly good read and a good start to the series and set up the main characters nicely. The plot depended on a lot of luck and circumstance but was cleverly done--I will be giving #2 (Righteous) a read soon.

For the most part I enjoyed this book. I think I may have read other books by Lisa Unger in the past but it was years ago. She is a good writer and can pen a face paced multi-faceted thriller with mostly well developed characters. It did keep me reading. However, it did feature a lot of repetitive narrative and a lot of cliche treatment of domestic abuse. The story surrounding Pearl, Selena, and Geneva was good--that was an interesting concept but the Graham story line was pretty cliche and blah blah blah- social media is fake. 

This category features books with a man's name in the title and yes it is an ongoing list as there are many such books

I really liked this book about a relationship that develops between two lonely women who briefly live as neighbors...it is inevitably sad, but really nicely done.

I was working through a category of books written in the Epistolary style during the Autumn months of 2019. As I was assembling this category I found many other books written as journal entries, diaries, emails, etc. So I began collecting these as well and they will be part of my 2021 reading.

A book about an English man who impulsively decides to walk 600 miles, leaving his family behind, to visit an old co-worker, convincing himself that if only she can wait for him this will cure her cancer. It is about his journey, it is about the past...but the story is also told through the perspective of his wife. Very unexpected and moving. I really enjoyed this book.

A collection of the Provincial Lady series that contains four volumes- A Diary of Provincial Lady, The Provincial Lady Goes Further, The Provincial Lady in America, The Provincial Lady in Wartime. The Lady series was suggested to me by English readers on Twitter when I was looking for books written in an epistolary style, in this case, in the form of diary entries. I enjoyed all of the books but I do have to be in a certain mindset and get into the groove of her writing style. I marvel at the lifestyle of this strata of English society from the raising of children, to "having help', to the overdraft/banking/credit system, etc. 

The picture accompanying this entry is not from the actual volume I read. I lucked into purchasing the original published by MacMillan & Co. in 1947 which has a plain blue cover. The volume was originally purchased as a gift and has the endearing enscription: With affectionate greeting from Ella & Ernest Christmas 1947. Unfortunately it seems that the recipient either didn't read it or did not read the entire  volume as in several places the pages were left uncut after printing.

What a delight to find a book by this author that I had yet to read. It is based on the true story of one of du Maurier's own distant relatives. It is not Rebecca but then nothing ever truly is...but still reading time very well spent.