All Dragons Read

2022 is barely two weeks old and I’ve already found myself in a reading slump!!

Instead of picking up a book, I’ve been binge-watching reruns of shows I’ve seen a million times or obsessively playing Mahjong Trails on my tablet.  I usually don’t get the winter blahs like this until mid-February…could be a long winter!

I was able to finish a couple of my current reads despite my brain turning to mush…

The Week in Books

The Twelve by Justin Cronin — 4 out of 5 stars

What began as a government experiment gone horribly wrong in The Passage continues into the future with mankind’s struggles to survive in the second book, The Twelve.  It’s been a couple of years since I’ve read The Passage but I fell right into this one!  Justin Cronin once again does an excellent job of world- and character-building, and while it did take me a bit to get into the story, once it started going it didn’t stop.  I have the final book out and ready to go, I can’t wait to see how this ends!

Blueburied Muffins by Lyndsey Cole — 3 out of 5 stars

One of my January selections.  This cozy had some potential story-wise, but when our MC walks into her cafe, finds a dead body, and the first thing she does is make herself some coffee…well…that’s just too stupid even for a bad cozy.  It did get a bit better and I know I will probably pick up the next in the series because I’m a bit of a masochist.  I just have to remind myself of the inanities that this particular series seems to have.

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Stay safe and Happy Reading!

After all the hustle and bustle of the holidays, it’s time to kick things into gear and get back to the weekly update!

The Week in Books

And the Devil Cried by Kristopher Triana — 4.5/5 out of 5 stars

Our MC Jackie is one of the most vile, disgusting characters I’ve come across in a long time.  Fresh out of prison, he soon takes a “job” involving the kidnapping of a young girl who is the daughter of a drunk driver who killed Jackie’s boss’ son.  This story is a crime thriller at its most extreme and definitely not for everyone (let’s just say, trigger warnings would come with content warnings).  But there’s something about Triana’s writing skills that kept me reading even when I hit some points where I just wanted to bleach my brain.  If you like taking your reading experience to disgusting extremes, this book is for you.

Ghana Must Go by Taiye Selasi — 3 out of 5 stars

The death of renowned surgeon and failed husband Kweku Sai reunites his scattered family and brings to light the family secrets long hidden.  This was one of those “quiet” novels that examines family dynamics and disfunctions, mainly through flashbacks from various characters.  Not bad as far as the plot, but I found it pretty slow-going, and at times choppy and confusing.

Anna by Niccolo Ammaniti — 2.5 out of 5 stars

In the near future, a virus wipes out everyone over the age of 14, then lies dormant in the remaining children until they, too, succumb when they reach puberty.  Anna and her younger brother set out in hopes of finding help?/immunity?/other survivors?/ ???          The blurb drew me in on this one, and it started out well enough, but by the half-way point I had reached an eye-rolling, mind-numbing point of no return.

Novellas, Short Stories, and Anthologies

Palmetto by Ania Ahlborn — 4 out of 5 stars

Fair warning:  if you have a fear of bugs, especially cockroaches, you might want to pass this one by!  Palmetto bugs are basically large flying cockroaches and one of the few insects that make my skin crawl.  This is the story of a young couple, expecting their first child, who move into a seemingly perfect home…key word seemingly!  This felt like a blend of Rosemary’s Baby and any insect-centered horror movie you can think of, and even with my hatred of the lead insect I really liked this quick, creepy-crawly read.

Mojo Rising by Bob Pastorella — 3.5 out of 5 stars

A new drug called Mojo is interrupting Juney’s drug business, so he sets out to take down the competition.  Add in the murders of his brother and cook and you get the set-up for a twisted tale of crime and revenge.  Overall I liked this one, but I felt there was something missing that would have lifted the story to the next level.  The ending was a bit of a letdown as well.

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Stay safe and Happy Reading!

It’s that time again, time for my reading goals for the new year!

As for my list of twenty-one books for 2021, I did pretty darn good.  My biggest problem was I saved the two longest books on my list for the very end.  Sorry The Twelve and The Crimson Petal and the White,  I will finish you eventually!

After going through my shelves and boxes of unread books, as well as all my kindle titles, I was able to pick out my twenty-two must-reads for the coming year.

Fiction (physical books)

Betty by Tiffany McDaniel

My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell

You Will Be Safe Here by Damian Barr

Since We Fell by Dennis Lehane

The Samurai’s Garden by Gail Tsukiyama

Songs of Willow Frost by Jamie Ford

Crow Lake by Mary Lawson

A Stain on the Silence by Andrew Taylor

LaRose by Louise Erdrich

These Women by Ivy Pochoda

Nonfiction

Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kayson

Practice to Deceive by Ann Rule

A House in the Sky by Amanda Lindhout

Code Talker by Chester Nez

Chefs, Drugs, & Rock & Roll by Andrew Friedman

Kindle

The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa

In the Shadow of 10,000 Hills by Jennifer Haupt

Handbook for the Criminally Insane by Brian Holtz

Cruelty: A Novel by Edward Lorn

Burning Bridges Along the Susquehanna by Paul C. Nelson

Classic

Silas Marner by George Eliot

Quite the handful (book over 600 pages)

Black House by Stephen King and Peter Straub

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What are your reading goals for the new year?  Drop me a line and let’s talk books!

Until next time, stay safe and Happy Reading!

A Happy New Year to all of you!!

Now let’s talk books!

One thing I’ve learned from my monthly themed TBR lists is that I tend to go overboard with my selections, often picking too many books and not having the time to finish them all.  This year, I will be limiting my monthly selections to one or two titles, and I will still be sharing featured titles from my Goodreads groups as additional inspiration for your own reading lists.

To start out the new year, I picked out a couple of new-to-me authors whose books just happen to be the first in a new-to-me series!  One of my kindle freebies, Blueburied Muffins by Lyndsey Cole, is a cozy mystery featuring Annie Fisher, a young woman who is running from her boyfriend and returns to her small hometown and starts working for her aunt at The Black Cat Cafe.  Of course, in true cozy fashion, chaos and murder follows Annie and has her looking for answers.

My second choice, also a kindle freebie, is Malevolent by Jana DeLeon.  Shaye Archer was found in an alley, beaten and with no memory of her past.  Years later, she becomes a private investigator helping others find answers to their pasts.  This one sounds like a good solid thriller and I can’t wait to dive into it.

The selections from my Goodreads groups all seemed to be ones I’ve featured in the past so I will wait until February to pick that up again.

What will you be reading this month?  Drop me a line and let’s talk books!

Stay safe and Happy Reading!

It’s just a few hours until a new year begins and I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the past twelve months.

I swear, at times 2021 felt like a repeat of 2020…on steroids.  But even though the world seemed to be stuck in a seemingly never-ending cycle of bad news, I tried to find happiness and peace in the little things and the baby steps back to some sort of normal.  From the relief of getting vaccinated to bringing home two new family members (bearded dragon Fu-tzu and kitten Rosalina), I did have some memorable moments and I hope you all were able to find some good moments in your lives as well.

And, of course, there were the books!  So now I would like to share my top reads of 2021 (in no particular order)

FICTION

Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby

Tell the Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt

The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave

My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones

Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy

Crossroads by Laurel Hightower

The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward

Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica

The Good Son by You-Jeong Jeong

We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker

NONFICTION

End of the Road by Brian Keene

Do Something for Nothing: Seeing Beneath the Surface of Homelessness, Through the Simple Act of a Haircut by Joshua Coombes

In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

Without You, I Would Be Nothing by Brooke L. Davis

What’s Good?  A Memoir in Fourteen Ingredients by Peter Hoffman

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What were your favorite reads this past year?  Feel free to drop me a line and let’s talk books!

And what do I have in store for 2022??  Stay tuned…

Stay safe, Happy Reading, and all the best to you in the New Year!!

Today is officially the first full day of winter…

…and there’s a forecast for snow on Christmas!  This time of year I find myself going into full-on hibernation mode, where all I want to do is curl up under some warm blankets with plenty of hot beverages and escape through tv binges and good books.  There’s something I find oddly comforting about the shorter, darker, colder days.  Of course, ask me how I feel about winter in late January or early February and I’m usually singing a much different tune!!

My reading year is winding down, and while I still have four books left on my 20 Plus 1 reading list I am confident I can finish three of them.  Sorry The Crimson Petal and the White, looks like you’re going to be a January finish.  I’ve also been going through my unread TBR mountain selecting my reading list for 2022 as well as coming up with my monthly themes.  And keep an eye out for my look back at 2021!

The Week in Books

Maiden by TC Parker and Ward Nerdlo — 4.5 out of 5 stars

4.5 stars, rounding up for Goodreads and NetGalley.      If you think you’ve read it all when it comes to horror fiction, then you need to pick up Maiden!  Set on a fishing boat named The Pepper Kay, we have a ragtag crew setting off for the Bering Strait under the leadership of a captain named God.  What they haul up from the deep is more than they bargained for and sets off a battle between good (actually in this case, the not-so-good) and evil.  Fast-paced storytelling, some truly unlikeable (and unforgettable) characters, and a ship with a mind of her own make this a must-read for horror fans.  Highly recommend!

Five Days at Memorial by Sheri Fink — 3.5/4 out of 5 stars

One of my 20 Plus 1 selections.  Hurricane Katrina wrecked havoc across several states in 2005, and the extreme flooding brought on by the storm and broken levees stranded thousands, including staff and patients at Memorial Medical Center.  When officials were finally able to get into the hospital, they found several deceased patients, most of whom were found to have died from excessive amounts of drugs injected into their systems.  Were these acts of compassion or murder?  The author does an excellent job of recreating the harrowing five days spent at the hospital and the immediate aftermath.  However, I felt the last third or so felt rushed and lacking the same attention to detail present in the first parts.

The Darling Dahlias and the Poinsettia Puzzle by Susan Wittig Albert — 3 out of 5 stars

I was a bit underwhelmed with this Christmas cozy.  This is one of those series where the storylines keep going throughout multiple books so if you haven’t read any of the earlier ones you might feel a bit confused or, like me, wind up not caring about any of the characters and their problems since there is no build-up or added explanations.  I give credit for the attention to historical details and I might just find myself checking out the first book in the series to see if it grabs me enough to read the other seven books that led up to this one.

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Stay safe and Happy Reading!

It’s snowing!

There’s still a few days left until winter officially starts, but earlier today Mother Nature decided to give us a bit of a preview in my little corner of the world.  Nothing nearly as heavy as this clip (thank God!!) but enough to blanket the yard and turn my steep driveway into a slippery slope.  We’re used to snowfall here in the foothills, but it seems like the first snow of the season always takes us by surprise.

One nice thing with all the white stuff is it makes it feel a bit more Christmas-y!  Will it still be around for the holidays?  I’ll keep you posted!

The Week in Books

My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite — 4 out of 5 stars

I wasn’t sure about this one going in as I had heard some mixed reviews about it.  However, I wound up enjoying this quick read that focuses on family relationships (kind of a “Family — Ya Gotta Love ’em” theme).  The title pretty much sums up the story, and the short chapters are a breeze to go through, perfect for an afternoon read.  I’m not sure who exactly I would recommend this to, but if you come across it give it a try.

Managed Care by Joe Barrett — 4 out of 5 stars

One of my 20 + 1 For 2021 titles.  Fair warning: this book is not for anyone who is overly sensitive to anything.   Our protagonist, Frank, is one of those guys whose heart is in the right place but his enthusiasm often leads to pretty stupid decisions.  Currently living in a care facility for the elderly (and wearing a diaper out of principle), this thirty-something teams up with a couple of 12-year-olds and set out to turn the Catholic church upside down…at least, the local church anyways.  I found myself laughing out loud quite a bit, then feeling a bit uncomfortable a few pages later.  The overall story is a good one, but I thought it went off the rails in the last third or so.  If you’re looking for a quick read that you don’t have to put much thought into, this one fits the bill!

A Gesture Life by Chang-rae Lee — 3 out of 5 stars

One of my 20 + 1 For 2021 titles.  This “quiet” novel focuses on Franklin Hata, a Japanese man of Korean birth, who is currently living in a small American town but is haunted by the women in his past, from his failings with his adopted daughter and a brief romance with a neighbor, to the tragedy surrounding his  encounter with a young Korean “comfort girl”/prisoner he fell in love with during the war.  I really wanted to like this one more than I did but it just fell flat for me.  Part of me wanted something more, but at a sluggish 356 pages, I don’t know how much more I really could have taken.

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Stay safe and Happy Reading!

I try to plan out my monthly themes several months in advance, and I knew that December would be perfect for some lighter “cozy” reading.  So you would think I would be prepared with several titles on hand, right?

Yep, that’s right, I’ve had several months to find some Christmas cozies and totally spaced on it!  Luckily I will be going to the library this week so there’s still a chance of finding something to fit the theme.  If you have any suggestions, feel free to send me a message!

One goal I know I can work on for December is finishing my 20+1 for 2021 list.  While I have six books left to finish, four of those are my current reads so I feel pretty good about reaching the finish line by the 31st!

What will you be reading this month?  Drop me a line and let’s talk books!

Until next time, stay safe and Happy Reading!

It’s hard to believe we’re in the final month of the year!  The past few months have flown by, while at the same time feeling like it would never end…it’s almost felt like living in the movie, Groundhog Day!

But December is my second favorite month, with the holidays and my birthday all coming up.  While I have no big plans for either, I do plan on spending some time relaxing and enjoying all of the festive movies, lights, and food that are to be had…

And read a book or two, of course!

The Week in Books

Reservation Blues by Sherman Alexie — 4 out of 5 stars

In his 1995 debut novel, Alexie uses magical realism to tell the story of Thomas, Junior, and Victor, three friends from the Spokane Indian Tribe who find themselves in possession of the enchanted guitar once owned by  legendary bluesman Robert Johnson.  What follows is a journey of highs and lows, humor, drama, and heartbreak.  As a longtime Alexie fan, I can say that while this wasn’t my absolute favorite of his works, it’s right up there and will stay in my thoughts and heart for some time.

The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson — 3.5 out of 5 stars

This one was kind of up and down for me.  At some points I was laughing out loud at the exploits of Allan, both past and present, yet other times I was restlessly counting the pages until the next break so I could stop reading.  I liked the overall story, but by the last eighty pages or so I had pretty much lost interest.  Needless to say, I won’t be reading the sequel.

Novellas, Short Stories, and Anthologies

Tales From the Typewriter by Mark Allan Gunnells — 4 out of 5 stars

Scheduled for publication in January 2022.  The latest from Gunnells is a collection of stories within a story.  Our narrator buys an old typewriter that once belonged to his favorite (deceased) author.  Shortly afterwards, strange noises are heard late at night as the typewriter comes to life and begins to tell some scary tales…

The six short stories offer some creepy, even disturbing, narratives, from a post-apocalyptic take on Misery (The Travelling Storyteller) to a tale that will make you rethink leaving those negative reviews (The Cult of Wrath), with all six sharing the common theme of storytelling.  I enjoyed all of the stories, and found this to be a quick, satisfying read.  Be sure to add it to your TBR for 2022!

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Stay safe and Happy Reading!

For those who will be celebrating this weekend, I want to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving!

Even though this year has been another one full of ups and downs, our little family will be giving thanks for the good things that have blessed our lives while enjoying a mini feast of turkey and all the trimmings.

I will also be participating in a four-day readathon, which will be perfect for the predicted cold, rainy weather coming our way.  Granted, I don’t know how much I will be able to read on Thursday and Friday, but I plan on curling up on the couch with some favorite teas and diving into my current reads on Saturday and Sunday!

The Week in Books

Without You, I Would Be Nothing by Brooke L. Davis — 4/4.5 out of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this very personal memoir…one hundred different memories and events, each told with one hundred words.  From the simplicity of planting flowers to dealing with a loved one’s decline, Brooke Davis shares her life in a very unique and touching way.  Highly recommend.

The Forest of Smoke and Fog by Alex McGlothlin — 2.5/3 out of 5 stars

Rounded up to 3 for NetGalley and Goodreads.  There was a lot of potential with this one:  John Kelton returns home after his father dies in a mysterious  hunting accident and finds himself battling for control of the family company while trying to find out the truth behind his father’s sudden death.  Overall not a bad story, but…I try not to lower my ratings on advance copies due to typos, grammar errors, etc. since many times the story has not gone through a final editing, but between the scattered narrative and other glaring errors, it became too annoying to overlook (example:  sequins are used in art projects, not sequences).   And as for the ending?  It felt like a last-minute “Hail Mary” that was thrown in and wound up falling flat.  If the final published copy addressed some of the bigger issues I found in this ARC then I will gladly revisit this book to reevaluate.

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Stay safe and Happy Reading!