Mailbox Monday – December 21

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mmb-300x282Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week.Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

I’m pretty sure I received another book in the past few weeks but since I can’t seem to find it I’ll just go with these!

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Way of the Warrior anthology of romance stories to benefit Wounded Warrior Project.  (was a win from Under the Boardwalk)

EIGHT PASSIONATE LOVE STORIES ABOUT AMAZING MILITARY HEROES BY BESTSELLING AUTHORS:
Suzanne Brockmann, Julie Ann Walker, Catherine Mann, Tina Wainscott, Anne Elizabeth, M.L. Buchman, Kate SeRine, Lea Griffith

To honor and empower those who’ve served, all author and publisher proceeds go to the Wounded Warrior Project.

The Wounded Warrior Project was founded in 2002 and provides a wide range of programs and services to veterans and service members who have survived physical or mental injury during their brave service to our nation. Get involved or register for programs and benefits for yourself and your family online at www.woundedwarriorproject.org.

The Case of the Fickle Mermaid by PJ Brackston (sent from my friend Golda at WW Norton) Coming in January!

Gretel—yes, that Gretel—is now all grown up and working as a private investigator in 18th century Bavaria. Her professional interest is piqued when she begins to hear whispers of of mysterious goings-on off the coast of Schleswig-Holstein: sailors are disappearing, and there are rumors of mermaids and sea creatures and all manner of slippery, sea-based happenings. Ordinarily, Gretel’s interest in sea-life does not extend beyond that which is edible, doused in butter and garlic, and already on the plate before her. However, funds are low, and the captain of the ship Arabella makes a tempting offer of good pay and a free cruise in return for her detective services. With a splendid new wig packed, Hans as her bodyguard on the journey north, and the promise of two weeks of fine dining and erudite company whilst sailing around the picturesque Friesian islands, what could possibly go wrong?

A Different Lie by Derek Haas (sent from my friend Golda at WW Norton)

Now a new dad, the infamous Silver Bear finds himself staying up late for feedings and changing diapers—all while leading the double life of a contract killer. The struggle is not with his conscience. He enjoys his gig. But a child forces him to weigh selfishness versus safety. Continue his line of work, and he’ll always wonder if he’s putting his child’s life at risk. His partner, Risina, serves as his fence. Like Columbus, she’s good at her job and likes doing it. An unusual take on working motherhood…

When the next assignment comes in, both Columbus and Risina are surprised to find that the mark is another assassin: a brash, young killer named Castillo. Castillo is an assassin on the rise. Even Columbus is impressed by his tenacity and talent—and as he closes in on his target, he realizes that Castillo is a younger version of himself. It’s almost like looking in a mirror. Castillo has even studied Columbus’s work. But Columbus’s assignment is clear: kill the young man.  However, Castillo learns that his hero and unwitting mentor has a family—a revelation with enormous ramifications.

The Verdict by Nick Stone (sent from my friend Golda at WW Norton)

Terry Flynt is a struggling legal clerk, desperately trying to get promoted. And then he is given the biggest opportunity of his career: to help defend a millionaire accused of murdering a woman in his hotel suite.

The only problem is that the accused man, Vernon James, turns out to be not only someone he knows, but someone he loathes. This case could potentially make Terry’s career, but how can he defend a former friend who betrayed him so badly?

With the trial date looming, Terry delves deeper into Vernon’s life and is forced to confront secrets from their shared past that could have devastating consequences for them both. For years he has wanted to witness Vernon’s downfall, but with so much at stake, how can Terry be sure that he is guilty? And what choices must he make to ensure that justice is done?

 

Let Love Find You by Johanna Lindsey

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fpoFinished 11-30-15. rating 4/5, historical romance, pub. 2012

Unabridged audio read by Anne Flosnik, 9.5 hours.

London society has its very own Cupid. Renowned horse breeder and occasional matchmaker Devin Baldwin pairs eligible young ladies with suitable gentlemen based on his theory of animal magnetism. Unafraid of ruffling the ton’s feathers, this darkly handsome Cupid doles out tips for bettering one’s chances of meeting a mate that are as pointed as the love legend’s sharpest arrows!

Lovely Amanda Locke, the daughter of a duke, is everything a nobleman could desire, yet she enters her third Season still searching for a match. Gossipmongers’ tongues are wagging, and her mystified family is considering drastic measures to find her a husband. But the insufferable advice of this Cupid fellow is the last thing Amanda wants.
When an earl passionate about horses becomes the target of her husband hunt, Amanda knows it’s time to overcome her fear of riding. With her sister-in-law Ophelia hastening the romance along by arranging riding lessons, Amanda is soon taking instruction from infuriating Devin Baldwin. Astonishingly, in her daily encounters with Devin—who treats her as an ordinary young woman, not a prize to be won at the marriage mart—Amanda experiences passion for the first time. Now, her search for a match takes her in an unexpected direction as she finds herself falling in love with Cupid himself.    from Goodreads

This is the fourth book about the Reid family and while I don’t plan to go back and read about her brothers, I did fall a little in love with her family and consider this a good standalone.

Amanda is in her third season and is willing to wait for the right man, but she’s getting nervous.  Her father and brothers haven’t put any pressure on her but her sister-in-law  makes a deal with the devil, er, Devin, and the two who don’t really like each other are forced together.    I really liked how this relationship developed, it felt real and balanced. There wasn’t the melodrama that I dislike in some romances.  A real relationship developed.

This is my first time reading Lindsey and I look forward to reading more.  The storyline, chemistry and romance were good and the sex scenes were never too much.  Anyone else a fan of hers and want to recommend a  title?

 

How To Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

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fpoHow To Win Friends and Influence People. Finished 11-17-15, rating 4.5/5, relationships, pub. 1936

You can go after the job you want…and get it! You can take the job you have…and improve it! You can take any situation you’re in…and make it work for you!

Since its release in 1936, How to Win Friends and Influence People has sold more than 15 million copies. Dale Carnegie’s first book is a timeless bestseller, packed with rock-solid advice that has carried thousands of now famous people up the ladder of success in their business and personal lives.

As relevant as ever before, Dale Carnegie’s principles endure, and will help you achieve your maximum potential in the complex and competitive modern age.

Learn the six ways to make people like you, the twelve ways to win people to your way of thinking, and the nine ways to change people without arousing resentment.     from Goodreads

I’ve had an old copy of this book in my boxes for so many years, curious despite my distrust of anything that can be called self-help, but since I started a new way to choose my books last spring I’ve been picking up some titles that have languished for years. It helped that the library had the audio, so I both listened and read. My biggest takeaway from this book is that it is amazing how relevant this book published in 1936 still is.  Yes, it can be considered self-help (I loved this post from earlier this month about a woman with Aspergers reading this book for the first time) but I think it’s also a really interesting look at human psychology.

I don’t think following the tips in this book will make you a better person (on the contrary, being too much of a people pleaser can be a bad thing) but I do think that it delves into what makes people tick. I found it easy while listening to see my strengths and weaknesses and that was helpful to me.  I don’t plan on using this as a guidebook or anything but I do think it’s a worthwhile read.  And if you read the post I mentioned you can see how there are a lot of people who can still really benefit from this oldie.

 

Quiz/Survey/Giveaway RESULTS & WINNER

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Thank you so much for participating in last week’s quiz! It was so much fun reading your answers and looking for duplicates.  Amazingly, even with 100 books to choose from there was always more than one person voting on a title.  Let’s take a look…

  1. FAVORITE FICTION TITLE – 2 people voted for To Kill a Mockingbird (Hannah & Carrie)
  2. FAVORITE NON FICTION TITLE – 5 people voted for The Bible (Nise, Hannah, Kay, Vicki, Jean), 2 people for Stories I Only Tell My Friends by Rob Lowe (Steph & Gina), and 2 people for The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom (Wendy & Carrie)
  3. LEAST FAVORITE BOOK – Wicked by Gregory Maguire (Kathy & Nise)
  4. & 5.FAVORITE COVERSfpo(Nise, Wendy, Leslie, Carrie, Jean) fpo(Nise, Michelle, Vicki) fpo(Hannah, Wendy, Jean) fpo(Kay, Gina)
6. BEST TITLE – The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie (Kathy, Nise,  Hannah, Vicki)
7. FAVORITE AUTHOR – Jane Austen (Steph, Wendy, Carrie) AND Stephen King (Michelle, Leslie, Vicki)
8. FAVORITE CHARACTER – Scout Finch from To Kill A Mockingbird ( Kathy, Hannah, Steph)
9. TITLE YOU’VE NEVER HEARD OF – A Day No Pigs Would Die (Nise, Wendy, Jean), The Man Who Ate a 747 by Ben Sherwood (Kathy, Hannah), Mindhunter:Inside the FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit (Kay, Carrie)

10. You all chose different books to win!IMG_5151and the winner is…..Gina from Book Dragon’s Lair!  She’ll be receiveing a copy of The Shadow of the Wind 🙂 

I’m taking next week off, but we’ll be back before the end of the year to finish out this round of quizzes.

Goodnight June by Sarah Jio

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fpoGoodnight June. Finished audio 11-20-15, rating 4.25/5, fiction, pub. 2014

Unabridged audio read by Katherine Kellgren. 8.5 hours.

Goodnight Moon is an adored childhood classic, but its real origins are lost to history. In Goodnight June, Sarah Jio offers a suspenseful and heartfelt take on how the “great green room” might have come to be.

June Andersen is professionally successful, but her personal life is marred by unhappiness. Unexpectedly, she is called to settle her great-aunt Ruby’s estate and determine the fate of Bluebird Books, the children’s bookstore Ruby founded in the 1940s. Amidst the store’s papers, June stumbles upon letters between her great-aunt and the late Margaret Wise Brown—and steps into the pages of American literature.

This was a sweet, charming story of second chances. Jane, a NYC banker, has all of the professional success she could ever want and yet when her aunt’s bookstore comes into her possession she realizes that so much has been missing.  She goes home to Seattle to confront the life she ran away from and little by little her resistance fades.

Most of us love bookstores (why would you be reading this otherwise?) so this story is one easy to fall in love with since it full of books, dreams and history.  I would love to inherit a children’s bookstore like Bluebird Books!  And this isn’t just any bookstore, it has hosted many an author and wealthy patron.  Jane finds that her Aunt Ruby has left her a scavenger hunt to find the answers to things that she hadn’t even thought to ask.  How did her Aunt Ruby know Margaret Wise Brown and did her aunt really contribute to Goodnight Moon?

There was so much to like about this book, even if you aren’t a fan of the children’s classic Goodnight Moon (one of the beloved classics I’ve never cared for (gasp!!)).  There were so many strong, flawed, independent women and I was rooting for them all.

I did feel that it was too simplistic in a few places, but I still really liked it.

 

 

Mailbox Monday – December14 – Jane Austen fans will appreciate

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mmb-300x282Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week.Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

On Saturday we had my family Christmas and I received the best, most thoughtful gift from my Aunt Betty.  pp1pp2pp3

My great-aunt Mary was an independent woman who never married and she loved books as much as I do.  This 1919 edition of Pride & Prejudice is the one that she used in high school!  There are a few homework assignments and notes sprinkled throughout.  I love it and love that my Aunt Betty (a retired elementary school librarian) chose me to give it a new life.

What book is most special in your library?

Shattered by Dean Koontz

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fpoShattered. Finished 12-5-15, rating 3/5. fiction suspense, 289 pages, pub. 1973

The van was in back of them again. Closer this time. There could be no mistake–they were being followed.

RUN… OR DIE

But why? The question kept nagging at Alex and Colin as they left Philadelphia behind and sped toward their new home in San Francisco. Courtney would be waiting for the, ready to begin a wonderful new life with her husband, her brother…

RUN… OR DIE

Now, someone else is driving cross-country to see Courtney, too. Someone whose brain is rotting inside. Someone who knows their route, their stops, even their destination.     

RUN… OR DIE

He’s got an ax.     from Goodreads

I like Koontz but haven’t read too many of his older titles.  Somehow this one ended up in Mt. TBR and I wanted something quick, so I picked it up and read it in about a day.  Aside from it being quite dated – which felt quaint, even when a psycho was wielding an axe – it was fun.

Alex and Colin were pretty fleshed out characters for such a short book. I liked their relationship and the bonding road trip of the new family they were making with Courtney.  Even though this was written over 40 years ago it seemed longer.  It’s amazing how technology has really left stories like this in the dust. Now there would be pics posted on social media and to the police of the offending man.

I liked it well enough but wouldn’t go out of my way to recommend it.

 

Quiz/Survey/Giveaway

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I revamped my favorite 100 book list and I’m pretty sure I hate it, BUT before I scrap it again I want you all to use the books on the list to fill out the following questions.  Everyone gets points for every question answered AND extra points if your answer matches anyone else’s.  PLUS I’M GIVING AWAY ONE OF MY FAVORITES JUST IN TIME FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASON!

Gage will randomly draw a winner from every one who participates this week!  Good luck 🙂

No Googling or looking at other commenter answers.  Yes, we’re going by the honor system 🙂  Play every week or just one time, you are always welcome 🙂  It only takes once to be eligible for a prize. 

You must use this list for the answers. YOU ARE ANSWERING THESE QUESTIONS FOR YOURSELF.

  1.  You Favorite fiction book
  2. Your Favorite non fiction book
  3. Your Least favorite book
  4. Your Favorite Cover
  5. Your Second favorite cover 🙂
  6. Your Best title
  7. Your Favorite author
  8. Your Favorite character
  9. One you’ve never heard of
  10. The one you’d like to win

The Splendour Falls by Susanna Kearsley – love this author!

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fpoThe Splendour Falls. Finished 11-24-15, rating 4.25/5. 380 pages, pub. 1995

Chinon-chateau of legend, steeped in the history of France and England. It is to Chinon that Emily goes on a long-awaited holiday, to meet her charming but unreliable cousin, Harry. Harry wanted to explore the old town and the castle, where Queen Isabelle, child bride of King John, had withstood the siege of Chinon many centuries ago, and where, according to legend, she hid her casket of jewels. But when Emily arrives at her hotel she finds that Harry has disappeared, and as she tries to find him she becomes involved with some of the other guests and learns of a mystery dating from the German occupation during the Second World War. Another Isabelle, a chambermaid at the hotel, fell in love with a German soldier, with tragic results.

Emily becomes increasingly aware of strange tensions, old enmities and new loves; as she explores the city, with its labyrinthine dungeons and tunnels and its ancient secrets, she comes ever closer to the mystery of what happened to both the Isabelles of Chinon’s history. from Goodreads

Kearsley has officially become a comfort read for me.  This was my third read from her and each of them has left me satisfied and happy.  There is always a back story that takes place in another time that connects with the current story in some way.  This book had less of the back story, which I think it suffered for, but the mystery, romance, and yes, evil all combined to make this a fun read.  I didn’t think it was as good as the other two, but this is an earlier work of hers and it’s still good.

The essence of the setting is always so easily felt and her writing is so accessible that once I get started I find it hard to put down.  There were so many potential bad guys in this one that I didn’t really have and handle on it until late in the game, but those smarter than I probably figured it out much sooner.

If you love historical intrigue with a dash of modern day romance I highly recommend Kearsley.

Last Night’s Reading by Kate Gavino

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Last Night's Reading: Illustrated Encounters with Extraordinary AuthorsLast Night’s Reading. Finished 11-27-15, rating 5/5, graphic non-fiction, 160 pages, pub. 2015

Why do we go to book readings? For a chance to see the authors we love come to life off the page, answering our questions and proving to be the brilliant, witty people we catch glimpses of through their work. Illustrator Kate Gavino captures the wonder of this experience firsthand. At every reading she attends, Kate hand-letters the event’s most memorable quote alongside a charming portrait of the author. In Last Night’s Reading, Kate takes us on her journey through the literary world, sharing illustrated insight from more than one hundred of today’s greatest writers—including Zadie Smith, Junot Diaz, Lev Grossman, Elizabeth Gilbert, and many more—on topics ranging from friendship and humor to creativity and identity. A celebration of authors, reading, and bookstores, this delightful collection is an advice book like no other and a love letter to the joy of seeing your favorite author up close and personal.  from Goodreads

What a delightful little book!  This was just released at the end of October so when I picked it up at the bookstore I hadn’t heard anything about it. The author loves to attend author events in the New York City area, draw the authors and make notes on what they say. She drew this charming book and included her story interspersed with quotes and sketches of the authors she met.

It’s beautifully made and a smaller size making it a perfect gift, either for yourself or a friend.  It’s inspiring and will make you want to attend every author signing you can.  In case you can’t tell, I love it!

You can check out her tumblr or instagram for some of her work.

http://lastnightsreading.tumblr.com/archive

https://www.instagram.com/lastnightsreading/?hl=en