Reading Challenge/Goals for 2023--2024 link added

[bobbiwoz]

9/75
After I enjoyed the latest Linda Castillo’s book, I took out her short story book and enjoyed it, too!
”A Simple Murder” by Linda Castillo. 3.5/5

 

[sdk1231]

5/26 - Without a Trace - Danielle Steel

like the poster just above posted about Danielle Steel, I feel the same way. I’ve read all her books, but am about to give up on them. I feel pretty sure that she is using a ghost writer because they aren’t well written and she releases a new book every 2-3 months.

I've never read a Danielle Steel book, but I always found her curious because of her massive output. I recall reading an interview with her. I remember her saying that she works 20 hours a day (or more), that she hardly ever sleeps, and that she often works on multiple books at one time. She denied using ghost writers. I remember this interview because I thought "20 hours a day?? Is that even possible?"

 

[bobbiwoz]

…

2/32 - Peg and Rose Solve a Murder by Laurien Berenson.
Spin off from another cozy mystery series which I didn’t read. Older sister in laws with a strained past unite to solve a murder in their bridge club. Lots of suspects and lots of Peg’s poodles. The details of playing bridge bored me and I didn’t figure out the suspect to the end. It was ok.

….

I checked, and in 2015, I read a fair amount of Laurien Berenson’s series, but I got tired of reading about standard Poodles! I read this one, and like you, I thought it was OK.

10/75

 

[bobbiwoz]

#3/24 - The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell by Robert Dugoni
3.5 ️ ️️ out of 5.
This is an intense story that includes discrimination, bullying, abuse, rejection, loss, infidelity. It also showcases loyalty, strength of character, friendship, faith and love. Sam's story is worth reading.

…

I agree, a story worth reading!
11/75

 

[Simba's Mom]

#8-"Walt DisneyWorld With Kids", Unofficial Guide-3 stars. While somewhat interesting, it had its usual share of misinformation.

 

[bobbiwoz]

12/75
Southern Storm Book 2 Terri Blackstock
I decided to read the whole series while I am somewhat indisposed because of a lingering cold. DH has it worse than I do, and his doctors have advised us to cancel the cruise we had planned to go on with our former neighbors.

4/5

 

[DisneyHardin]

6/26 - Half Truths - Adam Hamilton - I read this book because our minister at church was using it as the jumping off place for the current sermon series he is doing. It was really interesting. 4/5 stars

Synopsis from Amazon:
They are simple phrases. They sound Christian—like something you might find in the Bible. We’ve all heard these words. Maybe we’ve said them. They capture some element of truth, yet they miss the point in important ways.

Join Adam Hamilton in this 5-week Bible study to search for the whole truth by comparing common Christian clichés with the wisdom found in Scripture. The clichés include:

Everything happens for a reason.

God helps those who help themselves.

God won’t give you more than you can handle.

God said it, I believe it, that settles it.

Love the sinner, hate the sin.

 

[luvmarypoppins]

12/75
Southern Storm Book 2 Terri Blackstock
I decided to read the whole series while I am somewhat indisposed because of a lingering cold. DH has it worse than I do, and his doctors have advised us to cancel the cruise we had planned to go on with our former neighbors.

4/5

Hope you and your dh feel better soon!

 

[melk]

12/75
Southern Storm Book 2 Terri Blackstock
I decided to read the whole series while I am somewhat indisposed because of a lingering cold. DH has it worse than I do, and his doctors have advised us to cancel the cruise we had planned to go on with our former neighbors.

4/5

Oh no, how disappointing! Hope you feel better and have some good books to read in the meantime

 

[willowsnn3]

12/75
Southern Storm Book 2 Terri Blackstock
I decided to read the whole series while I am somewhat indisposed because of a lingering cold. DH has it worse than I do, and his doctors have advised us to cancel the cruise we had planned to go on with our former neighbors.

4/5

Hope you both feel better soon!

 

[willowsnn3]

#8-"Walt DisneyWorld With Kids", Unofficial Guide-3 stars. While somewhat interesting, it had its usual share of misinformation.

Years ago when we first started going to WDW, I read a lot of the official & official books and got loads of good info. But with the craziness of the last 3 years, I don't see how any guide can be of much help right now. That being said, I may be going to WDW with three under 3 later this year, lol.

 

[willowsnn3]

I've never read a Danielle Steel book, but I always found her curious because of her massive output. I recall reading an interview with her. I remember her saying that she works 20 hours a day (or more), that she hardly ever sleeps, and that she often works on multiple books at one time. She denied using ghost writers. I remember this interview because I thought "20 hours a day?? Is that even possible?"

She has also been married/divorced 5 times & has 9 children. I believe some were adopted. I have always steered away from her books just by looking at the number of her books on the library shelf, lol.

 

[willowsnn3]

#10/50 Your Heart Belongs To Me by Dean Koontz
From Goodreads:
At thirty-four, Internet entrepreneur Ryan Perry seemed to have the world in his pocket--until the first troubling symptoms appeared out of nowhere. Within days, he's diagnosed with incurable cardiomyopathy and finds himself on the waiting list for a heart transplant; it's his only hope, and it's dwindling fast. Ryan is about to lose it all...his health, his girlfriend Samantha, and his life. One year later, Ryan has never felt better. Business is good and he hopes to renew his relationship with Samantha. Then the unmarked gifts begin to appear--a box of Valentine candy hearts, a heart pendant. Most disturbing of all, a graphic heart surgery video and the chilling message: "Your heart belongs to me."
Koontz is hit or miss with me. This was a big "miss". Loved some of his earlier work but the last ones I have read are not very good.

 

[sdk1231]

#7 Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage: The Titanic's First Class Passengers and Their World by Hugh Brewster.

This is a non fiction look at the lives of some of the first class passengers on the Titanic. Written in 2013, after the discovery of the Titanic wreck site, this book was well researched, documented with primary source material, letters, survivor interviews, etc. It is quite "readable", written in an almost novel-like format. Great archival photos.

What you should know if you're thinking about reading, is that it is also a sketch of Gilded Age society in general. The author includes stories (and some conjecture) about the lives of these passengers and Gilded Age "high society" in general. Examples: who might or might not have been gay, who had extramarital affairs, inclusion of period scandals such as the Stanford White murder. (One of the big scandals of the day, White had a very tenuous connection to the Titanic. He was the brother-in-law of a Titanic passenger). I assume that the author was trying to paint a fuller picture of the world these first class passengers lived in. Whenever I finished one of these rather long digressions, I found myself thinking "Hm. Okay. And now, let's get back to the Titanic".

In the end, I think that if you're interested in reading a "different" book about the Titanic, or if you're interested in the Gilded Age, you might like this book.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Hope you and your dh feel better soon!

Oh no, how disappointing! Hope you feel better and have some good books to read in the meantime

Hope you both feel better soon!

Wow, thank you for this support from this great reading group!
We expect to be able to travel to Ohio to see our friends within two weeks!

 

[mrs. magoo]

My latest 2 books:

6/30 - The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave - My SIL told me to read this book. I enjoyed it. It reminded me of a lighter version of a John Grisham book. 3.5/5
From GoodReads:
Before Owen Michaels disappears, he manages to smuggle a note to his beloved wife of one year: Protect her. Despite her confusion and fear, Hannah Hall knows exactly to whom the note refers: Owen’s sixteen-year-old daughter, Bailey. Bailey, who lost her mother tragically as a child. Bailey, who wants absolutely nothing to do with her new stepmother.

As Hannah’s increasingly desperate calls to Owen go unanswered; as the FBI arrests Owen’s boss; as a US Marshal and FBI agents arrive at her Sausalito home unannounced, Hannah quickly realizes her husband isn’t who he said he was. And that Bailey just may hold the key to figuring out Owen’s true identity—and why he really disappeared.

Hannah and Bailey set out to discover the truth, together. But as they start putting together the pieces of Owen’s past, they soon realize they are also building a new future. One neither Hannah nor Bailey could have anticipated.

7/30 - The Quiche of Death by MC Beaton - This is the 2nd Agatha Raisin book I have read. I enjoy Agatha immensely. 3/5
From GoodReads:
Putting all her eggs in one basket, Agatha Raisin gives up her successful PR firm, sells her London flat, and samples a taste of early retirement in the quiet village of Carsely. Bored, lonely and used to getting her way, she enters a local baking contest: Surely a blue ribbon for the best quiche will make her the toast of the town. But her recipe for social advancement sours when Judge Cummings-Browne not only snubs her entry--but falls over dead! After her quiche's secret ingredient turns out to be poison, she must reveal the unsavory truth…

Agatha has never baked a thing in her life! In fact, she bought her entry ready-made from an upper crust London quicherie. Grating on the nerves of several Carsely residents, she is soon receiving sinister notes. Has her cheating and meddling landed her in hot water, or are the threats related to the suspicious death? It may mean the difference between egg on her face and a coroner's tag on her toe…

 

[melk]

5/35 Greenwich Park by Katherine Faulkner

What appears to be a budding friendship between two moms-to-be turns out to bring more than its share of unpleasant surprises.

Twisty psychological thriller that had me guessing until the end. It’s told by multiple narrators and I liked how it was wrapped up by each one.

 

[sdk1231]

My latest 2 books:

6/30 - The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave - My SIL told me to read this book. I enjoyed it. It reminded me of a lighter version of a John Grisham book. 3.5/5
From GoodReads:
Before Owen Michaels disappears, he manages to smuggle a note to his beloved wife of one year: Protect her. Despite her confusion and fear, Hannah Hall knows exactly to whom the note refers: Owen’s sixteen-year-old daughter, Bailey. Bailey, who lost her mother tragically as a child. Bailey, who wants absolutely nothing to do with her new stepmother.

As Hannah’s increasingly desperate calls to Owen go unanswered; as the FBI arrests Owen’s boss; as a US Marshal and FBI agents arrive at her Sausalito home unannounced, Hannah quickly realizes her husband isn’t who he said he was. And that Bailey just may hold the key to figuring out Owen’s true identity—and why he really disappeared.

Hannah and Bailey set out to discover the truth, together. But as they start putting together the pieces of Owen’s past, they soon realize they are also building a new future. One neither Hannah nor Bailey could have anticipated.

7/30 - The Quiche of Death by MC Beaton - This is the 2nd Agatha Raisin book I have read. I enjoy Agatha immensely. 3/5
From GoodReads:
Putting all her eggs in one basket, Agatha Raisin gives up her successful PR firm, sells her London flat, and samples a taste of early retirement in the quiet village of Carsely. Bored, lonely and used to getting her way, she enters a local baking contest: Surely a blue ribbon for the best quiche will make her the toast of the town. But her recipe for social advancement sours when Judge Cummings-Browne not only snubs her entry--but falls over dead! After her quiche's secret ingredient turns out to be poison, she must reveal the unsavory truth…

Agatha has never baked a thing in her life! In fact, she bought her entry ready-made from an upper crust London quicherie. Grating on the nerves of several Carsely residents, she is soon receiving sinister notes. Has her cheating and meddling landed her in hot water, or are the threats related to the suspicious death? It may mean the difference between egg on her face and a coroner's tag on her toe…

I've read all of M. C. Beaton's Agatha Raisin series and enjoyed them too. Quiche of Death was a good one. These are very fun cozy mysteries and highly readable. As often happens with me with any long running series, by the end of the 30-some books, I was finding Agatha's "antics" a bit tiresome, but I still finished the series.

A suggestion - If you like Agatha Raisin, you might try M. C. Beaton's Hamish Macbeth series, set in a little village in Scotland. Same kind of thing, exactly. Cozy mystery with an edge of humor. I like Hamish Macbeth more than Agatha Raisin, personally.

A word of warning - M. C. Beaton died in 2019 but new Agatha Raisin and Hamish Macbeth books are coming out, written by someone else. I didn't know that and snapped up one of the new books (on Kindle). Within a few pages I knew I wasn't reading the real thing. I quickly discovered my mistake and returned the book. It gave me a lot more appreciation of these little cozy mysteries and M. C. Beaton's talent. She definitely did a great job building her characters, the villages they lived in, and she had a great writing style. The author who's writing the new books just doesn't have the "it" factor, in my opinion.

 

[mrs. magoo]

I've read all of M. C. Beaton's Agatha Raisin series and enjoyed them too. Quiche of Death was a good one. These are very fun cozy mysteries and highly readable. As often happens with me with any long running series, by the end of the 30-some books, I was finding Agatha's "antics" a bit tiresome, but I still finished the series.

A suggestion - If you like Agatha Raisin, you might try M. C. Beaton's Hamish Macbeth series, set in a little village in Scotland. Same kind of thing, exactly. Cozy mystery with an edge of humor. I like Hamish Macbeth more than Agatha Raisin, personally.

A word of warning - M. C. Beaton died in 2019 but new Agatha Raisin and Hamish Macbeth books are coming out, written by someone else. I didn't know that and snapped up one of the new books (on Kindle). Within a few pages I knew I wasn't reading the real thing. I quickly discovered my mistake and returned the book. It gave me a lot more appreciation of these little cozy mysteries and M. C. Beaton's talent. She definitely did a great job building her characters, the villages they lived in, and she had a great writing style. The author who's writing the new books just doesn't have the "it" factor, in my opinion.

Thank you for the suggestion. I enjoy a good mystery now and then. I will definitely check out Hamish Macbeth. I rarely every finish a long running series and I find that I jump around with my book choices but there is something to be said when you know you can pick up a series at anytime and find a good cozy read.

 

[bobbiwoz]

…

5/32 - A Christmas Haven by Cindy Woodsmall and Erin Woodsmall
Many characters in this book from 2 different Amish communities. One is super strict. Brother helps pregnant sister get medical help. They are befriended by another less strict Amish family. Lots of drama. Decisions being made by family members affecting their futures. Good epilogue and HEA with a Christmas setting.

I enjoyed this book, and will read another one by the author.
12/75

13/75 I read the third in the Cape Refuge Series.

DH is getting ready to call for another appointment regarding his cold/cough that seems to get better and doesn’t.