Book Beginnings: Dreaming Spies

Dreaming Spies (Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes Mysteries #13), by Laurie R. King (Bantam, 2015). These are the book's opening lines:

"It's a rock, Holmes."
Sherlock Holmes raised his tea-cup to his lips. He swallowed absently, then glanced down in surprise, as if the homecoming drink had brought to mind the face of a long-forgotten friend. "Is it the water from our well that makes Mrs Hudson's tea so distinctive," he mused, "or the milk from Mrs Philpott's cows?"
My lack of reply had no effect on his pursuit of the idea.

Initial Thoughts:

I'm a huge Sherlock Holmes fan, so I had mixed emotions about a new series of novels using him as a character -- generally dubious about the enterprise, even though glad to see him back. That opening seemed intriguing if not terribly exciting; at least it didn't turn me off. And after a few more chapters, I'm still reading, but it's been slow-going. I think the problem might just be that, once again, I've jumped into the middle of a long-running series without having read any of the earlier books. I know that's usually a mistake, and I really should STOP doing it. But, anyway ... I'm hoping things will improve as the book and I go on together.

Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Fridays. As she says, the idea is to post the first sentence (or so) of the book you're currently reading, along with any first impressions or thoughts you have about the book, the author, etc.  It's a wonderful way of adding new books to your must-read list, and a chance to connect with other readers and bloggers.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

So, Monday. And almost the end of January. How did that happen?

Most years, I get through at least half a dozen books in January. But for some reason, I'm having a hard time getting started this year. So far in 2016, I've finished two books:

The Last September

by Nina de Gramont

(Algonquin Books, September 2015)

Lilies That Fester

(A Mrs. Malory Mystery)

by Hazel Holt (2001)

I enjoyed both of them, and I've got reviews in the works, but they're not quite ready for posting yet. This week, definitely.

And right now, I've got two books started. One e-book:

The Children's Home

by Charles Lambert

(Scribner, January 2016)

...and one paper:

Dreaming Spies

by Laurie R. King

(Bantam, paperback edition, October 2015)

The Laurie King book is an Early Reviewer book from Library Thing that I've had since last October. (!!!???) Yes, I've really got some catching up to do!

But right now, I'm going to be catching up on what everybody else is reading.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is now hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. If you want to let the world know what you're going to be reading this week, head on over to her blog and leave your link. It's also a great way to discover new books and new blogs.

Book Beginnings: The Children's Home

The Children's Home, by Charles Lambert (Scribner, January 5, 2016). These are the first two sentences of Chapter One:

The children began to arrive soon after Engel came to the house. It was Engel who found the first one, an infant girl, in a basket, with a bundle of neatly folded, freshly washed clothes.

My Thoughts:

I do like those opening lines -- a little eerie, a little Dickensian. That opening passage is what attracted me to the book in the first place. I'm about a quarter of the way through and, though it's not exactly what I expected, I'm enjoying it so far. Well, maybe "enjoying" isn't quite the right word. But it's keeping me curious about what's going to happen next. Which, I suppose, is nearly the same thing.

Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Fridays. As she says, the idea is to post the first sentence (or so) of the book you're currently reading, along with any first impressions or thoughts you have about the book, the author, etc.  It's a wonderful way of adding new books to your must-read list, and a chance to connect with other readers and bloggers.

2016 Back to the Classics Reading Challenge

Back to the Classics Challenge 2016

Hosted by: Karen K @ Books and Chocolate

Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2016

This is a very popular reading challenge, but this will be my first time to participate. At first glance, I thought it looked a little too restrictive, and I don't usually do too well with those challenges. And twelve books is quite a lot of books to commit to, for me. But when I realized I won't have to read that many books to join in, I took another look and was hooked. Especially since I believe it's really going to help with my effort to read more of the books I already own -- or books that have been on my TBR list for eons.

The idea of the challenge is to read 12 "classic" books, from 12 different categories. (However, you do not have to read 12 books to participate in this challenge.)

• Complete six categories, and you get one entry in the prize drawing
• Complete nine categories, and you get two entries in the drawing
• Complete all twelve categories, and you get three entries in the drawing

Participants choose books from these categories:

1. A 19th Century Classic - any book published between 1800 and 1899.
2. A 20th Century Classic - any book published between 1900 and 1966. All books MUST have been published at least 50 years ago to qualify. The only exception is books written at least 50 years ago, but published later.
3. A classic by a woman author.
4. A classic in translation. Any book originally written published in a language other than your native language. You can read the book in your language or the original language.
5. A classic by a non-white author. Can be African-American, Asian, Latino, Native American, etc.
6. An adventure classic - can be fiction or non-fiction. Children's classics like Treasure Island are acceptable in this category.
7. A fantasy, science fiction, or dystopian classic. Dystopian could include classics like 1984; children's classics (like The Hobbit) are acceptable in this category also.
8. A classic detective novel. Must include a detective, amateur or professional. 
9. A classic which includes the name of a place in the title. It can be the name of a house, a town, a street, etc. Examples: Bleak House, Main Street, or The Vicar of Wakefield.
10. A classic which has been banned or censored. If possible, please mention why this book was banned or censored in your review.
11. Re-read a classic you read in school (high school or college). 
12. A volume of classic short stories. This must be one complete volume, at least 8 short stories. It can be an anthology of stories by different authors, or all the stories can be by a single author. Children's stories are acceptable in this category also.

For the rest of the rules and info, see the challenge announcement/sign-up page (HERE).

I'll probably be reading six books -- might not be able to handle more than that. I'm not sure which categories I'll be choosing, so I don't have a set list for the challenge yet; but I've got a bunch of ideas. During the year, I'll be tracking my progress over on my challenge blog (HERE).

Book Beginnings: Lilies That Fester

Or, by its American title, Mrs. Malory and the Lilies That Fester, by Hazel Holt (first published by Macmillan, 2000).

Signet paperback edition, 2001

This is the book's opening passage:

'Are you sure you don't mind?' Rosemary asked.
'No, of course not,' I said.
'Only I've got this wretched cold and even if I felt well enough to go myself I wouldn't want to give it to her.'
'No, really, it's fine.'
'And Jilly and Roger are away and Jack has this meeting of the CPRE...'
'Rosemary,' I said, 'it's all right. I don't mind in the least. I was going myself anyway.'

My Thoughts:

I know some of you are thinking "BOR-ING!" But when I read that, I just think: Another Mrs. Malory mystery. I love it.

I've read almost the whole series now (21 books, this is number 11), but somehow managed to overlook this one even though it comes right in the middle. And this opening bit is so typically Sheila Malory, with many of the things I've come to love about the books -- the first-person narration, the chatty relationship between Sheila and her oldest friend Rosemary, and the way Sheila is always volunteering to take on good deeds at the drop of a hat. Those good deeds usually lead to a murder, of course...but then, there wouldn't be a book if they didn't.

I've loved all the Sheila Malory books, and as their author Hazel Holt died this past November, I decided to choose one of the series as my first read of the year. Also hoping to finish up the series this year -- I only have a few more to read. So I'm really looking forward to this one.

Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Fridays. As she says, the idea is to post the first sentence (or so) of the book you're currently reading, along with any first impressions or thoughts you have about the book, the author, etc.  It's a wonderful way of adding new books to your must-read list, and a chance to connect with other readers and bloggers.

2016 Women Challenge

2016 Women Challenge (#4)

Hosted by: Peek a Book!

Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2016

This challenge encourages us to read more books, of any kind, written by women authors. Since that's one of my reading goals for 2016, this seems like the perfect challenge. There aren't many rules: anyone can join, and you don't need a blog to participate; all formats are allowed, and re-reads are OK, too.

There are four levels to choose from:

• Level 1: BABY GIRL - read 5 books written by a woman author
• Level 2: GIRLS POWER - read 6 to 15 books written by a woman author
• Level 3: SUPER GIRL - read 16 to 20 books written by a woman author
• Level 4: WONDER WOMAN - read 20+ books written by a woman author

I'm going for Level 3 ( Super Girl ), and I'll be tracking my progress over on my challenge blog (HERE), and on this post, if I can remember:

MY READING LIST (books I read for the challenge, with links to reviews):

1. Lilies That Fester (Sheila Malory Mysteries #11). Hazel Holt
2. The Last September. Nina de Gramont
3. The People in the Photo. Hélène Gestern
4. Dreaming Spies (Mary Russell #13). Laurie R. King
5. My Name Is Lucy Barton. Elizabeth Strout
6. A Christmas Escape. Anne Perry
7. Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures. Kate DiCamillo; illus. by K.G. Campbell
8. Miller's Valley. Anna Quindlen
9. A Fine Imitation. Amber Brock
10. This Too Shall Pass. Milena Busquets
11. Lovely In Her Bones. Sharyn McCrumb
12. Inkheart. Cornelia Funke; trans. by Anthea Bell
13. Vinegar Girl. Anne Tyler
14. The Book That Matters Most. Ann Hood
15. The Girls. Emma Cline
16. The Clocks (Hercule Poirot #34). Agatha Christie
17. Curtain: Poirot's Last Case (Hercule Poirot #39). Agatha Christie
18.
19.
20. 

New Year, New Reads, New Challenges

Happy New Year, everyone!

I've been unusually lazy during this time between Christmas and the dawn of the new year. We're still sort of in Holiday mode around here -- we typically leave the decorations up until at least the 5th, and our main activity is trying to finish up all those jigsaw puzzles we've been saving up for this time of year.

Still haven't decided what will be my first book of 2016. Most years, I've at least picked out something by now. I'm hoping that's not a bad omen. I usually try to start off with a thriller or sci-fi of some sort. But this year I'm thinking I might begin the year with one of the Mrs. Malory books (by Hazel Holt who died in 2015) -- there are still three or four books in the series that I need to read, and I'm a huge fan of Sheila Malory.

Lately, my major bookish activity (aside from coloring books -- but more about those later) has been figuring out which reading challenges I want to take part in during 2016, and getting all the bookkeeping set up for those. So far, I've signed up for 17 challenges (see my list); mostly ones that I join every year, but also a few new ones, like the Blogger Shame Review Challenge and the Color Coded Challenge. I'm trying very hard to stop at 17, but there are several others I'm really interested in -- especially:

Back to the Classics, hosted by Books & Chocolate

The E-Book Challenge, hosted by Annette's Book Spot

Read the Nobels, hosted by Guiltless Reading

And then there's Reading Challenge Addicts -- I guess that's sort of a no-brainer for me. I definitely belong there.

I'm hoping to do a regular "challenge checkup" post on the blog this year. Maybe once a month or so -- just to keep me on track and show myself how I'm doing and what I still need to read.

I'm also planning to do more Sunday Salon posts. It's been many, many months (or possibly years) since I participated in the group -- I sort of abandoned it once it became a Facebook group, since I'm not a real FB person. Hoping to get back to it in 2016.

Anyway, that's the plan at the moment. But that could all change, of course. The year (unlike yours truly) is young.

2016 Netgalley and Edelweiss Reading Challenge

2016 Netgalley & Edelweiss Reading Challenge

Hosted by: Emily @ Falling For YA

Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2016

I didn't do as well as I'd hoped with the 2015 Netgalley & Edelweiss challenge, but I do think it was valuable for helping me keep track of the books I need to read and review. So I'm signing up for the 2016 challenge. I'll be going for the Silver Level (25 books), even though I have a few more than that to read.

As the challenge announcement post says:

"This challenge will (hopefully) give you the incentive to tackle your review books, stumble upon new ones, and get your Netgalley percentage to the desired 80%!"

And I would be thrilled to get my read-and-reviewed percentage up to 80%, but of course I'm aiming for 100%. During the year I'll be keeping track of my progress over on my challenge blog (HERE).

Books Read in 2016

Cumulative Reading List

Here's where I'll be tracking my reading in 2016.

Last year, for the first time in several years, I reached my annual reading goal of 50 books. (Actually, I read 51 books!) This year, I'm hoping to do a little better than that -- but officially, I'll still aim for 50.

JANUARY

1. Mrs. Malory and the Lilies That Fester (#11 in series). Hazel Holt (2000; fiction; 243 pages)
2. The Last September. Nina de Gramont (2015; fiction; 320 pages)

FEBRUARY

3. The Children's Home. Charles Lambert (2016; fiction; 224 pages, ARC)
4. The People in the Photo. Hélène Gestern; translated by Emily Boyce and Ros Schwartz (2011; fiction; 273 pages)
5. Dreaming Spies (Mary Russell & Sherlock Holmes #13). Laurie R. King (2015; fiction; 368 pages)

MARCH

6. My Name Is Lucy Barton. Elizabeth Strout (2016; fiction; 208 pages, ARC)
7. A Christmas Escape. Anne Perry (2015; fiction; 160 pages)
8. Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures. Kate DiCamillo; illus. by K.G. Campbell (2013; fiction; 233 pages)
9. Beanie and Tough Enough. Ruth and Latrobe Carroll (2015; fiction; 192 pages)

APRIL

10. Daisy Miller. Henry James (1878; fiction; 118 pages)
11. Far From True (Promise Falls Trilogy, #2). Linwood Barclay (2016; fiction; 464 pages, ARC)
12. Miller's Valley. Anna Quindlen (2016; fiction; 273 pages, ARC)

MAY

13. Picture Miss Seeton (Miss Seeton #1). Heron Carvic (1968; fiction; 176 pages)
14. Villa Triste. Patrick Modiano (1975; fiction; 176 pages)
15. The Disappearance of Signora Giulia. Piero Chiara; trans. by Jill Foulston (1970; fiction; 128 pages)
16. A Fine Imitation. Amber Brock (2016; fiction; 304 pages ARC)

JUNE

17. This Too Shall Pass. Milena Busquets; trans. by Valerie Miles (2015; fiction; 169 pages)
18. Lovely In Her Bones. Sharyn McCrumb (1985; fiction; 221 pages)
19. To Have and Have Not. Ernest Hemingway (1937; fiction; 272 pages)
20. Inkheart. Cornelia Funke (2003; fiction; 563 pages)
21. The Swimmer: Poems. John Koethe (2016; poetry; 96 pages)

JULY

22. Walter the Lazy Mouse. Marjorie Flack (1937; children's fiction; 96 pages)
23. I Am No One. Patrick Flanery (2016; fiction; 343 pages, ARC)

AUGUST

24. The Port-Wine Stain. Norman Lock (2016; fiction; 224 pages, ARC)
25. The Invoice. Jonas Karlsson (2011/2016; fiction; 208 pages, ARC)

SEPTEMBER

26. Vinegar Girl. Anne Tyler (2016; fiction; 224 pages ARC)
27. Dark Matter. Blake Crouch (2016; fiction; 354 pages ARC)
28. Tainted Tokay (Winemaker Detective #11). Jean-Pierre Alaux & Noël Balen (2006/2016; fiction; 181 pages)

OCTOBER

29. The Book That Matters Most. Ann Hood (2016; fiction; 288 pages ARC)
30. The Girls. Emma Cline (2016; fiction; 368 pages ARC)
31. The Vanishment. Jonathan Aycliffe (1994; fiction; 227 pages) [finished in 2017]

NOVEMBER

32. The Nightwalker. Sebastian Fitzek; trans. by Jamie Lee Searle (2011/2016; fiction; 272 pages)
33. Knots and Crosses (Inspector Rebus #1). Ian Rankin (1987; fiction; 241 pages)
34. The Clocks (Hercule Poirot #34). Agatha Christie (1963; fiction; 272 pages)
35. Curtain: Poirot's Last Case (Hercule Poirot #39). Agatha Christie (1975; fiction; 224 pages)

DECEMBER

To read in December:
...Faithful. Alice Hoffman (2016; fiction)
...Cruel Beautiful World. Caroline Leavitt (2016; fiction)