Reading Challenge Wrap-Up: 2019 Cloak and Dagger Challenge

Well, the New Year is right around the corner, and I really don't think I'll be doing much more reading before January arrives. So it's time to start wrapping up some of the reading challenges I signed up for in 2019. First up --

Hosted by: Stormi @ Books, Movies, Reviews! Oh My! and Barb @ Booker T's Farm

Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2019

For the 2019 Cloak and Dagger Reading Challenge I signed up for 16-25 books ("Detective" level), and though I was trying for 25, I only managed to read 16. Which means I did barely make it to Detective. Technically though, I really didn't complete the challenge because I only reviewed two of the books I read. Here's the list:

1. The Quiche of Death (Agatha Raisin #1). M.C. Beaton (1992; cozy mystery) 
2. The Janus Stone (Ruth Galloway #2). Elly Griffiths (2010; mystery / cold case, forensics) 
3. Murder Theory (The Naturalist #3). Andrew Mayne (2019; thriller) 
4. The Stranger Diaries. Elly Griffiths (2018/2019; psychological suspense) 
5. Run Away. Harlan Coben (2019; thriller)
6. The Appleton Case (Markham Sisters #1). Diana Xarissa (2015; cozy mystery)
7. The Vicious Vet (Agatha Raisin #2). M.C. Beaton (1993; cozy mystery)
8. Little Darlings. Melanie Golding (2019; thriller) 
9. The Lady in the Lake. Laura Lippman (2019; historical mystery)
10. The Potted Gardener (Agatha Raisin #3). M.C. Beaton (1994; cozy mystery)
11. The Man in the White Linen Suit (Stewart Hoag #11). David Handler (2019; mystery)
12. Fake Like Me. Barbara Bourland (2019; mystery)
13. The Shape of Night. Tess Gerritsen (2019; romantic suspense)
14. We Were Killers Once (Brigid Quinn #4). Becky Masterman (2019; thriller) 
15. Sorry for the Dead (Josephine Tey #8). Nicola Upson (2019; historical mystery)
16. The Walkers of Dembley (Agatha Raisin #4). M.C. Beaton (1995; cozy mystery)

But even though I had mixed results, this was still one of my favorite challenges. Thanks so much to the hosts for organizing and keeping the challenge going all year.

2019 European Reading Challenge: Wrap-Up Post

Well, there's still almost a week of 2019 left, but I really don't think I'll be reading much of anything that would qualify for this challenge, so I'm wrapping things up.

The idea of the challenge was to read books by European authors or books set in European countries (no matter where the author comes from). I signed up to read four books, but only managed one: Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death, by M.C. Beaton (set in the UK).

Obviously, I was not much of a world traveler in 2019. A bit embarrassing, but I'm hoping to do much better in 2020, and I've already signed up for next year's challenge (you can do likewise here). Thanks so much to Gilion at Rose City Reader for hosting this one.

What's In a Name 2020 Reading Challenge

Hosted by: Andrea @ Carolina Book Nook

Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2020

Click HERE for guidelines and sign-ups.

It's been a couple of years since I last participated in the What's in a Name Challenge. But I always enjoyed it, even though I didn't always manage to complete all the categories. (I think I enjoy making the lists of possible reads almost as much as doing the actual reading.)

So I'm signing up for the 2020 challenge. Basically, participants read books with titles that fit the requirements of six categories. I haven't made any firm decisions about what I'll read for each category, but I've got a few ideas:

Category 1: An ampersand – & (ex. Blanca & Roja, Rot & Ruin)

Arthur & George. Julian Barnes
Bellman & Black. Diane Setterfield
Daisy Jones & The Six. Taylor Jenkins Reid  

Category 2: An antonym (ex. Big Little Lies, Wicked Saints)

The Life and Death of Mary Wollstonecraft. Claire Tomalin
Night and Day. Virginia Woolf
Old New York (Four Novellas). Edith Wharton
Short Letter, Long Farewell. Peter Handke  

Category 3: 4 letters or less (ex. Feed, Vox)

Dust (Richard Jury #21). Martha Grimes
Hoot. Carl Hiaasen
Ubik. Philip K. Dick
Utz. Bruce Chatwin 

Category 4: A given/first name (ex. Tess of the Road, Flowers for Algernon)

Jane Eyre. Charlotte Brontë
Queen Lucia. E.F. Benson
The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn (Inspector Morse #3). Colin Dexter
What Maisie Knew. Henry James 

Category 5: Reference to children (ex. Baby Proof, Children of Blood and Bone)

The Children. Edith Wharton
The Children’s Book. A.S. Byatt
Wise Children. Angela Carter 

Category 6: One of the 4 natural elements – water, air, fire, earth (ex. The River at Night, The Name of the Wind)

The Book of Air and Shadows. Michael Gruber
Wide Sargasso Sea. Jean Rhys
The Wind in the Willows. Kenneth Grahame
Wolf Lake (Dave Gurney #5). John Verdon 

These are just possibilities, and it'll be interesting to see if I actually end up reading any of them. During the year I'll be tracking my progress and keeping all my lists over on my challenge blog (HERE).

2020 European Reading Challenge

Hosted by: Gilion Dumas @ Rose City Reader
Dates: January 1, 2020 - January 31, 2021 (this is a 13-month challenge)

Click HERE for all the guidelines and sign-ups.

Gilion's annual European Reading Challenge is always one of my favorite challenges, even though I really didn't do well with it this year – only read one book instead of the four I was hoping for. Hard to believe that I didn't read any books not set in the US or UK, but that does seem to be the case. Not much of a world traveler, am I?

So I'm giving it another try in 2020, but this time I'll be signing up at the Three Star "Business Traveler" Level, and committing to just three books. Surely I can manage three quick trips outside the English-speaking world?

During the year, I'll be tracking my progress and keeping all my book lists over on my challenge blog (HERE).

Mount TBR Reading Challenge 2020

Hosted by: Bev @ My Reader's Block
Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2020

Click here for guidelines and sign-ups.

I'm still hoping to do a bit more reading for the 2019 Mount TBR Challenge, though I probably won't make my original 12-book goal. But in 2020 I'm planning to really concentrate on reading books I've had on the shelves for a long time. And since I'll need all the help I can get, I'm signing up for next year's Mount TBR Challenge, hoping it'll keep me on target.

Once again, I'm signing up at the Pike's Peak level (12 books), and during the year I'll be tracking my progress on my challenge blog (HERE).

Calendar of Crime 2020 Reading Challenge

Hosted by: Bev @ My Reader's Block
Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2020

Click here for guidelines and sign-ups.

I signed up for the 2019 edition of this challenge and had a lot of fun with it, even though I didn't manage to review many of the books I read. (Maybe none of the books I read? Didn't really do much reviewing at all during this past year. Must do better in 2020.) I loved tracking down books for all the various categories and reading lots of reviews by other (more diligent) participants. So I'm signing up again for next year's challenge.

During the year, I'll be tracking my progress and keeping all my lists over on my challenge blog (HERE).

NetGalley and Edelweiss Reading Challenge 2020

Hosted by: Tina @ Reading Between the Pages
Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2020

Click here for guidelines and sign-ups.

It's been a couple of years since I last participated in the NetGalley and Edelweiss Reading Challenge. But I'm thoroughly embarrassed by all the unread ARCs I've allowed to pile up this year, and I think I really need something like this to help me get back on track. So even though I've made up my mind to cut way down on reading challenges next year, I'm signing up for this one.

I'm going for the Bronze Level (read 10 books), but hoping to do much better than that. During the year, I'll be tracking my progress and keeping all my lists over on my challenge blog (HERE).

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

So another week begins. And another month. And (amazingly) it's December!!! Don't know how that happened, but my calendar tells me it's true. Not a lot of time left in the year to finish up those TBR books on my list for 2019.

I'm not sure what, or how much I'll be reading this week. I've got oral surgery scheduled for Monday morning, and that most likely will put me out of commission for a couple of days. But I'm a little more than halfway through this one...

Sorry for the Dead (Josephine Tey #8), by Nicola Upson

and hope to finish it up pretty soon.

If that happens, I might get back to one of the ARCs I really should have read a couple months ago...

Olive, Again, by Elizabeth Strout

Or maybe something just for fun:

Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Dembley, by M.C. Beaton

I've read the first three books in this series of very quirky mysteries, and this is next in line.

So, here comes a brand new month of bookish adventures.

Happy reading, everyone!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is 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.

Reading Report: The Body in the Wake

The Body in the Wake (A Faith Fairchild Mystery)
Written by Katherine Hall Page
HarperCollins Publishers
May 2019; 240 pages

Publisher's Description:

For the first time in years, Faith Fairchild has time for herself. Her husband Tom is spending days on the other side of the island using a friend's enhanced WiFi for a project; their son, Ben, after his first year in college, is studying abroad for the summer; and their daughter Amy is working at the old Laughing Gulls Lodge, now a revamped conference center. Faith is looking forward to some projects of her own. Her friend Sophie Maxwell is also spending the summer on Sanpere Island, hoping for distractions from her worries that she isn't yet pregnant. And the daughter of Faith's good friend Pix Miller is getting married to a wonderful guy . . . with a less-than-wonderful mother. Between keeping Sophie's spirits up and Pix's blood pressure down, Faith has her hands full. And that's before a body with a mysterious tattoo and connections far away from small Sanpere Island appears in the Lily Pond.

[Note: I received my copy of this book free of charge from the publisher, through Library Thing's Early Reviewer program, in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was received.]

The Faith Fairchild mystery series is one of the longest-running series around (this book is number 25!), and (obviously) one of the most popular. I haven't read any of the earlier books in the series, so I knew I was taking quite a chance when I requested this from Library Thing's Early Reviewer line-up. And it really wasn't surprising that I felt a bit lost right from the start. So many characters and relationships and past histories to figure out and catch up with — it left me feeling like an unwelcome guest at the party.

The book was a quick and easy read, but confusing. There were several subplots going on and quite a few references to happenings in other books in the series. Or at least, I'm assuming that's what they were referring to. After a while, I found myself skipping around in large parts of the narrative, looking for the "main" sections dealing with the actual crime that had been committed. They were not easy to find — really, there wasn't much of a mystery at all. Well, not one that seemed to matter much to anyone. And even if I were more familiar with this series, I think I'd still find that a little disappointing. Not sure if I could recommend this one, but for anyone tempted to try it, I'd definitely recommend reading some of the earlier books first.

Rating: ★★½

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Qualifies for the following reading challenges:

2019 GoodReads Challenge.
2019 Print Only Challenge.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

So, another Monday. And another reading update. I've been in a bit of a reading slump for the last couple of weeks — hoping that changes soon. But I did pretty well last month. In October, I finished three recent books:

And one not-so-recent one:

My favorite of all those was Becky Masterman's We Were Killers Once, the 4th book in her Brigid Quinn series, and definitely worth the read. I thought both The Body in the Wake and The Shape of Night were disappointing, or at least not as entertaining as I expected. Hoping to post reviews of all them, sometime this week. Hmmm. Yes. We'll see how that goes.

And here's what I've got on my list for this month, if all goes well:

Sorry for the Dead, latest entry in the series of Josephine Tey Mysteries by Nicola Upson. I'm about midway through this one now, and liking it pretty well. I have a few complaints, but I'll save those for my review (if I ever manage to finish it).

The Long Call, by Ann Cleeves. This is the first book in Cleeves's new Two River series of mysteries. I know her Shetland series is very popular, but this will be the first time I've read anything by her. This one has gotten some glowing early reviews, so I have high hopes for it.

Olive, Again, by Elizabeth Strout — a follow-up to Strout's hugely successful Olive Kitteridge. That earlier novel won the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for fiction, and is well on its way to becoming a modern classic. And it's another book I've never read, I'm afraid; but I probably should read it before I launch into the sequel. So, that's something to think about.

Year of the Monkey, by Patti Smith. I really loved Smith's earlier memoir, Just Kids. And this new book comes highly recommended by several readers I trust, so I've put it on my TBR list and hope to get to it before the end of the year. (Which is coming up really fast, ya'll.)




Well, that's definitely enough to keep me busy. Now all I need to do is go curl up with some good books. Nice assignment, right?

Happy reading this week, everyone!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is 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: Sorry for the Dead

Sorry for the Dead, by Nicola Upson (Faber & Faber, November 2019). These are the book's first sentences:

She waited on the step until Josephine was out of sight, then closed the front door behind her. The house seemed unnaturally quiet, and it took her a few moments to accept that she was finally alone.

About the Book:

In the summer of 1915, the sudden death of a young girl brings grief and notoriety to Charleston Farmhouse on the Sussex Downs. 

Years later, Josephine Tey returns to the same house—now much changed—and remembers the two women with whom she once lodged as a young teacher during the Great War. As past and present collide, with murders decades apart, Josephine is forced to face the possibility that the scandal which threatened to destroy those women's lives hid a much darker secret.

Initial Thoughts:

There's a sense of foreboding about that beginning, isn't there? And I'm wondering who "she" is and what she has to do with Josephine. I like it. I also like that the book is set (at least partially) during that between-the-World-Wars period I find so fascinating.

This is the latest entry in Nicola Upson's series of mysteries featuring a fictionalized version of another famous mystery writer, Josephine Tey (a pseudonym of Elizabeth Mackintosh). It's the 8th book in the series, and I was a little afraid the fact that I haven't read any of the earlier books might be a problem. But, happily, that hasn't been the case — I haven't really had any trouble getting into the story, although it's turning out to be not exactly what I was expecting. Don't want to say too much more, in case I might give away a little too much about the plot. I'll just say I'm enjoying it quite a lot — enough so that I'm thinking I might want to read some of the earlier books. All good, so far.

Happy Friday, everyone! And happy reading! And have a lovely weekend.

Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Friday.  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.

Reading Report: The Last Romantics

The Last Romantics: A Novel
Written by Tara Conklin
William Morrow, 2019
354 pages

Publisher's Description:

A sweeping yet intimate epic about one American family, The Last Romantics is an unforgettable exploration of the ties that bind us together, the responsibilities we embrace and the duties we resent, and how we can lose—and sometimes rescue—the ones we love. 

When the renowned poet Fiona Skinner is asked about the inspiration behind her iconic work, The Love Poem, she tells her audience a story about her family and a betrayal that reverberates through time. 

It begins in a big yellow house, with a funeral, an iron poker, and a brief variation forever known as the Pause: a free and feral summer in a middle-class Connecticut town. Caught between the predictable life they once led and an uncertain future that stretches before them, the Skinner siblings—fierce Renee, sensitive Caroline, golden-boy Joe and watchful Fiona—emerge from the Pause staunchly loyal and deeply connected. Two decades later, the siblings find themselves once again confronted with a family crisis that tests the strength of these bonds and forces them to question the life choices they’ve made and to ask what, exactly, they are willing to do for love. 

[Note: I received my copy of this book free of charge from the publisher, through Library Thing's Early Reviewer program, in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was received.]


I don't want to say a great deal about the plot of The Last Romantics because it would be very easy to give too much away and spoil the reading experience for others. But I will just say a word about that "Pause" mentioned in the synopsis. The Skinner children have their world disrupted after their father dies young and leaves their mother to cope with taking care of the family on her own. It's a task she can't handle, and she simply withdraws from the real world for a while, pretty much leaving the children to fend for themselves. By using incredible amounts of resourcefulness and relying heavily on one another, they manage to take care of themselves and their mother during that frightening time.

For the most part, I enjoyed The Last Romantics. I liked the atmosphere and the author's attention to detail. And I particularly empathized with her description of the children's lives during the "Pause," as I experienced something of the sort myself after my father died when I was ten years old.

However, there were a few things that bothered me as I read the book. I never was able to completely warm to any of the characters. The time setting wandered all over the place. Also, the feminism theme came and went, as though the author couldn't really make up her mind about it.

And I had problems with the voice and perspective of the book. Most of the time we're seeing things through the eyes and memory of Fiona, the main narrator. But then without warning, we're getting thoughts or situations or conversations that she wouldn't have been part of. I think I would have been more comfortable if there'd just been the ordinary omniscient narrator all the way through. Picky, I know — but it kept taking me out of the story.

Still, it's definitely a book I'd recommend and I'm grateful to the publisher and Library Thing for giving me the opportunity to discover an intriguing, new-to-me author.

Rating: ★★★½

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Qualifies for the following reading challenges:

2019 GoodReads Challenge.
2019 Print Only Challenge.

Reading Report: Educated

Educated: A Memoir
Written by Tara Westover
First published February 2018
336 pages, Kindle edition

This is another book I read back in January, and it was certainly a powerful reading experience to start the year with.

Tara Westover's Mormon fundamentalist father was opposed to public education, so she never attended school. She spent her childhood and early adolescence working (and very nearly getting killed) in the family's junkyard, or learning herbal lore and midwifery from her mother, a self-taught healer. She had no birth certificate because her family didn't believe in registering with the state, and no medical records because they didn't believe in doctors or hospitals. What little education she got came from so-called home schooling, and she first set foot in a real classroom when she was seventeen. But after that first taste, she pursued learning for the next decade — eventually attending both Harvard and Cambridge.

This amazing memoir about growing up in an Idaho family preparing for the "end of days" is so fascinating and well-written, it actually reads like a novel. Some parts are hard to get through — child abuse is always ugly, even when (or maybe especially when) it's cloaked in religious nonsense. That she survived to tell the tale — and tell it so eloquently — is gratifying. That she can be so forgiving to her abusers is truly astonishing.

Rating: ★★★★

Note: I received my copy of Educated free of charge from the publisher, through the NetGalley website, in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was received.

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Qualifies for the following reading challenges:

2019 GoodReads Reading Challenge.

Reading Report: The Janus Stone

The Janus Stone
Written by Elly Griffiths
First published 2010
337 pages, Kindle edition

Lately I really haven't been very faithful about posting reviews or reading reports here on the blog. I've posted reviews in other places, but not here — for some reason. And I regret that. I like to use my book blog as a record of what I've read and what I thought about it. So I'm going to try to play a bit of catch-up over the next week or so, and write a few words about some of the books I've read during this past year. Probably won't try to keep to chronological order, but I'm starting with one I did read back in January — The Janus Stone, by Elly Griffiths.

In the book, archaeologist Ruth Galloway, a forensics expert in Norfolk (England), gets called in to investigate when builders uncover the bones of a child in an area they're excavating for a new development. The headless skeleton has been buried beneath a doorway, in a fashion that suggests it could have been a ritual sacrifice. DCI Harry Nelson — someone Ruth has worked with in the past — must find out if this was indeed some sort of religious ritual, or straightforward murder. And he asks Ruth to help with the case.

The Janus Stone is the second book in Elly Griffiths' series of Ruth Galloway mysteries, and I should say right away that (as usual) I haven't read the first book of the series. Still, overall I enjoyed The Janus Stone quite a lot, although I definitely would have benefited from having read book number one first. There was a lot of to-do in this book about the goings-on in that earlier book and occasionally I felt a little lost. Not the author's fault, of course — it's always best to start reading a series at the beginning. My bad.

As I said, it was reasonably enjoyable, with a decent amount of suspense and atmosphere. And I liked the fact that Ruth is an adult with some life experiences behind her, and isn't portrayed as a raving beauty. She's quirky and enjoys her relatively solitary existence in a remote cottage with only her cats for company.

The one thing that really turned me off (and kept this from being a 4-star read) was the way Ruth's pregnancy and who the father might be becomes the main emphasis of the book about midway through. (**Sorry, but that's really not a spoiler: her "condition" is announced very early in the narrative.**) Well, that's the trouble with most books about expectant mothers: How can the coming event NOT be the most important thing in their lives? Which would have been OK if this hadn't been a whodunnit. In a thriller you really want the focus on the crime and its investigation. Baby bumps just get in the way.

Rating: ★★★

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Qualifies for the following reading challenges:

2019 Calendar of Crime Challenge.
2019 Cloak and Dagger Challenge.
2019 Good Reads Challenge.

Book Beginnings: The Long Call

The Long Call, by Ann Cleeves (Minotaur Books, September 2019). This is the book's first sentence:

The day they found the body on the shore, Matthew Venn was already haunted by thoughts of death and dying.

About the Book:

Detective Matthew Venn has returned to the North Devon evangelical community he left years ago, to take charge of a complex murder case. A body has been found on the beach near Matthew's new home: a man with the tattoo of an albatross on his neck, stabbed to death. And as Venn and his team start their investigations, will he be drawn back into the community he left behind, and the deadly secrets that lurk there? And how will that affect the detective and the case?

Initial Thoughts:

That's what I like — a mystery novel that just gets down to the main theme right from the top. Well, I guess if you're a police inspector who spends his time investigating murders, you'd naturally have it on your mind, right?

This is the first book in a new series of mysteries by Ann Cleeves. I know she's written several other long-running series, but this will be my first time reading anything of hers. From that opening, I'd say she definitely knows how to set a mood. Hoping the rest of the book lives up to it.

Happy Friday, everyone! And happy reading! And have a lovely weekend.

Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Friday.  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?

Wow, it's been a while since my last reading update. September has been sort of a blur for me. Had some medical tests to get through early in the month — fortunately, everything turned out OK, but it was slightly traumatic. Then had to have oral surgery a couple of weeks ago and that's meant a lot of pain medication that's kept me sort of zonked for a while. And then I was attacked by a really mean migraine that knocked me out for another couple of days.

Tales of woe, hmmmm? Or maybe more like whoa!?

Soooo.... anyway, even though I have been doing some reading, I haven't had much energy for blogging or writing reviews. Hope I can get back to that pretty soon. But for now, I'll just make a little list.

Recently, I've managed to finish these three....

The Patience of a Dead Man, by Michael Clark

The Potted Gardener (Agatha Raisin Mysteries #3),

by M.C. Beaton

The Man in the White Linen Suit (Stewart Hoag Mysteries #11)

by David Handler

Three very different books. Enjoyed all of them, especially those last two.

This week I'm finishing up another ARC that I really should have gotten to back in June (shame on me)...

Fake Like Me, by Barbara Bourland

After that, I'll probably be starting this one...

What Rose Forgot, by Nevada Barr

Or possibly one of these...

Imaginary Friend, by Stephen Chbosky

Olive, Again, by Elizabeth Strout

A Very Mummy Holiday (Tourist Trap Mysteries #11)

by Lynn Cahoon

Or maybe something I haven't even thought of yet. I'll just be happy if I can stay awake for a while and keep reading!

Hope your summer has been fun and filled with lots of great reads! And happy reading this week, everyone.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is 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.

R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril XIV

I've been so out of it lately, I almost missed one of my favorite annual events!

The RIP (for Readers Imbibing Peril) reading event/challenge began September 1st and will run through the month of October. This is (sort of amazingly) the 14th year for RIP, and I believe I've participated (at least a little) in all but the first two editions.

RIP was the brainchild of Carl Anderson, over at his Stainless Steel Droppings blog (now dormant, I think), but was handed over to new hosts a couple of years back. This year it has its very own website, where you can read all about it and join up.

The purpose of the event is to read books that fall into any of the RIP categories:

Mystery

Suspense

Thriller

Dark Fantasy

Gothic

Horror

Supernatural

And the main goals are to HAVE FUN, and to share that fun with others. Pretty simple.

Actually, it's not that much of a challenge for me — those are the genres I read most of the time. But RIP always manages to renew my reading spirits after they've started sagging during the summer. And after the summer I've had, I really need some major renewing this year!

It also helps me find new books I might be interested in. I love reading all those lists and reviews.

Even though I'm getting a really late start, I'm still signing up at the Peril the First level (read four books), and I'll be combining that with Peril on the Screen (and possibly Peril of the Short Story, too). To find out about the various Peril levels, and to sign up, visit the challenge announcement page HERE.

I haven't really decided which books I intend to try to read, but I've got quite a few likely candidates. These are some new books that I'm eager to get to:

Imaginary Friend, by Stephen Chbosky
The Long Call, by Ann Cleeves
Old Bones, by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
The Possession, by Michael Rutger
Pursuit, by Joyce Carol Oates 

And during the challenge, I'll be tracking my progress over on my challenge blog (HERE). Happy reading, everyone!

Book Beginnings: Curtains for Romeo

Curtains for Romeo, by Jessa Archer (Archer Mysteries, July 2019). This is the book's first paragraph:

I'm not the type of person who is habitually late. In fact, I truly loathe being late. I'll get up an hour before I really need to in order to be sure I'm on time. Maybe even early. 

About the Book:

"Acting jobs are scarce now for former TV teen detective Antigone Alden. So when a teaching position opens up at Southern Coastal University, Tig packs up her teenage daughter and heads home to the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The house she inherited from her mother isn't entirely empty, however. Her mom seems stuck between this life and the next, and now Tig is a local reporter's prime suspect in the murder of the former theater professor. Given his reputation as a ladies' man, there are plenty of people with a motive. Tig isn't a detective. She just played one on TV. Will that be enough to help her find the killer?"

Initial Thoughts:

When I read that opening passage, my first thought was that it sounds just like me! I always think I'm going to need much more time to get ready to go somewhere than I really do. So things tend to get really frantic around here when I have any sort of early errands or appointments.

Anyhoo... I received this one as the result of a GoodReads giveaway, and I'm a little late starting it. Sounds like a fun read, so I'm eager to get going. It's the first book in a new cozy series — the Coastal Playhouse Mysteries, by Jessa Archer who is also the author of the Hand Lettering Mystery series which sound very intriguing.

Happy Friday, everyone! And happy reading! And have a lovely weekend.

Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Friday.  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?

Since my last update, I've finished exactly NO books. Summer stagnation has got me. Also, a few minor medical surprises have been taking up a lot more time than I'd expected.

So this post will be nice and short: no books finished, no reviews posted. Several books started, though — this week I'm hoping to finish at least these two:

The Man in the White Linen Suit, by David Handler

The Patience of a Dead Man, by Michael Clark

After that, I have a few more ARCs I should get to as soon as possible:

What Rose Forgot, by Nevada Barr

Pursuit, by Joyce Carol Oates

The Shape of Night, by Tess Gerritsen

That's definitely enough to keep me busy for the rest of August — and at the rate I read, probably into September as well. That's if I can stay AWAY from the doctor's office for a while. (Fingers crossed.) So, now it's back to the books....

Happy reading, everyone! And have a lovely week.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is 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.