Books from the Backlog - Perfectly Matched

Today I'm linking up with Carole from Carole's Random Life of Books for Books from the Backlog.  I really enjoy the chance to feature a book that's been hiding in the piles of books for far too long!

Goodreads:  Perfectly Matched by Heather Webber

Blurb:  The heat is on...

When Boston psychic Lucy Valentine finds herself involved in a group of eccentric psychics trying to learn more about their abilities, she is convinced a rare spring heat wave has flushed the crazies out of hiding.

Adding to her theory is her newest client in the Lost Loves division of Valentine, Inc., her family’s lucrative matchmaking firm. He’s an animal communicator who hires Lucy to find his purrfect mate—because his cat told him so.

But craziest of all is The Beantown Burner, a serial arsonist who is targeting private eye Sam Donahue, the brother of Lucy’s boyfriend, Sean. With the help of her kooky psychic group, Lucy must tap into abilities she didn’t know she had to catch the firebug before the fires turn deadly. What she never expected to discover is that the motive behind the flames hits a little too close to home...and her heart.

Why It Needs to Come Off the Shelf:  Not only is this the last book in a series I've read all the other books in but according to Goodreads this is the same Heather Webber who writes some of my favorite magical realism now.  

Three Books I'm Waiting For In the Next Three Months

 

There are so many great books coming out in the next few months and so many I can't wait to read!  Here are three coming out in the next three months that are at the top of my list.

June

Don't Let Him In by Lisa Jewell - I have really enjoyed every book I've read by Jewell and I can't wait to pick this one up.

July

Under the Stars by Beatriz Williams - It was so hard to pick just one for July but this one sounds amazing.

August

For Duck's Sake by Donna Andrews - I'd want to read this one just for the title but the fact that it's one of my favorite cozy mystery series doesn't hurt.

What books are you looking forward to reading in the next 3 months?

Birthday Season - Books I Actually Bought

 

I celebrate a birthday season instead of just one day and of course going to bookstores are part of the way I celebrate.  I've still got a bit to go but here are twelve books I've bought.

1.  The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club by Helen Simonson - This was part of a historical fiction bundle at one of our indie bookstores and it sounded really good.

2.  The Wandering Season by Aimie K. Runyan - Another book in the bundle and this one is not only an author whose books I've enjoyed in the past but involves a DNA test so I'm looking forward to it.

3.  Murder at Gull's Nest by Jess Kidd - The last book in the bundle!  I've read some good reviews for this one and it is another one that looked really good.

4.  At the Coffee Shop of Curiosities by Heather Weber - I've loved everything I've read by this author and I'm trying to get all the ones I haven't read.

5.  The Museum Detective by Maha Khan Phillips - The blurb really grabbed my attention.

6.  Emily Wilde's Encylopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett - I keep checking this out from the library but by the time I get it I don't have time to read it before it goes back so obviously I just needed to buy it.

7.  Touchstone by Laurie R. King - I picked this one up at a used bookstore and I was so excited.  I have the second book in the duology for years but have never been able to find this one until now.

8.  The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand - I finally read a book by this author earlier this year and really loved it.  The blurb really caught my eye on this one and I'm looking forward to reading it.

9.   The Riviera House by Natasha Lester - This one looks fantastic and I've read another book by this author and really enjoyed it.

10.  Our Last Days in Barcelona by Chanel Cleeton - A missing sister and a dual timeline sounds like a book for me and I've liked what I've read by this author.

11.  Picnic in Someday Valley by Jodi Thomas - I really liked the first book in this series and this is the only one that my library doesn't have so I was excited to see it in the store.

12. The Secret to Southern Charm by Kristy Woodson Harvey - I really enjoyed the first book in this series that I read last year so I had to pick up this second book.

What's a book you're really wanting to buy?  Have you read any of these?

My New TBR Jars

 

I watch a decent amount of Bookish YouTube and so many of them have TBR jars either with prompts or book titles.  I love an element of randomness and desperately wanted my own TBR jar.  While I don't have any spare jars I did find these 2 decorative boxes that were too pretty to throw away but I had never figured out what to do with them.

The first one is my Shelf TBR jar.  I took a whole bunch of index cards and wrote all the books on my shelves down.  If I had a series I just wrote the first one - or the next one I had to read - not the whole series.  It took a lot of time but I got a lot of audio book listening done and it was fun to explore my shelves.  I cut the index cards up into little slivers with one title one each one and spent a ridiculous amount of time folding them up.  Next time I'm looking for an actual book to read I just give the box a shake and pick a title.

The came the Audio Book TBR jar.  If I thought the Shelf one took awhile this one took a ridiculous amount of time.  It's at least double the size of the box for the Shelf titles and I have so many audio book titles saved in so many different platforms.  I did put a little symbol to show me what platform the book is on.  A lot of the Libby books will have to be placed on hold so when that happens I'll place that book on hold and pick another title.  I've already used this and have really been enjoying it!

I'm not really a mood reader but when I pick a book that I'm really not wanting to read than I'm going to use that as a sign that it's time for that book to come off my shelf.

Do you have any kind of random system to help you pick books?

Parting Breath - Classic Mystery Review

Goodreads: Parting Breath by Catherine Aird

Rating: Liked It (3 Stars)
Source:   Purchased

Description:  Murder in the Quadrangle

The college dons at the University of Calleshire fully expected trouble when the students planned to shake their ivory tower with a sit-in at Almstone Hall. But no one expected the very peculiar theft from a dormitory room...or the very dead body in the college quadrangle. For Detective Inspector C.D. Sloan, the ivied halls hid a host of clues - from the words whispered with the dying man's parting breath to what a madrigal singer saw. So it was only a matter of time until he uncovered the murderer hidden in the groves of academe...but could he do it before death became another victim's alma mater?

Genre: Mystery - Classic

Why I Picked This Book:  I've really enjoyed other books by this author and am trying to read through all of her books.  

My Impression:   I really enjoyed several of the previous books I've read by this author but this one was a bit of a miss for me.  This mystery got bogged down with a huge cast of characters and too many details.  There is large quantities of professors and just about the same number of students.  The reader is reminded regularly of what subject the character lectures or reads and what is going on with that specific subject.    As the book went on I found I had a hard time keeping up with who was who and I kind of stopped caring.  

When the solution was revealed I had a hard time remembering exactly who the author was talking about which definitely took the surprise and shock value down a notch.  I really like this author but this is a short book with a complicated mystery and a huge cast crammed into just over 150 pages which just got a bit jumbled feeling and confusing.  I'm looking forward to reading more from this author but this isn't one I would recommend.

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?  Absolutely!  Not every book can be a win and I've enjoyed most of what I've read from her.

Would I Recommend this Book? Not really.  I would recommend this author but this book wasn't the best representive of her work.

Friday Fives - Five Books to Take to the Beach

I'm in a list making kind of mood so I thought I'd start making random five lists.  Sometimes they'll be bookish other weeks not so much.  We have a beach trip coming up and I'm putting together my travel list!  Here are 5 books I'm planning on bringing on the trip.

1.  Murder Runs in the Family by Tamara Berry - I love this author and this sounds like a fun quirky mystery.  

2.  Midsummer Mysteries by Agatha Christie - Short stories seem like a good choice when I have a short attention span - especially when the short stories by my favorite author.

3.  The Spirit Moves by Carol J. Perry - This is the newest in one of my favorite cozy mystery series - that also takes place at the beach!

4.  Jane of Lantern Hill by L.M. Montgomery - I love this book and have been wanting to reread this one.  

5.  A Certain Kind of Starlight by Heather Webber - I love this author and reading magical realism at the beach seems fitting.  

What would you take to read at the beach (or on the way there)?

Books from the Backlog - The Dress Shop of Dreams

Today I'm linking up with Carole from Carole's Random Life of Books for Books from the Backlog.  I really enjoy the chance to feature a book that's been hiding in the piles of books for far too long!

Goodreads:  The Dress Shop of Dreams by Menna Van Praag

Blurb:  Since her parents’ mysterious deaths many years ago, scientist Cora Sparks has spent her days in the safety of her university lab or at her grandmother Etta’s dress shop. Tucked away on a winding Cambridge street, Etta’s charming tiny store appears quite ordinary to passersby, but the colorfully vibrant racks of beaded silks, delicate laces, and jewel-toned velvets hold bewitching secrets: With just a few stitches from Etta’s needle, these gorgeous gowns have the power to free a woman’s deepest desires.
Etta’s dearest wish is to work her magic on her granddaughter. Cora’s studious, unromantic eye has overlooked Walt, the shy bookseller who has been in love with her forever. Determined not to allow Cora to miss her chance at happiness, Etta sews a tiny stitch into Walt’s collar, hoping to give him the courage to confess his feelings to Cora. But magic spells—like true love—can go awry. After Walt is spurred into action, Etta realizes she’s set in motion a series of astonishing events that will transform Cora’s life in extraordinary and unexpected ways.

Why It Needs to Come Off the Shelf:  I really enjoy magical realism and it has been too long since I've read any.