This Week in Reading

What I Read:

The Birds and Other Stories by Daphne du Maurier (review)

I didn't really know what to expect with this one but I ended up really loving it.  I'm going to try and find a copy of the movie that was (very) loosely based on the first short story.  

The Seven Dials Mystery by Agatha Christie (Review)

This was the last one in stand alone or non-series books that Agatha published in the 1920s.  This decade is full of adventure stories with hints of romance and espionage and really provide some fun reading!

Blackberry Pie Murder by Joanne Fluke

This was my first book in the long running Lake Eden/Hannah Swenson series and I enjoyed it.  The review will be up tomorrow.  Definitely worth a read if you like cozy mysteries.

What I'm Reading:

Murder at Hazelmoor by Agatha Christie

Also published as The Sittaford Mystery.  I'm about a third of the way in and am really enjoying.  This is one of hers that I forget about completely so I get to re-discover it every time I reread it.

Sinfully Yours by Cara Elliott

Sigh.  The best thing I can say about this one is that I think the cover is pretty.  I'm about 40% into it and the only reason I'll probably finish it is because it's a review copy.  It's not awful it's just kind of boring.  The review should be up Wednesday.

What's Been Distracting Me:

J has been working crazy amounts of overtime which means my TV watching has significantly increased.  I don't know what it is but when he's not here I end up staying up way later watching TV instead of going to bed at a reasonable hour and than reading to an unreasonable hour.  Emma and I have been getting through our tremendous backlog of Criminal Minds lately.  We're almost up to Christmas so at some point we'll be caught up! 

This Week in Reading

Between the snow and the Olympics I didn't get much reading done this week!

What I Read:

  Cider Brook by Carla Neggers (Review)
This was a new author for me and I enjoyed it pretty well.  I liked how she developed characters and the series has lots of potential.  Not as much of a community feel as I've found in Mariah Stewart's Chesapeake Diaries, Susan Mallery's Fool's Gold or Jill Shalvis' Lucky Harbor.  It definitely walks the line between Romance and Women's Fiction.

And that's it.  It makes me sad.

What I'm Reading:

The Secret of Chimney's by Agatha Christie - I'm almost done with this one which is good because I need to pick up the pace on the Agathas or I'm never going to finish.

Home to Seaview Key by Sherryl Woods - about 10% in and so far so good.  This is another one that is light romance/women's fiction.  It's about somewhat older people which is a little different to me as most contemporary romance features people my age (early 30s) or younger.  These characters are in their 40s or 50s.

Disengaged by Beth Orsoff - Just started this one.  It's for book club and looks to be a lightweight fun read.

Four Winds Farm by Mrs. (Mary Louisa) Molesworth - this is a children's story that was mentioned in an Agatha Christie book.  It was published in the late 19th century and so far has been interesting.  Definitely has a bit of a fairy tale feel to it.

What I'm Distracted By:

With school being closed for 3 days and everybody's schedule being off I've been distracted by pretty much everything.  We've been watching some of the Olympics and staying up too late which cuts into my night time reading.  Also, I'm just tired.  All this grey and rain and cold is making me sleepy!

This Week in Reading

It's been grey and cold here which makes it perfect for yoga pants, fuzzy socks and reading.  J and the Tornado have been doing pretty much nothing but watching Star Wars so I've had a little time to read.  For some reason I seem to want to spend that time acquiring new books.  It's an illness I think.

What I Read:

At The River's Edge: The Chesapeake Diaries by Mariah Stewart (Review) 

A good read but read the series in order.  It doesn't get confusing but I definitely think you'd understand the characters more.

The Mangle Street Murrders by M.R.C. Kasasian (Review)

Kind of strange but a very well done if a little twisted mystery.  The next one comes out in June and I'll be stalking Netgalley and my library for it.

Delicious by Adrianne Lee (Review)

Definitely not my favorite.  Immature characters with 2 of my least favorite plot devices.  If you have nothing else to read this would work in a pinch but other than that find something better.

The Man in the Brown Suit by Agatha Christie

The first Agatha Christie novel not destined to be part of the series.  This one is a fun read.  To be reviewed when I finish the rest of the 1920s stand alones.

What I'm Reading:

Cider Brook by Carla Neggers

New to me author and apparently the 3rd in a series.  I'm not quite sure what I think yet.  I'm about 15% in and it has a lot of potential to be good but it could also go horribly wrong.

The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie

This is one of my favorites.  I always enjoy reading it.

What's Distracting Me:

I finally broke down and agreed to watch the last season of The Office.  J and I used to binge watch it when the Tornado was a baby and having some colic issues and we weren't sleeping much and it became one of our favorites.  After the previous season with all the boss upheaval I kind of lost interest in it and then I heard Pam and Jim were having marital problems in the last season and that made me really not want to watch it.  I'm actually enjoying the last season so far.  I love Nelly's character (Catherine Tate otherwise known as Donna from Doctor Who) and that they've brought back some of the Jim/Dwight pranks.  But J wants to watch them until 11 or midnight and I've got reading to do!  When I'm not watching that I'm in a panic to clear shows of the DVR.  I really need to just cut down on the number of shows I watch. It's a problem.

January Wrap Up

I was 1 short for making my goal of 15 book this month.  I actually read 1 more non-Christie book than I expected but came up 3 short on the Christie books.  The last 2 definitely drug a bit with slowed me down.

1. Secret Adversary
2. Partners in Crime
3. N or M?
4. By the Pricking of My Thumbs
5. Postern of Fate  (Review for the Series)
6. Once in a Lifetime - Jill Shalvis  (Review)
7.  When We Touch - Brenda Novak (Review)
8.  The Tastemakers: Why We're Crazy for Cupcakes but Fed Up With Fondue - David Sax (Review)
9.   The Tyrant's Daughter - J.C. Carleson (Review)
10. Scandalously Yours - Cara Elliot  (Review)
11. Queen of Hearts - Colleen Oakes (Review)
12. The Return of the Rogue - Sabrina Jeffries (Review)
13. Cocaine Blues - Kerry Greenwood (Review)
14. Brooklyn Graves - Triss Stein (Review)

With the exception of the last Christie book I enjoyed every book I read this month which is a nice change from the last 2 or 3 months.

Favorite Book: Either The Tastemakers or Return of the Rogue

Most Unexpected: The Tyrant's Daughter.  Completely not what I thought it was going to be and was so much better because of that.

Book I've Recommended the Most - The Tastemakers or Queen of Hearts.  The concept for Queen of Hearts is just amazing.

This Week in Reading

Last week I was on fire reading-wise so this week was a bit of a letdown.  Given the growing number of books to read both on the Kindle and on my bookshelves I don't have time for slumps!

What I Read:

When he Rogue Returns by Sabrina Jeffries (Review)

This was probably my favorite book this week.  It's been awhile since I've read a Historical that I've really loved so it was a lot of fun to really enjoy the genre again. I thought it was different that the characters were Dutch and that the heroine had a trade that made sense.  I also like that the secrets that were kept really needed to be kept and the consequences they were worried about were actually very serious.  This was a great book and I was thrilled to discover I'd bought the one before this months ago and had just forgotten!  I'll be digging into that one very soon.

Cocaine Blues by Kerry Greenwood (Review)

I have no idea why it took me so long to get to this series but I'm so glad I finally did.  Phrynne was a refreshing change from the either silly or emotionally traumatized leads in other mysteries that are set in this time period.  I loved the talk of clothes, jewelry and other bits of pop culture.  The mystery was well done and I'm looking forward to reading the 2nd one.  

 Postern of Fate by Agatha Christie (Review) 

This was the third time I've read this book and I'm no closer to understanding it than I was before I read it.  This was Christie's last novel and it is definitely one of her weakest.  Unless you're a Christie fanatic or trying to read all of them in a year I'd skip this one.

What I'm Reading:

At the River's Edge by Mariah Stewart

This is the latest book by one of favorite authors.  I've read the first one of this series and I've been pleased on how well #7 hold up without having to read all the ones in between.  I'm about half way done with this one.

The Man in the Brown Suit by Agatha Christie

This is the first of Christie's non-series books and it's been a really nice change from the confusing muddle that was Postern of Fate.  I'm 10% done with this one.

What's Distracting Me:

Just general craziness of life.  It seems like someone always needs to be taken somewhere or picked up from somewhere.  The Tornado has been on the clingy side.  I'm also thinking I was abducted by aliens at some point because I've gotten NOTHING done pretty much all week yet I feel like I've been crazy busy.   I'm hoping this weekend will be nice and quiet.

This Week in Reading

What I Read:

The Tyrant's Daughter by J.C. Carleson (Review) - I thoroughly enjoyed this one and was completely surprised by it as well.

Scandalously Yours by Cara Elliott (Review) - Didn't love this one.  Thought it was a bit all over the place and didn't find the main characters very likable or interesting.  I did like how the last half of the book was handled.  I also did like the main character's sister and am looking forward to reading Elliott's next book which is about her.

By the Pricking of My Thumbs by Agatha Christie - This is the second to last of the Tommy and Tuppence books.  I'll review all of them together next week.  This one is okay.  The basic premise is interesting but it's definitely one of her weaker books.

Queen of Hearts: Vol 1 The Crown by Colleen Oakes (Review) - I really enjoyed this prequel to Alice in Wonderland.  It was well written and wonderfully atmospheric.  The main problem right now is I have no idea where this can be purchased.  It's due out on February 14th so I'll be keeping a look out for it. 

What I'm Reading:

When the Rogue Returns by Sabrina Jefferies - I'm almost done with this one and so far am liking it.  Jefferies isn't a new author to me and I've liked her previous works.  This one is a bit different from most historicals I've read in the past and so far it's been done well.  

Postern of Fate by Agatha Christie - The last in the Tommy and Tuppence series and so far my least favorite.

The Mark of the Dragonfly by Jaleigh Johnson - I keep putting this one off.  So far it's good but not grabbing me.  To be fair I haven't given it much of a chance.  My goal is to buckle down and get this one read this week.

What's Distracting Me:  

Actually, I haven't been too distracted this week.   I've gotten some serious reading done and it's been kind of nice.  My 4 year old has been playing some serious Temple Run lately so I have spent some time playing that as he's starting to get better than me.  Other than that and the occasional TV show I've been doing lots of reading.

This Week in Reading

What I Read:

N or M? by Agatha Christie - Only 2 more in the Tommy and Tuppence series!

The Tastemakers: Why're Crazy for Cupcakes but Fed Up with Fondue by David Sax Loved this one!  (Review)

When We Touch by Brenda Novak - A good start to the series. Interested to see where it leads. (Review)

Brooklyn Graves by Triss Stein - A good mystery.  The review will be up next week.

What I'm Reading:

By the Pricking of My Thumbs by Agatha Christie - about 5 chapters in

The Mark of the Dragonfly by Jaleigh Johnson - so I started this last week but got distracted.  Not quite my thing so far but still interesting.

Scandalously Yours by Cara Elliot - haven't really started this and am a little apprehensive as my friend Lisa over at Books, Lists, Life didn't care for it.  

What's Distracting Me:

Once again, TV.  This time it's my DVR.  I got a little over confident when all the shows were on break during December and wasn't watching much TV.  This isn't really a bad thing but now the shows have come back on and I feel like I'm just barely treading water while I frantically watch one show to clear room for the show I'm currently recording.  I'm thinking this is a problem.  I could do the sensible thing and let go of the shows that I don't absolutely love but it just doesn't seem to happen.  My dream vacation right now involves staying home, yoga pants and doing nothing but watching TV and reading.  To be fair, it's cold and a large part of me wants to hibernate.  

This Week in Reading

Finished -

The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie

Partners in Crime by Agatha Christie

I'll review these when I finish all 5 books in the Tommy and Tuppence series.  

I'm reading:

The Tastemakers: Why We're Crazy for Cupcakes but Fed Up with Fondue by David Sax from Netgalley

The Mark of the Dragonfly by Jaleigh Johnson from Netgalley

N or M? Agatha Christie

This Week's Distractions -

Waking the Dead.  I discovered this BBC show on Netflix and I've been binge watching it ever since.  The focus is on a cold case unit run by smart but not tactful Detective Superintendent Peter Boyd who is pared with 2 other detectives, a psychologist and a forensic specialist.  The crimes are interesting and the character development is good.  I love that unlike most shows they don't try to make them a family.  They respect each other and some of them are friends but they also get on each other's nerves quite frequently.  It's a good solid British Police Procedural that looks into old cases.  Loving it!  I've only go 2 seasons left and I'm going to be very sad when it's over.

I've also been watching The Taste.  If there's a cooking competition I normally end up watching it.  An added bonus is that I absolutely love Nigella Lawson.  So far she hasn't done very well and I wonder if her lack of professional experience is a detriment in being able to pick a team.  

It's far too cold to do anything other than read and watch TV when I'm not doing all the everyday stuff.  Right now I just want to hibernate with my Kindle.

2014 Reading Goals

So 2014 is 39 minutes old.  I've got 1 book review and a look back at both my December reading and my 2013 to put up but first I want to start fresh with my reading goals for 2014.

1. Since I finished 130 books in a panic with 20 minutes to spare I think I'm going to leave the number as is and just try to manage my time a little better next year.  So once again I'm shooting for 130 books.

2. I tried this in 2012 and didn't make it but I'm going to give it another try.  For 2014 I want to read all of Agatha Christie's books.  I'm going to read them chronologically by character (all the Poirot's in order followed by all the Miss Marples, etc) because as much as I love Agatha her books in the mid-60s and onwards are very hit or miss.  I also want to read her autobiography and her memoir about her time spent working with her 2nd husband in archaeology.    I don't think I'm going to review all her mysteries individually though.  Maybe I'll break it up into 12 reviews or by character or something.  I've got time to figure this system out.

3.  I'd like to read or reread more classics this year.  I'm hoping to get a list of 12 books that fit into this general category in the next week or so.

4.  I'd like to not finish my reading goal in an absolute panic at 11:30PM on New Year's Eve.