Tuesday, March 7, 2017

The Fives!

Top Ten Tuesday from The Broke and the Bookish seems to be on a well deserved hiatus so today I'm doing The Fives!  This is a post that I found that I had done way back in February of 2014 that I had seen Trish over at Love, Laughter and a Touch of Insanity and Lisa over at Lit and Life do.  I thought it was really fun then and it turned out to be really fun to do again!

5 Books I've Recently Added to My TBR List

1.  Dragonslayer by Emilie Richards - I love Richards' books though I don't read them enough and Kathryn over at Book Date gave this one high marks.

2.  At Fairfield Orchard by Emma Cane - The cover is so pretty I couldn't resist!

3.  The Camelot Caper by Elizabeth Peters - I read this one years ago but I've been wanting to revisit Elizabeth Peters' books.

4.  Someone to Wed by Mary Balogh - I love Balogh but haven't read enough and Lark over at Bookwyrm's Hoard rhas really enjoyed this series.

5.  The Magic Bedknob by Mary Norton - This is the first in the Bedknobs and Broomsticks series.  I saw the movie ages and ages ago but I'm really wanting to read the book!

5 Books I'm Planning to Read in the Near Future

1.  Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck - I love Steinbeck and have read most of his books but somehow I've never gotten the book he's most known for.

2.  Scandal in Skibberdeen by Sheila Connolly - Sheila Connolly is one of my favorite cozy mystery authors and I really enjoyed the first book in this series set in Ireland.  I'm really excited about the second book.

3.  Evil Under the Sun by Agatha Christe - I'm making my way through Christie's Poirot books and this is the next one.  It's one of my favorites.

4.  Diamonds are Forever by Ian Fleming - It's been awhile since I read the 3rd James Bond book, Moonraker, so it's time to go back and pick up #4!

5.  Key of Knowledge by Nora Roberts - I just reread the first in this trilogy and really enjoyed it so I'm looking forward to rereading the second which was my favorite!

5 Books I Own but Still Haven't Read

1.  Because of Miss Bridgerton by Julia Quinn - I'm almost scared to read this one.  I loved the Bridgerton series so much that I'm afraid this one won't live up to my expectations.

2.  A Beautiful Blue Death by Charles Finch - I've been wanting to start this Charles Lennox series for years and don't even remember when I bought this book but I'm determined to get to it this year.

3.  Untraceable by Laura Griffin - I've loved the most recent two in this series and am really looking forward to retracing my steps with book one of the series.

4.  Headhunters on My Doorstep: A True Treasure Island Ghost Story by J. Maarten Troost - The title itself is amazing.  I'm super excited about it!

5. An Expert in Murder by Nicole Upson - The detective in this book is mystery writer Josephine Tey.  I've been reading her books for years so I'm looking forward to reading a book that focuses on her.

5 Books from a Series I Need to Continue

1.  Cress by Marissa Meyer - I read the first two books in the Lunar Chronicles and absolutely loved them.  I need to finish the series.

2.  God of the Hive by Laurie R. King - I've been reading this series about Mary Russell and her husband, a very retired Sherlock Holmes, since college and have always really loved it.  Somehow I've gotten seriously behind and desperately need to catch up.  Part of me wants to go back and start at the beginning since it's been so long since I read the early books but that's probably not going to happen so I've kind of locked up.

3.  Lockwood and Co: The Whispering Skull by Jonathan Stroud - I read The Screaming Staircase last year and really enjoyed it.  There were some hints dropped in that book about this one and I've been looking forward to reading them ever since.

4.  Peril in Paperback by Kate Carlisle - This is a super solid cozy mystery series all about a book restorer named Brooklyn.  The mysteries are always great and the descriptions of books are absolutely amazing.

5.  Bay of Sighs by Nora Roberts - I absolutely loved the first book in this trilogy and swore I'd read the 2nd book as soon as it came out which was June of 2016.  Now my goal is to get to it before June of 2017!

5 Soon to Be Released Books I'm Looking Forward to Reading

1. Last Chance Matinee by Mariah Stewart - I love Mariah Stewart and I love series that focus on sisters so this first book in a series about sisters written by Mariah Stewart sounds amazing!

2. Gone Without a Trace by Mary Torjussen - This book about a woman who comes home to find her boyfriend not just gone but erased sounds pretty page turning!

3.  Bad Housekeeping by Maia Chance - Maia Chance's cozies always make me giggle and this one involving an inn sounds like the beginning of a series I'll love!

4.  The Girl with the Make Believe Husband by Julia Quinn - It's by Julia Quinn.  The title could be "this is the most boring book ever" and I'd still probably be excited about it!

5.  Our Sweet Basil Kitchen by Cade and Carrian Chesney - I love the Sweet Basil blog so I'm super excited for this new cookbook!
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Monday, March 6, 2017

Reviews from the Children's Section - Mandy

One of my favorite genres and one that is the easiest for me to push aside is middle grade fiction. This year to make sure I get a little more children's and young adult fiction I thought I would designate the first Monday of every month Middle Grade Monday.  Some of the books I'll be picking are old childhood favorites, some are classics that I missed for whatever reason, and some will be newer releases that I just couldn't resist!

This month's book is a book published in 1971 but I didn't hear about it until after I joined Goodreads in 2011.  Not sure how I missed it!

Mandy by Julie Edwards

Mandy is by Julie Edwards better known as Julie Andrews (yes - THAT Julie Andrews.  Mary Poppins wrote a children's book!).  It's the story of a little girl named Mandy growing up in an orphanage.  She's never known who her family is and desperately wants a place to call her own.  When a trip over the wall leads to the discovery of an old abandoned cottage she thinks she's found her place.  But everything isn't quite as simple as it seems nor as perfect.

I can't tell you how much I wanted to love this book- I mean it's a children's book by MARY POPPINS!  How could I not love it?  Except I kind of didn't.  I loved the idea of the abandoned cottage and this little girl with no true place of her own making it hers.  I understood why she wanted to keep it a secret.  I loved the descriptions of her time at the cottage and all the animals she saw there.  I also really enjoyed the development later in the book surrounding the cottage.  But I struggled with Mandy in other situations.  There's a lot of lying and lying to everyone - even to people who truly care about her.  While I'm not a huge fan of regular lying in a children's book I think it would be pretty clear to the youngest of readers that the lying was not the way to go.  Mandy spends a good chunk of the book so stressed and anxious that I found myself stressed and anxious.  At one point I realized I was holding my breath a little like I was reading a thriller.  Not exactly the magical adventure I was looking for!  I also got a little frustrated with Mandy in the latter half of the book for being so discontented.  There were a few times I just wanted to tell her to stop complaining and be happy that all these people love her.

While this book wasn't quite as wonderful for me as an adult I suspect it would really speak to children - especially those in a little bit of upheaval.  That need to have some control over your environment is so clear on the page and Mandy does a fantastic job of voicing her uncertainty, her jealousy, and just the frustration of not being able to be in charge of her own destiny just because she's a child.  While she does lie a lot the book very clearly shows the consequences - not just getting caught but the stress and how it hurts those around you which I think would be more effective than a heavily moral story.  And there's a happy ending that I think would satisfy all readers.

While I didn't fall head over heels in love with this book and it isn't landing on my Keeper Shelf I am glad I read it.  It was well written and hooked me even when I didn't care for what was happening on the page.  I have heard that Edwards has several other books and I'm curious about them. While I think I would have rated this Really Good or even Loved it as a child as an adult I'm rating it: Good

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Saturday, March 4, 2017

This Week in Reading - March 5

It's Sunday Post time!  This is hosted by the awesome Caffeinated Book Reviewer and gives us all a chance to recap our week.

What I Got:

Nothing!  I got nothing!  I did start to go run and request some stuff once I realized my shelf was empty for the week but I restrained myself!  I'm hoping that I'll continue to make progress on reading down my review books.




Currently:

Reading:  Bel of the Brawl by Maggie McConnon and I just started The Lake House by Kate Morton

Listening:  I finished Serafina and the Black Cloak by Robert Beatty earlier this week and tomorrow I'm going to start Diamonds are Forever by Ian Fleming.

Watching:  I'm super excited that my guilty pleasure is back on!  I love Catfish on MTV and was almost giddy when it started back up this week.  We also finished up this season of Top Chef.  I was happy with who one but I did kind of want it to go the other way.  

Off the Blog:

Tonight (Saturday) we're going to go see the play Miss Nelson is Missing which is based off one of my favorite books as a child.  I'm super excited - far more than the Tornado though I think he'll enjoy it.  After that I think we'll be taking it easy for the rest of the weekend.  We all seem to be coming down with some kind of bug which I'm not real happy about.  Typically we don't get sick very often but the last little bit we've been struggling.  Does anyone else's teeth hurt when they're really congested?  My dentist says it's normal but the rest of my family looks at me like I'm a weirdo when I complain about it.

I tweaked a muscle at the gym earlier this week so I took a couple of days off.  I decided I wanted to do a few yoga videos so I tried Yoga with Adriene on Youtube.  I'd been hearing about her for awhile and the recommendations were not wrong - she's amazing!  There's a huge collection of videos and she's really easy to follow even for beginners.  I'm looking forward to trying some more on off days.

On the Blog:

What Happened:

What's Coming Up:

Monday: Reviews from the Children's Section - Mandy
Tuesday: The 5s!
Wednesday: Home at Last - Contemporary Romance Review
Thursday: Bel of the Brawl - Cozy Mystery Review
Friday: Linkups with Current Book
Saturday: Sally's Baking Addiction - Cookbook Review

Have a great week and happy reading!
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Pekoe Most Poison - Cozy Mystery Review + Recipe

Pekoe Most Poison (A Tea Shop Mystery) by Laura Childs

Rating: Very Good
Source: NetGalley

Description:  When Indigo Tea Shop owner Theodosia Browning is invited by Doreen Briggs, one of Charleston’s most prominent hostesses, to a “Rat Tea,” she is understandably intrigued. As servers dressed in rodent costumes and wearing white gloves offer elegant finger sandwiches and fine teas, Theo learns these parties date back to early twentieth-century Charleston, where the cream of society would sponsor so-called rat teas to promote city rodent control and better public health.
But this party goes from odd to chaotic when a fire starts at one of the tables and Doreen’s entrepreneur husband suddenly goes into convulsions and drops dead. Has his favorite orange pekoe tea been poisoned? Theo smells a rat.

The distraught Doreen soon engages Theo to pursue a discreet inquiry into who might have murdered her husband. As Theo and her tea sommelier review the guest list for suspects, they soon find themselves drawn into a dangerous game of cat and mouse...

Genre: Mystery - Cozy

 Why I Picked This Book:  I really enjoyed a book I had read in her Scrapbooking series as well as one in her Cackleberry Club series.  I had read the first few in this series years ago and really wanted to revisit it.

My Impression:  This was a delightful cozy mystery!  Laura Childs was one of the first cozy mystery writers I discovered when I first started reading cozy mysteries -around 15 years or so ago - and her mystery game has only gotten stronger.  I loved seeing Theo and Drayton getting involved in the investigation and it was super fun to watch the mystery unravel.  It's always fun when it starts out looking like there couldn't possibly any suspects and then things quickly became more complex than they originally seemed.

While a good mystery is always the fundamental thing in a mystery, Childs manages to make the setting of Charleston, South Carolina itself and Theo's tea shop just as enjoyable.  Charleston is a beautiful city with a fascinating and diverse history and I really enjoyed seeing little tidbits of this pop up throughout the book.  As well I really enjoyed seeing the inside of the tea shop and my mouth absolutely watered with all the mentions of Haley's yummy sounding creations.  Luckily there are tons of recipes and tips on tea at the back of the book.  This is a fantastic read for a rainy day - just make sure you have a big steaming cup of tea and a tasty scone.  I recommend the apricot scones from the recipe below!

My copy of Pekoe Most Poison is a review copy and didn't have the recipes but luckily my library has a bunch in this series (which I'm looking forward to reading) and I picked up Steeped in Evil which has a recipe for Apricot Scones that turned out absolutely fantastic!

Apricot Scones

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder 
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons cold butter, diced up
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup chopped dried apricots

Preheat oven to 375. In a bowl, combine flour, sguar, baking powder, and salt.  Cut in butter with fork or pastry blender until crumbly.  Stir in cream, then add apricots.  Knead dough 5 or 6 times on a lightly floured surface until dough forms a ball.  Roll dough into a circle about 6 inches thick.  Cut into approximately 16 triangles.  Place scones on greased baking sheet, sprinkle a little extra sugar on top, and bake 16 to 20 minutes.

Now I just wish I had some of that Devonshire cream that Theo always serves with her scones!

I'm linking up with Weekend Cooking hosted by Beth Fish Reads




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Friday, March 3, 2017

Friday Linkups: Mandy














It's Friday linkup time!  I'm linking up with the Book Blogger Hop hosted by Coffee Addicted Writer, Book Beginnings of Fridays hosted by Rose City Reader, and the Friday 56 hosted by Freda's Voice

 This Week's Book Blogger Hop Question:
When you start reading a novel, do you prefer to be plunged right into the action or do you prefer a slower more descriptive introduction to the plot and characters?

My Answer:
It depends on the book itself I think.  If the plot is all action than I like leaping right in but if the book is more character driven or relies more on the atmosphere than a slower descriptive introduction works.  The main thing for me is regardless of the speed of the start I'm immediately interested in the story!

This week's book is one I'm really excited about and one I wish I had discovered when I was a kid as it would have been a book I think I would have loved.  I discovered it on Goodreads when I first joined up and was looking through the recommendations and it's one of the reasons I really wanted to up my Middle Grade fiction reading this year.  Mandy by Julie Edwards (better known by her maiden name Andrews) is a story about an orphan with her own private refuge and a book I'm absolutely loving!

The Beginning:
On the outskirts of a pretty country village called St. Martin's Green, there stands a large, white house called St. Martin's Orphanage.

My Thoughts:
In the blurb it mentions that the Matron is kind to her but I like that it opens with pleasant imagery.  So often orphanages in this kind of fiction are gloomy and miserable but this sounds pretty.

The 56: 
Sue spoke in a soft voice, "Mandy, shall we go to the old quarry tomorrow and play?  It's Sunday and it would be fun."

My Thoughts: 
The quarry does sound like a fun place to play though it does make me wonder just how much supervision these kids have as it doesn't sound very safe!

So what do you think?  Keep reading?
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Thursday, March 2, 2017

One Wild Night - Contemporary Romance Review

One Wild Night by Melissa Cutler

Rating: Good
Source: NetGalley

 Description: A cowgirl at heart, Skye Martinez has a rebellious streak she's determined to shake. Especially since she's poised to take the reins of her family's business at Briscoe Ranch Resort. It's time for her to settle down and get serious about her future...right after one last night of fun with a handsome stranger she meets in the resort's stable. But when a midnight horseback ride turns into a red-hot weekend with one of country music's biggest stars, Skye's world is rocked beyond her wildest dreams...
Gentry Wells rode his bad boy image all the way to the top of the country music charts. But churning out hits has dried up his creativity, and he can't remember the last time his life was his own. Skye is a sexy distraction he can't resist, especially since she breathes new life into his music. They bring out the wild side in each other, which is great for Gentry's career—but a major threat to Skye's. Too bad he's fallen in love with her. With their hearts and futures on the line, can Gentry convince Skye to turn their joyride into a real chance to ride off into the sunset together?

Genre: Romance - Contemporary 

 Why I Picked This Book: I like contemporary romance and I'm always looking for new to me authors.  I also loved that Gentry is a celebrity.

My Impression:  There was a lot I liked about this one.  I loved the family feel and Skye works with many of her relatives and her mother and both grandmothers play important roles in the story.  I enjoyed the grandmothers' hijinks and seeing the more serious relationship with her mother.  I especially enjoyed the work type scenes.  It always drives me crazy when a character has a specific job for a plot point and then after she finds the dead body (that'd be more of a mystery than a romance) or meets the guy or his mother or his dog - never goes to it again.  Skye is warm and funny with a serious rebellious streak but also wants to settle down and make her parents proud of her.
I really loved Gentry.  He's got this bad boy image that's more than a little created by management and he's kind of at a cross-roads professionally, creatively, and personally and at the start of the book comes off as a little lost and just plain sad.  From the first run in with Skye it was fun to see the light kind of show back up in him.  I loved the relationship between him and his band mate Nick and enjoyed the not always flattering commentary on the music industry.  Plus, the man understands the meaning of the term "grand gesture" which is always an added bonus in a romance.
For the most part I enjoyed the conflict.  It made sense that Skye wouldn't trust Gentry given her past and his reputation.  It also made sense that Gentry isn't always the clearest on just what he wants in life since at the beginning of the book he seems so lost.  There's also another conflict that is one I typically dislike the most but actually worked here which was a surprise.  There were a number of issues that cropped up in the book but their reactions felt right and it was easy to believe that these people would react like that which is a big plus for me.

There were some things I didn't like.  Skye's rebellious streak is very prominent and seems to head towards self-sabotage at times.  I think it's not unrealistic but I didn't relate to her as much as I'd like because there were times I thought she was being super irresponsible and I wanted to shake her.  At times the book felt slightly disjointed with some parts being almost slapstick and then at other times it strayed towards angsty.

Overall, this wasn't my favorite read of the year but it was an enjoyable.   I love the setting the author has built up and am looking forward to reading more of the series.  This is the 3rd in the One and Only Texas series but honestly I would have had no idea it wasn't a stand alone if Goodreads hadn't told me.

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?:   I would!  I'd like to see a little more of Briscoe Ranch Resort and get to know more of the characters.

Would I Recommend this Book?:  If you enjoy contemporaries - especially with a Western theme I think you'd like this.
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Wednesday, March 1, 2017

Fatality By Firelight - Blog Tour Cozy Mystery Review + Giveaway

Fatality by Firelight by Lynn Cahoon

Fatality by Firelight (A Cat Latimer Mystery) Cozy Mystery 2nd in Series Kensington (February 28, 2017) Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages ISBN-13: 978-1496704375 
E-Book ASIN: B01GBAG6VO

Synopsis

Cat Latimer’s Colorado bed-and-breakfast plays host to writers from all over. But murder is distinctly unwelcome . . . To kick off a winter writing retreat, Cat and her handyman boyfriend, Seth, escort the aspiring authors to a nearby ski resort, hoping some fresh cold air will wake up their creative muses. But instead of hitting the slopes, they hit the bar—and before long, a tipsy romance novelist named Christina is keeping herself warm with a local ski bum who might have neglected to tell her about his upcoming wedding. Next thing Cat knows, her uncle, the town sheriff, informs her that the young man’s been found dead in a hot tub—and Christina shows up crying and covered in blood. Now, between a murder mystery, the theft of a rare Hemingway edition, and the arrival of a black-clad stranger in snowy Aspen Hills, Cat’s afraid everything’s going downhill . .

My Thoughts: 

I've been reading Cahoon's Tourist Trap series since the beginning and it just seems to be getting stronger and I'm thrilled to see that seems to be the case with the Cat Latimer series as well!  While I enjoyed the first book in this series Cat, Shauna and their writing retreat really seems to be hitting their stride in this second book full of theft and murder where just about everyone is a suspect!  I love getting the little tidbits about the writing retreat and the writing process and I would absolutely love to explore Cat's Victorian house.  It sounds amazing!  The mysteries - the stolen book and the murder -  were puzzling.  Just as I thought I had something figured out a new twist would appear and I'd be back to square one!   I did feel like one aspect of the book involving the college and the death of Cat's ex-husband came a little out of left field though I'm curious to see how that gets woven into future books.  While most mysteries are standalones the subplot involving Cat's ex-husband's death may be a little confusing to those that didn't read the first book.  Don't let that stop you though - A Story to Kill is a fun mystery as well!.  My one piece of advice - don't read this on an empty stomach because just the mention of some of Shauna's yummy treats (especially the banana bread waffles) will have you wanting to snack!  If you enjoy a fun cozy mystery and like reading about the writing process than this is a book and a series that I think you'd really enjoy!  Rating: Good


About The Author

Lynn Cahoon is the author of the NYT and USA Today best-selling Tourist Trap cozy mystery series. Guidebook to Murder, book 1 of the series won the Reader's Crown for Mystery Fiction in 2015. She's also pens the recently released, Cat Latimer series. A STORY TO KILL, book 1, came out in mass market paperback September 2016.She lives in a small town like the ones she loves to write about with her husband and two fur babies. Sign up for her newsletter at www.lynncahoon.com

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