Life with Leukemia (And Some Reading) - February 7

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 a week!  We are home from Memphis but it was an exhausting stay.  Our main hospital day was 11 hours and it was 11 PACKED hours.  Will had lab work done, a clinic appointment, reflex and neuropathy checks, physical therapy evaluation, a sedated spinal tap, a full MRI, and heavy chemo.  By the time it was over we limped back to our room and essentially collapsed.  Thankfully he got lots of sleep and isn't feeling too bad now.   He's on pretty heavy steroids for the next 2 or 3 weeks and they typically make him feel awful so we are kind of waiting for the other shoe to drop but for now he's enjoying playing Breath of the Wild on his Switch.  He's a lot tougher then me because I feel like I could sleep for a year and it still might not be enough!  We were supposed to go back to Memphis next week but an undetermined amount of time but just got the call that his treatment can be done at the affiliate.  While we love our St Jude Memphis team this makes things so much easier because we don't have to deal with the logistics of housing.  Also, because of Covid only one parent is allowed to go with the patient which is difficult all the way around.  This way we can all stay together.  Plus the St Jude affiliate in Huntsville has a therapy dog and that's hard to beat.

Since we are staying home for the foreseeable future I'm finally getting fully unpacked and tackling all the random chores I've been putting off - mostly cleaning out and reorganizing drawers and cabinets.  This needed to be done before we moved back in June and then when we got back in December we've just been shoving stuff in.  It'll be nice to actually find things again without having to search!  

Currently:

Reading:  Furbidden Fatality by Deborah Blake and The Clock Strikes Twelve by Patricia Wentworth

Listening:  A Treacherous Curse by Deanna Raybourn though I should finish this one today.

Watching:  Just YouTube videos.  I've basically been falling asleep on my feet so that's all I've had the energy for.

Have a great week and happy reading!

January 2021 Reading Recap

 

Number of Books Read This Month: 16

Bookish Breakdown: 

Audio: 5

Print:  8

Kindle:  3

Mystery:  10

Fiction:  6

Rereads:  3

Backlog Books: 7

My Favorite Book of the Month:

The Elusive Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman - Words cannot express how much I enjoy this series!

The Last Garden in England by Julia Kelly - I loved all three timelines in this story and the only downside is this garden doesn't actually exist.  I would love to visit it.

Least Favorite Book of the Month:

How Right You Are, Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse - I actually did enjoy this but I prefer the stories where Jeeves is more of a central character as my favorite part is how Jeeves and Bertie play off each other.  Since Jeeves is on vacation for most of this book I was missing this aspect.

Books I'm Still Reading:  None!  I finished all the books I was reading on January 31 and held off starting new ones until February 1st.

Goals For Next Month:  To try and get in a little more reading time and a little less flipping mindlessly on my phone time.  I also would like to read a nonfiction book and to continue focusing on finishing up series. 

How was your January?

Friday Fives - February TBR

I'm taking a bit of a break from my usual Friday Linkups to try something a little different.  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.  Since today is the first Friday in February I'm putting together my February TBR.  January was a smashing success and I managed to read all 5 so I'm hoping for a repeat of that success!

1.  The Clock Strikes Twelve by Patricia Wentworth - This is the next book in my Miss Silver readthrough and I'm so looking forward to it!

2.  A Side of Murder by Amy by Amy Pershing - This one is a review book I have scheduled for later in the month and it sounds fantastic.  Plus I love seeing a dog on a cozy cover.  It's a nice break from all the cats!

3.  Little Bookshop of Murder by Maggie Blackburn - This is an overdue review book from 2020 and I'm really looking forward to it.  I love a good bookish cozy.

4.  Missing!: Mysterious of People Gone Missing Through the Centuries by Brenda Z. Guiberson - This is nonfiction that looks really interesting.  It's a compilation of missing persons cases through the years but it's aimed for a younger audience so I might do it as a read aloud.

5.  A Treacherous Curse by Deanna Raybourn - I have the most recent book coming up on my review list for March and I'm trying to catch up on the middle books in this series that I haven't read.

What are you hoping to read in February?

Books from the Backlog - The Readaholics and the Poirot Puzzle

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 Readaholics and the Poirot Puzzle by Laura DiSilverio

Blurb: Agatha Christie is on the book club’s reading list in the latest from the author of The Readaholics and the Falcon Fiasco. This time, Amy-Faye and her friends might have to read between the lines to catch a killer.
Amy-Faye Johnson’s book club, the Readaholics, is engrossed in Murder on the Orient Express, and Poirot’s surprising resolution is stirring up debate. Is the solution remotely realistic? Is justice served by Poirot's decision? Well, the book is fiction after all…

Then, just as Amy-Faye is planning the grand opening of her brother Derek’s pub,

his hot-headed partner is murdered. To keep Derek from being railroaded as a suspect, Amy-Faye and the Readaholics take a page from Poirot and investigate. But as the clues lead to unlikely places, surprising motives, and a multitude of suspects, Amy-Faye and her pals wonder if truth can be just as strange as fiction.

Why It Needs to Come Off the Shelf: I read a later book in the series and absolutely loved it so I have to try one that involves one of my favorite fictional detectives.  

Mini Cozy Reviews #2

Goodreads: Bells, Spells and Murder by Carol J. Perry - 

The Basic Premise: When beloved chairman of the historical charities in Salem, MA is found murdered field reporter Lee Barrett puts on her Investigative Reporter hat and dives into the investigation.  With her researcher extraordinaire Aunt Ibby by her side they're trying to catch a killer before Christmas.

My Thoughts: This series just keeps getting better!  I love Lee's new job as a reporter and the access it gives her to crime scenes and investigations.  I love her relationship with her Aunt Ibby and Pete and was so glad to see the crew of the news station being regular side characters.  The mystery was a solid one with lots of clues and questions and side angles.  I had a few things figured out but there were still some surprises in the final reveal.  And as usual I found O'Ryan's (Lee's big orange cat and former witch's familiar) contributions absolutely delightful.  My Rating: Really Liked It!

Goodreads: Dangling by a Thread by Lea Wait

The Basic Premise:  Jesse Lockhart has found peace and a purpose out on the otherwise uninhabited King's Island where he protects the Cormorants.  But that peace is interrupted when a local realtor shows up on the island and demands he sells.  Chaos breaks out when Angie's friend Dave is shot and Jesse is found murdered.  Luckily Angie is on the case with the help of the Mainely Needlepointers and a kitten or three!

My Thoughts:   It has been too long since I read a book in this series but I was able to jump in right where I left off.  Angie is a bit grittier then the usual cozy main character. She's not sure what she wants to do with her life, she's lonely, and just generally at loose ends.  While she's not necessarily the most likable of my cozy character she's probably the most realistic even if she does get in her own head a bit too much sometimes.  This was an interesting read.  I really enjoyed all the tidbits about life in Maine and what's common in a lobster bake and things like that.  I also loved the chapter headings that featured old samplers and even gave a tiny bit of information about the girl who had made it.  The mystery didn't have the most surprising reveal but I didn't mind because getting to the end was so enjoyable.  I'm already looking forward to the next book!  My Rating:  Liked It!

Top Ten Tuesday - Ten Books on My TBR That Were Published Before I Was Born

 Today I'm linking up with Top Ten Tuesday hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl which is all about lists.  Since lists are one of my favorite things this is one of my favorite linkups!  Today's topic is Ten Books on My TBR That Were Published Before I Was Born.  

1.  Persuasion by Jane Austen - I am finally broadening out my Austen reading from Pride and Prejudice and this is next on my list.

2.  Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey - This is on my classic mystery list this year and it sounds like a good read.

3.  Mrs. Miniver by Jan Struther - The movie that is loosely based on this book is one of my absolute favorite movies so I'm looking forward to reading this one.

4.  Miss Plum and Miss Penny by Dorothy Evelyn Smith - I saw a review of this on Lil's Vintage World on YouTube and it sounds absolutely delightful so I'm looking forward to hunting this one down.

5.  The Rescuers by Margery Sharp - I only recently discovered that one of my all time favorite Disney movies was based on a book and now I need to read it!

6.  The Children of Green Knowe by L.M. Boston - I discovered this when I had looked up L.M. Montgomery on Goodreads and I really want to give this series a try.

7.  The Story of the Treasure Seekers by E. Nesbit - I feel like Nesbit is such a classic children's author but I somehow never heard of her until I was an adult.  I'm not really feeling middle grade right now but this one is high up on my list when I'm back in the mood for that genre.

8.  Turn of the Screw by Henry James - This has been on my TBR for ages and I've never gotten to it.

9.  The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde - Ditto above!

10. Cloud of Witness by Dorothy L Sayers - Another book on my classic mystery list and Sayers is an author I'd like to read more from.

What books published before you were born are on your TBR?

Undercover Kitty - Cozy Mystery Review

Goodreads:  Undercover Kitty (Second Chance Cat Mystery #8) by Sofie Ryan

Rating:  Liked It!
Source:  Publisher
 
Description:  Sarah and Elvis can always be found at a charming secondhand shop in the village of North Harbor, Maine. Despite the small-town setting, the daring duo often find themselves wrapped up in murder, but luckily they have help--a quirky group of senior citizens runs an amateur detective agency called Charlotte's Angels out of the store.

The Angels are hired to look into who is sabotaging cat shows in the state, and they decide the best way to do that is to send Elvis the cat undercover as a contestant. But then one of the cat show volunteers is murdered just before the latest competition, and Sarah and the Angels have to catch a killer in two shakes of a cat's tail!

Genre:  Mystery - Cozy

Why I Picked This Book:  This is a series I always enjoy and I was really excited to start this one - especially since Elvis is front and center.

My Impression:  I was pretty excited when I saw that Elvis is the star of the show in this book.  He's one of my favorite book cats and he did not disappoint!  Elvis is his usual adorable self and does not hesitate to voice his opinion (only in meows though he does get his point across).  I enjoyed the behind the scenes of the cat shows and the politics of the different cat groups.

While there is a mystery from the very beginning which is why the Angels are at the cat show in the first place the murder doesn't take place for some time and the investigation into that doesn't really get rolling until almost halfway through.  While it wasn't the most action packed book in the series the characters are so likable and entertaining that it was an entertaining read from start to finish.  

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?   Absolutely!  While this wasn't my favorite it was still fun and I will definitely be continuing with the series.  

Would I Recommend this Book?   I would as well as recommend this series in general.  It is such a fun series and one I think all cozy fans.

* I received this book in exchange for an honest review.  As always my opinions and impressions are completely my own. *