My friend Nan of Letters From A Hill Farm...

I learned a few days ago that one of my dearest friends, Nan, had passed away.  Nan was the author of the blog Letters From A Hill Farm, which I know several of you have visited and enjoyed over many years.  I have been so sad the last few days and will miss her more than I can really communicate in words.  She had not been posting for several months, but she has been missed tremendously.  I wanted to let people who check in here know what had occurred.

Nan and I met on a book site many years ago (like over 25 years).  There were others that we talked with, one of them Les who authors Coastal Horizons, and also Teri who does not write a blog.  The four of us just connected and we have kept up with each other through many years.  We've shared our book love, our love for our families and our children, and the ups and downs of our lives.  Our kids are all grown.  The other three have grandchildren.  Stuff has happened - wonderful things and sad things.  We supported each other through all that life tossed at us.  We have seen each other in person only a few times because we live spread out across the US.  And we have remained close friends.  Nan will be missed so, so much.

Les has written a wonderful, touching post about Nan on her blog here.  I encourage you to read it.  She said so many great things about Nan and has some lovely pictures as well.  Please do read it.  Nan and I met in person 3 times - once in 1998 at a bookstore in my area, once in 2017 in her part of the world that I wrote about here, and the last time in 2018 when she travelled again to Texas.  My thoughts on that are here.  Some may wonder how friends could know each other so well without being together face-to-face.  Well, it can happen.  For sure.       

I'll leave you with a quote from A.A. Milne that describes my feelings for Nan in the past and for the future.  And I'll encourage you to reach out to old friends, make new friends, and practice gratitude every day.  You won't regret it.  Take care, book friends!

Waiting on Wednesday - The Girl From Devil's Lake

 

'Waiting on Wednesday' is an event where I feature an upcoming book that I am extra excited about.  I love doing this, letting the 'word' spread about authors and series that I enjoy.   Hope you'll stop by often and see what I'm 'waiting' on.

The book I'm 'waiting on' this week is the 21st in one of the mystery series written by J. A. Jance.  I read the first book in the series, Desert Heat, back in 1995.  Since that time, I've read 6 or 7 others and then, after a gap of quite a while, have read the latest two books.  These books are set in Arizona and the main protagonist is Sheriff Joanna Brady.  Joanna comes to that profession after her husband, Andy, who had been the sheriff, is killed.  In the first book, Joanna and Andy have a daughter who is 9 years old.  This latest book relates that the daughter, Jenny, is graduating from the police academy.  Time has past for sure.  As you guys know, I love mystery series.  I have not been able to keep up with all the ones that I sample though.  Lately, I have been trying to catch up on several.  Some I've reread the previous books and am now current.  Some, like this one, I'm just skipping ahead in order to get current.  Have you ever read any books by J.A. Jance?  As I said, she has more than one series.  See what you think about this one.  

The Girl From Devil's Lake

by J.A. Jance

Publication Date: September 30

Arizona County Sheriff Joanna Brady solves her biggest case yet, from a body in the desert to crimes spanning decades and countries, in the thrilling latest installment in the New York Times bestselling suspense series.

Sheriff Joanna Brady is looking forward to the holidays with her busy family, and to celebrating her daughter Jenny’s graduation from the police academy. But the family is interrupted when a body is discovered beneath a flooded bridge in the Arizona desert, and Joanna is called onto the case. A young boy was murdered, and the details of the crime scene tell Joanna two things: This was not the killer’s first murder. And it’s only a matter of time before he kills again.

As Joanna digs deeper into the case, she begins to understand this murder is just one piece of a much, much bigger puzzle. She uncovers unlikely connections between cases of mysterious deaths and missing persons, having long since gone cold, that extend far beyond the confines of her small town and include the discovery of a body near Devil’s Lake, North Dakota. To get justice for the victims and to save the town of Bisbee from a predator, Joanna must chase down every dangerous lead.

Meanwhile, as a dogged journalist is circling the case and privileged information is leaked, Joanna can’t be sure who to trust. Could a prolific killer be hiding in plain sight? And how far will that person go to keep his many crimes hidden?

Vacation shots in Ruidoso, New Mexico - did you know that bears read?

Good morning all!  Hope you have had a nice weekend and are looking forward to fall.  We don't have any 'fall-ish' things in our area as yet, but honestly, we don't get a lot of lovely turning leaves, etc.  Too far south.  Just happy that the 100-degree temps seem to be done for this year. 

I thought I would share a few pics from our July vacation to New Mexico.  We have loved visiting the Ruidoso area of that state for many years.  We were in that part of the world just after the 4th and unfortunately heard about the flooding in Central Texas during our trip.  Put a bit of a damper on things.  Also, this area of New Mexico had big fires and flooding in 2024 and it was our first time visiting since that.  They have worked so hard to get things mostly back to normal, but are still struggling with flooding exacerbated by the burn scars and debris that continues to flow into their river.  In fact, we ended leaving a couple of days early because there was severe flooding during that July week.  I'm afraid their recovery will be slow for quite a period of time.  

However, on to happier notes.  The picture below was one I took on a walk around the outside of the golf course that is in town.  It's called 'The Links'.  It was a lovely morning and my husband was enjoying the golf and I was loving my walk. 

This next shot is of the golf course at The Inn of the Mountain Gods resort.  Another lovely course with walking trails all around.  And another lovely morning.  Crisp and cool.  

The Ruidoso Public Library can be found along the walking trail that I shared in the first picture.  I, naturally, stopped by that library on my walk and also took a couple of pictures to share.  It's a lovely little library with some cute sculptures outside of it.  Those pictures are below and I ask you - did you know that bears can read?  No?  Well, they certainly can in Ruidoso.  Thought those were very sweet.  

Yes, bears can read!  Think both of these are fun and I had to wait a bit because there were kids around playing with the bears and getting their pictures taken with them.  LOL

Thanks for stopping by!  I'll be back later in the week with a 'Waiting on' post and also, hopefully, a post to share a little about what I read this summer and hope to read this fall.  Have a good week!!

Waiting on Wednesday - The Librarians

 

'Waiting on Wednesday' is an event where I feature an upcoming book that I am extra excited about.  I love doing this, letting the 'word' spread about authors and series that I enjoy.   Hope you'll stop by often and see what I'm 'waiting' on.

I wanted to especially feature this new book by Sherry Thomas, The Librarians.  I had attended an author event back in the early spring where I got to see Sherry and hear her speak.  I shared that experience here.  She talked about her writing, especially her 'Lady Sherlock' mystery series (which I love).  She also told us about this new standalone book that she had been asked by her publisher to write.  Sherry lives in the Austin area and she visited my former workplace, one of the branch libraries of the Austin Public Library, for inspiration.  I had been told about her visit by one of my former work colleagues and he said they took her all around and let her discover the 'secrets' - ha!  I asked him, what secrets??  Anyway, Sherry used the Spicewood Springs branch as her setting in the book and I've gotten to read a bit of the beginning of the book.  The description of the library - yep, she's got it right - ha!  The mystery book group I attend is at this library and as we talked about 'waiting' on this book, it was suggested that we not have a 'mystery-themed' game night.  After all (if you read the description below), you never know what might happen!!  Ha!

The Librarians

by Sherry Thomas

Publication Date:  September 30th

Sometimes a workplace isn’t just a workplace but a place of safety, understanding, and acceptance. And sometimes murder threatens the sanctity of that beloved refuge....

In the leafy suburbs of Austin, Texas, a small branch library welcomes the public every day of the week. But the patrons who love the helpful, unobtrusive staff and leave rave reviews on Yelp don’t always realize that their librarians are human, too.

Hazel flees halfway across the world for what she hopes will be a new beginning. Jonathan, a six-foot-four former college football player, has never fit in anywhere else. Astrid tries to forget her heartbreak by immersing herself in work, but the man who ghosted her six months ago is back, promising trouble. And Sophie, who has the most to lose, maintains a careful and respectful distance from her coworkers, but soon that won't be enough anymore.

When two patrons turn up dead after the library’s inaugural murder mystery–themed game night, the librarians’ quiet routines come crashing down. Something sinister has stirred, something that threatens every single one of them. And the only way the librarians can save the library—and themselves—is to let go of their secrets, trust one another, and band together....

All in a day’s work.

It's September and I'm back...

Hello book friends!  I have missed all of you and sharing my reading journey, but I also have enjoyed time away.  We've been on a couple of vacations (and I'll share about those later this week and next) and I've had a good summer of reading.  Mostly rereading books, but I've caught up on a couple of mystery series and attended some book group meetings.

We went to Ruidoso, New Mexico in July and I have some pics of their library and the 'bear' reader statues that welcome patrons to that nice facility.  We also went with another couple to Yellowstone National Park in late August and enjoyed that very much.  Our first time there.  We saw amazing sights and amazing animals.  The picture I've shared below is of a 'Little Free Library' that's located outside a cafe/coffee shop in Gardiner, Montana.  Gardiner is located just a short bit from the North Entrance to Yellowstone (which is all in Wyoming, by the way).  I was delighted to see this little library and so naturally took a picture of it. 

 

As I said, I'll be back later this week with a new 'Waiting on Wednesday' post and also some pictures of the Ruidoso Library.  I'll also try to share a bit of what I've read this summer and do a couple of Yellowstone posts.  Missed you all.  Tried to comment fairly regularly, but I'm back to 'normal' now.  What have you been up to?  Any 'can't miss' book suggestions?