A couple of August reads and then September is coming...

Hey book friends!  Hope you've had a good weekend and are ready for the last day of August because September will be here tomorrow!  Can you believe it?  Time does march on, doesn't it?

Thought I would mention a few of my August reads that were good - one of them is Big Little Truths by Liane Moriarty.  I'll get to that one in a minute - mostly because a few asked if I would 'test drive' it and then share my thoughts.  I'll do it!  However, before I talk about that book I wanted to share a couple more that I recommend.

First of all, I have loved Linda Castillo's Kate Burkholder mystery series since the beginning of it.  Think there has been a book a year or close to that.  Anyway, this summer's book is A Dark Path.  It is a bit different because it is made up of 5 short stories that apparently have been published before and one short story that is brand new.  All have Kate, who is Chief of Police in her hometown of Painter's Mill, Ohio, and also her significant other, Tomasetti, and her team.  This area has a very large Amish community and Kate herself was raised Amish, but left that faith when she was in her late teens.  She became a police officer and eventually returned to her home as the Chief of Police.  This gives her a unique perspective on the area and the residents.  I'm not the biggest fan of short stories, but I wanted to share I did really enjoy this collection and recommend it highly.  I'll look forward to reading this series, hopefully, for years to come.

Another book I'd like to recommend is The Summer Guests by Tess Gerritsen.  It's the second book in her 'Martini Club' series that features a group of retired CIA agents that live now in coastal Maine and get together to sip martinis and also end up helping to solve crimes.  The local police chief doesn't quite know how to deal with them, but they have helped her out in both this book and the first one, The Spy Coast.  The mystery book group that I attend read and discussed The Spy Coast last year and gave it a definite thumbs-up.  I have also enjoyed many other books by the author, especially her Rizzoli and Isles series.  The 3rd book has just been published.  It's called The Shadow Friends and I'm making my way through it now.  Liking it a lot so far. 

OK, what did I think about Big Little Truths, Liane Moriarty's new book that is also her first sequel?  I re-read Big Little Lies a couple of weeks ago in preparation for this new book and did remember what I liked about it.  It was probably good that I refreshed my memory, but I will say if you haven't read Big Little Lies, you can still get enough info from Big Little Truths to follow the story.  There also was a TV adaptation that many loved.  I did not see the TV show and the author has a note in the beginning of her new book sharing that this is her first sequel and it is a sequel to the book and that the TV show had some changes to the story.  

I did enjoy Big Little Truths.  The group of mothers and families (kids and spouses, boyfriends, etc.) are the same.  In the first book, the kids were in kindergarten.  Ten years have passed and the kids are now 15 and in high school.  New issues, right?  Now the moms are worrying about the kids and drugs, alcohol, sex, grades, etc.  And the moms have their own issues going on as they have 'aged' and so menopause and a 'frozen shoulder' and work problems and marital problems arise.  And...several of the moms are having to deal with their own parents getting older and having health issues and some of the husbands have health issues, etc., etc.  See what I mean?  Life gets more complicated.  They thought that kindergarten was tough.  Ha!  The book also starts with a severed human finger being sent to the high school.  What in the world??  Again, ha!  

That's about all I will say.  Tweaked your interest?  I did like this one and it read very quickly for me.  Do I think everyone will love it?  Probably not.  I don't want to share spoilers so I will just recommend that if it sounds like something you'd like to try, do it!  

I've got a number of books that I want to read for September.  Some will be newly published and some are a little older.  I'm leading the book discussion for the afternoon book group I attend around the middle of the month.  Hope all your reading goes well and I'll try to be back around in a bit to share my reading and will also try to keep up my 'Waiting On Wednesday' posts to share new books I'm excited about.  Take care!     

Waiting On Wednesday - The Vanished Sister

 

'Waiting on Wednesday' is an event where I feature an upcoming book that I am extra excited about.  I used to do this in the past and am making it a priority to do again.  Seriously, who among us doesn't have a book or two or twenty that we are excited about reading?  Plus, it lets us 'spread the word' about authors and series that we personally enjoy.

The Lady Sherlock series is one that I have enjoyed from the very first book.  This new one is the 9th and, again, I am definitely looking forward to reading it.  I have met Sherry Thomas at an author event and really enjoyed hearing her speak about how she came to be a writer and how she decided to 'tweak' the Sherlock Holmes story a bit for her readers.  Are you a Sherlock fan?  Have you tried this series?  It's recommended by me for sure!  

The Vanished Sister

by Sherry Thomas

Publication Date: September 29th

Charlotte Holmes—aka Sherlock Holmes—becomes entangled in a puzzling missing person case that hits close to home for her beloved Mrs. Watson in this Victorian-set mystery from the USA Today bestselling author of A Ruse of Shadows.

It’s been three years since Charlotte Holmes struck a decisive blow against Moriarty's operations in Britain, three years of relative calm and benign developments. In a buoyant mood, everyone gathers at Lord Ingram's seaside cottage in North Devon for what promises to be a perfect summer holiday. Until Mrs. Watson receives an invitation from Mrs. Carstairs, her long-estranged sister, to attend a house party nearby.

Mrs. Carstairs has married spectacularly well. She is the mistress of a great manor, a doyen of all domestic arts, and still an unforgettable beauty. Now she clamors for a reconciliation with her sister. Mrs. Watson does not trust Mrs. Carstairs's motives. Yet she cannot help but feel tremors of the old admiration for this once-beloved sister.

Then Mrs. Carstairs disappears without a trace. The next day a woman is discovered floating on the waves, her build and coloring matching those of Mrs. Carstairs. But her husband insists that the corpse fished out of the Bristol Channel cannot be his wife. So where is the real Mrs. Carstairs? Would she have purposely dragged Mrs. Watson into a murder investigation? Or was it Sherlock Holmes's involvement that she needed from the very beginning?

I really enjoy book groups! Have you known this about me? Ha!

Hi there, friends!  Well, summer is winding down and I bet school has started in many places.  It has in our part of the world.  It's still very hot, but August is usually hot for us.  We look forward to fall coming and I look forward to reading a bit more in the 'spooky' section of mysteries or thrillers.  As I've shared a bit, summer has been quite busy for us.  My reading has kind of been all over the place, but it also seems to be settling down a bit.  I did a bunch of re-reading this summer, but I also read some 'new-to-me' books as well.  And I attended my three book groups regularly.  Had a lot of fun with those!

So, here's the scoop on the last book group meetings I've participated in - all over the last couple of weeks.  The first one is the 'Book Cafe' that I've mentioned a few times.  This takes place at a local library where I volunteer a couple of days a week.  It is for readers to come and talk about what they have been reading - no set book or genre to read.  Just share what's been fun for you or not fun for you if you like.  This last meeting had a couple of new people and they were interesting.  The usual group talked about various genres - sci-fi, fantasy, non-fiction, romances, mysteries, thrillers - you get the idea.  The new people had one gentleman who has pretty much spent his life reading science or non-fiction books and he has decided to try reading fiction.  He is starting with John Grisham and asked if we had read any of those.  Almost everyone had.  Another new person was a lady who has been reading some Sarah Maas books at the recommendation of her daughter.  Don't think this lady quite understands about series books because she didn't like the fact that the stories went on and on and on.  Ha!  Anyway, we gave her encouragement and also said that one doesn't have to read 'all' the books in the series if one doesn't want to.  I shared about re-reading books and got a couple of laughs about 'too many books, not enough time'.  

Next, I attended the Mystery Book Group that I love so much.  We had a theme this month, so everyone read different things.  It was fun to hear all the choices.  The theme was books that included a hobby or pursuit or interest that you enjoyed.  Some shared mysteries with yoga or genealogy or art history or creating art or sewing/knitting/crocheting as part of the story.  Lots of cozy-type books were suggested.  I did a re-read of the first book in Jenn McKinlay's Cupcake Bakery series, Sprinkle With Murder.  There are 16 books in this series, but I haven't read all of them yet.  It was fun and the setting of Scottsdale, AZ was familiar to me.  

I also decided to try a couple of Nicole Maggi's National Park mysteries and use the 'National Parks' as my 'area of interest'.  The first was A Murder In Zion, a park that we have not visited as yet.  The second was Lost In Yellowstone, a park that we saw on vacation last year.  While I didn't love every aspect of the books and the protagonist was a little angsty and emotional at times, I did really enjoy the settings of both books.  The Yellowstone book made me laugh and nod my head and picture places that we visited and contained crazy people who don't want to listen to the park rangers at all.  The main character is an investigator for the National Park Service and, of course, there are crimes/murders in both areas.  Will I read on in the series?  Yes, I will and I think the 3rd book will have a Death Valley setting, based on a hint at the end of the Yellowstone tale.  The Mystery Book Group will be reading With A Vengeance by Riley Sager for September.  I've already done a read/listen and will be interested in what others think.

OK, I know this post is getting a little long.  The 3rd book group I attend is one I call the Afternoon Book Group.  Both the mystery group and this one are at the branch library in Austin where I worked and volunteered for a long time.  I had not read the August book, but I wanted to hear what others thought about it, so I attended.  The book was A Far-Flung Life by M.L. Stedman.  The discussion was quite interesting, but I'm not sure I will pick it up and try it.  Several others had not read it either, but many had read the author's first book, The Light Between Oceans.  I told the group that I had read the description and some reviews and learned that many thought A Far-Flung Life was quite emotional and a bit heavy.  One lady said it was wonderful and not heavy.  However, when she talked about her experience she said, 'it was quite heavy'.  Ha!  I said, different strokes at different times for each of us, right?  I will be leading the discussion next month at this group's meeting and the selection is Lisa See's new book, Daughters Of The Sun And Moon.  Have not read it yet, but will do so soon.

I'll leave you at this point and will just say that I am glad to be back sharing my reading.  Have you read any of the books I mentioned above?  Thoughts?  Have you attended or been part of regular book groups at libraries or wherever?  I'm sorry to say that I worry that these types of book events are beginning to not be as popular, regular, or available as they once were.  Sigh.  I hope they don't go completely away.  

Have a good weekend!!      

Waiting On Wednesday - Big Little Truths

 

'Waiting on Wednesday' is an event where I feature an upcoming book that I am extra excited about.  I used to do this in the past and am making it a priority to do again.  Seriously, who among us doesn't have a book or two or twenty that we are excited about reading?  Plus, it lets us 'spread the word' about authors and series that we personally enjoy.

I am definitely looking forward to trying Liane Moriarty's first sequel of all her books.  I read Big Little Lies for the first time over 10 years ago, 2014 I believe.  I think I read it first in print and then a few years later listened to it on audio.  Both were fun.  I will admit that I remember parts of that book, but not all.  I did not watch the TV adaptation.  So, I'm thinking I will revisit Big Little Lies again before I pick up Big Little Truths.  I have enjoyed many of this author's books, but a few of them were not my favorites.  Hope this one will be a favorite!  Have you tried Liane Moriarty's works?   

Big Little Truths

by Liane Moriarty

Publication Date:  August 25th

In her first-ever sequel, Liane Moriarty examines the complexities of modern women’s lives, shining light on shame and family secrets with wit and compassion. Whether you’ve read Big Little Lies or not, this is the perfect novel for longtime fans and new readers alike.

The last time we saw the women of Big Little Lies—Madeline, Celeste, Jane, Renata, and Bonnie—their children were five years old. If someone wasn’t invited to a child’s birthday party, feelings were hurt. But ten years have passed, and the kids are now in high school, with all of the drama that accompanies teendom (goodbye playdates, hello drugs, sex, and alcohol).

Now, after the principal of the high school receives a severed human finger in the mail, the parents are in an uproar. But Madeline, Celeste, Jane, Renata, and Bonnie have other things to worry about. Celeste’s mother-in-law, Mary Louise, is behaving oddly—is it old-age forgetfulness and forthrightness, or something more sinister? Madeline is facing perhaps the biggest challenge of her life, Jane is at a dangerous fork in her marriage, Bonnie has realized there’s only so much solace in yoga. And Renata? Renata is living her best life—revenge is sweet.

When a strange man begins lurking around the school asking supposedly innocent questions, this tightly connected group of women must finally face the full repercussions of the big little truths they have and haven’t shared with their kids. Because the stakes are now much higher than not being invited to an ice-skating show—and the ice has never been thinner for any of them.

A little catch-up...

Hi there!  Hope everyone is doing well and not too hot in your region.  We are quite warm here in Central Texas, but it is August after all.  August means hot, humid, and repeat.  Sometimes not quite as humid, but this year has been pretty sticky.

Just thought I would stop by for a very short post and share that I hope to be more regular with my updates now.  We'll see.  It has been a busy summer, but my in-laws have settled in pretty well to their new living situation and my mother-in-law especially has been trying out various activities that are available to them.  Their house sold quickly once it was on the market and that was such a great thing.  Time will tell how things go, but I'm hopeful that they are in a good place and that they will come to enjoy it as much as they can.

We have not travelled this summer as we have been busy with the 'moving' project, but we do have some plans for the fall.  I'll be in and out, but will try to stop by and share a bit.  September is always a busy month for family stuff - birthdays, etc.  I'm planning to attend two book groups this week, one this afternoon, the Book Cafe, where everyone shares what they have been enjoying reading lately.  I'll also attend my Mystery Book Group on Thursday evening.  Will come back on Friday or this weekend and talk about those.  

My reading has been good at times and tiresome at times.  However, I have enjoyed a number of books and I'll try to share some of those as well.  I've done pretty well keeping up with all your blogs and commenting and have enjoyed that a lot.  I'll leave you with another chalk art picture, this one of a lovely buck.  Enjoy!