Carol J.'s Books Read in 2021

[Carol]

42. The Lions of Fifth Avenue by Fiona Davis - This was a slow starter, but it really grabbed my attention as the story unwound. Two stories taking place in two different times about two women, grandmother and the grand daughter she never got to meet. **** 2/20/21

[Elyse, Moderator]

Carol wrote: "Wow! I did not know that! I added Romeo and Juliet to my TBR list! I had never heard of Hewson (thinking he just had a few books...). He has written a ton of books! Thanks for the heads up.

I may have told you about this before, but if you like Shakespeare rewrites, then you might like New Boy (Hogarth Shakespeare) by Tracy Chevalier. It is Othello in the 1970s. I loved it. Most of the books in this series, I rated 3 stars, but I gave New Boy 5 stars (IMHO)..."

Cool thanks for the rec! I'm not a huge fan of Shakespeare retellings but sometimes I stumble onto some good ones! Still doesn't make me want to read the originals. lol

[Juli, Moderator]

Carol wrote: "13. Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes - Evvie Drake is a complicated woman. She is a recent widow who seems to have some baggage. ***** 1/19/2020"

I keep meaning to pick this one up.

[Carol]

42. Well Met by Jen DeLuca - Emily has come to town to help her sister who is recovering from a broken leg. This includes "volunteering" at the local Renaissance Faire! **** 2/22/21

[Elyse, Moderator]

Carol wrote: "42. Well Met by Jen DeLuca - Emily has come to town to help her sister who is recovering from a broken leg. This includes "volunteering" at the local Renaissance Faire..."

So fun! I really liked this book! I hope to read #2 before #3 comes out this year.

[Carol]

Elyse wrote: "Carol wrote: "42. Well Met by Jen DeLuca - Emily has come to town to help her sister who is recovering from a broken leg. This includes "volunteering" at the local Ren..."

Me too! Maybe we should do a buddy read...

[Elyse, Moderator]

Carol wrote: "Elyse wrote: "Carol wrote: "42. Well Met by Jen DeLuca - Emily has come to town to help her sister who is recovering from a broken leg. This includes "volunteering" at..."

I would definitely be up for that as we get closer to the release date for Well Matched! Maybe August/September? Overdrive/Libby has Well Played on audio.

[Carol]

Sounds good!

[Elyse, Moderator]

Carol wrote: "Sounds good!"

I've thrown it in my calendar to bring up on Aug 1.

[Carol]

43. Plague Land by S.D. Sykes - Oswald de Lacy is the third son of the Lord of Somerhill Manor. His father died and his two older brothers died of the plague. He never expected to be the next Lord of Somerhill Manor. *** 2/23/2021

[Carol]

44. Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman - Wow. An interesting novel on the mental health of a teen boy. Very affecting. **** 2/24/2021

[Carol]

45. Mrs. Pollifax and the Lion Killer by Dorothy Gilman - Mrs. Pollifax and her young friend, Kadi fly to the African country of Ubangiba. **** 2/25/2021

[Carol]

46. The Promised Neverland, Vol. 6 by Kaiu Shirai - Another manga about the kids of Grace Field House, or should I say runaways... Now they have met some new friends to help them through the forest, or are they friends... **** 2/25/2021

[Carol]

47. Very Valentine by Adriana Trigiani - Valentine works for her grandmother in the family business... shoe making. Valentine is dating the handsome Roman and has a chaotic Italian family. **** 2/26/2021

[Carol]

48. The Case of the Reincarnated Client (Vish Puri #5) by Tarquin Hall - Vish Puri is visited by a woman who claims to be the reincarnation of a woman who supposedly died in the 1984. Vish wants to dismiss the case, but his Mummy-ji thinks there may be something there. **** 2/27/2021

[Carol]

49. Twelve Sharp by Janet Evanovich - The wife of Ranger shows up and confronts Stephanie. She ends up murdered and Ranger is the prime suspect. Ranger claims not to have a wife and Stephanie investigates. **** 2/27/2021

[Carol]

50. Trouble in Nuala by Harriet Steel - Inspector Shanti de Silva and his wife move to the small town of Nuala in Ceylon. He is looking forward to a slower lifestyle, but he has to investigate the death of one of Nuala's citizens. ** 2/28/2021

[Carol]

51. Warm Up by V.E. Schwab - David died then came back. When he came back he brought a special power with him. *** 3/2/2021

[Juli, Moderator]

Carol wrote: "42. Well Met by Jen DeLuca - Emily has come to town to help her sister who is recovering from a broken leg. This includes "volunteering" at the local Renaissance Faire..."

I enjoyed Well Played as well. I am really looking forward to Well Matched because the single mom sister is my favorite character.

[Carol]

52. Trace by Patricia Cornwell - After a 18 year break I am picking up the Kay Scarpetta series again. She is asked to return to the Richmond, VA coroner's office to investigate the mysterious death of a young girl. *** 3/4/2021

[Carol]

53. The Chestnut Man by Søren Sveistrup - There is a rash of serial killings going on in Copenhagen, Denmark and the killer leaves a “chestnut man” as his calling card. *** 3/4/2021

[Elyse, Moderator]

Carol wrote: "53. The Chestnut Man by Søren Sveistrup - There is a rash of serial killings going on in Copenhagen, Denmark and the killer leaves a “chestnut man” as his cal..."

I chose this from BOTM a few years ago and still haven't read it!

[Carol]

Elyse wrote: "Carol wrote: "53. The Chestnut Man by Søren Sveistrup - There is a rash of serial killings going on in Copenhagen, Denmark and the killer leaves a “chestnut ma..."

IMHO, it has a Girl w/ the Dragon Tattoo vibe. It is well written, but dark. Am glad I read it, though.

[Elyse, Moderator]

Carol wrote: "Elyse wrote: "Carol wrote: "53. The Chestnut Man by Søren Sveistrup - There is a rash of serial killings going on in Copenhagen, Denmark and the killer leaves ..."

Ahh okay thanks for that. I loved the first 3 Lisbeth books, actually written by Larsson.

[Carol]

54. The Singapore School of Villainy by Shamini Flint - Inspector Singh investigates the death of a senior partner in a law firm. *** 3/5/2021

[Carol]

55. The Undertaker's Assistant by Amanda Skenandore - Effie Jones was a former slave who escaped to the North as a child. She was then raised by an army surgeon and his wife. Shew as trained to be an undertaker's assistant. *** 3/8/2021

[Carol]

56. The Kingdom of the Gods by In-Wan Youn - This is a graphic novel. Netflix is running a version of this book called The Kingdom. It is very different from the book, but very good. The story takes place hundreds of years ago. There is a famine and the people are starving. They get fed some human flesh that is tainted with what they believe is an epidemic. *** 3/9/2021

[Carol]

57. Grave Secret by Charlaine Harris - A good wrap up for the Harper Connelly series. Harper and her step brother now boy friend are taking a little time off and go visit their younger sisters. While visiting there were some deaths in town and they find out a shocking secret. *** 3/10/2021

[Carol]

58. Games Creatures Play by Charlaine Harris - A collection of short stories all dealing with the supernatural and sports. *** 3/10/2021

[Carol]

59. Before Green Gables by Budge Wilson - The official prequel to L.M. Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables series. Poor Anne was an orphan at just 3 months old and then taken in, and worked very hard by two families in need of help. This prequel tells about how life's path lead her to Marilla and her brother Matthew's doorstep. **** 3/12/2021

[Carol]

60. Village of Scoundrels by Margi Preus - This book is based on the true story of a group of villagers who helped smuggle thousands of Jewish people out of France during WWII. *** 3/13/2021

[Carol]

61. Manitou Canyon by William Kent Krueger - Cork is hired to find a missing grandfather who is lost in the Boundary Water Canoe Area. **** 3/15/21

[Carol]

62. Texas Blood Feud by Dusty Richards - Right at the start of this story, horse thieves struck, ran off, got captured and then got hung. Then things start to get dicey... *** 3/15/2021

[Carol]

63. Plum Lovin' by Janet Evanovich - Diesel, a shadowy person from Stephanie's past shows up and needs help from her. Instead of her being a bounty hunter, she has to step in for a "relationship expert". **** 3/16/2021

[Carol]

64. The Quarryman's Bride by Tracie Peterson - This was a hard story to listen to, but, it was good. Emmalyne Knox & Tavin MacLachlan were close to their wedding date when a tornado took the lives of her two younger sisters. Now she was the youngest sister of the family & was now responsible for taking care of her parents in their old age. She would no longer be able to marry Tavin. Her angry, unyielding father would have it no other way. The story skips 10 years in the future when Emmalyne Knox & Tavin MacLachlan were thrown together again. *** 3/19/21

[Carol]

65. Murder on the Caronia by Conrad Allen - George Dillman & Genevieve Masefield are undercover as detectives on the ship called The Caronia. Under a police escort, are two murder suspects and as usual, that is not the only thing going on. *** 3/30/2021

[Carol]

66. Seven Keys to Baldpate by Earl Derr Biggers - An author comes to Baldpate Inn to quietly work on a book. So much goes on it is hard to get work done. ** 3/20/2021

[Carol]

67. Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline - In Ready Player One, Wade Watts wins Halliday's grand prize. In this book, Ready Player Two, Wade discovers an "Easter Egg" left by James Halliday. Plus, he discovers a rival that could take it all away. ***** 3/21/2021

[Andrea, Moderator]

Carol wrote: "40. The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe - What a sweet idea for a book. A son, who takes his mom to her many chemotherapy appointment..."

Carol, I thought this book was just so touching and amazing in so many ways. I still think about it now and then and I read it several years ago.

[Carol]

68. Death by His Grace by Kwei Quartey - This was a dark, last book in the Darko Dawson series. Darko's wife's cousin was brutally murdered and he is asked to look into it. *** 3/21/2021

[Carol]

Andrea wrote: "Carol wrote: "40. The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe - What a sweet idea for a book. A son, who takes his mom to her many chemothera..."

I agree. I read it after my Mother in Law passed. Very touching.

[Andrea, Moderator]

Oh wow, that must have made it even more meaningful, Carol.

[Carol]

69. Bullet for a Star by Stuart M. Kaminsky - First book in the Toby Peters Private Eye series. Toby is hired to get a supposed photo and negative of a dicey picture of Errol Flynn. ** 3/22/2021

[Carol]

70. The Hidden Staircase by Carolyn Keene - Am revisiting this book I read as an early teen. Nancy's Dad has been threatened by a former client, Nathan Gombet. Also, a friends of Nancy's have been hearing strange noises in their home. Nancy investigates. *** 3/23/2021

[Carol]

71. Mrs. Pollifax, Innocent Tourist by Dorothy Gilman - Emily Pollifax is again the hero in this mystery/adventure. She is asked to accompany her friend, John Farrell to Jordan in order to retrieve a manuscript of great importance. **** 3/25/2021

[Carol]

72. The Strange Disappearance of a Bollywood Star by Vaseem Khan - Detective Chopra is asked to find a missing Bollywood star and finds much more than he bargained for. **** 3/25/2021

[Carol]

73. The Grand Banks Café by Georges Simenon - Inspector Maigret investigates the death of a trawler captain. *** 3/27/2021

[Carol]

74. Lean Mean Thirteen by Janet Evanovich - Stephanie is doing a favor for her friend Ranger that is going to get her into a heap of trouble. *** 3/27/21

[Carol]

75. The Promised Neverland, Vol. 8 by Kaiu Shirai - The story Continues... Emma and Ray travel with "The Geezer" to get to the next spot on their journey to find a human community. Emma gets separated and meets some new companions. **** 3/29/21

[Carol]

76. The Lost Book of Adana Moreau by Michael Zapata - The meandering story of a woman who wrote a sci fi book. The sequel gets lost. ** 3/29/21