Ceelee's Wrap Up of 2020 November and December Reads

[Ceelee]

Greetings everyone and Happy 2021! The past couple months have been tough for me and I haven't really been keeping up with my Goodreads groups much. I feel better and ready to get into the new year and the and and the things I like doing. I actually read quite a bit but I didn'thave the energy to get on my computer and post.

November


I read a couple good ARCs that had ghost stories and I liked both.

The Haunting of Bonaventure Circus by Jaime jo Wright



This was one of those dual timeline stories which I am not fond of because usually the modern story is a silly, poorly crafted waste of time. The historic period is almost always the better time period and I wish writers would stick to the past. The Sun Down Motel was the only book I have read in this style that really worked. This was a good novel when it stuck with the past although the ghost story was a bit disappointing.


The Haunting of Beatrix Greene: Episode 1 by Rebecca Hawkins et al.



I LOVED this one! It is about a medium in Victorian London who is a fake and a guy who is trying to debunk her and offers her the chance e to do a séance at his family mansion to contact his mother and to everyone's surprise she is more than successful! It was so funny and had enough creepiness to make it a little scary. It remanded me a little of And Then There Wee None but more like the movie House On Haunted Hill with Vincent Price as his creepy best. Loved it!

The Song Of The Lark by Willa Cather



OMG How I love this book! I was completely enthralled with the story set in the Great Plains of Colorado and is about the life of a young girl who is talented pianist and singer and it follows her life and career. The writing is stellar and one of my very favorite classics! The cover photo is from a painting at the Art Institute of Chicago theta Cather saw and was the inspiration of the story. I don't know why I haven't read anything by her before but this was worth the wait! I could identify with Thea very well iwht her struggles to become a successful singer.

The Secret Adventures of Charlotte Bronte by Laura Joh Rowland



I was really into this book until about page 270 when Charlotte inexplicably got all mushy over the guy she was supposed to be spying on and I lost faith in her after that. On the whole I really liked it because it reminded me of the adventure books I read as a tween and teen with famous girls and young women who were having great adventures solving mysteries.; Nostalgic reading.

Quackery: A Brief History Of The Worst Ways To Cure Everyth9njg Lydia Kang and Nate Pedersen



This book was a group read for the Fall Reading Challenge group. I wasn't sure what to expect but I really enjoyed it! There was a lot of information about the various things used to cure anything from alcoholism, sleeplessness , syphilize (always a popular one) to insanity.
It was told in a rather humorous way although some people in the group seemed to find the humor too dark for their taste but I have a healthy attitude toward death and dark humor amuses me so I laughed all the way through it and shared some of it with people I know who appreciate this sort of humor. Great ads and illustrations too. Highly recommend for people who appreciate this sort of book.

December

Murder At The Village fete by Catherine Coles

I read this for Book Sirens. This is maybe the third or fourth English village murder mystery I have read this year. I needed something light to read and it was a very good cozy mystery. At first I was a little turned off by the obvious cutesy Agatha Christie connections with the couple's last name "Christie" and were very much like the Partners In Crime, Tommy and Tuppence. They won me over and I felt that even though it was a cozy there was a depth to eat you don't always see in that kind of book.

Cat In A Topaz Tango by Carol nelson Douglas



Midnight Louie!!!! Always a great read for me! Vegas, Baby! with the King of the Feline Detectives, Midnight Louie! And a Dancing with the Celebrities' event! Love Love Love! And Carol Nelson Douglas lives in Fort Worth and I met her!

The Nidderdale Murders by J R Ellis



Another one of the English village novels I have read; last year. This one was from NetGalley. It was a little slow for me but still a good mystery and covered things like the local environment and hunting. Kind of on the line of Elizabeth George and her books where she looks at social issues .

Buzz Books 2020 Fall and Winter Edition

Couldn't get a cover page for this book I really enjoy getting this free guide every fall/winter and spring/summer.. I love checking the lists of books to be published and reading the excerpts. Some of the books are huge hits like The Midnight Library but others I haven't seen beyond the feature in this edition.

The Paris Hours by Alex George



I am so glad I ended 2020 with this wonderful book! It is one of my most favorites of the year! A historical novel with famous names among the citizens of Paris s and how they all intersect with each other's lives. Beautiful! This one is a KEEPER!

[Ann]

Ceelee: wow! It looks like you ended the year on a roll, and I'm glad you are feeling better. I may have to check out your ghost stories when they are published and the others too, your reviews are so tempting for several of these!

Ceelee wrote: "Greetings everyone and Happy 2021! The past couple months have been tough for me and I haven't really been keeping up with my Goodreads groups much. I feel better and ready to get into the new year..."

[Ceelee]

Thanks Ann! I really liked everything I read but some better than others. I like writing my reviews like I am talking to a friend and give enough info to pique interest.
I hope you can find those ghost stories! They should be available. Beatrix Greene totally blew me away and I am hoping that there will be more!

[Bonnie]

I added Song of the Lark to my tbr shelf (I loved My Antonia by this author) and was able to buy it for 2.11 (odd price) on kindle.

[Ceelee]

I am so plessed you are going to read it! If it hadn't been for a book challenge, I would have read O Pioneers first. But I am so thrilled over my choice. Thea is the character I didn't know I needed in my life. I really related to her from the beginning.

[Ann]

Ceelee: I may see if a Willa Cather is a possible "books published before I was born" choice.
I have My Ántonia around here somewhere from my daughter's books I think.
Ceelee wrote: "I am so plessed you are going to read it! If it hadn't been for a book challenge, I would have read O Pioneers first. But I am so thrilled over my choice. Thea is the character I didn't know I need..."