Cozy Mysteries discussion
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When You’re Not Reading a Cozy
My review for
Secrets at the Last House Before the Sea by Liz Eeleshttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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* The Death Factory by Greg Iles —an okay novella.
* Family Blessings by Fern Michaels — Romance novel set primarily around Thanksgiving and Christmas. This was an okay read, definitely not spectacular. I only gave it two stars as there were things about it that irked me.
Think I’m going to concentrate on some short stories for the next day or so. I’m way behind my usual number for the month.
Good luck Heather, but make sure you enjoy it as well :)
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I’m sure I will, just need a palate cleanser before starting my next book, and short stories or novellas are excellent for that. Plus, I’d like to finish at least one of several short story collections in progress before the end of the year — either the O. Henry one (9 stories left) or Eudora Welty (7 left, but they tend to be longer than those by Henry).
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The Nightingale by Kristin Hannahhttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show..."
I read this a couple years ago and it’s one of my all-time favorite books. It’s one that sticks with you long after you’ve finished.
I finished America the Beautiful: A Photographic Journey from Coast to Coast
by Publications International.My short 4 star review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Heather L wrote: "Brenda wrote: "My review for The Nightingale by Kristin Hannahhttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show..."
I read this a ..."
I can see this happening with me too Heather! It was breathtaking.
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"Congrats on your win, I hope you enjoy it!
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Karen M wrote: "Currently reading an ebook on won on GR, The Sun Rose in Paris by Penny Fields-Schneider."I enjoyed that one - I hope you do too :)
Heather L wrote: "Finished Stories by O. Henry by O. Henry — read the last story on the bus this morning and pretty appropriate for December 1, as it was a Christmas story. I started this..."It's been a while since I read any of O. Henry's stories, but he wrote some fun ones. And some serious ones as well. He was definitely gifted.
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Finishing off the week with
"W" is for Wasted by Sue Grafton https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
My review for
A Girl Called Justice: The Spy at the Window by Elly Griffithshttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
My review for
Hope, Mistletoe and a Christmas Promise by Juliet Archerhttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
I finished A Very Merry Bromance
by Lyssa Kay Adams. It wasn't my favorite book of the series but an enjoyable holiday read.
I finished The Lost Witch
by Paige Crutcher.My 3.26 rounded to 3 stars review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The author did a great job of transporting me to this community in both timelines. The imagery was extraordinary. Overall, this was an entertaining story that kept me engaged. The rich storyline with its layered plot, several interesting characters, and plenty of action made this a pleasurable read.
However, the pacing in the middle section of the book was slow. My other quibble is that there were times when the writing was more telling than showing. This also affected the novel’s pacing.
I finished Cleopatra's Vendetta
by Avanti Centrae.My 4.52 rounded to 5 stars review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Centrae does a great job of world-building and makes the locations in the book come alive. She also adds cultural and historical aspects to the places and people making the reading experience an immersive one. What more could I ask for than intrigue, history, science, and mystery in an action thriller?
In starting the week with the historical caper
City of Fortune by Victoria Thompson https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
I finished Deep Sleep
by Steven Konkoly. My 4.5 rounded to 5 stars review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Steven Konkoly’s first book in the Devin Gray series is disconcerting, suspenseful, and action-packed. It has aspects of both political and military thrillers as well as a conspiracy thriller. Konkoly continues to bring great characters, entertaining story lines, and lots of action together in exhilarating novels. I’m looking forward to reading the next book soon.
My weekend readathon reviews:
The Innocent Wife by Lisa Reganhttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Wrong Sister by Fiona Palmerhttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Lost Boy by Rachel Amphletthttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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It’s one of the December classics choices and one for which I voted. I found a free PDF version online of the excellent Penguin Classic edition. Unfortunately, there are no page numbers and no table of contents with hyperlinked chapters, so I have absolutely no idea how far into it I actually was when it defaulted. The problem with the PDF format is that if you aren’t able to finish a work in one sitting, or something happens to cause you to lose your place, it defaults to the front cover/first page. It wasn’t worth the headache after the weekend I’ve had, so I set it aside temporarily until I can get hold of a print copy, and started something else.
After Friday, I’m so glad I had this weekend off, though Monday may end up being a long day. We had a winter storm come through Friday. When I woke up at 3 am there was no snow. 6 am — still no snow. When I got up at 8 am — boy was it coming down then! By the time I left for work at ten, there was already about four inches of heavy wet snow on the ground and it was still snowing with a vengeance. I thought my biggest problem was going to be trudging through that to the bus stop and trying to cross slippery roads.
Yeah...I didn’t even make it out of the building before injury struck. I’m still not entirely sure how it happened. My best guess is melted snow in the hallway. Exiting the building there’s a step down into a small entryway where the front door is. The hallway is carpeted, except the two-inch strip along the edge of the step. I went to step down and the floor went out from under me. I pitched forward and came down HARD on my right knee. Bruised that and hurt my right foot — luckily I was wearing sturdy boots instead of sneakers or I’d probably have a broken toe or two. NOT a great start to the day.
After catching my breath, I limped off to the bus stop. When I originally tracked my bus, it showed it as only ten minutes behind, which would still get me to work on time. Then I checked again at the bus stop when bus still hadn’t come and — it was no longer showing, they had canceled that run entirely, next bus in an hour. AUGH! I was NOT happy. I should have started walking as soon as I saw it was delayed. 😠
So, after injuring my knee and foot, I ended up walking 2.25 miles to work, mostly up a really steep hill, with no sidewalks or bike lane. Thankfully, traffic was not as heavy as most days, drivers were slowing for conditions and they were good about giving a wide berth to those of us forced to walk in the road. One of my coworkers also ended up walking for the same reason I did. On the 10 pm news that night they showed several buses that got stuck in the heavy snow, especially on the steeper hills and side streets. (Damn glaciers!)
Anyway, as I’m used to wearing layers, I was (fairly) warm on the walk, I mostly felt the cold across the mid-section of my legs, which ended up being a good thing. The cold numbed my knee and foot—but you can bet I felt them once I was at work and started warming up. Good thing I carry ibuprofen on me! As we ended up being slow due to weather, I was able to go home three hours early. Thankfully, buses were running more on time by then. It was good to elevate my foot for a couple hours, followed by a long, hot soak in the tub.
I’ve tried to take it easy this weekend and not worry about all I wanted to get done. And, as I said above, while I’ve struggled to stay awake while reading, my body obviously felt it needed the rest. Here’s hoping for a better week ahead — and maybe actually getting some reading done!
Oh Heather, you poor thing! That sounds disastrous! I'm afraid I would have called in sick after the fall, without anything else! I hope your knee and ankle are feeling much better today. I don't envy your weather conditions but I would like to borrow some of the temperature. It's hot and humid here, with thunderstorms and rain :( Horrid weather!
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I finished reading All the Dark Places
by Terri Parlato. My 3.98 rounded to 4 stars review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
This debut novel is well crafted and hooked me in the first chapter.
Starting out the week with a non-fiction book:
Christmas Past by Brian Earl https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
My review for
A World of Curiosities: A Novel by Louise Pennyhttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
I finished The Devil's Bidding
by P.L. Doss.My 3.84 rounded to 4 stars review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
P.L. Doss brings mystery, suspense, and realism to the third book in the Joplin/Halloran mystery series.
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Cozy Mysteries
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Authors mentioned in this topic
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Kate Hewitt (other topics)
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My 4.63 rounded to 5 stars review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
As always, Feehan does an incredible job of bringing the main characters to life. The story grabbed my attention immediately and didn’t let up as I rapidly turned the pages. Overall, this action-packed romantic suspense has great characterization, several spicy and sizzling scenes, and plenty of action. I have read more than seventy books by this author across multiple series. This one has the right mix of romance, tension, action, and thrilling storyline.