What are you reading? 2024 Version

[Rosh ~catching up slowly~]

Barbara wrote: "Thanks so much for suggesting this book. Sounds like a great chance to explore life in a different culture, both universal human themes and challenging situations that are particular to that culture. I will order it!"

Most welcome! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. :)

[Peggyzbooksnmusic]

Finished The Alice Network by Kate Quinn. Rated 4 stars. Gritty dual time line, espionage, historical fiction set during WWI & WWII. Read on Libby Kindle while listening on Libby Audio. Excellent Audio narration by Saskia Maarleveld.

[a.g.e. montagner]

General update for March.

Speed-read the mindbending Banzeiro òkòtó: Uma viagem à Amazônia Centro do Mundo and interviewed the Italian translators. I'm still trying to write a coherent review.

A couple of excellent graphic novels set in the forests: The Forest and Through the Woods. Currently finishing the mindbending (literally, as in psychedelic) and hilarious Tu sueño imperios han sido.

Up next are Piranesi, the Le Guin marathon, then a coule of Delany, but it'll be June by then.

[PattyMacDotComma]

Poor old Harry Bosch. Alone again in Trunk Music, but at least Michael Connelly has given him plenty of action to keep him busy. An L.A. murder leads him to Las Vegas, and you know what that means.

My review of Trunk Music-Harry Bosch #5

[Jayme(theghostreader)]

I finished Tea Time for the Traditionally Built and started Foundation

[Tiziana]

Dangerous to Know by Tasha Alexander

Historical cozy mystery set in Normandy in 1892, with the intrepid Lady Emily as the amateur sleuth

my review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Carolyn]

Not HF but I really enjoyed this well researched non fiction account of Hazel Ying Lee, the first US American Chinese woman to gain a pilot's license, who went on to join the WASPs, ferrying planes across America through most of the war. It's a tale many HF fans will enjoy :)

American Flygirl by Susan Tate Ankeny

my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Alice]

I finished an excellent HIstorical mystery book. The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger. Beautifully written. Set in 1958 Minnesota. Characters are very well described so you feel you know them. I highly recommend.

[Sarah]

My thoughts on Magnolia Parks—> https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Thomas]

I read A Good Life by Virginie Grimaldi. It is literary fiction, translated from French. My 3.5 star review, rounded up. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Christine]

Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson | IRL book club selection
I enjoyed learning the history of traveling library and the women who dedicated their lives to it, however the story of Cussy Mary Carter didn’t really hold my attention.

[Jayme(theghostreader)]

Finished Foundation
and starting Intrigues

[PattyMacDotComma]

“A lot of people who aren’t Native don’t know this story,“ said Pulitzer Prize winner Tommy Orange about his second book, Wandering Stars. Now there's no excuse for not knowing about the Florida prisons and boarding schools where the Southern Cheyenne were sent.
My review of Wandering Stars

[Rosh ~catching up slowly~]

Maid of Steel by Kate Baker

A good debut that could have been great had it reduced the number of topics. Still, might be interesting to historical fiction readers as it covers plenty of events from 1911-12 Ireland.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Affy]

Just finished The Alice Network by Kate Quinn 😍🙌🏻 Next up: The Frozen River by Ariel Lawton

[Eric]

Affy wrote: "Just finished The Alice Network by Kate Quinn 😍🙌🏻 Next up: The Frozen River by Ariel Lawton"

I enjoyed "The Alice Network." I thought Quinn's The Rose Code was better.

[Thomas]

I read two kindle books: A Night at the Tropicana. My 4 star review for a sweet, short story https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Then Last Dance
It is book 16 in a legal thriller series. My 3.5star review rounded up https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Carolyn]

Although it deals with some dark themes, this is a fun Regency romance filled with swashbuckling adventure.

The Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies by Alison Goodman

review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Sarah]

Another book to add to my romantasy collection. Just finished Powerless. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Tammy]

Rereading an oldie House of Dreams by Brenda Joyce has romance, history, and the paranormal

[Pippa]

A change of pace for me Recently read the Lucy Worsley biography of Agatha Christie and thought I could do with a dose of the real thing .

[Peggyzbooksnmusic]

Finished Cannery Row by John Steinbeck. A classic! Rated 5 stars and on my Favorite Shelf.
Link to my short review with some favorite quotes:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Tiziana]

Another engaging mystery in "Crispin Guest" medieval noir series by
Jeri Westerson installment #6 :

Shadow of the Alchemist

here is my 5 stars review
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[MaryAnn]

I'm currently reading The Legacy of Longdale Manor by Carrie Turansky, a split-time historical romance set in the Lake District of England.

[MaryAnn]

Carrie Turansky

[Sarah]

Started off a little slow but then it really picked up. I enjoyed The Heiress—> https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Tammy]

Currently rereading Queen in Waiting byJean Plaidy I like this book though I wish people back then came up with more names

[Jayme(theghostreader)]

Finished Intrigues and reading Closer to the Heart

[Thomas]

I read The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden
It is historical fiction set in 1961 Netherlands. I rated it 2.5 stars rounded up. There are graphic sex scenes. My review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Rosh ~catching up slowly~]

Frank and Red by Matt Coyne

One of the sweetest stories I have ever read. The titular characters are the best!
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Peggyzbooksnmusic]

Finished Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. Contemporary YA fiction. Enjoyed more then I thought I would. Rated 4 stars.

[Jayme(theghostreader)]

Finished reading Closer to the Heart and starting The Extra

[Thomas]

I read Don't Let the Devil Ride by Ace Atkins It is an entertaining private eye thriller, set in Memphis, Tennessee. My 4 star review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Liza]

Just finished The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon. Really enjoyed it but the one drawback for me was the voice was too modern. Some authors (Geraldine Brooks and Maggie OFarrell come to mind) really have a great old timey voice that sets the right mood for the timeframe while still being accessible. This would be a 5 star read if the language was a bit more true to the time period, but still a great read.

[Thomas]

I read Desperation Reef: A Novel by T. Jefferson Parker It is a book that surfers will love. But I am not a surfer. I rated 3.5 stars rounded down. My review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Carolyn]

This is another fun culinary mystery in this series featuring a young Julia Child and her intrepid friend Tabitha in post WW2 Paris.

review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Christine]

Completed
The House on Biscayne Bay by Chanel Cleeton | read by Caroline Hewitt & Frankie Corzo | Review
Gorgeous Miami setting and a nice mystery early 20th century.

[Rosh ~catching up slowly~]

Our Daughter, Who Art in America by Mukana Press

An interesting anthology for those who would enjoy short stories infused with African culture.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Sarah]

I know a lot of people really liked this one but I found it kind of underwhelming. My review for The Last Thing He Told Me—> https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Joan]

I just finished A Calamity of Souls by David Baldacci and gave it 5 stars.

[Peggyzbooksnmusic]

Finished A Regimental Murder #2 Captain Lacey by Ashley Gardner. Gritty historical mystery set in Regency England. This dragged somewhat in the middle although had a powerful ending. 3.5 stars that I bumped up to 4 stars.

[Pippa]

Really enjoying it...shaping up for 5 stars. A true crime with a wrongful conviction for murder, set in the late 1880s. Really well written and stayed up way too late reading last night...

[Maureen]

I am currently reading
I am really enjoying it

[Tammy]

I have started reading Her Majesty's Necromancer byC.J. Archer kind of a fantasy during the late Victorian era

[Rosh ~catching up slowly~]

Chernobyl: The Fall of Atomgrad by Matyáš Namai

A graphic novel about the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. Won't have much to offer if you have already read other nonfiction works on the topic, but a good book for those who want a quick gist of the events.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Sarah]

Might be an unpopular opinion but I found Daisy Haites more bearable than the first one in this series. —> https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Bahram]

A recommendation by a friend a couple of years ago when I could not put the book down! It's a historical fiction, depicting life of ordinary people in Iran, pre- and post revolution 1979. A must read with a twist! From Fall to Spring

[Rosh ~catching up slowly~]

Red Runs the Witch's Thread by Victoria Williamson

A spooky novella loosely based on true events in 1720s Scotland.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Thomas]

I read The Wild Inside by Christine Carbo It is book 1 of the Glacier mystery series, set in Glacier NP, Montana, US. I rated it 3.5 stars rounded up. My review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Dana]

Right now, I'm immersed in Mark Twain's novel about Alexander the Great. I believe Twain has masterfully captured the essence of Alexander and translated it beautifully onto the pages.