January 2024, 5 Books Read

I thought one of the things I would do this year is keep a monthly list of books I have read and post it at the beginning of each month for the reading done in the previous month. Since this is early February you will see today books I finished during January. I will also say here that being on airplanes or in airports waiting for a connecting flight makes it easier for this list to be a bit longer that will probably be usual for the months later this year.

For January 2024 I finished the following 5 books.

1. Sing Wild Bird, Sing: A Novel by Jacqueline O'Mahony
2. Just After Midnight: A Novel by Catherine Ryan Hyde
3. The Last Phone Booth in Manhattan by Beth Merlin and Danielle Modafferi
4. The Ice Maiden: A Fast Paced Murder Thriller (Doug Bateman Thrillers Book 1) by B.D. Smith
5. The Brighter the Light by Mary Ellen Taylor

I read all these on my Kindle or the Kindle app on my phone and I got them either free through Prime Reading or as a monthly First Reads choice. I have an Amazon affiliate link below if you are interested in going shopping for some new reads or anything at all.

What have you read lately? Any recommendations? Would love to hear all about them so leave a comment.

I'll be sharing more about my trip to Vietnam in the coming days!

Back with more again soon.

Take care and stay cozy!

45 Books Loved and Read in 2023

The title says loved and read. I do love books but maybe I wouldn't say loved for all of them. Each book has something to offer though, in learning or a simple escape to another place and/or time. Last year, 2023, I had 45 pleasant times spent with someone else's work and words. Here's the list...

1. The Easy Life in Kamusari (Forest Book 1) by Shion Miura
2. The Candid Life of Meena Dave by Namrata Patel
3. Vanished: A Gripping Serial Killer Psychological Thriller (The Baudin and Dixon Series) by Victor Methos
4. Reluctantly Home by Imogen Clark
5. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
6. Contents Under Pressure by Edna Buchanan
7. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
8. The Last Rose of Shanghai by Weina Dai Randel
9. The Tracker (Sam Callahan Book 1) by Chad Zunker
10. She's Up to No Good by Sara Goodman Confino
11. No Ordinary Thursday by Anoop Judge
12. When I Found You by Catherine Ryan Hyde
13. The World Played Chess: A Novel by Robert Dugoni
14. Rich Blood (Jason Rich Book 1) by Robert Bailey
15. City Dark: A Thriller by Roger A Canaff
16. An Impossible Return: A Novel by Caroline Laurent
17. The Second Mrs. Astor: A Heartbreaking Historical Novel of the Titanic by Shana Abe
18. The Bookstore Sisters: A Short Story by Alice Hoffman
19. A Girl Called Samson: A Novel by Amy Harmon
20. My Evil Mother: A Short Story by Margaret Atwood
21. Shogun: A Novel of Japan Volume 1 by James Clavell
22. Wild, Beautiful and Free by Sophfronia Scott
23. The Memory Keeper of Kyiv by Erin Litteken
24. Someone Else's Life: A Thriller by Lyn Liao Butler
25. Shogun: A Novel of Japan  Volume 2 by James Clavell
26. Lost Light by Michael Connelly
27. The Chemistry of Love by Sariah Wilson
28. Invasion by Robin Cook
29. Above the Bay of Angels by Rhys Bowen
30. The Dry Grass of August: A Moving Southern Coming of Age Novel by Anna Jean Mayhew
31. They Came to Bagdad by Agatha Christie
32. N or M by Agatha Christie
33. Murder in Mesopotamia by Agatha Christie
34. The Undertaker's Assistant: a Captivating Post Civil War Novel of Southern Historical Fiction by Amanda Skenandore
35. The Road Towards Home by Corinne Demas
36. Vietnam-Culture Smart: The Essential Guide to Customs and Culture by Geoffrey Murray
37. Swan Light by Phoebe Rowe
38. Dutch Uncle by Marilyn Durham
39. Speak to Me of Love by Dorothy Eden
40. What the Wind Knows by Amy Harman
41. A Chance Inheritance by Carolyn Brown
42. Never Lie: An Addictive Psychological Thriller by Freida McFadden
43. This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald
44. Black River by Matthew Spencer
45. There's No Turning Back from This: A Novel by Ann Garvin

There it is. This is the list of books read during the day, typically at lunch time, or at night on my Kindle. I read from 4 different sources of books, some were Prime Reading books or First Read choices from Amazon, some were gift books from Connie given to me by her daughters after she passed away and some were books I already owned and had saved during all my moves. After I read any of the paper books, I am passing them on the thrift stores or friends. 

Have you read any of these? What outstanding books have you read this year? Feel free to leave a comment. If you want to make a blogger smile all day just leave a comment, I'd love to hear from you, any you, except spam, I delete those.

Back with more again soon.

Take care and stay cozy!

Black River by Matthew Spencer

I finished my bedtime reading on my Kindle book the night before last. The book was Black River (affiliate link) by Matthew Spencer. It was a good keep turning pages read. I didn't figure out the "whodunit" until the story revealed it. My favorite characters were Rose Riley who is a police detective and Adam Bowman a journalist. This is advertised as Book 1 in a series but there is no information on the next book or books yet on Amazon.

In some other bits of news here on the blog I have added one of those cookie notifying things that makes you accept or reject cookies. Google who owns Blogger said I had to do it. I know they can be annoying, sorry. Accept or reject as you wish, either way you can still read and comment.

Back with more again soon. 

Take care and stay cozy! 

 

Above the Bay of Angels by Rhys Bowen

Last night on my Kindle I finished a book I had borrowed from Amazon Prime. Did you know that if you have a Prime membership (affiliate link to a list of benefits) you can have up to 10 books at a time from the Prime library? There are thousands of books rotating through with something to read for everyone. You don't have to have a Kindle either. You can use the Kindle app on any phone or tablet. I use both apps and a Kindle depending on where I am when time for reading happens.

So last night reading before sleep came, I finished Above the Bay of Angels by Rhys Bowen. It was a charming story of a young woman who finds love and a sense of purpose in her life. Along the path of the story she solves a murder mystery too. I like the way this author develops characters and they way she has them interact. One of my favorites in the book was the French Chef. In the end he was a typical but charming hero.

I'll leave it there because I don't want to spoil this book for anyone who is considering reading it for themselves. 

So, if you have read this post so far, I have one last request. Leave a comment telling me what you are reading.

Back with more again soon. 

Take care and stay cozy!  

The Chemistry of Love by Sariah Wilson

Last night I finished reading The Chemistry of Love by Sariah Wilson. This was something I read on my Kindle. I use the Kindle for reading a bit each night in bed before I go to sleep. I love the luxury of reading in bed and with the Kindle I don't need to have a light on which is good because that would disturb Jim. I always have a real book around for reading during the day too.

So, about Ms. Wilson, this is from her about page on Amazon where all her books are available.

"Sariah Wilson is the USA Today bestselling author of The Chemistry of Love, The Paid Bridesmaid, The Seat Filler, Roommaid, Just a Boyfriend, the Royals of Monterra series, and the #Lovestruck novels. She happens to be madly, passionately in love with her soul mate and is a fervent believer in happily ever afters—which is why she writes romance. She currently lives with her family and various pets in Utah and harbors a lifelong devotion to ice cream. For more information, visit her website at www.sariahwilson.com."

I like the positive thinking of believing in happily ever after. A home life created with family and pets and ice cream sounds like a lovely place to be. 

The Chemistry of Love was the first book I have read by this author. I will be putting others on my Wish List which is very long but I hope to read most of it in time. The story involves misplaced affections, changing to a fairy tale happily ever after. The path between that start and the end was fun to read. Some of the feelings expressed by the two female best friends seemed a bit adolescent rather that the thoughts of college educated female scientists, but I guess I can accept that emotional development and intellect don't advance in all of us at the same time or pace. At least Anna, the main character, eventually gave up her infatuation, I won't call it love, with the bad boy and found the nice brother to fall in love with. This kind of lighthearted story is perfect for bedtime reading and I don't regret a minute spent turning the virtual pages.

I need to let you know the links to the book in this post are affiliate links and I could earn a small commission from qualified purchases, of course, at no cost to you.

So, do you read from a Kindle, real paper books or like me do some of both? Let me know, would love to hear from you!

Back with more again soon. 

Take care and stay cozy! 

Friday Favorites

A read a lot according to my husband. In my own mind I read more than some and less than others. If you asked for a favorite book most times I will tell you about what I am reading currently. I usually savor, enjoy, get lost in, and connect with the books I read and when done I move on to do it again with the next book. I read for entertainment and for education. 

With all that said I am currently reading "A Train to Moscow" written by Elena Gorokhova. From Amazon I will give you the following teaser.

In post-World War II Russia, a girl must reconcile a tragic past with her hope for the future in this powerful and poignant novel about family secrets, passion and loss, perseverance and ambition.

 

This book is written by someone who grew up in Russia. That gives her authentic insight into the characters and culture of the times and places she takes us to. Not to the end yet but it has been so good I will just go ahead and recommend it now. 

To shop for your favorite version, paperback, audible or Kindle just click on the picture or the following link > (This is and the picture are affiliate links)

Back with more again soon. Take care and stay cozy!

First 5 Kindle Books Read This Year

Are you a Kindle reader like I am? I use the app on my phone to read and I keep my Kindle Oasis on my nightstand for reading in bed before I go to sleep each night. I like to keep track of what I read and Kindle makes it easy. With the reading insights you can see consecutive days or weeks of reading. Currently I have read 98 weeks in a row and 313 days in a row. 

You can also set goals for yourself about the number of books you want to read in a year. Last year I read 70 books. Actually I read a few more that that but the others were "real" books and I track those in a reading notebook. Confession, I am a list maker and have to stop myself sometimes from seeing list making equivalent to actually doing something. That is why I don't create To Do lists anymore. But getting back on track here. So far this year I have read and enjoyed 5 Kindle books so far.

1. Knitting and Murder by Gillian Larkin.
2. The Best of Friends by Lucinda Berry
3. The Wise Ass by Tom McCaffrey
4. Hummingbird Land by Carolyn Brown
5. Half a Heart by Karen McQuestion.

The books on my Kindle are from the Prime Reading Library or one of the First Reads choices available each month for free. I am a bit frugal when it comes to reading. Prime Reading and libraries can easily keep me in material for the rest of my life.

You are interested in a Kindle of your own I will share links to what I have and the cover I use too. (These are affiliate links and I may earn a bit from qualified purchases.)

This Kindle is an update from mine that is a couple years old. Find it here.

This is the cover or case I have and have been very happy with how is has help up with a couple years of use so far. You could get yours in blue or another color here.

Back with more again soon. Take care and stay cozy!

Two Books Finished This Week

Do you read more than one book at a time? I have been reading two at a time for quite awhile now. One book is always a real paper one. I have had a pretty big stash of real books from a friend who was downsizing her library at her home. I will read almost anything and it has been great fun to go through about 4 large bins of books before I pass them along to a thrift store. I have a book ready to read for a couple hours every evening while Jim has the television on. I just can't watch tv anymore. I don't like the commercials. I get the latest news from online sources and my entertainment comes from Netflix and Amazon Prime when I want something on to knit to. The other book source I use day or rather nightly is an ebook on my Kindle. Finally, after all these years of marriage and not reading in bed because the light would disturb him, I can read in bed before going to sleep each night. As far as I am concerned ereaders like Kindle may very well be the best invention since sliced bread! Who's with me on this?

So what did I finish this week?

The real book was Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. It has been a long time since I read a book with so many twists in it. The villain and victim were never really the same people from one part of the story to the next  and at the end they deserved each other as far as I am concerned. Don't want to spoil this so that's all I'm saying here. Just read it if you haven't already. It was a best seller a couple years ago but I don't do a good job of keeping up with the latest top books.

The ebook that I finished this week was Lake City: A Novel by Thomas Kohnstamm. According to the summary on Amazon the story begins like this....

Hunkered down in his childhood bedroom in Seattle's worn-out Lake City neighborhood, idealistic but self-serving striver Lane Bueche licks his wounds and hatches a plot to win back his estranged Manhattanite wife.

In the end you are left not knowing what happens with Lane and his estranged wife but his struggle to get there is well worth the time spent with this book. 

 

Back with more again soon. Take care and stay cozy!