*there is a list of books at the bottom of every post*

ALL this week I have been thinking through the list of books read so far and it seems that most of the books have been mysteries and thrillers….. it feels a little lopsided. I do read  romances, cozy mysteries, and other things too, but the way my filters are set up in BookBub, each day’s suggestions seem to be mysteries and thrillers  more often than not. And when romances do show up I usually read them first, needing a break from the darker side, and then it’s back to mysteries again for awhile. All of that to say, I am happy that this weeks list has a bigger variety of light and dark than we’ve had so far, I am hoping you will be happy about that too.

I’ve also been thinking today about my goal here and out of that thinking has come a small change to my routine. I’ve decided that I should include books I read but didn’t necessarily like. If my reason for not liking a book is purely personal and not a legitimate complaint about the quality of writing and story line, it seems only fair to include it anyway, because … others may quite like the book. The book I’ve included today is well written, has an interesting story even, but moves at a slower pace than I like. I found myself skimming a lot and about half way through the book gave up and skipped to the last 50 pages, and skimmed through a lot of them too. I don’t enjoy rabbit trails and a lot of extra detail that doesn’t seem, to me, to be necessary to the story.  And, since well known authors have endorsed this book and I have no other complaints it seems only fair to add it to the list. I did like it enough though to want to know how it ended!

I really enjoyed all the rest of the books in this list. Check them out on Amazon for a better description of each book, maybe you will find something you would really like to read too.

Stain of Guilt (Hidden Faces book 2) – Brandilyn Collins ……  there is a 20 year old murder cold case, and the wife of the murder victim is convinced that Annie is the one she wants to draw an aged version of the suspect for a special TV show wanting to highlight and solve this cold case.

First Lady of Three Rivers Ranch – book 1  – Liz Isaacson …… Heidi is home for the summer and looking for a job to pay for her last year of Pastry Chef school. The handsome cowboy was not part of her life plan.

Brink of Death (Hidden Faces Series book 1) – Brandilyn Collins …. Annie and her kids move back to the mansion in Grove Landing after the death of her notorious lawyer father. A graphic artist, used to courtrooms, Annie find herself involved in a murder case  tasked with producing an artist sketch of the shooter.

Baking is Murder (A Bee’s Bakehouse cozy mystery) – Kathy Cranston ….  Jessie moves back to Springdale to help her aunt Bee after her life falls apart in the big city.  Life in Springdale turns out to be anything but dull…..

Every Bride Needs a Groom (Brides with Style book 1) – Janice Thompson …… Katie has always loved all things wedding and was talked into entering a contest to win a designer wedding dress for the wedding she was sure was going to happen with her longtime boyfriend.

The Random Acts of Cupid – Amanda Tru ……. Elise is a secret cupid, trying to be helpful. A lawyer discovers her secret and threatens to expose her.

Along Came a Prince – Carol Moncado ……… Ellie can’t abide pretty boys, especially rich spoiled ones, who end up in her group on a wilderness weekend. She  will discover things are not always what they seem.

None so Blind – Chautona Havig …….. Dani wakes up one morning, terrified, with no memories of her life and family. She had to learn trust and love all over again.

Beyond the Waves – Lynnette Bonner …… after many years a high school boyfriend returns to town wanting to make amends for a hurtful breakup.

Rescuing Lady Bugs – Diane Lil Adams….. Maura travels to check out a mountain cabin inherited from grandparents she hadn’t seen since her parents divorced many years ago.

Deadly Pursuit (Guardians of Justice book 2)  – Irene Hannon ….. a Child Services worker is targeted  by an unknown person with a vendetta for a wrong perceived to be her fault. ….a good story but not my favorite

Fatal Judgement (Guardians of Justice book 1) – Irene Hannon….. a Judge is targeted by someone unhappy with how their life went after an unfair but unavoidable ruling.

 

*there is a list of books at the bottom of every post* 

I am currently reading 3 books, I didn’t mean to but…it happened, again. I wanted to shorten the list of books waiting to be read and picked another one of Nick Thacker’s Thrillers to read, one called The Golden Crystal.

It starts out with a very recently invented submarine with a package to deliver to a secret place at the bottom of a river, the Potomac River. Decades later the story begins.   This is a thriller, with lots of fierce action and very tense moments. I like the story, it is intriguing, and I want to know what happens but…  This is seriously a guys book, they like all this action. I like stories like this too, one of my favorite series of movies is the Die Hard series with Bruce Willis but with movies you can look away and still keep up with the story, with books, not so much.

So I took a break and started reading a book about a hand writing expert whose client was involved in a messy dispute over a will.

In the meantime my mind was still on the thriller I was reading and was trying to figure out the name of title . It is not visible  at this particular place on my kindle and I just have to know. To make a long story short, I was checking out The Depths, another download of Nick’s thrillers to see if it was the same book. I was thinking it was but after the first few pages I knew it wasn’t and now I am hooked, I want to read it too. Then…. I got to the part where the dead guy sitting in her car had spike things in his eyes, and, I needed another break.

I went back to the story about the hand writing expert. It was interesting at first but disintegrated to the point I am now skimming through pages, and then more and more pages. I did the only sensible thing, with so many books waiting to be read,  quit and moved on. Now I’m back to 2 books.

I am still looking though, through my long list of unread books, for the lighter one to give me a break. I will let you know how that goes.

While looking through the list of possibles I came across the title of a book I read recently called:

The Braque Connection book 3 of the Genevieve Lenard series by Estelle Ryan.

Book 1 is called The Gauguin Connection. This series is about a brilliant, high functioning autistic, insurance investigator at a museum where she is highly appreciated and encouraged by her understanding boss. Her areas of expertise often put her in a place of danger as her skills uncover things others would rather keep hidden. She is joined in these experiences by an unlikely group who learn to love her fiercely and would do anything to protect her. The group includes her boss,  a police inspector, an art thief who is  working with Interpol in exchange for freedom and is accompanied by two of his friends-a fellow thief and a computer whiz. I love this series, it is fresh, interesting, and well written. There are 8 books in the series so far and I hope to read them all at some point.

So, back to my Saturday routine, and then maybe another book. I’ll let you know which one I finish. I hope you are all finding good books to read too!

Happy reading!

 

This is the list…. so far… for this month, I will keep adding as I read, the latest always on top. I list the books I recommend, not necessarily all the books I read, although it’s true there are not many I take the time to read if they aren’t what I would also recommend. Happy reading!

When Night Falls – Margaret Daley …. mystery/romance a SteepleHill book

A Mother’s Choice – Kristen Noel Fischer  …..  a compelling story about love and complicated family dynamics.

Strong Women, Extraordinary Situations, Box set (books 1-3) – Margaret Daley …. Deadly Hunt, Deadly Intent, Deadly Holiday   three short books.

Gone The Next – Ben Rehder …… a dark subject, the abduction of a little girl, made lighter by the quirky humour of the only one who is seriously looking for her.

Water from My Heart – Charles Martin ……. indifference that causes men to live lives they are deeply sorry for. As always with his books, this one touches  deeply, in a way that words cannot adequately describe so I won’t even try. I hope you will read this book and let it touch your heart too. This is one of those read all night books!

Home to You – Jenn Faulk …. 6 year old Faith Hayes was in love with 16 year old Sam Huntington. Life takes them in different directions and they lose touch. Their paths cross again and life has not always been kind.

The Amazon Code (Harvey Bennett Thrillers bk 2) – Nick Thacker … The company behind the terrorist attack in book 1 (The Enigma Strain) has resurfaced in the Amazon rainforest, with a different threat this time, and the search is on again.

Adams Mourning: A Christian Historical Romance (The Adams Series Book 1) – Dawnya Sasse ….. People with a dream become pioneers in a new place only to be faced with daunting obstacles while trying to make the dream come true.

The Enigma Strain (Harvey Bennett Thrillers bk 1) – Nick Thacker ….. A bomb goes off in Yellowstone National Park. A park ranger and a CDC agent team up to solve this act of terrorism that threatens to kill the whole nation.

A Touch of Ice (Book 1 Romantic Mystery): The Everly Gray Adventures  L J Charles….. This book is sort of like the TV show The Listener. The main character in this book sees/knows things when she touches with her fingertips. It helped solve the mystery.

False Pretenses (Secrets of Roux River Bayou)  – Kathy Herman…. Book 1 in a new series from Kathy Herman,  a suspense novel about honesty and accountability.

A Goose Creek Christmas (Tales from Goose Creek B & B bk 4 – Virginia Smith  ……. Forced into early retirement he keeps this secret from his wife who has plans to open a B & B despite his lack of enthusiasm. Lots of quirky neighbours. A lighter read.

Finder’s Fee – Alton Gansky ……….A terrifying phone call, a desperate search for a kidnapped boy, darkest secrets could be revealed.

One of my passions…. reading, books, lots of books.

Out of that passion is another passion…. to instill the same love of reading in others.

My message to those who say they don’t enjoy reading all that much is simple- you just haven’t stumbled over the one book to truly capture your interest! If you find the right book you will want to read.

Now, it may not work that way with everyone, my theory hasn’t be scientifically tested, but judging by how I can fall asleep reading one book and yet stay up all night reading another, I think I am on to something.

So, getting down to the purpose of this blog?

The initial purpose was to find a place to keep track of books I wanted to remember because they were good books. I also wanted to have a public place so it would be easy to share with my friends, and anyone else, looking for inspiration. I do want to inspire!! Seems like a blog is a good way to do that.

I hope you will see something on here that will inspire you to read, and maybe even to discover the joy of reading. And if you do, I hope you will pass it on so the passion will spread.

Happy Reading!!