war

Bargain book March 07, 2022 Part Two

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This bargain showed up as I was pursuing the books in today’s part one post. It is with an author I’ve not had a chance to read and I’m looking forward to the experience.

The Cryptographer’s Dilemma (Heroines of WWII Book 1

A Code Developer Uncovers a Japanese Spy Ring
 
Full of intrigue, adventure, and romance, this new series celebrates the unsung heroes—the heroines of WWII.
 
FBI cryptographer Eloise Marshall is grieving the death of her brother, who died during the attack on Pearl Harbor, when she is assigned to investigate a seemingly innocent letter about dolls. Agent Phillip Clayton is ready to enlist and head oversees when asked to work one more FBI job. A case of coded defense coordinates related to dolls should be easy, but not so when the Japanese Consulate gets involved, hearts get entangled, and Phillip goes missing. Can Eloise risk loving and losing again?

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My current read pairs well with this new bargain as they are related to the same era. Not in exactly the same way but still. I’m not far enough in to truly say I’ve started this book but I’m motivated to keep going because I’ve only read one story from this author. Not nearly enough to make a decision on likes.

The Witnesses

Young lawyer Parker House is on the rise—until his grandfather’s mysterious past puts both of their lives in danger.

Parker House’s secret inheritance is either his greatest blessing . . . or his deadliest curse. The fresh-faced North Carolina attorney shares his German grandfather’s uncanny ability to see future events in his mind’s eye—a gift that has haunted 82-year-old Frank House through decades of trying to erase a murderous wartime past.

While Parker navigates the intrigue and politics of small-town courtroom law, Frank is forced to face his darkest regrets. Then, a big career break for Parker collides with a new love he longs to nurture and the nightmares his grandfather can no longer escape. Sudden peril threatens to shatter not only Parker’s legal prospects but also his life and the lives of those dearest to him.

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It’s always a good idea to grab quickly because we never know how long a bargain price will last. It could go back to full price in a flash.

I’ll have to revise my current read status. I was checking it out a bit more and forgot I was supposed to be working on this post. That’s always a good sign.

Happy Reading… while I go back to my book.

This and that … Saturday March 05, 2022

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Click Bait. A skill I have not mastered but really should. It would help draw in unsuspecting new people, or even lure back some I haven’t seen in a while. Click bait has a good reputation for attracting attention. On the other hand, it has a bigger reputation for being a total liar. I have first hand experience so fact checking will not be necessary. All those times I took the bait, listened to the very end only to realize I’d been had. If any attention was given to the person or subject promised, it was but a blink of the eye and I missed it entirely. While I wouldn’t mind grabbing more attention myself, my guilty conscience for lying to make things seem special would be a killer.

So what is taking up thinking space in my head this week? Ukraine is on the minds of the whole world. I like keeping track of what is going on. Click bait stuff has been going on. People in a hurry to put something out when they had nothing were forced to improvise. Oops. Who knew someone would recognize those pictures from another place in another time.

I’m not so sure anyone has really figured out the truth of what is going on with this situation. I’m hearing many voices with as many “expert” opinions but I’m not hearing consensus, even on a small scale. When the truth finally comes out, if it ever does, there will be more than a few people saying the same thing. So far we are not hearing it.

When I ponder this for a while, it seems there are a whole lot of things going on, most of them under the table. I’m sure we would be shocked if we learned who the real players and influencers were in all of this.

It’s easy to worry about where the world is going but when it comes right down to it there is nothing in my power to do that would make any difference to the outcome. Worry will do nothing but destroy my life. We need to care, pay attention, and pray earnestly for the innocent people caught up in the flying debris, but we can’t let worry consume us. What good would we then be if trouble ever did come knocking on our door?

I have to give myself this lecture on a regular basis as I walk away from one more podcast on the whole scenario.

I’m focusing, briefly anyway, on my everyday life and I’m finding it gives me a mental boost in the right direction.

My frig, after many months, is now free of the long haired residents I was loath to deal with. (my grandsons will be impressed.) (procrastination is my middle name) A few closets and shelves have been sorted through and are looking better once I tossed some things I haven’t used in years. (I’ve found expiry dates as old as 2014!)

There is something about accomplishing tasks I have been avoiding forever that makes life suddenly seem good, very good in fact.

Who knew such mundane and inconsequential things could be an outlook changer?

Another of my current fixations. My first time ever growing an amaryllis.

A little beauty is another unexpected game changer.

I’m wishing some unexpected game changers for you too in these turbulent times.

A book and a podcast January 01, 2021

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I want to remember this podcast and this post will help with that. My favorite aspect of this discussion was the encouragement we are given to think outside the box, Erwin McManus stresses the importance of exercising this ability.

The second item on the agenda for this post is an introduction a WWII Novel by one of the writers in our monthly critique group. I have not read it but I have enjoyed Robert’s writing and expect this story will not disappoint.

Stealth

1944. American bomber pilot, Jack Swaggart, has led his squadron countless times into hostile German territory, hit the assigned target, and returned to base none the worse for wear.

Eventually, Jack’s luck runs out. With his B-26 Marauder heavily damaged by flak, Jack is forced to ditch his crippled airplane in the German countryside.

Separated from his crew, Jack trusts an unlikely ally, Hilde Augsburg, a plucky young woman, a decision which catapults them into an adventure neither could have envisioned. Coincidentally, they spot a new type of German warplane in flight–a design unlike anything they’ve ever seen before.

In that moment, Jack realizes that the Nazis have developed a formidable new bomber, one that could dramatically alter the course of the war. In the blink of an eye, Jack’s mission shifts from survival to thwarting the Germans, just when the Allies are on the verge of triumph.

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Carey picks titles that must be relevant to the bulk of his audience but generally, I find the actual interview always covers more ground than the title suggests. This podcast is no exception. I found the discussion to be challenging and thought provoking. It needs more than one viewing for a person to get the most out of it.

The whole interview will have us thinking outside the box.

Happy reading and viewing.

Free and bargain books September 25, 2021 part 2

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Author Chautona Havig mentioned a FREE book on Facebook. By one of her author friends, someone that I enjoy too. So excited to see this book.

Between Stairs and Stardust (Blue Ridge Fairytales Book 1) 

An illustrator in hiding. A millionaire with a gardening fascination. And the possibility of a perfect fit for a happily-ever-after.

Once Upon a time…A young illustrator, forced from her home in Boston, must return to her Blue Ridge Mountains to escape a scandal. Certain that her dreams are on hold, Stella Emory doesn’t expect to find a prince charming in the form of James Craven, a young man who works in the gardens of the famed Biltmore Estate.

Brought together unexpectedly, the two begin a tender friendship inspired by James’s little sister and the story of Cinderella, but James isn’t all he seems. As their friendship grows into a romance, the truth of James’s millionaire status shakes Stella’s confidence. When her past follows her to Asheville, Stella thinks her chance at romance with James is over, but will a Christmas masquerade and the remnants of a charm bracelet somehow provide the magic Stella needs to clear her name and claim her own happily-ever-after?

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Browsing Amazon suggestion strip showed this interesting bargain with an author new to me. From the little bit I’ve read, I’m excited about this one. I love the cover.

The Cryptographer’s Dilemma (Heroines of WWII Book 1)

A Code Developer Uncovers a Japanese Spy Ring
 
Full of intrigue, adventure, and romance, this new series celebrates the unsung heroes—the heroines of WWII.
 
FBI cryptographer Eloise Marshall is grieving the death of her brother, who died during the attack on Pearl Harbor, when she is assigned to investigate a seemingly innocent letter about dolls. Agent Phillip Clayton is ready to enlist and head oversees when asked to work one more FBI job. A case of coded defense coordinates related to dolls should be easy, but not so when the Japanese Consulate gets involved, hearts get entangled, and Phillip goes missing. Can Eloise risk loving and losing again?

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I’ve read and enjoyed a number of books by this next author. Her latest book looks just as interesting as the rest. Love this cover too.

Beauty Among Ruins 

In Ciesielski’s latest sweeping romance, an American heiress finds herself in Scotland amid the fallout of the Great War, and a wounded Scottish laird comes face-to-face with his past and a woman he never could have expected.

American socialite Lily Durham is known for enjoying one moment to the next, with little regard for the consequences of her actions. But just as she is banished overseas to England as a “cure” for her frivolous ways, the Great War breaks out and wreaks havoc. She joins her cousin in nursing the wounded at a convalescent home deep in the wilds of Scotland at a crumbling castle where its laird is less than welcoming.

Alec MacGregor has given his entire life to preserving his home of Kinclavoch Castle, but mounting debts force him to sell off his family history bit by bit. Labeled a coward for not joining his countrymen in the trenches due to an old injury, he opens his home to the Tommies to make recompense while he keeps to the shadows. But his preference for the shadows is shattered when a new American nurse comes streaming into the castle on a burst of light.

Lily and Alec are thrown together when a series of mysterious events threatens to ruin the future of Kinclavoch. Can they put aside their differences to find the culprit before it’s too late, or will their greatest distraction be falling in love?

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I am more than pleased with this line-up of new reads. It will be tough to decide which one to tackle next. A very nice problem to have, I must say.

I’m hoping these appeal to you just as much.

Happy Reading!

One more bargain Feb 06, 2021

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This bargain book was recommended by a writer friend, (not that I know her personally or anything, I’ve just read a multitude of her books,) and I value her opinion. Author Terrie Todd is new to me but reading the first chapter gives me confidence it will be a good book so I’m going for it.

Maggie’s War

Amazon quote:

A Word Award winner.

In 1942, telegrams always bring life-altering and tragic news in a war-hardened world—and the one Maggie Marshall receives is no different. But running a restaurant with the help of only pregnant, unwed girls has taught her to be tough. Maggie’s no weeping widow, but Charlotte Penfield thinks she’s the most unfeeling woman on earth. Seventeen, exiled by her wealthy parents, and working in the restaurant, fanciful Charlotte runs away with romantic notions of a reunion with her baby’s father at his military camp.

It has been years since Maggie darkened the church door of her pastor and childhood friend, Reverend Reuben Fennel, and his heart breaks for the hardened woman Maggie’s become. When she seeks his help to find Charlotte, he’s happy to aid her in the chase—though it may cost him his job and reputation.

Over the miles from Winnipeg to Fort William, Reuben and Maggie’s journey rekindles their affection—and their dreams of what they still could be. But Maggie stubbornly clings to her independent ways until she’s dealt another devastating loss, one that forces her to recognize that heroes can be discovered in unlikely places and love may be far sweeter than she ever dared imagine.

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I ordered another book today, it was a translation by one of our local writers. Originally, this book was printed in Europe in the 1800s and was popular then. Robert Stermscheg translated it to English and his introductory blog post for the book is scheduled to be shared here on this site tomorrow morning. Be sure to watch for it. The Prussian Lieutenant

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It looks like we have a military theme going on here.

Happy Reading once again.