Saturday, December 24, 2022

Scooby Doo! A Science of Sound

 I picked this book in order to cover a zombie prompt plus what's not to love about my favorite mystery loving gang.


Challenge Prompts

The Challenge Prompts I will use this for are:  

  1. Library Love  #LibraryLoveChallenge  Book #105   
  2. What an Animal Book #56
  3. Bookworm # 19 Read a book about Zombies 

Friday, December 23, 2022

Death Under The Stars

 Murder Mystery Book Club book #3 is Death Under the Stars. Set in Australia and focused on a book club, this series has cozy mysteries that tend to parallel Agatha Christie's books. They are enjoyable and cleverly written.


Death Under The StarsDeath Under The Stars by C.A. Larmer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

enjoyable cozy with lots of Christie references

This book has undertones of Christie’s Evil under the sun and mixes with some Hitchcock plot as well. The group dynamics of the murder mystery book club changed a bit in this installment. Now Alicia is involved with Det Jackson so there is the amateur connected with the pro trope. Also there is a bit of strain in the group dynamics and changes in member’s circumstances; all making for interesting twists. The book features lots of red herrings and twisty clues that make for a well written book. I look forward to continuing the series

View all my reviews


Challenge Prompts

The Challenge Prompts I will use this for are:  

  1. Literary Escapes  #LiteraryEscapes  Australia 
  2. Finishing the Series   #FinishingTheSeries2022  Series: 56 Book #1
  3. Mount TBR   #MountTBR2022  Book # 12
  4. Back List Reader  #Backlistreader  Book #98
  5. Cruisin thru Cozies  Free choice #91
  6. Cloak & Dagger  #CloakDaggerChal  Book #117
  7. Craving for Cozies  Book #109
  8. Medical Examiner Challenge 1 Toe Tags
  9. Beachcomber Challenge  
    • Crime Scene- park
    • Weapon- hands
    • Detectives- Alicia
    • Victims- Kat Mumford
  10. Six Shooter Challenge  Target #24  Shot #3
  11. OWLS 22  #4 Mistranslation: A book whose title is translated differently
  12. Beat the Backlist #BTB2022  # 28 'wolf' or 'star' in the title  

Thursday, December 22, 2022

Reflex

 

ReflexReflex by Dick Francis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is another great book by Dick Francis. This focuses on a steeplechase jockey, Phil Nore. He finds himself embroiled in several mysteries involving family and friends. Meanwhile these events lead to some more questions judging his and others’ actions. There are some very suspenseful moments as well as some soul searching for sure. I listened to the audiobook and found the narrator, Simon Preeble, to be amazing for the subject and the setting

View all my reviews



Challenge Prompts

The Challenge Prompts I will use this for are:  

  1. Library Love  #LibraryLoveChallenge  Book #  104 
  2. Audiobook  #2022AudiobookChallenge 10
  3. What an Animal Book #57
  4. Virtual Mount TBR #VirtualMountTBR2022   Book #128
  5. Back List Reader  #Backlistreader  Book #96
  6. Cruisin thru Cozies  Free choice #90
  7. Cloak & Dagger  #CloakDaggerChal  Book #116
  8. Craving for Cozies  Book #108
  9. Medical Examiner Challenge 3 Toe Tags
  10. Beachcomber Challenge  
    • Crime Scene- road; house; hospital
    • Weapon- car wreck; drugs, cancer
    • Detectives- Philip Nore
    • Victims- George Millace; Carolie Nore; Grandmother Nore
  11. Six Shooter Challenge  Target # 86 Shot #3
  12. Bookworm # 25 A book with a title that has 5 letters

Wednesday, December 21, 2022

An Alaskan Adventure

 The 12th book in the Cozy Cruise series keeps coming up with unique nonmurder mysteries.  My only complaint with this book was the lack of description of Alaskan ports due to the plot line in this book.  


An Alaska Adventure: Book Twelve: The Cozy Cruise MysteriesAn Alaska Adventure: Book Twelve: The Cozy Cruise Mysteries by Lizzie Josephson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

clever cozy

This book is perfect for anyone looking for a quick paced cozy that doesn’t involve murder There are some clever plot points and I hope they eventually do cruise in Alaska for the descriptions. If you are looking for in-depth complex details this may not satisfy but if looks for a good plot with unique twists then be sure to read

View all my reviews


Challenge Prompts

The Challenge Prompts I will use this for are:  

  1.  Literary Escapes  #LiteraryEscapes  Monaco
  2. Finishing the Series   #FinishingTheSeries2022  Series:53  Book #1
  3. Virtual Mount TBR #VirtualMountTBR2022   Book #129
  4. Back List Reader  #Backlistreader  Book #98
  5. Cruisin thru Cozies  Free choice #92
  6. Cloak & Dagger  #CloakDaggerChal  Book #118
  7. Craving for Cozies  Book #110
  8. Six Shooter Challenge  Target #38  Shot #6

Pepperoni Pizza Can Be Murder

 


Pepperoni Pizza Can Be MurderPepperoni Pizza Can Be Murder by Chris Cavender
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Good cozy with plenty of twists in the mystery. There are some moments when Eleanor makes some not so wise decisions in her pursuit of the truth. Her dilemma about her relationship with David feels realistic as well
Pizza lovers will find their mouth watering at some of the kitchen scenes for sure.

View all my reviews


Challenge Prompts

The Challenge Prompts I will use this for are:  

  1. Library Love  #LibraryLoveChallenge  Book #  103 
  2. Virtual Mount TBR #VirtualMountTBR2022   Book #127
  3. Back List Reader  #Backlistreader  Book #95
  4. Cruisin thru Cozies  Free choice #89
  5. Cloak & Dagger  #CloakDaggerChal  Book #115
  6. Craving for Cozies  Book #107
  7. Medical Examiner Challenge 1 Toe Tags
  8. Beachcomber Challenge  
    • Crime Scene- restaurant
    • Weapon- mallett
    • Detectives- maddy and eleanor
    • Victims- Wade Hatcher
  9. Six Shooter Challenge  Target #76  Shot #2

Tuesday, December 20, 2022

Ms Marvel Vol 3

 



Ms. Marvel, Vol. 3: CrushedMs. Marvel, Vol. 3: Crushed by G. Willow Wilson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Another engaging installment in this series. I enjoy the perspective of the teen acceptance and adjustment to her powers. The conflict between her heritage and her lifestyle is again a central theme. I appreciated that her brother explained the difficulties in her being able to date/marry outside her culture. It is handled well. She also comes to realize with the power comes conflict between what different factions feel the inhumans times should be

View all my reviews



Challenge Prompts

The Challenge Prompts I will use this for are:  

  1. Library Love  #LibraryLoveChallenge  Book #   102
  2. Virtual Mount TBR #VirtualMountTBR2022   Book #126
  3. Back List Reader  #Backlistreader  Book #94
  4. BooklistQueen  #booklistqueenreadingchallenge2022  # 16. About a Muslim Protagonist
  5. PopSugar #popsugarreadingchallenge #18. A romance novel by a BIPOC author 
  6. Pick your Poison # 66  a book by a BIPOC author

Monday, December 19, 2022

Violeta

 Violeta by Isabel Allende was a selection for my book club this year and it fit several prompts for different challenges perfectly.  This was my first book by Allende and I will be reading more works by her in the future for sure.  Overall I really liked the way she combines character development and story action.  My only real complaint was the ending of the book felt as though she was throwing as many possible social issues into the story as possible rather than sticking to the main plotline that centered around the Chilean political uprising and the general US involvement in Latin American politics.  The story is an amazing saga of the family and all it underwent over the course of Violetta's lifetime.  



VioletaVioleta by Isabel Allende
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

fantastic epic historical novel

This is such a beautiful mix of description and characters. The history of Chile and S America that is revisited in this novel is an astonishing reminder of how much has changed in the world and how often it repeats in a different manner. The only reason I did not give this 5 stars is the last portion felt as though all the faults in the world had to be thrown into the storyline/Violeta’s reflection letter. It just felt a bit contrived at that point whereas the rest of the book had felt authentic without lecturing til then. I am glad I went back and finished this book after having begun earlier in the year


View all my reviews



Challenge Prompts

The Challenge Prompts I will use this for are:  

  1. Library Love  #LibraryLoveChallenge  Book #  101 
  2. Literary Escapes  #LiteraryEscapes  Chile
  3. Virtual Mount TBR #VirtualMountTBR2022   Book #125
  4. Historic Fiction  #histficreadingchallenge   Book #13
  5. Around the Year in 52 Books # 38. A book by a Latin American author
  6. BooklistQueen  #booklistqueenreadingchallenge2022  # 23. A Book Everyone is Talking About 
  7. Beat the Backlist #BTB2022  #30 translated to your native language
  8. Nerd Daily  #NERDREADING2022 #21 a book you never finished 
  9. Pick your Poison #97 a book about a pandemic
  10. Beyond the Bookends  December- Read a family drama
  11. Book Voyage  #bookvoyagechallenge  December: Books Spanning Multiple Continents
  12. Diversify your reading #DYRC22  Dec Historic Fiction
  13. Lifetime of Reading  multi generational
  14. Uncorked Reader #UncorkedReading2022  #5 hiking

Read Your Bookshelf


 This is a new TBR reducing challenge that is prompt based.   I found it via the signup for the Backlist Reader challenge when checking out another blogger's signup page.   This challenge is hosted by Chantel at Hey Reader blog.   It is a 12 prompt challenge with a different prompt for each month.   The unique aspect of this challenge is many of the prompts are sparked by the previous month's book selection.   Thus, a very creative challenge that may require planning on the reader's part or just a bit of fun searching each month to find something that fits the month's prompt.   Either way,  a great way to get through your TBR pile.  

Tracked here on the TBR site








Read Around the US


 This is a new challenge by the BookGirls which focuses on regions of the US each month.  It seems like it could be a good complement to the regular US States challenge I already do.   Just requires scheduling and may even help with some of the harder-to-find states for selections. 







JANUARY

BOOKS SET IN MAINE, MASSACHUSETTS, NEW HAMPSHIRE, RHODE ISLAND, AND VERMONT

  1. Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng  MA
  2.  Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes  ME
  3. Murder at the PTA (Maya and Sandra Mystery, #1) by Lee Hollis ME


FEBRUARY
Book list to be published 1/20/2023
Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming

MARCH
Book list to be published 2/20/2023
AlabamaFlorida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee


APRIL
Book list to be published 3/20/2023
US Island Territories including:
Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands

MAY
Book list to be published 4/20/2023
Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky­­­, Missouri, Nebraska

JUNE
Book list to be published 5/20/2023
Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania

    JULY
    Book list to be published 6/20/2023
    Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Texas
    1. Hook, Line and Sinker (Ozark Lakes #3) by Marc Jedel
    2. A Murder Like No Author (Main Street Book Club #3) by Amy Lillard

    AUGUST
    Book list to be published 7/20/2023
    California, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, Washington
    1. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

    SEPTEMBER
    Book list to be published 8/20/2023
    Books with Characters Traveling Across State Lines
    1. Misfortune Cookie by Vivienne Chien
    2. Shelved Under Murder (Blue Ridge Library Mysteries #2)  by Victoria Gilbert
    3. The Last Thing He Told Me by  Laura Dave
    4. Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reed

    OCTOBER
    Book list to be published 9/20/2023
    Alaska, Idaho, North Dakota, Montana, South Dakota
    1. The Tourist Attraction by Sarah Morgenthaler


    NOVEMBER
    Book list to be published 10/20/2023
    North Carolina, Maryland, Ohio, Virginia, Washington DC, West Virginia

    DECEMBER
    Book list to be published 11/20/2023
    Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin

    Beat the Backlist 23

     

     I am going to do this prompt-based challenge again in 2023. It is hosted by Austine and Katie on the Austine Decker blog.   You don't have to own the book and can borrow etc.   There is a 24 or 52 prompt list.  They have created a bingo card or a regular checklist for whichever format you prefer to track using.  


    #BTB23

    Prompts completed 48/52

    TBR Reduction Efforts

     Once again I am doing several challenges to help clear the ever growing TBR pile.  

    Some of the TBR challenges refer to physical books I own and others have to do with clearing the list of Want to Read and Library borrows that I am always seeming to add to as well.  

    First up are 2 hosted by Bev on her MyReadersBlock blog.  

    Mount TBR-   #MountTBR2023  books you already own before 1/1/23  Goodreads group

     Challenge Levels:

    Pike's Peak: Read 12 books from your TBR pile/s-  <== Trying this
    Mount Blanc: Read 24 books from your TBR pile/s
    Mt. Vancouver: Read 36 books from your TBR pile/s
    Mt. Ararat: Read 48 books from your TBR pile/s
    Mt. Kilimanjaro: Read 60 books from your TBR pile/s
    El Toro*: Read 75 books from your TBR pile/s (*aka Cerro El Toro in South America)
    Mt. Everest: Read 100 books from your TBR pile/s
    Mount Olympus (Mars): Read 150+ books from your TBR pile/s

    The Rules:
    *Once you choose your challenge level, you are locked in for at least that many books. You are welcome to voyage further and conquer taller mountains after your commitment is met. 

    *Books must be owned by you prior to January 1, 2023

    *Audiobooks and E-books may count provided they are yours prior to January 1. ARCs are also fine.


    Virtual Mount TBR-  #VirtualMountTBR2023 Clear your want to read list   Goodreads group

     Challenge levels:
    Mount Rum Doodle: Read 12 books from your Virtual TBR/Wish List/Library
    Mount Crumpit: Read 24 books from your Virtual TBR/Wish List/Library
    Mount Munch: Read 36 books from your Virtual TBR/Wish List/Library  

    White Plume Mountain: Read 48 books from your Virtual TBR/Wish List/Library<== Trying this
    Stormness Head: Read 60 books from you Virtual TBR/Wish List Library
    Mount Mindolluin: Read 75 books from your Virtual TBR/Wish List/Library
    Mount Seleya: Read 100 books 
    Mount Olympus: Read 150+ books 


    ~Once you choose your challenge level you are locked in for at least that many books. If you find you are on a mountain-climbing roll and want to tackle a taller mountain, then you are welcome to upgrade. All books counted for lower mountains carry over towards the new peak.

    This challenge is only for books you do not own. They may be borrowed from the library, a friend, found on a free e-book site (like Project Gutenberg), or anywhere else that allows you to temporarily "checkout" the book. Also--unlike Mount TBR--there is no date limit on your wish list. If you see a book that strikes your fancy after January 1 and want to grab it from the library, etc. then go for it.




      This is a straightforward challenge to just track books that are on your to read list- whether or not you actually own them.  Only requirement is that it must be published before 2022 and be on your list at the beginning of the challenge.