Sunday Post #81

The Sunday Post is hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated reviewer book blog, and is a post to recap my bookish and non-bookish things from the last week. 

Work has been busy so by the time I got home every day I was exhausted and so I didn't get much reading or blogging done last week. It's also been boiling hot in my area, over a 100 degrees most days (today is supposed to 105) and I'm already done with Summer!

I traveled up to my daughters on Thursday and we had a nice time. I did a 5 mile hike that was about half shad half sun and even though I started at 8:30 am it got to be in the 90s by the time I got to the top. I didn't feel that great after because of the heat, but it was beautiful.

I'm on my way home as I'm writing up this (late) Sunday Post.

Dried up waterfall on my hike.

Read:

Click on cover for Goodreads link:

Settling an Old Score was fun and my first read of Delores Fossen. I love Allison Brennan's mystery/crime procedurals, and it was nice having Maxine and Lucy working together again. Maxine Revere is my favorite series by Allison Brennan.

Received/Purchased/Library Lend:

Click on cover for Goodreads link:

Got a library e-copy of The Veil, but I'll wait until the audio copy comes through before I start it. This will be my first Chloe Neil.

Watched:

Archive was a strange movie. Not sure I liked it, but it held my attention. 

How was your week?

Top Ten Tuesday: Most Anticipated Releases for the Second Half of 2020

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Artsy Reader where each week they post a new top ten list and ask fellow bookish folk to share their lists on that topic.

I missed last weeks topic and it's one I wanted to do so I'm going ahead and posting that one: Most Anticipated Releases for the Second Half of 2020. Here's what I'm looking forward to:

All these are part of a series except for Sandra Brown's Thick as Thieves, although most of the above books can be read as a standalone. I love the work of every author listed above and can't wait to get a chance to read them! 

What are releases are you looking forward to?

Sunday Post #80

The Sunday Post is hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated reviewer book blog, and is a post to recap my bookish and non-bookish things from the last week. 

Seems like July 4th celebrations were very subdued. I don't have special plans, but that's not really different from any other year in the past for me.

Due to the uptick in Covid-19 cases we're once again basically on lock down. Dining-in for restaurants, bars, and a bunch of other things have been canceled.  I get it with the possible crowds that 4th of July promised to bring. It could be an even bigger surge of cases than we're already seeing. Last week at my hospital we were almost at capacity with Covid patients so I understand the caution.

I don't understand the aversion to wearing a mask in public. I mean what harm does it cause to the person wearing it? I basically have to wear two masks and a face shield throughout my workday, so what does it matter to a person if they have to wear one mask for an hour or less while they're out shopping or whatnot? If this prevents the spread, then why not? Are your rights so important that you don't care about infecting someone who may have serious consequences contracting the disease even if you don't? Yeah, I just don't get it.

On a happier note, look at my wisteria!  This vine isn't that old so I'm so excited to have blooms even after Springs burst of flowers! The flowers are all over the vine that's on our patio cover!

Read:
(Click on cover for Goodreads link:)

Received/Purchased/Library Lend:

Got this approval last minute so it'll a while before I'm able to pick it up.

Watched:

When I heard about this adaptation from Kristen Ashley's The Will I was both excited and nervous! I loved this story so much I was worried how it would turn out. To my surprise it was pretty good, although I think if you hadn't read the book prior to watching you'd think it was a little cheesy, and the romance was a little out of the blue. The characters and setting were perfect! The book was really hot, but I was surprised at how hot the movie was too!  Didn't expect it to deliver in that regard! 

How was your week?

Mini Review: The Bad Boy of Redemption Ranch by Maisey Yates

The Bad Boy of Redemption Ranch (Gold Valley #9) by Maisey Yates

Publication Date: June 23rd 2020 by HQN

Pages: 336

Source: Publisher

Rating: ★★★½

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

About the book:

This rebel cowboy is looking for a fresh start—will he find more than he’s ever hoped for in Gold Valley?
Police officer Pansy Daniels is the poster girl for responsible behavior. Orphaned as a child, she has dedicated her life to safeguarding her local community. The last thing she needs is a hot-headed cowboy with attitude cruising into town. He may be her new landlord, but that’s no excuse for provoking her…or sending her heart into overdrive.
West Caldwell has come to Redemption Ranch to put his past behind him. Flirting with a pint-size police officer who thinks he’s bad news is definitely not part of the plan, but it’s deliciously easy to get under Pansy’s skin. Then West discovers the vulnerability Pansy keeps so well hidden, and suddenly this renegade cowboy is in over his head. In her arms, West feels like the man he always wanted to be—but can he become the man Pansy deserves?

My Thoughts:

I’ve enjoyed the Gold Valley Ranch series. Pansy and West’s romance was steamy and thankfully low on angst. West was such a sweetheart, patient with Pansy as she worked out her feelings, and I loved that he took in Emmett without hesitation. The small-town setting of Gold Valley described so beautifully it makes me want to pull up stakes and move to Oregon.

I love Maisey Yates’ writing, she brings her characters to life with emotion and relatable feelings. However, there was a lot of repeated internal dialogue that I feel could’ve been edited down. Still, the story was captivating, enjoyable, easy Summer reading. I look forward to Ryder and Sammy’s romance in The Hero of Hope Springs next!

3.5 Suns

Audio Review: The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix

Publication Date: April 7th 2020 by Quirk Books
Pages: 400
Audio Length: 13 hrs 49 min
Narrator: Bahni Turpin
Source: Library Lend
Rating: ★★★½ 

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible | Goodreads

About the book:

Fried Green Tomatoes and "Steel Magnolias" meet Dracula in this Southern-flavored supernatural thriller set in the '90s about a women's book club that must protect its suburban community from a mysterious and handsome stranger who turns out to be a blood-sucking fiend.

Patricia Campbell had always planned for a big life, but after giving up her career as a nurse to marry an ambitious doctor and become a mother, Patricia's life has never felt smaller. The days are long, her kids are ungrateful, her husband is distant, and her to-do list is never really done. The one thing she has to look forward to is her book club, a group of Charleston mothers united only by their love for true-crime and suspenseful fiction. In these meetings, they're more likely to discuss the FBI's recent siege of Waco as much as the ups and downs of marriage and motherhood.

But when an artistic and sensitive stranger moves into the neighborhood, the book club's meetings turn into speculation about the newcomer. Patricia is initially attracted to him, but when some local children go missing, she starts to suspect the newcomer is involved. She begins her own investigation, assuming that he's a Jeffrey Dahmer or Ted Bundy. What she uncovers is far more terrifying, and soon she--and her book club--are the only people standing between the monster they've invited into their homes and their unsuspecting community.

My Thoughts:

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires wasn't your usual vampire book with the "nice" romantic versions.  It was downright scary and gory in parts, but also had me laughing out loud.

Set in South in the early 90’s Patricia is a married housewife with two children in a very conservative type of family. The husband goes to work, the wife stays home and cares for the house and children: Husband is head of the house and his word goes. The only place Patricia feels independent is in her book club, where they read and discuss lots of real crime novels and wonder how they’d react in similar situations. Enter the handsome stranger, James, who moves into their idyllic neighborhood, and things get interesting and dangerous! Patricia is at first intrigued by James, but then little things niggle at her. She starts to get suspicious when people go missing and clues point to James.

I have to say I don’t remember the 1990s being like the 1950s where women were so subservient to men. I was newly married back then, and I don’t remember things being anything like what’s depicted here, but I live in Southern California so maybe the South was more traditional? It rankled especially when none of Patricia’s claims were taken seriously and her husband made her look like an idiot! I seriously wanted to strangle that man!  There were also a few times I wanted to shake the women in Patricia’s book club, too!  Wow, how much more can’t facts be staring you in the face and you choose to ignore them?!  I will say these women rallied together when it counted most, though.

The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Vampire Slaying was compared to Steel Magnolias meets Dracula, but it felt more like Desperate Housewives meets Dracula to me. It was an original mix of funny, odd, and frightening.

3.5 Suns

Sunday Post #79

The Sunday Post is hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated reviewer book blog, and is a post to recap my bookish and non-bookish things from the last week. 

So we finished our update on the bookshelves. Here's the before (natural stain) and the after (white paint). I think it brightened up the room.  I cut down on a few book so it's not as crowded and I'm happy with the results. Probably should do another clean out of books, but I'll put that off for now, lol. 

Before:

After:

Read:

(Click on cover for Goodreads link:)

All really good except for The Girl From Widow Hills which was a disappointment for me. Of course, Fire Touched was my favorite. Hard to beat Mercy Thompson (my 3rd time through).

Received/Purchased/Library Lend:

(Click on title for Goodreads link:)

Watched:

And I'm still watching Heartland...

How was your week?

Audio Book Challenge Mid-Year Check-In

Hot Listens and Caffeinated Reviewer are hosting the 8th annual Audiobook Challenge for 2020 and I'm posting my Mid-Year Check-in.

I pledged the 100 Club Audio Elite, and I guess I'm a little behind since I'm only at 39 books right now.  Must step up my game!

Click here for a link to my 2020 Challenge on Goodreads.

Here are some of my favorites of the year so far:

I'm including all the Mercy Thompson books, but Moon Called is the first one. I'm currently working my way through the series for the 3rd time and I've just finished book nine. Alone in the Wild is one that I both read traditionally and then listened to the audio. The audio was fantastic with Therese Plummer narrating. Loving the Ellery Hathaway series! All the Best Lies was so good! The Lady Darby series is one I've blown through by audio. Heather Wilds' performance is wonderful! 

What about you? Did you join the challenge this year? Let me know how you're doing!