Just popping in to post that I'm intending to participate in the next Bout of Books readathon. I participated in almost every one from the beginning and I can't miss this one! I will be traveling back home to California on Wednesday of that week, but I hope to get a decent amount of reading in throughout. Not sure of my TBR yet, but it will probably include Arabian Nights and No Time Like the Past.
Next up on the TBR pile:
It's time for my annual Christmas break from blogging. I hope everyone has a happy Holiday season and I will be back in early January with more posts!
Title: A Christmas to Remember
Author: Lisa Kleypas, Lorraine Heath, Megan Frampton, Vivienne Lorret
Publisher: Avon 2017
Genre: Historical Romance
Pages: 420
Rating: 4/5 stars
Reading Challenges: Mount TBR; New to Me
Romance stars Lisa Kleypas, Lorraine Heath, Megan Frampton, and Vivienne Lorret prove in this collection of stories that love is the most magical during Christmas…
"I Will" by Lisa Kleypas
To be reinstated into his father’s will, Andrew, Lord Drake, must court a respectable woman-his friend’s spinster sister, Miss Caroline Hargreaves. After he blackmails Caroline into helping him, the charade begins-but is it really a charade once love takes hold of their hearts…?
4/5 I loved most of this story. I enjoyed the interplay between the two main characters until we got to the sex scene. Then, I just didn't like how it played out. Too much for my taste.
"Deck the Halls With Love" by Lorraine Heath
Alistair Wakefield, the Marquess of Chetwyn, devastated Lady Meredith Hargreaves when he proposed to another. But when he becomes free to pursue her, it’s too late for she’s on her way to the altar….. As Christmas approaches, Chetwyn vows to lure Lady Meredith back into his arms.
5/5 Loved this story so much. Great characters and great storyline.
"No Groom at the Inn" by Megan Frampton
James Archer detests his mother’s matchmaking ways. When ordered to attend a Christmastime house party filled with simpering maidens, he produces a fiancée-Lady Sophronia Bettesford. James and Sophronia pretend to be in love for one month. But their pact soon turns into love.
4/5 Another decent story although I found James to be a bit dull for my taste.
"The Duke’s Christmas Wish" by Vivienne Lorret
To the Duke of Vale, science solves everything-even marriage. When the impulsive Ivy Sutherland makes him question all of his data, he realizes that he’s overlooked a vital component in his search for the perfect match: love.
4/5 Pretty good storyline and characters. I would have liked to see more from their plot.
Next up on the TBR pile:
We're now Indiana for the holidays and have completed even more Christmas related tasks.
Completed 11/28
Next up on the TBR pile:
Today's video round-up is heavy on trailers...
Loved the book but it was so weird, I was afraid of how they would turn it into a movie. I'll definitely watch the movie to find out.
I'll see it.
I don't think I can wait until May for this one...
But first we, get Black Panther. This movie looks badass!
AHHHHH!!!! I can't can't can't wait for Season 3! We get to travel on the Muntjac!
I can't wait for this one. It looks gorgeous.
I'll watch just about anything with Dwayne Johnson.
So creepy looking! We are adding to our To Watch list.
Oh yeah, we'll being seeing it!
Next up on the TBR pile:
Title: The Sometime Bride
Author: Ginny Baird
Publisher: Winter Wedding Press 2012
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 205
Rating: 3/5 stars
Reading Challenges: Mount TBR
A jilted bride and a ditched bachelor cut a "fake fiancé" deal.
After enjoying the anthology Christmas Magic, I turned to this other Baird novella hoping for something similar. Unfortunately this one just didn't really speak to me. I wasn't a huge fan of the main characters and the story was pretty tired.
Next up on the TBR pile:
My goal is to keep my quarterly clothes budget to $200. I've still got some weight loss goals to achieve, but I need to do a bit of fill-in in the meantime.
Amazon: $25.99
I was looking for some cute low oxfords to wear this winter. Thank goodness for Amazon as I was striking out at all the physical stores around here.
Amazon: $0
My care exchange partner bought me these two lovely tunics. I had been eyeing them for awhile, but I rarely buy clothes. It was a nice treat to get them in my box.
Target: $21.81
I love the Target clearance rack! I found this cute denim skirt and black sleeveless top. The top has gone into regular rotation for my outfits.
2017 Total: $322.59
Next up on the TBR pile:
Title: Christmas Magic #1-5
Author: Ginny Baird
Publisher: Winter Wedding Press 2015
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 444
Rating: 4/5 stars
Reading Challenges: Mount TBR; New to Me
THE CHRISTMAS CATCH (Holiday Brides Book 1)
A struggling single mom meets a handsome bachelor in Vermont, after running him off the road during a snowstorm. A sweet, romantic tale about fate and second chances. Set in snowy Vermont!
5/5 Cute little story set in the country. I was of the characters in this one.
THE HOLIDAY BRIDE (Holiday Brides Book 2)
A child asks for a new mommy for Christmas, and--much to her bachelor dad's surprise--Santa delivers. A sweet traditional romance and classic amnesia story, with a holiday twist!
3/5 This one was a bit too cheesy for me. Just wasn't a huge fan.
MISTLETOE IN MAINE (Holiday Brides Book 3)
A single mom takes her kids on vacation in Maine and meets a handsome innkeeper, a young widower with a teenage son. A winter wonderland love story about faith and new beginnings.
4/5 Cute little story.
BEACH BLANKET SANTA (Holiday Brides Book 4)
A couple with a past spends an unexpected, yet magical, Christmas week together at the shore, where serendipity abounds. Take a sweet, sentimental journey to the North Carolina Outer Banks...
5/5 Loved loved loved this story! Such a great set-up and payoff. I was totally in on this.
BABY, BE MINE (Holiday Brides Book 5)
A single woman gets a Christmas gift that sends her world into chaos, and has her tracking down a last-minute groom - with the help of her handsome best friend. A sweet romantic comedy novella.
4/5 Decent little story.
Next up on the TBR pile:
Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish.
Each week we will post a new Top Ten list complete with one of our bloggers’ answers. Everyone is welcome to join. If you can’t come up with ten, don’t worry about it—post as many as you can!
Next up on the TBR pile:
I used to listen to Dashboard Confessional constantly. Great to hear a new song...
Next up on the TBR pile:
As I look outside my window: There's a fine dusting of snow on the ground. So pretty outside!
Right now I am: Relaxing and watching a movie with the boys. We're working on our Christmas movie list.
On my bedside table: The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman
On my tv this week: Nothing much except for Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy.
Listening to: Lindsey Stirling and Leslie Odom Jr.'s Christmas albums. We're deep into the Christmas spirit here.
Happening this week: Not sure what we've got on tap for this week yet. I'm sure we will have a few activities, plus our advent Christmas activities. And then Sunday is Christmas Eve!
What I am creating: I'm finishing up my Occasions catalog swap cards. Almost done! After that, I want to start on the holiday albums.
My simple pleasures: Watching the snow falling.
Looking around the house: We're at my mom's house and it's currently a disaster. There are toys everywhere! We need to do a sweep clean.
From the camera: Q "shopping" in the living room. He's apparently picking up some sprinkles for cookies.
Next up on the TBR pile:
Title: Voyager (Outlander #3)
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Publisher: Dell 2001
Genre: Historical Romance/Fantasy
Pages: 912
Rating: 4/5 stars
Reading Challenges: Mount TBR; Popsugar - More than 800 Pages
Sweeping us from the battlefields of eighteenth-century Scotland to the exotic West Indies, Diana Gabaldon weaves magic once again in an exhilarating and utterly unforgettable novel....Their love affair happened long ago by whatever measurement Claire Randall took. Two decades before, she had traveled back in time and into the arms of a gallant eighteenth-century Scot named Jamie Fraser. Then she returned to her own century to bear his child, believing him dead in the tragic battle of Culloden. Yet his memory has never lessened its hold on her ... and her body still cries out for him in her dreams.When she discovers that Jamie may have survived, Claire must choose her destiny. And as time and space come full circle, she must find the courage to face what awaits her ... the deadly intrigues raging in a divided Scotland ... and the daring voyage into the dark unknown that lies beyond the standing stones.
I am not kidding when I say that it has taken me almost a year to get through this one. I started reading it way back in March (??? I think) and just finished it. I just got stuck in the middle for the longest time. I really enjoyed the first about 200 pages detailing Jamie's time after Culloden and Claire traveling back to Scotland. Once they were reunited, I just lost a bit of interest. The pace really slowed down and I just didn't have the burning desire to keep reading. Once I passed page 600 or so, everything starting moving a lot faster and I sped to the finish. There were so many twists and turns in that last 1/3 of the book. I was right along for the ride. Definitely a good read, just took me a year to finish. Here's hoping it doesn't take me all of 2018 to finish The Drums of the Autumn.
Outlander
#0.5 Virgins
Next up on the TBR pile:
We're now Indiana for the holidays and have completed even more Christmas related tasks.
Completed 7/28
Our Christmas Tree disaster...
Next up on the TBR pile:
Here's my randomness for the week:
Next up on the TBR pile:
Title: The Water Witch (Fairwick Trilogy #2)
Author: Juliet Dark
Publisher: Ballantine Books 2013
Genre: Paranormal Fiction
Pages: 322
Rating: 5/5 stars
Reading Challenges: Mount TBR
After casting out a dark spirit, Callie McFay, a professor of gothic literature, has at last restored a semblance of calm to her rambling Victorian house. But in the nearby thicket of the honeysuckle forest, and in the currents of the rushing Undine stream, more trouble is stirring. . . .
The enchanted town of Fairwick’s dazzling mix of mythical creatures has come under siege from the Grove: a sinister group of witches determined to banish the fey back to their ancestral land. With factions turning on one another, all are cruelly forced to take sides. Callie’s grandmother, a prominent Grove member, demands her granddaughter’s compliance, but half-witch/half-fey Callie can hardly betray her friends and colleagues at the college. To stave off disaster, Callie enlists Duncan Laird, an alluring seductive academic who cultivates her vast magical potential, but to what end? Deeply conflicted, Callie struggles to save her beloved Fairwick, dangerously pushing her extraordinary powers to the limit—risking all, even the needs of her own passionate heart.
The second volume in this series and I am getting slightly annoyed by Callie even though I do love the storyline. I am super absorbed in Fairwick's world and an super excited to see how all of this plays out over the course of the series. But... I must say that Callie can be a bit stupid. I pegged the incubus within the first 40 pages. And I was annoyed by how she responded to finding out who it was at the end of the book. One the other hand I'm super into following the bigger fight between the fey and the anti-fey witches. And now we have another player revealed. Must read the last book in the series.
Fairwick Trilogy:
Next up on the TBR pile:
Title: Bonk
Author: Mary Roach
Publisher: Norton 2009
Genre: Nonfiction - Science
Pages: 321
Rating: 5/5 stars
Reading Challenges: Mount TBR
In Bonk, the best-selling author of Stiff turns her outrageous curiosity and insight on the most alluring scientific subject of all: sex. Can a person think herself to orgasm? Why doesn't Viagra help women-or, for that matter, pandas? Can a dead man get an erection? Is vaginal orgasm a myth? Mary Roach shows us how and why sexual arousal and orgasm-two of the most complex, delightful, and amazing scientific phenomena on earth-can be so hard to achieve and what science is doing to make the bedroom a more satisfying place.
Our book club collection for this month. I actually read this about 6 years ago, but I couldn't remember the specifics of the studies highlighted. It was a nice easy reread for a busy time of the year. I fell back into Roach's hilarious style full of fun asides and irreverant questions. The first few chapters feel a little slow, but the book quickly speeds up. I flew through the last 100 pages or so. Definitely an interesting read.
Next up on the TBR pile:
Seriously the Latin Pop channel is on heavy rotation in our house lately...
Next up on the TBR pile:
As I look outside my window: So dark!
Right now I am: Getting ready to eat dinner (eta 10 minutes) after packing our suitcase for Tuesday.
Thinking and pondering: What else do I need to pack for Indiana? I always feel like I'm forgetting something...
On my bedside table: Voyager by Diana Gabaldon (darn it, I'm going to finish this one before the end of the year)
On my tv this week: Stan Against Evil S2 (Oh so good!); People of Earth S1; Dirk Gently S2
Listening to: Baby Driver Soundtrack; Pod Save America podcast; Reading Glasses podcast
On the menu for this week: On Monday, we're having Spinach and Blue Cheese Stuffed Chicken. On Tuesday, we're flying to Indiana. No idea what we're eating the rest of the week.
On my to do list: Finish packing! Clean up the toys and random crap. Send out the rest of the Christmas cards.
Happening this week:
What I am creating: Nothing at the moment, although I am prepping my December Daily album and the supplies for my Holiday Albums.
My simple pleasures: My new French Press is amazing. Such good coffee!
Looking around the house: There is crap everywhere! Seriously, I need an afternoon to just pick everything up, but not sure if I'll get it before we leave.
From the camera: Hello Q!
Next up on the TBR pile:
December is in full swing! Let's see how we've done so far this month.
Completed 6/28
Next up on the TBR pile:
Title: Star of the Sea
Author: Joseph O'Connor
Publisher: Harcourt 2002
Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: 401
Rating: 3/5 stars
Reading Challenges: Mount TBR; Read Your Book Shelf; Popsugar -- About an Immigrant
In the bitter winter of 1847, from an Ireland torn by famine and injustice, the Star of the Sea sets sail for NewYork. On board are hundreds of refugees, some optimistic, many more desperate. Among them are a maid with a devastating secret, the bankrupt Lord Merridith, his wife and children, and a killer stalking the decks, hungry for the vengeance that will bring absolution.
This journey will see many lives end, others begin anew. Passionate loves are tenderly recalled, shirked responsibilities regretted too late, and profound relationships shockingly revealed. In this spellbinding tale of tragedy and mercy, love and healing, the farther the ship sails toward the Promised Land, the more her passengers seem moored to a past that will never let them go.
Another one of those "It's been on my shelf way too long" books. I really don't have much to say about this book. It was interesting, but it felt like I was reading this one for forever. I just wasn't super engaged in the storyline or the characters. I kept reading to find out what happened, but I wasn't super excited. I'm sure there are many people who would love this book. I'm just not one of those people.
Next up on the TBR pile:
