Whoa. I realized that I haven't posted in a month. I even have entries from quick writes in my journal at school, but I think this shows how crazy the first part of March gets with the end of the quarter, conferences and spring break. My goal for the rest of the school year is to post more regularly. And, because I've gone so long in posting - I've got a lot of finished books to talk about on here.
School
I just finished The Age of Miracles today, so I'll need to pick a new one. I'll let you know in the "next up" section.
Home
Hemingway's Girl by Erika Robuck - I grabbed this one at Barnes and Noble from the staff recommends section (I've gotten some good books from that area - they have a notecard with a short description of why they liked the book; check it out!) mostly because it had "Hemingway" in the title. Hemingway is probably my favorite author (although, it may be a four-way tie with him, Anne Rice, Rainbow Rowell and John Green). I will pick up almost anything that includes him in the storyline. I'm about halfway through this book, and it is a little more romancey than I normally like. Not that crazy about it.
Finished
Pull up a chair, because this section is a little long.
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin - I did a book talk on this one when I finished it. It is about the girl who wakes up and knows her friends have died but she survived the building's collapse. She has no memories of it though. This was really good and kept me wanting to read more of it.
The Line by JD Horn - I needed a replacement for the Sookie Stackhouse series, and this one popped up in my Goodreads recommendations. It is a series that is mostly coming out this year (the books are going to be less than $5 on Kindle!!!) about witches in Savannah. I'm not fully sold on it yet, but it was entertaining and worth it for $5/book.
Boy 21 by Matthew Quick - I also book talked this one. This is about the boy who moves into a school district but barely talks to anyone. His coach pairs him up with a current student/player and he slowly comes out of his shell and no longer refers to himself as an alien named "Boy21."
The Last Enchantments by Charles Finch - This is about a group of people who go to school for a year at Oxford in England. I didn't like most of the characters and thought they thought too much of themselves, so I can't say I really enjoyed the book.
Paris by Edward Rutherford - This is a history of Paris written as a novel. It isn't in chronological order, but each time period has families that intertwine throughout the centuries of The City of Lights. Most of the book focuses on the time period from the construction of the Eiffel Tower on, which made me a little sad. I knew that history; I was reading it to get more of Paris' ancient history. However, it was still enjoyable to read and still talked about a lot of historical events (and included Hemingway, so I was happy). I have Rutherford's historical novelizations of London and New York, and I'll definitely be reading those soon.
The Engagements by J. Courtney Sullivan - This follows multiple married couples during different time periods. Slowly, you see the connection between the couples, however, it also doesn't paint a pretty picture of marriage. Most of the couples are dysfunctional for one reason or another.
The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout - I wasn't crazy about this book. The characters weren't likeable and it was too much like real life. A lot of times, I want to read something that isn't real life - I use it as an escape. This book just kinda plugged along. It was good writing, but not necessarily my cup of tea.
Tropical Warning by Tim Dorsey - This is a Kindle single, which is basically a short story. This is just an extra story about Dorsey's character, Storm Serge. I think it was too short and didn't really develop the plot well.
Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg - This is a non-fiction book about why women aren't leaders in the workplace (like CEOs, CFOs, COOs, etc.). I've heard a lot of buzz about this, but I wasn't too crazy about it when I read it. You all know that I'm not afraid to stand up for myself, and that's basically what the book was telling women to do. It was a lot about what I already do.
Honeymoon in Paris by JoJo Moyes - This was another Kindle single and is a companion to her The Girl You Left Behind. It follows each of the two couples - the one during WWI and the present couple - on their honeymoons to Paris.
The Edible Exile by Carl Hiasssen - same as Tropical Warning
The Sherlockian by Graham Moore - This was a literary mystery involving Sherlock Holmes. It follows a group who "studies" all of the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and fights to prove items about Holmes. There is a murder and the group is then plunged into a hunt for Doyle's missing diary. Chapters switch back and forth between the present and Doyle's time period. This was a great mystery.
The Witch of Belladonna Bay by Suzanne Palmieri - I won this book as a giveaway for an advanced copy on Goodreads.
This was a quick read, and I honestly couldn't put it down when I started reading it. I was sucked in to the tale of Brownwyn, who has escaped her Southern roots and magic for a calm farm in New York. She returns to her family home in Southern Alabama to try to help her brother, who is sitting in jail accused of murder. Wyn slowly embraces her roots and finds answers to secrets that have been eating away at her for years. There's a lot of mystery to the book, and it is very reminiscent of Southern Gothic. If you like Anne Rice, this would be a great book for you.
Alabama Moon by Watt Key - This was another book talk. Ten-year-old Moon has only lived off the grid in the forest with his father. Things take a drastic turn when his father dies and Moon gets sent to a home for boys. He doesn't adapt well to living there and escapes with two other boys. The trio tries to make it to Alaska from Alabama, but of course, things don't go as planned.
Lincoln's Letter by William Martin - Martin does a neat trick with his novels. There are always two story lines - one in the past and one in the present. It follows Peter Fallon who deals in historical documents/artifacts. Usually there is a mystery surrounding one, so you get its "history" in bits as that timeline slowly inches toward the present. These are great books if you like American history; he's done ones on New York City, the US Constitution, Boston and now this one on Lincoln. This was probably my least favorite, but if you liked the National Treasure movies, you may like these.
Up Next
I am thinking about Billy Linn's Long Halftime Walk for work, and at home, I know I've got three new releases being delivered tomorrow, so one of those may be up. Or I could randomly pick another one - you never know.
