Memorial Day

 

Reading slowly

 I wouldn't say that I am in a reading rut but it is most definitely taking me longer to get through books lately. I think that is in part to life being so off-kilter for the past 14 months. Hopefully, now that things are getting better our reading lives can improve again, as well. This is not to say that I haven't been reading at all because I have. It is just a matter of my own attention span being eschew. Has anyone else experiences this over the past year? 

I am reading Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling with my kids. Even that, a book we all love, is taking longer than normal. Of course, it is the end of the school year and this is ALWAYS a BUSY and somewhat chaotic time of year. Hopefully with the slower pace of summer coming up we will all be reading more as we enjoy more time outside in the sunshine - either on the trails, at the pool or at the beach. I LOVE pool side reading with a cold drink! Anyone else? 

Audio Books

 I want to talk a little bit about audio books. I am SUPER late getting into this trend. In my defense, I have tried multiple times to get into audio books but they have just never stuck for me - until now. I have been driving around a lot again. My kids and I are reading through the Harry Potter series together this year. We are finishing up Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets at this time. A couple of weeks ago we were all bummed to stop reading to leave to be somewhere. I thought of getting the audio book and I am SO GLAD I did. We are now combining reading the book together with listening to the book in the car. Jim Dale reads the audio books and I swear it is an entirely new experience listening to him read the books.

On one such afternoon I dropped my kids off and realized I couldn't keep listening to Harry Potter without them and I was bummed. So I looked for an audio book for myself. I happened upon Naked in Death by J.D. Robb. the In Death series is my favorite series! In case you haven't read any of them they are books about New York City Police Detective Eve Dallas and her Billionaire husband Roarke. Each book in the series revolves around a homicide case. Anyway, as I said, I LOVE this series of books so I decided to listen to them and checked out the first audio book! I am so glad I did this, as well. Listening to the books is so different than reading them! I did find I flew through the book though because when I was done listening in the car I would want to read in the house! This is proving true for both the In Death and the Harry Potter series of books. 

While I am late to audio books I see myself (and possibly my kids) being a convert to them now. Do you enjoy audio books?

Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon

 I am so happy that I can actually participate in the upcoming Dewey's 24-Hour readathon. the event is taking place on April 24, 2021. For the first time in quite a while I am actually free for the majority of the day! I am so looking forward to reading a lot! I do have a couple of things to do that day but will be able to read for most of the event! My day will be spent reading great books for myself and with my kids. I love that they enjoy participating in the readathon with me! It will be fun to make our book stacks and plan our snacks and drinks! For us that is part of the fun!

Will you be participating in Dewey's 24-Hour readathon?

Camp NaNoWriMo

 I have come to realize that I work better with a deadline. I have known this in regard to writing the first draft of a book and writing short stories in general. However, I hadn't really thought about a deadline for subsequent drafts of books. Therefore it has taken me much longer than I wanted to revise my novel. 

In April there will be a session of Camp NaNoWriMo. NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) is held in November and the goal is to write 50,000 words. In April, for Camp, we can choose our own goals. So I am giving myself the month of April to revise my novel. My hope is that having the deadline and revising my novel a little bit each day will help to finally complete it.

Have you ever participated in NaNoWriMo or Camp NaNoWriMo?  What was your experience?

Review: The Vineyard at Painted Moon by Susan Mallery

 

What do you do when you think you have nearly everything in life you ever wanted but then the rug is swept out from beneath you? In the Vineyard at Painted Moon we meet Mackenzie Dienes who has the great job, great friends a great home and marriage or so it appears. The thing is that everything in her life is wrapped up with her husband and when Mackenzie and Rhys decide to divorce she is hurt and grieving but also realizes she may lose everyone and every thing she values in her life.

Mackenzie's story is one of getting to know herself all over again. She slowly picks up the pieces of her life and creates a new and more fulfilling life for herself. There are bumps and surprises, tears and laughter, anger and forgiveness along the way. 

The secondary stories in the book are good as well. I particularly enjoyed Stephanie's story. This book is definitely heavy at times but worth the read.

Teaser Tuesday: Love Lettering by Kate Clayborn

 

Teaser Tuesday is newly hosted by Ambrosia at The Purple Booker. To play along, just do the following:

- Grab your current read 

- Open to a random page 

- Share two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page 

- BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) 

- Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR list if they like your teaser. 

My teaser this week is from Love Lettering by Kate Clayborn:

Then he drops his eyes to the bar, to my card and ads one more thing. "I would say I like you so much, Meg."

One Day at a Time

 I have not made a blog post in nearly two years. I have struggled with what to write so I wrote nothing here and I'm a little sad about that. While I have been thinking about what to write it dawned on me that I could share this uncertainty. Maybe someone else has felt the same way - either about writing or some other endeavor or life in general. 

We all know what the past year has been like. Everyone has had to change their life in some way. People have lost their lives (either to Covid or other illnesses {we lost two family members last year and a dear friend at the beginning of this one} or accidents) and families and friends are left to mourn and figure out how to carry on. People we love and care for have had to deal with so much. I don't mean for this post to be completely sad and melancholy but I want to acknowledge that the past year has been hard and different for EVERYONE for a multitude of reasons. 

I believe there has also been joy, though. I know that my husband and our kids and I spent a lot of time last summer going on walks and hikes on our local trails. Yes, we were socially distancing and doing our best to keep others and ourselves safe but we were also TOGETHER a LOT! We were (and are) very thankful for that! We played a lot of games together (UNO Flip is a particular favorite). I learned that I can draw when my daughter started a doodle project that she invited others to participate in - in order to spread joy. I crocheted an entire blanket that looks like an old-fashioned patchwork quilt and we love it. We watched a lot of funny videos because laughing helps SO MUCH! My kids started playing Among Us then got their friends to play with them virtually. We continued to practice our daily Gratitude and we prayed - a lot.

It's true that I didn't blog. I wrote fiction here and there but not really all that much. I was at a loss for direction with my own writing when our world was in turmoil in so many ways. I felt like writing fiction and love stories was a little frivolous. I'm over that now, though! I feel that now more than ever the occupants of planet earth need good stories with happy endings and I hope to provide some of them. I need to focus on revision and get my series done and submitted but I feel like I can work on that again - one day at a time. 

How have you all been doing? What did you struggle with and how have you endured and come through this past year? 

Happy Easter

Wordless Wednesday: Roses on our Walk

Book Review: Time Castaways - The Mona Lisa Key

This is a fantastic, wonderful and imaginative book that my kids and I read together! Siblings, Mateo, Corey and Ruby go on an unexpected time-traveling adventure with a time pirate and his interesting entourage. The siblings learn a lot about one another while they go to different times and places through history. They are helping Captain Vincent of the ship Vermillion to uncover the mystery of the Mona Lisa Key.

My kids and I loved every moment of this book. We look forward to reading the second book in the trilogy - Time Castaways: The Obsidian Compass - which comes out in October.

Teaser Tuesday: Devil in Spring by Lisa Kleypas

Teaser Tuesday is newly hosted by Ambrosia at The Purple Booker. To play along, just do the following:

- Grab your current read 

- Open to a random page 

- Share two “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page 

- BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) 

- Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR list if they like your teaser. 

My teaser this week is from Devil in Spring by Lisa Kleypas:

"There's very little in life that doesn't require a compromise of one kind or another. No matter what you choose, it won't be perfect."

Book review: The Magic Misfits - The Second Story by Neil Patrick Harris

My kids and I read this book together - as we did the first in this wonderful series - and really enjoyed it! Neil Patrick Harris does a fantastic job weaving together a tale of family, friendship and identity mixed with lots of magic.

This book centers around Leila Vernon. She struggles with acceptance due to having been left on the doorstep of an orphanage as a baby. She has two wonderful father's whom she loves immensely. She has a group of friends who share her love of magic but she still wonders about who left her behind.

This story made my kids and I laugh, feel a little frustrated along with Leila, cheer the success of the Magic Misfits and learn as Leila did about her past. We love the magic element of the book, as well.

We highly recommend this series - whether you're reading it with someone or on your own! 

Currently reading: Connections in Death by J.D. Robb

In this gritty and gripping new novel in the #1 New York Timesbestselling series, Eve Dallas fights to save the innocent—and serve justice to the guilty—on the streets of New York.

Homicide cop Eve Dallas and her billionaire husband, Roarke, are building a brand-new school and youth shelter. They know that the hard life can lead kids toward dangerous crossroads—and with this new project, they hope to nudge a few more of them onto the right path. For expert help, they hire child psychologist Dr. Rochelle Pickering—whose own brother pulled himself out of a spiral of addiction and crime with Rochelle’s support.

Lyle is living with Rochelle while he gets his life together, and he’s thrilled to hear about his sister’s new job offer. But within hours, triumph is followed by tragedy. Returning from a celebratory dinner with her boyfriend, she finds Lyle dead with a syringe in his lap, and Eve’s investigation confirms that this wasn’t just another OD. After all his work to get clean, Lyle’s been pumped full of poison—and a neighbor with a peephole reports seeing a scruffy, pink-haired girl fleeing the scene.

Now Eve and Roarke must venture into the gang territory where Lyle used to run, and the ugly underground world of tattoo parlors and strip joints where everyone has taken a wrong turn somewhere. They both believe in giving people a second chance. Maybe even a third or fourth. But as far as they’re concerned, whoever gave the order on Lyle Pickering’s murder has run out of chances.

This is the 48th book in the In Death series by Robb! I am over halfway through the book and it is great so far! 

Gorgeous Tulips