Catalina by Liska Jacobs
My rating: 1 of 5 stars
Oh, the boring problems of privilege. I tried. I just couldn’t finish this book. It was a NetGalley. There are plenty of people who love this book. But trainwrecks aren’t my favorite thing to watch. I got 21% into it. But my reading time is best spent with books, of which I have thousands, most free, that I like to read. So moving on.
The Setup by T.B. Markinson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
What have I said about mysteries and romances? Travel. In this romance, I got to go to London. Through the main character, Rory, I got to take a job in London and meet with an old friend who sets her up with a new friend.
This was another Kindle Unlimited, so it was a free, sort of, read. I read it in one night. Yes, that was with text-to-speech.
I found the main character okay. I like her new friend, Imogen, boring, but Rory loved her, so that’s not for me to care. I was in London.
Anything more gets into spoilers, and the book is too short for that. It was fun. Give it a try.
The Searcher by Tana French
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
What do romances and mysteries have in common? Bodies. But the other thing is to travel deep into another area where I am not. This book is an exception because we have no idea if there is a body or not—just a missing person. Still, we got to go to Ireland for this one. And we see it from an American’s point of view.
I am happy that it wasn’t a murder mystery. I find those kinds of mysteries boring and morally deficient. Can’t we find something that is suspenseful without it being murder? I find missing my favorite pen a good mystery. Maybe the freezer? It could happen!
Anyway, I found this book refreshing in a lot of ways. Though it didn’t come up to my reading goal of a female author, featuring a female main character (who was male). Still, I found the main character interesting, especially when he made friends with the brat who was throwing stuff at him.
Is it because of reading with text-to-speech? I found I couldn’t stay with the story. I found myself bored. But then the brat would do something, and I was back to caring for the outcome.
Maybe you will love this more than I. Still, it isn’t the worst. A beach read or waiting room occupation?
The Keto Vegan: 14-Day Ketogenic & Intermittent Fasting Meal Plan (With 51 Tasty Low-Carb Plant-Based Recipes) by Lydia Miller
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I like that there is a keto diet for vegans. This book outlines that plan well. I wish I had unlimited funds to support my dream eating habit. Still, I bought the Kindle version for my own references and followed recipes when I can in the future. Meanwhile, this book and others by this author are on Kindle Unlimited to peruse to see if it would help seek a healthier lifestyle.
I am still doing Intermittent Fasting but still need to find a doable food system for my particular needs. I look forward to trying some of these recipes in the future.
Northern Lights by Lise Gold
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
After finishing Kristin Lavransdatter, I needed something lighter to read, yet still wanting a little more Norway. What better than Northern Lights? It is an adventure on holiday in Norway to see the Northern Lights also a lesbian romance.
My husband and I took an Alaskan cruise in June about a decade ago. I had hoped beyond any known reality that I would get to see the Aurora Borealis. I stayed awake until the three hours of night were over hoping to see this phenomenon. It was June. I knew it wouldn’t happen. I hope I get to see it someday. Meanwhile, I have to sink into fiction to experience it.
This was a light, fun romance. And the author caught the feeling of being on a cruise or holiday together with strangers. It was fun to see how those in Norway celebrate Christmas. Oh, and at the end of the book are a bunch of recipes that a person who loves that sort of thing would enjoy. I don’t much like to cook. You might like it though.
Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This was the longest book I think I have ever read. It was agony. I’m glad I listened to it on Audible.
I’m sorry. I know a lot of people absolutely loved this book. Okay, it is three books in one. But it just seemed to go on and on. It was like living in that miserable time when misogynic religion ruled everyone’s life.
Still, I did like the main character and watching her make up her mind about life. I must have liked it as I couldn’t stop reading it even though I wanted to quit. The whole time I was reading, was it a month? All I could think about was trying to write a decent review. So let me lead you to a review that says what I felt better than I can. Read Rachel’s Review.
So Still the Dawn by Cidney Swanson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Cidney Swanson has me under her spell. I love all her books. I feel so fortunate to be able to be an early reader for her. I am especially giddy when she writes about Mars. This latest series is called Shadow of Mars. This was book three. This one is so new it wasn’t even listed on Amazon or GoodReads when I read it.
Just a quick blurb. Book one was So Dark the Sky, in which our main character Penny Wanjiru, a school teacher, finally gets the chance to go to Mars. But leaving her elderly grandmother makes the decision difficult. Book two was So Bright the Stars, in which Penny is on her way to Mars. This third book is So Still the Dawn, in which Penny is on Mars and wondering if she is going to get to stay.
Anyone who knows me well knows how much I love and have always loved science fiction, especially space travel. Cidney writes to my inner kid. Especially in her Saving Mars series. But this series is aimed toward adults. Even though I would have read it as a youngster. I read too many stories of men getting to go to space. They weren’t kids. They were adults. I wish there had been women in space novels who weren’t eye candy. Ms. Swanson makes you feel more, that the adult in the book isn’t so much a wimpy woman crying for romance but an adult who happens to be a woman who is brilliant in her own way.
Another wonderful thing Cidney does in her books is dive deep into the character’s psychology. All those creeping thoughts we record early in life, that make us feel unworthy or wrong for what good could happen, Cidney brings that forward and helps us to grow with the character. Go Cidney!
Okay, I don’t want to spell it out for you or give you spoilers. I highly recommend reading anything by Ms. Swanson but especially the Shadow of Mars series!
Cidney Swanson has me under her spell. I love all her books. I feel so fortunate to be able to be an early reader for her. I am especially giddy when she writes about Mars. This latest series is called Shadow of Mars. This was book three. This one is so new it isn’t even listed on Amazon or GoodReads yet. When it is, I will copy from here the parts about her book and paste them there. Usually, it is the other way around. I write the review on GoodReads, then copy to Amazon, and then here on WordPress.
I want to put the picture up here, too. But I don’t know if that is even okay yet. So I’ll do the best I can with my words.
Just a quick blurb, since there isn’t one to grab out there, I’ll see if I can give you a bit of what has happened and what this book is about. Book one was So Dark the Sky, in which our main character Penny Wanjiru, a school teacher, finally gets the chance to go to Mars. But leaving her elderly grandmother makes the decision difficult. Book two was So Bright the Stars, in which Penny is on her way to Mars. This third book is So Still the Dawn, in which Penny is on Mars and wondering if she is going to get to stay.
Anyone who knows me well knows how much I love and have loved science fiction, especially space travel. Cidney writes to my inner kid to teen. Especially in her Saving Mars series. But this series is aimed toward adults. Even though I would have read it as a youngster. I read too many of men getting to go to space. They were kids. They were adults. I wish there had been women in space novels who weren’t eye candy. Ms. Swanson makes you feel more that the adult in the book isn’t so much a wimpy woman crying for romance but an adult who happens to be a woman who is brilliant in her own way.
Another wonderful thing Cidney does in her books is dive deep into the character’s psychology. All those creeping thoughts we record early in life that make us feel unworthy or wrong for what good could happen. Cidney brings that forward and helps us to grow with the character. Go Cidney!
Okay, I don’t want to spell it out for you or give you spoilers. As soon as the book goes ‘live’, I will make sure you can go get it. I highly recommend it!
Per Linda:
Here are the JusJoJan Rules:
1. Just Jot It January starts January 1st, but it’s never too late to join in! Here, we run on the honour system; the “jot it” part of JusJoJan means that anything you jot down, anywhere (it doesn’t have to be a post, it can even be a grocery list), counts as a “jot.” If it makes it to your blog that day, great! If it waits a week to get from a sticky note to your screen, no problem!
2. I’ll post prompts at 2am my time (GMT -5). The prompt will be the word in quotation marks in the title of my 2am post. You don’t have to follow the prompt every day, but that will be where you leave your link for others to see. You’ll get a prompt for every day except Wednesday, when the prompt is simply my One-Liner Wednesday and on Saturday, when your prompt will be the Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS, which will appear at about 9:30am Friday. Each prompt post will include the rules.
3. Please ping back or link to the daily prompt. To ping back, just copy the URL from the daily prompt post, and paste it anywhere in your post. Check to make sure your link shows up where you want it to, and go back occasionally to see other bloggers’ entries – the more you visit others, the more they’ll visit you! Note: A) The newest pingbacks will be at the top of the comments section. B) Ping backs only work if you’re blogging on WordPress. Everyone else must paste a link manually.
4. Tag your post JusJoJan and/or #JusJoJan.
5. Write anything! Any length will do! It can even be a photo or a drawing – you’re going to title it, right? There’s your jot!
6. If your post is NSFW, do not ping back. Please leave your link in the comments with a warning.
7. If you’d like to, use the JusJoJan badge so that others can find your post more easily.
8. Have fun!
Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I thought I loved book number one. But this one was even better. And I am not a gamer from the 80s. But my adult kids were. They met most of their friends in their games. I think they would like this. But then again, I remember enough of their games and terminology that this was serendipitous for me.
If you read the first book (or even saw the movie), you will remember that the story started fast and nearly left you breathless. This book started lots slower. Video/computer game nostalgia and reconnecting with the main characters keep that slower first part moving and interesting. But you will be left not sleeping and breathless by the end of this book.
Though I bought the Kindle version of the book and then the Audible to Whispersynch both versions. I just liked the way Wil Wheaton acted the story that I gave up reading and just listened.
I can’t wait to reread this. And wow! If there is going to be one, the movie will be even better than book number one! I hope you check it out!
Here are the JusJoJan Rules:
1. Just Jot It January starts January 1st, but it’s never too late to join in! Here, we run on the honour system; the “jot it” part of JusJoJan means that anything you jot down, anywhere (it doesn’t have to be a post, it can even be a grocery list), counts as a “jot.” If it makes it to your blog that day, great! If it waits a week to get from a sticky note to your screen, no problem!
2. I’ll post prompts at 2am my time (GMT -5). The prompt will be the word in quotation marks in the title of my 2am post. You don’t have to follow the prompt every day, but that will be where you leave your link for others to see. You’ll get a prompt for every day except Wednesday, when the prompt is simply my One-Liner Wednesday and on Saturday, when your prompt will be the Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS, which will appear at about 9:30am Friday. Each prompt post will include the rules.
3. Please ping back or link to the daily prompt. To ping back, just copy the URL from the daily prompt post, and paste it anywhere in your post. Check to make sure your link shows up where you want it to, and go back occasionally to see other bloggers’ entries – the more you visit others, the more they’ll visit you! Note: A) The newest pingbacks will be at the top of the comments section. B) Ping backs only work if you’re blogging on WordPress. Everyone else must paste a link manually.
4. Tag your post JusJoJan and/or #JusJoJan.
5. Write anything! Any length will do! It can even be a photo or a drawing – you’re going to title it, right? There’s your jot!
6. If your post is NSFW, do not ping back. Please leave your link in the comments with a warning.
7. If you’d like to, use the JusJoJan badge so that others can find your post more easily.
8. Have fun!
Intermittent Fasting for Women Over 50: The Essential Guide to Get a Healthy Life and Lose Weight. Learn How to Detox Your Body, Support Your Hormones, and Increase Your Energy with Great Meal Prep. by Jason Watchers
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
My son (45) was told his cholesterol was high. He is thin and seemingly strong and healthy. He decided to go on an Intermittent Fasting diet. It seems to be helping him get even healthier. So I have thought I could do this kind of lifestyle change without too much trouble.
I found this book was Kindle Unlimited, so I picked it up. I read it in a day. Well, not all the recipes. I don’t cook, so I will have to wing a lot of this. But I have found that rescheduling when I eat and when I fast to be the easiest thing. I make sure not to eat after 8 PM and then start eating again after noon. During the eating parts, I try to eat as healthy as I can and watch my portions. Seems easy so far. The hardest is that my body is used to eating breakfast after years of hearing that it was my main meal, etc. But two days in and I don’t miss it. I know. There is a lot more to it. But this book is a start. I will be referring back to it again and again.
Congrats! You have completed your goal of reading 100 books for the 2013 Reading Challenge! 115 of 100 (115%)
Congrats! You have completed your goal of reading 225 books for the 2012 Reading Challenge! 225 of 225 (100%)
Congrats! You have completed your goal of reading 200 books for the 2011 Reading Challenge! 204 of 200 (102%)
Books, games, music, and life — filtered through the mind of a writer, drummer, and philosopher who thinks too deeply about all of it. If it moves something in your chest, I'm interested.
"Words & Wonders - Where thoughts meet art
Justice, Channeling,Spiritual,Astrology,Truth- Seeker.
Education, Information, Motivation
Portuguese-Canadian Writing About This Portuguese Thing of Ours
Inheritance. Narcissism. Turf. Welcome to the family.
Finding the extra in the ordinary
A Blog About Food and Travels
I upload photos & videos Golu lodhi village pairakhedi
Travel,Tourism, Life style "Now in hundreds of languages for you."
twisted yarns, unraveled
The Introvert's Roadmap to Self Discovery and Growth
story telling from history
Where ancient wisdom meets modern technology. Stories that illuminate the wonders of science, culture, and life — crafted with human creativity and a touch of AI magic.
Life is just down the road lesser traveled....
Darswords 
You must be logged in to post a comment.