Category: Reading



Something Lost, Something Gained: Reflections on Life, Love, and LibertySomething Lost, Something Gained: Reflections on Life, Love, and Liberty by Hillary Rodham Clinton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’m glad I got to read/listen to this as a Libby audiobook. Libby makes sure those of us with meager salaries can still afford to read currently popular books. Unless there is a hold. I didn’t know this had a timeline. Sadly, many like me will read it after the fact. Not that it would have changed my mind. And I doubt those who think differently than me would have changed their minds. Tribes seem set with their own.

I rarely give five stars to autobiographies. Mainly because it feels like I am being judgmental about the author’s life. It was what they lived and what they remembered; what was important in the moment.

What I liked about this book was it felt like we were having a conversation and she was relating her thoughts. And as with anyone you might have a cup of coffee or tea, you feel close. There are times you laugh. And there are times that are deep and honest. And the strong emotions that can crop up. Forgiveable with anyone.

If you have the curiosity, you may enjoy, even if you don’t politically agree, her work with women, here and abroad. Give her and her chat a chance.

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The Dragon Blood Collection, Books 1-3The Dragon Blood Collection, Books 1-3 by Lindsay Buroker
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

My last few nights I read this three-book collection from Kindle Unlimited. It was a nice bedtime book. But, honestly, I didn’t even remember reading (listening to text-to-speech) the book. There were fun times while getting to know dragons who could become human-shaped. And there was a person who reminded me of the supplier of spy gadgets (M?) in the 007 movies. But once I was finished I nearly forgot I read it. Until I found I had ordered the next in the series. Which I will read soon before I forget the rest of what I read.

There was nothing wrong with the books. I think others might enjoy them a lot. Hey, here’s the blurb from GoodReads, to help you decide.

“A thousand years have passed since a dragon has been seen in the world. Science and technology have replaced magic, which has dwindled until it has become little more than an element of myth and legend. There are those who still have dragon blood flowing through their veins, distant descendants of the mighty creatures of old. These rare humans have the power to cast magic, the power to heal, and the power to craft alchemical weapons capable of starting wars… or ending them. But they are feared for those powers, and in recent centuries, they have been hunted nearly to extinction. The few remaining survivors must find a way to change how humanity perceives them or be lost to the world forever. The Dragon Blood Collection includes three full-length novels of action, magic, and Balanced on the Blade’s Edge Deathmaker Blood Charged.”

Give them a try!

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My Grape Wedding (The Grape Series, #5)My Grape Wedding by Laura Bradbury
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love this autobiographical series! I read them on Kindle on my old phone. These are the only books I actually read with my eyes: no text-to-speech or audiobook. My tracking issues take a long time. But I love the French phrases scattered throughout. With the little bit of French, I do on Duolingo, these are easy enough, and I mostly don’t need help. But Kindle has the feature to show translation if needed or a dictionary lookup for words I might not get, such as food or other things that are foreign to me.

I feel I am traveling as I read these, and I love Laura Bradbury’s family, friends, and her sweet husband.

Look, I know it is a book about a wedding, and the series seems to surround the romance of Laura and Franck, but these are more the growing process and educational adventures of Ms. Bradbury. As I mentioned, it seems more travel and food than the yucky, sweet, snuggling stuff that can get annoying in other books.

I look forward to reading more of this series. Sorry, it takes so long.

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Claiming OneClaiming One by E.J. Runyon
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was at the bottom of my forever-held ‘currently reading’ shelf. I decided to get to the first books and try to catch up.

I have to admit to being lost. I don’t like short stories. If you read my reviews, they are usually centered around some long, never-ending series. So, bits and pieces of different lives were tough for me.

Don’t get me wrong, the writing was great. E.J. Runyon is great at telling a story. But I felt I was dropped into a moment and then jerked out.

So, here’s the deal: Try for yourself. You may love this kind of collection of stories. It’s just not for me right now.

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Scourge and Seed (Thalassic, #0-0.5)Scourge and Seed by Liz Shipton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Don’t you just love a back story about how the bad guy started out as a human? That’s what you get here—the back story to a few of the main characters of the Thalassic series. As book zero, this prequel shows you everyone’s start.

I found this one quite interesting. And now I feel I hold the whole story. So, it all started with a pandemic. And it all leads to the apocalypse and post-apocalypse. And as with all sci-fi disasters, you hope, like heck, the stories are not prophetic.

As far as I can tell, this is the last book of the series, though it could be read as book one, I suppose. I’ve already put Liz Shipton’s next book on pre-order. I think it comes in April.

I think most of these are on Kindle Unlimited. I loved all of them. I miss the world and the characters who became as close as friends in my mind. Try them out.

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Savage (Thalassic)Savage by Liz Shipton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

“I’d rather be a savage with you…than be civilized on my own.”

Jameson Briggs grew up in a savage world.

A survivor of the pandemic. An orphan at twelve. A brilliant poet, bullied for his words. A cutthroat pirate, ruthlessly hunted.

But when a disastrous shipwreck leaves him stranded in a foreign city, Jameson finds himself starting over in a world that is savage in a whole new way. Political maneuvering. Deception. Wealth. Beautiful women.

Beautiful dangerous women.

Like Zahara and Petra – daughters of the city’s most powerful CEO and heirs to a tech fortune. As Jameson grows closer to their family, his world spirals and he is drawn into a tangled web of lies and corruption. Jameson must will he rise above it?

Or will he become a savage?

This is a standalone origin story for the villain in the Thalassic Series. You DO NOT need to have read the series before you read it! In fact, this makes a nice entry point to the series. It is a spicy, enemies-to-lovers, forbidden-love romance between a morally-gray pirate and rich man’s daughter. In it, you’ll find the following

– Touch her and die
– Villain gets the girl
– Fish-out-of-water
– Found family
– Badass women
– Love triangle
– Pirates
– Dystopian world
– Plot twists
– Fast-paced, high-stakes adventure
– More snarky banter than you ever thought possible.

TRIGGER This book contains cheating. This guy is a villain. He is morally gray (and it is a pretty dark shade of gray.)

~~~
That is the blurb, as I found it hard to come up with something to say about this prequel. I was happy to read it, but how to describe it? I lost my words. I’m still a big fan of the Thalassic series and hope you find it fun, too. Now, on to the last written in the series.

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How to Be an Adult in Relationships: The Five Keys to Mindful LovingHow to Be an Adult in Relationships: The Five Keys to Mindful Loving by David Richo
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I have read/listened to other books by David Richo and felt this would be up my alley. Sadly, it is twenty-five years too late. I am in a good relationship now. We already follow a lot of the concepts Richo presents.

Still, I think there is a lot for everyone in this book. Having the author lead the listener through meditations as an audiobook is nice.

So many truths from scriptures, history, and other sources take more than one listen. It might be great to have the book and the audio, as I would have loved to go through and highlight those I felt were appropriate for me.

I was fortunate to pick this copy up on Libby, the library app.

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Prologue (Thalassic, #6)Prologue by Liz Shipton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This continues Paz’s story, and though it starts out with him in a bad place, he comes around to being the person I loved from the beginning of this series.

And once again, the exploration and adventure take over. I loved this addition to the series. There are two more little books about folks of this series. I can’t wait to fill in the missing pieces, Liz Shipton, author, supplies us.

I can’t wait to get started on what’s next.

By the way, did I mention these are all on Kindle Unlimited? Enjoy!

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Passage (Thalassic, #5)Passage by Liz Shipton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I hate to admit that I got confused between ‘Paz’ and ‘Passage’ about what happened in which book. I read them both in one night. So what I said for Paz can go here, too.

[These are] the least favorite of this series. I understand the need to view from another character than Bird. It is her friend turned lover, Sargo’s point of view. But sadly, he isn’t as perfect as we thought in previous books.

[And now Paz is falling for Johnny. Our lead man is confused on so many levels. We all get there sometimes. The best fictional characters show a lot of flaws and confusion.]

Another thing I didn’t like was all the fighting with or without weapons. I love visiting all the alternate dimensions, but the good guy and bad guy stuff was hard to take. And though the sex scenes before were fun, now it got weird, and with drugs involved, especially from the drug-free anchor partner, it just made Sargo even less appealing to me.

Still, as part of the series, I felt this part of the story needed to be told. And I’ve already moved on to #6! There is still a lot of interesting adventure to be had here.

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Review: Paz by Liz Shipton


Paz (Thalassic, #4)Paz by Liz Shipton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the least favorite of this series. I understand the need to view from another character than Bird. It is her friend turned lover, Sargo’s point of view. But sadly, he isn’t as perfect as we thought in previous books.

Another thing I didn’t like was all the fighting with or without weapons. I love visiting all the alternate dimensions, but the good guy and bad guy stuff was hard to take. And though the sex scenes before were fun, now it got weird, and with drugs involved, especially from the drug-free anchor partner, it just made Sargo even less appealing to me.

Still, as part of the series, I felt this part of the story needed to be told. And I’ve already moved on to #5 and, as of last night, #6! There is still a lot of interesting adventure to be had here.

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