Life and Things
It was a mostly quiet week. I went to see Pentatonix on Tuesday, which was lots of fun. Monday was a doctor visit, where they decided to set me up with yet another specialist. Ugh… And this Wednesday coming up, I leave for eight days in Alaska. It promises to be fun.
Enjoyable posts of the week from others
Book Blogger Meme Directory/ Perspective of a Writer
Has There Been a Rise in 4.5 Star Ratings (Is This Good or Super Fussy of Us?)/ Paper Fury
Bonding Through Blogging/ Bookidote
Guest Post: Top 4 Book Blogger Problems/ Ginger Mom & the Kindle Quest
Why We Love Psychological Thrillers/ Bookidote
Is This Real?/ Plot Monster (repost)
Beware the Book Exchange Pyramid Scheme
Posts of the week ICYMT
Love, Cutter by Michelle Jester
The Skeleton God by Eliot Pattison
…Thing To Do First Thing In The Morning
Heart of Mist by Helen Scheuerer
The Dolphin by Craig Bennett Hallenstein
Hard as Diamond, Heart of Copper
Review: Jurassic Florida by Hunter Shea
Tour: Jurassic Florida by Hunter Shea
Books read, reviewed, and posted/scheduled this past week
Pagan Portals: Gwyn ap Nudd by Danu Forest, 4*
Raptor Red by Robert Bakker, 4*
Life Sciences: Animals Help Plants by Mary Lindeen, 5*
The Storm Runner by JC Cervantes, 5*
Favourite Read(s) of the Week
Current Read
‘Aidan Dunn is a man driven by money and power – he just doesn’t have any. What he does have – he thinks – is charm. He’s been honing his manipulation skills as a charity collector for years, earning enough commission to rent a bedsit and keep him in lager. But it’s time for bigger and better things. He needs a break or a meal ticket. Rich, vulnerable looking Sophie Harris could be the answer.
The problem is, Sophie seems immune to his charms. When she isn’t at work, she spends her time at a group which she won’t tell him about. Worse still, she won’t commit to seeing him. It’s infuriating and addictive, so when Sophie finally seems to melt and asks him to come with her to a Salvation program meeting, Aidan is putty in her hands.
Because nobody’s perfect
At the meeting, ex-model front woman, Yvette Blake, and the program’s charismatic founder, doctor Jeffers, seem to be offering the route to money and power that Aidan seeks. All he has to do is climb the ladder and become a ‘Savior’ with the chance of securing a lucrative ‘Salvation program’ franchise.
The problem is, it costs too much. Fortunately, Sophie is willing to pay for him. She needs recruits to progress in the program, so what has Aidan got to lose? Nothing but his sanity, his freedom and his chance of true love with fellow initiate, Lizzie.’
Next Up (maybe)
Building a Trade Empire by Paul E Horsman
High Merchant by Paul E Horsman
Fascinating New Yorkers by Clifford Browder
Hiding by Jenny Morton Potts
Everything Under the Sun by Jessica Redmerski
Butcher Rising by Brandon Zenner
Implant by Ray Clark
Someone I Used to Know by Patty Blount
Devil’s Revolver by VS McGrath
Devil’s Standoff by VS McGrath
Burn Up: Secrets of Mylin by Joe Klingler
Book Haul
‘A captivating popular history that shines a light on the notorious Julio-Claudian women who forged an empire
Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and Nero—these are the names history associates with the early Roman Empire. Yet, not a single one of these emperors was the blood son of his predecessor. In this captivating history, a prominent scholar of the era documents the Julio-Claudian women whose bloodline, ambition, and ruthlessness made it possible for the emperors’ line to continue.
Eminent scholar Guy de la Bédoyère, author of Praetorian, asserts that the women behind the scenes—including Livia, Octavia, and the elder and younger Agrippina—were the true backbone of the dynasty. De la Bédoyère draws on the accounts of ancient Roman historians to revisit a familiar time from a completely fresh vantage point. Anyone who enjoys I, Claudius will be fascinated by this study of dynastic power and gender interplay in ancient Rome.’
‘“You know, to me, a violin and a person are alike. We keep inside the reverberations of the most important people who touch us. And the music we make lives after us.”
Imagine you are holding a violin made in 1750. Not a prestigious Amati or Stradivarius but a special one-off commission by a workaday luthier called John Johnson in his small workshop in Cheapside, London. You think about its history of more than a quarter of a millennium.
Who made it and why? Who has owned it? Played it? What celebrated characters might have heard it? How was it passed down, hand to hand, and how did its owners’ lives interlink? Holding it you might even muse on the transience of life against the durability of the instrument and the music it has played.
This is the story of that violin. It is taken on an incredible journey through history and is passed to a variety of characters including a Georgian libertine, a young French female virtuoso, a philanthropic collector, an illiterate labourer, a heroic WW1 flyer and a young German girl who survives the Holocaust. After a series of coincidences the story of the violin comes full circle in a touching and unexpected denouement.
The Violin is the perfect read for fans of historical fiction, or music lovers. It will transport you through time, pull on your heart strings and leave you spellbound.’
‘It begins with a nursery rhyme. Nineteen minutes later you die…
The sixth gripping thriller in Lars Kepler’s bestselling series featuring Joona Linna. Perfect for fans of Stieg Larsson and Jo Nesbo.
There’s a face at the window.
A stranger wearing a mask stands in the shadow of a garden. He’s watching his first victim through the window. He will kill him slowly, make it last – play him a nursery rhyme – make him pay.
A killer in your house.
There’s only one person the police can turn to – ex-Detective Joona Linna – but he’s serving time in a high-security prison. So they offer him a chance to secure his freedom: help Superintendent Saga Bauer track down the vicious killer known as the Rabbit Hunter, before he strikes again.
Only one man can stop him.
Soon another three victims have been murdered and Stockholm is in the grip of terror. Joona Linna must catch a disturbed predator, whose trail of destruction leads back to one horrific night of violence – with consequences more terrifying than anyone could have imagined…’
Thank you so much for the shout-out! Happy reading! 😀
Quite welcome! And you too!