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Dragon Rambles' Law of Fives Bingo
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2017 Pick Your Poison Reading Challenge (retired challenge - doing old boards for fun)
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Showing posts with label Hester Fox. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hester Fox. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 09, 2024
Top Ten Tuesday: Everyone's Dying to Get In
Top Ten Books On My TBR List That Feature Cemeteries in One Way or Another (Or At Least Sound Like They Might)
1. Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch—This is my current listen. As I said above, it's about a teen girl who goes to Italy to fulfill her mother's dying wish that she get to know her father. The situation is all kinds of awkward, and all Lina wants to do is hightail it back to Seattle. Everything changes when she's given a journal her mother kept while living in Italy; reading it leads Lina to hidden wonders and a well-kept secret that changes everything she knows about her mother and herself.
2. The Cemetery of Untold Stories by Julia Alvarez—After watching a friend and fellow novelist drive herself mad trying to finish a book, Alma Cruz vows not to let her own unfinished manuscripts chase her down the same path. When she inherits a piece of land in her native Dominican Republic, she turns it into a cemetery for her untold stories, burying incomplete drafts and abandoned revisions. Despite her determination to let them die, the tales take on lives of their own, the characters insisting on telling their own stories, refusing to be forgotten...
3. Fallen Grace by Mary Hooper—In this YA historical novel, a young woman in Victorian England who has just given birth to an illegitimate child who is born dead travels to a posh cemetery to bury her infant in the coffin of a wealthy woman. It's the only gift she can give her poor baby. In the graveyard, she meets two people who will impact her impoverished life greatly as she ekes out her meager existence. Sounds bleak, but interesting.
4. 199 Cemeteries to See Before You Die by Loren Rhoads—This travel guide, complete with stunning photography, showcases interesting cemeteries around the world that draw hordes of visitors eager to enjoy their beautiful scenery, hear about their unique histories, and visit their famous residents.
5. Grave Reservations by Cherie Priest—Leda is a Seattle travel agent and a sometimes psychic. When she reroutes a police detective from a doomed flight, the detective realizes her special gift could make her very useful to the police. Leda agrees to help him solve a cold case while at the same time investigating one of her own: her fiancé's murder.
6. Cemetery Road by Greg Iles—When Marshall McEwan returns to his small Mississippi hometown to care for his dying father, he realizes just how rundown Bienville has become. Its only hope for revitalization is an expensive new Chinese paper mill. When two murders happen in town, threatening the town's future even more, Marshall—an experienced journalist—decides to investigate. Will the secrets he uncovers be the nail in the coffin of the dying town?
7. The Orphan of Cemetery Hill by Hester Fox—Like #1, this YA novel features a young woman whose father works as a caretaker for a cemetery. When a series of grave robberies hits Boston, she uses her special gift—her ability to communicate with the dead—to take on a gang known as the "Resurrection Men." Her involvement will either save the city's cemeteries or land her in one of them. Permanently.
8. Over My Dead Body: Unearthing the Hidden History of America's Cemeteries by Greg Melville—This non-fiction title examines the history of how Americans memorialize our dead and what it has meant in terms of history, politics, the environment, and more. Sounds fascinating!
9. The Grave Tender by Eliza Maxwell—Widowed and pregnant, Hadley Dixon returns to the east Texas town where she grew up. Members of her family are still whispered about there and those who remain refuse to talk about the disturbing rumors that float about. Hadley only wants a safe place for her children to grow up. If she starts digging into the past, what might she unleash on herself, her family, and her hometown?
10. The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by Megan Bannen—Paranormal romance really isn't my thing, but this one sounds cute. Hart works as a marshal, keeping the magical land in which he lives under control. His job is not a popular one and he's got the crippling loneliness to show for it. Mercy is doing everything she can to keep her family's undertaking business afloat, including dealing with jerks like Hart. When the two enemies begin exchanging letters, pouring out their hearts to one another without knowing the other's identity, they get to know each other in ways they never could have before. What will happen when the new friends discover they are actually bitter enemies?
There you go, my somewhat macabre list. Do you love cemeteries like I do or do you avoid them like the plague? Are books set in or around graveyards as appealing to you as they are to me? Have you read any of the ones on my list? What did you think? What did you do for your freebie today? I'd truly love to know. Leave me a comment on this post and I will gladly return the favor on your blog. Please note that I am a week behind on commenting, but I will catch up!
Happy TTT!
Tuesday, September 20, 2022
Top Ten Tuesday: FALLing for a New Crop of TBR Books
Although we are having a little streak of days in the 90s, it's only going to last until Thursday, when we'll be back over 100 degrees again. This is par for the course in the Arizona desert, unfortunately. True Fall weather (at least our version of it) won't start arriving for a couple months still. I desperately miss real Autumn weather and dream of the days when I experienced it this way:
Even if it's not Fall yet on the outside where I live, it's Fall in my heart, so it seems appropriate that today's prompt is Top Ten Books On My Fall 2022 TBR List. These seasonal lists are my favorite! I can't wait to see what everyone's planning to read during this cozy time of year.
If you want to join in the fun (and you definitely do!), click on over to That Artsy Reader Girl for all the details.
Top Ten Books On My Fall 2022 TBR List
- in no particular order -
1. The Last Anniversary by Liane Moriarty—I've read most of Moriarty's novels, but this one slipped through the cracks somehow. I'm currently enjoying it on audio. The story is about a woman who very unexpectedly inherits the house of someone she barely knows. Along with the property comes an unconventional family full of untold secrets.
2. Come Down Somewhere by Jennifer L. Wright—The other day, I was working on improving my NetGalley downloaded-to-reviewed ratio (I went from 2% to 4%—woohoo!) when I came across Wright's first book, If It Rains. Remembering how much I enjoyed her debut, I went looking for more from her. Turns out, her sophomore effort came out a couple weeks ago.
The novel concerns 16-year-old Olive, whose family's New Mexico ranch is seized by the government in 1945 in order to make way for a hush-hush new Army post. Already angry at being uprooted, Olive's even more disconcerted when she hears rumors about what's really happening on her family's land. Seven years after a devastating explosion rocks the whole area, Olive returns to the ranch determined to figure out what really happened there. Sounds intriguing!
3. The House on the Lake by Holly Hill Mangin—It wouldn't be spooky season without a shivery read or two. This one is about two women who arrive at a mysterious lake house with no memory of getting there. The house is full of chilling surprises. What will the women find? Will they ever be able to leave?
4. The Last Heir to Blackwood Library by Hester Fox (available April 4, 2023)—Fox's newest doesn't come out until Spring, but I've got an e-ARC thanks to Edelweiss. The story stars a young woman who's shocked when she learns that not only is she part of an ancient English bloodline, but she's also the new owner of a sprawling Yorkshire manor. Although rumors of ghosts, curses, and sinister doings swirl around Blackwood Abbey, it has one major draw: an exquisite library. How could any book lover possibly resist? As strange things start happening, Blackwood's new owner is determined to get to the bottom of its many secrets.
5. The Blackout Book Club by Amy Lynn Green (available November 15, 2022)—Returning to World War II, Green's newest concerns an unlikely librarian tasked with keeping her small-town Maine library open despite wartime struggles. The book club she forms as a last-ditch effort brings together a group of very different women who find support, belonging, and commonality as they bond through books.
6. Exiles by Jane Harper (available January 31, 2023)—I love Harper's novels, especially those in the Aaron Falk series, so I'm excited for her newest. I've got an e-ARC of this one, which has the federal investigator traveling to Southern Australia for a baby christening. Naturally, he gets embroiled in the case of Kim Gillespie, a young mother who tucked her slumbering newborn into her stroller then vanished without a trace during a town festival one year ago. What would make a loving parent abandon her baby? Did Kim go willingly or was she taken? Where is she now?
7. Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer L. Holm—This middle-grade read is an older book and one of the few of Holm's standalone novels I haven't yet read. It's about a young girl who moves with her mother to Key West, Florida. Jobs are scarce in 1935 and her mom needs this one, even if the wealthy lady for whom she's working hates kids. Florida is a big adjustment for young Turtle, but it might be just what she needs to finally come out of her shell.
8. The Dark by Sharon Bolton—It's been eight years since Bolton published an installment of her Lacey Flint mystery series, so I'm super stoked about this one. In it, Lacey is investigating a disturbing new terrorist threat from an extremist group that hates women—killing their babies. Can Lacey stop them before another infant dies?
9. The Bequest by Joanna Margaret (available October 18, 2022)—Isabel Henley moves from the U.S. to Scotland in the wake of a devastating love affair. Immediately, one after another, things in her new life start to go awry. When Isabel receives a coded message from an old friend who's been abducted, she finds herself in a desperate race to finish the research her kidnapped pal started. If she can't do it, both women will be killed by the dangerous captors.
10. The Overnight Guest by Heather Gudenkauf—This thriller looks like a perfect Fall read! Wylie Lark, a true crime writer, has retreated to an isolated farmhouse to pound out her new book. Once the site of a grisly murder, it's an atmospheric place to write; an oncoming snowstorm just makes it more so. When Wylie discovers a child stranded in the blizzard, she realizes she's not as alone as she thinks she is. Someone is out there, dying to come in...
There you have it, ten books on my Fall 2022 TBR list. What do you think? Have you read any of them? What are you planning to read this Fall? I'd truly love to know. Leave me a comment on this post and I will gladly return the favor on your blog.
Happy TTT!
Tuesday, March 15, 2022
Top Ten Tuesday: Spring Forward and Read!
I'm a little late to the TTT party today, but never fear—I have a good, bookish reason for my tardiness. I mentioned that I'm going to be downsizing from my 5,000-square foot home into one that is half the size in the next few months (after our renters move out and we do some remodeling). Since I will no longer have the room to store all my many, many books, I need to get rid of about 75% of my collection. I was planning to organize a book sale with the proceeds going to charity since the majority of the volumes I need to unload are ones I got for free from authors and publishers. Then, I received an email announcing that a local high school would be holding a book sale this week to benefit their English Department. Huzzah! I contacted the ladies in charge, who generously came to my house and hauled away this mountain of books for their sale:
Although this represents only about 1/3 of the books I need to unload, it feels good to send even this many on their way to new homes. They will definitely get more love out in the world than they will gathering dust in my guest room closet. Bonus: guests can now open the closet door without risking death by book avalanche! Win-win.
Now that that's out of the way we can get down to business. The TTT topic du jour is: Top Ten Books on My Spring TBR List. I love these seasonal TBR lists because it's always fun to see what everyone is looking forward to reading and to get ideas of what I might want to check out. Since I'm a mood reader, I never really stick to these, but I still enjoy thinking about what I might read. I'm also going to *try* to feature books I haven't talked about yet. We'll see how that goes...
As always, be sure to click on over to That Artsy Reader Girl and give our hostess, Jana, some love. While you're there, why don't you join in the fun? TTT really is a good ole time.
Top Ten Books on My Spring TBR List
- in no particular order -
1. Ancestor Trouble: A Reckoning and a Reconciliation by Maud Newton (available March 29, 2022)—You all know by now that I'm a genealogy buff who lives for combing through census records, DNA matches, and old newspapers in search of forgotten family stories. It shouldn't surprise you, then, that I love books like this one, which is about the author's search for the truth behind her ancestors' colorful, controversial lives. Sounds like a great read!
2. Séances are for Suckers by Tamara Berry—Speaking of dead people...I'm all in for this cozy mystery series featuring a woman who pretends to hunt ghosts in order to pay the bills. I enjoyed Buried in a Good Book (available May 24, 2022), Berry's newest, so much that I want to read more from her.
3. The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan—As I was clearing off my bookshelves for the upcoming sale, I found my copy of this National Book Award winner that I've been meaning to read for years. Ever since I read The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah, I've been eager to read more about the Dust Bowl and the brave souls who lived through it. This promises to be a fascinating read.
4. Morning Sun in Wuhan by Ying Chang Compestine (available November 8, 2022)—This MG novel doesn't come out until Fall, but I'm hoping to get an early copy from NetGalley. Written by a woman who grew up in Wuhan, the story is about a 13-year-old girl whose life changes when COVID breaks out in her hometown.
5. The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune—How have I not read this book yet? I've had a copy ever since it came out. I think it's about time I actually read it!
6. Circus of Wonders by Elizabeth Macneal—Covered in birthmarks, young Nell is sold to the circus where she becomes a headlining act. As she deals with the narcissistic circus owner, falls in love with his kind brother, and learns to stand on her own two feet, she transforms from a shy, unloved child into a woman who knows her own worth and power.
7. A Lullaby For Witches by Hester Fox—I enjoy Fox's spooky books and this one, her newest, sounds like a compelling read. It's about a woman who starts working at the old Harlowe House and becomes obsessed with knowing more about the "witch" who once lived there.
8. Research Like a Pro With DNA by Diana Elder and Nicole Dyer—Diana and Nicole have been friends and mentors as I continue my journey down the road to becoming an accredited genealogist (COVID has turned it into a much longer process than expected). I'm eager to dip into their newest book since I have lots to learn about DNA and how to use it effectively in my family history research.
9. The Secret, Book, & Scone Society by Ellery Adams—I'm listening to this book, the first installment in a well-loved cozy mystery series set in a town full of healing magic. It's entertaining.
10. The Spanish Daughter by Lorena Hughes—Remember last TTT when I talked about one of my favorite tropes, the surprise inheritance? This one fits that bill. It concerns a woman who learns that she has inherited her father's chocolate estate in Ecuador. Through a series of unfortunate events, she is forced to don men's clothing and impersonate her dead husband while trying to solve a mystery, get to the bottom of family secrets, and navigate a new romance.
There you have it, ten books I'm hoping to get to this Spring. Have you read any of them? What did you think? What's on your TBR list this season? I'd truly love to know. Leave me a comment on this post and I will gladly return the favor on your blog.
Happy TTT!
Tuesday, October 06, 2020
Top Ten Tuesday: Falling for Autumn, Vicariously
Unlike in beautiful New Hampshire (top photo), where I was vacationing last year around this time, or in the stunning Columbia River Gorge (bottom photo), where I was reared, here in the Phoenix area we don't really have Fall. Sure, the temperature will retreat back into two-digit range sometime around November, but the leaves don't really change color, there's no briskness in the air, and the homey sight of smoke drifting out of chimneys into a bright Autumn sky is not something you see here in our desert. I miss real Fall, the kind I adored while growing up in Washington and going to college in Utah. Since I can't experience it without taking a drive, I'll have to do it vicariously through books (like I do a lot of things). That's where this week's Top Ten Tuesday topic—Top Ten Book Covers That Give Off Fall Vibes—comes in. My list is a mix of titles I've read and enjoyed, Fall books I loved as a kid and had fun reading to my own children, and a few that I'm looking forward to reading sometime soon.
If you want to join in the TTT fun, hop on over to That Artsy Reader Girl for all the details.
Top Ten Book Covers That Give Off Fall Vibes
Return to Virgin River by Robyn Carr—the newest in a series I enjoy but am behind in reading
Bitter River by Julia Keller—My Review
The Brutal Telling by Louise Penny—My Review
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown by Charles M. Schulz—Oh, the nostalgia!
A Separate Peace by John Knowles
Harvest Moon by Robyn Carr
Big Pumpkin by Erica Silverman, illustrated by S.D. Schindler—one of my kids' favorite seasonal read alouds
Fall Leaves by Loretta Holland, illustrated by Elly MacKay
The Orphan of Cemetery Hill by Hester Fox
Pumpkin Everything by Beth Labonte—Jana mentioned this sweet romance in her post today and it sounds fun, especially since I love New Hampshire!
There you go, some book covers that really say Autumn to me. What do you think of my picks? Which covers say Fall to you? What is Fall like where you live? I'd truly love to know. Leave me a comment on this post and I will gladly return the favor on your blog.
Happy TTT!
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