Category Archives: Reading

Beach Reading Bonanza!

Time to stock your beach bags. June has many, many new books for us to enjoy this summer. Seriously, so many fun reads. Here are just a few:

chick-lit-button[1]Eight Hundred Grapes: A Novel by Laura Dave – June 2, 2015. This is a novel about secrets – those you share and those you hide. Georgia Ford seeks refuge at her family’s winery in Sonoma after she discovers that her fiancé has been keeping a huge secret from her. Once she’s home, Georgia’s disheartened to learn that her own family hasn’t been completely honest with her either. As the Ford family begins to fall apart, Georgia must contemplate her own ambivalence as she tries to figure out how to fix her life. This is a dramatic family tale has already been optioned for a movie, so it promises to be entertaining.

In the Unlikely Event by Judy Blume – June 2, 2015. In 1987, Miri Ammerman returns to her hometown, Elizabeth, NJ, to commemorate the thirty-fifth anniversary of the worst year of her life. In 1952, a series of planes literally fell from the sky (this novel is based on real life events), shattering a period that should have been one of the happiest in Miri’s life. She was fifteen, in love for the first time, and excited about the future. Blume takes the reader back in time with nostalgia and details about some of the people who were on the planes. This is the story of a generation coming to terms with unlikely events and social change.

It’s You by Jane Porter – June 2, 2015. Ali McAdams suffers a terrible loss that sends her to Napa Valley, to spend time with her emotionally distant father. Ali’s dad has moved into a retirement home following the death of her mother – and it’s there that she meets the cantankerous Edie. Edie is a ninety-four year old woman who has also loved and lost. The two women bond over their grief. In a quest to bring closure to Edie, Ali travels to Germany to learn about the German resistance during World War II. Will solving the mysteries of the past help Ali heal her broken heart?

Royal Wedding: A Princess Diaries Novel by Meg Cabot – June 2, 2015. Fans of the Princess Diaries rejoice – Mia is back! It’s been five years since our princess graduated from college, and now she’s living and working in New York City. After her longtime boyfriend, Michael, proposes to her, she’s faced with the task of planning a very public wedding. Her grandmother has ideas of her own – and they may cause Michael to change his mind. Adding to the mayhem is the discovery of a planned political coup that could rob her father of the throne. It’s up to Mia to ensure these family secrets have no effect on her wedding – or her royal destiny.

The Status of All Things by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke – June, 2, 2015. This book is for those of us who abhor “FakeBooking.” Kate is a woman who is obsessed with social media, always one to portray her life in the most fabulous light for the entire internet to see. After she’s jilted at her rehearsal dinner, FaceBook is the last place Kate wants to share. Then she wakes up, back in time, with the amazing ability to rewrite her history using – you guessed it, FaceBook. Yet despite her attempts to make things right with her finance and for her friends, Kate learns that she doesn’t have the power to change fate.

There are nine more book previews, so jump over to Chick Lit Plus to read about books written by Lori Nelson Spielman, Emily Liebert, Danielle Steel, Elin Hilderbrand, Wendy Wax, Patti Callahan Henry, Candice Bushnall, Jane Green, and Beatrix Williams,. Click here.

 

Currently

Several of my fellow bloggers periodically share with their followers what they’re reading, eating, watching, etc.  When I first started blogging, I sort of did this with my “Things to be Excited About” posts, but I stopped writing those, because the title started to bug me.  A year later, I still haven’t come up with a clever and original LKM title for these posts, so I’m going to unabashedly borrow the “Currently” label.  Currently, I am…

Reading.  As I mentioned in my FTSF post last week, I have been indulging in quite a bit of reading to help me get through the winter.  I read SoulSpace by Xorin Balbes, which was recommended to be by Kelly McKenzie, and it was fabulous.  I read it in conjunction with the Life Channing Habit of Typing Up, and the two books really motivated me to get my act together (more below).  I just finished Family Pictures by Jane Green, and although it was good, it was not what I thought it was going to be – and the ending is cheesy.  IMG_20150227_125421_013 (3)I’m getting ready to start A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner for my book club.  I’ve been book club-less for about two years and, finally, someone has taken pity on me and invited me to join.  I’m so excited!

 

Listening.  My thirst for good books cannot be quenched by reading alone alas, I’m also an audio book junkie.  I’ve just listened to three very different books.  Queen Bees and Wannabes is all about adolescent girls and their relationships.  Oh, it was a frightening read.  My heart aches for my daughter, as she gets ready to tiptoe around the landmines of middle and high school.  The book about tidying that I referenced above is fantastic!  (It’s a very brief read or listen.) I was emptying closets as I listened, so motivated was I.  I’m still going – and it feels great.  I will leave you with a little preview below of the current state of my office, ten days after I purged.  I’m so excited.  It feels great!  Future post about organizing (yes, I am seriousJ).  Finally, I listened to a fantastic Johnathon Tropper novel, The Book of Joe.  I think Tamara is the one who recommended that to me?  I think I’m going to read all of Tropper’s backlist.  I loved it.  Continue reading Currently

My Favorite Books of 2014

 235

I’m an unabashed book nerd.  I love writing about books and would do it exclusively – if I thought anyone would read/enjoy it – but my stats say otherwise.  So, alas, I have backed off on the book reviews.  But ironically, my “favorite books of the year” posts have traditionally done well, so here we are again.  I did a lot of reading this past year my friends, beating my numbers from last year.  I consumed roughly (more on that below) 105 books.  It was split evenly between fiction and nonfiction, with a variety of subgenres.  Continue reading My Favorite Books of 2014

September Happenings

It’s been a while since I wrote a “catch-up” post about what I’m doing, reading and watching.  This post is also a partial link-up with Mama Kat’s World’s Greatest Writing Workshop.    I didn’t have a whole lot to write about on the new fall television line-up, so I decided to combine the two.  If you’re visiting from Mama Kat, please forgive me (but I hope you stick around, so I can learn more about you).

workshop-button-1[1]

Writing prompt:  Share the fall lineup you’re looking forward to.

Last year, I wrote a post all about the new fall television shows that was featured at Chick Lit Plus.  I did some research for that article and thought I had the winners and losers figured out.  I was wrong, so I’ve saved myself the trouble (and time) this year.  I’m going to wait a few weeks before watching anything new – to see what the critics and my fellow bloggers (who are usually attuned to the most buzz-worthy shows) like.  I’ve also been bruised one too many times by shows that I love getting axed way too soon.  With just a cursory glance at Entertainment Weekly’s site, my only interest at this point is Bad Judge (I love Kate Walsh) and Madame Secretary (love political dramas).  We shall see.  I am, however, very excited for my returning favorites!!!!  In no particular order; Revenge, The Good Wife, The Goldbergs, Nashville, Blue Bloods and ParenthoodContinue reading September Happenings