Sold!

We finally have officially sold mom’s house. We ended up canceling the contract we had because the buyer wanted things we were not willing to do. Then last week sometime my realtor contacted me to ask if we would sell as is for a lower price and the buyer would do all the repairs. So we said yes. We updated the new contract with new disclosures and today we transferred the title. I hope that’s the last of it.  I have to cancel the utilities and insurance tomorrow but then we wait for probate to run out and pay off the debts. It’s been a lot of work to get to this point.

Half of my dining room table is actually covered with mom’s containers of papers. I need to go through them but I just don’t want to do it right now. Maybe this summer when it’s too hot to go outside? Or whenever I decide I want my table back. 

Best Books of 2023

I’ve read some really good books this year! I finished at a respectable 89 books and I met both the number of books and the book challenge goals. Top genres are sci-fi romance, fantasy/sci-fi, historical mystery, YA, and romance adjacent (which includes a variety of genres with a small romantic subplot; many of my books are in overlapping categories). The YA is a bit of a surprise, but it includes the Spy X Family manga that I borrowed from my nephew. 61% of the books I read, I purchased. And 58% were paper vs electronic, which is opposite from last year, but I did read a bunch of stuff off my shelf so that could be why. 

I decided against listing any web comics this year. My favorites were on hiatus most of the year and others I loved have completed. I’m still reading them, but have gone back to waiting and reading multiple episodes at a time rather than following daily/weekly. It worked for me this year. I’ve learned that anything I think will happen for next year, will probably not, so I’m just rolling with it.

The ones I own in paper

And here’s my list for 2023:

The Wonder Engine and Thornhedge - T Kingfisher - She’s just one of my favorite authors and I love her books. Her writing is comforting.

Spy X Family Vol 8 - Tatsuya Endo - These manga are just consistently cute but I really loved this one. I love the anime as well.  

Know My Name - Chanel Miller - Hard to read but so worth it.

Annapurna: A Woman’s Place - Arlene Blum - Such an interesting look at an expedition to Annapurna. Told from a woman’s perspective, since the whole team were women, it really got into details I’m always curious about, but books by men never mention: logistics, being away from family, etc. 

Float - Kate Marchant - I found this book through the webtoon that is being drawn right now. It’s not perfect but it hit the spot so much and I loved it. Perfect book at the perfect time.

Sally-Ann - Susan Scarlett -I discovered Susan Scarlett (a pseudonym for Noel Streatfeild) this year and this was my favorite. Such a cute, old fashioned romance. I read it multiple times. 

Evil in Emerald, Terror in Topaz - AM Stuart - I just really enjoy this historical mystery series, and Emerald had a real-life character that I might be related to. I’m so happy that she’s decided to self publish another book. 

The Underworld: Journeys to the Depths of the Sea - Susan Casey - I loved this non-fiction book about the depths of the ocean. I can’t wait to read more by this author.

The Bookshop on the Shore - Jenny Colgan - The male lead bugged me a bit, but I got over it pretty quickly and it turned into another perfect book at the perfect time. 

Divine Rivals - Rebecca Ross - I saw this on GR and saw it was included with Kindle Unlimited so I downloaded a copy and then didn’t read it. And then I decided to just check it out and I wasn’t even 20% when I bought the hard cover and pre-ordered book 2. Loved it!

Honorable Mentions:

Dragonsong - Anne McCaffery - This was a childhood favorite that I re-read. I still love this book. Wasn’t really a fan of the other Pern books, but this one I read many, many times. 

Circe - Madeline Miller - This one frustrated me and made me think and I’m still thinking about it. And the ending was just so perfect.  

Lavender House - Lev AC Rosen - This was a great mystery and I ate it up. 

The Witch of Blackbird Pond - Elizabeth George Speare - Another childhood favorite. It’s simpler than I remember, but what from childhood isn’t? I still love it. 

 

And Now, September

Yay! Summer is over, even if not quite officially. Even if September 2 doesn’t look or feel any different from August 31. It’s here. Fall will officially be starting soon. 

Peaches are getting ripe and I will soon be eating my fill. I met my sister at the farmer’s market this morning. It was my last time for this year’s summer market. I got a few ears of corn, strawberries, and some dried tart cherries. I figured those would be good for fall/winter. My mom has already given me onions and carrots. I still haven’t been in the mood to cook at all, even though I really need to. Again, cooler weather will be here and soon I can make soup. Ha ha it’s like I feel like fall will solve all the problems. It’s not true, but I seriously love the last 4 months of the year, October and November being the most favorite. 

Happy New Year 2023 Style

Happy New Year indeed. I was only up at midnight last night because of fireworks going off in the street behind my house. I’ve been sick again and while I didn’t feel too terrible, I stayed home and tried to go to bed before midnight. Today is a lazy Sunday while I try to rest and get completely better. It’s raining/sleeting/snowing anyway so a nice day to be home. I’m actually sitting in my library with a blanket, hot drink, and stack of books which = rainy day perfection.

I’m not much of a goal setter and I never make new year’s resolutions but I do like feeling that a new year is a fresh start. I like the idea of Janus, the 2 faced god, looking both backwards and into the future, endings and beginnings. I also like making lists and crossing things off my lists. So here’s a (guilt-free) list of things I would like to do this year. 

• Get rid of the clutter piles; make a place for everything or donate/recycle/throw it out
• Finish the rag wreaths and tied blankets
• Take some trips and do things with my vacation days rather than stay home - I have ideas!!
• Get out of my book slump; try reading in genres I don’t normally to shake things up
• Play the piano more often
• Listen to podcasts on my drive home; there are so many I want to try
• Pay off my car loan
• Change my direct deposit so I’m saving a little more each month

 

Best Books 2021

I felt like my reading last year was not normal and pretty much expected it to go back to normal, or closer to normal this year. It didn’t, so now I think this is the new normal. Web comics took over a big chunk of my reading time so my book count is much lower than it has been in previous years. Not that I’m trying to read a certain amount of books, but the web comics reading is not going to go away. At least not until a few of them finish.

 

I read 74 books this year. For the first time since I’ve been tracking, I borrowed more books than I bought. That’s a crazy change.  As with last year, I read more ebooks than paper. The #1 genre this year was Sci-Fi Romance followed by Fantasy/Sci-Fi. Then I have a 2 way tie for spots 3 and 4 with Contemporary Romance and Historical Mystery, followed by Urban Fantasy/PNR for the top 5. Outside of my favorite genres, I read 1 children’s book, 1 classic, and 5 non-fiction. Not too bad.

 

What a sad little stack

Here are my best books of 2021. Ten books-it’s not very long this year. I feel like I didn’t get wowed by many at all. But these are some good ones.

 

The Third Pole – Mark Synnott

This Everest expedition from the Tibetan side was fascinating to me having only read about expeditions from the Nepal side. Plus, they were looking for Sandy Irvine’s remains in addition to summiting. I loved it.

 

A Stranger in Town – Kelley Armstrong

I love this series so much and some good stuff happened in this one. I’m happy/sad that the final book comes out next year.

 

Paladin’s Strength and Paladin’s Hope – T. Kingfisher

Two Kingfisher books made the list this year. I love the world she’s created and the humor in these books is the best.

 

Murder on Cold Street – Sherry Thomas

Another great book in the series. LOL at this point I’m hazy on the details but I know I loved it and I have the last book waiting on my shelf.

 

Murderbot – Martha Wells

I read Exit Strategy, Network Effect, and Fugitive Telemetry this year (books 4-6 of the series) and I’m putting them all on the list. I love Murderbot.

 

Delivering Evil for Experts, and Hunting Fiends for the Ill-Equipped – Marie Annette

Marie Anette is a new to me author this year. I loved this series and world she has built and am so happy she has a nice backlist for me to dig into.

 

 

The top 3 webcomics were super easy to pick out. After that, I absolutely cannot do it. There are so many good ones I’m reading, so I’m sticking with top 3 and then a huge list of honorable mentions.

 

The Gentle Way – by True

I am such a fangirl of this one. I love it so much! The characters are so fun, the art is amazing, and the humor and story just get me. Plus, I’m learning a little bit about judo. A shy girl is trying to get better at judo and she meets a handsome stranger who helps her out but won’t teach her, for reasons. But he likes her and she’s breaking down his walls. It’s sooooooo good.

 

Midnight Poppyland – by Lilydusk

I still love this one so much. I really hope she gets some deals to get this in paper one day. A small town girl meets a mafia bad boy. Season 2 has had so many good parts and so many parts where crap hit the ceiling. Again, the story and art here is amazing.

 

A Business Proposal –  by Guava Farm, Perilla, NARAK, and Haehwa

This is like one of those old romantic comedies. I laughed so hard and have read it over and over again. A girl accidently goes on a blind date with the CEO of her company and he decides to marry her. Hijinks galore. It’s so much fun. This one is complete too so I can read the finished story over without waiting for updates. It’s a definitely plus.

 

Honorable Mentions (aka others I really like, but don’t get me started on all of the ones I actually like and read):

 

Webtoon:

The Empress Remarried

Purple Hyacinth

Covenant

Suitor Armor

Unholy Blood

Everything is Fine

Swamp & Sea

Like Wind on a Dry Branch

The Kiss Bet

Lore Olympus

 

Tapas:

Painful, but Desirable

Positively Yours

All the Things I like About You

One More Try

I’m the Tyrant’s Secretary

 

Manta:

Under the Oak Tree

 

According to my Webtoons stats (so not including all the apps I read on), my top genres were Romance, Fantasy, and Drama. They say I read 296 episodes from 70 romance series. That seems like a lot, but I did binge a few and I have done a lot of re-reading of favorite episodes. LOL it still seems like a lot more than I really did, but who knows.

Olympics

I am not a sports fan at all. I hate watching on tv, although I have enjoyed live hockey games before. In most cases if you name a team, I can’t tell which sport they play and I’m perfectly happy this way. The exception to this is the olympics. When it comes to the olympics I will watch any sport. Needless to say, I’ve been glued to my computer for the last however many days watching all kinds of sports and crying with them over wins, losses, and upsets.  Yes, my favorite moments are always when the underdogs come up first. To me, that is the olympics, not the politics and other crap that is always there. I have to say some commentators can’t be bothered to report on the actual race, just the person they think is going to win. I mean they are right a lot of the time, but still. I can’t really complain since I’m not paying for any of it. Anyway, this is one of the few times where I am a sports fan. I’ll enjoy it for a few more days and then go back to my old ways. 

Best Books of 2020, Part 2

And my top books read in the order I read them.

Small stack this year: half were ebooks/library copy.

Love Lettering – Kate Clayborn

The year was off to a great start with my January reads. This was just really cute. I’m actually afraid to go back and re-read in case I feel differently now.

The Will and the Wilds – Charlie Holmberg

Soul stealing kisses in this one. That’s all you need to know.

Homebound – Lydia Hope

I like science fiction romance where the 2 leads are different enough that they have to look past things and overcome obstacles to be together and that’s what we have here.

Strange Planet – Nathan Pyle     

A perfect feel good book that I really needed. I bought it because I follow the author’s Instagram, but I’m happy to have read the book as well.

Faro’s Daughter – Georgette Heyer

This one cracked me up so good. I loved Deb. She gives Max the run around in so many ways. I keep going back to my favorite parts.

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder – Holly Jackson

I had a blast with this one. I read it at a time when reading wasn’t really working out for me so that’s an added bonus.

Emerald Blaze – Ilona Andrews

I felt like Catalina and Alessandro’s first book had a few missteps but this one picks it up and gives the non stop action with a little romance that the Andrews’ do so well.

Swordheart – T. Kingfisher

This one surprised me big time. I read about it somewhere online, decided I had to have it and read it in one go. I wasn’t even half way done before I downloaded Paladin’s Grace. I can’t wait for more. This is the kind of fantasy romance I like to read.

Revenge in Rubies – A.M. Stuart

The author’s first book in this series was on my best of list last year so I’m happy to see this one here too. It’s another really solid story. I love that it takes place in Singapore.

Return of the King – Megan Whalen Turner

The conclusion to an epic series. It was perfect.

The Bright and Breaking Sea – Chloe O’Neill

This one was unexpected. It hit all the right spots with me. A female captain in Her Majesty’s navy has to deal with spies, pirates, and a Viscount.

And that’s it for this year. Who knows what next year will bring. I’m not even going to speculate. My list of books to buy in 2021 is pretty small right now. I’m sure it will get bigger. Maybe I’ll try and read some of the books I bought in 2020 or any other year. They are sitting on my bookshelves just waiting for me to pick them up. 

Best Books of 2020, Part 1

Another year, another stack of books. I feel like my reading was strange this year. There were times when I had a really hard time concentrating on books and times when it was hard to figure out what I wanted to read. Even so, 98 books is nothing to be ashamed about. And it doesn’t count the comfort re-reading I did or the Webtoons, both of those things I would say actually took up almost half of my reading time this year. 

The top genre was once again mystery, followed by what I labeled romantic (meaning they aren’t in the romance genre, but they have a romance subplot in them and I wanted to track them). Then it’s urban fantasy/PNR, sci-fi romance, and fantasy/sci-fi to round out the top 5. Ha ha, I can tell by my genres that I didn’t want to be in the real world so much. 

Ebooks pulled ahead this year. It’s not surprising considering the pandemic and the library was closed for a few months. I read far more purchased books than borrowed this year. Again, not too surprising.

I’m breaking my list up into 2 sections: webcomics and books. I’m going to start with my favorite webcomics, which I read on WebToons. These saved me this year. Something about the pictures and episodic format really helped me escape and I found a new medium that I love. 

Midnight Poppy Land, creator: Lilydusk – I’ve already written about this one, but I love it. Love. It. Hands down my #1. Mafia bad boy with a heart of gold, a heroine to really cheer for, and just a fun story with great artwork. My obsession is down to a manageable amount but I’m in it for the long haul. 

My Dear Cold-Blooded King, creator: Lifelight – I love the artwork and story here. I wasn’t sure at first as it’s a little love triangle-y in the beginning.  It finished recently and I went back and re-read the whole thing and I loved it even more. There may be some plot holes and things that don’t all make sense but I don’t even care.

Covenant, creator: explodikid – Priests that focus on exorcism. Magic tattoos. I love the art and I love the story. I can’t wait to see where it goes.

Punderworld/Blood Stain, creator: sigeel – Punderworld is a Hades/Persephone retelling that’s just cute, and Blood Stain is about a down on her luck girl going to work for a mad scientist. I binged it and it’s so fun. Both have fantastic art.

Suitor Armor, creator: Purpah – This one’s just getting started but I love it so much already. A magical suit of armor starts protecting a lady-in-waiting who is more than she appears.

Purple Hyacinth, creators Ephemerys and Sophism – A fantasy/mystery where a cop and an assassin work together to stop a criminal gang. I binged this one in December and now have to wait for updates like the rest.

Others that I’m really enjoying: Jeff’s Disorder (lexet), The Alley Cat (Marie Jane Works), The Empress Remarried (Alphatart and Sumpul), The Wolfman of Wulvershire (K. Oliver), The Witch and the Bull (moonsia), In the Bleak Midwinter (Kat and Ali) and Enjoy the Show! (Jenna A).

And that’s only a handful of the ones I’m subscribed to. I have a ton of them I’m still waiting to check out or haven’t gotten far enough to know if I really like them.

So yeah, lots and lots of time spent here this year and I don’t regret it at all. I’m hooked on webcomics and they will be part of my reading for the foreseeable future.  So far I'm doing all the reading on WebToons but I hear Tapas has some good ones as well. I absolutely don't need more to read, but maybe next year I'll check it out. 

Best Books of the Decade

Since everybody is doing “decade” lists on the internet along with year end lists, I thought I’d look back on my favorite books of the decade. To qualify, they had to be on my “best of year” list on Goodreads, I have to own them, they impacted me in ways I still remember, and they garnered multiple re-reads.  Some of these books and series are responsible for huge book hangovers and the inability to let go of them. Others were read right when I needed them.

The Queen of Attolia – Megan Whalen Turner

Magic Bleeds – Ilona Andrews

The Scorpio Races – Maggie Stiefvater

Anna and the French Kiss – Stephanie Perkins

A Conspiracy of Kings – Megan Whalen Turner

Song of Scarabaeus – Sara Creasy

Lady of the Glen – Jennifer Roberson

Easy – Tammara Webber

Master of Crows – Grace Draven

Binding the Shadows – Jenn Bennett

Written in Red – Anne Bishop

Every Breath – Ellie Marney (entire series)

One Plus One – Jojo Moyes

The Road Home – Ellen Emerson White

Fangirl – Rainbow Rowell

Six of Crows – Leigh Bardugo (entire series)

Nimona – Noelle Stevenson

A Darker Shade of Magic – V.E. Schwab (entire series)

Den of Wolves – Juliet Marillier

Death Wears a Mask – Ashley Weaver

Revolution – Jennifer Donnelly

Dark Minds – Michelle Diener

Madam, Will You Talk? – Mary Stewart

The Wall of Winnipeg and Me – Mariana Zapata

White Hot – Ilona Andrews

The Firebird – Susanna Kearsley

Wait For It – Mariana Zapata

The Opposite of You – Rachel Higginson

Letters to the Lost – Brigid Kemmerer

Storm Cursed – Patricia Briggs

I look at this list and think there are a lot that are my favorite books that are missing. But then I realize that sometimes books get better after time and might not have been on my Best Of list back when I read it. Some of the books on the lists didn’t make this cut even though I liked them at the time I read them. And there are a few that I loved and might have re-read them over the years, but I don’t own them.

Best Books of 2019

This year I did something different and started tracking my books on a spreadsheet complete with charts and graphs. It was kind of fun and I’m going to keep going next year to get more data, although I think it has been a pretty typical year for reading. I read 117 books in 2019. Mystery was by far my most read genre (not surprising since it’s my favorite). The 2^nd most read genre was sci-fi romance, followed by historical romance. That one did surprise me a little because I’ve gotten tired of that particular genre, however, I read a bunch of Carla Kelly’s back-list which explains the number. Without them, it wouldn’t have made the cut. Contemporary romance came in 4^th and my top 5 rounds out with YA.  I got 5 classics and 9 non fiction books read. It’s been fun to realize the scope of books that I like as I try things outside my norm. Other statistics which were fun to track: paper vs. ebook. I read more paper, but just barely. I purchased more paper books and borrowed more ebooks (from both Kindle Unlimited and the library). Library books accounted for about 34% of what I read. March was my biggest month with 16 books read and November was my smallest with 4.

And here they are in the order I read them:

The Hollow of Fear – Sherry Thomas

I was reluctant to start this series but it was silly and this one is my favorite so far. I’ve got the next one on my shelf but haven’t gotten to it yet.

Letters to the Lost – Brigid Kemmerer

To an extent, I’ve gotten tired of the contemporary Young Adult genre but I read 3 of Brigid Kemmerer’s books this year and loved them. This one was the first and has been my favorite, so far.

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine – Gail Honeyman

This one killed me in the best way. I re-read it a few months later and it was still so, so good.

The Lost Man – Jane Harper

I read all 3 of Jane Harper’s published books this year and liked them very much. This one, though. I swear I could feel the heat of the Australian outback from my living room.

The Flatshare – Beth O’Leary

The buzz on this one was positive and I had a feeling so I bought it and found a cute chick lit type of romance but with some depth to the characters.  

Finder – Suzanne Palmer

This book was a breath of fresh air. I don’t read in the non-romance science fiction genre that much and it just felt good. It helps that the MC was just an all-around nice guy and competent and good at his job.

Storm Cursed – Patricia Briggs

A very good installment in a favorite series, plus there’s a scene at the end that completely shocked and wowed me.

Singapore Sapphire – A.M. Stuart

A fun mystery set in Singapore. The characters were so good, but in a first book, not everything is revealed about them. I have to admit I’m dying to find out more about Inspector Gordon. Book 2 next year will be an auto-buy.

The Downstairs Girl – Stacey Lee

This one gave me a lot to think about with the Chinese immigrants in the South. I love it when I get a good story plus learn about things I didn’t know before.

In the Time of the Dragon Moon – Janet Lee Carey

A random pick of YA fantasy with a tiny bit of romance. Fantasy is another genre I need to read in more often.

Murder at Kensington Palace – Andrea Penrose

I’m really enjoying this series. There was some great, if slow, character growth in this one. I’ve had issues with the author in the past for stagnating relationships and fingers crossed it doesn’t happen here. 

No Shortcuts to the Top – Ed Viesturs

This one snuck in at the end of the year. I read 4 mountaineering books this year. They were all good, but this was my favorite.

Best Books of 2018

Another year, another list of my favorite books...

I read 127 books this year. Officially. Unofficially, I’d add at least 20 books to that number. I caved and got a Kindle Unlimited subscription and started using Overdrive a lot more so I borrowed lot of books I wouldn’t normally read, just to try them. Since I skimmed parts in a lot of them, I didn’t always count it as “read”. Anyway, back to the official list. There are 4 classics and 4 non-fiction on the list. I was going to say that’s 8 books out of my comfort zone reading, and maybe it is, but I think it’s more that I’m realizing that I do like a bigger variety of books, even though I definitely have my favorite genres. Even more surprising is that some of these made my best of list.

Lake Silence – Anne Bishop
I absolutely love the world of The Others and will be so sad when she’s finished writing these books.

From Sand and Ash – Amy Harmon
Lots of tears for this historical fiction set during WWII.

Frederica – Georgette Heyer
This one left me chuckling and I really liked it. I just always want a little more from her romances.

Parnassus on Wheels - Christopher Morely
Such a cute, feel good story about a woman who up and leaves her dreary life to run a mobile library.

The Drive: Searching for Lost Memories on the Pan-American Highway – Teresa Bruce
This one is a travel memoir that I just loved. I should read more travel books.

The Opposite of You – Rachel Higginson
This is one of the books I couldn’t quit this year. I kept coming back to it for comfort re-reading.

White Night - Ellie Marney
I love EM's writing. This book had me hooked from the beginning because Bo was such a nice guy.

Rough Justice – Kelley Armstrong
Pretty much everything I loved about the series is in this novella, plus none of the things that drove me crazy.

Lethal White – Robert Galbraith
I binge read this series and while parts of it were frustrating, I really liked it and this last book, so far, was great.

Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster – Jon Krakauer
I was riveted by this tale, even though it happened over 20 years ago, it’s still an amazing and horrifying story.

Wait For It – Mariana Zapata
This is the other book I couldn’t quit. Huge book hangover. I haven’t actually stopped reading it since the first time.


Ghost Hunter series - Jayne Castle
I binge read a ton of Jayne Castle this year thanks to Overdrive and I can't say they are great literature, but I don't regret it a bit. I even bought my favorite to keep.


Spinning Silver - Naomi Novik
This one frustrated me a bit during the reading, although I swallowed the last 200 pages in a binge. Then I couldn't stop thinking about it.


Mrs. Drew Plays Her Hand - Carla Kelly
I started reading CK this year and she wrote some fantastic romances. The characters in this one actually talk to each other a lot.

This Fallen Prey - Kelley Armstrong
This series just keeps getting better and better. I'm so ready for the next book to hit the shelves in 2019. Just in time for my birthday!

My Favorite Things, Fall 2018

Now that fall is officially here, and it’s almost October, I’m thinking of my favorite things, both old and new, that I’m ready for.

Music:

One of my favorite pieces of classical music is Danse Macabre by Camille Saint-Saens. Nothing says October to me like this piece. I’m pretty sure there is an old cartoon of skeletons dancing to this music somewhere and I can totally see it. (There is. I found it on youtube – it’s from the 80’s.) I also love The Village soundtrack around this time of year. It’s beautiful and haunting.

Perfume:

I am loving James by Rosie Jane. It’s supposed to be inspired by fall and I believe it. The scent is fig and gardenia, but I get a lot of fig when I wear it and to me it just screams jumping into a pile leaves.

As it gets a little colder, I have some more chocolate fragrances to play around with, including my favorite: Guerlain’s Elixir Charnel Gourmand Coquin. I don’t know why, but I like them best in Fall/Winter.

Books:

A few years ago I started reading books specifically for Halloween and I think it’s a fun tradition to continue. I have Wilkie Collins’ The Woman in White on my list for sure.  I finished The Moonstone a few months ago and I really liked it so TWiW is a must read. I’m also debating on 2 other classics: Dracula or A Picture of Dorian Gray. Of course, I’ve got a bunch of mysteries of all sorts sitting on my bookshelves and I have an urge to throw in a little paranormal romance to round things off.  

Movies:

October is a great month for old horror movies too. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956), The Birds (1963), The Bat (1959), and multiple other Vincent Price movies will all be watched.

Podcasts:

And of course, I will get out and walk a lot more now that it is cooling down. Walking means I listen to podcasts. I need to catch up on a few of my favorites: By the Book for comedy, Women Who Travel and Extra Pack of Peanuts for travel, Stuff you Missed in History Class, and You Must Remember This for random history, along with a few book podcasts.

It looks like it will be a busy October. I’ve still got work, friends and family, and theater to do also. I can’t wait.

Farewell, 2017

Everybody, everywhere seems to be talking about what a crappy year 2017 was. I have to agree with a lot of it. In some ways this was a pretty bad year. I stopped reading the news and most social media on the weekends because I needed to be able to get away from it. It's turned out to be a good decision.

But...this last post at the end of the year is not about the crappy stuff. Good stuff happened too and that's what I'm writing about. I'd rather leave the year on a positive note. So here's a random list of good stuff that happened in 2017.

I went to Scotland with my mom and sister.
My family went on vacation to the Oregon coast.
I got new paint and carpet/floor and my house feels like a new place.
I dug up my ugly bushes out front and made myself a flower garden.
I made myself a home library out of one of my spare bedrooms and I love it.
I made music with my niece and newphew. They are getting better with the piano and clarinet.
I got to spend a lot of good times with my family.
I lost 10.5 lbs without really trying. It was a good shock. All the cooking and eating leftovers must be paying off.
And speaking of cooking, I've had a lot of fun cooking with my Instant Pot. I bought it during the 2016 Black Friday sales and this year my mom and sister both got one.
I've had some good opportunities at work and I feel like I do help out and make a difference.
I've spend the year playing the piano for the primary kids on Sunday and it's been fun.
I've enjoyed some of the movies that came out this year: Wonder Woman, Thor: Ragnarok, Beauty and the Beast, Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol 2.
I bought the first season of Wonder Woman (1975) and Charlie's Angels (1976) on sale this year and it's been fun to watch some of those episodes. I've only ever seen a few on re-runs. Times have changed and yet, they haven't. Lots of male chauvinism but the women deal with it and kick butt anyway.
Read lots of good books.
I've seen many theater productions with either my mom or my friend and it continues to be something I love.

I don't have a lot of plans for 2018 right now. The year will start with my next oral surgery but I might as well get it over with. We want to do a family camping trip. I have no set plans to travel but I have dreams so I'll try to make something a reality.

I don't always have a lot of optimism for the future, but it seems like maybe I should try as the new year begins. Who knows what can happen. I don't make new year's resolutions but I can resolve to have faith and hope that I will be able to deal with the bad and that there are good things to come.

Favorite Books in a Series

I just finished a book by one of my favorite authors in a series that I really love. It got me thinking about my favorite series and wondering if I could rank a top 10 list.

I think I can.

The order gets a little murky the farther down I go, but these are favorites from childhood up to now.  To be on the list I have to own every book in the series (or so far if they are still being written) and they have to have the same (or mostly the same) characters.

1. The Prydain Chronicles by Lloyd Alexander

2. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

3. Mercy Thompson by Patricia Briggs

4. Vicky Bliss by Elizabeth Peters

5. The Queen’s Thief by Megan Whalen Turner

6. The Coldfire Trilogy by C.S. Friedman

7. Lady Julia by Deanna Raybourn

8. Kate Daniels by Ilona Andrews

9. Arcadia Bell by Jenn Bennett

10. Egypt Trilogy by Linda Lee Chaikin

Ok - I tried, but depending on the day the order can really change except for maybe the top 5, so here are the next 10:

11. Mag Force 7 by Margaret Weis and Don Perrin
12. Sword Dancer by Jennifer Roberson
13. October Daye by Seanan Mcguire
14. Every Trilogy by Ellie Marney
15. Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
16. The Others by Anne Bishop
17. Shades of Magic by V.E. Schwab
18. Art Lover's Mysteries by Hailey Lind
19. Dragonlance: Legends by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
20. Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

Ha ha... I'll stop there. There are a few others that I could list or swap but this is good for today.

Happy New Year

It seems like I can't get online or even go anywhere without people griping about what a bad year it's been. I could join them, I mean my dad died, tons of car problems, and then the election happened. But...

I'm joining the ranks of those that found something positive to say about the year. Looking back, a lot of good things also happened to me. Here are a few of them:

My nephew Alexander

Technically, he happened in 2015. He was born December 21. But I got to spend this year watching him grow into a darling cutie boy. I love all my nieces and nephews and I've got a fine crew of them.

I went to Paris!

Ha ha yeah, I went to Paris. France. And Mont St. Michel, so that's 2 more spots to mark off my bucket list. It really was a great trip and I got to go with a good friend. One day I'll go back with my sister and see more of France.

Family vacation to Oregon

This was my dad's dream and we had a fantastic time. He rented a house on the beach and the whole family was there. We made a photo album from Shutterfly and I love to look at it. So, so many good memories. 

Family time when dad died

I mean, it sucked. It really did. But on the other hand I am so blessed with my family and seeing all the friends and family at the viewing and funeral was more of a happy time than sad. 

Planning the next trip!

My mom, sister, and I are all going to on a trip together next year. To Scotland. We got a fantastic deal on the airfare and we spent Christmas day deciding where to go and where to stay. We are all super excited.

So yeah, some good things happened this year.  It seems like 2017 is filled with so many uncertainties and fear but I have hope. I have to have hope that good things will also happen. 

Best Books of 2016

2016 was a great book year for me, which is nice since it sucked in other areas. But this post is about books. I read 132 books of varying lengths (plus I re-read a few all the way though which is not in my count). I gave 13 of them 5 stars. I know it's a low percentage but I'm stingy with my five star ratings and kind of feel that I loosened up this year. I got 3 classics in with The Outsiders, The Haunting of Hill House, and The Hidden Staircase (I totally count the original Nancy Drew as classic.) I read 5 non-fiction books, including a book of Mary Oliver's poems that I enjoyed. Ebooks made up 55 of the 132. Nothing can really beat the feel of a book in my hands, but I also love the advantages of ebooks. I've especially loved that now I can borrow them from the library.


So here are my favorite books of 2016 in no particular order:

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
I decided to read this one before Halloween to get in the mood. I've had mixed results with NG in the past but this hooked me and I just loved it. There might have been a few tears shed at the end when Bod leaves the graveyard.


Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo
Definitely tears shed for this one. This book was everything I wanted it to be. One of my most anticipated and I was bereft when it was over.


A Darker Shade of Magic & A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab
Both of these got 5 stars from me. It amazes me how authors come up with some of this stuff. I loved the four different Londons but I really loved Lila Bard and her determination to live life under her terms. I question some of her decisions in AGOS but I'm dying for the final book next year.


My Brother Michael by Mary Stewart
It's hard to say but this might be my favorite MS book yet. There is a very, very subtle romance and fantastic nail biting scene at the end. I wish so badly that I could visit Mary Stewart's Greece.


Dark Horse, Dark Deeds, & Dark Minds (The Class 5 series) by Michelle Diener
I'm cheating and putting the whole series on here because it was my biggest book hangover of the year. I really just couldn't get them out of my head. Music played a big part of these books and it had me thinking about what songs I would have chosen.


These Shallow Graves, Revolution, & A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly
I discovered Jennifer Donnelly this year and all 3 books have to be on the list. They are all so different and every one of them captured me from the beginning and wouldn't let go.
Read These Shallow Graves for a lighter historical mystery with a bit of romance, Revolution for some time travel with a moody teen and a fictional composer that I wish were real, or A Northern Light for an intense historical novel about a girl who has to make some hard choices. If I had to choose, Revolution would be my favorite but all of them are excellent.


Madam, Will You Talk? by Mary Stewart
Did I say My Brother Michael was my favorite? Dang! It's so hard to choose. I loved this from the start. It's a great old fashioned caper complete with mistaken identities and a car chase.


Death Wears a Mask by Ashley Weaver
Relationship drama! Plus a society murder. I loved it and can't wait to read the next book in the series.


Marked In Flesh by Anne Bishop
This series is so different from a lot of things I read. it's slow moving with lots of details and I'm on the side of the Others all the way.


Den of Wolves by Juliet Marillier
I loved the final book of this series. Grim is just the nicest guy and so patient and I loved the way the friendship between Blackthorn and Grim progressed in the series. It was rock solid.


One Fell Sweep by Ilona Andrews
I read this serial online and then bought the final published version and devoured it again in one night. Right now this series is my favorite of everything they write.


Whew! What a list. Like I said, it was a great reading year. Plus I have some notable mentions that just have to be here.


The Shadowy Horses by Susannah Kearsley
This is a "me" book all the way around. Girl on an archeological dig with a ghost, boy who can see ghost, handsome professor... it hit all the right buttons.


The Sherwood Ring by Elizabeth Marie Pope
Two words: Peaceable Sherwood. I love book boys that know exactly what they want right from the start and book girls who are clever enough to fall in with their scheme.


My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, Jodi Meadows
This one was just plain fun. I think the authors must have had a blast writing it.


Garden Spells & The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen
Another new to me author. I read 4 of her books this year and they are all keepers but I think these 2 might be my favorites.


As for 2017....


I'm looking forward to Etched in Bone by Anne Bishop, A Conjuring of Light by V.E. Schwab, Thick as Thieves by Megan Whalen Turner, and Silence Fallen by Patricia Briggs. I'm sure there are more that I can't think of.


As for what I'm reading next year, I found an old reading bingo card online that looks like it might be fun so I was thinking about challenging myself to a game of blackout. I changed it up a bit and got my niece and nephew to say they'd play along with me. I just have to think of an appropriate reward.