Fun book stuff

No book to report on today. I am reading "Mrs. Hudson and the Spirits Curse" for our October book club meeting. The theme is Sherlocke Holmes or other books set in that time period. Mrs. Hudson, of course, is Sherlock and Dr. Watson's housekeeper.

Saw these fun things about books, trivia etc. I thought I would share in the meanwhile. Goodreads has lots of these on their Face Book page.

Which fictional character would you like to get a cup of coffee with?


Off the top of my head, I would say Agatha Raisin. I would love to see the village and her cottage. And I think she is a hoot!

25 Things That Would Happen if Books Ruled the World

https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/561-25-things-that-would-happen-if-book-lovers-ruled-the-world?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=ifbookloversruled


11 Simple Reasons the Print Book Doomsdayers are Wrong



http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/ebook-sales-drop_5603f7e4e4b00310edfa20b8?ir=Books&section=books&utm_hp_ref=books
I still have a collection of books. And I think I will always still purchase them. And I cannot resist grabbing a couple when people at work put them out for giveaway or at the book club. I never thought I would go to an e book but I was given one as a gift and I love it. It is easy to take anywhere, slips easily into a bag or purse or even a jacket. I can read while I am walking on a treadmill at the health club.  Big bonus. I have received several great, new books from new authors electronically. And I have gotten lots of books for free or next to nothing on Barnes and Noble, Amazon and Book Bub. Check that out!


Nine Ways People Who Read as Kids Have an Advantage...


http://www.bustle.com/articles/111990-9-ways-people-who-read-as-kids-have-an-advantage-over-everyone-else

And last but not least:



Happy Reading!

Update on release of The Recipient

I know there were a few book buddies who are interested in reading The Recipient. I read it back in the summer as part of our Mysteries in the Pacific Tour for our book club. It was to be published in October. Dean Mayes is the author and lives in Australia.

It has been picked up by a publishing company in Chicago, and will be released a bit later. But this is really good news for Dean and his book. And for us in the US I imagine. Larger distribution.

I will keep you posted.

Breathe and Release

 

I just finished reading Breathe and Release by Katherine Hayton.

 

I highly recommend it! Here is the published description:

 

"Elisabet just woke with amnesia. The care offered to her by a husband she doesn't remember descends within weeks into aggression and violence.

Lillian lies hogtied in an underground cell. Forget about escape; unless she can manage the necessities of life she'll be dead within days.

Kristen lost her house, her friends, and her confidence when her parents separated. Now her injured stepmother has moved back in. Has she lost her memory, or lost her mind?

Will the secrets hidden in Elisabet's locked memory be enough to set them all free?"

 

https://www.goodreads.com/review/edit/25981000

 

This book was incredibly suspenseful. You won't be disappointed and you won't want to put it down. Katherine Hayton is a very talented writer. She is able to draw you in and feel the emotions that the characters are feeling. I found myself speed reading to see what was going to happen, to make sure the bad guy got his. I think a good comparison is roller coaster ride; up and down, up and down and just when you think you are coming to the end, nice and slow and smooth, there is a sharp right turn and back up we go! A very surprise ending.

 

About the author: 

"Katherine Hayton is a 42 year old woman who works in insurance, doesn't have children or pets, can't drive, has lived in Christchurch her entire life, and currently resides two minutes walk from where she was born. For some reason she's developed a rich fantasy life. "

 

Ms. Hayton has written two other books and it looks like another coming out in October 2015. It looks like they are equally suspenseful.

 

I think you would like it.

 

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review.

 

 

 

 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25981000-breathe-and-release

Arthur and George, Longmire

 Are you watching Arthur and George on PBS Masterpiece Theatre? It is really good. If you haven't, you should be able to catch up on the PBS website and/or repeats on PBS. It is only a three part series. I never had watched anything with Martin Clunes, really. Doc Martin never grabbed me. But he really is a good actor. While the series is based on true events, there are embellishments. But we also get a glimpse into the real life of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/programs/arthur-and-george/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Conan_Doyle  (I always liked biographies too as a kid. So I looked up the Wiki on Sir Arthur to compare some things in the series.)

 Longmire on Netflix? Available as of 9/10/15. I have watched 2 of the 10 episodes so far. So good. Picks up where last season left off. I am not a binge watcher. But you could watch all 10 episodes. I will probably watch 1 or 2 a week, just like it was on television and not Netflix.
https://www.netflix.com/title/70269479

Why am I mentioning these t.v. shows? I am a fan of mystery shows and movies, not just books. I want to share them with people that like mysteries. I for one did not know about Longmire until a member of our book club talked about it a few years ago. So I want to pass along the scoop on some great shows.

Currently reading:  Breathe and Release by Katherine Hayton. It's a page turner!

Real Murders: An Aurora Teagarden Mystery

Did any of you catch "Real Murders: An Aurora Teagarden Mystery" on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries over Labor Day?

I confess I had passed some of these up previously and now I am sorry I did.

In this movie, Aurora Teagarden is part of a club that meets monthly to discuss "real murder" cases. They research and debate and have food and have a grand time. Well, one of their group members is murdered hours before the meeting. Her husband is the first suspect, and as time goes on, everyone in the club is suspect. There are more murders of club members and they seem to be mimicking famous murder cases, even some from the turn of the 20th century. Aurora helps to solve the case.

It was really good. Being on Hallmark, it was a cozy so no gruesome murders.

You will recognize the two actors who play two of the main characters: Candace Cameron (from Full House many years ago and younger sister to Kirk Cameron) plays Aurora Teagarden. Aurora's mother is played by Marilu Henner (she was on Taxi a really long time ago). Interesting factoid about Marilu Henner: she has hyperthymesia. Hyperthymesia: condition of possessing an extremely detailed autobiographical memory. For instance, you gave give her a date and she can tell you what she was doing on that date. I saw her demonstrate this on a show and found it fascinating. (I do not have hyperthymesia as I had to go back and forth several times to get the correct spelling).

This movie will be shown again in October and I really recommend it.

The Art of Deception

I just finished a novella entitled The Art of Deception by Christine McClean.

First I looked up the definition of "novella". We probably learned it in English class many, many years ago and I new that meant it was shorter than a novel. But I wondered if there was other criteria.

 Novella (Wikipedia):
"A novella is a written, fictional, prose narrative normally longer than a short story but shorter than a novel. The English word "novella" derives from the Italian "novella", feminine of "novello", which means "new".^[1] The novella is a common literary genre in several European languages. A novella generally features fewer conflicts than a novel, yet more complicated ones than a short story. The conflicts also have more time to develop than in short stories..." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novella

This novella was 94 pages. It could easily have been read in one sitting.

"Mark finally had everything he could dream of – the perfect woman, friends and family who loved him, and a career-changing story at the newspaper about the mayor’s mistress and his seedy backroom deals. Little did Mark know that his big break was about to take a sinister turn when his girlfriend was kidnapped right before his story was to be published. Unbeknownst to Mark, the mayor was a member of a secret society that had been running the city for decades and would stop at no lengths to protect both its members and itself."

The book certainly grabs you right away with the kidnapping of Karen, Mark's girlfriend. As the description says, The Society, is apparently in charge of the town of Granston City, unbeknownst to the citizens of the town. The Society, is not a nice group of people. In fact, I would say they are pretty despicable. Now some are not in it by choice, like the mayor of Granston City.

It left me with the same feeling I had after reading Gone Girl and Natchez Burning. I kept reading because I wanted The Society caught, but it wasn't a feel good story.

Being a novella, all 94 pages are pretty much action, no room for descriptions of the landscape in a novella. I would say it is a good vs. evil story. You will have to read it to see who wins.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Art-Deception-A-Novella-ebook/dp/B013MZEB9A


I received a free copy of this in exchange for a review.

For those in the U.S., have a great long Labor Day weekend.



What will you be reading this weekend? I am going to read The Art of Deception, a novella by Christine E. McClean. I will let you know how it is. :)

September 2015 Mystery Line Up

Starting to see some of the mystery television shows return. I think these are all probably shown multiple times this month. Get your DVR's ready!

September 6: PBS Masterpiece Mystery: Season one of Arthur and George (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and his friend George Adalji) 3 episodes

September 6: PBS Masterpiece Mystery: rerunning season 3 of Sherlock. We are promised a Special and Season 4 coming up, but no date.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/programs/features/news/masterpiece-adds-more-new-titles-2015/

September 6: Hallmark Movies and Mysteries: Looks like 9/6 is a big day for the new movies on Hallmark.

• Garage Sale Mystery - Lori Laughlin and Cheryl Ladd
• A Healthy Place to Die with Dylan Neal and Brooke Burns. (I watched some of the other movies in these series and really liked them)
• Real Murders: An Aurora Teagarden Mystery: Candace Cameron Bure and Marilu Henner
• Murder She Baked:  Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder based on the book by Joann Fluke starring Alison Sweeney. This was on in the early summer. Really good. I am hoping they are making more of these.

Check out the schedule for the month on the website. There are some others that you may like

http://www.hallmarkmoviesandmysteries.com/movies

September 10: Longmire returns with 10 episodes on Netflix. The previous season is on Netflix if you need a refresher.

https://www.netflix.com/

I will be catching all of these over the month. Enjoy!

One Kick by Chelsea Cain

One Kick was our September Mystery Book Club choice. It was very, very good. It reads very fast and you won't be able to put it down.

The main character is Kit Lannigan who was kidnapped at age six and found five years later. Now in her late teens, she is sought out by John Bishop to help find two children who have disappeared. He thinks her knowledge, skills and experience, will help them. And the disappearances may be related to her kidnapping.

While Kit's experience was horrible, she has learned many coping skills, is very smart and cunning.
She practices for anything that may come up...lock picking, falling, fighting, "throwing stars". We also see some of the damage she has suffered due to her ordeal:  her "worry notebook", her obsessions and compulsions. But she is a survivor. She reminds me of Lisbeth Salander in The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. But the story is not as brutal and graphic. We are given glimpses into her ordeal, which are enough for me.

Another thing  that I really liked about the book, was Kit's wry sense of humor. One example: Bishop talks Kit into going with him on his private plane. She looks at the plane and it has a W on it. She wonders what the W stands for and thinks to herself "probably weasel". I still get a laugh when I think of that.

We meet several characters that I suspect will be in other books: Frank, the man who rescued her, James, her brother, her mother Paula and Beth.

I will be reading the second book entitled Kick Back.