Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Ten on Tuesday

This week's topic is a fun one for me as it involves one of my other hobbies, namely books!  Carole has asked us to talk about the last 10 books we have read, including reviews if we feel so inclined.  So here they are!



1. Be Careful What You Wish For by Jeffrey Archer.  This is the 4th book, of 5, in The Clifton Chonicles.  I have been waiting anxiously for this to be released and I was not disappointed!  This book focused more on the younger generation of characters as they have become adults.  Again the book ended with a great cliffhanger that has left me anxious for the 5th and final book of the series, although I have no idea how long I need to wait....
2. The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith (aka J.K Rowling).  Ultimately I enjoyed this book but it seemed to take me a while to get through it.  Cormoran Strike is an interesting character with an interesting background.  There may have been too many characters for my liking which seemed to take away form the pace of the story.  But in the end the outcome surprised me which I think makes a whodunnit even better.
3. The Yarn Whisperer: My Unexpected Life in Knitting by Clara Parkes.  This was a nice collection of essays that I lingered over for a long time, reading an essay here and there as it suited me.  Having had the pleasure of meeting Clara a couple times and spending a weekend with her at a retreat, I thought that she did great writing this book in her voice, if you know what I mean.
4. Me Before You by JoJo Moyes.  I. LOVED. THIS. BOOK!!!!!  It is a beautiful story of two people who have no idea of the ability they have to affect other people.  Some of their confinements are real and some, in my opinion, are imagined.  The opportunity arises for each of them to have a positive impact on the other.  Along the way they develop true and deep feelings for each other that neither of them expected.
5. Sycamore Row by John Grisham.  It had been several years since I read a Grisham novel, but my DH read this and couldn't put it down, so I decided to give it a go.  I'm glad I did!  I loved the character of Jake Brigance from A Time to Kill and this book features him again and also brings back many of the local characters from his town.  Although I had a pretty much guessed what the outcome was going to be, I enjoyed how it all came together in the end and I enjoyed spending time with these characters again.
6. Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple.  This was a fun book of quirky characters! What I loved most about Bernadette was that she was a character that was lost in about every way that a person could be lost.  Her story was told in part through correspondence with other characters, many of which had no interaction with each other.  Some parts of this story were truly heart wrenching and other parts were laugh out loud funny.  It was definitely worth the listen!
7. Visions of Sugar Plums by Janet Evanovich.  I love the Stephanie Plum books and this was the perfect light hearted book to entertain me during the holidays.  It wasn't as good as the numbered books, but thought provoking literature is not why I read Evanovich's books.
8. The Supreme Macaroni Company by Adriana Trigiana.  I've read everything this author has written.  If you are not familiar with her, she typically writes nice family driven stories. This book is part of the Valentine Series and picks up right where Brava, Valentine ends.
9. Deadline by Sandra Brown.  This was a typical romantic thriller by Brown, but sometimes that's just what you want to read!  Even better for me, I found myself surprised by some of the plot twists.  I love when that happens!
10. Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline.  This was a beautiful story.  The main characters are at very different stages in their lives.  Vivian is a 90ish year old women who wants to sort her belongings in her attic, although really she wants to visits the memories of her past.  Molly is a child in foster care in desperate need of community service to avoid juvenile hall.  When the two come together they discover they have much in common despite their age difference.  A true friendship develops between them and in a time of need for Molly, she turns to Vivian who gladly helps to the surprise of many.  This book made me think about the importance of GOOD foster homes for children in need and crisis, and how a bad one can have devastating damage for a child.

Currently I am reading The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce, and listening to Still Life with Bread Crumbs by Anna Quindlan.

Tell me about some of your favorite books recently.  I'm always looking for something good to read!





5 comments:

  1. I feel EXACTLY the same way about Me Before You! I put off reading it for quite a while because I was afraid it would be "chick lit" (not my favorite) but I was thrilled to discover that it was wonderful and poignant. JoJo Moyes has a new book called One Plus One but it's not published in the US until July. I'm looking forward to it so anxiously that I've half-seriously thought about ordering it from amazon.uk. Happy Reading!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good to know! I'll be on the lookout for her new book!

      Delete
  2. I really enjoyed Bernadette in much the same way that you did. Me Before You is one of the best books I read last year. I really loved it and recommend it to everyone.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree! I really enjoyed both of those books. I think that the best book I read last year though was probably The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult. Definitely worth a read!

      Delete
  3. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete