Welcome to Litsy!

Attended a fantastic author talk this evening with a friend. It featured William Kent Krueger talking about his tagged book which was selected for the local One Book One Community read this year.

I haven‘t had a chance to read this book yet, but his talk was wonderful. He also discussed his writing process and the power of stories. If you like his books and have the opportunity to see him speak in person I highly recommend it.

A murder mystery provides the framework for this painfully realistic portrait of mid-20th-Century life in small town middle America. Riveting.

#HauntedShelf #BookRecommendation Team #HexesandCrows @Catsandbooks

Prompt: Stand-alone

Our Sept. library book club pick. I prefer fast paced, psychological thrillers, so I didn‘t initially enjoy this book. But I kept going and ended up really liking it. The River is a slower paced mystery with some action but more back story than anything else. The character development in this book was in depth and fantastic. Book #91 in 2024

This story kept me guessing until the end. As with all of William Kent Kruger‘s books, it was beautifully written. Nobody can describe a landscape or piece of nature like he can. I did get lost in the amount of characters in the story. So many made it hard to keep track of. As with most (or all) of this authors books, there is a Native American tie in. I end up learning so much about their history when I read these books.

After 13 weeks…still really excited to read this!

#WithSadEnding #AboutABook

@Eggs
@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

4⭐. One of my favorite authors. This book gives you a lot to think about but had a lot of sadness, past abuse, and PTSD.

#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl

https://youtu.be/4cNZDLej90o?feature=shared

Chat #1: with Karen from Maine

The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger

Chat #2: with Nathan from near Seoul

Alphabetical Diaries by Sheila Heti

Motherhood by Sheila Heti

Chat #3: with Nancy (The Literate Quilter) from Metro Detroit

Chenneville by Paulette Jiles

Chat #4: with Vansa from India

When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit by Judith Kerr

This was a mixed experience for me. His writing is so good, but there were parts that I felt like the conflicts resolved unrealistically easily. And the ending sucked. I‘d have preferred he save the unrealistic resolution for that part of the plot. 😀 I look forward to my book club discussion next week.

Starting this tonight for my irl book club.

#LitsyLoveReads #ReadAway2024 The lyrical writing of this more-than-a-mystery had me hooked from the beginning. I‘ve found a new must-read author. Aaand many of his books are free on Audible. This is an excellent book and I highly recommend it.

I enjoyed this mystery that takes place in 1950‘s Minnesota. It talked a lot about The Catcher in the Rye, but I saw shades of To Kill A Mockingbird in there too.

Now I totally get all the William Kent Kruger love that I've read on my bookish social media! This was a fantastic mystery with depth, atmosphere, and a cast of interesting characters. I grabbed this one off my tbr shelves when it came up as my May #Doublespin, and now I have another author's backlist to dive into! @TheAromaofBooks

#LitsyLoveReads #AudibleFreebies I just started listening to this book and it is beautifully written. I believe I have a new author to add to my favorites. Books 1-9 and 11-19 of WKK‘s Cork O‘Connor series are currently free on Audible without a posted expiration date.

#LitsyLoveReads #AudibleFreebies I just started listening to this book and it is beautifully written. I believe I have a new author to add to my favorites. Books 1-9 and 11-19 of WKK‘s Cork O‘Connor series are currently free on Audible without a posted expiration date.

Last night I got to see this wonderful author speak and if you ever get the chance to listen to him, do it… he was an absolute delight!

This took a while to get going but this is so full of humanity. I think it‘s worth the time and effort. I don‘t know what else to say. 4 ⭐️

Loved this book so much… so heartbreakingly beautiful and exquisitely written! A great depiction of small town life and the ups and downs that come with it! A 5 ⭐️ read for sure!

Picked up my mug for completing my local library‘s Winter Reading Program, and a few books, because they have those and I can‘t resist. I might have a problem. 😉❤️📚 #library #libraryprogram #librarybooks

Loved this read set in a small town in 1958. War affects those that go and those that wait for soldiers to return. Great characters, heart wrenching story. Small town with people who care and are willing to forgive.

I‘m thinking historical fiction for our April buddy read! I thought we could plan ahead so that there‘s plenty of time to snag a copy!

January 27th Remarkably Bright Creatures discussion!
February-Hello Beautiful
March- Yellowface

Please tag the book you‘re interested in below! 👇🏻
Everyone welcome! 🤗

#LitsyLoveReads 📚

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑

A whopping 35 of the books I read in 2023 merited ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️! That's a new record for me. But all of those stars were richly deserved by the very talented writers who entertained me, made me think, and often confounded me in 2023.

Overall, was a very good year in books.

ᴡʜᴀᴛ ʙᴏᴏᴋ(ꜱ) ᴅɪᴅ ʏᴏᴜ ɢɪᴠᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ʜɪɢʜᴇꜱᴛ ʀᴀᴛɪɴɢ(ꜱ) ɪɴ 2023?

Thank you @Jas16 for hosting this challenge. I included books from other challenges- all from my mountain of a TBR. 📚💚

Thank you so much for the wonderful #jolabokaflodswap package, @Cuilin ! Tony‘s Chocolonely is a favorite because of their mission and I‘m really looking forward to reading this book. Merry Christmas to you and yours! 🎄🙂

Compelling, character-driven mystery set in 1958 small-town Minnesota. A good one! #BOTM

I loved this one. ❤️

A good mystery but a bit too sentimental and sedate in the telling for me. In this particular moment of my life I needed something with a bit more pace and grit.

This book paints such a vivid picture of 1958 Jewell Minnesota and the community whose lives were entwined as the Alabaster River flowed through It/them. Every character good, bad, and growing was drawn so precisely. I couldn‘t stop myself from reading to its conclusion while at the same time knowing I didn‘t want to leave this community. I was grateful for the satisfying epilogue that let me imagine their completed stories.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was the first book I‘ve read by William Kent Krueger, but I can see why he is so well respected. He painted a vivid and compassionate portrait of the town of Jewel and its people while also crafting a compelling and moving mystery. 🎧

Each William Kent Krueger book involves a death (murder, accident, or natural) around which the story revolves. Highly satisfying reading

#Death

#AutumnPlease!

@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

I haven't read much by this author, but with writing and plots this good I need to change that. This is a wonderful combination of historical fiction that captures the sentiments of small town America in the years after WWII, and a murder mystery. The author develops the characters wonderfully as the story probes the depths of the secrets in the town. I would love to see a sequel to this one. Thanks to Edelweiss + for the digital ARC. 4.5/5

I love mums! We went Saturday to pick up some 🌸

#FallFlowers
#AutumnPlease
#TBR
#Bookmail

Up next on audio. 🎧
Our Bookclub is reading this for October. Love this author!
#bookspinbingo

Set in 1950‘s Minnesota , in the small town of Jewel. A wealthy citizen is murdered… what follows is some great story telling that takes us into the lives of these town people. Historical fiction and murder mystery rolled into a heartfelt story. I really enjoyed reading this one.

Review is up! Check it out! This is a good one!

https://reecaspieces.com/2023/09/22/the-river-we-remember-by-william-kent-kruege...

Lovely writing but this book feels a little more disjointed than Krueger‘s other two stand-alones. It took me quite some time to figure out how the two younger boys, Del and Scott, fit into the story, and I‘m still not sure they were even necessary characters. I like the consistent river theme between the three books. #audiowalk

I expected to go see my dad today, but he was out when I called. I went for a walk instead. The shorter walk is in a small park I found on the Columbia side of the river. I‘ve got about 3 hours left in this book, so I need to pick a new one. #audiowalk

Today‘s walk was at the zoo and botanical garden. A good portion of the walk back to the gardens from the zoo (1/3 of a mile) is uphill, and it‘s pretty steep. I wasn‘t up to it after 2 and a half miles. That‘s the reason why there are two walking maps. I‘m about half way through with the tagged book. #audiowalk

When I knew I was coming back to SC, I got several new books — Stephen King‘s Holly, R.F. Kuang‘s Yellowface, and the tagged book. I bought the first two in print, but, since I like listening to Krueger‘s books, I used an Audible credit to get this standalone novel. So far, I‘m enjoying it. #audiowalk

Wow!! Krueger‘s latest novel set over a single 1958 summer in a small Minnesota town shines with an almost epic feel. He brings to life the whole town of Jewel with the farm struggles, the weight of the wars to the gossiping nature of a place where everyone knows everyone, to the multiple hats worn by many to chip in. When Jimmy Quinn‘s body is pulled half-eaten from the titular river, it sparks a summer unforgettable to the whole town. Riveting!

#TheRiverWeRemember #WilliamKentKrueger #SummersEnd #Readathon #BookSpinBingo #SeriesLove2033

Landowner Jimmy Quinn is found floating in the Alabaster River. Sheriff Brody Dern is called in to investigate the murder of Jimmy Quinn. I have read many novels by William Kent Krueger who also wrote the Cork O'Connor novels and I look forward to reading more from him.

My Book of the Month box arrived yesterday! 🎉🎉🎉 I'm a bit behind on my BOTM reads, so it might be a bit before I get to these! 🙈 I've already read My Murder though! I read my library's copy earlier this year but wanted a copy to keep because it's one of my favorite thrillers/mysteries of the year so far! 😱 #botm

Memorial Day 1958 in a small town Jewel, Minnesota…
WKK is the best story teller ever! His O‘Connor series is remarkable but his stand-alones are exquisite. It‘s so special to me having grown up in a small town in southern Minnesota; nature as well as people can be unpredictable and savage.

“Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth." Buddha

#SummerEndReadathon Day 5 @TheSpineView
#RushAThon

Happy Pub Day!
Full review here: http://tinyurl.com/mwzvkfkt
William Kent Krueger

Here's my #BookSpinBingo board for September! Since I am in my student teaching/edTPA semester, I know that realistically I will probably only get to the #BookSpin and #DoubleSpin picks. But, a girl can dream!