BackwardsAtoZ

pick

Finally finished this one!! I thoroughly enjoyed it so no idea why it took me so long! Haven't read this one in ages so I had forgotten a lot of the details. Still an epic tale of adventure and drama - great fun.

TheAromaofBooks #Jennyis30 - Classic @jenniferw88 || #SeparatedbyaPondTour - Hampshire @Andrew65 || #BackwardsAtoZ - No V 5y

Andrew65 Progressing well. 👏 5y

64 likes2 comments

TheAromaofBooks

Mystery in the Pirate Oak | Helen Fuller Orton

so-so

Realizing that it may be difficult to meet my #MarchUnshelving Readathon goal, I sort of cheated by reading a very short children's book to make up my numbers!! This is classic 1940's Scholastic Book Club material - pleasant but not ground-breaking. It was crazy that the grandma had gone west in a covered wagon only 60yrs before!! Owned this since 1997 so I guess it was time to read it. 🙄 Now it is heading to the giveaway box!
@Clwojick

TheAromaofBooks #ReadtheUSA2020 / #SeparatedbyaPondTour - New York @Andrew65 || #BackwardsAtoZ - No U || #MarchBookBingo - Title Starts With M 5y

Andrew65 It‘s a book! 🙂 5y

Laughterhp Wow! Since 1997! I‘m glad you finally read it 😊 5y

Clwojick I love that you held on to it for 23 years! ❤️ 5y

TheAromaofBooks @Laughterhp @Clwojick - soooo many books I picked up in the 1990's at book sales and thrift stores and then never actually read! Working my way through them now after a few decades! 😂 5y

49 likes5 comments

TheAromaofBooks

Wild Horse Running | Sam Savitt

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For the purposes of #MarchUnshelving I am considering any book on my shelves that I haven't read in over ten years to be unread. This one was purchased in 2005 and probably read around then but not since. The story is a bit simplistic, but I love Savitt's illustrations so hard that I don't think I am letting go of this one either!!
@Clwojick

TheAromaofBooks #ReadtheUSA2020 / #SeparatedbyaPondTour - Montana @Andrew65 @ljuliel || #BackwardsAtoZ - No T 5y

Clwojick Such a pretty book! ♥️ 5y

Andrew65 I still need to get to Montana so will research this book. 5y

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TheAromaofBooks @Andrew65 - It's a short one, so that's always fun haha Part of it also takes place in Wyoming. 5y

TheAromaofBooks @Clwojick - I just love Savitt's illustrations so much. They are a little sparse, but that honestly fits the kinds of books he illustrates - this one is set in the high plains, and his drawings seem very suited for that background. 5y

iread2much When I was a kid, i loved these books. 5y

TheAromaofBooks @iread2much - I LOVED horse books of all kinds when I was growing up, and still enjoy them even now. 5y

iread2much @TheAromaofBooks me too! I bought every horse book I could find. I wish I had kept more of them 5y

57 likes8 comments

TheAromaofBooks

Lucky Caller | Emma Mills

Made a bit of progress for #BackwardsAtoZ - I am doing these in order, so I am a bit stuck on No T at the moment!! Purple-y highlights are February's additions.

ravenlee Good Omens, most of Jane Austen‘s books, Jane Eyre, Bleak House, Anne of Green Gables, Greenglass House, Escape from Mr Lemoncello‘s Library... 5y

veritysalter Looking at my Agatha Christie shelf: Hickory Dickory Dock, Dead Man‘s Folly, Sad Cypress, Lord Edgware Dies for Poirot. Murder is Announced, Nemesis and Sleeping Murder for Miss Marple. 5y

TheAromaofBooks @ravenlee @veritysalter - Thanks for the ideas!!! 5y

59 likes3 comments

TheAromaofBooks

Lucky Caller | Emma Mills

pick

This was a decent read but my least favorite of Mills' books. It almost felt like she had an idea but then rushed to finish it, because some of the concepts were really disjointed. The radio thing seemed like it could have been a lot more developed (especially the tie-in to the title) and the same for the side plot with Nina's sister and a few other things. A decent but not amazing read. Also a bit sad about the switch to a different cover format.

TheAromaofBooks #ReadtheUSA2020 / #SeparatedbyaPondTour - Indiana @Andrew65 || #BackwardsAtoZ - No S 5y

Andrew65 Thanks for tag, don‘t think I‘ve got Indiana yet. (edited) 5y

TheAromaofBooks @Andrew65 - sometimes those random midwest states can be hard to find haha Right now I am checking off lots of easy ones that I just happening to be reading rather than specifically looking for books to fit the challenge, but at some point I know I'm going to need help finding some of the Great Britain ones - I haven't come across a single set-in-Ireland book organically yet! 5y

Andrew65 @TheAromaofBooks That‘s the way I‘m doing it too at this stage. 5y

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TheAromaofBooks

The Wildings | Nilanjana Roy

pick

No pic since my phone is on the fritz (sigh) -

I've been in a bit of a book slump the last couple of weeks, so I picked up this one with virtually no anticipation of finishing it. I was pulled almost unwillingly into the story, though - a clan of stray cats living in India is disturbed when a Sender appears in their midst, as legend says that Senders only appear during times of great need - and everything seems to be going well for the clan ⬇

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) At first this book was a little difficult to get into, but soon I was completely engaged in the characters, the setting, and the plot. While the animals in this story talk to one another, they still act completely like animals, and I don't think you have to particularly like cats in order to appreciate the complexity of the animal society the author creates. An unexpected pick, and weirdly a book that has drawn me back into reading. 5y

TheAromaofBooks Challenges: #Jennyis30 - Cats (obviously haha) @jenniferw88 || #TurningPagesBingo - Diverse Author || #BackwardsAtoZ - No R 5y

effani I really liked this one too! Glad it helped get you out of your slump. 5y

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TheAromaofBooks @effani - apparently there is also a sequel, which my library doesn't have, but I enjoyed this one so much that I hunted around and found it used for $6 on AbeBooks!! 5y

effani Nice find! I've heard the sequel isn't as good but I've still been meaning to read it. 5y

TheAromaofBooks @effani - I appreciated the way she concluded the first story, but left enough things open that a sequel could be purposeful. We'll see how it goes!! 5y

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TheAromaofBooks

Particular Intentions | L. L. Diamond

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Not gonna lie, my go-to for fluff reading? Terrible Pride & Prejudice variations. I love how many different ways a similar story can be told. This one was better than many, with realistic problems instead of ridiculous ones. I was a bit disappointed that the author went through the trouble of making Wickham even more despicable than the original, but then didn't have him be the main villain! Still, a fun and easy read.
⬇️

TheAromaofBooks PS Also a not-steamy version, which is always nice!!
Challenges: #SeparatedbyaPondTour - Hertfordshire @Andrew65 || #BackwardsAtoZ - No Q || #RomanceNovelBingo - a retelling 5y

Andrew65 Looks good. 5y

iread2much My fav fluff reads are P&P adaptations as well. I will have to add this to my list 5y

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TheAromaofBooks @iread2much - I go through blips in time where literally all I want is brain candy, and P&P variations are my favorite go-to for that. If you're interested, I actually have a blog that is JUST P&P that I've read, because that's how many I've read haha https://mysecretprideandprejudiceaddiction.wordpress.com/ Let me know if you have any favorites!! I'm always on the lookout for more. 5y

janeycanuck Terrible P&P variations are such wonderful delights... I love that you have a whole blog for them!! 5y

TheAromaofBooks @janeycanuck - thank you! I used to be a bit embarrassed, which is why I started a blog separate from my main book blog, but over time I've come to embrace the fact that I just genuinely love them haha 5y

iread2much That‘s awesome! I have a whole collection in my bookcrawler app 😄 5y

TheAromaofBooks @iread2much - they are definitely my comfort-read!! 5y

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TheAromaofBooks

The Intuitionist: A Novel | Colson Whitehead

so-so

Sometimes a book makes me feel kind of dumb, and this was one of those books. I never really "got" what Whitehead was driving at. Is this some kind of allegory? (I'm terrible at both identifying and understanding allegories, being more the straight-shooter type haha) The story is very slow moving, with sometimes confusing jumps in time and characters. (Who is the screaming man?) I wanted to know what was going to happen, but never felt connected⬇️

TheAromaofBooks to the characters or the story. It's incredibly rare for it take me more than a day and a half to read a book this length, and it took me almost four days to get through this one, and not even because I was reading other things - just because I never really felt interested in picking it back up. Not a horrible read, but not one I particularly liked. Still planning to read The Underground Railroad next week to give Whitehead another try. 5y

TheAromaofBooks Challenges: #AuthoraMonth @soubhiville || #BackwardsAtoZ - No P || #FancifulFebruary - Black Own Voices @4thhouseontheleft || #FebruaryBookBingo - Own Voices 5y

Suet624 I find this author to be hit or miss. 5y

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TheAromaofBooks @Suet624 - I found a description of this book listing it as “speculative fiction“ and I think that may have been part of my problem with it. I would have liked it better if the setting was either more significantly different from our world, or was just straight historical fiction. Still interested to give him another try, though. Which of his books have you found to be more hits than misses? 5y

Suet624 @TheAromaofBooks Underground Railroad and The Nickel Boys are ones I would lean toward. 5y

TheAromaofBooks @Suet624 - cool, I have Underground Railroad out from the library as well!! Hoping to try that one next week. 5y

Soubhiville Logged, that‘s 3📚 5y

65 likes7 comments

TheAromaofBooks

Well Met | Jen DeLuca

pick

This was exactly what I wanted it to be: a quick, fluffy, happy read with likable characters. There were times when Emily felt a little slow on the uptake, but overall a fun story. GR shows a sequel coming out this fall, and I actually think there are other characters to explore so that could be nifty as well.

TheAromaofBooks Challenges: #ReadtheUSA2020 / #SeparatedbyaPondTour - Maryland @Andrew65 || #BackwardsAtoZ - No O || #FancifulFebruary - Read in Bed / Purple on the Cover @4thhouseontheleft || #FebruaryBookBingo - Couple on Cover || #TurningPagesBingo - Sword on Cover 5y

Andrew65 Sometimes this is exactly what you do need! I‘ve not got to Maryland yet. 5y

TheAromaofBooks @Andrew65 - yes, it was a palette-cleanser kind of book! 5y

alisiakae That‘s a lot of prompts! 5y

62 likes2 stack adds4 comments

TheAromaofBooks

Free to Fall | Lauren Miller

pick

Set in the not-too-distant future, society looks very similar to today. Unsurprisingly, people are more dependent on their cell phones than ever, especially on an app called Lux, which analyzes every situation for you and tells you the optimal choice for every question - what to eat, where to shop, when to leave for an appointment. When Rory gets accepted to the most prestigious high school in the country, she's thrilled, especially when she ⬇️

TheAromaofBooks finds out that her mother (who died when Rory was born) also attended the same school. Things take a darker twist, though, as Rory begins to discover things about the school, a secret society, and (of course) Lux. While some aspects of this story were predictable YA/scifi/dystopian kind of stuff, overall I really loved the concept of a society that has done its best to quash that quiet voice in our heads & replace it with 100% rational choices ⬇ 5y

TheAromaofBooks thanks to technology. This book felt like it could easily have strayed too far into religious territory, but kept the balance well. Overall a fun read for its genre.

Challenges: #ReadtheUSA2020/#SeparatedbyaPondTour - Massachusetts @Andrew65 || #WinterBookBingo - Book on the TBR too long (since 2016!) @Honeybeegirl || #JanuaryBookBingo - Character moves to a new town || #TurningPagesBingo - Set in high school || #BackwardsAtoZ - No N || ⬇ 5y

TheAromaofBooks #FebruaryBookBingo - Title starts with F 5y

Crazeedi Well done!👏💕 5y

Andrew65 Well done 👏👏👏😊 5y

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