Love this memoir about working in the American death industry. The author shares her own perspective on what constitutes a good death while also briefly touching on death rituals and views in other cultures. She writes in a way that's funny and honest and she doesn't shy away from the uncomfortable aspects of death. Highly recommend.

"But I tried to pretend I was self sufficient. A lot of times when I think I'm being self sufficient, I'm really just learning to live without the things I need." ??❤️‍?

I wish I loved this book as much as I love the cover. I usually love a scholarly mystery with murder & magic. But the two main female characters weren't complex enough. Their lives were reactions to men. The main arc was away from that, but honestly, write me the book for who this women becomes, not who she is before she becomes herself (i.e. interesting,). Also, the ease of the scholarly search and the last scene was laughable.

Another great mystery in this series. Roxane is slightly less of a mess which was nice. The mystery is very believable with lots of suspects. Definitely a fun read. We get less of her brothers, which was the one thing I missed. Still, a great read that I stayed up late to finish.

Perfectly cute cozy mystery. This one has a lot of shenanigans that come when a love potion accidentally gets widely shared. That definitely made for some fun and for a more robust mystery. It's an enjoyable world, the main character is just a bit dull. I guess she's supposed to be the audience surrogate, but she's just so average even with magical powers. Makes it a little hard to care. All she is is nice and pretty. 😴

So incredibly boring. It should be interesting. There's a black preacher and possible serial killer accused of using voodoo to kill his family members for insurance money. There's the man that shot him at the funeral in front of 300 witnesses. There's a trial led by a famous Alabama lawyer and there's Harper Lee trying to write about it all. And it's all so boring. Maybe if you're really into Lee, read this. Otherwise, I cannot recommend.

Great biography of Milicent Patrick, the artist who designed the creature from the black lagoon and then was discredited. The book is also about the research process (since much of Milicent's life was almost lost to history) and early Hollywood. The narrator is wonderfully frank, never hiding behind an "objective narrator." Her passion for Milicent's work and horror is clear as is her willingness to call out misogyny in any time or place.

So normally, I am not into the alcoholic cop/detective cliche as a main character but I found Roxane to be a compelling narrator. Perhaps, because her alcohol use was in part fueled by grief and not just due to the job. The mystery was compelling. It was nice to have a bisexual main character with relationships that felt real. I will definitely read the sequel if there's one.

Fun cozy mystery. Although the formula seems to be that mysterious happenings will be "solved" by being attributed to a random demon that is easily captured. Basically it's more a fun world to spend time in than an actual mystery of any kind. I do wish there was some sort of overarching mystery or narrative to take it to the next level. But it's enjoyable even without that.

If you're sitting around thinking, "man, I really wish I could listen to a conspiracy book that is one step above National Treasure so that I can picture a younger Nic Cage bumbling around with a mysterious old high school flame, perhaps played by HBC circa Fight Club, and with Samuel L. Jackson as a mentor who may be a secret spy,," then this is your book. It's entertaining and it didn't have any mason or occult nazi cliches. So that was a win.

Perfectly adequate thriller. Hyper masculine lead (no surprise there) paired with prescriber female cop (also no surprise). Set in West Virginia. You know what you're gonna get with this kind of book so if you're in that kind of mood, go for it.

I wish this book was half as good as the cover image or the title. It was so insanely boring. I hated all of the characters. Both sisters are selfish and we never really get to know any of the men beyond the surface. And there's barely any murder. It's mostly the "good sister" whining and taking no responsibility. If you're going to enable a serial killer, own it. Start the book there. No one wants to read 250 pages of resentful martyrdom.

Another solid mystery in the Renee Ballard and Harry Bosch series. The book has multiple mysteries (one cold case and two recent murders) which keeps it interesting. Love the way an older, wiser Bosch plays off the younger, more brash Renee and how he plays off the slicker, more cavalier Mickey Holler. It's like checking in with favorite characters and hearing their latest escapades. Totally fun for fans of the Bosch or Lincoln Lawyer series.

I can't speak to whether the mystery in this book is any good because I'm at 16% and there's still not a dead body. Why am I bailing then? Because of the completely unecessary and persistent fat shaming in this book. An abused child with an eating disorder is described as grotesque by the narrator. That's 100% the author speaking, not the characters. I googled and it's a persistent issue with this author. Lazy hurtful writing. Nope. 😡😞👎🖕

Don't read this. The murder is underwhelming (it's obvious who benefited from the murder so the investigation is really a matter of slowly proving how it was done although it's not presented that way). But more importantly, the book is bi-phobic/homophobic as well as shaming of people in open relationships. The early chapters are so bad that I assumed it had been written in the 70s. But no. I guess when you're Ann Rule no one calls you out. 😡

Fascinating mystery reminiscent of I Heart Huckabees only with more hallucinagens and with an actual murder mystery. Loved the mystical take on detection and the stranger elements in the story set against the starkness of post Katrina New Orleans. I didn't necessarily like most of the characters but it didn't matter. It was refreshing to read a book with fully realized characters who were good and yet who also sometimes did terrible things.

Fun crime book set in quirky NM small town. I assume this will be the first in the series and I'm curious to read the next one as there seems to be a secret society running the town in addition to a couple psychic residents and assorted oddball characters. The main characters were a little reminiscent of this author's last series (only with less supernatural powers) but I was ok with that.

166 pts for 3 winter books (Mrs.Claus and the Santaland Slayings, Mistletoe Murder, and The Golden Compass), 2 TBR reads (Black Magick and The Boy, The Mole, etc), and the team read (A Christmas Carol). 447 pts for bingos and associated posts. 800 pts for 5 readathons for 16 hrs and 240 pts for 4 readathons for 6 hrs for my non-audio reads! Phew. Plus, 50 pts for the early bird points I forgot. 1703 total @Clwojick #MerryReaders #wintergames2020

#LittenListen #Audioathon This one was a lot harder than I expected! I wasn't double dipping or I could have gotten a few more. If I'd wanted more, I really would have had to pick books based on the board (instead of plugging my holiday and winter picks into the game when I could). Still, a lot of fun! 61 pts #Wintergames2020 #MerryReaders

#BookmasBingo Not bad. 81 pts. I didn't double dip books. How did no one sip hot chocolate? I probably just forgot. Lol. @MidnightBookGirl #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

Self care bingo #3. Given the state of the world, PJ Day is almost every day. It's self care to put on real pants these days. 😂 61 pts. #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

Self care bingo #2. Didn't do as well on this one. 41 pts #Wintergames2020 #MerryReaders

Self care bingo board #1. Five bingos. 101 pts #wintergames2020 #merryreaders

So I never finished this series and I wanted to before I watch the HBO series. This first book was just as good as I remembered. However, I can't say the same for the audiobook. It was a full cast and the woman doing Lyra's voice was like nails on a chalkboard. I almost bailed. I recommend the print version. Also, I'm counting this as a winter read due to the North Pole setting and the armored polar bears. 26 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

#Bookspinbingo TBR edition. Two lines. I clearly was more focused on the holiday reads. But still 41 pts. #MerryReaders #WinterGames2020

#Bookspinbingo Three more lines completed - G, O, and the middle line. All in all, not bad. 61 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

Beautiful illustrations. Simple vignettes of four friends interacting. Some of it borders on cliche but the drawings are lovely. I'd recommend not reading it in order and taking it more as brief meditations or inspirational images/quotes. It's a great gift (especially for people in recovery) as it focuses a lot on healing practices like kindness, gratitude, friendship, and accepting imperfection. TBR 16 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

First volume is basically setting up the world. Witches in hiding, one of which is a cop; witch hunters; and a mysterious third group working dark magic. Sets up some interesting possibilities, but definitely feels like a beginning volume. Definitely curious to see where it goes. Art is rather muted but well done. TBR 16 pts. #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

So, we all know the story. I hadn't read it in a while so I really enjoyed revisiting it. But what I really want to talk about is how much I enjoyed this audio version. Yes, it sucks that you can only get it through audible. But it's so good. Tim Curry does a great job. It really bright it alive. Plus, if you do have audible it's a free listen. Team Read and made into a movie so 56 pts. #HolidayRead #MerryReaders #WinterGames2020

Cute cozy Christmas mystery. I haven't read any of the other books in the series but it didn't matter. The Texas setting was cute and I liked the characters. The mystery was easy to figure out but it was still an enjoyable read. 26 pts #HolidayRead #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

Love this book so much!! It was well written and fun and funny. I was definitely tired of reading Christmas books so the fact that I loved this one shows how good it is. The world is fabulous, the characters are great, the mystery is well done. The only disappointing thing is that it's not available on audio. But I loved reading it in print so even that didn't matter! Can't wait for the sequel. 26 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders #HolidayRead

Week Four total: 1454 pts. Two holiday/winter reads (An Elderly Lady Seeks Peace at Christmas and Eight Winter Nights) and six TBR reads (four Elderly Lady stories, The Book of Two Ways and Tourist Attraction). 26 hours for five readathons. One holiday movie- SantaJaws!! @Clwojick #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

1301 pts this week for the readathons (and this post) for the following books: An Elderly Lady is Up to No Good, The Book of Two Ways, Eight Winter Nights, and 6 hours of Tourist Attraction. #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders #crushtherush #audioathon #bookmasbingo #readyourway #christmasspiritreadathon @Clwojick

Nope. I'm half way through and all the characters are still irritating to me. The entire plot is white hipsters in Alaska flirt and it's just boring. My favorite parts are the blind dog and the moose and that is not enough to get through another 5.5 hrs. I'm out. I hope they don't end up in love, but I'm sure they do. Because they both like Alaska, animals, and reading, and that's all it takes, right? TBR 16 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

Santa Jaws. Amazon Prime movie that is pretty bad but with hilarious Santa Jaws scenes. His eyes glow red like Rudolph. 😂 6 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

Cute short Hanukah love story. Nothing revolutionary, but a very sweet enjoyable holiday romance with some funny and awkward moments. I liked that it alternated perspectives and used dual narration. If you have audible, it's free so I recommend checking it out. #HolidayRead 26 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

It's been a long time since I stayed up late to finish a book and knew as soon as I finished that I was going to reread it sometime soon. Of course, that's in part because there's a lot going on in this book. Two timelines/locations, two love stories, ancient egyptian religion, quantum physics, and the realities of being a death doula. It worked for me, but I also know it would be too much for many. TBR 16 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

Final story in the collection. Quite satisfying although I did feel bad for the victim this time as I'm not convinced he was really planning on doing something bad. Maude ia a little too quick to jump to murder in this one, which if I remember correctly from Lady Killers tends to happen over time. So that felt accurate. Lol. Overall, really enjoyed this collection. Very fun. And the book design is adorbs. TBR 16 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

Vignette that sets up the final story in the collection. This one is told from the perspective of a retired journalist who lives in Maude's building so we see how her neighbors experience her. Then the final story will tell the story from her perspective. Due to that, this one doesn't really feel complete, but it was still enjoyable. TBR 16 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

It's the story I was most looking forward to! Excellent Christmas murder vignette. I love that she uses a stroller to manipulate people. I only wish it had been longer. I'd love to see her react to carolers or be asked to participate in a cookie exchange. I need more holiday Maude. 26 pts #HolidayRead #Wintergames2020 #MerryReaders

Second story in the collection and it is more of a story. We find out that Maude used to be a high school teacher, which is perfect. The murder in this one takes more effort and it's related to Maude's past so we learn more about her as a person, including her very first murder. These stories definitely evoke Dexter ethics (or Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) in that it is usually awful people being killed. TBR 16 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

Opening story in this collection. Very fun! Not a ton of plot so it was more like a vignette that introduced our serial killing senior citizen. Love the way she plays off people's assumptions about the elderly. Also, the method of murder was hilarious. The picture above is not a spoiler! It just captures the spirit of the story. 😂 16 pts for TBR #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

Week Three total: 1700 pts. Three holiday/winter reads (I'm Dreaming of an Undead Christmas, Snow Falling on Bluegrass, and The Bear and the Nightingale) and two TBR reads (Dracula Motherf**ker and The Five). 29 hours for five readathons. One holiday tradition, a bunch of holiday TV shows and finally four bingos!! @Clwojick #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

1451 pts this week for the readathons (and this post) for the following books: I'm dreaming of an Undead Christmas, Snow Falling on Bluegrass, The Bear and the Nightingale, and The Five. #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders #crushtherush #audioathon #bookmasbingo #readyourway #christmasspiritreadathon

Self care bingo. Finally decided to mark off my squares. Went floating for 90 mins last week so that was probably my biggest self care accomplishment of the month (and a great meditation session). I have hot cocoa almost every day so that one was the easiest! 21 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

#BookmasBingo Finally got a line done! I clearly need to read more holiday romance books or cozy mysteries so I can get more squares. For some reason, the nordic detectives never sip hot chocolate while investigating grisly murders. @MidnightBookGirl 21 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

#bookspin holiday edition. Hit bingo two ways this week! Going to have to get more strategic so I can hit it two more ways next week. 41 pts #Wintergames2020 #MerryReaders @TheAromaofBooks

I want to like this book so much as I like the idea. Unfortunately, Victorian England is incredibly depressing. A lot of the narrative is limited facts in cultural context and assumptions of how the women felt about their lives. There are a lot of assumptions about shame, guilt, and sadness, rather than letting the reader think about how the women might feel. Sadly, can't recommend. TBR 16 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

It's a lovely book, magical and darkly atmospheric. Very midwinter and pagan though it made me sad to see the way the wisdom of the past was lost and vilified due to new ways. I basically wanted to throttle the priest for the entire book. It's the kind of book that makes you think of lost things and makes you want to leave bread out for the fairies. So you're left both sad and hopeful. 26 pts #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders

"Ask any abuse survivor, you have to become a little bit of a monster yourself to escape it." - Alex de Campo, "On Monsters" ?

Ok, I debated if this is a spoiler and went with no since you have no idea what you're seeing and it doesn't give away a plot point. I want people to see the gorgeous art, but I hid my other posts in case people don't want to see entire two page spreads. @Clwojick