I both read and listened to this one. It‘s a soft pick for me. In general, I enjoyed the book, but it was slow overall and I knew a great deal of what was going to happen. I think it would have been improved with some tightening up and maybe even fewer story threads.

Finished: 05/30/25

I‘m ten seasons into the Midsomer Murders TV show, so I thought I would read the first book in the series the show is based on. I enjoyed this. It‘s definitely darker than the show, but I enjoyed some of the fleshing out. I was surprised that Sargent Troy is a bit of a prick. I enjoyed his character on the show.

Finished: 05/26/25

This was my top book for May and I should probably review it. Sandstorm is the first book in the Sigma Force series. It‘s what you would get if you threw elements of The Mummy, Indiana Jones, and King Solomon‘s Mines in a blender along with a secret military group and set it after 9/11. I found I didn‘t want to put it down, and listened to some of it on audio even though I didn‘t love the narrator. It was a great vacation read.

Finished 5/31/25

May #wrapup

Total read = 10
7 audio (2 novellas)
3 print

I returned to several series I had paused on and started a couple of new ones. My pick for May is Sandstorm, because it reminded me that I can get through a #chunkster. I gobbled up the almost 600 pages while on vacation.

#Bookspin My list is all books I own again. I switched out some to add a few (8) that were gifted from Littens, one I should return to, and one from my husband‘s picks.

What day is it? j/kI know this happened a week ago. Time just flies by. #bookspin #doublespin

Mean Spirit was a #bookspin pick on another year too. The Crossing is also a #husbandpick that I should have read last year. 😂

April #wrapup

6 read + 3 DNF:
4 audiobooks
1 children‘s book
2 graphic novels
2 print

My pick for April is the tagged, because I need more murderous bears and gory graphic novels in my life.

#Bookspin My list is all books I own again. It‘s made up of a few I have started and set aside in the past, a few my husband picked, random others, and possibly my oldest unread Kindle book.

I mentioned Paul Castle in the comments on my last review. I catch his and his husband‘s videos on YouTube. Paul is legally blind and uses tools that help him draw the illustrations in his books. The Pengrooms is a sweet simple story with the cutest illustrations.

Finished March 12, 2025.

This book about how Central Park was created is beautiful and I highly recommend it. I‘m pleased she included the forced removal of residents living where the park was built, even though this is a celebration of the park. The author ends by reminding us that the park was made for all of us.

Finished March 5, 2025.

I‘m surprised I didn‘t read this one in school. I hadn‘t even heard of it until my husband mentioned it. Short, but good.

Finished March 1, 2025.

March #wrapup

11 read + 1 DNF:
1 short story
4 audiobooks
3 children‘s book
1 anthology
2 print

My pick for February is tagged. It‘s the third book in the Monster Hunter Mystery series.

I did finish a couple of carry over books from last month! 🙂

#Bookspin My list is all books I own this month. It‘s made up of a few I have started and set aside in the past, a few my husband picked, random others, and possibly my oldest unread Kindle book.

This was my work book club‘s pick for “title with a question mark.” I think I may have enjoyed it even more because I saw the BritBox adaptation pictured on the cover a couple of years ago. However, I still didn‘t fully remember who did it so I was still puzzling along as I listened.

Finished February 18, 2025.

I think there may be some part of my brain that erases who the culprit is in Christie books/adaptations. I rewatched a couple of ⬇️

I read this one as a possible birthday gift for the nephew who loves The Big Book of John Deere Tractors. JD, himself, was no longer living when JD, the company, started making tractors. John was a blacksmith who invented the first steel plow and later founded Deere & Company.

Finished February 16, 2025.

Mercury Stardust is the Trans Handy Ma‘am on social media. Her DIY videos started showing up in my YouTube feed a few months ago. While I‘m not a renter, this books has helpful information in it for all. I like her message of “You‘re worth the time it takes to learn a new skill.”

Finished February 16, 2025.

This is the 3rd book in Rosen‘s Evander Mills series. I highly recommend these on audio as Vikas Adam‘s narration is spot on for the 1950 noir vibes. This one feels timely with book banning and government censorship. I continue to love the recurring characters in this series, along with Andy.

Finished February 9, 2025.

I was expecting more of a thriller, with maybe a dash of horror and that is not what this is. Every character is awful and I wanted a higher body count.

Finished February 2, 2025.

My #Bookspin and #Doublespin for March. Both have been on my shelf for a while now. I loved Jamieson‘s Roller Girl and Infidel is the second book in a trilogy.

February #wrapup

9 read + 1 DNF:
1 short story
1 graphic novel
3 audiobooks
3 children‘s book
1 non-fiction

My pick for February is Rough Pages. It‘s the third book in the Evander Mills series, which I continue to enjoy.

Someday I‘m going to finish those carry over books. 🙂

#Bookspin My list is all books I own this month. It‘s made up of a few I have started and set aside in the past, a few my husband picked, random others, and possibly my oldest unread Kindle book.

I‘m currently behind on the first two months picks, and I may have become slightly obsessed with watching Midsomer Murders so we‘ll see how March goes.

January #wrapup

I read 6 books in January and DNFed 2. The tagged and Cubs & Campfires were both top picks for the month, but I think I‘m going with Empire as my favorite in January.

Oof! This is my first Follett and I think he must have owed his publisher a book. I have heard great things about his historical fiction novels, but this was not great. I was expecting an exciting “stop an outbreak” kind of book. Instead, it was rather dull. I plowed on thinking there was going to be a huge twist. Nope!

Finished January 27, 2025.

I bailed on this one. It might just be me but I thought it was kind of boring. I tried print and audio and found myself not picking it up in either format.

This was a fun cozy mystery. I saw a review on GR that described it as “Agatha Christie if she wrote Wind In The Willows,” which pretty much nails it. I didn‘t have the murder figured out at all. I will pick up the next one in the series.

@MatchlessMarie has a really great review for this one. I‘m just going to add that I loved it. I loved Luca and Artair‘s banter and their 🔥. Also, the front and back covers make me so happy! I will definitely pick up the next one.

Finished January 21, 2025.

#Bookspin My list is a combination of books I own, library books, and the ones my husband picked for me last year that I never got to. 🙂

I bailed on January‘s bookspin, but am currently reading my doublespin.

I‘m looking for book recommendations for my nearly 9 year old nephew‘s birthday in April. I‘m struggling with this age range a bit. I think it‘s because I lean toward spooky, mystery and fantasy and most of my historical fiction picks are YA.

I‘m tagging a few of you who might have suggestions, but I would appreciate any suggestions!

If you enjoy The Mummy with Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz (I do!), I feel pretty confident stating you will enjoy this book. This was a lot of fun. I read in print and listened to this one and highly recommend the audio.

Finished January 19, 2025.

This completes my third reading (listen) of the Harper Connelly series. I‘m kind of surprised by the 3 stars in my original review because I‘m around a 4 now. I didn‘t finish Harris‘ Sookie series as I grew bored with it and have always wished this series was longer. This time I think maybe 4 books were perfect. No chance of the series becoming boring. Of course, after reading some comments on other reviews I found out the characters show up in ⬇️

I‘m not sure where I picked up this Christopher Pike book. I enjoyed Pike as a teen but after about 50 pages, I‘m bailing to move on to other reads. This was my #Bookspin for January.

This is my second book by Harrow. I read Starling House in September 👍🏻, but I enjoyed this one more. I loved the historical setting and literary references, along with the fantasy of doors to other worlds. I also loved the characters more in this one, even ones we didn‘t get as much time with. I think Harrow could have easily made this into a duology, because I could spend more time with these characters and visit more worlds.

Finished 1/1.

@TheAromaofBooks Could you add me back to the #bookspin list for 2025?

I jotted down a list on New Year‘s Day, but just dusted off PicCollage today. My list is a combination of books I own, library books, and the ones my husband picked for me last year that I never got to. 🙂

May #wrapup #BookspinBingo

I‘m positive I won‘t finish anything today. I DNFed my #Bookspin and got a bingo. I started an #aam book, which is also my #Doublespin, but won‘t finish until June.

Total read: 10
Audio - 4
Novels - 4
Graphic Novels - 2
Children‘s book - 1
DNF - 1

Here is my #BookspinBingo for June. I will move the titles as needed when @TheAromaofBooks shares the numbers on June 2nd.

📸: Lake Erie beach in Monroe, Michigan.

#Bookspin #Doublespin

I‘m using a year long list like @TheAromaofBooks does. I moved two books from the backup list on the right to fill in the previous picks.

#BookspinBingo list to come.

I have read about 60 pages of this and I‘m confused. I just can‘t get into it. There are several GR reviews that support this, so maybe it‘s not just me. On to the next book. 🙂

This is my #Bookspin for May.

Here are my #Bookspin and #Doublespin for May. #Doublespin is #aam and this is the one I plan to try.

I‘m currently two behind for the year (not counting those above), but I‘m almost finished with one of them.

April #wrapup #BookspinBingo

I still feel like my reading is off. I DNFed my #Bookspin and got a bingo. I ended up skipping #aam for the month.

Reviews? What are those? 🤪

Total read: 9
Novella - 2
Audio - 4
Novels - 2
Children‘s book - 1
DNF - 1

Here is my #BookspinBingo for May. I will move the titles as needed when @TheAromaofBooks shares the numbers on May 2nd.

#Bookspin #Doublespin

I‘m using a year long list like @TheAromaofBooks does. This month I didn‘t move books from the list on the right. Instead I added a couple more of #MyPartnerPickedIt and ‘one gifted to me,‘ because I have neglected those a bit.

#BookspinBingo list to come.

Read in March.

This is a reread from my childhood and I loved it all over again. It will be one of the books in my nephew‘s birthday pile.

DNF in March.

I started KFL in print and switched to audio, but bailed at 60%. This is supposed to be satire, I think, so maybe I just didn‘t get it. The summary refers to this as a “female-driven, modern-day American Psycho.” That should have worked for me. I haven‘t read AP and it‘s ages since I saw the movie so I can‘t compare.

Last year I read Maeve Fly, which was also compared to AP, and loved it. The content of MF makes it hard to ⬇️

Read in March.

This was my first experience with Mary Stewart and I need to remember to remember to read more by her. Set in 1950s France, an English woman becomes governess to a young heir, who may be in danger. This gave me Rebecca and Jane Eyre vibes at times, and I really enjoyed this gothic suspense novel.

Read in March and failed to take a photo.

This is my choice for #LMPBC Group Q. Overall, this was a pick for me. I really enjoyed the time period and how atmospheric the novel was. I don‘t want to share too many details as I think the less you know the better.

@BookmarkTavern I sent this out to you yesterday.

Here are my #Bookspin and #Doublespin for April. I‘m one behind as the end of March, but fingers crossed I can catch up this month.

Here is my #BookspinBingo for April. I will move the titles as needed when @TheAromaofBooks shares the numbers on April 2nd.

#Bookspin #Doublespin

I‘m using a year long list like @TheAromaofBooks does. Each month I will move two books from the backup list on the right to fill in the previous picks. Except for the categories which I will probably leave, unless they just repeatedly get picked, lol.

*I read a couple of extras and unhauled a few, so I have updated the lists a bit.

#BookspinBingo list to come.

March #wrapup #BookspinBingo

March has been a weird month. I sort of feel like I‘m in slump, but I still read stuff. I completed my #Bookspin and got a 2 bingos! I also read one for March‘s #aam pick, but I bailed on a couple.

No reviews posted. 😕

Total read: 9
Novella - 2
Middle Grade - 1
Audio - 3
Novels - 3

Plus 2 short stories recommended by a friend a while back.

“I just like cannabilism.” - me
“There‘s a Facebook status” - my husband

I don‘t do FB so I‘m sharing with all of you. 😂

**He secretly thinks I will eat him if necessary.