Reader’s Corner

[Minnesota disney fan]

I have another great author, if you like humor included with the action movie type stories.
Robert Crais is his name and he is truly funny. His one character has a good sense of humor and the other main character is a stoic no nonsense type. They are private eyes with a twist. It's always a good read!
I have a friend who is an author (no one famous, lol) and he is a very funny person. But he writes strictly without humor. He says that writing with humor is one of the hardest things for a writer to do.

 

[erstwo]

I have another great author, if you like humor included with the action movie type stories.
Robert Crais is his name and he is truly funny. His one character has a good sense of humor and the other main character is a stoic no nonsense type. They are private eyes with a twist. It's always a good read!
I have a friend who is an author (no one famous, lol) and he is a very funny person. But he writes strictly without humor. He says that writing with humor is one of the hardest things for a writer to do.

I agree! So very few books make me laugh out loud. I can only remember one or two where I laughed so hard I had to put the book down and breathe - Confessions of a Shopaholic being one of them......I'll never forget when I got to the part where she pretended to know Finnish.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

I agree! So very few books make me laugh out loud. I can only remember one or two where I laughed so hard I had to put the book down and breathe - Confessions of a Shopaholic being one of them......I'll never forget when I got to the part where she pretended to know Finnish.

That was a great book. The movie was okay but like most movie vs book situations the book was so much better.

 

[k8einwdw]

My October reads:



“The Pumpkin Spice Café” - Laurie Gilmore



A young woman inherits her aunt’s coffee shop in a small town, and someone…or something…is trying to make sure she doesn’t succeed in taking over the shop. There’s also a hot farmer. Did I buy this book mostly for the name and adorable cover? Yes. But, I enjoyed it more than I expected - it reminded me a lot of “Gilmore Girls,” which is ironic considering the author’s name.

“Big Little Spells” - Hazel Beck



This is the sequel to “Small Town, Big Magic,” which I read last year. Two sisters, who are witches, formerly stripped of their powers, have to prove to the local governing coven that they can responsibly use their magic. The coven in charge is doing everything in their power to make them fail, but why? I actually enjoyed this book more than the first one, and look forward to the next in the series.

“In the Company of Witches” - Auralee Wallace



Another one chosen mostly for its cute cover. A family of witches runs a bed and breakfast in a small town in New England, and a guest is murdered while staying with them. They have to prove their innocence, and in the process, uncover some town secrets. I also really enjoyed this one!

 

[Songbird76]

My October reads:

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“The Pumpkin Spice Café” - Laurie Gilmore

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A young woman inherits her aunt’s coffee shop in a small town, and someone…or something…is trying to make sure she doesn’t succeed in taking over the shop. There’s also a hot farmer. Did I buy this book mostly for the name and adorable cover? Yes. But, I enjoyed it more than I expected - it reminded me a lot of “Gilmore Girls,” which is ironic considering the author’s name.

“Big Little Spells” - Hazel Beck

View attachment 752183

This is the sequel to “Small Town, Big Magic,” which I read last year. Two sisters, who are witches, formerly stripped of their powers, have to prove to the local governing coven that they can responsibly use their magic. The coven in charge is doing everything in their power to make them fail, but why? I actually enjoyed this book more than the first one, and look forward to the next in the series.

“In the Company of Witches” - Auralee Wallace

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Another one chosen mostly for its cute cover. A family of witches runs a bed and breakfast in a small town in New England, and a guest is murdered while staying with them. They have to prove their innocence, and in the process, uncover some town secrets. I also really enjoyed this one!

The Big Little Spells one...how many books are there total and how many are out right now? It sounds like it's right up my alley, but I don't want to start a series where I have to wait years to finish it. I did that with Outlander, and with the Seven Sisters by Lucinda Riley. I just get really impatient.

I also want to read the Pumpkin Spice Cafe, because I love Gilmore girls, and I thought the name was fun, but since you said it reminds you of that, it sounds like I'd love it.

 

[k8einwdw]

The Big Little Spells one...how many books are there total and how many are out right now? It sounds like it's right up my alley, but I don't want to start a series where I have to wait years to finish it. I did that with Outlander, and with the Seven Sisters by Lucinda Riley. I just get really impatient.

I also want to read the Pumpkin Spice Cafe, because I love Gilmore girls, and I thought the name was fun, but since you said it reminds you of that, it sounds like I'd love it.

Big Little Spells is book two in the series - the first one came out last year, and the third one will come out next year. I’m not sure if they plan to stop at three.

Pumpkin Spice Café was so fun, definitely Hallmark/Gilmore Girls vibes!

 

[lisak09]

I agree! So very few books make me laugh out loud. I can only remember one or two where I laughed so hard I had to put the book down and breathe - Confessions of a Shopaholic being one of them......I'll never forget when I got to the part where she pretended to know Finnish.

Marian Keyes books frequently make me laugh out loud, I love her books.

 

[erstwo]

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I know I recommended this one in my first post, but wanted to post the book cover because it was so very good. Gave it to my daughter to read and just pulled it out of the abyss of her teen room to give to another friend.
Making my way through The Covenant of Water right now. Not sure if the photo does it justice but it’s giant. Too big for travel/ plane reading so it’s been slow progress. But I’m home all week this week so hoping to finish it.
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I finally finished ‘Covenant of Water’ about a week ago. Wow. Amazing book! If you liked ‘Cutting for Stone’, you’ll love this one.
It took me forever to finish it. Epics always do for me.
Not sure if anyone else is this way - but I like to think I can sometimes guess a plot line or an ending to a book - but there is no doing that with a book as complex as Covenant of Water.
So I got aggravated with my progress and took a week it two ‘off’ of the book and finished a few in my ‘death pile’

I’ve had American Moonshot since the 60th anniversary of the Apollo landing when the Douglas Brinkley came to my town to speak at our library fundraiser. It is so interesting but I put it down when it got to the part about the German scientists and their Nazi ties. It’s hard to read about the decisions that were made there by the US and how we got our successes in space and beyond. Ultimately a beneficial decision but one of those ‘what would I do if it were me’ things to think about. If you read ‘The German Wife’ this non fiction account would go hand in hand with that book.

Loved Lady Bird. Just got bogged down in the Vietnam part and never picked it back up until now.

Little Weirds was a Book club selection in 2018? 2019? Before I even started reading, our book club leader sent out a text saying don’t buy it - it’s terrible. But Amazon had already shipped. I thought I might pick it up again one day. Only made it 1/4 the way through. It is beyond weird. But maybe someone else’s cup of tea?

 

[Santa Raccoon 77]

Finished Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.

Interesting book. Much much different than the moving pictures.

 

[Minnesota disney fan]

I finally finished ‘Covenant of Water’ about a week ago. Wow. Amazing book! If you liked ‘Cutting for Stone’, you’ll love this one.
It took me forever to finish it. Epics always do for me.
Not sure if anyone else is this way - but I like to think I can sometimes guess a plot line or an ending to a book - but there is no doing that with a book as complex as Covenant of Water.
So I got aggravated with my progress and took a week it two ‘off’ of the book and finished a few in my ‘death pile’
View attachment 752671
I’ve had American Moonshot since the 60th anniversary of the Apollo landing when the Douglas Brinkley came to my town to speak at our library fundraiser. It is so interesting but I put it down when it got to the part about the German scientists and their Nazi ties. It’s hard to read about the decisions that were made there by the US and how we got our successes in space and beyond. Ultimately a beneficial decision but one of those ‘what would I do if it were me’ things to think about. If you read ‘The German Wife’ this non fiction account would go hand in hand with that book.

Loved Lady Bird. Just got bogged down in the Vietnam part and never picked it back up until now.

Little Weirds was a Book club selection in 2018? 2019? Before I even started reading, our book club leader sent out a text saying don’t buy it - it’s terrible. But Amazon had already shipped. I thought I might pick it up again one day. Only made it 1/4 the way through. It is beyond weird. But maybe someone else’s cup of tea?

I'm interested in Epics that have lots of adventure and romance, LOL. Is Covenant of Water like that? Or is it about one family? I'm just interested on your take of it and if it's worth it. Thank you

 

[erstwo]

I'm interested in Epics that have lots of adventure and romance, LOL. Is Covenant of Water like that? Or is it about one family? I'm just interested on your take of it and if it's worth it. Thank you

I think it’s more about one family. There are several couples in the book but their stories are more about the complexities of life rather than romance - if that makes sense?

 

[MinnieM123]

Finished Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.

Interesting book. Much much different than the moving pictures.

Hubs is a big fan of Mary Shelley, and Frankenstein is one of his favorite novels. He likes it much better than the movie.

 

[k8einwdw]

Little Weirds was a Book club selection in 2018? 2019? Before I even started reading, our book club leader sent out a text saying don’t buy it - it’s terrible. But Amazon had already shipped. I thought I might pick it up again one day. Only made it 1/4 the way through. It is beyond weird. But maybe someone else’s cup of tea?

I read Little Weirds back at the beginning of this year. I managed to finish it, but I agree, it’s beyond weird. I adore Jenny Slate, but the overuse of metaphor made it so hard to read, and it felt like she was trying a little too hard to be quirky.

 

[Minnesota disney fan]

I think it’s more about one family. There are several couples in the book but their stories are more about the complexities of life rather than romance - if that makes sense?

Thanks. I think I'll give it a try for something different. I just picked up a romantic l880's story which is NOT like me at all, but I need to try something new for a change.

 

[k8einwdw]

Just finished this one last night - “Crying in H Mart” by Michelle Zauner. It’s Michelle’s memoir - in it, she writes about her life growing up the daughter of an American father and a Korean immigrant mother. She talks about trying to find her place in the world and reconciling her two cultures, her trips to Seoul to see her Korean family growing up, her mother’s diagnosis and eventual death from cancer, and trying to connect with her Korean heritage without her mother there to guide her. This one will definitely make you want to hug your mom.

 

[lisak09]

I'm about halfway through this at the moment and really enjoying it! It's a murder set in Dublin during covid lockdown. Loving the way it's written!

 

[Minnesota disney fan]

I am almost through with Mary Kubica's Local Woman Missing! Wow! I can't put it down and read 3/4's of it yesterday while watching football! That book just grabs you and holds on. I can't wait to get to the end because I don't have a clue who the bad guy is, LOL. I can't wait to try another of her books. I'm a fan now

 

[Tiki Traveler]

Still reading through all of our books collected at home. One of my children read this in high school. Enjoyable read about the inside world of baseball and the application of analytics. I’ve seen snippets of the movie but am now planning to watch it in its entirety.

 

[Songbird76]

I just read the Decagon House Murders for book club. I liked the majority of it, but once the murderer was revealed, it didn't seem to make sense. So much of it was really far-fetched. HUGE leaps of logic that weren't really plausible. So it was just meh by the end. It was kind of anti-climactic, I guess. But I never would have picked it up myself if it weren't for book club, so I guess it's OK. That's the nice thing about book club, being exposed to genres and books that you would otherwise never have read.

 

[k8einwdw]

My latest read - finished this one last night. This book is very very highly rated and recommended, but I have to admit, it wasn’t my cup of tea. On the surface level, it’s about two childhood friends that make video games together. On a deeper level, it’s about the human experience and the relationships we have along the way. It’s very well-written, there was just too much video game talk for me.