Life Update 7/21/22

As you may have noticed, I haven’t been around for a while. Unfortunately, life got in the way of regular blog posts. I’ve had health issues, job issues and on the plus side a new addition to the family. Yes, we adopted a kitten, her name is Pumpkin, about a year ago and she has been a lot of fun. I’ll put some pictures below. Anyway, I’m hoping the I now have the time to get back to blogging. Going forward I expect to continue to have book content but also posts about the crafting I am doing, Pumpkin posts and anything else I feel like sharing.

This is my most recently finished cross stitch project. It’s supposed to be Carson Mansion in Eureka, CA but my stitching on this was not perfect for a variety of reasons. It also has not been washed and stretched so parts of it look a little crooked. Anyway, this was a very sentimental project in memory of an important person in my life so I will still display it with pride.

Here’s a few of Pumpkin. She loves to sit on that stairwell wall as she can she everything happening upstairs and downstairs from there. A collapsible laundry basket is a favorite place to play. Sleeping the afternoon away.

Currently reading: “Farewell to Russia” by Jim Williams – Amazon Link: https://amzn.to/3cpzhM9 – currently $0.99 for Kindle version

Currently listening to: “Rental Property Investing” by Brandon Turner – Amazon link: https://amzn.to/3oixwmD

I think that’s about it for now. I hope to start posting again on a more regular basis. Hope you all have a good day and I’ll talk to you again soon.

“His and Hers” by Alice Feeney

Narrated by Richard Armitage and Stephanie Racine

His and Hers is a great listen! Richard Armitage and Stephanie Racine did and excellent job of bringing the characters to life and allowing the suspense of the mystery to build gradually. I found that the back and forth flowed very smoothly and added to the drama of the story.

Anna Andrews and Jack Harper have a unique history which is not immediately apparent. There are mysteries within mysteries throughout the storyline and I found it to be very engaging from the start. The characters are multi-faceted which makes them more relatable and fascinating in my opinion. The conclusion rolled out easily and fit with the events that had transpired.

If you’re looking for your next audiobook, I would definitely recommend this one.

Happy Reading!

Find it on Amazon!

“Missing Persons” by Michael Brandman

LAPD homicide detective Buddy Steel finds himself detoured from his own life when his ailing father, Sheriff Burton Steel, calls him home to Freedom to take over as deputy. Though relations between father and son have always been strained, and Buddy reluctantly agrees to the arrangement.

When he begins investigating the possible disappearance of a famous local televangelist’s wife, he is met with outright antagonism. While the highly-secured husband insists that his wife is simply visiting a relative, the housekeeper who reported her missing fears she may have been murdered. And no one, from family members to ministry security and staff to the prosecutor’s office seems inclined to help Buddy in his investigation. In fact, many go out of their way to stop him.

But the more he pokes and prods, the more he realizes that the Bible-thumping family and their television empire may be an elaborate cover for a less-than-holy enterprise. This is far more than a typical missing person case. But how far up does the corruption reach—and will Buddy pay the ultimate price for refusing to look the other way?

Michael Brandman is a new-to-me author and he captured my attention with this story right away and kept me glued to the page till the end. Set in a small town on the coast of California, I instantly felt at home. Also, if you’ve been around for a while, you know I have a particular interest in stories with a cult connection.

Buddy Steel had me a little flummoxed at first because he is so conflicted about his new role as Sheriff. He did grow on me quickly though. I really enjoyed the interplay between him and his deputies. The author did a great job of incorporating Buddy’s personal conflicts into the story so that you can relate to him as a complete person not just a stereotype.

The story itself was original and had some great twists before the end. I enjoyed the author’s direct writing style which gave the narrative an added punch. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this first in a series book and will definitely pick up more books in this series.

Happy Reading!

Find it on Amazon!

“Nuclear Country” by Catherine McNicol Stock

In Nuclear Country, Catherine McNicol Stock explores the question of why, between 1968 and 1992, most voters in the Dakotas abandoned their distinctive ideological heritage and came to embrace the conservatism of the New Right. Stock focuses on how this transformation coincided with the coming of the military and national security states to the countryside via the placement of military bases and nuclear missile silos on the Northern Plains. This militarization influenced regional political culture by reinforcing or re-contextualizing long-standing local ideas and practices, particularly when the people of the plains found that they shared culturally conservative values with the military. After adopting the first two planks of the New Right—national defense and conservative social ideas—Dakotans endorsed the third plank of New Right ideology, fiscal conservativism. Ultimately, Stock contends that militarization and nuclearization were the historical developments most essential to the creation of the rural New Right throughout the United States, and that their impact can best be seen in this often-overlooked region’s history.

This book is a real departure from my normal reading but having transplanted myself to North Dakota almost 20 years ago I thought this would be a fascinating read and perhaps offer some insight into the mindset that I have encountered since living here. My expectations were met and surpassed with this book. I could not put it down, which is not typical for me when it comes to non-fiction.

I found the author’s tracking of the history of political thought in this region to be very thorough and well researched. I appreciated that she took the time to explain in depth the politics of the primarily agrarian society that existed at the beginning of the 20th century. She then goes into how various people and events of the 20th century led to the people moving from a “government should help people” way of thinking into the current pro-military, fiscally conservative way of thought.

There are moments in the book when the author seems to be almost anti-American in her presentation but I don’t think that is the case. I found it rather to be informative and gives me personally further input into my own political thought processes. I think there is a lot of food for thought in this book and we are at a point of time in our culture when we really need to be thinking about our choices with as much information as we can get. In addition, I found this book to be easy to read and understand for the average reader. I highly recommend this book.

Happy Reading!

Find it on Amazon!

“Crochet” from DK Publishing

This is a fabulous resource for beginners and advanced crocheters alike. All of the basic stitches are here along with a whole host of specialty stitches. There are beautiful photographs and diagrams that show you exactly what to do very clearly. The book is divided into sections that make sense and starts at the very beginning of a crochet project. Patterns accompany each section and reinforce the material presented.

The difficulty increases gradually as the presentation of stitches and techniques continues. There are a wide variety of projects included, from toys to hats to blankets and lots of other fun things to make. This is the best crochet reference book that I have seen and after 30 years of crocheting I was pleased that there are still techniques that I haven’t learned yet. This is an updated version of the book with new patterns included. I highly recommend it for anyone interested in crochet. Note: This guide uses the UK names for stitches.

Happy Reading!

Find it on Amazon!

“The Nothing Man” by Catherine Ryan Howard

Narrated by Alana Kerr-Collins and John Keating

At the age of twelve, Eve Black was the only member of her family to survive an encounter with serial attacker the Nothing Man. Now an adult, she is obsessed with identifying the man who destroyed her life.

Supermarket security guard Jim Doyle has just started reading The Nothing Man—the true-crime memoir Eve has written about her efforts to track down her family’s killer. As he turns each page, his rage grows. Because Jim’s not just interested in reading about the Nothing Man. He is the Nothing Man.

Jim soon beings to realize how dangerously close Eve is getting to the truth. He knows she won’t give up until she finds him. He has no choice but to stop her first …

Narration:

I enjoyed the narration of this book. The transitions between the 2 narrators were smooth and suited the story well. The audio quality was excellent. I think the narrator’s voices were good matches to the characters they are portraying.

Story:

The story is an interesting concept but it didn’t draw me in the way I wanted it to. Some places seemed to drag. I did enjoy that the narrative went back and forth between Eve’s perspective of events and the murderer’s perspective. I found Eve’s method of coping with the events of her life to be fascinating. The murderer seemed to want me to feel sorry for him but I just couldn’t see him as the wounded party in any of the events.

I’m giving this book

4 stars

because I did enjoy the narration, maybe a little more than the story itself.

Find it on Amazon!

“The Secret Mother” by Shalini Boland

Narrated by Katie Villa

Tessa Markham comes home to find a little boy in her kitchen. He thinks she’s his mother. But Tessa doesn’t have any children. 

Not anymore.

She doesn’t know who the child is or how he got there.

After contacting the police, Tessa comes under suspicion for snatching the boy. She must fight to prove her innocence. But how can she convince everyone she’s not guilty when even those closest to her are questioning the truth? And when Tessa doesn’t even trust herself…

This story had me intrigued from the opening chapter. Tessa comes home to find a child claiming to be her son in her kitchen. She is thrown for a loop. Now she can’t help but want to unravel the mystery of this child. The process will force her to confront her own history and even question her sanity. I couldn’t help but hope for the best even when everything seemed to be working against her.

This story has some surprising twists. I liked the pace of the story, it kept moving forward without dragging but also didn’t feel rushed. The story is well narrated by Katie Villa. She adds the right amount of drama to her narration to make the story come alive without overdoing it. I thoroughly enjoyed this listen.

Happy Listening!

Find it on Amazon!

 

 

Audible Original: “Second Skin” by Christian White

Narrated by Ellen Archer

Stan Weir is mourning a tragic loss when he meets a mysterious nine-year-old girl, who claims to be the reincarnated spirit of his late wife. Marcy Keef is a single mother trying to make ends meet when her daughter Erin starts describing ‘past life memories’. Neither wants to believe Erin, but as violent secrets are revealed, the truth becomes harder to deny.

So, I don’t delve into the paranormal much and I really wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I downloaded this Audible Original. I mean, a nine-year-old with the reincarnated spirit of a grown woman. What was that going to be like? I was in for a very intriguing surprise of a story. Turns out that Erin is a very charming little girl, but the secrets in this story are not charming at all.

I found the story to be filled with twists that I wasn’t expecting and Stan, who is in serious need of help. The story is also excellently narrated by Ellen Archer with just the right amount of drama to draw the listener in and breath life into the characters. I found this to be an excellent listen and well worth the 4 1/2 hours.

Happy Listening!

Find it on Amazon!

Flash Review: “A Curious Beginning” by Deanna Raybourn

Narrated by Angele Masters

Plot Summary: London, 1887. As the city prepares to celebrate Queen Victoria’s golden jubilee, Veronica Speedwell is marking a milestone of her own. After burying her spinster aunt, the orphaned Veronica is free to resume her world travels in pursuit of scientific inquiry – and the occasional romantic dalliance. As familiar with hunting butterflies as she is fending off admirers, Veronica wields her butterfly net and a sharpened hatpin with equal aplomb, and with her last connection to England now gone, she intends to embark upon the journey of a lifetime. But fate has other plans, as Veronica discovers when she thwarts her own abduction with the help of an enigmatic German baron with ties to her mysterious past. Promising to reveal in time what he knows of the plot against her, the baron offers her temporary sanctuary in the care of his friend Stoker – a reclusive natural historian as intriguing as he is bad-tempered. But before the baron can deliver on his tantalizing vow to reveal the secrets he has concealed for decades, he is found murdered. Suddenly Veronica and Stoker are forced to go on the run from an elusive assailant, wary partners in search of the villainous truth.

What I liked about it: Veronica Speedwell. She’s a gutsy young lady, an adventurer, who suddenly finds herself alone in the world with somebody out to get her. Very enjoyable characters in this book and an engaging plotline.

What I didn’t like: The first couple of chapters took a little time to get going but once the preliminaries were over it was full speed ahead. This is the first book in a series so there is some groundwork that has to be laid. I’ve also read one of the books further into the series and there is not as much background in subsequent installments.

Quality of narration:  Excellent!

Would I recommend:  Yes!!

Rating:  

Happy Reading!

Find it on Amazon!

 

 

Flash Review: “The Eighth Sister” by Robert Dugoni

Narrated by Edoardo Ballerini

A pulse-pounding thriller of espionage, spy games, and treachery by the New York Times bestselling author of the Tracy Crosswhite Series.

What I Liked: The complexity of the story and all the twists and turns.

Favorite Supporting Characters: The guys on the rescue boat.

What I Didn’t Like: It took me a while to warm up to the main character.

Would I Recommend: Yes!

Rating:

Happy Reading!

Find it on Amazon!