Monday, March 30, 2020

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (March 30, 2020)

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? is now hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date.

It’s Monday!  What Are You Reading is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.  It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.

I will be combining my YA and adult reading and purchases on this one weekly roundup.

Other Than Reading...

It has been another quiet week. I think I left the house twice. Both times were for quick trips to the grocery store. I am not taking advantage of the shopping hours set aside for seniors though since I have no wish to shop at 6 AM. My brother is considering taking Target up on the 30 days of paid leave he can get because of his age and health. He called his doctor's office but they really didn't give him any helpful advice as to whether or not he needs to get away from potential exposure. I'm trying not to put pressure on him to stay home if it isn't essential. I know he wants to keep working.

Since the governor of our state issued a "stay home" order beginning at midnight last night and lasting until April 10 and told more businesses to close, I am hoping that it will be less busy at Target anyway. Schools and bars and restaurants are now set to be closed until the beginning of May. I know the district I retired from is beginning distance learning tomorrow for all grades. I know also that this has been an immense planning task especially for the Elementary Staff.

I'm keeping busy with more baking and cooking. We had homemade pizza last night. I made the crust, sauce, and together my brother and I made the Italian sausage we put on it. We also made some of my dad's recipe for Polish sausage which is in the freezer firming up right now. Once frozen, they'll be wrapped and stored in air-tight bags for future use. We added more fat to the sausage this time since the last batches were too dry for our tastes. It adds more saturated fat but still less than commercial sausages do and I know we cut the salt content a lot.

We got our power bill for last month after a month of more sunshine and were pleased to find that our bill was $0 and we had a $15 credit to carry over for future months. I also got my hefty Federal tax refund which reflects a rebate on my half of the costs of the solar project. It is still going to take quite a few years (maybe 5 or so) before we recover the whole cost of the project. In the meantime, we have very low power bills to look forward to.

Read Last Week

If you can't wait until the review shows up on my blog, reviews are posted to LibraryThing and Goodreads as soon as I write them (usually right after I finish reading a book.)

  • Smoke Bitten by Patricia Briggs (mine) - Newest in the Mercy Thompson series is filled with all the action and adventure this series is known for. My review is linked below.
  • Local Custom by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller - audiobook re-read. My review will be posted on April 8.
  • The Glass Magician by Caroline Stevermer (Review; April 7) - Interesting historical fantasy set in New York City in 1915. My review is linked below.


  • A Bad Day for Sunshine by Darynda Jones (Review; April 7) - First in a new mystery series that was a great combination of humor and thriller. I enjoyed the characters and their byplay. My review will be posted on April 1.
  • The Body in the Garden by Katharine Schellman (Review; April 7) - First in a new historical mystery series set in London in 1815. I liked the characters and the mystery was nicely twisty too. My review will be posted on March 31.
  • Hid from Our Eyes by Julia Spencer-Fleming (Review; April 7) - Long awaited addition to a contemporary mystery series. Intriguing mystery and very stressed main characters. My review will be posted on April 2.

Currently

  • Balance of Trade by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller (Mine) - I'm listening to this audiobook of one of the Liaden Universe books that I haven't read many times. It is outside the time period of the bulk of the books in the series. 

Next Week

I have two review books and then will be looking for anything that catches my attention. I am trying something new and not filling up my calendar with potential reads a month in advance.


Reviews Posted

  • Plan B by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller
  • I Dare by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller



Want to See What I Added to My Stack Last Week?

Bought:


Review:




What was your week like?

15 comments:

  1. I haven’t been able to buy flour in over a month so I had to buy premade pizza bases this week.
    That’s great news about your solar bill, with all of us home 24/7 and heavy device usage I’m dreading the increase in our bill.

    Wishing you a great reading week and good health

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  2. My husband and I have hardly left the house and we are lucky to have a local market that hasn't been busy and is fully stocked when we buy groceries. My bills have definitely been going up with us both home, but that's okay. I'm glad you've been saving some money with that sunshine!

    That Caroline Stevermer book looks amazing! I'll have to check it out.

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  3. We are pretty much hanging at home, too, but I am showing a house or two when a request comes it. I've had a hard time finding butter, but we bought heavy cream this week so I will just make my own if I need to.

    What a great group of books you have this week. I hope you enjoy them.

    Praying you stay safe and healthy.

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  4. Your books look tempting, and I hope you continue to manage the lockdown. I have had two weeks of it so far, and mostly miss shopping and restaurants.

    Take care! Great news about the power bill.

    Here are my WEEKLY UPDATES

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  5. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who has had a productive week of reading! It is all I can do to try to stay away from the news right now.

    I'm happy to hear that you are safe and your brother has the option to take a leave when he feels he needs to. I've been fortunate to be able to work from home. Today starts week 3 of this new normal.

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  6. We haven't been leaving the house much either. Just to get groceries and that's it. It's crazy times.

    Your books look really good. I hope you enjoy them.

    Thank you for your kind words for the loss of my kitty.

    Take care and stay safe.

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  7. OOh nice! I need to purchase Kelley's newest this week! I never did read this book when it was the serial novella! I really enjoyed Darynda's new mystery series! Like Charley Davidson, but minus the paranormal and oddly, I still enjoyed it! Lol.

    Hope you enjoy your reads for this week!


    Here's my Monday Wrap-up

    Have a GREAT day!

    Old Follower :)

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  8. I'm trying to use up food we have on hand and my husband has mostly only been buying fresh fruit, eggs, and vegetables when he ventures out to the store. I have the second Charley Davidson book waiting for me on audio.

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  9. Glad you enjoyed A Bad Day For Sunshine. I hope to get to that one this week. We have been off school three weeks and under a stay at home order for one week. Getting lots of projects completed around the house. Have another good week.

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  10. I really want to put solar panels on my house. If I had more money, I’d do it for sure. The last time I went to a store was March 17, and most of the shelves were empty. I’ll probably have to go to there again soon. I hope they've restocked. Have a great week!

    Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  11. I am glad I am not teaching. Wouldn't want to have to do those online classes.

    Our senior hours are 7 a.m. to 8:30.

    I made homemade pizza last night too. :) I always cook, but have been cooking and baking more than usual. Bad for the waistline.

    Hope you stay safe and healthy, and enjoy your books.

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  12. Homemade pizza is the best. :) And I've been going out as little as possible too. Other than a few trips to the store we've been hermiting lol. Along with everyone else.

    Take care and be well this week!

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  13. One very nice thing about your solar project is that it adds a degree of independence.

    I love all the cooking you are doing. I've been waiting to see if I can get more flour before I do too much bread baking.

    I hope you and your brother stay safe this week.

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  14. Cooking! Lots of people are doing more cooking right now. Oh, you have some really great books read! I loved Smoke Bitten, A Bad Day for Sunshine, and The Body in the Garden! I want to read Redemption Prep, it sound really good! Thanks for stopping by! Happy reading!

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