It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (October 23, 2023)

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.

Want to See What I Added to My Stack? links to Stacking the Shelves hosted by Marlene at Reading Reality.

Other Than Reading...

This was another quiet week. It has been mostly cloudy and rainy this past week which isn't good for making solar power to bank for the snowy months. The forecast is saying that we might receive our first measurable snowfall this coming week. I'm hoping they are wrong. 

My brother took a sick day this week when a cold kept him up and coughing all night. It was his first sick day since his open-heart surgery in September 2019. He had a yen for minestrone soup which had me going to the grocery store to get the ingredients we didn't already have in our well-stocked pantry (fresh zucchini and refrigerated three-cheese tortellini) and then acting as his sous chef as we put the recipe together. He has been kind enough to share his cold with me too and just when I had finally gotten rid of my cough.

I've been watching The Voice and the baseball playoffs which should be concluded in the next couple of days. Otherwise, I've been doing reading and listening. I finished three audiobooks this week and five that I read with my eyes. Four of last week's books were review copies being released November 14 and November 21. I also read two books - one with my eyes and the other as an Audible Plus title - that I've had since 2009.

Next week's reading is all review books. I should finish up November releases and start on the stack I have that are releasing on December 5. I'll likely slide in at least one audiobook too. These reviews will also finish my November calendar which means I need to spend some time this week preparing posts for my December calendar. 

I had a good week for adding books to my stack too. I was approved for six new titles from NetGalley including The Night Island by Jayne Ann Krentz and The Lantern's Dance by Laurie R. King which I am especially eager to read. BookBub and Chirp also had deals that were too good for me to pass up this week. And Jayne Ann Krentz's newsletter made me want to get three of her older futuristic titles on Kindle even though I already have and have read these same books in print copies on my keeper shelves. I found that I already had one of the three on Kindle and just added the other two. One of them had an audiobook that I could add for $1.99 too. 

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.)

• I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died by Amanda Flower (Review; November 14) -- The second Emily Dickinson mystery as told by her maid Willa. Entertaining historical mystery. My review will be posted on November 11.
• The Other Half by Charlotte Vassell (Review; November 21) -- First in a new series starring a detective who needs to work among the rich and aimless to solve the murder of a party girl. My review will be posted on November 15.
• Show No Mercy by Cindy Gerard (Mine since 7/19/2009; Audible Plus title) -- This contemporary romantic suspense stars a reporter who has lost her nerve and a security expert who wants to keep her alive without falling in love with her. My review will be posted on November 18.

• There Should Have Been Eight by Nalini Singh (Review; November 21) -- This twisty locked room thriller was entertaining. My review will be posted on November 14.
• Hide in Plain Sight by Marta Perry (Mine since 7/17/2009 when it was free for my Kindle) -- This clean Christian Romantic Suspense story was an entertaining story. My review will be posted on November 21.
• Inheritance by Nora Roberts (Review; November 21) -- Start of a new trilogy filled with ghosts and wonderful characters. The only flaw is that so much is left unresolved at the end of the story. My review will be posted on November 16.

• Found Object by Anne Frasier (Mine since February; Audiobook) -- Contemporary thriller in which an investigate reporter goes home to Savannah to write a puff piece and finds herself solving her mother's brutal murder. My review will be posted on November 25.
• Ceremony in Death by J. D. Robb (Mine; Audiobook) -- Reread of an early In Death episode since it is being talked about on Facebook's In Death Universe's discussion group. I most recently reread this one last February and don't plan a formal review. 

Currently

• Dog Tags by David Rosenfelt (Mine) -- Catching up on the Andy Carpenter series
• Stork Raving Mad by Donna Andrews (Mine; Audiobook) -- Chipping away at the Meg Langslow series
• The Fiction Writer by Jillian Cantor (Review; November 28) -- Slowly reading this review copy which is much too meta for my tastes

Next Week

• Road Queens by MaryJanice Davidson (Review; November 28)
• Lost Hours by Paige Shelton (Review; December 5)
• The Fake Mate by Lana Ferguson (Review; December 5)

• Death by Demo by Callie Carpenter (Review; December 5)
• The Curse of Penryth Hall by Jess Armstrong (Review; December 5)
• The Buried Hours by R. S. Grant (Review; December 5)

Reviews Posted

• The Last Remains by Elly Griffiths (Audiobook)
• The Snake, the Crocodile & the Dog by Elizabeth Peters (Audiobook)
• The Fatal Folio by Elizabeth Penney (Review copy)

• Snow Place for Murder by Diane Kelly (Review copy)
• Deadly Tides by Mary Keliikoa (Review copy)
• The Last Close Call by Laura Griffin (Review copy)

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

Review:

• The Night Island by Jayne Ann Krentz (January 9)
• Northwoods by Amy Pease (January 9)
• The Lily of Ludgate Hill by Mimi Matthews (January 16)

• The Antique Hunter's Guide to Murder by C. L. Miller (February 6)
• The Lantern's Dance by Laurie R. King (February 13)
• The Stars Turned Inside Out by Nova Jacobs (March 19)

Bought:

• Agents of the Crown by Lindsay Buroker (BookBub; $.99)
• A Samantha True Mystery by Kristi Rose (BookBub; $.99)

• Spock's World by Diane Duane (BookBub; $.99)
• Sweet Starfire by Jayne Ann Krentz (Kindle; $1.99 after Kindle Rewards)
• Shield's Lady by Jayne Ann Krentz (Kindle & $1.99 Audiobook)

• Immortal in Death by J. D. Robb (Chirp Audiobook; $4.99)
• Rapture in Death by J. D. Robb (Chirp Audiobook; $4.99)
• Ceremony in Death by J. D. Robb (Audiobook; Whispersync)

What was your week like?