Saturday, June 24, 2017

Friday 5 that didn't get posted until the wee hours of Saturday morning...5 Things I Like besides Books :)




Friday 5 - 5 Things I'm Liking Right Now Besides Books 


1.  Pacifica

Not only do I love this cruelty free skincare and makeup brand, I loved finding this sassy lil sale tonight at Ulta! 



When the young man at the register checked me out, he even reacted to the price
$4.75 for this little sampler pack!
Can you say CLEARANCE?
And the same size trial individuals were sitting in bins on the bottom shelf for $5 each.
I did not have to think twice about this purchase...and I skipped all the way home to try it out. 



2.  Rhian HY from WifeLife on YouTube


and especially her "Empties" videos!! 
Rhian is one of my favorite YouTubers to watch...she and Tashina from Logical Harmony are by far two of the best in their biz.
When I watch the empties videos, I keep my Amazon account open so that I can fill up my wishlist.

I certainly don't buy everything on my wishlist.

...maybe not even one thing...but you've gotta love a Wishlist.  
Yes, I was one of those children who circled all the things in the Sears catalog every Christmas.

If, however, the same product shows up on multiple empties lists, I'll keep my eye open for it and purchase the next time I need that particular product.
and/or the next time I find it at Ulta for $4.95.



3.  Podcast of the Week


NPR Up First starts my day once I get in my car.
In 15-25 minutes, sometimes longer if they want to cover a more in depth piece, Rachel Martin, David Greene and Steve Inskeep catch me up on what I need to know.
My love for NPR goes all the way back to Hurricane Katrina.
We had no power weeks...no radio signals, no cell phones...but somehow, someway, NPR got its shows to us.  
To this day, the station music and show music make me feel better, not to mention the quality of their shows.


4.  Paleo Running Mama's Facebook Recipes

Paleo Chicken Bacon & Strawberry Salad with Orange Balsamic Vinaigrette came across my FB feed this week...probably bc I have Paleo Running Mama as one of my FIRST to see FB pages.

(I have to keep my thumb on FB or it gets out of hand quickly.)




You better believe I'm adding this salad to an upcoming weekly menu! 



 5.  And, last but not least...




Cait Flanders blog is not new to me.  I've had it bookmarked for a while and check it now and again...but one of her posts this week really touched me.  I don't remember reading it before...maybe I did and just wasn't ready to hear what she had to say. 
I'm all about mindfulness.
In everything I do.
My brain is going to be busy, no matter what I do...so I might as well give it something incredibly worthwhile to ponder. 




Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Day 398 - Books I'm Waiting On Wednesday






I'm trying so hard to read what's already on my shelves, the specially priced items on Kindle and Nook websites, and my review books...

trying.
so.
hard.

And then, as I knew it would happen, the blogosphere shows me this beauty: 




The Right Side by Spencer Quinn

and

to make matters even more difficult...
the author, Spencer Quinn, is the author of the Chet and Bernie series I'm getting ready to start. 

How am I supposed to stay focused??


Here's the synopsis and first remarks from Amazon: 
(I've highlighted in red the parts that yell at me loud and clear that I must read this book!)

“Brilliant. Deeply felt, but totally under control. I loved it.” —Stephen King

“A great suspense novel, and so much more. You won’t forget the heroic LeAnne Hogan—and the same goes for her dog! Not to be missed. —Harlan Coben

In this riveting new novel by the New York Times bestselling author of the Chet and Bernie mystery series, a deeply damaged female soldier home from the war in Afghanistan becomes obsessed with finding a missing girl, gains an unlikely ally in a stray dog, and encounters new perils beyond the combat zone.

LeAnne Hogan went to Afghanistan as a rising star in the military, and came back a much lesser person, mentally and physically. Now missing an eye and with half her face badly scarred, she can barely remember the disastrous desert operation that almost killed her. She is confused, angry, and suspects the fault is hers, even though nobody will come out and say it.

Shattered by one last blow—the sudden death of her hospital roommate, Marci—LeAnne finds herself on a fateful drive across the country, reflecting on her past and seeing no future. Her native land is now unfamiliar, recast in shadow by her one good eye, her damaged psyche, and her weakened body. Arriving in the rain-soaked small town in Washington state that Marci had called home, she makes a troubling discovery: Marci’s eight-year-old daughter has vanished. When a stray dog—a powerful, dark, unreadable creature, no one’s idea of a pet—seems to adopt LeAnne, a surprising connection is formed and something shifts inside her. As she becomes obsessed with finding Marci’s daughter, LeAnne and her inscrutable canine companion are drawn into danger as dark and menacing as her last Afghan mission. This time she has a strange but loyal fellow traveler protecting her blind side.

Enthralling, suspenseful, and psychologically nuancedThe Right Side introduces one of the most unforgettable protagonists in modern fiction: isolated, broken, disillusioned—yet still seeking redemption and purpose—LeAnne takes hold of you and never lets go.


SEE!!! I TOLD YOU I NEED THIS BOOK!!!!!!!! 



Tuesday, June 20, 2017

Day 397 - Top Ten Tuesday -Top Ten Series I've Been Meaning To Start But Haven't







The ladies over at The Broke and the Bookish have done it again this week! Have I mentioned that this is and always has been my favorite weekly blogging meme?

This week's topic is:

"Top Ten Series I've Been Meaning To Start But Haven't" 


What's interesting about today's post is that I took a ton of pictures in BAM while traveling this past weekend...pics of books I didn't want to forget existed in the world...books I wanted to come back to.

I'm a series junkie...I can quickly become so wrapped up in a series that I can't think of anything else except getting my hands on the next one.
Among many others, I've enjoyed: 
The Mitford series, Anita Blake, Stephanie Plum, Cat Who, Mrs. Murphy, Kate Burkholder, Bess Crawford, Maisie Dobbs...and I could go on and on... 

I went a little overboard on this list...may or may not have put more than 10 titles on my list...may or may not have had to delete even more because the list got ridiculous...got caught up in the excitement and all that ;) 
 I feel sure I'll add more once I start browsing other people's lists...tell me where to start!!



I actually have this one on the ottoman by my reading chair so it will happen soon.
Set out west, Chet is the doggie detective who failed doggie K9 school (bc of errant distractive cats no doubt), and Bernie is his human PI...they're well on their way to making the world a better place :) 




I've looked at these so many times in the bookstores.  I'm not sure what's holding me back...the setting is Botswana, and what's better than a mystery in a far away from me place, steeped in culture,  and a female protagonist?  
Not much.





I visited Ireland in 2012.  It was a trip of a lifetime so I'm very curious about any stories that take place there.  In my younger blogging days, I was very fond of the psychological thrillers but am not sure that's where I am right now...as you can see by all the cozy mysteries on this list...
I've wanted to read Tanya French for a while though and am sure this is not the first time she's been on my list.  
We shall see.





More Ireland...and another title that has made more than one appearance on the blog.




5.  The Kopp Sisters by Amy Stewart

WHAT?!
I discovered this series in a BAM while searching the cozy mystery section. 
Based on a true character from history...one of the first woman law enforcement officers in early NY...
I loved Lyndsey Faye's Timothy Wilde novels...and this...this...squeeeeeee!
I will very definitely have to give this one a try.





I was a huge fan of Sookie Stackhouse.  This series hasn't gotten the hoopla Sookie did, but I'd still like to give it a chance.







Ya'll...cozy mystery with a writer's apprentice...and dogs...German Shepherd dogs.  
I'm in.




8.  Lila Maclean Academic Mysteries by Cynthia Kuhn

I've actually downloaded this one already since it was specially priced on Amazon for .99
academics...college campus...students...female professor who solves mysteries in her "spare" time, the ivory tower...
Oh yeah




yes, I realize that once I start reading these cozy mysteries, I will somehow have to keep them all separated...
I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.
Nothing wrong with cozy, y'all.
Am I the only one who gets easily distracted by the covers of these books?



10.  Paw Enforcement series by Diane Kelly

not even gonna try and excuse this...even though it's a little embarrassing...told you I got carried away in the bookstore 
dog...
German Shepherd...
cozy mystery...
I'm predictable, right?



11.  Leaphorn, Chee, and Manuelito series by Anne Hillerman

Another favorite lifetime trip for me was with my husband to Taos, New Mexico and surrounding areas of the Southwest.  I've been interested in this series since then.



Anna Pigeon series by Nevada Barr

Park ranger, wild animals, the beautiful outdoors...let's go!


I'm stopping...I'm stopping...
I love this list...and this meme!! 
Way to go, ladies!