What I’m Reading – July 2024

What I’m Reading Now:

The Sister Effect by Susan Mallery – This novel centers around two sisters and their troubled relationship, but it also has a strong supporting cast and shows a lot of soul searching and personal growth. I am enjoying it.

What I Recently Finished:

Hello Stranger by Katherine Center – This was a fascinating novel about a woman who experiences face blindness after a surgery. I enjoyed it and I did not see the twist coming.

Summer Ever After by Jane Crittenden – I think this was my Amazon First Read for the month. It was pretty good. I had to really pay attention to the chapter titles to see which character’s POV it was and whether it was in the past or the present.

The Ghost Orchid by Jonathan Kellerman – This is #39 in the Alex Delaware series. It hit all the right places for one of his books. Highly enjoyed!

After Annie by Anna Quindlen – This is the story of how the family and friends cope with a woman’s death in the year after her passing. I appreciated the depth of the characters and the way Quindlen handles the different situations that arise.

Out of the Clear Blue Sky by Kristan Higgans – This could have been very formulaic, as it was about a woman whose husband leaves her for another woman just as their son graduates from high school. But it goes deeper than that and shows how life can go on and families can evolve.

Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred Practices in Everyday Life by Tish Harrison Warren – I appreciated this book and it’s call to observe God in the everyday things of our lives. The chapter on sleep spoke to me especially as I tend to stay up way too late oftentimes. Even though I enjoy sleeping, I have trouble forcing myself to put down what I am doing to turn in for the night. This is something I want to work on.

Revelation for the Rest of Us: A Prophetic Call to Follow Jesus as a Dissident Disciple by Scot McKnight – I actually had to add this one to my DNF list. I got through a chunk of it but found it too esoteric for my liking. I skimmed the rest and filed it away.

What I’ve Added to my TBR list:

Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins – This is another book in the Hunger Games series. It takes place 40 years after the events in The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Publication isn’t expected until March 2025, but I went ahead and added it to my list now.

If you’re on Goodreads, feel free to add me as a friend. I’m always looking for new recommendations!

What I’m Reading – November 2020

What I’m Reading Now:

The Printed Letter Bookshop by Katherine Reay – Found this one browsing the Libby app. Looks interesting.

What I Recently Finished:

Perfectly Impossible by Elizabeth Topp – Very enjoyable read!

The Tutor’s Daughter by Julie Klassen – I liked the characters, but wasn’t too crazy about the plot.

Being Known by Robin Jones Gunn – I’m not quite the demographic for this series, but it was fairly good anyway.

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig – Amazing book! Even though I could tell where it was headed fairly early on, I was still entranced by the story and I cried at the ending (which is rare for me).

The Shepherd’s Wife by Angela Elwell Hunt – This was actually better than the first one in the series. I liked it.

The Museum of Desire by Jonathan Kellerman – Satisfying read. #35 in the Alex Delaware series.

Your First Step to Celebrate Recovery by John Baker – Easy read about the founding of Celebrate Recovery as well as an overview of the principles and steps.

By John Flanagan

  • The Hunters, Brotherband Chronicles #3
  • Slaves of Socorro, Brotherband Chronicles #4
  • The Missing Prince, The Royal Ranger #4

By Sherryl Woods

  • Sea Glass Island, Ocean Breeze #3
  • The Inn at Eagle Point, Chesapeake Shores #1
  • Isn’t It Rich?, Million Dollar Destinies #1

What I’ve Added to my TBR list:

Serpentine by Jonathan Kellerman

Christmas at the Island Hotel by Jenny Colgan

A Picture of Love by Beth Wiseman

Scorpion Mountain by John Flanagan

Hurricane Season by Lauren K. Denton

Did Not Finish:

Memories in the Drift by Melissa Payne

If you’re on Goodreads, feel free to add me as a friend. I’m always looking for new recommendations!

What I’m Reading – May 26th

What I’m Reading Now:

The Burning Bridge by John Flanagan – Book 2 in the Ranger’s Apprentice series I started a couple of weeks ago.

What I Recently Finished:

Some Wildflower in My Heart by Jamie Langston Turner – I’m rereading her books in the order they were published, and this is her second book. I have read this one several times, so I knew the story details pretty well, but I still enjoyed the writing and the characters.

What I’ve Added to my TBR list:

I Miss You When I Blink by Mary Laura Philpott – A memoir in essay form, this was recommended by Nick & Hanna True from Mapped Out Money.  They read sections from the book on a recent podcast, and I was intrigued to read more of it.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins – Just released prequel to The Hunger Games series. The wait on my library app is more than 6 months, so it will be a while before I get to read this one!

Added to DNF list:

The Truth About Us by Brant Hansen – Fairly recent arrival by the author of Blessed Are the Misfits, which I enjoyed. The book has a good message and prompted me to recognize times I think I am better than other people in some way. I enjoyed the social science aspect of it as well as how he integrates Biblical wisdom on the topic of self-righteousness, but I just felt like he made his point pretty early on and was just restating it in different ways, so I didn’t finish this one.

If you’re on Goodreads, feel free to add me as a friend. I’m always looking for new recommendations!