Monday, October 01, 2018

It's Monday 10/1! What Are You Reading?

Wow, October already? It feels like we completely skipped September because it's usually one of the best months weather-wise, but we had nonstop rain for weeks and it still felt like summer - hot & humid - until just a few days ago! Guess we are jumping right into October now. It's still supposed to be low 80's here this week, but at least it's tolerable now and the rain has (mostly) stopped.

We took advantage of the break in the weather and rare sunshine and FINALLY went camping this weekend! We just went to a nearby state park in Maryland that's one of our favorites. We took a couple of nice walks - to a driftwood-covered beach (more evidence of recent storms) and a lighthouse out on a point overlooking the Chesapeake Bay - and relaxed and enjoyed the warm days and lovely, cool nights. Our son and his girlfriend joined us on Saturday. So, we had a wonderful weekend.

Of course, we enjoyed our books this week, too! Here's what we've been reading:
  • I finished Waking Gods, book 2 of The Themis Files by Sylvain Neuvel this weekend. My husband, Ken, and I both loved book 1, Sleeping Giants, and he just finished reading book 2, so I had my turn. It's a suspenseful and thought-provoking series about a giant robot hand found buried that is definitely not human-made. To say any more would spoil all the twisty surprises, but book 2 ended with the best last line EVER! Now, I can't wait to read book 3.
  • Next, I started reading The Killing Woods by Lucy Christopher, a YA novel about a teen girl named Emily whose dad, suffering from PTSD, emerges from the woods one night carrying the dead body of Ashlee, one of her classmates, and is unable to remember anything. Police think he murdered her, but Emily doesn't believe he is capable of that. It's good so far - suspenseful and dark. I loved Christopher's first novel, Stolen.
  • Ken and I finished listening to Not If I Save You First by Ally Carter, a YA thriller on audio. It's a suspenseful survival thriller set in Alaska, with the President's son getting kidnapped while visiting an old friend.We enjoyed it, though Ken had no patience for the teen romance angle woven in!
  • I started a new audio book (well, actually, a very old one): Macbeth by Shakespeare. It's a full production by L.A. Theater Works with multiple actors, but I was having a little trouble (toil and trouble - ha ha) understanding the language and following the story since it's not one I ever heard/read/saw before, so I have also picked up a paper copy that my son used in high school, and I paused in my listening until I catch up with the written word. Just the right choice for the season, now that I am understanding it better!
  • Ken is now reading The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell, a book I read for Big Book Summer this year and LOVED! It's the story of a group of people, including some Jesuit priests, who travel to another galaxy in search of extraterrestrial life. Something horrible and tragic happens during that mission, and only one man returns (not a spoiler). The novel begins with the present (2060), after the mission, and flashes back to the first ideas of the mission, ironically in 2019 (the book was published in 1996), and gradually fills in what happened in between. It is compelling and completely unique - a very powerful and thought-provoking novel. He felt it was a bit slow at the beginning (lots of character development), but they have now picked up the aliens' radio transmission, so he's getting to the part where the pace picks up considerably.
  • Our son, Jamie, 23, finished Words of Radiance, book 2 in the Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson. He loved book 1, The Way of Kings, and has been looking forward to reading the rest of the series. He's now reading book 3, Oathbringer, a big brick of a book at 1250 pages (and he's reading the hardcover!). He loves these epic fantasy series.
Blog posts from last week:
Movie Monday: Ocean's 8 - an all-female crime caper

Fiction Review: Still Life by Louise Penny - book 1 of her popular Chief Inspector Gamache series

Fiction Review: Red, White, Blue by Lea Carpenter - a quiet look at the inner life of a CIA spy

Middle-Grade Review: City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab - fun, spooky story of a girl who can see ghosts - I loved it!

What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

You can follow me on Twitter at @SueBookByBook or on Facebook on my blog's page.   

What are you and your family reading this week? 

20 comments:

  1. Hi,
    Great list of books. I'll definitely be adding a couple of them to my TBR list. Have a great day!

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  2. I love the Themis Files books. Enjoy!!

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  3. Oh I love camping in the fall!! We usually go in the summer, but maybe we can sneak away for a weekend this month. Thanks for all the shares, Sue!

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    1. Too hot here in the summer for camping, unless we head pretty far north. Usually fall is prime time for camping, but it's back in the 80's and humid today! I'm ready for a bit of crisp & cool!

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  4. Pleased that you finally got away for a little camping. I love the name Chesapeake Bay, whenever I hear it I think of one of the best places. I know books are sometimes set around there and they really attract me!

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    1. It really is a beautiful place, Kathryn. I'll post some photos on my Saturday Snapshot!

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  5. Love your list! I'm hoping to get to Not if I Save You First soon!

    Here's my week in reading: https://bookloaner.wordpress.com/2018/09/30/its-monday-what-are-you-reading-october-1-2018/

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    1. We enjoyed Not If I Save You First - and I also enjoyed Ally Carter's Embassy Row series (though I haven;t finished it yet).

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  6. September didn't heat up like it usually does. October is already promising rain which for California is wonderful. My weekly update

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    1. My college roommate is in CA and told me how dry it's been there - while we've had nonstop rain literally for months - I wish we could share some of it with you!

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  7. You all are so good at getting away and having time to yourselves out in nature! I am working my way through an ok book for a review tour. It's getting better as I get into it though.

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    1. I NEED that outdoor time to recharge, Helen - it's so important to me.

      I've read a few books recently that grew on me the more I read of them. Hope yours turns out to be a good one!

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  8. Camping sounds lovely. I was on the bay with students several years ago. What a gorgeous place it is. I put The Killing Woods & The Sparrow on my list. Both sound interesting to me, though I may not get to The Sparrow soon if it's "big". Thanks, Sue.

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    1. Yes, that state park on the Bay is one of our favorites.

      Don't be put off by The Sparrow - it barely qualified as a Big Book for my challenge - just about 400 pages.

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  9. I haven't read the newest Ally Carter yet, but I have students that love it! And I have the perfect reader for The Killing Woods--I need to recommend it!

    Happy reading this week :)

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    1. Oh, good - glad that was a recommendation you could use!

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  10. That's how I feel about September here! It's been mostly rain and after a smoke covered summer, a lot of my tomatoes seem to be not ripening.
    I enjoyed reading your review of Still Life. Hope you continue the series.

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    1. Yeah, not much of a fall so far - 85 & humid today! We have had a wonderfully long tomato season with our local farm CSA, though - loving that we are still getting tomatoes in October :)

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