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| Hosted by The Book Date |
Life
The beginning of the week was busy, with 4 doctor's appointments in just 3 days (which is way too much for me but two of them had been rescheduled). Then, my life came to an abrupt stop. Thursday evening, I suddenly got a severe sore throat (mild sore throat is normal for me, part of my immune disorder, but this is a whole different level). I went to bed early, slept a long time, and woke up feeling ... even worse.
I'm still about the same - severe, never-easing sore throat, plus a bad headache every day, and complete exhaustion. My husband has been in Texas since Thursday (a Father's Day gift from me), visiting his high school bestie, golfing and going to a concert. I've been flat on my back for 4 days, doing nothing but resting, reading, and watching TV. Quiet solitude was just what I needed. Nothing affects me this badly except COVID, but as of this morning, my test is still negative. With my immune dysfunction, I rarely catch any other kind of virus (my immune system over-reacts), but I hardly make any antibodies against COVID, so that hits me very hard. I messaged my doctor this morning because if it is COVID, I need to get on Paxlovid immediately (or it'll take 6 months or more to recover).
That's all the bad news. The good news is that my sick weekend of solitude coincided with Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon! Normally, I can't fully participate because we have things to do or are traveling, but this weekend, I fully immersed myself in the fun. While I can't do 24 hours (still need my nap and a long night's sleep), I read through most of my waking hours (in print and on audio) and enjoyed interacting with others online in the Dewey's Facebook group. I felt awful Saturday, but I actually had fun!
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| Reading ghost stories at the podiatrist |
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| Bundled up with a book on the porch |
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| My comfy spot for the Readathon! |
I also spent some time in my reclining chair on our screened porch this weekend. It was 80's Thursday, and I was in shorts, but by Saturday, the highs were in the low 50's and it went down into the 30's at night! I bundled up and enjoyed the fresh air, fall leaves, and birdsong. Nature is so rejuvenating!
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| I decorated my Little Free Library for Halloween |
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| Beautiful sunsets from our porch |
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| Starting to see some fall color in the yard |
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Trip to Delaware Beaches: Fenwick Island and Bethany Beach - On our relaxing mini getaway, we enjoyed beaches, marshes, a wildlife refuge, beach towns, a bookstore, and a concert.
Weekly Reading Wrap-Up - Creepy Fall Reading Continues with Mysteries, Thrillers, and Ghost Stories!
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I'm enjoying fall reading, with the annual RIP XXI event (Readers Imbibing Peril - my 11th year!) for reading darker books in September and October.
I finished reading The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger, one of his stand-alone historical mysteries. Set in 1958 in a small rural town in Minnesota, a local man named Jimmy Quinn is found dead in the river, catfish having chewed his face and body. Sheriff Brody Dern has quite a challenge here, since Jimmy was a mean, violent man who lots of people wanted dead. It's been outstanding so far, as are all of Krueger's novels, with an intriguing mystery, in-depth character development, interesting historical details, and gorgeous nature writing. Surprising (because it's rare for me), I guessed who was behind the murder (and the circumstances) very early on, but that didn't dampen my enjoyment of the novel. There were still plenty of surprising plot twists, and Krueger writes so beautifully, about nature and human nature, delving deep into each character's secrets and emotions. I loved it.
Next, I read World of Trouble by Ben H. Winters, book 3 in his trilogy that began with The Last Policeman and Countdown City (my reviews at the links). This series has a unique premise: mysteries set in an apocalyptic world, as a huge asteroid hurtles toward Earth. As it becomes clear that there is no way to stop it and life on Earth will be decimated, as happened with the dinosaurs, people react differently: rushing to complete their Bucket Lists, leaving their jobs, hunkering down with family and friends. But Hank Palace, a detective with the Concord, NH, police department, feels a commitment to continue doing his job, even after the department closes. In the first book, he solves a murder others wrote off as suicide, and in the second book, he searches for a missing man at the request of his old babysitter. In this third book, there's only one week left until the asteroid hits, but Hank is determined to find his younger sister, who's run off with an extremist group. As with the other books, this is a classic mystery/detective story but in a completely unique setting. Here, the world has reverted to an older version: no one is working anymore, so there is no more cell service, electricity, or running water. It's a fascinating concept, and Winters, who is both a novelist and screenwriter, has crafted another gripping, engrossing story. The ending was just perfect, and tears came to my eyes as I read it.
On audio, I finished listening to another mystery, but this one is a departure for me, a mystery set in Victorian England, Down a Dark River by Karen Odden. I don't usually read many novels set in Victorian times, but this one is special: the author was my classmate from 1st through 12th grades! When I heard at our 40th reunion that she was a best-selling novelist, I had to try one of her novels. In 1878 London, a wealthy young woman is found dead in a small boat floating down the Thames. She is soon identified as the daughter of a prominent judge, so Scotland Yard assigns the case to senior Inspector Michael Coravan (who the author says is based partly on our beloved 12th grade AP English teacher!). I loved this novel, and it was perfect for Readathon weekend, since I hated to set it aside anyway. It's a suspenseful, intricate, twisty mystery, but she's also included in-depth characters and a vivid setting. Karen Odden has written six novels so far, including her recent release, An Artful Dodge, which is garnering rave reviews and a lot of buzz. I decided to start with this one since it is the first Inspector Coravan novel. I will definitely be reading more!
I just started a new audiobook that's been in my review backlog since its release in 2020: Valentine by Elizabeth Wetmore, a Read with Jenna pick. It focuses on several women in 1976 Odessa, Texas, as the area is at the brink of another oil boom. Fourteen-year-old Gloria Ramirez was brutally assaulted on Valentine's Day. The next morning, she somehow makes it to the nearest farm house and knocks on the door, which is opened by Mary Rose Whitehead, a twenty-six-year-old woman with a nine-year-old daughter and a baby on the way. Her husband is a cattle rancher. Corine has also been introduced, a grief-stricken widow who lost her husband suddenly to cancer, just as they had retired and were planning to travel. I'm not sure how she will fit into the story yet, but so far, it is gritty and emotionally powerful.
My husband, Ken, is reading Past Crimes by Glen Erik Hamilton, a thriller I gave him for his birthday last week. This is the first book in the Van Shaw series, and the author's been compared to Lee Child, Ken's favorite novelist. I'm certain he had no time for reading all weekend, but he just texted me that his flight was delayed, so I'm sure he'll be reading a lot today!
Our son, 32, finished reading The Lost War by Justin Lee Anderson, fantasy novel and a new author for him. He said he enjoyed it and is definitely going to read the rest of the trilogy. Last I checked last week, he was reading Lord of the Isles by David Drake, the first book in a 9-book fantasy series. Sounds right up his alley!
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