Welcome to our Monday memes, which bring us together to celebrate our reading weeks.
Mailbox Monday is hosted this month by Bermudaonion.
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Book Journey.
Mailbox Monday:
This week, my mailbox contained one book only, which I ordered from Amazon.
The Home for Broken Hearts, by Rowan Coleman, has been on my wish list ever since I saw it on someone’s blog. Maybe more than one someone shouted it out. But I was sold.
Here’s what Amazon tells us:
For the past year, ever since Ellen Wood lost her husband in a car accident, she’s been afraid to leave the house. She struggles to keep her head above water and care for her adolescent son, Charlie, which becomes that much more difficult when she discovers just how little money she has. At a loss for ideas about how to keep her home, Ellen reluctantly agrees to her sister’s suggestion that she take in lodgers, and soon a German businesswoman, a handsome journalist, and Ellen’s favorite romance author are all living under her roof….
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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
Blogging Stuff:
Last week, as you know, we all had BBAW events, and this was my first time. I posted a couple of times on my Snow Connections and Impressions site.
I also did another merger, creating a page from Moonbeams and Rainbows over on Stardust Dreams, and saying good-bye to that first site.
Another related post: The Sunday Salon, which chronicles some of the week’s reading and blogging events.
This past week, I’ve finished some books, and now I’m ready to dive into my new stack.
Here’s What I Read and Reviewed (Click the title for the review):
1) Back to the Homeplace, by William Leverne Smith
2) Odd Mom Out, by Jane Porter
3) With Friends Like These, by Sally Koslow
What’s Up Next:
1) Missing Pieces, by Joy Fielding (It’s been on my TBR piles for awhile!)
Here’s a tidbit:
Therapist Kate Sinclair expertly deals with her Palm Beach clients, but her own family is flying apart. Her delusional half-sister Jo Lynn, who marries and divorces abusers, is now obsessed with Colin Friendly, an accused serial rapist-killer. Sara, Kate’s wily and buxom daughter, escalates teen rebellion to new heights, seeking the unstable Jo Lynn for support, and Kate’s husband of 24 years retreats into avoidance. When Robert, an old flame, turns up the heat by offering Kate her own therapy show on one of his radio stations, her prim assisted-living mother wigs out. Kate worries that if she keeps giving pieces of herself away, there won’t be anything left. The suspense intensifies when Colin escapes from prison and threatens Sara….
2) The Cloud Chamber, by Joyce Maynard (Another graduate of the TBR piles!)
Here’s a snippet:
Grade 7-10-In the 1960s, Nate, 14, copes with a family tragedy that is poorly handled by most of the adults in his life. Apparently, his father attempted suicide, but failure to find the rifle that caused his head wound has the local law enforcement-and the neighbors-wondering if Nate’s mother fired the shot. Their Montana dairy farm was already in big trouble and now bankruptcy is imminent. Nate deals with the cold shoulders he gets at school by determining to build a science project that would make his father proud: a cloud chamber in which the radiation of cosmic particles is made visible in vapor. His partner is the girl no one likes: Naomi dresses funny, and her father is a fire-and-brimstone preacher. But she is a good artist and has plenty of emotional intelligence, and Nate learns to treat her as an equal on the project and as a friend as well. Junie, six, has become his charge now that the family is collapsing. He listens to his sister, comforts her, and allows himself to be cheered by her seemingly endless good will. These are real kids. The plot moves quickly and engagingly through Nate’s trials and small triumphs….
3) Body Work, by Sara Paretsky
A blurb:
Paretsky’s superb 14th novel featuring PI V.I. Warshawski (after Hardball) delves into Chicago’s avant-garde art scene. At the trendy Club Gouge, where Warshawski is keeping an eye on Petra, a young cousin who caused trouble in the previous book, performance artist Karen Buckley (aka the Body Artist) invites members of the audience to step on stage to paint her nude body. The intricate design that one woman paints on Karen’s back provokes a violent outburst from Chad Vishneski, a troubled Iraqi war veteran. When two nights later, someone shoots the woman who upset Chad outside the club, Chad is the logical murder suspect. Hired by Chad’s estranged parents to clear his name, Warshawski straddles a minefield that reaches from the Windy City’s neighborhoods to the Gulf War battlefields. Scenes with her aging neighbor and a new love interest give a much needed balance to the serious plot. This strong outing shows why the tough, fiercely independent, dog-loving private detective continues to survive….
That’s it for this week! I hope that you’ll stop by and share your own goodies for the week.
I’ve never heard of The Cloud Chamber but I loved Labor Day, so I’m interested in it! I love the cover of The Home for Broken Hearts. Happy reading!
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Thanks, Kathy….I am really excited about each of them. Glad you stopped by.
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Wow—nice mailbox.
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Thanks, Elizabeth…glad you stopped by.
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I just discovered Broken Hearts, and I really want it now! It sounds like a great read. Enjoy!
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Thanks, Mrs. Q….I really have enjoyed everything by this author. Glad you stopped by.
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The Home for Broken Hearts sounds so good! Enjoy!!!
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Oh, I’m looking forward to it, too! Thanks for stopping by, Holly.
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Great books! The Sara Paretsky one sounds good. I think I’m way behind on that series. Have a great reading week.
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Oh, I think I’ve hit them all, but I might have missed one! Love that kick-ass V.I. Warshawski. Thanks for stopping by, Kathy.
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Hurray for TBR Pile Graduates! I have a few of those myself this week.
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Yes, sometimes I think I should have a special ceremony for those books that finally get read, Lydia! Maybe we can think of one! lol
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I’ve been seeing A Home for Broken Hearts, and must add it to my TBR list
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Thanks for stopping by, RAnn….I’ve been wanting to read that book for awhile!
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I do enjoy Joy Fielding – waiting for her latest arrival in the library…..The Wild Zone.
Have a great reading week!
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Oh, I want to read that one, too, Cat! Thanks for stopping by.
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I read Joy Fielding years ago…. can not remember the title but enjoyed the book. Have a super week Laurel. I hope to be around more this week.
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Thanks for stopping in, Sheila…I’m looking forward to a calmer week myself.
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I’ve read only one book by Paretsky and here she is at #14! I’m so behind.
have a lovely week!
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Oh, I know that feeling…that’s how I am with the Stephanie Plum series. I’ve only read two! Thanks for stopping by, Nancyo.
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The Home for Broken Hearts sounds like a really sweet book! Enjoy!
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Thanks for stopping by, Kate…Yes, I think it looks good, too.
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Enjoy your new books! Happy reading. My mailbox is at The Crowded Leaf.
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Thanks, Alayne….Hope you have a productive week, with all that you’re doing!
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These look so good! Have a great reading week ahead! Here is my Mondays: Mailbox/Where Am I/Musings post.
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Thanks for stopping by, gautami….I’m looking forward to them all.
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The Home for Broken Hearts is a new to me title. It does sound very good though and will be going on the wish list. I find the best book suggestions on Mondays!
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Oh, I know what you mean, Beth! Thanks for stopping by.
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I am undergoing a reading slump. You did well. Have another great reading week ahead!
Here is my Mondays: Mailbox/Where Am I/Musings post.
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Oh, I know what that’s like, gautami….thanks for visiting.
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Great books! I’ve been wanting to read a Sara Paretsky book sometime. I’ll await your review. 🙂
Happy reading this week!
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Thanks for stopping by, Judith…Yes, it’s been awhile since her last one.
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You’ve done well! My books read are in my Sunday posts, so I don’t repeat them in the Monday meme (when I participate).
The Sara Paretsky book sounds like something I’d very much enjoy,
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Yes, I’ll bet you would like it, Amanda. Have you read any of her V. I. Warshawski series? That woman is a real kick-ass broad, which I enjoy.
Thanks for stopping by.
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Looks like you’ve got some great books coming up! I really enjoyed Labor Day by Joyce Maynard and have been wanting to read more by her. Enjoy The Cloud Chamber!
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Thanks, Alita….I’ve stalled on this one for awhile, but then decided to go ahead since I really have loved everything by this author.
Glad you stopped by.
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I’d never heard of The Cloud Chamber, but it sounds intriguing. I especially like it’s age range, sounds great, enjoy!
Have a fabulous reading week and if you get a second stop by There’s A Book to take a look at what I’ve got planned for the week! 🙂
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Thanks for stopping by, Danielle…I didn’t read this book when I first got it because of the age range….but now I’m going to give it a whirl.
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You’ve got some really interesting books lined up. I think Missing Pieces is going to end up on my already enormous TBR list. It’s been a long time since I read anything by Joy Fielding.
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And this is one of her older ones, Joy, but I’m already having a hard time putting it down. Thanks for stopping by.
I really want Fielding’s newest one, The Wild Zone.
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I’ve heard so much about Joy Fielding’s books. I need to read one. Have a great week!
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Oh, you just might enjoy them, Aths. Thanks for stopping by.
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Home for Broken Hearts sounds wonderful doesn’t it??? Have a great week of reading!
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Yes, definitely, Staci. I’ve been seeing it around, and I was drawn to the synopsis, but also mindful that I’ve enjoyed every book I’ve read by this author. Thanks for stopping by.
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Hey Laurel! Great mailbox!
I love the picture of all your stacks of books… looks very familiar. LOL!
Lisa
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Thanks, Lisa! Glad you stopped by…and my stacks have gone down just a little (those original stacks numbered 166, now I’m at 113). Of course, I have new stacks in my office! lol
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I hope you enjoy your new book. Sounds like a good one.
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Thanks, Anna…hope you have a great week.
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Joy Fielding is an author I plan on exploring next year. She has so many books I want to read!
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Thanks for stopping by, J. Kaye…Fielding is an author I’ve always enjoyed. Hope you do try her.
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The Home For Broken Hearts looks like a good one!
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Yes, I agree…thanks for stopping by, Amused….
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Looks like some good ones. Enjoy!
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Thanks for stopping by, Carol….hope you enjoy your week.
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