GOOD MORNING! Welcome to another edition of Monday from the Interior.
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, and that your reading week was relaxing.
Today, let’s join Let Them Read Books for Monday Mailbox; and hop on over to Book Journey for What Are You Reading?
MAILBOX MONDAY:
For a couple of weeks, I haven’t received anything in my mailbox. But this past week, I received two review books from Amazon Vine, and an e-book that I’ll be reviewing for a blog tour in February.
Here’s my loot!
1. So Pretty It Hurts, by Kate White (Amazon Vine)
True-crime journalist and sassy amateur sleuth Bailey Weggins has scarcely begun her hard-earned weekend getaway when something comes up: a dead body, belonging to one of the world’s most glamorous supermodels. Now Bailey’s trapped at an upstate New York home amidst the glitterati—and any one of them could be a murderer. She’s determined to find out who’s responsible, but her investigation could provoke the killer into striking again… From Kate White, the New York Times bestselling author of Hush and the editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan magazine, So Pretty It Hurts is an addictive addition to the Bailey Weggins mystery series, and the book that fans of If Looks Could Kill, Over Her Dead Body, and Lethally Blond have been waiting for.
2. I’ve Got Your Number, by Sophie Kinsella
I’ve lost it. 😦 The only thing in the world I wasn’t supposed to lose. My engagement ring. It’s been in Magnus’s family for three generations. And now the very same day his parents are coming, I’ve lost it. The very same day! Do not hyperventilate, Poppy. Stay positive 🙂 !!
Poppy Wyatt has never felt luckier. She is about to marry her ideal man, Magnus Tavish, but in one afternoon her “happily ever after” begins to fall apart. Not only has she lost her engagement ring in a hotel fire drill but in the panic that follows, her phone is stolen. As she paces shakily around the lobby, she spots an abandoned phone in a trash can. Finders keepers! Now she can leave a number for the hotel to contact her when they find her ring. Perfect!
Well, perfect except that the phone’s owner, businessman Sam Roxton, doesn’t agree. He wants his phone back and doesn’t appreciate Poppy reading his messages and wading into his personal life.
What ensues is a hilarious and unpredictable turn of events as Poppy and Sam increasingly upend each other’s lives through emails and text messages. As Poppy juggles wedding preparations, mysterious phone calls, and hiding her left hand from Magnus and his parents . . . she soon realizes that she is in for the biggest surprise of her life.
3. Hot Chocolate (e-book), by Dawn Greenfield Ireland (On blog tour at my Chocolate & Mimosas site on 2/2/12)
Meet the middle-aged Alcott sisters: Madge, Lila Mae and Dorothea, heiresses to the Alcott Chocolate fortune and mavens of Houston’s elite River Oaks.
Madge ambushes Lila Mae with Dorothea’s manipulative plea: she can’t care for Bernie, their 92-year old father, any longer. Lila Mae explodes in a hissy fit—she had warned Dorothea years ago that they should put Bernie in an assisted living center.
Robert, Lila Mae’s astrologer, warns of impending problems and he’s rarely wrong.
The sisters call a meeting with Walter Branson, their solicitor. They discuss Bernie’s nurse Bambi Chaline, a blonde bombshell who looks more like a hooker than a nurse.
Arrangements are made for Bernie to be transferred over to Lake Sides Assisted Living Center in the Uptown Galleria area and a severance package is drawn up for Bambi….(check back in 2/2012 for my review and a guest post from the author).
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WHAT ARE YOU READING?
With the holidays surrounding us and demanding our time and attention, I’m surprised I got anything done this week.
But here’s some of what happened on my blogs:
SAVORING SOME GUILTY PLEASURES
MONDAY POTPOURRI: ENJOYING EACH DAY
HUMP DAY POTPOURRI: FAMILY STORIES
WEEKEND POTPOURRI: MERRY CHRISTMAS
Review: She Can Run, by Melinda Leigh
Review: The Marriage Plot, by Jeffrey Eugenides
Review: An Uncertain Refuge (e-book), by Carolyn J. Rose
What’s Up Next?
I’m trying to whittle down a few more from my TBR stacks, so I’ll be reading these books, hopefully:
1. Bleedout, by Joan Brady
Even after Hugh Freyl lost his sight he was invincible. But late one night, in the library of the elite law firm that bears his name, he was beaten to death. The obvious suspect is David Marion, a convicted killer from the inner city. Hugh, the scion of the richest and most influential family in Springfield, Illinois, had orchestrated David’s release from prison and outraged his family and friends by making the young man his protégé. Now, in the eyes of Hugh’s circle, David’s criminal past fits him perfectly for the murderer’s role. It makes no sense for David to have killed his teacher, liberator and friend. Yet, if he did not, who did?
With no one to stand up for him, and armed only with the criminal skills he honed in prison and the savage fury of a cornered man, David must fight alone. But is he battling to prove his innocence or to hide his guilt?
In Springfield nothing is what it seems, and the more David struggles to clear himself, the closer he gets to the snake pit of ambition and greed poisoning the social and political fabric of the city. Was Hugh all he appeared to be? Who was he protecting and why? Could this most upright of men have involved his firm in shady financial dealings? To find the answers, David must confront his violent past and the uncertainty of his future.
2. Nutcase, by Charlotte Hughes
Psychologist Kate Holly is about to get evicted from her office, and her best option may be to share space with her jacuzzi-loving ex-boyfriend, Dr. Thad Glazer. That’s not going to help her patch things up with her firefighter ex-husband. With her oddball patients, meddling mother, and eccentric secretary thrown into the mix—not to mention a spree of suspicious fires—will Kate put her life back together or wind up in a padded cell?
3. Balancing Acts, by Zoe Fishman
A poignant debut novel about the transformative powers of yoga and friendship for four women on the verge of realizing their dreams
With beauty, brains, and a high-paying Wall Street position, Charlie was a woman who seemed to have it all—until she turned thirty and took stock of her life, or lack thereof. She left it all behind to pursue yoga, and now, two years later, she’s looking to drum up business for her fledgling studio in Brooklyn. Attending her college’s alumni night with fliers in tow, she reconnects with three former classmates whose post-graduation lives, like hers, haven’t turned out like they’d hoped.
Romance book editor Sabine still longs to write the novel that’s bottled up inside her. Once an up-and-coming photographer and Upper East Side social darling, Naomi is now a single mom who hasn’t picked up her camera in years. And Bess, who dreamed of being a serious investigative journalist a la Christiane Amanpour, is stuck in a rut, writing snarky captions for a gossip mag. But at a weekly yoga class at Charlie’s studio, the four friends, reunited ten years after college, will forge new bonds and take new chances—as they start over, fall in love, change their lives…and come face-to-face with haunting realities.
***
I have several books on nearby stacks that I can grab if I finish these and have time on my hands.
What are you reading? What did you receive in your mailbox? I hope you’ll stop by and share.
Both the Kate White book and the Sophie Kinsella book look good to me. I hope they’re as good as they look!
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I think so, too, Kathy…I hope they are good….and enjoy your week! Thanks for stopping by.
I think we’re all alone on the blogosphere today! lol
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The Kate White book is definitely my type of book. Will be looking for your thoughts on this one to see if it goes on my “hopefully in my lifetime tbr list”.
Have a great week!!
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I am excited about it, too, Cheryl. I’ve loved every one of her books that I’ve read.
Hope you have a wonderful week, and thanks for stopping by.
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So Pretty it Hurts sounds great, and I love the title! Enjoy your new reads!
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Thanks, Jenny Q. I’m excited about the books, too. Glad you could stop by, and have a great week.
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you got some great ones this week. I love Sophie Kinsella and that one sounds like a hoot. Hot Chocolate sounds real good too. Enjoy your new books!
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Thanks, Kaye…I’m thinking that the Sophie Kinsella might be a new series…or the characters connect to Becky Bloomwood in some way. I’ll find out soon, I guess! Glad you could stop by, and enjoy your week.
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Hope you had a wonderful Christmas! I didn’t know about the new Sophie Kinsella book! Happy reading!
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I just discovered it, too, Anna…I’m excited about it! Thanks for stopping by, and enjoy your week.
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Nice group of books Laurel!
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Thanks, Peggy Ann…I’m looking forward to them. Enjoy your week, and I’m glad you could stop by.
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I’m going to have to look for that Kate White book too. I am also trying to whittle down the TBR stack. I have declared 2012 The Year of the TBR. It will take a year of determined reading to make a dent in mine. Have a great week!
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My “old” TBRs, as opposed to the newer ones (lol) is down to 50 books. When I started this journey, I had 166 books on the stacks. I would have done better if I hadn’t kept buying new ones…or accepting new review books.
It’s an enjoyable journey, though.
Thanks for stopping by, Kathy.
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KInsella’s latest sounds hilarious! The perfect read after a dramatic or serious book. Enjoy your reading week!
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I think so, too, Laura. Can’t wait to dive in! Thanks for stopping by, and enjoy your week.
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They sound good to me, enjoy!
http://tributebooksmama.blogspot.com/2011/12/mailbox-monday_26.html
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Thanks, Mary Ann. Hope you enjoy your week, too, and I’m glad you could stop by.
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Hello Laurel-Rain. Looks like you had a nice week. So Pretty It Hurts sounds interesting as do all three of this weeks reads. I am off to check some of your reviews.
I hope you had a lovely Christmas week and enjoy the last week of 2011!
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Thanks, Martha…hope you enjoy your week, too. Glad you could stop by.
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Bleedout sounds good!!
Here’s mine!
http://junkboattravels.blogspot.com/2011/12/its-monday-what-are-you-reading_26.html
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It is good so far, Jackie. Which makes me wonder why it sat on my TBR stacks for so long!
Thanks for stopping by, and enjoy your week.
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Balancing Acts sounds fun, the sort of book I’d like to read.
Have a good week – hopefully you’ll have a bit more reading time.
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Yes, I’m looking forward to it, too, Judith. Thanks for stopping by, and enjoy your week.
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The Kinsella book sounds like a fun read! Balancing Act seems like a book I might enjoy too. I’ll watch for your review of it! I’m hoping to just hang out and read during the week. This week just begs for lounging and reading..at least for me.
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Oh, I agree about lounging and reading…sounds like a perfect week. Thanks for stopping by, Beth.
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You have some great reading planned. Enjoy!!
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I’m looking forward to it, Lori…thanks for stopping by. Enjoy your week!
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I’m still on vacation but I’ve caught a cold. I’ve been too sick to get much reading done. Please come see what I’m reading.
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Oh, getting sick during the holidays sucks! Hope you’re better soon, and enjoy your week. Thanks for stopping by.
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Lots of fabulous reads awaiting you! Now that’s something to look forward to in 2012!
Here’s my It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
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Oh, I completely agree, Deb. Hope you enjoy your books as well, and thanks for stopping by.
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Looking forward to your thoughts about the Kinsella book!
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I’m very excited about it, Mary. Hope you enjoy your reads, too, and thanks for visiting today.
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Your week looks like a lot of fun, I hope you have a great time with all of them!
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Yes, I think it will be, Crystal. Glad you could stop by, and enjoy your week.
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Great looking books! I have not read any of the Bailey Weggin’s series, but I really like Kate White.
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I don’t think I have, either. I’m looking forward to it. Thanks for stopping by, Nise.
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So Pretty It Hurts and Bleedout both look really good. Hope you had a wonderful Chrsitmas.
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Thanks, Ryan…glad you could stop by, and have a good week!
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You received some good ones. The Kate White book looks good. I read Hush by her and it was really good.
Hope you had a lovely Christmas!
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Yes, I loved Hush….I’m looking forward to this one. Thanks for visiting, Michelle….
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I didn’t realize Sophie Kinsella had a new book coming out – very cool! I like her non-shopaholic books.
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I stumbled upon it, Alyce, and simply had to have it! When this one showed up on the Amazon Vine list, I was very excited. Thanks for stopping by.
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Wow, some nice books last week. Kate White is always a fun mystery. Have a great week Laurel.
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Yes, I’m in the mood for mysteries! Thanks for stopping by, Diane….
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Balancing Acts sounds really good! Definitely a potential book club book. Writing that one down 🙂
Happy New year!
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I think so, too, Brunette Librarian…thanks for stopping by, and have a great week!
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It looks like a nice selection of books. I hope you enjoy them!
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Thanks, Teddy Rose…glad you could stop by. Enjoy your week!
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Have a great reading week.
all best wishes for 2012!
carol
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Thanks, Carol! You, too! And I hope you enjoy your new Kindle reads….and 2012.
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Kate White’s cover is awesome! So many great books!
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I love that cover, too, Staci! I can’t wait to read this one. Thanks for stopping by.
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You had a very productive blogging week, in the middle of the holiday season – good for you!
I would love to read The Marriage Plot – will have to take a look at your review.
Enjoy your books this week –
Sue
Book By Book
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Thanks, Sue…I was kind of surprised about that, too! Hope you also have an enjoyable week.
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