WEEKLY UPDATES: HOLDING ON TO HOPE…

Good morning! Today’s post will link up to The Sunday Salon, The Sunday Post and Stacking the Shelves, for weekly updates.

**Mailbox Monday is hosted at the home site: Mailbox Monday.

And let’s join Kathryn, our leader in It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?, at Book Date.

 

Cooler days make for cozy nights curled up under favorite throws.  But outside, and lurking not that far away, are the wildfires.  And the smoky air that is part of our lives these days keeps us on alert.  Even though the wildfires are in other parts of the state (for now), we are hypervigilant..constantly aware of what could come.  Every part of our country has had disasters of one kind or another this year, and it is hard to fend off the sense of foreboding.

Reading, binge-watching shows and movies, and trying to connect with family and friends…these activities are signs of our hope and optimism.  I had an excellent reading week:  three books read and reviewed, and each one was a page turner.  I finished watching House of Cards Season 6 ( which I found disappointing, sigh), and yesterday, I started watching The Kominsky Method, starring Michael Douglas, Alan Arkin, and Nancy Travis…among others.  I enjoyed it so much that I’ve watched all episodes but one.  I saved that one for today.

Today is my eldest son’s birthday!  I won’t tell you how old he is, since that would age me as well.  LOL.  He is across the world in Prague…and I miss him and his wife Gabi.  Here they were three years ago when they visited.  So long ago!

I want to see Widows at the neighborhood theater…today, perhaps.  A great cast that includes Viola Davis and Liam Neeson, among others, “Widows” is the story of four women with nothing in common except a debt left behind by their dead husbands’ criminal activities.

I need to distract myself…and inside the theater, I’ll feel connected to something other than the frightening events in our lives.

Now…let’s grab another cup of coffee…and take a peek at the details of my week.

LAST WEEK ON THE BLOGS:

Sunday Potpourri:  Treats, Reading, & Shoes…

Rainy Day Excerpts:  “The Family at No. 13”

WWW Wednesdays:  A Great Week So Far…

Coffee Chat:  Anticipating Pumpkin Day!

Bookish Friday:  “The Three Beths”

Review:  Her Pretty Face (e-book), by Robyn HardingReview:  Three Days Missing (e-book), by Kimberly BelleReview:  Winter in Paradise (e-book), by Elin Hilderbrand

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INCOMING BOOKS-(Titles/Covers Linked to Amazon):

One book that I purchased came in my physical mailbox!  Then I received a NetGalley ARC.  I bought two downloaded books to round out my week.

Becoming, by Michelle Obama

NetGalley ARC: Release Date – 2/5/19

The Winter Sister (e-book), by Megan Collins

Downloaded Books (Purchased):

Night of Miracles (e-book), by Elizabeth Berg

The Family at No. 13 (e-book), by S.D. Monaghan

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WHAT’S NEXT?

I flipped through my ever-present notebook today, hoping to find just the right “up-next books”…and it was hard to select them!  I have quite a few that I want to read, and soon.  But here’s a start:

Under My Skin (e-book), by Lisa Unger

From New York Times bestselling author and master of suspense Lisa Unger comes an addictive psychological thriller about a woman on the hunt for her husband’s killer.

Then…how about this one?

The Three Beths (e-book), by Jeff Abbott

A psychologically intense and emotionally gripping new suspense novel about a daughter’s desperate search for her missing mother-one that may lead her closer to home than she ever anticipated.

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So…that’s my week:  intense, cozy, and anxious…let’s focus on the cozy.  What did yours look like?  I usually share lunch or dinner foods, but today I’m feeling like breakfast.  I enjoyed French Toast one morning while I was running errands.

 

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