Reading Challenge/Goals for 2023--2024 link added

[Wood Nymph]

20/30 - Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince - by JK Rowling

I've read the Harry Potter series many times so this wasn't a new book for me. But I love the series and enjoyed going back into the wizarding world.

 

[tiggrbaby]

July:

#41/80: The World Played Chess by Robert Dugoni (4.5/5) (coming of age)

In 1979, Vincent graduated high school and got a construction job working with two Vietnam vets. The lessons he learned that summer come back to him when he receives a war journal from the one vet.

Told in three timelines.

#42/80: Orphan #8 by Kim Van Alkemade (4/5) (historical fiction)

Rachel and her brother end up in a Jewish orphanage after a family tragedy. Here Rachel is subjected to medical experiments which leave her disfigured and bullied. Years later, she becomes a nurse at a Hebrew nursing home and is confronted with the doctor who caused Rachel’s misery.

Based on true events.

#43/80: The Last Secret of the Secret Annex by Joop van Wijk-Voskuijl and Jeroen De Bruyn (4/5) (nonfiction)


The story of Bep Voskuiji, the youngest of the people who hid the Frank family.

#44/80: The Heron’s Cry (Matthew Venn #2) by Ann Cleeves (4/5) (mystery)

Detective Venn is called to a crime scene at the residence of local artists: a man has been killed with a piece of his daughter’s blown glass. Then another body is found killed in a similar way. How are these murders connected?

#45/80: Endangered (Joe Pickett #15) by C.J. Box (4/5) (mystery)

Joe receives a nightmare call: his daughter April has been found in a ditch, badly beaten. He suspects Dallas Cates, who denies it. Joe is determined to find her attacker, even if it kills him.

Changing my goal to 80.

 

[Wood Nymph]

21/30 - The Last Thing He Told Me - by Laura Dave

"Before Owen Michaels disappears, he smuggles a note to his beloved wife of one year: Protect her. Despite her confusion and fear, Hannah Hall knows exactly to whom the note refers- Owen's sixteen-year-old daughter, Bailey. Bailey, who lost her mother tragically as a child. Bailey, who wants absolutely nothing to do with her new stepmother. As Hannah's increasingly desperate calls to Owen go unanswered, as the FBI arrests Owen's boss, as a US marshal and federal agents arrive at her Sausalito home unannounced, Hannah quickly realizes her husband isn't who he said he was. And that Bailey just may hold the key to figuring out Owen's true identity- and why he really disappeared. Hannah and Bailey set out to discover the truth. But as they start putting together the pieces of Owen's past, they soon realize they're also building a new future- one neither of them could have anticipated"--

I don't really know how to review this book. It was a bestseller and has glowing reviews. It also has become a mini series. I didn't really care for how it ended, even though it was "logical" to have ended like that. I didn't really like this book, although I could see why others would like it.

 

[melk]

18/35 All The Broken Places by John Boyne

From John Boyne’s website: All the Broken Places is a devastating, beautiful story about a woman who must confront the sins of her past and a present in which it is never too late for bravery.

I got the title from this thread but had forgotten it was the same author as The Boy In The Striped Pajamas. It can certainly stand alone but it helps if you know that story. I couldn’t put this book down. Gretel’s story of her life after the war had many layers to it that were peeled back slowly through the course of the book, culminating with a present day situation that reintroduces a chance for her to stand up for what is right.

 

[bobbiwoz]

@Wood Nymph , I gave The Last Thing He Told Me 4/5…I too, didn’t care how it ended! I understand what you say about it, but it really kept my interest.

 

[bobbiwoz]

63/75 Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier
It’s an inspiring novel of how one woman’s gift transcends class and social prejudice to lead to some of the most important discoveries of the 19th century. Above all, it is a revealing portrait of the intricate and resilient nature of female friendship.

Based on the lives of Mary Anning and Elizabeth Philpot.

4/5

 

[mgarbowski]

16 of 24 - The Surgeon's Mate (Aubrey/Maturin #7)

Like many others, I started this series after seeing Master and Commander in 2005. I got through the first 6 books in a few years and then was distracted. Back to it. Very good.

 

[willowsnn3]

#37/50 What She Found by Robert Dugoni
Detective Tracy Crosswhite has agreed to look into the disappearance of investigative reporter Lisa Childress. Solving the cold case is an obsession for Lisa’s daughter, Anita. So is clearing the name of her father, a prime suspect who became a pariah.
As all the pieces come together, it becomes clear that Tracy is in the midst of a case that will push her loyalties and her resilience to the limit. What she uncovers will come with a greater price than anyone feared.
This is book #9 in the Tracy Crosswhite series which is one of my favorite series & I anxiously await each new release. Unfortunately, this one was rather tedious and borderline boring. Hopefully book 10 will be better.

 

[Disney_Alli]

I'm probably going to get banned - oh darn - for saying this but with everything going on here I'll be bowing out and leaving. Happy reading everyone!

 

[Shellsbutt]

I'm probably going to get banned - oh darn - for saying this but with everything going on here I'll be bowing out and leaving. Happy reading everyone!

I'm sorry Alli, what's going on? I must have missed it because I have no idea...

 

[Shellsbutt]

I haven't updated here in a while, still trying to play catch up. I don't think I'm going to make my goal of 30 for the year, but I'm trying.
9/30-It Starts With Us by Colleen Hoover
10/30-The Housemaid by Freida McFadden
11/30-America The Beautiful? One Woman in a Borrowed Prius on the Road Most Traveled by Blythe Roberson
12/30-Happy Place by Emily Henry
13/30-Strange Flowers by Donal Ryan

I really liked all of these with the exception of America The Beautiful-way too political and not funny, definitely not what I was hoping for in a travelogue-see Bill Bryson and Frances Mayes, etc.

 

[bobbiwoz]

….


"The Plum Trees", Victoria Shorr 4.5 stars
Consie is home for a funeral when she stumbles upon a family letter sent from Germany in 1945, which contains staggering news: Consie’s great-uncle Hermann, who was transported to Auschwitz with his wife and three daughters, might have escaped. This seems improbable to Consie. Did people escape from Auschwitz? Could her great-uncle have been among them? What happened to Hermann? Did anyone know? These questions are at the root of Consie’s excavation of her family’s history as she seeks, seventy years after the liberation of Auschwitz, to discover what happened to Hermann.


The Plum Trees follows Consie as she draws on oral testimonies, historical records, and more to construct a visceral account of the lives of Hermann, his wife, and their daughters from the happy days in prewar Czechoslovakia through their internment in Auschwitz and the end of World War II. The Plum Trees is a powerful, intimate reckoning with the past.

What a book! Very hard for me to read, it is powerful, not enjoyable . I gave it 4/5. It was my 64/75.

 

[luvmarypoppins]

I haven’t really read alot. I was so sad that the older lady I shared a lot of my books with passed away. I am trying to get back into reading again.

17/32- Cheddar Late Than Dead by Linda Reilly
Cozy mystery set in a Vermont Grilled Cheese Cafe. When her friend Klarissa’s fiancé is murdered at her bridal shower, cafe owner Carly works on finding the killer. Fun story.

18/32 - Through the Lettered Veil by Candace West
Set in post Civil War Arkansas, Aynsley marries Nolan in a marriage of convenience. Cousin Elnora makes life miserable for everyone. Aynsley struggles with dyslexia. Freed slaves Eleazar and Becca help the family save their farm. The family survives many threats on their lives.

19/32 - Intensive Care Crisis by Karen Kirst
Nurse Audrey deals with death threats upon discovering stolen medical equipment and drugs. Marine sergeant Julian helps her solve the case. Constant action.

20/32 - Cooking Up A Mystery by Gail Pallotta
Cafe owner Laney along with her college assistant George work hard to establish her new business. Eric, a college professor and customer helps them solve the mystery of who is sabotaging her business. A budding romance ensues. I thought the motive was very different.

 

[OKW8297]

11. Christy by Catherine Marshall. Christian historical fiction set in the Tennessee Mountains at the beginning of the 20th century. I first read this in my early teens maaaaaany years ago. I enjoyed it then and it held up well.

 

[MGMmjl]

17/30 - Rich Blood by Robert Bailey

Description:
"Attorney Jason Rich has made a fortune off other people’s bad luck. His billboard slogan—“In an accident? Get Rich!”—accosts motorists on highways from Alabama to Florida. As ambulance chasers go, he’s exceptional.

But after a recent divorce and a stint in rehab, Jason has hit a rough patch. And things only get worse when his sister, Jana, is accused of her husband’s murder. Even though Jason has no experience trying criminal cases, Jana begs him to represent her.

Jason has mixed feelings about returning to Lake Guntersville, Alabama—and even more reservations about diving back into his sister’s life. Between the drugs, the affairs, and a tendency to gaslight everyone in her inner circle, Jana has plenty of enemies in town.

But did Jana hire someone to kill her husband? Jason isn’t so sure. He heads back to his hometown to unravel the truth and face off against opponents old and new."

This was a really good legal thriller! I have read one of the author's previous books, and look forward to reading more.

 

[willowsnn3]

11. Christy by Catherine Marshall. Christian historical fiction set in the Tennessee Mountains at the beginning of the 20th century. I first read this in my early teens maaaaaany years ago. I enjoyed it then and it held up well.

I think this was also a tv series back in the 90's also. I liked the show but never read the book(s)

 

[mgarbowski]

17 of 24 - Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World Through Islamic Eyes by Tamim Ansary.

Big sweeping history of the Islamic world from the time of Mohammed to current times (published 2009), and covering primarily the Arab peninsula, north Africa, Turkey, Iran, the rest of central Asia and India. As best as I can judge it is reasonably fair, which is not to say I agree with everything in it, but that I did not perceive any grand slant or narrative that is wholly removed from reality.

 

[willowsnn3]

I'm probably going to get banned - oh darn - for saying this but with everything going on here I'll be bowing out and leaving. Happy reading everyone!

Sorry if anything has offended or upset you on this thread. I am clueless, but you are welcome to post here any time you want.

 

[mgarbowski]

Sorry if anything has offended or upset you on this thread. I am clueless, but you are welcome to post here any time you want.

My guess it has nothing to do with this thread. Elsewhere on the board there have been major newsbreaks about horrid behavior by someone prominent on the Podcast and at high levels of ownership of the website. If you want to know more look for a thread titled "Disappointed" in the "DIS Unplugged Podcast / YouTube" forum. It has grown over 100 pages in about 10-11 days.

I'm being vague because it is not a subject for this thread or forum. Please do not anyone respond here.

 

[Wood Nymph]

22/30 - The Paris Daughter - by Kristin Harmel - 3.5/5

"Paris, 1939: Young mothers Elise and Juliette become fast friends the day they meet in the beautiful Bois de Boulogne. Though there is a shadow of war creeping across Europe, neither woman suspects that their lives are about to irrevocably change. When Elise becomes a target of the German occupation, she entrusts Juliette with the most precious thing in her life -- her young daughter, playmate to Juliette's own little girl. But nowhere is safe in war, not even a quiet little bookshop like Juliette's Librairie des Revês, and, when a bomb falls on their neighborhood, Juliette's world is destroyed along with it. More than a year later, with the war finally ending, Elise returns to reunite with her daughter, only to find her friend's bookstore reduced to rubble -- and Juliette nowhere to be found. What happened to her daughter in those last, terrible moments? Juliette has seemingly vanished without a trace, taking all the answers with her. Elise's desperate search leads her to New York -- and to Juliette -- one final, fateful time."--

This book should really be called "The Paris Mothers" because that is what dominates the story.

I enjoyed this book and found the story interesting. It is historical fiction that begins in Paris during WW2 and then moves to 1960. Much of the story deals with mothers who had to give up their children in order to keep them alive and safe from the Nazis. I appreciated the author's dedication to the historical facts. But I thought the story could have had more depth to it.