Wishing & Waiting on Wednesday: A Desperate Fortune

Posted in Wishlist Wednesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

There’s nothing like a Wednesday for thinking about the books we want to read! My Wishing & Waiting on Wednesday post is linking up with two fabulous book memes, Wishlist Wednesday (hosted by Pen to Paper) and Waiting on Wednesday (hosted by Breaking the Spine).

My most wished-for book this week is:

A Desperate Fortune by Susanna Kearsley
(to be released April 7, 2015)

For nearly 300 years, the mysterious journal of Jacobite exile Mary Dundas has lain unread — its secrets safe from prying eyes. Now, amateur codebreaker Sara Thomas has been hired by a once-famous historian to crack the journal’s cipher. But when she arrives in Paris, Sara finds herself besieged by complications from all sides: the journal’s reclusive owner, her charming Parisian neighbor, and Mary, whose journal doesn’t hold the secrets Sara expects.

It turns out that Mary Dundas wasn’t keeping a record of everyday life, but a first-hand account of her part in a dangerous intrigue. In the first wintry months of 1732, with a scandal gaining steam in London, driving many into bankruptcy and ruin, the man accused of being at its center is concealed among the Jacobites in Paris, with Mary posing as his sister to aid his disguise.

When their location is betrayed, they’re forced to put a desperate plan in action, heading south along the road to Rome, protected by the enigmatic Highlander Hugh MacPherson.

As Mary’s tale grows more and more dire, Sara, too, must carefully choose which turning to take… to find the road that will lead her safely home.

As soon as a new Susanna Kearsley novel is announced, it pretty much automatically goes to the top of my dying-to-read list. Yes, 2015 is a long way off… but I’ll be eagerly awaiting this one. Gorgeous cover plus a plot full of secrets, Jacobites, and Highlanders? Yes, please.

What are you wishing for this Wednesday?

Looking for some bookish fun on Thursdays? Come join me for my regular weekly feature, Thursday Quotables. You can find out more here — come play!

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Do you host a book blog meme? Do you participate in a meme that you really, really love? I’m building a Book Blog Meme Directory, and need your help! If you know of a great meme to include — or if you host one yourself — please drop me a note on my Contact page and I’ll be sure to add your info!

25Aug2014

The Monday Agenda 8/25/2014

Posted in The Monday Check-In by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Not a lofty, ambitious to-be-read list consisting of 100+ book titles. Just a simple plan for the upcoming week — what I’m reading now, what I plan to read next, and what I’m hoping to squeeze in among the nooks and crannies.

How did I do with last week’s agenda?

The Geography of You and Me Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet California

The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith: Done! My review is here.

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford: Done! My review is here.

California by Edan Lepucki: Done! I liked (but didn’t love) this very-hyped book. The ending seemed unfinished to me. Is there a sequel pending, or was it just supposed to be ominously open-ended? California was a quick and compelling read, but ultimately less satisfying than I’d hoped.

Fresh Catch:

I received this book for review, and I think it looks amazing!

Horrorstor: A Novel

What’s on my reading agenda for the coming week?

The Museum of Extraordinary Things Big Little Lies

I’m having a hard time deciding what I really feel like reading this week. My immediate reading plans include:

The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman: I actually started reading this one via ARC last week, but the formatting was so horrible that I had to quit. One library trip later, I’m ready to try again.

Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty: I lucked out and snagged a copy at the library!

The Far West (Frontier Magic, #3) And in children’s lit, I’m continued onward with The Far West, book #3 in Patricia C. Wrede’s Frontier Magic trilogy. The kiddo and I are both enjoying.

Ongoing book club reads:

The Scarlet Pimpernel A Breath of Snow and Ashes (Outlander, #6)

With Outlander Book Club:

Classic Read: The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy.

In-depth re-read and discussion: A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon: We’ll be reading and discussing two chapters per week starting September 2nd.

Want to join one or both of the group reads? Let me know and I’ll provide the links!

So many book, so little time…

That’s my agenda. What’s yours? Add your comments to share your bookish agenda for the week.

Happy reading!

19Aug2014

Wishing & Waiting on Wednesday: Rooms

Posted in Wishlist Wednesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

My most wished-for book this week is:

Rooms by Lauren Oliver
(to be released September 23, 2014)

The New York Times bestselling author of Before I Fall and the Delirium trilogy makes her brilliant adult debut with this mesmerizing story in the tradition of The Lovely Bones, Her Fearful Symmetry, and The Ocean at the End of the Lane—a tale of family, ghosts, secrets, and mystery, in which the lives of the living and the dead intersect in shocking, surprising, and moving ways

Wealthy Richard Walker has just died, leaving behind his country house full of rooms packed with the detritus of a lifetime. His estranged family—bitter ex-wife Caroline, troubled teenage son Trenton, and unforgiving daughter Minna—have arrived for their inheritance.

But the Walkers are not alone. Prim Alice and the cynical Sandra, long dead former residents bound to the house, linger within its claustrophobic walls. Jostling for space, memory, and supremacy, they observe the family, trading barbs and reminiscences about their past lives. Though their voices cannot be heard, Alice and Sandra speak through the house itself—in the hiss of the radiator, a creak in the stairs, the dimming of a light bulb.

The living and dead are each haunted by painful truths that will soon surface with explosive force. When a new ghost appears, and Trenton begins to communicate with her, the spirit and human worlds collide—with cataclysmic results.

Elegantly constructed and brilliantly paced, Rooms is an enticing and imaginative ghost story and a searing family drama that is as haunting as it is resonant.

Oooh, I love the sound of this! It’s about time for a good, spooky ghost story!

What are you wishing for this Wednesday?

Looking for some bookish fun on Thursdays? Come join me for my regular weekly feature, Thursday Quotables. You can find out more here — come play!

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

17Aug2014

The Monday Agenda 8/18/2014

Posted in The Monday Check-In by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

How did I do with last week’s agenda?

My reading this past week had a very structural focus — I had a house, a hotel, and a museum on my reading list!

Henna House Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet The Museum of Extraordinary Things

Henna House by Nomi Eve: Done! My review is here.

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford: Done! I just finished this lovely book late on Sunday. Review to follow.

The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman: Just getting started, still a long way to go!

The Far West (Frontier Magic, #3) My son and I read the first few chapters of The Far West, book #2 in Patricia C. Wrede’s Frontier Magic trilogy.

Fresh Catch:

No new books this week!

What’s on my reading agenda for the coming week?

The Museum of Extraordinary Things The Geography of You and Me California

My immediate reading plans include:

The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman

The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith

California by Edan Lepucki

Pop-culture goodness:

Just eating up the new episodes of Outlander on TV! And absolutely thrilled that it’s been renewed for a 2nd season! Here’s the sneak peek at the next episode:

Ongoing book club reads:

The Scarlet Pimpernel A Breath of Snow and Ashes (Outlander, #6)

With Outlander Book Club:

Classic Read (starting August 18th): The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy.

In-depth re-read and discussion: A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon: We’ll be reading and discussing two chapters per week starting September 2nd.

Want to join one or both of the group reads? Let me know and I’ll provide the links!

And in real life:

We celebrated my little guy’s 12th birthday this week! At his request, we spent his birthday on a whitewater rafting adventure. He was thrilled, and we all had a blast. My baby is growing up! I’ll just be a shamelessly bragging mom for a minute and say that I’m so proud of my kiddo and the person he’s becoming. (Now if only I could get him to read once in a while… )

So many book, so little time…

That’s my agenda. What’s yours? Add your comments to share your bookish agenda for the week.

Happy reading!

12Aug2014

Wishing & Waiting on Wednesday: The Rosie Effect

Posted in Wishlist Wednesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

My most wished-for book this week is:

The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion
(to be released December 30, 2014)

I’m not including a snip of the synopsis here… because this is the sequel to The Rosie Project, and I don’t want to give anything away from the first book. The Rosie Project was one of my very favorite books of 2013, so picking The Rosie Effect as a wishlist book is a total no-brainer for me. And let’s just say that if the sequel is anywhere near as charming as the original, then it’ll be a winner for sure!

Want to know more about The Rosie Project? You can check out my review here.

What are you wishing for this Wednesday?

Looking for some bookish fun on Thursdays? Come join me for my regular weekly feature, Thursday Quotables. You can find out more here — come play!

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

11Aug2014

The Monday Agenda 8/11/2014

Posted in The Monday Check-In by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

How did I do with last week’s agenda?

Landline Just Like the Movies Since You've Been Gone

Landline by Rainbow Rowell: Done! My review is here.

Just Like the Movies by Kelly Fior: Done! My review is here.

Since You’ve Been Gone by Anouska Knight: Done! My review is here.

Across the Great Barrier (Frontier Magic, #2) The kiddo and I just finished up book #2 in Patricia C. Wrede’s Frontier Magic trilogy, and can’t wait to dive into #3!

Fresh Catch:

Two of my pre-orders arrived this week:

The Wraith Spike: Into The Light

Plus, two of my library holds came in as well:

The Geography of You and Me The Far West (Frontier Magic, #3)

And then there are the two books I picked up at the neighborhood used book store:

Songs of Willow Frost Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption

What’s on my reading agenda for the coming week?

Henna House Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet The Museum of Extraordinary Things

I haven’t quite decided on the reading order yet, but the next three books on my reading agenda will be:

Henna House by Nomi Eve

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford

The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman

Pop-culture goodness:

Have I mentioned that I’m one of the moderators over at Outlander Book Club? Maybe one or two or five hundred times?? We were absolutely thrilled this week to see that the newest issue of Entertainment Weekly includes a two-page spread about how to go on an Outlander binge — and guess who’s listed (in ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY!!) as one of the fansites?

You could probably hear me hyperventilating from clear across the country.

Upcoming book club reads:

I have a few book club picks coming up:

Fields & Fantasies:

Join us for a discussion of The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman at the end of August. You can read more about Fields & Fantasies here.

Outlander Book Club:

All are welcome to join in for any of the upcoming group reads at OBC:

Classics read: OBC will be reading and discussing The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emma Orczy (one chapter per week) starting August 18th.

Book of the Month: The August BOTM pick is The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford. Discussion opens August 20th.

A Breath of Snow and Ashes re-read: We’ll be reading and discussing two chapters per week starting September 2nd.

Want to join in the fun for any of the group reads? Let me know and I’ll provide the links!

So many book, so little time…

That’s my agenda. What’s yours? Add your comments to share your bookish agenda for the week.

Happy reading!

4Aug2014

The Monday Agenda 8/4/2014

Posted in The Monday Check-In by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

How did I do with last week’s agenda?

The Book of Life (All Souls Trilogy, #3) 6990472 Where She Went (If I Stay, #2)

I finally finished The Book of Life by Deborah Harkness! It felt like I was reading it forever. My review is here.

I read both If I Stay and Where She Went by Gayle Forman, and loved them both. If there was any doubt (and there really wasn’t), it’s now official: I’ll happily read anything and everything that Gayle Forman decides to write!

Fresh Catch:

One new addition to my shelves this week:

The Unwritten, Vol. 9: The Unwritten Fables

It’s a Fables/Unwritten cross-over! I haven’t started the Unwritten series yet, but I do love everything related to Fables. It’s clear to me that I need a good week or two of undiluted graphic novel time!

What’s on my reading agenda for the coming week?

Landline Just Like the Movies Since You've Been Gone

After staring at it longingly from across the room for a few weeks, it’s finally time to read Landline by Rainbow Rowell. I’ve read about half so far — and like every other Rainbow Rowell book, it’s terrific.

Once I finish Landline, I think I’d better try to catch up on my backlog of ARCs. I intend to read Just Like the Movies by Kelly Fiore and Since You’ve Been Gone (don’t you love that cover?) by Anouska Knight, for starters.

Pop-culture goodness:

I had a blissfully fangirlish day this past week. On Wednesday, I took a day off work and headed downtown to a wonderful book signing/reading by Deborah Harkness. She was funny, smart (of course), gracious, and so friendly toward us all. What a pleasure!

From there, I hopped in my car and drove about an hour to get to the theater showing a preview screening of the first episode of Outlander. Arriving early, I had a great time hanging out with other fans for a couple of hours. The screening itself? What can I say? It was everything I’d hoped for. Amazing cast, beautiful settings, fantastic production… and so true to the book! Simply beautiful.

The first episode is available as a free preview via http://www.starz.com!

So many book, so little time…

That’s my agenda. What’s yours? Add your comments to share your bookish agenda for the week.

Happy reading!

29Jul2014

Wishing & Waiting on Wednesday: The Outsorcerer’s Apprentice

Posted in Wishlist Wednesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

My most wished-for book this week is:

The Outsorcerer’s Apprentice by Tom Holt
(released July 15, 2014)

Synopsis via Goodreads:

A happy workforce, it is said, is a productive workforce.

Mmmm.

Try telling that to an army of belligerent goblins. Or the Big Bad Wolf. Or a professional dragonslayer. Who is looking after their well-being? Who gives a damn about their intolerable working conditions, lack of adequate health insurance, and terrible coffee in the canteen?

Thankfully, with access to an astonishingly diverse workforce and limitless natural resources, maximizing revenue and improving operating profit has never really been an issue for the one they call “the Wizard.” Until now.

Because now a perfectly good business model — based on sound fiscal planning, entrepreneurial flair, and only one or two of the infinite parallel worlds that make up our universe — is about to be disrupted by a young man not entirely aware of what’s going on.

There’s also a slight risk that the fabric of reality will be torn to shreds. You really do have to be awfully careful with these things.

Sssh, don’t tell, but I actually have a day job, and… well… let’s just say that supernatural workforce planning just tickles my funny bone, professional and otherwise. This sounds hilarious, and I’ve been told repeatedly that I need to give Tom Holt’s books a try, so this may be where I finally jump in.

I’m not sure that this really counts as a “Waiting on…” selection, since it’s already available — but since I don’t have a copy yet, it works for me!

What are you wishing for this Wednesday?

Looking for some bookish fun on Thursdays and Fridays? Come join me for my regular weekly features, Thursday Quotables and Flashback Friday! You can find out more here — come share the book love!

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

28Jul2014

The Monday Agenda 7/28/2014

Posted in The Monday Check-In by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

How did I do with last week’s agenda?

The Book of Life (All Souls Trilogy, #3)

I am STILL reading The Book of Life, and getting frustrated by how long it’s taking me. Granted, I’ve had a crazy week with little to no reading time, but still. Argh. I did make the executive decision not to re-read Shadow of Night after all — thanks to a good, thorough synopsis via a wiki site, I managed to get myself up to speed enough to be able to enjoy The Book of Life and not get completely lost!

Fresh Catch:

Once again… no new books! I think I still have one or two in my house to read. Or a dozen or so. At the very least.

What’s on my reading agenda for the coming week?

The Book of Life (All Souls Trilogy, #3) Landline 6990472

Well, obviously, it’s all about The Book of Life right now. Deborah Harkness is doing an appearance at a local bookstore this week, and my goal is to have finished the book by the time I get in the signing line!

As soon as I finish The Book of Life, I’ll be starting Landline by Rainbow Rowell — which has been calling my name for a couple of weeks now…

… although I do also want to read If I Stay by Gayle Forman before the movie comes out!

Pop-culture goodness:

The big day is coming:

… and Starz has just released the opening credits sequence for Outlander, which left me absolutely teary-eyed and speechless. Check out how beautiful this is!

So many book, so little time…

That’s my agenda. What’s yours? Add your comments to share your bookish agenda for the week.

Happy reading!

22Jul2014

Wishing & Waiting on Wednesday: Symbiont

Posted in Wishlist Wednesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

My most wished-for book this week is:

Symbiont by Mira Grant
(to be released November 25, 2014)

Synopsis via Goodreads:

THE SECOND BOOK IN MIRA GRANT’S TERRIFYING PARASITOLOGY SERIES.

THE ENEMY IS INSIDE US.

The SymboGen designed tapeworms were created to relieve humanity of disease and sickness. But the implants in the majority of the world’s population began attacking their hosts turning them into a ravenous horde.

Now those who do not appear to be afflicted are being gathered for quarantine as panic spreads, but Sal and her companions must discover how the tapeworms are taking over their hosts, what their eventual goal is, and how they can be stopped.

Mira Grant’s Parasite is one of the grossest books I’ve read in a long time… and I loved it. (You can see my review here.) I can’t wait to read the sequel, even though I know the ickiness factor will be sky-high. Tapeworms! Shudder.

What are you wishing for this Wednesday?

Looking for some bookish fun on Thursdays and Fridays? Come join me for my regular weekly features, Thursday Quotables and Flashback Friday! You can find out more here — come share the book love!

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥