Tag Archives: to read

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Most Anticipated Books For 2013

Posted in Top Ten Tuesday by

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. I just happened to stumble across this weekly event for book lovers, featuring a different topic for a top 10 list each week. So… here I go, jumping in!

Top 10 Tuesday newThis week’s theme:

Top Ten Most Anticipated Books For 2013

More or less in order of how badly I want to read them, here are my top 10 can’t-wait-for books of 2013:

MOBYdiscovery

1) Written In My Own Heart’s Blood by Diana Gabaldon: It may be a bit of a cheat to include this book, but this is the one I’m most looking forward to. Book #8 in the Outlander series will have fans in a swoon, I’m sure. The author has mentioned fall of 2013 as the likely publication date, and while I haven’t seen anything more specific than that, I’m putting it on my list and keeping my fingers crossed.

2) All Souls’ Trilogy, #3 by Deborah Harkness: Another one that’s not a sure bet, but boy, would I like it to be. According to the author’s website, this book has neither a title nor a release date, but count me in as one of the devoted fans of the series with fingers crossed hoping for a summer 2013 release.

3) Etiquette and Espionage by Gail Carriger: Book 1 in Gail Carriger’s new Finishing School series, due out in February. I adored Ms. Carriger’s Parasol Protectorate series, and will absolutely read anything and everything she writes.

4) Tempest Reborn by Nicole Peeler: The sixth and final book in the Jane True series, due out in May.

5) Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs. The next installment in Briggs’s fantastic Mercy Thompson series, starring a shape-shifting auto mechanic and the werewolves and vampires of her acquaintance. Due March.

Tale for the Time Being

6) Fables, Volume 18: Cubs in Toyland by Bill Willingham: I got hooked, big-time, on this amazing series of graphic novels. Literary, smart, funny, and engrossing, Fables has it all. I’m counting the days until I can get my hands on the newest volume, due in January.

7) The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman: Neil Gaiman falls into the category of “must read whatever he writes”, and I’ll be sure to read this new book when it’s released in June.

8) A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki: The new novel by the author of My Year of Meats, one of my all-time favorites. I don’t know what it’s about, but I have no doubt it’ll be weird and wonderful. Due March.

9) Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris: I’m kind of over the whole Sookie Stackhouse series, but I’ll still read this final book to see how the author wraps it all up. Due May.

10) NOS4A2 by Joe Hill: Joe Hill writes creepy, scary, excellent fiction. I’m looking forward to sleepless nights when this one is released in April.

Of course, that’s not counting the paperback releases I’ve been waiting for, or all the books already on my shelves that I hope to read in 2013.

Looks like we’re in for a very happy new year! Happy reading, all!

The Monday agenda

Posted in The Monday Check-In by

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.

What do you mean it’s Monday? Already? These long holiday weekends make it so hard to return to reality.  Although, when your reality centers around reading, I suppose any day of the week is a good one.

Onward! What’s on the agenda this week?

From last week:

Seating Arrangements by Maggie Shipstead: Done! My review is here.

Dare Me by Megan Abbott: Just finished this one over the weekend. See my thoughts here.

My son and I are enjoying Magic By The Lake by Edward Eager, although based on the first few chapters, it’s not quite as captivating as Half Magic.

Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon (group re-read): No chapters this week — the group took time off from the re-read to focus on family time and Thanksgiving celebrations. No, not for shopping (although I’m sure a bit of that happened too).

And this week’s new agenda:

Last week I swore that I’d start reading Doc by Mary Doria Russell by the end of Thanksgiving weekend, and I made it in under the wire! Doc will be my focus all week — it’s a finely detailed, meticulously researched piece of historical fiction, with a huge cast of characters. I think this one will take a lot of concentration, but seeing as it’s written by one of my very favorite authors, I’m sure it’ll be well worth the time and effort.

And if, by some chance, I finish Doc this week, then I’ll resubmerge myself in the big pile of YA novels borrowed from the library. I have a mix of sequels and stand-alones waiting to be read, so I should be able to find something that strikes my fancy. Most likely, I’ll start with Because It Is My Blood by Gabrielle Zevin and then see which way the winds blow. Very unlikely that I’ll read much besides Doc this week, however.

Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon: Diving back in with chapters 66 and 67 this week.

So many book, so little time…

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

Wishlist Wednesday

Posted in Wishlist Wednesday by

And now, for this week’s Wishlist Wednesday…

The concept is to post about one book from our wish lists that we can’t wait to read. Want to play? Here’s how:

  • Follow Pen to Paper as host of the meme.
  • Please consider adding the blog hop button to your blog somewhere, so others can find it easily and join in too! Help spread the word! The code will be at the bottom of the post under the linky.
  • Pick a book from your wishlist that you are dying to get to put on your shelves.
  • Do a post telling your readers about the book and why it’s on your wishlist.
  • Add your blog to the linky at the bottom of the post at Pen to Paper.
  • Put a link back to pen to paper (http://vogue-pentopaper.blogspot.com) somewhere in your post.
  • Visit the other blogs and enjoy!

My Wishlist Wednesday book is:

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

From Goodreads:

Biographer Margaret Lea returns one night to her apartment above her father’s antiquarian bookshop. On her steps she finds a letter. It is a hand-written request from one of Britain’s most prolific and well-loved novelists. Vida Winter, gravely ill, wants to recount her life story before it is too late, and she wants Margaret to be the one to capture her history. The request takes Margaret by surprise—she doesn’t know the author, nor has she read any of Miss Winter’s dozens of novels.Late one night while pondering whether to accept the task of recording Miss Winter’s personal story, Margaret begins to read her father’s rare copy of Miss Winter’s Thirteen Tales of Change and Desperation. She is spellbound by the stories and confused when she realizes the book only contains twelve stories. Where is the thirteenth tale? Intrigued, Margaret agrees to meet Miss Winter and act as her biographer.

As Vida Winter unfolds her story, she shares with Margaret the dark family secrets that she has long kept hidden as she remembers her days at Angelfield, the now burnt-out estate that was her childhood home. Margaret carefully records Miss Winter’s account and finds herself more and more deeply immersed in the strange and troubling story.

Both women will have to confront their pasts and the weight of family secrets… and the ghosts that haunt them still.

Why do I want to read this?

I’ve had The Thirteenth Tale on my to-read shelf for a few years already, and I still very much want to read it. I’ve heard great things, both from book reviewers and from friends who have read it and recommended it.

I always love books about books, and this novel about a novelist, a biographer, and the uncovering of mysteries and secrets, sounds like something I’d really enjoy. I think I need to bump this one up closer to the top of the TBR list.

Happy Thanksgiving week to one and all! And may all your bookish fantasies come true!

Quick note to Wishlist Wednesday bloggers: Come on back to Bookshelf Fantasies for Flashback Friday! Join me in celebrating the older gems hidden away on our bookshelves. See the introductory post for more details, and come back this Friday to add your flashback favorites!

The Monday agenda

Posted in The Monday Check-In by

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.

The head cold that had been bouncing around my house earlier this week finally caught up with me and did serious damage to my scheduled reading time. Mostly better now, so it’s time to dive back in. What’s on the agenda for this week?

From last week:

Tell The Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt: Such a lovely book. My review is here.

The Red House by Mark Haddon: I just couldn’t finish it, despite giving it my best college try. Find out why here.

A Trail of Fire by Diana Gabaldon: Joy! Bliss! A new Diana Gabaldon book! My reaction is here.

The kiddo and I finished Half Magic by Edward Eager, always a delight. Somehow I missed out on this one during my own childhood, but have now had the pleasure of enjoying it with two of my children.

Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon (group re-read): Going strong, getting close to the end.

And this week’s new agenda:

I’m about half-way through with Seating Arrangements by Maggie Shipstead, which is quite a fun read.

Next up: I must make some serious headway on the stack of new YA novels I’ve borrowed from the library. I’m planning to start with a sequel: Because It Is My Blood by Gabrielle Zevin, book two in the Birthright series. I’ve enjoyed a few of her books previously, including the first Birthright book, All These Things I’ve Done. I’m looking forward to this one. If I have time for one more book, then I’ll start Dare Me by Megan Abbott, which was one of my recent Wishlist Wednesday picks.

I am absolutely committing myself to starting Doc by Mary Doria Russell by the end of Thanksgiving weekend, so I’ll have enough time to read, digest (the book, not my Thanksgiving meal — although perhaps that too), and come up with some thoughtful observations before my book group meets to discuss it in early December.

My son and I have just started Magic By The Lake by Edward Eager, a follow-up to Half Magic. So much fun!

Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon: Chapters 66 and 67 this week, I think. I’d better check the group reading calendar — for all I know, we may be on hiatus for Thanksgiving.

Let’s give thanks for all the wonderful books out there just waiting to be read!

So many book, so little time…

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

Wishlist Wednesday

Posted in Wishlist Wednesday by

And now, for this week’s Wishlist Wednesday…

The concept is to post about one book from our wish lists that we can’t wait to read. Want to play? Here’s how:

  • Follow Pen to Paper as host of the meme.
  • Please consider adding the blog hop button to your blog somewhere, so others can find it easily and join in too! Help spread the word! The code will be at the bottom of the post under the linky.
  • Pick a book from your wishlist that you are dying to get to put on your shelves.
  • Do a post telling your readers about the book and why it’s on your wishlist.
  • Add your blog to the linky at the bottom of the post at Pen to Paper.
  • Put a link back to pen to paper (http://vogue-pentopaper.blogspot.com) somewhere in your post.
  • Visit the other blogs and enjoy!

My Wishlist Wednesday book is:

great & terrible beauty

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray

From the Random House website:

Gemma Doyle, sixteen and proud, must leave the warmth of her childhood home in India for the rigid Spence Academy, a cold finishing school outside of London, followed by a stranger who bears puzzling warnings. Using her sharp tongue and agile mind, she navigates the stormy seas of friendship with high-born daughters and her roommate, a plain scholarship case. As Gemma discovers that her mother’s death may have an otherworldly cause, and that she herself may have innate powers, Gemma is forced to face her own frightening, yet exciting destiny . . . if only she can believe in it.

Why do I want to read this?

I’ve become quite a fan of Libba Bray over the past few years. I adored her newest novel, The Diviners, and really enjoyed Beauty Queens and Going Bovine as well. Somehow, I missed out on reading her first novel, A Great and Terrible Beauty, and its two follow-up books, Rebel Angels and The Sweet Far Thing.

To be honest, were this not written by Libba Bray, I’m not sure I’d be drawn to it. Victorian era boarding school novels don’t necessarily call to me… but I’m willing to give it a whirl.

Have you read the Gemma Doyle trilogy? And if so, what did you think?

Happy Wednesday!

Quick note to Wishlist Wednesday bloggers: Come on back to Bookshelf Fantasies for Flashback Friday! Join me in celebrating the older gems hidden away on our bookshelves. See the introductory post for more details, and come back this Friday to add your flashback favorites!

The Monday agenda

Posted in The Monday Check-In by

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.

So what’s on the agenda for this week?

From last week:

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater: I finished this one early in the week. Sadly, not all that impressed. (You can find out why here.)

Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple: Done! Loved it. My review is here.

Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon (group re-read): Two more engaging chapters. Almost done.

And this week’s new agenda:

I’m about 2/3 of the way through Tell The Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt. What a lovely, poignant story. I’ll finish and have a review up in the next few days.

Next, from my library pile, I plan to start either The Red House by Mark Haddon or Seating Arrangements by Maggie Shipstead.

Tiny aside: One of the benefits of having a school-aged child is learning all sorts of useful acronyms. At my son’s school (and probably lots of others), they have DEAR time — Drop Everything And Read — in which everyone stops all other work, picks a book, and reads without interruption for 15 – 20 minutes. When my older kids were that age, it was called Silent Sustained Reading (very cute to hear a 1st-grader say this, by the way).

How is this relevant to the Monday agenda? I expect to have a DEAR moment myself in the next day or two. In my case, this means that I’ll be dropping whatever else I’m reading or planning to read as soon as my copy of A Trail of Fire by Diana Gabaldon arrives. I’ll write more about this book, and why it’s a big deal, when my copy finally gets here… which should be tomorrow (fingers crossed).

My son and I are about half-way (!) through Half Magic by Edward Eager. I was pleasantly surprised when I offered him a stack of eight or nine books and he picked out this children’s classic. It’s been many years since I last read it, but it’s still thoroughly delightful.

Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon: Chapters 64 and 65 this week. Emotional high points. The end is in sight.

So many book, so little time…

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

Wishlist Wednesday

Posted in Wishlist Wednesday by

And now, for this week’s Wishlist Wednesday…

The concept is to post about one book from our wish lists that we can’t wait to read. Want to play? Here’s how:

  • Follow Pen to Paper as host of the meme.
  • Please consider adding the blog hop button to your blog somewhere, so others can find it easily and join in too! Help spread the word! The code will be at the bottom of the post under the linky.
  • Pick a book from your wishlist that you are dying to get to put on your shelves.
  • Do a post telling your readers about the book and why it’s on your wishlist.
  • Add your blog to the linky at the bottom of the post at Pen to Paper.
  • Put a link back to pen to paper (http://vogue-pentopaper.blogspot.com) somewhere in your post.
  • Visit the other blogs and enjoy!

My Wishlist Wednesday book is:

Small Damages by Beth Kephart

From Amazon:

It’s senior year, and while Kenzie should be looking forward to prom and starting college in the fall, she discovers she’s pregnant. Her determination to keep her baby is something her boyfriend and mother do not understand. So she is sent to Spain, where she will live out her pregnancy, and her baby will be adopted by a Spanish couple. No one will ever know.

Alone and resentful in a foreign country, Kenzie is at first sullen and difficult. But as she gets to know Estela, the stubborn old cook, and Esteban, the mysterious young man who cares for the horses, she begins to open her eyes, and her heart, to the beauty that is all around her, and inside her. Kenzie realizes she has some serious choices to make–choices about life, love, and home.

Lyrically told in a way that makes the heat, the colors, and the smells of Spain feel alive, Small Damages is a feast for the heart and the soul, and a coming-of-age novel not easily forgotten.

Why do I want to read this?

I remember reading about this book when it was released this past summer. The reviews were overwhelmingly positive, praising both the lovely writing and the quality of the story. I’m always fond of young adult fiction, and it’s nice to see a good YA novel released that’s set in the here and now — no supernatural forces, no unearthly creatures, no natural disasters, no dystopian governments. Just the story of a girl faced with tough decisions, having to figure out who she is, what matters, and what she wants.

Confession: This is one Wishlist Wednesday book that I actually own already. I picked this up a couple of months ago (thank you, Ebay!), but somehow I managed to lose track of it until this week. So, I solemnly swear, once I make my way through my huge tower of library books, that this will be next on my to-read list.

Happy Wednesday!

Quick note to Wishlist Wednesday bloggers: Come on back to Bookshelf Fantasies for Flashback Friday! Join me in celebrating the older gems hidden away on our bookshelves. See the introductory post for more details, and come back this Friday to add your flashback favorites!

The Monday agenda

Posted in The Monday Check-In by

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.

Hurray for a sun-filled weekend, perfect for sitting on the back porch with a book firmly in hand. So what’s on the agenda for this week?

From last week:

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn: Done! Wow, what a wild ride that was. My review is here.

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater: Just started this one yesterday… reserving judgement for now.

Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon (group re-read): Great chapters, with summaries written by yours truly. It’s a nice bit of validation when one’s chapter summaries provoke a good discussion. Yet another reason why I love my online book group.

And this week’s new agenda:

I should be done with The Raven Boys in the next day or two.

I managed to come home with a fresh stack of library books again this weekend. Why do I always feel like I’m playing catch-up? Or maybe it’s more like Beat the Clock — can I read all of these books before time runs out?

Next up will be either Where’d You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple or Tell The Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt.

My son and I have made great progress on the book we started last week, and should be ready for something new in the next couple of days. I’m thinking Ella Enchanted or From The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler — but he may have a different opinion entirely.

Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon: Chapters 62 and 63 this week. We’re within 100 pages of the end!

So many book, so little time…

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

Wishlist Wednesday

Posted in Wishlist Wednesday by

And now, for this week’s Wishlist Wednesday…

The concept is to post about one book from our wish lists that we can’t wait to read. Want to play? Here’s how:

  • Follow Pen to Paper as host of the meme.
  • Please consider adding the blog hop button to your blog somewhere, so others can find it easily and join in too! Help spread the word! The code will be at the bottom of the post under the linky.
  • Pick a book from your wishlist that you are dying to get to put on your shelves.
  • Do a post telling your readers about the book and why it’s on your wishlist.
  • Add your blog to the linky at the bottom of the post at Pen to Paper.
  • Put a link back to pen to paper (http://vogue-pentopaper.blogspot.com) somewhere in your post.
  • Visit the other blogs and enjoy!

My Wishlist Wednesday book is:

Dare Me by Megan Abbott

From Goodreads:

Addy Hanlon has always been Beth Cassidy’s best friend and trusted lieutenant. Beth calls the shots and Addy carries them out, a long-established order of things that has brought them to the pinnacle of their high-school careers. Now they’re seniors who rule the intensely competitive cheer squad, feared and followed by the other girls — until the young new coach arrives.

Cool and commanding, an emissary from the adult world just beyond their reach, Coach Colette French draws Addy and the other cheerleaders into her life. Only Beth, unsettled by the new regime, remains outside Coach’s golden circle, waging a subtle but vicious campaign to regain her position as “top girl” — both with the team and with Addy herself.

Then a suicide focuses a police investigation on Coach and her squad. After the first wave of shock and grief, Addy tries to uncover the truth behind the death — and learns that the boundary between loyalty and love can be dangerous terrain.

The raw passions of girlhood are brought to life in this taut, unflinching exploration of friendship, ambition, and power. Award-winning novelist Megan Abbott, writing with what Tom Perrotta has hailed as “total authority and an almost desperate intensity,” provides a harrowing glimpse into the dark heart of the all-American girl.

Why do I want to read this?

Cheer squads and high school power trips are not normally my thing. However, Dare Me has gotten exceptionally positive reviews. As the New York Times reviewer wrote:

Sounds terrible, right? But don’t let Abbott fool you. “Dare Me,” her sixth novel, is subversive stuff. It’s “Heathers” meets “Fight Club” good. Abbott pulls it all off with a fresh, nervy voice, and a plot brimming with the jealousy and betrayal you’d expect from a bunch of teenage girls.

And from Entertainment Weekly:

Dare Me is billed by its publisher as a Fight Club for girls, but calling them ”girls” might be underestimating the binge-drinking, lunch-vomiting, social-climbing queen bees in this dark high school thriller. Megan Abbott’s young heroines are cheerleaders, but they’re really more like teenage gladiators.

I’m intrigued. Cheerleaders as gladiators, with a dash of Heathers? Excuse the cliché, but… bring it on.

Quick note to Wishlist Wednesday bloggers: Come on back to Bookshelf Fantasies for Flashback Friday! Join me in celebrating the older gems hidden away on our bookshelves. See the introductory post for more details, and come back this Friday to add your flashback favorites!

The Monday agenda

Posted in The Monday Check-In by

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.

Nothing like the home team playing in (AND SWEEPING) the World Series to seriously interfere with one’s reading agenda! (and I’m not normally a baseball fan at all… but ya gotta go with the flow). Back to the books! What’s on the agenda for this week?

From last week:

The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell: I finished my re-read of this beautiful book. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of it.

I finally got a chance to attack my pile of library books. First up: Breed by Chase Novak. A great choice for pre-Halloween reading — boy, is this a disturbing book!

Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon (group re-read): Another couple of very good chapters.

And this week’s new agenda:

I should be done with Breed either today or tomorrow, assuming I can stomach it.

Next up: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. Finally! I’m hoping to get this one read before it’s due back at the library next weekend.

And after that? One of two young adult novels waiting for my attention: Either The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater or Because It Is My Blood by Gabrielle Zevin.

My son and I have started a new kids’ book by Eva Ibbotson. So far, so good! He does tend to bail on books after a few chapters, so the fact that we’ve gotten about a third of the way through it already is a good sign.

Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon: Chapters 60 and 61 this week, and it’s my turn to write chapter summaries for our group re-read. Must put on my thinking cap!

So many book, so little time…

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