It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? a place to meet and share what you have been and are about to be reading over the week. It’s a great post to organize yourself. It’s an opportunity to visit, comment, and add to your groaning TBR pile! So welcome in everyone. This meme started on J Kaye’s blog and then was hosted by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at The Book Date.
Jen Vincent, Teach Mentor Texts, and Kellee of Unleashing Readers decided to give It’s Monday! a kid-lit focus. If you read and review books in children’s literature – picture books, chapter books, middle-grade novels, young adult novels, or anything in those genres – join them.
Personal:
- Halloween was wonderful. Miss B went to a party, which was huge for her. She suffers from severe social anxiety and getting her out of the house is usually a chore. But since she has started her anti-anxiety medication, she has gotten a lot better. BK and I took Miss R and Mr. Z out trick or treating. There is one street where everyone goes. They both had fun. But, Miss R told us that she doesn’t think she wants to go next year (cries).
- The new kitten is doing well. But, we think she might have to get her left eye removed. We had taken her in because she wasn’t opening it (were given antibiotic eye drops). But, now that it is open, it looks like half of her pupil is grey. Plus, we noticed she can’t really see if anyone is coming from that side. She has a vet appointment this afternoon and I will bring it up with the vet.
- Speaking of my cats, we are taking Snickers (our almost 8 year old cat) in on Thursday. Everyone (from BK to Miss R) has noticed she has lost a lot of weight. Miss R and BK also have noticed a couple of lumps on her. So, I asked for a tech to look her over when we bring her on Thursday. My biggest fear is that she has cancer and we’ll have to put her to sleep. It will destroy Miss R (Snickers is her cat).
- I have been running back and forth between Dr appointments for myself and the kids, dentist appointments for myself and Mr. Z, and vet appointments. I am looking forward to next week, where I have nothing scheduled!
- I got a couple of new things over the past couple of weeks. BK and I upgraded our bed to king sized. It is glorious!! We gave our queen to Miss B and gave Miss R the frame that Miss B was using. The mattress is being stored (for Miss B in case she goes away to college).
- We also got new couches. They are gray, have cup holders (and on the sofa, a tray that comes down), and recline. But, most importantly, they both have storage areas and USB ports for phone chargers. That means…no more lost TV remotes and we have extra charging stations.
Reading
- I am still catching up on my reading from when I had COVID. I am not behind by much (2 books). I did a ton of reading this past weekend (testing the new couches out…haha).
- I am very behind with my reviews, though, for the same reason (stupid COVID). Thankfully, I have two indie reviews to write before I am on 2 weeks of just NetGalley reviews. I am hoping to catch up by Wednesday or Thursday with them.
What I am Reading Now:
One girl murdered. Another one missing. And a medical examiner desperate to uncover the truth in the latest Black Harbor mystery by acclaimed author Hannah Morrissey.
On a bone-chilling October night, Medical Examiner Rowan Winthorp investigates the death of her daughter’s best friend. Hours later, the tragedy hits even closer to home when she makes a devastating discovery—her daughter, Chloe, is gone. But, not without a trace.
A morbid mosaic of clues forces Rowan and her husband to question how deeply they really knew their daughter. As they work closely to peel back the layers of this case, they begin to unearth disturbing details about Chloe and her secret transgressions…details that threaten to tear them apart.
Amidst the noise of navigating her newfound grief and reconciling the sins of her past, an undeniable fact rings true for Rowan: karma has finally come to collect.
Books I plan on reading later this week:
A woman’s obsession with her new boyfriend’s dead ex-girlfriend fuels this sharp and honest debut novel, a send-up of modern dating and love
My fingers itched to put his name into the search bar. Once I’d found him, I’d have the cheat sheet.
After fleeing to Melbourne in the wake of a breakup, all Ana has to show for herself is an unfulfilling job at an overly enthusiastic tech start-up and one particularly questionable dating app experience. Then she meets Evan. Charming, kind, and financially responsible, Evan is a complete aberration from her usual type; Ana feels like she has finally awoken from a long dating nightmare.
As much as she tries to let their burgeoning relationship unfold IRL, Ana just can’t resist the urge to find Evan online. When she discovers that his previous girlfriend, Emily, died unexpectedly in a hit-and-run less than a year ago, Ana begins to worry she’s living in the shadow of his lost love. Soon she’s obsessively comparing herself to Emily, trawling through her dormant social media accounts in the hope of understanding her better. Online, Evan and Emily’s life together looked perfect–but just how perfect was it? And why won’t he talk about it?
Perceptive and original, full of both pathos and humor, Search History explores the contradictions and uncertainties of twenty-first century romance. Ana’s journey down the Internet rabbit hole of modern dating asks the question: Which is our “true” self–the one we show to the world online, or the one we keep to ourselves?
An epic story of love, betrayal, and art that spans decades, through the horrors of World War II to 21st century America, inspired by an actual porcelain factory in Dachau.
Two lovers caught at the crossroads of history.
A daughter’s search for the truth.
Germany, 1929. At a festive gathering of young bohemians in Weimar, two young artists, Max, a skilled Jewish architect, and Bettina, a celebrated avant-garde painter, are drawn to each other and begin a whirlwind romance. Their respective talents transport them to the dazzling lights of Berlin, but this bright beginning is quickly dimmed by the rising threat of Nazism. Max is arrested and sent to the concentration camp at Dachau where only his talent at making exquisite porcelain figures stands between him and seemingly certain death. Desperate to save her lover, Bettina risks everything to rescue him and escape Germany.
America, 1993. Clara, Bettina’s daughter, embarks on a journey to trace her roots and determine the identity of her father, a secret her mother has kept from her for reasons she’s never understood. Clara’s quest to piece together the puzzle of her origins transports us back in time to the darkness of Nazi Germany, where life is lived on a razor’s edge and deception and death lurk around every corner. Survival depends on strength, loyalty, and knowing true friend from hidden foe. And as Clara digs further, she begins to question why her mother was so determined to leave the truth of her harrowing past behind…
The Porcelain Maker is a powerful novel of enduring love and courage in the face of appalling brutality as a daughter seeks to unlock the mystery of her past.
