As the holiday season is upon us, I’m finishing the year — as I end each year — reading Dickens. This year A Christmas Carol is my 50th book read, which is my Goodreads goal for 2024. My God! It’s no wonder I haven’t written much in the past few months! Nearly a book a week. Whew!! I’ll post the entire list next week.

I’ve read and enjoyed nearly all the books I read this past year and came across several of the year’s best as part of an amazing book club. Plus, the list holds many by Indie authors, of course.

If you have not read A Christmas Carol, I urge you to do so or at least I hope you enjoy the above excerpt. In the words of Scrooge’s nephew, “Christmas had never put a scrap of gold or silver in my pocket but I believe it had done me good, and will do me good; and I say, God bless it!”

A few favorite shots from last week in NYC 🍎
Landing JFK
New York Public Library
Amazing Pizza
Strawberry Fields
The Dakota from Central Park
Times Square
Why my feet hurt — but just a little
Katz Deli — had to ignore the line around the block & visit x2
911 Memorial
Sabrett’s Dogs

Visiting NYC. Have never been so it’s about time. I have a few sites in mind — will likely hit the subway hence the meme 🤣— and looking forward to wandering a bit while appearing to know exactly where I’m going. First stop today the NYC Library on 5th Ave 📚 If you know of coffee shoppes or cafes in the Murray Hill area of Manhattan, please do let me know 🍎

#nyc #themetropolitanmuseumofart #thedakota #rockafellercenter #nyclibrary #manhattan  

With November half gone, I’m just now posting my October reads. Only read four, same as in September. My excuse is that my brain is finally cooling off after our hellishly hot Arizona summer.

Two are by Janet Evanovich whom I have stated is my go-to when I want an easy, enjoyable and usually funny read. Enjoyed them both.

Tough Cookie was in the bunch and I haven’t read many in the Goldie-the-caterer series. I must admit that this one tried my patience a bit. It took me too long a while to get into the story and the plot dragged through the first third of the book. Near the end, Davidson had the heroine flashing some wild self-defense that was largely not Goldie behavior, in my humble opinion. Oh, well.

The serious choice last month was The Women by Kristin Hannah, about gutsy combat nurses caring for the wounded in Viet Nam. If you have not read this book, you must and that’s all you need to know.

The story made me grateful to have paid my respects at the Viet Nam Veterans Memorial in D.C. soon after its installation during a work-related trip to our capitol city.

My reaction included a tearful, disturbed response to the rows and rows of names that seemed to continue ceaselessly, causing concern from younger colleagues who accompanied me. As much as I tried, it was hard to help them understand my sadness.

Read the book — which revers the soldiers, but also the nurses who put their lives at risk to help them.

Stay tuned for November’s choices.

Come visit my table (and dozens of other vendors too!) this Saturday, Nov 16, at the RR Craft Fair, from 9-1pm. We’ll be in the Hermosa Ballroom and I will have copies of my four mystery novels for sale as well as info about upcoming projects, like maybe a prequel to the City Streets trilogy and as scary as it sounds, a memoir 😳

My September reads.

All four were new-to-me authors and all four have deep cultural elements.

Two (Peters & Hirahara) were book club picks and the other two were recommended by my sister (Penny) and the other (Sepetys) by a friend, both of whom are librarians.

All were brilliant! I tried to rate them 1-4 but it’s impossible.

The Penny is first in a long series that I will continue enjoying one by one.

Highly recommend each of these! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

theberrypickers #amandapeters #stilllife #louisepenny #clarkanddivision #naomihirahara #Imustbetrayyou #rutasepetys

My friend Carolyn lent me ‘I Must Betray You’ by Ruta Sepetys. A gripping tale based on surviving the brutal Ceausescu regime in Romania. A young man, Cristian, is an aspiring writer and poet. Life is a torment due to extreme state-sponsored poverty, excessive control, and fostered distrust of everyone one encounters. At his peril, Cristian chooses to listen to his conscience. Two-thirds in and already highly recommend it.

As an Indie author, reviews can be few and far between, so when one rolls in we celebrate! Glad you enjoyed it & thanks so much to my awesome readers!!

#amazon #swansong #indieauthor #thriller

Hello fellow readers & happy Sept 1st. In August, I finished writing the prequel rough draft (finally!) and managed to mark four books off the old tbr list.

I’ve read Jonathan Kellerman’s books over four decades and adore his MC. Alex Delaware, a child psychologist, helps his best friend, Lieutenant Milo Sturgis, solve murders. As a former psychologist, Kellerman knows his character. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Mad Honey is my first by Jodi Picoult (with a writing partner) and I happened to find it at the RR library. A single mom who makes her living as a beekeeper sees her life fall apart when her teenaged son is accused of a crime. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

When I want something light and funny I gravitate to the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich. Stephanie, the reluctant bail bondsman from New Jersey, always makes me laugh aloud along with her cohorts Lula, Morelli, Ranger and Grandma. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon is the Sept choice for book club so I needed to get on it. Picked it right up at the Eloy Library — Thanks, Jane! Yeah! Intense historical fiction set in late 18th century Maine about a midwife, her family, and her community as she uses her medical expertise to solve a crime. Very well written. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Now on to September!