Someone Else’s Bucket List by Amy T Matthews – #BookReview – #siblingfiction

Book Blurb:

A bingeworthy, bittersweet, sisterly P.S. I Love You for the digital age, Someone Else’s Bucket List follows shy Jodie Boyd after the untimely death of her outgoing, hugely successful Instagram influencer sister, Bree—and Bree’s last wish: that Jodie complete her bucket list.  Instructed by a series of videos left by Bree, Jodie takes on the terrifying challenge as the world watches. The venture will not only change Jodie’s life, but save the family—and possibly others—from staggering medical debt. Perfect for fans of Josie Silver and Rebecca Serle.

My dying wish is for you to finish my bucket list. I refuse to die without knowing this list will be completed. And I refuse to die without knowing my family will be okay . . .

Someone Else's Bucket List by Amy T MatthewsJodie Boyd is a shy and anxious twenty-something, completely unsure what to do with her life. Her older sister, Bree, is an adventurous, globe-trotting, hugely successful Instagram influencer with more than a million followers. She’s the most alive person Jodie knows—up until Bree’s unfathomable, untimely death from Leukemia. The Boyds are devastated, not to mention overwhelmed with medical debt. But Bree thought of everything—and soon, Jodie is shocked by a new post on her sister’s Instagram feed.

The first of many Bree recorded in secret, the post foretells a jaw-dropping challenge for Jodie: to complete Bree’s very public bucket list. From “Fly over Antarctica,” to “Perform a walk-on cameo in a Broadway musical,” if Jodie does it—and keeps all Bree’s followers—a corporate sponsor will pay off the staggering medical debt. If she gains followers, the Boyds won’t be the only ones to benefit. It’s crazy. It’s terrifying. It’s impossible, immoral even, to refuse. So, despite the whole world watching, Jodie plunges in, never imagining that in death, her sister will teach her how to live, and that the last item on the list—“Fall in love”—may just prove to be the easiest.

His Review:

Bree had her life all figured out. She had prepared a bucket list of 100 things she wanted to do before she died. Climb Mount Everest, run with the bulls, learn martial arts in Brazil; yes, it was all planned out. Then, she went into the hospital with a mild case of pneumonia! What did the doctor mean, she had leukemia?! She still had too much to do on her list!

Someone Else's Bucket List by Amy T MatthewsJodie is living a predictable life until her sister’s diagnosis. She and both of her parents are working two or three jobs each to pay off the medical bills. Ryan Air steps in and offers to not only pay off the bills but help Jodie complete her sister’s bucket list. Jodie agrees to complete the list and embarks on a planned promotional trip to help rid the family of the massive debt. Jodie is less than thrilled with her commitment.

CE WilliamsThe author skillfully works through the minefield that is the endeavor to complete Bree’s bucket list. Jodie ruefully approaches each task with cameras and cell phones recording her every move. The entire task becomes morbid at times and the people tasked with recording the saga are relentless. I applaud Ms. Matthews and her rendering of this experience. It is a unique contemporary tale, gripping and entertaining, easy to become engaged. 4.5 stars – CE Williams

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book. Currently on pre-order.

 

Rosepoint Publishing: Four point Five Stars 4 1/2 stars

 

Add to Goodreads

Book Details:

Genre: Sibling Fiction, Women’s Friendship Fiction, Contemporary Women’s Fiction
Publisher: Kensington Books
ASIN: B0BFC6RJFV
Print Length:
Publication Date: May 23, 2023
Source: Publisher and NetGalley
Title Link: Someone Else’s Bucket List [Amazon]

 

Amy T Matthews - authorThe Author: Amy T. Matthews is a novelist and an academic. Her new book Someone Else’s Bucket List will be out May 2023 – it’s a tear-jerking, heartwarming story of sisterly love. Amy’s first novel, End of the Night Girl, won the Adelaide Festival Unpublished Manuscript Award and was long-listed for The Australian/Vogel literary award, and short-listed for the Nita B Kibble Dobbie Award and the Colin Roderick Award. She has published short stories in collections including Best Australian Stories and co-edited three collections of short stories and poetry. Amy is Senior Lecturer and Discipline Lead in Creative Writing at Flinders University, Deputy Director of Assemblage Centre for Creative Arts, and a former Chair and long serving board member of Writers SA; she is also an Associate Member of the JM Coetzee Centre for Creative Practice.

©CE Williams – V Williams

Enjoy Your Sunday

The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill – #Audiobook Review – #amateursleuthmysteries

The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill

(Amazon) Editors Pick Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense 

Book Blurb:

The ornate reading room at the Boston Public Library is quiet—until the tranquility is shattered by a woman’s terrified scream. Security guards take charge immediately, instructing everyone inside to stay put until the threat is identified and contained. While they wait for the all-clear, four strangers, who’d happened to sit at the same table, pass the time in conversation, and friendships are struck. Each has his or her own reasons for being in the reading room that morning—it just happens that one is a murderer. 

Award-winning author Sulari Gentill delivers a sharply thrilling listen with this unexpectedly twisty literary adventure that examines the complicated nature of friendship and reveals that words can be the most treacherous weapons of all.

My Review:

This novel was the library book club choice for October-December. I opted for the audiobook version—perhaps that was the problem as this is a well-acclaimed book according to Amazon.

The premise is the closed-room murder that occurs in the reading room of the enormous Boston Public Library where the quiet is disturbed by an obviously terrified scream. Four strangers occupying the same table are instructed to wait until the origin of the scream is identified and the space given the all-clear. Of course, that doesn’t come quickly, given that the scream is the victim’s last sound, and the four manage to bond.

Each of the four is then examined. Ad nauseum. I wanted to get into this book as it was, after all, voted the read for the quarter. If it was a murder mystery it moved too slowly for me. If it was a character study, someone missed the boat on making at least one of them appealing.

The Woman in the Library by Sulari GentillThe author has a quiet way of subtly introducing characters to whom you need to pay attention. Unfortunately, for me, I found some of the introductions tedious and lost interest. A story within a story, I didn’t care for the way this one was handled though I’ve read and enjoyed others of the same ilk. One, the author writing the mystery story doesn’t wholly jive with what’s concurrently happening and, two, she is corresponding to Leo who responds with critiques leaving me scratching my head as to why it was included.

I sighed with relief when I sensed the coming conclusion and assumed it’d clarify the whole picture, but, alas, it did not and left me wondering what it was I’d missed. I previously read Where There’s a Will by this author in January and noted occasions where the plot slowed, but then something would happen that would spark reinterest. Sadly, not so much here.

I downloaded a copy of this audiobook from my local well-stocked library. These are my honest thoughts.

Book Details:

Genre: Amateur Sleuth Mysteries, Women Sleuth Mysteries, Amateur Sleuths
Publisher: Dreamscape Media, LLC
ASIN: B09VCVM3BT
Listening Length: 8 hrs 58 mins
Narrator: Katherine Littrell
Publication Date: June 9, 2022
Source: Local Library (Audiobook Selections)
Title Link: The Woman in the Library [Amazon]
Barnes & Noble
KoboAdd to Goodreads

Rosepoint Publishing: Three Stars three stars

 

Sulari Gentill-authorThe Author: After setting out to study astrophysics, graduating in law and then abandoning her legal career to write books, Sulari now grows French black truffles on her farm in the foothills of the Snowy Mountains of NSW. Sulari is author of The Rowland Sinclair Mystery series, historical crime fiction novels (eight in total) set in the 1930s. Sulari’s A Decline in Prophets (the second book in the series) was the winner of the Davitt Award for Best Adult Crime Fiction 2012. She was also shortlisted for Best First Book (A Few Right Thinking Men) for the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize 2011. Paving the New Road was shortlisted for another Davitt in 2013.

[Goodreads] Sulari lives with her husband, Michael, and their boys, Edmund and Atticus, on a small farm in Batlow where she grows French Black Truffles and refers to her writing as “work” so that no one will suggest she get a real job.

Website
http://www.sularigentill.com
Twitter
sularigentill

©2022 V Williams

happy thursday!

Goodreads Choice Awards–The Best of the Winners and Losers 2022

Goodreads Choice Awards - 2022

 

How well did you do with your nominees in the annual Goodreads Choice Awards for 2022? I always participate in voting, searching for those books I’ve read and then seeing the final winner count in my choices. It’s always a surprise.

This year I was happy to note I chose more favorites. I don’t read such a wide variety that I have choices in every (17) categories.  I read humor, memoir and biography, as well as a few nonfiction and others, but my favorites, of course, are Mystery & Thriller, Historical Fiction, Fiction, and Debut novels.

The links below are to the Goodreads listings in those categories. Those with a thumbnail of the cover also have a link to my review.

Goodreads Choice Awards

2022 Goodreads Choice Awards

Nominees on my shelves:

Best Fiction

The Winners by Fredrik BackmanThe Winners by Fredrik Backman

This Time Tomorrow by Emma StraubThis Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub

 

Lucy by the Sea by Elizabeth StroutLucy by the Sea by Elizabeth Strout

 

 

The Winner:

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevil

… 

Best Mystery & Thriller

The Book of Cold Cases by Simone St JamesThe Book of Cold Cases by Simone St James

Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllisterWrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister

 

The Night Shift by Alex Finlay  The Night Shift by Alex Finlay

The Winner:

The Maid by Nita Prose (This is a mystery/thriller??)

… 

Best Historical Fiction

Lessons in chemistry by Bonnie GarmusLessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

The Last House on the Street by Diane ChamberlainThe Last House on the Street by Diane Chamberlain

 

The Winner:

Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Best Memoir & Autobiography

Funny Farm by Laurie ZaleskiFunny Farm by Laurie Zaleski

The Winner:

I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy

… 

Best Debut

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie GarmusLessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

The Winner:

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

 

Yes, this year I did choose a novel that ultimately made #1 this year, Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus nominated in both the debut and historical fiction categories, winning Best Debut with 64,107 votes. Also, last year I enjoyed six nominees in three categories, while this year I had three in two categories (best fiction and mystery and thriller), two in historical fiction and one each in memoir & autobiography, and debut for a total of ten in my five categories.

 

So I have to ask:

  • How many of the above did you read?
  • In how many different categories do you participate?
  • Do you look for reading ideas from the Goodreads winners?
  • Will you be choosing one of the 2023 trending books next year?
  • And, lastly—have you gone to any movies or viewed series based on one of your choices?

I’ve always appreciated Goodreads for the extensive resource they are. In the past, I participated often with Giveaways until they changed the entry to land in the “Want to Read” column. Yes, I did, but I didn’t want it accumulating in that column particularly if I didn’t win the book. I recently went through the column, some entries dating back years, and deleted them.

Now, besides the forums in which I’m a participant, I do mine their New Releases section under “Browse” and often crosscheck those against the offerings in NetGalley. Are you feeling lucky? Well, are you?

How many ways do you use Goodreads?

©2022 V Williams

Hemlock Hollow by Culley Holderfield – #BookReview – #southernfiction

Book Blurb:

Hemlock Hollow by Culley HolderfieldCaroline McAlister, college professor and life-long skeptic, is reeling from the loss of her father and her marriage. Her once promising career has come to a standstill. When her father bequeaths the family cabin to her, it comes with a ghost who haunted her childhood. When she discovers a century-old journal in the attic, she awakens the voice of Carson Quinn. The journal reveals Carson’s love for the same hollow that enthralled Caroline growing up. A little sleuthing uncovers rumors that the kind, curious boy in the journal grew up to murder his brother. Caroline plunges into the project of exonerating Carson, only to find herself in the throes of a personal past she’s spent her life trying to avoid. Hemlock Hollow is about how we forever haunt the places we love and how they haunt us in return.

His Review:

Love is sometimes a cruel and hypnotizing mistress. Carson Quinn and Marinda fell in love at first sight. Carson was tongue-tied every time he got around her but she kissed him once and the rest was history. They became inseparable and a long-loving future was surely theirs.

Taylor, Carson’s older brother, also took a shine to Ms. Marinda! There was no question as to who she was interested in, but Taylor was never far out of the picture. Then Carson went away to college and became a revered educator and publicist. Completing his education, he came back to Hickory Nut Gap to marry the girl he loves and is betrothed to.

Hemlock Hollow by Culley HolderfieldHer parents hold him back and his brother cannot be found. He discovers Taylor has taken his place with Marinda. Carson leaves his beloved Hickory Nut Gap.

The tale weaves a lovely setting of Henderson County, North Carolina, and the conflict that was the “War of Northern Aggression.” That is the title the South has named the American Civil War. Carson becomes an officer in the northern army because he and his family do not believe in secession.

Carson does not return to North Carolina for over ten years. Taylor has won the girl and totally split the family. There is no peace in Hickory Nut Gap after this revelation. He and Marinda wind up living within a mile of each other but never talk or share their existence.

CE WilliamsThis book is well written and engenders many of the wild and lovely places that is North Carolina. The description of the woods, mountains, and hollows paints a gorgeous picture of an enchanting country. Read and enjoy this tale! 4.5 stars – CE Williams

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book.

Rosepoint Publishing: Four point Five Stars 4 1/2 stars

Add to Goodreads

Book Details:

Genre: Southern United States Fiction, Southern Fiction, Historical Mysteries
Publisher: Regal House Publishing
ASIN: B09MSLL1KJ
Print Length: 303 pages
Publication Date: December 6, 2022
Source: Publisher and NetGalley
Title Link: Hemlock Hollow [Amazon]
Barnes & Noble
Kobo

Culley Holderfield - authorThe Author: Culley Holderfield learned to love storytelling on the porch of a cabin in the mountains of North Carolina. After graduating from UNC-Chapel Hill, he ventured to South America, Africa, and Europe. When not writing or working in community development finance, he spends his time hiking, paddling, and wandering the outdoors. His short stories and poetry have appeared in a variety of publications. Hemlock Hollow is his debut novel. He lives in Durham, NC.

©2022 – CE Williams – V Williams

Happy Holidays--Have a great Sunday!

Keep Sharp: Build a Better Brain at Any Age by Sanjay Gupta – #Audiobook Review – #medicalnonfiction

Keep Sharp by Dr Sanjay Gupta

Editors' pick Best Nonfiction 

Book Blurb:

Keep your brain young, healthy, and sharp with this science-driven guide to protecting your mind from decline by neurosurgeon and CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

Throughout our life, we look for ways to keep our minds sharp and effortlessly productive. Now, globetrotting neurosurgeon Dr. Sanjay Gupta offers “the book all of us need, young and old” (Walter Isaacson, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Code Breaker) with insights from top scientists all over the world, whose cutting-edge research can help you heighten and protect brain function and maintain cognitive health at any age.

Keep Sharp debunks common myths about aging and mental decline, explores whether there’s a “best” diet or exercise regimen for the brain, and explains whether it’s healthier to play video games that test memory and processing speed, or to engage in more social interaction. Discover what we can learn from “super-brained” people who are in their eighties and nineties with no signs of slowing down—and whether there are truly any benefits to drugs, supplements, and vitamins. Dr. Gupta also addresses brain disease, particularly Alzheimer’s, answers all your questions about the signs and symptoms, and shows how to ward against it and stay healthy while caring for a partner in cognitive decline. He likewise provides you with a personalized twelve-week program featuring practical strategies to strengthen your brain every day.

Keep Sharp is the “must-read owner’s manual” (Arianna Huffington) you’ll need to keep your brain young and healthy regardless of your age!

My Review:

Keep Sharp by Dr Sanjay GuptaGuess I’ve never been really big on TV doctors or what they’re selling. I’m from the generation of Watkins and Fuller Brush products. Many of those old products were based on old tonics and elixirs that worked. Remember, Coca-Cola included minute amounts of cocaine up until 1929. You might have still been sick but no longer cared. (snicker)

So, I guess what I’m trying to say is that the information we’ve grown old with is still, even glaring in the face of new, improved drugs, medicines, lightning-fast tests, machines, and improved systems of care, managed to come back to the same tried and true doctrine:

Five points to work on NOW

  1. Exercise, exercise, exercise
  2. Eat right; veggies, fruit—no sugar, refined white flour, nothing fun
  3. Keep challenging yourself, brain games (forget jigsaw puzzles), and learn something new
  4. Take the time (after the exercise I guess) to relax using yoga, tai chi, or the relaxation method of your choice—no distractions
  5. Cultivate your healthy relationships, whether long-term spouse, close friends, or volunteer, join a group—get yourself out there.

“Food for Thought: The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don’t want, drink what you don’t like, and do what you’d rather not…Mark Twain”

Alzheimer’s and Dementia–is it too late?

Few have not had these themes bombarding us since the advent of television or the internet. Dr. Gupta refers us to Dr. Internet to research information on Alzheimer’s, dementia, and other degenerative problems of the brain. It’s free.

Dr. Gupta cites the guidance as being scientifically based, but there is not much new information here.  He talks extensively about Alzheimer’s and dementia. However, the bad news is that by the time you figure that out—obviously it’s in evidence—and your time for heading off the problem was possibly decades previous.

One type of glial cell, microglia, engulfs and destroys waste and toxins in a healthy brain. In Alzheimer’s, microglia fail to clear away waste, debris, and protein collections, including beta-amyloid plaques.*

Did he decide whether or not that’s an inheritable trait? Apparently, as you probably know already—they can identify the culprit cell. Does that mean the person with the evidence will have the disease? Not necessarily. It’s as clear as mud.

He talks about cognitive reserve. The big keys here are specific activities that extend to the brain functions of reasoning and problem-solving. Jigsaw puzzles don’t do that.

My Take-Away

Okay, if not anything new, having it driven home again the importance of moving, moving, moving, and learning, keeping up social contacts (that includes you, my readers), and EATING  right (duh), I’ve resolved once again to look into the Mediterranean diet. (Is this something you are doing? I’d love to hear some of your ideas for meals.) Writing these posts has provided a plethora of learning opportunities. And walking, riding our bikes in the winter? Probably not. But I’ve acquired a few exercise tools—now I need to supply the incentive.

He advises seeking sources of information that include tests and I jumped on my own (United) health insurance as I am aware they are big on health and prevention which led me to their version of “Brain Games.” Behind that is a link through AARP into “Staying Sharp” that provides a number of tests. Scary stuff! And some REAL brain tests and games. (My problem is accessing and holding the website.) Also, I discovered another great link with solid content, brainHQ, has a minimal free hook into a subscription.

Dr. Gupta narrates his own book and delivers it in a pleasant, albeit authoritative voice, often punctuating it with well-known celebrities and colleagues’ names as backup experts. I downloaded a copy of this audiobook from my local well-stocked library. You may get the same advice from myriad sources–many of which are free. These are my honest thoughts. Are you a Gupta devotee?

Book Details:

Genre: Memory Improvement, Cognitive Neuroscience & Neuropsychology, Aging & Longevity
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
ASIN: B07Z6Q5BYB
Listening Length: 10 hrs
Narrator: Sanjay Gupta MD
Publication Date: January 5, 2021
Source: Local Library (Audiobook Selections)
Title Links: Keep Sharp [Amazon]
Barnes & Noble
Kobo
Audible

Add to Goodreads

Rosepoint Publishing: Four stars 4 stars

The Author:

Dr Sanjay Gupta - author Sanjay Gupta

Born in Novi, Michigan, The United States

October 23, 1969

Website

http://www.cnn.com/CNN/anchors_reporters/gupta….

Genre

Health, Mind & BodyScience

(Librarian Note: There is more than one author with this name in the Goodreads database)
Sanjay Gupta is an American physician and a contributing CNN chief health correspondent based in Atlanta, Georgia. An assistant professor of neurosurgery at Emory University School of Medicine and associate chief of the neurosurgery service at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, he is also a frequent guest on the news program Anderson Cooper 360°. “Charity Hospital” won a 2006 Emmy Award for Outstanding Feature Story in a Regularly Scheduled Newscast. From 1997 to 1998, he served as one of fifteen White House Fellows, primarily as an advisor to Hillary Clinton. Gupta currently publishes a column in TIME magazine. He is also host of House Call with Dr Sanjay Gupta. His book Chasing Life was a New York Times and National bestseller. As of January 2009, he has been offered the position of Surgeon General of the United States in the incoming administration of President-elect Barack Obama; the final vetting is currently under way. [Goodreads]

©2022 V Williams

#ThrowbackThursday

*NIA NIH.gov/Health

Swamp Story by Dave Barry – #BookReview – #TuesdayBookBlog

Rosepoint Rating: Five Stars 5 stars

Book Blurb:

Pulitzer Prize–winning New York Times bestselling author and actual Florida Man Dave Barry returns with a Florida caper full of oddballs and more twists and turns than a snake slithering away from a gator.

Swamp Story by Dave BarryJesse Braddock is trapped in a tiny cabin deep in the Everglades with her infant daughter and her ex-boyfriend, a wannabe reality TV star who turned out to be a lot prettier on the outside than on the inside. Broke and desperate for a way out, Jesse stumbles across a long-lost treasure, which could solve all her problems—if she can figure out how to keep it. The problem is, some very bad men are also looking for the treasure, and they know Jesse has it.

Meanwhile, Ken Bortle of Bortle Brothers Bait and Beer has hatched a scheme to lure tourists to his failing store by making viral videos of the “Everglades Melon Monster.” The Monster is in fact an unemployed alcoholic newspaperman named Phil wearing a Dora the Explorer costume head. Incredibly, this plan actually works, inspiring a horde of TikTokers to swarm into the swamp in search of the monster at the same time villains are on the hunt for Jesse’s treasure. Amid this mayhem, a presidential hopeful arrives in the Everglades to start his campaign. Needless to say, it does not go as planned. In fact, nothing in this story goes as planned. This is, after all, Florida.

My Review:

What a breath of fresh air and a major hoot to boot! I love it when I can get my hands on a Dave Barry book. So much fun you can’t put it down. I also knew this one had to be shared with the CE, so his review is below.

SOOO much to write about, it’d be easy to give away too much, but by the blurb you already know it is about Jesse Braddock and her treasure discovery. She is living in a tiny Everglades cabin with egocentric Slater, a pretty boy who is the father to her infant daughter Willa. Not bad enough she is stuck here with Slater, but now he’s taken in a cohort, Kark, also not large on brains or abilities.

Meanwhile, Ken Bortle of Bortle Brothers Bait and Beer is busy hatching another hair-brained scheme to lure tourists to the long-since failed business he inherited with his brother, Brad. Only Dave Barry could develop these misfit characters as they concoct yet another fantastic idea to make their millions. The idea is so stupid, so idiotic, that it’s sure to get shut down immediately by their buddy Stu but it seems Stu likes the idea. Ken is going to attract tourists by making a video of the “Everglades Melon Monster” and they already have someone in mind to play the melon monster.

Swamp Story by Dave BarryNow it gets even more complicated: There are the bad guys out in the swamp looking for treasure and even worse guys looking for Jesse who found it. Hey, it’s Florida, the Everglades, the swamp, wild boars, alligators. Barry knows how to heap on the absurd with satirical bits of side-splitting observations, LOL analogies, and dialogue dead on to the character; the characters so real you want to either give them a hug or kick some behind. It quickly goes from crazy to wild and dangerous and hilariously tongue-in-cheek.

“That’s Buddy,” said Skeeter. “He’s my emotional support boar.”

This is a book loaded with twists, unique atmospherics, and an outrageously imaginative plot. Engaging, entertaining, and totally recommended. LOVED IT! 5 stars

His Review:

Dumb and Dumber meet the Three Stooges in this slapstick adventure in the Florida Everglades. A struggling business; Bortle Brothers Bait and Beer is trying to drive business to their store. They devise a plan to create a viral video of a “swamp monster.”

Dave Barry is a classic writer who weaves average intellect with personal avarice and jealousy. Between enjoying various illegal substances and devising a script for their story, Ken’s prime motivator is cash flow. Almost losing the store, Ken and his cohorts decide there needs to be a swamp monster that is being investigated by them. The dialogue between these individuals is absolutely hilarious as well as idiotic. A few bucks is all that it takes to motivate the participants.

The plot thickens when a young beauty stumbles across some Civil War gold hidden in Everglades National Park. She is trying to dump the father of her child who turns out to be a real dirtbag. He has already blown through her inheritance and left her nearly barefoot and penniless.

Brad is another character. He is unable to put together a coherent thought when Jesse is around and has fallen head over heels for her. He helps with her daughter while she tries to get the treasure. She is not sure who she can trust.

The video goes viral with the first installment of the search for the swamp monster. I kept laughing as I waded through the antics of the head of the Department of the Interior, the local news agencies, and the instigators. Read and laugh along with this hilarious tale. 5 stars – CE Williams

I received a complimentary review copy of this book from #Simon&Schuster and the author through @NetGalley that in no way influenced either review. These are our honest thoughts.

Definitely a #nottobemissed novel releasing next year, currently on pre-order, and our recommendation for a book that is engaging and humorously entertaining.

Add to Goodreads

Book Details:

Genre: Dark Humor, General Humorous Fiction, Humorous Fiction
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
ASIN: B0BHTPVBCY
Print Length: 320 pages
Publication Date: May 2, 2023
Source: Publisher and NetGalley

Title Link(s):

Amazon   |   Barnes & Noble  |  Kobo

Dave Barry - authorThe Author: The New York Times has pronounced Dave Barry “the funniest man in America.” But of course that could have been on a slow news day when there wasn’t much else fit to print. True, his bestselling collections of columns are legendary, but it is his wholly original books that reveal him as an American icon. Dave Barry Slept Here was his version of American history. Dave Barry Does Japan was a contribution to international peace and understanding from which Japan has not yet fully recovered. Dave Barry’s Complete Guide to Guys is among the best-read volumes in rehab centers and prisons. Raised in a suburb of New York, educated in a suburb of Philadelphia, he lives now in a suburb of Miami. He is not, as he often puts it so poetically, making this up.

Dave’s most recent books are “Best. State. Ever.: A Florida Man Defends His Homeland,” and “Lessons From Lucy: The Simple Joys of an Old, Happy Dog.” His next book, “A Field Guide To The Jewish People,” which he co-wrote with his friends Adam Mansbach and Alan Zweibel, will be published September 24. Dave is not Jewish, but Adam and Alan are, so it’s kosher.

©2022  The CE and I

The Trackers by Charles Frazier – #BookReview – #historicalfiction

Rosepoint Publishing: Five Stars 5 stars

Book Blurb:

From the New York Times bestselling author of Cold Mountain and Varina, a stunning new novel that paints a vivid portrait of life in the Great Depression

Hurtling past the downtrodden communities of Depression-era America, painter Val Welch travels westward to the rural town of Dawes, Wyoming. Through a stroke of luck, he’s landed a New Deal assignment to create a mural representing the region for their new Post Office.

The Trackers by Charles FrazierA wealthy art lover named John Long and his wife Eve have agreed to host Val at their sprawling ranch. Rumors and intrigue surround the couple: Eve left behind an itinerant life riding the rails and singing in a western swing band. Long holds shady political aspirations, but was once a WWI sniper—and his right hand is a mysterious elder cowboy, a vestige of the violent old west. Val quickly finds himself entranced by their lives.

One day, Eve flees home with a valuable painting in tow, and Long recruits Val to hit the road with a mission of tracking her down. Journeying from ramshackle Hoovervilles to San Francisco nightclubs to the swamps of Florida, Val’s search for Eve narrows, and he soon turns up secrets that could spark formidable changes for all of them.

In The Trackers, singular American writer Charles Frazier conjures up the lives of everyday people during an extraordinary period of history that bears uncanny resemblance to our own. With the keen perceptions of humanity and transcendent storytelling that have made him beloved for decades, Frazier has created a powerful and timeless new classic.

His Review:

Being the oldest child and beautiful is not always a blessing. Eve is forced out of the house in her teens when her family has too many mouths to feed and no money during the depression. The early nineteen-thirties were a very difficult time for everyone in America.

The Trackers by Charles FrazierEve got her degree in survival in the camps of the depression population and rode the rails from place to place to find work. She picked fruit in all areas of the United States until she met Mr. Long. They were soon married but she still sang in local honky-tonks and was admired by many. With her marriage, Eve was no longer struggling and moving with the seasons and the railroads.

Valentine Montgomery Welsh is hired to paint a mural in the local post office. He is introduced to the Longs and offered free rent in one of their ranch-hand cottages. Everything is going well and the mural is nearly finished when the straw boss of the ranch corners Val and asks him where Eve is. Thus follows the major adventure of the book.

Val covers all four corners of the state looking for Eve to bring her home to Mr. Long. The country is fairly lawless during the thirties and tracking a runaway is fraught with danger. Some people are happy to help Val in his search, while others would just as soon dispatch him. One of these characters is Faro who is very big and very mean. He and Val attain a truce while they scour the country looking for the missing Mrs. Eve Long.

CE WilliamsThis story is entertaining and irresistible! I was engaged both by the plot and also the ruthlessly depicted characters. Enjoy! 5 stars – CE Williams 

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book. Currently on pre-order.

Add to Goodreads

Book Details:

Genre: US Historical Fiction, Historical Literary Fiction, Small Town & Rural Fiction
Publisher: Ecco
ASIN: B0B6JSJQLH
Print Length: 320 pages
Publication Date: April 11, 2023
Source: Publisher and NetGalley
Title Link: The Trackers [Amazon]

 

Charles Frazier - authorThe Author: Charles Frazier grew up in the mountains of North Carolina and is the award-winning author of bestselling novels COLD MOUNTAIN, THIRTEEN MOONS, NIGHTWOODS, and VARINA. His latest novel, THE TRACKERS, will be released April 11, 2023 from Ecco and is available for preorder now.

©2022 CE Williams – V Williams

Rosepoint Recommended-5 Stars

Rosepoint Reviews – November Recap—Hello Holidays!—You’ve Come Too Soon!

Rosepoint Reviews-RecapNovember was a mere flash of a month, eclipsing present goals, and creating new ones. Never a dull moment—guess that’s a good thing at this age!

November weather was so mild that the CE and I got to explore a new trail close by and walking was inspired by the cyclists whizzing by. Remembering the years we rode our own bikes, nostalgia took over and I went on the quest for a bike—not the motorcycle kind (had to give that up), a bicycle. My new, used Trek bicycle.Our son delivered his wife’s mountain bike and proving too big and heavy for me, defaulted to the CE. I finally found a guy who carefully guided me into a good used Trek that fits. LOVE this hybrid cruiser!

Then a crisis with our daughter diverted our attention to a quick trip to southern Illinois and another crisis in our son’s wife’s family short-circuited Thanksgiving plans, so it turned out to be a quiet, private Thanksgiving. How was yours? I hope you enjoyed family, a fabulous dinner, and lots of love. Speaking of—our little great-grandson had his first birthday the latter portion of November. Phew!

We did manage to do some reading in November though. (I did some reading, the CE the driving.) Together we read or listened to twelve books in November, most from NetGalley (still our primary resource).

November reads

  1. The Rising Tide by Ann Cleeves (audiobook)
  2. Back in the USSR by Patrick D Joyce (CE review)
  3. Defending Jacob by William Landay (audiobook)
  4. What Have We Done by Alex Finlay(CE review)
  5. More Harm Than Good by Jean Grainger
  6. Hell and Back by Craig Johnson (audiobook)
  7. The Nature of Secrets by Debra Webb (CE review)
  8. The Sandcastle Hurricane by Carolyn Brown
  9. Mitzy Moon Mysteries Books 2 and 3 by Trixie Silvertale
  10. Clive Cussler The Sea Wolves by Jack Du Brul (audiobook)
  11. Devil’s Way by Robert Bryndza (CE review)
  12. Hang the Moon by Jeannette Walls

2022 Goodreads Reading Challenge

Reading Challenges

I think I pretty well caught up my challenges page. As mentioned before, all my challenges have been achieved with the exception of the Goodreads Challenge of 180, now at 177 and 98% which is also my Feedback Ratio on NetGalley. Check my Reading Challenges page for updates.

I cranked up the speaker and listened to a number of my YouTube favorites, Queen, Abba, Andrea Bocelli, and 2Cellos (which, btw, did you know they quit as a team? Gees!!), and started my inside Christmas decorations. Almost done—next, the outside lights. Are you getting ready for the season as well? Do you celebrate with a crèche, cards, trees, and lights? Next week, my annual trek to the post office with my boxes. Pray for me. Ack! Boxes to the PO

I appreciate the follows; thank you to those who like, share, and comment—especially comment! And, please, let me know if you saw something above that got your interest.

©2022 V Williams

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