Book Journey

Morning Meanderings…. A Little Project With Audio Appetizer

Published on November 23, 2013November 23, 2013 by Sheila (Book Journey)25 Comments

Good morning and happy Saturday! It is COLD here in central Minnesota and it has driven me indoors which is a bummer, but the up side is I love this time of year for house projects and snuggling up with great reads. Last weekend I had an opportunity to do both.

Our entryway to our home was a color that I no longer loved. For a small space it was to dark and the two doors in that area that I had painted were chipped and scruffy looking. In usual “let’s get ‘er done” fashion, I went to the paint store in the morning, had my paint picked out within minutes and that afternoon went to work. I am pretty thrilled with the results so for this weeks Saturday Snapshot, here is my entryway make over:

Yes, I am thrilled with the look. It fresh, clean and makes the area look bigger. As for the audio accompaniment, that would be The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty which I am loving right from the beginning. This one is a treat on audio – love the narration!

Pop on in to Saturday Snapshot and see what others are taking pictures of this week. 😀

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

Published on November 17, 2013 by Sheila (Book Journey)41 Comments

I love being a part of this and I hope you do too! As part of this weekly meme I love to encourage you all to go and visit the others participating in this meme. Fair warning… this meme tends to add to your reading list!

It’s been a pretty good week. It was busy, I had a sick day, but all in all… I got some reading in which always makes me happy 😀

This past week I posted:

City Of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare (ooh I am loving the Mortal Instrument series!)

My Review Of The Tassimo Coffee Pot

I still have reviews to post! As for what I am reading now…

Cecilia Fitzpatrick lives to be perfect: a perfect marriage, three perfect daughters, and a perfectly organized life. Then she finds a letter from her husband, John-Paul, to be opened only in the event of his death. She opens it anyway, and everything she believed is thrown into doubt. Meanwhile, Tess O’Leary’s husband, Will, and her cousin and best friend, Felicity, confess they’ve fallen in love, so Tess takes her young son, Liam, and goes to Sydney to live with her mother. There she meets up with an old boyfriend, Connor Whitby, while enrolling Liam in St. Angela’s Primary School, where Cecilia is the star mother. Rachel Crowley, the school secretary, believes that Connor, St. Angela’s PE teacher, is the man who, nearly three decades before, got away with murdering her daughter—a daughter for whom she is still grieving.

I started this one on audio today while I was painting the entryway and wow I really am getting into it.

Manuel Perrine doesn’t fear anyone or anything. A charismatic and ruthless leader, Perrine slaughters rivals as effortlessly as he wears his trademark white linen suit. Detective Michael Bennett once managed to put Perrine behind bars, the only official in the US ever to accomplish that. But now Perrine is out, and he has sworn to find and kill Bennett and everyone dear to him.

Detective Bennett, along with his ten adopted children, their nanny, and his grandfather, are hidden safely on a rural California farm, with guards courtesy of the FBI’s witness protection program. Perrine begins to embark on an escalating series of assassinations across the country, killings whose brazenness and audacity bring into question the possibility of safety and law in the US. The FBI has no choice but to ask Detective Bennett to risk it all in Perrine’s war on America.

My guilty pleasure series – you may not enjoy Patterson but I bet you would like this series. Fantastic on audio!

The Mortal War is over, and sixteen-year-old Clary Fray is back home in New York, excited about all the possibilities before her. She’s training to become a Shadowhunter and to use her unique power. Her mother is getting married to the love of her life. Downworlders and Shadowhunters are at peace at last. And—most importantly of all—she can finally call Jace her boyfriend.

But nothing comes without a price.

Someone is murdering Shadowhunters, provoking tensions between Downworlders and Shadowhunters that could lead to a second, bloody war. Clary’s best friend, Simon, can’t help her—his mother just found out that he’s a vampire, and now he’s homeless. When Jace begins to pull away from her without explaining why, Clary is forced to delve into the heart of a mystery whose solution reveals her worst nightmare: she herself has set in motion a terrible chain of events that could lead to her losing everything she loves. Even Jace.

Loving this series!

Thats my week! I am excited to see what you are reading and think I have time this week to check out your posts. Be sure to add your What Are You Reading post to the link below where it says click here.

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For those of you that read mainly middle grade and childrens books, be sure to also link to the younger version of It’s Monday by using the link below!

Morning Meanderings… Join Me For Coffee!

Published on November 16, 2013November 16, 2013 by Sheila (Book Journey)16 Comments

Happy Saturday! I have a pretty nice wide open weekend here that I am pretty excited about. Lots of little mini projects I am considering: I have books to put away in the book room, a desk to set up in the office, paint to pick out for the front room and upstairs living room, reviews to write…

Recently I was picked to host a House Party for the Tassimo Coffee Pot. If you are not familiar with House Party, check it out. These are parties on products anywhere from books, to movies, to food, to beverages, to games, to projects. You sign up for the ones you are interested in and if you are chosen to host you are to invite at least 10 people over to share in the product with you. They can be a lot of fun and you are sent whatever you need to put on the party. In the past I have had two parties around books and one on a movie, this was my first branching out.

I wanted to host this party because I knew I would never buy a $165 coffee pot, which is what this model of the Tassimo is. Hosts received not only the coffee pot, but an assortment of coffee pods to use at the party. I was thrilled when I was selected.

I did have the party and it was a lot of fun. At first, I found the coffee pot to be a lot of work to figure out. I did not even get that the coffee pods that came with creamer was a pod you put in the machine after the coffee part to heat and foam the creamer and then the machine added it to your cup. It was one of my guests who pointed that out to me (thanks Brenda!)

As the evening went on, I actually found the coffee pot growing on me. I liked trying the different kinds and the fact that it brewed one special cup at a time. In fact, since the party, I have not used my regular coffee pot. For todays Saturday Snapshot (give it up for West Metro Mommy Reads!) I thought I would post a couple pictures from that event.

Brenda and I were fascinated watching it brew

My overall thoughts: I like the Tassimo and yes I would recommend it. They sent in the package 40% off coupons for my guests if they wanted a Tassimo Coffee pot as well as some yummy brunch recipes. We had a great time!

Pop on over to West Metro Mommy Reads and see what other people are posting pics of this weekend. It is deer hunting season here in Minnesota, my Facebook friends are saturated in pics of family members with their deer (what an odd tradition, to pose with your deer….) LOL

City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare

Published on November 14, 2013November 14, 2013 by Sheila (Book Journey)2 Comments

Book 4 (May contain (inadvertently) spoilers)

Finally things are coming together. The war is over. Clary’s mom is not only safe and home, but also preparing to marry the love of her life. Even Clary herself is in love, real love, now that it has been proven that Jace is not her brother after all. Even Simon who has become a little hotter, a little more self-assured in his new vampire physic, is attracting a few prospects of his own.

Yet nothing ever stays calm and soon Shadow Hunters are being murdered in New York. Tensions run high between the Downworlders and Shadow Hunters as each wonders now that Valentine is gone, who could possibly be behind these killings? Is it followers of Valentine? And then there is Jace, finally he and Clary have what they both had dreamed of and yet he seems to be pulling away. Clary is so confused – he claims to love her so much it hurts but then why it is every time they get close he pulls away. Far away.

As Clary and Jace deal with what is happening between them, Simon is trying hard to avoid what all vampires seem to cave in to… and his thirst just grows stronger and more uncontrollable every day. When a baby shows up at the hospital with claws for hands and black pits for eyes, something bigger than their own problems seems to be taking form….

Holy smokes! I read this one in its entirety while on vacation in Florida. Read that sentence again. I read this book while on a three-day Florida vacation packed with things to do and places to see. That is how awesome this book is. I read it in the morning while at the hotel breakfast and again at night when I was so tired I could hardly keep my eyes open. And I read a big chunk of it on the plane. I could not put it down …

and when it ended…

I could not wait to get my hands on the next one.

As Jace and Clary have now made it to boyfriend and girlfriend – what we had all (ok – me) been hoping for comes to reality only to seem to be ripped away as soon as it happens. While this may be a familiar scene in books of this genre – be sure that Cassandra Clare has put a spin on things to make it unique and page turning all at once. And with Simon’s battle of who and what he is you got to feel for him, I mean… a guys got to eat right?

Another solid delivery, Cassandra Clare takes us to yet another level of her world that is breathtaking and fast paced. How I long to add Shadow Hunter to my bucket list of things to do…..

A+ read.

Morning Meanderings…. Caution Required When Listening to Patterson’s Audio Books

Published on November 14, 2013 by Sheila (Book Journey)8 Comments

Mmmmm…. good morning! I am enjoying a delicious cup of coffee from my new coffee pot the Tassimo, thanks to House Party. It took a bit to get the hang of it but now… I may be addicted.

SO feel free to nickname me absentee blogger, that’s the way I feel lately. I am seriously hoping to get my mojo back and my hope lies in the winter months when life tends to slow down a bit for me and I hate the cold and wet and snow so I tend to spend more time indoors doing bloggy type things.

You may know I have a weakness for Patterson’s audio books (go ahead, insert your own groan here). Particularly the Michael Bennett series… the one about the cop with the ten adopted kids… I know a bot crazy but I love the story line. When recently offered the latest in this series for review that was a hard YES! One of the things I love about these adios and they are excellent at sound effects.. not cheesy ones… but good ones and set up for the right time. Gun shots, etc… A few years back when I started listening to these books while driving I had a time when a gunshot was on the audio and I seriously thought I was being shot at.

In central Minnesota…. can you imagine? 😯

SO now I am listening to this new one and I am at the grocery store pulling out of my parking spot when the audio makes a crashing noise. My heart stops… I am sure I just hit something….

Egads…. GOOD audio!

I am looking forward to a fairly mellow weekend. There is a 5k opportunity this weekend that I am not signed up for but kind of considering… maybe maybe not…. but books are definitely on the upcoming weekend agenda.

Questions to ponder… do you like audio (Laurel…. be kind! 😉 ) AND do you like sound effects in your audio? Also… what are your plans this weekend. I had an idea for a fun meme to start off the new year with that I am kind of excited about implementing… stay tuned… I will post about it in a few weeks 😀

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

Published on November 10, 2013 by Sheila (Book Journey)20 Comments

Last week I was in Florida for a fun weekend with my college son. Thank you to Vicki at I’d Rather Be At The Beach for hosting while I was away. 😀

Since I came back Monday evening last week, I was able to put up a couple posts…

A little bit of the Florida recap

City Of Ashes by Cassandra Clare

A chance to feel like I was on on e of those “Picker” shows….

City Of Glass By Cassandra Clare

You may see a pattern in my reading… I am devouring the Mortal Instrument books! As for what else I am reading/listening to…

Tana lives in a world where walled cities called Coldtowns exist. In them, quarantined monsters and humans mingle in a decadently bloody mix of predator and prey. The only problem is, once you pass through Coldtown’s gates, you can never leave.

One morning, after a perfectly ordinary party, Tana wakes up surrounded by corpses. The only other survivors of this massacre are her exasperatingly endearing ex-boyfriend, infected and on the edge, and a mysterious boy burdened with a terrible secret. Shaken and determined, Tana enters a race against the clock to save the three of them the only way she knows how: by going straight to the wicked, opulent heart of Coldtown itself.

Grace Stanton’s life as a rising media star and beloved lifestyle blogger takes a surprising turn when she catches her husband cheating and torpedoes his pricey sports car straight into the family swimming pool. Grace suddenly finds herself locked out of her palatial home, checking account, and even the blog she has worked so hard to develop in her signature style. Moving in with her widowed mother, who owns and lives above a rundown beach bar called The Sandbox, is less than ideal. So is attending court-mandated weekly “divorce recovery” therapy sessions with three other women and one man for whom betrayal seems to be the only commonality. When their “divorce coach” starts to act suspiciously, they decide to start having their own Wednesday “Ladies’ Night” sessions at The Sandbox, and the unanticipated bonds that develop lead the members of the group to try and find closure in ways they never imagined. Can Grace figure out a new way home and discover how strong she needs to be to get there?

In David Vann’s searing novel Goat Mountain, an 11-year-old boy at his family’s annual deer hunt is eager to make his first kill. His father discovers a poacher on the land, a 640-acre ranch in Northern California, and shows him to the boy through the scope of his rifle. With this simple gesture, tragedy erupts, shattering lives irrevocably.

In prose devastating and beautiful in its precision, David Vann creates a haunting and provocative novel that explores our most primal urges and beliefs, the bonds of blood and religion that define and secure us, and the consequences of our actions—what we owe for what we’ve done.

Thats what is happening here. What are you listening to? Please add your Monday What Are You Reading post where it says click here. 😀

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For those of you that read mainly middle grade and childrens books, be sure to also link to the younger version of It’s Monday by using the link below!

City Of Glass by Cassandra Clare

Published on November 10, 2013 by Sheila (Book Journey)2 Comments

Book 3: Clary’s mom has been in a coma for a long time and answers are finally starting to fall into place as to why she will not wake up. To get to the bottom of what is going on with her mom, Clary, Jace, Alex, and Isabelle must go to to the City Of Glass which is said to be an unwelcoming place and dangerous. Simon must stay behind because vampires are frowned upon and one that can withstand daylight would be all the more insulting to those who dwell in the City.

As Clary works to try to figure out her past, a friendship comes in the form of Sebastian, a good looking Shadow Hunter who seems to understand Clary. Downworlders and Shadow Hunters class are required to work together on what seems to be reaching epic battle proportions – but the underlying questions is can these two groups come together when they are worlds apart?

And can Clary stay strong as Jace moves on with another girl leaving her to come to face to face with the fact that is all she can ever have of him is his friendship.

1cb — City Of Bones party – New York May 2013

So mid series I am still at a WOW level. I simply love the characters and Jace… well…. see the City Of Bones movie and tell me if you can think of Jace any other way. 😉 (Just saying…). Simon is as always a great addition to the books (way to go Cassandra Clare!) He adds that mix of dorky loyalty that levels out the book from all the hotness those Shadow Hunters provide! But stay tuned future Mortal Instrument readers, Simon also comes into his own and this book is an excellent example of that.

Get ready to join in the battle as it is a GOOD one!

Morning Meanderings… A bit like a “picker”

Published on November 10, 2013 by Sheila (Book Journey)18 Comments

Good morning everyone! I hope your weekend was (and is still) FAB. I had a pretty sweet Saturday with a little adventure with my hubby. If you do not know, we own an excavating company. My hubby recently won a bid to tear down an old cabin that was condemned. I had heard that there was some old furniture in the cabin and I tagged along yesterday morning to go and salvage (pick?) what was savable. We left yesterday at 6 am, the cabin is about an hour away, and then went cautiously inside as the roof has caved in, the chimney had fallen through and there was a big hole in the middle of the large entryway which was probably once a cool three season porch.

The sight of the cabin was actually a little sad as by the looks of all the dishes in the cupboards, papers on the table, etc… it clearly looked like they had intended to be back. A sign hung outside the shed that said “Olson’s Oasis”.

Everything for the most part was in really bad shape. There was an old gate leg table that had warped and split because of the rain that has drizzled on it for years. A few of the key pieces I pulled out were:

20131109_082502 — This is possibly my favorite find. The table was covered with a plastic cloth so did not become damaged like the other pieces. The bottom needs a little work and of course a whole refinish job but my mom and I used to work on antiques together and I am kind of excited to have the opportunity to do this again.

20131109_074837 — Not sure what I will do with this but it was worth cleaning up and not being demolished.

20131109_074622 — I think this could be fun to put some love back into as well.

This is some of the highlights. There were a few other lamps, some dishes, chairs, etc… might be something to work on this winter or early spring.

This would normally have been a great post for Saturday Snapshot (which I am linking to anyway even though I am a day late 😀 ), but of course I was out “picking” yesterday morning and didn’t want to wait to post until next Saturday. With my life, you never know what might be new and exciting next.

For those who want to know, I did inquire about the family who once owned the home. Apparently there is only the wife still around and she is in a nursing home out of state. I am hopeful that by perhaps breathing life back into some of these pieces in a way it brings back some of the love they once had.

Enjoy your day! I have a full morning and lots of house cleaning projects to do this afternoon. The weather looks decent – I may try to get a run in as well. And I am reading the book club book, Ladies Night by Mary Kay Anderson and really enjoying it.

Ciry Of Ashes by Cassandra Clare

Published on November 7, 2013 by Sheila (Book Journey)9 Comments

Life… once resembled normal for Clary. She was a typical teenager hanging out with her best friend Simon. But now everything seems goofy. Simon, now seems to be more than a friend… and of course that is because Jace, who really holds her heart… has been relieved to be her brother. Clary wishes it would all just go back to what life was…

but not really.

At least Jace is part of her life, even if it can not be in the way she wishes. And the Shadowhunter world is both strange and exhilarating all at once. With her mom still in a coma, and Downworlders being murdered by who knows who or what, there is not a lot of time to dwell on what was…

1cb — Cassandra Clare and I – City Of Bones Party New York – May 2013

In a word: Yippy!

I moved on to this book not after reading book one (City of Bones), which was an “eh” audio listen for me, but instead, after I seen the City Of Bones movie. Yowza. Once I could see what was happening I could not wait to dive into this book and give the Mortal Instrument series another go.

Results? Fantabulous! (*My word.) Seeing the movie gave me the kick-start I needed to visualize what was happening in this world of Shadow Hunters, Downworlders, Demons, and other things that go bump in the night. I flew through this book loving the world that Cassandra Clare has created and thirsting for more. I do not think I have been this excited about a fantasy series since dare I say…. Harry Potter?

My recommendation: dig in. There are 5 books in the series but they are so engrossing you will fly through them. I have. And loved every minute of it.

Morning Meanderings…. Quick Florida Recap!

Published on November 6, 2013 by Sheila (Book Journey)4 Comments

Good morning! I am back and I had a blast with College Son in Florida! We came back LATE Monday night, I think I hit my driveway about midnight. We had three full days in Florida and here are a few pictures for recap:

**Me outside Harry Potter World at Universal Studios Orlando.**

I dont want to give all the pics away as I may use them for Saturday Snapshot, but you get the picture… we had a blast!

As for reading, yes, you will be happy to know I did read – book 4 of the Mortal Instrument series and I am hooked HOOKED HOOKED! Starting book 5 tonight and I have reviews to catch up on… especially since when I read book one of this series and reviewed it I said in my post,

While I found City of Bones to be interesting and well written, I don’t see myself diving into the rest of the series. It was good, but didn’t hook me to the point I need to go and get the second book right now! (I don’t quite want to dig out the Spoiler page for this one but did anyone else get a Harry Potter vibe on this one? They are looking for the Mortal Cup…. there is a bad guy trying to get to the cup first named…. ~~Voldermort,~~ I mean named Valentine.)

Mmmmmm hmmmm…. we will be discussing what changed my mind. 😀 That ever happen to you?