It’s Monday, What Are You Reading?

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)21 Comments

Today I am cruising through A Tree Grows In Brooklyn.  This is our book club read that is being reviewed tomorrow Monday what are you readingnight and I have procrastinated on getting it read.  The review is taking place here at my home and we are going to potluck to the theme of the book.  One thing I have discovered about A Tree Grows in Brooklyn – there is a lot of talk about food.  It should be interesting to see what everyone brings.

Last week I finished:

  • Football is For Lovers (blog tour this week – review will be up on Wednesday)
  • The Finanical Lives Of The Poets by Jess Walters (blog tour this week, review up on Wednesday)

As for my week of reading… I have set another lofty goal but as you look at the plan know this…

  • I have finished Novel Destinations last night so that one is off the pile.

  • Receive Me Falling I started last week and had to put down to get going on A Tree Grows In Brooklyn.

  • The 13 Days of Halloween is a blog tour and that review is up yet today, read and scheduled at this time.

  • The Guernsey Literary and Potato Pie Society is going in the car with me when we road trip tot he cities for the Women of Faith Conference this coming Thursday afternoon.  I am not driving so that means I can read a bit!  🙂

  • The 39 Clues is a book I am curious about and this one as well is going in the car with me for the weekend conference

001Yes… as always a lofty plan but when I break it down,  I think doable.  Chance goes home tomorrow afternoon after being with us for a month.  I am saddened by this as I love having him around.  With this move, my reading routine should increase as I will no longer be playing video games and watching TV with him late into the evenings.


What are you reading this week?  Stop over to J Kayes Blog and be sure to add your reading post to Mr Linky so others may stop by and visit you!

Morning Meandering….

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)8 Comments

a big improvementCoffee Cup and I were sitting here at the table this morning thinking about the next couple of weeks and plans for the “while I am away” posts.  While putting some thoughts down on paper I was also thinking about how I do book reviews and what I can do to jazz them up a bit.  I currently start with a one line sentence that sums up some feelings I had on the book…. its like my signature trade mark or something.  Then I have the book cover and the book information…  then my thoughts on the book, and I finish with author information and links to author websites, blogs, etc…

There are two things I have been considering adding to my reviews.smiley-thinking

1.  I would like to add a section called “What did I learn?”  It is a staple question in our book club discussions and I am surprised I hadnt thought to add it to my reviews here.  Fiction or non fiction – there is always something you learn while reading… it could be a new word, how to do something (or how not to do something), it could be a fact about a city or state or animal….  in the case of my recent review of Swimsuit, I learned that you never NEVER open a door for anyone who says they are delivering flowers to you!  (LOL)


2.  The second thing I thought would be fun is to have what I call…”the  book in action”.  Not just the cover pic… but also one of my copy… if I read it on a boat, or on the deck, by a camp fire or in my chair…

So that is what the Coffee Cup and I are up to this morning…. trying to plan ahead and to imrove on what we already have going to keep this little corner of the internet up to date and hopefully interesting…  🙂

In My Mailbox

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)21 Comments

Sunday already!  I had a busy week and did not accomplish anywhere near what I had hoped to for this week of reading!  I am now working on my book club read for Tuesday, A Tree Grows In Brooklyn by Betty Smith.

My mailbox however had a great week!  Lets check it out together!

The Secret Mandarin by Sara Sheridan is a win from Historical Tapestry (are you digging this cover?  I totally am!)


Saving Sammy by Beth Maloney is a true story of a mothers journey with a son who has obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) watch for this on Tour on November 9


Flowers for Elvis by Julia Schuster (would you just look at this cover!) I received this wonderful win from J Kayes Blog!


The Magic Warble is a blog tour for December 7.  How fun does this book look?  🙂


Wealth Out Of Ashes is a First reads win.


Lucan by Susan Learney was a win from Anna’s Book Blog ( A fellow Minnesotan Blogger!)


Tell Me Something True is part of the Hispanic month giveaway for a set of five books!  Check it out here only 4 more days to enter!


White Picket Fences by Susan Meissner is a review AND a giveway!  Yup see the extra copy?  It could be yours!


Catching Fire came this week with the super cool t shirt and pin I won over at Park-Avenue Princesses blog (WOO HOO!)  I gave Chance the t shirt – he was thrilled… but the book is all MINE!  MINE I say!  MINE!!!  😉


Diary of a Teenager, Leaving Carolina, and Limelight are all part of a set of fun fall reads that I will be on tour with.  I am excited to see what each of these books is about!


Family Plots… which is described as a laugh out loud funny read is also a tour


The Smart One and the Pretty One looks like a lite chick lit.  I am looking forward to this one!


Love Revolution by Joyce Meyer  came as twins this week (see the?  One… two!).  I already have a review copy so these two gorgeous looking books will be on for giveaways… stay tuned!  🙂


The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks ….. wait ….. wait…. yes, Sparks.  He is an incredible writer and in my hot little hand is this wonderful book for review.  There is a happy dance going on right here….


The Historian is for review and I also have five copies of this historical fiction to give away!  Giveaway is going on now so I suggest you stop and check it out!


39 Clues… book One…. yeah I broke down and bought it!  I have to know what it is all about!  I am excited to hopefully get into that one yet this week!


Novel Destinations arrived in my mailbox this week and I have already cruised through this book soaking up all the sights and literary landmarks!  Watch for this review this week…


Rooftops of Tehran.…  ahhhh….. yes of my wish list and now in my home!  The author of this book contacted me and had seen my excitedment about this book and offered me a copy!  That is sooooo cool!


There it is.  The mailbox is now emptied.  How about you?  Be sure to go over to Story Siren’s blog and use Mr Linky to connect with the In My Mailbox  post so others can see what you had arrive as well!  🙂

Happy reading!

Swimsuit by James Patterson (Audio Book)

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)14 Comments

Shockingly addicting…. from the very beginning I was captured with a story line that made my heart beat a little faster and I wanted to know… had to know, how it was all going to end.  ~  Sheila

a swim

THE BEACH…
A breathtakingly beautiful supermodel disappears from a swimsuit photo shoot at the most glamorous hotel in Hawaii. Only hours after she goes missing, Kim McDaniels’s parents receive a terrifying phone call. Fearing the worst, they board the first flight to Maui and begin the hunt for their daughter.

…WILL NEVER BE…
Ex-cop Ben Hawkins, now a reporter for the L.A. Times, gets the McDaniels assignment. The ineptitude of the local police force defies belief—Ben has to start his own investigation for Kim McDaniels to have a prayer. And for Ben to have the story of his life.

…THE SAME FOR YOU AGAIN.
All the while, the killer sets the stage for his next production. His audience expects the best—and they won’t be disappointed. Swimsuit is a heart-pounding story of fear and desire, transporting you to a place where beauty and murder collide and unspeakable horrors are hidden within paradise.

Buy this book

My Thoughts

I am fairly new to audio books.  Over this past year as I have had much time in the car as I went here and there across out great state of Minnesota, I discovered that I really enjoyed listening to the books.

With Swimsuit by James Patterson I was really surprised how quickly the story line swept me in.  As I was listening to the early parts of the book, at the point that I was still deciding if this was a fit for me…. I was pleasantly shocked at the fast pace of this thriller…. moving with speed through the scenes that reflected in my mind.  There were a cople moments where I caught my breath, had I heard that right?

The opening story line of this audio with the Super Model Kim and her parents is good, very good.  Yet Jame’s Patterson’s Swimsuit is so much more.  It is a close up look into a killers mind.  What makes him tick and even as the book goes on all the pieces do not fall into place until the very end – as well written novels are capable of doing.

I ended up being very glad that I had this opportunity to listen to this book.  A good murder mystery for me are few and far between.  this one left me waiting for the next opportunity it take a drive so I could continue on with this captivating story.

james

A storyteller like no other, James Patterson…jamesPatterson

  • Holds the New York Times bestsellers list record* with 47 New York Times bestselling titles.
  • In 2007, one out of every fifteen hardcover novels sold was a Patterson title. In 2007, an estimated 16 million James Patterson books were sold in the United States alone—more than John Grisham and Stephen King sold, combined, and more books than there are people subscribing to satellite radio.
  • Is the founder of the James Patterson PageTurner Awards which, for three years running, has given away cash prizes totaling more than $600,000 to groups and individuals who do outstanding work to spread the fun and excitement of books and reading. Patterson is also on the board of the charitable organization First Book whose mission is to get the first book in the hands of underserved youth and has donated thousands of books to troops overseas.

I received this audio book from Hachette Audio Books

I rate this audio R for graphic details and some sexual content

The Book Cover….How Important Is It?

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)47 Comments

scratchy ideaI had a little time to blog hop yesterday afternoon and I found myself over at a new blog (to me) lucy was robbed.  LOVE the name of this blog and I love the explanation of the name which you will find on the blog header.

What really caught my eye was that in one of the recent reviews there was a bit about covers having nothing to do with  the book.  I know this has been touched on a bit on blogs that I have seen and probably even ones I have not seen, so forgive me if this is just a repeat of what has already been hashed through.  I think what made me really start thinking about this was a quote that said, in this particular case, that “potential audience was lost”.

I don’t want to reopen a particular discussion on a particular book so lets not go there.  🙂   What I am thinking about is the bigger picture (no pun intended).  I have said it before and it is no secret that I love a great book cover.  In most cases when browsing through a book store it will be the cover that causes that initial pause in my travels to pull the book off the shelf.  Even if I have went into a book store with a title in mind for purchase, it is usually because I have SEEN the cover on someones blog or online and the COVER made me read more about the book.
The cover is not the reason I buy the book, but it is the initial “getting to know you” phase where I pick up the book to see what it is about and that can be what makes or breaks the connection.

It’s true and I hope that’s not shallow of me.

What I find concerning is reading how authors in many cases really do not have a lot on say on the books cover once it goes to the publisher.  Authors really can be putting their baby so to speak, in the hands of another… and really that can make or break a book.

What I am asking today is do you think covers affect sales?  Can a non appealing cover truly cause sales loss on a book?

I am interested in hearing your take on all of this… I may dive into this subject in more depth in future posts but do to time restraints today I just wanted to put this out there and see where it goes.  I would like to interview a couple authors and book cover designers as well to hear how this all works from their more experienced views.

Morning Meanderings…

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)20 Comments

a big improvementI woke up this morning to something I am just not ready for…. something I am not sure I am ever really ready for….. but it is what it is…



Snow

Front Deck: Oct 10,09
Front Deck: Oct 10,09

I cant remember having snow this early before.  I am kind of just fighting the urge to turn around and go back to bed and see if it is all just some sort of wild dream.  Yet … with Coffee Cup in hand… I stare out the window and know it is all too real.

This morning I am off to Breezy Point (about 20 miles) to set up for our Missions Banquet that takes place tonight.  We have a great Silent Auction this year with a Spa Package, A golf package, and we also have tickets “on the glass” to different Wild games.  Should be fun!  If I have time I have a post coming up yet today about books and covers….  I will be interested in hearing from readers about that.

Have a great day – stay warm wherever you are!

Driveway this morning
Driveway this morning
Back Deck this morning
Back Deck this morning

Morning Meanderings…. a Minnesota Rant

Published on by Sheila (Book Journey)30 Comments

a big improvementHow pathetic is this blog this week?  🙂  I mean seriously… the last few days all I have had time to post is my meanderings…..  today I have a low key afternoon – I should be able to catch up on the review that should have went up yesterday, giveaways that need to end…

ANYWAY…. This morning I am driving Chance to school and it is 28 degrees.  28!  I am wearing a long sweater jacket that I am hoping makes me look super cool like Neo in The Matrix (but of course more feminine).

I think it is funny that 28 degrees today is nothing like 28 degrees in March.  Now I am wining that I should have started the Durango earlier so it would have been warm when we got in.  I have the heat on and the windowns up tight.  I complain all the way out of the driveway about the cold and how Minnesota and I are not friends at this time of year.

On the flip of that…. after a long Minnesota winter of temperatures dipping way below zero, icy roads, shoveling sidewalks and the decks…. 28 degrees in March is like a heat wave.  I am outside that time of year in capris and a t shirt…. loving the crisp after winter sun and praising all things that are green or soon to be green.

I took a picture of this gorgeous tree on my way through town this morning…. perhaps looking at it occasionally will help me get through the long cool (who am I kidding?)  COLD days ahead….

Whats the weather like in your corner of the world?

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