Prepping for these WWW Wednesday posts can sometimes cause me a little headache. For example, when I finished my most recent read, I didn’t know what to read next. I have a shelf-and-a-half of TBR books staring me in the face (plus a couple of handfuls on my e-reader), and I do want to read them all, just not now. I picked 3 or 4 that I would want to read after my next one, but I wanted something else for now. Does that make sense? In the end, I went with something that will get me closer to finishing the While I Was Reading Challenge for the year—and it turned out to be just the right choice. Still a mystery, but different in tone, structure, and approach than anything I’ve read in years. A good palate cleanser.
Not quite a slump, but it’s as close as I’ve been to one in ages. Shall we get on with with it?
This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.
The Three Ws are:
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?
Easy enough, right?
What are you currently reading?
I’m reading The Case of the One-Eyed Witness by Erle Stanley Gardner—fairly sure this is the first time I’ve read this one (and if not, it was pre-1995, so it might as well be—and I’m listening to Breaking Silence by Linda Castillo, Kathleen McInerney (Narrator) on audiobook, time for more mayhem in Amish Country.
What did you recently finish reading?
I just finished Jo Perry’s Everything Happens novella and Dark Heir by Faith Hunter, Khristine Hvam (Narrator) on audio.
What do you think you’ll read next?
My next book should be the Western-Zomie-Steampunk sequel Bodacious Creed and the Jade Lake by Jonathan Fesmire and my next audiobook should be a return to the Guild Codex with Dark Arts and a Daiquiri by Annette Marie, Cris Dukehart (Narrator).
What about you? Anything good?
Allyson Johnson
I just finished reading Harriet Doerr’s beautifully written classic “Stones for Ibarra.” She was 73 when this, her first novel, was published. Worth the wait. Also re-read Sue Grafton’s “‘J’ is for Judgment”, a Kinsey Milhone novel half-way through the series, lacking a bit in tension but notable for revealing that orphaned Kinsey is not without family connections.
I am currently reading “The Goldfinch” by Donna Tartt, which was a huge success back in 2014 when first published, but I somehow never got around to it then. I am liking it VERY MUCH at about 20% through. (It’s another 700page + tome, but I like a book I can sink my teeth into for awhile.
And I’m up to Book 7 in Milton’s “Paradise Lost”, hearing about the battle between the good and rebellious angels which sent Lucifer into Hell and changed him to Satan. Lots of questions – e.g. How, if even bad angels are immortal, can they ever be truly defeated? If angels start out filling their lives with praising God and enjoying eternal bliss, how did the good angels learn to fight? Where did they get their weapons? And what effect did they have if the bad angels are immortal?
Next I will probably reread Dorothy Sayers’ “Nine Tailors”, a light Lord Peter Wimsey mystery as an antidote to all that serious thought. And when I finish “Goldfinch”, I might try again to get “The Book Thief” off my TBR shelf.
booker talk
I’d never heard of the While I Was Reading Challenge. Some of the categories would be straight forward (cosy mystery) but I would struggle to complete the magic realism one since I strongly dislike that genre
Ramona
I’ll be announcing the categories for my 2022 in about a month, if you’d like to join us next year!
Ramona
Thanks for the tag, it’s always nice to hear from you! And I’m glad you’re still working n my challenge.
This week I read three titles by Penny Reid: Motion, Space, and Time that are books 4, 5, and 6, in her Hypothesis series. It’s basically one story in three parts. I liked them a lot more than the first three.
Next up is Neon Gods by Katie Roberts, which I’m a little nervous about for some reason. It’s a sexy retelling of Hades and Persephone. Sometimes retellings work for me but not always…