Category: Currently Reading Page 46 of 71

20 Books of Summer 2021: July Check-in

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On August 3, 2021

In Books, Currently Reading, Fantasy, Fiction, General Fiction/Literature, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, News/Misc., Urban Fantasy

20 Books of Summer
One summer.

Three months.

93 Days.

20 books.

It’s time for my July Check-In for 20 Books for Summer. After a June that was less-than-productive (well, okay, I read nothing), it didn’t look so good.

I’m still not sure it does—July was better, I read eight books off the list. I thought I’d read more until I started prepping this post, though—math’s never been my strong suit. Twelve books in August still seems doable, but I’m thinking this goal is out of range. Still, I’m going to try, I’m having fun working through the list, anyway.

Speaking of which, here it is:

1. A Beginner’s Guide to Free Fall by Andy Abramowitz
2. The Dead House by Harry Bingham
3. The Run-Out Groove by Andrew Cartmel
4. Love by Roddy Doyle
5. The Ninja’s Blade by Tori Eldridge
✔ 6. Small Bytes by Robert Germaux
7. A Reason to Live by Matthew Iden
8. Twiced Cursed by J. C. Jackson
9. The Dime by Kathleen Kent
✔ 10. Dead Man’s Grave by Neil Lancaster		 ✔ 11. The Magnificent Nine by James Lovegrove
12. The Mermaid’s Pool by David Nolan
✔ 13. All Together Now by Matthew Norman
14. The Good Byline by Jill Orr
✔ 15. Sir Thomas the Hesitant and the Table of Less Valued Knights by Liam Perrin
16. Fools Gold by Ian Patrick
✔ 17. Know Your Rites by Andy Redsmith
18. The Far Empty by J. Todd Scott
✔ 19. August Snow by Stephen Mack Jones
✔ 20. In Plain Sight by Dan Willis

20 Books of Summer '21 Chart July

July 2021 in Retrospect: What I Read/Listened to/Wrote About

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On August 2, 2021

In Books, Calendar Items, Currently Reading, News/Misc.

“Only” 24 books this month—I got off to a strong start, and then I started a period of readjustment thanks to returning to the office. I’m not sure I’ve got my feet under me when it comes to reading/listening to audiobooks yet. That’s 6,412 pages (or audio-equivalent), plus I’m guessing another 350 or so—there was one audio short story and one to-be-published novel that I can’t find page counts for. Which is not terribly shabby when I think of it in those terms. My average rating was 3.9, a tenth of a point higher than most months this year (4 tenths higher than my worst), so that fits.

Part of what use these posts to do is spur myself to action on various fronts—or that’s the intent, anyway. Am rethinking the Mt. TBR portion of these posts, because it’s sure not working too well.

Enough monologuing, I’m not a supervillain about to leave the hero to die in an (doomed) elaborate contraption—here’s what happened here in July.

Books Read

Blood Trade Foundations of Covenant Theology In Plain Sight
4 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars
Small Bytes Sir Thomas the Hesitant and the Table of Less Valued Knights A Bad Day for Sunshine
3 Stars 3 Stars 4 1/2 Stars
An Accidental Death Know Your Rites Off the Grid
4 Stars 3.5 Stars 3 Stars
The Attributes of God Tales from the Folly A Good Day for Chardonnay
4 Stars 4 Stars 4 1/2 Stars
August Snow Finding Hope in Hard Things Veiled
5 Stars 3.5 Stars 4 Stars
Dead Man’s Grave The Drifter The Heathens
4 Stars 4 1/2 Stars 4 Stars
Church History 101: The Highlights of Twenty Centuries Lessons from the Upper Room In 10 Years
3 Stars 3.5 Stars 5 Stars
Wisp of a Thing The Magnificent Nine All
5 Stars 3.5 Stars 4 Stars

Still Reading

The Wonderful Works of God Things Unseen Solomon vs. Lord
Paper & Blood

Ratings

5 Stars 3 2 1/2 Stars 0
4 1/2 Stars 3 2 Stars 0
4 Stars 9 1 1/2 Stars 0
3.5 Stars 4 1 Star 0
3 Stars 5
Average = 3.9

TBR Pile
I’m strongly considering renaming this to Tsundoku (積ん読), so I can celebrate the size of some of these bars rather than shaking my head at myself…What do you think?
Mt TBR January 20

Breakdowns
“Traditionally” Published: 16
Self-/Independent Published: 8

Genre This Month Year to Date
Children’s 1 (5%) 2 (1%)
Fantasy 3 (16%) 14 (9%)
General Fiction/ Literature 3 (16%) 8 (5%)
Horror 0 (0%) 0 (0%)
Humor 0 (0%) 2 (4%)
Mystery/ Suspense/ Thriller 6 (32%) 59 (36%)
Non-Fiction 1 (5%) 10 (6%)
Science Fiction 0 (0%) 15 (9%)
Steampunk 0 (0%) 0 (0%)
Theology/ Christian Living 0 (0%) 18 (11%)
Urban Fantasy 4 (21%) 31 (19%)
Western 0 (0%) 0 (0%)

Review-ish Things Posted

Other Things I Wroteotherwriting
Other than the Saturday Miscellanies (3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th, and 31st), I also wrote (okay, mostly compiled):

That was my month…how was yours?

The Friday 56 for 7/23/21: Dead Man’s Grave by Neil Lancaster

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On July 30, 2021

In Currently Reading, News/Misc., Quotations, The Friday 56

The Friday 56This is a weekly bloghop hosted by Freda’s Voice.

RULES:
The Friday 56 Grab a book, any book.
The Friday 56 Turn to Page 56 or 56% on your ereader. If you have to improvise, that is okay.
The Friday 56 Find a snippet, short and sweet.
The Friday 56 Post it

from Page 56 of:
Dead Man’s Grave

Dead Man’s Grave by Neil Lancaster

‘We seem to be the funeral squad at the moment, and bearing in mind I’d never been to one before working with you, I’m starting to worry, especially as we’ve now done two recently,’ said Janie, taking in the scene.

‘Valuable intelligence sources, Constable. Next stop weddings, christenings and bar mitzvahs.’

‘I may ask for a transfer; it’s getting bloody depressing.’

The Friday 56 for 7/30/21: The Heathens by Ace Atkins

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On July 30, 2021

In Currently Reading, News/Misc., Quotations, The Friday 56

The Friday 56This is a weekly bloghop hosted by Freda’s Voice.

RULES:
bullet point Grab a book, any book.
bullet point Turn to Page 56 or 56% on your ereader. If you have to improvise, that is okay.
bullet point Find a snippet, short and sweet.
bullet point Post it

from Page 56 of:
The Heathens

The Heathens by Ace Atkins

“You had a chance, Chester,” TJ said. “You stole my momma’s money. Money she only had ‘cause she’d stolen it off me. You tried to threaten me, sending the police out knocking on my door like I did something wrong.”

“Get out of here,” he said. “I’ll call the sheriff.”

“Do it,” TJ said. She reached down on the glass table littered with an empty bag of chips, an overflowing ashtray, and the silver insulated cup of booze. She snatched up his cell phone and tossed it right in his lap. “Call 911. I damn well dare you. Call Sheriff Colson and let him know some seventeen-year-old girl is gonna shoot you. Because you’d be right. But then at least we might can get straight on all the trouble you caused me and my family. You’re sitting here drinking whiskey and eating Golden Flake chips while my little brother can’t even get breakfast.”

WWW Wednesday, July 28, 2021

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On July 28, 2021

In Books, Currently Reading, News/Misc., WWW Wednesday

Wait, it’s July 28th already? I’m not ready for that in several ways–can we get a recount? A mulligan? A giant “Pause” button? Time for the last WWW Wednesday of July!

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 Magnificent Nine by James Lovegrave—nothing like a little time with the crew of Serenity—and am wrapping up Wisp of a Thing by Alex Bledsoe, Stefan Rudnicki (Narrator) up on audiobook.

The Magnificent NineBlank SpaceWisp of a Thing<

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished Ian Shane’s In 10 Years—a wonderful read—and The Drifter by Nick Petrie, Stephen Mendel (Narrator) on audio.

In 10 YearsBlank SpaceThe Drifter

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be All Together Now by Matthew Norman—which is what I said last week, but I got distracted—and my next audiobook is TBD.

All Together NowBlank SpaceQuestion Mark

What are you doing to wrap up the month?

WWW Wednesday, July 21, 2021

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On July 21, 2021

In Books, Currently Reading, News/Misc., WWW Wednesday

The month is melting away and I’m starting to worry about my reading goal for the month (which is about as lame as it sounds, I realize, but that’s where I am). Returning to the office has really messed with my reading, and has wrecked my audiobook listening, so not a lot has changed since last week, but, still it’s time for WWW Wednesday!

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 new Quinn Colson novel, The Heathens by Ace Atkins, and am listening to the first Peter Ash novel, The Drifter by Nick Petrie, Stephen Mendel (Narrator), on audiobook.

The HeathensBlank SpaceThe Drifter

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished Neil Lancaster’s Dead Man’s Grave–a gripping read–and Veiled by Benedict Jacka, Gildart Jackson (Narrator) on audio.

Dead Man's GraveBlank SpaceVeiled

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be All Together Now by Matthew Norman, with a striking premise. My next audiobook should be returning to the tales of the Tufa with Wisp of a Thing by Alex Bledsoe, Stefan Rudnicki (Narrator).

<

p style=”text-align:center;”><img src=”http://www.hcnewton.com/irrreader/alltogethernow.jpg” alt=All Together Now” width=”125″ height=”189″ border=”0″ />Blank SpaceWisp of a Thing

Hope you’re reading something good, tell me about it!

The Friday 56 for 7/16/21: August Snow by Stephen Mack Jones

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On July 16, 2021

In Currently Reading, News/Misc., Quotations, The Friday 56

The Friday 56This is a weekly bloghop hosted by Freda’s Voice.

RULES:
The Friday 56 Grab a book, any book.
The Friday 56 Turn to Page 56 or 56% on your ereader. If you have to improvise, that is okay.
The Friday 56 Find a snippet, short and sweet.
The Friday 56 Post it

from Page 56 of:
August Snow

August Snow by Stephen Mack Jones

(for context, I think it helps if you know that the first speaker is the Chief Medical Examiner)

“So what brings you and Tubby McGlutton’—-he nodded to Danbury-—“to my Little Den of Decomp?”

“Eleanor Paget’s body,” Danbury said. “And don’t be calli’ me no ‘Tubby McGlutton,’ nay-gro.”

“Oh, please, Ray,” Bobby scolded. “You’re twenty pounds overweight. You smoke two cigars a day. And I’m sure, like every other over-forty black man who just has to show how successful he is in Detroit, you probably have three Courvoisier and Cokes three times a week at the Pontch. Oh yeah, son, I got a cold storage drawer with your name on it.” After eviscerating Danbury and taking a breath, Bobby said “Paget’s pretty straight-up stuff: GSW to the right temple.”

WWW Wednesday, July 14, 2021

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On July 14, 2021

In Books, Currently Reading, News/Misc., WWW Wednesday

After 15 months of telecommuting, I’m back to just commuting–this is wrecking my sleep and reading–and therefore blogging–habits. I’m still managing to do some of all three, but I’m having to make plenty of adjustments. Which is why things are a little light here this week. Still, I have been able to scrape together enough for this WWW Wednesday.

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 very fun ARC for A Good Day for Chardonnay by Darynda Jones and am listening to Veiled by Benedict Jacka, Gildart Jackson (Narrator) on audiobook.

A Good Day for ChardonnayBlank SpaceVeiled

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished Andy Redsmith’s Know Your Rites and the audiobook of Tales from the Folly by Ben Aaronovitch read by Aaronovitch and: Penelope Rawlins, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Alex Kingston, Ben Elliot, Shvorne Marks, Sam Peter Jackson, and Felix Grainger.

Know Your RitesBlank SpaceTITLE

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be August Snow by Stephen Mack Jones, I’m looking forward to seeing what waits for me there. My next audiobook should be The Drifter by Nick Petrie, Stephen Mendel (Narrator) (largely because my library just added it to their Overdrive collection)..

August SnowBlank SpaceThe Drifter

What about you? Reading anything good?

The Friday 56 for 7/9/21: In Plain Sight by Dan Willis

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On July 9, 2021

In Currently Reading, News/Misc., Quotations, The Friday 56

The Friday 56This is a weekly bloghop hosted by Freda’s Voice.

RULES:
The Friday 56 Grab a book, any book.
The Friday 56 Turn to Page 56 or 56% on your ereader. If you have to improvise, that is okay.
The Friday 56 Find a snippet, short and sweet.
The Friday 56 Post it

from Page 56 of:
In Plain Sight

In Plain Sight by Dan Willis

“My point is that we don’t know what we’re dealing with, and until we do, I suggest we limit possible exposure.”

“My boys have been in here for almost an hour,” Callahan said.

“And they’re probably fine, but let’s move everyone out of this room until I can run some tests.”

“All right,” Callahan agreed, then he shouted for everyone to stop what they were doing and go. “Don’t be too long, Doc,” he said once his men were gone. “I’m sure the Chief has heard about this by now and he’s going to want a report…soon.”

“We’ll be as fast as we can,” Iggy said and Callahan withdrew.

“You said you didn’t think it’s contagious,” Alex said once Callahan was out of earshot.

“I just wanted him and his men away from this room,” Iggy said. “It’s going to be hard enough to figure out what happened here without the police stomping all over everything.”

WWW Wednesday, July 7, 2021

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On July 7, 2021

In Books, Currently Reading, News/Misc., WWW Wednesday

I’m writing from a refreshingly chilly hotel 607 miles south(ish) from home, in Cedar City, UT. The trip is making things a little strange on the reading front (and non-existent on the audiobook front)–but I still think I have enough fodder for July’s first WWW Wednesday!

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 Know Your Rites by Andy Redsmith (a book I meant to read two years ago) and the audiobook A Bad Day for Sunshine by Darynda Jones, Lorelei King (Narrator) is providing our road trip entertainment.

Know Your RitesBlank SpaceA Bad Day for Sunshine

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished Liam Perrin’s Sir Thomas the Hesitant and the Table of Less Valued Knights and last week I wrapped up Blood Trade by Faith Hunter, Khristine Hvam (Narrator) on audio.

Sir Thomas the Hesitant and the Table of Less Valued KnightsBlank SpaceBlood Trade

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be The Good Byline by Jill Orr (another book I meant to read two years ago) and if we have time on the return trip, we’ll listen to An Accidental Death by Peter Grainger, Gildart Jackson (Narrator), because my wife should meet DC Smith–otherwise, I have no idea what I’m doing next.

The Good BylineBlank SpaceAn Accidental Death

Hit me with your Three W’s in the comments! (no, really, do it!)

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