Tag: News/Misc Page 15 of 29

Bodacious Creed and the San Francisco Syndicate Kickstarter

I have blogged about the first two books in Jonathan Fesmire’s Bodacious Creed series over the last couple of years—they’re a great mix of Steampunk, Zombie fare, and Western. You really should look into them, but that’s not what I’m talking about today. Fesmire just launched the Kickstarter to publish the third book in the series, Bodacious Creed and the San Francisco Syndicate, and I wanted to help spread the word.

Check out the video:

Look into the books, pitch in to help him pay for cover art and editing, and enjoy the weird Creedverse he’s creating. I think you’ll be glad you did.

Go kick that start.

The Friday 56 for 2/18/22: The Goodbye Coast by Joe Ide

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:
The Goodbye Coast

The Goodbye Coast by Joe Ide

“Is there any other reason Fallon came here?” Marlowe said.

“He wants to be an actor,” Ren said, shaking her head. “He went to a few theater auditions in London. He’d read for a minute, no more, and get dismissed. In England, we take our actors seriously.”

“If you catch up with Fallon, what will you do?”

“I’ll kill him first and then we’ll talk.”

The Friday 56 for 2/11/22: Life, The Universe, and Everything by Douglas Adams

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.

Another week where there’s nothing I can share from my current read. However, the book I’m reading is discussing the third book in the Hitchhiker’s Guide trilogy. That’s close enough for me…

from Page 56 of:
Life, The Universe, and Everything

Life, The Universe, and Everything by Douglas Adams

“Ask me if I ever get bored, go on, ask me.”

The mattress did.

Marvin ignored the question, he merely trudged with added emphasis.

“I gave a speech once,” he said suddenly and apparently unconnectedly. “You may not instantly see why I bring the subject up, but that is because my mind works so phenomenally fast, and I am at a rough estimate thirty billion times more intelligent than you. Let me give you an example. Think of a number, any number.”

“Er, five,” said the mattress.

“Wrong,” said Marvin. “You see?”

The mattress was much impressed by this and realized that he was in the presence of a not unremarkable mind.

The Friday 56 for 2/4/22: MASH by Richard Hooker

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.

When I started doing these, I imposed a rule on myself that I would only use a book that I was reading that week, but between ARCs and page 56s that didn’t work without context, I didn’t have anything this week (or, likely, next), and I like doing these. Rules are meant to be broken, right? So I started grabbing random books off my shelf—it took me three tries, apparently, page 56 is a popular one to leave blank.

A blast from the past this week.
from Page 56 of:
MASH

MASH by Richard Hooker

Dear Hawkeye:

As Dean of the College, I naturally remember you very well. In my job one has to take the bitter as well as the sweet, and I’ve had my share of both.

My natural expectation is that, if I accede to your request, I will soon have on my hands some illiterate seventy-year-old refugee from a leper colony. Despite the possibility of your having matured slightly in the last nine years, that is really what I expect.

However, this sort of thing is popular these days. If you feel your boy can do college work and if you can get him over here and supply him with a thousand dollars a year, we will give him a chance. Enclosed is an application for Ho-Jon to complete.

Sincerely,
James Lodge
Dean, Androscoggin College

The Friday 56 for 1/28/22: The Jackals by Adam Shaw

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 56% of:
The Jackals

The Jackals by Adam Shaw

As soon as I step out the front door, I exhale. The chilly downtown air hits me all at once, and I’m forced to recognize the beads of sweat resting in my hairline, the moistness of Rob’s post-workout filth on my shirt, the goosebumps traveling up and down my arms. I quit my job. Apparently, I’m moving.

“Jack!”

Beth is smiling. Her pale skin shines against the red brick of the wall behind her. Her hair is down, and she’s wearing the same red flannel she wore the day I got back to Lafayette. A couple golden strands cling to it near her right shoulder, but she either doesn’t notice them or doesn’t care. It only takes her eyes a couple seconds to notice the box of belongings under my arm, though, the bat signal of a corporate walk of shame, and her smile disappears.

The Friday 56 for 1/21/22: Nice Dragons Finish Last by Rachel Aaron

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:
Nice Dragons Finish Last

Nice Dragons Finish Last by Rachel Aaron

“…believe it or not, I don’t normally get into back-alley brawls with strange men.”

“Well, if anyone deserved breaking your ‘no slamming people into walls’ streak over, it would be Bixby’s idiots.”

“I only got half of them,” he reminded her. “You did the other. Credit where credit is due.”

Marci laughed. “If by ‘credit’ you mean ‘assault and battery charges,’ then I guess you’re right.” She shook her head and turned to flash him a warm smile. “You know, we make a pretty good team.”

Julius felt that smile all the way to his toes.

Top 5 Tuesday – Top 5 books I will definitely* read in 2022


This week’s topic is, “Top 5 books I will definitely* read in 2022. Same disclosure from 2021. You won’t be subjected to punishment (from me) if you don’t read these. But what are 5 books you really want to tick off your TBR this year?” Sure, I could’ve just picked five books that are the next in a series (and, yeah, that’s what I mostly did)–but these are ones that either I am champing at the bit to read or that I know I have every intention on reading, but can see myself getting distracted from and still wanting to read in 2023 (see the entry for Return of the Paladin on Top 5 books I haven’t read yet in 2021). So, calling my shot at the others should help me remember to do it.

1 Bye Bye Baby
Robert B. Parker’s Bye Bye Baby by Ace Atkins

The fiftieth Spenser novel is also the last one that Atkins will write. I can only imagine that Atkins is going to go out with a bang. This is the epitome of me champing at the bit to read a book. I will be abandoning whatever I’m reading to dive into this as soon as I get my hands on it.

2 The Botanist
The Botanist by M. W. Craven

The Poe/Tilly novels have become a (the?) highlight of my summers. I cannot wait to see what happens here.

3 Lives Laid Away
Lives Laid Away by Stephen Mack Jones

August Snow was one of my favorite “discoveries” of 2021–I was practically giddy reading it. I’d expected I’d read this one last year, and don’t know how I didn’t get to it. This will happen soon.

4 Adult Assembly Required
Adult Assembly Required by Abbi Waxman

This made my list without me knowing anything about it–I’ve just enjoyed Waxman’s voice so much the last few years. Also, I wanted something on this list that wasn’t a Mystery/Detective/Crime novel or part of a series.

Oops. It turns out that this is a sequel to The Bookish Life of Nina Hill. 1 out of 2 ain’t bad, right?

5 City on Fire
City on Fire by Don Winslow

I’ve loved almost every Winslow book I’ve read–and was impressed with those I didn’t. So it would seem I’d be super-excited about this–and I am. But after The Cartel–both in scope and impact–I’ve been intimidated by him. This is going to be one of those I have to push myself to read, oddly enough.

The Friday 56 for 1/14/21: Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire

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 (and a little bit of 57) of:
Where the Drowned Girls Go

Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire

The matron narrowed her eyes. “Can scarecrows talk?” she repeated, tone clearly implying that there was only one right answer, and it wasn’t the one she expected from Emily.

…Silence and blending into the background were Cora’s forte. She was good at it. But she was also a hero, and heroes didn’t stand idly by while someone smaller was victimized.

“Scarecrows don’t talk,” she scoffed, loudly enough and clearly enough to guarantee she would be overheard. The matron stiffened. Cora acted like she hadn’t noticed, continuing blithely, “They’re just straw stuffed into old potato sacks. If scarecrows could talk, that would mean straw could talk, and if straw could talk, grass would be able to talk, and no one could mow their lawns.”

The Friday 56 for 1/7/21: Bloodlines by Peter Hartog

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:
Bloodlines

Bloodlines by Peter Hartog

“What the f*** are you doing, Holliday?” Deacon hollered from the kitchen.

He leaned against one of the tables with arms folded across his chest.

“It’s what we police-types like to call ‘looking for clues,’” I retorted, irritated by the question. “Shake down the premises, go through his sock drawer, locate the virtual workstation, and mine it for information. You should try it sometime.”

“I get that,” he replied amiably. “But I doubt a vampire’s gonna hide its secrets inside an office, do you?”

Down the TBR Hole Revisited (3 of 3)

Down the TBR Hole Revisited

Huh. When I looked at this list, I really thought I’d cut some fat (although this part would be harder than the rest since some of these aren’t published yet, so I haven’t heard anything about them from other readers). I still managed to cut a little bit, which puts my Want-to-Read list under 150–which means overall, I’ve cut 90+ from the list since I started this (either through deleting or reading). I call that a win.

The big question is, what will this list look like in 2024-5 when I try this again?

This meme was created by Lia @ Lost in a Story—but Jenna at Bookmark Your Thoughts is the one that exposed me to this, and as my Goodreads “Want To Read” shelf is scarily long, I had to do this.

The Rules are simple:

  1. Go to your Goodreads to-read shelf
  2. Order on ascending date added.
  3. Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books.
  4. Read the synopses of the books.
  5. Decide: keep it or should it go?
  6. Keep track of where you left off so you can pick up there next week! (or whenever)

What distinguishes this series from the Mt. TBR section of my Month-end Retrospectives? Those are books I actually own while Goodreads contains my aspirational TBR (many of which will be Library reads). The Naming of the two is a bit confusing, but…what’re you going to do?

(Click on the cover for an official site or something with more info about the book)

Vanishing Edge Vanishing Edge by Claire Kells
Blurb: FBI Agent-turned-Forest Service investigator is on the hunt for a killer in the Sequoia National Park.
My Thoughts: I vaguely remember reading about this on a Crime Reads post–sounded good (still does), and I’d probably enjoy it. But…I know I’m not going to get around to it.
Verdict:
Thumbs Down
The Cipher The Cipher by Isabella Maldonado
Blurb: A pair of FBI Agents (both with troubled pasts) are on the hunt for a serial killer.
My Thoughts: This one (and the next by Maldonado) were also featured in a Crime Reads post. The mini-blurb above sounds pretty generic, I know, but I remember something about the write-up that convinced me that Maldonado is somsone I want to try. So I put the first entries in her two series on the list, and am going to keep them there for at least a little longer.
Verdict:
Thumbs Up
Blood's Echo Blood’s Echo by Isabella Maldonado
Blurb: A Phoenix PD Detective is on a crusade to take down a local crime family
My Thoughts: See above. I typically enjoy police detectives more than FBI Agents, so I’m leaning to trying this one first.
Verdict:
Thumbs Up
The Accomplice The Accomplice by Lisa Lutz
Blurb: Owen and Luna have been best friends since college, the kind you always wonder why they didn’t end up together. When Owen’s wife is murdered, Luna starts putting pieces together with that murder and things that happened years ago. The book “examines the bonds of shared history, what it costs to break them, and what happens when you start wondering how well you know the one person who truly knows you.”
My Thoughts: It’s Lutz, so of course I’m going to read it, she’s still on my “auto” list–writing the above blurb is the first time I even looked at a synopsis I have the eARC on my Kindle now, actually, it’s probably going to be the first novel I start in 2022.
Verdict:
Thumbs Up
How to Save a Superhero How to Save a Superhero by Ruth Freeman
Blurb: A ten-year old becomes convinced that a former superhero is a resident of the retirement community her mom works at. What’s more, she stumbles onto a conspiracy that puts him–and the whole human race–in danger.
My Thoughts: I thought I remembered where I saw this book recommended, but it’s not on the blogs I thought it was. Whoops. Regardless, it sounds like a cute story. It’s staying, I need some MG fluff.
Verdict:
Thumbs Up
Fatal Storm Fatal Storm by Carrie Vaughn
Blurb: “Cormac and Amelia take a job at a quaint Victorian mountain lodge: keep an eye on the famous psychic there to judge whether the place is haunted. Simple, right? Three problems: the blizzard that snows everyone in for the weekend, the murdered body that shows up in the morning, and the fact that everyone is sure Cormac did it.”
My Thoughts: I just need to take some time and read all the Cormac and Amelia stories, and keep forgetting. This story’s presence on the list is a mnemonic device to help. The pair was a big part of what made the Kitty Norville series work–am glad to see them keep the world alive.
Verdict:
Thumbs Up
Family Business Family Business by S.J. Rozan
Blurb: “The death of a powerful Chinatown crime boss thrusts private eye Lydia Chin and her partner Bill Smith into a world of double-dealing, subterfuge, murder, and—because this is New York City—real estate.”
My Thoughts: Like the Lutz book earlier, Lydia Chin/Bill Smith books are auto-reads for me. This one is waiting at the Library for me to pick up. I’ve been looking forward to this one for a while.
Verdict:
Thumbs Up
Dance Among the Flames Dance Among the Flames by Tori Eldridge
Blurb: I’m not even going to try to do this one. Click the links.
My Thoughts: This looks like a heckuva departure from her Lily Wong series. I’m super-curious about it and am looking forward to its release.
Verdict:
Thumbs Up
The Awkward Black Man The Awkward Black Man by Walter Mosley
Blurb: A collection of short stories.
My Thoughts: For years, I’ve felt like I’m missing out on not getting into Mosley–not a FOMO kind of thing, more of a “what is wrong with me that I don’t appreciate him.” After Allyson J Johnson mentioned it in a WWW Wednesday comment, I thought this might be a good way to jump start that effort (although a subsequent comment chilled me a bit).
Verdict:
Thumbs Up
How to Save a Superhero How to Save a Superhero by Ruth Freeman
My Thoughts: Okay, yeah, something about this clearly appealed to me because I put on the list twice. Whoops.
Verdict: At least this helps me trim the number, right?
Thumbs Down
Maxine Justice: Galactic Attorney Maxine Justice: Galactic Attorney by Daniel Schwabauer
Blurb: “Maxine Justice is an ambulance-chasing lawyer desperate for relevance and cash when aliens hire her to represent them before the United Nations.”
My Thoughts: I saw an advertisement for this on Publishers Weekly, and the premise seemed so ridiculous and tongue-in-cheek I had to give it a shot.
Verdict:
Thumbs Up
One for All One for All by Lillie Lainoff
Blurb: A YA gender-bent Three Musketeers featuring someone who (today) would be diagnosed with POTS.
My Thoughts: My daughter’s recently been diagnosed with POTS, so it’s been on my mind. When I saw this mentioned on my Twitter feed, I had to give it a shot. If for no other reason than to make sure my daughter gives it a read.
Verdict:
Thumbs Up
The Liar’s Knot The Liar’s Knot by M.A. Carrick
My Thoughts: I was really impressed with the first in this trilogy last year. I’ll likely be as impressed with this one–I will admit that I’m intimidated by the prospect of picking it up. Can I remember enough of what came before?
Verdict:
Thumbs Up

Books Removed in this Post: 2 / 13
Total Books Removed: 7 / 33

Anyone out there read any of these books? Did I make the right call with any of them?


(Image by moritz320 from Pixabay)

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