The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett by Chelsea Sedoti (Book Beginnings & Friday 56)

Wow.
Just ... wow.
I love this book so fanatically that if I ever lost my mind and decided to give birth to another child and that child ended up being a girl her first name would end up being Hawthorn. Heck, her middle name may very well be Creely just so I could call her "Little Creely" once in a while.
Read this book.
It's rare that I get so caught up in a "YA" book. Middle grade? Sure. Full-blown "adult" books? Not a problem. Unless there's some sort of mystical magical otherworldly freakiness going on, though, "YA" just really isn't my thing.
And then I met Hawthorn. And I got her. And she got me.
She's awkward. She's nerdy. She tries to hide more than she tries to stand out. She could count the number of friends she has on one hand. Actually, she could do it on one finger.
When super popular Lizzie Lovett disappears, Hawthorn starts to appear.
It's painful and beautiful and .... everything.
Read. This. Book.
This is absolutely one of the best books I have read all year. I guess sometimes it actually happens that we "save the best for last" even when we don't mean to. It's official release is next week on January 3rd and I already intend on picking up a gorgeous hardcover "forever" copy for my shelves to replace the digital e-ARC I received from Sourcebooks through NetGalley.
Maybe I can convince my son to name a future granddaughter Hawthorn .... hmmmmm .....

Friday 56 (share from the 56th page or 56% mark) is hosted at Freda's Voice (today 56%) 

& Book Beginnings (share the first few sentences) is at Rose City Reader.

Amazon Description

Hawthorn wasn't trying to insert herself into a missing person's investigation. Or maybe she was. But that's only because Lizzie Lovett's disappearance is the one fascinating mystery their sleepy town has ever had. Bad things don't happen to popular girls like Lizzie Lovett, and Hawthorn is convinced she'll turn up at any moment-which means the time for speculation is now.
So Hawthorn comes up with her own theory for Lizzie's disappearance.  A theory way too absurd to take seriously...at first. The more Hawthorn talks, the more she believes. And what better way to collect evidence than to immerse herself in Lizzie's life? Like getting a job at the diner where Lizzie worked and hanging out with Lizzie's boyfriend. After all, it's not as if he killed her-or did he?

Fat Fridays by Judith Keim (Tuesday Intros & Teaser Tuesdays)

Judith Keim's Fat Fridays is a pleasant and easy read about a group of five women who get together for weekly lunches. They share their highs and lows and lots of delicious sounding meals along the way (well, except for Tiffany who eats mostly salads). The chapters alternate between the stories of the five with most of the bulk of the book focusing on Sukie. Personally, I think I would have rather had more about Lynn because her life is far more dramatic and compelling, but I have a feeling that it wouldn't come across as pleasant and easy had that been the case! There's a second book, Sassy Saturdays, that I'll definitely be picking up. I've spent so many Fridays with these five that I need to know what they get up to on Saturdays!

"First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros" is from the first paragraph or two of a book being read now (or in the future) and is hosted by Bibliophile by the Sea. "Teaser Tuesday" at The Purple Booker asks for a random line or two from anywhere in the book currently being read.

Lizzie's Christmas Escape by Christie Barlow (Book Beginnings & Friday 56)

Friday 56 (share from the 56th page or 56% mark) is hosted at Freda's Voice (today 56%) 

& Book Beginnings (share the first few sentences) is at Rose City Reader.

Amazon Description

Every Christmas Lizzie promises herself that things will change and she will leap into the new year a new woman. And yet here she is again, at the beginning of December and nothing is different. Her girls have grown up and left home, her husband Henry is slumped in front of the TV and she is alone in the kitchen, seeking refuge in the cooking sherry and talking to her Gary Barlow calendar. She’s also been very diverted by handsome new neighbour Marcus and she knows she shouldn’t be …

So when best friend Ann suggests a weekend away in the country, Lizzie jumps at the chance. Will this Christmas escape give Lizzie some much needed perspective and allow her to mend her marriage? Or will Marcus prove to be too much of a distraction?

********************************

"A sparkling, feel-good Christmas romance" is the claim on the cover. I was excited about it & put kt off until right before Christmas for the proper warm fuzzy feelings. What did I get? I got misery and heartache and cheating and, call me crazy, but those aren't typically things that make me feel good. It's not necessarily a bad book, just not at all what I was expecting or hoping for.

Locking Up Santa by Nikki LeClair (Tuesday Intros & Teaser Tuesday)

Locking Up Santa is the second book in Nikki LeClair's Haunting Me series and since I absolutely loved the first one, I knew that this one would be great, too -- and it definitely didn't disappoint! I don't want to give away too much of the story since you should read the first one first (they're only $1.99 each in the US on Amazon for Kindle and totally worth it), but there's a ton of humor and snark and the mystery had me scratching my head. I thought that I had it all figured out pretty early but was totally off the mark -- and happily so! Hopefully LeClair is busy writing more adventures for Phoebe and Edie and their friends ... especially since she left this one with a mega-cliffhanger!

"First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros" is from the first paragraph or two of a book being read now (or in the future) and is hosted by Bibliophile by the Sea. "Teaser Tuesday" at The Purple Booker asks for a random line or two from anywhere in the book currently being read.

In The Market for Murder by T E Kinsey (Book Beginnings & Friday 56)

I'm only at the 20% mark in In The Market For Murder -- T E Kinsey's follow-up to A Quiet Life In The Country. I'm already loving it, though, with Flo and Emily just as much fun and snarky as they were the first time around. I'm assuming that there's a seance going on at the 56% mark but I have no idea who the three characters mentioned are. I have no actual plans for the weekend ahead so I'm guessing I'll just curl up and read and I can't wait!

Friday 56 (share from the 56th page or 56% mark) is hosted at Freda's Voice (today 56%) 

& Book Beginnings (share the first few sentences) is at Rose City Reader.

Buried Bones by Carolyn Haines (Teaser Tuesday)

I read the first of Carolyn Haines' Sarah Booth Delaney books back in May and so much of what I loved about that one has carried over. Sarah Booth is still a spitfire and still lovingly tormented by Jitty -- the ghost of her great-great grandmother's nanny. Jitty is mostly concerned about Sarah Booth's potential spinsterhood, while Sarah Booth (I guess the constant use of both names instead of just 'Sarah' is a Southern Daddy's Girl thing) is mostly concerned with the suspicious death of local legend, Lawrence Ambrose. Of course, it's not as if she isn't also interested in her own complicated love life, but that doesn't pay the bills and figuring out what happened to Ambrose might. We get to learn more about her neighbors in Zinnia, she gets a pretty whack dog as a Christmas present, and she gets an assistant in her PI business. It's another fun trip to the Mississippi Delta and I've already lined up the next three books on my 2017 Reading Thing. You could probably read this without having read Them Bones first without feeling too lost, but I wouldn't recommend it. There are relationships that overlap that it really helps to know about. (Besides, you should know by now that I would never recommend reading a series out of order!)

"Teaser Tuesday" is hosted by The Purple Booker and asks for a
random line or two from anywhere in the book currently being read.

Amazon Description

Private investigation isn't on the list of a southern belle's most desirable accomplishments--but it's saved Sarah Booth Delaney's Delta homestead. Now all she has to cope with is its bossy antebellum ghost who is determined to save Sarah--from spinsterhood. Then comes the perfect social occasion: Lawrence Ambrose's dinner party...
Buried Bones
Ambrose, once a famous man of southern letters, is planning a comeback: a delicious tell-all with a bitchy ex-model as his "biographer." As he taunts his dinner guests with the news that his book will blow the lid off Zinnia's darkest secrets, it becomes plain that each and every guest has a secret--and wants Ambrose to keep it. When the morning-after mess includes a bloody corpse and the manuscript of the biography disappears, Sarah Booth goes digging for answers. But many who hold them are six feet under--or soon will be--and if she doesn't tread carefully, she could join them any day now...

Alphabet Fun 2017

Once again I'll be tackling the alphabet with authors and titles in 2017. The title challenge, Alphabet Soup, is sponsored by Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book. The author challenge I haven't linked up anywhere yet, but it's one that I like to do all on my own just for kicks.

Titles: (subject to change)
A
Billionaire Blend - Cleo Coyle
The Companion - Ann Granger
Demon Hunting in Dixie - Lexi George
Every Trick in the Book - Lucy Arlington
F
G
H
If Fried Chicken Could Fly - Paige Shelton
J
A Killer Plot - Ellery Adams
L
A Meditation on Murder - Robert Thorogood
Never the Bride - Charlotte Fallowfield
On Borrowed Time - Jenn McKinlay
Pride & Prejudice - Jane Austen
Q
R
Soulless - Gail Carriger
T
U
The Vintage Cinema Club - Jane Linfoot
W
X
Y
Z

Authors: (subject to change)
Winnie Archer
Conor Brady
Victoria Cooke
Vicki Delany
E
Sarah Moore Fitzgerald
Juliet Gauvin
Erin Hart
I
J
Tracy Kiely
Annie Lyons
Susan Elia Macneal
N
Carlene O'Connor
P
Q
R
Robin Stevens
T
U
V
Patricia C Wrede
X
Y
Z

(Yes -- I'll likely be using the same X author as 2016. I adore her and she fits and she's written a LOT.)

Rambling About.. Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin PLUS Alphabet Challenges

Opting not to do back-to-back holiday books, I started reading Gabrielle Zevin's Elsewhere Sunday morning and pretty much flew through it. Not so much because I loved it ... but because it was there and I've heard that Zevin is amazing and I had slots to fill in my alphabet challenges.
Elsewhere is the story of 15 year old Liz who was killed when her bicycle was hit by a taxi. She ends up in Elsewhere -- where everyone ages in reverse until they're babies again and ready to be reborn on Earth again. She lives with the grandmother she had never met who is now in her mid-thirties although she died at fifty before Liz was born.
It's a lot to take in.
Liz is ... a fifteen year old. No offense to fifteen year olds, but she drove me a little nuts sometimes like so many fifteen year olds before her (even when I was one myself I wasn't awfully fond of them!). She's a bit of a selfish brat complete with the eye rolls and tantrums and the one word "conversations." She became a little less annoying in the company of the dogs (who talk, by the way), but before long she ended up back on my "want to slap" list.
Still, though, I couldn't seem to stop reading. Maybe in hopes that I would get to see more of anyone other than Liz.
As for the reverse aging bit, it's an interesting premise and makes for some interesting quotes, but I'm more in the Mitch Albom The Five People You Meet in Heaven camp as far as what I'm hoping for in whatever afterlife there may be ... if I had to pick one from a book. With my mom having died 12 1/2 years ago at the age of 54 and with me turning 41 this past weekend ... well, I would have to kick it pretty soon in order to get any time with her again in Elsewhere unless I want her to be younger than me when we see each other. No thanks!

And, with this crossing off "Z" for my authors and "E" for my titles, my alphabet challenges for 2016 are done! If you click on the letters you can go to a ramble or tease for each entry.

A - Arsenic For Tea by Robin Stevens

B - The Bachelor Girl's Guide To Murder by Rachel McMillan

C - Cold Florida by Phillip DePoy

D - Death of a Cad by M.C. Beaton

E - Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin

F - From the Sideline by Amy Avanzino

G - The Grand Reopening of Dandelion Cafe by Jenny Oliver

H - How to Stuff Up Christmas by Rosie Blake

I - The Ill-Kept Oath by C.C. Aune

J - Jimmy and Faye by Michael Mayo

K - Kitty's Countryside Dream by Christie Barlow

L - Leftovers by Stella Newman

M - Murder in the Paperback Parlor by Ellery Adams

N - No Regrets, Coyote by John Dufresne

O - One Hundred Proposals by Holly Martin

P - A Proposal to Die For by Vivian Conroy

Q - Quiet Neighbors by Catriona McPherson

R - Requiem for a Mezzo by Carola Dunn

S - Something the Cat Dragged In by Charlotte MacLeod

T - There's No Place Like Here by Cecelia Ahern

U - Until We Collide by Charlotte Fallowfield

V - The Vintage Guide to Love and Romance by Kirsty Greenwood

W - What Happens in the Alps... by T. A. Williams

X - The XMas Factor by Annie Sanders

Y - A Yorkshire Christmas by Kate Hewitt

Z - A Zen for Murder by Leighann Dobbs

And.... my authors:

A - Ashley

B - Berry

C - Challinor

D - Dunn

E - Ernst

F - French

G - Greenwood

H - Haines

I - Isley

J - Joyce

K - Kelman

L - Linfoot

M - Michael

N - Nagel

O - Oakes

P - Prescott

Q - Quick

R - Raisin

S - Sparkes

T - Tipping

U - Ursu

V - Volland

W - Wyer

X - Xarissa

Y - Young

Z - Zevin

A Little Ramble About.. A New York Love Story by Cassie Rocca

A New York Love Story is an absolutely darling read. It's a bit predictable, but I let holiday reads get a pass on that knocking a star off of the rating. For a Christmas chick lit, this checks off all of the boxes I look for -- love, humor, quirkiness, and being able to cast it in my head. It's like a Hallmark movie that you record every year and leave on the dvr to watch over and over again! Watching the relationship between Clover and Cade develop was a bit of a rollercoaster, but the highs definitely made up for the lows.

Amazon Description

Giving a present is not always easy. Clover O'Brian knows that only too well: her job consists of helping people in the arduous task of choosing unusual gifts. Christmas is coming, New York is buzzing, and Clover, who has always loved the festive period, savours the atmosphere.

Cade Harrison already has everything in life. A Hollywood actor, he is handsome, rich, famous and popular. Success, however, has its downsides; having just emerged from a disastrous relationship with an actress, he feels a need to hide away in an area unfrequented by stars, in an apartment lent him by a friend, far from prying eyes – especially those of tabloid reporters. But as chance will have it, the apartment in question is right opposite the one occupied by Clover, who until now has seen Hollywood actors only on the big screen. Two quite different lives meet by chance, at the most exhilarating time of year...

The Xmas Factor by Annie Sanders (Book Beginnings & Friday 56)

Friday 56 (share from the 56th page or 56% mark) is hosted at Freda's Voice (today page 156) 

& Book Beginnings (share the first few sentences) is at Rose City Reader.

Amazon Description

Meet two women with two totally different approaches to the festive season. 

Beth: it's only September, and already she has performance anxiety. Not surprising when she has agreed to lay on the annual Christmas Eve village bash - the piece de resistance of her husband's former wife - not to mention having to host Christmas for his difficult offspring. New to this frenzied build-up to the festivities, Beth begins to lose sight of what it all means. To her the Christmas lights are looking more like the headlamps of an oncoming train. 

Carol: glamorous magazine editor, who put her aspirational Christmas issue to bed sometime in July and is so involved in finding a scoop to save her ailing magazine that she fails to notice the impending festive rush. Panicked and wracked with guilt, she is determined to make it a picture-perfect time for her little boy and, opting for convenience, books a lovely-sounding cottage in a quaint village. 

Even the best-laid plans have a habit of unravelling - and no plan at all is a recipe for disaster. So when these two Christmases collide, it looks like it's going to be anything but goodwill towards men...

The description for this book doesn't even begin to do it justice. There's so very much more than just Beth and Carol. We also get to know Holly (Beth's stepdaughter who happens to work for Carol), Tim (Carol's seven-year-old son who wants more time with mom and for her to find a boyfriend), and Nick (the musician who is quite enthralled with Carol). The point of view jumps around between them and they all end up crossing paths and stories. I especially love the different takes on things between Carol and Tim. Kids are so much fun to get into the brains of and the writing duo that makes up "Annie Sanders" nailed it. In fact, they've nailed every character beautifully -- even the sometimes bratty Holly, Beth's 'can't-be-bothered' committee "helpers," tortured pop star Anya, and uppity magazine executive Ian. This is definitely one I'll keep on my shelf and pull out to re-read for future Christmases!

Plaid and Plagiarism by Molly MacRae (Tuesday Intros & Teaser Tuesday)

Today I'm teasing the first in a new cozy mystery series set in Scotland. I started this and put it down again several times. It's a bit slower paced than I typically enjoy, but there are enough amusing bits (like Ian -- I adore Ian) that I kept on going back to it until I could mark it off as read on my NetGalley list. I'm still up in the air as to whether or not I'll continue the series.  

"First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros" is from the first paragraph or two of a book being read now (or in the future) and is hosted by Bibliophile by the Sea. "Teaser Tuesday" from Books and a Beat asks for a random line or two from anywhere in the book currently being read.

A Yorkshire Christmas by Kate Hewitt (Book Beginnings & Friday 56)

Friday 56 (share from the 56th page or 56% mark) is hosted at Freda's Voice (today 56%) 

& Book Beginnings (share the first few sentences) is at Rose City Reader.

So, I put together the Book Beginning & Friday 56 image before I started reading the book and the further I got into my reading, the more confused I got because of the Amazon description:

Amazon Description

Wealthy New York City girl Claire Lindell isn’t looking for a Christmas miracle or happiness when she abruptly decides to hole up for the holiday at her godmother’s cottage in a little Yorkshire village, and lick her wounds from a near disastrous romantic decision. 
After her car skids into a snow bank, Claire may have accidently found her perfect Christmas and the family and love she’s craved when she offers Noah Bradford of Ayesgill Farm help to push the back end of one of his sheep out of the icy mud, even if she’s going to ruin a brand new pair of Prada boots during the rescue. 
What’s a little leather when love’s on the line?

Wait .... WHAT? Then who the heck is Hannah Ford from the 56% mark?

*dig dig dig ... search search search ... OH! The Table of Contents!*

Silly me ... the 56% is from another story altogether!
*dig dig dig ... search search search ...*
A ha! The second story is also sold on its own ...

Amazon Description -- Part 2

Welcome to Creighton Falls, New York… a town time forgot where miracles happen…
Glamorous city girl Hannah Ford wasn’t thinking when she walked out of a Christmas party and drove three hundred miles into a snowstorm; she just needed to escape. Thankfully local carpenter Sam Taylor comes to her rescue, and the unlikely pair are forced to spend a snowed-in Christmas together.
All Sam planned for Christmas was to get drunk alone. The holiday has always been something to be endured, until Hannah tumbles into his life, making it magical. Now Hannah and Sam have a chance to have a Christmas together… and make it the best one either of them have ever had.
But can one night out of reality turn into something that’s lasting and real?

Mysteries solved and confusion put on the back burner, I dove back in to reading and am now a huge fan of Kate Hewitt's (and, I'm assuming, will be of her alter ego,  Katharine Swartz) ... and I haven't even made it to the second story yet. The first one all on its own is just that good!

Anita Davison's Murder at Cleeve Abbey (Tuesday Intro & Teaser Tuesday)

[Please note that this has since been retitled as Betrayal at Cleeve Abbey.]

Last week I had the great joy of reading Anita Davison's Murder on the Minneapolis, and now (thanks to NetGalley and the publisher) I'm about a quarter of the way through the second in the series -- Murder at Cleeve Abbey! 

The story opens two years after the events of the first and Flora has moved on from being Eddy's governess and onto married life. She returns to Cleeve Abbey, though, upon receiving news that her father has died. Of course, she has a difficult time believing that it was an accidental death. Since she also still has questions about her mother's death when she was young, it's a very emotional visit that, hopefully, will answer a lot of questions.

I'm not far enough in to be able to spoil much (not that I willingly would, anyway), but so far it is just as beautifully written and compelling as the first!

"First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros" is from the first paragraph of a book being read now (or in the future) and is hosted by Bibliophile by the Sea. "Teaser Tuesday" from Books and a Beat asks for a random line or two from anywhere in the book currently being read.

Rambling About.. Aunt Bessie Assumes by Diana Xarissa

Title: Aunt Bessie Assumes
Author: Diana Xarissa
Publication: 21 May 2014 -- Amazon Digital
Amazon Description:

Aunt Bessie assumes that she'll have the beach all to herself on a cold, wet, and windy March morning just after sunrise, then she stumbles (almost literally) over a dead body.
Elizabeth (Bessie) Cubbon, aged somewhere between free bus pass (60) and telegram from the Queen (100), has lived her entire adult life in a small cottage on Laxey beach. For most of those years, she's been in the habit of taking a brisk morning walk along the beach. Dead men have never been part of the scenery before.
Aunt Bessie assumes that the dead man died of natural causes, then the police find the knife in his chest.
Try as she might, Bessie just can't find anything to like about the young widow that she provides tea and sympathy to in the immediate aftermath of finding the body. There isn't much to like about the rest of the victim's family either.
Aunt Bessie assumes that the police will have the case wrapped up in no time at all, then she finds a second body.Can Bessie and her friends find the killer before she ends up as the next victim?

First Lines: Elizabeth Cubbon, known as Bessie to her friends, rubbed her eyes and checked the clock by her bed. It was 6:06, which meant her internal alarm was a few minutes off today.

Favorites on 4s:
4%: Bessie drew herself up to her full height of five feet, three inches and glared back at the man. "I'll thank you to keep you sexist and ageist remarks to yourself, young man," she told the policeman.

34%: 'Obviously, a murder investigation is no place for a random civilian, but you're something of an institution in Laxey. If anyone is going to hear that little bit of information that we need, it's you."

64%: After ten rings she decided she had better answer the call. Anyone that was willing to hang on that long deserved an answer.

74%: "Someone was trying to get rid of you and I want to make sure that whoever it was doesn't get a second chance."  Bessie nodded sleepily. She tried to thank the inspector, but actually making words felt like a huge effort.

Ramble:
I'm so horribly glad that I stumbled upon Diana Xarissa's Aunt Bessie series while in a mad search for an author whose last name begins with X ... and who isn't writing erotica or Chinese. (Not that I have anything against the Chinese ... I just wasn't in the mood.)
Set in the village of Laxey on the Isle of Man, Aunt Bessie Assumes is the first in a series starring elderly spitfire Elizabeth Cubbon. She never married or had children of her own but over the years has become the honorary aunt to pretty much anyone and everyone. She's fiercely independent and set in her ways and absolutely adores reading mystery novels.
There's so much to love about this story beyond Bessie herself.
- The setting is an unusual one -- and not one that I can ever recall having read about in the past. This, of course, led me to hours of oohing and aahing and "oh I want to go there now"-ing on the web -- including finding a list of other books set there.

 - Bessie's friends and neighbors are an absolute delight. The young policeman, Hugh, who used to stay at Bessie's as youngster and is temporarily back under her roof is a particular favorite of man.  I've been marathon-watching past seasons of Gilmore Girls and there's just something very "Kirk"-ish about him.
- The mystery itself was nice and fits the "cozy" niche well. There's nothing too strenuous here and plenty of red herrings to make you scratch your head. The who, why and how all tied up nicely and made sense -- which isn't always the case. (I hate it when the bad guy is revealed and you end up going "but ... how the heck?!?")
All in all, more people should be reading Xarissa! She's got oodles of books listed on Goodreads and I'll definitely be working my way through at least all of the ones with Aunt Bessie!

Anne Ursu's Breadcrumbs (Book Beginnings & Friday 56)

We're quickly approaching the end of the year and, therefore, the end of my alphabet-centered challenges. Quite frankly, I don't think I'll succeed at finishing them both but I refuse to give up without a fight. I was scrolling through Amazon looking for Christmasy/Wintery reads by anyone with last names ending in U, X & Z ... and it suddenly hit me that I had been meaning to get my hands on Anne Ursu's Breadcrumbs the last time we went to the library. Of course, the library branch we were at didn't have it and it isn't one that's available in ebook (yet) through our system ... but it is on Scribd and they have a 30 day free trial deal.

Based on Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen, it's a lovely spin on an old tale - enjoyable for the middle grade crowd (its "intended" audience) and adults who remember all too well. The main character, Hazel is 11 years old and in the fifth grade and the only thing about her life that really seems "right" is her best friend, Jack. She's different and awkward and more than a bit geeky and I saw my younger self in her so many times. Heck, I saw myself now in her so many times, too.

So many stories are sprinkled throughout this book -- new (Hazel's a big Harry Potter fan) and old (other Andersen story characters appear throughout the second half). I'm not sure if kids (or adults) not familiar with Andersen would get the same "oh oh oh" feelings that I got but, as I alluded to before, I'm different and awkward and more than a bit geeky. Even without the background knowledge of the originals, though, I think most lovers of magic and fairytales would still find this enjoyable.

Friday 56 (share from the 56th page or 56% mark) is hosted at Freda's Voice (today 56%) 

& Book Beginnings (share the first few sentences) is at Rose City Reader.

Amazon Description

The winner of numerous awards and recipient of four starred reviews, Anne Ursu's Breadcrumbs is a stunning and heartbreaking story of growing up, wrapped in a modern-day fairy tale.

Once upon a time, Hazel and Jack were best friends. But that was before he stopped talking to her and disappeared into a forest with a mysterious woman made of ice. Now it's up to Hazel to go in after him. Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen," Breadcrumbs is a stunningly original fairy tale of modern-day America, a dazzling ode to the power of fantasy, and a heartbreaking meditation on how growing up is as much a choice as it is something that happens to us.

In Breadcrumbs, Anne Ursu tells, in her one-of-a-kind voice, a story that brings together fifty years of children's literature in a tale as modern as it is timeless. Hazel's journey to come to terms with her evolving friendship with Jack will deeply resonate with young readers.

Anita Davison's Murder on the Minneapolis (Tuesday Intros & Teaser Tuesday)

[Please note that this has since been retitled as Flora's Secret.]

Another historical mystery series to fall in love with? Yes, please!!!
Flora Maguire is a passenger on the maiden voyage of the ship S. S. Minneapolis. She's governess to thirteen year old Eddy and the two are returning to England after a short stay in New York with his family. It's early in 1900 (thanks to Google I now know the maiden voyage began on March 29, 1900) and the world is rapidly changing. Class lines are beginning to blur. Automobiles are becoming more than just a passing fad. The Strand Magazine is immensely popular and publishing stories by Arthur Conan Doyle on a regular basis -- of which Flora is a huge fan.
Shortly after the voyage begins, Flora comes across the body of another passenger -- dead at the bottom of a stairwell. Although the crew all insist that it was an accident, Flora isn't at all convinced and soon has other passengers (including the slightly nerdy and adorable 'Bunny' Harrington) questioning what really happened.
It's a fabulously well-told story with just the right amount of historical information without feeling text-booky and just the right amount of romance without making me want to hurl. As for the mystery aspect, it felt a bit "Golden Age" in its writing. Of course, since so many of my favorites fit into that original genre, I absolutely love this and look forward to reading more. (Luckily, when I found this on NetGalley I was also able to request the second in the series! Win!)
"First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros" is from the first paragraph of a book being read now (or in the future) and is hosted by Bibliophile by the Sea. "Teaser Tuesday" from Books and a Beat asks for a random line or two from anywhere in the book currently being read. Both the intro and teaser come from early on in the book because, well, "intro" is a bit self-explanatory and the teaser? There were a lot of great bits I bookmarked here and there as potentials to tease, but when it came right down to it: Pirates.

Amazon Description

Young governess Flora Maguire is on her way home from America on the maiden voyage of the S.S. Minneapolis with her young charge Eddy, Viscount Trent, when she discovers a dead body.

Unconvinced when the death is pronounced an accident, Flora starts asking questions, but following threats, a near drowning and a second murder, the hunt is on for a killer. Time is running out as the Minneapolis approaches the English coast.

Will Flora be able to protect Eddy, as well as herself, and uncover the identity of the murderer?

Is her burgeoning relationship with the handsome Bunny Harrington only a shipboard dalliance, or something more?

Rambling About.. Skottie Young's I Hate Fairyland Vol 1

I was scrolling through the hoopla app on my phone to see if anything jumped out at me to borrow for myself or John and stumbled on Skottie Young's I Hate Fairyland Volume 1 : Madly Ever After. 

Hmmm ... I haven't read comics regularly in quite a while but there was just something about this ...

Perhaps the kickass cover?

The "oooooh this sounds fecking awesome" description?

From superstar writer and artist Skottie Young (Rocket Raccoon, Wizard of OZ, Fortunately, The Milk), comes the first volume of an all-new series of adventure and mayhem.
An Adventure Time/Alice in Wonderland-style epic that smashes it's cute little face against grown-up, Tank Girl/Deadpool-esque violent madness. Follow Gert, a forty year old woman stuck in a six year olds body who has been stuck in the magical world of Fairyland for nearly thirty years. Join her and her giant battle-axe on a delightfully blood soaked journey to see who will survive the girl who HATES FAIRYLAND.

The fact that it's already mid-November and I still didn't have a "Y" for my A to Z Authors list?

         Yeah. That's actually what clinched it for me, to be completely honest.

Granted, there were other options for "Y" so the cover and description did help once I had a couple of others to choose from. I hopped onto Amazon to see if there were preview pages for any of them and once I got to this part from the I Hate Fairyland preview, I knew we had a winner:

Yeah, might not be the clearest of all images ... I do believe they do that on purpose ... but the Kindle version is only $1.99 or, you know, you might be able to borrow it from your library like I did.

Even if you don't normally "do comics," if you have any snark in you at all I'm pretty sure you need this. Gert is amazing and her little chain-smoking bug companion is even amazinger. (I know. It's not a word. Suck it.)

Volume 2 is coming out in about a month and I'm hoping hoopla adds it, but if they don't? Yeah, I'll probably end up buying both in paperback ...

Jenn McKinlay's Read It and Weep (Book Beginnings & Friday 56)

I was trying to find something Thanksgiving-y for my next read, but when I saw the cover of Jenn McKinlay's Read It and Weep I opted instead for the loveliness of the falling leaves like the ones that are currently all around me. (Well, not currently since I'm sitting at my desk inside -- but I think you know what I mean!)
This is the fourth book in the series and I highly recommend reading them in order. I know ... I always do ... but a lot would be missing in your understanding of who's who and what's going on without the backup. Besides, if you're reading this you obviously love books and with that typically comes a love of libraries and since the main character is a librarian, why would you not want to read them all?
Once again, McKinlay has written a story that I absolutely love and it's filled with twists and turns and humor and just enough romance to make the heart skip a beat here and there. Added to the usual McKinlay-awesomeness is the fact that the story revolves around a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream (one of my top three Shakespeare loves) and it may have just enthralled me even more than the last one -- and that had pirates!

Friday 56 (share from the 56th page or 56% mark) is hosted at Freda's Voice (today 56%) 

& Book Beginnings (share the first few sentences) is at Rose City Reader.

Amazon Description

Answering Shakespeare trivia comes with the job description for library director Lindsey Norris. But when the Briar Creek Community Theater mounts their newest production of the Bard, she has no intention of leaving the stacks for the stage. Unfortunately a villain is waiting in the wings…

Former Broadway actress Violet La Rue is holding auditions for A Midsummer Night’s Dream—and everyone from the sour spinster librarian Ms. Cole to Lindsey’s youthful library pages are trying out for parts. Brought in to play the mischievous Puck is the flirtatious professional actor Robbie Vine, who seems to have eyes for Lindsey. Before her blush has faded, the Bard’s dream turns into a nightmare—when one of the cast is poisoned. Now Lindsey and her crafternooners must take center stage to unmask the culprit before the final curtain call…

Vivian Conroy's Deadly Treasures (Tuesday Intros & Teaser Tuesday)

I have to say that I'm going to be completely and utterly smashed if Deadly Treasures is the last of Vivian Conroy's Lady Alkmene mysteries. It's the third that I've read since September and the thought of being without new adventures for Alkmene and Jake gets me a bit misty-eyed. 

As has been the case with the others in the series, it's a fabulously told story that constantly had me guessing. Of course, it also doesn't hurt at all that I have an enormous book crush on Jake Dubois. I may have a wee crush on Alkmene, too. Each book sees her a bit more confident and bit spunkier and I love the back and forth between her and Jake (and, well, her and anyone who may underestimate her!).

This latest installment, due out November 21st, sees Alkmene and Jake in Cornwall at the site of an archaeology dig being run by a childhood friend of Alkmene's. He's suspected of murdering someone at the dig site and it's all potentially tied in to an old story of missing gold that may or may not have ever existed.

"First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros" is the first paragraph (or two) of a book being read now or in the future and is hosted by Bibliophile by the Sea. "Teaser Tuesday" from Books and a Beat asks for a random line or two from anywhere in the book currently being read. 

Amazon Description

Lady Alkmene Callender has little interest in marriage, especially when her father is up to his matchmaking tricks, but when the opportunity arises to visit an archaeological dig she cannot resist.

However, when she arrives to find her potential groom under arrest for murder Lady Alkmene begins to wonder if she isn’t in the right place at the right time.

Putting her extensive sleuthing skills to good use, Lady Alkmene along with reporter Jake Dubois, starts to investigate hoping to uncover the real killer before she too ends up six feet under…

Jenny Colgan's The Bookshop on the Corner (Book Beginnings & Friday 56)

I fell in love with the premise of the latest Jenny Colgan book ever since I first saw it advertised with its UK title, The Little Shop of Happy-Ever-After. I was having an awful time finding a copy, though. Every couple of weeks since February I would check my typical dealers and shops and then hit up my library. I absolutely love that I'm able to check ebooks out of my public library and that if they don't have something that I really want to read, I can recommend that they get it and then they'll email me when they do. Such was the case with Jenny Colgan's The Bookshop on the Corner -- which, as it turns out, is the North American release title for that book I was obsessing over! I received notification Wednesday morning that my library had gone ahead and added it to its e-library ... and then within half an hour I received another notification that it was ready to check out!

Of course, Wednesday there was a bit of turmoil going on over here in thee ol' U-S-of-A and I couldn't focus enough to read any more than the first paragraph over and over. But, oh ... what a fitting first paragraph for this week! My plan for the weekend is to curl up with this as often as possible. I may not ramble more about it here (I can pretty much already guarantee that I'm going to love it as I have every word I've read of Colgan's), but feel free to check up on me and it on Goodreads come Sunday or so.

Friday 56 (share from the 56th page or 56% mark) is hosted at Freda's Voice (today 56% of the Kindle version I checked out of my library) & Book Beginnings (share the first few sentences) is at Rose City Reader.

Amazon Description

Nina Redmond is a literary matchmaker. Pairing a reader with that perfect book is her passion… and also her job. Or at least it was. Until yesterday, she was a librarian in the hectic city. But now the job she loved is no more. 

Determined to make a new life for herself, Nina moves to a sleepy village many miles away. There she buys a van and transforms it into a bookmobile—a mobile bookshop that she drives from neighborhood to neighborhood, changing one life after another with the power of storytelling.  

From helping her grumpy landlord deliver a lamb, to sharing picnics with a charming train conductor who serenades her with poetry, Nina discovers there’s plenty of adventure, magic, and soul in a place that’s beginning to feel like home… a place where she just might be able to write her own happy ending.

Teasing A Summer of Secrets & A Winter's Wish by Alice Ross

So, Friday I had finished Alice Ross' An Autumn Affair and the next day I dove right into A Summer of Secrets. THAT I finished on the bus on my way in to work and dove right into A Winter's Wish! Before getting to the typical Tuesday tease for that, though, I need to oooh and aaah over A Summer of Secrets.

While I loved An Autumn Affair, I wasn't sure if I could handle another book with so much angst right away. There was absolutely no need for worrying, though, as A Summer of Secrets is just as glorious and oh-so-much lighter. Not that there aren't uncomfortable situations because there definitely are. I think this time, though, the characters felt more like neighbors than merely book characters -- in much the same way that I've always felt when watching Gilmore Girls. It's like Buttersley is just a British Stars Hollow. I care about the good, the bad and the ugly with its residents in the same way I care about everyone from the Gilmores themselves, to Sookie and Jackson, to Kirk and Michel (both of whom I always wanted more of a story for).

This week's Teaser Tuesday blurb is coming from a flashback scene in A Summer of Secrets when one of this installment's main couplings first encountered Buttersley:

"Teaser Tuesday" from Books and a Beat asks for a random line or two from anywhere in the book currently being read. I know that technically I went for more than a line or two, but it's a great little blurb!
Rich, of course, was wrong about Buttersley. Well, mostly. Enough so that it would be a place I would gladly lay claim to myself, and enough so that it makes me break my typical rule about not reading a series back-to-back!

I've only just started A Winter's Wish and I'm already loving it. In fact, the first page made me spurt coffee so far that I have to share the whole dang thing for my Tuesday Intro. "First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros" is the first paragraph (or two) of a book being read now or in the future and is hosted by Bibliophile by the Sea. I'm claiming this bending of the rules as totally okay because the 'paragraphs' are so short. And, besides, it's perfect.

Now, I don't really know much about Amelia yet but I do know the O'Donnell's since they've been at least in the peripheral of each book. I'm super-stoked that it looks like we're going to get to see more of them in this one (though I'm not super-stoked that the description indicates some stress ahead for them).

Of course, I have every intention of flying through this one just like I did the first two. And, of course, then I'll be awfully sad over a lack of Buttersley visits. I'm almost afraid to ask Ross if there will be more for fear that she'll say no. After all, we've only had Autumn, Summer and Winter. We at LEAST need Spring. Granted, once upon a time they said that Gilmore Girls was finished and now we've got A Year In The Life coming in just 17 days! Not that I'm counting or anything...


(I've also rambled at Goodreads!)