The Reading Thing 2016 -- The Monthly Theme Version

While I was trying to figure out what I was going to read in order to fulfill my alphabet challenges (and tackle the TBR), I asked my darling son if he thought I should just randomly read or have some sort of theme for each month. He thought themes and immediately started to come up with ideas for each month. Since it's a fairly quiet night at work I figure it would be a good time to take the alphabetical Reading Thing and see about fitting it into the themes! I'm shooting for seven to eight books a month ... which may or may not actually happen.

1 February Random Update : Unless a new purchase or ARC falls into my lap I currently plan on filling "empty space" for each month with playing catch-up on M.C. Beaton, Charlotte MacLeod and Carola Dunn. I'll add them in as I go along.

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

January || February || March || April || May || June
July || August || September || October || November || December
*******************************************************************

***January***
New In The New Year (Mostly)
(top)

ramble	teaser	teaser	ramble
teaser/ramble	ramble	ramble	teaser/ramble
ramble	ramble	teaser/ramble	teaser & mini-ramble
ramble

***February***
Valentine's & Love Stuff (Book Crushes Included)
(top)

ramble	ramble	teaser/ramble	teaser
ramble	teaser/ramble	teaser/ramble	ramble
teaser & ramble	teaser/ramble	teaser & ramble	ramble

***March***
Irish, Easter & Just March
(and a bunch of ARCs)
(top)

teaser & ramble	ramble	teaser/ramble	teaser 1  2 /ramble
teaser & ramble	ramble	teaser	teaser & mini-ramble

***April***
Spring Break (Trips, Hotels, etc)
(top)

teaser	teaser  teaser&ramble	teaser/ramble	teaser & ramble
teaser	ramble	ramble	teaser/mini-ramble
ramble	ramble	ramble

***May***
Murder!!!
(top)

ramble	ramble	ramble	ramble
ramble	ramble	ramble	ramble

***June***
Weddings ... And Ice Cream
(top)

ramble	ramble	ramble	ramble
ramble	ramble	ramble	ramble
ramble

***July***
Christmas in July
(top)

ramble	ramble	ramble	ramble
ramble	ramble	ramble

***August***
Magic (and Stuff)! ("Otherwise August is boring." - John)
(top)

ramble	ramble	ramble	ramble
ramble	ramble	ramble	ramble
ramble

***September***
School Days
(top)

ramble	ramble	ramble	ramble
ramble	ramble	ramble	ramble

***October***
Spooky Stuff
(top)

ramble	ramble	ramble	ramble
ramble	ramble	ramble	ramble

***November***
Cozy
(top)

ramble	ramble	ramble	ramble
ramble	ramble	ramble

***December***
Christmas & New Year's
(top)

ramble	ramble	ramble	ramble
ramble	ramble	ramble

Jonathan Auxier's Sophie Quire and the Last Storyguard

My first official read of 2015 was Jonathan Auxier's amazing Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes so when I saw that the follow-up, Sophie Quire and the Last Storyguard, was available to request on NetGalley I was fully prepared to beg for a chance to read it early.

I shouldn't have asked for it.

Oh .... don't get me wrong .... it's not that I shouldn't have asked for it because it's BAD. My problem is exactly the opposite! I shouldn't have asked for it because I can't stand not having the actual real beautiful book in my hands to read. eBooks are great and definitely serve their purpose in the world and make reading while walking/falling asleep/pretending to work/riding on poorly lit public transportation/etc. a lot easier .... but ....

I've already hit the pre-order button for the hardcover (and, once my tax refund hits or the money fairy visits I'll be getting a hardcover of Peter Nimble to go with it ... which I fully figured was going to happen a year ago).

The book is being released on April 5th. I'm not sure how quickly it will get to me after that, but I may just have to call in sick to work so I can curl up with it.

The Book & The Tease

Sophie Quire and the Last Storyguard by Jonathan Auxier

The Meme

Book Beginnings & Friday56 -- The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow by Katherine Woodfine

I finally started reading Katherine Woodfine's The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow this week and I am SO in love with it! I know it's supposedly a middle grade/YA book, but anyone who loves shows like (the sadly cancelled) The Paradise and (soon-to-be entering it's final series) Mr. Selfridge and a nice easy-going mystery would love this, too, regardless of age.

Friday56 (share a blurb from the 56th page or 56% mark) is hosted at Freda's Voice & Book Beginnings (share the first few sentences) is at Rose City Reader.

Rambling About.. Phillip DePoy's Cold Florida

Title: Cold Florida

Author: Phillip DePoy

Publication: 1 April 2016 - Severn House

First Line: It was two in the morning, the middle of February. I was signing my time card, but I could barely read the handwriting I was so tired.

Favorite Line: I liked to move forward. I had always found that, when you moved back, you were liable to bump into something you'd rather forget. (22%)

Ramble:

When I saw that Phillip DePoy had a new series starting and that I could request the first title in said series from NetGalley I jumped at the chance. Years ago I devoured his Flap Tucker books and have read most of the Fever Devilin series (that will be remedied soon, I hope, and turn from "most" to "all"). Receiving my advanced copy for free did not, of course, influence my opinion of the story.  In case you aren't familiar with his work, DePoy writes "flawed" very well. His "protagonists" don't always have many "pros" going for them and I'm thrilled that the star of this newest series is no different.  It's 1974 and Foggy Moskowitz has been living in Fry's Bay, Florida for the past three years working for Child Protective Service. His previous job? A car thief in Brooklyn. He cares about making amends with the universe like a never-ending Yom Kippur and sees his job helping children as a good way to do that (and, of course, earn a living). When we first meet Foggy he's off to see about finding a baby born to a junkie who has disappeared from the hospital (along with the junkie mother). The ends that Foggy is willing to go to in order to secure the baby and make sure the needed medical attention is given is pretty touching and almost filled with heartfelt "awwwww"s ... but the "awwwww"s diminish ever-so-slightly when you see that he's not above shooting knees and stabbing forks in throats to get the good deeds done. Yeah. He's one of those characters you would probably not really want to know in real life but can't help but cheer on (at least a little bit) between the covers of a book.  Junkies, babies, mystical Seminoles, hit men, business moguls, and a town full of people who all seem to be harboring secrets of various shapes and sizes. It's kept me guessing, laughing and even "awwwww"ing from the beginning and I can't wait to see what DePoy puts Foggy through next.

Alphabet fun -- Revised

Once again, I'm going to attempt to read the alphabet. Last year I planned on doing author's last names and got distracted and missed several letters ... so this year I'm going at it again AND a title challenge, as well, which is being hosted by Escape with Dollycas Into A Good Book.

First, my titles:

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