CC's Stuff and Things

Book 3: Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah First, let me say this is the third book by Kristin Hannah that I've read.  I read The Great Alone  and The Nightingale , both which I enjoyed, though I felt that The Great Alone  should have ended differently. I'm also noticing that Kristin Hannah likes to leave the reader feeling hope in some way.   Winter Garden is a family drama sort of book centered around the mother, a Russian woman who married an American and came to the US after World War 2.  She is very cold towards the two daughters she has, and when their father dies suddenly, they are left to care for her.  The story is very well done and flashes back to the mother's time in World War 2.  Very well researched, and I did really enjoy it.   Book 4:  The Art of Inheriting Secrets by Barbara O'Neal I listened to this as an audiobook last year, and I like this author ( When we Believed in Mermaids  my favorite so far).  I deci...

 Book 1 of 2022:  The Moonflower Murders by Anthony Horowitz :) Purchased this book at the Palm Springs Airport on my way to San Jose for the Christmas holiday with family.  I didn't realize that this book was the 2nd in a series-ish sort of book.  It references things that happened in "The Magpie Murders" by the same author, without giving so much away that I knew exactly what happened, but it's not entwined so much with the Moonflower Murders that I could read it and not be confused.  I really liked this book because it was definitely a different structure than I'm used to.  It's about an editor of a deceased author who is contacted because the parents of a missing woman think that she discovered hidden clues in a novel that pointed to a murderer of someone who was killed.  It follows the main character as she travels to England to investigate herself, then about midway through the book, the book with the hidden clues is included for you to read alon...

By no means is this list complete. I suspect I'm forgetting 5-10 books I read. I read books from the library, books that I have been loaned to me, e-books, books purchased at Goodwill or scored for free at church sale prep, and audio books. I was told by a friend that I'm allowed to include audiobooks because I also read book books. I love a good story. So the short codes here are :) for good, :/ for okay, :( for did not enjoy, :)) favorite. 2021 The Boy from the Woods by Harlan Coben :) Valentine by Elizabeth Wetmore :/ The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate :) Verity by Colleen Hoover :( The Lost Recipe for Happiness by Barbara O’neal (audio) :) The all you Can Dream Buffet by Barbara O’neal (audio) :) The Garden of Happy Endings by Barbara O’neal (audio) :) The Lost Girls of Devon by Barbara O’neal (audio) :/ The Art of Inheriting Secrets by Barbara O’neal (audio) :/ Write my Name Across the Sky by Barbara O’Neal :) When we Believed in Mermaids by Barbara O’Neal (audio ...