So Many Books, So Little Time...

Hey everyone! 

So, I've taken some time for me this summer, for learning new things, lots of hockey (yes in the summer!) and other things.  I've been reading, though not as much as I normally have. I got as close as being 3 books behind schedule for my 100 books read that I challenged myself on Goodreads, and currently I am sitting at 5 books behind schedule though I do have 2 that I am almost finished!  I always have a couple of books on the go and read them depending on the mood that I am feeling.  

I've been getting ready and creating things for the Christmas craft shows this fall, and we've got tables in 3 of them so that is where some of my free time has been going.  It makes me want to read cozy mysteries about knitting and crocheting!  

I've got a backlog of reviews that I have to get done, and really will just need to take a day and punch them all out and get them posted properly.  My *plan* is to have most of them finished up by Friday.  Let's see how that goes, I also have to start getting some pickles made and other canning projects.  I really should make another blog for all the other things that I get involved in.... maybe someday soon :) 

Hope you are all enjoying what is left of the summer! 

It's Been A While....

Hey everyone... It's been a bit since I've been around. Real life can sometimes get in the way and throw some wrenches at you. And that's pretty much what happened.  Throw in some reading block (as opposed to writer's block), working, and other fun stuff and it equals me being away for too long. 

But, I'm back around and reading as much as I can while working on some projects that I just have to get done. I have some reviews to post soon, lots to catch up on, and a couple of current ones.  I'm about 15 books behind schedule on my reading challenge, but I'm hoping to catch up on that on my week's vacation. Let's see how many I can actually get done and if I'll be caught back up by July 24th. (That's 2 weeks away... fingers crossed!) 

So, today's challenge is getting a couple of reviews done for books I've recently read, update my pinterest, goodreads, etc and make my list of what needs to be read next for reviews. I discovered this morning I'd pre-ordered a few books and they magically have appeared on my Kindle :)  Fun stuff! 

Happy Reading! 

Monday's Minutes

Happy Monday! 

Hopefully everyone enjoyed their weekend! I read some really great books this week, and started a few more. These days it's rare for me to have at least 2 books on the go.  I'll be writing reviews of these books and have them posted soon! I also got approved for 3 more books on NetGalley... it's so addictive!

I'm also a crafter.. I don't talk about that much, but I got one of my yarn orders in the mail and I'm so excited to get to working on a few projects that I've been looking at! It's hard when you have more than one addiction, but hey.. books and knitting... can't go wrong there :) One of these days I'll start another blog for that addiction... but reading is still my number one hobby! 

So, this week I'm hoping to get a few more books read for my reading goal of 100 books this year.. I'm a few books ahead of schedule thankfully! I also plan on working on the blog a bit more, and getting my reading challenges updated to see where I stand on some of them. I am currently doing 3 challenges... there was 4 but, I kind of let one of them fall to the wayside. 

Hope you all have a great week! Don't forget to follow my blog so you don't miss any of the good stuff! 

Great Giveaway Alert: Storytellers Unlimited 4/11/16

Hello friends! 

I stumbled upon this great giveaway while I was on Facebook today. Over on the Storytellers Unlimited website, they are giving away a Kindle Fire and 35 ebooks ! What a great way to find some new authors, and who wouldn't love to win a new Kindle? 

To enter the giveaway, you just have to

 click HERE

Good luck to everyone that enters!  

Review: Borrowed Crime by Laurie Cass A Bookmobile Cat Mystery Book 3

Borrowed crime is the 3rd installment of A Bookmobile Cat Mystery series. (For some reason, I thought it was the 2nd... so I'll be going back to read that before I hit number 4!) 

Minnie and her cat Eddie are back and their troubles are back with them.  Minnie has lost funding for the bookmobile when the grant they'd received fell through, and her boss Stephen is on her back about it. Not only that, but one of the volunteers dies while on the bookmobile route! Now, the volunteer's brother is suing the library and blaming them for his death.  It looks like the bookmobile will be parked on the sidelines, and there's even talk of how Minnie's resignation would help with the lawsuit.  Was the death a hunting accident, or was it murder?  Eddie finds an important clue that points toward murder... if anyone can find out the truth, it's Minnie!

Who can resist a series about a librarian, bookmobile, and a crime solving kitty cat? I know I can't!  Some nice twists in this story introducing new characters and possibly a new romance? (Maybe this is wishful thinking but one can hope!) I love the characters in this series, many are fun and quirky and you never know what'll happen next.  If you haven't read this series before, I definitely recommend it! 

Cozy Mystery Reading Challenge

So, along my travels of goodreads and other reading blogs, I stumbled across the Craving for Cozies Challenge 2016

Now, cozy mysteries as many of you can tell from the books that I have been reading and reviewing lately are one of my favourite genres.  So, I think this challenge has my name written all over it! 

There are different levels you can achieve when you participate and well, I've jumped in with both feet! My goal is to complete the highest level, that being reading 61+ cozy mysteries in 2016. And counting the ones that I've already read starting this month, I've got a nice start already! (I think it's fair that I count the cozies that I read already... I only just found the challenge but, I still read the cozies in 2016!)

So, click the button above if you are interested in learning more about this cozy challenge and maybe even signing up yourself! If you do, please leave me a message in the comments to let me know, I'd love to see who else is participating! I'll also be posting a button on the side of the blog so it's easy to find and to visit the challenge home page. To anyone else doing this challenge... Good luck! 

Review: Going Organic Can Kill You by Staci McLaughlin A Blossom Valley Mystery Book 1

Firstly I want to say that I actually read the series out of order. Not my normal way of things, I usually like to read the a series in order but I had received an ARC of the 5th book in the series. I enjoyed that book so much I knew I had to come back and start the series properly. 

I love the setting for this cozy mystery, a farm turned spa.  The main character, Dana, has moved back home to help out her recently widowed mother.  Dana's mother has arranged for her to begin working at the O'Connell Organic Farm and Spa, as their marketer.  Unfortunately, on opening weekend Dana finds the body of one of the guests, and begins to try to solve the mystery so she can save the spa from closing (and her job!) 

Dana is a great character, a woman who stands up for herself, an avid health food hater (who works at an organic an health food centered spa.. oh the irony...) and is very funny. I had quite a few laugh out loud moments.  The mystery I was able to figure out after a while, but the answer wasn't staring me in the face.   There are some great supporting characters (and a few well.. let's say if they met their end, I wouldn't cry) and lots of openings for future mysteries.  I can't wait to hit the next book in the series! 

Review: The Secret Life of Winnie Cox by Sharon Maas

First I'd like to thank TBC for giving me an ARC of this book to review for an honest review. 

This isn't normally the type of book that I read, but I jumped at the chance because I've heard some great things about this book. It is a story of forbidden love between the teenage daughter of a wealthy sugar plantation's master and a black teenager who works at the post office.  It captured me from the beginning. I won't lie, I found it difficult to read at times with the treatment of the workers... slaves in everything but name... working and living conditions, the cruelty they endured.. It's very eye opening and thought provoking, to think what it would be like to live in that world. I think it takes a great writer to be able to bring you into their story, feel what the characters feel.. and Sharon Maas does just that. 

Review: Murder Most Wholesome by Staci mcLaughlin A Blossom Valley Mystery Book 5

Publish Date: February 23rd, 2016

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review 

This is the first book that I have read by Staci McLaughlin and I really enjoyed this cozy mystery.  Murder Most Wholesome is the 5th installment of A Blossom Valley Mystery Series and I had no problem reading this before any of the other books in the series.  

The book centers around our main character, Dana, who works in marketing for the O'Connell Organic Farm and Spa in Blossom Valley.  Dana accompanies her friend and cook for the Farm and Spa, Zinnia,  to the local farmers market to pick up supplies and they run into Zinnia's old flame, Birch.  He's back living on the commune that he and Zinnia lived in all those years ago. (wait, there's a commune? It seems like everyone knew about this commune in the area except Dana) Birch and Zinnia haven't seen each other for 20+ years, and when he turns up murdered in her yard the next day, she is heartbroken and understandably unable to go to work. Dana, who lives off of frozen meals, takeout, and lots of other unhealthy snacks, has to step in and prepare the healthy and organic meals. Easy right? Oh, along with doing her regular marketing duties and solving the 'whodunnit'  

There are some fun, laugh out loud moments in this book and it kept me turning the pages.  I like that the main character isn't involved with someone on the local police as many of the plots of other cozies have. In fact, most of the book centers around Dana and her friends investigating, the police are just in the background. I didn't guess the identity of the murderer right away, there were lots of clues pointing to several suspects.   There are lots of fun and quirky characters and I am looking forward to going back to read the others books in this series.

Review: Dead In A Dumpster by B.L. Blair (A Leah Norwood Mystery Book 1)

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley for an honest and unbiased review.  

Dead in a Dumpster is the first in a new cozy series.  

It is the first book that I have read by this author 

and I was not disappointed!

Leah Norwood is the owner of Scents and Sensibility, along with her 2 best friends. When she discovers a body in the dumpster in the alley behind hers and the neighbouring shops, she immediately becomes a suspect along with several others in the community.  A second body is found, again by Leah, who has decided it is up to her to investigate these murders.  There are many twists in this mystery and there is never a shortage of suspects.  There is an interesting love triangle that is developing and it will be fun to see how it all plays out as the series continues. I look forward to the next in the series! 

Happy New Year!

So it's January 1st.  A time of new beginnings, and of resolutions.  I have a few resolutions, but I am determined to keep mine simple this year.  My biggest resolution, is to be kinder to myself. I want to stop being so hard on myself, to give myself permission to make mistakes, to not try to be perfect and do everything for everyone.

My reading resolutions... well, I want to read at least 100 books this year.  I want to make my blog bigger and better, and fingers crossed, I just may have something to kick things off this month! (please! please! please!) and I want to read at least 1 'classic novel' per month this year. There are a lot of classic books that I've just never read, and it's time that I change that.  I am a book hoarder of such.. I've got books all over the place.... lots of shelves... a few bags of books here and there, plus all the ones that I've downloaded for Kindle to PC...now transferred to my new Kindle Paperwhite (yay!!)

So, you will see some changes with my blog, both design and some content. I hope that you will enjoy the changes the new year will bring, and please feel free to follow, and share with friends! I love talking to people about books, hearing what they like and what interests them.

Happy New Year, may this year bring you everything that you want, need and deserve!

Reading Rampage!

So I got a new Kindle for Christmas! (Wooohooo!!) And to say that I have been reading a bit since I have received it would be a complete understatement! Mom and Dad couldn't have given me a better gift :) Check out the funky purple giraffe case!

So I have ended up reading 5 books in 4 days and have 2 more on the go. I've got a few books that I was approved to read for Netgalley as well that I am excited over!

I really love this Kindle, it's the Kindle Paperwhite and it's so easy to download books. Why did I wait so long before getting one? My Kobo Glo was great too but I find myself more attached to this Kindle. No this isn't any paid advertisement or anything, I am just gushing (too much!) over this Kindle! haha

So my plans for 2016? Attack my reading challenges with a renewed passion, advance my blog to the next level, and create a separate blog for some of my crafting.  I am also addicted to yarn crafts and get torn between the 2 hobbies.

I hope you all have a wonderful New Years, and hope you will be visiting my little reading nook many times over the next year!

~Katie~