February 2024 Additions to My Digital Security Blanket

 

February was a  month of restraint, even though it doesn't look like it on the surface. I managed to avoid adding titles to my Kindle just because I had all the other books in the series on there already. (I'm determined to get the ones I have read before I load up on more. Who knows? A series may sour at some point, and I won't want any of the newer ones... at least that's what I'm telling myself.)

The ones I did buy are the results of killer sales and shifting from audiobooks back to eBooks. I still have several audiobooks to listen to, but no matter how I try, I'm basically a print reader. I like my own voice to tell me a story, if that makes any sense, although Titus Welliver as Harry Bosch in Michael Connelly's books is an exception...

Let's see the books I couldn't resist last month. I've grouped them by genre, and if you click on the link in the book title, you'll be taken to Amazon US where you can learn more about the book.

=== Non-Fiction ===

 

 

The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson. Set in the U.S.

 

Synopsis: "From 1915 to 1970, this exodus of almost six million people changed the face of America. Wilkerson compares this epic migration to the migrations of other peoples in history. She interviewed more than a thousand people, and gained access to new data and official records, to write this definitive and vividly dramatic account of how these American journeys unfolded, altering our cities, our country, and ourselves.
 
With stunning historical detail, Wilkerson tells this story through the lives of three unique individuals: Ida Mae Gladney, who in 1937 left sharecropping and prejudice in Mississippi for Chicago, where she achieved quiet blue-collar success and, in old age, voted for Barack Obama when he ran for an Illinois Senate seat; sharp and quick-tempered George Starling, who in 1945 fled Florida for Harlem, where he endangered his job fighting for civil rights, saw his family fall, and finally found peace in God; and Robert Foster, who left Louisiana in 1953 to pursue a medical career, the personal physician to Ray Charles as part of a glitteringly successful medical career, which allowed him to purchase a grand home where he often threw exuberant parties.

Wilkerson brilliantly captures their first treacherous and exhausting cross-country trips by car and train and their new lives in colonies that grew into ghettos, as well as how they changed these cities with southern food, faith, and culture and improved them with discipline, drive, and hard work. Both a riveting microcosm and a major assessment, The Warmth of Other Suns is a bold, remarkable, and riveting work, a superb account of an “unrecognized immigration” within our own land. Through the breadth of its narrative, the beauty of the writing, the depth of its research, and the fullness of the people and lives portrayed herein, this book is destined to become a classic."
 

 

█  This is a book that I originally had on audiobook, but I've learned that the audiobook format doesn't really work well for me when it comes to non-fiction. I've been wanting to read it-- not listen to it-- so when it went on sale in eBook format, I snapped it up.

== Amateur Sleuth ===

The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose. Set in a big city hotel.

 

Synopsis: "Molly Gray is not like anyone else. With her flair for cleaning and proper etiquette, she has risen through the ranks of the glorious five-star Regency Grand Hotel to become the esteemed Head Maid. But just as her life reaches a pinnacle state of perfection, her world is turned upside down when J. D. Grimthorpe, the world-renowned mystery author, drops dead—very dead—on the hotel’s tearoom floor.
 
When Detective Stark, Molly’s old foe, investigates the author’s unexpected demise, it becomes clear that this death was murder most foul. Suspects abound, and everyone wants to know: Who killed J. D. Grimthorpe? Was it Lily, the new Maid-in-Training? Or was it Serena, the author’s secretary? Could Mr. Preston, the hotel’s beloved doorman, be hiding something? And is Molly really as innocent as she seems?
 
As the high-profile death threatens the hotel’s pristine reputation, Molly knows she alone holds the key to unlocking the killer’s identity. But that key is buried deep in her past, as long ago, she knew J. D. Grimthorpe. Molly begins to comb her memory for clues, revisiting her childhood and the mysterious Grimthorpe mansion where she and her dearly departed Gran once worked side by side. With the entire hotel under investigation, Molly must solve the mystery posthaste. Because if there’s one thing she knows for sure, it’s that secrets don’t stay buried forever." 

█ I enjoyed the character of Molly Gray so much in Nita Prose's first book, The Maid that I used some of my Amazon rewards to buy this.

=== Thriller ===

The Last Word by Taylor Adams. Set in Washington State.

 

Synopsis: "Emma Carpenter lives in isolation with her golden retriever Laika, house-sitting an old beachfront home on the rainy Washington coast. Her only human contact is her enigmatic old neighbor, Deek, and (via text) the house’s owner, Jules.

One day, she reads a poorly written—but gruesome—horror novel by the author H. G. Kane, and posts a one-star review that drags her into an online argument with none other than the author himself. Soon after, disturbing incidents start to occur at night. To Emma, this can’t just be a coincidence. It was strange enough for this author to bicker with her online about a lousy review; could he be stalking her, too?

As Emma digs into Kane’s life and work, she learns he has published sixteen other novels, all similarly sadistic tales of stalking and murder. But who is he? How did he find her? And what else is he capable of?

Displaying his trademark command of rapid-fire pacing, unnerving atmosphere, and razor-sharp characterization, Taylor Adams once again delivers a diabolically disturbing—and deadly—game of cat and mouse." 

█ This is a sale purchase made to switch over from audio to eBook format. How could the subject matter NOT appeal to me?

=== Historical Mystery ===

The Shadows of Men by Abir Mukherjee. Set in India.

 

Synopsis: "Calcutta, 1923

When a Hindu theologian is found murdered in his home, the city is on the brink of all-out religious war. Can the officers of the Imperial Police Force—Captain Sam Wyndham and Sergeant “Surrender-Not” Banerjee—track down those responsible in time to stop a bloodbath?

Set at a time of heightened political tension, beginning in atmospheric Calcutta and taking the detectives all the way to bustling Bombay, the latest instalment in this remarkable series presents Wyndham and Banerjee with an unprecedented challenge. Will this be the case that finally drives them apart?" 

█ More Amazon rewards were spent on this, the next in one of my favorite historical series. Due to the main character's drug addiction, I was uncertain about continuing, but what happened in the book before this kept me on board. I have few hot buttons when it comes to my reading, but I have to admit that I have little patience for alcoholism or drug addiction in main characters.

=== Detective ===

Death Under a Little Sky by Stig Abell. Set in England.

 

Synopsis: "When Jake Jackson inherits his reclusive uncle’s property in the country, the detective seizes the opportunity for a new life away from the hustle of London.

The new home in this charming rural idyll is beautiful and the surroundings are stunning. While the locals are a bit eccentric, they’re also friendly and invite the newcomer to join their annual treasure hunt.

When a young woman’s bones are discovered, Jake finds himself pulled back into the role of detective, and on the trail of a dangerous killer hiding within this most unlikely of settings." 

█ Between the atmospheric cover and evocative title, AND the synopsis, this book has been on my radar for awhile. Sale and Amazon rewards? Bingo!

Well, how did I do? Have you already read any of these? Or did I tempt you to add any of them to your own lists? Do tell! Inquiring minds would love to know!

June 2023 Additions to My Digital Security Blanket

 

I fell off my Austerity Wagon a bit last month, but I'm not particularly worried. For the past week and a half, I've been deleting my "special price eBooks" emails without even looking at them. Something must be wrong because I don't even blink at the thought of the wonderful bargains I may be missing. It probably has something to do with all the medical scheduling I have to keep track of. Hopefully, I won't have to install a revolving front door to take care of all the traffic!

 

I've grouped last month's purchases according to their genre/subgenre, and if you click on the link in the book title, you'll be taken to Amazon US where you can learn more about the book. (Just in case I tempt you...)

 

Let's see what I couldn't keep my hands off, shall we?

 

 

=== Police Procedural ===

 

 

Riccardino by Andrea Camilleri. Set in Sicily.

 

Synopsis:

 

"At eighty, I foresaw Montalbano's departure from the scene, I got the idea and I didn't let it slip away. So I found myself writing this novel which is the final chapter; the last book in the series. And I sent it to my publisher saying to keep it in a drawer and to publish it only when I am gone." –Andrea Camilleri
 
Montalbano receives an early-morning phone call, but this time it's not Catarella announcing a murder, but a man called Riccardino who's dialed a wrong number and asks him when he'll be arriving at the meeting. Montalbano, in irritation, says: "In ten minutes." Shortly after, he gets another call, this one announcing the customary murder. A man has been shot and killed outside a bar in front of his three friends. It turns out to be the same man who called him.
 
Thus begins an intricate investigation further complicated by phone calls from "the Author" in tour de force of metafiction and Montalbano’s last case.

 

♦ I've been a fan of this series since the very first book, and Riccardino is the 28th and last book in the series. I have five books left to read, including this one, and I doubt that I will read them quickly. I don't want to face the fact that my time with Montalbano will soon come to an end. 

 

 

Gone for Good by Joanna Schaffhausen. Set in Illinois.

 

Synopsis:

 

The Lovelorn Killer murdered seven women, ritually binding them and leaving them for dead before penning them gruesome love letters in the local papers. Then he disappeared, and after twenty years with no trace of him, many believe that he’s gone for good.

Not Grace Harper. A grocery store manager by day, at night Grace uses her snooping skills as part of an amateur sleuth group. She believes the Lovelorn Killer is still living in the same neighborhoods that he hunted in, and if she can figure out how he selected his victims, she will have the key to his identity.

Detective Annalisa Vega lost someone she loved to the killer. Now she’s at a murder scene with the worst kind of déjà vu: Grace Harper lies bound and dead on the floor, surrounded by clues to the biggest murder case that Chicago homicide never solved. Annalisa has the chance to make it right and to heal her family, but first, she has to figure out what Grace knew—how to see a killer who may be standing right in front of you. This means tracing his steps back to her childhood, peering into dark corners she hadn’t acknowledged before, and learning that despite everything the killer took, she has still so much more to lose.

♦ I read and enjoyed the first book in Schaffhausen's Ellery Hathaway series and had heard lots of good things about this first book in the Annalisa Vega series, so I decided to take advantage of its bargain price. Of all the books I purchased last month, this is the one from which I suffer a bit of buyer's remorse. My feelings have absolutely nothing to do with the author; I'm just trying to break the habit of stockpiling large numbers of books when I have no earthly clue when I'll get around to actually reading them. 

Red, Green or Murder by Steven F. Havill. Set in southern New Mexico.

 

Synopsis:

Former Posadas County Sheriff Bill Gastner, now a New Mexico Livestock Inspector, is enjoying a day on Herb Torrance's ranch - soaking in the sun, counting a small herd of cattle, and thinking about meeting an old friend back in town for lunch. But suddenly a light breeze stirs the dust, a horse spooks, and Bill finds himself ferrying a broken cowpuncher in the back of his SUV, headed out to meet an ambulance.

Moments later, Bill's day goes from bad to worse. He is summoned by undersheriff Estelle Reyes-Guzman to investigate an unattended death. Too impatient to wait for Bill, his friend George Payton decided to eat lunch on his own. A couple of bites later, he collapsed - dead of an apparent heart attack. But something isn't right.

Then the small herd of cattle Bill had just counted is found wandering down a county highway. But there's no sign of cowpuncher Pat Gabaldon or his boss' $40,000 truck and livestock trailer. Forced into two tangled investigations, Bill faces one of the most complex cases in his 35-year career.

 

♦ This is next up in another favorite series of mine. (#11 of 25 so far.) Havill writes an excellent mystery, and the ensemble cast is one of the very best in crime fiction. 

===Short Story===

Hallowed Ground by Linda Castillo. Set in the Amish country of Ohio.

 

Synopsis:

 

When a family dog brings home a human bone, Chief of Police Kate Burkholder finds herself on a desperate search for answers. Where did the bone come from? Who does it belong to? And perhaps most importantly, are the bones a result of foul play? With Halloween approaching, the unsettling questions garner uneasiness, rumors, and macabre theories among the residents of Painters Mill. Determined to get to the bottom of the case—and stop the ghost stories upsetting the town—Kate and her soon-to-be husband John Tomasetti embark on a sweeping investigation. Will their search for the source of the human remains uncover the truth? Or will it lead them to an even darker discovery buried on hallowed ground?

 

♦ I can't resist Linda Castillo's short stories featuring vignettes from the life of Chief of Police Kate Burkholder. For me, they're the literary version of a tasty snack. I rated this four stars on Goodreads.

 

 

Snakebit by Paul Doiron. Set in Maine.

 

Synopsis:

 

When a teenager arrives at a Maine hospital with a rattlesnake bite, warden Mike Bowditch is baffled. Rattlesnakes have been extinct in the region for over a hundred years—so where did this one come from? Bowditch’s investigation leads him to a pair of eccentric married scientists who have a vested interest in rattlesnakes and their venom. Even more suspicious, their estranged daughter has accused them of carrying out grotesque experiments on her. As more rattlesnakes appear in the woods—and the case becomes increasingly mystifying—Bowditch finds himself running out of time to catch his exotic foe.

♦ Like Linda Castillo's short stories featuring Kate Burkholder, I can't resist Paul Doiron's about Game Warden Mike Bowditch. They are very tasty snacks. I rated this short story four stars on Goodreads.

 

 

=== Cozy Mystery ===

 

 

Please Don't Push Up the Daisies by Diane Vallere. Set in Texas.

 

Synopsis: 

 

When interior decorator Madison Night finally meets the family of boyfriend and police captain Tex Allen, the circumstances are less than joyful. His sister’s broody botanist husband left Lily to raise their four rambunctious boys on her own, and she’s at wit’s end. The only bright spot is the mid-century ranch he gave her in their divorce settlement.

The soon-to-be-ex has one request: a face to face with Lily before he says goodbye. Madison offers to go along for moral support, but in lieu of signed settlement papers, she finds the ex’s body crumpled in the corner of the arboretum where he works. When swarm of angry bees sideline Tex, it’s Madison’s job to dig up the secrets that led to the murder — but if she’s not careful, the dirt she uncovers could fill her grave instead.

♦ If you ever wonder what books are on my Pre-Order List, Diane Vallere's Madison Night series is one of them. The mysteries are good ones, but Madison herself is the lure that keeps me coming back for more.

Will I be back on the Austerity Wagon next month? Only time will tell!

May 2023 Additions to My Digital Security Blanket

 

My recent restraint in buying eBooks and audiobooks slipped slightly in May, but that's only because I did find a couple of can't-resist sale prices AND I used several "coupons" that I'd been squirreling away. I'm still scrolling past many books that I would've snapped up last year, so my newfound fiscal responsibility hasn't disappeared completely!

Last month, I mentioned my monthly "reading map" in which I plug in any Advance Reading Copies (ARCs) that I have and then add gems that have fallen down the rabbit hole of my Kindle. So far, it's been going well, aided in large part to the fact that I've had fewer ARCs to read the past two or three months. See? My restraint has also included ARCs-- which is a good thing because I have hundreds of books, not only on my Kindle, but on my physical bookshelves as well.

 

What books proved to be irresistible last month? Let me show you! I've got them grouped by genre/subgenre, and if you click on the link in the book title, you'll be taken to Amazon US where you can learn more about the book.

 

 

=== Non-Fiction ===

 

 

A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan's Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them by Timothy Egan. Set mainly in Indiana.

 

Synopsis: "The Roaring Twenties--the Jazz Age--has been characterized as a time of Gatsby frivolity. But it was also the height of the uniquely American hate group, the Ku Klux Klan. Their domain was not the old Confederacy, but the Heartland and the West. They hated Blacks, Jews, Catholics and immigrants in equal measure, and took radical steps to keep these people from the American promise. And the man who set in motion their takeover of great swaths of America was a charismatic charlatan named D.C. Stephenson.

Stephenson was a magnetic presence whose life story changed with every telling. Within two years of his arrival in Indiana, he’d become the Grand Dragon of the state and the architect of the strategy that brought the group out of the shadows – their message endorsed from the pulpits of local churches, spread at family picnics and town celebrations. Judges, prosecutors, ministers, governors and senators across the country all proudly proclaimed their membership. But at the peak of his influence, it was a seemingly powerless woman – Madge Oberholtzer – who would reveal his secret cruelties, and whose deathbed testimony finally brought the Klan to their knees.

A FEVER IN THE HEARTLAND marries a propulsive drama to a powerful and page-turning reckoning with one of the darkest threads in American history." 

▲ Timothy Egan wrote one of my all-time favorite books, The Worst Hard Time about the Depression and the Dust Bowl. He has a brilliant talent for turning all his hard-earned research into a riveting story that rivals the best fiction. After reading one of Jess Montgomery's Kinship mysteries that featured the Klan and after learning that the little Illinois farm town (population 1700) in which I grew up had its own chapter of the KKK in the 1920s, there was no way I wasn't going to get my hands on this book and read it.

The Ride of Her Life: The True Story of a Woman, Her Horse, and Their Last-Chance Journey Across America by Elizabeth Letts.

 

Synopsis: "In 1954, sixty-three-year-old Maine farmer Annie Wilkins embarked on an impossible journey. She had no money and no family, she had just lost her farm, and her doctor had given her only two years to live. But Annie wanted to see the Pacific Ocean before she died. She ignored her doctor’s advice to move into the county charity home. Instead, she bought a cast-off brown gelding named Tarzan, donned men’s dungarees, and headed south in mid-November, hoping to beat the snow. Annie had little idea what to expect beyond her rural crossroads; she didn’t even have a map. But she did have her ex-racehorse, her faithful mutt, and her own unfailing belief that Americans would treat a stranger with kindness.

Annie, Tarzan, and her dog, Depeche Toi, rode straight into a world transformed by the rapid construction of modern highways. Between 1954 and 1956, the three travelers pushed through blizzards, forded rivers, climbed mountains, and clung to the narrow shoulder as cars whipped by them at terrifying speeds. Annie rode more than four thousand miles, through America’s big cities and small towns. Along the way, she met ordinary people and celebrities—from Andrew Wyeth (who sketched Tarzan) to Art Linkletter and Groucho Marx. She received many offers—a permanent home at a riding stable in New Jersey, a job at a gas station in rural Kentucky, even a marriage proposal from a Wyoming rancher. In a decade when car ownership nearly tripled, when television’s influence was expanding fast, when homeowners began locking their doors, Annie and her four-footed companions inspired an outpouring of neighborliness in a rapidly changing world."

▲ I love horses. I've read and enjoyed other books by Elizabeth Letts. When I saw the title of this book, I had to read the synopsis, and once I'd done that, I was hooked and had to buy it.

 

 

Woman, Captain, Rebel: The Extraordinary True Story of a Daring Icelandic Sea Captain by Margaret Willson.

 

Synopsis: "History would have us believe the sea has always been a male realm, the idea of female captains almost unthinkable. But there is one exception, so notable she defies any expectation.

This is her remarkable story.

Captain Thurídur, born in Iceland in 1777, lived a life that was both controversial and unconventional. Her first time fishing, on the open unprotected rowboats of her time, was at age 11. Soon after, she audaciously began wearing trousers. She later became an acclaimed fishing captain brilliant at weather-reading and seacraft and consistently brought in the largest catches. In the Arctic seas where drownings occurred with terrifying regularity, she never lost a single crewmember. Renowned for her acute powers of observation, she also solved a notorious crime. In this extremely unequal society, she used the courts to fight for justice for the abused, and in her sixties, embarked on perilous journeys over trackless mountains.

Weaving together fastidious research and captivating prose, Margaret Willson reveals Captain Thurídur's fascinating story, her extraordinary courage, intelligence, and personal integrity.

Through adventure, oppression, joy, betrayal, and grief, Captain Thurídur speaks a universal voice. Here is a woman so ahead of her times she remains modern and inspirational today. Her story can now finally be told." 

▲ Book titles catch my eye more than covers do. I grew up in a village library and finally got paid for the work I did when I turned sixteen. One of my jobs was to choose books for housebound patrons, and my eye quickly became trained to look for those all-important titles on the spines. Once this particular title caught my eye, my love of maritime as well as women's history took over.

 

 

Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson.

 

Synopsis: "In this brilliant book, Isabel Wilkerson gives us a masterful portrait of an unseen phenomenon in America as she explores, through an immersive, deeply researched, and beautifully written narrative and stories about real people, how America today and throughout its history has been shaped by a hidden caste system, a rigid hierarchy of human rankings.
 
Beyond race, class, or other factors, there is a powerful caste system that influences people’s lives and behavior and the nation’s fate. Linking the caste systems of America, India, and Nazi Germany, Wilkerson explores eight pillars that underlie caste systems across civilizations, including divine will, bloodlines, stigma, and more. Using riveting stories about people—including Martin Luther King, Jr., baseball’s Satchel Paige, a single father and his toddler son, Wilkerson herself, and many others—she shows the ways that the insidious undertow of caste is experienced every day. She documents how the Nazis studied the racial systems in America to plan their outcasting of the Jews; she discusses why the cruel logic of caste requires that there be a bottom rung for those in the middle to measure themselves against; she writes about the surprising health costs of caste, in depression and life expectancy, and the effects of this hierarchy on our culture and politics. Finally, she points forward to ways America can move beyond the artificial and destructive separations of human divisions, toward hope in our common humanity.

Original and revealing, Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents is an eye-opening story of people and history, and a reexamination of what lies under the surface of ordinary lives and of American life today."

 

▲ The title grabbed me, and the synopsis made it a done deal. I like the fact that I'm getting back to reading more non-fiction. 

=== Thriller ===

AUDIO: The Last Word by Taylor Adams. Set in Washington state.

 

Synopsis: "Emma Carpenter lives in isolation with her golden retriever Laika, house-sitting an old beachfront home on the rainy Washington coast. Her only human contact is her enigmatic old neighbor, Deek, and (via text) the house’s owner, Jules.

One day, she reads a poorly written—but gruesome—horror novel by the author H. G. Kane, and posts a one-star review that drags her into an online argument with none other than the author himself. Soon after, disturbing incidents start to occur at night. To Emma, this can’t just be a coincidence. It was strange enough for this author to bicker with her online about a lousy review; could he be stalking her, too?

As Emma digs into Kane’s life and work, she learns he has published sixteen other novels, all similarly sadistic tales of stalking and murder. But who is he? How did he find her? And what else is he capable of?

Displaying his trademark command of rapid-fire pacing, unnerving atmosphere, and razor-sharp characterization, Taylor Adams once again delivers a diabolically disturbing—and deadly—game of cat and mouse." 

▲ I came across this book while doing some work on The Poisoned Pen Bookstore's Pinterest page. Once I read the synopsis, I decided I had to use an Audible credit to get it. I think it's something few book bloggers/reviewers could resist taking a peek at!

Loot by Aaron Elkins. Set in Europe.

 

Synopsis: "In April 1945, the Nazis, reeling and near defeat, frantically work to hide the huge store of art treasures that Hitler has looted from Europe. Truck convoys loaded with the cultural wealth of the Western world pour in an unending stream into the compound of the vast Altaussee salt mine high in the Austrian Alps. But with the Allies closing in, the vaunted efficiency of the Nazis has broken down. At Altaussee, all is tumult and confusion. In the commotion, a single truck, its driver, and its priceless load of masterpieces vanish into a mountain snowstorm.

Half a century later, in a seedy Boston pawnshop, ex‑curator Ben Revere makes a stunning discovery among the piles of junk: a Velazquez from the legendary Lost Truck. But with it come decades of secrets, rancor, and lies, and the few who know of the painting’s existence have their lives snuffed out one by one by an unknown assassin. Revere must travel back to the grand cities of Europe to unravel the tangled history of the lost truck and its treasures before fifty years of hatred, greed, and retribution catch up with him." 

▲ I've always been interested in art history and art theft, and articles about found art that was looted by the Nazis are guaranteed to capture my attention, so... Loot was right down my alley.

What do you think of last month's purchases? Have you read any of them? Did you add any of them to your own wish lists? Do tell! Inquiring minds would love to know! 

January Additions to My Digital Security Blanket

 

As I'd suspected, the previous month's paltry number of additions to my digital security blanket was a fluke. January looked more like business as usual.

 

I've grouped my acquisitions by genre/subgenre, and if you click on the link in each book's title, you'll be taken to Amazon US to learn more about it. Let's get started!

 

 

===Historical Fiction===

 

The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner. Set in England. 

 

 ■ An attractive sale price and a dual timeline story set in 18th-century and present-day London concerning a secret apohtecary shop catering to an unusual clientele meant that I couldn't resist this one.

 

Consider the Lilies by Iain Crichton Smith. Set in Scotland.

 

 ■ A tale of the Highland Clearances as told by an elderly woman who experienced them AND a killer sale price? Sold!

 

 

AUDIO: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus. Set in California.

 

 ■ I was contentedly prepared to ignore all the praise I'd seen heaped on this book. I was going to bide my time and get to it in a couple of years or so, but when I discovered that I could get the audiobook version for $2, there went all my good intentions.

 

 

 

===Short Story===

 

Signal Moon by Kate Quinn. Dual timeline story set in World War II and present-day England.

 

 ■ I've got Quinn's The Diamond Eye already on my Kindle, but when I stumbled across this short story with its intriguing dual timeline premise, I thought I'd sample her writing with it first. I rated this four stars on Goodreads.

 

 

 

===Thriller===

 

AUDIO: City Under One Roof by Iris Yamashita. Set in a cold, cut-off, and claustrophobic town in Alaska.

 

 ■ I seem to be drawn to claustrophobic tales laced with hypothermia lately, and the combination of a killer sale and intriguing premise meant that I couldn't keep my hands off this one.

 

 

AUDIO: Picture in the Sand by Peter Blauner. Set in Egypt.

 

 ■ A another killer sale and watching The Poisoned Pen's Zoom event with the author meant that, once again, I succumbed to temptation.

Shifty's Boys by Chris Offutt. Set in Kentucky.

■ Reading A Killing in the Hills made author Chris Offutt one of my "finds" of 2022. When the next book in the series went on sale, I didn't waste any time.

Kinglake-350 by Adrian Highland. Set in Australia.

■ (1) One of my favorite authors who just plain doesn't write enough. (2) A fictional account using the setting of an actual 2009 Australian wildfire. (3) Being handed several discounts. (4) Get out of my way-- I'm buyin' this one! (I do expect to be very emotionally involved in this book due to my knowledge of the wildfires Arizona has had to face.

There you go-- the books I couldn't resist last month. Have you read any of them? Do you want to read any of them? Please share! 

 

 

 

November 2022 Additions to My Digital Security Blanket

 

If you have an eReader, do you keep every book you download, or do you weed through them occasionally? I'm asking because I just finished doing a little weeding of my own eBooks. I'm not a re-reader, so I don't see the sense in keeping books that I know I'm never going to read again.

 

Now that I've asked the burning question that's on my mind, it's time to go through the books that I added to my digital security blanket last month. I'd say it was an average month, but bargains were scarce, so I spent more on regular price books that I didn't want to wait for. Let's see if any of my acquisitions tickle your fancy, too!

   

I've grouped the following books by genre/subgenre, and if you click on the hyperlink in the book title, you'll be taken to Amazon US where you can learn more about the book. 

 

 

===Short Story===

 

 Goodnight, Sweet Mother by Alex Kava.

 

► I've become a fan of Alex Kava's Ryder Creed series, so I decided to see what sort of short story she wrote. I rated this one four stars on Goodreads. 

 

 

===Historical Fiction===

 

Crusoe's Daughter by Jane Gardam. Set in England. 

 

 ►Gardam is an author I've run across several times yet never read. When this title showed up on one of my bargain newsletters, it caught my eye and then the synopsis sealed the deal.

 

 

===Police Procedural===
 

 AUDIOBOOK: Desert Star by Michael Connelly. Set in California.

 

 ►For anyone who's been following along on this blog for very long, my addition of the newest Ballard & Bosch mystery will come as no surprise. I'm listening to this one now and enjoying every second.

 

 Bleeding Heart Yard by Elly Griffiths. Set in England.

 

 ►This one will also come as no surprise. I've already read it, and it's been added to my Best Reads of 2022 list.

 

 

===Thriller===

 

The Quarry Girls by Jess Lourey. Set in Minnesota.

 

 ►It seemed that, everywhere I looked, I saw this book. When I finally broke down and clicked on the link in one of my bargain newsletters, the synopsis certainly made it sound like something I would enjoy. We shall see, eh?

 

A Ghost of Caribou by Alice Henderson. Set in Washington.

 

►I've rapidly become a fan of Henderson's Alex Carter series, so there was no way I would ignore this newest book in the series. Besides, I have a weakness for books set in Washington State.

 

 

===Cozy Mystery===

 

 A Killer Christmas at Honeychurch Hall by Hannah Dennison. Set in England.

►The latest in one of my favorite cozy series. If all goes well, I'll read it during this holiday season.

===Non-Fiction===

Dinners With Ruth: A Memoir on the Power of Friendships by Nina Totenberg.

►Ruth Bader Ginsberg was one of my heroes. I couldn't pass this one up, especially when it went on sale.

===Fiction===

AUDIOBOOK: Dinosaurs by Lydia Millet. Set in Arizona.

►Dorothy's review of this book on her blog, The Nature of Things, convinced me that I should read this book. An added bonus is the fact that it's set in Arizona, and I haven't read nearly enough books set here this year. Shame on me.

Well, there you have it-- the books I couldn't resist last month. Have you read any of them? Did I tempt you with any of them? Which ones? You know inquiring minds would love to know!

October 2022 Additions to My Digital Security Blanket

 

October is the month many Phoenicians wait for. After months of 100°F.+/38°C.+ temperatures, things finally begin to cool down. One of my favorite October things is to turn on the cold water faucet and actually have cold water come out (instead of boiling hot). That's just one facet of life in the desert-- like the prime parking spots being the ones in the shade, not the one closest to the building you want to enter. I've been spending quality time sitting outside enjoying the breeze and sunshine while doing needlepoint and listening to an audiobook. Yep. Other parts of the country are already getting snow, and here I am, sitting outside stitching and listening.

Due to some unexpected bargains, there are a few more additions to my digital security  blanket, so I'd better start sharing them with you! I have them grouped by genre/subgenre, and if you click on the link in each book's title, you'll be taken to Amazon US where you can learn more about it. Let's see what I couldn't resist.

 

 

===Short Story===

 

Seven Years by Peter Robinson, set in England.

 

♦ I enjoy Peter Robinson's writing as well as the Bibliomysteries series this short story is a part of. Looks like a win-win situation to me!

 

Only the Lucky by Linda Castillo, set in Ohio.

Disappeared by Linda Castillo, set in Ohio.

 

 ♦ I've been enjoying these Kate Burkholder short stories, so I've indulged myself.

 

Dark Chamber by Jeri Westerson, set in medieval England.

 

 ♦ I've been curious about Westerson's Crispin Guest series for years, so I decided to sample this short story. Rated three stars on Goodreads.

 

 The Tiger Came to the Mountains by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, set in Mexico.

 

♦ This is the second short story by Moreno-Garcia that I've read (rated four stars on Goodreads) and enjoyed. One of these days, I'm going to pick up my Kindle and start reading Mexican Gothic!

 

 

===Thriller/Suspense===

 

Death in the Sunshine by Steph Broadribb, set in Florida.

 

♦ Broadribb's Retired Detectives Club series intrigued me. The price was right, so...

 

Falling by T.J. Newman.

 

♦ This one was a triple threat: intriguing plot, local author, sale price. Cha ching!

 

 

===Historical Mystery===
 

 Funeral Train by Laurie Loewenstein, set in Oklahoma.

♦ I loved her first Dust Bowl mystery, Death of a Rainmaker, so I jumped on this one when I saw it-- and it wasn't even on sale! (I hope you were sitting down...) I'll be reading it SOON.

===Private Investigator===

AUDIOBOOK: Pay Dirt Road by Samantha Jayne Allen, set in Texas.

♦ This is another case of intriguing plot and the right price.

===Police Procedural===

The Final Curtain by Priscilla Masters, set in England.

♦ I've read other books in series Masters writes, and the synopsis (and price) of this one showed me, once again, that I have no self-restraint when it comes to books.

Bryant & May: London Bridge Is Falling Down by Christopher Fowler, set in England.

♦ I came to Fowler's Bryant & May series late, and I seem to be gobbling them up as they come on sale and squirreling them away for the day I'm no longer a literary magpie. (Well, I can dream, can't I?)

===Science Fiction===

AUDIOBOOK: Doing Time by Jodi Taylor.

♦ I read one of Taylor's books in another series and really enjoyed the light-hearted fun. This is the first in a new series, and as I read the synopsis, I was reminded of Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next series, so I just had to give it a try. 

AUDIOBOOK: The Apocalypse Seven by Gene Doucette, set in Massachusetts.

♦ Lark's review of this book persuaded me that I just had to read it.

===Historical Fiction===

People of the Morning Star by W. Michael Gear & Kathleen O'Neal Gear, set in Illinois.

♦ This couple are bestselling authors and award-winning archaeologists. I read one of their books featuring the Anasazi years ago and really liked it, so when I came across this book on sale and found out it was the first in a series about the People of Cahokia, I snapped it up. I've been to Cahokia, a very evocative place, and I look forward to reading the Gears' take on this civilization.

===Cozy Mystery===

Love Me or Grieve Me by Diane Vallere, set in Texas.

 

♦ This latest in one of my favorite series has a fascinating premise-- what would happen to YOU if you were declared dead? I'm looking forward to reading it.

How did I do? Did I choose any that you've already read... or that I persuaded you to add to your own Need-to-Read lists? Do tell! You know that inquiring minds would love to know!

September 2022 Additions to My Digital Security Blanket

 

I have to admit that my mind is elsewhere today. I'm almost finished with Charlie Lovett's The Enigma Affair, which is probably going to turn out to be yet another Best Reads of 2022 book. I don't know how I managed to find a seat at the table of a banquet of savory reading these past few weeks, but I'm enjoying every second of it.

 

Fortunately, I can usually keep focused on what needs to be done. The faster I get that stuff done, the faster I can get back to my book, so... I'm not going to waste any more time in telling you about the eBooks I just couldn't resist adding to my digital security blanket! I've got them grouped by genre/subgenre, and if you click on the link in the book title, you'll be taken to Amazon US where you can learn more about it. 

 

 

===Short Story===

 

A Hidden Secret by Linda Castillo. Set in Ohio.

 Seeds of Deception by Linda Castillo. Set in Ohio.

 

 ■ I decided to indulge myself with two of Linda Castillo's Kate Burkholder short stories that I enjoy so much.

===Thriller===

Kismet by Amina Akhtar. Set in Arizona.

■ I've heard some good things about this book, and since it's set in Sedona, Arizona, I knew I couldn't pass this one up!

The Program by Charlie Lovett. Set in New York City.

■ An earlier book by one of my favorite authors, and the price is right? You know what happened!

Bretherton: Khaki or Field Gray? by W.F. Morris. Set in France.

■ World history from 1875 to 1920 has long been one of my favorite time periods to read about, both in fiction and in non-fiction. I found the synopsis of this World War I mystery too intriguing to pass up.

 

Andean Express by Juan de Recacoechea. Set in Bolivia and Chile.

 

 ■ I am always determined to read more books set in South America, although my follow-through is usually lacking. The synopsis sounded intriguing, and the price was right; however, I'm now experiencing a bit of buyer's remorse because I think I read another of the author's books and didn't like his writing style at all. We shall see!

The Enigma Affair by Charlie Lovett. Set in North Carolina and Europe.

■ This is Lovett's first attempt at a thriller, and he's going a wonderful job. He's become a must-read author for me.

===Historical Fiction===

The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner. Set in England.

■ This book was a very small blip on my radar when it was first released, but I didn't pay any attention. For some reason, I decided to pay more attention to it now, and I really liked the idea of a story about people banding together to save Jane Austen's house and legacy. I have to admit that I'm tempted to listen to the audiobook version, so don't be surprised if this title shows up again next month!

===Non-Fiction===

The Address Book: What Street Addresses Reveal About Identity, Race, Wealth, and Power 

by Deirdre Mask.

■ The subject matter of this book captured my attention and wouldn't let it go, so I put it on my wish list. A few days later, the price of the book was dramatically reduced. Kismet, eh?

So far, I already know that I struck paydirt with The Enigma Affair, and I'm looking forward to reading the rest. How about you? Have you read any of these? Which ones? Opinions, please! Or did I tempt you to add one or two to your own wish lists? You know that inquiring minds want to know!