MOVIE - Brooklyn

PG-13 (1:51)

Limited release 11/4/15

Viewed Tuesday, 1/12/16 at ElCon

RT Critic:  98  Audience:  90
Critic's Consensus:   Brooklyn buttresses outstanding performances from Saoirse Ronan and Emory Cohen with a rich period drama that tugs at the heartstrings as deftly as it satisfies the mind.

Cag:  5.5 Just loved it, top quality, too...

Directed by John Crowley
Written by Nick Hornby

Fox Searchlight

Saoirse Ronan - who was absolutely wonderful!

My comments: A period story, (early 1950s) with excellent acting, lots of giggles, a few tiny sniffles, and wonderful costuming and hairstyles.  The storytelling was superb, not sappy, thoughtful, with a lovely, perfect ending.

RT Summary:  Eilis Lacey followed her sister, Rose's, plan to leave Ireland and find a better future and job in the US. She departs terribly, enduring seasickness and a terrible relationship with her cabin mates. A kind traveler gives her advice to live in Brooklyn, where many Irish immigrants live. Eilis settles in Brooklyn and becomes close to Father Flood, a Catholic priest. She gets a job in a department store and falls in love with an Italian boy named Tony. News from home sends Eilis back to Ireland, away from Tony.

MOVIE - Star Wars Episode 7: The Force Awakens

PG-13 (2:16)

Wide release 12/18/15

Roadhouse Cinemas Friday 1/8/16

RT Critic: 93   Audience: 90
Critic's Consensus:   Packed with action and populated by both familiar faces and fresh blood, The Force Awakens successfully recalls the series' former glory while injecting it with renewed energy. 

Cag:  4.5 Liked it a great deal

Directed by J. J. Abrams

Walt Disney Pictures

Harrison Ford

My comments:  This was excellent storytelling that somewhat paralled the first episode - I loved the story, the actors, and was totally able to follow the plot the first time (unlike others in the series).  Very enjoyable, with a great deal of humor.

RT Summary:  They've done a great job about keeping the plot under wraps so that no spoilers leak out to people that haven't seen the movie yet:  The Star Wars saga continues with this seventh entry -- the first under the Walt Disney Co. umbrella. The film will act as the start of a new trilogy set after the events of Return of the Jedi. 

A Little New Year's Eve Letterboxing

What a great way to end the new year - and fill the last page of my current logbook - than spending the day with a best friend and visiting a new library  (I can't believe what a tiny library the big town of Brewer, Maine has). I love these clever, inside-a-book letterboxes, and this one certainly did NOT disappoint!

See the slender red volume?  It has no shiny cover, and would probably not be picked up by anyone to look over....it sits there so innocently!

Fran opened it up to read the page below:

Then, snuggled into a cut after turning this page:

So COOL!

Thanks On the Corner!

You can check this letterbox out on Atlas Quest here.

2016 Reading Challenges

2016 Reading Challenges

16 Challenges for 2016

1.  Published in the Current Year - 2016

(except Picture Books, which are outlined below)

1.  The Opposite of Everyone  by Joshilyn Jackson ADULT CRF

2.  Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard YA

3.  Into the Dim by Janet B. Taylor YA

4.  The Girl in the Ice by Robert Bryndza ADULT Myst

5.  Hard Light bt Elizabeth Hand ADULT Myst

6.  Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld ADULT CRF
7.  The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementary by Laura Shohan CHILD

8.  Lizzie and the Lost Baby by Cheryl Blackford CHILD
9.  Summerlost by Allie Condie
10.  Raymie Nightingale by Kate diCamillo CHILD

11.  Wolf Lake: A Novel by John Verdon ADULT Myst
12.  Among the Wicked by Linda Castillo

13.  Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven YA
14.  The Female of the Species, by Mindy McGinnis YA

15.  Family Tree by Susan Wiggs ADULT CRF
16.  The 13th Continuum by Jennifer Brody YA Dystopia
17.  The Body Reader by Anne Frasier ADULT Myst
18.  The Poet's Dog by Patricia MacLachlan MID

2.  Written Before 2006 
(making the book over 10 years old)
1.  Desert Shadows - Betty Webb, 2004
2.  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, 2005
3.  Where There's Smoke - Sandra Brown, 1993
4.  Sugar Skull - Denise Hamilton, 2003
5.  Darkscope - J. Carson Black, 1990
6.  Die Trying - Lee Child, 1998

3.  One-Word Titles
1. Conversion
2.  Wonder
3.  Deadline
4.  Eligible 
5.  Summerlost 
6.  Darkscope
7.  Suspect
8.  Suspicion

4.  Where in the World?
1.  The Janus Stone Norwich, England
2.  Silent Scream W. Midlands, England
3.  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Sweden
4.  The Girl in the Ice London, England
5.  The Fifth Gospel Rome, Italy & Vatican City, Italy
6.  Hard Light England
7.  Lucifer's Tears Helsinki, Finland
8.  Lizzie and the Lost Baby WWII Yorkshire, England
9.  The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox Scotland
10.  Career of Evil London, England and vicinity
11.  Six Impossible Things Australia
12.  Suspicion England
13.  Seeking the Dead England
14.  Evil Games England

5.  Arizona or Maine?
1.  Girl in the Glass (Portland, ME)
2.  Desert Shadows (Phoenix, AZ)
3.  Darkscope (Bisbee, AZ)
4.  Empty Houses  (Bisbee, AZ)
5.  Water Castle (ME)
6.  Bad Little Falls (ME)

6.  YA
1.  The Fifth Wave
2.  Cruel Beauty
3.  Conversion
4.  The Age of Miracles
5.  Glass Sword
6.  Into the Dim
7.  A Shade of Vampire
8.  AA Shade of Blood
9.  Article 5
10.  Holding Up the Universe
11  The Female of the Species
12.  Snow Like Ashes
13.  Six Impossible Things
14.  The 13th Continuum
15.  Suspicion
16.  City of Glass

7.  Mid Grades
1.  11 Birthdays
2.  Space Taxi: Archie Takes Flight (actually, way younger than Middle Grade, I think....)
3.  Wonder
4.  My Life With the Liars 
5.  Water Castle
6.  Summerlost 
7.  Raymie Nightingale
8.  The Map Trap
9.  The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementary
10.  Lizzie and the Lost Baby
11.  The Poet's Dog

8.  Historical Fiction
1.  Into the Dim (Time Travel)
2.  Lizzie and the Lost Baby

9.  CRF
1.  The Life List
2.  The Map of True Places
3.  The Opposite of Everyone 
4.  Wicked Ties
5.  The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend
6.  Eligible 
7.  Raymie Nightingale
7.  The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementary
8.  The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox
9.  Holding Up the Universe
10.  Family Tree
11.  Six Impossible Things
12.  The Poet's Dog, The (magical realism?)
13.  Summerlost 

10.  NonFiction (yuh, right...)
1.

11.  Poetry
1.  The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementary by Laura Shovan VERSE novel

12.  Mystery
1.  Crime of Privilege Walker
2.  Small Wars - Child
3.  The Janus Stone -Griffiths
4,  Silent Scream - Marsons
5.  Girl in the Glass - Hayman
6.  Desert Shadows - Webb
7.  Blood Ties - Guild
8.  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Larsson
9.  Deadline - Brown
10.  The Girl in the Ice - Bryndza
11.  The Fifth Gospel - Caldwell
12.  Hard Light - Hand
13.  Worth Dying For - Child
14.  Blood Oath - Farnsworth
15.  Dead Time - White
16.  Where There's Smoke - Brown
17.  Lucifer's Tears - Thompson
18.  Career of Evil - Galbraith (Rowling)
19.  Wolf Lake: A Novel - Verdon
20.  Bad Little Falls - Doiron
21.  Night and Day - Parker
22.  Evil Games - Marsons
23.  One Shot - Child
24.  Seeking the Dead - Ellis
25.  Among the Wicked - Castillo
26.  Sugar Skull - Hamilton
27.  Darkscope - Black (Falk)
28.  Empty Houses - Thornton
29.  Blackman's Coffin - de Castrique
30.  Suspect - Crais
31.  Once Shadows Fall - Daniels
32.  Suspicion - Monir
33.  The Body Reader - Frasier
34.  Against the Odds - Jacobs
35.  Die Trying - Childs

13.  Paranormal/Dystopia/Fantasy
1.  The Fifth Wave - Rick Yancey YA Dyst
2.  Cruel Beauty - Rosamund Hodge YA Fant (Fractured Fairy Tale
3.  The Age of Miracles - Walker AD/YA Dyst
4.  Space Taxi: Archie Takes Flight - Wendy Mass Child SciFi
5.  Glass Sword - Victoria Aveyard YA Fant
6.  Into the Dim - Janet B. Taylor YA TimeTravel Fant
7.  The Library at Mount Char - Scott Hawkins AD Fant
8.  Blood Oath  - Christopher Farnsworth AD Para Myst
9.  A Shade of Vampire - Bella Forrest YA Fant
10.  A Shade of Blood - Bella Forrest YA Fant
11.  Article 5 - Kristen Simmons YS Dyst
12.  Darkscope - J. Carson Black/Margaret Falk AD Ghost/Myst
13.  Snow Like Ashes - Sara Raasch YA High Fant
14.  The 13th Continuum - Jennifer Brody, YA Dyst
15.  City of Glass - Cassandra Clare, YA Dyst

14.  Audio Books
1.  Crime of Privilege (Walker)
2.  Small Wars (Child)
3.  Cruel Beauty (Hodge)
4.  The Age of Miracles (Walker)
5.  The Opposite of Everyone  (Jackson)
6.  Blood Ties (Guild)
7.  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Larsson)
8.  Deadline (Brown)
9.  Worth Dying For  (Child)
10.  Blood Oath (Farnsworth)
11.  Dead Time (White)
12.  Where There's Smoke (Brown)
13.  The Map Trap (Clements)
14.  The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox (O'Farrell)
15.  Career of Evil (Galbraith)
16.  Raymie Nightingale (diCamillo)
16.  Wolf Lake: A Novel  (Verdon)
17.  Holding Up the Universe (Niven)
18.  The Female of the Species (McGinnis)
19.  Among the Wicked (Castillo)
20.  Blackman's Coffin (de Castique) [partially read, partially listened]
21.  Suspect (Crais)
22.  Once Shadows Fall (Daniels)
23.  City of Glass (Clare)
24.  Die Trying (Child)
25.  Night and Day (Parker)
26.  One Shot (Child)
27.  Summerlost  (Condie)
28.  Bad Little Falls (Doiron)

15.  Books in a Series 
Sequels and Prequels
1.  Small Wars (Child) #19.5 Jack Reacher
2.  The Fifth Wave (Yancey) #1 The Fifth Wave
3.  Cruel Beauty (Hodge) #1 Cruel Beauty Universe
4.  The Janus Stone (Griffiths) #2 Ruth Galloway
5,  Silent Scream (Marsons) #1 DI Kim Stone
6.  Girl in the Glass (Hayman) #4 McCabe & Savage
7.  Desert Shadows (Webb) #3 Lena Jones
8.  Space Taxi: Archie Takes Flight (Mass) #1 Space Taxi
9.  Wicked Ties (Black) Wicked Lovers #1
10.  Glass Sword (Aveyard) Red Queen #2
11.  Into the Dim (Taylor) Into the Dim #1
12.  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Millenium #1)
13.  Hard Light (Cass Neary #3)
14.  Worth Dying For  (Jack Reacher #15)
15.  The Girl in the Ice (DCI Erika Foster #1)
16.  Blood Oath (#1 Nathaniel Cade, President's Vampier)
17.  Dead Time (Alan Gregory #16)
18.  Lucifer's Tears (#2 Kari Vaara)
19.  Career of Evil (#3 Comoran Strike)
20.  Wolf Lake: A Novel (#5 Dave Guerney)
21.  Article 5 (#1 Article 5)
22.  Among the Wicked (#8 Kate Burkholder)
23.  Sugar Skull (Eve Diamond #2)
24.  Pleasure Extraordinaire series
25.  Empty Houses (#1 Kate Waters)
26.  Blackman's Coffin  (#1 Sam Blackman)
27.  Snow Like Ashes (#1 Snow Like Ashes)
28.  The 13th Continuum (#1)
29.  Suspect (they will appear again in Cole & Pike mysteries)
30.  Once Shadows Fall (Sturgis & Kale #1)
31.  Against the Odds (Anna Dawson, Las Vegas Gambler #1)
32.  City of Glass (The Mortal Instruments #3)
33.  Die Trying (Jack Reacher #2)
34.  A Shade of Vampire (A Shade of Vampire #1)
35.  A Shade of Blood, (A Shade of Vampire #2)
36.  Seeking the Dead (Joe Plantagenet #1)
37.  Night and Day (Jesse Stone #8)
38.  One Shot (Jack Reacher #9)
39.  Evil Games  (D.I. Kim Stone #2)
40.  Bad Little Falls (Mike Bowditch, ME Game Warden; #3)

16.  Authors New-to-Me
1.  Walter Walker Crime of Privilege (3)
2.  Rick Yancey The Fifth Wave (4.5)
3.  Rosamund Hodge, Cruel Beauty (1)
4.  Angela Marsons, Silent Scream (5)
5.  Lori Nelson Spielman, The Life List (4)
6.  Karen Thompson Walker, The Age of Miracles (2) Gorgeous writing, depressing plot
7.  Shayla Black - Wicked Ties (2)  If I try another of this genre, it'll be with another author....
8.  Janet B. Taylor - Into the Dim (5) What a great debut novel!
9.  Stieg Larrsson - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Unfortunately, deceased, but there are two more to go, phew!
10.  Datarina Bivald - Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend (3) Quirky characters & plot
11.  Caela Carter - My Life With the Liars  (5) Main premise is what got me....
12.  Scott Hawkins - The Library at Mount Char (5) Wow....an incredible imagination!
13.  Sandra Brown - Deadline (4) I'm sure I read her before I started this blog, but I can't remember specifics, so I'll include her on this list.
14.  Sittenfeld, Curtis (female, despite the male-ish name) Eligible  4.5 Definitely will try another of hers
15.  Robert Bryndza - The Girl in the Ice Good
16.  Christopher Farnsworth - Blood Oath Interestingly different
17.  Stephen White - Dead Time Psychologist's "angle" into mystery detection - good stuff
18.  Maggie O'Farrell - The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, The MUST try some others!
19.  Simmons, Jennifer - Article 5 Hard-to-believe actions and reactions of characters
20.  Jennifer Niven - Holding Up the Universe hard-to-believe characters....
21.  Mindy McGinnis - The Female of the Species great storyteller, sad stuff happens
22.  Mark de Castique - Blackman's Coffin  more, please!
23.  Susan Wiggs - Family Tree good romance writer, but not my cuppa tea when it comes to genre
24.  Sara Raasch - Snow Like Ashes Strong female warrior lead
25.  Fiona Wood - Six Impossible Things  Australian. A real find!
26.  Jennifer Brody - The 13th Continuum, The  Very readable
27.  Robert Daniels - Once Shadows Fall Looks like the start of a great new mystery series
28. Alexandra Monir - Suspicion, a take on DuMaurier, would read her again
29.  Anne Frasier - The Body Reader, fantastic writer, must read more
30.  Mara Jacobs - Against the Odds , knows her way around Vegas, great characterization
31.  Laura Shovan = The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementary, great characterization in verse
32.  Bella Forrest = A Shade of Vampire NO!
33.  Kate Ellis - Seeking the Dead very decent mystery writer
34.  Megan Frasier Blakemore - Water Castle Maine setting, so-so

4.5 or 5 Stars
1.  The Fifth Wave  - Yancey (4.5) YA Dyst
2.  Silent Scream - Marsons (5) AdMyst
3.  Into the Dim - Taylor (5) YA TimeTravel
4.  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Larsson (5) Ad Mystery
5.  My Life with the Liars - Carter (5) Mid CRF
6.  The Library at Mount Char - Hawkins (5) Ad Fant
7.  Hard Light - Hand (5) Ad Myst
8.  Eligible - Sitterfeld (4.5) Ad CRF
9.  The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox - O'Farrell (5) AdCRF
10.  Raymie Nightingale - diCamillo (4.5) Mid CRF
11.  Empty Houses - Thornton (5) Ad Myst
12.  Six Impossible Things - Wood (5) YA CRF
13.  The Body Reader - Frasier (4.5) AdMyst
14.  Summerlost  - Condie (4.5) MidCRF/Myst

Short Stories Read in 2016
1.  Joyce Carol Oates - Where are You Going, Where Have You Been?

I Love Picture Books
1.  Knit Your Bit, (Hopkinson/Guarnaccia) 2013
2.  Last Stop on Market Street (delaPena/Robinson) 2015
3.  This Is Not My Hat (Klassen) 2012
4.  The Artist and Me (Peacock/Classon) 2016
5.  Secret Tree Fort (Farley) 2016
6.  Will's Words:  How William Shakespeare Changed the Way You Talk  2016 
7.  Flutter & Hum: Animal Poems (Paschkis) 2015
8.  What are you Glad about?  What are you Mad about?  (Poetry by Judith Viorst and  illustrated by Lee White) 2016
9.  The Stamp Collector (Lanthier/Thisdale) 2012
10.  Ada's Violin: The Story of the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay (Hood/Comport) 2016
11.  The Night Gardener (Fan Bros.) 2016
12.  Every Day Birds (VanDerwater) 2016
13.  A Year of Borrowed Men (Barker/Benoit) 2015 Canada, 2016 USA
14.  If I Had a Gryphon (Vansickle/Atkinson) 2016
15.  A Child of Books (Jeffers & Winston) 2016
16.  Mr. Wayne's Masterpiece (Polacco) 2014
17.  I am Lucille Ball (Meltzer) 2015
18.  Dorothea's Eyes (Rosenstock) 2016
19.  I am Rosa Parks (Meltzer) 2014

Books Read in 2016
1.  Crime of Privilege (Walter Walker) 432 pgs.
2.  Small Wars (Lee Child) 44 pgs. (total 476 pgs.)
3.  The Fifth Wave (Rick Yancey) 457 pgs. (total 933 pgs.)
4.  11 Birthdays (Wendy Mass) REREAD 267 pgs. (total 1200 pgs.)
5.  Cruel Beauty (Rosamund Hodge) 352 pgs. (total 1552 pgs.)
6.  The Janus Stone (Elly Griffiths) 327 pgs. (total 1879 pgs.)
7.  Silent Scream (Angela Marsons) 307 pgs. (total 2186 pgs.)
8.  Girl in the Glass (James Hayman) 373 pgs. (total 2559 pgs.)
9.  Conversion (Katherine Howe) 402 pgs. (total 2961 pgs.)
10.  The Map of True Places (Brunonia Barry) 402 pgs. (3363 pgs.)
11.  The Life List (Lori Nelson Spielman) 368 pgs. (total 3731 pgs.)
12.  Desert Shadows (Webb) 280 pgs. (total 4111 pgs.)
13.  The Age of Miracles (Walker) 294 pgs. (total 4405 pgs.)
14.  Space Taxi: Archie Takes Flight (Wendy Mass & Michael Brawer) 112 pgs,. (4517 pgs.)
15.  Wicked Ties (Black) 341 pgs. (4858 pgs.)
16.  The Opposite of Everyone (Joshilyn Jackson) 352 pgs. (5210 pgs.)
17.  Blood Ties (Nicholas Guild) 320 pgs. (5530 pgs.)
18.  Glass Sword (Victoria Aveyard) 444 pgs. (5974 pgs.)
19.  Into the Dim (Janet B. Taylor) 432 pgs. (6406 pgs.)
20.  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo 465 pgs. (6871 pgs.)
21.  Wonder  (R. J. Palacio) 415 pgs. (7286 pgs.)
22.  My Life With the Liars (Caela Carter) 288 pgs. (7574 pgs.)
23.  The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend (Katarina Bivald) 394 pgs.  (7868  pgs.)
24.  Deadline (Sandra Brown) 410 pgs. (8278 pgs.)
25.  The Girl in the Ice (Robert Bryndza) 396 pgs. (8674 pgs.)
26.  The Library at Mount Char (Scott Hawkins) 390 pgs. (9064 pgs.)
27.  The Fifth Gospel (Ian Caldwell) DNF though read over halfway; 215 pgs. (9279 pgs.)
28.  Hard Light (Elizabeth Hand) 246 pgs. (9525 pgs.)
29.  Worth Dying For  (Lee child) 400 pgs. (9925 pgs.)
30.  Eligible  (Curtis Sittenfeld) 492 pgs.(10,417 pgs.)
31.  Blood Oath (Christopher Farnsworth) 390 pgs. (10,897 pgs.)
32.  Dead Time (Stephen White) 397 pgs. (11,294 pgs.)
33.  Where There's Smoke (Sandra Brown) 417 pgs. (11,711 pgs.)
34.  The Map Trap (Clements) 144 pgs. (11,855 pgs.)
35.  Lucifer's Tears (James Thompson) 336 pgs. (12,191 pgs.)
36.  Lizzie and the Lost Baby (Cheryl Blackford) 181 pgs. (12,372 pgs.)
37.  The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementary (Laura Shovan) 248 pgs. (12,620 pgs.)
38.  The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, (Maggie O'Farrell) 245 pgs. (12,865 pgs.)
39.  Water Castle (Megan Frazer Blakemore) 344 pgs. (13,209 pgs.)
40.  Summerlost (Allie Condie) 272 pgs. (13,481 pgs.)
41. A Shade of Vampire (Shade of Vampire Bk 1) (Bella Forrest) 154 pgs. (13,635 pgs.)
42.  Career of Evil (Comoran Strike #3) (Robert Galbraith) 492 pgs. (14,127 pgs.)
43.  A Shade of Blood (Shade of Vampire Bk 2) (Bella Forrest) 340 pgs. (14,467 pgs.)
44. Raymie Nightingale (Kate DiCamillo) (272 pgs.) (14,739 pgs.)
45.  Wolf Lake: A Novel (John Verdon) (Dave Guerney #5) 375 pgs. (15,114 pgs.)
46.  Bad Little Falls  (Paul Doiron) 310 pgs. (15,424 pgs.)
47.  Night and Day (Jesse Stone #8) (Robert B. Parker) 304 pgs. (14,728 pgs.)
48.  Evil Games  (DI Kim Stone #2) (Angela Marsons) 382 pgs.  (16,110 pgs.)
49.  One Shot (Lee Childs) 376 pgs.  (16,486 pgs.)
50.  Seeking the Dead (Ellis) 330 pgs. (16,816 pgs.)
51.  Article 5 (Kristen Simmons) (#1 Article 5) 362 pgs. (17,178 pgs.)
52.  Among the Wicked (Kate Burkholder #8 ) (Linda Castillo) 306 pgs. (17,484 pgs.)
53.  Sugar Skull (Eve Diamond #2) (Denise Hamilton) 304 pgs. (17,788 pgs.)
54.  Darkscope (J. Carson Black/Margaret Falk) 349 pgs.  (18,137 pgs.)
55.  Holding Up the Universe (Jennifer Niven) 400 pgs. (18,537 pgs.)
56.  Pleasure Extraordinaire 1 (Liv Bennett)  198 pgs. (18,735 pgs.)
57.  Pleasure Extraordinaire 2 (Live Bennett) 170 pgs. (18,905 pgs.)
58.  Empty Houses (Betsy Thornton) 224 pgs. (19,129 pgs.)
59.  The Female of the Species (Mindy McGinnis) 344 pgs.  (19,473 pgs.)
60.  Blackman's Coffin (Mark de Castrique) 255 pgs. (19,728 pgs.)
61.  Family Tree (Susan Wiggs) 368 pgs. (20,096 pgs.)
62.  Snow Like Ashes (Sara Raasch) 416 pgs. (20,512 pgs.)
63.  Six Impossible Things (Fiona Wood) 304 pgs. (20,816 pgs.)
64.  The 13th Continuum (Jennifer Brody) 416 pgs. (21,232 pgs.)
65.  Suspect (Robert Crais) 312 pgs. (21,544 pgs.)
66.  Once Shadows Fall (Sturgis & Kale #1) 352 pgs. (21,896 pgs.)
67.  Suspicion (Alexandra Monir) 296 pgs. (22,192 pgs.)
68.  The Body Reader (Anne Frasier) 289 pgs. (22,481 pgs.)
69.  Against the Odds (Mara Jacobs) 228 pgs. (22,709 pgs.)
70.  The Prayer Box, The (Lisa Wingate) read 125 out of 400 pgs. (22,834 pgs.)
71.  City of Glass (Cassandra Clare) 541 pgs. (23,375 pgs.)
72.  The Poet's Dog (Patricia MacLachlan) 88 pgs. (23,463 pgs.)
73.  Die Trying - Jack Reacher #2 (Lee Child) 552 pgs. (24,015 pgs.)

73rd Annual Golden Globe Nominations - 2016

Best Motion Picture – Drama

Carol

Mad Max – Fury Road

The Revenant WINNER

Room

Spotlight

Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy

The Big Short

Oy

The Martian WINNER

Spy

Trainwreck

Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama

Bryan Carnston – Trumbo

Leonardo Dicaprio – The Revenant WINNER

Michael Fassbender – Steve Jobs

Eddie Redmayne – The Danish Girl

Will Smith – Concussion
Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy

Christian Bale – The Big Short

Steve Carell – The Big Short

Matt Damon – The Martian WINNER

Al Pacino – Danny Collins

Mark Ruffalo – Infinitely Polar Bear

Best Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama

Cate Blanchett – Carol

Brie Larson – Room WINNER

Rooney Mara – Carol

Saoirse Ronan – Brooklyn

Alicia Vikander – The Danish Girl

Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy

Jennifer Lawrence – Joy WINNER

Melissa McCarthy – Spy

Amy Schumer – Trainwreck

Maggie Smith – The Lady in the Van

Lily Tomlin – Grandma

Best Actor in a Supporting Role – Any Motion Picture

Paul Dano – Love & Mercy

Idris Elba – Beasts of No Nation

Mark Rylance – Bridge of Spies

Michael Shannon – 99 Homes

Sylvester Stallone - Creed WINNER

Best Actress in a Supporting Role – any motion picture

Jane Fonda – Youth

Jennifer Jason Leigh – The Hateful Eight

Helen Mirren – Trumbo

Alicia Vikander – Ex Machina

Kate Winslet – Steve Jobs WINNER

Best Director – Motion Picture

Todd Haynes – Carol

Alejandro G. Inarritu – The Revenant WINNER

Tom McCarthy – Spotlight

George Miller – Mad Max: Fury Road

Ridley Scott –  The Martian

Best Motion Picture – Animated

Anomalisa

The Good Dinosaur

Inside Out WINNER

The Peanust Movie

Shaun the Sheep

Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language

The Brand New Testament (Belgium/France/Luxembourg)

The Club (Chile)

The Fencer (Finland/Germany/Estonia)

Mustang (France)

Son of Saul (Hungary) WINNER

71. Till the Sun Breaks Down - Tom Leveen

Deviant Aeon Book 1
read on my iPhone
2015 for Kindle
130 pgs.
genre/audience
Finished 12/10ish/2015
Goodreads rating: 4.00 (only four ratings)
My rating: 1
Setting: Phoenix and LA sometime in the future

First line/s: "Phoenix nights are as warm as the recently dead."

My comments:  Just let's leave it that I won't be reading book 2..... I read this for a book group read (anything by Tom Leveen, who is a Phoenix author coming to the Festival of Books in March).Not a good fit for me, I guess!

Goodreads synopsis:  Malikai awoke in the desert with nothing but a name and a sword, lacking any memory whatsoever of his identity or past. Discovering that his inhuman strength and reflexes made him a Deviant in the eyes of human society -- a monster who must be identified, cataloged, and registered, or else done away with -- he hid himself in an abandoned farm outside Phoenix. 
          But driven by an unnamed and voiceless force within himself, he fights to bring justice to the criminals of Phoenix, a once vibrant city now fallen into ruin. 
          When his zealous quest accidentally ruins one father’s pursuit of his kidnapped daughter, Malikai vows to find the girl and return her safely home. This promise takes him to the shining beacon of Los Angeles, where he uncovers a gang of human traffickers operating below the city streets. But this bloody job does more than expose the evil men do for profit -- it exposes the truth of his own origin and the penalty he has yet to pay... 

70. Deception - Jonathan Kellerman

Alex Delaware #25
audio read John Rubenstein
cd back & forth from school and back & forth from Reagan Airport....
2010 Ballantine
338 pgs.
Adult Murder Mystery
Finished 12/27/15
Goodreads rating: 3.95
My rating: 3.5?  It held my interest...
Setting: Contemporary LA
First line/s:  "The woman had haunted eyes."

My comments:  These Kellerman mysteries keep me involved and thinking, though I appreciate the detective, Milo Sturgis, much more than Alex Delaware, the supposed protagonist, who only seems to be along for the ride.

Goodreads Summary:  Her name is Elise Freeman, and her chilling cry for help comes too late to save her. On a DVD found near her lifeless body, the emotionally and physically battered woman chronicles a long ordeal of abuse at the hands of three sadistic tormentors. But even more shocking is the revelation that the offenders, like their victim, are teachers at one of L.A.’s most prestigious prep schools. Homicide detective Milo Sturgis is assigned to probe the hallowed halls of Windsor Prep Academy, and if ever he could use Dr. Alex Delaware’s psychological prowess, it’s now. As the scandal-conscious elite close ranks around Windsor Prep, Alex and Milo push to expose the dirty secrets festering among society’s manor-born. But while searching for predators among the privileged, Alex and Milo may be walking into a highly polished death trap.