Crapola Books Read 2022 - Guilty Pleasures, I Guess....

Sometimes you just need a break.  So you pick up something thoughtless - and usually trashy - that usually puts you to sleep.  When you finish, you wonder why you wasted your time.  These are those books.

6.  Three Simple Rules - Nikki Sloan

2015 Chirp Audio

This starts hot and fast and flies along with steam, steam, steam.  Yes, a tiny bit of storyline, but....

Goodreads :  I would do anything for my dream job. Now I have to.

     In order to save my skin at the office, I'm forced to sell it at an exclusive and illegal blindfold club. He paid thousands of dollars for one night to own me, but when my blindfold comes off, I want more. More nights, more rules, and more from this unavailable and uncompromising man.
     Rule number one, no questions. Rule number two, no lies. But, rule number three? That's the hardest one to obey.

1. The Outcast Dead by Elly Griffiths

#6 Ruth Galloway (Forensic Anthropologist)

listened on Audible

2014
374 pgs.
Adult Murder Mystery/Series
Finished 1/1/2022
Goodreads rating: 4.13
My rating: 4
Setting: Contemporary Norfolk, England

My comments: I continue to enjoy Ruth Galloway, a feisty, believable archeological anthropologist who lives in Norfolk, England. In this episode, two major plots intertwine to tell the story, much of it set in Norwich (where I visited for a day, on foot, and have many pleasant memories, so I could picture it a bit...). Notorious Jemima Green's 150 year-old bones have been excavated, and an American TV company has come to film it. Ruth unwillingly becomes involved -she doesn't like any limelight - because she's the expert on the case. At the same time, the police are pursuing the possibility that a mother has killed her babies ... and then there are two kidnappings of one-year-olds nearby. This keeps the familiar police team of Nelson, Clough, Judy and Tim harried and busy. Good storytelling, fun going back and forth between points of view. Great narration with enough of a British accent to keep it very British, but not so much that you cannot understand it.

Goodreads synopsis:  Ruth Galloway uncovers the bones of what might be a notorious Victorian child murderess and a baby snatcher known as "The Childminder" threatens modern-day Norfolk in the latest irresistible mystery from Elly Griffiths.

Forensic archaeologist Ruth Galloway uncovers the bones of a Victorian murderess while a baby snatcher threatens modern-day Norfolk in this exciting new entry in a beloved series.
Every year a ceremony is held in Norwich for the bodies in the paupers' graves: the Service for the Outcast Dead. Ruth has a particular interest in this year's proceedings. Her recent dig at Norwich Castle turned up the body of the notorious Mother Hook, who was hanged in 1867 for the murder of five children. Now Ruth is the reluctant star of the TV series Women Who Kill, working alongside the program's alluring history expert, Professor Frank Barker.

DCI Harry Nelson is immersed in the case of three children found dead in their home. He is sure that the mother is responsible. Then another child is abducted and a kidnapper dubbed the Childminder claims responsibility. Are there two murderers afoot, or is the Childminder behind all the deaths? The team must race to find out-and the stakes couldn't be any higher when another child goes missing. 

2022 Reading Challenges

Published in the Current Year - 2022

1.  The Deepest of Secrets (#7 Rockton) - Kelly Armstrong

2.   Sea of Tranquility - Emily St. John Mandel

3.  The Book of Cold Cases - Simone St. James

4.  Kismet- Lauren Blakely

5.  The Verifiers (#1 The Verifiers) - Jane Pek

6.  The Hidden One (#14  Kate Burkholder) Linda Castillo

7.  Maizy Chen's Last Chance - Lisa Yee

8.  The Book Woman's Daughter -Kim Michele Richardson

9.  No Mercy (#1 Valerie Law, FBI Profiler) Blake Pierce

10.  Hatchet Island (#13 Mike Bowditch) -  Paul Doiron

11.  The Night Whispers (#2 Slayton Thrillers) Caroline Mitchell

12.  Four Treasures of the Sky - Jenny Tinghui Zhang  

13.  Upgrade - Blake Crouch  

14.  The Bookstore Sisters - Alice Hoffman

15.  Girl in Ice - EricaFerencik

16.  Desert Star - (Bosch/Ballard) - Michael Connelly

Middle Grade

1.  Alone (going to be a favorite!) 5

2.  The Last Cuentista (2022 Newbery Medal) 4

3.  Louisiana's Way Home - Kate DiCamillo (5)

4.  Maizy Chen's Last Chance - Lisa Yee (4.5)

YA

1. In the Wild Light - Jeff Zentner (5)

2.  Seven Crowns (#1 Shadows & Starlight) E. Everest (3)

3.  Between Shades of Gray - Ruth Sepetys (5)

4.  Serpent & Dove (#1 Serpent and Dove) Shelby Mahurin (5)

Shorts

1.  The Bookstore Sisters - Alice Hoffman

2.   A Sugarplum Christmas - Viola Shipman

Series

1.  The Outcast Dead (#6 Ruth Galloway) - Elly Griffiths (4)

2.   Mastermind (#1 Jessica Blackwood & Theo Cray) - Andrew Mayne (3.5)

3.  Cyber Count (#2? Kat Munro) - S. L. Beaumont (3)

4.  The Loot (#1 Charlie McCabe) - Craig Schaefer (4)

5.   Seven Crowns (#1 Shadows & Starlight) E. Everest (3)

6.  The Deepest of Secrets (#7 Rockton) - Kelly Armstrong (3.5/4)

7.  The Insider (#2 Charlie McCabe}  - Craig Schaefer (4.5)

8.  The Trapped Girl (#4 Tracy Crosswhite) -Robert Dugoni (4.5)

9.   Serpent & Dove (#1 Serpent and Dove) Shelby Mahurin (5)

10.   Bad Memory (#2 Jessica Shaw) Lisa Gray (4)

11.  Tell Me (#2 Inland Empire) - Anne Frazer  (4)

12.  Crimson Lake (#1 Crimson Lake) Candice Fox (5)

13.  The Ghost Fields (#7 Ruth Galloway) - Elly Griffiths (4)

14.  Whispers from the Dead (#2 Serenity Adams) - Karen Ann Hopkins (3)

15.  The Hidden One (#14  Kate Burkholder) Linda Castillo (4.5)

16.  Secrets in the Grave  (#3 Serenity Adams) - Karen Ann Hopkins

17.  The Woman in Blue (#8  Ruth Galloway) - Elly Griffiths (3.5)

18.  Hidden in Plain Sight (#4 Serenity Adams) - Karen Ann Hopkins (3)

19.  No Mercy (#1 Valerie Law, FBI Profiler) Blake Pierce (3)

20.  Hatchet Island (#13 Mike Bowditch) -  Paul Doiron (5)

21.  The Midnight Man (#1 Slayton Thrillers) Caroline Mitchell (3.5)

22.  The Night Whispers (#2 Slayton Thrillers) Caroline Mitchell (3)

23.  The Chalk Pit  (#9 Ruth Galloway) Elly Griffiths (3.5)

24.  Desert Star (#5 Renee Ballard) 

REAL Books

1.

Abandoned

1.  Black Cake

4.5 or 5 Stars

1. Twenty Years Later - Charlie Donlea (4.5)

2.  Alone - Megan E. Freeman (loved it!)

3.  Love and Other Words - Christina Lauren

4.  In the Wild Light - Jeff Zentner

5.  Between Shades of Gray - Ruth Sepetys

6.  The Insider (#2 Charlie McCabe) Craig Schaefer (4.5)

7.  The Trapped Girl (#4 Tracy Crosswhite) Robert Dugoni (4.5)

8.  A History of Wild Places - Shea Ernshaw (4.5)

9.  Serpent & Dove (#1 Serpent & Dove) Shelby Mahurin 

10.   Sea of Tranquility Emily St. John Mandel (4.5)

11.  Thornyhold - Mary Stewart  

12.  Louisiana's Way Home - Kate DiCamillo 

13.  Winter Cottage - Mary Ellen Taylor 

14.  The People We Keep - Allison Larkin 

15.  Crimson Lake (#1 Crimson Lake) Candice Fox  

16.  The Hidden One (#14  Kate Burkholder) Linda Castillo (4.5)

17.  Pieces of Her - Karin Slaughter (5)

18.  Maizy Chen's Last Chance -  Lisa Yee (4.5)

19.  The Book Woman's Daughter - Kim Michele Richardson

20.  Rock Paper Scissors - Alice Feeney

21.  Hatchet Island (#13 Mike Bowditch) 

22.  Upgrade - Blake Crouch (4.5)

23.  Lost and Found Bookshop - (4.5)

23.  Gathering Dark - Candice Fox (4.5/5)

Not-so-great-quality novels read this year:

2.  A Not So Meet Cute - Meghan Quinn, 2021 Audible, 402 pgs. (776 pgs.)

6.  Three Simple Rules - Nikki Sloan, 2015 Chirp, 288 pgs. (2094 pgs.)

20.  Put Me In Detention-Meghan Quinn, Kindle (3)

22.  The Heart Principle - Libby (3?)

23.  Bad Guy: A Science Fiction Romance - Ruby Dixon

34.  Finding Kyle Chirp 4/23 (4-really enjoyed this!)

39.  The Krinar's Informant 5/13 Chirp

40.  The Accidental Kiss 5/16

42.  Kismet - Lauren Blakely - 2022 (3.5) 5/27

46.  Daisy's Decision - Ruby Dixen (Ice Home#16) 6/8

59.  Risking It All - Chirp (1)

70.  My One Week Husband - Lauren Blakely, Audible 11/27

81.  Wild Passion - Mari Chirp?

Novels Read in 2022 (that I can be proud of, LOL!)

January (10)

1.  The Outcast Dead (#6 Ruth Galloway) - Elly Griffiths, 2014 Audible (4) 374 pgs.

3..  Mastermind (#1 Jessica Blackwood & Theo Cray) Andrew Mayne, 2021 Audible (3.5) 332 pgs. (1108 pgs.)

4.  Twenty Years Later - Charlie Donlea, 2021 Libby (4.5) 368 pgs. (1476 pgs.)

5.  Cyber Count (#2? Kat Munro) - S. L. Beaumont, 2021 Kindle (3) 330 pgs. (1806 pgs.)

7.  The Loot (#1 Charlie McCabe) - Craig Schaefer, 2019 Audible (4) 329 pgs. (2423 pgs.)

8.  Alone - Megan E. Freeman, 2021 Kindle (5) 404 pgs. (2827 pgs.)

9.  Love and Other Words - Christina Lauren, 2018 Libby, (5) 432 p.

10.  The Last Cuentista -  Donna Barba Higuera, 2021 Audible (4) 336 pgs.

February (8)

11.  In the Wild Light - Jeff Zentner, 2021 Audible (5!) 432 p. GR

12.  Seven Crowns (#1 Shadows & Starlight) E. Everest, 2020 Kindle (3) 318 p.

13.  Between Shades of Gray - Ruth Sepetys, 2011 Chirp (5) 344 p. onGR

14.  Exo - Fonda Lee, 2017 Chirp (4) 384 pgs. GR

15.  Hard Cash Valley Chirp - Brian Panowich, 2020 Chirp (4) 304 p. GR

16.  The Paths Between the Stars - Amira K. Makansi, 2021 Kindle (2) 324 p. GR

17.  The Deepest of Secrets (#7 Rockton) - Kelly Armstrong 2022 Audible (3.5/4) 341 p. GR

18.  Last of the Moon Girls - Barbara Davis, 2020 Kindle Unl/Audio (3+5=4) 397 p. GR

March (9)

19.  The Insider (#2 Charlie McCabe}  - Craig Schaefer, 2020 Audible (4.5) 329 p. GR

21.  The Trapped Girl (#4 Tracy Crosswhite) -Robert Dugoni, 2017 Audible (4.5) 378 p. GR

24.  A History of Wild Places - Shea Ernshaw, 2021 Libby (4.5) 354 p. GR

25.  The Desert Sky Before Us - Anne Valente, 2019 Chirp (2.5) 429 p. GR

26.  We Belong Together - Beth Moran, 2021 Kindle Unl (4) 363 p.GR 

27.  Within These Wicked Walls - Lauren Blackwood, 2021 Libby (3) 336 p. GR

April (8)

28.  Serpent & Dove #1 Serpent & Dove - Shelby Mahurin, 2019 Kindle & Aud (5) 513 p. GR

29.  Bad Memory (#2 Jessica Shaw) Lisa Gray - 2019 Kindle & Aud, (4) 311 p. GR

30.  The Taste of Ginger. - Mansi Shah, 2021 Kindle 4/12/22 (3) 317 pgs. gr

31.  Tell Me (#2 Inland Empire) - Anne Frazer  2021 Audible & Kindle (4) 285 pgs. 4/14/2022

32.  The Cheat Sheet - Sarah Adams, 2021 Audible (4) 4/17/2022 

33.  Sea of Tranquility - Emily St. John Mandel 2022 Libby (4.5) 225 pgs.

35.  The Book of Cold Cases - Simone St. James, 2022 Libby (3) 344 pgs.

May (8)

36. Thornyhold - Mary Stewart -1988 Kindle (5) GR

37.  Well Matched - Jen DeLuca 2021 Libby (4)

38.  Louisiana's Way Home - Kate DiCamillo 2018 Kindle (5)

41.  Winter Cottage - Mary Ellen Taylor, 2018 Audible and Kindle (5) 5/22

43.  Objects of My Affection - Jill Smolinski, 2012 (4) 5/30

June (4)

44.  The People We Keep - Allison Larkin, 2021 Libby (5) 6/6

45.  Crimson Lake (#1 Crimson Lake) Candice Fox, 2017 Audble (5) 6/8 gr

July (6)

47.  The Ghost Fields (#7 Ruth Galloway) - Elly Griffiths, 2015 Kindle (4) 370 pgs.GR 7/5 gr

48.  Whispers from the Dead (#2 Serenity Adams) Karen Ann Hopkins 2015 Aud & Kindle (3 ) 7/6 gr

49.  The Hidden One (#14  Kate Burkholder) Linda Castillo 2022 Aud (4.5) gr

50.  Pieces of Her - Karin Slaughter, 2018 Libby (5) 7/17 gr

51.  Secrets in the Grave (#3 Serenity Adams) - Karen Ann Hopkins 2015 Aud & Kindle 7/22 gr

52.  The Woman in Blue (#8 Ruth Galloway) - Elly Griffiths, 2016 Aud, (3.5) 7/23 gr

August (4)

53.  Plain Truth - Jodi Picoult, 2000 Libby (4) 8/14 gr

54.  Maizy Chen's Last Chance - Lisa Yee, 2022 Kindle (4.5) 8/20 gr

55.  Hidden in Plain Sight (#4 Serenity Adams) - Karen Ann Hopkins, 2016 (3) 8/25 gr

56.  Stuck on You - Portia MacIntosh, 2020 Chirp (4) 8/27 gr

September (5)

57.  The Book Woman's Daughter -Kim Michele Richardson (5) 2022 Libby 9/8 gr

58.  No Mercy (#1 Valerie Law, FBI Profiler) Blake Pierce, 2022 Kindle (3) 9/13 gr

60.  Rock Paper Scissors - Alice Feeney, 2021 Libby (5) 9/19 gr

61.  Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow 

62.  Hatchet Island (#13 Mike Bowditch) -  Paul Doiron, Audible (5) 9/22   

63.  The Walled Garden - Robin Farrar Maass, 2022 Chirp, (4) 9/25 GR

October (2)

64. The Midnight Man - Kindle (#1 Slayton Thrillers) Caroline Mitchell 2021 (3.5) 10/4 GR

65.  The Night Whispers (#2 Slayton Thrillers) Caroline Mitchell - 2022 Audible&Kindle (3) 10/6 GR

November (6)

66.  Four Treasures of the Sky - Jenny Tinghui Zhang, 2022 Libby (3) 11/13 GR

67.  Upgrade - Blake Crouch Libby, 2022 (4.5) GR

68.  The Chalk Pit  (#9 Ruth Galloway) Elly Griffiths -  Audible 3.5n GR

69.  The Bookstore Sisters - Alice Hoffman, 2022 Audible-Short Story 36 pgs.(3) GR

70.  A Sugarplum Christmas - Viola Shipman, Kindle - Short Story 35 pgs? (4) GR

72.  Girl in Ice - Erica Ferencik, 2022 Libby (3.5) 304 pgs. GR

December (9)

73.  Christmas Every Day - Beth Moran, 2019 Audible (4) 408 pgs. GR

74.  Things You Save in a Fire - Katherine Center, 2019 Audible (4) 320 pgs. GR

75.  Desert Star (Rene Ballard #5/Harry Bosch) Michael Connelly, 2022 Audible (4) GR

76.  The Lost and Found Bookshop - Susan Wiggs, 2020 Chirp (4.5)  GR

77.  Gathering Dark - Candice Fox -2020 Chirp (4.5/5) GR

78.  I Am Not a Serial Killer, Chirp (2.5) 12/15

79.  Wherever the Wind Takes Us, Audible/Kindle (1) 12/16

80.  She's Up to No Good, Audible (4) 12/27

81. (above) 

Total books read in 2022

Nine Crapola/Not So Important Books Read

At the "rear end" of 2021, I read a number of crappy books that I don't want to spend a lot of time adding to my blog, so I'm just going to bulk-drop them here.

109.  Dragon's Thief by Zoe Chant, finished 12/2/21  2020 Kindle.  Repetitive and trite, just lovey dovey stuff with very little description. (Girl has been on the run for years for a really hazy reason, and is rescued by a guy that turns into a dragon who's looking for someone in her family that stole the key that allows him to turn...) (1)  DISBURSED

108.  Cavalier - T. L. Smith, finished 11/30/2021. 2018  Audible.  First in a series about four guys who run a company together, a sex club for executives that is highly secretive called Crimson Elite..  These guys are extremely rich, and really tight.  If one of the club's members even breathe a hint of it, they are maimed/harmed.  Although this is not the premise of the actual story, the male protagonist, Creed, is the one who kills and maims.  They just skim over this!!!  So stupid!!!  The relationship between he and Isha is very strange.  The inner and outer Creed do not match at all.  The next three books are about his three buddies.  I think I'll be passing on them.  (1)  DISBURSED

104.  Sexy by J. A. Huss, finished 11/11/21.  Audible.  Extremely steamy with a bit of mystery concerning the male protagonist, what kids of secrets was he keeping?  Female protagonist was never fully rendered, I couldn't picture her and could not empathize with her.  Quite a bit of story mixed in with the steam.  Loved him.  A lot. (NR)

99.  Wrapped in Ink by Carrie Ann Ryan, finished10/8/2021.  This is a Montgomery family/Boulder book, I think I've read some of the other Montgomery family books.  Too many brothers!  Liam has three and a baby sister; Arden is the baby sister to four older brothers.  It's absolutely ridiculous and stupid.  Arden has lupus and is constantly sick.  Liam is an ex-model turned successful author.  There's no reality at all in this book.  A bit of steam but mostly story, that part works so-so.  (2)

92.  The Deal by Elle Kennedy.  Finished around 9/3/21.  Audible.  Yep, another romance.  This one includes a pretty decent storyline, but unrelatable characters.  The male protagonist is the hottest ivy league hockey captain ever.  (Lol!)  And he falls for our female protagonist, of course, even though he's a complete and total man-wh...(you know what I'm talkin' about).  But I've got say I totally enjoyed the story, set in rural Massachusetts featuring quite a bit of hockey, singing, and romping, lol!  I did enjoy this one.  (4)

93.  Devi's Distraction by Ruby Dixen. Ice Home #7.   Finished 9/6/21.  Audible.  Devi and N'dek.  She is an anthropologist and loves digging apart creatures to see how they work and he is a hunter who has lost one of his legs below the knee.  She helps him by making a prosthetic so that he can walk and they are pretty much instantly attracted to each other, although they don't resonate until near the end of the book.  Hugely high steam factor, but quite a bit of story as well.  The male reader used quite a bit of an accent at the beginning of the story and lessened it somewhat by the end, which I liked better.  There were lots of references to other couples, a few too many!

91.  Without Her Consent - Kindle.  Finished 8/30/21.  Slow going and boring with quite a predictable outcome (Long-time comatose victim in a hospital gives birth to a baby boy.)  (2)

86.  The Dispatcher by John Scalzi. Finished 8/21/21.  Audible Short.  I guess you'd probably consider this science fiction a bit more than fantasy, though it doesn't take place in outer space, lol.  And interesting addition to the norms of contemporary world in that when people die they are now given the opportunity to return to a point in their life 12 hours before their demise.  There are people that are specifically trained to do this "work," and they are called dispatchers.  This novella is about one dispatcher and the help he give a police detective in finding a fellow dispatcher that has disappeared.  Quite interesting, actually. (4)

88.  Hold Me Today by Maria Luis.  Finished 8/16/2021.  Set in Boston, a full blown romance that had very little of the stupid things that usually get me perturbed.  Very steamy in places.  Good storytelling.  Fun read.  (4)

Waiting in the Wings

Audible Purchases and what's left to read

Current Kindle Unlimited List - both book and audible - THIS GOES DIRECTLY TO AMAZON AND IS COMPLETELY up-to-date!

Kindle Booklist

Current Audible Library

Current Chirp Library

2022 Movies

4 movies in 2022

2021 - ONE MOVIE!! (Continued Pandemic)

2020 - 5 movies (Pandemic!)

2019 - 26 movies

2018 - 51 movies

2017 - 49 movies

2016 - 62 movies

2015 - 37 movies

2014 - 46 movies

2013 - 48 movies

2012 - 37 movies

2011 - 54 movies

*6*  Awesome

5  Loved it

4  Liked it

3  It was okay

2  Not great

1  Nope

Dog (3/26/22) great story, not simply a comedy! (4.5)

Licorice Pizza (3/11/2022) long and boring...just meh (2)

Power of the Dog (1/2/22) Slow, dark, depressing, sad, and oddly enough, wonderful (5)

Spiderman: No Way Home (1/10/22) Lots of fun surprises, but too long (4)

WOW movies of 2022

Power of the Dog (1/2/22) Slow, dark, depressing, sad,  and oddly enough, wonderful (5)

REALLY GOOD movies of 2022 (4.5 & 5)  

Dog (3/26/22) great story, not simply a comedy! (4.5)

Spiderman: No Way Home (1/10/22) Lots of fun surprises, but too long (4)

GOOD/FUN movies of 2022 (3 - 3.5 - 4)

.

WASTE-OF-TIME MOVIES OF 2022 

.Licorice Pizza (3/11/2021) long and boring...just meh (2)

116. Before She Disappeared by Lisa Gardner

#1 Frankie Elkin

2021

400 pgs.
Adult Murder Mystery
Finished  12/26/2021
Goodreads rating:  3.94 
My rating: 4
Setting: Contemporary Mattapan (Boston)

My comments: Interesting plot and characters.  I could not envision the tough Mattapan neighborhood, because in the lat 1950's, early 1960's I was able to wander around freely while visiting my Aunt Laura who lived on Hollingsworth Ave.  Now it's a really rough Haitian neighborhood full of gangs.  

     There's a lot of sadness in the story, which overlaps Frankie's own sad history with the current sad story.  Frankie's a wreck - an alcoholic with many, many issuead, but she's looking for redemption in the only way she can -- her knack for finding missing personas who no one else can. Great premise, looking forward to the second in the series, which will come out in 2022

Goodreads synopsis:  From #1 New York Times bestselling author Lisa Gardner, a propulsive thriller featuring an ordinary woman who will stop at nothing to find the missing people that the rest of the world has forgotten

Frankie Elkin is an average middle-aged woman, a recovering alcoholic with more regrets than belongings. But she spends her life doing what no one else will--searching for missing people the world has stopped looking for. When the police have given up, when the public no longer remembers, when the media has never paid attention, Frankie starts looking.

A new case brings her to Mattapan, a Boston neighborhood with a rough reputation. She is searching for Angelique Badeau, a Haitian teenager who vanished from her high school months earlier. Resistance from the Boston PD and the victim's wary family tells Frankie she's on her own--and she soon learns she's asking questions someone doesn't want answered. But Frankie will stop at nothing to discover the truth, even if it means the next person to go missing could be her.

115. The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

listened on Libby - borrowed from the library

2021

352 pgs.
Adult Rom Com with one steamy part
Finished 12/24/2021
Goodreads rating: 4.44
My rating: 4.5
Setting: mostly Stanford University campus, a little at a Boston conference

My comments: For some reason I really loved this story.  A romcom about fake dating that anyone and everyone will realize is going to have a HEA, but its telling is pretty cool.  Yes, frustration's because the protagonist lies so much to protect herself and the guys she's falling for, but otherwise the story would have been about a quarter of its length, lol.  I love that it was set in academia, at Stanford, with really smart protagonists.  And the bad guys is so bad, no glossing over it.  Of course the good guy is really good (and of course has the fantastic body hidden under ordinary clothing to go along with it.}  Maybe it's just my current mood, but this story really tickled me in many ways.

Goodreads synopsis:  As a third-year Ph.D. candidate, Olive Smith doesn't believe in lasting romantic relationships--but her best friend does, and that's what got her into this situation. Convincing Anh that Olive is dating and well on her way to a happily ever after was always going to take more than hand-wavy Jedi mind tricks: Scientists require proof. So, like any self-respecting biologist, Olive panics and kisses the first man she sees.

That man is none other than Adam Carlsen, a young hotshot professor--and well-known ass. Which is why Olive is positively floored when Stanford's reigning lab tyrant agrees to keep her charade a secret and be her fake boyfriend. But when a big science conference goes haywire, putting Olive's career on the Bunsen burner, Adam surprises her again with his unyielding support and even more unyielding... six-pack abs.

Suddenly their little experiment feels dangerously close to combustion. And Olive discovers that the only thing more complicated than a hypothesis on love is putting her own heart under the microscope. 

Novels Read

 Novels Read Since Starting This Blog in 2008

A   B   C   D   E   F   G   H   I   J   K   L   M   N   

O   P   Q-R   S   T   U   V   W   X-Y-Z

Had to split it up, took way toooooooo long for edits to appear.  Original long list, changed 12/24/202

114. The Stand In by Lily Chu

listened on Audible

2021

300 pgs.- estimate, audio only, 10+ hrs. listening time
AdRomCom
Finished  12/17/2021
Goodreads rating: 3.94
My rating: 3.5/4
Setting: Contemporary Toronto

My comments: Very cute, predictable-ish story about a girl that looks so much like a burnt-out famous Chinese actress that she stands in for her during evening events and activities.  For money, a large amount of money.  Because her mother has Alzheimer's and she wants to ensure that her accommodations are topnotch.  Of course there's a handsome, sexy actor named Sam in the picture.  Setting is contemporary Toronto and the three protagonists are all Chinese, although Gracie is half white American.  I enjoyed listening to this.

Goodreads synopsis:  How to upend your life:

–Get fired by gross, handsy boss
–Fail to do laundry (again)
–Be mistaken for famous Chinese actress
–Fall head-first into glitzy new world

Gracie Reed is doing just fine. Sure, she was fired by her overly “friendly” boss, and yes, she still hasn’t gotten her mother into the nursing home of their dreams, but she’s healthy, she’s (somewhat) happy, and she’s (mostly) holding it all together.

But when a mysterious SUV pulls up beside her, revealing Chinese cinema's golden couple Wei Fangli and Sam Yao, Gracie’s world is turned on its head. The famous actress has a proposition: Due to their uncanny resemblance, Fangli wants Gracie to be her stand-in. The catch? Gracie will have to be escorted by Sam, the most attractive—and infuriating—man Gracie’s ever met.

If it means getting the money she needs for her mother, Gracie’s in. Soon Gracie moves into a world of luxury she never knew existed. But resisting Sam, and playing the role of an elegant movie star, proves more difficult than she ever imagined—especially when she learns the real reason Fangli so desperately needs her help. In the end, all the lists in the world won’t be able to help Gracie keep up this elaborate ruse without losing herself... and her heart. 

113. How to Date Your Dragon by Molly Harper

listened on Audible

2018

200 estimated pgs. 6 hrs+ audible only)
Adult Fant/Romance
Finished 12/14/2021
Goodreads rating: 3.94
My rating: 2
Setting: supposedly contemporary Louisiana bayou town

My comments: Absolutely ridiculous story, why do I waste my time with such trite trash?  An anthropologist goes to Louisiana bayou town to discover how all the shape-shifters there get along with each other so well.  Of course, as soon as she arrives, murders begin to happen.  The story skips around a lot and develops weirdly.  I'm not a big fan of the southern accents that were used, either, though I'm sure they depicted what people who live there might sound like. Just not good.

Goodreads synopsis:  Anthropologist Jillian Ramsay's career has taken a turn south.

Concerned that technology is about to chase mythological creatures out into the open (how long can Sasquatch stay hidden from Google maps?), the League for Interspecies Cooperation is sending Jillian to Louisiana on a fact-finding mission. While the League hopes to hold on to secrecy for a little bit longer, they're preparing for the worst in terms of human reactions. They need a plan, so they look to Mystic Bayou, a tiny town hidden in the swamp where humans and supernatural residents have been living in harmony for generations. Mermaids and gator shifters swim in the bayou. Spirit bottles light the front porches after twilight. Dragons light the fires under crayfish pots.

Jillian's first assignment for the League could be her last. Mystic Bayou is wary of outsiders, and she has difficulty getting locals to talk to her. And she can't get the gruff town sheriff, Bael Boone, off of her back or out of her mind. Bael is the finest male specimen she's seen in a long time, even though he might not be human. Soon their flirtation is hotter than a dragon's breath, which Bael just might turn out to be.... 

112. There's Something About Merry by Codi Hall

listened on Audible

2021
336 pgs.
Adult Christmas romcom
Finished 12/12/21
Goodreads rating:  3.70

My rating: 3
Setting: contemporary Misteltoe, Idaho (groan....)

My comments: Nicely narrated.  A cutesie Christmas romance about a single dad and a very sweet (too sweet?) happy middle daughter of a Christmas tree farm family that is way over-the-top too-good-to-be-true.  A real Hallmark movie book.  Fun to listen to, however,  And although there was nothing super steamy , there were some places that would probably raise many eyebrows...

Goodreads synopsis:   Get in the holiday spirit with this sexy rom-com from the author of Nick and Noel's Christmas Playlist.

Merry Winters has the holiday blues. She's spent the last year learning to love herself, and now she's ready to find the right guy. But the pickings are slim in Mistletoe, Idaho, and it’s just her luck that the man who catches her eye is the stoic new foreman at her family’s Christmas tree farm. Too bad he wants to keep a 39-and-a-half-foot pole between them.

Single dad Clark Griffin isn't looking for romance, but he wouldn't mind a friend to snuggle with on a cold winter's night. When he signs up for online dating, he doesn't expect to connect with the sassy, crafty Knottygirl25 and get wrapped up in every message she writes.

But when Merry turns out to be his blind internet date, his surprise causes him to miss his chance under the mistletoe. Can a little Christmas magic give these two a second chance at a first impression?

111. The Dark Hours - Michael Connelly

#4 Renee Ballard/#23 Harry Bosch

listened on Audible

2021
400 pgs.
Adult Murder Mystery/Police Procedural
Finished 12/10/2021
Goodreads rating: 4.51
My rating: 5
Setting: Contemporary LA

My comments: Two mysteries keep Renee Ballard busy with the help of Harry Bosch.  Both are super intuitive and puzzle solvers.  One of the cases is about a bad cop, now retired, who is a hitman of sorts; and the other is about two guys who are serial rapists.  Renee even gets a teeny tiny bit of a love interest in this one, and an apartment!  It was so excellent!

Goodreads synopsis:   Has a killer lain dormant for years only to strike again on New Year’s Eve? LAPD Detective Renée Ballard and Harry Bosch team up to find justice for an innocent victim in the new thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Michael Connelly

There's chaos in Hollywood on New Year's Eve. Working her graveyard shift, LAPD Detective Renée Ballard seeks shelter at the end of the countdown to wait out the traditional rain of lead as hundreds of revelers shoot their guns into the air. As reports start to roll in of shattered windshields and other damage, Ballard is called to a scene where a hardworking auto shop owner has been fatally hit by a bullet in the middle of a crowded street party.

It doesn't take long for Ballard to determine that the deadly bullet could not have fallen from the sky. Ballard’s investigation leads her to look into another unsolved murder—a case at one time worked by Detective Harry Bosch.

Ballard and Bosch team up once again to find out where the old and new cases intersect. All the while they must look over their shoulders. The killer who has stayed undetected for so long knows they are coming after him

110. The Box in the Woods by Maureen Johnson

#4 Truly Devious

listened on Libby, borrowed from TPPL

2021
400 pgs.
YA Myst
Finished 12/5/2021
Goodreads rating: 4.17
My rating: 4.5
Setting: contemporary western Massachusetts - kids' summer camp on a pond

My comments: This is a continuation of the Truly Devious trilogy, with an entirely new mystery but same cast of characters.  Stevie Bell is a 17-year old sleuth who has been enlisted by a rich guy who has purchased a summer camp that has been closed since 1978, when four of its camp counselors were murdered in the woods.  Stevie and two of her close friends become pseudo-camp counselors while she investigates the murders.  Her boyfriend, David, show sup, camping across the lake.  It's an interesting mystery, and I like it better than the first Truly Devious books. I DID discover that I didn't like the voice that the narrator gave to Stevie.  It was too throaty or something.  Good mystery.  More to come?

Goodreads synopsis:   The Truly Devious series continues as Stevie Bell investigates her first mystery outside of Ellingham Academy in this spine-chilling and hilarious stand-alone mystery.

Amateur sleuth Stevie Bell needs a good murder. After catching a killer at her high school, she’s back at home for a normal (that means boring) summer.

But then she gets a message from the owner of Sunny Pines, formerly known as Camp Wonder Falls—the site of the notorious unsolved case, the Box in the Woods Murders. Back in 1978, four camp counselors were killed in the woods outside of the town of Barlow Corners, their bodies left in a gruesome display. The new owner offers Stevie an invitation: Come to the camp and help him work on a true crime podcast about the case.

Stevie agrees, as long as she can bring along her friends from Ellingham Academy. Nothing sounds better than a summer spent together, investigating old murders.

But something evil still lurks in Barlow Corners. When Stevie opens the lid on this long-dormant case, she gets much more than she bargained for. The Box in the Woods will make room for more victims. This time, Stevie may not make it out alive.

Personal Poetry Anthology Index

1 = A Packet of Poems

2 = A Parcel of Poems

3 = A Posse of Poems

4 = A Plethora of Poems

Anonymous:  If You Should Meet a Crocodile (3)
Anonymous: Thanksgiving (3)
Author Unknown: Fairy Tale Song (3)
Asch, Frank:  Sunflakes (2)
Baylor, Byrd:  Coyote (2)
Brady, Elsie N.: Leaves (3)
Brown, Calef:  Lone Star Witches (3)
Bryan, Ashley:  Song (2)
Chanko, Pamela: Jiggle, Wiggle, and Giggle (3)
Curie, Robert:  The Home Place (2)
Dickinson, Emily: If I can stop one heart from breaking (1)
Dotlich, Rebecca Kai:  Classroom Globe (2)
Dyson, Cheryl: Veteran’s Day (3)
Esenwine, Matt. F.:  Christmas Cookie Favorites (3)
Farjeon, Eleanor:  A Dragonfly (2)
Farjeon, Eleanor:  There Isn't Time (1)
Field, Rachel:  If Once You Have Slept on an Island (2)
Field, Rachel:  Some People (1)
Fisher, Lillian M:  My Desert Home (1)
Fletcher, Ralph:  Poetry (2)
Florian, Douglas:  Don't! (2)
Frank, John:  A Cold October Night (3)
Frost, Robert:  The Road Not Taken (2)
Frost, Robert:  Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening (1)
George, Kristine O'Connell:  Storm (3)
Ghinga, Charles:  Pigs (1)
Giovanni, Nikki:  knoxville, tennessee (1)
Greenfield, Eloise:  Things (1)
Gregory K.: Resolutions (3)
Hahn, Mary Lee:  Reading is Breathing (2)
Heck, C. J.: The day the circus came to town (3)
Hindley, Judy:  Green (2)
Holbrook, Sara: The Library (3)
Hopkins, Lee Bennett:  The Museum Door (1)
Hughes, Langston: April Rain Song (1)
Hughes, Langston: Dreams (2)
Klein, A. M.:  Orders (2)
Lamm, C. Drew:  Watercolor Maine (1)
Lansky, Bruce: Lost (2)
Lee, Dennis:  Muddy Puddle (1)
Lesser, Carolyn: A Walk in the Woods (1)
Livingston, Myra Cohn:  The Night (2)
Mansfield, Katherine: Butterfly Laughter (2)
Nye, Naomi Shihab:  The Traveling Onion (2)
Ozer, Kemal (Turkey): At the Beach (2)
Paul, Ann Whitford: California Missions (2)
Prelutsky, Jack:  Alligators are Unfriendly (2)
Prelustky, Jack:  My Gerbil Seemed Bedraggled (1)
Richards, Laura E.:  Eletelephony (1)
Rossetti, Christina:  Who Has Seen the Wind? (2)
Schroc, Priscilla:  Grandmother's Parlor (2)
Shields, Carol Diggory:  The First Americans (2)
Silverstein, Shel:  Eighteen Flavors (1)
Singer, Marilyn:  Desert (2)
Spinelli, Eileen:  When Grandma Comes (2)
Teasdale, Sara:  May Night (2)
The Only Cin: Overload (2)
Thompson, Dorothy Brown:  Maps (2)
Zolotow, Charlotte:  People (1)
Hubbell, Patricia: On My Island (1)
Katz, Bobbi: Poems (1)
Kennedy, X. J.: Mother's Nerves (3)
Kuskin, Karla:  Rules (1)
Lear, Edward:  There Was an Old Man with a Beard (1)
Lindsay, Vachel: There was a little turtle (3)
Livingston, Myra Cohn: El Dia de Muertos: The Day of the Dead (3)
Livingston, Myra Cohn:  Why? (1)
Lobel, Arnold: Books to the Ceiling (3)
Merriam, Eve:  How to Eat a Poem (1)
Moore, Helen H. : Author, Author (3)
Moore, Helen H.: Cooperation (3)
Moore, Helen H.:  Popcorn:  (3)
Mora, Pat: This Big Sky (1)
Nesbitt, Kenn: The Aliens Have Landed (3)
Prelustky, Jack:  Homework!  Oh Homework! (1)
Prelutsky, Jack:  A Pizza the Size of the Sun (3)
Racza, Bob:  Norm (3)
Rose, Margaret: The Butterfly (3)
Rossetti, Christina:  Hurt No Living Thing (3)
Sandburg, Carl:  Fog (1)
Schertle, Alice:  Lizard (2)
Schertle, Alice:  Moo (3)
Shakespeare, William: Sonnet 18 (1)
Siebert, Diane: from Mojave (1)
Silverstein, Shel:  Batty (3)
Stevenson, Robert Louis: Bed in Summer (3)
Stevenson, Robert Louis: My Shadow (3)
Vance, Barbara: Snow Kisses  (3)
Viorst, Judith: Learning (3)
Williams, William Carlos:  This is Just to Say (1)
 
Gregory K: Resolutions (3)
Sarah, a fourth grader in PA:  One Class (2)