65 Comments

Glad you are feeling better, Renee. My husband is also in recovery mode from a bad cold. I finished THE HEART OF WINTER by Jonathan Evison on audio, and it was a wonderful listen with a great narrator. It is the story of a long marriage with all the ups and down of real life, and I enjoyed my time listening to it. Thanks, Renee for recommending it. In print, I finished THE FLATSHARE by Beth O'Leary, and it was just okay, but I rarely read romances, so I am probably not the right reader.

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The Heart of Winter was such a realistic portrayal of a marriage. So glad you enjoyed it as well.

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I’m liking the sound of this.

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I am thinking of reading THE HEART OF WINTER next. I have had it on my wish list for a few weeks now. Is it really that good?

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I've heard great things about it, especially the audio of it.

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Yes…and nice to read about a couple in their 80s and about their past too.

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I recommend for sure!

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I'm so glad you enjoyed The Heart of Winter, I had started that in print before it came out and then paused it because I wanted to listen to it, I had a feeling it would be right up my alley on audio, now I need to return to it haha

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Renee I am glad you are on the mend!

I would really like another fast paced fun thriller! I just finished THE NOTE by Alafair Burke and really enjoyed it. Takes place in The Hamptons so fun setting and perfect poolside read. Has anyone read any of her other books? This was the first for me. I am starting HISTORY OF WOLVES this weekend and finishing THE SEQUEL.

Just saw that Amy Poeppel has a new one coming out in June called FAR AND AWAY. She wrote THE SWEET SPOT and MUSICAL CHAIRS which I really enjoyed if anyone is looking for feel good stories with substance about found family.

I hope everyone has a relaxing weekend! Happy Reading!

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Thanks Ashley! Regarding Alafair Burke's books, I thought The Ex and The Wife were super fun and pretty fast paced

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Thanks Renee! I will add those to my Summer poolside list!

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I’m so sorry to hear you’ve had the flu! It’s been rampant here and I’ve heard it’s terrible. Glad you’re on the road to recovery! I will definitely check out SLANTING TOWARDS THE SEA.

Last week I finished I’LL COME TO YOU, and WHAT HAPPENED TO THE MCCRAYS. Neither were the huge wins for me that they have been for most other readers, but I do think that the elements of THE MCCRAYS that bugged me may actually not bother me so much the farther away that I get from it. I also read a book written for Christians but with universal themes called THE RUTHLESS ELIMINATION OF HURRY that gave me a lot to think about.

I can’t think of a recommendation I need, but I will make a couple. I did not read the book, but my husband and I have been watching the adaptation of SAY NOTHING, and it has been incredible so far. Also, if you love food and/or cooking, the New York Times cooking subscription is absolutely worth every penny!

Is anyone here attending The Savannah Book Festival this weekend? I leave this afternoon and can hardly wait. Last year was such an amazing experience.

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I think you'll enjoy Slanting Towards the Sea! WHAT HAPPENED TO THE MCCRAYS was one of the books I sampled and wasn't feeling. I gave it a few chapters but I didn't feel pulled into the story or the characters. I second the NYT cooking, there's so many easy recipes. Have the best time at the book festival! I can't wait to hear who you see and what books you discover:)

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I’m sure I’ll have plenty to share! πŸ€“πŸ“š

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Have fun LeAnne! I’m heading to Thomasville in a month for reader retreat at The Bookshelf and can’t wait! I love Savannah!

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That'll be so fun!

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The Bookshelf is literally a bucket destination of mine! One day I’ll get there. Savannah is maybe my favorite city on earth so spending time there AND being surrounded by books, authors, and readers is just the best.

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I want to get to Annie's reader retreat someday, now I also want to visit Savannah and that book festival too- bookish travel goals!

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Book people ARE the best people πŸ˜‰

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Oh I’m so glad. I’m going also Ashley. I’m looking forward to meeting you !

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Beatrice that is so exciting! I will see you in a month!

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I used to live in Savannah. I didn't realize they had a book festival. This sounds so much fun! Enjoy!

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I’m from the area even though I live about four hours away now and I had no idea they had one either! And it’s huge and with really impressive authors. I was blown away last year.

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My stepdad still lives there. I’ll have to try to attend next year!

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This week I finished BEAUTIFUL UGLY by Alice Fenney. I wasn’t that into it and am feeling like I need to give this author a break for a bit. I’m currently reading THE OLIGARCH’S DAUGHTER by Joseph Finder and really enjoying this new to me author. I have one more new release (GOOD DIRT) coming up next from my library, a buddy read, and then I’m going to read a Historical Fiction, in my quest to read more HF this year. I’m open to recommendations. Stay well everyone.

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I"m giving Feeney a break too. Only because I seem to keep expecting her books to be as good as HIS & HERS and those expectations are maybe too high. So glad you're liking TOD! If you like Alice Hoffman, I love recommending her book THE WORLD THAT WE KNEW, it's one of my favorite historical fiction books

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I highly recommend Daughters of Shandong by Eve J. Chung.

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As soon as i finish checking in with my book recs, i am finishing the last hour of The Oligarch’s Daughter too. Love it.

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Kelly I wanted to throw Beautiful Ugly against the wall when I finished it πŸ˜‚ I was so into the setting and the plot at first then the last third just went off the rails. I think I am done with that author for now as well. I’m tired of twists and turns that don’t make sense!

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Ashley, I felt a middle drag and it made me wonder what the ending would be. I was soooo disappointed. I told my book friend that I have plenty to talk about. I haven’t read His & Hers yet, but now I’ll wait a bit.

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Glad you’re feeling better Renee! I finished Good Dirt last night; really enjoyed it. If you liked Black Cake, you’ll like this too! Finish Penitence two weeks ago, and I can’t stop thinking about it. So good

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Thanks Kathy, I have a copy of Good Dirt and sampled it but I set it aside because I wasn't in the mood for alternating timelines. I loved Black Cake and want to pick her new one back up when I know I can sink into the alternating time lines. Sometimes I get in these reading moods where I want everything in the story to go in a forward timeline. Glad Penitance was so memorable for you!

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I’m going to finish PENITENCE today and I’m really liking it. I keep forgetting the characters aren’t real! I have GOOD DIRT from Libby in both print & audio, and I’ll likely read it this weekend.

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I am happy to hear that you’re feeling better. Keeping my fingers crossed that I’m not coming down with the flu. I woke up with the worst headache ever today. As soon as I finish submitting this comment, I will finish reading the one hour I have left in THE OLIGARCH’S DAUGHTER. Cannot wait to see how it ends. I really enjoyed reading VERA WONG’S UNSOLICITED ADVICE FOR MURDERS. It just was a β€œfeel good” book. I am looking for a β€œrags to riches” family saga. Older readers may relate to book comps for A WOMAN OF SUBSTANCE VY BARBARA TAYLOR BRADFORD, CAIN AND ABEL BY JEFFERY ARCHER, and THE IMMIGRANTS BY HOWARD FAST. I have been using my Salt and Stone Body Wash and the spray on mist for 2 weeks now and love it. It has a subtle scent or fragrance with a hint of sandalwood. It does not make me itch at all. The body wash rinse off very nicely and doesn’t your skin feeling sticky. I just love it. I just saw advertised a stone that is infused with lavender fragrance to use in place of diffusers. Wondered if anyone has bought one and if it is worth the $60 for the stone.

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I hope you don't get this flu!! You'll have to let me know what you think of that last hour of The Oligarch's Daughter, it left me surprised. I'll circle back if I have any rags to riches recs, I need to peruse my backlist, I haven't read any of those comps.

Thanks for the feedback on Salt and Stone, I love a good body wash and the lavender stone sounds intriguing. I don't burn a lot of candles or use diffusers but I love the smell of lavender especially if it's more subtle

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I'm glad to hear you're recovering from the flu. It's been quite prevalent around here as well, but I've been fortunate enough to avoid it so far. I'm usually not into love stories unless they're complicated, so SLANTED TOWARDS THE SEA sounds like a perfect match and will be added to my TBR.

You recommended LEAVING by Roxana Robinson and FATHER OF THE RAIN by Lily King, and I absolutely loved both. Do you have any other book recommendations that offer a similar reading experience? This week, I finished reading KILL FOR ME, KILL FOR YOU. It was a fun ride! Now, I'm switching gears and started THE GUNNERS by Rebecca Kauffman last night. After reading the first few chapters, I feel like this one is going to be a winner for me.

I started watching The Rivals on Hulu this week. It's VERY open door and a bit quirky but I am thoroughly entertained.

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I hope you continue to avoid this flu, I'm over myself coughing so much! I'm so glad you loved Father of the Rain and Leaving! Complicated love stories are my absolute favorite too - SLANTING TOWARDS THE SEA will be for you for sure. I'll also recommend THIRST FOR SALT by Madeline Lucas, WRITERS & LOVERS by Lily King, THE PAPER PALACE by Miranda Cowley Heller, DON'T BE A STRANGER by Susan Minot (this one is VERY open door), THE IDEA OF YOU by Robinne Lee (also extremely open door), ONE DAY by David Nicholls - hopefully others will have additional recs because I'm always on the hunt for these types of stories

The Gunners is on my tbr!

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I loved THE PAPER PALACE and THE IDEA OF YOU. THIRST FOR SALT has been on my tbr. I will also check out your other recommendations. Thank you!!

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I too loved LEAVING, and I would recommend THE CARETAKER by Ron Rash because of the wonderful prose, memorable characters, and great story.

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Oh yes this is a great rec, I loved The Caretaker too. And I totally forgot to include in my list of additional recs haha

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Thank you!! I will check this one out!

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As always I'd love some cosy fantasy or cosies in general - I've never found something similar to the Shady Hollow series so if anyone has any comps for that I'd be very happy!

I've been loving the Paradise tv show, it's kind of giving Hallmark movie but I'm loving it anyway. I also loved Babygirl at the movies. I just finished GUILTY BY DEFINITION by Susie Dent and loved it - I very strong debut!

Otherwise I've been on a thriller kick with BEAUTIFUL UGLY by Alice Feeny and THEY NEVER LEARN by Layne Fargo. But now I'm onto THE GROUP by Sigge Eklund.

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I haven't heard of the Susie Dent, love getting a good debut rec!

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Renee, thank you so much for your careful read and for championing SLANTING TOWARDS THE SEA!

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Does anyone have any recommendations of great mysteries or thrillers that are set in France but are not gory?

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I loved THE REUNION by Guillaume Musso and I don't remember any gore in it. I hope others chime in with some recs, I would love to know of more mysteries/thrillers set in France

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Thanks! I will give it a try.

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Ooh, this sounds so good! Requesting it from the library now, thank you! Also glad you're over the flu. My family and I had it 2 weeks ago and it was horrible!

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ugh glad you all have recovered, this flu is no joke, I haven't had it years and I hope I never get it again!

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It’s awful! And of course my four year old boy was the only one who didn’t get it, and he needs exercise like a little 🐢! It was so hard.

Have a great weekend!

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It's so hard to be sick as a parent with young kids at home- and then to have them sick too is doubly hard so I'm glad you had one illness free. I hear you about the energy level of boys, I remember being sick when mine were little and them still going full forceπŸ˜…

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I need a book recommendation. I would like to read a book that is a closed door, wholesome romance story. Something I could get easily on libby or kindle would be great! It can also be within any other genre; I would just like the romance to be the main story plot.

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How do you feel about YA? I rarely read YA but one romance I absolutely loved was Field Notes On Love by Jennifer Smith - I'm pretty sure it's closed door, I read it a long time ago and don't remember specifics but I did give it 5 stars

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I like reading YA, so I will be sure to give this one a try. Thank you!

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Have you ever read the wholesome, YA, rom com classic Daddy-Long-Legs by Jean Webster? The author was the grandniece of Mark Twain. The book is epistolary and delightful! It is in the public domain so you can find the ebook online for free.

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I don't think I have heard of it! I'll be sure to look at that one! Thank you!

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Paige you need to read Evvie Drake Starts Over! One of my all time favorites!

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Thank you, I'll be sure to check it out!

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I'm looking for a couple different recommendations - I've been spending hours this week using my heating pad and I would love to know if anyone has recommendations for a heating pad that doesn't have a cover that constantly slips off and maybe one with more than just 3 heat settings. I don't need something full body, I only use it for my back and neck but it's not that big so I have to keep alternating locations

Other book recs I'm looking for - I have a neighbor/friend who's looking for books with similar characters/themes/vibes to THE GREAT GATSBY- doesn't have to be the same time period

On my reading front - I finished HEARTWOOD by Amity Gaige before I read Slanting Toward the Sea. Overall, I enjoyed the story, especially the main character Bev. What I didn't like was a technique that authors sometimes use when in the middle of action or intense scenes the character narrating will all of a sudden "remember" a time in the past and then back we go with into detail overloaded backstory that (for me) takes me right out of the present day scene and action. I inevitably end up skimming a lot of this backstory dumping. This happened repeatedly throughout this story and is my biggest criticism. I also thought the ending was rushed but that's all I'll say about it for now. I did enjoy her writing itself and do think I'll give SEA WIFE a try.

Right now I'm currently reading and enjoying STONE YARD DEVOTIONAL by Charlotte Wood - this comes out Feb 11. This story follows an older woman who up and leaves her life and retreats to a monastery but she's. not all that interested in religion, it's more of an escape. Why, I don't know and that's part of the intrigue. The writing is excellent and the main character has made me chuckle a couple times already. This was short listed for the Booker Prize which is a literary prize I've had good success with in the past. On my kindle I'm over halfway through ASSUMPTION by Percival Everett. This is a crime fiction from his backlist. I like it, I enjoy his writing style and like the main character Ogden who's a deputy sheriff. I'm hoping I'll end up loving this like ERASURE and JAMES but we shall see

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My husband has a heating pad that he likes because it can be set to stay on all night or for a few hours, and it has 6 settings, and there is not a loose outer covering. He has cold feet at night and this helps with that. We put it under the mattress pad where it lives in the winter. Here is the link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08JQQPPCZ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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This is exactly what I'm looking for, thank you!

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There’s a YA book called A SKY PAINTED GOLD (I think) that was Gatsby-esque that I loved and I’m usually not a YA reader. Also maybe RULES OF CIVILITY by Amor Towles?

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Thanks! I haven't heard of that YA title

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I have SAY NOTHING Ready to download. Where is the adaptation streaming? Which service. Enjoy Savannah Love that city.

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It’s on Hulu. It’s intense!

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