Tuesday, December 22, 2015

My Christmas Book Bag


Every Christmas I do something for myself.  I buy books to fill a Christmas gift bag with, sit it under the tree, and on Christmas Eve, I get to take the books out and officially make them mine.  Yes, I already know what the books are, but it's fun for me to fill the bag and get to fawn over them on that special night of the year.  So, what is in my bag this year?  Take a peek.







Thursday, December 10, 2015

Favorite Reads of 2015




I've picked fifteen favorite reads of 2015, and I feel like maybe I should have picked all the books I read.  Because, I did enjoy every book I read this year, and because it was a slow reading year for me, and so I really did only read books I thought I would love.  In fact, this year has been the slowest reading year I can remember since I began keeping track of how many books a year I read.  I blame my reading slump on my house being torn apart for the year, up until about a month ago, as major interior work was transforming my drab house into a beautiful, new living space.  So, I plan to do a post before the year is out on the many books I would have normally read and plan on catching up on.  2016 will hopefully see me back on track and reading up a storm.  The fifteen books I have chosen to feature from the 2015 wonderful world of books represents an amazing wealth of great reading, with three new authors whom I am delighted to have discovered.  There is one 2016 book that I've included as a bonus book.  Lyndsay Faye's Jane Steele isn't out until April 7th, but how could I not include mention of this book that I was lucky enough to read an advanced copy of and couldn't put down.  Links to all my reviews, except for Jane Steele, are listed below all of the pictures.  (Lyndsay wanted to hold off on putting the reviews out there too soon, so I'm respecting that.)  I hope you will enjoy these amazing books as much as I did.  If you've already read them or some of them, then you know why they're on the list.






 
 




  







Reviews:
The Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust
Dreaming Spies
The Edge of Dreams
Murder in Hindsight
The Ghost Fields
The Fatal Flame
Burnt River
Little Pretty Things
No Other Darkness
The Nature of the Beast
What You See
The Child Garden
Mrs. Roosevelt's Confidante
Entry Island
The Secret Life of Anna Blanc