Again this week I find myself nearing the end of a rather intense book, although I doubt I will be able to finish it tonight (Thursday, as I write this). I am exhausted and can hardly keep my eyes open--I may try though! I am reading Karen E. Olson's Vanished, the 4th in her Black Hat series.
A weekly meme where readers share the first sentence of the book they are reading and say what they think. Hosted by the wonderful Gillion Dumas of Rose City Reader.
The hacker known as Tracker moves along the sidewalk, a hoodie pulled up over his head, his eyes darting from side to side.
My thoughts: Is he up to know good? Is he hiding from someone? Tracker is one of my favorite characters in the series, and I would follow him just about anywhere. I was hooked the instant I read the first sentence.
A shadow crosses one of the windows."They can't see you," she whispers. [56%]
My thoughts: Uh oh. Sounds like trouble is coming. it is a fairly tense scene in the book, and it looks like the protagonist will be on the run again soon.
What do you think? Does this sound like something you would be interested in reading?
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Everyone has a favorite and then we also have something we dislike. Like a coin, there are two sides to every question. Each week, Carrie at The Butterfly Reads and Laura from Blue Eye Books ask participants to list what they like and don't like about that week's topic.
This week's topic is Favorite Book Set in Winter/Summer
I really struggled with this week's topic and am tweaking it a bit to make it an easier fit for me. If you knew how much time I put into trying to find books that I count as favorites set in just one season . . . The truth is I don't remember what season most of my favorites are set in. Then the question became: do I go with a books that are mostly set in winter and summer? Or perhaps have a more summer or winter feel to them regardless of when they are set? In the end, I decided to pick a couple of favorite books that have the feel of the particular season I read them in--at least in my memory.
Winter:
First Sentence: It was November.
The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield is well written, intriguing, and spoke to me, sometimes the voice sounding a little like mine.The Thirteenth Tale is a love letter to reading, a book for the feral reader in all of us, a return to that rich vein of storytelling that our parents loved and that we loved as children. Diane Setterfield will keep you guessing, make you wonder, move you to tears and laughter and, in the end, deposit you breathless yet satisfied back upon the shore of your everyday life. [excerpt from Goodreads Summary]
First Sentence: Later, when memory was all she had to sustain her, she would come to cherish it:
Old Honolulu as it was then, as it would never be again.
Moloka'i by Alan Brennert ~ Having lived in Hawaii for a short time during my childhood made me forever interested in the Hawaiian Islands and their history. I can't say enough about Moloka'i and how much I loved it.
This richly imagined novel, set in Hawai'i more than a century ago, is an extraordinary epic of a little-known time and place---and a deeply moving testament to the resiliency of the human spirit. [excerpt from Goodreads]
What favorite book of yours speaks to you of winter? Of Summer?
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Vanished sounds interesting. Also the beginning kind of rhymes.
ReplyDeleteBreana - It was a good one! I hadn't noticed that about the opening, but you are right! Haha
DeleteThe Thirteenth Tale was fantastic! And Moloka'i sounds interesting!
ReplyDeleteEustacia - Both are among my all time favorite books. :-)
DeleteGood to know that the new Karen Olson book is a winner for you. I'm definitely going to start that series this year. I would have a tougher time with the seasonal theme too, I think. I liked THE THIRTEENTH TALE very much, but it's been a long time since I read it. I've have MOLOKA'I on my Kindle for years and still haven't read it. Perhaps this year.
ReplyDeleteKay - I hope you enjoy the series when you read it. I have enjoyed it. I hope it gets picked up again to continue.
DeleteI should probably do a re-read of both The Thirteenth Tale and Moloka'i. Both are all time favorites of mine. I have so much love for them.
Vanished sounds so good and definitely like something I'd enjoy. I was sad to see that my library doesn't have this one but luckily Amazon does! I've read 2 books that really say summer to me - THe Peach Keeper and Garden Spells which are both by Sarah Addison Allen.
ReplyDeleteKatherine - It was a lot of fun--and intense. Those books are all intense. LOL I hope you enjoy it if you read it. Definitely start at the beginning of the series. It will made more sense that way.
DeleteI hate when I'm so tired I can't finish a book like that!
ReplyDeleteKathy - I do too! Sometimes though my eyes won't stay open for anything. :-(
DeleteGreat excerpts! I haven't heard of this series, but now I'm intrigued. Thanks for sharing...and here's mine: “THE SIXTH WINDOW”
ReplyDeleteI can relate to the exhaustion, and I don't have an excuse, since I am retired and my life is all about books and blogging! Although there are appointments, maintenance people coming by, etc.
Enjoy your weekend.
Laurel-Rain - Thank you! It's a fun series.
DeleteI think you do plenty to make you exhausted. Being retired may sound like all relaxation, but from watching my mom, I know it's not.
Sounds like an interesting series. Reading has a tendency to wake me up rather than make me sleepy. I found myself reading until 4 AM recently which works since I'm retired and can sleep in the next day. This week I have Final Siege by Scarlett Cole. Happy reading!
ReplyDeleteKathy - It is a good series--very suspenseful. I wish reading had that tendency with me. I can usually hang in there a good while, but sometimes I just can't make it no matter how hard I try. The older I get, the harder it gets. Maybe if I didn't get up at 4:30 every morning for work . . .
DeleteI like the sound of the Black Hat series. Will have to give it a closer look.
ReplyDeleteCatherine - It's a great series. I hope you get a chance to read it.
DeleteOh no. My TBR pile just grew. All these books look awesome. Although I'll have to start with the first in the Black Hat series.
ReplyDeleteRoberta - Definitely start with the first book in the Black Hat series. It's a good one and the rest of the series is tied into it in one way or another.
DeleteI loved The Thirteenth Tale, but I'd have a hard time deciding on a book for each season!
ReplyDeleteJenclair - It was hard deciding based on season. I am sure I will have different answers every day if I was asked. LOL
DeleteBoth, winter and summer are both great seasons. Yes, I do love summer more. I also read more books in the summertime. :)
ReplyDeleteNina - Yes, they are great seasons. So are spring and fall. :-) I am partial to fall of all of them though. I don't really read more based on the season. Back when I was in school I read more during the summer, but that's been a long while.
DeleteVanished sounds good though I haven't read any of the black hat series. A hacker named Tracker..love the opening. Great cover, too!
ReplyDeleteJo-Ann
Jo-Ann - Tracker is a great hacker. :-)
DeleteSounds intriguing and fast-paced, I'm in!!! Happy weekend!
ReplyDeleteFreda - It is a fast read! Definitely intense.
DeleteHope you have a great weekend with Vanished! Looking forward to your review.
ReplyDeleteIliana - I was able to finish it Friday morning. So good! I hope the series gets picked up for more installments.
DeleteMolokai'i is one of my favorite books of ALL TIME! I love it so, so much!!
ReplyDeleteLori Bree - Yes! Me too. I have so much love for Moloka'i. It's one of my favorites of all-time too.
DeleteThe Thirteenth Tale is such a good book. I hope you like it.
ReplyDeleteAnne - The Thirteenth Tale is one of my all time favorites.
DeleteI loved The Thirteenth Tale. I think my mind will go blank should I play this week's topic for the season. Reading-wise, I think my choice will lean more towards the winter season since we have summer all year around. ;)
ReplyDeleteMelody - It's an awesome book. My mind went blank and I had a hard time figuring out what direction to go. I think I managed okay though, even if I didn't quite follow the prompt exactly. :-)
DeleteI am like you in that I don't remember what season most books are set in. I don't know that I could have answered this question. I do need to get around to reading The Thirteenth Tale.
ReplyDeleteCarole - It was a hard one this week. I hope you get to read The Thirteenth Tale someday. I love it.
DeleteI really want to re-read The Thirteenth Tale. That was on my list this week of books I've read, loved, but completely forgotten everything about the plot.
ReplyDeleteSuzanne - I hope to reread it someday as well. Hopefully it will be just as great the second time around!
DeleteI totally understand! I usually don't remember the seasons unless it's like drastic... like tornado or snow storm. I had to google books set in seasons lol
ReplyDeleteThanks for linking up!
Carrie - I Google books set in winter too. LOL :-) I ended up looking through my past favorites though and pulled directly from there, ultimately.
DeleteI'm the same way with the whole 'not remembering the season' thing (actually, it would be accurate to say that I'm bad with the whole 'remembering what even happened in a book' thing too) so I just went with my gut instinct and chose two that were sort of obvious. I've never heard of The Thirteenth Tale before but it sounds really interesting! I'll have to check it out sometime. Thanks for linking up, Wendy!
ReplyDeleteLaura @BlueEyeBooks
Laura - Haha! Me too, I'm afraid. I have a terrible memory. That's why I started journaling about the books I read and eventually blogging about them. :-)
Delete