Weekly Mews: Good Riddance to March and Tip Toeing into April . . . (Please Vote in my April TBR Poll!)

I am linking up to the Sunday Post hosted by Kim of Caffeinated Book Reviewer and The Sunday Salon (TSS) hosted by Deb Nance of Readerbuzz  where participants recap our week, talk about what we are reading, share any new books that have come our way, and whatever else we want to talk about. I am also linking It's Monday! What Are you Reading? hosted by Kathryn of Book Date where readers talk about what they have been, are and will be reading.

As part of my monthly wrap up, I am linking up to Nicole of Feed Your Addiction's Monthly Wrap-Up Post.

March was a punch in the gut. Or rather, a punch in the heart. My grandmother was put in hospice, tired and ready to rest after 104 and some months of life. She took her last breath on my daughter's birthday. My grandmother always had a ready smile, loved to dance and cook during her younger years, but most of all she loved her family. A week or so after, my great-aunt suffered a major stroke. She died at home, surrounded by family. I was always a little intimidated by her, I admit. She could be so stern and proper, but she was also very kind hearted. She took me to Mexico for the first time when I was a young adult and hosted my wedding shower at her house. Even though both of these women were older, their deaths cast a shadow over the month that still lingers--as grief has a way of doing. 

The month actually began though with my aunt (not to be confused with my great-aunt) in intensive care (ICU), the prognosis dire. An infection and sepsis on top of her existing health issues. She's survived being near death before and evidently her body was not ready to call it quits yet this time either.  Although she's not completely out of the woods health-wise, she is out of ICU and this past week was moved to a rehab facility. Some good news amongst the bad. But now she has COVID. Because March couldn't go without throwing that in too. She is hanging in there.

In other news: there was work, lots of work, the end of the Girl Scout Cookie season, dance and rehearsals, Mouse's school's open house, regular dental check-ups, spring break for my daughter, Mouse's birthday, and both my husband and I came down with colds. I accompanied my mom to a couple of doctor's visits in preparation for her upcoming surgery this coming week. She is starting to feel nervous, but we are optimistic things will go well. 

Even with everything going on this past month, I did what I could to make sure my daughter had a good birthday, spreading the celebration over several days. She received lots of books for her birthday. So many books! I would be a little jealous but I am sure she will let me borrow any I may want to read.

Although my husband and I had to work through Mouse's spring break, we did visit the Living Desert Zoo last weekend. It was our first visit there even though we've lived so close for the past 20+ years. 

All of that has kept me away from blogging. My head just has not been in it. Even my reading was slow going. I am not sure what April will hold but hopefully it will be a gentler month.

Last Read

March got away from me, and I never did get around to posting the results of March's TBR List Poll. Thank you to everyone who voted! It was a close race: Black Sun (Between Earth and Sky #1) by Rebecca Roanhorse receiving 8 votes, Clark and Division by Naomi Hirahara got 12, and Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo won with 13 votes. 

I can see why Last Night at the Telegraph Club received so much praise and have to add mine to it. I also recently read Witch Hat Atelier, Vol. 5 by Kamome Shirahama, translated by Stephen Kohler, a manga series I continue to enjoy. I love the artwork! 

Reading Now

At the moment I am reading Four Aunties and a Wedding (Aunties #2) by Jesse Q. Sutanto, which is just as funny as the first book in the series so far. I also have continued with my reading of The Count of Monte Cristo, which I am stretching out over the course of the year. I am right on schedule! 

Up Next

I could really use your help in choosing my next read. I am not sure what I am in the mood for. Something romantic and funny or perhaps heartwarming and touching? Or would something more intense and heart pounding be a better fit? Which of these three books do you think I should read next? 

The Bromance Book Club (Bromance Book Club #1) by Lyssa Kay Adams

The first rule of book club: You don't talk about book club.

Nashville Legends second baseman Gavin Scott's marriage is in major league trouble. He’s recently discovered a humiliating secret: his wife Thea has always faked the Big O. When he loses his cool at the revelation, it’s the final straw on their already strained relationship. Thea asks for a divorce, and Gavin realizes he’s let his pride and fear get the better of him.

Welcome to the Bromance Book Club.

Distraught and desperate, Gavin finds help from an unlikely source: a secret romance book club made up of Nashville's top alpha men. With the help of their current read, a steamy Regency titled Courting the Countess, the guys coach Gavin on saving his marriage. But it'll take a lot more than flowery words and grand gestures for this hapless Romeo to find his inner hero and win back the trust of his wife. [Goodreads Summary]

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman 

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove and “writer of astonishing depth” (The Washington Times) comes a poignant comedy about a crime that never took place, a would-be bank robber who disappears into thin air, and eight extremely anxious strangers who find they have more in common than they ever imagined. Viewing an apartment normally doesn’t turn into a life-or-death situation, but this particular open house becomes just that when a failed bank robber bursts in and takes everyone in the apartment hostage. As the pressure mounts, the eight strangers begin slowly opening up to one another and reveal long-hidden truths.

First is Zara, a wealthy bank director who has been too busy to care about anyone else until tragedy changed her life. Now, she’s obsessed with visiting open houses to see how ordinary people live—and, perhaps, to set an old wrong to right. Then there’s Roger and Anna-Lena, an Ikea-addicted retired couple who are on a never-ending hunt for fixer-uppers to hide the fact that they don’t know how to fix their own failing marriage. Julia and Ro are a young lesbian couple and soon-to-be parents who are nervous about their chances for a successful life together since they can’t agree on anything. And there’s Estelle, an eighty-year-old woman who has lived long enough to be unimpressed by a masked bank robber waving a gun in her face. And despite the story she tells them all, Estelle hasn’t really come to the apartment to view it for her daughter, and her husband really isn’t outside parking the car.

As police surround the premises and television channels broadcast the hostage situation live, the tension mounts and even deeper secrets are slowly revealed. Before long, the robber must decide which is the more terrifying prospect: going out to face the police, or staying in the apartment with this group of impossible people.

Rich with Fredrik Backman’s “pitch-perfect dialogue and an unparalleled understanding of human nature” (Shelf Awareness), Anxious People’s whimsical plot serves up unforgettable insights into the human condition and a gentle reminder to be compassionate to all the anxious people we encounter every day. [Goodreads Summary]

The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix

A fast-paced, thrilling horror novel that follows a group of heroines to die for, from the brilliant New York Times bestselling author of The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires.

In horror movies, the final girl is the one who's left standing when the credits roll. The one who fought back, defeated the killer, and avenged her friends. The one who emerges bloodied but victorious. But after the sirens fade and the audience moves on, what happens to her?

Lynnette Tarkington is a real-life final girl who survived a massacre twenty-two years ago, and it has defined every day of her life since. And she's not alone. For more than a decade she's been meeting with five other actual final girls and their therapist in a support group for those who survived the unthinkable, putting their lives back together, piece by piece. That is until one of the women misses a meeting and Lynnette's worst fears are realized--someone knows about the group and is determined to take their lives apart again, piece by piece.

But the thing about these final girls is that they have each other now, and no matter how bad the odds, how dark the night, how sharp the knife, they will never, ever give up. [Goodreads Summary]

Thank you for voting! What will you be reading next?

My TBR List is hosted by the awesome Michelle at Because Reading. It’s a fun way to choose a book from your TBR pile to read. The 1st Saturday of every month, I will list 3 books I am considering reading and let you vote for my next read during that month. My review will follow (unfortunately, not likely in the same month, but eventually--that's all I can promise). 

March Monthly Wrap Up

Here is what I finished reading in March:

• Black Sanction Magic (The Hollows #8) by Kim Harrison
• Pale Demon (The Hollows #9) by Kim Harrison
• Fool Moon (Dresden Files #2) by Jim Butcher (re-read)
• Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
• Witch Hat Atelier, Vol. 5 by Kamome Shirahama, translated by Stephen Kohler

I am really enjoying Kim Harrison's The Hollows series and am kicking myself for waiting so long to read it. I love the world building and Rachel Morgan has really grown over the course of the series.

It's been over two years since I last attempted an audio book but I needed something to keep me company on my recent solo walks and so listened to James Marsters narration of Fool Moon, the second in the Dresden Files series. I read the print version of the book years ago--it's a favorite series of mine. I recently watched a video on the internet of a 2020 NY Comic Con conversation between Marsters and Butcher as they talked about the Dresden Files, which has me excited about diving back into the series again. 

My daughter got me into the manga series, Witch Hat Atelier last year and I continue to enjoy it. The detailed artwork is amazing. It's a fun series, although I wish there were not such big cliff hangers at the end of each volume.

Last Night at the Telegraph Club was my favorite read of the month. It was a quieter novel than most of what I have been reading as of late, which took a moment to adjust to, but it is such a good book with characters that I came to really care for, especially Lily and Kath. 

My roses welcoming in spring

How did your March shape up? Do you have a favorite among the books you read?

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