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Posts by Jane J
Enjoy Wisconsin Book Festival events all year round! Several incredible authors are headed your way in September, so make plans to join us.
Plus save the date for the 4-day festival October 17-20, 2019. The complete list of events can be found at wisconsinbookfestival.org.
All Wisconsin Book Festival events are free and open to the public, no tickets or registration required.
Every few months I write a book report on the books my mystery book group at Lakeview has discussed. But in thinking about it recently I realized I've neglected to mention (at least recently) all of the other book discussion happenings at the library. Every one of our locations has groups you can join to talk books if you'd like.
It's been a while since I've read such a delightful novel. And not only is this one great and good, I'm thrilled that there are several more books in this young adult series that I can read next. Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger is set in the same world as her adult Parasol Protectorate series (a combination steam punk/romance/paranormal series that is also super-fun). This YA entry takes place a number of years earlier and introduces Sophronia Angelina Temminnick.
I'm a big fan of mysteries. I'm also a big fan of the author Nalini Singh. But up until now the twain did not meet in the same book. Singh, who has written contemporary, paranormal and suspenseful romances (and all extremely well), is venturing into the mystery genre (and returning to her roots in New Zealand) with her new novel A Madness of Sunshine.
In keeping with my new minted tradition (second posting like this, first one is here) I come to you with a report on how the Lakeview Mystery Book Group's recent discussions have gone.
A week or so ago I saw a trailer for a new tv show and as it flashed across the screen in quick shots (as trailers do) it seemed so familiar and I thought, is it? Could it be? Yes it was. Starz has a new show starting at the end of June about one of my favorite fantasy novels, The Rook. I read the book a while ago but I'm re-upping my review to tie it in in with the show to come.
This summer the Hawthorne Library will be hosting a Girls, Inc group who'll be participating in the Summer Reading Club and programming with crafts and activities at the library. To get them started on some great books for girls, Librarian Tracy Moore created a Girl Empowerment reading list with titles for all ages.
There was a time when I discovered Sarah Dessen and did a deep dive into her young adult novels. And once I'd caught up on her backlist I'd read each new one when it came out. But then I stopped doing an auto-read of her books. Can't really tell you why, though I'm guessing there were just too many other things on my TBR radar (a constant challenge in my life), but there it is. What's funny is I can't tell you why I decided to try her newest and why, when I decided to do so, I was kind of nervous. Would it be as enjoyable as the earlier ones were? Had I grown out of my love for her books?
I'd been in a bit of a slump, reading-wise, lately, so I decided I needed something that offered adventure, magic and romance. To achieve that combo I decided to dip back into a couple of paranormal romance series I'd fallen away from to see if I could capture some of the old magic. And capture it I did (whew! big sigh of relief! - I always have a fear that I'll never get my reading mojo back when I've been stuck).
Anna McDonald has no idea of the double whammy that's about to hit her as she starts her day in the normal fashion; getting the kids lunches and clothing ready for school while starting a new true crime podcast. The first blow comes as she listens to the opening segment of the podcast and realizes that the true crime that's being narrated features a former friend who she is now learning is dead and may have taken his family with him on a sunken yacht in the Mediterranean.
