A Quilter's Holiday

A Quilter's Holiday by Jennifer Chiaverini

This is the 15th book in the Elm Creek Quilts series.

This book sees the Elm Creek Quilters gather the day after Thanksgiving for their annual Quilt-a-thon and potluck lunch. With a storm closing in, it looks as if everyone will need to spend the night rather than return home. As the day progresses, each member recalls what they are thankful for, but new challenges and problems are hiding in the wings.

For me this was a bit of a scene setting book. Several things are bought up thorough out the book that I can see Chiaverini exploring further in subsequent books, such as Matt's father wanting Matt to take over the family business, the blossoming romance between Anna and Jeremy and Sylvia's continued search into her family history.  On the whole, another enjoyable read.

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesday is hosted by MizB over at Should Be Reading

This is how it works

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers.

This weeks Teaser Tuesday comes from:

  The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood.

They grab a man who is walking along, a man with a briefcase, an ordinary-looking man, slam him back against the black side of the van. He's there a moment, splayed out against the metal as if stuck to it; then one of the Eyes moves in him, does something sharp and brutal that doubles him over, into a limp cloth bundle.




If you leave a comment, please leave a link to your teaser! 

Odd One Out

Odd One Out by Monica McInerney

After Unholy Messenger I needed something light and fluffy to read. Monica McInerney fits the bill perfectly.

Sylvie is the down trodden, non artistic family member of a high profile artistic family. She is the one who manages all the adminstration and boring things so her mother and sisters can be creative. Her brother, recongnising how she is being used and abused whisks her off to Melbourne to "find herself" and discover a life away from the rest of the families controlling influences.

And really, that's all there is to say about this! Standard chick lit that took me less than 2 hours to read, but gave me a really good break from the heavier stuff.

Unholy Messenger

Unholy Messenger: The Life and Crimes of the BTK Killer by Stephen Singular.

It has been awhile since I read a good True Crime book. Truth be told, the more I read, the harder I am to please. So I am very pleased to say that this one hit the mark! Stephen Singular managed to not only retell the harowing story of a serial killer who terrorised Witchita, Kansas for thirty years, he gave an insight into the man, his community and the police who hunted him.

Dennis Rader achieved the almost impossible in the world or serial killing - he managed to keep the lives of the monster and the man seperate. Not only did he hold down a job, he was married with children, president of his church council and completely under the radar. It was only his need to communicate with the police that finally bought about the end of his killing career.

For me, this book is a must read for anyone with an interest in this area. I myself and fascinated by it, having a shelf full of books about serial killers and mass murderers. I not sure what it is, most probably the fact that I can't understand someone like that. I swear if I was 20 years younger and wondering what to do with my life, forensic psychology would be high on my list!

The end of the book mentioned that the BTK was given the chance by the judge to give details of his crimes. This was televised  and  because I couldn't help myself I youtubed it. While it is compelling, it is also highly disturbing. Don't do it unless you have a strong stomach.

It's Monday! What are you Reading?

What are you reading Monday  is hosted by Shelia over at Book Journey. Head over and check out what others are reading!

What I have finished this week

What the Mother Knew by Edmund Tadros

The Lost Quilter by Jennifer Chiaverini

Unholy Messenger: The Life and Crimes of the BTK Killer - Stephen Singular
Odd One Out - Monica McInerney

What I am reading now

The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood

From Goodreads:

In the world of the near future, who will control women's bodies?
Offred is a Handmaid in the Republic of Gilead. She may leave the home of the Commander & his wife once a day to walk to food markets whose signs are now pictures instead of words because women are no longer allowed to read. She must lie on her back once a month & pray the Commander makes her pregnant, because in an age of declining births, Offred the other Handmaids are only valued if their ovaries are viable. Offred can remember the days before, when she lived & made love with her husband Luke; when she played with and protected her daughter; when she had a job, money of her own & access to knowledge. But all of that is gone now...
Funny, unexpected, horrifying, & altogether convincing, The Handmaid's Tale is at once scathing satire, dire warning & tour de force.

This had been on my Books from other blogs list for a bit. The review came from Ambrosia Salad Book Review. I should say it's what I will be reading as I've only just finished Odd One Out this morning and this is what's been lifted off the shelf.

What's next?

Most probably We Need To Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver. It's our book group book. It arrived in the post the other day, but I have lent it to a friend. Hopefully they will get it back to me soon.

So what are you reading this Monday?

How to make a book lover cringe.

picture via The Mogg Blog

Yep, it's made of books! Anyone else cringing over those bent back spines??

Wednesday Wordle.

I stumbled across this over at So Many Books, So Little Time. Hope she doesn't mind me borrowing the idea! Oh, and we will ignore the fact that today is Thursday, OK?

Make your own Wordle here