What Fiction are you reading this week, January 2, 2022?

[hermetic]

Happy 2022!

Didn't get quite what you wanted this year? We understand! Bring it in and we'll help you find something with a better fit.

I'm reading The Dark Hours by Michael Connelly. Perfect timing. This story begins on New Year's Eve, and I just started reading it. It's so real. He's describing fireworks booming and I was actually hearing them at the same time. COVID is happening and people are dealing with it. I think this is going to be a good one. "Renée Ballard and Harry Bosch must join forces to find justice for a victim in a city scarred by fear and social unrest." Some reviewers, though, are quite annoyed by the constant referrals to masking. The plague rats are all, "Waaa, how dare he preach at me. I'll never read his books again." SMH

Speaking of good ones, I'm listening to Truth and Justice by Fern Michaels. Quite a tale; it really grabs you. Up next: Wish You Were Here by Rita Mae Brown.

What are you starting the year off with in Fiction?

[bif]

1. "Project Hail Mary" by Andy Weir

An absolute must read for any science fiction fan. One of those unputdownable" books I'm about 3/4 of the way through. It has a lot of science in it, but that just makes it more believable. Great book!!!

[hermetic]

3. Wanting to read that one

Sounds really good. There is a bit of a waiting list for it.

[bif]

8. I was on the waiting list at our library

But, as luck would have it, my daughter got it for me for Christmas!

[hermetic]

9. How nice!

She sounds like a treasure.

[SheltieLover]

2. Just finished qll of David Rosenfelt's 2021 books

Now reading "Death by Chocolate Lab," by Bethany Blake. It's okish, I guess...

Have my eye on the new Harry Bosch! Ty for sharing!

[hermetic]

4. Just so you know...

Harry doesn't play a major part. At least that's what some reviewers have said. Mostly it's about Renee Ballard. When Renee first goes to see Harry, though, I felt like I was seeing an old friend. I'll take what I can get.

[SheltieLover]

5. I've read that, too.

Ty for the heads up.

I feel that way, too... I suppose living vicariously, they are friends.

I felt the same way with Rosemfelt's characters.

[alittlelark]

6. Re-reading 'Enders Game'

Feeling nostalgic.

[hermetic]

7. Ah, there's a classic

Timeless.

[bahboo]

10. Connelly is a master among masters....

The Dark Hours is on my list. Read all his books upon moving to LA 15 years ago. A great intro to the area...that and watching car chases haha...

[hermetic]

12. No doubt an interesting place to live

I've only visited there a few times. I guess this book takes the reader into some pretty rough areas.

I agree he is one of the best. Did you know he does podcasts of true crime?
https://www.michaelconnelly.com/podcasts/

[yellowdogintexas]

21. I am looking forward to the new series

in which Bosch is a character, but not the lead.

[The King of Prussia]

11. "Murder at the House on the Hill" by Victoria Walters

A cozy set in the Cotswolds by a new author to me. Haven't formed a judgement on it yet. Previously I read the Golden Age thriller "Mystery in White" . Dreadful. Ended the year with "The Christmas Killer" by Alex Pine. Also poor - largely because the protagonist must be the thickest detective in all of fiction.
New Year's Day was warm do we went to the seaside. And discovered a fantastic book shop: The Old Pier Bookshop and bought a lot of books.
Our festive period was ruined by Covid. My great niece tested positive, although she had no symptoms at all, despite being unvaccinated. She gave it to my brother in law and his wife, both of whom are in their late 60s and not in the very best shape. Both ill with it, but nowhere near being bad enough for hospital. Recovering now.
I now face a difficult choice about returning to work, given that catching covid would be certain.

Anyway, happy new year. I do think this will be the year that it just goes away.

[hermetic]

13. SO SORRY go hear about your relatives

I do hope they all recover nicely, and don't pass it on to you. I would be very unhappy if I had to go back to work these days. Glad to be an old fart now.

Glad you were able to have a little getaway. It's so cold here, around 0 today which I believe is about -17.7 C, and a foot of snow so nobody is going out anywhere for a while. Probably a good thing.

I sure hope you are right. Take care.

[japple]

14. Happy New Year! Thank you, hermetic, for the weekly thread.

I am Just finishing up re-reading Linda Hogan's Solar Storms and highly recommend it to any readers of Native American fiction.

I was thrilled to find that Lissa Evans (Old Baggage and Crooked Heart) had a new book. V for Victory came out in May of 2021, but I hadn't read about it. So that is where I'll start tonight. I loved the main characters in her previous books and look forward to more of their story.

In this witty, charming follow-up to the acclaimed Crooked Heart, the life of lies a small time scammer and her adopted son have constructed in London becomes endangered during the tumultuous final months of World War II.

[hermetic]

15. Solar Storms

sounds terrific. I didn't know Linda Hogan was Pulitzer Prize finalist. Critics call this book “luminous.” I like luminous. Other books sound good, as well.

Thank you for sharing the lovely library photos. Will surely be using some in the future.

Love to you and the kitties.

[Paper Roses]

16. Just finished Radiant Angel by Nelson DeMille, now starting:

The Bourne Treachery by Robert Ludlum. Not far enough to comment on this.
Radiant Angel was very good. Worth reading.

[hermetic]

17. That does sound good

"Prescient and chilling. DeMille's new novel takes us into the heart of a new Cold War with a clock-ticking plot that has Manhattan in its crosshairs." Russian spies, terrorists. A definite thriller.

[PennyC]

18. The Dark Hours!

It was my turn in the Libby queue. I'll jump in as soon as I finish Julian Fellowe's Snobs (total indulgence).

[hermetic]

19. Cool!

[yellowdogintexas]

20. Sisterhood #23 Kiss and Tell

Life comes in stages. Even the Sisterhood has been content to let their gold shields gather a little dust while they enjoy their friends and family. But when a string of anonymous emails arrives at Pinewood, suggesting shady dealings at a local assisted-living facility, Myra Rutledge and her best friend Annie de Silva are more than ready to out-hustle a master con-artist at his own game. They’ll need to enlist some new and untested allies in order to pull off their brilliant plan, all while Myra faces a personal challenge that will rock the Sisterhood to the core . . . The roots of the Men of the Sisterhood series surface in this installment..

I also finished these:

#20 Home Free As it turns out, once you’re a part of the Sisterhood, normal is a relative term. President Martine Connor, their long-time ally, has announced the formation of a top-secret organization. Officially, the CIC won’t exist. Unofficially, they’ll report directly to the president and tackle the jobs no one else can handle. For the Sisterhood, it’s the end of an era—and the beginning of a whole new adventure . . .


#21 Gotcha! Sometimes, justice is a long time coming. That's the case with Julie Wyatt, whose story strikes close to home for the original founder of the Sisterhood, Myra Rutledge, and her best friend--and fellow Sister--Annie. Julie is convinced her greedy daughter-in-law Darlene had something to do with the mysterious circumstances surrounding her son Larry's death. She desperately wants to get a confession out of Darlene--and to ensure the safety of Larry's daughter, Olivia. As Myra, Annie, and their cohorts dig deeper into Darlene's shady dealings, events unfurl in a way that no one could have predicted, bringing to light the true meaning of loyalty and courage--and the kind of friendship that can create miracles. . .

#22 Blindsided Myra Rutledge isn’t ready to mothball the Sisterhood just yet. When Maggie Spitzer, former editor-in-chief of the Post and an honorary member of the Sisterhood, arrives with a new mission in mind, the Vigilantes are soon gathering in their war room once more. While catching up on each other’s lives, they plan a brilliant campaign against a duo of corrupt judges running a moneymaking racket that sends young offenders to brutal boot camps, often on trumped-up charges. Their enemies are powerful and ruthless, but the Sisterhood have their own formidable allies—including former President Martine Connor. Once their scheme takes off, the guilty won’t know what hit them . . .

[SheltieLover]

22. Ty for sharing!

Sounds like a great series & my library has a lot of them in ebook form!

[yellowdogintexas]

23. I have most of them in Kindle and they are loanable. If you would like me to

lend the first book in the series to you, you can PM your email to me.
If you go to the author's website, there is a list of all the books in her various series...this lady is prolific!!!

The first book is "Weekend Warriors" and sets up the premise for the whole series. She has tried twice to end the series and the fans just won't let her!!! Fans also send her ideas on story lines and the just desserts the Sisterhood dispenses.

I think you can also look up one of her books on Amazon and down below the entire series will be listed in order.

[yellowdogintexas]

24. Truth and Justice is indeed a tale. It was my first Sisterhood read.

I have enjoyed every one of them.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

25. Just started It's a Wonderful Woof

by Spencer Quinn, the 12th and most recent book in the Chet and Bernie series. Chet is a dog, the narrator of the books. He is TOTALLY dog, with the essential ADD that all dogs have, plus his complete love of his human, Bernie. Bernie is a private eye, and without Chet, although he may not fully realize it, he wouldn't solve most of his cases. Great series.

I also started World War Z by Max Brooks two days ago. Since I own that one (the Chet and Bernie book is from the library) I can put it briefly aside. For those of you who haven't already read it, do so now. It turns out to be very prescient of the current Covid thing.

Because of the holiday, my library was closed from 1pm this last Friday until today. I had four books that were on reserve to pick up, and of course I found several more to check out. It's a good thing I don't work these days and can spend most of my waking hours reading.

Complete aside here. I was on a flight from Hilo to Los Angeles in late 1972 or early 1973. I was an airline employee and so I was flying first class. It was a 747, back when the upper deck was a first class lounge. Sigh. What we have lost. Anyway, also on board were Anne Bancroft, Mel Brooks, their baby Max, and Max's nanny. I actually helped change a diaper for baby Max. I sort of pretended I didn't really recognize Bancroft and Brooks, to give them their privacy in the very small space on the airplane. But honestly, it was a thrill to fly with them. They were mainly parents to the baby, and their Hollywood celebrity barely showed up.

[hermetic]

26. What a nice memory

Some of my favorite people.

Have you read Falling by T.J. Newman? It's about an airplane flight. It's a super intense thriller. I'm quite enjoying it and finding it difficult to put down.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

27. Not yet. It's on my list of books to get to.

So many books, so little time.