It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

The Its Monday! What Are You Reading meme is hosted at Book Journey.

Life…

This past week has been a whirlwind of activity! I am proud to share that my three youngest children all received Academic Excellence awards at the end of school year presentations on Thursday. I am a very proud Mummy! On Friday night we enjoyed Carols by Glowstick at their school and had a great time at their Scout Christmas party on Saturday. Yesterday was my youngest son’s birthday party at the the local indoor pool with 10 of his friends as well as the community Carols by Candlelight later that night where my eldest performed, and we were treated to  a fabulous fireworks show. It’s not over quite yet either, tonight I am off to see my oldest daughter receive an award for placing first in Photography.

What I Read Last Week

The Scrivener’s Tale by Fiona McIntosh

The Man Plan by Elise K Ackers

Sex, Lies and Bonsai by Lisa Walker

Lethal Inheritance by Tahlia Newland

Reviews posted this week

(click the titles to read my reviews)

The Escape Diaries by Juliet Rosetti ★★★

Sister Pact by Ali Ahearn & Ros Baxter ★★★1/2

Where Have You Been? by Wendy James ★★★★

The Man Plan by Elise K  Ackers ★★★

Lethal Inheritance by Tahlia Newland ★★★

What I Am Reading Today

How far would you go to save someone you love? Two years ago, Desi Priest made a horrific mistake and destroyed her family.  Now, she is coming home to make amends: to her daughter Maya, who’s nurturing her own dangerous plan; to her brother Jackson, who blames himself; and to her close friend Pete, who has spent years shielding her from a devastating truth.  But as Desi returns to her beloved house by the ocean, there is a stranger waiting for her. Someone who needs her help. Someone whose arrival will reveal a chain of secrets hidden for over twenty years. And one by one the family will be forced to confront the possibility that they have somehow got things terribly, tragically wrong … Set across five continents, Shallow Breath is a compelling novel of dashed dreams and second chances. But most of all it is a story about love, and what it really means to be free.

What I Plan To Read This Week

(click the covers to view at Goodreads)

Irreverent and streetwise prostitute, Friday Woolfe, is in London′s notorious Newgate gaol, awaiting transportation. There, she meets three other girls: intelligent and opportunistic thief, Sarah Morgan, naive young Rachel Winter, and reliable and capable seamstress, Harriet Clarke. On the voyage to New South Wales their friendship becomes an unbreakable bond — but there are others on board who will change their lives forever. Friday makes an implacable enemy of Bella Jackson, a vicious woman whose power seems undiminished by her arrest and transportation, while Harriet is taken under the wing of an idealistic doctor, James Downey. Rachel catches the eye of a sinister passenger with more than honour on his mind, whose brutal assault leaves her life hanging in the balance. When they finally arrive on the other side of the world, they are confined to the grim and overcrowded Parramatta Female Factory. But worse is to come as the threat of separation looms. In the land behind the sun, the only thing they have is each other …

Hunted, Killed—Survived? As the last Healer in the Fifteen Realms, Avry of Kazan is in a unique position: in the minds of her friends and foes alike, she no longer exists. Despite her need to prevent the megalomanical King Tohon from winning control of the Realms, Avry is also determined to find her sister and repair their estrangement. And she must do it alone, as Kerrick, her partner and sole confident, returns to Alga to summon his country into battle. Though she should be in hiding, Avry will do whatever she can to support Tohon’s opponents. Including infiltrating a holy army, evading magic sniffers, teaching forest skills to soldiers and figuring out how to stop Tohon’s most horrible creations yet; an army of the walking dead—human and animal alike and nearly impossible to defeat. War is coming and Avry is alone. Unless she figures out how to do the impossible … again.

Ruth Park’s classic novel Harp in the South is one of Australia’s greatest novels. Hugh and Margaret Darcy are raising their family in Sydney amid the brothels, grog shops and run-down boarding houses of Surry Hills, where money is scarce and life is not easy. Filled with beautifully drawn characters that will make you laugh as much as cry, this Australian classic will take you straight back to the colourful slums of Sydney with convincing depth, careful detail and great heart.

An inheritance is usually a blessing . . .could it also be a curse? Yallandoo, the cattle station in the rugged, beautiful and potentially dangerous hinterland of Far Northern Australia – passed down through generations from English ancestors. Now willed to Cassie Taylor, a young woman from the busy metropolis of Sydney. Can a city girl cope with the challenges of running this vast property? Who is out to stop her? And why?

While you are here…

Join…

Are you up for the challenge? Join the Eclectic Reader Challenge for 2013!

Read…

AWW Feature: Tis the Season by Ros Baxter

AWW Feature: Elise K Ackers

Virtual Christmas Advent Tour – some tasty party recipes for you!

Stuff On Sunday: Yay me!

Enter…

Win 1 of 2 copies of Where Have You Been? by Wendy James (Aust only)

Congratulate…

these five winners of The Storyteller’s Daughter by Maria Goodin

Sharon, Marg, Kerri, Tien & Tracey – check your email!

Sharon & Tien had gotten a copy in the meantime so Laura and Bernadette are winners via the redraw

Thanks for stopping by, I’ll be along to visit you shortly!