It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

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

Life…

Well what a week! The highlight was my daughters year 12 formal.  She looked stunning, I am sure you will agree. I can’t believe she has graduated high school.

What I Read Last Week

Cluetopia by David Astle

Happy Eva After by Chris Harrison

The Trap by Andrew Fukuda

Disconnected by Jennifer Weiner

Snake Bite by Christie Thompson

Dish It Up by Hayden Quinn

The All Girl Filling Stations Last Reunion by Fannie Flagg

New Posts

(click the titles to read my reviews)

Review:

Review: The Lazy Hostess by Babe Scott ★★★

Review: The Theory of Opposites by Allison Winn Scotch ★★★1/2

Review: Cluetopia by David Astle ★★★1/2

Giveaway: Happy Birthday Escape Publishing!

Review: Barracuda by Christos Tsoilkas ★★★★1/2

Review: Color Me Bad by Sharon Sala and Disconnected by Jennifer Weiner ★★★

Stuff On Sundays: Bookshelf Bounty

What I Am Reading Today

Helen McNeil is a vet in the small rural town of Broadview. While taking evasive action from a dull girl at a party one night she falls over – and fails to recognise – national sporting hero, Mark Tipene. For some mysterious reason Helen never really grasps, Mark finds this charming and appears the next day at the front counter of the vet clinic to ask her out. A whirlwind romance follows and everything is going swimmingly until one little hiccup changes everything… Chocolate Cake for Breakfast is the funny and heart-warming story of the pros and cons of dating a man whose shirtless picture adorns a wall in every second lunchroom in the country, of calving cows and crazy cat ladies, and of doing your best when life takes an unexpected turn.

What I Plan To Read This Week

(click the covers to view at Goodreads)

Poppy Abbott seems to have it all. Bright, successful and attractive, she lives in a beautiful apartment with sweeping views of Sydney. However, since the recent death of her beloved grandmother, she’s been struggling to come to terms with her grief. Feeling nostalgic one evening, Poppy decides to sort through her grandmother’s belongings, which she hasn’t been able to face before. She’s hardly started when she comes across an old leather diary with the name ‘Maggie Abbott’ written in the front. It’s not long before she’s drawn into Maggie’s life and her fears for her soldier boyfriend during the First World War. As her interest in Maggie’s diary intensifies, Poppy decides to spend some time at her grandmother’s house in the country. Away from the city, Poppy begins to wonder if all the things she’s always valued so much are what she really wants out of life. And then love intervenes… From the bestselling author of Bridie’s Choice, this is the story of a woman leaving a fast-paced existence in the city for a calmer, more meaningful life in the country, where she finds herself re-evaluating just about everything.

From a childhood spent yabbying and riding horses on friends’ farms where the sun always shone, Angela Goode has always wanted to live on a farm of her own. With the handsome cattleman her friends set her up with, she finds her romantic illusions of country life under challenge. From one large cattle stud Angela and her cattleman husband Charlie move to another, this time with city partners. Here she is caught in the divide between city and country values, her past and her present. Land and animals are pushed hard, as farmers battle the drought under escalating interest rates. Angela and Charlie’s dream of becoming start-from-scratch farmers is at last possible when they find the run-down ‘Field of Mars’, a former sheep and onion farm, and home to endangered wildlife and rare trees. Slowly, they integrate cattle with rare wildlife, business with conservation, and make a life on the farm raising cattle and growing lucerne seed. Through the Farm Gate takes us through the pain, the joys, the fears, dedication and complexity of what it takes to live on the land. Angela’s honesty and her enduring love affair with the farm shines through every page of this funny, heartwarming memoir of dreams and determination.

Kate Everett is about to begin her “second act.” She’s been a widow for eight years and thinks it might be time to start looking for someone to share her life with again. She quits her high-pressure job for something that will allow her more leisure time. She gets rid of the huge family home and moves into a fabulous condo that’s smaller and easier to manage. She’s pretty much got the rest of her life figured out. All she has to do is sit back, relax, and let the pieces fall into place. But her real life never gets the memo. First, her son moves back in with her—along with his girlfriend. Her dream job falls through, leaving her unemployed. Her mother, whom she hadn’t spoken to in years, can no longer live alone and has to move into her basement. And her only daughter is planning the smallest and simplest wedding in the history of all weddings, much to Kate’s dismay. Kate thinks that she and Jake, her former college love who has reemerged on an online dating site, of all places, can build something real, and that maybe her happy ending is in front of her at last. But the arrival of Edward, her daughter’s future father-in-law, presents Kate with an unexpected choice.  It looks like real happiness may require a slight change of plan.

Therese Wolley is a mother who has made a promise. She works as a secretary, shops for groceries on Saturdays, and takes care of her two girls. She doesn t dwell on the fact that her girls are fatherless, mostly because her own father abandoned her before she was born and she has done just fine without him.Even though her older daughter regularly wakes with nightmares and her younger one whispers letters under her breath, she doesn t shift from her resolve that everything will be fine. She promises . . . and they believe. Until the morning an obituary in the newspaper changes everything. Therese immediately knows what she has to do. She cannot delay what she has planned, and she cannot find the words to explain her heartbreaking decision to her daughters. She considers her responsibilities, her girls, and her promise. Then she does the only thing that any real mother would do. She goes on the run with one daughter . . . and abandons the other. Left is told from the perspectives of Franny, the autistic sister who is left behind; Matilda, the troubled older sister who vows to go back and save her; and Therese, a mother on the run

While you are here…

Enter to WIN the Escape Publishing Australian Romance Bundle giveaway (Open Worldwide)

Congratulate the winner of Driftwood by Mandy Magro Paula C

Congratulate the winner of the  The Literary Giveaway Blog Hop Elizabeth

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