The It’s Monday! What Are You Reading meme is hosted at BookDate
I’m also linking to The Sunday Post @ Caffeinated Reviewer
And the Sunday Salon @ ReaderBuzz
Life…
I hope you are enjoying a lovely Easter holiday. I know that for some of you the day will not be what you hoped, but I hope you have been able to make the best of it, or at least have plenty of chocolate!
Tomorrow (the 14th) is my birthday.
In lieu of a celebration I opened a Facebook fundraiser for The Australian Literacy and Numeracy Foundation, which is dedicated to raising language, literacy and numeracy standards in Australia and raises funds to develop, implement and sustain innovative projects for individuals, families and communities.
If you have a few dollars to spare, you can contribute HERE.
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What I’ve Read Since I last Posted…
Precious You by Helen Monks Takhar
The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix
The Beautiful Mother by Katherine Scholes
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New Posts…
Review: Return to Stringybark Creek by Karly Lane
Review: Gulliver’s Wife by Lauren Chater
Review: Precious You by Helen Monks Takhar
Review: The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix
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What I’m Reading This Week…
Brimming with anticipation, humour, desire and strangeness these stories will quicken your senses and make your spine tingle.
In Thrill Me, thirty-one award-winning and emerging Australian storytellers write to thrill and move you. Look away if you want cheap thrills. Read on if you dare. These stories will leave an imprint on you. Some will be unshakeable.
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Summer has come to Atlantic City but the boardwalk is empty of tourists, the casino lights have dimmed, and two Jane Does are laid out in the marshland behind the Sunset Motel, just west of town. Only one person even knows they’re there.
Meanwhile, Clara, a young boardwalk psychic, struggles to attract clients for the tarot readings that pay her rent. When she begins to experience very real and disturbing visions, she suspects they could be related to the recent cases of women gone missing in town. When Clara meets Lily, an ex-Soho art gallery girl who is working at a desolate casino spa and reeling from a personal tragedy, she thinks Lily may be able to help her. But Lily has her own demons to face. If they can put the pieces together in time, they may save another lost girl—so long as their efforts don’t attract perilous attention first. Can they break the ill-fated cycle, or will they join the other victims?
Evocative, eerie, and compelling, Please See Us is a fast-paced psychological thriller that explores the intersection of womanhood, power, and violence
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“Everybody lies about their lives. What would happen if you shared the truth?” This is the question that Julian Jessop, an eccentric, seventy-nine-year-old artist, poses within a pale green exercise book that he labels The Authenticity Project, before leaving it behind in Monica’s Café. When Monica discovers Julian’s abandoned notebook, not only does she add her own story to the book, she is determined to find a way to help Julian feel less lonely.
And so it goes with the others who find the green notebook that will soon contain their deepest selves. It will also knit the group together In Real Life at Monica’s Cafe, where they’ll discover the thrill and sometime-risk of being completely honest–and, for some, find unexpected love.
With a cast of characters who are by turns quirky and funny, heartbreakingly sad and painfully true-to-life, The Authenticity Project is a novel readers will take to their hearts and read with unabashed pleasure.
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It’s the opposite of love at first sight…or is it?
Dairy farmer Tabitha Cooper-Jones has a heart of gold, yet she’s the eternal bridesmaid. Everyone’s best mate. Despite facing some serious challenges over the years, she’s built a successful ice-cream business and cafe, she’s adored by her family and is an integral part of her hometown – there’s just one thing missing from her life. But the last thing Tab wants is a man – or worse, love – to stop her achieving her dream.
In town for a temporary teaching contract, Fergus McWilliams thinks the small community of Walsh will be the perfect place to stay under the radar but he couldn’t be more wrong. Suddenly, the kids’ cricket team coached by Ferg is inundated with female supporters – single female supporters – and that’s only the beginning.
The only woman who doesn’t seem to have her sights set on Ferg is Tabitha. Despite a disastrous first meeting and a visit from a past love, circumstances keep throwing them together. Neither can deny the sparks between them, but can friendship even be possible for these two strong-willed people?
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 03:27:58
I’m reading Rachael Johns new book atm too. I’m also reading The Lost Jewels by Kirsty Manning. I read and loved The Dictionary of Lost words by Pip Williams, I highly recommend that one.
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 03:28:47
I bought Gulliver’s Wife last week, I can’t wait to get to it.
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 04:41:29
Our Easter is rainy and kind of sad since our son won’t be able to join us. I hope your birthday is grand!
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 06:04:05
It’s hot here (92 degrees F) but I am hoping that is something that will lead to the demise of this virus.
I love the idea behind the story of The Authenticity Project. Wouldn’t that be a nice premise for a novel?
Here’s to the end of the virus. The weather-makers here in Texas are doing our best to drive it away.
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 06:16:52
Your books look really good. Please See Us looks really good. I’m going to have to add that to my bookshelf.
Hope you have a great week and stay safe!
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 06:53:02
I am eyeing your books and wanting to add them to my list. Enjoy! Thanks for sharing…and for visiting my blog.
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 06:53:34
Happy Easter & Happy Birthday to you! …. usually it would be a great time to have a birthday but this year …. the time feels confined & sad with the hardship of others. Still I hope you enjoy your day & books as much as possible.
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 07:50:34
I have The Southern Book Club from the library. Happy birthday! I hope you find some peace and joy for your day. I know my days are running together a bit.
Have a healthy, safe week! Happy Easter!
Anne – Books of My Heart Here is my Sunday Post
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 08:08:42
Happy Birthday!!!! Enjoy your day and be safe!
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 09:16:36
The Authenticity Project sounds interesting. Enjoy.
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 09:38:22
A very Happy Birthday and I hope you manage to enjoy the day, even though it is going to be so very different from any other you’ve ever had… Take care and have a peaceful, healthy week.
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 10:50:27
Happiest of birthdays to you. Hope you have a wonderful day. Stay safe and happy reading!
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 12:16:08
Hope you have a lovely birthday! It is a strange Easter, right? Enjoy your books and take care, Shelleyrae! 🙂
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 13:11:39
Happy birthday top you tomorrow! Hope you have a fabulous one! And happy Easter as well! 🙂
The southern Book Club’s Guide sounds fun.
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 15:29:26
Fun books you’re reading and have coming up! I hope you have a great week, and thanks for stopping by!
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 15:35:04
All the best for your 14th April birthday. So many birthdays in lockdown. So different. I am thinking about reading the Rachael Johns book, if I had realised about Victoria Purman’s book I would have left that and picked up RJ’s book.
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 16:38:45
I am curious to hear your thoughts on the Rachael Johns. I am reading the book that is linked to the new one at the moment.
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 21:46:37
The Authenticity Project sounds so good! And I have Please See Us on my shelf, but your review actually has me wanting to read it. (I’m kind of burnt out on missing girl stories but I like the way this sounds). Happy birthday tomorrow!
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Apr 13, 2020 @ 22:49:17
Happy birthday! I hope you have a blessed day.
Our Easter was nice, just smaller than usual.
The Authenticity Project and Something to Talk About both sound great. Thanks for sharing.
Hope you enjoy your week. Thanks for visiting my blog.
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Apr 14, 2020 @ 00:13:00
Happy Birthday! And I hope that you had a nice Easter. 🙂 Your books look good!
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Apr 14, 2020 @ 00:17:39
I really want to read Please See Us. Have a Happy Birthday and be safe!
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Apr 14, 2020 @ 00:20:24
Happy Birthday! It’s sure to be a little different this year, but I’ve enjoyed seeing stories of how so many people are finding fun new ways to celebrate. Have a great reading week, too!
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Apr 14, 2020 @ 00:35:39
I hope you’re having a wonderful birthday! And enjoy that special dinner tonight. 🙂
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Apr 14, 2020 @ 01:49:23
Hope you have a wonderful birthday!
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Apr 14, 2020 @ 02:02:07
Happy birthday! Hope you have a wonderful day despite the unusual circumstances!
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Apr 14, 2020 @ 03:47:17
I’m going to check out the Thrill Me book you are currently reading. As a UK reader I find Aussie and New Zealand authors write with a voice that I find more comfortable for want of a better word.
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Apr 14, 2020 @ 03:52:43
I hope you have a wonderful birthday! We had a nice Easter–definitely lots of chocolate. I hope you are enjoying your reading. I still am not reading much–just can’t seem to focus long on a book. Poetry is helping, and maybe this is a good time to get to my stack of graphic novels I’ve been neglecting. I hope you enjoy your current reads! Have a good week and stay safe and well.
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Apr 14, 2020 @ 04:15:49
Interesting looking assortment of books. We still have some snow on the ground in my part of Minnesota but we didn’t get the new snow some parts of the state got over the weekend. Come see my week here. Happy reading!
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Apr 14, 2020 @ 05:39:10
I hope you had a great Easter. And a very Happy Birthday to you. 😉
Stay safe and happy reading.
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Apr 15, 2020 @ 04:08:27
Happy belated birthday!
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Apr 15, 2020 @ 07:34:27
Happy Birthday! My guess is you didn’t get to do much celebrating. But, being safe and healthy is good news so I hope you had as good a birthday as possible under the circumstances!
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Apr 15, 2020 @ 11:41:18
Happy Birthday!
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Apr 16, 2020 @ 05:39:21
Of course I had plenty of chocolate! I live in belgium LOL
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Apr 17, 2020 @ 08:21:02
Ooooh, Thrill Me looks good. I need to go add that to Planet TBR.
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Apr 19, 2020 @ 06:55:30
Happy birthday! I hope you had a wonderful reading week.
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Apr 19, 2020 @ 17:19:09
Thank yo7 🙂
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Apr 19, 2020 @ 07:12:35
I hope you had a good birthday!
The title The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires sounds very intriguing! I hope you enjoyed all your reads!
Have a wonderful week!
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