Saturday, November 14, 2009

The Sunday Salon - Library Loot Edition


Hmm...is it a no-no to combine The Sunday Salon and Library Loot into one post? Probably but I can't wait any longer to share all of the goodies that I have brought home from the library lately. And I haven't shared my reading progress lately...plus, it IS Sunday :) Let's start with the obvious which is that once again I have way too many books checked out. I honestly don't care though as I am so excited about some of these. I can't possibly read all of these but I'm sure going to try.
In reading news, I'm currently reading Dangerous Angels by Francesca Lia Block. Heard about this author on a couple of other blogs and I couldn't not give her a try. I've only finished the 1st Weetzie book but I liked it. Different but good is my opinion so far. I'm also still working on The Woman in White but my reading on that one has definitely slowed down. Not for any real reason other than I don't pick it up at times. I do like it though so I'm not sure exactly what my problem is. But on to my library finds:


Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood- From Publishers Weekly: "Intrigued by contemporary reports of a sensational murder trial in 1843 Canada, Atwood has draw a compelling portrait of what might have been." I loved The Handmaid's Tale so I'm looking forward to reading more by this author.


A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray- From Goodreads: "A Victorian boarding school story, a Gothic mansion mystery, a gossipy romp about a clique of girlfriends, and a dark other-worldly fantasy..." This is reloot for me but how can I resist this cover? And that description? I will HAVE to get to it this time!



Case Histories by Kate Atkinson- I've been wanting to read something by this author for awhile now. It is about 3 different mysteries that are all tied together somehow...not sure how but I'm looking forward to finding out.


Crow Lake by Mary Lawson- From Goodreads: "In this universal drama of family love and misunderstandings, of resentments harbored and driven underground, Lawson ratchets up the tension with heartbreaking humor and consummate control, continually overturning one's expectations right to the very end." Sounds intense but good!


Graceling by Kristin Cashore- I've yet to read a bad review of this book so of course I took this one home with me.



Heat Stroke by Rachel Caine- Book 2 in the Weather Warden series and one that I've been meaning to pick up for awhile now. I really liked the 1st one so I'm looking forward to this! And I believe that this may be reloot as well.



The Heretic's Daughter by Kathleen Kent- From Goodreads: "Kent paints a haunting portrait, not just of Puritan New England, but also of one family's deep and abiding love in the face of fear and persecution." I picked this one up based on Dar's review and am really, really excited about it.


The House at Riverton by Kate Morton- From Goodreads: "Set as the war-shattered Edwardian summer surrenders to the decadent twenties, The House At Riverton is a thrilling mystery and a compelling love story." Sold! Sounds so good :)



Spindle's End by Robin McKinley- I was in the mood for a retelling of a fairy tale and this one jumped out at me. This is the retelling of Sleeping Beauty and hopefully it will be just what I am looking for.




The House on Tradd Street by Karen White- Another recommendation that I found over at Dar's blog. If you guys haven't checked her out you should. And this one is billed as a mystery with ghosts so of course I couldn't resist.



Wow! I really need to work on my self control :P And if you can't guess, the rest of my Sunday will probably be spent reading so I can make progress in my towering stack of books. Plus, I'll be stopping by to see what you all are up to. Happy Sunday!

20 comments:

  1. I wouldn't be able to wait to post about the library loot either. The only one I've read from your pile is Kate Atkinson's Case Histories. It was very enjoyable and the stories were woven together quite gracefully, I thought.

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  2. Christy- That is really good to hear because although I've heard good things about this author and this is a mystery...well, I was still wondering if I would enjoy it or not.

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  3. That's quite a loot! I loved Crow Lake! Enjoy your stack. :)

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  4. Looks like you got some good stuff at the library. A few of those books are on my wishlist, including Graceling!

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  5. I loved Crow Lake last year, wonderfully sad.
    Alias Grace is quite different from The Handmaid's Tale, but one of my favorite of Atwood's.

    There are others on your list I'm looking forward to reading - Case Histories and The House at Riverton.

    Good luck getting through all these great looking books.

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  6. You've got to keep on going with The Woman in White! It'll be worth it, I promise. :)

    Also, A Great and Terrible Beauty is a great read, but be prepared to be sucked into the rest of the trilogy.

    Good luck making it through your library stack!

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  7. Awesome choices! Lots of women writers. You have a great library.

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  8. You can do whatever you want with your Sunday Salon post as far as I'm concerned. :-)

    Those chunky books can sometimes be hard to pick up again even when you are enjoying them. Hopefully you will continue to enjoy The Woman in White.

    You've got some great library finds! I really want to read Alias Grace someday. I still haven't read anything by Atwood. One of these days!

    I hope you enjoy Case Histories. I really liked that one when I read it.

    I hope you have a great week, Sam!

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  9. Your loot looks terrific!!! I want to read Case Histories for sure too. I really loved Crow Lake and I want to read her other books. Enjoy your great loot!

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  10. These look good! I haven't read this Margaret Atwood, though I have enjoyed her other books, especially A Handmaid's Tale. And that Libba Bray book has been on my shelf for ages, though I haven't read it yet.

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  11. I have had Graceling on my TBR pile since I bought it for my teenage daughter for Christmas last year. I, too, have yet to read one less than stellar review for it. AND I've read even more stellar reviews for Cashore's more recent release, Fire, which by the way, is a prequel of sorts to Graceling, but should actually be read AFTER Graceling. Just in case you needed to know. ;)

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  12. So many good books there to read! I hope you enjoy!

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  13. GREAT library finds. I'm especially interested to read A Great and Terrible Beauty. it's been on my shelves for-freakin'-ever and it's been a victim to my swinging moods.

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  14. lol! I think it's awesome to combine Sunday Salon and Library Loot. :) I Just read Alias Grace a couple weeks ago-it was SO good! As was Case Histories, which I read a few years ago. I felt more 'meh' about The House at Riverton...it felt a bit too derivative to me. But I hope you enjoy it! Spindle's End is an AWESOME title-I read McKinley's retelling of Beauty & the Beast and loved it.

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  15. My goodness, no wonder you couldn't wait to share. That's a good load of books and lots of good ones too.

    I really liked the Libba Bray series and you already know how much I loved The House on Tradd Street. I'm reading the sequel The Girl on Legare Street and it's good so far as well. Thanks for the shoutout on my blog.

    Happy Reading. I'm looking forward to your thoughts on a few of these.

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  16. I read Case Histories a few years ago but I remember not being very impressed with it at the time. The House on Tradd Street on the other hand is awesome. Hope you enjoy your loot!

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  17. Great library loot! enjoy it. I've been wanting to read The Heretic's Daughter.

    http://thebookworm07.blogspot.com/

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  18. I hope you enjoy Alias Grace as much as I did. It's a favorite of mine.

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  20. Thanks everyone for sharing all of your thoughts on the books that I checked out from the library. I'm excited to read all of them :)

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