Sunday Salon- I'm Back!!

Good afternoon all of my fellow bloggers- I hope that you have all been well! I haven't been able to do a salon post for awhile but am excited to be back. Let's get to what I've been reading first. I'm currently reading Sisters Of Misery by Megan Kelley Hall which was sent to me awhile back. It is a YA novel surrounding a group of young girls. It looks like there are some paranormal elements to it but I'm not very far in yet so I'll have to let you know. But the blurb on the back makes it sound amazing so I'm excited to read it. I just recenly finished reading 1st To Die by James Patterson. I'll have a review posted in the next day or two. I'm having trouble rating it as I was kinda detached from this book for most of the story. I'm gonna have to mull it over and decide. I've also read and reviewed Reunion In Death and Gods In Alabama both of which I enjoyed.

In other news, my oldest started kindergarten. I would swear that I blinked my eyes and he turned 5. I keep asking myself how this happened but he is loving it and doing well. Plus he is really excited about learning how to read which is exciting for me :) And his sister has decided to not be out done and has taken her first steps. Needless to say there have been a lot of tears (from me of course) as I see my two babies grow. I also recently joined Shelfari and am joining probably too many groups on there but oh well. I've been seeing people playing book tag though and decided to join in myself. The tag for the month of September is dragons so I picked up a Katie MacAlister book for this. I'm excited about it and thinking that it will be up next. Now I'm off to see what all of you have been reading while I've been gone...or maybe just this week :)

P.S.- I forgot to add that Maw Books is hosting a reading and blogging campaign for Darfur that I am going to be participating in. I urge you all to go and check out her blog...maybe it is something that you would like to join in with as well.

Reading For Darfur- Let's Raise Awareness

Okay, first of all I am a regular visitor to Maw's Book Blog. (and just for you I figured out how to link to her blog :) ) She always is reading and adding to my neverending TBR list. For the entire month of September Maw is going to be reading and blogging for Darfur and now I am too! It's a campaign to raise awareness about the genocide that is going on in Darfur right now! She is looking for anyone and everyone to join her in raising both awareness and money for this more than worthy cause. I know there are a lot of things that are wrong in this world but I can't help but hope that maybe we can make a difference. I'm committing to blogging about this (as you can already see), adding the button to my sidebar (next on my to do list), and reading a book (or two or three) about Darfur. Hopefully even donating some money. I can't help but hope that maybe after reading Maw's post that all of you will want to join in. And I'm giving my best wishes to Maw because she is really doing something amazing here. I hope that it succeeds in the best of ways!

P.S.-I'll be perusing Maw's book posts as she has already read some books about Darfur that I have been interested in reading...if you need ideas this is where I would go.

Reunion In Death by J.D. Robb

In this installment of the In Death series, Eve is up against a very worth foe named Julianna Dunne. Eve was one of the cops who had previously put Julianna behind bars but now Julianna is free and killing again. Julianna has a vendetta against men and is pitting herself against Eve. In this book we get a closer look at Eve, her relationship with Roarke, her past, and everything else that makes up Eve as a person.
This series is definitely becoming a "comfort read" for me. I haven't read a bad book yet and I continue to love the characters and the world that Robb has created. Robb has the ability to allow the reader to really connect with Eve and Roarke as a couple and you can see both the good and bad of their relationship (although there really isn't that much bad....I guess you could say the difficulties that they face together). Needless to say I really liked this book and I felt like I got the chance to see Eve and Roarke's relationship grow even more. Good read and I recommend this series!
Challenges: None, I just felt like reading this :)
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Gods In Alabama by Joshilyn Jackson

Gods in Alabama is about Arlene, now called Lena, and her promise to God that she made as long as no one finds out that she killed someone years ago. But her past is coming back to get her and now she is about to break her promise and go back to Alabama where she came from. This book keeps the reader guessing from the very beginning. It jumps back and forth from the present and what Lena is going through and the past that Arlene went through. And the entire time that you are reading this book you just wonder how it is going to work itself out. For this being Jackson's first novel, she does a heck of a job keeping you guessing and interested in the story that is playing itself out.
I wasn't sure how I was going to like this book. And the main character seemed to be like a train wreck waiting to happen...but that seemed to be the author's point. I did end up enjoying this novel along with the twists and turns that it took me on. Joshilyn Jackson did a nice job crafting an interesting tale. I will most definitely be coming back for more of this author!
My Rating: 4.25 out of 5
Challenges: Southern Reading Challenge (but alas I'm too late so it doesn't count except for in my own head :) ) and A-Z Challenge ("G" Title)

Three For The Money by Janet Evanovich

What could be more fun than riding along with Stephanie in whatever car that she is currently driving trying to find people who have failed to appear in court and broken their bond agreement. In this installment of the series, Stephanie is on the search for Mo, a candy seller who is beloved by all of the people who live in the burg. It should be an easy case for Stephanie but of course it isn't. This series is brainless mind candy but so much fun to read. I'm sitting in the breakroom at work laughing while I'm reading this and at the same time I am being thankful that I am the only one in there because otherwise I would look like an idiot. But you can't help but laugh at the situations that she gets herself into. Plus add Lula into the mix (who is my favorite character) and it is a wild and crazy ride. I recommend this series because it has been fun to read and hope that the next one is as fun as the first three books.
Challenges: Numbers Challenge
My Rating: 4 out of 5

Reading Update: I'm currently in the midst of Gods of Alabama by Joshilyn Jackson which is really good so far. I'm curious to see where the author is going and I really like what I've read so far. My son starts kindergarten the middle of next week so I've been trying to keep my mind occupied lest the waterworks begin early. That being said I am hoping that I get a good portion of this book read or even finished by this weekend. Of course that would mean that the Olympics don't distract me which they have been. Hope everyone is enjoying watching the Olympics and reading as well :)

Book Love

As busy as I have been lately, I have still been collecting books like crazy. I'm pretty sure that I've stated before that I am not usually a book buyer. Unless I am at Goodwill and buying books for dirt cheap...that is just to much for me to resist. Anyways....I went to visit a relative of mine and came home with two grocery sacks filled with books to borrow and read. Lovin it!! Here is what I got and let me know if you have read any of these:

• Critical Mass by Steve Martini
• Where The Heart Is by Billie Letts (turns out that I actually own a copy of this so I will be returning this one unread)
• Suzanne's Diary For Nicholas by James Patterson
• The Bourne Ultimatum by Robert Ludlum
• The Attorney by Steve Martini
• My Losing Season by Pat Conroy (plus she said that all of this author's book are REALLY good so I am adding the rest to my TBR list if I like this one)
• 1st To Die by James Patterson
• The Simple Truth by David Baldacci
• Riptide by Catherine Coulter
• Nights of Rain and Stars by Maeve Binchy
• A Price For Everything by Mary Sheepshanks
• Scarlet Feather by Maeve Binchy
• Evening Class by Maeve Binchy
• The Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn
• Echoes by Maeve Binchy

Plus I have a bunch of library books checked out that I need to get to:

• Undead and Unwed by Mary Janice Davidson
• The Laughing Corpse by Laurell K. Hamilton
• Shadow Game by Christine Feehan
• Reunion In Death by J.D. Robb
• The No. 1 Ladies Detective by Alexander McCall Smith
• Gods In Alabama by Joshilyn Jackson

How in the world am I going to read all of these books especially the library books before they are due? Aack! But it is such a good feeling to have plenty of choices and be surrounded by books :) I'm in the middle of Three For The Dough by Janet Evanovich which is a ton of fun to read. I'm always giggling while I'm reading these books. I'm off to blog hop and then put my nose in a book!

Book Reviews

Because I am 4 reviews behind I am going to catch myself up all in one fell swoop. Sorry if they are a bit short and you can always email me at samantha.1020@yahoo.com if you have any questions for me about a certain book or just leave a comment. Here is a few reviews of what I have been reading:

34. Seduction In Death by J.D. Robb- Another mystery involving Eve and her hubby Roarke. I can't even begin to explain how much I enjoy these series. It is a treat for me to pick up these books. In this book, Eve is trying to track down possibly two killers who are drugging and killing young women. I really liked the side story with Peabody and McNab and felt that it added to this book. This wasn't the best in the series but it was still pretty good so I gave it a 4 out of 5 rating. I already have the next book in this series checked out from the library :)
Read for the A-Z Challenge ("S" Title)

35. Grave Peril by Jim Butcher- I have been reading a lot of series books lately. This is a fairly new series to me (I'm only on #3) but I am really enjoying it. I love Harry and am always rooting for him to come through. In this installment, Harry is up against an unknown someone who has been stirring up ghosts and causing all sorts of trouble for Harry. This was a good book and I felt like he developed into an even more likeable character. The ending was bittersweet for me but also made me want to read the next book sooner rather than later. I ended up rating this one a 4.25 out of 5.

36. Better Read Than Dead by Victoria Laurie- The second book in her Psychic Eye series has Abby involved with the mafia. She has major relationship issues with Dutch and is trying to help Dutch's old partner in a serial rapist case. It all adds up to be a fun read that kept me guessing to see how Abby was going to get herself out of it all. I did guess one part of the ending but it didn't keep me from enjoying the rest of the book. I will keep reading this series and see where it goes from here. I rated this one a 4 out of 5.
Read for A-Z Challenge ("L" Author)

37. Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death by M.C. Beaton- I've been hearing a lot of differing opinions on this series with you either like or don't like Agatha. Apparently I like Agatha because I really enjoyed this first book. I know, I know....like I need another series to start reading but whatever. In this 1st book, Agatha moves to Cotswalds and then decided to enter into a baking contest in order to try and fit in with her neighbors. Except she buys her quiche and later it is found that it has poisoned and killed the judge of the contest. This was a very simple mystery but it still drew me in and kept me wrapped up within it wondering what kind of trouble Agatha was going to get into next. And I liked her as a main character. I rated it a 4.5 out of 5 and am looking forward to the next book in this series.
Read for the 1st In A Series Challenge

I am officially on book #38 for the year which is Three For The Money by Janet Evanovich. I am looking forward to a few good laughs and a visit with Grandma Mazur. I've got a ton of books checked out from the library that I need to get to. Plus, I should probably buckle down and read a few books for my challenges but....we'll see. I really just enjoy making the lists anyways. It is going to be a busy few weeks as we buy my oldest his very 1st school supplies and go to backpack night. He is going to have to start with a bedtime again which I am sure that he is not going to be thrilled about. Oh well...that is just the way the ball rolls sometimes, right? Well, I'm off to take my daughter on a walk and get some fresh air and exercise. Hope to talk to you all very soon :)

Go Cubs Go!

I've had a pretty laid back weekend which has been really nice. We grilled out and then played softball in the backyard. I'm knee-deep into Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death by M.C. Beaton. I really have enjoyed this book so far. It is very laid back and a definite cozy but still I am enjoying reading about Agatha. More reviews will be coming soon. Tomorrow is going to be a fun day as I'm off to Chicago on a bus trip to see the Cubbies play. Hence the title of this post. :) I'm ready to have a few beers and a hotdog or two. It was a stressfull and emotional week for me.
My oldest baby is five and I registered him for kindergarten this week. I got tears in my eyes just looking at him in his brand new Spiderman backpack. What am I going to do when he actually starts school? Plus, we had to go to the doctor for a physical which meant four shots! Very traumatic to say the least. But all is well now and he is very excited for school. Think of me tomorrow cause I'll be singing Go Cubs Go!