While I liked this book, it was at the lower end of the pick scale for me. Mainly because it seems as if Mildred never really does anything — she just lets things happen to her and lets people take advantage of her. Nothing in her life ever really gets resolved: she seems to be one of those women perpetually doomed to be of use to others but never to be really important to those others. #audiowalk

It‘s now back to Excellent Women for my walking book. I‘m finally getting into the swing of the story; I think that‘s why I was having trouble sticking with it before. #audiowalk

I finished A Shameful Murder for #nunlitquarterly. I especially liked how evocative it is of time (1920s) and place (Ireland.) I did occasionally lose the thread of the story, but I think that was more me than the fault of the author. I will read more in this series. #audiowalk

Started A Shameful Murder for #nunlitquarterly. I think I‘m going to like it. You can‘t tell, but the water in that fountain at the bottom is purple. It‘s down by the University of South Carolina, so I‘ve no clue what the purple is about since their colors are garnet and black. #audiowalk

I love this series. There was a scene in this book, though, where I nearly cried. We also learn something new about Ibrahim. The story is pretty convoluted, but these characters are wonderful. #audiowalk

Usually when I‘m in SC, I stay with my sister; I know her neighborhood pretty well and am comfortable enough to walk at night. This week I‘m staying with one of my brothers. It got pretty late and I don‘t know his neighborhood, so my walk was short. At least I did get some Thursday Murder Club listening in. 😊 #audiowalk

Well, I was going to go back to Excellent Women until I learned this new Thursday Murder Club book was out, so now it‘s my walking book. Walked a lot today because it was such a lovely day outside. #audiowalk

This is a nice, uplifting summer read. The women‘s friendships go through ups and downs, but they come out the other side of those problems. It‘s probably the book I needed now given what‘s going on in my life. It was a lovely day — I‘m enjoying the lower temperatures. #audiowalk

I switched from Excellent Women to this because I‘m having trouble concentrating and Kristy Woodson Harvey‘s books are easier to digest. Her characters though often make decisions for idiotic reasons and that‘s happening here too. #audiowalk

This novella isn‘t in Litsy. It‘s Krueger‘s attempt, according to his author‘s note, to write a more accessible story about the 1927 Mississippi River Flood than he found William Faulkner‘s The Old Man to be. The story succeeds on that level, but it‘s not Krueger‘s best work. I still enjoyed it, so I‘m giving it a pick. I don‘t understand why pools in Southern states close after Labor Day. Today would‘ve been a perfect day to swim. #audiowalk

When I lived in Columbia, the space All Good Books occupies was a restaurant. I loved my experience in the bookstore. It sells both new and used books, and has a great atmosphere. I wish I‘d taken some pictures. I did buy Richard Russo‘s The Destiny Thief there.

Lovely writing but this book feels a little more disjointed than Krueger‘s other two stand-alones. It took me quite some time to figure out how the two younger boys, Del and Scott, fit into the story, and I‘m still not sure they were even necessary characters. I like the consistent river theme between the three books. #audiowalk

I expected to go see my dad today, but he was out when I called. I went for a walk instead. The shorter walk is in a small park I found on the Columbia side of the river. I‘ve got about 3 hours left in this book, so I need to pick a new one. #audiowalk

Today‘s walk was at the zoo and botanical garden. A good portion of the walk back to the gardens from the zoo (1/3 of a mile) is uphill, and it‘s pretty steep. I wasn‘t up to it after 2 and a half miles. That‘s the reason why there are two walking maps. I‘m about half way through with the tagged book. #audiowalk

When I knew I was coming back to SC, I got several new books — Stephen King‘s Holly, R.F. Kuang‘s Yellowface, and the tagged book. I bought the first two in print, but, since I like listening to Krueger‘s books, I used an Audible credit to get this standalone novel. So far, I‘m enjoying it. #audiowalk

Well, I finished this before Audible locked it and really enjoyed it. As always, I really enjoyed Sarah and Frank and their interactions with both others and each other. The story was also pretty interesting and kept me guessing. #audiowalk I started The River We Remember as my new walking book.

The audiobook for this 3rd entry in Thompson‘s series is available for free on Audible until September 12, so I‘m listening to it. I‘m back up in SC, and I listened to most of it on the drive up. It‘s an interesting story and introduces chiropractors. I walked by the river today. #audiowalk

This is a sort of mystery, but not in the same vein as Krueger‘s Cork O‘Connor series. The emphasis here is not on the whodunnit but on the impact a murder has on the family of the victim. It‘s a lovely book.

I‘m ambivalent about this book. The author is around my age, and I was frankly appalled at how obsessed she and the people she grew up with are with breasts. This book is memoir/cultural history but leans more toward memoir. Lehr is full of contradictions; she‘s obsessed with breasts, gets implants, but is not supportive when her 21 year old daughter wants the same? The most affecting chapters were the ones that dealt with her breast cancer.

We went down to the beach today. Mr. Mercedes was our road trip book, while I read Yellow Face at the beach and listened to more of Ordinary Grace when I walked. I wasn‘t able to get much walking in because I waited until it was cooler, and then a big thunderstorm just opened up. #audiowalk. Fall decorations at the park in Foley.

Someone is murdering young girls, but no one really cares because they are girls with “bad reputations.” Sarah gets angry about the injustice and sets out to solve the murders. The story was interesting but I knew who the murderer was VERY early. Sarah and Frank, though, not the stories, are the reasons to keep reading this series. Picked up Ordinary Grace again. #audiowalk

I put aside Ordinary Grace for a bit because this book is only available on Audible Plus until 9/12. I like Sarah, but she is naive. And Frank! He‘s so resistant to any kind of help from anyone for anything! He just makes everything harder on himself. I think I know the murderer all ready, but I could be wrong. #audiowalk

What strikes me about Tey‘s books, and Agatha Christie‘s too, is how often the characters originally come to the conclusion that it has to be a foreigner who was responsible for the murder because no Englishman would do such a thing. The xenophobia is actually pretty remarkable.

I got a couple of relatively long walks in today. I think an important person in the main character‘s life is supposed to get murdered, but I‘m almost halfway through and that hasn‘t happened yet. Maybe I misunderstood. #audiowalk

Since I kind of miss This Tender Land and need a new walking book since I finished Girl Gone Missing, I downloaded this book. It‘s the 3rd book in a row partially set in Minnesota. #audiowalk

While I liked Girl Gone Missing, there was far too much of Cash‘s everyday problems, beer drinking, and angst and far too little of the mystery surrounding the missing girl. The ending and the reveal of the villain felt rushed because there wasn‘t enough build up to either.

Today is my husband‘s and my 39th anniversary. We had such a nice day. We didn‘t do anything big, but we went for a nice drive to Magnolia Springs to a restaurant I‘d always wanted to try. I walked later in the evening and listened to more of Girl Gone Missing. I feel like I‘m hearing more about the number of beers Cash drinks daily than I am about the missing girls. #audiowalk

This is my new walking book, but I don‘t know if I can continue with it. I love Cash Blackbear, but I‘m not sure I can handle her bleak outlook on life right now. We‘ll see. #audiowalk

I liked this book but more because of the characters than because of the mystery. Sarah is a midwife who used to belong to one of the high society New York families, and Frank is a cop who may or may not be corrupt. The mystery was interesting enough, but I guessed every single twist (and there were quite a few). It would‘ve been nice if at least one was a surprise, but nope. Still, I would read another in this series. #audiowalk

I‘ve decided to stick with Murder on Astor Place as my #audiowalk book for now. It was hot outside today but was so cloudy that it was bearable.

“… your thoughts can be your enemy, or you can make them your ally.” Btw, I found myself overthinking while reading this book. 🙄

I really couldn‘t concentrate on a walking book today. I wanted something light but didn‘t really have anything light, so I ended up switching between Rhiannon Gidden‘s fabulous Freedom Highway album, Possession, and Murder on Astor Place. #audiowalk

I really enjoyed this book. William Kent Krueger is very good at evoking time and place; I could see every place Odie and his companions were as they traveled along the river looking for their hearts‘ desires. #audiowalk

While many of Lewis‘ observations are brilliant (I especially liked when he points out to Arthur C. Clarke, who was upset over criticism of his work as escapist, that the only people who object to escapes are jailers), I find that too many of the quotations included in this collection don‘t have enough context to make them understandable and/or meaningful. Lewis‘ review of The Lord of the Rings made me want to read that book again.

Odie made a huge mistake several chapters ago by jumping to a conclusion without any evidence; I can‘t believe he‘s fixing to do it again! #audiowalk

This book was emotionally satisfying for me in a way that a lot of King‘s books aren‘t. Mainly, I think he wrapped it up well, which he doesn‘t always do. Fairy Tale does drag in a few places, especially after Charlie enters the fairy tale realm — some judicious editing would‘ve helped — but it‘s a solid story, and I liked it.

For Pete‘s sake, I hope something good happens to these kids soon! I‘ve still got 5 hours left, and their lives have been so tough. It was over 100° outside today, so I didn‘t walk until around 7:00 when it finally went down to the 90s. #audiowalk

I had started this book on my way up to Canada, but I really needed something lighter. I picked it up again today as my walking book since I finished At the Coffee Shop of Curiosities. The weather app said it felt like 97° outside because of the humidity, but it really didn‘t since there was a breeze. #audiowalk

Given the touch of magic about Heather Webber‘s books, there‘s an improbability about her stories that the reader just accepts. This one, though, comes with more than its fair share. Since I mostly liked the characters (especially the mean, mysterious, old lady Estrelle) and the Alabama beach setting,I just went with it. If you can‘t deal with too many coincidences without rolling your eyes, however, this might not be your book. #audiowalk

Y‘all are going to think I hate this book, but I don‘t. I‘m now irritated with all of both Maggie‘s and Ava‘s families and friends. They‘ve done them no favors by trying to protect them from the bad things in their lives. Maggie hasn‘t changed anything in her coffee shop in 30 years just in case her mother might return, and Ava doesn‘t tell anybody about her epilepsy because she‘s embarrassed and afraid people might hover over her. #audiowalk

My husband and and I went for a drive just to get out of the house and to listen to more of Deadbeat Druid. When the sun wasn‘t so high, I went for a walk and continued to be annoyed by Maggie in At the Coffee Shop of Curiosities. The other character, Ava, makes me sad. She has epilepsy, and her parents raised her to be fearful of doing anything risky because she might have a seizure. My parents encouraged me to do things. #audiowalk

First my dog ate my copy of Fairy Tale when I was about halfway through; now my cat is preventing me from reading the library‘s copy of it!

I‘m getting very irritated with Maggie. Just because she can‘t move on (at almost 40) and make changes to her life after her mother‘s disappearance when she was young doesn‘t mean her father is suffering from dementia because he finally wants to do so at the age of 68. I could be feeling extra sensitive though because I‘m 66. 😄 #audiowalk

The new Heather Webber book is my new walking book, while Deadbeat Druid is our new road trip book. They both have magic in them but are very different. It was 93° outside, but there was quite a breeze and that helped. #audiowalk

This was the low end of the pick scale for me, mainly because, although I‘ve experienced depression, I had a hard time relating to Evans‘ mental health struggles. Although I could empathize, I just didn‘t find this book compelling reading, but it wasn‘t bad and I did finish it. I‘m listening to Manitou Canyon on my #audiowalk. After my trip, I should be back to a more regular walking schedule; it was difficult to do on my vacation.

1: C. S. Lewis: On Writing (and Writers)
2: Jennie Marts: Take the Honey and Run — night book
3: William Kent Krueger: Manitou Canyon — walking
4: Beth Evans: I Really Didn‘t Think This Through
#weekendreads

I love the Liz Talbot series, so I was eager to read this new book featuring a new character, Hadley Cooper. Unfortunately, I didn‘t love it as much. If I heard one more thing about Hadley‘s whole food, plant based, oil free diet, I thought I‘d scream. It was mentioned so frequently that it was distracting. Once or twice, sure, but 50 million is a bit excessive. I also finished Donna Andrews‘ Birder She Wrote on my trip home. It was good.

It‘s a bit warm in South Carolina right now, but there was a lot of shade where I was walking. You could swim here when I was a kid; no longer. I started This Tender Land. So far I like it. #audiowalk

I started this book today. Here‘s some sights from around Kirkland Lake, ON — my father‘s hometown. #audiowalk

I can‘t really say I loved this book or this series. I think I want to like it more than I do and I want to like Miriam and her husband more than I do. But we get so much of the minutiae of Miriam‘s son‘s life and so much about her pregnancy and so little about the mystery that I can‘t bring myself to care. #audiowalk