Book lovers unite

I somehow missed a post for July. I will blame it on the camping I did which you can see photos of here and here.

I've found out that today just has my name all over it. First of all we have National Book Lovers Day and then tonight is the August supermoon. If there are two things I love they are books and moon gazing.

So in honor of National Book Lovers Day I thought I would do some book chat.

I snapped that photo while camping last month. I don't normally take my kindle camping but in this case it was the best option because I couldn't decide what I wanted to read. I ended up reading was The Valley of Fear (aka Sherlock Holmes #7) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
Some of the Sherlock Holmes stories I've slogged through but this one was quite good!

The past few years I've been in a terrible book funk and I can barely make it through most of the books I pick up to read. Once in a while I'll get one that really grabs me but for the most part I find them to be quite silly. I still can't decide if that is just the books I'm choosing or if I'm just being a book Grinch or what. Anyone else having trouble finding books they can't put down?

So for this year I did the "Goodreads challenge" for.....20 books in a year. For reference three years ago I read 54 books in a year.

This year I'm only 10 books into my challenge but there are a few that kept me reading into the night/morning.

Veronica Mars: The Thousand Dollar Tan Line - Rob Thomas & Jennifer Graham

I caught a cold in February and my coworkers told me I looked horrible and to go home. They were doing some kind of construction in the apartment above mine so I couldn't sleep and so I thought I'd watch something instead. That something ended up being Veronica Mars which I then proceeded to binge watch until I'd finished the entire series (don't worry this took at least a few weeks).
I may have gotten a little obsessed.


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The movie was already out on video at this point so I watched it next and then I was able to get my hands on this book. Fresh on the heels of the show and movie like that was a great way to read this book. I felt like I hadn't missed a beat and I read through this one quickly. The story was interesting and I can't wait for the next one coming out this Autumn....I think?

Lost Lake - Sarah Addison Allen

I don't know what to say about Sarah Addison Allen's books except that they are like the coziest, softest blanket that you can wrap yourself in. When I try to explain what her books are like I lose the words to describe how homey and magical they are and how they make me think that anything will be fine and hope abounds. This one was no exception. I'm an admittedly slow reader but I devoured this story like I was starving and felt quite satisfied when I was finished.

Austenland & Midnight in Austenland - Shannon Hale

Okay. These books were silly. The first was silly and the second was more silly than the first ever thought of being. But I still had a hard time putting them down. I remember reading in bed one night and literally smacking my forehead at what the characters were doing yet....reading in bed until way past bedtime? Yep. I can't explain it. I really don't feel like I want to recommend these due to their immense silliness. Or that I can recommend these. And yet I did get a modicum of enjoyment so there you go.
I only read them because I was loaned the movie (which I watched five times before I returned it) and I thought after that that I just had to read the story that spawned that. The movie is hilariously funny (the more you watch it) and silly but also, in some ways, fantastic.

Credit

I am definitely up for some book recommendations! Have you read something that knocked your socks off or made you laugh or otherwise wowed you? I'd love to hear about it. Obviously I'm not doing very well choosing reading material for myself.

If you'd like to keep up with my reading and are on Goodreads feel free to friend me here.