Reading Time - December

Sooo ... it appears I last book-posted in August. Since then, I’ve been a little busy and haven’t been able to focus on reading as much as I’d like. I’m still reading every day, but by the time I can get to my book ... I’m already exhausted and lucky to get a chapter read and sometimes it ends up being a paragraph or two. Always thankful for Steph and Jana hosting this linkup - check out the other posts and add to your TBR.

So since August when I posted I was then-currently reading “Hope Rides Again”, I can say I finished that one! It’s a sequel to Hope Never Dies, and I preferred Book 1 to this one. It could be a stand alone book, but I recommend Hope Never Dies first anyway. It was a good introduction to what they were doing after they left office. I’m still curious if President Obama and/or Vice President Biden have read either of these and what they think. Book 2 seemed to be rushing the story line - it was a solid 2.75 stars for me.

According to Goodreads, it took me 2 months to finish that one and I didn’t start my next book for another two weeks. It seems like I was slacking, but in my defense I was also finishing up training runs for marathon #5 and sleep was a priority for me. Then I made the mistake of starting two books at the same time. That’s normally not an issue for me but these were too similar to each other: Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell and When We Believed in Mermaids by Barbara O’Neal. Well, they were similar at the beginning - and I don’t think I’m giving away any spoilers by saying both involved a missing daughter who died in one book and was presumed dead in the other. One was set in London and the other was set in California and New Zealand and there I was trying to figure out 'am I reading the one where the daughter really died or only they thought she died?' Anyway, I set the Mermaids one aside to finish Then She Was Gone.

This one was good once I was able to differentiate between did this daughter really die and the location. All good now - I'm easily confused these days. 4 stars, though I did kind of guess where it was going. I thought I had read others by this author but that's a no - I have most of her books in the Want To Read category. Those who have read her, which one should I read next?

Currently reading: 

I thought I would have finished this one by now, but then the house situation happened (in the process of selling). It's very good so far (about 75% done) and I can see myself in both sisters - aloof and analytical but also a pro at compartmentalizing (is that a word?). 

Not sure if I'll get much reading done after this one for the rest of the year - I have to go through my hundreds of books to sort through what I want to keep and what I want to donate. I guess that's a benefit of Kindle/e-books, but I still very much prefer real books I can see on the shelves and hold in my hands. 

So, there you have it. About 2 books in 3 1/2 months. It's been worse and I know it'll get better. Again, check out the other posts in the linkup and feel free to leave a comment on if you've read these and what tips you have for selecting books to keep forever or anything else.