Carol's Notebook – Page 158

Police at the Funeral by Margery Allingham

January 14, 2020January 14, 2020 by CarolNo Comments

Campion is contacted by Joyce Blount, who is engaged to a friend of his. Joyce lives in Socrates Close, Cambridge, surrounded by the old, eccentric Faraday family. The matriarch of the family is Caroline Faraday, widow of a famous academic. However, Uncle Andrew has gone missing and all is not well within the household. As a favor to his friend, Marcus, Campion goes to the house and helps with the investigation. Upper-class families are always at least a bit more open to others like themselves than to detectives. It turns out Uncle Andrew is dead, just the first of the murders. The family members don't get along well, but they all rely on Mrs. Faraday, since none have money of their own. To be honest, I really enjoyed them. One Aunt was a bit of a religious fanatic, an uncle is a closet drinker who wants to be braver than he is, Joyce is just sweet, Carolin is as tough as...

FitReaders – 1/14

January 14, 2020January 14, 2020 by CarolNo Comments

I did not do so great with my goals this week, but I'm just getting back in the swing. FitReaders is hosted by Geeky Bloggers Book Blog and That’s What I’m Talking About. The hashtag is #FitReaders. Goals for 2020: Lose 12 poundsGet back to being able to run 3-5 milesEat more plant-based, whole-food meals – probably will do this more intentionally next month. With Amber home it’s not the easiest thing to do. Goals for January (starting today 1/7): 8,000 steps, 5 days per week - 6/7 :)Exercise at least 30 minutes, 5 days per week - 1/7 Keep a food log – 7/7 (this week I'll try harder to stay under my calorie count) :)Drink 6 glasses of water a day, 7 days a week - 2/5 ish. I need to keep better track of how much water I drink; I'm pretty sure I forgot to mark some down....

Why We Can’t Sleep by Ada Calhoun

January 13, 2020January 13, 2020 by Carol1 Comment

This summer was the first time someone referred to me as "middle-aged." I'll be honest, it threw me for a bit of a loop. Usually, people tend to think I'm younger than I am, but this person has known me since I was a kid and knows exactly how old I am. He's also not the most tactful of people. Apparently, Gen X-ers are hitting middle-age. Why We Can't Sleep is for and about us - middle-class Generation X women in America. Calhoun has done a lot of research, historical and social, and spent a lot of time interviewing women from across the country. If you're one of us, at least parts of the book will strike a chord. She talks about watching the Challenger explosion at school, about Oregon Trail, about being new to the workforce during the early-2000s recession and about buying our houses right before the housing crisis. She looked into housing costs, HR trends, credit card...

Mailbox Monday – 1/13

January 13, 2020July 7, 2020 by Carol8 Comments

Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists. Tell us about your new arrivals by adding your Mailbox Monday post to the linky at mailboxmonday.wordpress.com. I made the mistake of stopping by NetGalley. Here's what I picked up....

Sunday Salon – 1/12

January 12, 2020January 12, 2020 by Carol11 Comments

Thanks to Deb at Readerbuzz for hosting The Sunday Salon. Stop over there or at the Facebook Group to participate. Week’s Highlight: Amber's birthday was Saturday and we went to the funkiest little museum in Pittsburgh. The Bayernhof Museum was the home of Charles B. Brown, III, who knew he wanted the house to become a museum when he died and set up the foundation that owns and runs the museum in his will. The 19,000 square foot house, completed in 1982, is unique in and of itself, with secret passages, a cave, and unusual rooms, but it also contains a world-class collection of automatic antique music machines. Reading: Bout of Books finishes today. I'll probably post a short wrap-up tomorrow, but I did finish three audiobooks, mostly because I was the only one in my office all week. I need to set aside some time to read Orlando before the end of the month for the Classics Club Spin. I've been reading several of the Her Royal Spyness...

Crowned and Dangerous by Rhys Bowen

January 10, 2020January 10, 2020 by Carol2 Comments

I promise this is the last Lady Georgiana Rannoch book for a while. I need a break, even though they are a lot of fun. In this one, Georgie fiance's father is accused of murder. Darcy tries to keep her out of the whole situation, but of course Georgie, thankfully, has a mind of her own and joins him in Ireland to help prove his father's innocence. I enjoyed the move in the action to Ireland. Darcy's family are kooky, but fun and solid people. While this can be read as a stand-alone, you'll miss some of the history of Georgie and Darcy's relationship. The fact that the mystery is so personal keeps Georgie and Darcy focussed. The few clues were slowly revealed and I found the solution a bit unlikely, even if not surprising. There was one moment at the end that was unexpected. I actually really enjoyed Georgie's maid, Queenie, this time around. She is devoted if nothing else,...