Carol's Notebook – Page 294

Short Stories – Audible Channels

June 1, 2016June 1, 2016 by Carol2 Comments

I've been enjoying the new Audible Channels and have listened to several short stories recently. Most of them come from the Mystery Channel, of course. "The Sign of the Broken Sword" by G. K. Chesterton - Features his famous characters Father Brown and former criminal Flambeau. In the center of the story is the mysterious death of General Sir Arthur St. Clare, who was hanged on a tree with his broken sword hung round his neck. The descriptions are excellent and Father Brown does a good job about telling us how he reaches his conclusion. "Too Many Have Lived" by Dashiell Hammet - One of only three Sam Spade short stories, this one involves a blackmailing poet, a seductive chanteuse, her rough-hewn stage-door-johnny, and, of course, murder. The story was interesting but I found the full cast performance a bit distracting. "If You Can't Stand the Heat" by Lawrence Block - Story about a dangerous woman. It's the first of the Kit Tolliver series and...

Readers’ Workouts – 5/31

May 31, 2016 by Carol3 Comments

Here are my steps for the week. I didn't hit my goal every day, but at least I made the week. I'm upping my goal to 9,000 steps for June. We'll see how it goes. If you're on fitbit, you can find me here. My current plan is to do cardio on Tuesday (60 mins), upper body on Wednesday, cardio on Thursday (60 mins), a total body workout on Friday, cardio on Saturday (60+ mins), and a core workout on Monday. I'm also doing a 10 minute-ish Pilates workout each day. I didn't do a very good job keeping track this week, so this is what I remember. Tuesday - Walk with the dog. Wednesday - 20 mins arms & shoulders. Thursday - Walk with the dog. 35 mins Barre. Friday - 8 mins Pilates arms. Saturday - Walk with the dog. Monday - Played horseshoes. I usually listen to a book while I'm walking, jogging, whatever. This week I finished The Master by Claire North and listened to several short stories on Audible Channels. 2016...

Sci-Fi Summer Read-a-thon

May 31, 2016June 3, 2016 by CarolNo Comments

I am joining in on the Sci-Fi Summer Read-a-thon hosted by Michelle @ Seasons of Reading starting tomorrow. Here are the details: Read-a-Thon dates: Wednesday, June 1 at 12:00am CST until Tuesday, June 7 at 11:59pm CST (adjust your time zone accordingly). I wanted to try out a different day configuration this time. Since Sci-Fi is a very specific genre, this will be strictly reading science fiction during the event. However, since fantasy is so closely related to science fiction, if you feel more comfortable reading fantasy, that is also fine. To check in on Twitter, we'll use hashtag #SciFiSummerJune As usual, you do not have to have a blog to participate...feel free to link up and check in from Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, etc. These days, it seems most of our activity goes on in our Facebook group which I love. The interaction in our group is fabulous! Science fiction is not usually my genre of choice but I have a couple on my shelves that I've been wanting to...

In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware

May 30, 2016May 23, 2016 by Carol2 Comments

Did you read the blurb above? It sounds really good, doesn't it? First off, i like house party murder mysteries, so the glass house in the middle of the woods with a small cast of characters appealed to me. Add an unreliable narrator and secrets of the past and it should have been a winner. Unfortunately, all the characters were annoying and juvenile and the big surprise wasn't that surprising. I didn't care about Nora and found her agreement to go to the party unlikely. Add in her obsession with a high school boyfriend character and she was just a pretty sad character who I didn't relate to or sympathize. Actually, I was hoping for a final twist that took into account her knowledge from crime writing, but no, she just puts herself in a dangerous position alone with the killer like so many amateur female detectives. Really, when will they learn to at least tell someone where they're going? I...

Saturday Snapshot – 5/28

May 28, 2016May 27, 2016 by Carol3 Comments

We are in Brood V territory, which means the 17-year cicadas are here. They are gross and fascinating. The tree is in our front yard. You can see the "shells" all the way up in the leaves. When you walk in the grass, it actually crunches. Saturday Snapshot is hosted by Melinda at West Metro Mommy Reads....

Night Night, Sleep Tight by Hallie Ephron

May 27, 2016May 23, 2016 by Carol4 Comments

The blurb gives the set-up - and of course all the events are connected. I think Hollywood in the '80s with secrets going back to the late '50s was a great setting. Stars and writers with their careers and public image to think of give an interesting outlook on the mystery. My main problem with Night Night, Sleep Tight was that I just didn't care about Deidre. I didn't like her, didn't hate her, didn't feel sorry for her, or any of the main characters really. I didn't get to know her mother and brother enough to fully understand their motives and the family friends were all pretty self-absorbed. The mystery itself was fine but not compelling enough to carry the book.Deidre happens to find her father's memoir quickly after his death, which was more than a bit convenient. It gave her a direction to take her questions and other people a motive for murder. I was surprised, and a bit disappointed, by...