Carol's Notebook

I found myself laughing and crying while listening to this, something I don't find myself saying about traditional or cozy mysteries usually, especially the crying part. Penny just has a gift of writing the characters and events in ways that I connect with. Of course, walking the dog around the block choking back tears probably got me some odd looks, but there's a fire scene that just grabbed me. This is the second in the Gamache series, and I do think it could be read alone, but the events of the first were alluded to occasionally. I think I appreciated it more by having read Still Life first. Three Pines is a delightful town in Canada and the residents are celebrating Christmas. I love some of their traditions by the way, especially the Réveillon, a party that many of characters gather for after the Christmas Eve service. It just seemed very heart-warming to me, maybe I just like the fact that the...

This past weekend, we went to Camp Asbury for Family Canoe Camp. It was a great weekend. We went canoeing, fishing, hiking, swimming. We ate too much and met some nice people. I didn't get much reading done, aside from listening to The Cruelest Month by Louise Penny while we were fishing, just too much to do and by the end of the evening I was exhausted. And did I mention we got a new computer at home last weekend. I love it! I did get a couple of new books over the past week. Mailbox Monday is taking a blog tour. This month’s host is Staci at Life in the Thumb. Always a Princess by Alice Gaines (from Carina Press via NetGalley) Black Butterfly by Mark Gatiss (from PaperbackSwap) The Lucifer Box series (Black Butterfly is the last) is an off-beat one that I've enjoyed. Always a Princess just sounds like fun. It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey....

I like Guido Brunetti, the lead in Donna Leon's mystery series. He's a commissario in Venice and I have to admit that I tend to listen to these on audio rather than read them. I love hearing all the Italian words and places pronounce. It gives me a fuller feeling for the setting, and I have fallen in love with Leon's Venice. Blood from a Stone takes place just before and during Christmas. Brunetti is called to the scene of a murder, a "vu cumpra" has been killed, an African who sells knock-off handbags from a sheet spread out on the ground. As he investigates the case, despite being ordered not to by his superior, he realizes it is more complex and stretches farther than he could have imagined. I've listened to a couple of Leon's mysteries and this was not my favorite. There was a lot of build up but then ending just kind of fell flat for me. That being...