Book a week:Week 20

Oh yeah! 

My 20th book is finished!!!!! "Long Bright River" by Liz Moore is the 20th book. 

I got this book because my friend Vivian recommended it. I always trust her recommendations. 

The book is based on substance addiction. Two sisters, grown up in the same house, turned to live very different lives. One, became a cop and the other, a substance abuser. 

Mickey is a cop and a single mom. She has her own problems with life. Her sister Kacey lives on the street. Her ex boyfriend is not paying child support. Her son is only four years old! She needs a reliable babysitter too. 

Mickey is awkward in social situations. Their mother killed herself, when Mickey and Kacey were little. They were brought up by the grandmother, a very cold woman, who was traumatized by the overdose and eventual death of her own daughter. Their father left them too. The family didn't really care about education or being on the right side of the law. 

Kacey is missing. Even though Mickey is not on speaking terms with Kacey, she wants to find Kacey. 

Being born when mother was addicted to drugs, Kacy had withdrawal symptoms at birth. No one really knew about it then. Mickey's search for her sister made her realize how their mother's addiction might be the root cause of Kacey's fate. She also finds out where their father is living now. 

The novel taught me a lot about why people cannot get out of addiction. I didn't know a baby born to a woman who is a drug addict, needed to be held, and given medication to  help them from withdrawal symptoms. 

This tells the story of the strength and vulnerability of women.

A good read indeed. 

Any suggestions for my next read?

Book a week: week18

This week I am posting about "The Go-Giver  A Little story about a powerful Business Idea". Not a thriller like previous ones. 

Bob Burg tells us about why the "go getter" attitude is not going to let us where we want to be. This book will give us the five principles of how to be "giver" and to receive gracefully.

What are we giving? It is not giving out money or food or things like that. You give your best self to others and serve them. In a nutshell, give more than what you receive in value while receiving from others gracefully.

The book is written in a story narrative kind of. So, not actually a self help kind of usual book. The story helps to let us keep reading and grasp the points better. 

Will it work in your life? I am not sure though. But, if you want to try giving more in value for the pay you receive,When you start giving more value to what you actually paid for, you will find a difference in your attitude and happiness. 

It is a really fun book to read. I have written 18 blog posts about my reading so far. I can also create my own graphics for the blog. isn't kind of cool?

 

Bindu

Book a week: week 16

 

I finished reading "Tear Me Apart" by J.T. Ellison. Actually I was trying to find "Lie to Me" on the library. I saw my friend Vivian was reading it one time. I needed to place hold and wait for that. I found "Tear me Apart" is  available to borrow. So, started reading. I got hooked on the novel. 

That smart teenage skier is not really the kid of her dad and mom. Things went on fire, when the mom and dad were not matched for bone marrow transplant for her. 

a very twisted story indeed! How Mindy ended with her current parents?

It all started with the friendship of two mentally disturbed girls. 

We think, we can predict how it is going to turn. But, not till the end. The author gets our full attention all the time. 

When I finished it, I felt so great that I chose the book to read. 

How the author think and bring the story to make an experience!

I suggest, you read it. 

The background image is created using Canva. As you can see, it is a different background. I think, this one really represent the story.

Book A week: Week 15

Last week I fnished the book, "A week to Midnight" by David Baldacci. I didn't know it was second in Atley Pine series. 

I loved the beginning and thought to give it a try. 

 The beginning is a bit confusing. Agent Pine beating the crap out of a pedophile, her supervisor let her to go and find who is responsible for the disappearance of her sister Mercy.

When her investigation regarding Mercy was going on, the story turns around. there were several other murders happening in the small town. When Pine solved the case and still cannot find the key information about Mercy's disappearance, I did a Google search. That is when I understood that it is part of a series. 

Now, am I going to find the next one and read it???? Good question: not right away. It has to wait. The writing style is not that great.  

There are some flows: especially the way FBI handles their agents! Why Pine was not given any punishment for beating the pedophile? It can be justified, yet, not believable. That is the fault of the author. 

Bindu

Book A Week: Week 12

I can't believe, I am reading a LOT now a days. 

This  last week I finished "Camino Island" By John Grisham. It is not a legal thriller, like most of Grisham's novels. This one deals with rare books. 

There was a theft in Princeton library. Thieves took the precious manuscript by F. Scott Fitsgerald. FBI is involved in the case. Princeton will pay any thing for the safe return of the book. 

A private investigative team is also trying to get the book back. 

In the beautiful Camino Island, there is a thriving book store. Do the book store owner know about the manuscript? 

The private investigator team think so. Then will they get the manuscript back? If so how?

Grisham keeps us on the edge with his narration. 

I love reading Grisham's thrillers. 

PS: I use Canva to create the images. Like to make your own? Use this link to get some Canva rewards.

 https://www.canva.com/join/financier-laptop-mud 

PPS: If you use this link to join, Canva will give you and me a premium element for free. 

Bindu

Book a Week: Week 11

For week 11, I read "Recipe For a Perfect Wife" by Karma Brown.

Alice is fired from her job. But she lied to her husband about it. Actually, she was not honest to herself, when she agreed to move to suburbs. 

When Alice was agreeing to Nate about having a baby, she lied again. She was not ready for it. 

She was "writing a novel" was another lie she was telling everyone. 

But, things changed with Alice when she discovered Nellie's cook book. She started cooking. Then she learned more about Nellie. Then, she gained more information about Nellie  from her unsent letters to her mom. 

Karma Brown narrates two parallel stories of two women lived in the same house on different times. It is full of twists and turns. Both women had their own struggles. Actually, women still struggle to have ownership of their own body and mind, it seems. 

Throughout the story, I was questioning why Alice had to lie to her husband? We can understand Nellie as a victim, but who is Alice? Why can't she tell the truth about events happened in her life to her husband? 

I have to agree that it was a page turner. In the end Alice decided to stand for herself. A relief to my curious mind!!!

Bindu

A Book A week:Week 9

Last week I finished Emma Straub's "All Adults Here".

The novel starts with Astrid witnessing a bus accident. It happened just before her hair appointment. 

The accident make her think over her life. She was thinking about her past, her kids and then the future.

She realized she was not a great parent to her 3 kids. Now, her grand daughter is here to live with her. 

She realized, she has to do certain things now, or she will never get a chance. So, she decides to stick with truth. That is a lot of courage. 

I really loved reading this book. The style is capturing your attention. 

 

Bindu

A book a week: Week7

The last week I finished reading "The temptations of Forgiveness" by Donna Leon.

The story is taking place in Venice. It is the mystery of  commissario Guido Brunetti. It starts with Brunetti's meeting with his wife's colleague. Then he was called to visit a man in the hospital, who seems like got attacked.

It turned out the man in the hospital is the husband of his wife's co-worker.

Brunetti's investigation revealed the killer. Now the author leave us think about the morality of all this.

It is an okay book to read. Will I read another book about Brunetti's detective work? Not sure, may be not.

 

Bindu