First book of 2012

This Body of Death by Elizabeth George

876 pages!! It's been a while since I've read a book that long. It was a good story though. There were two stories, completely separate, being told at the same time. It all came together in the end, and then it all made sense.

This is the first book I've read by E.G. in the Inspector Lynley saga. I found it very interesting and will read more of them, as I have several that were given to me a long time ago. I'll be passing this onto my dad as I know he enjoys Elizabeth George books. I would definitely recommend it.

Books

I must get these books posted as I have to return 2 of them to their rightful owner.

Sugar Creek by Toni Blake

This was a cute read.
Rachael Farris returned to her childhood home with one mission in mind: get Mike Romo out of her family's apple orchard business and out of their lives. But hard-nosed and totally hot Mike, who happens to be the law in Destiny, is convinced the Farris clan stole the land from his family fifty years ago and he's not backing down. Even when shapely trouble shows up in a pair of designer blue jeans.. However, neither the hunky cop nor the sexy prodigal hometown girl can anticipate the electricity that heats things up whenever they are together-adding new sizzle to an ongoing feud that's raged for generations, and soon putting both their hearts at risk.
Predictable but it was a good light read.

The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls

This is a memoir of resilience and redemption, and a revelatory look into a family at once deeply dysfunctional and uniquely vibrant. When sober, Jeanette's brilliant and charismatic father captured his children's imagination, teaching then physics, geology, and how to embrace life fearlessly. But when he drank, he was dishonest and destructive. Her mother was a free spirit who abhorred the idea of domesticity and didn't want the responsibility of raising a family.

The Walls children learned to take care of themselves. They fed, clothed, and protected one another, and eventually found their way to New York. Their parents follow them, choosing to be homeless even as their children prospered.

This book is truly astonishing-a memoir permeated by the intense love of a peculiar but loyal family.

Prayers and Lies by Sherri Wood EmmonsWhen seven year old Bethany meets her six year old cousin Reana Mae, it's the beginning of a kinship of misfits that saves both from a bone'deep loneliness. Every summer Bethany and her family leave Indianapolis for West Virginia's Coal River Valley. For Bethany's mother, the trips are a reminder of the coalmines and grinding poverty of her childhood, of a place she'd hoped to escape. But her loving relatives, and Bethany's friendship with Reana Mae keep them coming But as Bethany grows older, she realizes that life in this small, close-knit community is not as simple as she once thought.....that the riverside cabins that hold so much of her family's history also teems with scandalous whispers.....and that those closest to her harbor unimaginable secrets. Amid the dense woods and quiet beauty of the valley, these secrets are coming to light at last, with a force devastating enough to shatter lives, faith, and the bond that Bethany once thought would last forever.

Songbird by Josephine Cox

Madelaine Delaney holds a dark and dangerous secret, one that she has carried with her for over twenty years. Madelaine is the star of the show at the Pink Lady Cabaret Bar. Her angelic voice and striking looks capture the hearts of many. But she only has eyes for club owner, Steve Drayton, a devastatingly handsome but terrifying man. Then one night, she witnesses a horrific crime and her life is irrevocably changed forever. The kindness and friendship of one girl, Ellen, rescues Madeleine. But in order to survive, they must flee London, leaving those they dearly love behind, and danger is following them wherever they go.

There are lots of twists and turns in this story so it keeps your interest all the way through.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Aibileen Clark is a black maid in 1962 Jackson, Mississippi, raising her seventeenth white child. She's always taken orders quietly, but lately it leaves her with a bitterness she can no longer bite back. Her friend Minny Jackson has certainly never held her tongue, or held on to a job for very long, but now she's working for a newcomer with secrets that leave her speechless. And white socialite Skeeter Phelan has just returned from college with ambition and a degree but, to her mother's lament, no husband. Normally Skeeter would find solace in Constantine, the beloved maid who raised her, but Constantine has inexplicably disappeared.

Together, these seemingly different women join to work on a project that could forever alter their destinies and the life of a small town-to write, in secret, a tell all book about what it is really like to work as a black maid in the white homes of the South. Despite the terrible risks they will have to take, and the sometimes humorous boundaries they will have to cross, these three women unite with one intention: hope for a better day.

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest

Finally, the third book came out in paperback. Because it has taken so long it took me a little while to get into this book as I couldn't remember all the characters. Once I got into it I really enjoyed it.

Lisbeth Salander lies in critical condition in the intensive care unit of a Swedish hospital. She's fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she recovers, she'll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for three murders. With the help of journalist Mikael Blomkvist, she will have to prove her innocence. And, on her own, she will plot revenge. Once upon a time, she was a victim. Now Salander id fighting back.

I'm just sorry that there will be no more books by this author. I have really enjoyed this trilogy.
Bye for now.

Potato Crop

I had read about potatoes being grown in containers on the internet last spring so I decided I would try it.
I got one of these collapsible bins and followed the instructions I had read on a gardening blog.
I would add a new bag of compost every time the plants would get about 6 inches high.
After adding 8 bags of compost I decided to let them go on their own. The plants never did flower but according to some of the reading I did not all plants do. I was anxious to see what kind of results I would have, so when the plants were droopy and dying back I decided to dump the dirt out and see what I would have.
Here you see the results!!



The biggest potato was a little bigger than a golf ball and it was downhill from there. We managed to have enough to have at two meals!! To say I was disappointed would be an understatement. With the cost of the container and the cost of the compost it probably works out to two very expensive meals. I really don't know what I could have done wrong so I'm a little leery about trying this again next year. It seems like such a wast of time, money and energy.

More 2011 books

Down Our Street by Lena Kennedy

Amy is the apple of her mother's eye, she's the youngest of 13. With the outbreak of WWII the Flanagan family is sundered, shaken from their crowded nest in London's East End. Joe id made a sergeant, fighting in France. Billy volunteers for the Army Transport, young Dan fulfils his dreams and joins the RAF. The young ones are evacuated from the war torn capital-the girls to Devon and the boys to a school in the Midlands they reckon is worse than Colditz

The war brings tragedy-even the old home is in ruins, bombed and shell-splintered. It's Amy, with her fierce courage and determination, who pulls the family back together. Then handsome Sparky, full of wicked charm and Cockney banter, walks into her life and wins her heart. Turbulent happy years follow; times of great joy for Amy and times of bitter heartrending when family ties war against the needs of her feckless husband.
Quite a few surprises along the way, an interesting read.

Spider Bones by Kathy Reichs

When Tempe Brennan is called to the scene of a Quebec drowning, shocking discoveries await. The victim-identified as John Lowery-was engaged in a bizarre sexual practice when he died; and the same John Lowery was an American soldier declared dead in 1968, after a Huey crash in Vietnam. Who then, Tempe sets off to find out, is buried in the vet's North Carolina grave? Exhuming the remains and having them analyzed at a military compound in Hawaii gets complicated when Tempe's ex Detective Andrew Ryan, appears....and when a Honolulu ME consults with her on who or what lethally attacked a young victim-a shark, or a more sinister predator? And when Lowery's dog tags turn up linked to yet another corpse, Tempe must deconstruct a twisted tale of death that spans years, continents, and too many tragic losses.

Kathy Reich is one of my favourite authors but I must say I found this book rather confusing keeping all the corpses organized as to who was who.

A Time for Us by Josephine Cox

Lucy Nolan is the golden girl. The only daughter of local grocers, Sally and Mike Nolan, she's grown up in a home of total love and security. The one thing her heart desires is that Jack Hanson might ask her to marry him, and when he does eventually propose, Lucy is prepared to give up everything to be with him-even though it means leaving her beloved parents to live abroad where Jack has been offered an exciting business opportunity.

But then, almost on the eve of the marriage itself, tragedy strikes. And for the rest of her life, Lucy is forced to realise that Fate, which has been so kind to her, can also be just as cruel.

I found this an interesting read and do enjoy most of Josephine Cox books.

Love by Design by Nora Roberts

Two books in one

Loving Jack

Somehow her own fictional brooding hero had turned up in person right under her own roof, and now all romance writer Jackie MacNamara had to do was convince stubborn Nathan Powell that happily-ever-after began at home-with her.

Best Laid Plans

She was the sexiest thing in a hard hat that architect Cody Johnson had ever seen, but structural engineer Abra Wilson also had a will as strong as a steel girder-and just about as flexible. But Cody has plans for Abra that not even this spirited beauty could resist.

Two short predictable stories. Good for a summer read.

Promise Canyon by Robyn Carr

After years spent on ranches around Los Angeles, Clay Tahoma is delighted to be Virgin River's new veterinary assistant. The secluded community's wild beauty tugs at his Navajo roots, and he's been welcomed with open arms by everyone in town-everyone except Lilly Yazhi. :i;;y has encountered her share of strong, silent, traditional men within her own aboriginal community, and she's not interested in coming back for more. In her eyes, Clay's earthy, sexy appeal is just an act used to charm wealthy women like his ex-wife. She can't deny his gift for gentling horses, but she's not about to let him control her. There's just one problem-she can't control her attraction to Clay.

Forbidden Falls by Robyn Carr

Noah Kincaid arrives ready to roll up his sleeves and revitalize his new purchase, but he's going to need some help. An ad in the local paper brings an improbable candidate his way. "Pastor's assistant" is not a phrase that springs to mind when Noah meets brassy, beautiful Ellie Baldwin. With her colourful clothes and even more colourful past, Ellie needs a respectable job so she can regain custody of her children. Noah can't help but admire her spunk and determination and she may just be the breath of fresh air he needs.

This unlikely duo may come from two different worlds, but they have more in common than anyone would have expected. And in Virgin River lasting happiness in never out of the question.

The Shipping News by Annie Proulx

When Quoyle's two-timing wife meets her just deserts, he retreats with his two daughters to his ancestral home on the starkly beautiful Newfoundland coast, where a rich cast of local characters and family members all play a part in Quoyle's struggle to reclaim his life. As Quoyle confronts his private demons-and the unpredictable forces of nature and society-he begins to see the possibility of love without pain or misery.

I found this book very difficult to stick with, even though I did finish it. I kept thinking it would get better, but it didn't. Sorry I wasted my time.

Hey, Good Looking by Fern Michaels

Darby Lane and Russell Gunn had been inseparable friends from their early years in the Horseshoe, their wonderful Baton Rouge neighborhood of southern comforts and childhood fancies, all the way through to graduate school dreams and beyond.. Then a tragic accident takes Russ's life-and Darby's world is shattered. But her long journey to healing takes hold as Darby begins to see Russ's brother Ben through new eyes. Suddenly love blooms in the place of grief, and now, with the help of three wily and colourful aunts who raise her, Darby faces the challenge of reuniting Ben with his estranged father-if she and her aunts can get through the conniving schemes of Ben's social-climber stepmother, Like the custom dollhouses Darby creates with tender care and patience, she begins to understand that loss can build new life-and love truly can conquer anything.

I found this to be a very silly but funny read.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

Harriet Vanger, scion of one of Sweden's wealthiest families, disappeared over forty years ago. All these years later, her aged uncle continues to seek the truth. He hires Mikael Blonkvist, a crusading journalist recently trapped by a libel conviction, to investigate. He is aided by the pierced and tattooed punk prodigy Lisbeth Salander. Together they tap into a vein of unfathomable iniquity and astonishing corruption.
I enjoyed this book as much as the first book, The Girl Who Played with Fire. I'm awaiting the third book to come out in paperback.

The Woman Who Left by Josephine Cox

Louise and Ben Hunter have a happy, loving marriage, marred only by their unfulfilled longing for a child. Living and working with Ben's father, Ronnie, they quietly accept their uneventful but contented lives. But when Ronnie dies, their whole world changes. News of his father's passing bring Ben's lazy brother, Jacolb, back on the scene, in the mistaken belief that he stands to inherit Ronnie's small fortune. Added to which he means to have his brother's wife, though just as she did years before, Louise warns him off. Jacob, however, is not so easily dismissed. When he realises it is Ben who will inherit everything, Jacob is beside himself with rage, and commits a terrible deed, one that threatens to destroy everything his brother and Louise hold dear-their home and their family, their friends, their marriage and even their lives.

I enjoyed this book, but certainly had its sad moments.

Phew, that's it, all caught up. I find putting pictures into a blog post is the most time consuming, frustrating process. There has to be a better way. Maybe there is and I don't know about it!!!Then when you have it all spaced correctly and saved and you publish the post there are huge gaps all over the place. Drives me crazy!!

Bye for now.

Still Reading

Still reading but not much else happening!

The Shadow of Your Smile by Mary Higgins Clark

At age 82 and in failing health Olivia Morrow faces a momentous choice: expose a devastating family secret, or take it with her to her grave. Olivia has in her possession letters from her deceased cousin Catherine, a nun now being considered for beatification by the Catholic Church. The letters are evidence that Catherine gave birth at age seventeen to a son she gave up for adoption. The young man who fathered Catherine's child, Alex Gannon, went on to become a world-famous doctor and scientist. Now, thirty-one year old pediatrician Dr. Monica Farrell, their granddaughter, stands as the rightful heir to what remains of Gannon's fortune. But to silence Olivia and prevent Monica from learning the secret, those who are exploiting the inheritance will stop at nothing-even murder.

Indulgence in Death by J.D. Robb

When a murder disrupts the Irish vacation she is taking with her husband, Roarke, Eve realizes that no place is safe- not an Irish wood or the streets of the manic city she calls home. But nothing prepares her for what she discovers upon her return to the sop shop in New York.

A limo driver is shot through the neck with a crossbow. Then a high priced escort is found stabbed through the heart with a bayonet. Eve begins to fear she has come across the most dangerous criminal: a thrill killer, and one with a taste for the finer things in life-and death'

As time runs out on another innocent victim's life. Eve's investigation will take her into the rarefied circle that her husband, Roarke, travels in-and into the perverted heart of madness.

Lap of Luxury by Kristine Rolofson

The perfect husband-once upon a time there was a fair maiden who found a sleeping prince on her doorstep. But the fantasy had one catch...

Stuck on you-who would have thought hanging wallpaper would lead to the perfect man and the perfect ready made family? Still-it was turning into a sticky situation.

Make believe honeymoon-a jilted bride, a sexy duke-a make believe honeymoon to die for. Except marriage wasn't on the menu.

Bye for now.

Spring in Canada

This is what it looked like two weekends ago.

We got 30cm./12" of snow.

Then we got 20cm./8" yesterday.

We are going to get another 20cm./8" tomorrow!!!

When will this ever end.

Books Again!!

Someday Soon/Sooner or Later by Debbie Macomber

I had already read the second story in this book.

Someday Soon is about a lonely young woman who gets under the skin of a dangerous mercenary who discovers that love wins over war every time.

Where Yesterday Lives by Karen Kingsbury

Ellen Barrett is a Pulitzer prize winning journalist with an uncertain marriage, a forgotten faith, and haunting memories of her hometown and the love she left behind. The eldest of five siblings, Ellen longs for the time, long ago, when they were happy-when they were a family. Then tragedy strikes. Ellen's father is dead, and she must go back home. As she returns an avalanche of memories is unleashed. She is on a quest to make peace with the people who still live there.

An Afternoon Walk by Dorothy Eden

On an afternoon walk Ella and her five year old daughter come upon an abandoned house with an eerie overgrown garden. The house conjures up images of grand parties and bygone fashions. Then they hear a horrible scream and from a second story window, see the spreading white wings of an owl taking flight. When she tells her husband that evening he reminds her that having recently lost a child at birth she is still emotionally unstable. Then she starts receiving a series of anonymous phone calls. Who did she hear scream?

Staying at Daisy's by Jill Mansell

Daisy MacLean runs the country house hotel owned by her flamboyant father, Hector. When she hears who's about to get married there, she isn't worried at all-her friend Tara absolutely promises there won't be any trouble between her and ex-boyfriend Dominic, whom she hasn't seen for years. But Daisy should have been worried. Dominic has other ideas. And seeing Tara again sets in motion a chaotic train of events with far-reaching consequences for all concerned.

Devices and Desires by P.D. James

A serial killer of women is on the loose in a remote area of the Norfolk coast.

Overshadowing the bleak landscape and the lives of the local community is the Larksoken nuclear power station, run by the charismatic Alex Mair. Commander Adam Dalgliesh, who is staying at his aunt's converted windmill, becomes involved in the hunt for the murderer, a search that implicates him in the concerns and dangerous secrets of the headland community. And then one moonlit night it becomes chillingly apparent that the mass murderer isn't the only killer at work in Larksoken.

Bye for now.

New Year, More Books

Breaking the Rules by Barbara Taylor Bradford

Following a terrifying encounter, a beautiful young woman flees her quiet English countryside in search of a new life. She adopts the initial M as her name and embarks on a journey that will lead her onto the catwalks of Paris to New York, where she meets and soon marries a handsome Hollywood actor. M believes she has truly put the demons of her earlier days behind her. But life in the spotlight is about to take a dark turn. Someone from her past, a psychopath with deadly intent, has made a vow to shatter M's world forever. M also makes a vow: to do everything in her power to keep herself safe and protect her loved ones-even if that means breaking the rules.

O'Hurley Born by Nora Roberts

Two stories in one book.
The Last Honest Woman

If sex sells, then so do lies-especially when the truth is revealed. And cynical journalist Dylan Crosby knew that the just-a-simple-widow routine Abby O'Hurley was giving him wasn't anything close to the truth. There was a story there. All he had to do was turn on the charm, turn down the lights and she would whisper all her secrets. Unless she uncovered his first.

Dance to the Piper

Maddy O'Hurley shone in the spotlight. Her passion for dancing set the stage aflame and left no one in her audience unaffected-including business mogal Reed Valentine. But Reed wasn't used to burning-not for anything or anyone. And he wasn't about to let the ruthless business skills he honed be affected by wild passion. So was he prepared to fight fire with fire?

More light reading with the usual predictable endings.

Exclusive by Fern Michaels

When Toots Loudenberry relocated to Los Angeles from South Carolina to be near her daughter, Abby, she expected to bump into the occasional celebrity. She just never expected them to be dead. Meanwhile, Toots, Sophie, and Mavis are concerned that the prestigious Dr. Sameer's budding romance with Ida may have something to do with his ailing bank balance. And Abby's attempted makeover of the celebrity magazine the Informer into the most talked-about tabloid in town could end more than just her career.

But the Godmothers wouldn't be Godmothers if they weren't pulling a few behind-the-scenes strings, and Abby's hopes of changing the fortunes of The Informer are still alive. Yet it'll take an assist from a source no one could have predicted, let alone see, to secure a story that will shake Tinseltown to its very core.

This was cute and funny although I think its part of a continuing story that I haven't read.

Bye for now.

Beautiful Orchid

I changed the picture in my header.

I received this beautiful orchid as a Christmas present. It is absolutely gorgeous and has more than 20 flowers on it. It started out with four leaves but it is down to one now. I think I may have messed up . I was listening to a gardening show on the radio shortly after Christmas and they were saying that if you received an orchid and it is in moss take it out . So I took all the moss out and I was sure that they said to replace it with rock, so I did. Of course, now I'm thinking how will it retain water for the roots in rocks? I think that is why I've lost three of the leaves. I've only just lost one flower so that is pretty good as it's six weeks since Christmas. I think I need to get some wood chips and replace most of the rocks with that. Hopefully it doesn't die on me!!

Bye for now.