Category: Virtual Nightstand

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 4-28-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand

There are two cats in this picture. Luna is obvious. Luna is seldom anything BUT obvious. However, do you see that shine among the black of the chair cushions? That’s a cat, specifically that’s a Lucifer cat. I have to be very careful about sitting in my own office chair as it is frequently occupied by a stealth Lucifer. A Lucifer who usually refuses to move his fuzzy butt so that I can have my chair back.

Because this was a week where I visited Overcommitment City, and was NEVER in the village of Running-on-Time. I spent a lot of the week in “kitten jail” with my door closed and barred by an unopened box of cat litter that has been sacrificed to this cause. (My office door pushes inward and doesn’t latch. All the cats are more than heavy enough to push it open one way or another – although Lucifer would rather sit outside the door and pout where I can see him through the glass than impinge upon his dignity that way.) Of course the minute I opened that door – the hordes rushed in. If you’re wondering whether only two cats constitutes a horde, the answer is yes, they can. And they are.

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Rain Drops on Roses Giveaway Hop (ENDS TUESDAY!!!)
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Blog Recap:

B+ #AudioBookReview: Close to Death by Anthony Horowitz
B #BookReview: Judge Dee and the Limits of the Law by Lavie Tidhar
A- #BookReview: Chaotic Aperitifs by Tao Wong
B #AudioBookReview: Lovers at the Museum by Isabel Allende
A+ #BookReview: A Murder Most French by Colleen Cambridge
Stacking the Shelves (598)

Coming This Week:

Lost Birds by Anne Hillerman (#BookReview)
People in Glass Houses by Jayne Castle (#BookReview)
Come What May Giveaway Hop
Knightqueen by Anna Hackett (#BookReview)
My Dearest Mackenzie by Rachel Blaufeld (#BlogTour #BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 4-21-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand

Let’s talk about things like schedule distribution and weight distribution. Sounds boring, doesn’t it? Well, first I have a picture that amply illustrates weight distribution.

Believe it or not, George and Tuna weigh exactly the same. Each cat weighs 14 pounds – which is a lot of cat. Each. But George’s weight is distributed over the length of his rather long body, while Tuna’s well, clearly isn’t. Still, there is a LOT of each of them to love, and they both expect every ounce of it.

(In case you’re wondering, on the ‘Cat Chonk Chart’ the vet has declared George to be ‘A Fine Boi’ while Tuna has crossed into ‘He Chonk’ territory.)

The weight of Reading Reality’s schedule for this week is also a bit chonky, even if it doesn’t seem that way. Because the person attempting to fulfill that schedule seems to have hit overload this week – meaning that what I’m intending may not be what actually appears. We’ll see!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Rain Drops on Roses Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Honey Bunny Giveaway Hop is Melanie

Blog Recap:

A+ #BookReview: Mal Goes to War by Edward Ashton
Rain Drops on Roses Giveaway Hop
B #BookReview: The Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain by Sofia Samatar
A+ #BookReview: What Cannot Be Said by C.S. Harris
A- #AudioBookReview: The Murder of Mr. Ma by John Shen Yen Nee and SJ Rozan
Stacking the Shelves (597)

Coming This Week:

Close to Death by Anthony Horowitz (#AudioBookReview)
Lost Birds by Anne Hillerman (#BookReview)
Judge Dee and the Limits of the Law by Lavie Tidhar (#BookReview)
A Murder Most French by Colleen Cambridge (#BookReview)
Chaotic Aperitifs by Tao Wong (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 4-14-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand

It’s time to bid this year’s Blogo-Birthday Celebration farewell. The posts have posted, the giveaways have all found winners, so it’s back to the usual here at Chez Reading Reality for another year.

Although the usual isn’t quite so usual this past week, as one of my rare ‘D’ graded reviews spewed itself over the blog earlier in the week. There have been a few books over the years that I detested every page but couldn’t put down – and then couldn’t get out of my head – and Space Holes absolutely was one of THOSE. Hence Wednesday’s rant-fest. I’ve heard that the audio makes it better, but I can’t even. I’d rather listen to something I’m actually enjoying – which I am at the moment with The Murder of Mr. Ma.

Staying with that enjoyment topic, we were treated to a rare sighting of the girl cats coexisting peacefully even as they are clearly exhibiting the traits that make that sight so very rare. Luna is looking up, all bright eyed and eager for any attention or her next adventure, while Hecate’s face is firmly fixed in a glower, declaring wordlessly but with a VERY speaking glance that she would much rather be alone – or at least alone with her humans and without any squeaky little interlopers harshing her not exactly mellow.

 

 

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Honey Bunny Giveaway Hop (ENDS TOMORROW!!!)
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of ANY BOOK BY MARTY WINGATE is Betty
The winner of ANY BOOK IN THE BARKER & LLEWELYN SERIES is Leela
The winner of ANY BEST BOOKS OF 2024 SO FAR is Cali
The winners of the LUCKY 13 BLOGO BIRTHDAY GIVEAWAY are Anne, Billie, Carolyn, Lisa, Shelly, and Susan

Blog Recap:

A- #BookReview: The House on Widows Hill by Simon R. Green
B #AudioBookReview: No One Goes Alone by Erik Larson
D #BookReview: Space Holes: First Transmission by B.R. Louis
Grade A #BookReview: A Short Walk Through a Wide World by Douglas Westerbeke
A++ #BookReview: Court of Wanderers by Rin Chupeco
Stacking the Shelves (596)

Coming This Week:

Mal Goes to War by Edward Ashton (#BookReview)
Rain Drops on Roses Giveaway Hop
The Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain by Sofia Samatar (#BookReview)
The Dead Cat Tail Assassins by P. Djèlí Clark (#BookReview)
What Cannot Be Said by C.S. Harris (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 4-7-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand

Today is the start of National Library Week. As a part of this commemorative week, tomorrow is Right to Read Day, when the list of the 10 most challenged books of 2023 will be released. For most book lists, I would say I’m looking forward to the list – but not in this case, because there is nothing to look forward to in a list of books that have been challenged – especially in a year when challenges have risen so much and are so obviously pointed at books by or about people of color and LGBTQIA+ people.

On a lighter note, my annual Blogo-Birthday Celebration took place last week. The giveaways will be open until this Friday, April 12 and the winners will be announced in next Sunday’s Sunday Post. And again, my deepest and sincerest thanks to all who participated and everyone who has followed along on this journey.

Last but certainly not least, this week’s cat picture features a brightly orange George on a brightly colored comforter playing ‘pawsies’ with Galen.

Current Giveaways:

Any book by Marty Wingate in the Blogo-Birthday Celebration
Any book in the Barker & Llewelyn series by Will Thomas in the Blogo-Birthday Celebration
Any book from the list of Best Books of 2024 so far in the Blogo-Birthday Celebration
(1) $25 Amazon Gift Card and (4) $25 Barnes & Noble Gift Cards in the Lucky 13 Blogo-Birthday Giveaway
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Honey Bunny Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Blog Recap:

Honey Bunny Giveaway Hop
A- #BookReview: A Body at the Dance Hall by Marty Wingate + #Giveaway
A+ #BookReview: The Black Hand by Will Thomas + #Giveaway
LUCKY THIRTEENTH Annual Blogo-Birthday Celebration and #Giveaway!
Blogo-Birthday Birthday Book Celebration and #Giveaway!
Stacking the Shelves (595)

Coming This Week:

The House on Widows Hill by Simon R. Green (#BookReview)
In the Shadow of the Greenbrier by Emily Matchar (#BookReview)
Space Holes: First Transmission by B.R. Louis (#BookReview)
A Short Walk Through a Wide World by Douglas Westerbeke (#BookReview)
Court of Wanderers by Rin Chupeco (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 3-31-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand

Today is Easter, so Happy Easter (or Hoppy Easter) to those who celebrate!

Speaking of celebrations, this week marks Reading Reality’s LUCKY 13th Annual Blogo-Birthday Celebration. Reading Reality began on April 4, 2011, as Escape Reality, Read Fiction. April 5 is my own birthday, hence “Blogo-Birthday”. This is, as it has been from the beginning, a Hobbit birthday for both the blog and yours truly, so I’ll be giving books and gift cards away every day this week, starting tomorrow with the Honey Bunny Giveaway Hop.

Today’s cat picture is a close up of Hecate and her very pretty copper eyes. It’s also as appropriate for Easter as anything ever gets around here. We have a ritual, involving eggs, that is ALL for Hecate. On Sunday mornings, Galen makes hard boiled eggs for us for breakfast, a process which involves a big bowl of chilled water. Hecate makes a bee line for the bowl of “egg water” the minute the eggs are out of it. It’s just water, with maybe the wisp of essence of egg, but no egg. No salt, no flavoring that we can sense. But it’s all hers! Unless she catches Tuna ‘poaching’ it, that is.

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Blog Recap:

Grade A #AudioBookReview: What You Are Looking For Is In the Library by Michiko Aoyama, translated by Alison Watts
B+ #BookReview: A Cast of Falcons by Sarah Yarwood-Lovett
Cover Reveal: Shoestring Theory by Mariana Costa
A- #BookReview: The Emperor and the Endless Palace by Justinian Huang
A- #AudioBookReview: The Annual Migration of Clouds by Premee Mohamed
Stacking the Shelves (594)

Coming This Week:

Honey Bunny Giveaway Hop
A Body at the Dance Hall by Marty Wingate (#BookReview)
The Black Hand by Will Thomas (#BookReview)
THIRTEENTH Annual Blogo-Birthday Celebration and Giveaway
Blogo-Birthday Birthday Celebration and Giveaway

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 3-24-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

It turned out to be an excellent reading week this week – although I did have a ‘flail and bail’ along the way. I have to admit that the later parts of this coming week are looking a bit shaky as well.

The week after this one, however, is sure and certain and celebratory, because April 1-5 will be Reading Reality’s Lucky 13th Blogo-Birthday Celebration with giveaways every day for the whole week. Come celebrate with me!

I’m celebrating, hopefully you’re celebrating, but George and Tuna are cats so they are much more blasé about the whole thing. Here they are out on the catio with Tuna clearly on overwatch checking out what the neighbors are doing.

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Winter 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop is Anne P.

Blog Recap:

A- #BookReview: The Graveyard of the Hesperides by Lindsey Davis
Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop
A+ #BookReview: The Hellfire Conspiracy by Will Thomas
A- #BookReview: Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
A- #BookReview: The Citadel of Weeping Pearls by Aliette de Bodard
Stacking the Shelves (593)

Coming This Week:

What You Are Looking For Is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama (#AudioBookReview)
A Cast of Falcons by Sarah Yarwood-Lovett (#BookReview)
Shoestring Theory by Mariana Costa (#Spotlight + #CoverReveal)
The Emperor and the Endless Palace by Justinian Huang (#BookReview)
To Slip the Bonds of Earth by Amanda Flower (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 3-17-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

Today is both St. Patrick’s Day AND St. Gertrude of Nivelles’ Day. It’s a pity that St. Patrick gets all the attention, because St. Gertrude of Nivelles is the patron saint of CATS. Also gardeners, poor people and widows, but most especially CATS – at least in the modern interpretations. So, it’s either the dude who drove the snakes out of Ireland, or the woman who protected cats. I’m with the cat lady.

Speaking of which, here’s Tuna, standing at the window outside on the catio, looking into the kitchen instead of the other way around!

As far as the bloggy stuff goes, the Winter 2024 Seasons of Books Hop ends tomorrow, just in time for the SPRING 2024 Seasons of Books Hop to begin the next day. After appearing in the schedule multiple times but not actually getting reviewed, The Graveyard of the Hesperides review will definitely happen this week. I’m in the middle of the book now and being constantly reminded just how much I’ve enjoyed this series over the years. The later part of the week is a bit less certain, but c’est la vie – or at least, c’est la reading vie at Chez Reading Reality!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Winter 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop (ENDS TOMORROW!!!!!)

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Lady Luck Giveaway Hop is Clem

Blog Recap:

B #BookReview: Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis
A/A- Joint #BookReview: These Fragile Graces, This Fugitive Heart by Izzy Wasserstein
B #AudioBookReview: A Midnight Puzzle by Gigi Pandian
B+ #BookReview: Fury Brothers: Burn by Anna Hackett
B- #AudioBookReview: The Mystery Writer by Sulari Gentill
Stacking the Shelves (592)

Coming This Week:

The Graveyard of the Hesperides by Lindsey Davis (#BookReview)
Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop
The Underground Library by Jennifer Ryan (#BookReview)
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi (#BookReview)
Fathomfolk by Eliza Chan (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 3-10-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand

First, the BIG NEWS! The week of April 1-5, Reading Reality will be celebrating its “LUCKY” 13th Blogo-Birthday. If you’re new to these pages, you might be wondering what a “Blogo-Birthday” could be. It’s simple, really. Reading Reality dropped its very first post on April 4, 2011 – thirteen years ago. My own birthday is April 5, making the portmanteau word “Blogo-Birthday” as its both the Thirteenth Blogoversary AND my birthday.

It’s a celebration all week long, and I’ll be giving things away (books and/or gift cards to places that sell books – or both) every day that week. Please come and celebrate with me!

In other news, news that’s kind of big. Or at least Tuna is kind of big. The Big Tuna finally figured out that YES! he can fit through the cat flap to the catio. So he’s on the left in this pic, while George is sitting very handsomely on the right. They’ve also become buddies all of a sudden, which is wonderful – although it is a bit startling when the two of them come hurtling through a room in full chase mode as they are 14 pounds of cat EACH!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Lady Luck Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Winter 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Blog Recap:

A- #BookReview: Murder at the Merton Library by Andrea Penrose
B #BookReview: That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Human by Kimberly Lemming
A+ #BookReview: The Truth of the Aleke by Moses Ose Utomi
B #BookReview: The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed
A- #BookReview: The Fox Wife by Yangsze Choo
Stacking the Shelves (591)

Coming This Week:

The Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis (#BookReview)
These Fragile Graces, This Fugitive Heart by Izzy Wasserstein (Joint #BookReview with Amy Daltry)
A Midnight Puzzle by Gigi Pandian (#AudioBookReview)
Fury Brothers: Burn by Anna Hackett (#BookReview)
The Graveyard of the Hesperides by Lindsey Davis (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 3-3-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

I was in a murder-y mood again this week, so I pulled a couple of mysteries out of the virtually towering TBR pile to read until it passes. Also, the next book in the Wrexford & Sloane series, Murder at King’s Crossing, just popped up on Edelweiss and in yesterday’s Stacking the Shelves post, so it seemed like that might be a hint to catch up with the previous book in the series.

I couldn’t resist this shot of Luna artfully posing in the center of the gaming pillow. Lucifer likes to sit ON the pillow while the pillow is sitting around someone’s lap, but Luna has clearly found a much more artistic use for the thing. (BTW, if you are a gamer the pillow is surprisingly helpful. It gives you something to balance your arms and hands on while you’re playing and keeps you from leaning forward too far and messing up your back. A cat sitting on the pillow right in front of you makes it even more difficult to lean over too far – and the cat gets extra pets into the bargain!)

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Lady Luck Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Winter 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Love is in the Air Giveaway Hop is Heather
The winner of the Wish Big Giveaway Hop is Laura D.

Blog Recap:

A- #BookReview: Always Remember by Mary Balogh
Grade A #BookReview: Mastering the Art of French Murder by Colleen Cambridge
C #BookReview: Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum, translated by Shanna Tan
A- #BookReview: Feed Them Silence by Lee Mandelo
Lady Luck Giveaway Hop
Stacking the Shelves (590)

Coming This Week:

Murder at the Merton Library by Andrea Penrose (#BookReview)
That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Human by Kimberly Lemming (#BookReview)
The Graveyard of the Hesperides by Lindsey Davis (#BookReview)
The Truth of the Aleke by Moses Ose Utomi (#BookReview)
The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 2-25-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand

Today’s picture may be George at the vet, but George isn’t the cat who actually went to the vet this weekend. That would be Mr. Lucifer, who gets a shot every month to help him with his arthritis – along with a claw trim because he’s not doing that job nearly well enough himself in his senior years. And he’s a sweet old man and doesn’t protest at all when the vet does it – although he probably would mightily if we did.

George was actually FINE during this visit – he just believes that he’s been betrayed because he got taken in and wasn’t happy about it. Neither was the vet because George is so salty and spicy at the vet’s that they need to drug him to do the exam. George is just a LOT and has a lot of sharp and pointy bits to protest with when he wants to. Lucifer, at this point in his life, just can’t be bothered.

Speaking of things that should be bothered with this week, the Love is in the Air Giveaway Hop ends TOMORROW! and the Wish Big Giveaway Hop ends on Thursday – just in time for the Lady Luck Giveaway Hop to begin on Friday.

Believe it or not – and I’m having a bit of trouble believing it myself – Friday is the first day of MARCH. It feels like this year is already flying by. Also flying by, the number of years that Reading Reality has been part of my life – and hopefully yours as well. Reading Reality’s Lucky 13th Blogo-Birthday Celebration Week begins one month from Friday, on April 1, 2024. Time really does fly when you’re having fun!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Love is in the Air Giveaway Hop (ENDS TOMORROW!!!!!!)
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Wish Big Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Winter 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Blog Recap:

Presidents’ Day 2024 (Guest Post by Galen)
B #BookReview: Village in the Dark by Iris Yamashita
A- #BookReview: The Kamogawa Food Detectives by Hisashi Kashiwai, translated by Jesse Kirkwood
Grade A #BookReview: The Lantern’s Dance by Laurie R. King
B #AudioBookReview: Glory Be by Danielle Arceneaux
Stacking the Shelves (589)

Coming This Week:

Always Remember by Mary Balogh (#BookReview)
Mastering the Art of French Murder by Colleen Cambridge (#Blogtour #BookReview)
Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett (#BookReview)
Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-Reum (#BookReview)
Lady Luck Giveaway Hop