The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 12-10-23

Posted on December 10, 2023December 9, 2023 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand

Today is the third day of Hanukkah, a particularly fraught Hanukkah considering events, not just in the Middle East but also the responses here in the U.S. and elsewhere this year. While the presentation of the image below may be on the cute side, the message should be universal – and is much needed.

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Holly Jolly Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Fall 2023 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Let It Snow Giveaway Hop

Blog Recap:

A Review: Role Playing by Cathy Yardley
A++ Review: Murder Crossed Her Mind by Stephen Spotswood
A- Review: The Christmas Appeal by Janice Hallett
Let It Snow Giveaway Hop
A- Review: The Hero She Needs by Anna Hackett
Stacking the Shelves (578)

Coming This Week:

We Are the Crisis by Cadwell Turnbull (audio review)
The Good, the Bad, and the Uncanny edited by Jonathan Maberry (review)
Seven of Infinities by Aliette de Bodard (review)
To Kingdom Come by Will Thomas (review)
Death in the Dark Woods by Annelise Ryan (review)

Stacking the Shelves (578)

Posted on December 9, 2023December 7, 2023 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | Stacking the Shelves

This stack of covers isn’t so much pretty as it is evocative. The Barker & Llewelyn covers do an excellent job of invoking the time and place and projecting the sense of dark mystery, the London Ladies’ Murder Club covers pretty much scream the 1920s while the cover of Paladin’s Faith fits right in with the rest of the Saint of Steel series.

Speaking of Paladin’s Faith, that’s the book in this stack that I’m MOST looking forward to. I’m planning to treat myself with it over the holidays.

ghosts of honolulu by mark harmon and leon carroll audio

For Review:
A Body on the Doorstep (London Ladies’ Murder Club #1) by Marty Wingate
A Body at the Séance (London Ladies’ Murder Club #2) by Marty Wingate
Ghosts of Honolulu by Mark Harmon and Leon Carroll, Jr. (audio)
Lore of the Wilds by Analeigh Sbrana

Purchased from Amazon/Audible/Etc.:
Blood is Blood (Barker & Llewelyn #10) by Will Thomas
Hell Bay (Barker & Llewelyn #8) by Will Thomas
Old Scores (Barker & Llewelyn #9) by Will Thomas
Paladin’s Faith (Saint of Steel #4) by T. Kingfisher
Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor (audio)

If you want to find out more about Stacking The Shelves, please visit the official launch page

Please link your STS post in the linky below:

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 12-3-23

Posted on December 3, 2023December 2, 2023 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

I had a bit of a “bail and flail” this week, and it made me think of an opinion piece on a review blog that I follow, Crossing the Pond Reviews. The author of the piece was talking about when it’s time NOT to read a book, and that fit perfectly with one of the books I intended to read this week – because I’d read the first two in the series – and I finally came to the conclusion that this particular book needed to go in my ‘Not Finished Yet’ or NFY pile. I DID read the first two, and I did like them both in the end, but I just wasn’t in the mood this week – or possibly this month – for a dystopia that was just that far down the road. I do want to find out how it ends, but not right now.

I kind of had the same reaction this week as one of the books I was planning to review this week got yeeted to the NFY pile before you even saw the list. The tone was just too arch, like way, way too high of an arch, and I’m not in the mood. We’ll see if what you see here is what you get later by this time next week!

The above picture is Hecate, posing in a very pretty little curl. But not nearly so little as the first time we captured her picture in this kind of curl – which Galen actually has on a t-shirt. Still, she’s a very pretty cat, albeit more than a bit on the round side these days, and this curl pose shows off all the beautiful colors on her hidden side.

Stacking the Shelves (577)

Posted on December 2, 2023December 1, 2023 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | Stacking the Shelves

Not a lot of review copies in this stack, but I’ve clearly given in, or leaned in, or both, to my love of the Barker & Llewelyn series and am in the process of collecting the ones I don’t have eARCs of, which is unfortunately most of them. So there’s that. The prettiest cover ‘award’ certainly goes to A Botanist’s Guide to Society and Secrets, but all the covers in that series have been pretty – even if the plants and flowers pictured thereon are of the deadly and poisonous variety.

Normal Women is a book that made my curiosity bump itch, because we all have ideas and beliefs about exactly what roles average, “normal” women played in history, and I’m hoping to learn something of how much of that popular opinion is remotely correct. We’ll see.

botanists guide to society and secrets by kate khavari

For Review:
A Botanist’s Guide to Society and Secrets (Saffron Everleigh #3) by Kate Khavari
The Hero She Needs (Unbroken Heroes #1) by Anna Hackett
Normal Women by Philippa Gregory

Purchased from Amazon/Audible/Etc.:
The Black Hand (Barker & Llewellyn #5) by Will Thomas
Fatal Enquiry (Barker & Llewellyn #6) by Will Thomas
The Hellfire Conspiracy (Barker & Llewellyn #4) by Will Thomas
The Limehouse Text (Barker & Llewellyn #3) by Will Thomas
Murder Your Employer by Rupert Holmes

If you want to find out more about Stacking The Shelves, please visit the official launch page

Please link your STS post in the linky below:

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 11-26-23

Posted on November 26, 2023November 25, 2023 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand

It feels like Thanksgiving was early this year. So early, in fact, that there’s nearly and entire additional week of November coming this post-Thanksgiving Day week!

But I couldn’t let the week pass without giving away a little extra something, so Friday’s review of the seasonally apropos Evergreen Chase included a bit of a giveaway to mark the unofficial yet official beginning of the holiday season.

Before this weekend completely slips away, here’s a picture of Tuna being very Tuna, whether he’s showing off his own version of a turkey coma or just being his usual silly self, this was a pose that I absolutely could not resist!

Current Giveaways:

$5 Gift Card or $5 Book in Reading Reality’s Black Friday Giveaway
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the In All Things Give Thanks Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Super Stocking Stuffer Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Fall 2023 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Blog Recap:

A+ Review: Some Danger Involved by Will Thomas
B- Review: Stephen Leeds: Death and Faxes by Brandon Sanderson
B Review: Chaos Terminal by Mur Lafferty
Thanksgiving 2023 (Guest Post by Galen)
B Review: Evergreen Chase by Juneau Black + Giveaway
Stacking the Shelves (576)

Coming This Week:

Anything with Nothing edited by Mercedes Lackey (review)
Uncanny Vows by Laura Anne Gilman
Hercule Poirot’s Silent Night by Sophie Hannah
Sunset, Water City by Chris McKinney
Holly Jolly Giveaway Hop

Stacking the Shelves (576)

Posted on November 25, 2023November 23, 2023 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | Stacking the Shelves

First and most definitely foremost, I hope that everyone had a GREAT turkey day, whether there was turkey on the menu or not!

For a work week that was only THREE days long, a surprising amount of stuff showed up on Edelweiss and NetGalley. Which I am, of course, VERY thankful for!

After absolutely LOVING the first book in the Barker & Llewelyn series, Some Danger Involved, earlier this week, of course I bought the next book in the series! But the book I’m also really looking forward to in this stack is Murder at the White Palace, the 6th book in the Sparks & Bainbridge historical mystery series. That series has been terrific from the very first book, The Right Sort of Man, so I’m eager to see what happens to our intrepid duo next.

The book I’m most curious about is Pets and the City. It’s nonfiction, the autobiographical account of a vet who makes house calls in Manhattan – as the full title clearly states. I’m curious because this is not the first book that I’ve seen telling that story. Dr. Louis J. Camuti wrote his tales of calling on tails and fins and fangs in Manhattan back in 1980 under the hilariously true title of All My Patients Are Under the Bed. I remember those tales and those patients very fondly, and still have a copy of the book – assuming the cats haven’t either chewed it to scrap or peed on it somewhere along the way. But all of that means I’m really curious to see how much as changed and how much remains the same. For example, I wouldn’t be at all surprised to learn that all of Dr. Attas’ patients are ALSO under the bed!

murder at the white palace by allison montclair

same bed different dreams by ed park audio

For Review:
The Emperor and the Endless Palace by Justinian Huang
Fathomfolk (Drowned World #1) by Eliza Chan
Foul Days (Witch’s Compendium of Monsters #1) by Genoveva Dimova
In Our Stars (Doomed Earth #1) by Jack Campbell
Murder at the White Palace (Sparks & Bainbridge #6) by Allison Montclair
Pets and the City: True Tales of a Manhattan House Call Veterinarian by Amy Attas
Same Bed Different Dreams by Ed Park (audio)
A True Account by Katherine Howe (audio)

Purchased from Amazon/Audible/Etc.:
To Kingdom Come (Barker & Llewelyn #2) by Will Thomas

If you want to find out more about Stacking The Shelves, please visit the official launch page

Please link your STS post in the linky below:

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 11-19-23

Posted on November 19, 2023November 18, 2023 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

This was one of those weeks where what I thought I was going to post was what I actually posted. Admittedly, that’s mostly because it was already mostly done at the beginning of the week. It was just that kind of week. This coming week has a bit more uncertainty in it, but I’ve already finished Monday’s book and DAMN that was good. You’ll see.

On the subject of seeing and not seeing, I realized that you’d all been seeing a lot of pictures of Luna and Tuna because they’re willing to pose – or at least sit still – for the human in ‘camera position’. But I caught Lucifer dozing on top of my gaming pillow, and he was too comfy to run off as Galen and I fiddled with lights and camera phones in order to get a shot where it at least looked like he had eyes. Without extra lights his handsome face was just a void. Which, may be a perfect description but not nearly as photogenic as what I had in mind!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Super Stocking Stuffer Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the In All Things Give Thanks Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Fall Seasons of Books 2023 Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Thanks a Latte Giveaway Hop is Heather

Blog Recap:

A- Review: System Collapse by Martha Wells
A- Review: The Star and the Strange Moon by Constance Sayers
A+ Review: Calamity by Constance Fay
In All Things Give Thanks Giveaway Hop
B+ Review: The Wishing Bridge by Viola Shipman
Stacking the Shelves (575)

Coming This Week:

Some Danger Involved by Will Thomas (review)
Chaos Terminal by Mur Lafferty (review)
Stephen Leeds: Death and Faxes by Brandon Sanderson (audio review)
Thanksgiving 2023 (Guest Post by Galen)
Evergreen Chase by Juneau Black (review)

Stacking the Shelves (575)

Posted on November 18, 2023November 17, 2023 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | Stacking the Shelves

For a not very tall stack it has a lot of fascinating books in it!

The prettiest cover is a dead heat between The Fallen Fruit and The Spellshop. The hands-down best, I’m picking this book for its title award goes to How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying. That title is hard to beat on a whole bunch of fronts – unless, of course, one actually succeeds in becoming the Dark Lord and doesn’t die trying. We’ll see.

I’ve been stalking NetGalley in the hopes that my request for the audio of We Are the Crisis would get approved – and it finally did. I started it immediately and am just as immersed as I was in the first book, No Gods, No Monsters. I can see a lot of solitaire in my future so that I can listen to it faster.

This coming Thursday is Thanksgiving, which means that the holiday season will officially commence. I don’t know about you, but the holidays have certainly snuck up on me this year. I’m definitely looking forward to a lot of extra reading opportunities in the weeks ahead.

we are the crisis by cadwell turnbull audio

practice the horizon and the chain by sofia samatar

how to become the dark lord and die trying by django wexler

For Review:
The Fallen Fruit by Shawntelle Madison
How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying by Django Wexler
The Queen of Poisons (Marlow Murder Club #3) by Robert Thorogood
Rakesfall by Vajra Chandrasekera
The Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain by Sofia Samatar
Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky
The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst
Sunbringer (Fallen Gods #2) by Hannah Kaner
We Are the Crisis (Convergence Saga #2) by Cadwell Turnbull (audio)

If you want to find out more about Stacking The Shelves, please visit the official launch page

Please link your STS post in the linky below:

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 11-12-23

Posted on November 12, 2023November 11, 2023 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand

I’m in the midst of a ‘reading weekend’ for Library Journal, so this past week fell apart at the end because my ’round tuit’ broke and that ‘so many books, so little time’ thing absolutely bit me in the ass. I needed to get started earlier than I planned and I just didn’t have another book in me, so the results of a previous LJ reading weekend appeared on Friday. I still plan to get to Chaos Terminal, but it will be later in the month.

Today’s cat picture is Luna, who both looks like she’s posing for her closeup AND reminding everyone that cat people are never permitted to go to the bathroom alone. She’s multitasking – that thing I kind of failed at earlier this week.

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Thanks a Latte Giveaway Hop (ENDS WEDNESDAY!)
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Super Stocking Stuffer Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Fall Seasons of Books 2023 Giveaway Hop

Blog Recap:

A- Review: Twilight Falls by Juneau Black
Spotlight + Excerpt: The Wishing Bridge by Viola Shipman
B Review: A Power Unbound by Freya Marske
Super Stocking Stuffer Giveaway Hop
B Review: The Lost Cause by Cory Doctorow
Stacking the Shelves (574)

Coming This Week:

System Collapse by Martha Wells (review)
The Star and the Strange Moon by Constance Sayers (review)
Calamity by Constance Fay (review)
In All Things Give Thanks Giveaway Hop
The Wishing Bridge by Viola Shipman (blog tour review)

Stacking the Shelves (574)

Posted on November 11, 2023November 10, 2023 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | Stacking the Shelves

Today is Veterans Day in the U.S., and Remembrance Day in the U.K. and much of the British Commonwealth. This holiday, which recognizes the service of all military veterans, was first celebrated as Armistice Day to commemorate the end of World War I at the “eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month” of 1918. A conflict which unfortunately did not turn out to be “war to end all wars.”

World War I Books for Soldiers poster from the Library of Congress Collection.

Speaking of books, because that’s most of what we do here at Reading Reality. this is another short stack that got embiggened a bit because the original few looked so lonely. I’m also “auditioning” a couple of series as possible comfort reads as I’m just about caught up with Wrexford & Sloane.

I’ve heard good things about the Barker & Llewelyn series, I have a few in eARCs and they’re Victorian, so more Holmes’ era than either Wrexford & Sloane or Sebastian St. Cyr. So we’ll see. I’m also looking back at Barbara Hambly’s Benjamin January series, set in the 1830s in New Orleans and thereabouts. I read the first, it looks like ten, books in the series, beginning with A Free Man of Color (which describes Benjamin January’s situation rather succinctly if not completely) back when they first came out, but it fell by the reading wayside in that torrent of ‘so many books, so little time’. But my memory says the series is absolutely worth picking up again, so I’ll have to see if that memory is playing me true or false in the months ahead.