liz4444's virtual coffee shop thought spot 2022

hi! starting a thread here, I'm a big Neil Gaiman and Erin Morgenstern fan, so I will definitely be putting stuff about that in here, as well as general reading journey updates!

quick question for anyone who stops by - if you could be a bridge from any book, which bridge would you be and why? (if you can't think of a bridge, any special place would do)

I'm always looking for more lgbt books to read; here's a list of the ones I've read so far and whether I'm planning on re-reading them or not!

One Last Stop
Cute romantic comedy, the relationship was really well written. I loved the main character and all of her friends, and there were wonderfully unexpected magical elements woven in. Made me feel all the emotions!! About falling in love with a mystery girl on the subway in NYC. Absolute favorite.
Would re-read

Something to Talk About by Meryl Wilsner
I had a great time reading! Cute romcom story about two women falling in love in a work environment despite obstacles along the way.
Maybe re-read

Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
Well written and very long. It was a bit slow to start but I really enjoyed it. Fairly highly descriptive. Victorian period-piece. Lots of betrayal, intrigue, romance, more betrayal, more romance, all the works. I really enjoyed it, but did not see this plot coming at all! Definitely very unique, kind of dark, but very good. I would re-read it, but once you know all of the twists I think it would be less fun the second time.
Wouldn't re-read

Summer of Salt, Katrina Leno
So freaking cute. Magic, set on an island, romance, friendship, the whole works. I read this a while ago, so I can't remember a bunch but. Definitely YA, for a younger audience.
Would re-read
Reminds me of The House in the Cerulean Sea
Also makes me think of the movie Practical Magic with Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman.

The Priory of the Orange Tree
Beautifully written! All of the characters and their individual story lines and the way they came together was masterful. Romance is in the book, but there is also so much more going on! Dragons, magic, a cool orange tree, an incredible final battle. This book is pretty long but didn't feel as long as it was, and I loved that there wasn't really any drama around being lgbt, it just existed naturally within this fantasy world.
Would re-read

Honey Girl by Morgan Rogers
Romantic comedy plotline of accidentally getting married to a stranger in Vegas. It's so sweet. There is a lot of internal conflict and reflection, this book was so kind to my soul. This book is a pretty quick read, but definitely worth it.
Would re-read

The House in the Cerulean Sea
So adorable. I loved this book so much, all of the characters are hilarious and it's very heartwarming. I loved the atmosphere of this story too, I could totally hear the ocean the entire time.
Would re-read

Hello to your new topic.

Nice new thread. Welcome. Your question takes me first to Alexander’s Bridge, in Willa Cather’s first novel. But I wouldn’t want to be that bridge. An Orchestra of Minorities by Chigozie Obioma has a bridge in its opening scene, a terrific and also somewhat disturbing scene with a suicide theme. Again, not sure I would want to be that bridge, in Nigeria, but I loved the scene.

>4 dchaikin: Interesting answer! I'm in the same boat myself. I can think of bridges, but I'm not sure if I'd want to be the bridges. A lot of book bridges are very foreboding

My favorite murder mystery genre is isolated island murder, preferably rainy, windswept, but ok if not. There's And then there were none, of course, but some other books I've read that fit the bill are The Guest List, Pretty as a Picture, and Death in the Family.
I'm always looking for more books that involve rainy island murder, recommendations are more than welcome!

>6 liz4444: You may want to check The Decagon House Murders (non-spoilery review: https://www.librarything.com/work/16193646/reviews/202311013)

Great start to your new thread. All the bridges I can think of are not happy ones: Bridge of San Luis Rey, Bridge to Terabithia, Bridge of Birds (disliked that book), Bridge over River Kwai, The Invisible Bridge, Bridge on the Drina, and most recently the bridge in Anxious People. Not sure if that is representative of how bridges are depicted in literature or just the type of literature I read. :-)

Just so long as I don't have to be Mrs. Bridge.

>1 liz4444: The only one I can think of would be the bridge in Rivendell (Lord of the Rings), at least it has a beautiful view :-)

>2 liz4444: Great list, thank you! I am currently listening to When Harry met Harry by Sydney Smyth, apparently it is an audible only work and not available as an ebook or in print. I am not generally a rom com reader, but I am enjoying it.
The Priory of the Orange Tree is waiting on my shelf.

>7 AnnieMod: this looks awesome, I will totally read it! thank you!

>8 labfs39: I feel that! Maybe because bridges are easily made into something transformative, authors make them foreboding? I've been thinking of the Night's Bridge from Neverwhere in London below, which is also kind of spooky but in a cool magical way. I would maybe be that bridge. It could be cool to be a spooky bridge

>10 MissBrangwen: this is a wonderful answer, omg, I forgot about the bridges there.
Would you want to be this Rivendell bridge...


Or the one in the back over the waterfall?

>11 liz4444: I was thinking about the one over the waterfall.

Coincidentally, the topic of the year book of the German Tolkien Society is "Bridges and Borders". It is the 2020 year book, but it was just sent out because they are a bit behind due to Covid difficulties. I am looking forward to reading some interpretations of this bridge or any other bridges in Middle-earth when I get to this book.

Happy Thanksgiving to those who celebrate! Some reading updates -

I'm getting into the winter holiday spirit right now by listening to the audiobook for The Dark is Rising. I like it so far, and don't mind as much that it is a kids fantasy book. There are a lot of plot points that feel a bit too convenient, like how they download information into Keanu's mind in The Matrix, though those scenes are much more fleshed out in The Matrix and are pretty awesome. It's definitely not a deal breaker in The Dark is Rising. The imagery and atmosphere are absolutely amazing. There's something more essence of storytelling in it, whatever that means. Maybe because it is a children's book.

I finished listening to The Thursday Murder Club. I really enjoyed it! It's not the kind of book I normally go for, but I had a good time with it. I've heard one of the later books is the best, so I might keep on with the series if I ever need an audiobook.

I've pushed off on finishing The Shadow of the Wind and The Little Stranger for now, I've been trying to read too much at once I think and will need to come back to The Shadow of the Wind at a later time, I've been reading too many books that take extra focus and want to indulge in easier reads for a while.

It's also surprised me that I've been thinking about The Secret History by Donna Tartt a lot recently. I think the atmosphere of the book is coming back to me a lot as fall is getting colder and moving into winter. It wasn't too long ago that I read it, but I'm feeling a bit nostalgic for it now even though I definitely wouldn't consider it a favorite.

I've also put Red Dragon and Anansi Boys down for a while, as I have my own physical copies of those books and too many e-and-audio books with a due date to catch up on.

>12 MissBrangwen: Oh lovely!! I would love to hear more about middle-earth bridges. Someone asked me several years ago what bridge I would be if I could be any bridge, and I interpreted it as a book question and have been thinking about it ever since. I love this Rivendell waterfall bridge answer :)

Last year I read several horror books, so I thought I'd drop a list so anyone who's read them can recommend anything similar!

The Return Rachel Harrison - this book had such vivid, horrifying descriptions. I kept trying to read this book while eating and had to take so many breaks because it just wasn't good lunch reading. Combined with little reveals about the main character's personality and intrusive thoughts, this book was very unsettling.. I also read Cackle by the same author, but I wouldn't count that as horror.

Home Before Dark Riley Sager - I enjoyed this one. Was a bit more fun and a bit less unsettling, but I had fun reading.

Wonderland Zoje Stage - this book was really out there. I was not expecting it to turn in the direction it did, but I was on the edge of my seat the whole way.

Mexican Gothic Silvia Moreno-Garcia - I really loved reading this, it was so suspenseful and trippy. I will definitely be re-reading this at some point.

Mostly unrelated to horror, but I read this book around the same time as all the ones above and wanted to mention it in case anyone else has. Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts was so much fun.

>2 liz4444: omg I loved Fingersmith, one of my all time fav historical novels. Even tho I know the twists, I still like rereading it. Also loved The House in the Cerulean Sea for so many reasons (being a special ed teacher made me esp sympathetic to the 'auditor' who really was trying to help, and ultimately did. We all do what we can)

>1 liz4444: quick question for anyone who stops by - if you could be a bridge from any book, which bridge would you be and why? (if you can't think of a bridge, any special place would do)

Can you explain this more, not sure I understand

>14 liz4444: I don’t remember how I stumbled across this book. I had no idea it was classified as horror but I liked it very much. - Follow Me to Ground

>16 cindydavid4: Any bridge from a book, whether its an actual bridge written about or a fictional bridge. Someone asked me what bridge I would want to be a few years ago and I'm still stuck on it, so I put the question here in book-context!

Ah ok then. Cant really think of any one, I;ll wait and see what others say to help me remember ones in books

>17 dianeham: Definitely will check this out!

>17 dianeham: this looks really interesting! I think I saw it in the library recently, I will definitely check it out. Cool magical concept.