Karen (Witchyrichy) Reads the Days Away in 2026 Part 2

Welcome to my second thread!

I am Karen Richardson, aka Witchyrichy, and this is my 12th year in the 75ers group, and in October 2025, I celebrated my 20th year on LibraryThing. I am continuing to try to retire but teaching online is just too easy to pass up. I get paid to work from home, often in my pajamas.

I live with my husband of 34 years, Bob, Josie the dog and Circe the cat, in a 19th century farmhouse on 18 acres in rural southeast Virginia. Bottle Tree Farm, as we call it, is our own little bit of paradise and came with a library for my books. I have lots of hobbies in addition to reading: book binding, gardening. crocheting, gel printing, and junk journaling are just a few. This year, I want to add quilting to the list. I also play the piano and ukulele.

My husband and I share a love for the outdoors including gardening, birding and exploring. The header includes a picture of my little family sharing the sofa, our farmhouse in the recent snow, and two pictures from our travels around Virginia.

I am looking forward to another great year of reading and sharing.

Ticker

Bingo Card



Features Senior Citizens: The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
Micro-History: Paper: Paging Through History by Mark Kurlansky
Set Entirely Or In Part At Sea: The Wager by David Grann
Dead Author: The Pursuit of Love by Nancy Mitford
Tree On The Cover: Proving Her Claim: On the Dakota Frontier by CK Van Dam
Fairy Tale Or Myth Retelling
Something Living on the Cover: Happy People Read and Drink Coffee by Agnès Martin-Lugand
Award Winner: The Road to Tender Hearts by Annie Hartnett (2025 New England Book Award for Fiction)
"End It": Studies At the School By the Sea by Jenny Colgan
Published Before You Were Born: Love in a Cold Climate by Nancy Mitford
New-To-You-Author: Rachel Reid author of Game Changer
"Green" Book: The Time Hop Coffee Shop by Phaedra Patrick
Read a CAT or KIT: The Wind Knows My Name by Isabelle Allende (AlphaKit May: W/A)
Beautiful Cover: The Bookshop Below by Georgia Summers
Onomatopoeia in the Title: The Zig Zag Girl by Elly Griffiths
Difficult to Categorize: Vigil by George Saunders
Female Author's Debut Novel: Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
Great First Sentence: Yellowface by R.F. Kuang
Indigenous Author: The Lost Journals of Sacajewea by Debra Magpie Earling
Set in Province/State Bordering Your Own: The Buffalo Creek Disaster by Gerald M. Stern
Road Trip Book: My Friends by Fredrik Backman
Mode of Transportation in the Title
Classic from Another Literary Tradition: The Weaverbirds by Yusuf B. Mangunwijaya
Book of Poetry
From an LT Legacy Library: A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn (David Bowie)

January - March
TOTAL: 27

January

Lessons at the School by the Sea by Jenny Colgan (audio)
What You Are Looking For Is In the Library by Michiko Aoyama
Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan
Wide Awake: The Forgotten Force that Elected Lincoln and Spurred The Civil War by Jon Grinspan
The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
Studies At the School By the Sea by Jenny Colgan (audio)
The Queen Who Came in from the Cold by S.J. Bennett
Rez Life by David Treuer
The Something Girl by Jodi Taylor
The Time Hop Coffee Shop by Phaedra Patrick (audio)



February

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang
The Briar Club by Kate Quinn
Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan
Miss Caroline Bingley, Private Investigator by Kelly Gardiner (audio)
The Pursuit of Love by Nancy Mitford
Love In a Cold Climate by Nancy Mitford
The Devil's Bible by Steve Berry



March

The Mitford Affair by Marie Benedict
The Wager by David Grann
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt (audio)
Proving Her Claim: On The Dakota Frontier by CK Van Dam
Game Changer by Rachel Reid
My Friends by Fredrik Backman
The Hidden Palace by Helene Wecker
I See You've Called In Dead by John Kenney
Death of a Wild Swimmer by Peter Boland
Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid

April - June

April - 11

A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn
How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix
His and Hers by Alice Feeney
The Wedding People by Alison Espach
Vigil by George Saunders
In the Belly of the Anaconda by C. Arthur Ellis Jr.
The Zig Zag Girl by Elly Griffiths
Dear Debbie by Frieda McFadden
The Lost Journals of Sacajewea: A Novel by Debra Magpie Earling
The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife by Anna Johnston
Paper: Paging Through History by Mark Kurlansky



May - 9

The Bookshop Below by George Summers
Heart the Lover by Lily King
Happy People Read and Drink Coffee by Agnès Martin-Lugand
The Wind Knows My Name by Isabelle Allende
The Road to Tender Hearts by Annie Hartnett
Witch of Wild Things by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland
The Weaverbirds by Yusuf B. Mangunwijaya
This Book Made Me Think of You by Libby Page
Murder on the Marlow Belle by Robert Thorogood (audio)



June - 12

The Restoration of Celia Fairchild by Marie Bostwick (audio)
The Curse of the Flores Women by Angélica Lopes
The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop by Fannie Flagg
The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict
A Deadly Episode by Anthony Horowitz
Beach Read by Emily Henry
The Last Mandarin by Louise Penny and Melissa Fung
Booked for Murder by P.J. Nelson (audio)
Death on the Lanai by Rachel Ekstrom Courage
Theo of Golden by Allen Levi
The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
All My Bones by P.J. Nelson (audio)
Whose Body in the Library by Eva Gates

July - September

A Great Deliverance by Elizabeth George
The Buffalo Creek Disaster by Gerald M. Stern
Hidden in Smoke by Lee Goldberg

October - December

Hi Karen my dear, Happy New Thread, dear friend.

Happy new thread!

Happy new thread, Karen!

Happy new one, Karen.

Happy New Thread, Karen!

>8 johnsimpson: >9 Storeetllr: >10 drneutron: >11 PaulCranswick: >12 vancouverdeb: Thanks!

I have a couple reviews to write but am in the throes of finishing the spring semester grading and setting up the summer course with the goal of having next week off before I start teaching again. So, today is a nose-to-the-grindstone day.

Happy new thread, Karen. You've done some great reading this year! Good luck with your end-of-semester work. I do not miss the grading.

>14 BLBera: Thanks! I have really just let my intuition be my guide this year for choosing books and so far it has not failed me. I try to keep up throughout the semester so semester-end isn't so bad. It just means I have to put work first.

Heart the Lover was my first Lily King novel. She tells the story of three college friends as they navigate a love triangle. Jordan, the nickname given to her by her friends, narrates the story from the point of view of adult life. Facing her own family struggles, she is pulled back into her old life.

It was an engaging read with all the characters bringing their own quirks and kinks to the story. And, in an age when writers seem to sprawl across the page, King is efficient and effective in her prose.

Writers and Lovers has been on my shelf for a long time so may make it closer to the top of the TBR.

I picked up The Bookshop Below on a whim at the library. Georgia Summers plunges us directly into a magical world where books are used to cast spells and bookshops are powered by a mysterious river that receives the gifts exchanged for the books.

Cassandra Fairfax has remade her life from book thief to book owner and finds herself in the midst of murder and intrigue. The elements of the magical world unfold through the story as we navigate along with Cass. The story centers on "ink magic," a system where magic is derived from a river beneath the bookshops and involves specialized, often dangerous, readings and books.

While I found some of the magical elements a bit confusing, the story of Cassandra's relationship to a rival book shop owner and her book seller bring a compelling human element that pulled me in.

Happy People Read and Drink Coffee, a short novel by Agnès Martin-Lugand translated from French, tells the story of Diane who finds life impossible after the death of her husband and daughter. Even her literary café fails to bring her joy. She escapes to Ireland where she must finally deal with her loss and decide how to move on. The journey includes a challenging neighbor struggling with his own tragedy and loss.

The book is the first in a series, but I'm not sure I need to read the second book. This one was fine but nothing earth shattering. I wondered if the translation left something to be desired as it seemed like people, especially Diane, were "screaming" a lot.

This is a case of buying a book for the title: I read and drink books and I think that makes me happy. But, there was little discussion of book reading or even coffee drinking. Instead, I think the title should have included smoking cigarettes as lots of them were consumed by Diane and her neighbor.

If you liked Heart the Lover, you will love Writers & Lovers.

>16 witchyrichy: I am glad you enjoyed Heart the Lover, Karen . I was not too keen on it.

>19 BLBera: Thanks! I am scanning the shelves right now to see what happened to my copy.

>20 vancouverdeb: It's funny how different books connect with different people. I bought the whole set of Outlander novels because my sister raved about them and never managed to finish the first one. The local bookshop was thrilled when I brought them in to trade.

Happy new thread, Karen! As Beth said, you do seem to be reading some good books so far this year.

>22 atozgrl: Thanks for stopping by! They haven't all been five star but I don't regret reading any of them. I am not good at not finishing books so I will plow through something I'm not loving. I haven't done that at all this year.

>23 witchyrichy: I'm the same way. I'm not good at DNFing books. I had one a month ago or so that was so bad that I might have done it, but I was reading it for a challenge and it was fortunately short. Any longer and I probably would have quit.

In her novel The Wind Knows My Name, Isabel Allende weaves together the stories of Sam Adler and Anita Diaz.

Samuel was part of the kindertransport that rescued Jewish children and sent them to England, leaving their families behind. An accomplished violinist, Adler makes his way to America and eventually to Berkeley, California, where he lives as a widower with a supportive housekeeper.

Anita is a blind five-year-old brought to America in 2019 where her mother is seeking asylum. They are separated, and we follow Anita as she enters the chaos of the immigration system.

Allende's novel was a powerful testimony to the challenges of displacement, war and immigration faced by children. She alternates between the stories of Samuel, Anita, and an immigration advocate named Selena. For the most part, Allende manages a neutral narrator but ever so often, especially as we follow Anita, the mask drops, revealing her anger and frustration with the system.

The Road to Tender Hearts is my RLBG choice for May. Annie Hartnett tells the poignant tale of PJ Halliday's second chance at life. We meet PJ as he heads to his ex-wife's house for breakfast with her and her fiancé. The couple is heading to Alaska for an extended vacation, leaving PJ on his own for the first time in almost forever.

Meanwhile, Luna and Ollie Meeklin, two children who live near PJ in Pondville, Massachusetts, are facing their own challenges.

Eventually, they find themselves in a car heading west along with PJ's daughter Sophie and a cat named Pancakes who has a special talent.

There were twists and turns and grief and sorrow but it was a good story with a satisfying, if surprising ending.

>25 witchyrichy: Oh! You got me with this one, Karen. I have loved all the Allendes I've read, but I haven't read this one yet. It sounds so good, though it may exacerbate my already searing anger at what is happening today.

>26 witchyrichy: I’m on the list for The Road to Tender Hearts at my library. Great review!

Karen O

>27 Storeetllr: She does not pull any punches and is not overly concerned about portraying all points of view. You have been warned.

>28 klobrien2: Thanks! The last book my RLBG read was How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix. Hendrix writes authentic horror stories and my group did not like it at all. I am sure they were relieved with The Road to Tender Hearts and am looking forward to our meeting on Tuesday.

>29 witchyrichy: She never does. :)

>1 witchyrichy: Aww they look so calm and happy sitting together like best pals

Happy new one!

I have never read anything by Hartnett, but this sounds good. I will give it a try.

>31 figsfromthistle: Thanks for stopping by!

>32 BLBera: I didn't make it to book group due to a summer cold but the librarian said their were mixed reactions. I thought it was a lovely balance of grief and joy.

I came up to Pennsylvania on Friday for a ten-day visit to help my parents make the move to their apartment at their retirement community. Unfortunately, my mother ended up in the ER later that night due to breathing issues caused by fluid in her lungs. She is recovering well and will most likely be home tomorrow. Mostly she is bored and cranky; no one would every accuse my mother of being a good patient. My sister came up this afternoon to help with visitation and give Dad and me a break to go to chapel where his men's group was singing.

I have the early shift tomorrow. She is feeling better and not willing to wait around for help getting on and out of bed so needs babysitting. I'll grab a latte at Starbucks and be in the recliner by 7:30 AM. I bought her a cookbook this morning along with some magazines and my sister showed her how to use YouTube.

After a lengthy hold, This Book Made Me Think of You came in just in time for me to bring it along. It is a lovely book to read in my quiet time at the rental cottage.

I finished Witch of Wild Things by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland. It is the first in a series, and I really enjoyed it. Magic realism focused on the Flores women who each bring a special magic into the world. Oldest sister Sage narrates the tale that begins with her return to Cranberry, Virginia, after an eight-year absence following the death of her youngest sister. There is romance and heartache and just a nice story. I have the two sequels on my TBR list.

I believe I have mentioned that, when I visit my parents in Pennsylvania, I rent cottages in the historic community of Mt. Gretna. I am staying in a new one to me this time, and it is charming with beautiful gardens.

I am also testing out the image feature and was able to drag directly from Photos to LibraryThing. What a world! Thanks, @Copperskye!

I hope your mother recovers quickly and that you get some quality reading time in your charming cottage.

Sending healing thoughts to your mother. What a lovely cottage!

>36 BLBera: >37 Storeetllr: She was discharged yesterday morning and seems to be doing great. So, we are back to moving.

I get most afternoons and evenings after dinner to myself. I couldn't decide what to bring for a craft and settled on some paint by numbers that my husband gave me last year. They have a national park theme. Mt. Gretna is an artist's community so it was fun to sit on the porch and paint.

Here's my paint by number:

It is my last day at the cottage as I head home tomorrow. I am ready to sleep in my own bed and just rest after a physically and emotionally challenging ten days.

My sister went home. My parents and I are taking the morning off before meeting for lunch and then doing the last few odds and ends at the old house. I am going to dig up a few plants from dad's garden.

They are mostly settled into the apartment. It is good sized two bedroom on the top floor with a lovely balcony. This is one of those bittersweet moments: they have been in their house on Gatehouse Lane for 20 years. The people on their street are sad to see them go. They do know lots of people in the apartment building and will have easier access to services like the dining room and special events.

I LOVED The Book Made Me Think of You. Libby Page provides the list of 80 books mentioned.

Sounds like it was a lot--but your mom is getting better and the move is done. Nice job Karen. Cute cottage!! Take care of yourself this week.

It sounds like your parents are in a good place, Karen. Safe travels home.

>41 Berly: We ate take out pizza last night and just chilled. I am fortunate to have a good relationship with my parents.

>42 BLBera: Their community is small and fairly close knit. My drive home was uneventful and I am now being pestered by the pets for treats.

I'm glad your parents are settled in their apartment. I know it had to be a lot of work for you and the family. I'm sure they will be better off there at this stage of their lives, even though it's sad to leave their home. I'm also glad to hear your mother is recovering. I hope you will take some time to yourself now for some rest.

>45 atozgrl: Thanks for the good wishes. I talked to them yesterday after I got home and they were doing well. I took your advice and took the day off! Porch sitting, book reading, dog walking and garden viewing. I may do more of the same tomorrow!

>39 witchyrichy: That is a gorgeous paint by number, Karen!

>47 vancouverdeb: Thanks! I am going to start another one this week. It does look better from a few feet away.

The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop returns us to Whistle Stop, Alabama, moving between the present and the past. Once a thriving town with its cafe famous for fried green tomatoes, Whistle Stop is now abandoned. Flagg reminds us of the original story through flashbacks and Dot Weems' newsletter and Christmas letter.

She moves us into the present day using the story of Buddy, Ruth's son. His daughter, Ruth, also plays an important role in connecting the past to the present. And Idgie Threadgoode is very much with us throughout with stories of her tricks and how she still touches the family in surprising ways.

I don't think it was as engaging as Fried Green Tomatoes At the Whistle Stop Cafe, but it was a heartwarming return to a familiar setting with comforting characters. There were a few laugh out loud moments and bittersweet reminders of what we lose and gain as we get older.

I chose to read The Weaverbirds to cross off the bingo square for classic from another literary tradition. The novel is considered a classic of Indonesian literature. It tells the story of Larasati and Setadewa, who grew up together but end up on opposite sides during the tumultuous beginnings of Indonesian independence. The story begins during the Japanese occupation during WW II and moves through the National Revolution and the New Order.

It was fascinating and engaging, covering a part of the world and history that I know little or nothing about. But, it was also an adventure and romance set against the backdrop of the geopolitics. I am grateful to the Bingo card for guiding me to this book that I otherwise would have probably never encountered.

In The Restoration of Celia Fairchild, advice columnist Celia Fairchild returns to her home town of Charleston after her estranged aunt dies, leaving Celia a house full of stuff. Divorced, out of a job, and a bit desperate, Celia dives into restoring the house with a couple of local brothers who use Celia as a bit of an intermediary. As she finds her way, she manages to connect to and create community. Heartwarming happily every after with just the right amount of evil villain threatening the peace. The audio book was excellent.

My second book featuring a family of women named Flores. The Curse of the Flores Women tells the story of a family of lacemakers in a small Brazilian town who are cursed to be unlucky in love. The novel moves between the story of Inês and her friend Eugênia in the early 20th century and Alice Ribeiro in the present day. Alice inherits an intricately woven lace veil that leads her to learn more about her family and these two women.

Angélica Lopes has created richly drawn, complex women who fight for the freedom in a world where they have no rights.

Murder on the Marlow Belle is the latest in the Marlow Murder club series by Robert Thorogood. I have enjoyed the audio versions of these books and this one did not disappoint. This time, we see Judith joining the local theatrical group to see what she can find out about a mysterious death on a tour boat. Twists and turns, including a subplot related to Becks and her concerns about her daughter's boyfriend.

Hi Karen! Happy summer to you. I'm glad your parents are settled into their place and I'm sorry your mother had been unwell. What an adorable little cottage you found!

You got me with >26 witchyrichy: The Road to Tender Hearts. I already have This Book Made Me Think of You on the list!

>54 AMQS: Same to you! I am now at my second adorable cottage as I came up for a few days. Mom is doing better but mostly suffering a bit of stress from moving, which is understandable.

Glad to provide a book suggestion! I seem to be on a trend with good stories about pretty ordinary people who find some magic in their lives.

>55 witchyrichy: It sounds lovely to be at an adorable cottage, Karen. I'm glad you are getting so many good reads in.

Just dropping by to wish you a lovely weekend!

>57 Storeetllr: Thanks! Same to you. I actually have plans besides reading and gardening: on Saturday, I am going with a friend to see the giant Presidents Heads near Williamsburg, Virginia. (NOTE: The title does not include an apostrophe.) They were once a public tourist attraction, but now are on private property and only open a few times a year for viewing. I never went when they were public; now, they are aging in place and I think it will be fascinating.

>56 vancouverdeb: Thanks for stopping by. I am just getting ready to do an update.

>58 witchyrichy: I had no idea such a thing existed. Only quibble: who thought it was a good idea to group Andrew Jackson's with George Washington's and Abe Lincoln's, two of the greatest presidents? He belongs toward the back of the bunch. Oh, well, I hope you enjoy your outing! Bring back pictures!

>60 Storeetllr: The tour guide answered that very question: the current owner, who was hired to demolish them but ended up buying them, liked Jackson's hair and epaulets. He put Jefferson in the back row because the owner was a Virginia Tech graduate.

Click the picture to see the full album. I think I correctly identified most of them. The website has a map.



They will be open over Labor Day and that may be the last time as the land is being sold for development.

>63 witchyrichy: I remember seeing a story about this on a news show or news "magazine" style show. I guess if the land is being sold for development, then the heads are finally going to be destroyed?

>64 atozgrl: Not sure what will happen to them: for now, the county has postponed the vote until October. I think they are trying to figure out what to do with them so they don't have to destroy them. There were two other sets of the heads made, and they are located various places like airports and parks.

The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict was imaginative and fun: historical fiction with a touch of fantasy as Benedict brings together five women mystery writers from the Golden Age--Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham, and Baroness Emma Orczy--to solve a crime and prove their mettle against the men. The women work together to investigate the tragic, highly publicized death of May Daniels—a young nurse who disappeared into a ferry terminal bathroom in France and was later found strangled. Benedict captures each woman as an individual and imagines how they would work as a team.

Great fun! And it opened up several new avenues of reading for me as I have only read Agatha Christie.

A Deadly Episode is number six in the Horowitz/Hawthorne series. Anthony Horowitz is writing a book about writing a book about an investigator named Hawthorne. And now they are involved in making a movie in which the actor playing Hawthorne is murdered. It was a fun installment in the series as we return to Hawthorne's home as a young man and learn a bit more about his all-too-secret past.

Beach Read by Emily Henry is truly a perfect beach read. January Edwards and Augustus "Gus" Everett, authors who write very different types of books, end up in neighboring beach houses in Michigan. They make a bet to each write the others' genre: January will attempt dark, literary fiction, while Gus will try out romance writing. It's Emily Henry so you can probably guess the rest. There are some fun moments with Gus's family and a visit to the site of a creepy cult that Gus plans to use in his novel. We also learn that January and Gus were rivals in college. There are twists and turns and I enjoyed the ride.

>63 witchyrichy: Huh! James Buchanan actually looks kind of creepy…

>68 witchyrichy: I pulled Beach Read off the shelf recently. It does sound like a good beach read (ha!). I’ve yet to read anything by Henry but I know she’s very popular. Glad to see you liked it!

>63 witchyrichy: Great pictures, Karen. You are doing well with your reading.

>68 witchyrichy: This does sound like fun. I haven't read anything by Henry either.

>69 Copperskye: I agree! I felt obligated to include him I am from Pennsylvania and in high school served as a tour guide at Wheatland, his house in Lancaster. We, of course, did not mention his rumored sexuality or his terrible role in the run up to the Civil War.

>70 vancouverdeb: Thanks! I have been trying to read more and scroll less! Hope you are well.

>69 Copperskye: >71 BLBera: I had only ever read Book Lovers and remembered liking it. She manages to add some intrigue and twists to the standard kind of romance. But you are also guaranteed a happy ending and I really need that these days!

I am a huge Louise Penny so was excited to read a new book while I wait for the next Inspector Gamache. She partnered with Melissa Fung to create an edge-of-your-set thriller about what happens when rogue agents gain control of the world's systems. Within seconds of the opening of the novel, all the alarms in the world have been set off. China seems to be the culprit but it is up to estranged mother-daughter duo—Chinese dissident Vivien Li and her food blogger daughter, Alice to find out what is really going on. Fast-paced but a human element that kept my interest. Maybe a little disconcerting as the escalating attacks seem only a bit outlandish.

I made two road trip in a month and found this new series in Hoopla, my go-to app for audio books. P.J. Nelson introduces us to Madeline Brimley who returns to her hometown in Georgia to take over her eccentric Aunt Rose's bookshop. Like her aunt, she left town to pursue an acting career that is slowly coming end. Within hours of arriving, Madeline finds herself embroiled in mystery and murder.

Both books--Booked for Murder and All My Bones--were good if not stunning: classic cozy mysteries with a bit of romance and small town eccentrics mixed in, including her aunt's psychology professor friend and a local Episcopalian priest. I may listen to the third one on my upcoming road trip.

About this time last year, I sat on the porch of a cottage in Mt. Gretna and read a book I picked up at Target on my trip north. Murder by Cheesecake by Rachel Ekstrom Courage featured the Golden Girls--remember them?--as the main characters and I was right back at 6151 Richmond Street laughing and crying and bickering with those wonderful women. Courage must have spent hours watching the shows as she captured each character perfectly.

They are back in Death on the Lanai; this time, Dorothy, Blanche, Rose and Sophia are invited to a mysterious party on a private island where Blanche is reunited with an old lover, a renowned artist who used Blanche as his muse. He turns up dead and the foursome sets to work to figure out what happened, knowing they are trapped on the island with a murderer.

I will read the next one, if there is one.

>74 witchyrichy: I agree about happy endings, Karen! It seems like you've found some good cozy series. I will have to look for them.

I was out early to walk the dog, water the pots, and feed the hummingbirds. Now hunkered down inside watching tennis and playing with paper crafts.



Here's another cozy series that I keep up with every year: Eva Gates (aka Vicki Delaney writes the Lighthouse Library series, set on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The library in question is in the Bodie Island Lighthouse. There is also an apartment. All a figment of Gates' imagination but still fun to think about.

Whose Body In the Library is the 13th book in the series. We have followed Lucy the librarian since she arrived in North Carolina after fleeing an unhappy engagement. Now, she is married and juggling her newborn twins. So, Gates makes an interesting twist in the series by introducing a new character, Nichelle, who joins the staff after Lucy is promoted to director.

Nichelle pretty quickly finds a body and then begins to suspect it is her long lost father. And the mystery begins. All the usual quirky characters are still around and I settled in to one of my favorite reads. While the story is mostly told from Nichelle's perspective, there are a few chapters where Lucy is the focus of the third person narrative. It flowed along just fine.

>63 witchyrichy: Wow. Those presidential heads - all together like that - are pretty darn impressive, and I can't help but feel sad that they are probably going to be destroyed. Thanks for the pics!

Theo of Golden is a fascinating book that moves between reality and allegory with Theo being our guide between the two. Theo's arrival in the small town of Golden comes with little fanfare until he begins to buy up the portraits in the local coffee shop and bestow them on the subjects. As he shares the drawings, he gets to know the people behind the pictures, and his life and theirs often change as a result. Theo is mostly a mystery to the townspeople and the reader although we get glimpses into his life as the novel progresses.

Allen Levi uses Theo to teach lessons about how to deal with the hardships of life, but does so in a gentle way. There is some talk of Heaven but the main theme is how human beings can learn to love and connect with each other.

The ending includes a several shocking twists that left me thinking about the book long after I finished reading it.

In The House in the Cerulean Sea, TJ Klune weaves a fantastical and fun tale. Linus Baker is a lonely man who works as a caseworker tasked with investigating the orphanages where magical children and youth reside. When he is sent to a far away island that is home to six "dangerous" magical children, he begins to question his work and his life. Klune explores what is means to be an outsider and how we create families. I loved it and am looking forward to the sequel.

I have never read Elizabeth George's Lynley and Havers series but found a whole shelf of the paperbacks at the thrift shop. I bought the first one--A Great Deliverance--and will be heading back to the thrift shop next week to see if the rest of them are still there! It was most definitely NOT a cozy mystery: Lynley and Havers are called to investigate the gruesome decapitation of a local farmer in Yorkshire.

George has created complex and complicated characters in aristocrat Thomas Lynley and working class Barbara Havers. Their relationship starts on a bad foot as Havers is brought out of uniform to partner with Lynley. The latter has a well-deserved reputation as a lothario and Havers has her own ideas why she was chosen. We are taken into their minds as they try to work out the mystery and their own insecurities and traumas.

I did a bit of searching for a book set in a state next to my own to fill in my bingo card. I could have gone with Anne Tyler whose many books are often set in Maryland but as I poked around, I discovered The Buffalo Creek Disaster by Gerald M. Stern. Stern, a former Civil Rights lawyer for the federal government, became the main legal representative for West Virginia coal mining families whose lives and communities were devastated by a horrible flood when a dam made of coal mining debris failed. Rather than coal miners who died, the victims were mothers and children who were at home when the black water pushed into their homes.

Stern tells the legal story in a way that connects with the reader, the same way he worked to tell the story of the disaster in a way that jurors could understand. He pulled the curtain back on the way the legal system actually works and why it often seems to be against the working people. This case became one of the foundations for the development of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as Stern and his colleagues focused on the mental impact of the disaster as many of the plaintiffs hadn't actually been injured or even in the valley during the flood. But they still suffered from survivor's guilt and the loss of their way of life.

I realized I never reviewed This Book Made Me Think of You. I mentioned that it was a lovely read and it continued to be so. There was grief as Tilly faces the death of her husband. But Joe had time to prepare a journey for her, a year in books picked up each month at a local bookshop where Alfie struggles to make a living.

Each chapter opens with a list of books that meet the theme. Then one book becomes the focus. Author Libby Page has posted all 80 books that are mentioned on her Substack page.

>85 witchyrichy: That is an interesting premise and the Substack page with its list is of course, for me, irresistible!
I have read 19 of the 80 books she listed.

Hope all is well with you, Karen. xx

>82 witchyrichy: This book was so amazing!

>86 PaulCranswick: I haven't checked to see how many I have read but I know it was at least one per chapter.

All is well and hope the same to you.

>87 The_Hibernator: It was, wasn't it? I liked how Klune just dropped the reader in this world and let is up to us to find our place and understand what was happening.

Hidden in Smoke by Lee Goldberg is the third in his Sharpe & Walker series. While there is a crossover with his Eve Ronin series, this set of books focuses on arson investigation. I have enjoyed all three, and it is worth reading them from the beginning as there are plot lines that move through the books. Sharpe is a genius investigator whose arrogance doesn't make him any friends in the Los Angeles fire and police departments. Walker joined the team after giving up a more dangerous life as a US Marshal. Goldberg gets beyond the mystery investigation to create complicated characters whose personal lives sometimes inform their work.

There is talk of a fourth book but I don't see a pre-release date. I may have to check out the Eve Ronin books to tide me over.

I am back in Pennsylvania for a visit with family and an old friend. I postponed the trip for a day as Mt. Gretna, the small community where I stay, had a major power outage after a ferocious storm went through on Saturday. The power was still out when I arrived but came on within the hour. We had another thunderstorm early this morning but the power stayed on.

I am watching tennis and chilling out before heading over for lunch with my parents and afternoon Bible study with my mother and her friends. There is something enlightening about spending the day with elderly people. It can be frustrating--they talk a lot about their ailments--but it is also a learning experience for how to face the inevitable.

I listened to The Widows' Guide to Murder by Amanda Ashby. It is the first in the Widows' Detective Club series and I am finding it so much fun! The narrator is Diana Croft and she is fabulous, adopting accents for all the quirky characters, especially the widows.

Sixty-year-old Ginny Cole moves to a small village after the death of her husband. She takes a job at the library only to find her prickly boss lying dead on the second day. Then, she meets the widows, who one village member calls "unhinged." That is not a bad description. It reminds me a bit of the Marlow Murder series. There are three more in the series and I am adding them to my "to listen" list.