Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week is a Halloween Freebie. However, in October 2023 one of the themes was Books with Weather Events in the Title/on the Cover. At the time, I put this list of books together but I never got around to adding the commentary and pictures or posting it....until now! It's a bit scary that it has been sitting in draft all this time. See what I did there?
I am starting with some wind and storms, then moving onto sun, rain and snow.
Ill Wind by Rachel Caine - Rachel Caine has a whole series of books called the Weather Warden series that I could have picked for this prompt. This is the first book in the series. (my review)
Season of Storms by Susanna Kearsley - One of the lesser know Kearsley books but, as always, I couldn't resist the urge to include one of her books. Unusually for Kearsley this book is set in Rome.
A Taste of Italian Sunshine by Leonie Mack - Wine making in Italy. Yes please! (my review)
Under a Greek Sun by Mandy Baggot - Moving on from Italy, this is set on a Greek island (my review)
An Island in the Sun by Kate Frost - Another country, another island. This time it was Portugal. (my review)
Floodtide by Judy Nunn - I read this years ago and don't remember much about it other than one particular scene. Looking at my rating on Goodreads I didn't like it at all, but the title fits the theme.
The Right Attitude to Rain by Alexander McCall Smith - This is the third book in the Isabel Dalhousie mystery series set in Edinburgh. (my review)
Midnight in the Snow by Karen Swan - In the past this author put out a summer book and a winter book. Guess which one this was.
Snowy Mountain Cattleman by Alissa Callen - The Snowy Mountains are actually a place in this instance, but they do get a lot of snow. This is the second book in the Bundilla series.
The Secret of Snow by Viola Shipman - I still haven't gotten over not enjoying the last Viola Shipman book I read. This one wasn't bad though.
As I mentioned last week, the theme for our next read on a theme book club is war. I probably have at least 50 options already on my Kindle to fit that theme so I suspect that I will be reading multiple books again this month. I have already read the first which was The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn. I had this from Netgalley before it was even released. I do intend to write a review. Do you think it's too late to add feedback now?
I also read Over the Sea to Skye this week. This is the third book in the Skye Sisters trilogy and I enjoyed it. My review will be up later this week.
On audio, I finished The Mirror by Nora Roberts, the second book in the Lost Brides trilogy. The final book comes out later this year and I am looking forward to seeing how she wraps the story up. I have no idea what book I am going to listen to next. I have so many options and I can't make a decision. I did look at all the books I have nominated for 20 Books of Winter, but I already own them all or at least have them out of the library.
I also finished The Page Turner by Viola Shipman Normally l love this author but this one didn't work for me. It did, however, have some great quotes about books and reading. Here's just one
"Sometimes we forget why we read," my mother says as if to herself. "Sometimes it is to walk in someone else's shoes for a while. Sometimes it is to travel to a place or time we never will. Sometimes it is to get angry or more informed. And sometimes it's simply to escape, smile and be offered a little bit of hope so it's possible to go on in this world."
I was excited to attend the launch event for Jodie McAlister's new book, An Academic Affair. I am really looking forward to reading this one! It sounds so good!
I'm watching
I watched a French movie called Siddonie in Japan. It was a very quiet movie about an author who goes on a book tour to Japan. However, the ghost of her husband starts to appear to her as she begins to have feelings for her publisher. She visits some of the same places we went to in Japan. Only difference....there were no crowds! Here's the trailer
Life
It's been a very social long weekend here. Today is a public holiday to celebrate the King's Birthday (it's not his actual birthday) but it was mine! I was out for lunch and dinner on Friday, then we went to Geelong for lunch, and then to an engagement party and then brunch on both Sunday and Monday! Now I am ready for a good lay down!
Everything at the lunch at Geelong was delicious, and the view is pretty spectacular too!
This was another week where I started more than I finished. Whilst that isn't a terrible thing it also isn't ideal, especially seeing as I haven't started that one book that I need to review this week! I guess there's still time.
As Imentioned last week, I was in Perth for the Rachael John's Book Club Retreat last weekend, and I took The Bad Bridesmaid with me to both read and get signed. I ended up finishing the book 5 minutes into my flight home, and then I tried to sleep because it was the red-eye flight. Notice I said tried, not really succeeded. I have shared a post about the retreat yesterday.
I then finished Wicket Maiden by Chrissie Harrison, which is a book featuring a woman cricketer as the sport star. I reviewed it here.
Next up was The Woman Who Met Herself by Laura Pearson, who is now an auto-buy author for me! My review is here.
On audio I finished listening to Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry. I had seen a lot of reviews saying it didn't feel like an Emily Henry romance, but it did to me!
For my next audiobook, I started listening to The Mirror by Nora Roberts, which is the second book in the Lost Brides series. I listened to the first one at the beginning of last year.
I also started reading Page Turners by Viola Shipman. Shipman's books can be very difficult to get hold of here, so when I saw that my old library system had it I decided the 40 minute drive to the library was worth it!
I also started reading Head Over Wheels by Leonie Mack. This is another sports romance, this time featuring professional cyclists! Have only read a few chapters but I am really liking it to so far!
In other news, Emma from Words and Peace has announced that she will once again be hosting Paris in July, which is one of my favourite blogging events! Check out the announcement post!
I'm watching
This week we watched all five episodes of the new Stanley Tucci show, Tucci in Italy. If you watched his previous series it follows the same format where he visits different places, they all love him, he loves the food they share and so on! There's every chance I might watch it again yet. I still enjoy watching his previous series.
I also watched the Netflix movie, Nonnas which stars Vince Vaughan and Susan Sarandon amongst others. It tell the story of a man who wants to start a restaurant on Statton Island where all the chefs are nonnas. It was a lovely movie, made even better by the fact that it is based on a true story.
We also watched the first few episodes of Murderbot, based on the books by Martha Wells. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by this. We now have to wait for each new episode to come out.
Life
I started listening to a new podcast called No One Saw it Coming which is hosted by Marc Fennell. I am becoming a big fan of Marc Fennell. He does intelligent TV and podcasts, as well as hosting the TV quiz show Mastermind. In this series, they talk about the things that kind of just happened, and no one was expecting. This week's episode was about how you can trace the roots of chemotherapy as a treatment back to a WWII attack on the port of Bari in Italy.
We had a very French weekend. It wasn't necessarily designed that way but it just happened. Last week I made chocolate eclairs. Then on Friday night we went to a French themed dinner before we went to see the arena version of Les Miserables. It was so good!
Then on Saturday, I went to a macaroon making class, which was so much fun. I am aiming to post about that for my next Weekend Cooking post.
Now, we are going to be eating macaroons and chocolate eclairs for the next few days. We had a lot of passionfruit flavoured ganache left over from the class, so I ended up using this as a glaze on some eclairs, and filling it with chocolate cream, so in effect combining the two!
Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's theme is How My Reading Habits Have Changed Over Time (submitted by Lydia @ https://lydiaschoch.com)
Occasionally I do a look back at books I have read in this month over previous years and this theme seems like it would work for that quite well. So, here are some books that I have read in October over the last few years
2023 - The Christmas Love Letters by Sue Moorcroft - Reading Christmas novels is something I would never have done 10 years ago
2022 - A Year at the French Farmhouse by Gillian Harvey - This was my first Gillian Harvey book, but I have now read a further 6 books by her, and consider her an auto-read author
2021 - The Summer Cottage by Viola Shipman - In October 2021 I read two books by Viola Shipman. I would have read more but his books are a bit tricky to get on e-book here.
2020 - Beach Read by Emily Henry - I did read my first Viola Shipman in October 2020, but it was also the first time I read Emily Henry, who I definitely consider and auto-read author now, or rather auto-listen as I tend to listen to her books.
2019 - The Pearl Sister by Lucinda Riley - Another series I tend to listen to. I really must listen to the last couple of books in this series. They are a big commitment though.
2018 - Lethal White by Robert Galbraith - I really enjoyed the audiobooks of this series, but these days I don't really read this series.
2017 - A Letter from Italy by Pamela Hart - So I have been reading about Italy for a while now
2016 - The Art of Keeping Secrets by Rachael Johns - Even during my biggest reading slump, Rachael Johns was an author I read..
2015- Taken with You by Shannon Stacey - I used to read a lot of books from this author, but this was the last one I read, and I have no idea why.
2014 - Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins - Back in the day I used to read and love the occasional YA book but it has been a while now
Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This
week the theme is Books On My Fall 2022 To-Read List. Of course, we are in Spring now so for me it isBooks On My Spring 2022 To-Read List
The Last Summer by Karen Swan - I currently have this book out from the library and I intend to read it before I return it so I don't have to reborrow it again
Meshi: A Personal History of Japanese Food by Katherine Tamiko Arguile- Another book that I currently have out from the library.
The Happiest Man on Earth by Eddie Jaku - My read on a theme bookclub theme this month is biography or autobiography. I am actually listening to another book to fit the theme, but I think I might read this as well.
With Love from Wish & Co by Minnie Darke - When I moved house I joined a new library. Whilst the new library system isn't as big as the previous one, I was able to put this one on hold. Luckily I can be a member of both systems!
A Year at the French Farmhouse by Gillian Harvey - I am going to be on a blog tour for this book in October.
Twenty One Nights in Paris by Leonie Mack - And this one too!
The Language of Food by Annabel Abbs - I started this a few months ago and then misplaced it, but I am intending to read it to review for Weekend Cooking in September.
The Night Ship by Jess Kidd - I am reading this at the moment!
Christmas in Bellbird Bay by Maggie Christensen - This is the next book in the Bellbird Bay series!
The Edge of Summer by Viola Shipman - Viola Shipman has just announced his Christmas book which is going to becalled A Wish for Winter which is great, but I haven't read The Edge of Summer yet!
Tomorrow, the third Sunday in July, is World Ice Cream Day. Whilst that makes sense in the Northern Hemisphere, it isn't exactly ice cream weather here! We also don't eat a lot of ice cream in my house any more. We always have emergency cream, but not ice cream!
A couple of years ago I started reading Viola Shipman. He writes such lovely books, all set around Lake Michigan. I love his voice, whether he be talking about food, flowers or the 80s! He also has a new book out called Edge of Summer and I am sure that I am going to love it! Today, I am sharing quotes from The Summer Cottage, which was the second book I read by him. I read it last year and have been saving the quotes for just the right occasion!
I look through the shiny glass at the endless options. My mouth waters as my eyes scan cappuccino, chocolate chunk, cotton candy confetti, Mickinac Island Fudge, country blackberry, Milky Way, snickerdoodle and Superman. But my eyes lock on the container filled with Smurf-blue ice cream. "Double in a waffle," I say.
"You're a true Michigander," Teresa says with a laugh.
"But I'm from Illinois," I say.
"Not if you order this," she says with a wink.
There is a phenomenon in the Great Lakes known as Blue Moon ice cream. The ice cream is iridescent blue, marshmallowy sweet and has an elusive taste that many describe as a combination of lemon and fruit. I think it tastes like the leftover milk from a bowl of Froot Loops. It's addictive, and the recipe is largely kept secret by the different dairies, ice cream makers and shops in Michigan and Wisconsin. Blue Moon ice cream turns your tongue blue, and it is a favorite of children.
And mine, I think.
Teresa turns on the waffle machine, which sits on a table between the long rows of ice cream. When it is hot, she opens it and pours in some homemade batter and shuts the lid. After a few seconds, she pops the lid open and removes a razor thin waffle with tongs, immediately and expertly twisting it into a tight, rolled cone. She plops in two huge scoops of ice cream, which begin melting and trickling down the side. Teresa slips it into a wrapper and hands it to me along with a fistful of napkins.
I take a bit and shut my eyes. I am immediately transported back in time. I can feel myself standing in this shop between my parents, all of us licking giant cones. When I open my eyes, Teresa is smiling at me.
"It's nice to feel like a kid again, isn't it? she asks. "Even if it is just for a second."
~~~~
And later the same day.
~~
But my grandmother firmly believed - after witnessing the eating habits of men for decades - that the ice cream a man ate showed who he truly was. Vanilla? Plain but steadfast. Chocolate meant an all-American type of guy at heart, but one who never yearned for excitement or adventure. Men who ate strawberry were as sweet as the fruit, but forever little boys. Scooter leans into the case, his breath fogging the window. His eyes scan the tubs and then the labels on the case. He looks at Teresa, who is waiting patiently, holding her ice cream scoop in the air. I turn again to Scooter. He opens his mouth, and I hold my breath. "Rocky road," he says. "Two scoops in a waffle cone, please." He's a keeper, Adie Lou, I can hear my grandmother say. Adventurous, curious. Has led an up-and-down life but is an optimist who wears his heart on his sleeve. "Good choice!" I blurt. Scooter turns, a laugh escaping when he sees my face. " You get excited about ice cream, I can see," he says. I nod. "Still a Blue Moon girl?" Teresa asks me. "In a waffle?" I nod again.
I don't know what Adie Lou's grandmother would make of my husband who doesn't like ice cream at all!!
As for me, I love boysenberry ice cream. I also like boysenberry yoghurt, and recently I even tried and liked boysenberry ripple chocolate. And yet, I have never actually ever tried a boysenberry.
What is your favourite flavour, and what do you think it says about you?
Weekly meals
Saturday - Baked potatoes with bacon and mushroom sauce
Sunday - Roast beef rolls with gravy
Monday -
Tuesday - Takeaway
Wednesday - Spaghetti bolognaise
Thursday - Beef Pepper pie with mashed potato toppping
Friday - Out for dinner
Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page
Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week the topic is Most Anticipated Books Releasing In the Second Half of 2022
Here comes one of the more dangerous TTT themes! I know that as I visit other people's lists I will see at least 10 other titles which will make me think I can't believe I forgot that title! I have therefore left a space for those books! That and I only had a list of 9!
The Edge of Summer by Viola Shipman - Over the last couple of years Viola Shipman has become a must read author for me! This looks really good!
This Place of Wonder by Barbara O'Neal - This author is also a must read for me, although I am a couple behind.
The Crimson Thread by Kate Forsyth- I have been reading Kate Forsythe for a number of years now and her book Bitter Greens is one of my favourites.
In the Middle of Hickory Lane by Heather Webber - Heather Webber was a 2021 discovery and I can't wait to read more from her.
Other Birds by Sarah Addison Allen - It's at least 7 years since we have had a new book from Sarah Addison Allen! Can not wait to read this new one!
With Love from Wish & Co by Minnie Darke - Minnie Darke's book The Lost Love Song was one of my favourite reads from 2020! Really excited to see if I love this book too.
The Work Wives by Rachael Johns - Even when I was in my mega slump that lasted for a couple of years, Rachael Johns was still a must read for me!
Exiles by Jane Harper - Aaron Falk is back!
Love Letters from a Lord by Tessa Dare - I don't read a lot of historical romance anymore but Tessa Dare is an exception I am always happy to make!
Over the last 18 months or so I have read several Viola Shipman books and I think it is probably time to read my next one.
The Clover Girls was full of references to the 80's. So full in fact, that I did a Top Ten Tuesday post all about it.
One of the things that was mentioned in the book is the series Flowers in the Attic. Those books were everywhere in my late teens, but it was a series that I was most definitely not allowed to read which is why this quote appealed to me. Oh, and the part about reading under the covers too.
Lost in thought, I suddenly look up to find myself standing in front of The Cottage Book shop, a bookstore I consider the cutest in the world. It's an antique log cabin that looks as if it should be sitting in the middle of the woods with smoke streaming out of its chimney. Instead, it's jammed with books. The Clover Girls always came here, led by Em, whenever we'd escape camp. Em was obsessed with books. I always told her she should be a writer instead of a librarian.
Did fear stop her, too?
I walk inside and feel as if I'm on a field trip in school, exploring an old homestead. I browse through the selection of new book's before I head into a corner of the old log cabin.
I wonder if they have a copy? Oh, Em, I think. Can you imagine?
I head to the front of the shelf, my fingers moving across all the A authors.
There it is!
A paperback copy of Flowers in the Attic. I smile, grab the novel and hold it to my heart.
Em sneaked a copy into camp one summer because her mom didn't want her to read it. She'd tried to convince her mom it was a sweet little book about a girl who loved flowers but her mother didn't buy it: she'd already heard about it and didn't want Em to get nightmares. So, after all the other campers went to bed, Em crawled into my bunk and we read Flowers in the Attic with a flashlight under the covers.
Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week the theme is best books of 2021. So let's start with my five star reads of the year.
The Dressmakers of Yarrandarah Prison by Meredith Jaffe (review)
The Cartographer's Secret by Tea Cooper
I had 10 books that I graded as being 4.5 star reads. When I looked at those book these were the 6 that were closest to being graded up to a 5 star read.
Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray by Anita Heiss (review)
Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe by Heather Webber (review)
I have previously shared a passage from the first Viola Shipman book I read, The Heirloom Garden. This passage comes from the latest book I read by the same author, The Secret of Snow.
The downstairs is one massive room: living, dining, kitchen all rolled into one. My mother was open-concept before open-concept was a thing. For years, this space was a playground. I could ride my wheelie bike round and round in circlees without ever having to go outside. I head into the kitchen.
A huge floor-to-celing fireplace made of Michigan lake stones of various shapes, colors and sizees fills the living room. I run my hand over the stones, cool and smooth.
And that's when I smell it before I even see it: a huge Christmas tree stands in the corner, soaring toward heaven. It's a Fraser fir, of course, my father's all-time favorite. We could never have any other kind for a Christmas tree.
"The perfect Christmas tree," my dad used to always say as we decorated. He loved its dark green needles and upturned branches, which showcased our colorful, vintage ornaments. He loved that it didn't drip its needles and that, when lit, the tree had almost frosty underlying glow.
But we all love the way it smelled, a fragrance that filled that house with a perfumed outdoorsy scent that could only be described as "Christmas".
The glass ornaments - so fragile, so pretty - are tucked into every crevice of the tree.
How long did it take her to decorate this? I think. It must've taken days. Who does she do this for anymore?
I crane my neck and look up
The star!
One year, Joncee and I were playing, and we rode our little bikes directly into the tree. It fell with a mighty crash, and my mother was nearly inconsolable as my father swept up broken ornaments that had been passed down by her mother and grandmother. Joncee and I retrieved the big pieces from the trash and made a giant patchwork star. It was like a Frankenstein ornament, but my mother thought it was beautiful.
She wept when we showed it to her, and placed it atop the tree every year since.
"It's like our hearts," she said. "Sometimes they get shattered, and we have to piece them back together and still shine for the world to see.
Last year I read and loved this book. It was one of my favourite reads of 2020. This year I have read two more of his books and now look forward to reading his whole backlist.
"You're still coming over for Christmas, right?" Abby asks. "I'm roasting a turkey with all the fixings, and we're going to bake cookies."
"You're decorating," Lily says, pointing at me, "and I'm eating."
I laugh. "That's a good plan."
Everyone leaves with a big hug, and I shut the door.
As soon as they are out the front gate, I return to life. I check my watch and then rush up the stairs and head to the attic, pulling out boxes of heirloom ornaments. I blow dust off the tops of the boxes.
Handle with care! is written in my mom's handwriting.
"You haven't seen the light of day for years," I say. "It's time."
I take box after box down to the tree, make some tea and turn on the TV just as the Charlie Brown Christmas special begins. It is the show I've watched for decades, the only thing that made me feel like I had a family again.
Until this year.
I pull out my grandma's and mom's vintage glass ornaments in bright colors and begin to hang them from the branches, watching Charlie Brown as I go.
"I never thought it was such a bad little tree," Linus is saying. "It's not so bad at all, really. Maybe it just needs a little love."
I stop and look at my tree, and my heart fills with joy. I sit on my couch, sip my tea and stare at my tree, remembering Christmases past. I think of spending Christmas Day with Abby and her family.
"It's not what's under the Christmas tree that matters but who's around it."
"You're right, Charlie Brown," I say, staring at the TV.
I head to the kitchen and set my cup in the sink. The sky has cleared, the wind calmed adn the stars are bright. I can see the moon shimmer off the lake.
I have the best water view in Michigan now, I think.
Moonlight illuminates my Christmas cactus, and I smile.
"You will finally have some company, Pretty Boy," I say.
I move the cactus underneath the tree, lie down on the couch and pull a blanket over my aching body.
I fall asleep on the courch in front of the tree, just like I did as a girl.
When I wake, hours later, I cannot believe my eyes. In fact, I blink - once, twice - rub my eyes with my fingers and then reach for my glasses.
My Christmas cactus is in full bloom, its prickly green arms weighted down with beautiful red blooms.
I jump up and do a little jig around the tree.
"You were right, Grandma! You were right!"
I lean down and touch a bloom on the cactus. "I told you!" I can hear it say in my grandma's voice. "I told you!"
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