Waiting on Wednesday: Mad Honey

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature where I highlight a soon to be released novel I can't wait to read.

This week's pick: Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan 

Due out: October 11, 2022

Synopsis taken from Amazon:

A soul-stirring novel about what we choose to keep from our past, and what we choose to leave behind, from the New York Times bestselling author of Wish You Were Here and the bestselling author of She's Not There.

Olivia McAfee knows what it feels like to start over. Her picture-perfect life—living in Boston, married to a brilliant cardiothoracic surgeon, raising a beautiful son, Asher—was upended when her husband revealed a darker side. She never imagined she would end up back in her sleepy New Hampshire hometown, living in the house she grew up in, and taking over her father's beekeeping business.
 
Lily Campanello is familiar with do-overs, too. When she and her mom relocate to Adams, New Hampshire, for her final year of high school, they both hope it will be a fresh start. 
 
And for just a short while, these new beginnings are exactly what Olivia and Lily need. Their paths cross when Asher falls for the new girl in school, and Lily can’t help but fall for him, too. With Ash, she feels happy for the first time. Yet at times, she wonders if she can she trust him completely . . .
 
Then one day, Olivia receives a phone call: Lily is dead, and Asher is being questioned by the police. Olivia is adamant that her son is innocent. But she would be lying if she didn’t acknowledge the flashes of his father’s temper in him, and as the case against him unfolds, she realizes he’s hidden more than he’s shared with her.
 
Mad Honey is a riveting novel of suspense, an unforgettable love story, and a moving and powerful exploration of the secrets we keep and the risks we take in order to become ourselves.

Blast From the Past: May 2012

It's taken me a while to get myself organized enough this month to look back on what I read back in May 2012.  Every month I am always surprised with how many books really have stuck with me over a ten year span of time.  There are plenty of books I can remember very little of.  But there are also a lot that I remember general plotlines, small details, or that bring back a memory of what I was doing while I was reading a particular book.  Here are four books that I spent time with back in May of 2012. 

1.  Much Ado About Anne by Heather Vogel Fredericks -this is the second book in the Mother Daughter Book Club series - and I can't believe that I never read the rest.  I loved books one and two and now that I've seen this title again, I am hoping I will pick up the third one soon.  

2.  Wild by Cheryl Strayed- this memoir has certainly gotten enough hype - and had a movie made about it.  That alone hasn't allowed me to forget this one, but I also remember bits and pieces about this one, including how little I really felt like I understood some of the author's choices, despite finding her voice so easy to read.

3.  How To Eat A Cupcake by Meg Donohue - a debut novel about two friends who open a cupcakery. I love a good food book, and this is a fun one that includes some betrayal, past secrets and a few other problems thrown in for good measure.

The Woman Who Wasn't There by Robin Gaby Fisher - a true account of Tania Head's made- up story of her survival of the 9/11 attacks.  Head's story is heartbreaking - until you find out that it is fabricated.  I was fascinated by this account.

What were you reading in May of 2012?  What about last May? I'm always happy to add to my own TBR list.

Friday Five: A Busy Time of Year

 I've waited until Saturday to post again this week.  This is seeming to become a habit and I'm hoping I get back on track when I'm done with school for the summer.  We've had an exciting week with district track on Thursday night.  

It was 95 degrees when Little Sister had to run the 3000. She was in the lead the entire way but the girl drafting off of her for six and a half laps darted around her with half a lap left.  (I know it's a strategy, but I think doing that for an entirety of a long race is a little bit of a cheap shot).  Her second place finish earned her a trip to the state tournament this next week.  Middle Sister ran a fantastic first leg of the 4x800, and the anchor also ran well.  However, the second and third runners struggled so we had to wait until last night to find out if she made it in to the state tournament.  Middle Sister ran the 1500 later in the night (when the sun had gone down and it was a bit cooler). She ran a PR of 5:13.13, but because she placed third, had to wait until last night to find out again if she had made it in.  She qualified in both of her events as well, so we are state track bound.  

It's an exciting time of year, especially with Middle Sister's graduation also quickly approaching.  

I need to find something to wear to commencement and open houses, and have looked a little bit, but still haven't found anything I'd like for that.  I keep on finding other things, though.  

1.  T. La Puff-Sleeved Pullover

2.  Birkenstock Big Bucke Arizona Patent Leather Sandal

3.  AE Oversized Resort Shirt

4.  Sleeveless Ruffle Top

5.  Expect the Best Natural Slides

6.  Mini T-Shirt Dress

7.  Ameera Pump Mule

8.  Sunrise Wrap

9.  Linen Shirt Dress

10.  BR Sport Crinkle Nylon Windbreaker

That's it for me this week.  What's caught your eye?

Waiting on Wednesday: Forsaken Country

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature where I highlight a soon to be released title I can't wait to read.

This week's pick: Forsaken Country by Allen Eskens

Due out: September 20, 2022

Synopsis taken from Amazon:

In this new novel from the acclaimed and bestselling author of The Stolen Hours and  The Life We Bury , Max Rupert has left behind his career as a homicide detective to live in solitude—until a shocking kidnapping sends him into the vast wilderness of Minnesota’s Boundary Waters on a hunt for the most dangerous kind of criminal: a desperate father.

Max Rupert has left his position as a Minneapolis homicide detective to live a life of solitude deep in the woods of Minnesota. Mourning the tragic death of his wife, he's also racked by guilt—he alone knows what happened to her killer. 
 
But then his only friend, Lyle, comes to him with a desperate plea. Lyle’s daughter Sandy and his six-year-old grandson Pip have disappeared. Lyle’s certain Sandy's no-good ex-husband Reed is at fault, but the new sheriff is refusing to investigate. When Max reluctantly looks into their disappearance, he too becomes convinced something has gone very wrong, and that Reed is likely involved. But the closer Max and Lyle get to finding proof, the more slippery Reed becomes, until he makes a break for the Boundary Waters with Pip in dangerous tow.
 
Max and Lyle will have to find their way through the 1.3 million acre wilderness if they hope to find out what happened to Sandy—and to bring Pip home alive.  

Non-Fiction Tuesday: I Guess I Haven't Learned Yet

 Have you ever picked up a book and as soon as you started reading it, knew right away that you were going to love it?

Last year I read (and loved) Good Apple by Elizabeth Passarella and this memoir reminds me a lot of that.  Passarella and her family moved from Memphis to New York City and she weaves her faith journey into the story she tells of her life.  This book reads much the same way.  

Niequist moves from the midwest to New York City.  She and her husband and sons had connections to the home they left....generations of her family had lived there.  Her family had started a church there.  The roots ran deep, and yet there was some part of her that recognized that what she had always done was no longer working.

Now Niequest and her family call New York City home. They've found new friends, new schools, new places to eat, and a new way of living.  

In her forties, Niequist is someone I feel like I can relate to.  I understand what she means when she says that things that always worked for her no longer work.  I appreciate that she is able to find a new way of doing things, which encourages me to also embrace change.  

I have loved every page of this memoir and can't believe that this is the first book I've read of hers.  I can't wait to pick up more by Niequist in the future and will be thinking on this book for a long time.

Friday Five: It's May and I'm Still Wearing My Winter Clothes

I can't think of any spring that has been so wet and cold and depressing.  I've stood outside at track meets in the rain twice this week with my winter coat on.  We're counting down to all sorts of things: the end of the school year, graduation, the last day for seniors, the state track meet, confirmation at church, and SUMMER!

I've found some fun things to share this week and just had the realization that at some point I might need to find something to wear to all of the open houses and the graduation ceremony.   I've still been wearing some of my winter wardrobe to work every day because it just seems too cold to get out anything with short sleeves.  

And because this is Iowa, I'll probably be complaining next week that it is too hot here.  

Enjoy this week's finds:

 

1.  Hoka Slides

2.  Briela Lileeze Swing Dress

3.  Reversible Crossover Sweater

4.  Taner Hoops

5.  Linen Lace Tank Top

6.  Cropped Eyelet Shirt

7.  Slouchy Straight Ecru Overalls

8.  Northwood Vintage T in Quinwood Stripe

9.  Smocked Ruffle Gauze Dress

10.  Princess Charlotte's Seventh Birthday

That's it for me this week.  What's caught your eye?

Non Fiction Preview: Path Lit By Lightning

My TBR pile is always getting bigger. I love adding non-fiction titles to the books I want to read.  Here's my latest non-fiction find.

This month's pick: Path Lit by Lightning: The Life of Jim Thorpe

Due out August 9, 2022

Synopsis taken from Amazon:

A riveting new biography of America’s greatest all-around athlete by the bestselling author of the classic biography When Pride Still Mattered.

Jim Thorpe rose to world fame as a mythic talent who excelled at every sport. He won gold medals in the decathlon and pentathlon at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, was an All-American football player at the Carlisle Indian School, the star of the first class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and played major league baseball for John McGraw’s New York Giants. Even in a golden age of sports celebrities, he was one of a kind.

But despite his colossal skills, Thorpe’s life was a struggle against the odds. As a member of the Sac and Fox Nation, he encountered duplicitous authorities who turned away from him when their reputations were at risk. At Carlisle, he dealt with the racist assimilationist philosophy “Kill the Indian, Save the Man.” His gold medals were unfairly rescinded because he had played minor league baseball. His later life was troubled by alcohol, broken marriages, and financial distress. He roamed from state to state and took bit parts in Hollywood, but even the film of his own life failed to improve his fortunes. But for all his travails, Thorpe did not succumb. The man survived, complications and all, and so did the myth.

Waiting on Wednesday: Kaleidoscope

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature where I highlight a soon to be released title I can't wait to read.

This week's pick: Kaleidoscope by Cecily Wong

Due out:July 5, 2022

Synopsis taken from Amazon:

A dazzling and heartfelt novel about two sisters caught in their parents’ ambition, the accident that brings it all crashing down, and the journey that follows.

Everybody’s heard of The Brightons.

From rags to riches, sleepy Oregon to haute New York, they are the half-Chinese family that built Kaleidoscope, a glittering, ‘global bohemian’ shopping empire sourcing luxury goods from India and beyond. Statuesque, design savant, and family pet—eldest daughter Morgan Brighton is most celebrated of all. Yet despite her favored status, both within the family and in the press, nobody loves her more than Riley. Smart and nervy Riley Brighton — whose existence is forever eclipsed by her older sister’s presence. When a catastrophic event dismantles the Brightons’ world, it is Riley who’s left with questions about her family that challenge her memory, identity, and loyalty. She sets off across the globe with an unlikely companion to seek truths about the people she thought she knew best —herself included.

Using the brightly colored, shifting mosaic patterns of a kaleidoscope as its guide, and told in arresting, addictive fragments, Kaleidoscope is at once a reckoning with one family’s flawed American Dream, and an examination of the precious bond between sisters. It reveals, too, the different kinds of love left to grow when tightly held stories are finally let go. At turns devastating and funny, warm and wise, sexy and transportive, Riley’s journey confronts the meaning of freedom and travel, youth and innocence, and what it looks like to belong, grieve, and love on one’s own terms.

Friday Five: May Is Right Around the Corner

May is right around the corner and I've been reading other bloggers say that May is the equivalent of December in terms of busy-ness.  I would have to agree.  We've got graduation for Middle Sister coming up this month which means planning her open house (the invitations, the food, the decorations) as well as end of year stuff for school/work.  

The weather (always a topic of conversation in Iowa) needs to hurry up and warm up.  April has been a miserable month of cold, windy weather.  I'm looking forward to seeing some sunshine soon.

I've got ten great things that caught my eye this week.  Check them out:

1.  Ziggy Denim Overalls

2.  Super Star Sneakers

3.  Dolce Vita Sandal

4.  Pilcro Ruffle Buttondown

5.  Maeve Contrast Buttondown

6.  Peter Pan Collar Shirt in Windowpane

7.  Polo Tiered Hem Dress

8.  Cable Crewneck Sweater

9.  Puff Sleeve Cotton Blouse

10.  Prince Louis Turns Four

That's it for me this week.  What's caught your eye?
 

Waiting On Wednesday: Flying Solo

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature where I can highlight a soon to be released title I can't wait to read.

This week's pick: Flying Solo by Linda Holmes

Due out: June 14, 2022

Synopsis taken from Amazon:

A woman returns to her small Maine hometown, uncovering family secrets that take her on a journey of self-discovery and new love, in this warm and charming novel from the New York Times best-selling author of Evvie Drake Starts Over.

Smarting from her recently cancelled wedding and about to turn 40, Laurie Sassalyn returns to her Maine hometown of Calcasset to handle the estate of her great-aunt Dot, a spirited adventurer who lived to be 90. Along with boxes of Polaroids and pottery, a mysterious wooden duck shows up at the bottom of a cedar chest. Laurie’s curiosity is piqued, especially after she finds a love letter to the never-married Dot that ends with the line, “And anyway, if you’re ever desperate, there are always ducks, darling.”

Laurie is told that the duck has no financial value. But after it disappears under suspicious circumstances, she feels compelled to figure out why anyone would steal a wooden duck — and why Dot kept it hidden away in the first place. Suddenly Laurie finds herself swept up in a righteous caper that has her negotiating with antiques dealers and con artists, going on after-hours dates at the local library, and reconnecting with her oldest friend and first love. Desperate to uncover her great-aunt’s secrets, Laurie must reckon with her past, her future, and ultimately embrace her own vision of flying solo.