Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Books borrowed and bought

Oh, the books that have been coming into my house lately!

Borrowed:

I had cozy fever, and picked up:

Murder is Binding by Lorna Barrett - first in a series set in a fictional New Hampshire town of bookstores; picked up right after reading Kay's review.
The Stabbing in the Stables by Simon Brett - I can't seem to resist Jude and Carole. I've read the previous ones, and wanted to catch up.
Death of a Gentle Lady by M.C. Beaton - the next one after Death of a Maid which I recently wrote about.
And a police procedural (I think that's the right classification) - Orchestrated Death by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles, first in the Inspector Bill Slider series. I read this years and years ago, and have meant to carry on with the series. It has been so long now that I wanted to read this first one again before continuing.
The Tales of Maudie Tipstaff by Margaret Forster. I read this ages ago, and remember liking it. A woman goes off to visit her adult children. Doesn't she have a great name?! addendum: not a cozy mystery, but fiction.

Bought:

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson- irresistible after reading raidergirl's review .
Queen of the Road by Doreen Orion - have been thinking about since Heather's review.
The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett - I've read many, many great reviews of this.
Counter Culture: The American Coffee Shop Waitress by Candacy A. Taylor - sounded wonderful after hearing about on National Public Radio.
The Provincial Lady in America by E.M. Delafield - one I haven't read about one of my favorite fictional characters.
Dog On It by Spencer Quinn - a mystery narrated by a dog. Sounds like great fun.
Frangipani by Célestine Vaite - I was captivated by the cover and description as I wandered my local bookstore.

All these books plus the Inter Library Loan biography on the sidebar, and the one I had to put aside to read it. Will I read them all? I hope so, but I'm not a fast reader, and spring is coming, and I am on the six-movies-out-at-a-time plan at Netflix, and I have several other books on order from the library, and on and on. But they are so very appealing. Now I must shut off my computer and head to a reading chair.

19 comments:

  1. Murder is Binding is a fun read and I loved Uncommon Reader. For some reason I love saying the word Frangipani:) Enjoy all your reading!

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  2. I must check out Dog On It! Sounds delightful.
    An Uncommon Reader is a wonderful book. I loved it.

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  3. Book Psmith, I just found out that frangipani is another word for plumeria. I have some plumeria shampoo made by Alba Botanica, and it has the best smell. I look forward to all the books!

    Pamela, Dog On It really looks good, and it doesn't hurt that the cover looks a bit like my Ben (the current blog header). :<)

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  4. Nan, look at you! You are on a wild tear aren't you? :-)

    Enjoy your books. 6-at-a-time? We're on 2 right now. Probably bump it up when summer comes and nothing will be on TV. Hope you like the Booktown book. I've read others in Simon Brett's series, but not that series. The one I read from was Mrs. Pargeter or something like that I think. Years ago. And my experience with M.C. Beaton is the Agatha Raisin series.

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  5. Uncommon Reader was a good read.

    I have a bit of cozy fever myself - with 18 books on request at the library :)

    How I need to see if The Tales of Maudie Tipstaff is in - that will make 19.

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  6. Nan dear,

    I always end up making lists of "must reads" after reading through your posts.

    Love,

    Sharon Lovejoy Writes from Sunflower House and a Little Green Island

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  7. You have so many wonderful reads there!! Enjoy!

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  8. People are snobby about those Simon Brett books but like you I enjoy reading about Carole and Jude.
    Do you know the wonderful radio series Brett wrote in the 1980s, After Henry? It's often repeated on BBC 7. Thames nicked it for TV and had a great success with it. I've just bought the DVDs and am loving them but of course the radio is better because you get twice the script.

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  9. Some great books have made their way into your home, Nan. The Uncommon Reader was one of my favorites last year, and I just added my name to the Major Pettigrew list at the library today. Murder is Binding sounds good, (read Kay's review this weeK) and will be my next new cozy mystery series. Enjoy!

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  10. Don't you just love surrounding yourself with new and borrowed books? Looks like you have quite a few to keep you busy for a bit. ;)

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  11. You've got a great list there! I hope you enjoy QUEEN OF THE ROAD, since I convinced you to check it out ... :)

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  12. Kay, this is a series I think you'd enjoy. Jude and Carole are very different people, yet have become friends. I haven't read his other series. I have read a lot about Agatha R. but I haven't read them. I'm quite fond of Hamish.

    Island Sparrow, that's so funny! I just had three more come in for me. :<) Maudie T. isn't a cozy mystery. Sorry for confusion - it is straight fiction.

    Sharon, I'll be sure and write about these books when (and if) I get to them all. :<)

    Staci, they all do look so good!

    Call me madam, no snobbery here! I find the characters growing as each book goes on - well, Carole at least. I'm still wondering why we don't know Jude's last name. I'm quite fond of Carole; maybe even more than Jude, though it seems clear the author likes J's way of living better. Sadly, After Henry isn't available on dvd over here. Gosh, it must have been good. Prunella Scales! I love her.

    JoAnn, does 'Pettigrew' sound great! It will be a while till I get to it with all these library books. :<)

    Les, I do! And the library books are all on one little table. Three more came in for me yesterday. :<)

    Heather, I so loved what you wrote about it that I couldn't resist!

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  13. Nan, sounds like a grand group of books you have in your house! I have Murder is Binding on my to read mountain!

    Also thanks for stopping by my blog and telling me about the oregano tea for my sinus'. I am hurting so bad even with meds I think I'll try it!

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  14. I love this post. It's an addiction. I can walk into a library or a bookstore and I can't resist them. I want to read them all. Good luck with your huge pile.

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  15. Sherri, hope you feel better!
    Margot, yes it is! I

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  16. I'd be interested to learn what movies are in your Netflix queue. I've thought of posting mine on a blog. My latest post is on my lifelong love of (or obsession with) the movies.

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  17. Mary Lois, as of this Saturday morning, I have 428 in the queue, and 68 in the saved section! I think there's a widget somewhere that you can put on the sidebar that tells what you have at home. I'll see if I can find it again and let you know. I've thought it would be a fun entry maybe once a week to post a list of 'what's at home from Netflix' - maybe I'll actually do it!

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  18. I just changed my Netflix account down to one-at-a-time two a month. Now that spring is here and the garden needs are great, I don't want to be inside watching movies. I sure enjoyed them in the winter, though.

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  19. Debbie, I know what you mean! there isn't much gardening around here for a while yet. Well, I could rake, I suppose. :<)

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