Talk Healthy

Posted: **Fri Aug 01, 2014 12:20 pm**

I'm reading Michael Palmer's latest and last novel. Didn't realize he had died.

I like his books.

Posted: **Mon Aug 04, 2014 9:53 am**

I finished One Plus One by Jojo Moyes last night. I loved it. It was funny, heartwrenching and plausible. Really good. Glad I have her others on hold.

Now I'm reading Circle of Wives by Alice LaPlante:

When Dr. John Taylor is found dead in a hotel room in his own hometown, the local police find enough incriminating evidence to suspect foul play. Detective Samantha Adams, whose posh Palo Alto beat usually covers small-town crimes, is innocently thrown into a high-profile murder case that is more intricately intertwined than she could ever imagine. A renowned plastic surgeon, respected family man and active community spokesman, Dr. Taylor was well loved and admired. But, hidden from the public eye, he led a secret life-in fact, multiple lives. A closeted polygamist, Dr. Taylor was married to three very different women in three separate cities. And when these three unsuspecting women show up at his funeral, suspicions run high. Detective Adams soon finds herself tracking down a murderer through a deceitful web of lies, marital discord and broken dreams. With a rare combination of gripping storytelling, vivid prose and remarkable insight into character, Alice LaPlante brings to life a story of passion and obsession that will haunt readers long after they turn the final page. A charged, provocative and surprising psychological thriller, A Circle of Wives dissects the dynamics of love and marriage, of trust and jealousy, and poses the terrifying question: How well do you really know your spouse?

Posted: **Mon Aug 04, 2014 9:59 pm**

In the last week I've finished "White Teeth" by Zadie Smith (really excellent--worth the multi-month wait. Anyone with an interest in immigration/history/race relations/how those can all be interrelated would probably enjoy it) and "The Husband's Secret" by Liane Moriarty (a quick read, entertaining enough, but pretty contrived. The ending just tied up far too nicely to be plausible). I just downloaded "Allegiant" by Veronica Roth on digital book. If it's anything like the others it'll be a quick one.

I also have "What Color is Your Parachute" (2014 edition) by Richard Nelson Bolles. I don't plan to read it word for word but will peruse it to see if it has good ideas for musing over as I consider longer-term career path options.

I will have to add JoJo Moyes' other works to my waitlists, because several people have enjoyed her other books (I read "Me Before You" earlier this year and thought it was pretty great).

Posted: **Thu Aug 07, 2014 8:51 am**

I'm gonna order some others by Jojo Moyes jn English. Me before You was excellent.

I didn't like White Teeth, though I don't remember a single thing about it. Well, opinions are like asses and all that. I couldn't get into it at all, and that was back in the day when I finished books I didn't like.

I finished The Midnight Rose by Lucinda Riley. The translation was terrible, and not only that, there were TONS of Portuguese mistakes. I emailed both the publisher here, to complain, and the writer's website, to warn them. So I don't know if her writing is kinda bad or if it's the translation's fault. Anywway, I loved the story. Yes, it had several predictable and soap opera-ish twists, but I couldn't put it down. I'm definitely checking out her other books in English. She's kinda trashy and formulaic, but so much fun.

Today I'm starting Longbourn by Jo Baker.

Posted: **Thu Aug 07, 2014 11:37 am**

Huh, I'm surprised to hear you didn't like White Teeth, Silvia. I think we tend to like the same sorts of books, don't we? But you are so very right about opinions. And the older I get the more it seems that my tastes run a bit askew from most people's when it comes to things like this, so who knows.

Oh well, good thing there are a million books out there to choose!

Posted: **Thu Aug 07, 2014 1:34 pm**

Bugsy, yeah... You seem to like fantasy, which I don't, but we do seem to agree when we both read The same thing. I'm glad you didn't ask for my opinion before you picked up WT!

Posted: **Thu Aug 07, 2014 3:51 pm**

I don't know what I'm reading

nothing right now. I just finished the Divergent series a couple weeks ago and now I'm not sure what's next.

I need a good summer beachy type read. Maybe I'll look thru some others posts to get some suggestions!

Posted: **Tue Aug 12, 2014 5:59 am**

I think I'm giving up on Longbourn. What a bore. It's a retelling of Pride and Prejudice from the servants' point of view. There's a bunch of readers on goodreads furious because she destroyed Jane Austen's characters. They say the book is vulgar and violent. Well, I wish I'd seen some of that action because up to page 85 NOTHING happens. You can sum it up like this: life for servants at that time was very hard. There's a new servant at the Bennetts' house. Yawn. Every day I read a couple pages to see if anything will happen, but so far, no such luck.

Meanwhile, I bought my first e-book! I'm tired of not finding the books I want in English, so I succumbed (sp?). I bought a kindle too, which should arrive today at my mom's (long story). The book is What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty. Apparently several of you have read it. I'm hooked. The idea is very unoriginal but the execution is excellent, imo. Also, I can't believe I hadn't heard of this author until earlier this year. So she always writes this chicklit for the 40 somethings genre? I'm sold!

Posted: **Tue Aug 12, 2014 11:57 am**

I finished Circle of Wives on Friday. It was a light, quick read.

Now I've got "Far Gone" by Laura Griffin. I will have to be quick as it's due on Saturday and I have 4 holds to pick up as well.

Posted: **Thu Aug 14, 2014 9:11 am**

I was on vacation last week so I got lots of reading in!

I read Dust by Hugh Howey, the final book in the Wool series - it was good! Ending wasn't quite what I expected but I liked it.

Read California by Edan Lepucki - it's a dystopian type book, it was decent

Read The Fever by Megan Abbott. Eh. It was ok.

Read Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty. Really enjoyed it!

Read Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo - it's a YA fantasy book, I liked it.

Now I'm almost done with All Fall Down by Jennifer Weiner. It's not very good but it's a quick mindless read.

Posted: **Thu Aug 14, 2014 10:11 am**

mellen....sooooo jealous.

Posted: **Fri Aug 15, 2014 10:03 am**

Yesterday I finished "Allegiant" by Veronica Roth. Meh...it was all right. I didn't enjoy the series a whole lot, though.

And then last night I caved and bought my first digital book: The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. It's our current book club pick, and we're meeting next Saturday. I'd been on about 7 waitlists at the library for it in several different formats and just wasn't going to get it in time. I'm about 40% through it and am liking it. It's a lot of character development and not a fast-moving plot, though, so it wouldn't be for everyone.

Posted: **Fri Aug 15, 2014 10:14 am**

Bugsy, I hated Allegiant. I thought the first book in the series was decent and it just went down hill after that.

Finished All Fall Down by Jennifer Weiner. It was pretty bad, I miss her writing style from her earlier books.

I'm planning to start The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith (JK Rowling) today.

Posted: **Mon Aug 18, 2014 8:05 pm**

Finished What Alice Forgot. I loved it. The premise was unoriginal and the whole development of the story was predictable, and I STILL loved it. I thought it was funny, I loved the main characters, I couldn't put it down. Can't wait for her other works.

Then I started The Girl you Left Behind by Jojo Moyes. I like it, but don't love it (yet?) Maybe because I loved Me Before You so much.

Posted: **Tue Aug 19, 2014 3:59 pm**

Sil, I know we usually have the opposite views on books, but I like the Liane Moriaty books too - I just read her most recent Big Little Lies - check it out - it's funny.

I finished the Silkworm by Robert Galbraith. It was good - better than Cuckoo's Calling.

I just started Monument 14 (YA Dystopian). Hopefully I'll get through while waiting for my holds at the library to come in.

Posted: **Wed Aug 20, 2014 7:10 am**

Actually, Mellen, I was just comparing our books on goodreads and we have agreed more than we have disagreed. There are just a few books on which we've radically disagreed. Go check it out if you're bored. I LOVE the "compare your books" feature. And yes! I'm totally checking out her other books. I really enjoyed The Husband's Secret and now I loved this one.

Posted: **Thu Aug 21, 2014 3:29 pm**

I had no idea there was a compare books feature! I will have to go find it!

I finished Monument 14 - it was a decent quick read. It's about a school bus full of kids that end up alone inside of a Wal-Mart type store after there is an accident at a nuclear facility that releases a compound in the air that affects people differently depending on blood type.

Started Storm and Seige last night by Lauren Bardugo. It's #2 in the Grisha trilogy.

Posted: **Thu Aug 21, 2014 4:52 pm**

I finished Far Gone by Laura Griffin. It was...fine.

Now I have Reconstructing Amelia.

Posted: **Thu Aug 21, 2014 8:45 pm**

I finished "The Goldfinch" by Donna Tartt and loved it. Like I said previously, this has a lot of character development and a mostly slow-moving plot. Because of that, some people won't like it; however, I liked these characters tons more than those from her first novel "The Secret History" and really enjoyed getting to know each of them as they grew older. And the premise was intriguing to me as well. This is right up there as one of my favorites of the year.

I think the next book club book will be "The Giver" by Lois Lowry, and I'm thrilled that it came in right away for me at the library. I'd read this back in grade school but don't remember it overly well. It'll be a quick read.

And "Life After Life" by Kate Atkinson just came in on my digital book hold list, so I'll be starting that tomorrow on my commute probably.

Posted: **Sun Aug 24, 2014 8:11 pm**

I finished Reconstructing Amelia yesterday and I loved it.

Now I have The Girls of August by Anne Rivers Siddons. It should be a quick read and then I have The Divorce Papers.

Talk Healthy

August! What are you reading?

August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?

Re: August! What are you reading?