I Read: Dead over Heels

Dead over Heels by Charlaine Harris

(Aurora Teagarden Mysteries Book 5)

I will probably never figure out how someone can come up with the most random ways to have someone die that Charlaine Harris does. They're almost comical, but not quite comical enough to make the entire book seem ridiculous. 

Her characters would almost be cartoons if they didn't have little bits of realism that keep pulling you back to normal. I admire the skill of that. Each character and scenario are just almost at the crest of over the top, but they never quite tip to the point of being ridiculous. They're amusing. And you're interested in their reactions because they're never exactly what you expect them to do. 

It's almost like reading a soap opera a la General Hospital's Ice Princess. If you were to read a synopsis of it, it would seem ridiculous, silly even. But you want to know what happens because the characters need resolution. 

Aurora Teagarden is her same Southern self, with a few fiery independent stripes thrown in. If I met her, I'd probably find her pretty annoying. But she gets things done and in a mystery that's really the important point. 

#53-2021

I Read: Cursed Luck

Cursed Luck by Kelley Armstrong

(Cursed Luck series book 1)

Another fabulous Kelley Armstrong book. She's taken a new supernatural direction on this one and I kind of love it. I'd never considered the possibility of Curse Weavers before, but there's so much potential for mystery and intrigue. I'm not surprised she's managed to create an interesting backstory for this new series. 

As always her characters are multi-dimensional and seem realistic despite whatever powers they may have. The skills her characters have augment their personality; they're not the entire personality.

I'm interested to see where this series goes. Of course, I am. It's Kelley Armstrong. She continues to be one of the few authors whose work I will pick up with no thought. I know I won't be disappointed. 

#52-2021

I Read: The Handmaid's Tale

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

I read this for the first time in high school.  I remember being appalled but it, but I think I probably was even more so this time. 

I wanted to re-read this before the new TV adaptation started airing, but I never actually got it done. I'd been saving the series on my PVR until I read the book. I had to switch TV services recently and was going to lose all the recordings if I didn't watch them, so I started to read. 

I didn't manage to finish the book before beginning the series, but it didn't really matter. The book is still appalling in so many ways, and the show just adds to the grotesque and horrific. 

I Read: Make Your Bed

Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life... And Maybe the World by William H McRaven

This is such a simple little book, and the advice in it is very common sense, but it's written in a way that would probably make an impact for a different set of people than the traditional self-help set. 

There are very few people in the world who can't use a reminder or two that McRaven has written into his book, even if it's something they're already endeavouring to do in life. 

For example, the title piece of advice is to make your bed, every day.  Even if you accomplish nothing else in the day, you've achieved the first goal that you set out to do, which was to make your bed. It sets the day up for success in a simple way that nearly everyone would have no difficulty following. 

The other tidbits shared within are just as simple, but they make you think just a little bit about how you conduct your life. Some things are easy, some things are hard, but there is always room for change, room for growth. Take a chance to make the most of what you've got. Make your bed. 

#50-2021

I Read: Remembering Whitney

Remembering Whitney: My Story of Love, Loss, and the Night the Music Stopped by Cissy Houston

I picked this up figuring that if I was going to read a book about Whitney Houston, who better to have written it than her mother. I should have realized by the subtitle of this that the book would really be more about Cissy's relationship than about Whitney. I've always had that impression of Cissy Houston anyway - that she's really more interested in how the world affects her than anything else. 

It's kind of a mutual biography - of both Cissy and Whitney. It is interesting to read how Cissy got where she was and became who she is, as well as knowing how that framed her relationship with her kids. She's led a very musically influential life even without being Whitney Houston's mother, and I would imagine that she often gets overlooked because of that fact. 

I Read: Happy Women Live Differently

Happy Women Live Differently: 13 Ways to Trigger Your Happiness Every Day by Valorie Burton

I love the logic with which Valorie Burton writes. Nothing she says in her books is particularly groundbreaking, or earth-shattering, but most people would never reach these conclusions on their own. 

The thirteen triggers or areas that we each need to look at in order to live our best life are fairly simple to see. And taken individually they are also easy to adapt into your own life. You may not want to change all of them, but you can acknowledge that making the changes might increase the happiness in your life. 

The biggest take away from the book is to be at least content with your life the way that it is now. Dream big, keep striving, but don't expect reaching those goals to provide the miracle of happiness. Be happy now. Be happy with what you have now. Then strive to be better. 

#48-2021

I Read: Successful Women Think Differently

Successful Women Think Differently: 9 Habits to Make you Happier, Healthier and More Resilient by Valorie Burton

I loved this book.  Not because I have any grand ambitions to be "successful" in ways that most of the world would consider important, but actually because this book considers success differently than that. 

Success isn't about money, or power, or career advancement. It's about feeling fulfilled, content and happy with what you've achieved, and created. Learning how to frame your life and motivation in ways that make you feel successful is really the key to success. Do what motivates you, what you're passionate about and put your heart into it. That's how you become truly successful. 

The 9 habits are mostly common sense, but as with most practices a person doesn't actually give them much thought until someone else points them out. They make sense. They're logical. But Burton doesn't write them in a way that makes you feel stupid for not having clued into it before. 

This is a great read for anyone who's interested in being their better self, while also acknowledging that success isn't externally acquired. Find your joy, feed your passion. Live your best life. 

#47-2021
 

I Read: How to Think Like a Cat & Behind Every Great Woman is a Great Cat

How to Think Like a Cat by Stephane Garnier

Behind Every Great Woman is a Great Cat by Lulu Mayo

Alright, so I'm lumping these together because they were quick reads and don't deserve a lot of discussion. 

Firstly, thinking like a cat makes a lot of sense, when laid out in this manner. Cats really don't seem to put much thought into the things that tend to stress out people, and they take a lot of naps, which are stress relieving. Who isn't a fan of a nap? And less stress. Cats are not actually as independent as the author seems to portray because the reason they're able to be as stress-free is that they have doting owners/slaves to look after the details. But I'll let that go for sake of the broader point. 

Secondly, there are definitely some women in the book that I wouldn't necessarily have put in the "great" category (Taylor Swift anyone?) but the point still stands that there are a lot of very talented women who are also cat lovers.  And maybe that's not necessarily a coincidence. I like the concept of this book and appreciated that it's a mix of contemporary and historically significant women included. I would find it interesting to see if there are others that might resonate more clearly with me, but overall I did enjoy it. 

#45-2021 & #46-2021