I’m writing this a bit early and scheduling it in for Sunday as we’ve had some big storms in my part of the world. They’re calling them ‘super cells’ in the media, but I’m sure they’re nothing like the hurricanes / tornadoes (not to mention earthquakes etc) experienced in other parts of the world. Nevertheless, there have been some power outages and so I’m sticking by that old entertainment industry adage… the show must go on.
What I read
For a change I actually kept to my planned reading. I whipped through Beautiful Broken Things by Sara Barnard, which I hadn’t realised was a YA novel, and I just love love LOVED it. It’s out in a week or two so I’ll publish my review then.
I then read Orphan X and loved it as well. Gregg Hurwitz has done a great job with our new leading man… Evan Smoak!
And finally I got to Rebound by Aga Lesiewicz. And well… I struggled a little initially. More on why when I get to the review but, let’s just say the words WTF circled in my little brain again and again.
What I wrote
It was a pretty good reviewing week for me, though I didn’t bother with any (more) personal posts.
To Catch a Killer by Nele Neuhaus – great characters, (personally) difficult plot (4 stars)
Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty – a good book but I think I expected something phenomenal (4 stars)
The Bitter Season by Tami Hoag – 5th in the series but that didn’t matter. Great characters and plot. (4 stars)
Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz – fabulous protagonist, great backstory, humungous potential (4.5 stars)
I also published my monthly ‘fave books’ post over at Styling You.
What I did
I got a job. Well, I found out (formally) that I got a job I interviewed for a while ago. I’ll start soon and it’s only 5 days a fortnight which is perfect. It’s with a government department so I guess I’m looking forward to the security that comes along with that.
I changed my hair colour. I now have brown hair. I’d love to go short again but the 35kg I’ve gained in the 3yrs since my seachange means I feel far too heavy for that at the moment, so… I went brown instead. #asyoudo
And here’s a pic from Friday night’s power-outage. I sat drinking red wine by candlelight while watching the lightning light up the night sky!
What I plan to read
I’m excited that JD Robb’s latest, Brotherhood in Death, will be first on my list. It’s the 42nd in the Eve Dallas / Roarke series and I’m pleased Nora Roberts shows no sign of slowing down any time soon…
As for what comes next… I have no idea. I have about a half a dozen ebooks in NetGalley and this trusty pile. I need to go through both and sort them chronologically!
And that’s about it for my weekly check-in, this last week in January 2016. I’m looking forward to the next week as I think I’ll start my new job and next weekend my brother, SIL and niece are coming for a short visit.
What’s on your weekly agenda?
Linking up as usual with Kimberly from The Caffeinated Reviewer for the Sunday Post and Kathryn from The Book Date for It’s Monday!
January 31, 2016
Love a huge reading pile! Good luck with your new job.
January 31, 2016
Thanks Karen… I’m hoping it’s okay. It’s a lower level than I worked when previously in government and part-time so I’m hoping it gives me the balance I didn’t have last time I worked!
January 31, 2016
Super cells…hope the weather is okay there and you don’t get slammed too hard. Congrats on the job!!! Hope it’s awesome.
I love that title Beautiful Broken Things. Glad it was good. And glad you liked Big Little Lies- I loved it and I know I raved about it probably too much but I liked the snark. 🙂
Wine and candlelight is nice even if one doesn’t exactly CHOOSE to have a power outage! It does look a little stormy in that picture. Hope you have a great weekend…
January 31, 2016
Friday night’s storms were quite severe here Greg and someone lost their life when a tree fell on the caravan (trailer) they were staying in. There was a lot of debris and our local Council had a big clean up to do. Saturday wasn’t as bad but there’s been some flooding elsewhere in the state and some thunder about at the moment. I don’t mind the rain but the storms can be a bit debilitating for those needing to do stuff!
January 31, 2016
Congratulations on the job! I knew you’d get it 🙂 I heard you guys had some wild weather down there.
January 31, 2016
We did. I was in the bath when it first started. It’d been windy all day but then the power went out and I suddenly realised how incredibly windy it was outside, so decided I should dress in case I needed to make a quick getaway or something! Thankfully it died down so I was able to open my doors and windows for some relief from the humidity a bit later.
January 31, 2016
Congrats on the job, I hope it goes well. Looks like you got a lot of good books to choose from! 🙂 Happy Reading!
February 1, 2016
Thanks Stormi!
January 31, 2016
I’ve been eyeing The Expatriates…and I’ve heard good things about Be Frank with Me. Enjoy your books and your new job…congrats! Thanks for visiting my blog.
February 1, 2016
I have to admit I don’t know anything about Be Frank WIth Me, but I’ll have to go through the new books this week and do some organising!!!
January 31, 2016
Congrats Deb, you deserve some job security and it will be good to get into a routine 5 days a week!
February 1, 2016
Thanks TIff!x
January 31, 2016
Congrats on the job! And stay safe in all the crazy weather! Have a great week 🙂
February 1, 2016
Thanks Maree, am hoping the storm clouds move on soon. (The rain, I don’t mind!)
January 31, 2016
wow “super Cells” sounds like a good book title! the candlelight is inspiring too 🙂 Hope you stay safe with the storms though! CONGRATS on your new job Debbie! so happy for you. Looking forward to your review of Expatriates. I really enjoyed Orphan X’s review :).
February 1, 2016
Thanks Daniela… I must get to the Expatriates. I must admit it’s not leaping out at me and I can’t even remember requesting it, but something must have drawn me to it.
January 31, 2016
I hope you haven’t had anymore power outages, though they can give some very nice nights and days of reading. And congrats on the job. That’s great!
February 1, 2016
The worst thing about Friday night’s outage is that I was reading a print book. If it’d been an ebook I could have stayed in the bath with my iPad, but alas…
January 31, 2016
Congrats on the job, Deb! I’m so happy for you! Both because you’ll have a secure income, and because it’s not a full-time position that will make everything else you want to do difficult.
And I want a pic of your brown hair! I’ve gone brown before, but I don’t think I will again, it made me look incredibly pale.
Have a wonderful week ahead and happy reading.
February 1, 2016
I’ve shared a pic on my Debbish FB page and instagram – though just a photograph of hair strands rather than my whole face….
January 31, 2016
Congrats on getting the job! Its fantastic! Hope the electric becomes more stable, I hate power cuts!! Have a good week and happy reading!
February 1, 2016
I think the worst thing about the power cuts Laura is that it makes me paranoid for days after. We’ve probably been in no danger of cuts since the first big storm but because the weather’s still unpredictable, I’m waiting for more!
January 31, 2016
Congrats on the job! That’s awesome news. The storms? Not so awesome. Stay safe and warm. Looks like you have lots of good reading to do if you lose power again. Have a great week!
That’s a Wrap Weekly
February 1, 2016
Thanks Kimberly!
February 1, 2016
Congrats on the job! And changing your hair is always kind of fun and refreshing. How are the storms though? Drinking wine by candlelight actually sounds kind of awesome. As much as power outages suck, the short ones can actually be kind of fun when you break out the flashlights and candles and kind of just chill for a while. (As long as your food doesn’t go bad. Then it becomes not fun.)
February 1, 2016
Oh yes Kristen I’d bought a heap of meat the day before the power outage and so I was hoping the power wasn’t out long enough to spoil all of that in my freezer… but it was only off 3hrs so that was fine and I’d actually already cooked and my dinner was basically ready to eat when it happened. I was very very lucky!
February 1, 2016
Congrats on the new job! That sounds awesome, and the benefits and security must be such a relief. As for the storms…not so much. Stay safe and read up!
February 1, 2016
Before my seachange I job-hopped a lot. All in government, but I moved from project to project and / or when I felt like I needed a change I moved on to another Department. I’d never really had trouble getting a job before so it’s been confronting to have so much difficulty here. I live in quite a poor socioeconomic area now (lot of young families and retirees) so jobs are few and far between…. let alone jobs that might pay a little better or offer more of a challenge.
February 1, 2016
Congratulations on the job! Hope the storms didn’t cause too much disruption…red wine by candlelight seems a good idea.
February 1, 2016
It was a great idea Emma, though it was so hot and sticky I eventually ran myself a cool bath and lolled in that for an hour or so to get out of the heat!
February 1, 2016
Oh fantastic on the job, so delighted for you. Saw the brown hair on FB! I’ve never dyed mine, just not brave enough! So far any storms around seem to have passed my little part of the world by. We are having what I call Australian temps though. I have every door and window open!
I was sent Brotherhood in Death and I am looking at it, see it is about Dennis Mira, and I so want to read it, but am only mid way through the series and like reading in order. Might read a few more and then… skip and go back! YA can be the holder of some fabulous books, will be keeping an eye out for your review, I could be sucked in.
February 1, 2016
I’ve dyed my hair three or four times now Kathryn. The first time I left it brown for years I was in my mid 20s. I think I only went back to blonde as I was going to Africa to volunteer and I worried about regrowth and sustaining the colour etc. And then I did it several years later… but it’s been a while this time!
February 1, 2016
Congrats on your new job! I hope the storms don’t cause too many problems. At least you have some wine to keep you company 🙂
February 1, 2016
Ah yes, I also bought and made some food which didn’t need to be heated etc… but kept eating that while we still had power. #oops
February 1, 2016
Hope you stay safe and don’t get frustrated by the weather. We used to live in FL so every year we were on hurricane alert and I lived through some but never had damage. We also lived in NY when Superstorm Sandy swept through a few years ago (don’t know if it was covered where you were but 6 full days of no power and it was chilly and no oven or lights or heat). Your pic above is actually very soothing looking, despite the situation.
I read The Bitter Season and enjoyed it as I have almost all Tami Hoag’s books. I look forward to picking up The Expatriates and I have The Choice already on hand. Have a great week, Deb!
February 1, 2016
Oh yes Rita I remember hearing about Sandy at the time and am sure we would have seen footage etc… We’ve had some long outages after cyclones which have gone on for a few days, but are fairly lucky! (So far!!!)
February 1, 2016
Congratulations! I hope it is a nice balance for you! Sounds like a great reading week! Might have to buy myself an early Birthday present 🙂
February 1, 2016
Yes… the Christmas period is a bit quiet for me – lots of cookbooks, memoirs etc so the novels I love are just coming out again now!
February 1, 2016
Nice set of books to go through for your next read. Congrats on the job. Hope the weather improves.
February 1, 2016
Thanks Harvee – it’s really humid at the moment which is horrendous and as I live opposite the beach all of my tiled floors are slippery and sticky! (Such a first-world problem though!) 😉
February 1, 2016
Beautiful Broken Things sounds like a good book. Have a great reading week.
Theresa (The Truth About Books)
See What I’m reading here
February 1, 2016
I loved it Theresa but am worried I’ll struggle to explain why when I come to write the review!
February 1, 2016
Im so so so excited for your new job (and the hair. it looks fab.).
And I cant wait to hear more about what YOU think as it all unfolds.
February 2, 2016
Thanks Carla. x
February 1, 2016
Congratulations again on the job 🙂 its weird, north and south of here there have been lots of storms but it’s just bloody hot and humid here. Enjoy your new books 🙂
February 2, 2016
They’re just circling here now too (or perhaps it’s the same everywhere). My tiled floors are just constantly sticky and slippery. Ugh!
February 1, 2016
It sounds like you had a great reading week Deborah. ‘Beautiful Broken Things’ sounds like a great read. I can’t wait to read your thoughts about it.
Congratulations on the new job. Super exciting!!
I hope the weather gets better soon. Have a great week 😉
February 2, 2016
I must get to the Beautiful Broken Things review (which I thought I’d started when I finished the book last week, but didn’t!!!!).
February 1, 2016
Congrats on the job!! And yay for a change in hair!! Enjoy your new books and hope you have a great week!
February 2, 2016
Thanks Grace!
February 2, 2016
Congrats on the new job, exciting. I look forward to your thoughts on the Expatriates. I’m intrigued even though its not really my kind of book.
February 2, 2016
Ummm.. I have to say Marce, I’m a bit worried it’s not my kind of book either, but perhaps it’ll prove me wrong!… #eek!
February 2, 2016
Such great news on the job Deb. I’m glad it’s finally happened for you.
February 2, 2016
Thanks Char. Will be a relief not to have to deal with Centrelink etc and feel guilty for not getting more copywriting work etc.
February 2, 2016
Congratulations on the job! I wish you great success. Hope the storms were kind to you. Can’t wait to get to Brotherhood in Death! I am listening to The Choice on audio. Have a wonderful week.
February 2, 2016
I’ve only read the one Nicholas Sparks before Nise’ and was a bit underwhelmed… I must get to The Choice as it looks fairly short!
February 2, 2016
Wahoo..wonderful news about the job. I love your haul. I so need to catch up on Dobbs. Have a wonderful week!!
February 2, 2016
Thanks Kimberly!
February 2, 2016
We’ve had some spectacular lightning shows here in Victoria too. They are awesome to watch as long as you’re safely indoors. Good luck with the job.
February 2, 2016
That’s true Yvonne! I was happily tucked away behind the glass doors just watching it all. I was a little worried when the winds were pretty strong but after that felt completely safe and able to enjoy the show. Of course someone in Hervey Bay lost their life and we had quite a bit of damage so I shouldn’t be too glib… (But still, I was fortunate!)
February 3, 2016
I hope you didn’t suffer from any power outage. They are very uncommon here. Stay safe with those storms around! And congrats on the job! I hope it’s a good job. I have the first J.D. Robb book on my to-read list, but it’s such a long series, it’s a bit daunting. I hope you’ll have a great week!
February 3, 2016
They’re a rarity here too Lola (thankfully). Nowadays it really only happens in severe weather and usually fairly briefly.
And yes, I can imagine the JD Robb series seems a bit overwhelming but they’re easy fun reads and not HUGELY detailed, so it doesn’t matter if time passes between one and the next as you’re unlikely to forget any important backstory / info.
February 3, 2016
Oh wow, I love the look of Cambodia Noir – I think I have Manila and KL Noir but not that one. Very interesting.
February 3, 2016
Oh Myra, I didn’t even know there was a series!
February 4, 2016
CONGRATS on your job!!
Looks like you had a terrific reading week and writing week.
Nice stack of books.
Elizabeth
Silver’s Reviews
My It’s Monday, What Are You Reading
February 4, 2016
Thanks Elizabeth.
February 4, 2016
Yay! Big congrats on your new job, that is so exciting! We had horrendous storms over the weekend, well we had Storm Gertrude at the end of the week and Storm Henry early this week. I am fed up of the weather but a lot of other areas have had it a lot worse.
Have a great week!
February 4, 2016
I’m the same Heather… we’re pretty fortunate really, which I guess is why it’s such a big deal when we do get bad weather!
February 4, 2016
You do have an interesting stack there. I hope your weather isn’t causing you too much trouble. Congrats on the new job! I hope you enjoy it.
I am going to check into Orphan X.
Happy reading!
February 4, 2016
No more power outages Martha but very hot and muggy (80-90% humidity) weather. It should be changing by this next weekend though. (I hope!)
February 6, 2016
Wow! That’s fantastic that you found a job. Congrats! And the hair color too – a little change is always fun. 🙂 Hope you had a good week!
February 6, 2016
Thanks Rachel – it’s been a great week!
February 6, 2016
Hope this week is going well too (I know I’m late in commenting). I’m just really back in blogging mode (well I don’t know whether I’m really back at all) after the school holidays. Great to hear about your new job – sounds like a great balance between what you are doing here on the blog and with your book reviewing and the security and interactions of a government role. And the thing is (as I’m sure you know coming from your senior public sector roles before) that once you are ‘IN’ the opportunities open up if you want them. Best of luck.
February 7, 2016
Thanks Kathy! And I’m a bit the same as you on commenting front – still getting back into blogging mode after the break!