Goodbye May - Here Comes June

I'm actually happy to say goodbye to May. The only good thing about it was that I found a lot of time to read.  My right knee suddenly began hurting the beginning of May and I finally had to go to a specialist the middle of the month - X-rays showed moderate patellofemoral osteoarthritis. prescription arthritis drugs didn't work with swelling or pain so, I finally went back 2 weeks later for a cortisone shot (5 days ago).  Slight relief until I had a PT session on Friday and, I literally, could not walk out of the office without borrowing a cane afterwards. I was in so much pain.  I haven't done the at home exercises as knee is still painful.  I'm beginning to wonder whether I have another meniscus tear like I had in same knee about 15 years ago? On a positive note, as I got out of bed this morning, there was very little swelling so I'm hoping progress is being made. F/up Wednesday.

Outside…

It's been kind of hot and humid this past week but, really nice today. 

Watching…

I didn't watch much television last week, instead spending most of the week with my feet up reading or playing games on computer. We did watch Double Indemnity, a movie from 1944, after having finished the book. 

Exercise and other highlights…

No highlights/no exercise because of my knee pain.

Today’s To Do List…

Finishing up - If it Bleeds, Stephen King (it's pretty good).

Retail Therapy...

I actually ordered a cane to have on hand as I have to return the one I borrowed on Wednesday. I didn't need it yesterday but, just in case. Exciting huh? (peacock pattern).

May Reads-  (13) Books  (47-YTD) - (3) kids, (2) NF, (8) fiction. Of these (3) were 5 star reads for me.

                                                                  Fave Books of May

1. Kaia and the Bees; M. Boelts - 5/5 (print/May)
2. The Nest that Wren Built; Sosenshine - 5/5 (print/May)
3. Hike; Oswald - 4.5/5 - (print/May) - 4.5/5 (print/May)
4. The Dilemma; B.A. Paris - 2.5/5 (eGalley/May)
5. Wild Game; Adrienne Brodeur - NF - 4/5 (eGalley/May)
6. Brother and Sister; Diane Keaton - 2/5 -(NF/Audio/May)
7. Olive Kitteridge; Elizabeth Strout - 5/5 (reread/audio/May)
8. My Dark Vanessa; Kate Elizabeth Russell - 5/5 - (eGalley/May)
9. Redhead By the Side of the Road; Anne Tyler - 3.5/5 (audio/May)
10. The Sun Down Motel; Simone St. James - 5/5 - (eGalley/May)
11. Double Indemnity; James M. Cain - 4.5/5 (print/May)
12. All Adults Here; Emma Straub - 4/5 - (audio/May)
13. If it Bleeds; Stephen King (audio - should finish today)

Reading Plans for June (so far)

• A Week at the Shore; Barbara Delinsky (finish/in progress)
• The New Husband; D.J. Palmer
• Tomorrow There Will Be Sun; Dana Reinhardt
• Malice Aforethought; Francis Isles

How did your week go? Any favorite reads?

Book Review - All Adults Here; Emma Straub

TITLE:  All Adults Here

AUTHOR:  Emma Straub

PUBLISHER:  Penguin Audio

PUB. YEAR: 2020

Setting: Upstate NY

Format: audio

Rating - 4/5

Astrid Strick is a 68 year old mother and grandmother to 3 adult children, it's a family where everyone seems to have issues they are struggling with.  Astrid is a widow, very matter-of-fact, not at all warm and fuzzy. Now in her senior years she's been keeping a secret from her children, she's attracted to her female hairdresser, Birdie.

As the story opens, Astrid witnesses a woman she has long known killed by an empty speeding school bus. It is this incident that causes her to reflect on earlier days as a young woman and mother and how she could have been a better mother to her children.  The untimely death of this woman forces Astrid to look back, try to make amends and decide how she wants to live her life moving forward.

As the reader I felt like I got to know the quirky, yet well-crafted characters and messy lives quite well. Eldest son Elliot is parent to twins works in real estate development, middle child Porter, 37 decides to have a baby in a non traditional manner and youngest child Nicky is unfocused, sending his 13 y/old daughter, Cecelia, upstate to live with Astrid after an incident at her school back in Brooklyn. There were plenty of social issues that surfaced in this novel: sexual and gender identity, child-rearing, bullying and more. Although there definitely wasn't a strong story line in this novel,  I enjoyed the time I spent with these flawed characters and their life struggles.  

The audio book was read by Emily Rankin who did a great job.

(Audio download provided by by Penguin Audio in exchange for an unbiased review.)

Book Review - Double Indemnity, James M Cain (Book and Movie)

TITLE:  Double Indemnity

AUTHOR:  James M. Cain

PUBLISHER:  Vintage Crime/Black Lizard/Random House

PUB. YEAR: (1936) reprint: (1992)

Setting: CA

Format: print

Rating - 4.5/5

Walter Huff is a decent enough guy, he's single and is an insurance salesmen in Beverly Hills, CA. He is lured into a murder plot by an attractive vixen who is looking to have her husband killed once he purchases and accidental death policy. He meets Phyllis Nirdlinger, the soon to be victim's wife, while making a house call on her husband who is out at the time. The two hit it off and them meet several times to come up with a plan.

The story is told as Walter looks back on how the met Phyllis, how the plot is carried out and how things quickly spiral out of control.

This was a well-craft, murder mystery and just 118 pages. Since it was first written in 1936 some aspects of the story certainly felt dated but, it in no way detracted from my enjoyment of this page turner.

I first learned about this book when I recently read Eight Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson and, I decided to purchase it. I'm glad I did.  I then watched the (1944) film version on TCM starring Fred MacMurray as Walter, Barbara Stanwyck as Phyllis and Edward G. Robinson as Walter's boss.  The movie is slightly different from the book, (Walter's last name is different as was Phyllis's and the ending was different as well). The movie was very enjoyable but, I liked the book a bit better.

This is my first completed book from my Summer Reading List - 2020.

Double Indemnity - (1944)

Editorial Reviews

Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck star in the gripping film noir classic, Double Indemnity, directed by Academy Award winner Billy Wilder. A calculating wife (Stanwyck) encourages her wealthy husband to sign a double indemnity policy proposed by smitten insurance agent Walter Neff (MacMurray). As the would-be lovers plot the unsuspecting husband’s murder, they are pursued by a suspicious claims manager (Edward G. Robinson). It’s a race against time to get away with the perfect crime in this suspenseful masterpiece that was nominated for 7 Academy Awards including Best Picture.

First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros - If it Bleeds; Stephen King

Welcome to First Chapter/Intros, now hosted by Yvonne @ Socrates Book Reviews. . Each week readers post the first paragraph (or 2) of a book they are reading or that they plan to read soon.

If it Bleeds; Stephen King

Simon & Schuster Audio-2020

Mr Harrigan's Phone

My home town was just a village of six hundred or so (and still is, although I moved away), but we had the Internet just like the big cities, so my father and I got less and less personal mail.  Usually all Mr. Nedeau brought was the weekly copy of Time, fliers addressed to Occupant or Our Friendly Neighbors, and the monthly bills.  But starting in 2004, the year I turned nine and began working for Mr. Harrigan up the hill, I could count on at least four envelopes hand-addressed to me each year.  There was a Valentine's Day card in February, a birthday card in September, a Thanksgiving Day card in November, and a Christmas card either just before or just after the holiday. Inside each card was a one-dollar scratch ticket from the Maine State Lottery, and the signature was always the same: Good Wishes from Mr. Harrigan. Simple and formal."

Just started the audio version and the readers are fantastic. (Will Patton, Danny Burstein and  Steven Weber).

What do you think - read more or pass?

Summer Reading List for 2020

I wasn't sure whether it would be wise to make a summer reading list for 2020 but, then figured, hey, I'm here, I'm  home and I'm still practicing social distancing so, yeah, I actually might be able to accomplish a goal like this.  

So here goes: a few murder mysteries, thrillers, lighter beach/pool reads and one non-fiction.  Have you read any of these? Double Indemnity (1931) and Malice Aforementioned (1936) are oldies but  goodies and were considered (2) of the top murder mysteries on the list created in Eight Perfect Murders; Peter Swanson.

summer-reading-list-2020

A Week at the Shore (in progress)

by Barbara Delinsky

If It Bleeds (in progress)

by Stephen King

Malice Aforethought: The Story of a Commonplace Crime

by Francis Iles

Double Indemnity (completed 5/28/2020)

by James M. Cain

Death in Her Hands

by Ottessa Moshfegh

28 Summers

by Elin Hilderbrand

Tomorrow There Will Be Sun

by Dana Reinhardt

Girls of Summer

by Nancy Thayer

Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family

by Robert Kolker

Kept Animals

by Kate Milliken

Have you thought about a summer reading list?

Book Review - The Sun Down Motel; Simone St. James

TITLE:  The Sun Down Motel

AUTHOR:  Simone St. James

PUBLISHER:  Berkley

PUB. YEAR: 2020

Setting: Fell, NY

Format: eGalley

Rating - 5/5

In 1982 Vivian Delaney was a young girl who hoped to make in big in New York City, but she ended up in small town Fell, NY taking a job on the night shift at The Sun Down Motel. Things never seemed right at the motel and on November 29, 1982, while working, Vivian seemed to vanish without a trace. 

Fast forward 35 years Carly Kirk's mother was Vivian's sister.  Carly's mother has died and would never talk about Vivian's disappearance. Carly is disillusioned with college and becomes obsessed with finding out what happened to her aunt Vivian.  She leaves college in Illinois and moves to Fell, NY to try to find out more about what now seems to be a closed case. When she visits The Sun Down Motel, there is a night clerk vacancy, the same job Vivian held 35 years earlier. She gets the job and by day plays amateur detective. In the process she learns that small town Fells has had more than one unsolved cases. It's clear that bad things have happened at the Sun Down over the years and not too many people are anxious to talk about it. It's also clear, early on, that ghosts haunt the place.  Yes, the Sun Down Motel, built in the early 70s and now rundown, offers more than a cheap room. 

What will Carly uncover as she delves deeper?

The story alternates between Vivian in 1982 and Carly in 2017. Readers who enjoy atmospheric stories with a creepy Gothic feel, strong, gutsy female characters who support one another should read this book. This is an edge of your seat mystery. I loved that the motel seemed to come alive on the pages and that quite a lot of the action takes place there as well.  This story was so well crafted and had a satisfying ending as well.

Thanks go to Berkley Publishing and Edelweiss to allow me access to this eBook.

Book Review - Redhead By the Side of the Road; Anne Tyler

TITLE:  Redhead By the Side of the Road

AUTHOR:  Anne Tyler

PUBLISHER:  Random House Audio

PUB. YEAR: 2020

Setting: Maryland

Format: audio/download

Rating - 3.5/5

Micah Mortimer is in his early 40s and single. He lives a life that thrives on routines.  He was the unplanned baby in his family and the only child that went to college.  Now he lives in a basement apartment in a rather run down building in Baltimore. In exchange for free rent he does routine maintenance and handyman work there.  He also runs a one-man business known as "The Tech Hermit" making house calls for clients with technology/computer issues.  He's been involved long term with Cass, a woman in her 30s, the relationship allows for his life to remain orderly and still allowing him to stick to his routines. So when Cass is facing eviction, she's hoping Micah will suggest she move in. If that isn't enough to upset his orderly life, when a young man named Brink, appears at his door and claims to be his son, Micah is perplexed beyond belief. What's Micah to do?

Written in classic Anne Tyler style and a rather short novel, I enjoyed spending a few hours with quirky Micah, as he contemplates the effects of his life choices. I'm happy I tried this novella but, I didn't think this was one of Tyler's best effects.