Amazon First Reads - September 2024

Hi, everyone!!

Did you know as part of your Amazon Prime Membership you receive a FREE monthly Kindle book available?? It is called Amazon First Reads!! You can find out more about it here: Amazon First Reads.

The Amazon First Reads email went out yesterday! There is a free Kindle book and a free Kindle short story for September 2024. I am really enjoying the additional short story along with the free ebook!

My TWO choices for September 2024 are:

When We Were Friends by Jane Green (short story)

Hill of Secrets by Galina Vromen (ebook)

So what Kindle book are you SELECTING?!? 

Also, as a reminder, remember to "buy" AND download the FREE books from Amazon! You cannot read the books for free if they are not downloaded! Ask me how I know?

Happy reading, 

Dorothea 💜

My next audiobook is...

The Moment of Lift by Melinda Gates (audiobook)

 

Happy Labor Day!!

Happy reading!

Dorothea 💜

AUGUST 2024 - Monthly Wrap-up

Good afternoon, everyone!

First off, I hope that everyone is enjoying this long weekend! I am grateful for those who created the weekend, work weeks, and overtime through their efforts.

So August was a good improvement in books read! Unfortunately, the Olympics cut into my reading time, but it was worth the time!

 

2^nd ANNUAL “booksbydorothea” BEST BOOKS OF 2024:

All We Were Promised by Ashton Lattimore (January) 5 stars (ebook)

Miss Morgan's Book Brigade by Janet Skeslien Charles (February) 5 stars (ebook)

The Lost Story by Meg Shaffer (March) 5 stars (ebook)

How To Read A Book by Monica Wood (April) 5 stars (ebook)

Here One Moment by Liane Moriarity (May) 4.5 stars (ebook)

The Friday Afternoon Club (June) 5 stars (audiobook)

The Bookstore Wedding by Alice Hoffman (July) 5 stars (ebook)

The Briar Club by Kate Quinn (August) 5 stars (ebook)

 

GOODREADS READING GOAL:

My goal is to read 100 books in 2024. As of 08/31/2024, I have read 59 books, or 59% of my goal.

 

AUGUST 2024 STATISTICS:

8 total books

5 e-books; 3 audiobooks; 0 physical books

1 book was an ARC (Advance Reader Copy)

6 books were library books

0 books were purchased

1 book was an Amazon First Reads

0 books were a Book Club Girl

 

Audio listening time in August:  28 hours, 15 minutes

Pages read in August:  1273 pages

Average review rating: 4.44 stars

 

AUGUST BOOK RATINGS with BOOK COVERS: 

5.0-star book (2)

The Briar Club by Kate Quinn (ebook) LINK

What Does It Feel Like? by Sophie Kinsella (ebook) LINK

4.5-star book (4)

Drama - An Artist's Education by John Lithgow (audiobook) LINK

What A Fool Believes by Michael McDonald (audiobook) LINK

The Light Over London by Julia Kelly (ebook) LINK

 

4.0-star book (1)

It. Goes. So. Fast by Mary Louise Kelly (audiobook) LINK

3.5-star book (1)

Natural Selection by Erin Hilderbrand (ebook) LINK

3.0-star book (0)

 

If you want to read my full review of any of these books, there are individual review links for each ebook or audiobook next to the book title and author. Click on the specific book link to get to that book review!! 

 

Happy reading!

Dorothea 💜

 

P.S. For more information about my book ratings, you can find out more HERE.

REVIEW - It. Goes. So. Fast (audiobook)

It. Goes. So. Fast by Mary Louise Kelly (audiobook)

OVERVIEW

My family, especially my husband, are huge NPR and our local LAist radio stations. Our daughter grew up listening to it on her way to school with her dad and her love of politics grew from this exposure. 

So when I saw this audiobook, the name seemed familiar as did the voice. The premise was to enjoy and be involved in every moment of her older son's last year at home before college. It did do that, but it all strayed from the original premise and was told in a random order that was difficult.   

OVERALL REVIEW: 4.0 stars

Writing: 4.0 stars

Mary Louise can write and I would expect nothing less from a world-renowned NPR journalist. But, she misses it with the heart and soul I was expecting. I wanted and expected more emotion and nitty gritty. My expectations were very high with her writing. 

Narration: 4.0 stars

Mary Louise narrates well as I expected, but again the emotion and real feeling were not there as I wanted and expected. There was some emotional reading, but it needed more, IMHO. 

Character Arc: 4.0 stars

The audiobook is in random order and seems haphazard at times. It is fine to tell backstories to add depth and character. But in this memoir, it was constant backstories and it was sometimes off-putting. It spans the birth of her sons to her older son's high school graduation in 2022.

Memorable:  4.0 stars

Mary Louise's stories about being on assignment in multiple war zones were fascinating and scary. But, again, I wanted more. 

Entertaining:   4.5 stars

The author sprinkled some funny stories throughout the memoir, but the most entertaining was the guinea pig in Ukraine. 

Book cover: 4.5 stars

Appropriate!  

Book title: 5.0 stars 

Truth!

DEFINITE recommend

STATISTICS

Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) borrow (audiobook)

It. Goes. So. Fast by Mary Louise Kelly (audiobook)

MacMillan Audio

7 hours, 1 minute

Release date of 4/11/2023

INFORMATIONAL LINKS

Mary Louise Kelly

My Goodreads review

Macmillan Audio

Los Angeles Public Library

Happy reading, 

Dorothea 💜

My next ebook is...

 The Lost English Girl by Julia Kelly (ebook)

Happy reading, 

Dorothea 💜

REVIEW - The Light Over London (ebook)

 The Light Over London by Julia Kelly (ebook)

OVERVIEW

This is the fifth book that I have read by Julia Kelly. I have enjoyed her historical fiction mystery series (Parisian Orphan) and her historical fiction novels.  

In this historical novel, the author has two timelines - WWII and a contemporary timeline. As a personal aside, I have a personal embargo on reading more WWII books, but Julia is one of the few exceptions.  

I learned about another piece of British history I knew nothing about - the "gunner girls" of WWII. These women were incredible heroines who saved many British lives by downing Luftwaffe planes before they dropped bombs over cities and military targets. 

This novel has some twists and turns so I am being vague about the plot and the characters.

OVERALL REVIEW: 4.5 stars

Writing: 4.5 stars

As always, Julia Kelly writes so beautifully! She ties the two timelines together by weaving historical information to create a multi-layered story. I loved learning about British history in the novel, but it was written in such a well-done manner as to be pleasant and not scholarly.  

Character development: 4.5 stars

The main characters are Louise (a WWII character) and Cara (a contemporary character).  

The secondary characters are Paul (Louise's friend), Liam (Cara's friend), Iris (Cara's grandmother). Paul, Liam, and Iris are yin and yang characters. 

The tertiary characters are Kate (Louise's cousin), Nicole (Cara's friend), assorted military characters, and Cara's boss. 

Storyline:  4.5 stars

The storyline begins when Cara finds Louise's diary while working on an estate consignment sale with her boss. Cara becomes curious and wants to return the diary to Louise's family. She reads the diary and begins to research Louise while also trying to convince Iris to share about her WWII service. 

The main locations were Cornwall, London, and Gloucestershire England. 

Memorable/Informative:  4.5 stars

The British female gunners in WWII were brave, smart, and patriotic. They were real heroines who helped Britain win the war over Germany. 

Book cover: 4.5 stars

Lovely!

Book title: 4.5 stars 

Very appropriate!

STRONG recommend

BOOK INFORMATION

Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) borrow (ebook)

The Light Over London by Julia Kelly

305 pages 

Gallery Books

Release date of 1/8/2019

INFORMATIONAL LINKS

Julia Kelly

My Goodreads review

Gallery Books

Los Angeles Public Library

Happy reading, 

Dorothea 💜

My next audiobook is...

 It Goes So Fast by Mary Louise Kelly (audiobook)

Happy reading, 

Dorothea 💜

My next ebook is...

 The Light Over London by Julia Kelly (ebook)

I am slowly reading Julia Kelly's previous books that I have missed. Since this one became available from the library, I decided to read it now. 

Of course, I am also reading Framed, but it is a deep topic and I need to break away from it when it becomes overwhelming. It is excellent but difficult to read. 

Happy reading, 

Dorothea 💜

P.S. I also need to find a new audiobook!

REVIEW - What a Fool Believes (audiobook)

 What a Fool Believes by Michael McDonald (audiobook)

OVERVIEW

I grew up listening to Michael McDonald primarily in junior high and high school when he was in Steely Dan (I had no clue) and The Doobie Brothers. He has such a hauntingly beautiful voice. 

So when I saw this audiobook, I knew I had to listen to it especially as Michael narrates it himself. This is not a hugely "tell-all" book, but he does share some stories about his life that are real, raw, and gritty. It is told from his childhood to the current time. This audiobook came out this year and I somehow missed it! 

There is one caveat about this book. There are lots of mentions of extreme alcohol consumption, drug usage, and finally recovery. If any of these trigger you, please do not read this book. 

OVERALL REVIEW: 4.5 stars

Writing: 4.5 stars

Michael writes prose, lyrics, and music beautifully. I was impressed that the writing was so strong especially as Michael didn't finish high school! Impressive!

Narration: 5.0 stars

Michael read like a professional narrator with his amazing speaking voice (just as good as his amazing singing voice). He read with feeling and emotion as appropriate. 

He also has a great sense of humor and made me laugh out loud. Michael's book is sprinkled liberally with curse words including my favorite that begins with an "F". It didn't bother me at all as it was all appropriate! 

Character Arc: 4.0 stars

The audiobook is told chronologically from his childhood in St. Louis to his current life in California. The story ends in 2023 with Michael in a good place in his life with his career, marriage, and family. 

The only real issue for me is that Michael knows a lot about music from writing lyrics and music to playing multiple instruments and being a music producer including forming his own record label. He talks about chord progression and I was lost as I have no natural musical ability. I wish Michael had explained more about the music as it would have been helpful!

Memorable:  5.0 stars

I loved how he shared how his life was not perfect including his wife's breast cancer diagnosis and their joint drug and alcohol recovery. He also shared his difficult relationship with his father.  But my favorite parts are when Michael takes ownership of his behavior and calls himself an "a-hole" which was a correct analysis. 

Entertaining:   5.0 stars

Michael told funny stories, but the best anecdotes were about his son when he was little. The story about the coffee shop and the cookie was hysterical to me as a parent! 

Book cover: 5.0 stars

Perfect - showcasing his beautiful blue eyes.  

Book title: 5.0 stars 

Oh, so perfect - he wrote this song AND Michael has imposter syndrome thinking he is the fool!

STRONG recommend

STATISTICS

Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) borrow (audiobook)

What a Fool Believes by Michael McDonald

Dey Street Books

10 hours, 57 minutes

Release date of 5/21/2024

INFORMATIONAL LINKS

Michael McDonald

My Goodreads review

Dey Street Books

Los Angeles Public Library

Happy reading, 

Dorothea 💜

My next ebook is...

 Framed by John Grisham and Jim McCloskey (ebook)

Happy reading, 

Dorothea 💜

REVIEW - The Little Shop of Found Things (ebook)

The Little Shop of Found Things by Paula Brackston (ebook)

 

OVERVIEW

This is the second book that I have read by Paula Brackston. It is also the first in a four-part series! I am so excited to read more about these wonderful characters!

This book is basically about a woman with psychometry who travels through time. It is similar to the Outlander series with time travel, but is set about a century earlier in England and the reason for the journey is a silver chartelaine. 

Please note that I am being careful with many details not to spoil the twists in this lovely book. 

OVERALL REVIEW: 4.5 stars

Writing: 4.5 stars

The author writes beautifully in a lovely educating way about the two time periods in the book. I loved learning about the history in the novel, but it was written in a manner that wasn't a schoolbook way. 

Character development: 4.5 stars

The main character is Xanthe who is the time traveler in this novel. She had to bridge two time periods in Wiltshire during the early 1600s and late 2010s.  The two time periods collide making for some interesting dialogue and plot twists! 

The secondary characters are Flora (Xanthe's mother and owner of an antique shop), Liam (Xanthe's friend), and Samuel (Xanthe's friend). 

The tertiary characters are the assorted supporting characters in both times.   

Storyline:  4.5 stars

The storyline is about Xanthe traveling back in time to ensure her mother's safety through psychometry and a chartelaine. Xanthe had a mission to time travel to the early 1600s and correct a wrong. She also finds friendship and love in the past. 

The main location was Wiltshire England, but specifically Marlborough and Salisbury.   

Memorable/Informative:  4.5 stars

I learned two new words that intrigued me in this book: psychometry and chartelaine. They are both fascinating in their definitions!!

Book cover: 4.5 stars

So pretty!

Book title: 5.0 stars 

Excellent!  

STRONG recommend

BOOK INFORMATION

Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) borrow (ebook)

The Little Shop of Found Things by Paula Brackston

336 pages 

St. Martin's Press

Release date of 10/2/2018

INFORMATIONAL LINKS

Paula Brackston

My Goodreads review

St. Martin's Press

Los Angeles Public Library

Happy reading, 

Dorothea 💜