Did You Love The Time Travelers Wife?... Here's The Long Awaited Sequel!

I loved The Time Travelers Wife by Audrey Niffenegger when I read it way back in 2009. The story was so unique and so touching. I still love that story...

In October, we get to read the continuing story of the Time Travelers Wife, following the daughter of Henry and Clare, Alba, who is also a "time traveler".

Here is the blurb from the publisher... 

Alba DeTamble has never lived a life in order. Born with the same rare Chrono-Displacement Disorder as her father, Henry DeTamble, Alba is an involuntary time traveler: she slips unpredictably through decades, carrying the weight of a future she can witness but cannot change. Yet she strives to maintain a normal life: as a gifted violinist, Alba finds refuge in her music, as well as her tight-knit community of artists and activists who fight to take care of each other in an increasingly unstable world. 

As she dips in and out of time, Alba is haunted by secrets she must keep from those she loves most, including Zach, her safe, supportive anchor in the chaos. Her journey takes her from the riot-torn Chicago streets, to the eerie, timeless “Yellow House” – where she meets Oliver, a handsome fellow time traveler – to the digital corridors of the Museum of Lost Souls, a virtual sanctuary of forgotten memories and lost artifacts. Curating the museum is Isadora, Alba’s mysterious stepsister and an increasingly unsettling presence in their family – whose fate may be intertwined with Alba’s in more dangerous ways than she knows.

At once intimate and sweeping, Life Out of Order is a kaleidoscopic tale of love, resilience, and hope amid our fractured world where time itself is the greatest adversary. With every leap through the years, Alba is forced to reckon with the choices that define her, the people she cannot bear to lose, and the question that haunts every time traveler: can you ever truly belong to the present?

AND, publishers also added that you don't have to read The Time Travelers Wife to enjoy this- it's a standalone.

Will we fall in love with Life Out of Order? 

I sure hope so! Looking forward to reading this!

Are YOU looking forward to it too?

Blood Bound by Ellis Hunter... A Deadly Duel. A Forbidden Love. One Jaw-Dropping Twist.

Blood Bound by Ellis Hunter

A centuries-old covenant forces the heir of the witches of Arturea to fight the heir of the dragon riders of Vatra… to the death.

Astrid—princess of Arturea—is powerful, proud… and not a warrior at heart.
Zryan—Vatra’s lethal champion—is a battle-hardened force of nature, bonded to a massive fire-breathing dragon… and completely obsessed with Astrid.

What should be a death sentence becomes something far more dangerous:
a forbidden, undeniable pull neither of them can resist. Blood Bound is the kind of romantasy that hooks you fast and doesn’t let go. 

The world-building? Incredible. From the witches’ distinct magic and their familiars to the dragon riders’ raw, elemental power—every detail feels vivid and immersive. I swear, I was living in Vatra the entire time. (Still waiting to find out if “reading” counts as a magical talent… I’m claiming it.)

What fills this story out even more is the political intrigue and the rebellion hiding in the shadows—adding layers of tension and depth that make the stakes feel even higher.

And the characters? I was in. Fully invested. Practically third-wheeling alongside Astrid. The friendships that develop are true and touching. I loved the way the female friendships unfolded.

But let’s talk about what really delivers:


Forbidden love…. Enemies to lovers….That slow burn tension…. Touch her and you’ll die… Dragons & Familiars… Political intrigue… Great banter!… Found family… Great female friendships… Magic & Potions… Did I say Dragons! And Familiars!
  

And then—THE TWIST. The kind that makes you stop, reread, and immediately need to talk about it with someone. I want to scream about it… but I won’t ruin it for you.

Just know: It’s big, it’s bold and it brings everything together in a jaw-dropping way. There is so much packed into the story - you’re going to love it. I know I did. This is the first book of a promised 3 book trilogy. 

And I am already whining that I want the second book! 

Published by Atria Books on April 28th! And available at your favorite bookstore right now! I want to thank Atria Books for an advanced copy of Blood Bound to read & review! I loved it!

 

In My Mailbox...

 

I've gotten some great books this week from publishers! Here they are...

June Baby by Shannon Garvey... Some summers never leave you. In this moving debut novel, set over the course of one transformative summer in the lush, beachy enclave of Block Island, a young woman reckons with love, loss, and the choices she must make to move forward. Published by Random House on May 12th. I can see this as being "THE" beach read of the summer!

Second Times A Charmy by Taylor Epperson... Returning

home after years away, Reece is going to have to avoid her assassin ex-boyfriend as she learns to care for the magical creatures now under her protection. Published by Grand Central Publishing on April 21st. How can you resist a place for magical creature?

Second First Dates by Gabriella Gamez... One bad date, shame on you. Two bad dates, shame on me ... Forever (Grand Central Publishing) on July 28th. This looks like a fun romance!

Somewhere Soft To Land by Kai Alonte... In this crackling portrayal of friendship in peril, a young woman’s world is upended when a tragedy in her best friend’s life tests the boundaries of their sisterhood—a sharp and compelling debut novel from a Ghanaian American writer. Published by Ballantine on April 21st. I love stories of Sisters and women's friendships. This looks like it's going to be so memorable!

Doomsdate... When a first date between a doomsday prepper and a nerdy film professor goes horribly, zombie-apocalypse-level wrong, the mismatched pair team up on a road trip to safety in this delightfully feral rom-com. Published by Ballantine September 15th. I can't resist a good zombie apocalypse story! I love the premise for this!

Dragons, Dogs & Delicious Drama... It's New Book Release Tuesdat!

Tuesdays are for new book releases! Here are 3 of my top picks this week!

Blood Bound by Ellis Hunter... A debut high-stakes fantasy romance trilogy set against a once-in-a-generation duel to the death between rival witches and dragon riders as they battle to control the source of all magic in their kingdoms. Perfect for fans of Fourth Wing, Throne of Glass, and Quicksilver.

You duel or you die.

Astrid has always known she is destined to die. She is the last Nachstern witch and heir to the Queendom of Arturea, cursed by a centuries-old covenant to duel the heir to the Kingdom of Vatra for the source of all magic: the Heart. And now Astrid’s time is up. She is heading into enemy territory to face Prince Zryan, the most powerful dragon rider in eons, with only her familiar, her potions and her wits to aid her. She is going to die, and any chance her queendom has of curing the Blight that’s ravaging the lands and killing her people will die with her.

Meanwhile, deep in dragon country, Skylar and her traveling troupe arrive in Vatra's capital, ready to profit off the legions of spectators swarming to the city ahead of the duel. She despises the royals and all they stand for, especially as the King’s guard murdered her mother. But when her best friend disappears, suspected to have been taken in the conscription, her search takes her closer to the royals than she ever could have imagined.

As the duel looms over the kingdom, Skylar and Astrid’s fates intertwine. They must battle a growing rebellion, their inner demons, and ultimately, those they love most, to determine if together they will save—or doom—their world.

OMG, I am reading this right now and am totally absorbed! As soon as I started reading I was loving it! I love the MFC's, and the witches familiars, and I love the idea of the two different worlds, that of the dragon riders and the witches. The banter between characters is great... There has been so much hype for this book and it's all worth it in my opinion! Look for my review coming soon. But if you love romantasy or just great storytelling ADD THIS TO YOUR TBR list! This is published by Atria Books and a huge thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this!!

Ms. Mebel Goes Back to the Chopping Block by Jesse Q. Sutano... Retirement should mean long-awaited trips to the sapphire waters of Santorini or careening down a sand dune in Dubai. For sixty-three-year-old Mebel, retirement means her husband of more than forty years announcing that he's leaving her for their private chef. Mebel isn’t sure who's the bigger loss.

Not to worry, Mebel has the perfect plan: she’s going to win back her husband. No one knows what he needs better than her—after all, she's been anticipating his needs their whole marriage. And if he wants a wife who can cook (why else would he leave her for a chef?), she will simply go to cooking school. And where better to learn to cook for your husband than France, the most romantic country in the world?

However, Mebel quickly learns that she has mistakenly enrolled in a culinary school not in glamorous Paris but rather in England—and in some small village outside of Oxford no less. Despite the less-than-warm welcome from her much younger classmates, Mebel manages to befriend Gemma, the breakout star of the program. And this unlikely friendship starts to show Mebel that maybe there’s more to her than being the perfect trophy wife…

As I was reading about the new books coming out this week, I ran across this one and started reading a bit of it to see if I liked it. AND I DID! The beginning of this story is just too funny and I think I'm really going to like Mebel. Check this book out by Jesse Q. Sutano, who has a a bunch of books already published and adored.  This book is published by Berkley and is on my TBR list...

Dogs, Boys, and Other Things I've Cried About... 
From the social media superstar behind @SimonSits, Isabel Klee—known for her heartwarming tales of dog rescue—comes an utterly winning memoir about a twentysomething woman’s search for true love in New York City and the dogs who helped her find it.

A Jersey girl by birth, Isabel Klee had always wanted to live in New York City. At age 20, she got her chance, ditching her college upstate and moving into a grungy basement apartment in Manhattan. Dog-obsessed since childhood, her first post-grad job was becoming an assistant to a dog photographer, and something clicked into place: a career focused on helping dogs was the new dream.

Isabel quickly found a passion for rehabilitating rescue dogs and helping them get adopted. At the same time, she was caught up in a whirlwind of friendships, parties, fickle boyfriends and grand romances, which she recounts in honest, tender, and sometimes devastating chapters about the search for love and belonging.

Isabel’s first true love, though, was Simon, a fluffy puppy who’d been saved from the meat trade. As the highs and lows of her twenties hit Isabel in wave after wave, it was Simon who kept her grounded. Together, Isabel and Simon created a community of dog-lovers and a tight-knit group of friends pursuing their dreams.

In this honest and moving memoir, Isabel weaves together the stories of her foster dogs—and the challenges she helped them overcome—with tales of complicated relationships, hard decisions, and great loves in New York City, all leading to a happy ending not only for the rescue pups, but for Isabel herself.

Any person in dog rescue has a special place in my heart. I've spotlighted this book last monday in Memoir Monday, but wanted to highlight it again because today is its' official publishing day! And courtesy of William Morrow and NetGalley, I now have a copy to read and review! Thank you so much!! Look for my review coming soon!

New Book Tuesday... Part Two... Because One Post Wasn't Enough!

Just like last week, there were quite a few great looking new books coming out today. Here are 4 more books I have my eye on. And for any of you Allurial subscribers, it's hinted that An Arcane Study of Stars may be one of their special editions being released for May. (I can't wait to find out!)
 

Memoir Monday... Are We All Really Strangers to Each Other?

Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage by Belle Burden... It was a great love story, one for the ages. The speed of our beginning and the speed of our ending felt like matching bookends. They both came out of nowhere. He wanted it, he wanted me. And then he didn’t.

In March 2020, Belle Burden was safe and secure with her family at their house on Martha’s Vineyard, navigating the early days of the pandemic together—building fires in the late afternoons, drinking whisky sours, making roast chicken. Then, with no warning or explanation, her husband of twenty years announced that he was leaving her. Overnight, her caring, steady partner became a man she hardly recognized. He exited his life with her like an actor shrugging off a costume.

In Strangers, Burden revisits her marriage, searching for clues that her husband was not who she always thought he was. As she examines her relationship through a new lens, she reckons with her own family history and the lessons she intuited about how a woman is expected to behave in the face of betrayal. Through all of it, she is transformed. The discreet, compliant woman she once was—someone nicknamed “Belle the Good”—gives way to someone braver, someone determined to use her voice.

With unflinching honesty and profound grace, Burden charts a path through heartbreak to show the power of a woman who refuses to give up on love. Strangers is a stunning, deeply moving, compulsively readable memoir heralding the arrival of a thrilling new literary talent.

I have heard so many people talk about this book. It almost sounds like a book of fiction, but for Belle Burden it is all too real. I read the first 13 pages or so and was crushed for Belle and her family. Now I need to read this to know how Belle survives the betrayal. 

Published by The Dial Press last January.

The Sunday Salon and ....Bookish Adventures in One of the Largest Book Outlet Warehouses in South Carolina

Welcome to The Sunday Salon! It's the place where Book Bloggers from around the world share their bookish finds with one another in a virtual place called The Sunday Salon. Thank you to for Deb at ReaderBuzz keeping us all together on Sundays and hosting The Sunday Salon now! I also visited with Kim at The Caffeinated Reader, another Sunday gathering place for us bookish people called The Sunday Post!

It was a lovely week in South Carolina, but the bookish fun happened on Friday, when rolling tote in hand I went to the Book Warehouse Sale in Easley, SC. It's usually a 2 day event, Saturday and Sunday, but this month they opened on Friday too! I thought was perfect because it might be a little less crowded. (Yeah, right)... I arrived 40 minutes before they opened at 1pm. I really wasn't sure how long it would take me from home, so I left early. I wasn't going to get in line until it was near 1pm, but as the line grew and grew, I thought I better get to it. 

If you've never been there, The Book Warehouse Outlet is in an old factory warehouse and it is HUGE! Here's a photo of one section off their FB page...

When you enter, you walk about a mile (okay, it just seems like a mile) to the stacks and shelves of books. Everything is 70% off. They carry books that didn't sell at the big box stores, like Target and Walmart. They are all remainders, but I've yet to find one with a remainder mark on it. The shelves are organized by subject... fiction, romance, horror, etc. Once you get into the section, it's a hunt for the author or title you want. My goal was to pick up some romantasy I wanted to try, some Abby Jimenez and see if anything else caught my attention. There was plenty of Abby Jimenez and Elin Hilderbrand, Julie Soto, and Kennedy Ryan. Here's what I picked up...

1. Pachinko by Min Jin Lee (Literary Fiction)

2.The Veins of the Drowning by Kalie Cassidy (Fantasy Romance)

3. The Housemaid's Secret by Freida McFadden (Psychological Thriller)

4. Little Alleluias by Mary Oliver (Poetry)

5. Lethal by Sandra Brown (Suspense Thriller with Romance)

6. Throne of The Fallen by  Kerri Maniscalco (Book 1 of 3 of Prince of Sin)           

7, Throne if Secret by Kerri Maniscalco (Book 2 of 3 of Prince of Sin) Fantasy

8. Phantasma by Kaylie Smith (Book 1 of 2) Fantasy Romance

9. Enchantra by Kaylie Smith (Book 2 of 2) Fantasy Romance

10. The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne (Book 1 of 3) Fantasy Adventure

11. The Hunger of the Gods (Book 2 of 3) Fantasy Adventure

12. The Fury of the Gods (Book 3 of 3) Fantasy Adventure

13. Nightweaver by R.M. Gray (YA Dark Fantasy Adventure)

14. A Rip Through Time by Kelley Armstrong(Time Travel Sci-fi/Historicl Fiction)

15. Verity by Colleen Hoover (Psychological Thriller)

16. The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez (Romance)

17. Just For The Summer by Abby Jimenez (Romance)

18. Rose in Chains by Julie Soto (Fantasy Romance)

I've been meaning to read Verity by Colleen Hoover (I can't believe I haven't yet!). I haven't read Pachinko yet either and have had it on my TBR list forever. I didn't see any poetry except for this Mary Oliver book just lying out of place somewhere. And it was one of her books I do not have. She's one of my favorite poets. My mother loves Sandra Brown, and so I've started to read her too. And then all the rest are new to me and thought I would give them a read. I've been really enjoying some Romantasy lately (Romance Fantasy) and thought I'd try more. Abby Jimenez is all the rage these days, so I thought I'd read some of her. I did pick up her newest hardcover before this. I did have Elin Hilderbrand books in my hand, but thought I was already carried away, so I'll save those for another time.

Have you read any of these books? 

 I'd love to know what you think and what to expect!

Besides all the bookish adventures, I'm reading Blood Bound by Ellis Hunter, courtesy of Atria Books and NetGalley. It's a Romantasy with lots of adventure and I'm loving it! There are witches and dragon riders and a fight to the death, and a slow burn romance, magic great world building. Yes, I am really enjoying. It will be released this coming Tuesday.

I'm also listening to The Best Dog in the World essays edited by Alice Hoffman, that I borrowed from my local library, and which I'm really enjoying. If you are a dog person, this audiobook is for you! It's the kind of audiobook where you listen to one      story and then take a break to enjoy and reflect.

Here's what happened this week on the blog...

Memoir Monday... It's about the dogs she rescues and the life behind it. Dogs, Boys and Other Things I've Cried About by Isabel Klee.

New Release Tuesday... There were so many great new books released tuesday, I did Part 1 and Part 2! Check them out and tell me if you were waiting for them to be released! 

Kindle Deal of the Day... If you're a fan of Freida McFadden (The Housemaid?!), her new book, The Witch, sounds like a creepy hit and the Kindle pre-order was $4.99! And last I checked it still was $4.99 (83% off!).

National Poetry Month Post!... April is National Poetry Month! Have you read/do you like poetry? Get some great suggestions from this post!

First Lines Friday... and this one comes with a body count! Click the link and see if you'd keep reading after the first lines

I hope you found something interesting this week! What do you think of the book warehouse? What books would you look for?

Come back next week for more bookish news, new releases on Tuesday and of course First Line Friday... Happy Reading, Suzanne

 

First Lines Friday... This One Comes With a Body Count 💋🔪

I just love those Scream movies and when I read about this book, this was the first thing I thought about and just HAD to read it! 

Would you keep reading after these First Lines?

How to Kill a guy in Ten Dates by Shailee Thompson... When Jamie Prescott and her best friend Laurie attend a speed-dating event, Jamie expects to meet a roster of mediocre men and indulge in some street food afterwards. She doesn’t expect one of her dates to have his throat slit at their table during a blackout. After the lights come back on and there are more bodies on the floor, it becomes clear that dating can be a very dangerous pastime.

Armed with makeshift weapons and Jamie’s extensive knowledge of what NOT to do in a slasher, the remaining speed daters try to find an exit while the killer adds to their body count. As the night progresses and Jamie comes face-to-mask with the murderer, she begins to suspect they are committing the slayings to woo one of the daters and turn them into a real-life Final Girl. But Jamie has other plans, and as she fights for her life, she can’t help but find herself ensconced in a love triangle with two of the other survivors. Will she make it through the bloodshed to find her Happily Ever After? Or does this machete-wielding psychopath have another ending in mind?

Published by Gallery Books this past February, and available at your favorite book store now! I recently received a digital copy of this book to read and review! Thank you Gallery Books! I am so looking forward to reading it!! Keep your eyes out for my review coming soon...

Happy National Poetry Month!... Who Are Your Favorite Poets or Poems?

Happy National Poetry Month!

April is National Poetry Month! And I've been so busy, I haven't even talked about it yet! Here is a photo of some of my favorite poetry books too. I have them lying around the house to be picked up and enjoyed whenever the mood strikes. 

In general, I think people have a love/hate relationship with poetry. Either you enjoy it or you can't be bothered. There are all kinds of poetry, from Shakespeare's sonnets to more contemporary written poems, such as by poet Billy Collins... there are free verse, Rhymed, Epics, Lyrical, Haiku, Blank verse...

Though I do enjoy reading the Romantics of the late 18th and early 19th century, my favorite poets are from the 20th and 21st century. Let me share some of my favorite poets today...

Billy Collins, Mary Oliver, Donald Hall, Jo Harjo, Nikki Giovanni, Seamus Heaney, Wistawa Szymborska, Marge Piercy, Tracy K. Smith, Julia Hartwig, Jane Kenyon, Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost,  Federico García Lorca, and Donna Marie Merritt. (Donna is a CT poet who was gracious enough to come to my book club for a night of poetry and her poetry is wonderful!)

This week while looking at new book releases I came upon a newly released book of poetry called Size of Your Joy: Poems by Elise Powers. I found her website, sampled some of her poetry( you should too!) and really liked it… and ordered her new poetry book to add to my growing collection. (Look for a review of her book too!).

Some poetry collections that I like... Good Poems by Garrison Keillor, She Walks in Beauty: A Woman's Journey through Poems by Caroline Kennedy, and Poems to Learn by Heart by Caroline Kennedy.

But, how do you pick out a book of poetry? You open up one and read a poem or two.. maybe more. To get a feel for the poem and the poet... Does it speak to you? Can you relate to its' subject matter? Do you just like it? 

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE POETRY BOOKS? 

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE POEMS?