Sharing Beyond Books #266 Comment Giveaway August 23, 2016 (for 8/20)

Hello again and Welcome to Sharing Beyond Books, SBB!
[Sorry to miss Saturday night posting. Just enough time now during child nap to get to this post. :-)]

Thanks to everyone who commented last week.
Interestingly the favorite shake flavors fell within five flavors: 5 commenters picked chocolate (one being dark chocolate); 5 others picked strawberry but two of those were mixed with another flavor; 3 chose banana, one of those mixed with strawberry; 3 chose vanilla although 2 of those were alternates to chocolate; and 2 of us picked coffee (including mine since Jamocha is a mix of coffee and chocolate but I didn't count it for chocolate).

~~~~~

The Winner from SBB #265 comments is:#9 Janhvi who can make a GC choice if international or book choice from the Updated ARC/Review titles or (not yet updated) Love titles - all linked near the end of the post. [I'm hoping to update the book choices - maybe the beginning of next year, lol.] Please let me know your choice by completing the WINNER FORM.

WEEK #266

(One Question.)

Birgit asks: Do you always start reading a series with book one? Or are you like me, often discovering a series by accidentally (eg finding an interesting novel on sale and giving it a try) reading a book later on in the series??

We've had a few questions on "series", but not quite this one.
I prefer to start series at book 1 but I sometimes get the chance to read a mid-series book for review. I sometimes think twice, but usually I won't turn them down.:-) I have found some good series that way. Getting back to the earlier books is always a challenge though, considering how many books I have in the TBR stacks already.

Image Found at Pinterest page

Thanks to those who are sending in Questions. DON'T BE SHY! Surely everyone has a Q or two you'd like to ask. Input suggestions in this Suggested Question Form. At the end of each month I draw from the suggestions I used during the month and that person will get a book choice or GC. I thank everyone for submitting questions. Thanks for sending in questions! The supply of questions is dwindling so share some if you think of any -- even if they are duplicates I'll weed through or try to modify.

Your turn to share:
Birgit asks: Do you always start reading a series with book one? Or are you like me, often discovering a series by accidentally (eg finding an interesting novel on sale and giving it a try) reading a book later on in the series??

SBB Comment Winners can choose a selection from the Valentine and "Love" books or the February 2015 Newly Updated ARC/Review List. (My daughter pulled several of the Christmas titles to give with gift bags we made up for the nursing homes. One of these days I will get together a new box of Christmas titles.)

SBB Rules:
a) Must be a follower.
b) Share a comment on the question above.
Open internationally and an international winner may get a smaller book or a $5.00 GC if I decide the mailing is too much.
I will pick a Comment winner from all comments made through Saturday August 27, 2016 at 5 PM central.

Sunday Post August 21, 2016/It's Monday! What are You Reading? Plus Mailbox Monday August 22, 2016

[I use this post to help me keep track so I am posting even though late.]

I am linking with Sunday Post at Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading now at The Book Date.
Thank you to Sheila for the years that she handled this meme.
Thank you to Kathryn for taking up the baton.

What Are You Reading, is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week. It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.

As I explained in a post Monday afternoon I caught a flight up to Indiana on Saturday to visit with my son and daughter-in-law and to help out as they were bringing home the newborn twins. I didn't have computer/internet access from Friday night until Monday mid-morning. Besides the fact I had no time to be on the computer.:-)

My reading/listening was good with extra on the plane, even though I only finished two books: one audio and one ebook. I posted two reviews but only my Sunday/Monday and Friday memes.

I enjoyed visiting some blogs early in the week.
Thanks as always to all the nice people who visit me.

These were last week's posts (the fewest in a long time I think - but for good reason!):

• Sunday Post August 14, 2016/It's Monday! What are You Reading? Plus Mailbox Monday August 15, 2016.

• Book Review: The Crêpes of Wrath, A Pancake House Mystery by Sarah Fox; Cozy Mystery; my rating 4.5.

• Book Review: The Cat, The Collector and the Killer by Leann Sweeney; Cozy Mystery; my rating 4.5.

• Martha's Bookshelf***Friday Pick Giveaway August 19, 2016. Open Worldwide. Ending 8/25/2016.

Finished Reading:

1. Audible/MP3 (Narrator)

Unseemly Pursuits: The Concordia Wells Mysteries Book 2
Written by: K.B. Owen
Narrated by: Becket Royce
I enjoyed this even more than book one! 
Nicely plotted mystery and engaging characters. :-)
Click on book title for full description.

2. eBook/Kindle (Author)

The Lame Duck
by Bernard Leo Remakus
A lot of this is scary... but very captivating. 
The author offered me this Medical thriller with a female lawyer.
Click on book title for full description.

Currently reading:

1. Audible/MP3 (Narrator)

Apocalypse Machine
Written by: Jeremy Robinson
Narrated by: Jeffrey Kafer
I am 60% along in this engaging EOTW Thriller.
I received this audio title from the narrator through AudioBook Boom.
Publisher's Summary
The human race started the sixth mass extinction on Earth.
A chain of subglacial volcanoes erupt in Iceland. The melting ice floods the countryside. Poisonous gas descends on Scotland. A tsunami devastates the Norwegian coastline. An ash cloud rises into the atmosphere, blotting out the sun across Europe, ushering in a new Ice Age. Dozens of nuclear power plants, flooded by ocean water, experience meltdowns. Millions perish. Many more are displaced. All on the first day.
On the second day, a series of earthquakes moving in a straight line, reveal the presence of something massive walking across the landscape. Concealed by a thick, radioactive ash cloud, the 'aberration' heads west, toward Russia.
Abraham Wright, a science writer for Modern Scientist, who wants nothing more than to be reunited with his family, finds himself at the center of the United States' response to the crisis. Under his new title as Assistant Science Advisor to the President, Wright is sent to Europe with a team of Army Rangers, where he uncovers the truth about the ancient behemoth laying waste to the world: there have been five mass extinctions on planet Earth, and the aberration has been present at each.
On the third day, the world fights back.
And loses.
Separated from his family by continents and oceans ravaged by countless disasters and populated by strange new life, Wright struggles to survive in an evolving world. Hoping to uncover the key to mankind's redemption, he fights for answers, and to reach his loved ones - before the human race's extinction.
The Apocalypse Machine will finish it.
Jeremy Robinson returns to the Kaiju thriller genre he popularized with the largest Kaiju to ever appear in fiction: the Apocalypse Machine. Bursting with all the epic action, desperate struggle and complex characters that listeners have come to expect, Robinson takes the world to the brink.
©2016 Jeremy Robinson (P)2016 Jeremy Robinson

2. eBook/Kindle (Author)

Second Chances - A "Chosen" Short Story
by Jeff Altabef and Erynn Altabef
This short story sounds engaging. 
Received from author for an honest review.
Precious and rare, second chances must be earned, but has Ayden done enough to win his?
[Short Story, Teen & Young Adult, Mystery and Thriller, Fantasy and Supernatural, American Indian Culture]
One night changes everything.
One chance meeting forces a young man to make a choice.
Will he do what’s right?
Or what’s easy?
Ayden is forced to remember old secrets he’d rather not reveal when his daughter returns home with questions about his shadowy past and dangerous legacy. Will she understand when he tells her about the night mysterious strangers came to his sleepy Arizona town looking for a local medicine man?
As his tale unfolds, Ayden pieces together the mystery that connected a recent murder, the strangers, and the medicine man’s bizarre behavior.
Will he allow old demons to rule him, or will he get a second chance?

3. eBook/Kindle

Keepsake for Eagle Cove
by M. L. Buchman
Book 4 in small town romance series.
I really like this author and hope reading Book 4 will be okay. Releases 8/30
-an Eagle Cove romance-
In the heart-warming conclusion to the Eagle Cove series:
Tiffany Mills hides a secret about the small Oregon Coast town of Eagle Cove. The line between her past and her present grows blurred. Until, with her life as a recluse threatened, she must defend her beloved homestead in the woods.
Devin Robison wants nothing to do with women, at least for now. He needs a summer as far away from his past as he can get. The opposite of Chicago? A renovation job on a remote Oregon lighthouse keeper’s cottage feels just perfect.
But when their pasts collide and their present unfolds, they both discover the Keepsake for Eagle Cove.

July 30, 2016 - I am still one day behind but expect to catch up this week with Reading The One Year Bible again along with my husband and others from our church. I will also be listening (sometimes) to the companion commentary online.

I posted two reviews. That still keeps me with four: two new and two older. So I continue to feel mostly up to date.

I am still accepting new audio titles as I can always squeeze listening in!
I am still at seven on the author titles list.
My NetGalley shelf is still at three.
I was hoping to set aside September for TBR books but I will have a few of the author titles to get in also.

I am still working on additional releases at eTreasure's NetGalley page .

Welcome to Mailbox Monday.

Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week and explore great book blogs. This Meme started with Marcia at A Girl and Her Books (fka The Printed Page) and after a tour of hosts has returned to its permanent home at Mailbox Monday. Thanks to the ladies sharing hosting duties: Leslie of Under My Apple Tree, Serena of Savvy Verse & Wit and Vicki of I'd Rather Be at the Beach. Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

I received three new audio review books.
Again, I didn't purchase any kindle titles but picked the usual generous number of free kindle titles.

Are your mailbox and TBR piles blooming?

Review Titles

I received these three audio titles from the author/narrator through AudioBook Boom.

Apocalypse Machine
Written by: Jeremy Robinson
Narrated by: Jeffrey Kafer
See full description under Currently Reading above.

Tarah Woodblade: The Bowl of Souls Book 6
Written by: Trevor H. Cooley
Narrated by: Andrew Tell

Sounded like an fantasy with good action.

Mistletoe Mayhem: Dawson Chronicles, Book 1
Written by: Linda Bridey
Narrated by: Mary Ann Weathers
This historical romance looks like one I will enjoy.

Won

NONE

Purchased

NONE

Free

Through Sunday emails I added 49 free Kindle titles to my library. Titles found linked through Bookbub, Bookfun, Ereader News Today, Free Par-tay, Ignite Your Book, Inspired Reads, Pixel of Ink or Kindle ebooks.

Out of Town (and computer touch) to Help With Twins

Hi Blog friends.
I'm popping in to update why I have been absent this weekend. It is one of those "Life interfering with blogging" events!

As I noted on Friday Giveaway Post our daughter-in-law had twins on 8/15. They are fairly new in their community in Illinois so late in the week I decided to fly up to help for a few days. I got a good price on a last minute flight out Saturday am- really early am. Unfortunately I missed the early flight but Delta folks were wonderful and got me on standby for another a couple of hours later.

Turns out a good thing I came up as, after discharging mother and twins after only two days (not sure why the rush!) they have had to go back to the hospital every day to get the twins checked on. So starting yesterday (Sunday) I got to be designated care watcher for our 3 1/2 year old granddaughter who is still adjusting to sharing mom and dad.

Today the doctor called and advised our son and daughter-in-law to take the twins into emergency room as the blood work from yesterday shows possible bacterial infection in little Eli. He is the first born, slightly smaller, but more active, including crying, of the two. Madison pretty much eats and sleeps with occasional stretches in between.

I didn't even pull out my computer until this morning so our son could set up internet. Then during nap time I spent the first hour covering office emails. I do not anticipate a chance to catch up on my weekend memes but maybe I will get on later tonight to do some blog posts.  I won't be back to usual schedule until after I get home late Wednesday which is the same day our daughter-in-law's parents will be flying in - from China!

Please keep the twins and family in prayer.

Martha's Bookshelf***Friday Pick Giveaway August 19, 2016

Happy Friday!
Hi - This is a happy week for me! I am a grandmom again to our son's twins. Our D-I-L did a wonderful job carrying those two to 35 weeks! Eli was 5lbs 15 oz and Madison (to be called Mae) was born about 25 mins later weighing in at 6lbs 2 oz. I'm trying to juggle my schedule to go visit for a couple days and try to help as they get settled in with these bundles of joy. 

TO ENTER FRIDAY PICK

US Entrants: Leave a comment and tell me WHICH BOOK you would like to get from the Friday Pick lists.
INTERNATIONAL: Leave a comment indicating "Gift Card" (see further comments near the end of the post.)

CUT OFF TIME IS THURSDAY NIGHTS AT 9:00 PM CENTRAL so I do not have to stay up too late to do the winner post! I will randomly pick two winners to announce Friday mornings with the next Pick post.

Thank you to all who entered the August 12 Pick. This week there was one automatic wins. Automatic wins are those who requested the book four times without other people asking for that book during those weeks. There was one book with a three way block again.
AUTO: Rubynreba gets Short Straw

CONGRATULATIONS
to Random.org picked Winners from August 12 Pick:
Bube gets A GC

Natalija also gets a GC

All winners please fill in the Winner's Acceptance Form or email me to confirm your win, send your snail mail address information and let me know if you would like bookmarks - sensual, sexy or sweet bookmarks. {The form is new because Google changed their forms and the old one wasn't letting me print out the responses.}

This looks soooo relaxing! I could use a dose.

Image found at NPR Books..
 
New Book Group #66 June 25, 2016

(I will post a picture later. *Four of these books are very old; pulled from a box of gothic novels I have had for many years. They may not be wanted by anyone and if so, I will donate elsewhere in time.)
Sandra Brown: Above and Beyond and Honor Bound (my copy is 1986 edition with a different cover
Joan Johnston: Faron & Garth: The Cowboy and the Princess / The Wrangler and the Rich Girl and Sweetwater Seduction
SINGLES:
Swan for the Money by Donna Andrews (new- hardcover)
*Maggie – Her Marriage by Taylor Caldwell (1953 very old, yellowed pages, some stain damage doesn't effect reading)
*Witch’s Hammer by Caroline Farr (a 1967 yellowed pages - different cover)
*Mistress of Mount Fair by Jane Gordon
Once an Angel by Tammy Hilz
Bound By Temptation by Lavinia Kent
Fire Dancer by Ann Maxwell
On Fire by Carla Neggers (1999 version with different cover)
Breathing Room by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Waiting for Nick & Considering Kate by Nora Roberts
*She Came Back by Patricia Wentworth (1981 yellowed pages)
Freedom's Stand by J. M. Windle


New Book Group #65 April 29, 2016

SINGLES:
A Dangerous Fancy by Tracy Cozzens
The Champion by Heather Grothaus
So Wild A Kiss by Nancy Richards-Akers


New Book Group #64 March 4, 2016

SINGLES:
Short Straw (Ed Eagle Novel) by Stuart Woods Hardcover
First Things First by Stephen R. Covey- Audio Cassette
N is for noose by Sue Grafton -Cassettes
Regretsy: Where DIY Meets WTF by April Winchell


New Book Group #63 January 22, 2016

SINGLES:
Wayward Winds by Michael Phillips - Audio Tapes

New Book Group #62 November 6, 2015
All Gone

New Book Group #61 October 30, 2015
After I noticed the trend I went on a hunt for “bride” titles. I even pulled a couple from some of my long time collections(*). (But they are not getting read on my shelves.)

SINGLES:
Bride of Lochbarr by Margaret Moore (*)
The Ideal Bride by Stephanie Laurens (*)
A Necessary Bride by Debra Mullins
Border Bride by Deborah Hale

New Book Group #60 September 18, 2015
A set of "haunting" tales and a few mysteries for October!

Shannon Drake –  Realm of Shadows (Alliance Vampires#4) 
SINGLES:
The Shadowing by Joan Overfield
The Renegade Hunter by Lynsay Sands
Trilogy Of Mysteries Audio Book Shadow Prey, There Was A Little Girl, Smokescreen Audio Cassettes (NOT CDs)


New Book Group #59 July 31, 2015
A few more summer titles, historicals and mysteries!

SINGLES:
Cruise to a Wedding by Betty Neels

New Book Group #58 June 26, 2015 -- All Gone

New Book Group #57 May 1, 2015 -- All Gone


New Book Group #56 March 20, 2015
SINGLES:
The Sweetheart Dance by Patti Ann Colt
Raintree Haunted by Linda Winstead Jones (spine creases)

New Book Group #55 February 5, 2015 -- All Gone

New Book Group #54 December 26, 2014

SINGLES:
Ender’s Shadow by Orson Scott Card - Tape Cassettes


BOX 4 2015 (reboxed from Boxes 47-53)

The Hidden Truth of Cytech's Randall Forty byVickie Kennedy
First to Fight Anthology
Jezebel by Katherine Sutcliff
The Commander by Kate Bridges
A Garden of Friends by Penny Pierce Rose
Undateable by Ellen Rakieten & Anne Coyle


BOX 3 2015 (reboxed from Boxes 39- 47)

Shetland Summer by Janet Lynnford
Breakfast in Bed by Sandra Brown - Audio Cassette Tapes (link is for mass media version)
A Lady of Consequence by Mary Nichols
Sweet Talking Man by Betina Krain


BOX 2 2015 (reboxed from Boxes 24- 38)

Thinner by Stephen King
Foundation (Foundation Novels) by Isaac Asimov
Magic: The Gathering Distant Planes, An Anthology
The Willful Widow by Valerie King (spine wear)
An Honorable Man by Rosemary Rogers (spine creases)
A Courtesans Guide to Getting Your Man by Susan Donovan and Celeste Bradley -- NOTE This book has dog bite damage; it is missing half back cover and the edges of pages in the back third of the book... it does not effect the text but I will understand if no one wants this one
Tara Taylor Quinn: Father: Unknown and McGillus v.Wright
The Trailsman: Texas Lead Slingers by Jon Sharpe
Anthology: Something Borrowed, Something Blue - this book has spine creases and minor water damage...I thought I had read it and liked it but now I realize it was another anthology I read with Elaine Barbier.


BOX #1 2015 (reboxed from Boxes 1- 23)

Circle of Stars by Anna Lee Waldo
Alien Chronicles - The Crimson Claw by Deborah Chester
Ghost Writer (Shivers #3) by M.D. Spenser


If you saw the pictures posted of my bookshelves and boxes you know I do have lots of books! And that doesn't include the other eight or so boxes at my office!! And more books as I find deals too good to pass up! I am sharing my book bounty by these Friday Pick Giveaways.

I started Friday Pick on November 27, 2009 and in almost six years I have posted 62 groups of 16 (992) books to find new homes! (as of November 6, 2015).

I am happy to say that so far about 987+ books have found new homes! YAY. I have to update my print out to check the exact number sent out - a few were never claimed. I periodically update the lists - deleting those won. You can still go to the Friday Pick list link to see older posts and the older lists book pictures if you want!

Note rules here regarding international entries.

Because postage to overseas can be prohibitive I am willing to give a $5.00 book certificate to international winners - Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Borders, ARe, TWRP, ClassAct Books, eTreasures, Desert Breeze, etc....you tell me where and I'll set it up. So for my overseas visitors your comment may indicate a smaller book and I'll check postage or note your choice of gift card.

I learned that The Book Depository does not ship to everywhere. The postage for some of the books to far away places runs between $7.00 and $10.00 and up. Since I would award $5.00 for The Book Depository to an international winner, as an alternative you may choose a smaller book and we will hope the postage will not exceed $6.00. If the postage is more, or if you want to pick a larger book and you are willing to pay any extra postage beyond the $6.00 I will work with you on that. This may not make a difference to many but if it helps one or two of you to give one of my books a home that will make me happy too. :o)

Repeating this helpful blog tip: You can right click on a link and you will be given the choice to open the link in a new window or tab so you do not navigate away from the screen you are on!! I use this all the time!

Book Review: The Cat, The Collector and the Killer by Leann Sweeney

This is a purringly fun cozy.
The Cat, The Collector and the Killer
A Cats In Trouble Mystery
by Leann Sweeney 

File Size: 2509 KB
Print Length: 302 pages
Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0451477405
Publisher: NAL (August 2, 2016)
ASIN: B01839Q396
Genre: Cozy Mystery
My Rating: 4.5 of 5.0

In the latest mystery from the New York Times bestselling author of The Cat, the Sneak and the Secret, a cat collector is suspected of murder.
Jillian Hart and police chief Tom Stewart are enjoying peaceful, newly wedded bliss in Mercy, South Carolina, until a woman is found wandering the streets one night. She's in her night clothes, disoriented, and carrying a kitten in a tote bag. A search of the woman’s house reveals many more cats, a maze of cardboard boxes—and a dead man.
Although the evidence suggests the frail woman is the killer, Jillian doesn’t believe she’s capable of such a crime. The dead man had many enemies in town, which means finding the real murderer may prove to be its own cat and mouse game...

Review:
Jillian is enjoying her newly married life with Tom. Tom is acting police chief in a small town. Jillian makes cat quilts and cares for her many cats plus the one that Tom brought to the house.

The local animal sanctuary owner, Shawn, calls early one morning asking for Tom’s help. Shawn had been called to come rescue some cats that had gotten out of a neighbor’s house. The cats belonged to Minnie, a widowed lady who collected cats (not a hoarder, though). Shawn was concerned that he couldn’t reach Minnie on the phone but he was afraid to go to her house alone. His reluctance was due to a restraining order obtained against Shawn by his nemesis, Chester, the county animal control officer.

Jillian offers to go with Shawn and they arrived to discover the cats outside and the house open. When they went in, looking for Minnie, they found a dead body instead. Not only that but the house, although clean and orderly, is jammed with boxes of purchased items. A confused Minnie is later found wandering downtown in her nightgown with a kitten in her bag.

Jillian is called in by the hospital to try to get Minnie to release the kitten. Jillian meets the lady psychologist who is trying to help Minnie who has become the prime suspect in the murder. Squabbling family members appear and the lady doctor is in a bad accident. Jillian is determined to prove Minnie’s innocence and to figure out the mystery of the boxes and her new friend’s accident, which wasn’t so accidental after all. Jillian needs to sort out the clues, while taking care of the cats, and keeping herself out of trouble if she can.

I found Jillian, Tom and the secondary characters to be lovely, natural people. The plot provides a couple of suspects and although the clues lead to a fairly clear conclusion there are some twists that are a good reveal late in the story. Of course I liked the cat elements and Jillian’s cat camera to check on her furry babies when she was out of the house for a long time.

The story reads easily and lives up to the genre of “cozy mystery”. This is apparently an eighth book in the series but read fine as a stand-alone. I liked it enough to want to get earlier books to enjoy when I want a light, quick cozy read. I do recommend this to readers who enjoy cozy mysteries… and cats!

I received this title through NetGalley for an honest review. It was a Promo/review reach out from Lori at Great Escapes Book Tours. This qualifies for my NetGalley Challenge.