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Saturday, April 30, 2022

Audible Book Review: Polar Vortex by Matthew Mather

This got a little long and dreary but I was satisfied when it ended.
Polar Vortex
By: Matthew Mather
Narrated by: Tom Taylorson

Polar Vortex audiobook cover art

Length: 10 hrs and 18 mins
Release date: 04-02-19
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
Genre: Adventure, Mystery, Suspense
My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.0, Narration 4.25.


Publisher's Summary
A routine commercial flight disappears over the North Pole. No wreckage. No transponder signals.
Mitch Matthews is writer struggling to make ends meet when his wife's brother offers them a first-class seat on a flight from Hong Kong to New York. When his wife needs to stay behind, it becomes an opportunity for some quality daddy-daughter time with his five-year-old Lilly. At check-in, they run into a strange Norwegian arguing with a huge Russian. A mysterious redhead is guarding a package in the business lounge. But everything is fine...right up until the event.
Within hours of Allied Airlines 695 disappearing, a massive international search is launched. Aircraft and ships are dispatched from Russia, America, Canada, and Norway. How can a modern airliner simply vanish in one of the most heavily monitored places on Earth?
Global tensions rise. The media and grieving families whip into a frenzy. The armed forces of America and Russia tip the world toward the brink of an apocalyptic war.
Weeks later, found on the ice in a chance discovery, the journal of Mitch Matthews reveals the incredible truth behind the disappearance of Allied 695, and what really happened in the Polar Vortex.
©2019 Matthew Mather (P)2019 Blackstone Publishing


Review:
Mitch Matthews leaves his wife in Hong Kong while he takes a flight with their five-year old daughter, Lily, to return to their home in New York. The flight pilot is his wife’s brother, who is known to have a drinking problem and possible anger issues regarding Mitch. As a struggling writer, Mitch journals his observations of other passengers, his surroundings, and the events that occur.

Mitch’s brother-in-law allows Mitch and Lilly the rare opportunity to visit in the pilot’s cabin. They learn a little about the plane and its route before the rotation of crew has them returning to their seats. They fall asleep and wake to find the plane has crashed on the ice of the north pole.

A handful of passengers, including several dubious characters, must work together to try to survive the hostile environment. This is more edgy as there are suspicions of sabotage that brought the plane down and has inhibited the ability to communicate the location of the crash. Several conspiracy theories abound.

There was a lot in the story that was a stretch to believe and the dreariness of the situation made it almost unpleasant to continue. However, I enjoyed the mystery and the unfolding of the final scenes. I did guess the important passenger although not the reason for the attack. I also like the use of the journal entries being used by the searchers to find the plane and determine the cause of the crash. I would recommend this story to fans of adventure (willing to stretch) and mystery stories.

Audio Notes: Tom Taylorson is a new narrator to me. I enjoyed the distinct voices as well as the tone that fit the narrative style of the story. The audio enhanced my enjoyment of the story.

Source: 11/30/2019 Audible Daily Deal $3.95. This qualifies for 2022TBR, 2022Audiobook, and 2022Alphabet goals.

Wednesday, April 27, 2022

Audible Book Review: Inside Jobs, Tales from a Time of Quarantine by Ben H. Winters

This is a humorous take on crime during Quarantine situation.
Inside Jobs
Tales from a Time of Quarantine
By: Ben H. Winters
Narrated by: Scott Aiello, Kevin T. Collins, Ellen Archer

Inside Jobs Audiobook By Ben H. Winters cover art

Length: 2 hrs and 32 mins
Release date: 04-30-20
Publisher: Audible Originals
Categories: Literature & Fiction, Anthologies & Short Stories
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.25; Narration 4.25.


About This Audible Original
Three offbeat stories of crime and conundrum, set in the present moment, from The New York Times best-selling, Edgar Award-winning author of Underground Airlines and The Last Policeman.
Inside Jobs: Tales from a Time of Quarantine includes:
The Crimson Parrot
It's not easy masterminding the crime of the century when your whole gang is working from home. A high-stakes tale of larceny, deception, and teleconferencing.
The Cape House
As the world shifts around them, two estranged brothers end up in their childhood home. But it's the memories they unearth that will change them forever.
Stop Motion
With endless time on her hands, an apartment-bound young woman gets to all the hobbies she's neglected—martial arts, playing the sax, photography...and solving a murder?
©2020 Ben H. Winters (P)2020 Audible Originals, LLC


Review:

This is a fun look at crime and the route it could take during a pandemic. The Crimson Parrot tells the tale of three thieves planning a heist through a Zoom meeting. Behind their meeting they have to deal with family or situational issues. Learning new technology won’t change the stripes of these criminals.

The Cape House is a house inherited by two estranged brothers when their father dies. They have memories of the home but most of them are not good memories. They realize that each one wants to keep the house for their own reason. But they don’t want to share. They discover their father’s pistol hidden in the attic and now their options expand.

Stop Motion is my favorite of the three stories. It has elements of Rear Window as a woman stuck in her apartment begins to suspect a neighbor has killed his partner. She ropes her former boyfriend into helping her investigate. It is a little macabre, but fun…in a twisted way.

I always love irony that twists in a story and the author does that well in these three short stories. I didn’t realize this was an author I read before but when I checked I realized I like another short story, Q&A, that I listened to. I think I have looked at his longer works and now I am ready to take a longer look. I recommend this to fans of mystery with twists.

Audio Notes: The three narrators, Scott Aiello, Kevin T. Collins, and Ellen Archer deliver the stories with clear voices that fit the characters and the situations. I am glad that I got to enjoy this on audio.

Source: December 2020 Audible Plus. This qualifies for 2022TBR, 2022Audiobook, and 2022Alphabet goals.

Monday, April 25, 2022

Sunday Post April 24, 2022/It's Monday! What are You Reading? Plus Mailbox Monday April 25, 2022

Sunday Post #318 Chairs, Compliance, and Storms
I am linking with Sunday Post at Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? now at The Book Date (at Wordpress)
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.

Hubby is back in hospital to get the fluids off so he can breathe easier. (See Friday Status Update post for more detail.)  This week his attitude is improving. He still anticipates short time remaining but he is willing to go to rehab and try to get his strength up so he can move around the house and maybe cook a little. I am spending an extra three to four hours a day at the hospital, in the morning and evening, to give him some visiting time and to meet with the doctor for updates.

We've had no internet at home for over a week now so I am staying late at office just to get this post up.  I am not sure when I can visit blogs or upload more posts.

I continue to pray for the people and situation in Ukraine and for world leaders.
.
Our weather has been mostly nice.

I enjoyed my listening and reading (when the app worked) last week.  I finished two audiobooks and the eBook. I posted only the Sunday/Monday Post and a Status Update.

I didn't get to visit any blogs as I have no internet at night and I am working during the days.

Audible offerings for free children's titles ended June 30, 2021.
Audiobooks.com is still sharing some free listens for children.

These were last week's posts:
  • ATBR: Audible Book Review: Let Her Be by Lisa Unger; Genre: Domestic Thriller, Psychological, Suspense; My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.0; Narration 4.25.
Finished Reading:
1. Audible Smartphone (ATBR)
Legend  By  cover art


Legend: Four Horsemen Tales, Book 1
By: Christopher Woods
Narrated by: Marc Vietor
Series: Four Horsemen Tales, Book 1
I liked this merc space stories.
Source: 8/15/2021 from Audible Plus.

Click on book title for full description.



2. eBook/Kindle App on Smartphone (Author2021)
56335264. sy475


Chinook (Miranda Chase NTSB #6)
by M.L. Buchman
I really like the unique characters and situations in this story. It's just sad it takes a month to read on Kindle.
Source: March 2021 from Author (through BookFunnel).

Click on book title for full description.



3. Audible Smartphone (ATBR)


The Smear
How Shady Political Operatives and Fake News Control What You See, What You Think, and How You Vote
By: Sharyl Attkisson
Narrated by: Sharyl Attkisson
Length: 11 hrs and 19 mins
This is remarkable -- and disturbing.
Source: Audible 11/14/17 Credit Purchase.

Publisher's Summary
Ever wonder how politics turned into a take-no-prisoners blood sport? The New York Times best-selling author of Stonewalled pulls back the curtain on the shady world of opposition research and reveals the dirty tricks those in power use to influence your opinions.
Behind most major political stories in the modern era, there is an agenda - an effort by opposition researchers, spin doctors, and outside interests to destroy an idea or a person. The tactic they use is the Smear. Every day, Americans are influenced by the Smear without knowing it. Paid forces cleverly shape virtually every image you cross. Maybe you read that Donald Trump is a racist misogynist or saw someone on the news mocking the Bernie Sanders campaign. The trick of the Smear is that it is often based on some shred of truth, but these media-driven "hit pieces" are designed to obscure the truth. Success hinges on the Smear artist's ability to remain invisible, to make it seem as if their work is neither calculated nor scripted. It must appear to be precisely what it is not.
Veteran journalist Sharyl Attkisson has witnessed this practice firsthand. After years of being pitched hit jobs and puff pieces, she's an expert at detecting Smear campaigns. Now, the hard-hitting investigative reporter shares her inside knowledge, revealing how the Smear takes shape and who its perpetrators are - including Clinton confidant Sidney Blumenthal and, most influential of all, "right-wing assassin turned left-wing assassin" (National Review) political operative David Brock and his Media Matters for America empire.
Attkisson exposes the diabolical tactics of Smear artists and their outrageous access to the biggest names in political media - operatives who are corrupting the political process and discouraging widespread citizen involvement in our democracy.
©2017 Sharyl Attkisson (P)2017 HarperCollins Publishers



Currently Reading:
1. Audible Smartphone (ATBR)


The Keeper
A Novel
By: Suzanne Woods Fisher
Narrated by: Amy Rubinate
Series: Stoney Ridge Seasons, Book 1
Length: 9 hrs and 4 mins
I decided on a change of pace and a “K” title in the mixed Audio goal.
Source: 4/18/17 Audible Sale $5.95.

Publisher's Summary
Life on Windmill Farm hasn’t been the same since Julia Lapp’s father has had trouble with his heart. But that doesn’t stop Julia from hoping for a bright future. She has planned on marrying Paul Fisher since she was a girl. Now twenty-one, she looks forward to their wedding with giddy anticipation. But when Paul tells her he wants to postpone the wedding - again - she is determined to change his mind. She knows who is to blame for Paul’s sudden reluctance to wed: the Bee Man.Roman Troyer, the Bee Man, travels through the Amish communities of Ohio and Pennsylvania with his hives full of bees, renting them out to farmers in need of pollinators. A mysterious man who relishes his nomadic life, Roman especially enjoys bringing his bees to Stoney Ridge each year. But with Julia seriously at odds with him, Windmill Farm is looking decidedly less appealing.
Can Julia secure the future she’s always dreamed of? Or does God have something else in mind?
©2012 Suzanne Woods Fisher (P)2012 Brilliance Audio, Inc.


I have no idea what ebook or maybe print I will pick next. I will probably get to a "P"audio book but I haven't chosen that yet either.


April 24, 2022 - I've been able to keep up with reading but haven't watched the connected videos for a week since I don't have internet at home. I look forward to when I can watch them again. Bible Reading Plan: BibleProject | One Story that Leads to Jesus. I know it won't match my Hubby's reading but I wanted some different insights/devotions and I am enjoying the devotion video project. I am enjoying keeping up with my reading each day.
I look for a new study soon.


I completed three books for review. I have five outstanding reviews to post.
My NetGalley shelf is back to the three old ebook titles. I will probably end up letting A Place Called Armageddon go as DNF.
I am reading the last eBook title I had in queue.
(Plus a few that I received from facebook links and newsletter sign-ups, not specific review requests.)
Still many titles through InstaFreebie and many new author requests I haven't replied to.

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: Serena of Savvy Verse & Wit, me and new to the team, Velvet at vvb32reads. Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

No new review books.
I haven't been online to select books but I will make time to get my VIP pick at Audiobook.com this week.

I added four ebooks to my Kindle TBR library last week while I was online a short time.

Are your mailbox and TBR piles blooming?

Review Titles
NONE

Won
NONE

Purchased
NONE


Free
4/22/22 I picked up four free kindle titles to add to my library.


Four Free titles this week. Free titles often found at Bookbub, Bookfun, Book Adrenaline, Ereader News Today, Inspired Reads, Pixel of Ink or Kindle ebooks.

Saturday, April 23, 2022

Audible Book Review: Let Her Be by Lisa Unger

This is a dark, rather depressing, but ultimately intriguing listen.
Let Her Be: Hush Collection
By: Lisa Unger
Narrated by: Chris Andrew Ciulla


Series: Hush Collection
Length: 2 hrs and 15 mins
Release date: 07-30-20
Publisher: Amazon Original Stories
Genre: Domestic Thriller, Psychological, Suspense
My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.0; Narration 4.25.


Publisher's Summary
A writer’s misguided suspicions ruined his life once before. This time he plans to prove he’s right in a New York Times bestselling author’s haunting short story of what happens when seeing is not believing.
Will, an aspiring novelist, can’t stop parsing his ex-girlfriend’s popular social media accounts for clues that her ideal new rural life with the perfect man has a dark side. After all, nobody he knows has actually seen the blissful blogger in the flesh for nearly a year. When Will draws a wary friend into his “investigation,” the real question becomes who’s truly in danger.
Lisa Unger’s Let Her Be is part of Hush, a collection of six stories, ranging from political mysteries to psychological thrillers, in which deception can be a matter of life and death. Each piece can be read or listened to in one truly chilling sitting.
©2020 Lisa Unger. (P)2019 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.


Review:

The story opens with Will describing his depression and attempted suicide. He was upset by the apparent rejection and abandonment by his ex-girlfriend. Her social media posts would make it seem she is enjoying a simpler lifestyle in seclusion with her new boyfriend. Will is obsessed with her and begins to think that the blog posts are faked. One of his ex’s best friends is trying to help Will work past his obsession and depression. She begins to believe there may be something in his suspicions and she travels with Will to investigate a location they think has appeared in the posts.

The best friend has long had a crush on Will. But her interest in him may put her in danger she doesn’t suspect as the web of deception gets more clouded.

I was a little bit uncomfortable with the negative emotions…but perhaps that is the author’s intent and a sign of successful story telling. I did appreciate the twist revealed in the end. To that point, I recommend this quick listen to fans of dark, phycological stories.

Audio Notes: Chris Andrew Ciulla seemed to provide spot on narration. The tone fit the dark nature of the primary character and the female voices worked as well. I enjoyed the audio presentation.

Source: August 2020 Audible Plus. This qualifies for 2022TBR, 2022Audiobook, and 2022Alphabet goals.

Friday, April 22, 2022

No Friday Pick This Week and Status Update

Hello all -

Just a quick [it expanded as I wrote] update on my home front. My hubby is back in hospital with continuing issues. As of a month ago he had under 30% lung capacity then his last X-ray showed that part all blocked too. They treated him for pneumonia but there will be no restoration of the rest of the lung damage. (The result of chemical damage from his work years ago.)  His condition is aggravated by heart concerns as he had open heart surgery a few years ago and has a pacemaker. He is also being treated for type 2 diabetes. Both of these contribute to the fluid retention.

The medications left his legs and arms swollen which is uncomfortable and painful. Because I am at work, no one is home with him and he was struggling just to get from bedroom to bathroom. The walker I got for him helped but he still has little strength to pull himself up and now he fears falling. No way could he go downstairs to the kitchen so I was going home at lunch to make sure he would eat something. He is frustrated and feeling like a burden on top of having to struggle to get his breath and move around. :-(  I have more empathy now for caregivers.

They put him back in hospital to try to get the excess fluids out of his body. The treating physicians have agreed he will get some therapy to keep him mobile and he will likely be discharged next week to rehab instead of coming straight home. If rehab is not helpful, we will move on to home health (Hospice) care. He is 79 (birthday 7/4/42) and part of him is ready to go be with Jesus. The other part doesn't want to leave me alone. He has been working hard the last year to pay off our mortgage and build up a nest egg as I will lose half of our household income when he dies. These are all usual end of life dilemmas.

Between caring for him and taking him to doctor's offices I am falling more behind on office work. Add to that our internet service at home stopped working a week ago so the blogging I do at night can't be done.That makes me sad and frustrated... more stressers. :-)

Sooo -- please pray for my hubby, me and our family. And please be patient regarding blog items. I'll get here when I can fit time in. 

 Meanwhile I hope everyone is enjoying spring (or autumn if applicable) and some good books!


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