Category: Winner announcement

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 7-21-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

Last week’s cat pic was of Tuna and George on the stairs, so it seems fitting that this week’s picture be Luna, just being Luna – although she’s kind of wearing George’s concerned, serious face. (Luna contains multitudes)

Recent Stacking the Shelves posts have been rather short, but it sure looks like GIVEAWAY SEASON is in full swing. It’s sort of an Xmas in July thing all over the place! More encouragement – not that I need any – to stay inside out of the heat and READ!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Christmas in July Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Sip Sip Hooray Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book PLUS EVENT-WIDE AMAZON/PAYPAL PRIZE in the Late Summer Giveaway Event
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the SUMMER 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of Reading Reality’s Early Summer Giveaway Hop is Elizabeth H.
The winner of the Sparkle Time Giveaway Hop is Shelly P.

Blog Recap:

A- #AudioBookReview: Earthlight by J. Michael Straczynski
Sip Sip Hooray Giveaway Hop
Late Summer Amazon/Paypal Giveaway Event!
A- #AudioBookReview: The Dallergut Dream Department Store by Miye Lee, translated by Sandy Joosun Lee
A+ #BookReview: Murder at the White Palace by Allison Montclair
Stacking the Shelves (610)

Coming This Week:

Chaos at the Lazy Bones Bookshop by Emmeline Duncan (#BookReview)
Summers End by Juneau Black (#BookReview)
Star Trek: The Original Series: Lost to Eternity by Greg Cox (#BookReview)
More Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa, translated by Eric Ozawa (#AudioBookReview)
In the Shadow of the Fall by Tobi Ogundiran (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 6-23-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

This week’s books turned out to be good to excellent! And Galen did one of his guest posts and a blog hop started this week so it was a bit of an easy week – also good!

Speaking of good, I’ve been going through this year’s Hugo nominations and picking one nominee per week that I hadn’t already read to read and review. Between Library Journal and Reading Reality it turned out that I’d read a fair number of the novels and novellas during the year, but I don’t read a lot of short fiction unless it’s in a collection – and that usually happens well after the fact.  So far, the short stories and novelettes have ranged from OK to great, so I’m just making my final selections more difficult even if they will be better informed!

The above picture is a combination of “if I fits I sits” – writ rather large – and “possession is 9/10ths of the cat”. There are three cat beds on top of my dresser – as shown above. Lucifer has firm possession of the heated bed on the right as he glares at anyone who even thinks about ousting him from it. The middle cushion is only used when Lucifer doesn’t have possession of HIS bed, so he has a comfy place from which to glare at the interloper. That’s Tuna on the left, the biggest cat in the house in the smallest bed. Because he wants to be Lucifer’s buddy and Lucifer is barely tolerant of that fact. And because Tuna seems to enjoy overflowing his sleeping spots – as his other favorite bed is equally under proportioned to his generous purrson.

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book PLUS EVENT-WIDE AMAZON/PAYPAL PRIZE in the Early Summer Giveaway Event
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the SUMMER 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop is Lisa

Blog Recap:

Grade A #BookReview: The Year Without Sunshine by Naomi Kritzer
A- #BookReview: The Comfort of Ghosts by Jacqueline Winspear
Guest Post by Galen: Juneteenth 2024: Ron’s Piece
Summer 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop
B #AudioBookReview: The Most Human by Adam Nimoy
Stacking the Shelves (606)

Coming This Week:

A Ruse of Shadows by Sherry Thomas (#BookReview)
Unexploded Remnants by Elaine Gallagher (#BookReview)
Pets and the City by Amy Attas (#BookReview)
Ivy, Angelica, Bay by C.L. Polk (#BookReview, #HugoReview)
Requiem for a Mouse by Miranda James (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 6-1-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

The attached picture isn’t exactly “Lazy Lions Lounging in the Local Library”, but it’s close. It’s clearly lazy kitties lounging on a willing human – and not that Chez Reading Reality doesn’t resemble a library!

Luna looks huge in this picture, but she’s actually the smallest of the three. Not that ANY of these three are actually small.

This past week, reading wise, turned out to be mostly interesting in all the ways that make “interesting” a euphemism. It ended up being a number of books that didn’t work as well as I’d hoped, and then one I turned to as a saving grace because this week required that something really good get read no matter how deep I had to dive into the virtually towering TBR pile!

I have much higher hopes for this coming week, if only because I’ve already finished most of the books!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Moms Rock Giveaway Hop is Steph

Blog Recap:

Memorial Day 2024 (Guest Post by Galen)
B #AudioBookReview: The Bodies in the Library by Marty Wingate
B- #BookReview: One Man’s Treasure by Sarah Pinsker
D #AudioBookReview: To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods by Molly X. Chang
A+ #BookReview: Fatal Enquiry by Will Thomas
Stacking the Shelves (603)

Coming This Week:

Early Summer Giveaway Event
On the Fox Roads by Nghi Vo (#BookReview)
The Fireborne Blade by Charlotte Bond (#BookReview)
Fiasco by Constance Fay (#BookReview)
Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 5-19-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

I’m in kind of a murder-y mood this week, so a couple of mysteries are definitely on my reading horizon. I have to confess that it might not be the two actually slotted into the schedule – but if it’s not them it will be something similar.

Although, speaking of wanting to murder something – I wish I could figure out what purpose it serves for bogus email addresses to enter one of the giveaways. I do check to make sure that the random entry rafflecopter settles itself on is legit – which takes forever when there are 13,000+ (not a typo, THIRTEEN THOUSAND) entries to let it shuffle through until it hits a real, honest-to-goodness entry by someone who actually did comment. By the end, I was yawning as much as Tuna in this picture below, although Tuna is absolutely, totally, definitely much cuter when he does. As I snapped the picture, he was yawning and stretching SO HARD that he eventually rolled himself off the step. Fortunately for him, he was on the bottom step and just landed on his feet. As they do.

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Moms Rock Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Come What May Giveaway Hop is Brigette

Blog Recap:

A+ #BookReview: How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying by Django Wexler
B #AudioBookReview: Every Time We Say Goodbye by Natalie Jenner
B #BookReview: In Our Stars by Jack Campbell
Moms Rock Giveaway Hop
A+ #AudioBookReview: When Among Crows by Veronica Roth
Stacking the Shelves (601)

Coming This Week:

A Mischief of Rats by Sarah Yarwood-Lovett (#BookReview)
Dear Edna Sloane by Amy Shearn (#BookReview)
The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood (#BookReview)
Lost Ark Dreaming by Suyi Davies Okungbowa (#BookReview)
I’m Afraid You’ve Got Dragons by Peter S. Beagle (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 5-5-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

Yesterday was Star Wars Day (May the Fourth be with You!) Today is Cinco de Mayo. Next Sunday is Mothers’ Day. And it’s SPRING! Really, truly spring, whatever that might mean where you specifically are. Here it also means that summer is literally just around the corner and will be springing out any day now.

Today’s picture may look a bit more like Fall – but we won’t be thinking about THAT season for a while around here. Nevertheless, there’s Hecate, definitely looking her witchy best with all of her Halloween-colored fur on display. She’s also been BEING a witch, but that’s something else altogether!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Come What May Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Rain Drops on Roses Giveaway Hop is Viki S.

Blog Recap:

Grade A #BookReview: Lost Birds by Anne Hillerman
A- #BookReview: People in Glass Houses by Jayne Castle
Come What May Giveaway Hop
B+ #BookReview: Knightqueen by Anna Hackett
B #BookReview: My Dearest Mackenzie by Rachel Blaufeld
Stacking the Shelves (599)

Coming This Week:

Funny Story by Emily Henry (#AudioBookReview)
The Summer Swap by Sarah Morgan (#BlogTour #BookReview)
Black Shield Maiden by Willow Smith and Jess Hende (#BookReview)
The Brides of High Hill by Nghi Vo (#BookReview)
In Our Stars by Jack Campbell (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 3-24-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

It turned out to be an excellent reading week this week – although I did have a ‘flail and bail’ along the way. I have to admit that the later parts of this coming week are looking a bit shaky as well.

The week after this one, however, is sure and certain and celebratory, because April 1-5 will be Reading Reality’s Lucky 13th Blogo-Birthday Celebration with giveaways every day for the whole week. Come celebrate with me!

I’m celebrating, hopefully you’re celebrating, but George and Tuna are cats so they are much more blasé about the whole thing. Here they are out on the catio with Tuna clearly on overwatch checking out what the neighbors are doing.

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Winter 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop is Anne P.

Blog Recap:

A- #BookReview: The Graveyard of the Hesperides by Lindsey Davis
Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop
A+ #BookReview: The Hellfire Conspiracy by Will Thomas
A- #BookReview: Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
A- #BookReview: The Citadel of Weeping Pearls by Aliette de Bodard
Stacking the Shelves (593)

Coming This Week:

What You Are Looking For Is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama (#AudioBookReview)
A Cast of Falcons by Sarah Yarwood-Lovett (#BookReview)
Shoestring Theory by Mariana Costa (#Spotlight + #CoverReveal)
The Emperor and the Endless Palace by Justinian Huang (#BookReview)
To Slip the Bonds of Earth by Amanda Flower (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 3-17-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

Today is both St. Patrick’s Day AND St. Gertrude of Nivelles’ Day. It’s a pity that St. Patrick gets all the attention, because St. Gertrude of Nivelles is the patron saint of CATS. Also gardeners, poor people and widows, but most especially CATS – at least in the modern interpretations. So, it’s either the dude who drove the snakes out of Ireland, or the woman who protected cats. I’m with the cat lady.

Speaking of which, here’s Tuna, standing at the window outside on the catio, looking into the kitchen instead of the other way around!

As far as the bloggy stuff goes, the Winter 2024 Seasons of Books Hop ends tomorrow, just in time for the SPRING 2024 Seasons of Books Hop to begin the next day. After appearing in the schedule multiple times but not actually getting reviewed, The Graveyard of the Hesperides review will definitely happen this week. I’m in the middle of the book now and being constantly reminded just how much I’ve enjoyed this series over the years. The later part of the week is a bit less certain, but c’est la vie – or at least, c’est la reading vie at Chez Reading Reality!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Winter 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop (ENDS TOMORROW!!!!!)

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Lady Luck Giveaway Hop is Clem

Blog Recap:

B #BookReview: Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis
A/A- Joint #BookReview: These Fragile Graces, This Fugitive Heart by Izzy Wasserstein
B #AudioBookReview: A Midnight Puzzle by Gigi Pandian
B+ #BookReview: Fury Brothers: Burn by Anna Hackett
B- #AudioBookReview: The Mystery Writer by Sulari Gentill
Stacking the Shelves (592)

Coming This Week:

The Graveyard of the Hesperides by Lindsey Davis (#BookReview)
Spring 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop
The Underground Library by Jennifer Ryan (#BookReview)
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi (#BookReview)
Fathomfolk by Eliza Chan (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 3-3-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

I was in a murder-y mood again this week, so I pulled a couple of mysteries out of the virtually towering TBR pile to read until it passes. Also, the next book in the Wrexford & Sloane series, Murder at King’s Crossing, just popped up on Edelweiss and in yesterday’s Stacking the Shelves post, so it seemed like that might be a hint to catch up with the previous book in the series.

I couldn’t resist this shot of Luna artfully posing in the center of the gaming pillow. Lucifer likes to sit ON the pillow while the pillow is sitting around someone’s lap, but Luna has clearly found a much more artistic use for the thing. (BTW, if you are a gamer the pillow is surprisingly helpful. It gives you something to balance your arms and hands on while you’re playing and keeps you from leaning forward too far and messing up your back. A cat sitting on the pillow right in front of you makes it even more difficult to lean over too far – and the cat gets extra pets into the bargain!)

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Lady Luck Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Winter 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Love is in the Air Giveaway Hop is Heather
The winner of the Wish Big Giveaway Hop is Laura D.

Blog Recap:

A- #BookReview: Always Remember by Mary Balogh
Grade A #BookReview: Mastering the Art of French Murder by Colleen Cambridge
C #BookReview: Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum, translated by Shanna Tan
A- #BookReview: Feed Them Silence by Lee Mandelo
Lady Luck Giveaway Hop
Stacking the Shelves (590)

Coming This Week:

Murder at the Merton Library by Andrea Penrose (#BookReview)
That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Human by Kimberly Lemming (#BookReview)
The Graveyard of the Hesperides by Lindsey Davis (#BookReview)
The Truth of the Aleke by Moses Ose Utomi (#BookReview)
The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed (#BookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 2-18-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Virtual Nightstand> Winner announcement

This week has definitely better. I finally stopped feeling like all I was full of was snot sometime late last Sunday. Clearly, it’s better to be full of piss and vinegar than snot, because you get more done that way. But c’est la vie, it is what it is, etc., etc., etc. The hurrieder I go, the behindeder I get. I’m working on it.

This past week’s books were all just really, really good. I can’t wait to see what this coming week’s books bring, particularly as I’ve been chomping at the virtual bit to dig into The Lantern’s Dance. I remember listening to the first book in the series, The Beekeeper’s Apprentice, OMG THIRTY YEARS AGO, and thinking that the concept really shouldn’t work, but damned if it didn’t anyway. And it still does. Does it ever!

Last week’s picture was of Tuna’s sister, Luna, in more-or-less the same upside-down-kitty-face position. (They are biological and not merely adopted siblings from the same litter. You can kind of see the resemblance around the eyes and face although there’s certainly a lot more of Tuna to love.) When Tuna actually posed for me a few days ago, I couldn’t resist snapping him in the same position before he woke up enough to figure out what I was doing. Doesn’t he look winsome as well as handsome?

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Love is in the Air Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Wish Big Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Winter 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Heart 2 Heart Giveaway Hop is Angela

Blog Recap:

A+ #BookReview: The Imposition of Unnecessary Obstacles by Malka Older
Grade A #BookReview: The Bezzle by Cory Doctorow
A- #BookReview: At First Spite by Olivia Dade
A- #AudioBookReview: What Feasts at Night by T. Kingfisher
Wish Big Giveaway Hop
Stacking the Shelves (588)

Coming This Week:

Presidents’ Day 2024 (#GuestPost by Galen)
Village in the Dark by Iris Yamashita (#BlogTour #BookReview)
The Lantern’s Dance by Laurie R. King (#BookReview)
The Kamogawa Food Detectives by Hisashi Kashiwai (#BookReview)
Glory Be by Danielle Arceneaux (#BlogTour #AudioBookReview)

The Sunday Post AKA What’s on my (Mostly Virtual) Nightstand 2-4-24

Posted on by Marlene Harris | Author : | The Sunday Post> Winner announcement

Well, that old groundhog did not see his shadow on Friday, so he’s predicting an early spring. YAY! Not that it has been all that terribly wintry here in Atlanta, but my friends up in Anchorage have seen over 100 inches of snow – SO FAR! There’s plenty of winter left for more to fall. (If you are wondering, and I wouldn’t be AT ALL surprised if you were, Anchorage gets 75 inches of snow in an average winter. It’s plenty cold up there, but the air is often too dry AND COLD for actual snowfall.)

Also if  you’re wondering, I miss my peeps up in Anchorage. The weather – not so much.

Speaking of chilly weather – or at least chilly enough for the leaves to fall, here’s a peek at the bare tree trunks in our backyard over Luna’s prettily posing purrson. Meanwhile, Hecate is in her favorite window perch, behind the probably empty can of sparkling water, looking on suspiciously and grumping at the world. As she does.

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Heart 2 Heart Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Winter 2024 Seasons of Books Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Winter Wishes Giveaway Hop is Cindy M.

Blog Recap:

Spotlight + Excerpt: A Quantum Love Story by Mike Chen
A- #BookReview: A Body at the Séance by Marty Wingate
#BookReview: Remember Me by Mary Balogh
Heart 2 Heart Giveaway Hop
#BookReview: That Time I Got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf by Kimberly Lemming
Stacking the Shelves (586)

Coming This Week:

The Holy Terrors by Simon R. Green (#BookReview)
A Murder of Crows by Sarah Yarwood-Lovett (#BookReview)
The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett (#BookReview)
A Quantum Love Story by Mike Chen (#BookReview)
Love is in the Air Giveaway Hop (#BlogHop)