Fall Books 2016 - Sequel Squeals and a Picture Book

The very best thing about Fall is the arrival of a ton of new books that keep me up far past my bedtime and have me daydreaming about what will happen all day long! I'm such a book nerd.

Here's my annual roundup of books I've been eagerly anticipating ...

My very-favorite book of 2015 was Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo. I can't gush enough about how totally blown away I was by the storytelling and characters. Six distinct characters pull off an impossible heist in a fictional world with a cliffhanger that nearly killed me ... INEJ!! At the end of September comes the sequel Crooked Kingdom and OHMYGOD I've been waiting long enough to find out the disastrous results of their heist and what will become of Kaz and his crew.

I picked up Ember in the Ashes audiobook last year and it was so intense I was stressed about listening to it for a whole week. But I couldn't stop. That sequel, A Torch Against the Night, is coming out on August 30 and I've been saving up my Audible credit to make that purchase. I'm both petrified to find out what happens next and excited to see if love blooms between the two characters or -- if one of them gets their head chopped off. Both are equally possible, which illustrates just the severity of this book.

Furthermore by Tehereh Mafi is a magical, fantasy book that might be a great bedtime read-aloud to my the girls. Also, the main character's name is Alice, so this makes the story ten-times more attractive to my Alice. It's getting lots of rave reviews and, well, the cover looks pretty amazing.

Bright Smoke, Cold File is the latest from Rosamund Hodge. I listened to her last two books Cruel Beauty and Crimson Bound (not a series) as audiobooks and became a fan of her textured, sensuous style. Even though this one is a Romeo and Juliet re-telling, which doesn't thrill me all that much (you can't top the original), I will be grabbing this audiobook for my commutes.

One of my favorite historical romance writers, Sarah MacLean, has a new book coming called A Scot in the Dark (extra points for the pun-y title). It's the second in her Scandal and Scoundrel series and the first was delightful. Romance fiction has a bad reputation but I'm telling you there are so many good books in this genre! A few bad apples shouldn't dissuade you. (I'll write a post about my favorite romance novels soon.)

If you've read Rosie Revere, Engineer and Iggy Peck, Architect to your kids, you know how exciting and subtly inspiring they are. Follow your dreams! Don't let the haters hate, etc. The writer/illustrator team of Andrea Beaty and David Roberts are releasing a third ... Ada Twist, Scientist. I'm so ready to update our (enormous) picture book library with this one.

What are you reading?

Family Room: The Accent Wall

Wall: Before Ever since I started to think about decorating this house -- way back in October -- I knew I wanted to do a dramatic accent wall in the family room. The room is huge with two-story ceilings. There are six windows on one wall and four more flanking the fireplace -- so this room could definitely handle a dark, rich color. A few design magazine, sites and HGTV shows later, navy blue stuck in my head. Like one design show I watch advocates, look to the clothes you wear often to help decide color -- which for me and Dave is denim. And we both have soft navy sweatshirts that are common weekend wear. Navy it was -- decided in December. So, each night since we moved in while watching TV I'd stare at the beige wall, that is slightly inset, and imagine it was navy blue. And I'd itch and wish to paint it. Now, with the new media cabinet arriving on Friday, it's finally time! Once we moved out the furniture pieces we no longer will need, we reoriented everything ...

Keep reading »

Top 5 Spots in Tenerife: La Ortava and Hotel Mencey

3. La Ortava A charming old town in the valley above Puerto de la Cruz. In my memory, it was green and lush, but in reality it's a small village populated by ancient buildings and nice locals. The Casa de los Balcones is a popular tourist spot to pick up local lace and your own little balcony. We walked up and down the hilly streets, and discovered two stunning public gardens and a nice coffee shop. We also watched fancy-dressed wedding guests entering an old church. The bride, I'm sorry to report, was very, very late. View Down a Twisty Street in La Ortava The Famous Tourist Trap - Casa de los Balcones Jardin Victoria With Quite a View! 4. Hotel Mencey and Parque Garcia Sanabria In Santa Cruz, the small city we used as home base, we stretched our budget a little to stay at the historic Hotel Mencey. It was a comfortable, well-maintained hotel in a great location. I love a hotel will a lot of common spaces to relax in, and this one had a bunch, all with beaut...

Keep reading »

Thinking Spring...

Thinking Spring ... and testing out this new collage photo editor . These are from last Spring. I was taking pictures of where the daffodils were coming up (for next Spring) when this cherubic creature stepped into the garden.

Keep reading »

What Ana Does

Search This Blog