Seeking book haul bliss in a chaotic world

With the news truly getting stranger than fiction these days, it’s a real relief to have a book haul or two to find some much needed comfort in.

All of that is why I indulged myself with my recent Book of the Month Club box. Four books in total, with two of them being Book of the Year(BOTY) nominees-yes, I did get The Women and The Lion Women of Tehran!

Also, I added a pair of new releases starting with Count My Lies by Sophie Stava. This debut thriller follows Sloane , a young woman who makes casual lies part of her daily routine. When a chance encounter in the park leads to a job offer as a nanny to the wealthy Lockhart family, she is more than ready to take her full frontal falsehoods to the next level.

However, it soon becomes clear that Sloane is not the only one dealing in secrets and lies here. Can she figure out what the endgame is before getting seriously played for good?

The word of mouth is strong for this book and it’s already a Good Morning America book club pick but what really intrigues me is the Gone Girl vibes that this novel is putting out there, big time:

For something completely different, my other selection was First-Time Caller by B.K. Borison.

Aiden Valentine, host of the popular radio talk show Heartstrings, has a bit of a personal problem blending into his professional life; he no longer believes in the power of true love.

So when a little girl named Maya calls in to ask for advice for getting  her single mom Lucie out into the dating scene, more than one interest is peaked. While Lucie is not pleased with the media focus on her lack of a love life, having Aiden as her guide to love is not such a bad thing there. Can they find true romance together or hang up on this phone love connection once and for all?

Yes, this is a take on the romcom classic Sleepless in Seattle and even if you’re not into that particular movie(I’m a You’ve Got Mail gal myself), those nineties romantic comedies are a solid basis for a fresh take on the genre. Just the dialogue alone is something for any lovelorn reader to slowly savor:

Meanwhile, I had to make a library return this week and stocked up on a few backlist titles.

Gil Hornsby ‘s Godmersham Park  is based on the personal history of Jane Austen’s family. Anne Sharpe has taken a position as governess to Fanny Austen, daughter of Edward and niece to Jane.

While Anne becomes used to the inner dynamics of the household , she also finds some potential friendship with Jane yet the visits from another Austen brother Henry place Anne in some uncertainty regarding her place in more ways than one.

With Hornsby’s earlier novel, Miss Austen, coming to PBS later this spring, such a story feels as perfectly timed as a Jane Austen plot point indeed:

Along with Happiness Falls by Angie Kim(really want to try her work after hearing such great things about it), I picked up Elin Hilderbrand’s The Perfect Couple , a murder mystery/contemporary drama set in Nantucket.

When the maid of honor in the illustrious wedding party of the Winbury family is discovered dead on the beach by the bride to be on her big day, a  major myriad of scandalous stories threaten to erupt.

As the chief of police and his best detective sort out the situation, many of the folks involved are planning to see what happens next and fit their accounts of that fatal incident accordingly. When all is said and done,will there be a wedding or something much more dramatic that will change everyone’s lives for better or worse?

I’m already reading this one and it’s a grand page turner for sure. As it turns out, there was a Netflix adaptation of this novel last year but since I didn’t see it (and probably won’t due to dropping that subscription), it’s just as well. The changes from book to screen inspired much talk and I would rather just enjoy the book on its own terms.

I know that spring is just around the corner but if there was ever the time for summer time beach reading, that time is here and now:

As much as I do appreciate many of the technical advancements made in the world, particularly when it comes to books and reading, there is still something to be said for the pleasures of the physical book.

Just being able to focus solely on the narrative within that set of bound pages, pausing when you need to and not due to an ad break and the sheer joy of shutting out the noise and confusion of the outside world for a little while makes all the difference there. That time to gather yourself up in another’s thoughts and ideas without losing your own perspective in the bargain is being taken for granted, I fear.

Don’t get me wrong; technology certainly has its uses and can offer far reaching opportunities for humanity to do better by others but it’s not the be-all and end-all.

 Perhaps part of the problems we’re dealing with today are due to not slowing down and contemplating what is in front of us. A good book in any form can help with that but trust me, a physical copy keeps that information more grounded and smells better to boot: