Cleaning Up My TBR with a Giveaway: Down the TBR Hole #10

Posted February 23, 2019 by Lisa Mandina in giveaway / 12 Comments

This meme was started by Lost in a Story.  Here is how it works:

  • Go to your goodreads to-read shelf.
  • Order on ascending date added.
  • Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books
  • Read the synopses of the books
  • Decide: keep it or should it go?

Because I have so many to do, I’m going to try to do this weekly, and do 10 at a time.

1.  Something To Talk About by Sarah Webb:

Lucy is determined to
find a girlfriend for her best friend, Max and introduces him to her
beautiful friend, Jenny. Soon easy-going Max is running scared of
man-eater Jenny and would prefer to be out flying his power kites than
falling into the dating pit again. But fate works in mysterious ways.

My thoughts:
Hmm, not a lot of info on this one to really go by.  Makes it hard to decide if I would want to read this or not.  I know I liked the other books I read by the author.

Verdict:  Toss

2.  2 books by Leslie Schnur:

From the acclaimed
author of “The Dog Walker” comes “Late Night Talking,” a tender and
funny novel about bad behavior, the fragility of friendship and family,
and how we cannot choose whom we love.Jeannie Sterling, host of a
late-night NYC talk show, vents with her listeners about everyday
injustices, from rude cell phone users and poor gym etiquette to bad
drivers and negligent pet owners — the many aggravations of modern
urban life. An idealistic California girl raised by two free-spirited
parents, Jeannie believes in a life of value through activism. She’s
passionate about making a difference, about making the world a better
place, one annoying person at a time.

For as long as she can
remember, success in her career has been more than enough. But after all
these years of being single, Jeannie realizes that some of the pieces
of her perfect puzzle aren’t fitting quite right. The people she thought
she knew best all harbor secrets, secrets Jeannie isn’t prepared for,
secrets that can’t be digested, processed, and solved in the neat
three-hour window of her show. Her best friend, Luce, is growing distant
and distracted; her wayward father unexpectedly moves in; and an
ambiguous relationship with her college crush ignites.

When the
radio station is bought by the maverick mogul Nicholas Moss, Jeannie’s
career, her one safe haven, also descends into chaos. She is pushed to
increase ratings and goes too far, risking the loss of everything and
everyone important to her.

Delightfully real and deliciously
flawed, Jeannie Sterling is a character we can’t help but root for as
she faces her life’s most hilarious — and heartbreaking — challenges. 

My thoughts:  I have no idea why this book is on my list. I haven’t read anything else by the author.  The reviews on Goodreads have it rated at below 3 stars.  And it doesn’t sound necessarily like one I’d want to read.


Refreshing and
insightful, rich with humor and brimming with life, The Dog Walker is
the story of Nina Shepard, Manhattan dog walker extraordinaire. With the
keys to her clients’ apartments, Nina has the freedom to cross several
foyers and a moral boundary, and enter their lives…where she just
might find the things that are missing in her own. 


And so she falls
in love with Daniel, a man she has never met but whom she thinks she
knows from snooping around his apartment when she picks up Sid, his
Weimaraner, for walks. But by the time each of them unleashes the truth
about who the other really is–after all the mishaps, deception, and
lost dogs–it’s too late. Nina and Daniel will never be the same again. 


The Dog Walker is the hilarious and heartwarming tale of a single
woman’s quest for fulfillment. It is about city living–any city, all
cities–and the struggle to feel at home in the world. Finally, it is
about life itself: unpredictable, bursting with love, and not to be
missed.
 

My thoughts:  Now this one sounds more like I might like it. And the rating on Goodreads is higher.  
Verdict: Toss the first one, keep the second one for now.

3.  Welcome to Promise City (The 4400 #3) by Greg Cox:

The 4400 were only the
beginning. Now anyone can become extraordinary. The rewards are great.
But so are the risks. . .Mere months have passed since a viral outbreak
transformed Seattle. Over nine thousand people died horribly, while
thousands more gained remarkable new abilities. The disaster has also
left Jordan Collier, the charismatic leader of The 4400 Movement, in
charge of the city, much to the dismay of the rest of the world.

To
Collier’s followers, the birth of “Promise City” heralds the dawn of a
glorious new future that will forever change the face of humanity. But
not everyone welcomes Collier’s vision of tomorrow. An
internationalconspiracy, composed of many of the world’s most powerful
figures, will stop at nothing to destroy the Movement, even if it means
igniting an all-out war against Promise City.

NTACNTAC agents Tom
Baldwin and Diana Skouris find themselves caught in the middle of a
historic clash as they try to save Seattle from both Jordan Collier and
his mortal enemies…with the future of the planet hanging in the
balance.

The saga of The 4400 continues.  

My thoughts
I loved this tv show when it was on, well the first season or so. But then I lost interest.  Don’t know if I’ll ever have the interest to go back to it.

Verdict:  Toss

4.  Rediscover the Joy of Creative Writing:  Overcome Writer’s Block, Boost Your Creativity, Reignite Your Creative Fuse by Paul Lima:

With over 50 exercises
to get you started and to keep you writing, (re)Discover the Joy of
Creative Writing will spark creative writing ideas – whether you are an
aspiring writer or an experienced writer looking for a creative spark.
It will help you discover, or rediscover, the joy of writing. Also
includes chapters on character development and editing your own work.

My thoughts:
I don’t know if I’m a big fan of too many books on “how to write”.  Not that I don’t feel they are helpful.  It’s just that I have a few, and if I spend time reading instead of writing, I won’t get any writing done.

Verdict: Toss

5.  Angelology by Danielle Trussoni:

Sister Evangeline was
just a girl when her care was entrusted to the Franciscan Sisters of
Perpetual Adoration. Now, at twenty-three, she discovers a 1943
correspondence between the convent’s late mother superior and the famous
philanthropist Abigail Rockefeller that plunges her into a secret
history stretching back a millennium: an ancient conflict between the
Society of Angelologists and the monstrously beautiful descendants of
angels and humans, the Nephilim. Blending biblical lore, the Miltonic
fall of the rebel Angels, the apocryphal Book of Enoch, and the myth of
Orpheus, Angelology is a luminous, riveting tale of ordinary people caught up in a battle that will determine the fate of the world.

 
 

My thoughts:  I still feel like I want to read this.  I had a friend who read it and loved it.  

Verdict:  Keep

6.  2 books by Douglas Preston:

Yesterday, Special Agent
Pendergast still mourned the loss of his beloved wife, Helen, who died
in a tragic accident in Africa twelve years ago.

Today, he discovers she was murdered.

Tomorrow,
he will learn her most guarded secrets, leaving him to wonder: Who was
the woman I married? Why was she murdered? And, above all . . . Who murdered her?

FEVER DREAM

Revenge is not sweet: It is essential.  

My thoughts:
I don’t even know if I’ve made it this far in the Pendergast series, so not sure if that is why this one is saved to my list or not.  I can probably get rid of it, and if I ever decided to move on in this series, I’ll be able to figure out by which books I’ve got on my read shelf.

Wyman Ford is tapped
for a secret expedition to Cambodia… to locate the source of strangely
beautiful gemstones that do not appear to be of this world.


A
brilliant meteor lights up the Maine coast… and two young women borrow
a boat and set out for a distant island to find the impact crater.

A
scientist at the National Propulsion Facility discovers an inexplicable
source of gamma rays in the outer Solar System. He is found
decapitated, the data missing.

High resolution NASA images reveal
an unnatural feature hidden in the depths of a crater on Mars… and it
appears to have been activated.

Sixty hours and counting.

My thoughts:
Now, I’ve read the first book in this series/trilogy. And I liked it.  But I don’t know if I’ll read on.  So, not sure this needs to be kept on my TBR either.

Verdict:  Toss both

7.  Wolfsbane and Mistletoe (Kitty Norville #2.5) by Charlaine Harris:

New York Times
bestselling authors Charlaine Harris, Patricia Briggs, Keri Arthur,
Carrie Vaughn, and Karen Chance-along with ten other masters of the
genre-offer stories on werewolves and the holidays, a fresh variation on
the concept of birthdays and vampires found in Many Bloody Returns.

The holidays can bring out the beast in anyone- particularly
lycanthropes. Charlaine Harris and Toni L. P. Kelner have harvested the
scariest, funniest, saddest werewolf tales by an outstanding pack of
authors, best read by the light of a full moon with a silver bullet
close at hand.

Whether wolfing down a holiday feast (use your
imagination) or craving some hair of the dog on New Year’s morning, the
werewolves in these frighteningly original stories will surprise,
delight, amuse, and scare the pants off readers who love a little
wolfsbane with their mistletoe. 

My thoughts:  Hmm, this isn’t the True Blood series, obviously, so I’ll probably pass on it.

Verdict:  Toss

8.  My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding (There Be Pirates #1 – Dead Man’s Chest) by P.N. Elrod:

Werewolves, vampires, witches, voodoo, Elvis—and weddings

An
“ordinary” wedding can get crazy enough, so can you imagine what
happens when otherworldly creatures are involved? Nine of the hottest
authors of paranormal fiction answer that question in this delightful
collection of supernatural wedding stories. What’s the seating plan when
rival clans of werewolves and vampires meet under the same roof? How
can a couple in the throes of love overcome traps set by feuding
relatives—who are experts at voodoo? Will you have a good marriage if
your high-seas wedding is held on a cursed ship? How do you deal with a
wedding singer who’s just a little too good at impersonating Elvis? Shape-shifters, wizards, and magic, oh my!

“The Wedding of Wylda Serene” / Esther Friesner
“All Shook Up” /P.N. Elrod
“Tacky” / Charlaine Harris
“A Hard Day’s Night-Searcher” / Sherrilyn Kenyon
“Something Borrowed” / Jim Butcher
“Spellbound” / L.A. Banks
“Dead Man’s Chest” / Rachel Caine
“Charmed by the Moon” / Lori Handeland
“…Or Forever Hold Your Peace” / Susan Krinard
  
 
My thoughts:
Hmm, I’m going to go with the similar thoughts on the book above.  Not sure I’ll ever get to this one.  There’s one short story by Charlaine Harris, but I don’t know if it is even part of the Sookie Stackhouse series.


Verdict:  Toss


  

9.  Meeting Your Half-Orange:  An Utterly Upbeat Guide to Using Dating Optimism to Find Your Perfect Match by Amy Spencer:

How would you like to
have a wonderfully well-suited, kind, adoring half-orange who feels like
a teammate, a partner in crime, a true other half? “Half-Orange” refers
to the Spanish term mi media naranja, which describes one’s
sweetheart, that perfect other half. What if you heard he or she would
be coming along soon? Would you be relieved? Excited? Happy? Well those
are the feelings that dating optimism can give you.
Rather than
admonishing readers to make themselves more available, or turn dating
into a full-time job, Spencer’s program of dating optimism is a fun,
results-oriented way to find a healthy happy relationship, based on
brain science and psychology that can help you become a more positive
dater. She’ll guide you through sowing the orange seed of your ideal
relationship and growing it to “fruit-ion.” In essence, by focusing
positively about dating, you can actually change your brain, which
changes everything from your body language to the way you perceive
others and what you ultimately attract.
Meeting Your Half-Orange
is the pep talk that puts finding true love back into your own hands.
It will guide you toward becoming so focused on the relationship you
want and so happy in your own skin, the right person will be naturally
drawn straight to you. You’ve never read a dating guide like this
before. But best of all, it will be the last one you’ll ever need.
 
 

My thoughts:  Um, yeah, I don’t care about self-help books for dating.  I’m pretty much going to be alone, so why bother.

Verdict:  Toss

10.  2 books by Maureen Johnson:

Sometimes you have to get lost . . .

The Girl:
Clio Ford, seventeen, wants to spend the summer smooching her art-store
crush, not stuck on a boat in the Mediterranean. At least she’ll get a
killer tan.

The Mission: Survive her father’s crazy
antics. Oh, and also find some missing underwater treasure that could
unlock the secrets of civilization.

The Crew: Dad’s wacky best friend Martin, his bizarre research partner Julia, her
voluptuous daughter Elsa… and then there’s Aidan, Julia’s incredibly
attractive, incredibly arrogant assistant. What’s going on behind
Aidan’s intellectual, intensely green eyes, anyway?

As Clio sails
into uncharted territory she unveils secrets that have the power to
change history. But her most surprising discovery is that there’s
something deeper and more cryptic than the sea—her own heart…

…to find what you’re looking for.

My thoughts:
I know that I’ll always be interested in reading a book by Maureen Johnson, but I don’t know that I need to keep those titles on my Goodreads TBR.

The funny thing about stop signs is that they’re also start signs.

Mayzie
is the brainy middle sister, Brooks is the beautiful but conflicted
oldest, and Palmer’s the quirky baby of the family. In spite of their
differences, the Gold sisters have always been close.

When their
father dies, everything begins to fall apart. Level-headed May is left
to fend for herself (and somehow learn to drive), while her two sisters
struggle with their own demons. But the girls learn that while there are
a lot of rules for the road, there are no rules when it comes to the
heart. Together, they discover the key to moving on — and it’s the key
to their father’s Pontiac Firebird.. 

My thoughts:  Not sure on this one.  It might be good, might not.  Not sure I’ll ever actually want to read it though.

Verdict:  Toss both from my list.  I might still read the top one, but the bottom one I probably won’t.

Final thoughts:
I got rid of quite a few!  I noticed a few of you decided to join in last week.  If you want to join in and link up, I made a link-up below and we can go check your post out.  I’d love to see if you do this and how well you do with cleaning up your TBR.

 

Inlinkz Link Party

Now, while you’re here, don’t forget about my weekly giveaway!  Just go fill out the Rafflecopter below.

Giveaway:
Once
again this is a US only giveaway, unless you are International and see a
book here you really want and would be willing to pay for the
difference in the shipping through Paypal or some other way.  Just
as with the past weeks, you get to pick any book from the pictures below, as
long as they don’t get traded away, or picked by last week’s winner,
and I will pick a surprise book from the piles to add to your choice. 
Here are your choices: 





Above are the 2018 ARCs you can pick from.




Above are the 2017 ARCs you can choose from.




These are the 2013-2016 ARCs you have to choose from.


Just enter in the Rafflecopter below:



a Rafflecopter giveaway

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12 responses to “Cleaning Up My TBR with a Giveaway: Down the TBR Hole #10

  1. Thanks for sharing your ARCs with your readers. I still see several in your photos that I haven't read yet, but really want to, including This is Not a Love Letter.

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