Big Little Lies

 I wanted to take an Outlander break and read some present day fiction. Big Little Lies is a page turner! The book is about school politics and what goes on in marriages behind closed doors. The story centers around an elementary school in Sydney, Australia. I enjoyed this book. I look forward to watching the movie adaptation of Big Little Lies.

Dragonfly in Amber

My Outlander obsession continues. I couldn't put this book down so I had to get it on the iPad (for reading in the dark) and in paperback (to carry whenever I have a spare moment to read). The second book wasn't as wonderful as the first but I still love the characters.

Outlander Series

 In January after reading Wildflower by Drew Barrymore I was still floundering with books. I was listening to more podcasts than reading. I came across What Should I Read Next? It's a short podcast usually 20 minutes. The concept is simple. Guest come on the show and list 3 books they love, 1 book you hate. Then the the host recommends your next books to read.

Thanks to What Should I Read Next? I came across this little doozy! 

I couldn't put this book down! It's pretty steamy. It has things that I like...Time travel, love story and history. You will fall in love with the main characters Jamie and Clarie. I am already on book 2. I haven't seen Outlander on Starz. I wanted to read the 1st book before I watched the show.

1st book of 2016... Wildflower

My life has been hectic the last 3 months of the year. I went through a real reading dry spell at the end of 2015. I started a few books and just didn't finish. 

I broke my dry spell with Drew Barrymore's Wildflower. It's a breezy autobiography...nothing terribly juicy. The chapters feel like stories she would share with you at a party in the Hollywood Hills. Drew Barrymore had a crumby childhood but all of that brought her to the happy place she is in today. She loves being a mom and I can't help but respect that.

Kitchens of the Midwest

Kitchens of the Great Midwest  is J. Ryan Stradal's first novel. The book is peppered with recipes.  I almost had to stop reading because it made me so hungry! Every chapter is a short story that adds up to a wonderful novel. Loved this book.

The Hive

Mean Girls for grown ups with British slang.

Saint Mazie

 I had a long list of books I wanted to read this summer and this book kept popping up on Must Read List of 2015. Saint Mazie is a roaring 20's good time girl with a heart of gold. This book is written as a diary of a common person who was known as the Queen of the Bowery. Mazie loves the bums, dirt and grim that make up New York City. She sits in her cage, the ticket booth at the Venice movie, watching life go by. I really liked the format of journal entries. I didn't want this book to end.