An Exciting Buddy Read Announcement

So a few months ago, I featured "Dread Nation" on my Can't Wait Wednesday post.  It seems like I've been waiting for this book forever.  When I did, a regular follower, Maria from A Night's Dream of Books mentioned that she was interested in it too. Now this was somewhat surprising because Maria is not a fan of horror.  Even through she regularly visits my blog, I know horror has never been and will never be her thing.  So imagine how surprised I when she and I committed to doing a buddy read of "Dread Nation" upon it release.  For those who aren't familiar with the book (are there any?) here's the low down.

Jane McKeene was born two days before the dead began to walk the battlefields of Gettysburg and Chancellorsville—derailing the War Between the States and changing America forever. In this new nation, safety for all depends on the work of a few, and laws like the Native and Negro Reeducation Act require certain children attend combat schools to learn to put down the dead. But there are also opportunities—and Jane is studying to become an Attendant, trained in both weaponry and etiquette to protect the well-to-do. It’s a chance for a better life for Negro girls like Jane. After all, not even being the daughter of a wealthy white Southern woman could save her from society’s expectations. But that’s not a life Jane wants. Almost finished with her education at Miss Preston’s School of Combat in Baltimore, Jane is set on returning to her Kentucky home and doesn’t pay much mind to the politics of the eastern cities, with their talk of returning America to the glory of its days before the dead rose. But when families around Baltimore County begin to go missing, Jane is caught in the middle of a conspiracy, one that finds her in a desperate fight for her life against some powerful enemies. And the restless dead, it would seem, are the least of her problems.

So I had an opportunity to ask Maria a very important question prior to starting this book so make sure you hop over to A Night's Dreams of Books to see what she had to say.  In return, she posed this question to me:

"Barb, you and I have both kidded around about the fact that I don't like the horror genre.  In fact, I've even told you that I'm a 'huge chicken' when it comes to reading such books, which you frequently feature and review on your blog. So were you really and truly SHOCKED when I said I was willing to read "Dread Nation" right along with you?  Any guesses as to why I've decided to 'take the plunge' as you put it?"

Well Maria, yes, I was pretty shocked.  I mean, you've made it no secret that horror just isn't the genre for you.   In fact, not only is it horror, but it's zombies nonetheless.  However, I do believe I have a few ideas about why this book interested you.  Firstly, being a YA book, one could anticipate that the horror element will be pretty mild.  Also, I'm pretty sure you enjoy historical reads and it doesn't get much more historical than the Civil War.  Finally, I think you were drawn to the diverse characters in this book and that all of these reasons combined contributed to you wanting to give this book a chance.  Am I right?

So please everyone join with me and welcome Maria to the "Dark Side" and follow us along this journey.  I doubt I reform her to a true horror lover, but I am accepting the challenge!

Can't Wait Wednesday (154)

Can't Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings to spotlight highly anticipated books.  It is based on the Waiting on Wednesday meme which used to be hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

FROM GOODREADS: Beatrice Hartley has no plans for the summer—except a secret reunion with her five former best friends.

Once upon a time, back at Darrow-Harker School, they were the cool kids, the beautiful ones. Then the shocking death of Jim—their creative genius—changed everything.

One year after graduation, Beatrice is returning to Wincroft—the seaside estate where they spent so many nights sharing secrets, crushes, plans to change the world—in the hopes that she will get to the bottom of the dark questions gnawing at her about Jim’s death. She suspects that her friends knew much more than they ever let on.

But as the night plays out in a haze of stilted jokes and unfathomable silence, answers seem unlikely. Her friends are all so different now, so splintered and lost. It’s too late. Beatrice senses she’s going to live the rest of her life far away from them, never knowing what really happened.

Then night fades to morning. A thunderstorm rages, and a mysterious man knocks on the door. He looks like the exhausted ringmaster of a cheap traveling circus. Blithely, he announces the impossible.

And so begins the Neverworld Wake. The nightmare. The nothingness.

WHY I CAN'T WAIT:  Besides the fact that this guy sounds like someone who might show up randomly in my neighborhood, I really want to know what is going on and what he announces.  I've never read "Night Film" but I do own it and this sounds like it could be a good followup.  

WHAT BOOK CAN'T YOU WAIT FOR THIS WEEK????

TTT - Ten Prince Books On My TBR

The top 10 weekly meme used to be hosted by The Broke and the Bookish but starting this week, they are handing over the reins to ThatArtsyReaderGirl who can be found HERE.  Each week she will focus on lists which cover various topics related to books and reading. 

This week's topic is a free choice so it fits perfectly with some things I wanted to showcase on my blog in April.  Therefore, I am showing you ten books about/relating to Prince which are on my TBR.  And to make it a TAD more interesting, I'm sharing some lesser known facts about my favorite musician!

Prince's favorite meal was spaghetti and orange juice.

Prince played guitar on Madonna's hit "Like a Prayer."

The song "Purple Rain" has some deeper meaning.  Prince has said "When there's blood in the sky - red and blue = purple...purple rain pertains to the end of the world and being with the one you love and letting your faith/God guide you through the purple rain."

In 2013 Prince performed at the wedding of George Lucas.

Prince wrote his first song at the age of 7 - "Funk Machine."

And 2 new preorders this year:

Prince originally asked Stevie Nicks to write the lyrics for "Purple Rain."  She told him she was too intimidated and said only he could do the song justice.

So there you have it. Sadly, I also have a lot of collector's magazines and even a few more books which I have read in my collection.  Hopefully I haven't bored you too much and you learned something that might help you some day on Jeopardy or Trivial Pursuit!

Books to Bark (and Crow) About #4

Guess who's baaaacccckkkk???? It's me - Booker T!  Sorry this is a week late but you know what they say, better late than never.  Mom was ill last week and I didn't harass her to fire up the computer so Cass and I could play.  My paws still aren't to adept at hitting that on and off button.  

So this week I wanted to showcase a series which Mom has been collecting for a while.  I know she read the first book and I've seen her slip some others in the house when Dad wasn't looking.  I also just caught sight of a new Book Outlet order she is sending in and I think the last 2 books of this series are on it.  I heard her mumbling something about this series being perfect for her "Dog Days of Summer" participation in August.  I really don't understand the whole dog days of summer concept.  I mean seriously folks, every day is a dog day at our house!  Anyway, on to the books!

Here's a synopsis of the first one:  

Introducing police officer Megan Luz and her loyal K-9 partner Brigit—two Fort Worth cops who are worth their weight in kibble.

SHE’S ON A SHORT LEASH.

Officer Luz is lucky she still has a job after tasering a male colleague where it counts the most. Sure, he had it coming—which is why the police chief is giving Megan a second chance. The catch? Her new partner can’t carry a gun, can’t drive a cruiser, and can’t recite the Miranda Rights. Because her new partner is a big furry police dog. So that’s what the chief meant when he called Megan’s partner a real b*tch…

WILL FATE THROW HER A BONE?

With Brigit out on the beat, Megan is writing up enough tickets to wallpaper the whole station. But when a bomb goes off at the mall’s food court, it’s up to Megan and Brigit to start digging—and sniffing—for clues. With the help of dead-sexy bomb-squad expert Seth Rutledge and his own canine partner named Blast, Megan finds herself in a desperate race to collar a killer. Will justice be served—or will she end up in the doghouse?

And here is a link to the entire series - PAW ENFORCEMENT

Seriously, these books contain interesting mysteries, a snarky female cop and an adorable police dog - what's not to love?  

PS - Cass will be back next week.  Spring is in the air and he is out back bird watching - silly dog thinks he can actually catch one!

Stacking the Shelves (156)/Sunday Post - Sit Back and Have a Cup of Something

Stacking the Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves or TBR piles, may it be physical or virtual.  This means you can include books you buy in a physical store, online, books you borrow from the library or friends, review books, gifts and of course, ebooks! The original meme was started over at Tynga's Reviews. And it now has a new co-host where individuals can link up as well - Marlene from Reading Reality.  Clicking on the book (or title) should take you to the Goodreads page.  I'm also now linking up with the Sunday Post which is hosted by Kimberly@Caffeinated Book Reviewer. 

So it's been a busy book week here at The Farm but we are all bookworms and love books so that really shouldn't be a problem huh?  First up are two books I won in Goodreads' Giveaway and the third in a book an author sent me unsolicited.  I won "Mr. Flood's Last Resort" which sounds kind of quirky and is a mystery to boot and "Smothered" from Goodreads.  Diane Moat contacted me earlier this week about her new release.  I've been waiting forever for a sequel to "Dog Gone" and didn't even know she had one coming out.  She graciously sent me a copy of "Dog Fight" and it arrived Thursday.  I'M SO EXCITED FOR IT!

Next there were a couple of books I wanted but my library didn't have them. They have an on-line form you can fill out for requests and they actually ordered them and as of yesterday, I already have them in my greedy little hands.  I remember the late 80's and early 90's all too well and always thought Samantha Fox was an interesting character.  I like memoirs and it's fairly short so I think "Forever" might be interesting.  I've wanted "Outpost" since I first saw the cover and the dog lover in me couldn't resist the wolf on the cover of "The Wild Inside."

And finally it seems the Netgalley requests have been pouring in.  In my defense, I didn't get all of these this week and haven't showed the Netgalley books in several posts.  "The Witch of Willow Hall" is a historical fiction about witches so yep - sign me up.  "A People's History of the Vampire Uprising" doesn't sound like sparkly vampires so I'm on board for that too.  And a lot of people know I love Hunter Shea so I had to grab "Jurassic Florida."  

"Grounds for Remorse" is the second book in a cozy series, "Ghost Virus" is horror and "Burning Ridge" is in the Timber Creek K-9 Mystery series.  I couldn't pass it up.

So what books did you grab this week????

Weekly Reads (04-13-17) Happy Friday the 13th!

So we only got a dusting of snow last weekend so I was happy about that and today it's supposed to reach close to 80.  Nothing like one extreme to another.  Mr. Barb is still not 100% but managed to go back to work mid-week except now I've been under the weather.  It started last Saturday when I was visiting Gpa and escalated.  I've been OD'ing on Vitamin C and Mucinex and have been holding it at bay fairly well but I just want it gone for good.  Also, because I was sick, I totally picked up a book that wasn't on my TBR last Sunday and read the whole thing before naps.  You should see that review next week.  

There hasn't been a lot of new movies coming out to rent but we did watch "The Commuter."  I'm pretty sure I have enjoyed almost every movie I've ever watched with Liam Neeson and this one was no exception.  "Lost in Space" starts on Netflix today so I may give this reboot a try.  Also, it's the season finale for "The Walking Dead" Sunday night so we'll be glued to the TV to see who dies.  I'm not as invested in it as I once was but Mr. Barb still loves it and it is fun to watch it together.

This week I want to get some more reading done.  I'm almost 1/2 through "Murder on Black Swan Lane" and enjoying it and I have to pick up "Let Me Lie" next before it expires.  I hope to also throw in a graphic novel somewhere.  

So how was your week and what are your weekend plans???

A Dark and Gothic Tale - The Atrocities Review

TITLE: The Atrocities
AUTHOR: Jeremy Shipp
PUBLISHER: Tor.com
PUBLISHING DATE: April 17, 2018

FROM GOODREADS: When Isabella died, her parents were determined to ensure her education wouldn't suffer.

But Isabella's parents had not informed her new governess of Isabella's... condition, and when Ms Valdez arrives at the estate, having forced herself through a surreal nightmare maze of twisted human-like statues, she discovers that there is no girl to tutor.
Or is there...?

MY THOUGHTS:  This is one of my most anticipated books this year and lately I've been seeing it everywhere. So I was thrilled when I received an ARC from Netgalley and Tor.com in exchange for an honest review. "The Atrocities" tells the story of Danna Valdez who is hired by a somewhat eccentric couple, Mr. and Mrs. Evers, to tutor their daughter Isabella. When she arrives, she first has to navigate the maze depicted on the cover which is staged with scary and horrific statues - The Atrocities. Danna soon catches on that things might not be as they originally seemed with the family and honestly, with all the characters acting so odd, it was pretty much an obvious conclusion. During the tale, Danna explores what is real and what is imaginary and often the line between becomes quite blurred.

I really enjoyed "The Atrocities." It has a very Gothic feel and the mood and atmosphere is intensified by Shipp's writing. As a reader, I was never quite sure where the story was headed but enjoyed finding out. I liked Danna, as well as the house staff which helped her navigate the home and her new position, even if everyone did seem "off" from the beginning. In fact, I sort of felt as if I was watching a dream sequence while reading. 

My main complaint with the book is actually one of the reasons I picked it up so quickly - its length. "The Atrocities" is just a novella and like a lot of novellas, I found myself wanting more. I would have liked to have had a little more story because one I figured out what was going on, I felt things wrapped up too quickly. In addition, I would have loved to know more about why some characters behaved as they did. Plus, Danna has a backstory which contributes to the tale, but I think more could have been said.

Despite my issues, I still really enjoyed this book. It was a quick read and eerie story and I will definitely keep my eye open for more books by Shipp as I am anxious to further explore his writing and storytelling.

RATING: 4 PAWS