Weekly Wrap-Up: 20 – 26 June, 2022

Wow, we are almost halfway through 2022. When did that happen?

I have done a bit of catching up on reading this week. I did plan to read only during the weekdays and keep weekends for binge watching TV series and movies. I deviated a little from my reading list but managed to 6 books this week and halfway through the 7th

Since I was approved for Daryl Wood Gerber’s A Hint of Mischief last week, I decided to catch up on the series before reading the latest installment. The theme of this series is fairy garden. I had never heard of fairy gardens before coming across this series. Now I am curious to try a DIY fairy garden project. If you have done one, I could use some pointers. I am interested in the teacup version of fairy garden. 🙂

A Glimmer of Clue is the second book in the series. Courtney Kelly, owner of Open Your Imagination, is our protagonist. She has a young fairy named Fiona as her sidekick/sleuthing partner. Courtney’s best friend’s mother is accused of killing someone during one of her sleepwalking episodes. The sleepwalking issue reminded me of my sleepwalking problem.

When I was a child, I used to sleepwalk a lot. We had gone on a trip somewhere and in the middle of the night, there were fireworks so my mum and aunt went out, leaving the door unlocked (closed but unlocked). When I woke up, I was in the hotel’s dining room. Alone in a pitch dark room. Next thing I know, I was in the hotel lobby. I finally managed to find the way up to our floor, all right. But I was banging the door of a wrong room for a good five minutes before realizing what was going on. My mum and aunt did not know of my sleepwalking adventure until the next morning. They must have returned after I went back to sleep.

A Hint of Mischief is the third book in Fairy Garden mysteries. In this installment, we get to see a lot of fairies – seems like Carmel-by-the-sea has become a fairy haven. There’s also a he fairy. Quick question: Are he fairies called Fairros? Fairo (singular)? Ferreros? Shop talk aside, I really enjoyed reading A Hint of Mischief.

Take a Chance on Greece by Emily Kerr was my second book for this years 20 books of summer challenge. I had downloaded an ARC from One More Chapter a month ago. And I finished reading the book in 15 mins. Wait, what? Turns out, I downloaded a sampler or something. Or, quite possible the full-length version was not uploaded on NetGalley previously. So, I had to download the book once again and read it from the start. But it was totally worth it!

Lydia has gotten a tattoo on her back. It says Awesome Andreas. What’s the problem, you say? Lydia’s boyfriend is called Jim. She has no idea of what went on the previous night – she was drunk. And she definitely does not remember meeting Andreas – Awesome or otherwise. She was on a weekend trip to Greece with her friends. Andreas is quite a common name in Greece.

Lydia breaks up with her boyfriend – well, he turned out to be Jackass Jim. Good riddance, Lydia! She goes back to Greece in search of Awesome Andreas. She randomly messages Andreas on Facebook and asks them out on a date. But none of them are Awesome. Sheesh!

I also read a novella this week. It is the first in a new historical mystery series. Making a Killing by Norah Winter. The novella is just 76 pages long but pretty impressive. The protagonist is a female forensics examiner – story set in 1930s. I loved the storytelling and the character introduction. I will be reading the next book of this series sometime this coming week. Or, at least I hope to!

I finished reading Donna Ashcroft’s The Little Cornish House. It’s my third read for 20 books of Summer challenge. I did not like the story but my next read turned out to be a smashing hit. West Side Murder by K.L Montogmery – music, murder mystery (a decade old), frienship and a dash of romance.

I plan to do a bit of reading today – started reading Old Bones by Marion Todd this noon.

I didn’t get to watch a lot of TV this week. No Bond movies this week. But I did watch Doctor Strange and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. I didn’t like Multiverse in the Madness – it was utter madness. Excuse the pun!

I am now in season 7 of Star Trek Voyager. I really liked the series so far – thought some episodes are hit-and-miss types, overall this series is quite impressive. Apart from Star Trek, I have also been watching Modern Family. 5 seasons through (no, I didn’t watch them all this week!) so far.

Reviews on the blog this week:

A Harvest Murder by Frances Evesham

Assassin’s Lullaby by Mark Rubinstein

The Lost Ones by Marnie Riches

Vegas Murder Mystery by Trevor Scott

A Glimmer of a Clue by Daryl Wood Gerber

Making a Killing by Norah Winter

I am linking this post to Kimberley’s Sunday Post Meme.

See you all next week. 🙂

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