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April 2022 Book Blogger Round Up


Book Blogger Posts Round Up

A collection of blog posts by book bloggers


This post may contain affiliate links. Meaning, I get a commission if you purchase through my links, at no cost to you. Read the full disclosure here.

Looking for new bookish content to read? Want to discover some new book bloggers to follow?  Look no further!

I introduced this new feature here on the blog in May 2021 to showcase blog posts by other book bloggers. I'll be linking up a variety of blog posts so hopefully there will be something to suit all tastes.

The following posts were submitted for inclusion in this round up via my Twitter, where I asked for posts. I'll be continuing to do this every month.

Why?

Because I like reading blog posts by other book bloggers and thought you might too. Finding the time to scan through various social media feeds to find suitable content can take up valuable time though and so I figured I'd make it easier and put together a collection here on the blog.

My plan is to include a wide variety of content so there's something for everyone. You'll find book reviews, interviews, discussion pieces and more...

Want to be included in future round ups? Follow my Twitter profile and keep an eye out for the submission tweet.


April 2022 Book Blogger Round Up


@Scintilla_Info shared a book review for A Brief History of the Earth: Four Billion Years in Eight Chapters by Andrew H. Knoll. "This book is not written for, or at least not exclusively for, other scientists. It is the kind of science those of us who are long removed from high school and college can handle. There are occasional scientific terms thrown in, quite translatable in their context, but this book is for the enthusiast and not the expert." Read the full review here.

@TanazMasaba reviewed The Keeper Of Lost Things by Ruth Hogan. "I forced my way through all 336 pages of this disappointing novel so that you don’t have to." Read the full review here to discover why it didn't live up to the hype.

@WordsofMystery shared what she read in March "I already know Rise will make it onto my top ten reads for 2022. It’s such a great, informative and necessary read especially during a time when tensions towards Asians around the world, especially in North America, are at an all-time high!" Read more about Rise and the other books she read here.

@owlbookworld discussed the benefits of reading fiction and gave 6 very good reasons why you should consider reading more fiction if you want to grow and learn. 

For National Poetry Month @ReadingLadiesBC decided to share one poem a week and spotlight authors. In this post she featured The Lanyard by Billy Collins.

@nsfordwriter took a closer look at The 10 types of book reviewer. I'm definitely a mix. Which are you?

@Mehsi_Hime took part in the This Is My Genre, Tell Me Yours, Book Tag! including great questions like What’s the book that started your love for your favorite genre? and If you had to recommend at least one book from your favorite genre to a nonreader/someone looking to start reading that genre, what book would you choose and why?

@AVoraciousReadr reviewed Darkest Corners of Texas by Russ Hall. "I like how it’s hard to figure out what’s going on. I can make guesses, but it’s not until the end that the whole thing comes together. Perfection." Read the full review here. 

What bookish blog posts did you enjoy reading in April? Have a favourite book you read in April that you want to share?


In case you missed it, don't forget to check out the March Round Up for even more great bookish posts by different book bloggers. 


April 2022 Book Blogger Round Up



You might also like: The Ultimate Guide for Book Bloggers


Are you a book blogger? Check out 101 Blog Post Ideas For Book Bloggers

If you'd like to support me, donating goes a long way to helping with the running of this blog. Thanks for your support 💗

Donate now

    

Book Spotlight Dread Wood by Jennifer Killick



Dread Wood by Jennifer Killick


This post may contain affiliate links. Meaning, I get a commission if you purchase through my links, at no cost to you. Read the full disclosure here.


You might also like: The Ultimate Guide for Book Bloggers


Today I'm part of a virtual book tour organised by The Write Reads for Dread Wood by Jennifer Killick. The tour for ‘Dread Wood’ will run from 31st March to 20th April 2022. 


tour banner Dread Wood by Jennifer Killick


Genre: MG Horror

Length: 304 Pages

Publishing: 31st March 2022



New to virtual book tours? Check out my book Virtual Book Tours: Effective Online Book Promotion From The Comfort Of Your Own Home.


 

Book synopsis for Dread Wood by Jennifer Killick


Dread Wood by Jennifer Killick

Turn the lights on. Lock the door. Things are about to get SERIOUSLY SCARY!


The brand new must-read middle-grade novel from the author of super-spooky Crater Lake. Perfect for 9+ fans of R.L.Stine’s Goosebumps


It's basically the worst school detention ever. When classmates (but not mate-mates) Hallie, Angelo, Gustav and Naira are forced to come to school on a SATURDAY, they think things can’t get much worse. But they’re wrong. Things are about to get seriously scary.


What has dragged their teacher underground? Why do the creepy caretakers keeping humming the tune to Itsy Bitsy Spider? And what horrors lurk in the shadows, getting stronger and meaner every minute…? Cut off from help and in danger each time they touch the ground, the gang’s only hope is to work together. But it’s no coincidence that they're all there on detention. Someone has been watching and plotting and is out for revenge…




Where to find Dread Wood by Jennifer Killick online: 

 
Amazon affiliate link

Goodreads


About the author


About the author 
Jennifer Killick

Jennifer Killick Author of Dread Wood


Jennifer Killick is the author of Crater Lake, the Alex Sparrow series, and middle-grade sci-fi adventure Mo, Lottie and the Junkers. She regularly visits schools and festivals, and her books have three times been selected for The Reading Agency's Summer Reading Challenge. She lives in Uxbridge, in a house full of children, animals and Lego. When she isn't busy mothering or step-mothering (which isn't often) she loves to read, write and run, as fast as she can.


Twitter: @JenniferKillick


You can find the full tour schedule at https://readtoramble.com/dread-wood-by-jennifer-killick-tour-schedule/


You might also like: 101 Blog Post Ideas For Book Bloggers


Book Spotlight Dread Wood by Jennifer Killick


You might also like: Best Tips for Book Bloggers


If you'd like to support me, donating goes a long way to helping with the running of this blog. Thanks for your support 💗

Donate now

  

Book Club Kit Eight Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson


Book Club Kit

Eight Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson


Please be aware going into this post that it is for people who have read the book and therefore contains some spoilers.

Eight Perfect Murders was also published under the title Rules for Perfect Murders.

About the book


Publisher: William Morrow

Genre: Serial Killers, Thriller, Bookshop, Psychological Thriller, Murder Mystery

Number of pages: 288

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0062838202
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0062838209
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07TD5CGZQ

Published: March 2020

Purchasing links:  Amazon - Barnes and Noble 

Goodreads

Book Covers


Eight Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson book covers

Book Synopsis

A chilling tale of psychological suspense and an homage to the thriller genre tailor-made for fans: the story of a bookseller who finds himself at the center of an FBI investigation because a very clever killer has started using his list of fiction’s most ingenious murders.

Years ago, bookseller and mystery aficionado Malcolm Kershaw compiled a list of the genre’s most unsolvable murders, those that are almost impossible to crack—which he titled “Eight Perfect Murders”—chosen from among the best of the best including Agatha Christie’s A. B. C. Murders, Patricia Highsmith’s Strangers on a Train, Ira Levin’s Death Trap, A. A. Milne's Red House Mystery, Anthony Berkeley Cox's Malice Aforethought, James M. Cain's Double Indemnity, John D. Macdonald's The Drowner, and Donna Tartt's A Secret History.

But no one is more surprised than Mal, now the owner of the Old Devils Bookstore in Boston, when an FBI agent comes knocking on his door one snowy day in February. She’s looking for information about a series of unsolved murders that look eerily similar to the killings on Mal’s old list. And the FBI agent isn’t the only one interested in this bookseller who spends almost every night at home reading. The killer is out there, watching his every move—a diabolical threat who knows way too much about Mal’s personal history, especially the secrets he’s never told anyone, even his recently deceased wife.

To protect himself, Mal begins looking into possible suspects . . . and sees a killer in everyone around him. But Mal doesn’t count on the investigation leaving a trail of death in its wake. Suddenly, a series of shocking twists leaves more victims dead—and the noose around Mal’s neck grows so tight he might never escape.



About the Author

Peter Swanson author of Eight Perfect Murders


Peter Swanson is the author of six novels including The Kind Worth Killing, winner of the New England Society Book Award, and finalist for the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger, Her Every Fear, an NPR book of the year, and his most recent thriller, Eight Perfect Murders. His books have been translated into 30 languages, and his stories, poetry, and features have appeared in Asimov’s Science Fiction, The Atlantic Monthly, Measure, The Guardian, The Strand Magazine, and Yankee Magazine.

A graduate of Trinity College, the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, and Emerson College, he lives in Somerville, Massachusetts with his wife and cat.


Authors website

Author Interviews


You could say this about all of my books, but in this case, my inspiration truly was my love of reading. And specifically, my love of crime fiction. The idea for Eight Perfect Murders came to me as I was mentally cataloging some of my favorite murders from books I’ve read. I imagined a fictional character compiling this same list, then imagined another fictional character using that list to commit actual crimes. And that was how the book was born. Los Angeles Public Library's Interview With an Author: Peter Swanson 

In almost all of my books I am making things up as I go along but for this particular book I knew the entire plot when I began writing. In fact, I knew the entire plot within an hour of coming up with the premise. The Stand Magazine Q&A with Peter Swanson

 

For a lot of us who read mysteries, our love for the genre began when we were young. And for a lot of us the books we first read were classic whodunits, books by Agatha Christie or books similar to her’s. Because of this, there’s something comforting in an old-fashioned mystery novel, one that includes all the classic elements of red herrings, multiple suspects, and a big reveal at the end. Author Q&A with Peter Swanson by Crime by the Book 

 

Book Reviews


My Review of Eight Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson.

Swanson is brilliant, and his love for the mystery book genre is extremely evident. Not only would I read this book again, but I also want to read all of the books that Swanson uses throughout this novel! Highly recommend! Read the full review by The Gloss Book Club

EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS is a love letter to the crime fiction genre. It’s a story steeped in genre history and present-day in-jokes, and it’s one that no crime fiction reader will want to miss. I haven’t had this much fun reading a crime novel in ages. Put on your amateur sleuth hat and join Peter Swanson on this delightfully nostalgic, utterly clever journey through the greatest murders in crime fiction. Read the full review by Crime By The Book

This was my first Swanson novel and I appreciated how he didn’t hold back. This was completely wild and over-the-top. It was full of unbelievable things, but that’s what made it so fun. Read the full review by Megs Book Rack
Twisted and well paced, I was quickly pulled into the narrative. This was my first soiree with author Peter Swanson, but it won’t be my last. Read the full review by Caffeinated Book Reviewer.


Discussion Questions


If you were writing a list of books with eight perfect murders, which books would you pick and why?

Do you think there is such a thing as "the perfect murder"? 

Do you think any of the nine novels has a perfect murder?

Which of the titles have you read? After examining the list, which are you most eager to read? Which of them would make the ideal book group novel and why?

Did your opinion of the main character Malcolm Kershaw change by the time you reached the end of the book?

Why do you think he decided to keep the cat? 

Old Devils Bookstore in the novel was famous for its specialty in crime fiction. Do you visit specialty bookstores when you travel? Do you buy books or souvenirs from bookstores?

How did you feel about the end of the book? 


Quotes from Eight Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson


Old Devils Bookstore is not in a high-traffic area, but we’re a specialty bookstore—mystery books, used and new—and most of our customers seek us out or simply order directly from our website.

 

I no longer have the stomach for contemporary mystery novels—sometimes I reread a particular favorite from my childhood—and I find the book blogs indispensable. I suppose I could be honest, tell people that I’ve lost interest in mystery novels, that I primarily read history these days, poetry before I go to bed, but I prefer to lie. The few people I’ve told the truth to always want to know why I’ve given up reading crime, and it’s not something I can talk about.

 

I was starting to wonder why she had come to me. Was it just because I owned a mystery bookstore? Did she need a copy of the book? But if that were the case, then why did she ask for me, specifically, on the phone? If she just wanted someone who worked in a mystery bookstore, then she could have come inside and talked with anyone.

 

She unzipped her leather bag and removed a single sheet of paper. “Do you remember a list you wrote for this store’s blog, back in 2004? A list called ‘Eight Perfect Murders’?”

 

I think I must have had some delusions of grandeur that my blog platform might turn me into a public and trusted aficionado of crime fiction.

 

I waited for comments to appear, allowing myself brief fantasies in which the piece would start an online frenzy, blog readers chiming in to argue about their own favorite murders. NPR would call and ask me to come on-air to discuss the very topic. In the end, the blog piece got two comments.


I knew I should have told Agent Mulvey this at the time, but I didn’t, and until I felt I had to, I didn’t plan on telling her. I was sure she was withholding information from me, so I planned on withholding this information from her. I had to begin to protect myself.


Books are time travel. True readers all know this. But books don’t just take you back to the time in which they were written; they can take you back to different versions of yourself.


I read the list of mysteries I’d selected, all ones that took place in wintertime or during a storm. At this point in my blog-writing career I was happy to just list books, and not describe them. 


Old Devils is not a famous store, but we are famous to a certain kind of reader.

 

Brian told me once that the reason he dedicated almost all his books to her was because she’d sulk for days if he didn’t. He told me that divorcing her was good for many reasons, but mostly because he was now free to dedicate books to other people in his life.


The latest comment was posted less than twenty-four hours earlier, at three A.M., from a user named Doctor Sheppard, and read, I am halfway through your list. STRANGERS ON A TRAIN, done. THE ABC MURDERS, finally finished. DOUBLE INDEMNITY, kaput. DEATHTRAP, saw the film. When I’m finished with the list (it won’t be long now) I’ll get in touch. Or do you already know who I am?


All poems—all works of art, really, seem like cries of help to me, but especially poetry. When they are good, and I do believe there are very few good poems, reading them is like having a long-dead stranger whisper in your ear, trying to be heard.


We never get the whole truth, not from anybody. When we first meet someone, before words are ever spoken, there are already lies and half-truths. The clothes we wear cover the truth of our bodies, but they also present who we want to be to the world. They are fabrications, figuratively and literally.


Being an avid mystery reader as an adolescent does not prepare you for real life. I truly imagined that my adult existence would be far more booklike than it turned out to be. I thought, for example, that there would be several moments in which I got into a cab to follow someone. I thought I’d attend far more readings of someone’s will, and that I’d need to know how to pick a lock, and that any time I went on vacation (especially to old creaky inns or rented lake houses) something mysterious would happen. I thought train rides would inevitably involve a murder, that sinister occurrences would plague wedding weekends, and that old friends would constantly be getting in touch to ask for help, to tell me that their lives were in danger. I even thought quicksand would be an issue.


I’ve always been suspicious of literary writers, with their attempts at immortality. That is why I much prefer thriller writers, and poets. I like the writers who know they are fighting a losing battle.


I’ve always felt that being with people, as opposed to being alone, can make you feel loneliness more acutely.


IT’S A FUNNY THING grieving for someone you’ve murdered. In the beginning my sadness was coupled with an enormous guilt.


I WROTE THAT I burned Claire’s entire diary after reading it. That’s not entirely true. I saved one page, probably because I wanted some proof that she had loved me, something in her own handwriting. 


 

Book Club Kit: Eight Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson


You might also like: Book Club Kit: You'll Be The Death of Me by Karen M. McManus


Are you a book blogger? Check out 101 Blog Post Ideas For Book Bloggers


If you'd like to support me, donating goes a long way to helping with the running of this blog. Thanks for your support 💗

Donate now


        

Book Review The Art of Optimism by Jim Stovall


My thoughts about The Art of Optimism by Jim Stovall


This post may contain affiliate links. Meaning, I get a commission if you purchase through my links, at no cost to you. Read the full disclosure here.





  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0779LNRBJ
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎  Sound Wisdom
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 15, 2018
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 115 pages

The book synopsis for The Art of Optimism by Jim Stovall

The Art of Optimism by Jim Stovall

Optimism is your secret weapon in business and in life. It is custom-designed specifically for you, and it is capable of bringing you everything you want. Optimism can overcome financial problems, physical disabilities, and personal challenges. In Jim Stovall's latest book, The Art of Optimism, he uses stories, studies, and personal experience to illustrate how adopting an attitude of optimism can change your life. Read this book and learn: How to fuel optimism How to find opportunity through optimism How to overcome negative circumstances How to maintain optimism in business and in life How optimism is your most important asset And much more! 'A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.' -Winston Churchill


You might also like: My 2022 Reading Challenges



Discussing The Art of Optimism by Jim Stovall





Where to find The Art of Optimism by Jim Stovall online:


 Amazon affiliate link

Goodreads


Book Review The Art of Optimism by Jim Stovall




You might also like: The Ultimate Guide for Book Bloggers


Are you a book blogger? Check out 101 Blog Post Ideas For Book Bloggers
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