Tuesday, December 04, 2018

Waiting to Read Wednesday (#26)



The Old(er) 
I have an embarrassing number of unread books sitting on the shelves in my personal library. Carole of Carole's Random Life in Books has given me the perfect excuse to spotlight and discuss those neglected books in her Books from the Backlog feature. After all, even those older books need a bit of love! Not to mention it is reminding me what great books I have waiting for me under my own roof still to read!


Coraline by Neil Gaiman (2002, Harper Collins)
The day after they moved in, Coraline went exploring....

In Coraline's family's new flat are twenty-one windows and fourteen doors. Thirteen of the doors open and close.

The fourteenth is locked, and on the other side is only a brick wall, until the day Coraline unlocks the door to find a passage to another flat in another house just like her own.

Only it's different.

At first, things seem marvelous in the other flat. The food is better. The toy box is filled with wind-up angels that flutter around the bedroom, books whose pictures writhe and crawl and shimmer, little dinosaur skulls that chatter their teeth. But there's another mother, and another father, and they want Coraline to stay with them and be their little girl. They want to change her and never let her go.

Other children are trapped there as well, lost souls behind the mirrors. Coraline is their only hope of rescue. She will have to fight with all her wits and all the tools she can find if she is to save the lost children, her ordinary life, and herself. [Goodreads Summary]
Why I want to read this one: I have long wanted to read this book, and it has been sitting on my shelf for years now. I have loved everything I have read by Gaiman so far and this sounds like such a fun creepy read. My daughter tried to watch the movie once and got scared so didn't finish it. She wants me to hurry up and read the book so she can try the movie again, this time with me. 

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The New
Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by the marvelous Tressa at Wishful Endings to spotlight and discuss upcoming release we are excited about that we have yet to read.



The Paragon Hotel by Lyndsay Faye
Release Date: January 8, 2019 by G.P. Putnam Sons
The new and exciting historical thriller by Lyndsay Faye, author of Edgar-nominated Jane Steele and Gods of Gotham, which follows Alice “Nobody” from Prohibition-era Harlem to Portland’s the Paragon Hotel.

The year is 1921, and “Nobody” Alice James is on a cross-country train, carrying a bullet wound and fleeing for her life following an illicit drug and liquor deal gone horribly wrong. Desperate to get as far away as possible from New York City and those who want her dead, she has her sights set on Oregon: a distant frontier that seems the end of the line.

She befriends Max, a black Pullman porter who reminds her achingly of Harlem, who leads Alice to the Paragon Hotel upon arrival in Portland. Her unlikely sanctuary turns out to be the only all-black hotel in the city, and its lodgers seem unduly terrified of a white woman on the premises. But as she meets the churlish Dr. Pendleton, the stately Mavereen, and the unforgettable club chanteuse Blossom Fontaine, she begins to understand the reason for their dread. The Ku Klux Klan has arrived in Portland in fearful numbers–burning crosses, inciting violence, electing officials, and brutalizing blacks. And only Alice, along with her new “family” of Paragon residents, are willing to search for a missing mulatto child who has mysteriously vanished into the Oregon woods.

Why was “Nobody” Alice James forced to escape Harlem? Why do the Paragon’s denizens live in fear–and what other sins are they hiding? Where did the orphaned child who went missing from the hotel, Davy Lee, come from in the first place? And, perhaps most important, why does Blossom DuBois seem to be at the very center of this tangled web? [Goodreads Summary]
Why I want to read this: After reading and falling in love with Jane Steele, I will read anything Lyndsay Faye writes. It helps that this book sounds really good too! A bit of history mixed in a thriller? I must read this one!


A Literal Mess by J.C. Kenney
Release Date: January 8, 2019 by Lyrical Underground
The first book in a new series featuring Allie Cobb brings the New York literary agent back to her Hoosier home town where a mysterious death keeps everyone on spoiler alert...

Allie Cobb left home for the literary circles of Manhattan to make her name out from under the shadow of her legendary father. Now his death brings her and her rescue cat Ursula back to the southern Indiana town of Rushing Creek, population: 3,216. But a tragic new chapter hits the presses when the body of her father’s hard-drinking, #1 bestselling client is found under the historic town bridge. The local police suspect foul play and their prime candidate for murder is the author’s daughter—Allie’s longtime friend.

Determined to clear her bestie, Allie goes into fact-checking amateur detective mode while trying to ignore the usual rumormongers. Those with means, motive, and opportunity include the vic’s ex-wife, his rejected girlfriend, the mayor, and a rival agent trying to mooch clients. With a rugged genealogist distracting her and the imminent Fall Festival about to send tourists descending on their once-peaceful hamlet, Allie needs to stay alive long enough to get a read on a killer ready to close the book on a new victim: Allie . . . [Goodreads Summary]

Why I want to read this: It's hard to resist a cozy featuring anyone in a profession related to books. And I definitely can't resist a cat named Ursula.



Do any of these books appeal to you? Have you read them?


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34 comments:

  1. A Literal Mess has such a cute cover! And Paragon hotel does sound like an awesome read!

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    1. Greg - I love the cover of A Literal Mess too. :-) I am especially looking forward to reading Paragon Hotel. Thanks for visiting, Greg!

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  2. I also have an embarrassing number of backlist books. I'm currently trying to decide if I should join a challenge to try and tackle them. I really enjoyed Coraline, but think I might like the film a little bit more. Happy reading!

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    1. Alicia - If I was better at challenges, I would take part in a TBR challenge for sure. I have way too many unread books sitting on my shelves. I am glad to hear you enjoyed Caroline. I hope I can read it sooner than later so I can finally see that movie! Thank you for stopping by, Alicia.

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  3. A Literal Mess looks so good. That cover caught my attention right away. Hope you´ll enjoy all your picks and that your TBR pile will become smaller.
    My pick

    Best wishes
    Vi

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    1. Vi - Thank you! I hope all of these will be as good as they sound. Thanks for visiting!

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  4. Ooooh, Coraline is a great read! Kinda spooky, though - has more of a Halloween vibe than Christmas one to me.

    And Jane Steele was awesome! I'd try reading The Paragon Hotel just for that.

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    1. Eustacia - I am glad to hear you enjoyed Caroline. I hope I will too! I hope you do get a chance to read The Paragon Hotel and that we both enjoy it. :-) Thank you for stopping by!

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  5. Coraline is very creepy in parts! My kid refused to watch it again for years. I read the graphic novel version, it was pretty good. Especially the character of the cat.

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    1. Jeane - She likes some creepy stuff, but not a lot of it at this point. I am not sure she's ready to try Caroline again, but I might be. :-) Thank you for visiting!

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  6. I loved Coraline - both the book and the movie.

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    1. Kathy - I am glad to hear it. I hope I will too. :-) Thank you for stopping by.

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  7. Oh, you have some great choices here! I have that new Lindsay Faye, and I still need to read her last one. And I love Neil Gaiman too. I hope you enjoy!

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    1. Jennifer - Neil Gaiman is such a talented author, and I just love his imagination. I hope we both enjoy the new Lindsay Faye novel. I can't wait to read it. Thanks for visiting!

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  8. A Literal Mess has such a cute cover. I actually read Coraline for the first time in October. I had seen the film (which really creeped me out).

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    1. Barb - I like that cover too. :-) Thank you for stopping by!

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  9. I've long wanted to read Coraline, too. I don't know why I haven't; it's not that long of a book. And The Paragon Hotel is high on my To Read list for next year. :D

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    1. Lark - I am not sure why I haven't gotten aroudn to reading Caroline either, especially given its size. I hope we both love Paragon Hotel! Thank you for visiting.

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  10. I loved Coraline but have to agree that the movie could be scary to younger kids. I thought that the first time I watched it. I’ve probably seen it 4 or 5 times by now. The Paragon Hotel sounds so good. I’ll have to check that one out.

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    1. Darlene - I had heard Caroline was a bit creepy, so was surprised when my daughter decided to watch it (she had her dad's permission--I don't think he knew). I think she might fare better with it when she's older. Thank you for stopping by!

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  11. Oooh! I loved reading coraline!! Such a fun and creepy read! Great picks!

    Here’s my WoW!

    Ronyell @ Rabbit Ears Book Blog

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    1. Ronyell - I am looking forward to reading it. :-) Thanks for visiting!

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  12. I hope you do give Coraline a try. Such a great read!

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    1. Iliana - I plan to, just not sure when. :-) Thank you for stopping by!

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  13. I was really disappointed by the animated film of Coraline and not being a huge fan of Neil Gaiman I'm not convinced I'd enjoy the book. i agree with your daughter, the film was creepy ... at least those button eyes were but then i have a thing about eyes.

    I'm not sure that The Paragon Hotel interests me either but I do like the sound of A Literal Mess.

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    1. Tracy - I've enjoyed everything I've read by Neil Gaiman, so am hopeful I will like Caroline too. Thank you for visiting!

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  14. Happy reading Wendy. I read and watched Coraline, it's good but I can see it being a little creepy for the little ones.

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    1. Naida - Thank you! She was probably still a little too young for Coraline. One of these days maybe she'll be ready. And I will too! Thank you for visiting!

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  15. I also have had Coraline sitting around for ages. I am always thinking, maybe next year. 😛

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