Connie ROOTs for another year in 2024 - part 2

Hello all my co-ROOTers.

I'm known to most of you but here is a small introduction.

I'm Connie and I live in a small town in The Netherlands. I celebrated my 71th birthday on March 25.

I'm a retired secretary at a college and was looking forward to a nice retirement with my husband, Peter. Sadly enough he now lives in a care-centrum since he fell with his bike and damaged a nerve in his neck which was operated on. The surgery failed and his walking is rather bad and unstable. Taking care of him in our home was impossible and he moved to a place nearby. So for the first time in my live I life alone.
I have a son, Jeroen (41) who lives with his partner Rianne (36) and their daughter Lonne (6)
And a daughter, Eveline who (38) lives with her partner, Cyrille (40) and their daughters Fiene (7) and Marie (4).

I'm a very proud grandmother and have lots of children's books. All my girls love books and reading.

I have read books for as long as I can remember and bought a lot of books too. My favourite genres are Fantasy and Thrillers, but I love a god novel too.



Me and the girls

Fiene in the train for a night spend at grandma's with her sister.

It was carnaval so she is dressed up as one of the frozen girls.

Lonne in front of the trainstation in Maastricht

Marie dressed for the snow we had two months ago.

For my RL Book-club I will read books for the challenges we set for 2024
I will keep a list of them here.

Total
15.

Nobility
01. The Holly King - Mark Stay

Three times
01. Wonder Woman, Warbringer - Leigh Bardugo
02. Ren, Jack Ren - Ruth Ware

Inheritance
01. De gestolen erfgenaam - Holy Black

Isogram

01. Vermist - Simon Beckett
02. Water - John Boyne
03. De Camino - Anya Niewierra

Cats (for Marion, in loving memory)
01. De reis van de wijze kat - James Norbury

Classic titles

Ridiculous titles
De boom die een wereld was - Yorick Goldewijk

Coffee

Denial

Old ones

Oxymoron
01. Een eerlijke leugen - Tarryn Fisher

Publication time train

Queeste

Rainbow colors

Forbidden books

Far East
01. The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea - Axie Oh

Vehicle

World-trip
01. Belgie - De storm van de echo's - Christelle Dabos

Shop
01. The Lost Bookshop - Evie Woods
02. Under the Whispering Door - TJ Klune

No pictures
01. Trots en vooroordeel - Jane Austen

I will count a book or E-book as a ROOT if it has been on my shelves for more then 4 months.

01. Wonder Woman: Warbringer - Leigh Bardugo -
02. De storm van de echo's - Christelle Dabos -
03. Trots en vooroordeel - Jane Austen -
04. Het meisje dat de wereld veranderde - Machiel Hoek -
05. Vermoorde onschuld - Angela Marsons -
06. Hartenstrijd - Tracy Rees -
07. The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea - Axie Oh -
08. Under the Whispering Door - TJ Klune -
09. Het geheime boek van Flora Lea - Patti Callahan Henry -
10. The Holly King - Mark Stay -
11. The Book that Wouldn't Burn - Mark Lawrence -
12. De gestolen erfgenaam - Holly Black -

Books read in 2024

January, Februari, March

01. Vermist - Simon Beckett - Book - Forumchallenge # 1 -
02. Water - John Boyne - Book - Forumchallenge # 2 -
03. Wonder Woman: Warbringer - Leigh Bardugo - E-book - ROOT # 1 - Forumchallenge # 3 -
04. De reis van de wijze kat - James Norbury - Book - Forumchallenge # 4 -
05. De storm van de echo's - Christelle Dabos - Book - Forumchallenge # 5 - ROOT # 2 - BFB # 1 -
06. Trots en vooroordeel - Jane Austen - E-book - ROOT # 3 - Forumchallenge # 6 -
07. De vervlogen helft - Brit Bennett - Book -
08. The Lost Bookshop - Evie Woods - Book - Forumchallenge # 7 -
09. Een eerlijke leugen - Tarryn Fisher - Book - Forumchallenge # 8 -
10. Het meisje dat de wereld veranderde - Machiel Hoek - Book - ROOT # 4 -
11. Vermoorde onschuld - Angela Marsons - Book - ROOT # 5 -
12. Hartenstrijd - Tracy Rees - Book - ROOT # 6 -
13. The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea - Axie Oh - E-book - ROOT # 7 - Forumchallenge # 9 - Foreign Fantasy # 1 -
14. Under the Whispering Door - TJ Klune - E-book - ROOT # 8 - Forumchallenge # 10 - Foreign Fantasy # 2 -
15. Stromend graf - Robert Galbraith - Book - BFB # 2 -
16. Damsel - Evelyn Skye - E-book - OB # 1 -
17. Het geheime boek van Flora Lea - Patti Callahan Henry - Book - ROOT # 9 -
18. The Holly King - Mark Stay - Book - ROOT # 10 - Forumchallenge # 11 -
19. The Harp of Kings - Juliet Marillier - E-book - Foreign Fantasy # 3 -

Books read in 2024

April, May, June

20. The Book that Wouldn't Burn - Mark Lawrence - Book - ROOT # 11 - Foreign Fantasy # 4 - BFB # 3 -
21. De boom die een wereld was - Yorick Goldewijk - Book - Forumchallenge # 12 -
22. Tower of Thorns - Juliet Marillier - E-book -
23. Den of Wolves - Juliet Marillier - E-book -
24. De gestolen erfgenaam - Holly Black - Book - Forumchallenge # 13 -
25. A Dance with Fate - Juliet Marillier - E-book - Foreign Fantasy # 5 -
26. Ren, Jack ren - Ruth Ware - Book - Forumchallenge # 14 -
27. De Camino - Anya Niewierra - Book - Forumchallenge # 15 -

Books read in 2024

July, August, September

Books read in 2024

October, November, December

Books bought in 2024

01. De reis van de wijze kat - James Norbury
02. Duizend & ik - Yorick Goldewijk
03. Gun iedere kabouter zijn eigen muts - Aaf Brandt Corstius
04. Een eerlijke leugen - Tarryn Fisher
05. The Lost Bookshop - Evie Woods
06. De boom die een wereld was - Yorick Goldewijk
07. Normale mensen - Sally Rooney
08. Schermtijd - Linda van Rijn
09. Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries - Heather Fawcett BB by Curioussquared
10. Anna O - Matthew Blake
11. De Camino - Anya Niewierra
12. Het boek der deuren - Gareth Brown
13. Emily Wilde's Maps of the Otherlands - Heather Fawcett
14. Ren, Jack, ren - Ruth Ware
15. Starling House - Alix E. Harrow
16. The book that wouldn't burn - Mark Lawrence
17. De hulp - Freida McFadden
18. De stille Patiënt - Alex Michaelides
19. Gezinsverpakking - De Chabotten
20. In steen gebrand - Rebecca Yarros
21. Een ijzeren vlam - Rebecca Yarros
22. Moeder Doorn en andere verhalen over moed en vriendelijkheid - Juliet Marillier
23. The Book That Broke the World - Mark Lawrence

Cursief is read.

BFB's in 2024

De storm van de echo's - Christelle Dabos - 572 pages
Stromend graf - Robert Galbraith - 1117 pages
The Book that Wouldn't Burn - Mark Lawrence - 559 pages

BookBullets

01. Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries - Heather Fawcett BB by Curioussquared (Bought)
02. Het onsterfelijke leven van Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot BB by LisaMorr

I'm glad you followed me to my second thread for 2024. Welcome.

Now starting in De gestolen erfgenaam by Holly Black - ROOT # 12 - Forumchallenge # 13

The blurb NOT my review

Eight years have passed since the Battle of the Serpent. But in the icy north, Lady Nore of the Court of Teeth has reclaimed the Ice Needle Citadel. There, she is using an ancient relic to create monsters of stick and snow who will do her bidding and exact her revenge.

Suren, child queen of the Court of Teeth, and the one person with power over her mother, fled to the human world. There, she lives feral in the woods. Lonely, and still haunted by the merciless torments she endured in the Court of Teeth, she bides her time by releasing mortals from foolish bargains. She believes herself forgotten until the storm hag, Bogdana chases her through the night streets. Suren is saved by none other than Prince Oak, heir to Elfhame, to whom she was once promised in marriage and who she has resented for years.

Now seventeen, Oak is charming, beautiful, and manipulative. He's on a mission that will lead him into the north, and he wants Suren's help. But if she agrees, it will mean guarding her heart against the boy she once knew and a prince she cannot trust, as well as confronting all the horrors she thought she left behind.

Started and finished De boom die een wereld was by Yorick Goldewijk

Original Dutch, translation: The tree who was a world - Forumchallenge # 12 -

My review

Nice story about a tree inhabited by all kinds of animals and insects, with even a small lake at its foot with two pikes.
The residents are all jealous of what the others have and can do and they cannot. But that changes when one of them decides that they are actually all extraordinary and it's time for a celebration.

Happy new thread, Connie! That first picture of you with the girls is adorable. How grown up they are getting!

>18 Jackie_K: And this was taken more then a year ago. Thanks, Jackie.

Love all the pictures! Beautiful!

I think I will steal your BB tracking; I take way more BBs though, lol, and don't get around to reading enough of them. Maybe in retirement!

Hello to you and the girls! Love the photos -- you are all very fashionable :) I love Fiene's Frozen dress, Lonne's rabbit handbag, and Marie's wool hat!

>21 rabbitprincess: Thanks, RP. I think they are pretty awesome too.

Happy new thread, Connie! Love the photos :)

Happy new thread, Connie! I also enjoyed all the pictures of the family.

Thanks, Natalie and Irene.

Happy new thread, Connie! The girls are looking so happy!

Thanks, Birgit. They are always happy and cheerful, except when they are quarreling (Fiene and Marie) about who gets what. Lonne is happy most of the time.

Finished Tower of Thorns by Juliet Marillier -

The blurb NOT my review

Disillusioned healer Blackthorn and her companion, Grim, have settled in Dalriada to wait out the seven years of Blackthorn's bond to her fey mentor, hoping to avoid any dire challenges. But trouble has a way of seeking out Blackthorn and Grim. Lady Geiléis, a noblewoman from the northern border, has asked for the prince of Dalriada's help in expelling a howling creature from an old tower on her land, one surrounded by an impenetrable hedge of thorns. Casting a blight over the entire district, and impossible to drive out by ordinary means, it threatens both the safety and the sanity of all who live nearby. With no ready solutions to offer, the prince consults Blackthorn and Grim. As Blackthorn and Grim begin to put the pieces of this puzzle together, it's apparent that a powerful adversary is working behind the scenes. Their quest is about to become a life and death struggle--a conflict in which even the closest of friends can find themselves on opposite sides.

My review

Wonderful book by Juliet Marillier. Enjoyed reading this story in the Hawthorn and Grim series. When Hawthorn and Grim go to the court of Prince Oran to assist his wife Flidais with her pregnancy, they meet Geiléis, the lady of Bann, who comes to ask for help in a panic. Her estate is being ravaged by the screams of someone in the tower of her domain. The entire environment must hear the noise every day from sunrise to sunset, affecting everything from agriculture to mental health. Hawthorn travels back with her and tries to investigate what happened in the years before, but it turns out that this has happened several times in the last two centuries. Meanwhile, Grim must deal with his own demons from the past. Well written, exciting and just wonderful to read.

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On with Den of Wolves by Juliet Marillier

The blurb NOT my review

Healer Blackthorn knows all too well the rules of her bond to the fey: seek no vengeance, help any who ask, do only good. But after the recent ordeal she and her companion, Grim, have suffered, she knows she cannot let go of her quest to bring justice to the man who ruined her life. Despite her personal struggles, Blackthorn agrees to help the princess of Dalriada in taking care of a troubled young girl who has recently been brought to court, while Grim is sent to the girl's home at Wolf Glen to aid her wealthy father with a strange task--repairing a broken-down house deep in the woods. It doesn't take Grim long to realize that everything in Wolf Glen is not as it seems--the place is full of perilous secrets and deadly lies...
Back at Winterfalls, the evil touch of Blackthorn's sworn enemy reopens old wounds and fuels her long-simmering passion for justice. With danger on two fronts, Blackthorn and Grim are faced with a heartbreaking choice, to stand once again by each other's side or to fight their battles alone.

Hi Connie! I need to try some Juliet Marillier at some point.

Hi Natalie, please do. They are wonderful stories and al intertwined. The series can be read on their own, but some people are sidekicks in other books. The world is situated in a country that is called Erin and all het stories have that Irish feel, complete with Fey and Wee people.
If you like fairytales, you will appreciate them.

Ohhhh I'm late to the new thread and the glorious new photos, absolutely lovely!

>30 connie53: I need to check out Juliet Marillier too!

>31 detailmuse: Thanks, MJ.

>32 LisaMorr: Please do, Lisa.

Finished Den of Wolves by Juliet Marillier and the book gets

My review

Last part of the Blackthorn & Grim series and a great ending it is. It's a shame there aren't more books about these two great characters. There are two storylines. One that runs through all three books and tells of Blackthorn and Grim's battle against Lord Mathuin, a power-hungry nobleman who commits the most cruel crimes against his subjects. And another storyline that tells the story of the young girl Cara, her father Tóla and Bardán, a man who spent fifteen years with the Fey and returns to the village of Winterfalls a broken man.
Tóla is a rich man who wants Bardán to make a second attempt at building a heartwood house. That house will guarantee prosperity and happiness. Tóla asks Grim to build the house because Bardán is unable to do so with his broken and deformed hands.
Cara has a talent for communicating with birds and trees, which suggests she has some Fey blood. Blackthorn doubts whether Tóla is Cara's real father and investigates and discovers a big secret. Different people from the villages know parts of the history and Grim and Blackthorn have to put these pieces together.

Finally finished De gestolen erfgenaam by Holly Black - ROOT # 12 - Forumchallenge # 13 -

My review

I am not very impressed with this book, especially after the first 3 parts, which I enjoyed reading much more. The story revolves around Suren and Eik again. It mainly takes place in the Fey world. I thought the Young Adult content was very high. And I found it not very coherent and sometimes impossible to follow.

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Started in A Dance with Fate by Juliet Marillier

The blurb NOT my review

A young woman who is a bard-and a warrior-seeks to repay her debts and settle scores in this thrilling historical fantasy series. The young warrior and bard Liobhan has lost her brother to the Otherworld. Even more determined to gain a place as an elite fighter, she returns to Swan Island to continue her training. But Liobhan is devastated when her comrade Dau is injured and loses his sight in their final display bout. Blamed by Dau's family for the accident, she agrees to go to Dau's home as a bond servant for the span of one year. But Oakhill, she soon learns, is a place of dark secrets. The vicious Crow Folk still threaten both worlds. And Dau, battling the demon of despair, is not an easy man to help. When Liobhan and Dau start to expose the rot at the center of Oakhill, they place themselves in deadly danger. For their enemy wields great power and will stop at nothing to get his way. It will take all the skills of a Swan Island warrior and a touch of the uncanny to give them a hope of survival. . .

Started a new Tree-book for my RL-Forumchallenge

Ren, Jack, ren by Ruth Ware

The blurb NOT my review

Hired by companies to break into buildings and hack security systems, Jack and her husband, Gabe, are the best penetration specialists in the business. But after a routine assignment goes horribly wrong, Jack arrives home to find her husband dead. To add to her horror, the police are closing in on their suspect...her.
Suddenly on the run and quickly running out of options, Jack must decide who she can trust as she circles closer to the real killer

Finished A Dance with Fate by Juliet Marillier - Foreign Fantasy # 5 -

My review

What a great book this was. I actually read the last 40 pages in tears. Occasionally wiping my eyes because I could no longer read one
syllable. Such a shame that there are no more unread books left for me to read by Juliet Marillier.
I would very much like to have stayed in that world.
Liobhan, Dau and Brocc must do everything they can to survive and solve some misunderstandings and riddles. When Dau accidentally lands on his head during a practice fight with Liobhan, he becomes blind and can no longer stay on Swan Island. Liobhan is accused of causing grievous bodily harm. She is sentenced to serve Dau's family for a year.
They leave for the family estate, but there is Seanan, Dau's eldest brother, who abused him in his youth and blamed him in all kinds of ways for the things that went wrong then. Dau is rebellious and in a lot of pain. Liobhan acts as his nurse and babysitter. Meanwhile, Brocc has his hands full protecting the Fey people of his wife, Queen Eirne, whose realm is ravaged by the attacks of the Crow Folk.
Really well written and exciting down to the last letter.
It's all about loyalty and trust and perseverance.

I found one last book by Juliet Marillier I overlooked. So I will start that one after I finished the books I'm now reading.

>38 connie53: I've enjoyed the few books of hers I've read. I need to get back to her.

Finished Ren, Jack Ren by Ruth Ware - Forumchallenge # 14 -

My review

Ruth Ware's books are usually exciting and good. And this book is no exception.
Jack and Gabe are a married couple and a team. They investigate the security of companies and produce reports on this for the management of the company in question and make recommendations for improvements. Jack is the one who does the outside work and Gabe guides her through her earphones as he digs into the internet side of the business and guides Jack through her work. One evening she is stopped by company security and is interrogated for a while at the police station. When those problems are solved, she goes home relieved, only to find Gabe murdered. Then her nightmare begins, because she is suddenly the main suspect for his murder. She decides to escape from the police station and find out for herself who could have killed Gabe. A few tense days follow where she only has two people who can help her and whom she trusts, her sister Helena and Gabe's best friend, Cole.
To survive, Jack must break in, hack things, stay out of the hands of the police and piece together all the clues she can find along the way.
I thought it was an exciting book, but not very believable. There are a lot of things a woman can handle, but Jack has to be able to handle a lot while also getting hurt. It was a bit much. And the number of repetitions of the same thoughts about Gabe, who can no longer help her. That could have been a little less. Those are two negative points that do not make it a 4 ****.

>38 connie53:
Have you read the Sevenwaters Trilogy by Marillier? I have a couple of those books on my shelves but just have not read them yet.

>41 benitastrnad: Yes I did. Good reads, all of them. But totally different from her latest books. The earlier ones are more dreamlike and based on fairytales. These newer ones are more developed in character building. There is one book I gave 3 stars, the remaining are all 4 stars or more.

Started and finished De Camino by Anya Niewierra - Forumchallenge # 15 -

Original Dutch book

The blurb NOT my review

The 44-year-old chocolatier Lotte Bonnet has lived happily in South Limburg (The Netherland) for years with her husband Emil, a former refugee from Bosnia. But then Emil unexpectedly commits suicide while walking the Camino, leaving Lotte devastated.
When she travels to Bosnia eleven months later to scatter his ashes, Lotte discovers that Emil has lied about his identity. She hires a lawyer from Sarajevo to investigate his past, and he makes a shocking discovery. In the meantime, Lotte will walk the Camino herself, exactly according to Emil's route and planning. She wants to find out what drove him to his act of desperation. But someone is following her, someone who doesn't want her to discover the truth.

My review

I finished this book yesterday and thought for a long time about what I felt about it. I mainly felt uneasy about it. Many people who all took different names, people who did bad things, but turned it around.
The story takes place along the Camino, part of the walking tour to Santiago de Compostella. Lotte walks this route in memory of her husband Emil, who committed suicide on the route exactly one year before she walked it. The reason for this suicide lies in the distant past during the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, where 3 childhood friends from a small village eventually grow apart and end up on different sides of the conflict. Very disturbing to read what fanaticism does to people. That can make for a moving story, but sometimes I couldn't make sense of it. A bit of a missed opportunity. Ultimately I decided to give 3 stars (a 6).

Starting in 10 minuten 38 seconden in deze vreemde wereld by Elif Shafak

The blurb NOT my review

In the pulsating moments after she has been murdered and left in a dumpster outside Istanbul, Tequila Leila enters a state of heightened awareness. Her heart has stopped beating but her brain is still active-for 10 minutes 38 seconds. While the Turkish sun rises and her friends sleep soundly nearby, she remembers her life-and the lives of others, outcasts like her.
Tequila Leila's memories bring us back to her childhood in the provinces, a highly oppressive milieu with religion and traditions, shaped by a polygamous family with two mothers and an increasingly authoritarian father. Escaping to Istanbul, Leila makes her way into the sordid industry of sex trafficking, finding a home in the city's historic Street of Brothels. This is a dark, violent world, but Leila is tough and open to beauty, light, and the essential bonds of friendship.
In Tequila Leila's death, the secrets and wonders of modern Istanbul come to life, painted vividly by the captivating tales of how Leila came to know and be loved by her friends. As her epic journey to the afterlife comes to an end, it is her chosen family who brings her story to a buoyant and breathtaking conclusion.

>44 connie53: I remember reading Severance, a collection of dozens of flash fictions that imagine the last thoughts of various real people and fictional characters, based on the premise that consciousness remains for 90 seconds after decapitation. It was interesting!

>44 connie53: I love Shafak's books. I haven't read this one yet. I'm looking forward to your opinion.