Connie ROOTs in 2017

Of course I am in again for 2017. I will keep my goal small. 36 books this year. 3 ROOTs a month leaves room for those new and shiny ones.
I'm Connie, married to Peter (Peet). We have one son, Jeroen. He lives with Rianne in the same town we live in. Roermond, The Netherlands. And we have a daughter, Eveline, She lives with her boyfriend Cyrille in Maastricht, The Netherlands. They have a baby-daughter

The topper is the first picture taken on June 11 2016 when our first granddaughter was born. Such a tiny little girl she was. Her name is Fiene and we are very proud grandparents.

This is what she looks like now



And she loves to read: It's not a very clear picture. But she is reading a Christmas book with her mom, my daughter Eveline

ROOTs are all paper books that have been on the shelves for 6 months or more.




01. Erika Johansen - De kroon van de Tearling - bought 2016/05/10 - 444 pages -
02. Martijn Lindeboom en Remco Nieboer - De legende van de zwarte wolven - bought 2005/12/17 - 73 pages -
03. Erika Johansen - De invasie van de Tearling - bought 2016/7/13 - 506 pages -
04. Patricia Briggs - Ziel van ijzer - bought 2016/08/02 - 329 pages -
05. Dorothy Hearst - Geheimen van de wolven - bought 2012/03/31 - 366 pages -
06. Stepenie Meyer - het korte tweede leven van bree tanner - bought 2012/03/05 - 185 pages -
07. Benny Lindelauf - Hoe Tortot zijn vissenhart verloor - bought 2016/04/05 - 234 pages -
08. Tom Michell - De pinguïnlessen - bought 2016/03/15 - 279 pages -
09. Anita Amirrezvani - Dochter van Isfahan - bought 2010/09/01 - 325 pages -
10. David Mitchell - DroomNummerNegen - bought 2016/06/17 - 424 pages -
11. Simone van der Vlugt - Nachtblauw - bought 2016/03/15 - 309 pages -
12. Henriette Power - De erfenis - bought 2014/06/03 - 356 pages -
13. Brandon Sanderson - De wet van staal - bought 2014/11/29 - 316 pages -
14. Kate Elliott - Koud vuur - bought 2012/10/28 - 542 pages - Chunkster - *

* Currently reading

This will show the total of books read in 2017 (ROOTs and new books and ebooks)




01. Lemony Snicket - De slangenserre - 85 pages - ebook -
02. Anne Bishop - Grijze ogen - 490 pages - book -
03. Erika Johansen - De kroon van de Tearling - 444 pages - book -
04. Martijn Lindeboom en Remco Nieboer - De legende van de zwarte wolven - 73 pages - book -
05. Erika Johansen - De invasie van de Tearling - 506 pages - book -
06. Patricia Briggs - Ziel van ijzer - 329 pages - book -
07. Dorothy Hearst - Geheimen van de wolven - 367 pages - book -
08. Stephenie Meyer - het korte tweede leven van bree tanner - 185 pages - book -
09. Brandon Sanderson - Staalhart - 412 pages - book -
10. Brandon Sanderson - Mitosis - 39 pages - ebook -
11. Robert Haasnoot - De heugling - 163 pages - ebook -
12. Brandon Sanderson - Vlammenwerper - 412 pages - book -
13. Brandon Sanderson - Calamity - 412 pages - book -
14. Benny Lindelauf - Hoe Tortot zijn vissenhart verloor - 234 pages - book -
15. Tom Michell - De pinguïnlessen - 279 pages - book -
16. Anita Amirrezvani - Dochter van Isfahan - 325 pages - book -
17. David Mitchell - DroomNummerNegen - 424 pages - book -
18. M.J. Arlidge - Iene Miene Mutte - 372 pages - book -
19. M.J. Arlidge - Piep zei de muis - 382 pages - book -
20. Jane Harper - De droogte - 334 pages - book -
21. Simone van der Vlugt - Nachtblauw - 309 pages - book -
22. Henriette Power - De erfenis - 356 pages - book -
23. Branson Sanderson - De wet van staal - 316 pages - book -
24. Kate Elliott - Koud vuur - 542 pages - book - *

* Currently reading

I want to read 10 Chunksters too. (ROOTs or new and shiny). Chunksters are big books with more than 500 pages.




01. Erika Johansen - De invasie van de Tearling - 506 pages - book -
02. Kate Elliott - Koud vuur - 542 pages - book - *

* Currently reading

Here I will keep track of the books bought in 2017. I do not need to reach my goal, but I will certainly try not to surpass my goal of 40 bought books.




01. Brandon Sanderson - Staalhart
02. Brandon Sanderson - Vlammenwerper
03. Brandon Sanderson - Calamity
04. Justin Cronin - De stad van spiegels
05. Stella Gemmell - De onsterfelijke troon
06. M.J. Arlidge - Iene miene mutte
07. M.J. Arlidge - Piep zei de muis
08. M.J. Arlidge - Pluk een roos
09. Stephenie Meyer - De chemicus
10. Ilona Andrews - Op de grens
11. Nicci French - Zondagochtend breekt aan
12. Jane Harper - De droogte
13. Anthony Ryan - Het vuur van de draak

Extra non fiction book Margriet Sitskoorn - ik2 de beste versie van jezelf
Week of books: gift in the shop Herman Koch - Makkelijk leven

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I decided to make a list of the BB's that are no doubt going to hit me here.




BookBullets in 2017

01.

Welcome to all visitors!

Welcome back - good to see you and good luck rooting this year 😊

Thanks Henrik!

Welcome back! Those pictures of Fiene are so lovely!

Welcome back! Good to see you and love the pics. Happy ROOTing this year!

Welcome back and have a great reading year! Enjoy reading with your granddaughter as well! :)

Always nice to see you, Connie. I hope you read lots of great ROOTs this year!

Hi Connie! So glad you've set up your 2017 thread and I'll be able to follow along this year. I hope you and Peet are well. Fiene is precious.

Happy ROOTing!

Hi Connie. Beautiful pictures. Welcome back and keep ROOTing!

Thanks guys! I feel good about another year of ROOTing. And I hope to keep up with all the ROOTs you are going to read.

Hi Connie, it's lovely to see you here again. All the best wishes for 2017 and lots of reading time with Fiene!

Thanks Birgit! I'm happy to be back too.

Good luck! I'm not sure I could stay under 40 books purchased for the year. Our local secondhand book fair is lethal for that sort of thing!

Hello welcome back & Happy 2017 ROOTing!
Love the pics - and it's amazing how quickly Fiene is growing!

I'm very happy to see you back, Connie. I keep my fingers crossed that everything goes well with Peet's therapy.

I wish you from my heart health, happiness, satisfaction and much exciting read in 2017. May all your wishes come true.


from my hometown Zürich, Switzerland

Connie, welcome back!

What a beauty your granddaughter is - she will break hearts when she grows up! Having grandchildren brings a new kind of love into your life - enjoy every moment.

I agree, your granddaughter is beautiful, Connie. Welcome back.

Thanks guys and girls!

I'm busy with all the new threads and making an excel sheet of all your goals. I'm a bit crazy about lists.

>1 connie53: love these pics! Looking forward to following along with your reading and family :)

>23 connie53: wow that is ambitious!
I also love lists though... ;)

>23 connie53: >25 avanders: and done !! The lists are up to date!

An update on the reading. I just finished one book and that one was no ROOT but a book for the challenge on my RL bookclub: Find out what your Chinese sign is and read a book about it (Title or subject or anything else you can come up with.) My sign is snake so I read De slangenserre by Lemony Snicket
Slang = Snake



From LT
The Reptile Room begins where Lemony Snicket's The Bad Beginning ends... on the road with the three orphaned Baudelaire children as they are whisked away from the evil Count Olaf to face "an unknown fate with some unknown relative." But who is this Dr. Montgomery, their late father's cousin's wife's brother? "Would Dr. Montgomery be a kind person? they wondered. Would he at least be better than Count Olaf? Could he possibly be worse?" He certainly is not worse, and in fact when the Baudelaire children discover that he makes coconut cream cakes, circles the globe looking for snakes to study, and even plans to take them with him on his scientific expedition to Peru, the kids can't believe their luck. And, if you have read the first book in this Series of Unfortunate Events, you won't believe their luck either.

Now I'm reading Grijze ogen by Anne Bishop and that's not a ROOT too.
This is the translation of Marked in Flesh
Grijze ogen = Grey eyes. (so nothing to do with the English title which would translate into Gemerkt in Vlees/Huid)



From LT
Fourth in the series from the author of The Others

For centuries, the Others and humans have lived side by side in uneasy peace. But when humankind oversteps its bounds, the Others will have to decide how much humanity they’re willing to tolerate—both within themselves and within their community...

Since the Others allied themselves with the cassandra sangue, the fragile yet powerful human blood prophets who were being exploited by their own kind, the delicate dynamic between humans and Others changed. Some, like Simon Wolfgard, wolf shifter and leader of the Lakeside Courtyard, and blood prophet Meg Corbyn, see the new, closer companionship as beneficial—both personally and practically.

But not everyone is convinced. A group of radical humans is seeking to usurp land through a series of violent attacks on the Others. What they don’t realize is that there are older and more dangerous forces than shifters and vampires protecting the land that belongs to the Others—and those forces are willing to do whatever is necessary to protect what is theirs...

An interesting challenge from your book club!

Good luck rooting and great pictures, Connie!

>27 connie53: Lemony Snicket books are so much fun, and it's clever to read The Reptile Room for your snake sign. Of course we're the same sign..... same year..... maybe that's why I've enjoyed becoming your friend so much over the last year.

>30 karenmarie: Same here! I really enjoy all your posts, They are filled with fun and spirit!

It's time we become real LT friends ;-)))

Good to see you back, Connie. Happy ROOTing.

Yesterday my daughter had her 31st birthday. We planned to go there and join the festivities. Such a pity weather got very bad and there was a warning not to go out. It was cold and freezing, with snow and icy rain. The Netherlands is a small country and there were relatively a lot of car accidents on the highways. And when our son decided it was to dangerous to go out and drive to Maastricht, we decided the same. He is a better and younger driver.
We hope to go today because now everything is melting away.

It's good that you stayed home, Connie. We had lots of car accidents during the last two days due ti ice and snow. I've decided to go by public transportation for the upcoming week. It's much safer.

>33 connie53: Better safe than sorry!

>33 connie53: It's sad you had to miss the festivities, but an accident would have been so much worse. We've had similar weather here and hundreds of car crashes. Mostly without people getting hurt, but still scary.

>36 MissWatson: We can't buy another car if anything happened, so I think we did right by not going. We went this morning around lunchtime so we did give the presents and played with Fiene for a while.

Great that you got to see them (even if a little later), and I'm sure everyone is better pleased that you stayed safe!

Happy New Year! I love your photos and I'm glad you finally got to your daughter's house.

Weather has had quite a few of us housebound. We've been in since Friday evening, with no hopes of getting out 'til Tuesday at the absolutely soonest!

Very few things would be worth the risk of an accident.

>27 connie53: what a fun challenge! :)
Glad to see you're still enjoying the series.. I still have to read book 1! But I lent it to my mom recently, so I'll have to wait until she gets to it first ;)

>33 connie53: oh my, that's crazy weather! We had one day of bad weather so far this winter. ... I must confess, I loved it. But it was very dangerous driving that day!!!
Sounds like you made the right decision to stay home!

>37 connie53: and just as nice to go for lunch and presents the next day :)

>40 karenmarie: wow... I don't remember ever being housebound that long, even when I lived in Wisconsin and we got "real winters"!

First of all, what a beautiful family you all make. Fiene (how pronounced?) looks ultra-cuddleable and no doubt will prove to be a bookworm and a fire-cracker. An excellent combinish!

Love your thread because of the trouble you take to translate Dutch into English. Maybe I'll learn something!

>41 avanders: It is a fun challenge, but very hard to find books to fit in. Like a goat, and we had one member that is a goat and refused to read a book with a goat in it. She just can't make herself read such a book. A bit silly I think.
We have one motto "A challenge would not be a challenge if it wasn't a challenge" ;-))

And we did have a nice time visiting Eveline for her birthday. We had them all to our selves.

>42 Limelite: Hello Limelite. Glad to see you visiting my thread.

Fiene is pronounced like F from Few. ie like iiiiiiiiii. ne like nuh. It's short for Josephine. My daughter chose that name when she was about 15 years old. So it was purely coincidental that Cyrille's grandmom is named Josephine.

Thanks for the explication.

In my head, I heard fee-n'-ee. But then, as a kid, I thought "Phoebe" was pronounced Foe'-eeb. Took me a while to make the connection with Phoebe spoken and Phoebe in my mind!

The perennial problem of young readers who read beyond their years.

>44 Limelite: It's sometimes really strange how we pronounce a name in our head while reading. I've noticed that before when me and my brother discussed the books we read. His pronunciation was very different from mine. Especially so because we read more fantasy then. Names in Fantasy are sometimes really strange and unfamiliar.

And about translating Dutch into English. I like to do that because a title can be translated into something else completely. But I think when English speaking people see a Dutch title next to the English one, they might see a similarity in the language.

I'm always a bit insecure about my English, especially the grammar side of the language. Google translate helps a lot and spelling control too.

Weather is acting strange in a lot of places lately, Connie. Where I live close to Vancouver, BC we hardly ever see snow. We have had snow on the ground since the beginning of December and it hasn't disappeared although the government thought it would and didn't do enough plowing for several snow storms. I just hope it all goes away soon but it is really cold today although the sun is shining. Too odd.

A wise decision to stay home for your daughter's birthday and visit the next day. Sounds like everything worked out just fine.

>46 Familyhistorian: Hi Meg. You are so right. Weather is acting strange lately. today we had some snow again, but it did disappear real soon. In other places of Holland it's really bad again today. With storms and lots of snow and the accidents that you see when people don't adapt their speed to slippery roads.

Sooooo... I made some more tickers, one for BB's and one for chunksters (books with more than 500 pages). They are up in the first posts. And I decided I will not join the 75ers this year. It's too much to keep up with and I feel so at home in this group. It's relatively small and I feel lots of love and real interest here.

It feels good to have made that decision.

>47 connie53: Yes, I agree. This is the group I feel most 'at home' in here too. I enjoy the Category Challenge (which is the only other group I am in) and there are some lovely people but it is so big that I can only really keep up with a handful of threads (and it's much smaller than the 75ers group, that really is too fast and stressy for me!). I nearly didn't rejoin the Category Challenge this year, but then the CAT challenges for this year looked so interesting (and I had SO MANY books that fit them) that I was sucked in again! I'm just accepting though that I can only visit a few people's threads, and will concentrate mainly on the CAT threads and this group.

>43 connie53: I think it would be fun to find a book w/ a goat in it! I agree w/ you that she's a bit silly for refusing to read it ;P
And you're right -- it's a challenge bc it's challenging!

>44 Limelite: so true! There were plenty of words that I later learned I had been mispronouncing bc I read them first...
One of my favorites, though, is my sister, who read "debris" as DEB-ris .. but also knew the word she heard pronounced deb-REE.. She didn't make the connection until much later in life ;)

>45 connie53: oh yes, names in fantasy or in a different language always give me trouble too! Hermione is a classic example.. one that Rowling had to address for the millions of people like me who were pronouncing it HER-mee-own ;)

>47 connie53: hee hee, more tickers ;)
One for BBs! Nice! I'm scared to actually track that one.... :-o

>47 connie53: and >48 Jackie_K: nice that it feels like home here! I agree .. I never really branched out ;)
I suppose I'm technically a "part" of a couple other groups, but I've never been active in them...

>43 connie53: >49 avanders: Last year I read a book called The Trouble with Goats and Sheep which I really enjoyed (and which didn't really feature a goat at all).

>44 Limelite: >49 avanders: The one that always comes to mind for me is "misled". I knew the word when I heard it, but for years I read it as "MY-zl'd"!

Dear 45-50

So comforting and also funny to learn that I am not the sole embarrassed reader. I'm sure there are dozens of troublesome English (and other) words that were my multi-Waterloos. Practically all of the Greek gods. It wasn't until my first trip to Greece as a mature woman (ahem!) that I discovered that Greeks don't say Die-oh-NEE-sis, like always had, when referring to the jolly tippler in their pantheon. Nothing like! Greeks pronounce the name (as closely as I can render it) DJOHN-ee-sis. I kept my mouth mostly shut in Greece!

>45 connie53: Your English is as close to perfection as most American English speakers is. We're shameless when it comes to playing with our tongue and manipulating it. I think because English is, itself, shameless in stealing all kinds of words from other languages and pretending they've always been "English." Including Dutch words! Cookie, cole slaw, boss, and waffle, for ex..

>50 Jackie_K: One of my university professors used to think it was MY-zulld too! :D

Speaking of mispronunciations, my friend nearly died laughing when I pronounced "assuage" as "a sewage" rather than "uh-SWAYJ".

>50 Jackie_K:
>52 rabbitprincess:

My latest faux-pas (without thinking) was saying day ha voo instead of day Juh voo! (deja vou). I guess I thought I was speaking Spanish or something. Anyway, I said it in front of a class of 16 year olds and I am pleasantly surprised that they caught it and surely they called me on it!

>51 Limelite: Thanks, Limelite, for the compliment.

About pronunciation: I think it's also a thing that belongs to a region or country. Like the example Limelite gives in >51 Limelite: about how the Greek pronounce the name of gods.

And another strange thing (to me) i noticed, while writing this post is: pronounce and pronunciation. Where did the o go?

Sometimes we English speaking natives feel a little bit French and don't care what we way as long as it sounds good when we say it.

Pro-NOUN-cee-ay-shun sounds funny and a bit pretentious to American speakers' of English ears. So out with the "o."

I finished my second book in 2017 today Grijze ogen by Anne Bishop

This is the 4th book in series about 'The Others' and it read just as good as the first 3 books did. The last 75 pages were a bit complicated to read. There were so much things happening at the same time. I really had to give all my attention to the reading. Not very easy with Peet watching speed skating on TV.

And now I have started my first ROOT for this year. Book bought 2016-5-10
De kroon van de Tearling by Erika Johansen
The translation of The Queen of the Tearling
De kroon = The Crown
The Queen = De koningin



From LT

On her nineteenth birthday, Princess Kelsea Raleigh Glynn, raised in exile, sets out on a perilous journey back to the castle of her birth to ascend her rightful throne. Plain and serious, a girl who loves books and learning, Kelsea bears little resemblance to her mother, the vain and frivolous Queen Elyssa. But though she may be inexperienced and sheltered, Kelsea is not defenseless: Around her neck hangs the Tearling sapphire, a jewel of immense magical power; and accompanying her is the Queen's Guard, a cadre of brave knights led by the enigmatic and dedicated Lazarus. Kelsea will need them all to survive a cabal of enemies who will use every weapon--from crimson-caped assassins to the darkest blood magic--to prevent her from wearing the crown.

What can go wrong with a book about a girl that loves books!

Hi Connie! Delurking for a quick hello and hope you are doing well. I hope that Peet is coming along nicely with his therapy.

>57 karenmarie: Tomorrow is his first real full afternoon: Outdoor sporting and sessions with a therapist.

I bought some books today. I didn't mean to but it just happened.



Staalhart by Brandon Sanderson

The translation of Steelheart part 1 in the series called The Reckoners

Ten years ago, Calamity came. It was a burst in the sky that gave ordinary people extraordinary powers. The awed public started calling them Epics. Epics are no friends of man. An astonishingly powerful Epic named Steelheart has installed himself as emperor. When Steelheart came to Chicago, he killed David's father. David has been studying, and planning, and he has something they need. Not an object, but an experience. He has seen Steelheart bleed. And he wants revenge.



Vlammenwerper by Brandon Sanderson

The translation of Firefight part 2 in the series called The Reckoners

They told David it was impossible - that even the Reckoners had never killed a High Epic. Yet, Steelheart - invincible, immortal, unconquerable - is dead. And he died by David's hand.
Eliminating Steelheart was supposed to make life more simple. Instead, it only made David realize he has questions. Big ones. And there's no one in Newcago who can give him the answers he needs.
Babylon Restored, the old borough of Manhattan, has possibilities, though. Ruled by the mysterious High Epic, Regalia, David is sure Babylon Restored will lead him to what he needs to find. And while entering another city oppressed by a High Epic despot is a gamble, David's willing to risk it. Because killing Steelheart left a hole in David's heart. A hole where his thirst for vengeance once lived. Somehow, he filled that hole with another Epic - Firefight. And he's willing to go on a quest darker, and more dangerous even, than the fight against Steelheart to find her, and to get his answers.



Calamity by Brandon Sanderson

The translation of Calamity part 3 in the series called The Reckoners

They told David it was impossible - that even the Reckoners had never killed a High Epic. Yet, Steelheart - invincible, immortal, unconquerable - is dead. And he died by David's hand. Eliminating Steelheart was supposed to make life more simple. Instead, it only made David realize he has questions. Big ones. And there's no one in Newcago who can give him the answers he needs. He found some of those answers in FIREFIGHT. Now, he has to decide what to do with them ...Calamity is about what you do to fill your heart once you have vengeance.

So glad to read what "just happened" to you. It just happened to me, too. I am too cowardly to confess and have decided to like myself the way I am -- a book acquisaholic.

>50 Jackie_K: lol fun - I like misleading titles (as long as the book is still good!)
MY-zl'd - love it! (and makes perfect sense)

>52 rabbitprincess: a sewage also makes sense if you only read the word! :)
My husband is generally good at correcting me w/o laughing.. but sometimes they really get to him too... ;)

>53 Tess_W: lol of course 16 year olds would call you on it ;)

>54 connie53: how the English language morphs various words or the similarities between words that aren't similar (and vice versa) or why some words are pronounced the same when they are spelled completely differently (and vice versa) are just some of the frustrations of the English language ;p I believe it's because, as Limelite noted, we take from so many different languages ...

>56 connie53: Congrats!
& yay - hope you love the Tearling book!

>59 connie53: lol happens to the best of us ;)

>59 connie53: Oops! ;) I've had several books coming here accidentally over the past couple of weeks -- my Christmas gift card haul was split up into multiple packages for some reason, and I ordered a couple of books off Abebooks too. Love having new books come in.

Hi Connie! Even with speed skating in the background, you have managed to get some great reading in. Congratulations.

Love the support for mispronunciation! It reminds me of a quote I've seen on social media, something like, "Never make fun when people mispronounce a word, it means they learned it by reading."

>64 detailmuse: LOL MJ.

Yesterday I went to a special day with all my colleagues form school and other schools in our area. It was filled with meeting people and workshops. In the morning we listened to a lecture by a professor who teaches neuro-psychology at the University. She writes also and I thought her lecture was very inspiring and funny. So I bought a book she wrote about being the best you you can be.



Ik2 de beste versie van jezelf by Margriet Sitskoorn.

Translated it would I2, the best version of yourself (The two is in superscript, but I don't now how to make that here)

I will not count that one for my books bought in 2017 ticker. Because it's not a fictional book.

>65 connie53: that lecture sounds just up my alley! I look forward to your thoughts on the book :) (whenever you get to it ;))

Hi Connie! >65 connie53: sounds like a fun day and a good book.

Hi Connie, just wanted to say hi. Love the pictures of your granddaughter, she looks adorable. A number of friends of mine are having babies this year (if all goes well, there will be four new little ones by the end of the year). I will buy them all books and turn them into boekenwurmen ;)
Hope Peet's therapy will help him and he will be feeling better soon - though it might be a slow process...

>61 avanders: In response to the earlier discussion, English is rather 'famous' for its spelling, and how it doesn't always make sense with how words are pronounced. It is in part due to borrowed words, but also due to shifts in pronunciation; there has been a number of times in the past when the pronunciations of English words shifted, but the spelling stayed the same.
A word for which I had trouble figuring out the pronunciation was caveat. It's just a weird word. What didn't help was that pretty much every university professor I had pronounced it differently...

>66 avanders: interesting! I read/pronounce that word: KAH-vee-yah-t
I often look up pronunciations online -- e.g., I'd google something like "caveat pronunciation" and see what the interwebs have to say ;)

Thanks for keeping my thread warm, ladies.

Finally finished my first ROOT for the year. Reading is very slow right now.
De kroon van de Tearling by Erika Johansen.
This was a very good read. I really loved the book and gave it
I loved Kelsea. She is a really smart girl, growing into an awesome queen. And both Mace and the Fetch are very interesting men with some secrets I hope will get revealed in part 2 or 3 of the series. (Part 3 is still not translated though. I really hope they will do that soon).

I've started part 2 immediately because I had to simply read on.

De invasie van de Tearling by Erika Johansen book bought 2016-7-13. So a ROOT according to my rules: 6 months on the shelves



This is the translation to the letter of The invasion of the Tearling

From BOL.com

With each passing day, Kelsea Glynn is growing into her new responsibilities as Queen of the Tearling. By stopping the shipments of slaves to the neighbouring kingdom of Mortmesne, she crossed the Red Queen, a brutal ruler whose power derives from dark magic, who is sending her fearsome army into the Tearling to take what is hers. And nothing can stop the invasion.
But as the Mort army draws ever closer, Kelsea develops a mysterious connection to a time before the Crossing, and she finds herself relying on a strange and possibly dangerous ally: a woman named Lily, fighting for her life in a world where being female can feel like a crime. The fate of the Tearling - and that of Kelsea's own soul - may rest with Lily and her story, but Kelsea may not have enough time to find out.

Congrats on your first ROOT, Connie! And my best wishes that the reading will get better.

ETA

>71 MissWatson: ETA?

>72 connie53: ETA=Edited to add. I hit the post message button too soon.

>72 connie53: LOL Those things happen!

Congrats on your lovely family. It's always fabulous when another reader is born.

Thanks Mandy!

Hi Connie! Glad you so greatly enjoyed your last read!

Hi Connie! Quick hello and warm wishes for good reading and things going well for you.

>70 connie53: I agree w/ all you say on Queen of the Tearling! I think I even preferred the 2nd, so hope you really enjoy that read too!
& congrats on ROOT #1!

>79 avanders: I'm enjoying every page of part 2, Ava.

I started another ROOT today. One for the February challenge for my RL bookclub: read a book about wolves.

De legende van de zwarte wolven by Martijn Lindeboom and Remco Nieboer. Bought in 2005.
This is an original Dutch book.
The title translates into The legend of the black wolves. So pretty literally translated.
It's a rather small book, only 73 pages. I know Martijn and Remco from previous fantasy events so I have their signatures and a little message for me personally written in the book.
They based this book on several things that were found at excavations and in old churches in one of the Northern parts of The Netherlands, Groningen. They also found a little book written around 1290.

>81 connie53: so, I may have missed this explanation before, but for your RL book group, do you also read books as a group to discuss? or do you meet more for accountability and general discussion but each follow your own challenges?
Your challenge book sounds interesting :)

>82 avanders: Both, Ava. The monthly challenge is about a theme and we have to read 15 books in one month. Each member chooses one book to read and tells something about it in a separate thread. You can read max. 3 books per theme. Every two months (the odd months) we choose a book in a Foreign Language to read together and in the even months we choose a book in Dutch.
Those challenges can take for ever! It is possible to read a FF (Foreign Fantasy) or OB (OpperBoek) book now that was chosen years ago.

Hooray for all the incipient readers waiting their turns to get to the book shelves! May they all be born literate from the get-go. The world needs them -- there are so many books in it now that I'm afraid too many are going unread simply because there are more books than readers!

15 books in one month! I thought an average of 10 books per month was a lot.

>85 Robertgreaves: Not 15 books per person, Robert. There is a maximum of 15 books read by the whole group. Each person reads one or two books fitting in the challenge theme.

And I finished ROOT # 2

De legende van de zwarte wolven by Martijn Lindeboom en Remco Nieboer.

It was an interesting story though not as good as I expected. A bit to much random magic stuff for me.

Hi Connie, just dropping in to wish you a nice weekend!

>88 MissWatson: Thanks, Birgit! The same to you.

Hi Connie! I love reading about how different book clubs operate - thanks for sharing.

I hope your week is going well.

I like your book club organization, Connie!

>83 connie53: wow! That's a cool challenge :) & it sounds like a very satisfying book group :)

>87 connie53: congrats on another ROOT!

Thanks guys!

Bought 2 more books this past week. I made a promise to myself to buy some books ( 2 or 3) each month.

For February I bought De stad van Spiegels by Justin Cronin part 3 in The Passage series



This is the translation of The City of Mirrors
City = stad
mirrors = spiegels

From BOL.com and in spoiler block because this is part 3
The Twelve have been destroyed and the terrifying hundred-year reign of darkness that descended upon the world has ended. The survivors are stepping outside their walls, determined to build society anew-and daring to dream of a hopeful future.

But far from them, in a dead metropolis, he waits: Zero. The First. Father of the Twelve. The anguish that shattered his human life haunts him, and the hatred spawned by his transformation burns bright. His fury will be quenched only when he destroys Amy-humanity's only hope, the Girl from Nowhere who grew up to rise against him.

One last time light and dark will clash, and at last Amy and her friends will know their fate.

De onsterfelijke troon by Stella Gemmell part 2 in the City series



This is the translation of The Immortal Throne
Immortal = onsterfelijk
Throne = troon

From BOL.com
The emperor is dead…long live the emperor!
The fervent hope of the victorious rebels and the survivors of the uprising that liberated the City from tyranny is that the accession of Archange to the imperial throne will usher in a new era of freedom, peace and stability. If only that were so...
As the the City struggles to return to something resembling normal life after the devastation brought on by the rebellion, word arises of a massive army gathering to the north. No one knows where it has come from or who leads it, but it soon becomes apparent that its sole purpose is to destroy the City and annihilate all - man, woman and child - who live within its battered walls. And while warriors go forth to fight and die on the battlefield in defence of their homeland and all that they believe in, bitter family feuds and ancient rivalries, political and personal betrayals, and mindless murder surface within the palaces and corridors of power: it seems the City is under siege - from both without and within . . .

I really like the idea of buying yourself books as a promise to yourself! That's much more positive than feeling guilty when you have a book-buying splurge!

I agree with Jackie_K!

>93 connie53: Excellent! Promising yourself to buy books. I, on the other hand, usually feel guilty because of spending the money.

Thanks for the translations. I really enjoy them and now now what that German newspaper/magazine title means.

I also believe in self-rewarding with a book or two a month. I reward myself for breathing.

Congratulations on your ROOT goal progress, too!

>94 Jackie_K: >95 karenmarie: >95 karenmarie:

With that promise I will keep within my own book buying challenge: no more then 40 books bought in 2017.
I even have a ticker in one of the earlier posts.
12 x 3 = 36

Finished ROOT # 3 today

De invasie van de Tearling by Erika Johansen

A very good book with lots of twists and a very open end. There is a third book somewhere and I hope that will be translated soon because I'm really curious about the adventures of Kelsea and Lily.

Next book will be

Ziel van ijzer by Patricia Briggs bought 2016/8/2 - part 3 Mercy Thompson



This is the translation of Iron kissed
Ziel = Soul
van = of
IJzer = Iron

kissed = Gekust door.

From LT
Mechanic Mercy Thompson can shift her shape - but not her loyalty. When her former boss and mentor is arrested for murder and left to rot behind bars by his own kind, it's up to Mercy to clear his name whether he wants her to or not. Mercy's loyalty is under pressure from other directions, too. Werewolves are not known for there patience, and if Mercy can't decide between the two she cares for, Sam and Adam may make the choice for her.

Admirable, Connie, to plan on buying 40 books this year. I guess that unofficially I plan on buying 11 books a year - one for each month of bookclub, always excepting the month we choose books for the next month. However, I've already bought 32, with one arriving today from Amazon, and one arriving early next month. Sigh. Okay, so some of the books were only 5 cents each, but still. Gotta find shelf space for them.

>93 connie53: what a nice promise to yourself! To buy 2-3 books per month :)
Oooh, City of Mirrors.. I really need to get back to that series...

>97 connie53: and it makes sense to provide yourself with some leeway while still attempting to keep the "acquisitions" number managed ;)

And I also hope you get Fate of the Tearling soon!! I'm almost done with it.. I know it has received a little flack from some fans, but I've *really* enjoyed it so far!

>98 karenmarie: hee hee, this is my problem ;) I plan to buy RL book group books too... and maybe not much else, but then "much else" beckons.... ;)

>98 karenmarie: >99 avanders: I'm still staying strong and did not buy any new books since the beginning of this month. My wishlist is growing though. I think this wishlist thing is working out all right. I tend to delete books from it each month just because I'm not that enthusiastic about it anymore. If I had bought it right away when the BB hit me, I would have had 20 books bought by now.

Finished ROOT # 4

Ziel van ijzer by Patricia Briggs and gave it . It could have been an but something bothered me about it. I can't really say what that was, maybe it was a bit 'too much'.

Now reading another book about wolves (theme for the monthly challenge on my RL live book-club)

Geheimen van de wolven by Dorothy Hearst Bought 2012/31/03 - part 2 De Wolven



This is the translation of Secrets of the Wolves
Secrets = Geheimen

From BOL.com
The rules of the Wide Valley wolves were clear: Never consort with humans; never kill a human unprovoked; never allow a mixed-blood wolf to live.

When she was little more than a pup, Kaala, born of mixed blood and nearly killed for it, found herself irresistibly drawn to the forbidden humans. She shattered the rules of the valley, exposing the lies hidden beneath. Now, responsibility for the consequences rests with her. In part two of The Wolf Chronicles, Kaala and the human girl she has befriended must find a way for the wolves and humans of the valley to live in harmony. If they succeed, Kaala will finally prove herself worthy of her pack. If they fail, every wolf and human in the valley will die.

Then Kaala learns that much more than the Wide Valley is at stake. Humans and their relationship to the world around them are changing. Kaala's choices may affect not only her pack, but the survival of all wolfkind.

>100 connie53: congrats on staying so strong!
Yes, that's the great thing about wishlists.... we can delete the choices: no harm, no foul ;) Though sometimes I do hesitate to do even that because I think, well... I did put it on there in the first place, there must've been a really good reason...... ;p Still, every few months, I go through and try to cull it down :) And I also try to move things from my "buy" wishlist to my "to read" list for the library whenever I have time.

And another ROOT - yay!

Congrats on another ROOT, too, Connie!

I need to prune my wishlist. It's over 300 books, but some of them were put on there so long ago I don't know why I wanted to read them!

>102 karenmarie: My wishlist is the same, Karen. I only started using it for BBs last year (rather than just buying the new and shiny), so I'm not yet at the point (I don't think) where I feel up to pruning it. Probably by the end of this year when it is so out of control I'll have a go (and knowing me will probably take about 2 max off the list!).

My bookbuying pledge this year is to only buy
1. bookclub books
2. if I'm reading a series the next in the series but only if my ROOTs are up to date
3. 2 books as a reward each time I lose a kilogram.

>59 connie53: I bought some books today. I didn't mean to but it just happened.

Ha :).

I enjoyed reading about everyone's mispronounced words. Recently friends of mine were talking about some of their more humorous ones: Lasciviously ("lash-viciously") and picturesque ("picture-skew").

>105 readingtangent: Yes, Ha indeed.

I've been reading a novella in the Eclips series by Stephenie Meyer

ROOT # 6



het korte tweede leven van bree tanner bought 2012-03-05
This is the translation of The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner and that is to the letter.



Bree Tanner can barely remember life before she had uncannily powerful senses, superhuman reflexes and unstoppable physical strength. Life before she had a relentless thirst for blood... life before she became a vampire.
All Bree knows is that living with her fellow newborns has few certainties and even fewer rules: watch your back, don't draw attention to yourself and, above all, make it home by sunrise or die. What she doesn't know: her time as an immortal is quickly running out.
Then Bree finds an unexpected friend in Diego, a newborn just as curious as Bree about their mysterious creator, whom they know only as "her". As they come to realize that the newborns are pawns in a game larger than anything they could have imagined, Bree and Diego must choose sides and decide whom to trust. But when everything you know about vampires is based on a lie, how do you find the truth?

Now I've started a very new book because it's our RL bookclub book. Bought in January so no ROOT at all.



Staalhart by Brandon Sanderson
This is the translation of Steelheart

Ten years ago, Calamity came. It was a burst in the sky that gave ordinary people extraordinary powers. The awed public started calling them Epics.
Epics are no friends of man. With incredible gifts came the desire to rule. And to rule man, you must crush his will.
Now, in what was once Chicago, an astonishingly powerful Epic named Steelheart has installed himself as emperor. Steelheart possesses the strength of ten men and can control the elements. It is said that no bullet can harm him, no sword can split his skin, and no fire can burn him. He is invincible. Nobody fights back . . . nobody but the Reckoners.
A shadowy group of ordinary humans, the Reckoners spend their lives studying Epics, finding their weaknesses, and then assassinating them. And David wants in.
When Steelheart came to Chicago, he killed David’s father. For years, like the Reckoners, David has been studying, and planning, and he has something they need. Not an object, but an experience.
He has seen Steelheart bleed.
And he wants revenge.

Happy reading, Connie!

Hi Connie! I hope things are going well for you.

Hello Connie! Hope all is well for you and Peet, and you're enjoying your reading!

>109 Jackie_K: I do enjoy my current book, Jackie

Peet is still following his therapy. I don't notice much progress, but he is not that far into it yet. I really hope it's going to work, because I really want to start some normal live soon. He is very claiming and wants me to be around all the time. Even asks me sometimes to skip my work at school for a day. But that won't happen. He can't ask me that. So we plug away each day.

I forgot to mention some books I've bought! This books will count for books bought in March, but I cheated a bit and ordered them last week. ;-))



Iene miene mutte by M.J.Arlidge part 1 in the Helen Grace series

This is the translation of Eeny Meeny which means about the same thing. Iene miene mutte is a Dutch children's rhyme

From LT
The girl emerged from the woods. Traumatised and emaciated; close to death, but alive. Her story seemed too terrible to be true. But it was. Every dreadful word of it. When, days later, another desperate survivor is found, a pattern becomes clear. Pairs of victims are being taken; then forced to make an unthinkable decision. And for DCI Helen Grace there is now an unseen killer to be hunted down. Haunted by her own past, Grace has faced down her own demons to rise to the top of her profession. She has coping mechanisms. Now though, there's a new monster to confront. And unless she succeeds, more innocents will die.But worse, some will survive, and have to live with the choice that they made ...



Piep zei de muis by M.J.Arlidge part 2 in the Helen Grace series

This is the translation of Pop Goes the Weasel means about the the same thing too. Piep zei de muis is also a Dutch Children's rhyme

From BOL.com
The body of a middle-aged man is discovered in Southampton's red light district - horrifically mutilated, with his heart removed. Hours later - and barely cold - the heart arrives with his wife and children by courier. A pattern emerges when another male victim is found dead and eviscerated, his heart delivered soon afterwards. The media call it Jack the Ripper in reverse; revenge against the men who lead sordid double lives visiting prostitutes. For Grace, only one thing is certain: there's a vicious serial-killer at large who must be halted at all costs . . .



Pluk een roos by M.J.Arlidge part 3 in the Helen Grace series

This is the translation of The Doll's House
Pluk een roos = pick a rose
The doll's house = Het poppenhuis
Pluk een roos is also a Dutch children's rhyme. I don't know if the Doll's house is one too.

From BOL.com
A young woman wakes up in a cold, dark cellar, with no idea how she got there or who her kidnapper is. So begins her terrible nightmare.
Nearby, the body of another young woman is discovered buried on a remote beach. But the dead girl was never reported missing - her estranged family having received regular texts from her over the years. Someone has been keeping her alive from beyond the grave.
For Detective Inspector Helen Grace it's chilling evidence that she's searching for a monster who is not just twisted but also clever and resourceful - a predator who's killed before.
And as Helen struggles to understand the hiller's motivation, she begins to realize that she's in a desperate race against time . . .

Nice haul, Connie!

Were you deliberately looking for books with titles from nursery rhymes?

>110 connie53: Hi Connie! I'm sorry you're not seeing many results for Peet yet. I'm glad that there is at least one boundary you've set. Sending hugs and best wishes for improvement for Peet and patience and bits of joy here and there for you.

>112 Tess_W: Thanks, Tess
>113 Robertgreaves: No. These books came highly recommend by my online bookstore. You know: if you like this you will like that too. That kind of thing. And I liked the covers and the blurbs.
>114 karenmarie: Thanks Karen. The last few days were much better for Peet and that reflects on me too. That spring is kicking in helps of course. There is where I get my joy from and books of course.

>106 connie53: Staalhart was a very good book.
The story is very fast and exciting. I wanted to read on and on. Part 2 is right beside me on the table right now. I read a small novella in the series though. Mitosis

part 1,5 in the series about the Reckoners. And *drum rolls * I read it in English!! Yeah.

From Brandon Sanderson, comes Mitosis, a short story set in the action-packed world of Steelheart: the Reckoners series, exclusively available in a HB collector's edition. Epics still plague Newcago, but David and the Reckoners have vowed to fight back.

Then I first to read a book for the march challenge on my RL bookclub: The theme: hare (haas) or rabbit (konijn). It could be in the title, in the name of the writer or in the story itself.

So I choose De haas met de amberkleurige ogen by Edmund de Waal but that was kind of a disaster. I did not finish it.


This is the translation of The Hare with Amber Eyes. Not my thing

So I started another 'Hare' book.



De heugling by Robert Haasnoot Original Dutch

The connection to the challenge is in the name HAASnoot and there are rabbits (lots of them) in the story.

My own translation
A group of ominous raven appear on the tower of the great church in Zeewijk (village by the see). All the rabbits in the dunes are exterminated by an unknown disease. Several people in the village have the same dream each night and there is a eccentric man living in the newly build white villa on top of the great dune. What is he doing there. The storyteller writes everything down in a novella for someone he knows who is in prison. The storyteller is the last descendant from a family who wrote the chronicles of the village. They are called 'Heugling'

I think 'heugling' is a fusion of two words. Heug comes form geheugen (memory or recollection) and 'ling' is an extension to make a noun male.

Dropping in to wish you a lovely weekend, Connie. I hope you have sunny weather like us? I spent the afternoon on my balcony for the first time this year. Best wishes for you and Peet.

Hi Connie, just stopping by!

Thinking of you and Peet and sending lots of positive vibes.

>115 connie53: I'm glad the last days have been more positive for Peet, and therefore for you too. Spring and books! Two wonderful things.

>116 MissWatson: It was so nice outside today, Birgit. I spend the whole afternoon out in the yard reading in my Hare book and finished it around 5pm. It's was a fairly nice book but not good, although the ending was a real surprise. I did not see that coming until the few last pages. just because of the ending

Now I'm reading
Vlammenwerper by Brandon Sanderson


This is the translation of Firefight
Vlammenwerper = flame thrower
Firefight - vuurgevecht.

From BOL.com and in spoilerfont
They told David it was impossible - that even the Reckoners had never killed a High Epic. Yet, Steelheart - invincible, immortal, unconquerable - is dead. And he died by David's hand.
Eliminating Steelheart was supposed to make life more simple. Instead, it only made David realize he has questions. Big ones. And there's no one in Newcago who can give him the answers he needs.
Babylon Restored, the old borough of Manhattan, has possibilities, though. Ruled by the mysterious High Epic, Regalia, David is sure Babylon Restored will lead him to what he needs to find. And while entering another city oppressed by a High Epic despot is a gamble, David's willing to risk it. Because killing Steelheart left a hole in David's heart. A hole where his thirst for vengeance once lived. Somehow, he filled that hole with another Epic - Firefight. And he's willing to go on a quest darker, and more dangerous even, than the fight against Steelheart to find her, and to get his answers.

The Sunday started of real bad with Peet waking me up in complete panic. He was sure he was having a heart attack. So we called the emergency doctor and he came over within a few minutes. Luckily is was 'just' another panic attack and after making an ECG in the GP-weekend post he was reassured there was nothing wrong with his heart. We went home and he was feeling better.

Jeroen came over to help us with some IKEA stuff, two billy's, one crib and one baby dresser. The billy's are for my BOOKS, Yeah!!!!

After he went home again I sat in the garden reading! Also Yeah!

>121 connie53: Sorry to hear that Peet had a panic attack. I've had a panic attack myself and can sympathize; it really does feel like a heart attack. Glad to hear he was able to get an ECG and reassurance on the medical front.

Hurray for new bookshelves and for sitting outside to read!

>121 connie53: I'm sorry to hear about Peet's panic attack - they can be so very frightening, but I'm glad that he was seen quickly and has been reassured.

Billy bookcases are the best - we have loads, of varying heights! I need to sort out our spare room, to turn it into an office for me. It is already full of bookcases, but I am thinking that perhaps if I am creative I can order it in a way that will squeeze one more bookcase in :)

>121 connie53: That must have been really scary. I'm glad you got a chance to sit in the garden. It felt like spring all weekend here, and I've done a bit of clearing out. Sadly, no outside reading today.

>121 connie53: Sorry that Peet is feeling this way and for you having to experience it, also. But glad you have some new shelves (to fill with new books) and time to relax in the garden. We are having 2-4 inches of snow here today, so it will be several months before I can get outside and read.

I'm so sorry about Peet's panic attack, Connie. So much anxiety and stress for both of you. I hope that bookcases and books can bring you moments of fun and calm here and there.

... I will definitely not be able to "catch up" on threads.. so I'm just dropping in to say Hi!! :)

Also, I happened to notice >115 connie53: -- congrats on reading the book in English! Very impressive!

Just stopping by to wish you a lovely weekend. I hope it involves lots of hours in the garden with a book!

Belated Happy Birthday, Connie! I hope you had a lovely day!

Have a nice weekend, Connie!

Hi Connie, I just wanted to say that I miss you here and hope that things are starting to get better with regards to Peet's therapy etc. Thinking of you!

Hi Guys! Back again on the discussion front. I really need to come here more. It seems the longer I stay away, the less I feel the need to come here again. I guess all those new posts frighten me a bit. But I will try to do better in the coming days and visit more frequent.

Peet is doing better, but it's still not great. He had a few more panic attacks. We have now entered a new medical search. He probably has sleep apnea. Do you know that? He has several spells a minute where his breathing stops for more then 10 seconds while sleeping. We are in the midst of all kind of examinations.

Connie, glad you are back. Don't worry about catching up on posts. Just enjoy yourself while you're here.

Glad Peet is somewhat better. I, too, have sleep apnea. I went to a sleep lab and I now sleep with a C-pap machine (light oxygen) and I feel and sleep so much better!

Hope you can enjoy some quality reading time.

Hi Tess, first to welcome me back. I hope Peet will get a C-pap machine too. He want to a sleep lab too. That's where we are now. Waiting for what will come out of that. I hope it will help him getting over lots of complaints he has now. We will see.

And yes, I did get some reading time. The weather is still not that good. Some days I can read outside but those are few and far between. Next Sunday promises to be the first real warm day. So I will be sitting there with DroomNummerNegen by David Mitchell.

I updated my first 4 posts so all my lists are correct now.

>132 connie53: welcome back, I hope your husband gets the treatment he needs and things settle for you soon.

>132 connie53: Connie, my husband Thomas had such sleep apnea really heavely. Since one and a half year he is slepping with a special mask and it is like a wonder. He isn't sleepy anymore, much fitter and his depression with the help of meds is banned too.

Update on Fiene

http://vidmg.photobucket.com/albums/v706/Egwene1/Fiene/VID-20170304-WA00011_zpsj...

Carneval with mom and dad


Reading



Her favorite toy! A bit big





Ready for the summer

Thanks Donna and Barbara!

Echoing Tess, please don't worry about catching up on posts! We miss you but you must do what's best for you right now! Sleep apnoea is very common and I know so many people who now sleep with a C-pap machine who swear by it, and say that the improved sleep gives them so much more energy and 'oomph' for everything else. Hopefully the sleep clinic will come up with a good course of treatment that works well for you both.

Fiene is gorgeous! I love that picture of her with the giant teddy! I still have my teddy from when I was that age, I'm sure that it was equally big at the time, although now he seems so small! (my husband calls him 'zombie teddy' because his brains are spilling out... Never mind, he's still the best bear in the world).

Hi Jackie! That bear was our gift when she was born. We arrived just after Eveline and Cyrille came home with Fiene from the hospital. You can see the bear in the photo in the first post.

She's getting so big! She's a doll!

Awww! Love the picture of Fiene and her bear! I also love the picture of her reading. She looks very serious and adorable at the same time :)

I hope the visit to the sleep lab results in some helpful treatment for Peet, and that he gets a good night's sleep soon!

Thanks, RP. In the book she found a bear too, so she was so delighted by that. You can see the bear in the book.

Great pictures of Fiene. I am sure that she and your books make getting through these trying times easier, Connie. I hope that getting treatment for sleep aponea will clear up his problems. It is hard dealing with a spouse with issues that alter your lives. Take care of yourself.

Hi Connie!

That video of Fiene making music is adorable! So are the pictures, and I love the huge teddy bear. I still have my teddy bear somewhere, packed in a box, I think. But I still have him.

My sister uses a c-pap machine and swears by it too. If she falls asleep without it, the next day she suffers. I hope that Peet gets one and gets positive results from it.

Hang in there and make sure you take care of yourself, too.

Hi Connie, glad to see you drop by. Fiene is such a cute little girl, I'm sure she brightens your life. Best wishes that they will find a treatment for Peet that works.

I'm getting grandma envy with all the cute photos!

I see you're reading number9dream - I finished it a few days ago so I'm looking forward to hearing what you think of it.

>147 floremolla: I think it is a bit confusing in the beginning. You have to find the pattern in the story, once you have that figured out it's real interesting.

>148 connie53: I thought I understood the pattern early in the book but as Eiji's 'real life' events got more unusual I couldn't separate it so easily!

>149 floremolla: I know, I had to concentrate real good. Especially the part whit the goat-men, the lady chicken and Pithecanthropus. I'm now in the part/dream #6 with the diary of Ejij's great uncle.

>137 connie53: Your grandbaby is adorable. And I think I have that same bear! LOL :)

>132 connie53: I know the feeling.. I keep thinking "okay, I'll come more regularly now"... but life hasn't yet been cooperative ;)

sorry to hear about Pete -- glad he's doing better! But sorry that he's still having panic attacks :(

>137 connie53: beautiful pics! Fiene is so cute!! As always, thanks for sharing! :)

Thanks Ava!

Started another one, not a ROOT but a new and shiny one



Iene Miene Mutte by M.J. Arlidge
This is the translation of Eeny Meeny
Meaning the same thing: the title of a nursery rhyme

Blurb from LT
The girl emerged from the woods. Traumatised and emaciated; close to death, but alive. Her story seemed too terrible to be true. But it was. Every dreadful word of it. When, days later, another desperate survivor is found, a pattern becomes clear. Pairs of victims are being taken; then forced to make an unthinkable decision. And for DCI Helen Grace there is now an unseen killer to be hunted down. Haunted by her own past, Grace has faced down her own demons to rise to the top of her profession. She has coping mechanisms. Now though, there's a new monster to confront. And unless she succeeds, more innocents will die.But worse, some will survive, and have to live with the choice that they made ...

>154 connie53: sound wonderful, will go on my wishlist!

>155 Tess_W: part one of at least four. You are now warned for a series ;-))

>121 connie53: Billy bookcases! It seems as though almost everyone has some. Did you know if you look under "stats/memes" on your profile, it will tell you how many Billy bookcases it would take to shelve your LT library? According to mine, it would be 11.39. It's a good thing mine are mostly e-books because I just moved and got rid of another bookcase and am now down to only 2 full-size Billy-s.

>137 connie53: So cute!! I love the one of her reading, and the ones with the bear.

>154 connie53: Sounds good!

>157 readingtangent: I had no idea about that meme, that's really funny! Another big fan of the Billy here :)

>157 readingtangent: Oh my, it tells me I need 39.5 bookcases! Glad 75% of my books are ebooks!

>157 readingtangent: I can't find it!! ;-((

Edit: Found it!


IKEA Billy boekenkasten: 15.74

I've never dug down into stats/memes before. For example, I never realized that I have the equivalent weight of Adult badgers: 1380.36 in books. Gotta love the LT folks!

Hi Connie, wishing you a wonderful Easter weekend.

Thanks Barb! Such a nice pot with flowers and Easter-eggs!

Yesterday we had a lovely day with my family. My sisters and brother with their partners and some of their kids. We started with a long walk with GPS points and questions. Our group walked about 8,5 km. And that was the first long walk after my knee operation. All went well. So that was good. Then we had a nice BBQ

Here are some pics.



The family



Jeroen and Cyrille did the BBQ-ing



My God daughter Rhea with Fiene



Peet and Eveline

Thanks so much for sharing these wonderful photos, Connie. I'm glad to hear that your knee did well and you had such a lovely day.
Happy Sunday.

What a wonderful day! The walk idea is a great one, I think I would like to incorporate that into some of my family reunions when there aren't any really old or disabled folks who can't participate! Your granddaughter is just so cute!

lovely, thanks for sharing! I love extended family get-togethers. Having ours this afternoon - an Easter egg hunt in the garden but lunch indoors as it's a damp and chilly 8 deg C.

What lovely photos! It looks like a great day. We aren't able to do the same as we live so far from all our family - we are hopefully catching up with both sets of family in August when we go to England for a bit.

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter to all of you!

Love the pics Connie, thanks for posting them. It seems impossible for Fiene to be the big girl she already is!

>164 connie53: looks like a wonderful celebration! Thanks for sharing the pics!!
& Happy Easter!

Thanks Ava.

Another lovely day with the seven of us. We went out for brunch. It's almost a tradition we do that.

We went to Kasteel Daelenbroeck.





We went out for a walk near there after the brunch. And now Peet and I are back home. I did some reading in the garden, but the weather is not really that nice, very windy and with some big clouds blocking the sun. So I went inside to do some catching up on threads.

>172 connie53: beautiful!

How about this one



Fiene with Eveline and the Easter bunny.

Hi Connie! Wonderful pictures of a happy family events. Thank you for sharing.

>172 connie53: beautiful! Looks like a wonderful place for a walk :)
>174 connie53: and adorable! Fiene looks happy to be with the Easter bunny ;)

Great family pics, Connie. I hope Peet is enjoying them as much as he can.

Thanks everyone!

Finished Iene Miene Mutte by M.J. Arlidge

I liked this book a lot. Thanks to the short chapters it reads very fast. It may not be the best written book, but it's really exciting.

Now reading part two in the series about Helen Grace.



Piep zei de muis by M.J. Arlidge
This is the translation of Pop Goes the weasel

From Amazone
The body of a middle-aged man is discovered in Southampton's red-light district - horrifically mutilated, with his heart removed. Hours later - and barely cold - the heart arrives with his wife and children by courier. A pattern emerges when another male victim is found dead and eviscerated, his heart delivered soon afterwards. The media call it Jack the Ripper in reverse; revenge against the men who lead sordid double lives visiting prostitutes. For Grace, only one thing is certain: there's a vicious serial-killer at large who must be halted at all costs.

>178 connie53: looks fun! :)

Hi Connie, it's lovely to see you had a good time with the family!

>157 readingtangent:, 160

I am feeling really dumb, but I can't seem to find those stats at all (and I was looking forward to my number of adult badgers)..

>181 Caramellunacy: go to your profile (click on your name top right) and an extra bar appears under the top menu with stats/memes among other things - scroll down and be entertained ;)

>158 Jackie_K: They (the bookcases) are really handy! :)

>159 Tess_W: Wow! :) Yes, if I actually had every paper book I've catalogued here including library books, ones I've gotten rid of and such, I def. wouldn't have enough room for all of them!

>160 connie53: Glad you were able to find it :).

>161 karenmarie: Ha! I hadn't noticed that one but that is funny.

>172 connie53: Gorgeous! I wish I could go there.

>178 connie53: Another good-sounding one!

>181 Caramellunacy:, >182 floremolla: Yes, it's under stats/memes and then you have to click on "Pages, dimensions and weight" (on the left hand side) :). Hope that helps.

How nice to see all these visitors!

I have bought two books (for May, but I bought them now, because I always have them delivered at my workplace and we have two weeks of vacation coming up)



De droogte by Jane Harper
This is the translation of The Dry - literally.

From BOL.com
Amid the worst drought to ravage Australia in a century, it hasn't rained in small country town Kiewarra for two years. Tensions in the community become unbearable when three members of the Hadler family are brutally murdered. Everyone thinks Luke Hadler, who committed suicide after slaughtering his wife and six-year-old son, is guilty. Policeman Aaron Falk returns to the town of his youth for the funeral of his childhood best friend, and is unwillingly drawn into the investigation. As questions mount and suspicion spreads through the town, Falk is forced to confront the community that rejected him twenty years earlier. Because Falk and Luke Hadler shared a secret, one which Luke's death threatens to unearth. And as Falk probes deeper into the killings, secrets from his past and why he left home bubble to the surface as he questions the truth of his friend's crime.



Zondagochtend breekt aan by Nicci French
This is the translation of Sunday Moring Coming Down - Almost literally

From BOL.com
Psychotherapist Frieda Klein's home is her refuge. Then she returns to find it has become a crime scene. Beneath the floorboards the police have found the body of a man she had hired to help protect her. The message from the killer is clear: you're mine. But when those closest to Frieda begin to be targeted the picture becomes more confused, the patterns uncertain. And unless Frieda can find and stop whoever is threatening her friends and family her love and loyalty could come at a fatal cost ...

Hi Connie! I hope you're doing well and looking forward to vacation.

Enjoy yourself on vacation! I have 22 total days of school left , we get on on May 25th (last day for student) and teachers work day is Fri May 26th. But who's counting the days!???

Oh, you've got a vacation coming up! Enjoy!

My vacation started today! And it includes all kind of national festive days. Like Kings-day (April 27), Remembrance day (May 4). Liberation-day (May 5).

Tomorrow we have a RL meet-up with 8 members of my bookclub. We will have lunch together and visit some bookstores of course. I will go back home before dinner, because Peet can't handle it if I stay away much longer. He has had an panic attack on Wednesday just thinking about it. **Sigh**. We will have to see how he is feeling tomorrow morning.

Another picture of Fiene, just because it's such a cute one

>188 connie53: that is a cute picture!

I hope there's cause for optimism that Peet can come out of this fearful stage sometime. In the meantime enjoy your book club day :)

>188 connie53: It's a great picture, are the puppies hers? I hope you have a great day tomorrow.

Have a great day.

Thanks, I had a lovely day. There were 8 of us. First we went to a restaurant to have lunch, then we took a ride through the town with a horse tram.



And of course we visited some bookstores.

I bought another book just because it is some kind of tradition to buy one at a meet



Het vuur van de draak by Anthony Ryan (Draconis Memoria 1)

This is the translation of The Walking Fire
Het vuur van de draak = The fire of the dragon
The Walking Fire = Het lopende vuur

From BOL.com
Throughout the vast lands controlled by the Ironship Trading Syndicate, nothing is more prized than the blood of drakes. Harvested from captive or hunted Reds, Greens, Blues and Blacks, it can be distilled into elixirs that bestow fearsome powers on the rare men and women known as the Blood-blessed.
But not many know the truth: that the lines of drakes are weakening. If they fail, war with the neighbouring Corvantine Empire will follow swiftly. The Syndicate's last hope resides in whispers of the existence of another breed of drake, far more powerful than the rest, and the few who have been chosen by fate to seek it.
Claydon Torcreek is a petty thief and an unregistered Blood-blessed who finds himself pressed into service by the Protectorate and sent to wild, uncharted lands in search of a creature he believes is little more than legend. Lizanne Lethridge is a formidable spy and assassin facing gravest danger on an espionage mission deep into the heart of enemy territory. And Corrick Hilemore is the second lieutenant of an Ironship cruiser whose pursuit of ruthless brigands leads him to a far greater threat at the edge of the world.
As lives and empires clash and intertwine, as the unknown and the known collide, all three must fight to turn the tide of a coming war, or drown in its wake.

Then we had some coffee and cupcakes and I walked to the train-station for my ride home. The others went for dinner to a restaurant.

>190 clue: No the puppies aren't hers. This was around Easter and it was done especially for Easter. There were all kind of newly born animal, like puppies and kittens, and little lambs and goats.

Happy Sunday, Connie. Enjoy your vacation. I love the photo of Fine and the puppies.

Thanks, Barb! Same to you.

I've a question for the ROOTers. Someone compared a read book with Ready Player One and now I'm searching for the thread where that happened. I have a friend who loved RPO and wants to know which book that was.

>192 connie53: more great pictures, Connie! Glad you had a nice day out :)

Hi Connie! What a sweet picture of Fiene and the puppies, and I'm so glad you had a good time with your book club friends.

I'm sorry that Peet continues to have panic attacks and send hugs to you.

Hi Connie! Nice to see you enjoying your vacation. And little Fiene - such a pretty girl, and getting bigger. The picture with the puppies is very cute! And all of your photos are wonderful. What a blessing to have such a large family who gets along! I hope that you had a nice weekend, and that you have a good Monday! Keep on ROOTing!

I finished Piep zei de muis by M.J. Arlidge this afternoon.

I likes this book just as I liked the first part of this series. The descriptions of the murders were a bit horrific to read, but I'm used to reading thrillers for many years now, so I'm good with a bit of horror.

Now I'm reading De droogte by Jane Harper
Translation of The Dry. Which means exactly the same.



From BOL.com
Amid the worst drought to ravage Australia in a century, it hasn't rained in small country town Kiewarra for two years. Tensions in the community become unbearable when three members of the Hadler family are brutally murdered. Everyone thinks Luke Hadler, who committed suicide after slaughtering his wife and six-year-old son, is guilty. Policeman Aaron Falk returns to the town of his youth for the funeral of his childhood best friend, and is unwillingly drawn into the investigation. As questions mount and suspicion spreads through the town, Falk is forced to confront the community that rejected him twenty years earlier. Because Falk and Luke Hadler shared a secret, one which Luke's death threatens to unearth. And as Falk probes deeper into the killings, secrets from his past and why he left home bubble to the surface as he questions the truth of his friend's crime.

I'm on page 68 but I'm finding it a very intriguing story from page 1.

Hi Connie, it's nice to hear you had a great day with your book club. I hope you will enjoy The waking fire when you get to it. I liked it very much. Best wishes for you and Peet.

>188 connie53: & 192 What lovely pictures!

Thanks, avidmom.

I finished De droogte by Jane Harper just this afternoon.

I thought this was a very good and complex book. Of course it is a thriller with an old murder and three new ones. So past and present run parallel in this book. And very cleverly too. The end was quit a shock to me, I never saw it coming. Excellent book.

Now I'm reading ROOT # 11 for the year.



Nachtblauw by Simone van der Vlugt

This book is the history of the color Delfts blauw/blue and takes place in around 1654 in Amsterdam and Delft (two dutch cities).
The book is based on real historical facts. That's what Simone van der Vlugt does best.

My own translation of the Dutch Blurb

After her husband dies Catrijn gets a position as housekeeper with the Nulandt family. She feels very much in place there and helps the lady of the house with her attempt to paint. Catrijns past is catching up with her and she moves on to Delft where she works in a pottery and the owner sees a talent in Catrijn. Then there is a great disaster when a warehouse filled with gunpowder explodes. 500 houses are destroyed and there are more than 100 people killed. Catrijn barely escapes and then she has to decide what she really wants to do with her live. Will she wait for the love of her live, who sets sail to seek adventure with the VOC of will she choose the man that will give her security.

>202 connie53: I like the sound of the Jane Harper novel and haven't read a good murder thriller in a while - wishlisted!

>188 connie53: What an adorable trio! Your book meet sounds awesome.

>184 connie53: yay fun new books! They both sounds very interesting!
And so nice that you have a 2-week vacation coming up!

>186 Tess_W: lol not me... ;)

>188 connie53: So sorry to hear Peet's anxiety is still affecting him so strongly :(
& that pic of Fiene & pups is adorable!

>192 connie53: your book club day sounds perfect!

>194 connie53: gosh, I hope that wasn't me... I loved RPO also and have casually compared other books with it... but I certainly don't remember any specifics!

>202 connie53: wow you read that fast! Still sounds very interesting! may have to check it out one of these days.... :)

Thanks for visiting everyone!

>205 avanders: I will check out your thread, Ava. And see if it was you!

Just catching up on your posts, Connie. I hope things continue to improve and good wishes to you and Peet.

I liked the idea your book club uses for reading themes and challenges, although I don't know if the gals in my local group would go for it. :-)

Best of luck with all your ROOTing goals this year.

>207 This-n-That: I did not even mention the book I read for the April Challenge on my book club: Moving to another city.

I read Dochter van Isfahan by Anita Amirrezvani which was a beautiful book.



This is the translation of The Blood of Flowers
Dochter van Isfahan = Daughter of Isfahan
The Blood of Flowers = Het bloed van bloemen

From LT
In Persia, in the seventeenth century, a young woman is forced to leave behind the life she knows and move to a new city. Her father's unexpected death has upended everything - her expectation of marriage, her plans for the future - and cast her and her mother upon the mercy of relatives in the fabled city of Isfahan.
Her uncle is a wealthy designer of carpets for the Shah's court, and the young woman is instantly drawn to his workshop. She takes in everything - the dyes, the yarns, the meanings of the thousand ancient patterns - and quickly begins designing carpets herself. This is men's work, but her uncle recognizes both her passion and her talent and allows her secretly to cross that line.
But then a single disastrous, headstrong act threatens her very existence and casts her and her mother into an even more desperate situation. She is forced into an untenable form of marriage, a marriage contract renewable monthly, for a fee, to a wealthy businessman. Caught between forces she can barely comprehend, she knows only that she must act on her own, risking everything, or face a life lived at the whim of others.

I finished Nachtblauw by Simone van der Vlugt A nice read but not that special.

Now I'm reading another ROOT



De erfenis by Henriette Lazaridis Power
This is the translation of The Clover House
De erfenis = The inheritance
The Clover House = Het Klaver Huis

Boston, 2000: Calliope Notaris Brown receives a shocking phone call. Her beloved uncle Nestor has passed away, and now Callie must fly to Patras, Greece, to claim her inheritance. Callie’s mother, Clio—with whom Callie has always had a difficult relationship—tries to convince her not to make the trip. Unsettled by her mother’s strange behavior, and uneasy about her own recent engagement, Callie decides to escape Boston for the city of her childhood summers. After arriving at the heady peak of Carnival, Callie begins to piece together what her mother has been trying to hide. Among Nestor’s belongings, she uncovers clues to a long-kept secret that will alter everything she knows about her mother’s past and about her own future.

Greece, 1940: Growing up in Patras in a prosperous family, Clio Notaris and her siblings feel immune to the oncoming effects of World War II, yet the Italian occupation throws their privileged lives into turmoil. Summers in the country once spent idling in the clover fields are marked by air-raid drills; the celebration of Carnival, with its elaborate masquerade parties, is observed at home with costumes made from soldiers’ leftover silk parachutes. And as the war escalates, the events of one fateful evening will upend Clio’s future forever.

>208 connie53: The Blood of Flowers sounds like a very good read - wishlisted, thanks! :)

>206 connie53: I see it wasn't :)

>208 connie53: oh that's a cool challenge :) and you always find such great books to go with them!

>210 avanders: I am always very curious what the new theme is. This year the members have to come up with a theme. Last years two moderators choose all the challenges, but they came up with the idea for members to do so. My month is June.

Hi Connie! I hope you and Peet are doing well.

>211 connie53: oh fun! Even better to have different people coming up with the themes :)

It is lots of fun. The theme for may is: read a book about a dead person that has a big role in the story even after death. So the book I just finished De erfenis by Henriette Lazaridis Power fitted perfectly. This book was a bit disappointing. It is written beautiful, but I missed some more tension. I did not feel any connection with Callie (the daughter).

Yesterday I started in an other ROOT De wet van staal by Brandon Sanderson



From LT
Three hundred years after the events of the Mistborn trilogy, Scadrial is on the verge of modernity, with railroads to supplement the canals, electric lighting in the streets and the homes of the wealthy, and the first steel-framed skyscrapers racing for the clouds. Kelsier, Vin, Elend, Sazed, Spook, and the rest are now part of history--or religion.Yet even as science and technology are reaching new heights, the old magics of Allomancy and Feruchemy continue to play a role in this reborn world. Out in thefrontier lands known as the Roughs, they are crucial tools for the brave men and women attempting to establish order and justice. One such is Waxillium Ladrian, a rare Twinborn who can Push on metals with hisAllomancy and use Feruchemy to become lighter or heavier at will. After twenty years in the Roughs, Wax has been forced by family tragedy to return to the metropolis of Elendel. Now he must reluctantly put away his guns and assume the duties and dignity incumbent upon the head of a noble house. Or so he thinks, until he learns the hard way that the mansions and elegant tree-lined streets of the city can be even more dangerous than the dusty plains of the Roughs.

Just catching up with your thread, Connie, so I had to check out the stats. My books would fit 52.9 Billy bookcases. - those must be the short bookcases because I already have most of my collection in a lot fewer of the tall Billy bookcases. Great family pictures especially the ones of Fiene.

Glad to see you here, Meg. Thanks for the compliments about the pics.

Yesterday I had another fun meet-up with a few friends of my RL book-club. We went to a small town and visited 2 escape-rooms. I had never done that before and it was really very much fun.

!0 minutes left for the girls



Narrow escape with only seconds left.



We had a delightful dinner at a Greek restaurant.



It was a very nice day.

>217 connie53: Sounds like a lot of fun and a great day. I have never tried an "Escape Room" before. You have to pick locks, figure out the right way out or?

>217 connie53: I'm also not sure what happens in an escape room - sounds like you had a good time though!

>217 connie53: Another one who doesn't know what an Escape Room is.

You get locked up in a room. Our first was a broken-down spaceship and we had to figure out how to make things work again like electricity and air-flow and by solving puzzles searching for codes until we could lift off. You get an hour to do so.
The second one was in the hut of a hermit who died by murder. Again puzzles and searching for clues as to what happened.

It was great fun.

On the ROOTing front:
ROOT 13 is finished.

De wet van staal by Brandon Sanderson Very good story although with a bit more fighting than I thought necessary.

Now I'm starting another ROOT

Koud vuur by Kate Elliott



This is the exact translation of Cold Fire part 2 in the Spiritwalker series

From BOL.com
Cat Barahal and her beloved cousin Bee think they have reached a safe place to shelter. But the Cold Mages who are conspiring to take them prisoner are closing in. The warlord who hopes to conquer all Europa is convinced their destiny is to aid him, whether they want to or not. And the man Cat was forced to marry is back, as vainly arrogant and annoyingly handsome as ever.
Worst of all, as Hallows' Night approaches, powers hidden deep within the spirit world are rising. Cat must seek allies against these threats and figure out who to trust, for if she makes the wrong choices, she'll lose everything.
Only one thing is certain. When Hallows' Night comes the Wild Hunt will ride- and it feeds on mortal blood.

Hi Connie!

Escape rooms sound like a lot of fun. Thank you for sharing the pictures.

Congratulations on your ROOTs.

Feel free to add here about escape-rooms and such, but my second thread is here.
http://www.librarything.nl/topic/256733