A blog post two years in the making...

There's a saying in Puerto Rico (where I'm from and where I live) that goes "El que mucho abarca, poco aprieta", basically saying that if you try to carry too many things at once you will not be able to hold them tight. This is what that means: if you juggle too many things at once, nothing will get done as it should. And it happened to me. Family, church, work, direct sales business, book reviews, and a few side jobs, among other things, proved to be too much to handle and in the end, few things were done correctly and most things fell apart. Because this is what happens with me: when I have too many things at once my mind feels like an opened file cabinet. Too many files to handle at once, so I shut down. And it has been this way for the past two years.

No more.

I want to go back to basics, back to focusing on God, my family, my church and my work. Back to reading and enjoying it. Back to my books and good times.

During this time (two years!) in which I have not posted anything, I have read quite a few books, novels, and series that I have enjoyed. For instance, if you haven't had the chance to read The Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill series by Jennifer Beckstrand you don't know what you're missing. It's funny, very romantic, entertaining and full of Amish wisdom.

Another good series is the Cormoran Strike series, by Robert Galbraith (a pseudonym for J.K. Rowling). This is not a Christian series, and the first book is full of f words and c words and just plain old bad words, but it's a very entertaining series all the same. So far I have read the first two, and liked the second (The Silkworm) better than the first (The Cuckoo's Calling).

I also recommend the Alaskan Courage series, by Dani Pettrey. I have yet to read the last book of this series (book 5 "Sabotaged") but the first 4 were great, full of suspense, mystery, romance...

Not a book, but still a great find for me, Lauren Daigle's CD "How can it be". Great lyrics, great music, very talented young woman.

For other books and novels I have read, you can visit my Goodreads account.

So relax, spend quality time with God, enjoy good times with family and friends, enjoy a good book, make great memories and live life! Merry Christmas!

Murder on the Rocks, by Karen MacInerney

Overview (from Goodreads): Natalie Barnes buys the Gray Whale Inn, a bed and breakfast in Maine, and publicly opposes Bernard Katz's proposed resort development, which threatens a colony of black-chinned terns, and when Katz is found dead, Natalie must find the true killer in order to clear her own name.

Quick Review: Well, it wasn't bad, but it wasn't great. Although well paced, the author goes into unnecessary details, sort of like "I grabbed the milk from the refrigerator and closed the door with my left foot", all the time. It's not the milk part, but the left foot part that bothered me, as if she was writing a detailed movie script rather than a novel. The characters were ok but Natalie's love interest was meh. I guess he will be developed more as the series progresses, but he was so uninteresting that you wonder what she sees in him and doubt he's worth sticking with the series to find out. Natalie, on the other hand, is more interesting. However, she does some pretty dumb stuff trying to figure out who the killer is, which was disappointing.

The mystery is amusing at first but too easy to figure out. Even if you're not trying to guess it, you will instantly know who the killer is and part of the reason behind the murder. So it was somewhat entertaining but mostly forgettable.

2 1/2 stars

Agatha Christie

I have read only two Agatha Christie's books, and was pleasantly surprised. Here's my take on both:

The Secret Adversary

Great book, great mystery, great execution. I love it when they keep me guessing right until the end. There were a few things that bothered me slightly, but so minimal that I will not get into them. I loved the characters, and the plot; although it certainly is outdated, it's so well written that it doesn't matter. I could see a Hollywood adaptation. It's full of twists and turns, mystery, intrigue, suspense. I highly recommend it.
This was my first Agatha Christie book and it did not disappoint. 4 1/2 stars

The Mysterious Affair at Styles (Hercule Poirot #1)

Very, very good. This Poirot character is wonderfully irritating and funny. Also, although you may think you know who did it, keep on reading until the end because I found it to be surprising. Not what I expected. I love to be surprised, I love an unpredictable mystery, and The Mysterious Affair delivered. Not 5 stars because there were a few boring parts, but the rest made up for it. Nicely written and narrated, Mrs. Christie was very ingenious. A very smart mystery. 4/5 stars

Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder (Hannah Swensen, #1), by Joanne Fluke

Overview (from Goodreads): Hannah Swenson already has her hands full trying to dodge her mother's attempts to marry her off while running The Cookie Jar, Lake Eden, Minnesota's most popular bakery. But once Ron LaSalle, the beloved delivery man from the Cozy Cow Dairy, is found murdered behind her bakery with Hannah's famous Chocolate Chip Crunchies scattered around him, her life just can't get any worse. Determined not to let her cookies get a bad reputation, she sets out to track down a killer.

Review: Well, it was entertaining, and kept me guessing, which is a must in a who-done-it for me. However, I find it irritating that the main character knows everything. There is absolutely no topic (except men) that she doesn't know about, and not vaguely. She knows about the most unimportant, obscure or rare things, details, information always! Also, I didn't like the fact that her brother in law is the police detective, and she, true to form, knows about detective work more than him. I don't mind her solving the crime, of course not; but I do mind her speaking with her brother in law and practically teaching him how to do his job.
I like intelligent, educated, smart main characters, but Hannah is just too much.
Overall, not a bad book, although I'm still debating whether to read the next or not.

Oh! One more thing, the recipes! Loved that part!

3 out of 5 stars