Reading while unemployed

Today would have been the 14th anniversary of my time with my former employer had I not quit about a month ago. It was becoming more and more clear that the company's priorities were different than they had been. And I was never going to measure up to the (unrealistic?) expectations set by a revolving door of bosses. So, I saved up my money, found a couple of contract jobs, and turned in my resignation.
During the last month, I've employed a number of self-care techniques including travel (which isn't something I normally do) and reading (which is a life-long passion.) I've also taken the time to nook-and-cranny my house and my online life. What does that mean? I'm going through everything, everything, to see whether or not it serves me. And what am I noticing? If I had been paying closer attention, I would have noticed my unhappiness a lot sooner.
When my life is going well, I never let my blog posts pile up. I had to go through almost 2,000 posts to catch up. When my life is going well, my ratings on books are inevitably higher (I'm guessing that's true for everyone). There were a lot of two and three stars reviews from me 7/8 months ago. When my life is going well, my TBR is usually at the same level or going slightly down (unless I go to book conferences... but that's another story) and it was going up and up and up and stressing me out.
Right now, I am thankful. Thankful that I am in a place where I don't have to work in a job that is so toxic just to make the rent. Thankful that I am getting to a place where I am exercising every day, even if that only means a 30 minute walk with my dog. Thankful that I can take some time to cull down my TBR as well as re-read old favorites. I am thankful that the friends who have been telling me for over a year that it is time to get out aren't saying, "I told you so" although it is well within their rights. Thankful that my therapist was able to cut through the bullshit and figure out what was really bothering me.

tl;dr Take care of yourselves -- try to use your books to figure out when you're in a life slump -- self-care is never a bad thing

Giving Done Right by Phil Buchanan

This is a really good book about noprofits and how they work. There are great tidbits of information like -- you should not judge a nonprofit by its overhead costs. Giving coherent examples, Buchanan bucks the trend that I normally dislike in my nonfiction books -- using more stories than facts.

Not just for givers, this book should be read by the people on nonprofit boards as well as the people at the top levels. I used to work in the nonprofit world and got to see firsthand what worked and what didn't and I think Buchanan has nailed almost everything.

Will this book appeal to every reader? I don't know. I feel like this is more of a labor of love than a book that is going to appeal to a wide audience but it is a valuable book nonetheless.
Four stars
This book came out April 16th
ARC kindly provided by Perseus Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Fatal Inheritance by Rachel Rhys

Like so many women, English housewife Eve Forrester's fiance died in World War II. She ended up marrying a man who is a bit pompous but generally very good to her. So what if her days are unendingly boring and she doesn't have a child? She's alive and married to a good man. Her carefree days of adventure are long behind her.  At least, they are until a mysterious letter from a French solicitor comes to her doorstep. Her husband is convinced it's a scam but Eve decides to take advantage of the ticket to get away from her husband and her nagging, always unhappy mother.
On the train ride down, she starts to meet the cast of characters who will change her life. The mysterious inheritance from a man she never knew sets a number of wheels in motion including propelling Eve into the fading but still glittering world of the Riviera in the late 1940s.
Included in the cast of characters are the man's two sons from his first marriage and one of their fiancee's (who is purported to be in love with the brother she's not marrying), the second wife and her daughter, an American writer, and a famous film actress who is more hopped up on pills than not.
Rhys manages to weave together several fairly disparate plotlines into one story. The  use of present tense  made it hard for me to settle into the story. It took over half the book for me to catch on to the rhythm. I think I understand the use of it (it's sort of a Gothic novel and the present tense adds to the general creepiness) but it did almost make me quit the book.

Three and a half stars
This book comes out June 11
ARC kindly provided by Atria Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

The Liar in the Library by Simon Brett

About fifteen, twenty years ago, Jude used to have dinner with Megan Georgeson and her husband Al Sinclair. Megan was a famous actor and Al was... well. He was handsy. Jude always managed to escape but she wasn't sure how Megan put up with him. Nor how his new wife, the paragon Persephone, is managing.
Now Al has rebranded himself as Burton St. Clair and has finally published a book worth noting. In fact, he's talking about his book at the Fethering library. There are a number of people who stand up to ask questions, then hang around to drink the wine. It's too bad that it starts raining at the end of the night and Al offers Jude a trip home. True to form, he makes a pass. Jude slaps him and walks home. Too bad no one sees her and that turns out to be a problem when Al/Burton is found in the parking lot the next morning, dead. As the last person to see him, Jude is immediately a suspect.
It doesn't help that Megan remembers Jude as a homewrecker and no one seems to believe that she wasn't, even Carole, Jude's usual amateur detecting partner.
I hadn't read any of the other books in this series but didn't feel like I was missing anything (at book 18 even!). I also didn't connect with either Jude or Carole. Jude was a little... well, after 17 other run-ins with a dead body you'd think she would've been smarter. And that Carole would have trusted her a bit more though the fact that she didn't blindly believe Jude was nice. The mystery was fairly clued and that helped make this a very readable story.

Three stars
This book comes out June 16th
ARC kindly provided by Black Thorn and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Who's Sorry Now? by Maggie Robinson

When the first book ended, Lady Adelaide had sincerely believed she would not see her dead husband again. And yet, here he is in the same New York underground club surrounded by Bright Young Things and telling Addie that the club is about to be raided. He helps get her and her sister, Cecelia "Cee", out the men's room window.
They make it back to England but Addie once again hears Rupert as Cee drinks out of her friend's glass and immediately falls over. This after a string of BYTs have been poisoned to death. Luckily, Adelaide jumps into action and saves her sister. She immediately offers to help the hunky Detective Inspector Dev Hunt in his search for the killer.
I liked this book better than the first. Robinson has built her world and now is able to work into the story a bit more.

Four stars
This book came out June 1
Follows Nobody's Sweetheart Now
Followed by Just Make Believe
ARC kindly provided by Poisoned Press, NetGalley, and Edelweiss
Opinion is my own

Murder at Morrington Hall by Clara McKenna

A Kentucky heiress, Stella Kendrick isn't much for the social whirl. Which makes it even more surprising that her father has dragged her along to some society wedding in England. Specifically, at Morrington Hall where her father is giving some of his racehorses as a gift. Stella is shocked to find out that she is supposed to be the bride. Strong-willed and independent (she drives!), she's determined that this wedding will not happen. No matter how handsome or understanding the groom is.
Lyndy, Viscount Lyndhurst is bemused by this brash young woman. She doesn't act like anyone he's ever known. Stella certainly doesn't act like she's anxious to be married to an English lord nor is she particularly interested in being the perfect viscountess. And that, along with her beauty, intrigues him.
Their wedding day is stalled, however, when the vicar supposed to marry them is found dead in the library. By Lyndy and Stella no less. This definitely casts a pall over the wedding proceedings but it gives them a chance to get to know each other a little. Lyndy is working hard to convince Stella that he doesn't want her to change while Stella is trying hard to figure out who killed the vicar and stole the surprisingly large amount of money from his coin purse.
An interesting start to a series. The relationship between Lyndy and Stella is only just beginning so we only get to see the two of them starting to figure each other out and I think that was a wise choice. The mystery was a little more rocky for my taste. The motive sort of made sense but I didn't think that the solution was introducted in a logical manner.

Three stars
Followed by Murder at Blackwater Bend
This book came out May 28th
ARC kindly provided by Kensington Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Sweet Cream Ladies, Ltd. by Flo Fitzpatrick

Hasn't everyone come up with a list of people they wouldn't mind dying? Okay, I technically haven't but I could see good reasons for doing so. Babs "Binnie" Harrison and Bootsie Kittredge, both professional actresses, come up with such a list one drunken night. And also joke that other people have similar lists and that the two of them should go into business "helping" others check names off their own lists. But then Babs gets drunk again and starts telling people about their list, the five names including a demanding actress they've both gone up against for roles, both of their ex-husbands, a psychic who helped Binnie's marriage crack up. Then, the people on their list start ding, in just the manner they had proscribed. Of course, they're the first ones suspected and interviewed by the hunky Detective Laramie. But they may need more than just his help to stay out of jail.
It took me a bit to get into the writing style but I eventually caught up. The ending was a bit over the top as well but it was overall a fun read.

Three and a half stars
This book came out May 15th
ARC kindly provided by publisher and NetGalley
Opinions are my own