Sunday Summary, 4 January 2015

It's a brand new year. Brand new opportunities and brand new challenges. I don't make New Year's Resolutions, as such, but like most people, I do take time at the turn of the year to review the previous one and think about ways to make the new year even better. I have decided to participate in several online reading challenges and I'm “keeping score” here on the blog.

Where I've been reading

In the second week of my end-of-year vacation, we stayed at home. We did make several short trips to visit our kids and hubby's parents—all of whom live roughly an hour from our house. I've read at home, in the car, and in various restaurants in the area.

What I've been reading

I thought I was never going to complete reading another book after The Galaxy Game which I finished early in the morning last Sunday. I was choosing other entertainments than reading (TV shows, NCAA football, and even a trip to the cinema), which meant that I completed the first book of 2015 yesterday morning.

Format: eBook
Source: purchased at Baen Ebooks
Completed: 3 January

★★★☆☆

Shadow of Freedom from the Saganami Island series in the Honorverse overlaps the main Honor Harrington series (A Rising Thunder) and Wages of Sin series (Torch of Freedom), telling the story of the escalating skirmishes between the ships of Manticore and the Solarian League. The action is set in the Verge, frontier worlds subject to exploitation by the Solarian League's Office of Frontier Security (OFS) and various transstellar corporations. Michelle Henke's Tenth Fleet, though not at full strength and with a limited supply of missiles, becomes responsible for intervening on various worlds struggling to remove the choke hold imposed by corrupt officials in the pay of OFS and the transstellars.

It's a riotous romp of a space opera. Expect lots of battles where the Manties “whup up” on the Sollies. There's very little character development going on, and there's no progression of the main story line, but it's still an enjoyable supplement to the saga of Honor Harrington and the universe in which she lives.

At the beginning of 2014, I set a goal of completing all the books in the Honor Harrington series and its related sub-series. I had intended to finish this most recently published book by the end of the year. It simply took me longer than that. Even though I started the book before Christmas, there was so much going on that I didn't spend as much time reading as usual. Finally, I wound it all up on Saturday morning, completing the challenge just a few days late.

Format: eBook
Source: borrowed from Sanger Public Library (via Overdrive)
Completed: 3 January

★★★☆☆

In this first book of Y S Lee's Agency series, we are introduced to Mary Quinn, a young orphan who is recruited into an all-female investigative unit called The Agency. Set in the late 1850's, Mary is asked to assume role of a lady's companion and obtain information on a rich merchant's missing cargo ships. A Spy in the House is full of action and adventure set against the backdrop of Victorian London.

I've had A Spy in the House on my library wishlist for months and months. When it suddenly showed as available just before my vacation was due to start, I scooped it up. I wasn't disappointed. It was a delightful and quick read—a bit of a romp as Mary demonstrates lots of “spunk” as she takes on her very first case for The Agency.

I think it is so much fun to catch up with the characters in favorite series. I'm almost half-way through Poison Flower, the seventh book in Thomas Perry's mystery series starring Jane Whitefield. I should finish it today or tomorrow and move on to A String of Beads which I will be reviewing for NetGalley. I'm also reading Echo Burning, the fifth book in Lee Child's Jack Reacher mystery series.

This Week on the Blog

It was another quiet week on the blog as my vacation from work became a vacation from blogging as well. Since I will be starting the 12th Bout of Books read-a-thon tomorrow morning and have two reviews to be posted this week, there'll be more to see here at Reading in Texas.

1. Stacking the Shelves (17)

And, as usual, I'm linking up with The Sunday Post, hosted by Kimba @ The Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on the blog, showcase books and things received. Share news about what is coming up on the blog for the week ahead.