Category: Conversations with Kav

Just a wee bit more End of the Year bookish chitchat. Feel free to join in by answering any (or all) of these questions in the comments. It’s fun to see what other readers’ bookish priorities are as we draw near to the close of another year.

Are there any books you started this year and want to finish?

Not any fiction that I can think of. Once I start a book, I either commit or DNF pretty quickly. So, if I’m committed, the book is read in a day or two – three at the most. If it’s DNFed, I don’t give it a second thought and move on.

It takes me longer to work my way through non-fiction books though. I’ve been reading ‘Hearing God : Developing a Conversational Relationship with God’ by Dallas Willard that I thought I’d have finished before the end of the year, but I’m not going to push myself so it will likely be a carry over. Lot’s of thought-provoking ideas that I need sit with and mull over before I continue reading.

Is there a new release you’re still waiting for this year?

YESSSSSS!!!!!!! ‘Cloaked in Beauty’ by Karen Witemeyer. I loved the first two books in her ‘Texas Every After’ series and this one is a Red Ridinghood retelling. Eepppp! I don’t think I’ve ever read a book based on this particular fairy tale so I’m excited to see the ways the author weaves the familiar parts into her unique reimagining. It comes out December 17.

What 3 books would you like to read before the end of the year?

Ummm….only three, eh? Okay, let’s see if I can be that concise:

Because it’s been on my TBR for months and everyone is raving about it: ‘Wedding at Sea‘ by Melissa Tagg. I know, I know, what have I been waiting for?!

Because it’s tradition to read a Julie Klassen book in December: “The Seaside Homecoming” — it just released this week. Eeeeppp!!!

Because I just picked it up from the library: ‘The Roads We Follow’ by Nicole Deese…yes, I know, another book that got away from me this year but it’s on my TBR now, right at the tippy top so it we’re getting closer….if I could just stop reading Christmas books long enough to look at anything else. Bwahahaha!

Is there a book that could surprise you and become a favourite?

Hmmm….I’m usually pretty secure in my picks but I’ve been exploring more clean rom/coms lately and I never know if I’ll jive with a new-to-me author until I give one of their books a try. That’s because the definition of ‘clean’ can vary quite a bit and I’m looking for the ones that fit my comfort level. So, another recent library acquisition on my TBR is ‘How to Kiss Your Grumpy Boss’ by Jenny Proctor. I’m excited to give this author a try and see is she becomes a fave.

What book have you been putting off reading this year?

Didn’t have to think twice about this answer. ‘Wishtress’ by Nadine Brandes. I have checked this book out of the library so many times, renewed it over and over again, returned it and then checked it out again. And repeat and repeat and repeat. I don’t know why I’m so reluctant. It has rave reviews from readers I trust, the story sounds intriguing, I’ve enjoyed other books by this author but still, here we are at the end of year and ‘Wishtress’ is back on my physical TBR valiantly battling her way to the top. I really need to give her a chance. Maybe it’s the fantasy aspect that gives me pause?

Have you already started making plans for the new year?

Wellll….I did go out and buy my reading and tracking journals. I’ll set them up sometime over the Christmas break and since Reader’s Choice Week will be upon us soon I’ll start plotting out the January, February and March 2025 new releases I will want to read. I’m very much a mood reader though, so I never really have any concrete reading plans.

First a bit of blog business: Christmas is fast approaching as is our last Reader’s Choice Week of the year and I’m looking for your input as to when and how to schedule it. I’m taking a break from blogging for Christmas week, December 22 – 28 so we’re looking at Reader’s Choice Week being mid December or the first week in January. I’m also considering drawing it out over two weeks instead of the hectic one, so we’d do three genre days the first week and three genre days the second week. That could be three days the week of December 15-21 and three days the week of December 29 – January 4. Or the first two weeks of January – Any preferences? Let me know in the comments.

‘Tis the season where bloggers, booktubers and bookstagrammers start making their top books of the year lists, daring to answer absolutely horrid questions like: What was your favourite book of the year? Seriously?! Who can pick just one? And choosing a favourite is like asking a mother to identify her favourite child! It’s just not done! So, I’ve modified the question and asked myself:

What is one notable book you read this year?

I thought I’d have a really hard time picking just one, but, honestly, there actually is one book that did come to mind right away, and it’s one I’ve thought about time and again since I read it way back in January! One of the reasons is because it seems to have been largely overlooked, in my sphere of social media anyway. There wasn’t a lot of hoopla over the book’s release or lots of review chatter. I didn’t see it posted on Instagram. I don’t even remember how I stumbled upon its existence — but oh my, am I ever glad I did! This story has stayed with me for a whole year! And it’s definitely one I’ll be adding to my re-read list. The book:

Trust the Stars by Tricia Goyer

This is how I started my review: “Me after finishing this book: languishing on my fainting couch in a gobsmacked swoon of astounded delight. I did not expect this story to be so…royal and deep and spellbinding! And the faith thread about trusting God and how easy/hard that is all rolled into one. Goyer touched my heart and made me think and stunned me with the richness of this not quite fairy tale.”

You can read the full synopsis and my complete review here (but then come back for the giveaway): https://kavsbestreads.ca/2024/01/11/trust-the-stars-giveaway/

Because this is such an awesome, unsung hero kinda book, I’m offering a giveaway of Trust the Stars. Details below. And feel free to share one of your 2024 notable reads as well!

GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

This giveaway is for a print or ebook copy. Winner’s choice.

US – available in print or ebook — winner’s choice

Canada – available in print or ebook or audible (if available) — winner’s choice

International – ebook copy if you have a US Kindle account.

If you would like a chance to win a copy of the Trust the Stars, leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoread AT yahoo DOT ca. If you add an email to your comment, remember to use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in order to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email, please add the title to the subject line so it’s easy to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Saturday December 7 2024.

In honour of American Thanksgiving, let’s share some of our favourite bookish things. And let’s chat holiday traditions and FOOD too. (I have so many questions!) Plus, there will be a GIVEAWAY because we’re all so thankful for Baker Book House and all they do to promote quality Christian Fiction and make it easily accessible to us all. More details about that at the end of this post.

CANADIAN VERSUS AMERICAN THANKS GIVING

I’m surprised by some of the differences between our two countries’ celebrations. Canada’s Thanksgiving is always the second Monday in October. We’ve been celebrating since 1879 but it became an official holiday in 1957 with this heartwarming proclamation: “A Day of General Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed – to be observed on the second Monday in October.”

American Thanksgiving began a little bit earlier — 1863 — and, of course, is linked way back to the Pilgrims’ harvest festival in 1621, so actually, you kinda have a couple of centuries jump on us. But the fourth Thursday of November? How does that make any sense? Why not make it Friday or Monday so everyone can have a long weekend?

And y’all are football crazy! (disclaimer: I’m getting my US cultural facts from all the fiction I’ve read.) But, seriously, football seems to be the main event on Thanksgiving day…and I’m thinking it’s a major league important game? Canadians are — surprise — hockey mad and the NHL season starts in early October so if anyone is watching a game on Thanksgiving weekend, it’ll be hockey!

• Another interesting difference between our two countries is that right after Thanksgiving, Canadians decorate for Halloween while Americans go into full Christmas mode. 🙂

• And the food! The basics are the same, turkey or ham with veggies and green bean casserole seems to be a universal love/hate side dish…BUT… speaking of sides, do you actually have baked macaroni and cheese as a side too? Up here that’s the main course and I’ve never seen it paired with meat in the same meal as well…unless you have a vegetarian in your midst that you’re catering to.

• Now onto to pies. I have questions. First, in Canada I’d say by far the favourite is apple pie for our Thanksgiving dinner, though we have pumpkin pie too. I LOVE pumpkin pie, but most people I know aren’t a fan, hence the apple pie. Or any other kind of fruit pie.
• What we don’t have is sweet potato pie! We have yummy sweet potatoes as a side veggie (divine with a maple syrup glaze) but in a dessert?! Nope. I don’t think anyone up here has even thought of it and, honestly, I think it sounds kinda gross. So, if you’ve had sweet potato pie, what does it taste like?
• And I’ve never seen a pecan pie. I’m thinking that’s a mostly Southern dish? We have butter tarts here, and sometimes you can get them with pecans, but that’s the closest I can think of to pecan pie. Maybe because pecans are so expensive up here since we can’t grow them ourselves? Definitely not a part of a our Canadian harvest.
• Then there’s chocolate pie. I have never seen one of these either. Since it sounds divine (hello, chocolate!) I thought I’d give making one a try but it turned into one very expensive inedible mess, so, I’m on the fence about chocolate in a pie. I think I’d prefer cake. But if you’re a fan, tell me why.

Now onto the Bookish Things I’m Thankful For!

Book I’m most thankful for this year:

This is an impossibly cruel question to ask an avid reader so I’m not going to answer it, other than to say — ALL OF THEM!!!! Bwahahahaha!

Author I’m most thankful for this year:

Argh — I hate having to single any one author out. I will say that for my Cozy Mystery reading, Donna Andrews is someone I’m so thankful for. I have been reading and re-reading her Meg Langslow series (36 books and counting) since 2020. She’s created characters who have become my friends and Caerphilly is where I want to live, if only it existed. Meg and company have seen me through some tough times and they always lift my spirits.

For Christian Fiction.…there are just so many that I don’t dare single one author out. How about I go with the last time I felt such an anticipatory thrill when I discovered a new-to-me book by a fave author that I ordered it immediately. That would be Pepper Basham and the book was The Christmas Clue to Finding You.

Booktuber I’m thankful for this year: Again, there are so many I enjoy watching who highlight Christian Fiction. But, I’ll pick Lou at Christian Faith and Fiction. She lives in the UK and gives really insightful reviews, plus, she’s started rating faith content — 1 – 3 stars, which is really, really helpful. And, while she’s a regular contributor to the booktube community, you won’t be overwhelmed by the sheer volume of videos releasing, so great for a newbie to the book world on Youtube. Oh, and at the beginning of each month she does a pretty thorough update of Christian Fiction releasing that month. https://www.youtube.com/@ChristianFaithAndFiction

New author I’m thankful I ‘met’ this year: Gah….it’s always so hard to stick to just one so I’ll go by genre.

• Gracie Ruth Mitchell for Clean Contemporary Romance
• Jackie Layton for Christian Fiction Cozy Mystery
• Laura Thomas for Christian Fiction Romantic Suspense (and she’s a Canadian!)
• Pat Simmons for Christian Fiction Contemporary Romance
• Juneau Black for Cozy Mystery
• Tricia Mingerink for Fantasy
• Miranda D. Nelson for Historical Romance

2024 Debut author I’m thankful for: Hmmm….I’ll say Angela Carlisle. Her debut, Secondary Target is incredible and she’s an exciting new voice in Romantic Suspense. Can’t wait to see what she releases next.

And let’s not forget about notebooks! Squeall!! I need them for keeping tracking of giveaways, goals, stats, scheduled blog posts, upcoming releases, books I want to read, authors I want to check out…the list goes on forever. This is my recent haul courtesy of the Dollorama’s stationary aisle. All brand new, pristine pages ready to be filled to brimming with bookish wonders. I can’t wait!

AND NOW IT’S TIME FOR THE GIVEAWAY!

Just leave a comment (or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca) about one of the bookish things you are thankful for and I’ll put your name in my Random Wheel of Names Generator and you could win a $10.00 e-gift card for Baker Book House. They have fantastic deals, including free shipping and discounts for new releases as well as used books. 

Draw will be held and winner announced on Saturday November 30 2024.

It’s finally cool enough to light a fire so, gather ’round and toast your tootsies and let’s participate in a Bits and Bobs Bookish Chat. That’s a fancy way of saying I don’t have a themed conversation planned for today. 🙂 So, we’re going to bounce around topics and you can jump in with some of your own too. I’ll provide the refreshments (hot cocoa and ginger thins (kafferep) from IKEA. Yum!) Let’s get started!

I mentioned this event a couple of weeks ago and it’s now in full swing. A ton of indie authors have banned together to host the event and I believe there will be giveaway announcements in the latter part of the month. I’ve discovered a bunch of new-to-me authors through the list I’ll share below and I’ve purchased a few books and will be sharing them in giveaways the rest of the month. I got a nice mix of historical, contemporary rom/com and suspense and I stuck with a holiday theme because that’s what I’m in the mood for. I’m really pleased with what I’ve read so far. Here’s a link (thank you, Paula) to a list of their genres and authors/titles. Very clever categories. They’ve put a lot of thought into it.https://subscribepage.io/bellpepper?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=check_out_this_bell_pepper_romance_event_going_on&utm_term=2024-11-01

Also, if you do a search for #Bell Pepper Romance, you’ll find links to blogs, instagram posts and You Tube videos.

And speaking of hashtags — I need help with some of the technicalities of posting reviews online and I’m sure there are some techno wizards in our midst who can help. Pretty please. 🙂

First — Amazon: Lately I’ve been getting notifications from Amazon requesting that I edit and resubmit my reviews because of questionable content such as profanity, harassment, hate speech, sexual content, illegal activity and private information! I’m totally gobsmacked — especially since the exact same review will be approved and published on the Canadian Amazon site. But the US site is giving me fits. It happens with maybe one out of five reviews. I change a few words and resubmit my review and it’s usually approved. A few just seem to be stuck in limbo though and never get posted. It wouldn’t bother me that much except that Net Galley expects reviews to be posted on various online sites, so it is kinda a big deal if I want to keep getting audio books from them. So, has this been happening to anyone else? I’m hoping it’s just some flukey algorithm glitch and not a targeted attack on little old me. Bwahahaha! Any suggestions on what I can do to sort this problem out?

And then there’s Net Galley. I’m pretty comfortable posting reviews and links on their site but there’s one area I keep leaving blank because I don’t know what to put. Of course, I can’t remember exactly what it looks like or what it’s called, but it’s on the second page after you click the boxes about whether you’d buy the book, recommend the book etc. It’s something about putting in descriptors to help other reviewers search? Do they mean tags like Historical Fiction or the author’s name or Christian Fiction? Do you add anything in that field? I’ve still been getting books to review even though I’ve been leaving it blank.

Oh — and do you have a shelf dedicated to Net Galley on Good Reads? I had one request from an independent author to do that and I couldn’t figure out why I thought the shelves we create were for our own use and I can’t fathom why I’d want a list of books I received from Net Galley.

And then, when you post reviews on instagram or other social media, do you tag the author and publisher? Like @theauthor ? Is that good digital etiquette or is it a nuisance? Expected or not? Inquiring minds want to know. 🙂

And can someone explain how to use hashtags properly? I haven’t used them at all because, I dunno, they seem so random and my little librarian brain can’t compute. Like what earthly good would #bookboyfriends be to anyone? But I can see how #bellpepperromance works successfully in a search because it’s more specific. But I see posts with so many random hashtags at the end that it’s just confusing.

Okay — that’s enough questions from me today. I’d sure appreciate some feedback, though, from you more sophisticated, got-it-all-together reviewer types. 🙂

I am very much a mood reader so it’s pretty much impossible for me to stick to a monthly TBR like a lot of people do. Content creators on Booktube create lovely monthly TBR videos, sharing the books they plan to read in the next month. So, right now, I’m being inundated with these goal-oriented videos and, while I love watching them, I can’t imagine anything more torturous than having to make up a reading list and sticking to it for a whole month!

EXCEPT….

I have noticed a definite inclination towards certain genres and tropes in different seasons.

Summer

Like I discovered an affinity for Contemporary Rom/Coms this summer. It was like I couldn’t get enough of fun, flirty meet-cutes, witty banter and plots filled with comedic flare. I could read one after another and never grow bored. It wasn’t that I didn’t read other genres as well, but I craved rom/coms…especially ones set in summertime.

Autumn

So, then things get kinda strange when the crisp cool weather heralds in the fall. Oh, I’ll still read a rom/com if it catches my eye but what I can’t live without, literally, I would pine away without… a healthy dose of Romantic Suspense! And, as the days get shorter and the nights grow colder and I start making a hot cocoa to sip while I read, just any Romantic Suspense won’t do. It has to be a Stalker trope! Yes, I know that sounds really odd…maybe even creepy to some of you…but I cannot make it through the fall without a few good stalker books!

Winter

I live far enough north that the snow starts to fly in November so that’s when I officially feel like winter has arrived. And my reading cravings become oddly specific. I’m still on the Romantic Suspense kick BUT now I need a snowed in with a crazy stalker guy / damsel in distress / brooding hero to the rescue trope. Bwahahaha. Don’t judge. It’s really more than a craving…it’s a deep rooted bibliophile need and I have no idea why. I can settle for being stranded by another kind of natural disaster, but snow is my first choice. And while I love a strong heroine to the rescue other times of the year, the first chill of winter screams ‘damsel in distress’ to me. Isn’t that odd? Oh, and the brooding hero is very important. All noble intentions but miffed that he’s been put in that position. And he shouldn’t communicate well. Like, if he doesn’t talk for the first 50-100 pages, you know just heavy sighs and annoyed grunts kind of thing, well, then I’m swooning in bibliophile bliss. (Told you my reading cravings became oddly specific!)

Christmas

Guess we can’t talk seasons without mentioning Christmas. I can happily read Christmas books any time of the year but I start looking for them in September and read most of them before December. That’s because I want to make sure giveaway books reach winners in a timely fashion so they can be enjoyed during the holidays. This is the time of year that I actually look for novella collections. And I’m particularly fond of Regency Christmas novellas. And Amish Christmas books in general…which is kinda weird since they really don’t celebrate the holidays with the same gusto us Englishers do. Then again, maybe it’s the simplicity of the festivities that are the draw.

So, what about you? Do different seasons spark different genre interests in you too? Or am I just peculiar? 🙂

Oh — and you’ll notice I didn’t mention spring and that’s because I really don’t think I have a genre/trope preference in the spring. I think I’m so gobsmacked giddy over no more snow and getting back into my garden that I’m happy to read anything that strikes my fancy.

This is me feeling uber guilty over one of my ten reading goals for this year. That would be to read more independently published books. Because my reading year looks like this so far:

Yikes! It looks really bad put into a graph! So I have just two months left to sort this and I need your help!

LET’S TALK INDIE AUTHORS AND THEIR BOOKS

I need some guidance and a whole lot of encouragement to help me navigate the indie world of Christian Fiction. So, what’s a reader to do but turn to her bookish besties who always have her back?!

I’d love to hear about:

• some of your favourite indie authors (can include hybrid authors (publish both indie and traditional)
• a specific indie book recommendation you think I would enjoy
• how you source indie books

No worries if some of you end up recommending the same author(s )– that’ll just push them higher up the priority list since they are so popular. But I’d also like to end up with a healthy Indie TBR list by the end of the day. And, as a special thank you for sharing your love of Indie Christian Fiction:

INDIE CHRISTIAN FICTION GIVEAWAY

At the end of your comment, include the title and author of an indie CF book you would like to win and I’ll enter you in the draw. Books MUST BE CHRISTIAN FICTION and can be independently published any time up through the end of this year.

This giveaway is for a print or ebook copy. Winner’s choice.

US – available in print or ebook — winner’s choice

Canada – available in print or ebook or audible (if available) — winner’s choice

International – ebook copy if you have a US Kindle account.

If you would like a chance to win a copy of a Christian Fiction Indie novel, leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoread AT yahoo DOT ca. If you add an email to your comment, remember to use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in order to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email, please add the title to the subject line so it’s easy to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Saturday October 26 2024.

I was recently scrolling through my Instagram feed and I came across a post announcing an upcoming November Clean/Closed Door Romance promotion. First — I love they have coined the phrase ‘Bell Pepper Romance’ to describe these romances. I’ve always been uncomfortable with defining books as ‘clean’, ‘wholesome’, ‘sweet’ etc. Makes them sound so…well, ‘meh’. Like there won’t be any substance to the stories which is so far from the truth as these kinds of romances often deal with difficult subject matter, have emotionally layered characters and complex plots. So, Bell Pepper Romance is not only fun, but perfectly compliments its sister, ‘Spicy Romance.’ I really hope this trend catches on.

Anyway, the definition of a Bell Pepper Romance is no sex on the page and no swears….except for bible swears? I’ve never heard that term before and wonder if any of you have? I’m assuming it means words found in the bible that are generally considered as ‘mild’ cuss words? Like um, well, the other word for donkey or h-e-double hockey sticks (true confession, I’m super conservative about language as you can tell by my inability to even spell the words out here! 🙂 )

So, this got me thinking — what does ‘clean’ actually mean to you? Just the absence of physical intimacy and no crude cursing in a story? Because, that’s not what I am looking for when I am reading Christian Fiction (especially!) or a Bell Pepper Romance.

For example, if you take the biblically acceptable h-e-double hockey stick word and turn it from a place name noun into an exclamation, then it becomes swearing as far as I’m concerned. I recently read a contemporary rom/com which used that word as a form of cussing a few times and it totally took me by surprise. Enough that I won’t be reading any other books by that new-to-me author. I mean, if you’re only going to use the word a handful of times, why even bother? Surely there are other ways to show a character’s shock, dismay or other strong feeling.

And don’t get me started on using the Lord’s name in vain — another bible word that is all to often used as a curse word. I stopped reading a Historical Romance author I loved when I noticed this kind of profanity creeping into her stories more and more. I finally DNFed one where a number of male characters kept using the Lord’s name in vain…as if that was somehow an acceptable ‘clean’ alternative to coarser language. Now, this is a secular author, so totally understandable that she is fine with that type of language in her books, but it’s just not content I want to read.

So, tell me, am I too conservative? Could some of these milder examples of swearing be more acceptable in some regions/countries than in others? Or am I just a prude? (I won’t be offended if you say I am.)

And how do you source out your really, truly ‘clean’ (for lack of a better word) contemporary and historical romances? Any recommendations? I’m excited to have chance to discover new authors and books during this special November promotion…just not sure how I can avoid the ‘bible swears’.

Stay tuned for details on the Bell Pepper Romance Bookstagram Event in November!