When I'm embroidering, I love to listen to an audiobook. Sometimes I can watch TV or a movie, but I often miss a lot of the visual cues that are needed for movies. And don't even suggest a foreign language film, because I can't embroider and watch one of those to save my life. Audiobooks are a great way to let my mind wander and explore while I stitch. I love that my hands can stay busy and I can enjoy a good story. Audiobooks have helped me keep up with my passion of reading murder mysteries. If you've seen my Goodreads, then you know that's almost exclusively what I listen to.
In an effort to share more of the books I've enjoyed each month, I'm starting a new monthly series Called Audiobooks and Embroidery. I'll share some of the projects I've stitched as well as books I've enjoyed. If you're looking for murder mystery book recommendations, want to see what I'm stitching on behind the scenes, or just want a book club like blog post to read each month, then this series is for you!
Audiobooks and Embroidery: October Round Up
Bad Summer People by Emma Rosenblum
If you love a gossipy, beach town murder all about people keeping secrets and who have way too much money, then this book is for you. I read this book in two days because I was so engrossed in all the drama. I enjoyed the different perspectives throughout the book and did not see the ending coming! Find this book on Amazon.
One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson
This is the second book in the Jackson Brodie series. Like the first book in the series, it meanders between different characters lives that are all somewhat intertwined. As the story progresses you start to see how each story line connects, even though I often wondered if some ever would. Each character is intriguing, but I find this style of writing distracting because the murder isn't often front and center. It can be hard to know what is going on until the book wraps up. Will I read the next in the series? I'm on the fence. Find this book on Amazon.
The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager
I really struggled with this book. There were moments that had me really interested, but was also so unbelievable that I just almost didn't finish reading it. The paranormal aspect of the plot was too far fetched for me to enjoy. This book was recommended to me so I thought I'd power through and see if there was something I was missing. In the end, this was not it for me. Find this book on Amazon.
MISSING PIECES: A Kings Lake Investigation, Roxanne (Kings Lake #3), On Eden Street (Kings Lake #2), Song Bird (Kings Lake #1), The Camera Man: A DC Smith Investigation, and The Truth: A DC Smith Investigation by Peter Grainger
This month I finished all of the Peter Grainger books in the Kings Lake and DC Smith Series that I had started reading in September. Overall these are solid police style murder mysteries that remind me of a BBC production. There wasn't anything overly dramatic or anticliactic, but it was an enjoyable series, if somewhat predictable at times. A Case for Willows and Lane is another related Peter Grainger series that I'm planning to read next.
Swipe Up for More!: Inside the Unfiltered Lives of Influencers by Stephanie McNeal
Ok, this book has nothing to do with murder mysteries. Over the summer my friend Sara of Bear and Bean mentioned she was reading this book. It sounded interesting and I put it on my library holds list. This book is a look at mid 2010's to 2022 influencer culture, mainly on Instagram. While McNeal mentions some platforms, such as Snark Forums, that I'd never heard of before (think reddit but way meaner), there wasn't anything groundbreaking in this book. Instead, I was a little frustrated that McNeal focused on influencers that seemingly skyrocketted to fame instead of the grind and outreach a lot of this work can entail. (Apparently I have feelings about this :P) Find this book on Amazon.
What books have you been reading lately? Are there any titles or authors you'd recommend?
Now you might be wondering, what have I been doing while listening to all of these audiobooks? A lot of embroidery and driving to embroidery workshops.
This month I had a few big deliverables due for my second book, all about shoe embroidery. One of them was possible cover photos. This meant that I needed to have a handful of shoes embroidered to use for the cover. So everyday until a few days before the deadline, I spent at least 4 hours/day embroidering shoes. When I wasn't stitching on shoes, I was teaching embroidery workshops. I'm thankful to have so many amazing partners to teach with and be able to offer a few classes each week.
Stay tuned to see what I read next month.
Happy reading and stitching!
- Melissa
***Thanks for checking out my book recommendations. This post contains affiliate links. Should you purchase something listed, I may receive a small portion of the sale.***
Comments