A Bookish Life In AK

Met with a few writer friends this morning in our local bookstore that just reopened in a beautiful new spot.

I am sitting in the new Islander Bookshop here on Kodiak enjoying the view and the pot of English Breakfast tea. I was invited to meet up with a couple of local writers. I am also working on a couple of writing projects as well as this blog. This place is beautifully done up for Christmas and their Grand Opening. I will have a post up telling you all about this wonderful place in a few weeks. I have a few posts that are coming up in the next few weeks about Christmas reads, both fiction and nonfiction. To be honest, reading and listening to all these Christmas stories has me wanting to decorate before Thanksgiving. I can’t wait to tell you all about them!

I have finished 2 books recently, “The Secrets Beneath” by Kimberley Woodhouse and “The Lost Boys of Barlow Theater” by Jamie Jo Wright. Both are new releases from both authors and I just had to have them. (This post contains affiliate links.)

First up is “The Lost Boys of Barlow Theater.” The cover is absolutely gorgeous. This was a great October read. If you love ghost stories, this is for you! In 1915, Greta Mercy’s parents have died, her older brother was killed in a horrible accident at the Barlow Theater, leaving her in charge of her younger brothers. Greta was at a show and she sees a woman in white toss a baby off the balcony. All this leads her on a chase to find out who the woman is. One of her brothers, Leo, and a few other boys decide to go out and cause some trouble. Meanwhile, in 2023, Kit Boyd and her friend decides to lead a ghost walk with a television crew through the theater to research the stories of missing people and other strange occurrences that have happened through the years. While on the walk, Kit’s best friend goes missing. She then has to work with ghost hunting skeptic Ethan to find her friend. Kit faces dangers she never thought she’d have to face and finds out who she can trust. I honestly have not been able to stop thinking about this book. I am already wanting to reread it. Amazon Link: https://amzn.to/473IxNs

When I went to Anchorage in September I got to meet Kimberley Woodhouse and Tracey Peterson. Kimberley was talking about her newest series, “Treasures of the Earth” and the first book ofd that series is “There Secrets Beneath.” I fell in love with the idea of a paleontologist’s daughter going on digs. The story is set in the late 1870’s, a time when girls and ladies were not encouraged to not get dirty or dig in the dirt at all. Anna is the daughter of a well known paleontologist and accompanies him on his fossil digs to do the sketches of what they find. Her beloved, Joshua, left for medical school 3 years ago. They had a huge fight before he left and have not spoken since. While Julian is on his way back to visit family, Anna is caught in a flash flood that uncovers some bones on the neighbor’s property. When they get the permission to dig there, a friendship develops between Anna and Julian Walker, the new owner of Walker Ranch since his father died. Julian is known for being an amazing gardener, which on the flip side, is not common in men back then. When tragedy happens, Anna asks Julian to help her with a project. During this same time Joshua has come home for a break and reunites with Anna. He helps Anna out on the dig and then finds himself needing to stay longer than he expected.This book has lots of twists and turns, wonderful messages of faith, and great characters. Kimberley did such a great job researching all of the dinosaur and fossil information. You almost forget that it is fiction when your read her descriptions of how they do the required work. This book had me from the start, I felt like Anna and I could have been friends, she is so much like me. I am excited to read the next one that comes out in March 2024, “Set in Stone.” Amazon Link:https://amzn.to/3QyDNbM

I have read several from both authors now, Kimberely Woodhouse for a bit longer, I just came to find out about Jamie Jo Wright earlier this year and have devoured most of her books, either on audiobooks or paperbacks. They re 2 very different writers. Kimberley Woodhouse books and historical and sweet romances were as Jamie Jo Wright’s books are more of thriller types, although Kimberley does have a series that has some pretty intense stuff in it. You need to look up “8 Down.” Jamie Jo Wright is deliciously dark and so intriguing, I cannot put her books down. Both very different writers but so wonderful to read. You can find Jamie Jo Wright at https://www.jaimewrightbooks.com and Kimberely Woodhouse at https://kimberleywoodhouse.com.

Prayer and Blessings, Becky

I have set the LORD always before me:
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth:
my flesh also shall rest in hope. Psalm 16:8-9