New Arrivals!

After a drought, the books are coming in again, way faster than I can read them. I got one new book for review and I went to the library because I needed books for my Reading around the USA in 90 Days challenge (do check oit the post and help me find books for the different states, please!). I made a separate New Arrivals post for the Dutch books I received (on my Dutch blog, in Dutch).

The reason I got only one book for review is that I say “no” to almost everything now. I did get one other book, but that’s a Dutch publisher, so it’s in my Dutch post. I want to spend most of the summer on books I already own or books that I get from the library for my USA challenge. After the summer, I may take on some more review books again.

Books for review

The Wine Maker by Noah Gordon

I got this book from Open Road Media via Netgalley. The print book will be out in September.

In the 1980s, I read The Physician and Shaman by this author. Especially the first book I re-read several times and absolutely loved it. Seeing this new book at Netgalley I was very keen to read it. I finished it yesterday and it’s as good as I had hoped. The only issue with it: it ends. 5 stars

From the publishers: “Josep Alvarez is a young man in the tiny grape-growing village of Santa Eulália, in northern Spain, where his father grows black grapes that are turned into cheap vinegar. Joseph loves the agricultural life, but he is the second son, and his father’s vineyard will be inherited by his brother Donat, the firstborn. Josep needs to keep his hands in the soil. He yearns for a job growing grapes and for an opportunity to marry Teresa Gallego.

In Madrid, an assassination plot, conceived against the political leader of Spain by men of wealth and power, creates a storm of intrigue that sucks into its vortex a group of innocent young farm workers in Santa Eulália. How Josep’s life is changed drastically by these events, and how, ironically, they gradually turn him into an inspired vintner with an evolving vision of life, is the fascinating story ofThe Winemaker.

From the library

The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt

 Virals by Kathy Reichs

 The Turnaround by George Pelecanos

These books I got for the Reading around the USA in 90 Days challenge (California and Oregon, South Carolina, and Washington DC, respectively). I’ve already read them (during my Seven Books in Seven Days challenge) and you can expect reviews soon.

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On the Road to Mr Right by Belinda Jones

Also for the Reading around the USA in 90 Days challenge. This looks like a fun chick-lit. As many states are being visited, I will be able to pick and choose!

Description from the publishers: “Belinda loves America. Her best friend Emily loves men. So when they decide it’s time to shake up their lives, they combine their two greatest passions in a fantastic road trip taking them from Eden to Valentine – via Climax – in pursuit of the American Dream Guy.

There’s no shortage of men – a Casanova from Cazenovia, a male cheerleader from Darling and a tattooed trucker from Kissimmee. But is romance really the answer to their problems? And is two women in search of the perfect man such a great idea anyway?

Theirs is a journey of revelations and surprises, of cactus kisses and errant snowploughs, but above all it’s a journey in seach of love. And you think Thelma and Louise had an eventful trip…”

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Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson

And a final book for the Reading around the USA in 90 Days challenge (at least, in this batch – I’m not done yet!). This looks like a more serious read that I’m sure I will enjoy.

Description by the publishers: “Acclaimed on publication as a contemporary classic, Housekeeping is the story of Ruth and Lucille, orphans growing up in the small desolate town of Fingerbone in the vast northwest of America. Abandoned by a succession of relatives, the sisters find themselves in the care of Sylvie, the remote and enigmatic sister of their dead mother. Steeped in imagery of the bleak wintry landscape around them, the sisters’ struggle towards adulthood is powerfully portrayed in a novel about loss, loneliness and transience.”

A book I bought

Fifty Shades of Grey by E. L. James

DON’T JUDGE ME TOO SOON!!

I know, I’m too honest. Why do I even mention that I got this book? Well, maybe to see what reaction I get?

Anyway, I do NOT like erotic fiction – a few years ago I decided I had to try the genre but a third way in the book (a different book, of course, not this one), and after 5 pages of explicit scenes (with more to come), I decided I could not read such a thing.

Still, I saw this book at the bookshop and decided I’d like to see what the fuss is all about. I may not finish it, though…

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Have you read any of these books? Which of these would appeal to you?