C is for Corpse by Sue Grafton

This is my favourite book in the series so far. 

Kinsey has been hired by Bobby Callahan to find out who tried to kill him by running his car off a bridge.  Luckily, Bobby survived, but he still feels his life is in danger.

I really liked the character of Bobby and teared up when he died.  It would have been great if his character could have continued, but then it would have spoiled the plot.  Darn, I sure hope author Sue Grafton crafts another character similar to him in a future novel in this series.

After his passing, I found myself cheering Kinsey on during her investigation.  She is such a positive, forward looking woman that I can't help but like her.  In this case, we actually see some of her vulnerabilities which made me like her even more.

I listened to the unabridged audio book read by Mary Peiffer, 7 hours 47 minutes.  Ms. Peiffer also read the earlier books in the series.  I enjoyed the familiarity of her voice characterizations, it made Kinsey seem more like a longtime friend than a paper character.  There is another version of this audio book available read by Judy Kane.


Kinsey Milhone Series:

A is for Alibi
B is for Burglar

Cover image courtesy of Penguin Random House Canada

Needlework Tuesday - A visit with YarnCanada

 Over the weekend, I had a chance to play with the Scrubby yarn that was sent to me by the kind people at YarnCanada.  The yarn was package neatly in a box and delivered promptly as promised.   They are a relatively new company, with a wide range of yarns and wools that should meet the needs of most Canadian knitters.  YarnCanada is  a sister company to NailPolishCanada, with whom I have shopped in the past.

Red Heart Scrubby is unique from other dish cloth type yarns, in that it is 100% polyester, meaning it is light weight when wet and dries quickly unlike cotton which stays wet forever and in my opinion, gets stinky.

The yarn is #4 - Medium weight.  I used a 5mm crochet hook and 5mm knitting needles and was happy with the tension.  You can clearly see the structure of the yarn in this photo.

 To test out the yarn, I decided on two easy to make projects that I found on the Red Heart website.  First a bath pouf.  Very simple, crochet two long strips and a chain for gathering.

It took  a bit to get used to the yarn as it was hard to see the actual stitches due to the nubbly things.  Then  I realised that it's only a bath pouf, it doesn't have to fit so why worry if I don't get a stitch placed perfectly.  It worked up very quickly with treble stitches.

 It didn't specifically say to, but I laid the strips on top of each other and then laced the chain through the loops before gathering.

 I tied it tight, then tied a loop for hanging and left it in daughter's bathroom for her to try.  She rated it excellent with good exfoliating powers.  She has already asked for some smaller facial scrubbies to be made with this yarn.

Next up, what would it be like to knit with.  I used the pattern "Clean in Stripes Dishcloth".  Again, it was easy to make and I found it even easier to knit with, though occasionally the little nubs would get stuck when pulling the stitch through.  Not a problem though.  The cloth is about 7 inches square which is perfect for washing either face or dishes.

After taking this photo, I took the cloth to the kitchen and started washing.  It worked wonderfully.  It is now quickly drying over the faucet. It has kept it's shape and still looks good.

Red Heart Scrubby is a good quality yarn that I would happily work with again.

The people at YarnCanada have been a pleasure to deal with and I would gladly shop with them in the future.

Note: I received the Scrubby yarn at no cost from YarnCanada for an honest review.  I received no compensation for this post.

Needlework Tuesday is a regular weekly post where I share the progress of my various needlework projects over the past week. I enjoy the encouragement that I receive from my readers and in return visit their blogs and cheer them on with theirs. You are welcome to grab the cute little mouse and create your own Needlework Tuesday post. Leave a comment with a link and I'll be sure to visit with you.

I hope that you are having fun and  making progress on whatever project is dear to your heart at this moment.  Mister Linky is waiting below for a link to your needlework post.

 I hope that you have enjoyed this review of this new company and this unique yarn.  It was fun for me to play with this yarn and patterns.  I have made several scrubbies in the past and they are much appreciated by the recipients.  One of their biggest appeals to me,  is that they are small projects that I can finish quickly and then I can enjoy that feeling of success.

If you have any small, easy projects that you enjoy making, please share them in a comment or with a link to your blog post.  Once I start wandering the web looking for projects, I tend to get lost and spend hours roaming around instead of stitching. Your ideas might help to keep me focused and on track.

 

Needlework Tuesday - New Yarn to Play With

 I received a wonderful little box in the mail last week.  It contained a sample of yarns from YarnCanada. The sweet people there sent me three balls of Red Heart Scrubby to play with in exchange for an honest review.

The colours are gorgeous and make me want to cuddle them. Since starting my new job, I have been exhausted and thus haven`t had time to knit or crochet with them.  Hopefully next week I`ll have a proper review and projects to share.

Having such a lovely new yarn to play with has me wondering what new products my readers have found lately. I`d enjoy hearing about them in either a comment or a blog post.  Please include links back to manufacturer or shopping source. If I can`t be spending my time stitching, then I want to be learning about various stitching supplies.

Needlework Tuesday is a regular weekly post where I share the progress of my various needlework projects over the past week. I enjoy the encouragement that I receive from my readers and in return visit their blogs and cheer them on with theirs. You are welcome to grab the cute little mouse and create your own Needlework Tuesday post. Leave a comment with a link and I'll be sure to visit with you.

I hope that you are having fun and  making progress on whatever project is dear to your heart at this moment.  Mister Linky is waiting below for a link to your needlework post. 

Needlework Tuesday - Arranging quilt blocks

I'm surprised that I got any stitching in this past week being that it was a very full week of volunteering.  I was so tired on Saturday that I almost fell asleep during dinner.  That would have been embarrassing as we were at a sushi restaurant, and I don't think I'd look good with rice on my face.

 All the blocks are complete for my current quilt.  The colours are wonderful and on the masculine side, which was the intent,

 This is the tentative arrangement, though I might make some changes. 

 I have a little paper punch that cuts one inch squares.  I cut the same assortment as I have finished blocks and started arranging.  This version is sort of an off centre barn raising.

 I believe this is called streak of lightening.  I don't like the mass of blue in the bottom left corner.

I switched the red and blue around a bit and it is better, but I still haven't come up with anything better than the original arrangement.  Once I finish piecing this top, I'm done.  I'll pass it along to another member of my quilt bee for the quilting and then it will be donated to charity.

 Yesterday afternoon was fun.  My nephew and I went to the Spinrite tent sale and we sure did buy some yarn.  If you are within reasonable driving distance, this is one sale that is really worth the drive. The prices are amazing and they had a vast amount of yarns in lots of colours in stock.  The yarn bombing around town was lots of fun.

I have two large garbage bags that were both fairly full.  More than half was for my sister.  I kept mine selections to specific projects that I already had in mind.  I bought these worsted weight yarns to make a mermaid style afghan for a friend using a pattern from Interweave Crochet. It's shown the cover of the current issue.   The pattern calls for bulky and I bought worsted weight, oops.  I can make this work.

The next bunch is for a secret project, so all you get to see are the colours.  This is going to be fun working with these colours.  I so want to start this project right away, but I really must finish some that are already in progress. I've not worked with mega bulky yet and will have to purchase new needles, size 19mm.

I am energised and ready to leap into my current projects. just seeing all those bins of yarns has put me in the mood for creating.  Time to stop writing and get stitching.  I hope that you are all inspired to stitch and  share your projects.

Needlework Tuesday is a regular weekly post where I share the progress of my various needlework projects over the past week. I enjoy the encouragement that I receive from my readers and in return visit their blogs and cheer them on with theirs. You are welcome to grab the cute little mouse and create your own Needlework Tuesday post. Leave a comment with a link and I'll be sure to visit with you.

I hope that you are having fun and  making progress on whatever project is dear to your heart at this moment.  Mister Linky is waiting below for a link to your needlework post.  Feel free to post last weeks post as well since I didn't have a linky at that time. 

Defragmenting Daniel: the Organ Scrubber by Jason Werbeloff

I read this book in one sitting. I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep without knowing what happened on Daniel's quest.

The Organ Scrubber is science fiction, but for how long.  We have organ transplants, artificial implants and 3D printing technology is advancing in leaps and bounds.  How long can it be until we are facing some of the issues explored in this novel.  Already,  there are sensational news stories of needed organs being bought from poor people in developing countries. 

Daniel is an orphan and his job involves cleaning organs to prepare them for transplant.  He must survive with faulty artificial implants while wealthy citizens buy his young and healthy body parts.  I was captivated by Daniel's fate.  Through no fault of his own, his body is being sliced and diced for some one elses benefit.  No child should be treated that way.  I needed to find out how he was going to deal with this unfair practise.  In a world with such advancements in medical science, how could they be so far behind in social welfare.  In fact, as their science improved, their morality seemed to fall into the basement.

This is not a story for the squeamish or the faint of heart.  Author Jason Werbeloff didn't hold anything back when describing Daniel's and others actions.  While I would have preferred not to have read one particular passage, it had to be included to show how morally bankrupt the wealthy and privileged had become.  Fortunately, all is not doom and gloom as Daniel does meet several characters who go far towards humanity's  redemption.

Reading The Organ Scrubber is like watching a movie with your hands over your face.  You watch through the slits between fingers hoping it will filter out the horror but not being able to stop watching.

I received a complimentary advance copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Cover image courtesy author Jason Werbeloff.

SYNC Audio for Teens - Week 15

The next pairing of free audiobooks is now available.  For more information about this wonderful program, read my introductory post.  Remember, these are only available till August 17, 2016.

This is the final week for the program.  If you have enjoyed these selections, be sure to leave a comment on the SYNC website.

 Bone Gap by Laura Ruby

Classic American Short Stories

16 Short stories by a variety of popular American authors. 

Needlework Tuesday - Out for a Run

This week is my annual week of volunteering with The ENDURrun.  It's a week of running races covering 160 kilometres.  I am one of the  food co-ordinators responsible for keeping the various runners and volunteers feed.

I'll be back next week with a regular Needlework post.

SYNC Audio for Teens - Week 14

The next pairing of free audiobooks is now available.  For more information about this wonderful program, read my introductory post.  Remember, these are only available till August 10, 2016

 The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez

Full cast reading

Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War by Steve Sheinkin

Needlework Tuesday - Shuffling priorities

Did you miss me yesterday?  I missed all of you, though I do have a great explanation for my late appearance.  I got a job outside of the house.  I have been a stay at home mom for the past two decades and now that both my kids are out of the house, I no longer fit that profile.  What to do.  Yes, I could keep up with the reading and stitching, but I was wanting a new challenge. A job is certainly that.

So where are I working. I'll give you a hint, it's retail and you only get two guesses.   Nope, not a quilt store, it's in a book store.  I knew that would be one of your two guesses.  Indigo Kids is my new home away from home.  This now has me thinking bookshelf quilts...

 This will cut into my stitching time, but then again, it might help be with my organization skills and I'll spend less wasted time.  I did get a wee bit of stitching.  I'm back to those blocks using the 2 1/2 inch strips. All the reds are pieced and cut to 12 1/2 inch pieces.  I  had enough for 7 blocks.

 Blocks pieced.  They go really fast once the segments are made.  I think I have around 40 blocks of various colours.

One more set of strips to go. The light beiges. Once these are complete, then I get to play with arranging the blocks.

I have been fitting some knitting in while watching television. The afghan is progressing, though I still have about 1/3 to go.  That baby is due any time, but it's way too hot to need a warm blankie. We're in for another week of 30C weather.

Please excuse me over the next few weeks if I am late with my Needlework Tuesday posts.  It will take some time getting used to working once again.  I'll still be here even if I am late.

Needlework Tuesday is a regular weekly post where I share the progress of my various needlework projects over the past week. I enjoy the encouragement that I receive from my readers and in return visit their blogs and cheer them on with theirs. You are welcome to grab the cute little mouse and create your own Needlework Tuesday post. Leave a comment with a link and I'll be sure to visit with you.

I hope that you are having fun and  making progress on whatever project is dear to your heart at this moment.  Mister Linky is waiting below for a link to your current post.

A Promise of Fire by Amanda Bouchet

Cat is far more than the circus performer and fortune teller that she appears to be.   Turns out, she has skills that exceed even her expectations.  She is the Kingmaker, the presumed key to a power struggle about to erupt between her adopted home and the neighbouring kingdoms, and Griffin, the warlord of Sinta, intends to have her on his side.  She wants to stay out of it, stay hidden, but others want her for her powers, worst of all her mother wants her back and it not out of parental love.

Now add to the mix a number of gods, including Poseidon and Hades and we have a volatile cast sure to bring mayhem to the quietest of towns.

The story was a little slow starting while I was getting used to the characters and their world.  Once it started picking up speed, it didn't slow and wouldn't let me go.  It became a fast paced read that gave me no time to sit back and ponder what had happened because I couldn't wait to see what would be happening next.

Cat is a strong female character who grows and learns about herself during the tale. 

I totally enjoyed the Greek mythology tie ins.  It helped to ground the fantasy with something familiar.  Families play an important role in both Cat and Griffin's lives, both those families we are born with and those be grow to become part of.

This is a lively story with lots of action, but plenty of tender moments as well. 


Thanks to Sourcebooks for my ebook review copy and for use of the cover image.