I really need this three-day weekend. With the snow this week I spent a lot more time in my car than I planned. Tuesday night I had what I called a "free for all" commute. There had been significant snow, and somehow the highway department was not ready for this (I guess that they too never believe the meteorologists), thus the drive home was on unplowed roads. This reminds me why there are lines on the roads. If there are not, people make six lanes, or two. It's very interesting to note that people truly cannot remember that, hey, this highway usually has three lanes, let's do that again.

Then Wednesday night there was an accident in the Lincoln Tunnel, which had me sitting in the car for more than an hour and a half trying to get to the tunnel. It was one of those nights when I play deejay with the radio, knit, return calls, call friends who have not heard from me in months, clean out the center console and lament why I cannot read while I am sitting there. I did not have a book with me. Who thinks they need a book to DRIVE home?
 
Thus this weekend I want to read...for three days. Of course, this is not the only thing on the agenda. We have a new couch coming and need to get the other one moved upstairs, which requires cleaning the attic that I cannot walk in right. So what is in there now needs to be flung out and organized.
 
I also need to shelve books. As you can imagine, our house looks just a bit like a branch of the local library. But the library needs to be organized a bit better than it is right now. There are books stacked everywhere. I actually have taken to shelving and stacking them by theme. The wine and other food-related coffee table books, not cookbooks, are in the dining room on top of the hutch. The living room has five stacks of coffee table books, by theme. I also have way too many books for the number of bookshelves that we have. The family room is all shelved double deep. I need a new solution this weekend, so I can see my reading time being eaten into with this project. One of my friends is coming over with an idea that two of us can master this together. I see her wondering WHY she decided to do this about 20 minutes into this project as we get overwhelmed! Hmmmm...let me think...does she have bookshelves that I can use for my library annex?
 
We have interviews with two authors this week whose books I loved. Both Therese Fowler's SOUVENIR and Julie Buxbaum's THE OPPOSITE OF LOVE are wonderful, emotionally rich stories that will take you someplace else and make you happy to be reading. I love a good story, and both of these authors can tell a great story. We received advance readers' comments for THE OPPOSITE OF LOVE, which our readers enjoyed. You may read them here.

We also received advance reader responses for THE MURDER GAME by Beverly Barton and GARDENS OF WATER by Alan Drew, both of which were well-received by our readers. You may read responses for THE MURDER GAME by clicking here and GARDENS OF WATER by clicking here.

This week we have a review of James O. Born's new book, BURN ZONE. Born is with the Florida ATF, and we will be catching up at Sleuthfest in Florida in a couple of weeks. After years of reading mysteries and thrillers I have decided I want to learn to fire a gun. I want to feel the recoil! Born is going to be my instructor. I am sure there will be just a few stories from this experience.
 
We are launching a new Romantic Suspense feature this week for bestselling author Lisa Jackson, who has written over 75 novels to date. In her new thriller, LOST SOULS, a young woman investigates the link between the disappearances of four girls at All Saints College. What she discovers is terrifying. We have 20 copies of LOST SOULS to give away to readers who would like to preview the book and comment about it. If you are interested, please fill out this form by Friday, February 29th.

Also new this week, Jennifer Kaufman and Karen Mack, authors of A VERSION OF THE TRUTH, have responded to some of our advance readers’ questions, which you can view here.
 
For those of you who are wondering how the Valentine's Day cake turned out, there's a photo above. The plate really makes it look special, and it was pronounced my best ever. While I do not love the concept of Valentine's Day --- never did embrace Cupid --- I DO love that cake! I think this ends my themed baking adventures for a while!

May you have a great long weekend with much time for reading and relaxing. Hmmmm...an extra day means a good opportunity to hit a bookstore to find the perfect new additions to your library. Have a good one.

Carol Fitzgerald (Carol@bookreporter.com)

Andrew Britton captivated readers and critics alike with his electrifying thrillers THE AMERICAN and THE ASSASSIN. In THE INVISIBLE, the third installment in the Ryan Kealey series, he delivers a supercharged international adventure that is sure to keep audiences on the edge of their seats. The book will be available in stores on February 26th.

-Click here to read a second excerpt from THE INVISIBLE.
-Click here to read fast facts about Andrew Britton.
-Click here to read Andrew Britton’s bio.
-Visit the author’s official website, www.AndrewBrittonBooks.com.
-Click here to see our advance copy winners.

More about THE INVISIBLE:
For more than a decade, Ryan Kealey has been a key player in the war on terror. First, as a captain in the U.S. Army’s third Special Forces Group, then as a contract operative with the CIA. His actions have saved thousands of lives, including that of the U.S. President. Now once again, Kealey receives the call of duty --- only this time, the odds for success are slim to none. And he will have to risk everything, including the woman he loves, to save the life of one person.

We are pleased to announce the launch of the new ReadingGroupGuides.com Blog! Throughout the month we will share postings from regular contributors and special guests. The regular contributors will have their photos and biographies added to the site so you can get to know them better. The special guests will have their photos with their postings and short biographies following them. Click here to read our new blog!

With more than 2,200 discussion guides available, ReadingGroupGuides.com continues to be the leading place for book clubs to find all the resources they need on the web.

The following guides are now available on ReadingGroupGuides.com:

THE ADULTERY CLUB by Tess Stimson
CALLING HOME by Janna McMahan
THE COMMONER by John Burnham Schwartz
I'M LOOKING THROUGH YOU: Growing Up Haunted by Jennifer Finney Boylan
ISLAND LIFE by Michael W. Sherer
KINDNESS GOES UNPUNISHED by Craig Johnson
LADY MACBETH by Susan Fraser King
LIFE CLASS by Pat Barker
MY REVOLUTIONS by Hari Kunzru
NECESSARY SINS by Lynn Darling
THE OPPOSITE OF LOVE by Julie Buxbaum
THE SECRET BETWEEN US by Barbara Delinsky
SEPULCHRE by Kate Mosse
SILENT IN THE SANCTUARY by Deanna Raybourn
SKYLIGHT CONFESSIONS by Alice Hoffman
SPEAKING OF FAITH: Why Religion Matters -- and How to Talk About It by Krista Tippett
STEALING BUDDHA'S DINNER by Bich Minh Nguyen
THE TEN-YEAR NAP by Meg Wolitzer
THEN WE CAME TO THE END by Joshua Ferris
WHAT LOOKS LIKE CRAZY by Charlotte Hughes

We have the following new guides for Christian book groups:

ELVIS TAKES A BACK SEAT by Leanna Ellis
MONDAY NIGHT JIHAD by Jason Elam and Steve Yohn
PAR FOR THE COURSE by Ray Blackston
SOMEDAY by Karen Kingsbury
STUCK IN THE MIDDLE: Sister-to-Sister, Book 1 by Virginia Smith
YOU HAD ME AT GOOD-BYE by Tracey Bateman

Please note that these titles, for which we already had the guides when they appeared in hardcover, are now available in paperback:

THE BASTARD OF ISANBUL by Elif Shafak
NINETEEN MINUTES by Jodi Picoult
TALLGRASS by Sandra Dallas

Poll:

Do you consider yourself to be a fast reader?

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Not sure

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Question:

Name up to three books that you just could not put down.

-Click here to answer our question of the week.