January recap

My main aim for this year is to finish things. Projects that have sat about, kits untouched, books unread, games unplayed etc.
To try and keep track of how well I'm doing at the end of each month I'm going to blog and recap what I've managed to do this month.

Pounds lost - 7

Games completed - 0 (but close on 2)

Layouts done - 3

Projects finished - 5 PL style layouts, one huge hama bead stitch, 10/28 secret projects done.

Cross stitch done -
From this:

to

Books read:
The letter, Kathryn Huges.
Blurb - The Letter tells the story of two women, born decades apart, whose paths are destined to cross and how one woman's devastation leads to the other's salvation.
This wasn't what I expected. It flitted from the past to the future and about halfway through I knew exactly where the story was going and I was right. Started off as an interesting suspense story, but soon turned into fluffy chick lit. Nothing wrong with that if you like it, was an easy read and predictable. Just not what I expected.

Pretending to dance, Diane Chamberlain
Blurb - Molly Arnette is very good at keeping secrets. She lives in San Diego with a husband she adores, and they are trying to adopt a baby because they can't have a child on their own. But the process of adoption brings to light many questions about Molly's past and her family—the family she left behind in North Carolina twenty years before. The mother she says is dead but who is very much alive. The father she adored and whose death sent her running from the small community of Morrison's Ridge. Her own birth mother whose mysterious presence in her family raised so many issues that came to a head. The summer of twenty years ago changed everything for Molly and as the past weaves together with the present story, Molly discovers that she learned to lie in the very family that taught her about pretending. If she learns the truth about her beloved father's death, can she find peace in the present to claim the life she really wants?
Mixed feelings on this one. I usually love Diane Chamberlains books. They twist and turn and keep me guessing. This one however seemed unrealistic from the get go. The twists were predictable and the characters were unlikable so to be honest I didn't really care too much what happened to them anyway. :(

Once gone, Blake Pierce
Blurb - Women are turning up dead in the rural outskirts of Virginia, killed in grotesque ways, and when the FBI is called in, they are stumped. A serial killer is out there, his frequency increasing, and they know there is only one agent good enough to crack this case: Special Agent Riley Paige.
I've not looked into it yet but I get the feeling this is at least the second in a series as it refers to a previous case quite often. That said it can be a read as a stand alone book just as well.
I didn't expect too much of this one as it was a kindle freebie but it was actually really good. There were a few interesting twists, the Riley character was interesting and I found myself hoping she would get things sorted out for herself. Will be keeping an eye out for more in this series.

A turn in the road - Debbie Macomber
Blurb - Sometimes, where you think you’re going isn’t where you end up. . .
Bethanne Hamlin has her life all mapped out. Until her ex-husband, Grant, suggests they reconcile – now Bethanne’s facing a turn in the road. So when her former mother-in-law, Ruth, suggests a road trip she jumps at the chance to escape…
Depending on my mood, I like lots of different kinds of books. Sometimes I'm just in the mood for a fluffy, predictable, girly love story and Debbie Macomber is great for those. This however was a bit too fluffy for my taste.
Don't get me wrong I like the whole 'boy meets girl, love at first sight' stuff but this dragged out a bit too long and was full of the whole 'You make me want to live again, I didn't know I could love again until I met you' cliches.
If it wasn't the 8th book in a series I've so far enjoyed I wouldn't have bothered finishing it.

Well I didn't think I'd done much this month but looking at it written down like that it doesn't look too bad :) Well except the cross stitch. Better get moving on that one!