Quarantine Adventures -- DJ Palmer Book Launch

I managed to get an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) of DJ Palmer's new book The New Husband. I read it in about a day on the way to Arizona. It is an excellent thriller that is somewhat predictable but have enough twists and turns to keep you interested.

When I saw that Gibson Bookstore in New Hampshire was offering a free virtual book launch with DJ Palmer via Zoom. I RSVP'd and was sent a link.

Prior to getting a copy of The New Husband, I never read DJ Palmer before or even heard of him. The cover grabbed me to request an ARC. I never read Daniel Palmer before either.

I learned a few things from this book launch

1. DJ Palmer and Daniel Palmer are the same person. His editor wanted to signal that Saving Meghan was not what came before so DJ Palmer was born. Thanks to Noelle to reminding me of the connection

2. He is a funny guy and has many talents including guitar playing.

3. I can't wait to read more of his books. They are all medical thrillers or thrillers which is fine with me. It's a good break from romcoms.

The Book Launch lasted about an hour but possibly could have gone a lot longer. I am grateful for these bookstores and authors taking the time to doing these virtual book launches. It has allowed me to discover new authors, "meet" some of my favorite authors, and keep me from going stir crazy.

I have a few more book launches coming up in the next few weeks and I'm sure I will find others.

Quarantine Adventures: Lindsey Hamel and J'nell Ciesielski Book Launch

Facebook never ceases to amaze me when it suggests events for me. Scrolling through Facebook, I saw a Facebook Live Author Chat with two authors that I never heard of. It said there would be giveaways. I was hooked. Who doesn't love a chance to win free stuff.

Like the event page said, it was a very informal discussion with both authors who actual never met before doing a trial run of the event. They just happened to have books coming out at the same time by the same publisher.

Both Lindsey and J'nell are wonderful ladies. The hour sped by with them talking about their lives, writing careers, and their books. They talked about what it was like to write during quarantine while still doing the mom thing and home school thing. It is not easy.

Lindsey's book, The Joy of Falling, follows two sister-in-laws and their husbands' friend through the training and completion of an Ultra-Marathon in New Zealand. J'nell's book, The Socialite, is set in WWII and follows two sisters and their lovers across Europe while the sister is trying to bring the other sister back to England. Both books sound really good and went on the to read list.

I'll be honest the sole reason The Socialist went on the to read list (or at least the shortened version) is that everyone has tea at Hitler's place in Bavaria. That sounded like an amazing scene to read about especially when J'nell talked about the research involved in making sure she got the color of Hitler's patio umbrellas right in the book.

After going to a couple of these book launches and hearing the authors talk about the process of writing a book, I never realized how much research went into even a fiction book. Historical fiction, crime fiction, and other books with specific topics I get. I never would have thought about researching what happens to your toenails when running an ultra-marathon. It does make me appreciate a good book a whole lot more.

Doing virtual book launches does allow more readers to connect with authors easier and allows a peek into their homes. It is always fun to sit back and listen to an author talk. I find it much more comfortable to do so while sitting on my couch or bed than a stiff chair in a bookstore or a library. Maybe this trend should continue after the pandemic.

6342. Watch to an episode of the Manitowoc Minute

The Manitowoc Minute is literally a minute-ish long weekly news show about anything that is going on in the world. It is really a comedy news update that is broadcasted on You-Tube and there website. Being from Wisconsin and finding things like this amusing, I always wanted to check it out.

This is something I've wanted to check out but never really got around it since it required me to check out a website or You-Tube Channel neither high on my list of internet goals. You Tube videos are just not my thing.

Then a couple of weeks after the first Jump Around Phenomenon, I saw something posted in the Facebook Group that Jump Around Phenomenon was featured on the Manitowoc Minute. Well, now I have to watch it.

So I clicked on it and watched the video. It was highly amusing. The host, Charlie Berens, did an amazing job at covering a wide range of topics in 15-20 second blurbs including Tiger King, 2 headed goats, Jump Around, and various police reports and Craigslist ads. The whole show was about 5 minutes.

If you are not from Wisconsin, you probably won't find it as amusing as I did but it is still worth checking out.

Quarantine Adventures -- Make Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

The hubby is a big fan of cinnamon rolls.. especially homemade ones. Browsing Pinterest, because what is there to do, I found a recipe for homemade cinnamon rolls that didn't require any yeast or rising time.

The dough is literally 2 ingredients -- self-rising flour and Greek Yogurt.  Self-rising flour was as scarce as yeast. We managed to find a small bag of it at Walmart. I snatched it up.

Mix the flour and yogurt together and then roll out the door.

Once the dough is rolled out, brush with melted butter, sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon.

Roll into a log -- tightly. That part is hard. Then cut into slices.

Bake them.

Cool and then frost with an icing.

Enjoy.

Yes, they do have a slightly sour taste -- like sourdough. But they are quite tasty. Even the hubby likes them. I will definitely make them again.

Quarantine Adventures: Brenda Novak Book Launch

Browsing Facebook, I discovered a Facebook Live Event for one of the authors on my to read list. Brenda Novak's new book "One Perfect Summer" was just coming out and she was having a virtual launch party. Okay, I'll bite. I've not read her but the book sounds good and it's women's fiction. Besides I was told there would be prizes.. maybe..

Normally, I don't get to go to these fabulous launch parties or new book tours because they are usually in some glorious warm city in the south or other major metropolis not near me. So due to the pandemic, we are all forced inside thus launch parties and new book tours are going virtual. This makes me excited.

Brenda's launch party was fabulous. Not only did she talk about her new book and give away oodles of fabulous prizes (none of which I won), she had mystery guest authors join her to talk to about themselves and maybe their books. Because Brenda has written both women's fiction and thriller books, she had a wide variety of authors make an appearance. Susan Wiggs and Debbie Maccomber were among the guest authors. Not only did I get to hear some of my favorite authors, but I learned about a few new ones that made my to read list such John Lescroart, Susan Stoker, and Jennifer Snow.

Even though there were technical difficulties, it was a great evening. I did buy "One Perfect Summer" earlier today and started it. I can't wait to finish it and read other of her books.

I have a whole bunch of author events coming up in the next few days and weeks. Some I've never heard of, others I have read. Well at least this pandemic is going to let me connect with some authors I would normally never get to connect with since they don't normally venture this far north. Stay tuned to see which other authors I've discovered and hung out with.

Quarantine Adventures -- Hiking at High Cliff

Since it was nice out and the state parks were free, I convinced the hubby to go to High Cliff for a walk. The hubby isn't a big one for nature or hiking. I could go hiking or walking in nature any time. It is always nice to go outside. I've not been out to High Cliff in over a year or two. It's literally 10-15 minutes away.. probably closer than the Trestle Bridge in Mensaha.

High Cliff was pretty full when we got there in the early afternoon. I knew better than to initially park down by the lime kilns because the parking lot is small and the trails could be muddy. We headed to the upper trails. The were some parking spots available.

Yes, it was crowded but social distancing wasn't that much of a problem. People moved over to let you pass on the trail. Some people wore masks but not many.

We had a nice mile or so walk. We walked about a half mile based on the mile marker and then turned around and came back to our car. That was about all the hubby could handle.

After walking the upper trial, I decided we should go see the lime kilns. That lot was almost full and we were able to snag one of the last spots.

The lime kilns weren't too busy. Everyone walked by to get to the trail.

It was a nice afternoon. Hopefully we can enjoy the trails again.

Note: The state parks were closed later in the week because of over-crowding and vandalism. They will re-open a month later and only if people have passes.

Quarantine Adventures -- My First Foray into Opera

I stumbled across a video on Facebook for a quarantine opera performance. The original bucket list has "Go to an Opera" on it. I figured this would at least give me an insight into Opera.

The opera is performed on Facebook by Opera singers and musicians via video feeds and then put together as a performance. Every musician and singer is in their own residence.. in their own country.

The performance itself, including introductions, is about 5 minutes so by no means an entire opera. It is just the beginning of the performance I believe it is a part of the Opera "Carmen Habanera".

Personally I am not a fan of Opera. I did not understand anything that was going on. Despite that I was clueless about what was happening, it was still exciting to watch. It liked how the video was put together and actually makes me want to watch more of it. I know, even though I'm not a fan I want to see more to see maybe if I can understand what's going on.