Tag Archive for: Dru Ann

Lists

/in /by

by Dru Ann Love

I had nothing for this month’s post.  I couldn’t think of anything to write about until I saw it and I thought would make a great post. 

LISTS.

We all do it.  It helps us to organize our daily lives and keep us up-to-date.  However, during this time of year, the most interesting lists frequently pops up on the Internet and that is…”Best of” or “Top 5” list of 2013.  Below are some that I found.  Enjoy.

World’s Best Shopping Cities

  1. New York
  2. Tokyo
  3. London

Top 10 most popular Thanksgiving destinations

  1. New York City, New York
  2. Chicago, Illinois
  3. Las Vegas, Nevada

Top 10 Most Expensive Hobbies In The World 

  1. Dressage
  2. Flying
  3. Drag Racing

Top 10 Holiday Tech Gifts of 2013

  1. Apple iPad Air
  2. Pebble Smartwatch
  3. Sony PlayStation 4

The Best Gifts For Babies And Kids

  1. Paint Your Own Funky Rainboots
  2. Tetris Link
  3. Hello Kitty Airlines Play Set

Ask.com top 10 most-asked questions of 2013

  1. Royal Baby. What is the royal baby’s name?
  2. Boston Marathon. Where was the Boston Marathon bomber found?
  3. Syria. Will the U.S. invade Syria?

Kirkus’ Best Mysteries & Thrillers of 2013 (Listed are the ones I’ve read)

  1. Breaking Point by C.J. Box
  2. Never Go Back by Lee Child
  3. The Shadow Tracer by Meg Gardiner
  4. As She Left It by Catriona McPherson
  5. Silken Prey by John Sandford

Publisher’s Weekly Best Books of 2013

  1. Sea of Hooks by Lindsay Hill
  2. Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood & the Prison of Belief by Lawrence Wright
  3. Dirty Wars: The World Is a Battlefield by Jeremy Scahill

Library Journal – Best Books 2013: Mystery

  1. Cries of the Lost by Chris Knopf
  2. Nightmare Range by Martin Limón
  3. How the Light Gets In by Louise Penny

Best Job in America 2013

  1. Biomedical Engineer
  2. Clinical Nurse Specialist
  3. Software Architect

So, what’s on your 2013 list?
Can you think of any other lists that you’ve seen?
Have you read any of the “best of books”?

Fall

/in /by

By Dru Ann Love

One of the things I love about living on the East Coast is we get to celebrate all four seasons. My favorite are Spring and Fall. It’s not too hot like Summer and it’s not too cold like Winter. Spring and Fall seasons give you the nice in between.

What I like most about Fall is the changing of the leaves. A walk in the part will have you staring at the lovely colorful leaves as they fall to the ground. When I was younger, I loved when they were all gathered in a pile and we got to jump smack dab in the middle of it. Did you do that as a youngster? Could I do that now, no way, first I couldn’t jump in in and second I would not be able to get up. But I do remember the freedom it gave me.

Fall is also good weather to sit in a chair, wrapped in a blanket and read the next scintillating mystery that have you in goose bumps, especially if it’s the latest thriller set at Halloween.

Speaking of Fall, there’s the two holidays: Halloween where there is no excuse for eating that Snicker bar, that Hershey kiss, that Dove bar, that jawbreaker (yeah, like that’s going to happen), that tootsie roll pop and especially Brach’s candy corn (accept no substitution, because Brach’s is the best). Best of all, you can also dress anyway you want and not be criticize…a mummy, sure; a superhero, sure; a Agatha Christie, solve that puzzle; a zombie, go for it; you can be anybody and have you fill of it.

Then there is Thanksgiving where you are given permission to eat all the food that the dieticians and/or nutritionist say you shouldn’t eat during the rest of the year. Want that turkey leg? Have at it. Want a thick slab of baked ham? Go for it. Want some dressing with gravy? Pour it over your food. Some macaroni salad? Put that scoop on your plate. Rice? Yep. Collard Greens? Put it right next to the white rice. Cranberry Sauce? Put it in that spot, right there. Candied Yams? Make sure to give me a slice of that pineapple. Baked macaroni and cheese? You betcha.

Then there’s dessert. Apple pie? Slice it up, please. Yellow cake with chocolate frosting? A thin slice, please. I don’t know where I have the room to eat it. Ice Cream? Right between my pie and cake. And don’t forget the pumpkin pie to go with my cup of hot beverage. And then Thanksgiving is over and now I can sleep for a week.

What’s your favorite thing about Fall?

Monday, Monday

/in /by

The last Monday in August is when my post is due here. This is what happens when you have no idea what to write. You just ramble until something rattles around in your brain.

Labor Day is approaching. Do they still have the Fashion dictate of no white shoes after Labor Day?

Fall is coming. Which means school is back in session, but more importantly, it’s TV Fall programming time and I can’t wait.

Returning shows I’m eager to see:

  • Bones – that was a dinger of a cliff-hanger 
  • Castle – love that season ending cliff-hanger 
  • Criminal Minds 
  • Elementary 
  • Hawaii Five-O 
  • The Mentalist 
  • Person of Interest 
  • Raising Hope – my guilty pleasure show 
  • Amazing Race 
  • Dancing With The Stars

As for the new TV shows, nothing has struck my fancy, so it will be a wait and see once I start viewing it.

You know what I miss? NBC’s Mystery Movie TV show.

You know what else I miss, the old TV Guide that was reader’s digest size.

Is there any show you can’t wait to see return? Any of the new shows to recommend?

Family Reunion

/in /by

By Dru Ann L. Love

I recently attended my first family reunion ever. We gathered in North Carolina to meet my mother’s paternal family that still resides in the area. My mom went up north when she was 18 years old and hasn’t been to her father’s hometown ever since, until 6 years ago when by chance we met two of my cousins who live in the same town where my niece attends college.

Then last year, the cousins started prepping for a reunion on Facebook and that’s where I discovered all these lost cousins and relatives I’ve never known. I was determined that both me and my mother would be attending this reunion and what a joyous time we had.

I learned the history of my family – and saw the house where the matriarch grew up and raised her 12 kids. Eight descendants of the twelve children were there from over ten different states. The oldest person attending the reunion was 95 and the youngest was two. I learned that we have an author in the family, educators, events planner, philanthropist and entrepreneurs to name a few.

I feel truly blessed that I have found and reconnected with my family.

Have you ever attended a family reunion? What was the outcome?

Ramblings From Dru

/in /by

The hardest thing about writing a monthly post is coming up with a topic that the audience will find interesting.

So here I sit, trying to think of a post to write.

Should it be related to writing? Well, since I’m not a writer, I don’t have to worry about that.

I am a reader, but how many times can I write about the number of books I’ve read since January (for the record it is 78 books).

My friends tell me that besides being a reader, I’m also a blogger/reviewer. I don’t consider myself a reviewer because my musings are short and not standardized. However on my blog I do offer a feature to authors about the day in the life of their protagonist or a recurring character from their stories.

I recently attended my fourth Malice Domestic Convention. I always have a good time and it’s a chance to attend panels; catch up with friends who I haven’t seen in a year, meet new-to-authors and reconnect with the authors I’ve already met. The one for reader fans are fun to attend and so far this year I’ll be going to four events. I’ll be at BookExpo America (BEA) where I’ll be attending the Power Reader event. Then it’s the Fan Fest at Thrillerfest this summer and last but not least I’ll be at Bouchercon in Albany. Is anyone attending any of these events?

Well, it looks like I thought of something to write.

What’s the hardest thing that you have to do?

What to read next?

/in /by

By Dru Ann L Love

I spent 48 hours in their world, standing next to the protagonist as they gather clue, while trying to nab a killer. The threats don’t deter us from our chosen path of being an amateur sleuth. Victory is ours when justice is achieved. But when it’s all done, I feel elated yet sad because I have to leave this world that I felt comfortable in. But then the evitable happens. What do I read next?

Unless I’m reading the books that I need to read for my monthly post over at the Cozy Chicks or books directly from authors and/or publishers, this is what I do most of the time.

I open up my Excel file and see what books I have on my list which will includes this month’s release and any leftover books from the previous month. Usually I’ll have anywhere between 20 to 30 books on my list. When I can’t make a decision, I go to Amazon and read the synopsis of the books and I’ll have an idea or two of which book I plan to read next. Sometimes I’ll even look at how many pages are in a book, anything to help me narrow down my choices. If I had all the time in the world to read all the books in a given month, I would but after 30 days, a new set of books are released.

But after all is said and done, it will come down to if my favorite author has a book out, or if I’m hearing buzz about a book that I already own or I the old standby of “eenie, meenie, miney, moe.”

How do you pick out the next book you plan to read?