Notebook Collection, part 17

I have yet again waited too long to post about more notebooks, and they seem to have grown exponentially in the time since my last post. I know I keep saying that this has become a sickness, but it’s really starting to feel out of control now. The longer I went without posting more of the notebooks, the more of a weight it became (though of course I don’t have to make these posts, but I really do enjoy it). I’m going to start sharing batches of notebooks that are related in some way to make the posts a little easier to write. For example, this post (and the one that will follow it) are all notebooks that have been gifted to me by someone.

Past posts about the collection I have so far: Post #1  |  Post #2  |  Post #3  |  Post #4  |  Post #5  |  Post #6  |  Post #7  |  Post #8  |  Post #9 | Post #10 | Post #11 | Post #12 | Post #13Post #14Post #15Post #16

I’ve actually had both of this mini notebooks for several years. They were a gift from my in-laws for Christmas one year, a set of 3 Doctor Who notebooks, one of which I later gave to my daughter. Last year, when I was sort of inventorying my notebook collection to compare it to my husband’s board game collection to use both as a “fun fact” to share during our 25th anniversary party, I realized that there were several notebooks that I hadn’t previously considered part of my official collection for one reason or another (for these, it was probably because they’re so small), but since they’re notebooks, they really do count. So here they are.


This notebook is also very small and was given out to children’s workers at our church as part of a thank-you dinner a few years ago. I suppose it was again the size that made me dismiss it (at least subconsciously) as part of my collection.


This is one of the most unique entries in my collection. It’s actually an accounting ledger (see pic below) that my dad and step-mom found when they were cleaning out the things that belonged to her brother who passed some years back. Because they know I collect notebooks, they thought I might like it, and besides that, I also do bookkeeping work for various people in my family. I know I will never get to using all of the notebooks in my collection, but oddball ones like this tend to be ones I really hope to use eventually in some way.


These both also came from my dad and step-mother. The one on the left they picked up at a bookstore in Nashville, IN, and boy does that title suit me. The one on the right was somehow procured due to a son that works at Wal-mart. I sadly don’t remember how it came about; I just know that they didn’t simply go to the store and buy it…it’s already been at least a year since they gave it to me. But I do remember it was the first notebook they gave me—my step-mother really enjoys giving things to people in her family as she gets to know what they like, so it’s special for that reason alone.


No more messing around—another batch of these will be forthcoming. And then hopefully the momentum will propel me into posting about the rest of the [redacted] notebooks that I haven’t gotten to yet before the number doubles!

Do you collect anything related to reading or writing? Feel free to share!

Book Review: Mists over the Channel Islands

Mists over the Channel Islands
Allegiance Under Pressure #3

by Sarah Sundin

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: Christian historical romance

When the Germans invade the British Channel Islands, Dr. Ivy Picot is left trying to keep her dad’s medical practice afloat, with him and half of her family evacuated to England. Then Ivy is pulled into a ring of medical people who help treat hidden laborers who are in danger from their German taskmasters who are using forced labor to build fortifications on the island. One of those responsible for the new structures marring the beautiful landscape of her beloved Jersey is Gerrit van der Zee, a Dutchman who volunteered for the work in the hopes that he’d be able to help the Allies in some way. But even as he is captivated by the lovely young doctor, he can’t tell her that he is not one of the occupiers she so despises, that he’s actually on her side.

Again I’m struck by Sarah Sundin’s grasp on the history in this time period. I’ve read a few non-fiction books about (and in some cases written by) people who were involved in underground resistance rings during WWII, and Sundin’s writing here rings true for the most part. There is one character who never quite grasps the “don’t say anything to anyone ever” concept, but the codes that are set up and different ways they attempt to keep things hidden and secret kept me engage and in suspense. I kept watching the dates tick ever closer to D-Day, then to the date I knew the Channel Islands would be liberated, and wondering how badly things would fall apart as the Germans got more and more desperate. 

Sundin has a way of writing romance into her stories without making it the predominant theme or overwhelming the plot, and the same is the case here. I also really liked several of the side characters and was appropriately saddened by one particular story arc throughout the book. Then near the end, we get to reunite with characters from the previous two books in this series, and I really enjoyed that. I recommend this book to anyone who likes historical fiction from this time period in the Christian romance genre. Though this is the third book in a series, you don’t need really to read them in order. Though of course, since I enjoyed the whole series, I’d say there’s no reason not to start with the first book, Embers in the London Sky.

Thank you to Netgalley and Revell for providing me a copy of this book to review.

Find out more about Midnight on the Scottish Shore

See what I’m reading next.

If you’ve read this book, or read it in the future, feel free to let me know what you think!

February in Review

I read 13 books last month, a major drop-off from the record-breaking amount of reading I did in January and much closer to a normal month for me. As the month went on, I was amused to realized that all of the books I was reading were coming out to be 4 stars (minus a couple of re-reads that were 5 stars). Up until the last 3 books (again, excluding 2 re-reads), all 4 stars. Kind of bizarre.

Here are the books I read in February:

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (5 / 5)
How to Ride a Dragon’s Storm by Cressida Cowell (4 / 5)
Super Puzzletastic Mysteries by Chris Grabenstein & various authors (4 / 5)
Dead Fake by Vincent Ralph (4 / 5)
But for the Grace by Peter Grainger (4 / 5)
Silent Extraction by J.N. Timmer (4 / 5)
The Fugitive by John Grisham (4 / 5)
Dog Eat Dog by David Rosenfelt (4 / 5)
The Gentleman Spy by Erica Vetsch (5 / 5)
Sad Cypress by Agatha Christie (4 / 5)
Red by Ted Dekker (5 / 5)
Citizen K-9 by David Rosenfelt (3 / 5)
Time Lottery by Nancy Moser (3.5 / 5)

This list includes 2 ARCs and 3 re-reads. My favorite book from February was Red. I started 2 series, continued 8 series, and finished 0 series. My ever-changing short list of to-be-reads, as well as a flag for the book I’m currently reading and an ongoing list of those I’ve read and posted about can be found here.

I’m also keeping my Goodreads page updated with a more extensive list of to-be-reads. Despite my almost too-long TBR list, I’m always looking for more to add. Feel free to offer suggestions of your favorites or just recent reads you enjoyed.

Book Review: Time Lottery

Time Lottery
Book #1
by Nancy Moser

My rating: 3.5 / 5
Genre: Christian speculative fiction

Three people win a prize that will allow them to travel back in time, within their own minds, to a moment of their choosing, to try to change something in their past. After they’ve lived out the change, they can decide whether they want to stay in the new alternate universe they’ve created or return to their original lives.

The “time travel” involved here is an interesting idea and clearly just a means to the speculation involved in seeing what would happen if one could change a pivotal moment in one’s past. And it is an interesting premise. I was really looking forward to some high emotions and heart-felt moments, partly because of that premise and partly because of my experience with the other book that I read by this author. I can’t really say that it was as emotional as I expected, though. I did enjoy the story, and who hasn’t dreamed of the ability to revisit the past and at least see what could have been different, if not actually stay and live out a new path in life? There are three different storylines here, though there is some connection that requires suspension of disbelief (not in a bad way). One of the storylines I didn’t really connect with as much as the others, and I’m not a huge fan of something that happened at the end of the book. I think that many fans of Christian fiction would enjoy this book, especially those interested in the exploration of past decisions and the ability to change some of those decisions.

Find out more about Time Lottery

See what I’m reading next.

If you’ve read this book, or read it in the future, feel free to let me know what you think!