This post contains MAJOR SPOILERS from late in the set. Do not read this post unless you've read ALL of the books that have been published. You've been warned.
I have included all of my past comments on this Forgotten Secret. I want all of my thoughts in the same post, and it will be easier for me to find what I need if I separate the Forgotten Secrets into separate posts. I will indicate any additional thoughts by adding comments in brackets.
From Keeper of the Lost Cities #9 The Forgotten Secrets:
Page 197 "You have more experience with everything, Bronte. You can't always claim seniority. Plus, you were away working on the mysterious investigation you refuse to tell us about."
I continue to wonder what Bronte's investigation was.
[It's apparent from this secret that Bronte knows about the plague that affects the gnomes. Kenric apparently doesn't, at least not at this time.]
Page 197 "Where's the gnome you hailed Elwin about?" Kenric frowned. "How did you—" "Elwin alerted me right after he spoke with you. I've asked all the physicians to contact me if they ever hear any report of a sick gnome—and thankfully Elwin remembered."
[Yes, Bronte knew. He then takes Kenric's memory, which is how it ends up in Kenric's cache. Bronte is keeping the secret of the plague to himself.]
Page 199 "It's been about three hundred seconds," Kenric announced several minutes later.
This is a huge clue about Kenric. Sophie counts the seconds, and so does Kenric. This means that Sophie and Kenric share an odd habit. Sophie shares an odd habit (tugging out her eyelashes) with her mother, so now we know that she shares an odd habit with Kenric, who is likely her father.
[I left an "out" when I wrote this, saying that Kenric is "likely" her father. For some time, I have been completely 100% convinced that Kenric is Sophie's father. I don't see how this series can be going in any other direction. There is just too much for it to mean anything else.]
Page 206 Councillors weren't allowed to date or marry or have families of their own because it could bias their decisions. But Kenric had asked Oralie to resign with him so they could be together—and Oralie had refused. Not because she didn't love him. Because she needed to stay on the Council. Partially for her own ambitions. And partially so she'd be in a position to protect Sophie.
[When Kenric was also on the Council, Oralie's only reason to remain Councillor was for Sophie. She resisted her feelings for Kenric only because of Sophie. Now that Kenric's gone, Oralie is on the Council for Sophie, but she also a Councillor because she doesn't have anything else. She cannot resign for love, because there's no one.]
From Keeper of the Lost Cities #9 More on the Forgotten Secrets:
I mentioned in my previous post how Kenric counts the seconds at one point during this memory. Counting the seconds is one of Sophie's two odd habits. She pulls out her eyelashes like her mother, Oralie, and she counts the seconds like her father, Kenric.
Page 196: "King Dimitar brought it to our attention. He claimed we've been allowing the humans to expand into this land, even though it's supposed to be a Neutral Territory—and unfortunately he's right."
Kenric points out the cause of the pollution, a nearby human city that cannot be relocated. He also mentions that Dimitar said that he will consider the Neutral Territories to be up for grabs if the humans are allowed to remain. Bronte tells Kenric that he has no idea what they might be dealing with, and Bronte refuses to explain. However, Bronte acts like the ogres are to blame at first. Later, he says that it isn't what he feared and that the pollution was caused by human chemicals.
Page 205: "There is a lot to monitor, Kenric. We can only keep track of so much." "Then we should ask for more help." "From whom?" Kenric dragged a hand down his face, leaving streaks of mud. "I... have no idea."
Interesting. Kenric starts to give a response, then he changes his response to "have no idea." What was he going to say? I think he was close to making an accidental slip, like perhaps a reference to his Black Swan activities.
Forgotten Secret #1 is the only secret that was placed in Kenric's cache by someone else. Bronte kept the secret about the ogre plague to himself and washed Kenric's memory of it.
All of my past Keeper posts are linked from this page:
Keeper of the Lost Cities Summaries, Reviews, and Theories
Thursday, January 16, 2025
Keeper of the Lost Cities Forgotten Secret #1 Bronte and Kenric
Tuesday, January 14, 2025
If I Tell: A Murder Mystery Thriller about a Girl and a Serial Killer
Publisher's summary:
My name is Jenna.
I'm sixteen years old.
And I think my dad is a serial killer.
On a muggy summer afternoon in Upstate New York, sixteen-year-old Jenna Cooper is swimming in a lake when a murdered girl is found nearby, pulled from that very same lake. The next day, the body of another girl is discovered a couple of miles away. Soon, more bodies are found. All are girls in their teens or early twenties, and they were all killed in the same distinctive manner.
As police race to solve these horrible crimes, Jenna finds clues that make her wonder if her father might be the killer. Although she is terrified to believe her dad could be a murderer, she is determined to find out the truth, no matter what it is.
But her quest for the truth is about to land her in a makeshift prison, at the mercy of a serial killer. Will she find a way to escape or will she be the next to die?
If you like fast-paced murder mysteries with short captivating chapters, intriguing family relationships, jaw-dropping twists and turns, a dash of clean romance, and an ending that brings everything together, you'll love this riveting thriller that will keep you guessing until the final pages!
The book has an interesting premise, and I did enjoy it overall. When I finished the book, however, I felt depressed. The story just didn't do much for me. There are several problems.
The book has way too many characters, and I quickly decided not to keep track of them. That reduced my enjoyment. Furthermore, the characters are all flat. The text is flat. The book is missing that something that makes a book compelling and really good.
The book has a good story, but I wanted more from it. If the story had been fleshed out more with more feeling shown by the characters, then it could have been an excellent story.
Sunday, January 12, 2025
My Complaints about the New eBay Feed Page
I previously wrote about the new eBay feed.
eBay Removed a Perfectly Good Feature This Afternoon
The eBay Feed Situation and Other Grievances
It's now over two weeks later, and we are still stuck with the new feed, which I still feel is a permanent change. I was getting used to it, but I saved an item to my watch list early Saturday morning. Now it's the first item I see every single time I go to the feed. I just want to see the final selling price without having to leave myself a note on my computer monitor. I don't need the item flashed in front of me every time I go to eBay. I seriously want to remove the item from my watched items list. I'm sick of seeing it!
I sent eBay another complaint in the feedback form that is linked from the feed page.
First, here are my previous three complaints to eBay. I complain each time the new feed does something I don't like.
Complaint #1:
You removed the eBay feed page? Why? It was perfect the way the items flowed. Stuff I wanted was easy to spot. Instead, it goes to this awful saved searches page that loads slower and has so much white space everywhere. You're just driving customers away, and I've been buying since 1997. This will decrease how much I spend on eBay. I am not someone who complains. This is unacceptable. Return www.ebay.com/feed to what it looked like before today, PLEASE.
Complaint #2:
This page could work if it were changed to where ONLY NEWLY LISTED items show up on top, not the dreadful mess that it is right now. Please give us the old eBay feed back! It was perfect. It didn't need to be changed.
Complaint #3:
I listed a bunch of items for sale, and they are not showing on this page. This makes me not trust the results. What else is being filtered out? I want a feed that shows me everything that appears when I run the search manually, not just what eBay wants me to see. Let me decide what I want to see. This page is so bland and uninteresting compared to the feed page that existed until late last week. We need this new page to do EXACTLY what the feed page did. Anything else is unacceptable.
Items from my watch list don't need to be shoved in my face at the top of the feed each time I go to the saved items feed. Most of us place items in our watch list because we are just curious about the final selling price.
Items we intend to buy are placed in our shopping carts, and the notification icon at the top of our screen reminds us to check out. We don't want to see watched items at the very top of the saved search.
Please make this page function as it did in the previous feed. I already removed all of my saved sellers because their items took up most of the page. I will quit using the watched items feature as well if the watched items aren't removed. Thanks.
I put "Thanks." at the end of my complaint to be... how do I say it? I guess I did it to indicate annoyance and not to thank them. Something like that. I am annoyed, for sure.
Saturday, January 11, 2025
Keeper of the Lost Cities #8.5 Unlocked and #9 Stellarlune - Thoughts from 4th Reading
This post contains MAJOR SPOILERS from late in the set. Do not read this post unless you've read ALL of the books that have been published. You've been warned.
My general comments about both books are combined here. I will go more into the Forgotten Secrets in upcoming posts.
Book 8.5, Page 524 "Can you feel how serious I am when I tell you that it's absolutely essential to keep everything about Elysian fragmented?"
Kenric apparently obtained information about both stellarlune and Elysian, and whatever he learned scared him. He mentions keeping it fragmented in order to prevent anyone from figuring it out. He's afraid.
Sophie has a lot of anger because of what was done to Keefe. This is very apparent near the end of Book 7. Sophie's anger is why she burns the archetype and the storehouse. She's getting even for what Gisela did to Keefe.
Book 9, Page 53 "I needed a powerful Empath to merge with my abilities."
Lady Gisela basically tells Lord Cassius that she married him just for his ability. As a result of stellarlune, Keefe now has merged abilities.
Book 8.5, page 587 Oralie's cheeks flushed. "I'm not certain. It just seems significant that Keefe is now a Polyglot and an Empath, and used his voice to control emotion. That almost sounds like the two abilities merged somehow—or synchronized. Which would make sense, given that Keefe was exposed to shadowflux and quintessence. Elements trigger change. They rarely create something entirely new. But I'd need to do more research to know for sure."
Sophie also appears to have merged abilities, which is mighty interesting.
Book 8, Page 662 "Well… it at least explains why your enhancing is so much stronger on Empaths." "True," Sophie agreed. "Though my enhancing's also stronger on Telepaths—but that might be because of what Lord Cassius said. He said the way I use my telepathy reminds him of an Empath," she explained when she saw Oralie's confusion. "I pick up on emotions with my thoughts, I guess, without having to be in the emotional center."
Even though Sophie isn't an Empath, she can pick up on emotions through her telepathy. This makes me wonder if Lady Gisela wasn't the only one experimenting with stellarlune. Did Forkle do something to Sophie?
In Book 9, on page 56, Lady Gisela asks Lord Cassius if he's ever heard of Elysian. She's making sure all of his memories were washed. This confirms that Lady Gisela has known about Elysian.
Book 9, Page 97 "I know you elves are used to solving all your problems with your weird little talents or endless boring conversations..."
This is hilarious. Ro mentions the "boring conversations." Well, they are. The biggest flaw in the later books is the extremely lengthy conversations.
Book 9, Page 269 "Show me Mr. Forkle! Show me Magnate Leto! Show me Sir Astin!" None of his aliases responded. She'd expected as much, since she'd tried the same thing when she was still in Oralie's mind-map room—and her Imparter had stayed just as silent.
If this passage is the literal truth, then Oralie must know that Leto and Astin are Forkle identities. Sophie called for all of them in Oralie's presence.
In Book 9, on page 506, Stina points out that Fintan could have added a certain secret to his cache later. Exactly. That's why the supposed inconsistency about Kenric's Forgotten Secrets isn't an inconsistency. A fan had pointed out that the secret with Prentice was apparently saved last, and yet it couldn't have been. Kenric's secrets could have been placed in his cache much later and in any order.
All of my past Keeper posts are linked from this page:
Keeper of the Lost Cities Summaries, Reviews, and Theories
Wednesday, January 8, 2025
Keeper of the Lost Cities #8 Legacy - Thoughts from 4th Reading
This post contains MAJOR SPOILERS from late in the set. Do not read this post unless you've read ALL of the books that have been published. You've been warned.
#8 Legacy is when the secrets begin to be revealed. Many fans think these later books are boring and pointless when to me, they are great. I have thought of one reason why some fans find the later books boring.
The Keeper series is for middle-grade readers and it is certainly written on that level. However, the overarching storyline is quite complex, really too complex for middle-grade. Many of the target readers are struggling to see what Shannon is doing because it's so complex. I've figured a lot out along the way, especially about the Forgotten Secrets, but I'm still completely confused about other things. This is precisely why I love this series so much; it's so much fun trying to figure it out with the obscure clues we have been given.
Page 14 "We've been playing defense for far too long," he said, clearing the thickness from his throat. "And that is never a good way to win."
Mr. Forkle knows that they need to be more aggressive.
Page 16 He turned to meet her gaze. "We're spiraling toward war. And not an isolated battle. A global conflict involving every living being."
The following passages are from the washed memory that Forkle returns to Sophie.
Page 322 They started out talking. But talking shifted to teasing. And teasing turned to taunting as the voices grew louder and louder. Angrier and angrier. Sophie couldn't make out any of the individual words. But she could feel them cutting deeper and deeper.
Page 337 "I don't know," Amy admitted after downing half the bottle. "I guess I thought..." She looked away, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Those things I said to you—" "I don't even remember them," Sophie assured her. "Seriously. In the memory it was just a bunch of noise. I couldn't separate out the words—and I don't want to know."
In my post for #7 Flashback, I included some passages pertaining to Keefe's recovered memories. The memories had been washed, or so they thought, but the memories were damaged. Tiergan explained that washed memories, if recovered, would not be damaged. The ones that were damaged had been shattered.
It's apparent that Mr. Forkle chose to spare Sophie from knowing what cruel words Amy said during their fight. He tampered with the memory so that Sophie wouldn't be able to hear what Amy had said. There's no other explanation. Sophie has a photographic memory, and Amy's words should have been in the memory. Mr. Forkle didn't tamper with the memory he returned to Amy, so Amy knew what she had said.
I want to revisit the Inflicting session from Book 3 with Bronte, Kenric, and Sophie.
From the first Book 3 post:
On page 215, Kenric gives Sophie a suggestion on how to inflict, but then he quickly adds, "At least, that's what I remember studying," as if he needs to explain how he knows so that it won't be suspicious. If Kenric is Forkle, then he does know about Inflicting, since he worked on genetic experimentation with Inflicting.
From the second Book 3 post:
The Kenric in the Inflicting session seems to cover for himself when he mentions how Inflicting works.
Page 215: "I believe the first step is to identify the emotion you want to unleash," Kenric offered quietly. "At least, that's what I remember studying."
He added that last part to cover. The surviving Forkle is the one who tested the Inflicting genes to make sure that they were safe for Sophie. This is another clue that the Kenric in the Inflicting session is the surviving Forkle.
I was getting closer. It's irrelevant which brother was in the Inflicting session since they considered themselves to be one person and shared their memories with each other. Regardless, a Forkle did inflict on Sophie years before, and he inflicted positive emotions on Sophie. He knew from past personal experience how inflicting works, no matter which brother was in the Inflicting session. He covers for himself when explaining to Sophie how inflicting works, saying that he had studied it.
We learn in Book 8 that when Sophie manifested as an Inflictor, she simultaneously manifested as an Enhancer. When Sophie inflicted on Amy, Forkle grabbed her hand and was able to inflict positive emotions into her mind in order to get her to stop. Forkle knows exactly how inflicting works, even though he doesn't have that ability.
On page 342, Mr. Forkle goes into a detailed explanation of the five unmapped stars and how each of them creates a different form of quintessence. Here is a summary:
Elementine - the most powerful, can be used to create explosive substances like frissyn
Marquiseire - abrasive, reflective, most versatile, works at a cellular level
Lucilliant - coldest, darkest, but most balanced and can be used to preserve something
Candesia - weakest, sluggish, but safest and best for slight changes
Phosforen - most vibrant, full of life and energy, used by the Black Swan for DNA tests
The stars are tied to what Lady Gisela does to Keefe in Loamnore and to stellarlune and Elysian.
Also, on page 343 Mr. Forkle finds it odd that him telling Sophie about the five types of quintessance doesn't trigger the details that he implanted into her mind years before. Mr. Forkle decides that it's because the details were hidden so well that that they aren't being triggered. What if something else is at play?
On page 151, Emery tells Team Valiant that the Council has set up a meeting with King Enki and that this is "a meeting the Black Swan would never be able to properly arrange, regardless of what they might claim." King Enki is annoyed when Bronte and Team Valiant meet with Enki a day after Granite meets with Enki.
On page 477, Mr. Forkle tells the Council that "holding secret meetings is childish." Bronte then notes that the Council's secret meeting is to discuss the fallout from the Black Swan's secret meeting with Enki on the previous day." After some discussion, Mr. Forkle realizes that he should have told the Council once the Black Swan had worked out a meeting with Enki.
Emery then says that the Council has been forthright, but Mr. Forkle reminds them that they didn't inform the Black Swan ahead of time when they decided to appoint several of the kids as Regents. Sophie is surprised to learn that the Black Swan didn't know.
Mr. Forkle and Emery realize that both sides have failed to communicate. Emery promises to update the Black Swan, and Mr. Forkle apologizes for the secret meeting with Enki. This is a pivotal point where the Black Swan and Councillors truly turn a corner in their relations.
[This next part was written before I read Book 9.5 Unraveled. I have left it as I wrote it, but I have struck through the parts that I believe are false.]
I am currently confused about Ethan Benedict Wright and his daughter. My belief is that Ethan is one of Forkle's identities. Mr. Forkle shows up with an obituary for Ethan and his daughter, which he could have faked. But then, Mr. Forkle also has a photo of Gisela from the surveillance cameras, and this leads the kids to believe that Gisela killed Ethan and his daughter. I find it hard to believe that Forkle would be that cruel to Keefe.
[Exactly. Forkle wouldn't be that cruel.]
I thought it odd that Mr. Forkle would create a fake obituary, because I don't think Ethan is/was a real person and it would be cruel for Forkle to make Keefe think his mom killed Ethan. Rather, I think Gisela faked Ethan's death.
[I believe Ethan's death was faked, but it was done to trick Gisela.]It could be that Gisela faked the obituary and the deaths. Forkle is just showing what he found. It's interesting that the deaths occurred in a gap in the Black Swan's surveillance. Mr. Forkle agrees that it's odd. But did he pick that time on purpose, or did Gisela? As I stated, I am confused at present. I think we'll learn something in Book 9.5.
[I've now read Book 9.5, and I'm even more confused. As I will mention in a future post, Shannon is a master of misdirection. She actually has already revealed some of the big secrets but has simultaneously misdirected and to a degree that has kept the secrets hidden in plain sight.
More has been revealed about Ethan and his daughter, and it appears that I am wrong about Forkle and Ethan. Perhaps I am, but perhaps what Keefe is told in Book 9.5 isn't exactly the truth. Even if what Keefe is told is true, it is obvious that he is being given only a small portion of the truth. And there's something else I realized that could mean anything is still possible. I will get more into this when I write about Book 9.5.]
All of my past Keeper posts are linked from this page:
Keeper of the Lost Cities Summaries, Reviews, and Theories
Sunday, January 5, 2025
Using an Ozone Generator to Remove Musty Odor
Getting rid of musty odor is usually a losing proposition. Some people will insist that they've gotten rid of musty odor with dryer sheets, carpet freshener, or cat litter. But did they really? Or did they just substitute one odor with another?
Other people swear that wrapping books in newspaper works. Or placing in a container with charcoal. Or using essential oils. Or using baking soda and placing the books in the freezer. Or microwaving the books.
I've tried most of these methods, and they don't work.
Carpet freshener
I used carpet freshener on books that had a strong mothball odor. The books then smelled like mothballs and carpet freshener. Yuck. I couldn't keep the books. This method is a very bad idea.
Baking soda with or without the freezer
This does fade the odor, but it doesn't go away. It also tends to return. This method doesn't work.
Wrapping in newspaper
One time I did get rid of cigarette odor this way and failed another time. I've never tried with musty odor, but if this method failed with cigarettes, then it won't get rid of musty odor.
Microwaving the books
I have microwaved books. This method temporarily reduces the odor, but it comes back. The books can also scorch if you're not careful. Ask me how I know. Don't microwave your books.
I have never tried charcoal or essential oils. Charcoal is too messy, and using essential oils is odor replacement.
There is one more method: using an ozone generator. I purchased an ozone generator in 2021.
Ozone generators are dangerous. If you ever use one, you must be very careful to use it away from pets, animals, and people. Ozone is toxic to the lungs.
This bears repeating:
Ozone is toxic to the lungs.
Now that I've made that statement, I used the ozone generator on some musty books in 2021 with partial success. I don't think I exposed the books for long enough.
On May 25, 2023, I posted this on Facebook:
This poor book smells strongly of varnish. It's an okay odor which is far preferable to a musty or cigarette odor; I'd just like it to be a bit less strong. I can smell the book from four feet away now that I have it propped open with zip ties. This book is an exciting Kay Tracey purchase which is an upgrade to an earlier printing than what I've owned for years. I'd turn the book around and photograph the front, but the zip ties would fall out.
This is the book.
I treated the book with ozone for an indefinite amount of time. I don't know how long, because I don't remember. I got rid of the fragrance, but it was replaced with an ozone odor. I still didn't like it, but it was an improvement. What I thought was varnish was gone.
Sometime later, the seller asked me if I'd "smelled the roses." It turned out that what I perceived as strong varnish was from a rose-scented box that the seller reused to ship the book. She was proud of herself and thought it was great.
If you ever sell books, never use any kind of fragrance in or on the packaging. Buyers like me will hate you. While I wouldn't leave negative feedback over a fragrance, many book buyers would.
The ozone smell was not permanent, which I knew. I shelved the book and hadn't checked it until working on this post. The book now has no odor other than the smell of paper. It smells great! The ozone worked.
Fast forward to November.
I purchased a rather cheap bulk lot of Nancy Drew books, most of which have dust jackets. When I opened the package, I discovered that the books had a very strong musty odor—a very pungent, dreadful musty odor. Imagine the worst musty odor you have ever smelled, and that was how these books smelled.
Many of the books were solid blue and tweed Nancy Drew books from the early 1950s with good quality paper and in dust jacket. These were books that I hoped to sell. The musty odor was so awful that I could not possibly sell the books for much of anything. Despite the hassle involved, I had to get out the ozone generator.
I do this outside away from the house. I have an outbuilding with a porch that has a roof. The building does have electricity and is about 100 feet behind the house. I found a large cardboard box and placed on the porch. I used zip ties to prop the books open. The books and the ozone generator went into the box. Here are pictures.
The ozone generator has a three-hour timer. This is because it's not safe to approach the ozone generator while it's running. It must shut itself off. I kept the ozone generator unplugged while I prepped the books. When I was ready, I turned the dial to three hours and shut the box. I plugged in the ozone generator, then I walked away quickly while holding my breath. I took no chances.
I waited until I felt certain that the time had expired, and then I waited a bit longer, maybe 20 minutes. Ozone has a short half-life and dissipates quickly. When I checked on the books, I made sure that the ozone generator was off. I held my breath, opened the box, and moved away. The wind was blowing on this day, so any ozone left would have disappeared fast.
I then repeated the process, over and over. Each time I cycled the books, I checked one. At first, the books still smelled musty. It was at about 12 hours that I thought the musty odor might have been removed. I wasn't about to go to this much trouble again, so I continued cycling the books. All told, the books were treated to ozone for 21 hours. By that point, the books had a strong ozone odor.
In case you're wondering what ozone smells like, I'd describe it as smelling like the vinyl lining of an above ground swimming pool. Other people say that it smells similar to chlorine. It's a clean smelling odor.
Once I was finished, I got the books in the house and up on shelves to air out the ozone.
I'm not sure how long I left the books on the shelves. At first I thought it was for a day or so, but now I think it was probably for one week. The ozone odor did not decrease, and I needed to speed it up.
I moved the books to the garage. Outside air enters the garage, and any books placed in the garage air out quite well. I have a hygrometer in the garage, and the humidity stays between 45% and 55%. The humidity level is fine for books.
Here are some of the books in the garage.
The other books were scattered between other items on the shelves.
I finally checked on the books at either 2 1/2 weeks or 3 1/2 weeks since they were moved to the garage. I detected a very light ozone odor and removed the books from the garage.
I stacked the books and waited a day. I wanted them to be fully room temperature before I checked again. The books smelled lightly of ozone, light enough that the paper smelled like a new book. It was pleasant.
These are the books.
These books are also from the bulk lot, and they have significant water damage.
The rest of the books are fine with no water damage. Old Clock has a damaged dust jacket. Some of the other jackets have water stains that are visible only from the reverse side. Altogether, this is a nice group of books. They will be sold. I have written "ozone" on a sticky note placed inside each book. The books get mixed in with other books that will be sold, and it's important that I keep track of these. I will disclose that the books were musty and now aren't, just in case some allergens remain.
Conclusion
The horrific musty odor is gone. The remnant ozone odor is pleasant and may fade completely given enough time. Even if the ozone odor remains, most people would just smell paper.
Some people use ozone generators inside their homes when they deodorize books. They seal off a room where they run the ozone generator. I cannot do that since my home has central heat and air. There is no possible way to seal off a room. Air will be pulled into the central unit no matter what. My only solution is to do it outside or in an outbuilding. I prefer outside so that I know that the ozone has dissipated. Ozone is the best way to remove odors from books, but make sure that you know what you are doing before you proceed.
Thursday, January 2, 2025
Purchasing a Bulk Lot of Dana Girls Books
In the case of the blue/red jackets, I kept the earliest copy of each, especially if it had good quality paper. This meant that sometimes I kept the lesser condition book and jacket since I went with the earlier copy. It was tough, but I did it.
I recently saw a bulk lot of Dana Girls books with blue/red dust jackets. After some thought, I purchased the lot. The main reason was because I figured that some of the books would have good quality paper and that some of them might be upgrades to the copies that I have. It was a crap shoot as to what would happen, but I figured in the worst case scenario, I'd at least be able to sell the books and break even. I knew that most of them would not be upgrades, but I hoped that at least some would be.
The books arrived, and this was what I saw when I opened the package. (Click on each photo in order to see it in higher resolution.)
I marvel that sellers can just stick 80+ year old books with dust jackets in a box unwrapped and that most of the time, the books and jackets arrive undamaged. It's amazing.
It's such a joy to open up a package like this one. I immediately compared the books to what I had on the shelf. Some were earlier copies. Some were better in some ways and not in others. Initially, I decided to keep four books from the bulk lot.
In the above photo, each book from my shelf is shown first followed by the corresponding book from the bulk lot that will replace it. Going by spines only, you can see that these are not clear upgrades and look to be downgrades, but I have reasons for keeping the new copies over the old ones. Here is the rundown.
While the spine isn't an upgrade for Lone Tree Cottage, the new dust jacket is much brighter.
The new Lone Tree jacket is earlier, listing to Cobweb.
The new Locked Room jacket is also much brighter.
The new Locked Room jacket is earlier, listing to Gatehouse.
The new Locked Room book is in much better condition.
It was at this point while writing this post that I realized that I needed to once again compare the rest of the books in the bulk lot to what was on my shelf. I needed to make sure that I had considered all details including book condition. I'll get to that shortly.
The new Portrait in the Sand book and jacket is a clear upgrade in all ways other than the spine. My old copy is water damaged and faded.
The new Old Well dust jacket spine has a hole in it, but it is otherwise in better condition, much more so that I have to keep the new one in spite of the hole in the spine.
The Old Well book situation is interesting. The old copy, seen on the left, is in better shape. The new jacket is the jacket that is in better shape. Here's what is interesting. Seen below is my old book, which is the book in better condition. Look at the top sticky note that I have inside the book. Remember that you can click on the photo in order to see it better.
The book is nice enough that I've already kept it and swapped jackets with later acquisitions. I have owned the book since May 12, 2000. The jacket currently paired with it is from a book I acquired on January 29, 2019. I'm going to keep the book again and swap it with the jacket on the book I just received. It's okay to do this when both books and jackets are from the same printing. Some people might frown on it, but it's how I cobbled together my complete set of first printing copies of Nancy Drew #1-38 in dust jacket.
I then went back to my shelf and made certain that I had made the right decision not to keep the rest of the books from the bulk lot. In most cases, the new books had poor quality paper, and my books had good quality paper. I would never downgrade to a later printing with poor quality paper, even if the dust jacket is better.
I did decide to keep two more books from the bulk lot.
In both cases, both books are the same printing, and the condition is very close. When that is the case, I usually keep the old book just so I don't have to mess with changing my records.
The Gatehouse jackets are very close in condition. The old jacket has a large water stain on the reverse side, but the front side looks better than the new jacket.
Unfortunately, both books have issues, but the new book is not as bad. Also, the paper is not soiled on the outside vertical edge of the new book, so the new book is just cleaner and nicer as long as I keep the jacket on the book so that I don't see the cover.
I will swap jackets on the Gatehouse books, keeping the new book but pairing it with the old jacket. The books and jackets are all from the same print run.
The new Rusty Key jacket is brighter.
The new book is a little better as well.
All told, I'm keeping four of the books and jackets from the bulk lot and two other books provided me the means to swap jackets to create an upgrade. Almost half of the books from the bulk lot helped me with upgrades, so this was a good purchase.
Wednesday, January 1, 2025
Books Read in 2024
I finished 2024 with a reading total of 66 books.
Here is my list of how many books I've read each year going back to 2014 when I began keeping track.
2014: 262 books
2015: 231 books
2016: 355 books
2017: 403 books
2018: 315 books
2019: 185 books
2020: 106 books
2021: 60 books
2022: 47 books
2023: 51 books
2024: 66 books
How many of you are like me, always reading everything? Product boxes, signs, articles, anything and everything placed in front of me. I am always reading. Even when I'm not reading actual books, I can spend hours each day reading something.
It's compulsive. Put words in front of me, and I'll start to read them, even if they don't interest me. When I'm online on social media, I end up beginning to read stuff that's of little interest when it's in my feed, simply because I can see it. I want to learn, to know, to think.
I always have a short list of topics that are on my mind, and I seek out information about them. One of those topics is pandemics. Naturally, I'm keeping an eye on the bird flu situation.
Here is my list of books I read in 2024. As I have done in previous years, books I had already read prior to 2024 have been marked in blue.
January: 3 books
Percy Jackson #1 The Lightning Thief
Percy Jackson #2 The Sea of Monsters
Nancy Drew Diaries #25 What Disappears in Vegas...
I watched the new Percy Jackson television series, and then I decided to reread all the Percy Jackson books. I got bored during the third book and quit. I get sidetracked so easily these days.
In February, I decided to read young adult books. I found praise online for the imprint, Sourcebooks Fire. Following that lead brought me to quite a few books that I enjoyed.
February: 11 books
That's Not My Name by Megan Lally
They're Watching You by Chelsea Ichaso
The Warning by Kristy Acevedo
The Fallout by Kristy Acevedo
Plague Land by Alex Scarrow
Plague Land: Reborn by Alex Scarrow
Plague Land: No Escape by Alex Scarrow
What Happened on Hicks Road by Hannah Jayne
Swarm by Jennifer D. Lyle
Don't Let In the Cold by Keely Parrack
The Last to Die by Kelly Garrett
March: 12 books
The Girl Who Knew Too Much by Tiffany Brooks
The Chaperone by M Hendrix
All That's Left in the World by Erik J. Brown
The Compound by S. A. Bodeen
The Fallout by S. A. Bodeen
The Rule of Three by Eric Walters
The Rule of Three: Fight for Power by Eric Walters
The Rule of Three: Will to Survive by Eric Walters
Wilders: A Dystopian Half-Pocalyse Series by Cass Kim
Wilders: The Change by Cass Kim
Consequences: A Wilders Finale by Cass Kim
Michael Vey #1 The Prisoner of Cell 25 by Richard Paul Evans
April: 9 books
Michael Vey #2 Rise of the Elgen by Richard Paul Evans
Michael Vey #3 Battle of the Ampere by Richard Paul Evans
Michael Vey #4 Hunt for Jade Dragon by Richard Paul Evans
Michael Vey #5 Storm of Lightning by Richard Paul Evans
Michael Vey #6 Fall of Hades by Richard Paul Evans
Michael Vey #7 The Final Spark by Richard Paul Evans
Only She Came Back by Margot Harrison
Campus Murder Club by Kristi Rose
They All Had a Reason #1 A Rumor. A Secret. A Lie. A Murder by Michele Leathers
I ran out of books that interested me, and I couldn't find anything else. Also, May and June were months of extreme stress, so reading books was the last thing on my mind.
May: none
June: 3 books
The Defiant Heart by Florence B. Michelson
Keeper of the Lost Cities #1
Keeper of the Lost Cities #2 Exile
I tried to start my rereading of the Keeper books, then I lost interest.
July: 6 books
The Riddle of Raven Gulch by Mary Francis Shura
Mystery of the Lobster Thieves by Elaine Macmann Willoughby
The Secret of Hallam House by Nina Brown Baker
The Gray Ghosts of Taylor Ridge by Mary Francis Shura
The Season of Silence by Mary Francis Shura
Six-Dinner Sid by Inga Moore
August: 4 books
Let the Sky Fall by Shannon Messenger
Let the Storm Break by Shannon Messenger
The Last Witness by Claire McFall
The Murder Game by Carrie Doyle
September: 3 books
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
Good Girl, Bad Blood by Holly Jackson
As Good as Dead by Holly Jackson
I reread Keeper of the Lost Cities #1 and #2 for the second time this year before continuing with the set. I don't know if that rereading happened in September and/or October. I was not keeping good track of my reading at around this time. I have accounted for all of my reading, but I don't know where I was in the Keeper set at the beginning of October. Also, I am only counting the June reading of Keeper #1 and #2 towards my total, so when I read them the second time doesn't matter.
October: 3 books
Keeper of the Lost Cities #3 Everblaze
Keeper of the Lost Cities #4 Neverseen
Keeper of the Lost Cities #5 Lodestar
November: 5 books
Keeper of the Lost Cities #6 Nightfall
Keeper of the Lost Cities #7 Flashback
Keeper of the Lost Cities #8 Legacy
Keeper of the Lost Cities #8.5 Unlocked
Keeper of the Lost Cities #9 Stellarlune
December: 7 books
Keeper of the Lost Cities #9.5 Unraveled
Keeper of the Lost Cities #9.5 Unraveled
If I Tell: A Murder Mystery Thriller about a Girl and a Serial Killer by J. W. Lynne
End of Times #1 Impact by Nate Johnson
End of Times #2 Escape by Nate Johnson
End of Times #3 Endure by Nate Johnson
End of Times #4 Quest by Nate Johnson
The End of Everything #1 by Nate Johnson
I read Keeper of the Lost Cities #9.5 Unraveled twice through when it was released. I am only counting the first reading towards my total.
Currently, I am mainly interested in reading modern books. 59 of the 66 books I read in 2024 have been published since 2000.
The Best Books of 2024
These books are the most outstanding books out of all of the books I read in 2024. I am so fortunate that I read them.
That's Not My Name by Megan Lally
Campus Murder Club by Kristi Rose
The Season of Silence by Mary Francis Shura
The Worst Books of 2024
These books bored me.
Michael Vey #7 The Final Spark by Richard Paul Evans
Let the Sky Fall trilogy by Shannon Messenger
Mystery of the Lobster Thieves by Elaine Macmann Willoughby
I enjoyed this next group of books to varying degrees, but they were quite disappointing. When I finished reading each one, I felt depressed, disgusted, or angry.
If I Tell: A Murder Mystery Thriller about a Girl and a Serial Killer by J. W. Lynne
The Last Witness by Claire McFall
They All Had a Reason #1 A Rumor. A Secret. A Lie. A Murder by Michele Leathers
The one that really angered me was The Last Witness by Claire McFall, because it was a total waste of time. I don't appreciate being manipulated and lied to by the author. It is enraging.
At present, I am still on winter break and am thoroughly enjoying Nate Johnson's books. The books are self-published and have quite a few errors with homonyms and punctuation, but Nate Johnson writes engaging stories that have interesting characters. I'm good to go for around the next week, and then I'll see if I can find something else that I like.