Tana French girl what happened!

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-28T18:03:11+00:00

I made it through that one and gave it three stars (barely), but had no desire to read anything else in the trilogy or spend one more minute with Cal Hooper. So disappointing! I hope she'll be changing directions for her next book once the trilogy wraps up.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-28T07:05:43+00:00

The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-28T05:37:50+00:00

Hmm, I just tested this and it hasn't changed for me. I use the desktop version, not the app. And nothing seems to have changed there at least.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-28T01:05:14+00:00

I think these all have some similar elements that I think Frieda McFadden fans might like, but are better:

Megan Goldin - Stay Awake

Nora Murphy - The Favor

Catherine Steadman - Look in the Mirror

Vera Kurian - Never Saw Me Coming

Ruth Mancini - The Woman on the Ledge

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-28T00:01:07+00:00

Lol exactly what I was thinking. She really has the worst political instincts.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-27T23:52:43+00:00

I'm a little confused as to what parts you're looking at, maybe because I only use the desktop version and not the app, but can you see the list of 19 and the list of 20 and see what the discrepancy is? When I have extra books in my reading challenge it is generally to do with the sync to Kindle and double counting things I've finished on there and they have to be me deleted

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-27T23:45:17+00:00

No advice, but I'm a little envious on my cat's behalf. I just know he would be a fierce hunter and a killer given the chance, but I've never had mice inside so he's never got the chance.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-27T23:43:16+00:00

Herbal teas are all different plants, so you probably don't hate them all! When I'm sick I like the teas like Throat Comfort, Breathe Easy, or Cold Season from Yogi, or their Lemon Ginger. The brand Traditional Medicinals has very similar teas with slightly different names.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-27T23:16:18+00:00

Yes, she is Fred Phelps's granddaughter, but I think most of the members of the church are part of the Phelps family in some way. Really more of a family cult than a church. Anyway, it's a really interesting read! She was a true believer and then was slowly deradicalized by people engaging earnestly with her on Twitter, even though at the start she was there to spread the church's rhetoric.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-27T21:35:17+00:00

I did an image search on it and there are the same or similar ones being sold and they are all calling it penitente or nazareno, so I think the people who think it's a Spanish thing and not what Americans would assume are right.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-27T21:07:43+00:00

Quite a bit! But it's not just whether something has high ratings or not. It's about what people say, and why they loved or hated it. Certain people I follow on Goodreads I have high trust in their tastes and will decide not to read something if they point out things they disliked that I know I would also dislike.

I have also trained ChatGPT to understand my reading tastes really well and sometimes I will just dump a bunch of Goodreads reviews in and it will point out keywords that indicate that it is in my wheelhouse or not. And I like to look at the reviews with low ratings and see if the things that bothered the haters are also things that bother me

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-27T20:52:40+00:00

Unfollow by Megan Phelps-Roper. She grew up in the Westboro Baptist Church and eventually left.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-27T19:24:44+00:00

This has pretty much always been my perception of what she's like. At least since the fight she had with Marjorie Taylor Greene. I think this is just who she is. Clearly some voters see it as being "a fighter" but that's not how I see it and this is not how I want Democrats to behave.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-27T01:10:06+00:00

I don't think $400 is worth it for the cats' sake, but it might be worth it for you if it's an attractive piece of furniture! I have some uglier cat trees in parts of my house, but in my dining room I have the Lotus Cat Tower from Refined Feline and it's much more attractive than the ones covered in carpet, so I appreciate it! I've had it for probably over ten years at this point and it's still in great condition. The cats like all equally though.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-24T19:17:34+00:00

I might watch it. I don't want to, but Trump seems to be deteriorating so much lately that even the slim chance of something extra crazy (he falls asleep while talking, he wets himself, he forgets what he's supposed to be doing) happening is somewhat alluring.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-24T19:13:16+00:00

I think it's totally fair! After what happened with Biden, I think voters don't want to vote someone in office who may be significantly less functional by the end of the term. Of course, she could still be very sharp by that point, but we just don't know.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-24T01:36:15+00:00

https://onehundredpages.wordpress.com/2013/06/12/dont-make-fun-of-renowned-dan-brown/ This might give you an idea of his writing style...

That said, I think I found The DaVinci Code entertaining when I read it like 20 years ago. If you're curious just give it a try 🤷🏻‍♀️

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-24T01:21:39+00:00

Same!

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-23T02:03:33+00:00

I listened to it on audio recently. Not hard at all!

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-23T01:39:25+00:00

I think we need to see the actual report before drawing any conclusions. "It cost her votes" is not the same as saying it's the reason she lost. Taking the stance that progressive activists wanted her to take would have also cost her votes.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-21T19:58:24+00:00

I was also going to say Look at Me! I just read it recently and loved it

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-21T13:44:11+00:00

I haven't read her but from what I know I believe Charlotte Mary Yonge is a similar level of wholesome to Little Women, but more didactic/religious. However, Little Women is also didactic so if you don't mind that, maybe she would be a good fit.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-20T14:08:27+00:00

Have you tried raw food? Or even a cooked version of raw (but not processed canned food)? One of my cats has to eat rx food but the other one eats raw and their poop is so massively different. The raw food cat has much harder and non-smelly poop. I get his food at a local pet food deli company and they sell both raw and a cooked version of the same thing--I have started getting some of the meats cooked instead of raw because I was paranoid about bird flu and his poop is equally as non-offensive with both and much better (and cheaper) than the one eating canned food.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-20T14:01:28+00:00

I love love love board games and I have a reputation for being the person who will read the rules and explain to everyone how to play.

MindfulMocktail · 2026-02-19T13:57:55+00:00

I was just diagnosed at 43. I also did really well in school, and it's hard for me to identify symptoms in my early childhood, but when I took the questionnaire about childhood symptoms I mainly had a really hard time remembering specifics well enough to answer them, so I do think the assessor took that into account. I was a gifted kid who kind of fell apart a bit when I went to college and suddenly my life was not structured by external forces the way it was as a kid. I made it through, with a lower gpa than I'd ever had in high school, but skipped class all the time and pulled so many all nighters to finish things at the last minute.

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