Share Your Shelf-December

Kicking off the new year with a book post. It's the first Thursday of the month which means it's time to share our shelves and what we read in December. Before I do that let's talk Goodreads. Are you on Goodreads? If you're not, how do you remember what you read and who wrote what? 

I enjoy participating in Goodread's reading challenge each year, and in 2024 my goal was 34 books. I read 44, a mix of historical fiction, non-fiction, memoir, contemporary fiction, and mystery/legal thriller. I always struggle to answer the question, 'which one was your favorite', but those near the top of that list would be Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver, The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese, and Foster by Claire Keegan. 

Now on to December. Back to December? Whatever, here's what I read in December, fewer books than other months but the holidays didn't leave a lot of open space on the calendar. 

I'm linking this post today with the Share Your Shelf girls-Joanne (Slices of Life), Marilyn (Memphis Bridges), Tanya (The Other Side of the Road) and Jen (My Joyful Life). 

1. Joy To The World: Daily Readings For Advent by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Charles Spurgeon was a preacher in the mid 1800's, and this collection of daily short readings taken directly from his sermons still rings true today. Some of the language feels 'old', and after reading day one I wasn't sure I'd like it, but am so glad I stuck with it as I ended up loving it more each day. He made me think, which is what I want in an Advent devotional. I gave this one 5 stars. 

2. The Lost City Of The Monkey God: A True Story by Douglas Preston

Hubs and I listened to this one on Audible as we were driving here there and everywhere during the month of December. We both enjoyed it. Mostly. The author got a little 'preachy' in spots toward the end, but overall this true account was really, really interesting. 

This is the story of a project by some documentary filmmakers (Steve Elkins and Bill Benenson) who used a technology called LiDAR to search for archeological sites in the Mosquitia region of Honduras. The Mosquitia region was one of the last scientifically unexplored places on earth, and basically I knew zero about any of that, including Honduras. The author, Douglas Preston, has written a number of fiction books, but has also written for National Geographic and The New Yorker. The story flows and was very readable. Listen-able? 

Elkins search was inspired by rumors of a lost city called La Cuidad Blanca or The White City, mentioned by Spanish conquistadors back in the 1930's. The stories and rumors surrounding this 'lost city' talked about a pyramid topped with a giant stone statue of a monkey god somewhere in the Mosquitia region, and this book tells the tale of Elkins and his team's attempts to locate and unearth it. A privately funded LiDAR survey showed complex archeological sites under the rainforest, and Preston (the author) accompanied the group of scientists, geologists, archeologists, videographers, etc to investigate and verify the findings. 

A fair bit of the book deals with the hardships (that's putting it mildly) of jungle life including a disease called leishmaniasis several of the group contracted and continue to deal with still today. Let me just say, reading this book confirmed my suspicion that I'm not cut out for jungle life. Have you ever heard of a snake called the Fer-de-Lance? Well they're a fixture in this particular part of the Honduras rainforest and they cause more human deaths than any other American reptile. Details of their trek into the rainforest were gripping and I am always fascinated by people who live lives of exploration, adventure, and risk. I gave this one four stars. 

3. The Southern Criminal (Joe Hennessey Legal Thriller #2) by Peter O'Mahoney

I like a legal thriller and enjoy this series featuring the lawyer Joe Hennessey. The books are set mainly in Charleston, but the author also mentions the Upstate, which is the part of SC where I live, and I enjoyed the references to familiar spots. This is the second of six in a series and I will probably read them all. I think the individual cases in each book stand alone, but Joe Hennessey's personal storyline is a thread carried through at least the first three books, maybe more.

In The Southern Criminal a high profile lawyer is charged with murdering his wife and Joe agrees to join the defense team since he owes the lead attorney on the case a favor. There's a side story playing out too, as Joe also agrees to separately defend a well known folk singer on drug charges. These two cases intersect, the plot lines are interesting, and the characters well-developed. There's a great deal of corruption, back room dealing, and shady lawyering (not by Joe) along the way, as well as the continuation of Joe's personal tragedy storyline (his ten year old son was murdered 20 years prior). Bits of that story are parceled out and it sounds like Book 3 (The Southern Killer) will tell much more. Joe is a likable lead character and this is a genre I enjoy. I gave it four stars. 

So what did you read in December? 

What's one book you're really excited to read in 2025? 

Three Days In June by Anne Tyler is one I'm looking forward to. I love her writing and the plot appeals to me. Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy coming out in March sounds really good too, and  The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff is also on my to-read list. I  love a generational tale. Frederik Bachman has a book coming in May that I'll be waiting for, entitled -My Friends.

My to-read list is long, and I could go on, but I'll leave it there for now.

Will you be participating in any book challenges this year? I will definitely set a Goodreads goal for 2025, and this year I'm also considering the 52 book challenge. I might give myself a bit of latitude on that one, but it sounds like fun. 

New year, new books...happy reading everyone!