Welcome to The Sunday Salon, where we get to sit back and enjoy our weekend paper.. or our fellow blogger's Sunday posts. And scroll to the bottom to get to my Sunday Swap List.

Now that August is here, it is time to get our kids in gear! School shopping and getting back on a school schedule is our main priority (that they've been ignoring). The summer has been full of hot, lazy days. The kids were waking up just in time for lunch. And then running through the house at midnight. A five year old running around upstairs does not equate to the adorable pitter patter of tiny feet.

And this five year old will start Kindergarten in a few weeks. Yup. The baby is technically not a baby. Only technically. He's got that whining thing down though, so I worry about his new teacher. Hopefully he'll enjoy the school routine, he always did quite well with the daycare setting. It's just been a bit boring for him this summer which is why I have both hopes and fears for kindergarten to get him back to being my happy go-lucky little guy.

Bookish news.. Have you see the Estella Society yet? They are welcoming book bloggers and your ideas to help cultivate blogger relationships. They're on Facebook, too! Co-host Andi says this about The Estella Society: 'We're pretty open to anything you want to share! This is a readerly playground so it should be fun, informative, and freeing to share your thoughts.' Doesn't that sound fun? Official launch date is August 15.

Speaking of bloggers coming together, the BEA 2013 Conference is already under discussion. Is this something you care about anymore as a book blogger? Personally, since I would never go to one in NYC it is not something that is on my radar, but I like to see what is going on there bookwise/bloggerwise. Turns out, 2012 BEA was a bit of a let-down as it was still more author-focused as opposed to blogger-focused. Serena from Savvy Verse & Wit put together some ideas for what she thinks would be a more valuable blogger conference, and you could read them here. And then I direct you to one of my previous posts where I suggest a fabulous location. Put these two together, and Yeah baby! I'm there!

I really enjoyed myself big-time during the Armchair BEA which ran online at the same time as the physical BEA, as I was able to converse with many new bloggers from the comfort of my computer. The twitter parties were awesome, and I look forward to more of those. I just wish there were more bloggers there that were representative of different genres, this time around there were a large amount of YA bloggers. But I did manage to get some intriguing book recommendations through them.

After last week's announcement of me not becoming the slave to the ARCs, I have felt like a huge weight is off my shoulders. The books are still here, but I have ignored at least 20 emails so far (pats self on back). I am on my way to reading what I want to read when I want to read it!

In the spirit of 'I hate being a robot reviewer'.. I had to mention this article I read via mediabistro.. Fake Erotica takes iBookstore by storm.. shooting to the top but can't yet beat Fifty Shades.. the point is that these comedians got their friends/fans to write fake reviews, give out five stars etc for a fake book and now it's technically a bestseller. So if they can do that, so can everyone else selling a book. Just saying. Which means finding a trusted blogger (like you and me!) is so totally important. (GRIN!) Crazy stuff in the book review world.

I have a question:
Have you read Hemingway.. recently?
What would you recommend for me to read first? For Whom The Bell Tolls was put on the top of my list.
I am intrigued. He was a sexy man.. here is a photo Erika Robuck puts of him in her book, which I am loving Hemingway's Girl:

Ernest Hemingway Collection. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston.

I opened the book, turned a few pages, and *bam* that photo was there. Wasn't expecting that, or his calf muscle. Anyway...


Christian Non-fiction:
I Love You to God and Back by Amanda Lamb (used paperback)

Tudor-ish:
In A Treacherous Court by Michele Diener (new pb)
At The Kings Pleasure by Kate Emerson (book #4, these are stand alone; this is a new pb copy)
The King's Damsel by Kate Emerson (book #5, signed, used ARC)
Pale Rose of England by Sandra Worth (used ARC)
Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory (used ARC)

Other Royal-related:
Queen By Right by Anne Easter Smith (used ARC)
For the King by Catherine Delors (used ARC, one that came bound with that black tape)
Confessions of Catherine de Medici by CW Gortner (used ARC)
The Shadow Queen: A Novel of Wallis Simpson by Rebecca Dean (used ARC)

Royal Non-fiction:
Notorious Royal Marriages by Leslie Carroll (older ARC & has a little stain on cover even though I never read it)
Sister Queens by Julia Fox (good non fiction if you are interested in these two Queens; Used ARC)

Austenesque/Regency:
Wickham's Diary by Amanda Grange (small book, an ARC)
Pemberley Ranch by Jack Caldwell (used ARC)
A Darcy Christmas by Grange/Lathan/Eberhart (used ARC)
The Gilded Shroud (a Georgian mystery) by Elizabeth Bailey (used PB)

Historical Romance:
The Wildest Heart by Rosemary Rogers (used ARC, this is 736 pages and a LOT of fun)

Historical Fiction:
The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe (used ARC)
The Day the Falls Stood Still by Cathy Marie Buchanan (used ARC)
Madame Tussaud by Michelle Moran (used ARC)
Burnt Shadows by Kamila Shamsie (used pb)
The Dressmaker by Kate Alcott (used ARC)
The Irish Healer by Nancy Herriman (used ARC)
A Parliament of Spies by Cassandra Clark (used ARC)
Come a Little Closer by Dorothy Garlock (used pb)
Madame Bovary's Daughter by Linda Urbach (used ARC, she wrote on it, put my name etc)
Pendragon's Banner by Helen Hollick (used PB)
The Shadow of The King by Helen Hollick (used ARC)
Child of the Northern Spring by Persia Wolley (used ARC)

General Literature/Women's Fic:
This Must Be The Place by Kate Racculia (used ARC)
Mothers & Daughters by Rae Meadows (used ARC)
The Darlings by Christina Alger (used ARC)
The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa (used pb)

Others:
The Land of Painted Caves by Auel (ARC)
The First Assassin by John J Miller (ARC)
Four Sisters, All Queens by Sherry Jones (ARC)


For Easier Access, I have attempted to add these titles to my Goodreads To-Swap shelf. That way, you can see ratings etc and figure out if they are something you are interested in.
If you are interested in any of these books and have something you would like to offer in trade, you can either email me, or comment on the post. I can reply via comments as well for initial questions or offers.

There are many different books I would be interested in, but to get an idea of things that are on my official wish list, see my Goodreads wish-list shelf, My Amazon Wish List, or my paperbackswap wish list. Or, just show me what you've got! (*USA only, please).

And I am eagerly looking for Gilbert Morris novels, as well as lots of Christian Historical fiction. Just saying.

Hello blogosphere! (It's been two years since I've done a Sunday Salon. There's a lot to catch up on!)

What a month it has been! SO many changes.. so many mini and mega dramas have been going on in the blogosphere that I have decided to step away quietly and make a firm decision to curtail the 'review' requests etc that have become a major part of my life. When I began the blog in late 2008 it was because I wanted to share my thoughts on my new love of British history related books. My father had just passed away suddenly and I needed a hobby fast to get my mind otherwise occupied.

I loved blogging.. and I met some fellow like-minded historical fiction fans and things were awesome for a while. Soon enough there was a Drama Mama everywhere I went and I stopped the social aspect but continued reviewing as my love for reading never stopped. Then the review schedule took my life OVER. EVERYTHING in my free time was (still is) balanced against the publication schedule of my review books. The review books have piled up. They have mocked me. They have given me nightmares (almost).

I mean, really, this is horrible. Seriously.

I have not even read Penman's latest. (*And I got the ARC way before pub date. And it sits.) WTF is wrong with me, right?

Turns out there is more to life than the Plantagenets and the Tudors, and I have been happily reviewing Christian historical fiction as well. So that means there are EVEN MORE books *I MUST* read. (Someone slap me!)

Which means once again, I overextend myself, and take on more than I can handle. This has been going on for the longest three years of my life. And as my 2012 Updated Review policy states, I am so sick of it. Of my schedule, the reviews, the pesky dramas, the misguided world..etc.

Longest story short (impossible).. it is with a clean conscience that I am stepping back from review requests and I cannot wait to get to my massive pile of accumulated books that the blogosphere has recommended to me over the last three years. I am back, and as a blogger. Out with the reviewer status, and happily embracing the blogger status. I am going to read and review still... but I am not going to be active out there feeling like some robotic tool for various publishers and authors. I am not going to be any one's free marketer any longer. And I am not going to be mean and snarky, I will just be honest, and if that's snarky, awesomeapplesauce cuz I don't care. There are still commitments that I have personally made to review certain books at certain times in the next few months. I will still honor those if I can, but I am gleefully ignoring all further requests till I get that stack done and over with and then will continue to ignore requests because I am going to be on Goodreads and Facebook and booktalking with bloggers instead of being a book marketer. So get used to me, cuz I'm joining in on your fun too! Read alongs! Yes!


Since it's the end of the month I figured I would share my reading stats. Maybe I'll do that every month like a Monthly wrap up post.

According to my fave bookish site, Goodreads:
I've read 48 Book this year so far, with a total 17,803 pages.
For 2011, my year's total was 52 books and 20,084 pages.. so I think I can manage to knock those numbers out of the park this year, eh?

Some great books I have read so far in 2012. The majority were 4 stars, with 14 being 3 stars and 9 being 5 stars. As you can tell, as long as it keeps me happy and reading, I give it a pretty good rating. It doesn't take much. I do wish Goodreads would implement the .5 star rating though, since I use those in my review ratings and would probably skew things a little more critically for me. But no biggie.
And now to the good stuff...

The other reason I am here.. is to swap with you!
Do you have four million ARC's that you don't know what to do with? I do! Ok, I am exaggerating, but I am seriously running out of room in my 3200 square foot house. Yea, it's freaking horrible. I even have books in the warehouse that I would like to unpack someday. That's where the title of this blog post comes in.. drowning in books. Out with the old, in with the new!

This week I saw at Katie's Christian Fiction blog that she hosts a monthly bookswap. Since I don't have a lot of that genre that I want to give up, I decided to post my own books that I am willing to trade for (after I happily snagged 4 books from the swap at Katie's). I do want more of that genre in my library, but I just didn't have enough to offer her readers to logically post my list on her site. So, I'll do it here.

Here is Katie's swap post at A Legacy of A Writer which I totally stole the idea from (with permission). If you like Christian Fiction, CHECK THIS POST OUT! 

What I have to trade (most of these you can find in my Master Review List unless it was a Historical Novel Society Review to be posted later):

Christian Non-fiction:
I Love You to God and Back by Amanda Lamb (used paperback)

Christian Fiction:
Bees in The Butterfly Garden by Maureen Lang (used ARC)
Need You Now by Beth Wiseman (used PB) contemporary

Tudor-ish:
In A Treacherous Court by Michele Diener (new pb)
At The Kings Pleasure by Kate Emerson (book #4, these are stand alone; this is a new pb copy)
The King's Damsel by Kate Emerson (book #5, signed, used ARC)
Pale Rose of England by Sandra Worth (used ARC)
Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory (used ARC)

Other Royal-related:
Queen By Right by Anne Easter Smith (used ARC)
For the King by Catherine Delors (used ARC, one that came bound with that black tape)

Royal Non-fiction:
Notorious Royal Marriages by Leslie Carroll (older ARC & has a little stain on cover even though I never read it)
Sister Queens by Julia Fox (good non fiction if you are interested in these two Queens; Used ARC)

Austenesque/Regency:
Wickham's Diary by Amanda Grange (small book, an ARC)
Pemberley Ranch by Jack Caldwell (used ARC)
A Darcy Christmas by Grange/Lathan/Eberhart (used ARC)

Historical Romance:
The Wildest Heart by Rosemary Rogers (used ARC, this is 736 pages and a LOT of fun)

Historical Fiction:
The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe (used ARC)
The Day the Falls Stood Still by Cathy Marie Buchanan (used ARC)
Madame Tussaud by Michelle Moran (used ARC)
Burnt Shadows by Kamila Shamsie (used pb)
The Irish Healer by Nancy Herriman (used ARC)
A Parliament of Spies by Cassandra Clark (used ARC)
Come a Little Closer by Dorothy Garlock (used pb)
Madame Bovary's Daughter by Linda Urbach (used ARC, she wrote on it, put my name etc)

General Literature/Women's Fic:
This Must Be The Place by Kate Racculia (used ARC)
Mothers & Daughters by Rae Meadows (used ARC)
The Darlings by Christina Alger (used ARC)
The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa (used pb)


Others: (no reviews, I haven't read and won't get to these this lifetime)
The Land of Painted Caves by Auel (ARC)
The First Assassin by John J Miller (ARC)
Four Sisters, All Queens by Sherry Jones (ARC)

If you are interested in any of these books and have something you would like to offer in trade, you can either email me, or comment on the post. I can reply via comments as well for initial questions or offers.

There are many different books I would be interested in, so I am not going to post a wish list & further expand this humongous blog post. To get an idea of things that are on my wish list, see my Goodreads wish-list shelf, My Very Old Amazon Wish List, or my paperbackswap wish list. Or, just show me what you've got! (*USA only, please).


Even if you do not see something here that you like, please feel free to also post a swap list of items you have (w/Email addy) so others can contact you, or link to a post of your own if you would like to do it that way. My thanks to Katie for letting me snag this swap idea.

If I happen to have Historical books left over I will be offering some as part of the Partial to the Past Blog Hop Giveaway that Holly is hosting at Bippity Boppity Book on August 24. See you there?