Fireweed flowers have reached the tip of the stalk!

 

Those of us who live in Alaska know what that means. Fall is almost on us. A cold summer, I still kept the door open and let the fresh air in even when it was raining. I don't mind watching the rain come down.

I brought all but the geraniums in off the deck. It was too cold for the rest of my plants. And I'll probably close the upstairs window. I still have the heat off at night, it's easier to sleep.

That said, there are two new books to tell you about. The first is a new release from Holly Barbo. This one is killer! It practically throbs with action. I found it almost impossible to put down.

If you like historical novels, the Blood and the Barley is a different take on Scotland after Culloden and 1745. I do recommend it. Great story and well drawn characters. 

 

 

 Fall on it's way.

Until later, avoid the pot holes and never give in, never give up.

When the temperature gets above 65 and the sun comes out, Wasilla lake in downtown Wasilla is the place to be. The parking lot is too small so the surrounding businesses find the back part of their lots filling with those looking for a little fun in the sun.

We all knew it would be a good day when we woke up to sunshine and not a cloud in the sky anywhere. Better yet, since it would be nice far into the evening hours, people at work get to come home and take advantage of the great weather. Like the old nursery rhyme, Alaska when she is good is very, very good. And when she is nasty.....Well you get it.

Woke up to another beautiful day. And it's a weekend. Wow. Later all. Below is the view from the gym. I love the pink touching the peaks.This is from a few days ago before the clouds blew away.

The Eklutna Iris field has bloomed.

And the blooms have died off. But the wild roses are still blooming. The wild geranium and clover are next. We've had a lot of gray days and rain, but there have been some glorious days in between. The Alaska Scottish Highland games have come and gone. They were grand and great fun as always.
A little early rain fled and it got to be scattered and broken. I didn't take any pictures and should have but I was busy.
You see we did a give-away. Two baskets filled with goodies went to the two lucky winners who signed up and gave us email addresses. They will get a Paper Gold Publishing newsletter once a month. Nothing spammy or too often. That is too much work for me.
Busy hasn't let up one little bit. Galway Days is coming August 11 on the Alaska Pacific University campus. Come and joint he fun if you can. It should be fun. And we plan to do another give-away. Put us on the calendar if possible.
I'll leave you with another picture.

It's almost for the Alaska Scottish Highland Games. 

June 30th is the day. I sure hope that it is every bit as nice as this one was. My daughter and I have had a booth at the games for years, at least twenty. 

This year we intend to have stuffed animals. Sewn by hand with sewn on eyes as usual.

But this year I'm also bringing a ton of swag and Paper Gold Publishing will have a booth at the games.

There will be lots of free stuff and paperback books. So make time to come by and say hello Saturday, June 30th. Cherime's Treasures will be in the program. See you there.

I like to make things from scratch. This was an interesting article. Since I use bowls more than plates these days, I enjoyed reading it. The article from Quartzy makes some interesting points. Have a look. Bowls v. plates.

Such a fantastic day. I had to run over to my son's place to let the grand-dogs out. When he works it's 12 hour shifts and an hour commute both ways. On the way there and back motorcycles were out all over the place. And it was hot in the truck cab. I came close to turning on the AC. At home the dog wanted out to enjoy the weather. I obliged him, turned the heat off and opened the front door to enjoy the day. Wonderful to be able to do that. This morning the temperature is 39 degrees. Real soon a leaf explosion will take place. I can tell the willows are almost ready, their stems are a dark red. It doesn't hurt that it's daylight until nearly 10 pm and the sky is getting light at 5 am. Yay summer. It's what Alaskans live for.

Amazon has strange ways of gauging friends these days. I have taken to reviewing books on Bookbub because I have a reasonable expectation that the reviews will be there tomorrow. I often do batches of reviews on Sunday. And I read voraciously.
Some authors aren't on Bookbub. That makes it all trickier. Now that Goodreads is an Amazon company, any reviews on there may be subject to removal.  
I ran across two books recently which I enjoyed. The first is an Irish crime tale titled Murder on the Bog Road.
On reviewing it on Amazon I found a couple of less than stellar which did surprise me. I enjoyed both the locale and the characters.
Another, Wild Rose by Sherrie Hansen was a sweet romp in the world of the church. The first meeting between the pastor and Rose is unforgettable. So if you are looking for a good read, check Bookbub for my recommendations and reviews. I read almost anything other than horror and hard core erotica. That does not mean I turn my nose up at well done adult reading, I don't. https://www.bookbub.com/profile/cherime-macfarlane

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Alicia suspects his mother had the brilliant idea of throwing them together hoping they would get together. That is not going to happen if he keeps running away. Ken is a too solitary for his own good.