BBAW: Interview Swap with Robin from My Two Blessings

TBV: Let's start off by letting everyone know a little bit about you and your reading preferences. Can you tell us a little about yourself and what types of books one can find on your book blog My Two Blessings?

Robin: I'm a 51 year old mom to our only son who just turned 12.  We also home school and 6th grade just started this week so I've been in midst of researching curriculum and planning lessons the past few weeks.  We own an electronic audio repair business and I work two days a week and get to have some adult interaction while hubby gets to have a couple daddy days.  He's a genius when it comes to electronics and science so he gets to teach those subjects on my work days.   I also a self professed bibliophile and have been reading ever since learned to read at the age of 6.  I'm a bit of a speed reader so go through a lot of books and I hate to get rid of any of them, so our shelves are pretty full, double and triple packed.  My interests are pretty eclectic so many different books can be found on my blog from all types of romances to mysteries and thrillers to paranormal, urban fantasy and science fiction to Christian fiction.  With a few historical fictions novels thrown in here and there.  I love discovering new to me authors and when I discover one I like, will devour all their books.

TBV: What are your top 5 books you've read in 2011 so far?

Robin: The top 5 - Oh Mercy!   I've read a lot of new to me authors this year, so its hard to pick.  I'd have to say one of the books that made the biggest impression so far would be Guilty Pleasures by Laurell K. Hamilton.  It is the first book in the Anita Baker Vampire series and she hooked me.  The series is quite addictive and I'm just about to start the book #20 Hit List which is the last book in the series.   Another new to me author is K.M.Weiland and her book A Man Called Outlaw.  An old fashioned western along the lines of Louis L'Amour with lots of suspense and really hits you emotionally.  Of course I can't leave out my favorite authors J.D. Robb (aka Nora Roberts) and her latest in the IN DEATH series Treachery in Death or Patricia Briggs latest in the Mercy Thompson Series River Marked.  I'm not a huge non-fiction reader but there is one that really stuck with me Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynn Truss.  It was a very witty, fun filled guide to punctuation which is one of my big pet peeves.

TBV: 2011 seemed to be the year of new-to-me authors as well! Who are a few of your favorite authors?

Robin: Just a few huh!  Let's see - Nora Roberts of course. I'll read anything she writes.  Then there are Cherry Adair, Ted Dekker, Bodie Thoene, Robyn Carr, Laurell K. Hamilton, Christine Feehan, Cindy Gerard, and Roxanne St. Clair.

TBV: That’s a great group of authors you mentioned. What books are you looking forward to reading?

Robin: I have quite a few books on my nightstand so it's hard to choose. Sometimes I just have to go to random.org and plug in a number and see what comes up on my list.  I think the ones I'm looking forward to reading right now are:  An Instance of the Fingerpost by Iain Pears, Charmed by Jayne Ann Krentz, Death Comes to the Archbishop by Willa Cather, Map of Bones by James Rollins, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt, Rose Labryinth by Titania Hardie, Shadow of Betrayal by Brett Battles, Tenth Stone by Bodie Thoene and The Priest's Graveyard by Ted Dekker.  A rather eclectic mixture now that I look at it.

TBV: I’ve used random.org to pick my next read as well. Let’s switch gears a bit here – You host the 52 Books in 52 Weeks reading challenge. Can you tell us a bit about that. Will you be hosting it next year?

Robin: The 52 books reading challenge started a couple years ago on the Well Trained Mind homeschool forum.  One of the gals came up with an idea to have a casual read a book a week challenge and I loved the idea.  Initially she would put up a weekly thread and everyone would comment on what they were reading. Then I offered to start a blog so folks who didn't have a blog could post reviews.  Halfway through the year, she dropped out and I ended up taking over.  At the end of the year, everyone wanted to continue doing it, plus I had a few people from outside the group express an interest in joining in.  I revamped the blog and started doing a Sunday weekly post with Mr. Linky for everyone to link to their reviews.   I started doing a A,B,C theme so it would help give me ideas to post about such as A is for Art Mysteries, C is for Cara Black, F is for Fantasy and Science Fiction.  Last year I had tried doing a Science Fiction reading challenge and set up a separate blog for it.  However, it became too difficult keeping up with three blogs, so I blended it in with 52 books challenge as a mini challenge within the challenge.  There are several mini challenges including Ireland Reading Challenge, Armchair Traveler, reading all things Jane Austen and read 12 classics in 12 months for those who didn't think they could possibly read 52 books but could manage 12.  I'll introduce new authors, challenge the participants to read a different genre or pick a book based on the title or cover.  It's been a lot of fun and I'm enjoying it so definitely will be continuing in 2012. 

TBV: And there you have it folks. Thanks Robin for being my interview partner! I love getting the opportunity to meet new book bloggers

Where to find Robin: blog | twitter

Be sure to check out my interview at Robin’s blog!