Category Archives: Announcement

When I first started Book Reviews & More by Kathy in September 2011, my plan was to post three reviews of books I owned every week. I was also going to post a couple of contests a week. Then blog tour companies and publishers came a-calling and well, the rest is history.

During the past twelve years, much has changed in the publishing world. Small, independent publishers imploded due to malfeasance and dwindling profits (such as Ellora’s Cave & Samhain Publishing). Other independent publishers ended up with major problems but they are still limping along. The New York publishing world has also changed due to the explosion of self-published authors. eBook prices have dramatically risen as has the price of hardback and some paperpacks.

The world in general has also undergone tremendous upheaval and change. The Covid pandemic resulted in a tragic loss of lives world wide. After everyone resumed their lives after shutdowns and lockdowns, “normal” looks different . It is hard for me to remember my life before all of the worrying about my friends’ and family members’ health.

In the wake of my own non-covid (I have managed to avoid catching it, knock on wood!) health problems, we moved to a warmer town in New Mexico. Due to a cascade of health issues, I gave up reviewing full-time and changed my website’s name to Book Talk & More with Kathy. I greatly enjoyed returning to reading for pleasure and no longer hosting blog tours. My health is now greatly improved and I love being “me” again.

Not too long ago when I was setting up my posts for the week, the thought “I don’t want to do this anymore” popped into my mind. I wasn’t sure if that was just a transitory feeling but when it happened again, I knew it was time to pick a date to say “The End”.

I would like to thank everyone for their support over the years. Many of you have been with me right from the beginning and my appreciation is beyond words. I wish nothing but good health and happiness for all of you in the future. And, of course, happy reading!

So, like Carol Burnett ended each episode of her show, I’ll conclude my final post with “I’m so glad we had this time together”.

May the light of the season shine brightly upon you and your family today and every day of the year.

Today is Thanksgiving here in the United States, so I thought today would be a good time to reflect on what you’re thankful for this year.

With all of the health issues I’ve faced this past year, I am thankful none of them have been truly serious. It has been challenging dealing with multiple surgeries while also dealing with the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis.

But these health problems ended up having an unexpected positive side for us. Our move to Las Cruces was a direct result of needing better access to health care. This silver lining has been the best thing for us and next month, our youngest is moving over here too!

Feel free to share what you are thankful for this year.

And Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who celebrates the holiday.

Or at least I hope it is!

I’ve struggled with this decision as long as I can and I hope everyone will understand. I have come to realize that it is time for me to give up writing reviews. Although I truly enjoy sharing my thoughts on books that I read, I can no longer reliably commit to writing reviews. I’ve been hoping that once we moved and life settled down that I would feel like my old self again. Unfortunately, that has not happened so I would rather not make commitments I cannot keep.

However! I do not want to give up my website. I do want to keep original content where I can share the books I’ve been reading and hear about what you’ve been reading. On Monday and Thursday, I’ll be hosting Book Talk. Monday’s Book Talk will be devoted to what books we’ve read the past week. Thursday’s Book Talk will be a mix of what books we’re looking forward to reading. Or it might be a topic about genres, authors, etc. If you have suggestions, please drop me a line at bookreviewsandmorebykathy @ gmail.com (the email address is not changing).

Sunday will continue to feature The Week Ahead and giveaways will still be Wednesday and Saturday. The daily themes will stay the same (i.e. Mystery Monday, etc). While the website name is changing, the web address will remain bookreviewsandmorebykathy.com (it is too difficult to change the domain!). I have already updated my twitter handle to @BookTalkMore. I am waiting for Facebook to update the page name but I am going to leave the link as is. Too much change is not always a good thing!!

I hope everyone will continue to drop by and make Book Talk & More with Kathy a part of your reading day!

On Sunday July 24th in the early afternoon, my web host suddenly went down. Although I was occasionally able to access my dashboard, I could not post anything. My website has been up down since the crash. BUT! I was finally notified an hour ago that the server issue is now completely resolved. Twelve days of frustration is finally over! Posting will be back to normal Saturday with this month’s book challenge, last month’s challenge discussion and the Saturday Series Spotlight (Avery Flynn’s Last Man Standing).

While I did not want the headache of dealing with website problems, I did get a lot of unpacking done at our new house. I’m not completely unpacked but I’m working slowing but surely on finishing up. I’ll be glad when we’re done.

The landscapers are almost finished with our yard, so I’ll end the post with a beautiful picture of our oleander blooms.