Hello and welcome to Thursday on damppebbles. Not only is it Thursday, it’s also day 3 of #R3COMM3ND3D2022 and I’m loving the recommendations we’ve had so far. The good news is that we’ve only just begun, so there are a lot more book recommendations coming your way over the next few weeks, so make sure you stay tuned! Joining me to talk all things #R3C22 today is the very lovely Carla of Carla Loves To Read. Carla’s blog is a treasure trove of bookish delights for readers so if you don’t already subscribe, head on over and give Carla a follow!

So, what is #R3COMM3ND3D2022? It’s about sharing the book love. It’s a chance for authors, book bloggers, reviewers and bookstagrammers to shout about three (yes, *only* three) books they love. They can be written by any author, in any genre and published in any way (traditionally, indie press or self-published). But there is a catch. All three books must have been published in 2022. To make things interesting there are a couple of teeny, tiny rules; 1) the book must have FIRST been published in 2022 and 2) special editions and reissues do not count. I like to keep you lovely people on your toes 😉

This is the sixth year of #R3C so things are going to be a smidge different this year. Like last year, there’s a scary deadline involved *shudder*. Unlike last year’s form which closed in December, this year’s form will close A LOT EARLIER. The #R3COMM3ND3D application form will only be open until midday (GMT) on Thursday 10th November. If you would like to take part in #R3C this year (and I would LOVE you to!) then please get your three choices in sooner rather than later. Any posts scheduled for later in November will be brought forward and I will close the series early if I’m not able to fill all of the available dates. The form is at the bottom of this post if you fancy taking part.

Here are the three books Carla recommends…

Black Orchid Girls (Detective Amanda Steele #4) by Carolyn Arnold
Black Orchid Girls is part of Carolyn Arnold’s Detective Amanda Steele series. Amanda is a great protagonist in the Police Procedural, Crime Thriller series. I am a huge fan of this series and this is a great story. You do not have to read the previous books in this series to enjoy this book. It is tense with twists that will keep you turning the pages.
Carla’s Review of Black Orchid Girls

The Girl From Guernica by Karen Robards
I enjoy historical fiction, especially when it is based on true events, around something I know nothing or little about. I knew nothing about Guernica, so this definitely hit the mark. This is a well written and plotted story about a young woman who was there when Guernica was hit and what might have happened to her afterwards. One of my top books for 2022.
Carla’s Review of The Girl From Guernica

The Overnight Guest by Heather Gudenkauf
I really enjoyed this twisty thriller, set in the middle of a snowstorm. This was a gripping, chilling, twisty read that I read/listened to in one day, I could not stop. The atmosphere was perfect for this story of a true crime writer trying to finish her third book. She selects a place that is the scene of an unsolved crime twenty years earlier to work without distractions. Just that description had me grabbing this book. I absolutely loved it and recommend it enthusiatically.
Carla’s Review of The Overnight Guest

Thank you so much for your cracking recommendations, Carla. I love the sound of all three books so will be adding them to my wish list right away!

About Carla:
Hi, I’m Carla a retired administrator/teacher librarian/special education teacher and more. I have always loved to read and now spend time reading and reviewing books. I am a grandmother to three (3. 6. 9) and love to read to and with them as well. I began blogging in 2015, about a year before I lost my husband to cancer. Now living alone and being retired, I have a lot of time to read or listen to audiobooks. Joining the blogging community has introduced me to authors, books and genres I probably would never have picked up before. I used to read a lot of romance and popular fiction, but now I read historical fiction (mysteries, romance, based on true events or people), women’s fiction, contemporary romance, rom-coms, mystery, police procedurals, cozy mysteries, middle grades, picture books and have dabbled into fantasy. I love that I have branched out in my reading.

Carla’s Blog and Social Media Links:
| Carla Loves To Read | Twitter @CarlaLoveToRead |

If you’re a book blogger, bookstagrammer, reviewer or an author and you have three books published this year which you want to shout about then please complete the following form (or click this link: https://forms.gle/CNhNp5GRcr4XVedh8)