I think I have found the solution to my current reading funk. I am going to take Victoria's advice and just choose something that looks appealing and concentrate on that and get back to the other books later. I had Diane Setterfield's The Thirteenth Tale requested at the library, but I received a Barnes and Noble coupon for a whopping 46% off the book (making it an inexpensive $13.92, which even I can afford), so the book is mine and I am hoping to lose myself quite nicely in it. If it is as wonderful as everyone is saying, this should easily capture my interest. It is described as:
"a tale of ghostly legacies, descended from Jane Eyre -- begins like a reader's dream: a bookseller's daughter returns to the shop one night to discover a letter from England's best-loved writer, a woman whose life is shrouded in rumor and legend. Reading the strange missive from the famous Vida Winter, Margaret Lea is puzzled by its invitation to discover the truth about the author's mystifying past. Later that evening, unable to sleep, Margaret returns to the shop from her bedroom upstairs in search of something to read. Passing over her old favorites -- The Woman in White, Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre -- she can't resist the temptation of the rarest of her correspondent's books, Thirteen Tales of Change and Desperation, the recalled first edition of a book that contained only twelve stories. Falling under Vida Winter's spell for the first time, Margaret reads it straight through. Not long afterward she is standing in the opulent library of Miss Winter's Yorkshire home, transported by the romance of books into a mysterious tale of her own."
It has been compared to Daphne DuMaurier's Rebecca and it sounds quite atmospheric, so I am going to add it to my RIP List. I never know what to think about books that get so much press and are so hyped. Is it really wonderfully written, and the story captivating? I guess I will find out. As long as the story is good, I will be happy. And the thrill of a new book (and on sale!)!
I have also become a BookMooch-aholic. I have sent out one book, and have had requests for two more. One will be going to Australia (I hope if I can mail it in an express mailer the postage won't be too bad--at least it is a paperback!), which means I received three bookmooch points instead of one. I am now up to nearly 9 points. I have used a few on requests for myself. I am hoping to get: A Frost in May by Antonia White, Blindness by Jose Saramago and The Line of Beauty by Alan Hollinghurst. I have even started a wishlist there as well. I can see this is going to be addictive. I am trying to use my points sparingly and choose books that I have really wanted, as I could easily pick out books right now to spend my points on. It will be interesting to see how this all works out, since I am still very new to this!