Book and a Beverage [140] – Leah from The Pretty Good Gatsby

Welcome back to BOOK AND A BEVERAGE!

In case you don’t know the deal about Book and a Beverage, it’s a very simple yet fun feature: We read books, we drink beverages, we take pictures of them and then I share your photos and a little about you to the blogging world!

Give a big welcome to Leah from The Pretty Good Gatsby!

Name & Blog Name: I’m Leah from The Pretty Good Gatsby!
Tell us a little about your blog! After years spent reviewing music and television shows for an online magazine, I decided to start my own blog and focus on my main passion, books. In August of 2011 The Pretty Good Gatsby was born! I’m admittedly not a big fan of YA (eek!) though it occasionally finds its way into my posts. Mainly, though, I review adult novels – thrillers and historical fiction make my heart sing! – and I also adore Middle Grade.
What’s been your favorite post you’ve written so far? (Link us up!) Oh man, there have been a ton I’ve been super proud of over the years, but I’ll share some love for a recent (and NON-bookish!) post: 4 Totally Binge Worthy Shows. I’m typically not a big tv person, but I finally decided to put my Prime account to good use and ended up finding some seriously addictive shows. I’m ALWAYS open to recommendations, too 🙂
Got anything special coming up we should know about? Yes! It’s not exactly specific to MY blog, but I host a historical fiction chat with fellow blogger Ellice and author Erin Lindsay McCabe! We can be found at #HistoricalFix and our next chat will be April 26 at 8:30 EST. Our theme is Biographical Fiction (aka my favorite aka fiction that uses actual historical figures as characters) and our guest author is Michelle Gable – there will be a giveaway for BOTH of her novels! (Anyone curious about the books can head over to my reviews: A Paris Apartment and I’ll See You in Paris.)
In addition to the chats, Ellice, Erin, and I recently started a book club! The book club meets at#bookclubfix and our next chat will be May 24 at 8:30 EST and we’ll be discussing Lyndsay Faye’s Jane Steele (a reimagining of Jane Eyre – with murder!) as well as the first season of Reign!

Whatcha reading? Hercule Poirot: The Complete Short Stories by my queen Agatha Christie
Where did it come from? (Library, purchased, publisher, etc) Purchased! This baby is mine all mine forever.
Any special reason you chose to feature this book? Last year I fell HARD for Agatha Christie after giving her a second try (my intro to her work was not that great..) Since then, however, I’ve been making up for lost time and having been doing some serious binge-reading.
What’s important that we should know about this book? Would you recommend it? I would absolutely recommend it! For starters, there’s a reason Agatha is the grandmother of crime and why her novels are still so beloved. Hercule is sassy and a total know-it-all but that’s what makes him everyone’s favorite Belgian detective. Also, because these are short stories, this book is the perfect starting point for anyone new to Poirot!

Whatcha drinking? Dream Catcher tea from Flying Bird Botanicals. I randomly picked it up while wandering around town one day and thought it smelled heavenly. Turns out it tastes even better. The lavender, chamomile, catnip, and other flavors make it deliciously relaxing and perfect for enjoying right before bed.
What’s your favorite thing to drink while reading? I live up to the bookworm + tea cliche! I won’t say no to coffee or hot chocolate though.
Favorite beverage of all time. Go! There’s a juice bar in my town that has a drink called the Jane Good’All: orange, strawberry, banana, peach, and coconut water. SO. AMAZING.

What are your top three books you would recommend to other people? YOU’RE KILLIN’ ME. Totally cheating here. THREE FOREVER FAVORITES: The Chronicles of Chrestomanci by Diana Wynne Jones (or, really, anything of hers) The BFG by Roald Dahl (I practically worship Dahl) and A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway (because everyone should love Papa) THREE RECENT FAVORITES (these links go to my reviews): Black Rabbit Hall by Eve Chase (gothic, English country estate, and dark family secrets, y’all!), The Quality of Silence by Rosamund Lupton (the bleak, vast, emptiness of the Alaskan landscape; subzero temperatures and a hurricane-like snowstorm ahead; someone’s following the main characters) and Along the Infinite Sea by Beatriz Williams (dual-era narrative! WWII! forbidden love!)
What’s your proudest blogging/reading/writing moment? For sure the moment I was told I was going to be quoted in a book! I got my own little blurb in the trade paperback of I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes.
Anything else you’d like to share? I’m always open to making new bookish friends – don’t be afraid to say hello! & thank you so much, Brittany, for allowing me to be a part of Book and a Beverage! It was a blast!