The Weekend Post #220: Weekly Highlights & More!

Welcome to The Weekend Post #220! The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted at Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme. I will also be joining Deb at Readerbuzz for the Sunday Salon.

My Week:

It’s been a dry and warm week here in Vancouver, with no rain and none forecast for the coming week. As I write this Friday morning, there are currently 113 active wildfires burning across the province, with 13 of those having started in the past 24 hours. Of the active fires, 48 are currently classified as out of control. Thankfully, 56 fires have been extinguished since last week.

The fire near my brother-in-law’s and sister’s cabin is in an area that, over the past week, has thankfully been downgraded from an evacuation order to an evacuation alert. We are very grateful for this change, although the situation remains concerning.

There is also a major wildfire in the Okanagan region that began last Friday night and spread incredibly quickly. Approximately 20,000 people are currently under evacuation orders because of this fire. It was so aggressive that it grew from just four hectares to 260 hectares in a matter of a few hours. Sadly, homes and businesses have been lost throughout the province, and with dry lightning forecast in many areas this weekend, British Columbia remains on high alert.

We are especially thankful for the additional international support that has arrived to help our firefighters. An additional 100 firefighters from Mexico and 102 from Costa Rica have joined the hundreds of other firefighters already battling these blazes, as I mentioned in last week’s post. Their help is very much appreciated.

On a happier note, my Mom and I did a little shopping this week at Winners and HomeSense, and we had a wonderful time picking up some cozy fall décor. It was a fun way to enjoy the changing season, even though the weather certainly doesn’t feel very autumn-like yet!

I’m also starting to look ahead to Christmas reading. I’m planning to host another Christmas reading challenge this year, which will run from October 1 through the end of the year. I’ll be sharing more information about the challenge in early September, so stay tuned if you’d like to join in!

Recent Additions To My Bookshelf:

From Publishers, Netgalley or Libro.fm:

🇨🇦 The Birthing Tree follows Aliet, a woman raised in rural Nova Scotia by her fiercely loving grandmother, Kiju, beneath a tree sacred to generations of Indigenous women. After Aliet’s mother dies giving birth beneath the tree and her father remains a mystery, Aliet grows up surrounded by Kiju’s traditional teachings while witnessing increasing prejudice toward Indigenous birthing practices. Decades later, Aliet works as a nurse in the city, balancing modern medicine with the wisdom and stories passed down by her grandmother, while carrying a deeply personal tragedy. When Kiju dies suddenly, Aliet returns home, drawn back to the tree and her roots, where she begins uncovering long-buried family secrets and reconnecting with her heritage. Spanning generations, the novel explores identity, grief, tradition, land and the enduring strength of the women who came before us. Thank you to HarperCollins Canada Audio and Netgalley for this ARC.

Eleven years after surviving the plane crash that killed their parents, sisters Eliza and Bea Ramsey have built their lives around an unbreakable bond—until Bea mysteriously disappears without picking up her beloved daughter, Piper. As Eliza searches for her missing sister, she uncovers shocking secrets that call her family’s tragic past into question and reveal a sinister legacy someone will do anything to keep hidden. With Piper’s safety at risk and time running out, Eliza must unravel the truth before history repeats itself in this gripping, twist-filled thriller. Thank you to Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for this ARC.

Future Releases Added to My TBR:

After serving ten years for murder, Griffin Ford is finally released from prison, hoping to make peace with his past and reunite with the woman he has never stopped loving, Clare Keaton. But within hours of his release, Griffin survives a terrifying abduction, making it clear that someone wants him silenced. A decade earlier, Griffin had crossed the divide between working-class Milltown and wealthy Newfield to pursue his teenage love, only to become the prime suspect in the murder of a privileged local man and ultimately confess to the brutal crime. Now, as Clare prepares for her wedding, cryptic messages force her to question everything she believed about Griffin and the events that tore them apart. As the two race to uncover the truth, buried secrets, enduring love, and a dangerous enemy threaten to catch up with them before Griffin can finally clear his name. I saw this book on Netgalley and it is expected to publish January 12, 2027.

In 1962 Manhattan, fashion It Girl Josephine “Jo” Carmichael returns home for her father’s funeral and unexpectedly takes over his struggling Madison Avenue advertising agency, determined to prove herself in a male-dominated industry. Decades later, Jo has abandoned her glamorous career and built a quiet life running a flower shop in Michigan, leaving her granddaughter Alex to wonder what drove her to walk away from such a successful legacy. When Jo asks Alex to accompany her on an unexpected trip back to New York, long-buried secrets begin to surface, forcing them both to confront the sacrifices, choices, and truths that shaped their lives. Spanning generations from the Golden Age of advertising to the present day, The Making of a Mad Woman is a sweeping story of ambition, reinvention, family, love, and the courage to forge your own path. I saw this book on Netgalley which is expected to publish February 9, 2027.

What I’m Watching:

We are watching our regular series but I am particularly enjoying Paris is Always a Good Idea and The Five Star Weekend.

What Was On The Blog This Week:

Practice Makes Perfect by Sarah Adams Review: A Charming Small-Town Romance Full of Heart and Humour

Can’t Wait Wednesday #201: The Bluff by Wade Rouse

The Romance Revival by Christina Lauren Review: Can Love Survive Without Memory?

Who Wears it Better in August 2026?

This Post: The Weekend Post #220

Next Week On That Happy Reader:

🇨🇦 Book Review: The Table Where We Meet by Jess Janz

Can’t Wait Wednesday #202

🇨🇦 Book Review; Getting Away With Murder by Shari Lapena

From Page to Screen: Must-See August 2026 Book to Film Adaptations

The Weekend Post #221

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That’s a wrap on The Weekend Post #220. How was your week?

I wish you a wonderful week ahead!