As you all know, I’m heading to New York City today. Rick expressed some concern because I’m traveling, going to the theater, and I appreciate his comments. He’s right. COVID isn’t over, and it’s quite likely it’s only going to get worse this summer and fall. I agree. However, until this month, I had gone over two years with no live theater and no travel except to visit family, and that was only in the last year or so. Like so many others, I’m tired of staying home. I have been doubled boosted. I wear my mask, even when I go to the local post office and grocery store. I’ll be wearing my mask in the airport, on the planes, in the theaters. But, honestly? As much as I love books, I told my family there just hadn’t been any joy in my life until I went back to New York to see live theater. And, two years is a long time to go without joy. I can only say I’ll continue to take precautions, but life just isn’t worth it without something that makes me happy. Unlike most of you, I don’t have immediate family close. And, I have no children or grandchildren. I love to travel and go to the theater. That makes me happy.
But, enough of that. Let me tell you about the book that I’m taking with me to read. It’s Larry D. Sweazy’s Lost Mountain Pass.
Sweazy is an Indiana author. I’ve read some of his mysteries, but he’s an award-winning Western author as well. Here’s the summary of Lost Mountain Pass.
First in a brand new series from Spur Award-winning author Larry D. Sweazy, a lawman’s grave mistake sends him gunning for justice against a gang of badmen whose violent trail of bloodshed ends at Lost Mountain Pass . . .
Kosoma, Indian Territory. The outlaw Darby brothers have been sentenced to hang until dead. Witnessing the exectution are Amelia Darby, sister of the condemned men, as well as U. S. DeputyMarshal Sam “Trusty” Dawson and Judge Gordon Hadesworth. After justice is served, Trusty hits the trail, escorting the Judge—and begrudgingly, Amelia—back to Oklahoma. Ambushed en route, the Judge is murdered and Amelia vanishes, leaving Trusty to believe she led them into a trap for revenge.
To find Amelia, Trusty will have to put his faith in Father Michael Darby, a fourth brother who gave up his criminal ways to take up the cloth and collar. Unwilling to let his sister continue to fall to the wicked evil that claimed the rest of his family, Michael joins the hunt for Amelia. But as their journey turns deadlier by the day, Trusty starts to doubt that Michael is truly on the righteous path…
So, what about you? How are you coping with COVID? What are you doing to take care of yourself? And, an important question, what are you reading this week?
What an exciting trip to look forward to! I love live theater.
We are getting ready to leave for Europe in 10 days and I am finally beginning to believe it will really happen. We were scheduled to be in Italy to be with our son in May of 2020 but of course had to reschedule so we have waited quite a while to hug each other!! We’re double boosted too and are ready to go! Until then I am reading and listening to books!
Just finished The Guide by Peter Heller. I love his nature writing as the surroundings just seem to become a character. It was a slower book, much like the patient fly fishing that the book features. The last 1/4 of the book moved at high speed as it ramps up to the finale! I really enjoyed it. Because we will be in London for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee I thought it would be fun to read All the Queen’s Men by SJ Bennett. I enjoyed the first one in the series, The Windsor Knot, so I was excited to see the Queen featured again. Laundry Love by Patric Richardson was an interesting reference book that opened my eyes to this everyday chore and Bomb Shelter by Mary Laura Philpott is my slow and steady. I am loving her essay/memoir book. I so enjoy her writing.
I hope you will report back on the shows you get to see. Have a save and fabulous time!
Hi Jurorgaye – I heard about Laundry Love on the Currently Reading podcast, they absolutely raved about it. It’s not in our library catalogue – would you say it is worth seeking out? I’m not always convinced by the Currently Reading reviews, so I’d welcome your opinion.
I hope you enjoy London. The Platinum thing is not so big up here in Scotland, so we will probably just get more gardening done (weather allowing)! My daughter says London is already terribly hot (but I suppose how you find it will depend on what you are used to). Enjoy Italy!
And, JurorGaye, you’ll have to give us a report on your European trip when you get back. Someday, I hope to get to London. Maybe I should make that the new item on my bucket list since I don’t have anything on it right now.
I hope you enjoyed All The Queen’s Men. It sounds as if you had a good week of reading before your trip. One more week! I hope you have a wonderful trip & lots of fun things to tell us about!
Hey, Jurorgaye. I usually forget to check here until Thursday night and then just read the comments, but I remembered earlier today. I read Peter Heller’s The Guide last year, and I agree with you about it. The nature writing is fantastic, making me feel the surroundings and enjoy the fly fishing. The evil going on behind the scenes of beauty is quite the juxtaposition. I reviewed The Guide on my book blog and am putting the link here because it has some information about Peter Heller himself that might be of interest to people. https://www.readingroom-readmore.com/2021/10/the-guide-by-peter-heller-reading-room.html
I also just read All the Queen’s Men by SJ Bennett. I read the UK publication that’s called A Three Dog Problem, the title I prefer because it refers to the Queen’s taking three of her dogs out on a walk when she has a special problem. I also reviewed it. I’m really looking forward to more of this series.
I’m envious that you are preparing to go to Europe. I wish you a great trip. And, Lesa, I saw in the comments here that you might put a trip to England on your bucket list. I am wanting to go next year and might need a travel friend.
We went to a graduation celebration for my niece last Sunday. Party in the backyard, masks required in the house. We drove eight hours round-trip, before Covid it would have been a weekend trip. Safest at home. But we did get a glimpse of the lunar eclipse on the drive home.
Just a word about Gigi Pandian’s UNDER LOCK AND SKELETON KEY that I started last week. The series is named “a secret staircase mystery” and it has puzzles and magic, but actually a very charming story with lots of family and food.
The 2022 winner of the Agatha for Best Historical Novel DEATH AT GREENWAY. The setting is Agatha Christie’s holiday estate in WW II. Bridey Kelly is a nurse-trainee caring for evacuated children at the estate. I found the three 2022 award winners I read all fit the criteria for Agatha award: no explicit sex or excessive gore or gratuitous violence, but, a little light on the “traditional mystery” aspect for my taste.
And MECCA Susan Straight’s epic narrative of Southern California told via interlocking stories examining race, history, family and destiny. Interesting perspective.
Lesa, I hope you have a great time in New York and find that missing joy.
Thank you, MM! I found that missing joy when I went to NY early this month with my sister, and I’m glad we’re going back. She and I travel well together, and we already went to an art show yesterday afternoon, and we haven’t even left for NY yet. We’re going to 4 plays, and doing a walking tour of Greenwich Village. We always cram a lot in on our trips.
Like you, I enjoy the “traditional mystery” part of books. I really think I’d enjoy Gigi Pandian’s book, and I have a ocpy. I just haven’t gotten around to it.
Lesa, I totally understand your feelings about needing to seek out joy after two years of the pandemic, and I hope you have a wonderful trip and see some great musical theater. I am also double boosted and a dedicated sanitizer/hand washer, and I haven’t been to any indoor gatherings with a lot of people, but I have not been masking up for stores and social card games lately. Enough is enough. I’ll adhere to any laws as things change, though. Nothing I’ve read this week really resonated with me, unfortunately.
I didn’t know in advance that Casey McQuiston’s I KISSED SHARA WHEELER was a YA book, but that wouldn’t have deterred me. I have enjoyed many YA books. This one–not so much. The premise is interesting, but the first two-thirds of the book left me not particularly liking the two main characters and, even worse, totally bored. The “scavenger hunt” of clues left for several fellow students by the most popular girl in the class (and the principal’s daughter) before she disappears during the senior prom didn’t seem compelling or even interesting. Also, it bothered me that I couldn’t picture the central character for some reason. Things did pick up in the last third, and I finally gained some insight into a number of the characters, but it was too little, too late for me. However, I can understand why the target audience might enjoy the book, an otherwise well-written queer first love story set in the last month of high school in the Bible Belt of Alabama.
DIRT CREEK by Hayley Scrivenor is a well-written debut mystery set in small-town Australia about the disappearance of 12-year-old Esther during her walk home from school. Esther’s plucky best friend Ronnie is determined to find her, occasionally aided by their more reluctant friend Lewis. But each of the young characters is a member of a dysfunctional family, which results in quite a few suspects and a close look at family dynamics. Chapters focus alternately on a number of characters, with some devoted to a “Greek chorus” of young townspeople who express their feelings about growing up in this town and ultimately describe what had actually happened and why. There didn’t seem to be much happiness in any of the characters, which made it a bleak read for me. But the author succeeded in capturing the atmosphere of the setting and the growing tension among the major players. (August)
I was hoping that some of the issues I had with Mango, Mambo, and Murder might be resolved in the sequel, CALYPSO, CORPSES, AND COOKING by Raquel V. Reyes, but that didn’t happen. The author’s use of Spanish language still feels excessive to me as part of the non-Spanish-speaking audience. Even when I was able to figure out what the Spanish words, expressions, and sentences meant, or to look it up on my Kindle, I found it distracted me from the story. The law enforcement officer still comes off as unprofessional, especially when he confides to the main character, Miriam (a civilian) that he has something on the mayor that will keep the latter from disciplining him–and shows her pictures! And Miriam’s mother-in-law and a couple of other characters still have no redeeming qualities, making them seem one-note and unrealistic. I had a difficult time warming to Miriam’s character in this book since there was little reference to what happened in the previous book, and I would have liked to read more about her career as a presenter in a TV cooking show. Also, Miriam’s frequent ruminations (in italics) about who could have committed a couple of murders, and why or why not, left me feeling that the mystery is too convoluted and in need of more explanation than should have been required. Or, I could just be in the wrong mood to enjoy the book. The details about food, food history, and Hispanic culture are interesting and appealing. And as the author is a recent Left Coast Crime Best Humorous Mystery winner for her previous book, I am confident the series will appeal to a wide audience. I wish her continued success. (November)
Based on a true story but enhanced with magical realism, THE CARTOGRAPHERS by Peng Shepherd focuses on maps–and one New York map in particular. After receiving her Ph.D. in cartography and geography, Nell interned at the New York Public Library, working under her highly respected father in the maps section and hoping for a full position there. But after a huge argument about a mass-produced road map, her father fired her, along with her former fellow student and current boyfriend. Because of her father’s reputation in the field, neither worked in their desired field again. But seven years later, Nell’s father has died under suspicious circumstances, and Nell finds, to her surprise, that he has kept the aforementioned map. She comes to believe that it has become a dangerous commodity, sought out by persons who are aware of its power. The rest of the book focuses on a group of seven Ph.D. grads in cartography, including Nell’s father and late mother, who banded together years ago to work on a project that they hoped would establish themselves as experts and, in so doing, found themselves embroiled in an unbelievable and dangerous situation. It is an intriguing story, but I found it difficult to sufficiently suspend belief or to care about any of the characters.
I’m sorry, Margie. You usually don’t have a blah reading week. It happens to all of us sometimes, but you usually have one book that delighted you.
Yes, I”m ready to move on. I probably wear my mask yet more than most people, and I don’t mind wearing it. But, I want something more in life. So, I’m really looking forward to this trip!
In my last review, it should have been “suspend DISbelief.”
I’m glad you are going on this trip. Life can’t be on hold forever. Be cautious, but COVID is here. We have to learn to live with it. I’m all about taking precautions. But we can’t hide in fear.
I’m getting close to finishing A SPRINKLE IN TIME by Dana Mentink, thanks to an early pre-order. The book actually comes out next Tuesday, but it was delivered a week ago or so. This is the second Shake Shop Mystery, and I’ve really been enjoying it. I’d like to think I will finish it on Thursday, but I’ve got enough else going on, I’m not sure if that will happen or not.
I should amend my first paragraph by saying that I know there are people with real medical issues who do still need to stay home. Everyone’s situation is different. I’m not trying to say we act like it isn’t there. But for the majority of the country, there is nothing to be gained by staying home indefinitely either. We need to find the right balance at this point, and that balance might be different things for different people.
Mark, I think you summed it up well. I can understand people with real medical issues, and people who have young children who can’t be vaccinated yet. But, you’re right. We need to find a balance, and it took us quite a while to even get to this point. I am ready to experience life again. Thank you.
And, thank you for talking books, too. I”m glad I didn’t just discourage people from talking books when I talked about travel and COVID.
Hello everyone – and Lesa, if you’re reading this I hope you’re having a great trip.
As for Covid – I am lucky because many of the things that bring me joy were largely unaffected by the pandemic – walks, the countryside, seeing a few friends (outside and individually.). In fact I got more of these than I did when I was still working in Edinburgh. BUT I totally see where you are coming from Lesa. I have a friend who lives alone – she does have two daughters but they both live a long way away and have their own lives. She was absolutely terrified of Covid (she has always been a bit obsessive about germs) and for ages she saw no one, ordered groceries online, and on the rare occasions she went out, she dropped almost everything into a bucket of bleach as she came through the door. She end horrified when I told her I had been on a bus. As things have eased up here, we have met up for walks, but last time I saw her she said she had decided that she simply could not let Covid rule her life any longer. Like most of us she has been triple vaccinated, she is still careful, still wears a mask (as do I) etc, but she also loves live entertainment, and she is now going to the theatre, comedy shows, the cinema, etc. I think she is now a lot more out there than I am, and if you knew her you might not expect that.
My children have of course been living a fairly normal life for months and months. All of them do jobs which involve almost constant interaction with the public. One caught covid (but not at work and thankfully not at all badly) the other two don’t seem to have done. Young people have really suffered during all these restrictions, and I completely understand that they want to get back to their busy lives asap.
So good on you Lesa, and I hope you enjoy every minute.
Walks! – Last Saturday we had another day out to Cruden Bay where, we are told, Bram Stoker wrote the first few chapters of Dracula, inspired by the nearby ruins of Slains Castle. The ruins are still there, and are very striking. In bad weather in particular they would certainly fire the imagination. We were lucky to have a beautiful day, and we walked right round the bay. It’s a huge beach with great views, and lots of sea birds. My husband could see the seals on the rocks offshore – I have to admit I could hardly make them out, but I could hear them barking away. After our walk we had a cup of tea in the garden of the hotel where Stoker is said to have stayed.
On Sunday we had another good walk, this time much nearer to Aberdeen city, along the banks of the river Don. I think we saw even more wildlife there than we did at the beach. We also visited a garden centre that I hadn’t been to before – it had excellent plants, and also a café where we had rock cakes for the first time in years. They were delicious. Unlike many of the garden centres on Deeside and in Edinburgh, this one has not turned into a shopping centre with a few plants added on. There was a tiny shop selling gardening supplies, but other than that it was all about the gardening, so we had lots of choice, and at lower prices too.
The week started off very wet and dark; on Monday I stayed home almost all day and actually appreciated the time and quietness to catch up with paperwork, reading, etc. The weather has improved since then; on Tuesday Nancy and I walked at Cairnie Woods but were taken aback by how many trees are still laying all over the paths after last year’s storms. Still, we muddled through; I’m sure the Forestry will get to it eventually, but they must have had so much clearing up to do. We were more concerned about the red squirrels, who were always a big feature at these woods. We didn’t see a single one. I hope they survived and maybe just moved somewhere else.
I finished reading DEATH BY MALICE by Julia Chapman, and very much enjoyed it. Although it has elements of a cosy, it’s much more than that. The lead characters – Samson, a policeman turned private detective, and Delilah, a web designer/dating agency owner – are great, the supporting cast (including the residents of the local sheltered housing complex) are engaging and well developed, and although I don’t know the Yorkshire Dales well, the locations seemed authentic to me. The story takes place in December, and Julia Chapman doesn’t hold back in conveying the bleak, wet weather, the dark days and the long nights; I’m glad she showed the other side of living in those areas. The best things about the book for me, though, were the humour – which did not feel contrived – and Tolpuddle, Delilah’s anxious Weimaraner dog, who even moves the plot along all by himself.
I’m now reading THE FEAST by Margaret Kennedy – which is one of my ’20 Books of Summer’, so I’m cheating a little bit by starting before 1st June. It’s set in 1947 and is about a Cornish hotel that is buried under a cliff fall, killing the seven people inside. But after a short prologue in which the local minister is struggling to write a sermon about the disaster, the book returns to the week before the landslide, and looks at the people who work at, own or are staying at the hotel. Only some of them will die, but we don’t yet know who survives. I like it so far.
The other books I have chosen for my ’20 Books of Summer’ are:
DIARY OF A YOUNG NATURALIST by Dara McAnulty
FROM THE HEART OF COVINGTON by Joan Medlicott
EDWARD KANE AND THE PARLOUR MAID MURDERER by Ross Macfarlane
ABOARD THE BULGER by Ann Scott-Moncrieff
WRITING DOWN THE BONES by Natalie Goldberg
THE BOOK OF FORGOTTEN AUTHORS by Christopher Fowler*
OLIVE KITTERIDGE by Elizabeth Strout
NINE COACHES WAITING by Mary Stewart
THE SHAPE OF WATER by Andrea Camilleri
SALLY ON THE ROCKS by Winifred Boggs
THE SNOW AND THE WORKS ON THE NORTHERN LINE by Ruth Thomas
GILEAD by Marilynn Robinson
HIS BLOODY PROJECT by Graeme Macrae Burnet
ARTISTIC LICENCE by Katie Fforde
THE END OF SUMMER by Rosamunde Pilcher
THE GARRICK YEAR by Margaret Drabble
VILLAGE AFFAIRS by Miss Read
THE PUMPKIN EATER by Penelope Mortimer
HONEST DOUBT by Amanda Cross
If anyone wants to know more, I wrote a blog post about it here: https://sconesandchaiseslongues.blogspot.com/2022/05/20-books-of-summer-2022-planning-is-fun.html. *I did namecheck you Jeff, as it was you who kindly told us about the Christopher Fowler book.
On TV I haven’t found much to watch this week – I finished the wonderful HEARTSTOPPER, which I would recommend, then wandered about a bit. For the last two nights I’ve been watching the box set of MONARCH OF THE GLEN, which I finally treated myself to after recording so many episodes in the wrong order and getting thoroughly muddled. So I know I will have seen at least some of the series already, but I don’t mind, I still like it. At the weekend my husband wanted to watch EUROVISION, which is not my favourite thing, but which was entertaining enough for a little while. The judging takes SO long – I went to bed once all the countries had performed. It was something of a foregone conclusion that Ukraine would win, but to be honest we were surprised that the UK came second, we liked some of the others better. Still, it made a lot of people happy!
Our younger daughter Madeleine is exhibiting at the Generator Project in Dundee from tomorrow till late June, so we will try to get down to see the show as soon as we can. This weekend, however, we will be in Edinburgh to take my mother to audiology appointments and do a few other admin chores. I’ve therefore been out in the garden all this afternoon trying to get as much as possible planted before we leave tonight (I’m typing this on Wednesday.) I got quite a lot done, and it was lovely to be out there in the sunshine, though Charlie was not impressed with only being able to see me through the window. Since he got his harness I have taken him out there every afternoon, but you need to watch him constantly as he is so interested in bees and other flying insects, and if he’s not doing that he’s eating plants he probably shouldn’t (at least we don’t have any lilies) I just didn’t have time to watch him today.
I hope everyone has a good week. Safe travels Lesa!
Rosemary, I read all the Joan Medlicott books when they were first published. I enjoyed the very much except at the end they became a little overly saccharine for me.
I love reading about your walks. Thank you for sharing.
Nice list of books and authors, Rosemary. I’m sure you’ll enjoy the Fowler, good for finding new authors to add to one’s list.
We finished the last ANNIKA last night, with a nice surprise ending. Looking forward to the next series. Yes, she is somewhat neurotic, but nicer than some other characters Nicolas Walker has played. Also finished – and enjoyed – WHITSTABLE PEARL, more than I expected to. 11th series of DEATH IN PARADISE is good if not fabulous. I still prefer Ardal O’Hanlon to Ralf Little.
Jeff, We are hoping for a second series of Whitstable Pearl. And our favorite Death in Paradise detective was Kris Marshall.
Rosemary, you’re always so busy! And still time to write such entertaining posts. Thanks.
I’ll be interested to see what you think of Diary Of A Young Naturalist. I remember checking to see if it was available locally when you mentioned acquiring previously. Unfortunately not.
Rosemary, I just love to read your posts. As you can tell, I’m much more a city person for my entertainment, so I can relate to your friend who finally decided not to hide from life. I know. That’s what it feels like.
You and Charlie make me laugh.
I loved your summer reads list. I might not have read many of those particular titles, but I’ve read other books by most of the authors.
Safe travels to you as well! And, thank you again, for your beautiful posts.
Rosemary, your walks are so lovely to read about. Thank you. From you summer reading list, I am going to finally try to get to Nine Coaches Waiting, and I already have The Book of Forgotten Authors in my bed-basket of books.
THE FEAST by Margaret Kennedy sounds very good, based on your description. That is a new author to me.
I also discovered I do have a copy of HIS BLOODY PROJECT by Burnet, so maybe I will read it sometime this year.
Enjoy your trip Lesa. Since my Mom is 94 and just had heart surgery we’re still being pretty careful about masking up and haven’t been going to any indoor events. Fortunately the things I like to do this time of year like gardening and going foe walks aren’t a problem. We’ve released 5 Black Swallowtail butterflies that overwintered in our garage and we still have about 8 more to go. Fortunately they don’t all eclose at the same time.
I read STRAWBERRIED ALIVE by Jenn McKinlay. It’s the latest in her cupcake mystery series and was a fun read.
THE VANISHING TYPE BY Ellery Adams. I always enjoy visiting with Nora Pennington and Sheldon. This is a series I read more for the characters than the mystery.
And I’m finishing up an ARC of MUDDLED THROUGH by Barbara Ross. I almost didn’t read this since I didn’t enjoy the last book in the series but she’s gotten back on track with this book and I’m glad I decided to read it.
Thank you, Sandy! I totally understand that you have to be cautious. Fortunately, as you said, you enjoy outdoor activities.
I’m so glad your three books were successful this week. I love Jenn McKinlay’s humor in her books. And, I’m always happy when one of my authors gets back on track.
Hi Lesa – Hope you packed light clothing as we are expecting oppressively hot weather for Saturday and Sunday -weather has been crazy. Read “What Happened to the Bennetts” by Lisa Scottoline – I enjoyed it – I like her as a person very much -her essays always make me laugh. Some of the book was a little farfetched but you have to go with the flow. Enjoy your trip!
Hi Donna – Yes, short-sleeved tops, with a light sweater for the theater. I saw the weather.
Lisa Scottoline is so funny, and, as you said, I just love her essays.
Thank you!
I’m sure you’ll have a great time, Lesa. AS you know, theaters are still requiring that everyone be masked at least until the end of May. After that, we’ll see. As promised, it rained overnight but it is over now and should be moved out by the time you get here. It is a little cool this morning, but they are promising 90 over the weekend!
Books. I finished Graham Swift’s ENGLAND AND OTHER STORIES. This was an OK read, in my opinion, but I’d give a much higher rating and recommendation to his LAST ORDERS.
Lawrence Block has written a ton of novels and short stories (the large majority of which I’ve read), but he has also written a lot of non-fiction, especially books about writing (again, most of which I’ve read). The latest is A WRITER PREPARES. He was working on this in 1994 when he was a visiting professor in South Carolina, and then he put it aside and picked it up again two years ago, only to be faced with the pandemic. If you like Block or if you’re interested in how a young man got started writing (often soft corn porn) as a teenager in the late ’50s, yoiu might find this as interesting as I did.
Currently reading: Bill Pronzini, SMALL FELONIES 2. Clearly, this is a sequel to his first collection of short short stories. I’ve read a number of these over the years, but never mind revisiting them. Good stuff.
I read a high recommendation for Catherine Ryan Howard’s 56 DAYS, and as I am interested in novels that use the pandemic in a mystery, I was going to borrow it. But Amazon had it on sale at a really cheap price, so I bought it and have started it. You can look up the premise online, and I’ll wait until I finish it to say more.
Now several books I’ve been waiting for have come in, so I will see what catches my eye first: the new Anne Hillerman about Jim Chee and Bernie Manuelito, THE SACRED BRIDGE; he third Chris Hauty book about Hayley Chill, STORM RISING; or perhaps the new Alexandra Cupidi book by William Shaw, THE TRAWLERMAN, which arrived in the mail yesterday. As with the last one, the library doesn’t have it and it wasn’t available in Kindle, so I bought a trade paperback copy online.
Have a great trip, Lesa.
Have a good trip, Lesa.
This week I finished Summer at Skylark Farm by Heidi Swain. I enjoyed it but it wasn’t special. Amber leaves her high pressure London job to move to the countryside with her boyfriend. His ex girlfriend predictably shows up to complicate matters but it all ends up well.
Now I am reading SJ Bennett’s All the Queen’s Men. I enjoyed the first one but am finding this one a bit of a slog. I care enough to see how the mystery gets resolved so I am finishing it.
Stay safe, keep cool and happy reading.
That’s funny, Sharon. I actually enjoyed the second book by SJ Bennett more than the first, although I liked the first one enough to be eager for the second.
Thank you!
Thank you, Jeff! We’re all prepared with masks, for flights, for the theater. And, I can understand if theaters extend that requirement with all the COVID that seems to have gone through casts. And, seeing that author Chris Bohjalian lost his voice too years ago with COVID, and has never recovered it, that would ruin an actor’s career. He said he actually has a voice coach, but he sounds as if he has laryngitis, and his voice will never be the same.
Thank you for the weather, Jeff. I’ve appreciated your heads-up. We’re ready!
Good morning!
Lesa, I am so glad you are able to take this trip with your sister. I hope you have a wonderful time and store up lots of memories.
Everything is finally in full bloom in my neck of the woods. The crabapple trees are gorgeous, the bleeding hearts are filling out and the dandelions are a never-ending battle! It has been great to be able to get outside and enjoy the weather.
This week I have been reading:
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith – Cassandra Mortmain’s family inhabits the remains of a castle. They live a lifestyle of extreme poverty mostly due to the fact that Mr. Mortmain hasn’t worked for years. He is a writer suffering from writer’s block, who encloses himself in the tower most days. No one is sure what he does in there, but hope that he is working on his next great book. The rest of the family decide they must figure out a way to bring in money or they will starve.
The story is written as pages from Cassandra’s diary. She describes the daily details of their lives, the beauty of the seasons, the eccentricities of her family, her hopes and dreams and when they are dashed. This has been on my TBR for a really long time. I am so glad I finally read it. I love Dodie Smith’s writing,
Murder on Washington Square by Victoria Thompson – This is the fourth entry in the Gaslight Mystery series. Midwife Sarah Brandt is used to people knocking on her door, so when she opens the door to find a little boy there, she assumes someone is about to have a baby. However, the boy has been sent with a message from Nelson Ellsworth, the son of her nosy neighbor. He is requesting that Sarah meet him.
It turns out Nelson wants Sarah to examine a lady friend of his who is claiming to be carrying his child. Nelson offered to marry the woman, Anna Blake, but she refused and only wants money so she can support herself. When Sarah arrives at the boarding house where Anna lives, she refuses to see her. The next morning Anna is found dead in Washington Square.
The number one suspect is Nelson Ellsworth. Sarah does not think Nelson is capable of murder and she feels an obligation to her neighbor, Mrs. Ellsworth, to prove his innocence. Sarah seeks the help of Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy. Unfortunately he is not assigned to the case, but because he is a friend of Sarah’s and will be forever grateful to Mrs. Ellsworth for saving Sarah’s life, he agrees to look into the case. I like the way the author is able to invoke such a sense of time and place into these stories. I also really like the main characters and the relationship they have with one another.
Have a great week everyone!
Good morning, Gretchen! You know, I’ve never read Victoria Thompson’s series. I really need to try one sometime.
I’m sorry about the issues with the disappearing posts. Thanks for sticking with it!
Just started on the Victoria Thompson’s Gaslight Series – there is a lot of good background in the first book so I suggest you start with it. Murder at/in Astor Place. I enjoyed it and have now read the second one.
Good morning!
I seem to be having the problem that other have mentioned where my post disappears. I will try again.
Lesa, I am so glad you are able to take this trip to NY with your sister. I hope you have a great time and store up lots of memories for later.
Things are finally in full bloom in my neck of the woods. The crabapple trees are gorgeous, the bleeding hearts are filling out and the dandelions are a never-ending battle. It has been great to get out and enjoy the weather.
This week I read:
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith – Cassandra Mortmain’s family inhabits the remains of a castle. They live a lifestyle of extreme poverty mostly due to the fact that Mr. Mortmain hasn’t worked for years. He is a writer suffering from writer’s block, who encloses himself in the tower most days. No one is sure what he does in there, but hope that he is working on his next great book. The rest of the family decide they must figure out a way to bring in money or they will starve.
The story is written as pages from Cassandra’s diary. She describes the daily details of their lives, the beauty of the seasons, the eccentricities of her family, her hopes and dreams and when they are dashed. This has been on my TBR for a long time. I thoroughly enjoyed it,
Murder on Washington Square by Victoria Thompson – This is the fourth book in the Gaslight Mysteries series. Midwife Sarah Brandt is used to people knocking on her door, so when she opens the door to find a little boy there, she assumes someone is about to have a baby. However, the boy has been sent with a message from Nelson Ellsworth, the son of her nosy neighbor. He is requesting that Sarah meet him.
It turns out Nelson wants Sarah to examine a lady friend of his who is claiming to be carrying his child. Nelson offered to marry the woman, Anna Blake, but she refused and only wants money so she can support herself. When Sarah arrives at the boarding house where Anna lives, she refuses to see her. The next morning Anna is found dead in Washington Square.
The number one suspect is Nelson Ellsworth. Sarah does not think Nelson is capable of murder and she feels an obligation to her neighbor, Mrs. Ellsworth, to prove his innocence. Sarah seeks the help of Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy. Unfortunately he is not assigned to the case, but because he is a friend of Sarah’s and will be forever grateful to Mrs. Ellsworth for saving Sarah’s life, he agrees to look into the case. I love the time period and main characters of this series. I always learn something new.
Hope you all have a great week!
Good morning! I am also delighted that Lesa is going to New York. I understand completely the lack of joy over the last two or three years. It’s been a sad time for everyone.
The new shower downstairs will be complete tomorrow. I replaced a fiberglass stand-alone that was here when I moved in with a real tiled walk-in shower. It looks great.
Trying to get the powder room on the main floor finished. The wallpaper needs to be removed and the walls repaired and painted. Not an easy job. Hoping to start that next week.
My reading has been mixed, as usual. The latest in the Sharon McCone series by Marcia Muller is a solid meh. I loved that series when it was new but the last few books have lost their appeal for me.
I started an intriguing thriller/action kind of thing by Michael Asher called Sandstorm. It’s about a teenager who went on what was supposed to be a quick joyride in a plane piloted by a WWII ace, only to have the plane crash in the Sahara. Years later his father heard the boy survived the crash and he sets his middle class life aside to go after him. Asher is an authority on the Sahara and the nomadic tribes who live there.
Over the weekend I read a couple of titles in the Mark Treasure series by David Williams. I love these books and wish they were not so hard to find.
I also read Long Lost by David Morrell; reviews said it is not his best but I considered it competent if maybe predictable.
Waiting for me is The Verifiers which folks on DorothyL recommended highly. When the Corn Is Waist High, which is set in rural Indiana. Books by J. J. Connington and Ruth Sawtell Wallis. And a full Kindle.
Regards,
Aubrey
Good morning, Aubrey! You know what one good thing happened during COVID? You called, and we’ve had the chance to talk books and life every couple weeks. I’m so glad you did that. It means a lot.
I can’t wait to see your reaction to When the Corn is Waist High. A surprising book in so many ways. I picked it up because of the setting.
I hope the bathrooms are still moving along this week. And, I hope the cats are eating.
Sending hugs!
Lesa
Thanks, Lesa. It’s been a decent year for Trusty #1. It was a WWA Spur award finalist (didn’t win, but I’m always grateful to be noticed) and a WF Peacemaker award finalist (winner is announced June 15th). The second book, The Broken Bow, comes out in June. The ARC is available on NetGalley (or message me if you want a print copy). Have a great time IN NYC!
Hello everyone.
Enjoy your time in NYC Lesa. I agree, if we are vaccinated/boostered and proceed with caution, we need to get our lives back on track. Covid is not going away anytime soon. I, too, have returned to traveling. However, my willingness to go to an airport and get on a plane was forced upon me when I had 2 deaths in the family that required my going to Florida on two separate occasions. Since the ice was broken, we recently took a trip to Charleston, SC. Airlines do not make flying a pleasant experience. We were scheduled to fly to Charleston out of Newark airport. Jet Blue canceled our flight and arbitrarily put us on a flight out of JFK airport (much further away from where we live). We arrived at the airport at 7:30 in the morning only to find out our flight was scheduled for 10:00 at night!!! (Note to self, in the future check the a.m. versus the p.m.). We were able to change our flight to an earlier one but it was out of LaGuardia airport. Of course all of this cost us quite a bit of additional money and stress! In the end, we arrived in Charleston and had a wonderful time.
Anyway, onto books. I am reading Book Lovers by Emily Henry and listening to A Treacherous Curse (#3 in the Victoria Speedwell series) by Deanna Raybourn. Both are enjoyable.
Have a wonderful week.
Hi Lesa — I hope you have a satisfying and very safe trip with no glitches. I haven’t traveled yet, but the idea was getting more and more tempting…until the COVID numbers started going up again in our county. I’m putting my nose back into a book and hoping for a summer reprieve. I’m about halfway through The Lincoln Highway by Amor Knowles and it’s very hard to put the book down. The characters are wonderful and the story has me hooked.
Lesa: Hope you enjoy your trip. Tons to see and do. Stay safe. Wear that mask. Hope someday you’ll read my historical suspense set in WWII. Joan Ramirez, author
Lesa, I am glad you have enjoyed yourself going back to theater. I don’t go out alot but I have gone to a few concerts and I am always masked. I’ve had both shots and a booster. I don’t think this will ever completely go away, we will just have to adjust our lives to deal with it. Not completely hiding away but being sensible when we do go out around crowds.
I am currently reading When She Dreams by Amanda Quick and True Crime Story by Joseph Knox.
Enjoy your trip to NYC – one of my very favorite cities. Stay safe and stay well.
I”m just about to finish Linda Castilllo’s new book THE HIDDEN ONE which takes Kate Burkholder to Pennsylvania to help prove that her childhood friend Jonas did not kill the bishop. I’m 90% through (ran out of time to finish last night) per the Kindle app, and the tension has been released but she still hasn’t finished the job. I’m waiting for her to tie it up, which is going to be hard to do. I’d say I’m disappointed in this entry since none of her team is in it, tho they’re mentioned, nor is Tomasetti. A bit of a let down.
After being I’ll, finally ready to open a book. So here goes, “Murder at an Irish Wedding”😁
Hey, Lesa. I’m so glad that you and your sister are returning to your beloved Broadway shows. I keep saying I want to go to some shows. I might have to rope Aubrey into doing that with me. Last week and this week have been busy with getting ready to have new windows installed on the house and now having them installed. Last week I worked so hard getting the rooms involved deep cleaned and cleared out. I thought the man doing the job would be inside more than he was, but the rooms got a long overdue cleaning out. One of the main jobs was, of course, putting all the books somewhere else for a while. I ended up boxing up books and will leave some boxed. I was lucky that my son-in-law’s business (Benthall Brothers in Evansville, with four other locations, you probably have heard of them, Lesa) gave me the family discount on the windows, and the man who installed them was the loveliest of people plus a great installer. Next, I’ll order a new front and back door and get those installed. Then, there’s some outside painting, repaving the driveway, renovating the kitchen, and several other projects. I’m going to space them out though.
So, I actually come to you with a reading week that shows little. I have started Annette Dashofy’s new Zoe Chambers book, Fatal Reunion, and I’m loving it like I have all of this series. I do have some more great reading ahead of me that includes The Murder of Mr. Wickham by Claudia Gray, Death in a Blackout (the first in new WPC Billie Harkness series) by Jessica Ellicott, The Island by Adrian McKinty, and The Dark (finally a new Lacey Flint book) by Sharon Bolton. I hope to have a blog about summer reading up by this weekend.
HI Lesa, I am very happy the stent in my right is working well, have one more checkup fpr it and tomorrow or Monday wiill call to get the left eye stent done. I don’t need my 2nd booster until next month I really am cabin crazy. Need to go somewhere!!!
Finished Lizzie Blake’s Best Mitake and except for an overload of steamy sex that was to o much I loved, loved it. The author has ADHD and she nailed it. The love interest was strangely similar roy husband in that he caredully folds everything asfter doing the laundry. Now I wan to read her other book. I never meet anyone who has ADHD so it was pure jpy to find a character in the book.
Began “Born By The River” by Jenness Clark. It is not enough to have a book with big enough print that I can read it, this is downright boring. It is autobiobiographical which is strange because everyone in this world has had some exciting things happen in their life. Will finish it tonight.
Also reading Home Sweet Organized Home by Jessica Litman, I got for a doller. It has tiny print but I am hoping that it will have a few tips for organizing our tiny apartment. We may move but won’t knpw unitl October when we fing out the new rent amount. It is 1,000 times more interesting than the other book.
Already starting with the red flag fire warnngs.
This week I got three of the Harlequin Mystery Anniversary books from a few years ago, so I read them.
Pardon My Body by Dale Bogard; A reporter encounters an unconscious young woman in the middle of the road.This leads to a series of murders, in several states. Nobody calls the FBI. Probably for the best.
You Never Know With Women by James Hadley Chase; A shayd PI is hired to replace a stoeln dagger, and falls for the woman who stole it. We can see where this is going on page one.
Kiss Your Elbow by Alan Handley; A sort of screwball comedy if itwere written by Ed Wood. Actors try to solve a murder, and someone else solves it, At least this is pre-Kerouac, so we don’t have to read a lot of blather about beat-niks.
I also read Man Hungry, an early sleaze novel by Donald Westlake, that seemed surprisingly innocent today.
Paul Cain: The Complete Stories by, well, Paul Cain; Cain was a writer for Black Mask. His stories are almost like impressionist paintings in prose.
Wayob’s Revenge by Arthur Swan; Murder and body switching makes for a book more confusing than most time travel novels.
I completed one book last week, JUSTINE by Lawrence Durrell. Recommended by Rick Robinson, and I am so very glad he did. I never would have discovered it on my own.
It was very very good, but I will admit that it was a hard read for me, and sometimes confusing. It was worth it for the lovely, lyrical writing. It is the first book in the Alexandria Quartet, centering around a group of people living in Alexandria, Egypt in the years before World War II. I am now reading the second book, BALTHAZAR, and it is expanding on the events in the first book. I am enjoying it even more. My reading is still slow though, it could be me or the depth of the book.
Like Rosemary, I am doing the 20 Books of Summer challenge.
My list has three books with European setting for my European Reading Challenge:
Luke McCallin: The Man From Berlin (Sarajevo, Yugoslavia, 1943)
Stuart Kaminsky: Murder on the Trans-Siberian Express (Russia)
Harry Mulisch: The Assault (The Netherlands)
Five books by Canadian authors or set in Canada:
Louise Penny: The Long Way Home
Robin Spano: Dead Politician Society
Ted Woods: Dead in the Water
Stef Penney: The Tenderness of Wolves
L. R. Wright: Fall From Grace
Plus:
Steve Burrows: A Pitying of Doves
Catherine Aird: Some Die Eloquent
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (short stories)
Raymond Chandler: The Long Goodbye
John Scalzi: Head On
Connie Willis: Fire Watch (short stories)
Martha Wells: Rogue Protocol
Penelope Fitzgerald: The Bookshop
Gail Honeyman: Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
George Saunders: Lincoln in the Bardo
Adrienne Chinn: The English Wife
Leo Tolstoy: Anna Karenina
I read CLOSING RANKS by Elizabeth Gunn. I thought it was a new one in the series, but maybe not, I am confused. I liked it. The story development was a bit different, It seems like the first case is solved in 25 pages, but maybe not. The whole group of detectives work to eventually solve several related cases. AQll of them contributes and Gunn individualizes each of them. I also like her books because of the domestic details she brings in, although not quite so much in this one. And she gets the Tucson setting and weather right!
I just finished THE HOMEWRECKERS by Mary Kay Andrews and thought it was one of her best.