I have to share a picture from my visit last week to my Mom’s. This apple fritter is from House of Donuts in Huron, and it really is the size of my head. Mom and I split it. We each had a quarter of it for breakfast, and a quarter for dinner.
Friday morning we went to a diner, The Invention Restaurant, in Milan. I love a good diner, don’t you? We had a terrific waitress who told me I have to have a pancake the next time I come back because they have the best pancakes. I told her I’d be back in October. She told me she works Thursdays and Fridays (smile).
That was last week. This week, we’ve had gorgeous weather. I had the time to sit on the porch and read for three hours on Tuesday. It was just so nice sitting out. So, I finished a book that I’ll review on Friday’s blog. I just started my new book.
A Resistance of Witches is Morgan Ryan’s debut novel. I love to discover a debut and a new voice. Since I’ve only read the first chapter, here is the blurb for the book.
As World War II rages around her, a witch abandoned by her coven must journey to find a book of unspeakable power before it lands in Nazi hands
Stubborn, plain-spoken and from an unimpressive family, Lydia Polk never expected to be accepted into the Royal Academy of Witches. Now, with Hitler’s army rampaging across Europe, the witches of Britain have joined the war effort, and Lydia is key to the cause: she must use her magic to track down magical relics before Hitler and his sycophants can. When a Nazi witch infiltrates the Academy with heart-breaking consequences, the coven is left shaken, exposed and divided. The elder British witches have no interest in further loss of coven life in service of a government that has forced them into hiding for decades, no matter the consequences to the world. But with the discovery of the Grimorium Bellum, an ancient book that leaves a trail of death and destruction wherever it goes, Lydia knows her mission has never been more urgent.
In the first chapter, the Grand Mistress of the Royal Academy of Witches takes Lydia to 10 Downing Street to offer Winston Churchill the assistance of the Academy. I’m hoping the rest of the book is as good as this first chapter.
What about you? What did you do this week? What are you reading?
Oh I do love apple fritters but I have never seen such a huge one Lesa. How wondrous!
A bit of a quieter week over here. We had the family over for lunch last Sunday, sort of a last get-together before the start of all the busyness of school and sports (hockey, soccer, and curling). Almost everyone could make it, so we were a group of nine and fun was had by all.
And today we went to the swearing in ceremony for one of our sons-in-law who made the move from transit police to city police. He’d been wanting something with more variety. And the home interview with our daughter was less stressful this time around since there was no blood splatter on the walls. Never a good look if three police officers come into your home. Why were there blood splatters at all you might be wondering. Long story short, their dog wags her tail quite violently, and the skin at the tip would break open and bleed but she would still thwack it against the walls, resulting in the splatter, particularly by the stairs. It really did look like a crime scene. Side note, they had wrapped the tip in a bandage to help it heal, but unbeknownst to them the tip of the tail died off while wrapped up and when they removed the bandage a grey lifeless bit of tail came off at the same time. Really quite traumatic for everyone except their dog who didn’t seem bothered at all.
Books then:
THE STORY SHE LEFT BEHIND by Patti Callahan Henry (a book talked about here before)
Bronwyn lived in the U.S. and wrote a hugely popular children’s book, published when she was just twelve years old, about a girl named Emjie and her travels and adventures; but that book ended with Emjie stuck in whatever land she was in at the time. And the world has been waiting for a sequel.
In the first chapter we learn that the grownup Bronwyn left her husband, her 8-year-old daughter Clara, and indeed her whole life behind. She just left. Disappeared from their lives because she thought her daughter would be better off without her. Why she felt this way we don’t know. But we do know that poor Clara, twenty-five years on, is still an emotional wreck, still missing her mother, and still desperately looking for answers.
Which brings us to Clara’s daughter Wynnie. Wynnie is a loving, gentle, wise-beyond-her-years little girl. Clara loves her deeply and understandably says she will never ever leave her. Interestingly, Wynnie’s best friend is Emjie, who often ‘helps’ her.
Fast forward to the day Clara receives a phone call from a Charlie, in England, who says he’s discovered a satchel of papers and a sealed letter for Clara. It all seems genuine so she and Wynnie travel to England to retrieve them. Unfortunately for asthmatic Wynnie, they arrive in London during the Great Smog (a true event from 1952 wherein thousands of people died). Charlie takes them to his mother’s estate in the Lake District so they can take refuge from the smog. The rest of the story takes place there – the continuing search for answers about Clara’s mother; the beginnings of a relationship between Clara and Charlie; and getting to know Charlie’s lovely mother, Pippa.
The book is quite atmospheric; descriptions of the beauty of the Lake District and the tenseness of being in the Great Smog are wonderfully done. But even though the premise is interesting I didn’t like the book as much as most people did. Much of the dialogue tended to distance me from the story rather than pull me in because it seemed somewhat unbelievable. There is a resolution of sorts near the end of the book but neither it nor the dialogue rang true. For me.
I liked the author’s book The Secret Life of Flora Lea better. Something I did like though was that a character from that book made a short appearance in this one. Makes me wonder if the author has plans to write another book and maybe have this character play a larger part. There’s a bit of mysteriousness there, so we’ll see.
THE BODIES IN THE LIBRARY by Marty Wingate
A light mystery, first in a series.
Hayley has just been appointed curator of the book collection of the First Edition Society library in Bath, England. The collection belonged to the late Lady Georgiana Fowling and is comprised of first editions of Golden Age Mysteries written by women. It is housed in what was Lady Georgiana’s home, Millbank House. Hayley’s new job includes private accommodation in the home. The previous curator left in a hurry and the board, in urgent need of a replacement, hired Hayley – likely due to a lack of other candidates. While she has a degree in 19th Century literature, Hayley has not ever read a Golden Age mystery but is nevertheless determined to do her utmost to help keep the library going and to keep Lady Georgiana’s legacy alive. Also living and working at Millbank House is Mrs. Woolgar – very traditional in her outlook, with firm views on how things should be done; and not terribly receptive to any of Hayley’s ideas.
In her quest to up the appeal of the library to a wider audience, Hayley gives permission for a group of fan-fiction writers to hold their weekly meetings there. But it’s a strange collection of people, all seemingly at odds with one another. And then one morning a member of that group is found dead in the library.
Hayley desperately wants to save her job and the home that comes with it, but that means she needs to save the society itself. The bad publicity of a murder on the premises is not going to make the public feel safe for one thing, and Lady Georgiana’s nephew is contesting the will. He was left a sum of money but what he really wants is Millbank House – and not for the purpose of keeping up the society’s work either.
An enjoyable mystery, with nothing too deep. A bit slow to get going and maybe a bit repetitive at the beginning, but as I got to know the characters more my interest picked up. I did like that it wasn’t all about the mystery – there were a few sub-plots which make the book more interesting overall. Also, the police played a bigger part in this cozy mystery than usual which made for a more balanced mix of characters doing the solving. And there was a teeny tiny touch of the paranormal, which I always enjoy.
I’m so glad most of your family could be there for Sunday lunch, Lindy
You have the most interesting family stories! Blood spatter on the walls when the police are there. All from a dog!
I like cozy mysteries with books, and ones in which the police participate and aren’t sidelined.
That’s a great story, Lindy! Very funny. I read The Bodies in the Library and enjoyed it as well. I wasn’t so enamored with the two follow-up books in the series though.
It was too hot to do too much.
This week I read:
Killer Transaction by Catherine Bruns; A real estate agent’s rival is killed, and she is the primary suspect. She needs to clear her name, but spends a lot of time doing frippery.
Stand Into Danger by Alexander Kent; It’s the Age of Sail, and a young lieutenant is on a ship looking for treasure, and pursued by every sailor on the seas. A lot of skullduggery. The kid seems to worry mostly about the state of his uniform.
Switch by William Bayer; A serial killer murders two women and switches their heads for art’s sake. Can’t sell that at a street fair!
The Bangkok Girl by Sean O’Leary; A burn out Aussie PI in Thailand looks for a missing Aussie girl. The trail takes him to Tokyo. Burns Bannion would have had this wrapped up in 90 pages. Jim Brodie in maybe 120. Time to start writing again, Barry Lancet!
Death By Hollywood by Steve Bochco; A burnt out screenwriter witnesses a murder through his telescope, and insinuates his way into the investigation for material. Seemed like something Lee Goldberg might write.
Glen, loved the Burns Bannion reference. I wonder how many others here will get it. I remember reading those Richard Prather wannabe books as a 13 year old in summer camp in 1962.
Jeff,
I found all but one at a library book sale.
It took a while to find the last one, but I got it several years ago. A great series, not very well knonw because it was only sold in PX’s.
As Jeff says, I didn’t get the Burns Bannion reference. But, I still enjoy your reviews of burnt out characters in books.
Lesa,
Burns Bannion is a fun detective. Basically, the author takes Shell Scott, puts him in Mike Hammer plots, and it’s set in Post WWII Japan, and everybody uses karate instead of guns.
It was only sold in PX’s, and can be the devil to find. The series is best known as the first western series to feature karate as a plot device. If you find one cheap somewhere, you should try just for the novelty value.
Further on the Burns Bannion front:
“The credits on the version of this movie which exists today are actually for the movie “Mad Doctor of Blood Island” and bear no relation to this film. This comes from when they were originally intended to be released as a double feature.
“Contrary to popular belief, this film was not directed by Kenneth G. Crane, was not made in 1970, was not produced by Toei Company, and was not titled “The Double Garden”. It was originally filmed in 1966 as “Body of the Prey” and it was produced and directed by Norman Thomson. Thomson was the popular pulp [sic-TM) novelist of the Burns Bannion series, which he wrote under his pen name ‘Earl Thomson’. The production was assisted by members of the United States military bases in Japan and shot on location there. During production, Al Rickett wrote about the making of this film in the ‘Stars & Stripes’ newspaper, as well as having a small part as a gas station owner. However, while Edward D. Wood Jr. claimed he wrote the script for this film under the title “Venus Flytrap” and placed it on his resumes, reports of the making of the film in ‘Stars & Stripes’ claim Thomson wrote the script. It’s possible that Wood sold the script to Thomson and it was slightly re-written before production. It’s undetermined if the completed film was released theatrically, in either Japan or the United States.”
I have taken the liberty of replacing the credits with the data listed on the IMDb, footage from the Moody Institute’s “Carnivorous Plants,” and a little music from “Knife of the Party.” I did it with my handy-dandy NERO. Since this created a NEW work under the law, despite being a simple combination of Public Domain works, I slapped a copyright notice on the back. Hack those off and the film belongs to everyone. If you don’t, expect trouble from YouTube! The original VHS release can be downloaded from Public Domain Movie Torrents, complete with incorrect credits under the “Revenge of Dr. X” title.
Whether or not Ed Wood had anything to do with this steaming dogflop of a film, it’s certainly worthy of his name!
https://archive.org/details/BodyOfThePrey1966
Earl Norman was the pseudonym he used for the Bannion books.
I gathered, but the film buff didn’t get that far…
Books about serial killers are bad enough but when said killer switches the heads?! Somehow that’s even more disturbing. I don’t think I could be persuaded to read that one Glen.
Sounds like a nice (and delicious) visit.
We’ve been hot here in So Cal. I will admit, a little cooler sounds nice, but I’m not ready for real fall weather yet. Even our version of it.
This last weekend, I played some games on Saturday and went to a pool party on Sunday. Monday was just vegging around the condo, although I didn’t get quite as much done as I had hoped (reading, watching TV, playing my Switch 2.) To quote Calvin (of Calvin and Hobbes fame), “There’s never enough time to do all the nothing you want.”
Thanks to our slightly off fiscal year, we are in quarter end close at work. So far, so good. Hopefully, that continues now that we are starting on our extra reporting.
Reading wise (I didn’t forget what this comment is supposed to be about), I just finished up CLAWS OUT by Cate Conte. This is book nine is her Cat Cafe Mysteries series. The Cat Cafe goes on the road thanks to a customized food truck. But when a best selling authors dies at the cat and lit festival, the characters jump in to figure out what happened. I enjoyed it over all, although I did have several minor issues with it.
Next up will be DEATH ON THE CAUSEWAY by Caleb Wygal. This is book four in his Myrtle Beach series. It’s one of several series I’m making a concerted effort to catch up on right now. (which for me means a book every two or three months). I generally enjoy these books, so hopefully that will hold true here again.
I love that Calvin and Hobbes quote, Mark. I agree with Calvin! I need more time to do nothing.
And, this post is about what you’re doing, not just books. It’s all about life, whether it’s hot, or leading to fall. Enjoy the books.
Good luck at work!
That’s a CRAZY fritter but looks sooooo good. It’s starting to get cold in the mornings here – I’m starting to run again after oral surgery so that’s a good thing. I’m currently reading The Book of Sighs by Richard Russo.
It was good, Melissa. I’m glad we only had one to share.
Enjoy the running and Richard Russo’s book.
Jackie is going to be SO jealous when I show her that picture. She loves apple fritters. Occasionally (like once a month) we get one at Jupiter Donuts in Florida, which seems huge until compared with yours, which is at least twice the size.
Well, on a personal note, I’m done with doctors for a while (fingers crossed). Last Tuesday I had my left cataract done, Wednesday I was back downtown getting checked on by the doctor. Then this week it was the right eye on Tuesday (I had to be there at 6:15 am!), and Wednesday was the check up. Now I have to go back in six weeks to see how they’ve healed and see if I need new glasses _ i do have astigmatism in the right eye.
Still, when you think of what people had to go through with cataract surgery years ago – wearing those giant dark glasses, being afraid to move your head, etc. – this was (relatively speaking) a piece of cake.
We’ve had a great stretch of weather, the best of the summer, 13 straight dry days (we could use some rain), warm but not hot, very pleasant. Looks like we’ll get some rain and warmer temps the next couple of days, then back to mid-70s. Nice.
Books, then. Jackie is reading the second (of four) in a Linda Lael Miller series about time traveling vampires , FOR ALL ETERNITY (The Black Rose Chronicles).
Of course, I couldn’t read much for a couple of days these past weeks. But I got my short stories read and even some books. First, Thursday I did finish Deanna Raybourn’s KILLS WELL WITH OTHERS, discussed last week. Next it was Nicole Krauss’s short story collection, To Be A Man, much of which was set in Tel Aviv, some in New York. I enjoyed this one. Then was Maggie Shipstead’s collection, You Have a Friend in 10A, which I enjoyed in part but not as much as the Krauss book.
There has been discussion here of Tim Sullivan and his Sgt. George Cross series in Bristol, and I read the second, The Cyclist. Cross is clearly on the autism spectrum, but he is a brilliant detective at solving murders. Here he deduces that a murder victim was a cyclist, and quickly discovers that he ran a Greek restaurant with his brother. But who would want to kill him? This is another fast moving mystery. I will continue with the rest of the series in between other books.
I’ve read and enjoyed a lot of Lee Goldberg’s books over the years – I don’t know when the guy has time to sleep – including all of his Monk novelizations, the series he wrote with Janet Evanovich, as well as the more recent Eve Ronin and Sharpe & Walker series, though my favorite of his so far was definitely CALICO. A couple of years ago he published Crown Vic, which consists of two novellas about ex-con (he stole high end cars) Ray Boyd. These take classic noir tropes from THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE and the like and puts them in a modern setting, with twists you might not see coming. They are also pretty graphic as far as sex and language goes, so fair warning. Nevertheless, I definitely recommend them highly to any Lee Goldberg fan (and aren’t we all?), as they are a fun twist on an old genre. There is also a third novella, “If I Were a Rich Man,” in Crown Vic 2, but I read that in another collection I am halfway through, Eight Very Bad Nights: A Collection of Hannukah Noir edited by Tod Goldberg (Lee’s brother).
Lastly, yesterday I started a book Lesa mentioned, Sulari Gentill’s Orien Express mystery, Five Found Dead. I’ll talk about it next time, but I can tell you it is a very fast read, and if you’re a fan of the old Agatha Christie mystery (again, who isn’t?) you will definitely want to read this one.
Apple fritters and cream filled doughnuts, Jeff – white cream, not custard. Those are my favorites.
I’m glad you’re trying Five Found Dead. I enjoyed Sulari’s take on Murder on the Orient Express, and her references to mystery detectives.
You’re right. Cataract surgery has come a long way. I hope you’re happy with the results.
Our weather has been wonderful. Expecting rain today, which we need.
Jackie agrees with you on the cream vs, custard thing too. She won’t eat the custard ones.
Our Bouchercon days are behind us, but we are going to New Orleans on November 1. We’ve been there many times since our first visit in 1998, including Jazzfest 7 times, and it remains a favorite city.
I kind of miss Bouchercon when everyone is there, Jeff. But, I doubt that I’ll be going there again, either. I’m glad you’re still enjoying New Orleans!
Jeff, I think I’ve mentioned before about my brother and zydeco music. He’s been to New Orleans many times and became friends with some of the musicians he met there. Whenever he goes (well, not this year) he stays with them in their homes, and plays guitar as their guest in their bands. He’s played Jazzfest three times (says the best time was in front of a crowd of 20,000 people), as well as countless other gigs around town.
He’s played with ‘Sunpie and the Louisiana Sunspots’ and also with ‘Rosie Ledet and the Zydeco Playboys’.
Linda, that is very cool.
We’ve had nice weather here too. We drove out to PA last weekend to go to a Renaissance fair which was a lot of fun. As a bonus it was held on the grounds of an old tile and pottery factory so we were able to tour that as well. On the way home we stopped at an orchard and got a basket of softball sized peaches. Fortunately they are really good.
I read A GIRL OF THE LIMBERLOST by Gene Stratton-Porter. It was originally published about 1909 and I know I read it years ago but I didn’t remember much of it. A young girl who grows up poor on the edges of the Limberlost Swamp in Indiana puts herself through high school by collecting moths and butterflies. The writing was very old fashioned and it took me a while to get through it.
An ARC of ALWAYS CARRY A SILVER CROSS by Andrea Robertson. This was mainly a werewolf romance (the silver) but with a vampire thrown in (the cross). The characters were not really not really well developed, they were too busy jumping from crisis to crisis, and the the story didn’t really wrap up. I’m guessing the author plans a sequel.
I’m about halfway through MURDER AT CAPE COSTUMERS by Maddie Day. Once again Mac and her crew are trying to solve a murder. But this time they are also trying to find Tim’s sister who was visiting Mac and Tim but who has disappeared, leaving her two young children with Mac and Tim. I’m really enjoying this one.
Oh, good peaches! I love peaches, Sandy, but they have to be just right. I’ve had too many that were hard, and not ready.
My best friend grew up and spent her whole life in Indiana. Girl of the Limberlost is one of her favorites from childhood.
Sandy – Was that at the Moravan Pottery & Tile Works? I’ve seen their work and it seemed like it would be an interesting place to tour.
It was and we enjoyed seeing it.
That’s one enormous apple fritter, Lesa! One of my fav donuts. YUM!
Yesterday I had some ladies over to play cards and they all oohed and ahhed over my in – progress kitchen remodel, for which I was grateful. I am truly out of my element with designing a kitchen, so it was good to receive feedback that I’m not messing it up!
For over a week I have been reading “This is Happiness” by Niall Williams. I do not like to read slowly as there are so many books on my TBR list. But Mr. William’s style of writing requires slow reading. The sentences are lyrical, juxtaposed, other worldly. I liken it to picking up Shakespeare for the first time. I almost quit reading it in fact, so irritated was I by him slowing me down. But I persevered and it was so worth it. His verbiage immerses the reader into the small town of Faha, Ireland and all of the angst with growing up (via the character Noel), dealing with regret as one ages and seeking forgiveness (via the character Christy), and enduring love and its quiet forms of sustaining a relationship (via Noel’s grandparents). Highly recommend.
I’m so glad your card playing friends admired all the work you’re putting into your kitchen, Mary M.
I know what you mean about slow-moving novels with so many other books out there. I’d have a hard time. It may be why I seldom read literary novels.
Mary, I loved This is Happiness by Niall Williams! I think it will make it onto my 10 best books read in 2025 list.
I’ve been in the car too much lately. Mostly mundane errands and meeting up with folks passing through the area. Last week’s trip to Shelter Cove on California’s Lost Coast was a once-in-a-lifetime for me. In the heart of the redwoods, it’s called The Lost Coast because an additional mountain range, the King Range, protected that area from road development. Beautiful, but not easy to get from here to there. And today, the local energy coop is holding their annual meeting. Surely cuts into my reading time!
From Canadian author Susan Juby, her first mystery novel for adults, MINDFUL OF MURDER. The author has created a unique main character, Helen Thorpe, a Buddhist nun who left her order when her mother became ill. After her mother passed away, Helen worked at a New Age retreat center on one of British Columbia’s Discovery Islands. She started as a meditation teacher and became the lodge manager before the owner of the Yatra Institute, Edna Todd, paid for her to go to the North American Butler Academy in Florida. Murder investigations are not her first calling, but she can’t quell her suspicions. Add in a colorful cast of characters and a beautiful location for quite the entertaining story. (to date, a three book series – I’m currently reading book #2 A Meditation on Murder)
“When selecting an exotic location for travel, it’s advisable to choose one where the air isn’t trying to kill you” Egypt 1926. So starts MURDER AT THE MENA HOUSE (Jane Wunderly Mysteries) by Erica Ruth Neubauer from 2020. A fair bit of light romance and sightseeing as the heroine tries to solve the murder of a beautiful young socialite.
I’ve also been reading MAD AT THE WORLD: A Life of John Steinbeck.
I’ll think of you when I’m running errands this morning, MM. You’re right. It gets tiring being in the car. And, I don’t do audiobooks, so I’m missing reading time.
Enjoy the time, if you can get it!
LordAMercy – That Fritter! YUM!
Seeing pictures from Bouchercon at Facebook and thinking of you. We had so much fun at the last New Orleans Bouchercon!
I loved a book that others may not. But would it be boring for us all to read and enjoy all the same books all the time? Too sad.
GO GENTLE by Maria Semple is an odd book. i loved it.
Description from NetGalley –
“Maria Semple is a treasure.” —Los Angeles Times
The New York Times bestselling author of Where’d You Go, Bernadette returns to form in her most exuberant and life-affirming novel yet with the story of one woman’s cheerful determination to live a life of the mind only to have the heart force its way in.
Adora Hazzard has it all figured out. A Stoic philosopher and divorcée, she lives a contented life on New York City’s Upper West Side. Having discovered that the secret to happiness is to desire only what you have, she’s applied this insight to blissful effect: relishing her teenage daughter, the freedom of being solo, and her job as a moral tutor for the twin boys of an old-money family. She’s even assembled a “coven”—like-minded women who live on the same floor in the legendary Ansonia—and is making active efforts to grow its membership. Adora’s carefully curated life is humming along brilliantly until a chance meeting with a handsome stranger.
Soon, her ordered world is upended by black-market art deals, secret rendezvous, and international intrigue . . . and her past—which she has worked so hard to bury—lands like a bomb in her present. Inflamed by unquenchable desire, Adora finds herself a woman wanting more: and she’ll risk everything to get it.
Adora Hazzard’s journey of self-discovery will grip you from the start. Romantic, hilarious, intelligent, and bursting with the stuff of life, Go Gentle is a thrilling story of one woman’s mid-life transformation, cementing Maria Semple in the pantheon of our most exciting and important contemporary writers.
I know, Kaye! Doesn’t it make you wish you were there? But, it would be different since David and you and I aren’t together. That was a fun conference. A gorgeous city.
You’re right. I don’t think it’s my type of book, but I agree. It would be boring if we all liked the same books.
Good morning! It’s been a fun week for me. Last Sunday I went to see Piano Men: Generations at the Harris Center, and it was everything I had been told and more (last year I had to relinquish my ticket when I was in the nursing facility after my car accident). A father and son both play pianos and they cover Billy Joel and Elton John songs only, which are all fantastic. They are accompanied by three guitars, an amazing drummer who juggles his drumsticks frequently, and a musician who plays saxophone, tambourine, and sometimes keyboard. Both of the stars have amazing voices (one is 66). They are currently on a tour which ends in 2027 (!) so if you have the opportunity, I highly recommend their show. They even took requests on Instagram and Facebook during the show, mentioning the requesters’ names and shining a spotlight on them. And all of them did a rendition of “For the Longest Time” for the first time (something they had fooled around on backstage) without microphones, in beautiful harmony, and with the son reading the lyrics from his phone. Ninety-plus minutes with no intermission–wow!
On Tuesday I went with a group of 19 women to see “The Roses” at the movies. I haven’t been attracted by a movie in months, so this was a treat. I love Benedict Cumberbatch and especially Olivia Colman, and I knew it was a story that was over the top, and I found the movie something that kept me entertained (and awake) throughout. In two weeks we are going to see the final Downton Abbey movie.
My son Nick attended the family fantasy football draft from a distance (he didn’t want to drive for an hour to join the others) and was quite happy with the players he got on his team. It is grandson Henry’s first year (he is almost 9), and I’m sure he will get a lot of help from Zach. I believe there are 12-14 playing this year. Nick won last year, but there is no money changing hands.
Here’s what I was reading this week:
With all of the current books that feature dual timelines and multiple points of view, it is refreshing to savor Terry Shames’ Samuel Craddock mystery #12, THE CURIOUS POISONING OF JEWEL BARNES. As always, it is an absorbing story narrated by her protagonist, a seasoned police chief in rural Texas, so everything we experience comes from the perspective of this respected lawman. The main plot revolves around two members of the local Barnes family, middle-aged female twins who drive identical cars and often dress alike. But these days, they seem to be drifting apart, as Lily accuses Jewel of trying to poison her. So why is Jewel the one lying there, the apparent victim of poisoning? Her family has its suspicions, but no one seems to have a logical answer. At the same time, Samuel hears complaints about large trucks making nighttime deliveries to a site outside the town. and he wonders whether toxic materials are being dumped that could endanger the community. And all of this is occurring when Samuel’s lady friend has suddenly abandoned him for a former flame. It’s a lot to handle. Fortunately, Samuel has a devoted team of deputies, each with different skills and insights, and good friends such as his neighbor, Loretta, who can always be depended on for fresh, home-baked goodies and the willingness to be a sounding board for her long-time friend. Everything is just right in this book. Returning characters and new ones are all fleshed-out humans with details that make them come to life. The mysteries are difficult to solve, making the reader feel invested in Samuel’s responsibility to his beloved town. And Samuel himself is a character to root for and to love. Supporting characters such as Loretta, the Barnes twins, and ex-con Russell spring from the pages. And a small surprise at the very end hints at future developments and more books in the series. Terry Shames is writing at the top of her form, maintaining the high quality of this stellar series, which I hope continues indefinitely. (December)
The Bobbi Brown you meet in STILL BOBBI, the cosmetics entrepreneur’s memoir, is more than the creator of a billion-dollar brand, although that is certainly one of her most important achievements. She is also the author of multiple books of makeup tips and tricks, an award-winning humanitarian, the long-term beauty editor for the Today show, and President Obama’s appointee to an advisory trade commission, not to mention the mother of three sons with her supportive husband of decades. Having created her own major at Emerson College (theatrical makeup and photography), Bobbi spent several years looking for lucrative opportunities as a makeup artist before scoring her first Vogue cover and garnering the attention of celebrities and the Estee Lauder Cosmetics empire. Even in the 1980s and to this day, she has believed that women don’t need an abundance of bright makeup, but rather cosmetics that enhance their natural beauty, and she began by creating just 10 lipsticks. When Bobbi’s company was acquired by Estee Lauder and she stayed on as creative director of her line, she signed a contract that prevented her from creating a competing line of makeup for a full 25 years, and she stuck to that commitment even after leaving Lauder. It wasn’t easy for someone for whom creating was her main pleasure, but a few years back she started her second company, Jones Road Beauty. I enjoyed the way the book lays out Bobbi’s influences, including her immigrant grandfather who ultimately became the owner of the biggest car dealership in Chicago, and her mother, who believed in perfection and appearance at all times but later struggled with mental illness, as well as many mentors and colleagues. My book club’s theme this month of biographies and autobiographies led me to this entertaining, well-written book. And even though I’ve never worn her cosmetics, I found it a pleasure to learn about this ambitious women who relentlessly pursued an ultra-successful career on her own terms, while always finding balance with her “flourishing home life.” (Sept. 23)
Ellery Adams’ fantastic A Secret, Book, and Scone Society series is one of my favorite cozy mystery reads. And since autumn is approaching and thoughts of the upcoming holidays are impossible to ignore, I especially enjoyed the creative way Miracle Books’ display window is painstakingly designed and executed by employee Sheldon and his boss, Nora, first for Halloween and later for the Thanksgiving-to-Christmas timeframe. But, in THE TATTERED COVER, book #8 in the series, there is more afoot than holiday preparations. The store’s first author reading and book signing is a big success, leading Nora to schedule yet another author, a medium whose memoir has just been published. Lara believes that a childhood lightning strike brought on her psychic talents and agrees to do a private seance for six paying customers after the reading. The weather is brutal, and when the power goes out during the seance, the author collapses and dies in front of those in attendance. She had been feeling under the weather, but was her demise from natural causes or something more dastardly? Nora’s detective beau’s investigation reveals that there were several people at the bookstore that night–some of them local residents–who had an axe to grind with Lara. Her journal is found, and there are hopes it will help solve the mystery, but it seems it was written in some sort of code. Nora and her close friends put their heads together to decipher the journal, but their progress is slow, and another suspicious death occurs. It is an interesting mystery, but what I particularly love about these books is the tight circle of supportive friends Nora has established–each with troubling secrets in her background, as Nora does. They have confided in each other and found a measure of redemption and relief in so doing. I also like the mature relationship between Nora and Detective McCabe, which continues to develop in this book. Among Nora’s friends, there is also a pregnancy and a wedding to relish. I look forward to each new entry in this well-written series and am always ready to return to Miracle Springs. (October)
I love the Samuel Craddock mysteries, Margie. I have it on the list from NetGalley, and I’m looking forward to it.
I think it’s great your family is including Henry in their fantasy football league. That’s fun.
I enjoy hearing about your concerts and shows. Thank you for sharing!
For comfort, I am reading The Persian Pickle Club by Sandra Dallas, books about surviving in the Great Depression give me hope.
Also I won The Devil Reached Toward the Sky, An Oral History of the Making and Unleashing of the Atomic Bomb by Garrett M. Graff. It is good, I understand more why Japan got into WW Ii and it is interesting to hear from the scientist’s own words about living Germany and Italy and how they realized it was time to get out. Some of the quotes make wish for books about the people like Laura Fermi and her spine chilling experiences.
The Persian Pickle Club is one of my all-time favorite books, Carol. Have you read Dallas’ Tallgrass? I like that, too, but not as much.
Not yet but I will look for it.
Oh, my goodness that apple fritter looks delicious!
Two books for me this week.
SHOT THROUGH THE BOOK is the newest of the Lighthouse Mysteries by Eva Gates. This one was a little off for me. The library is preparing a YA book festival, and the featured author shows up at Lucy’s house to speak with her. Before she gets a chance to find out what he wanted he is shot and killed with an arrow. The author’s wife shows up she uses her husband’s murder as a launching pad for her political career with accusations against Lucy and the local police force. This one was only okay.
THE MEASURE by Nikki Erlick was recommended by my neighbor and her daughter. The premise is would you choose to find out the length of your life? One day at the age of 22 people all over the world receive a wooden box that contains an indestructible string that is the length of your time on earth. The book follows eight character and their choice as to whether open the box and what they do with the information. This was very thought provoking and had parallels to today’s political climate. I enjoyed it very much.
Happy Reading!
Sharon,
The fritter was delicious!
I don’t know. I’ve seen The Measure around, but I’m not sure what my decision would be. I’m tending towards not opening the box.
I don’t think I would either, Lesa. It definitely was a thought provoking book.
Hi Lesa and everyone! Despite not chiming in for a couple of weeks I don’t have a lot to share. I finished listening to “Time of the Child” by Niall Williams, which is about the Irish village of Faha, the people in it, and the ripple effects of a baby abandoned the evening of the Christmas fair. The horrible church-run orphanages (and other institutions that take the place of close local ties) haunt the story. I love the writing and the insight into human nature in all its variety. Like Mary M above I sometimes wanted the plot to move more quickly, but that how life happens, isn’t it?
Heartwood by Amity Gage is the best mystery I’ve read in a while. It concerns the disappearance of a through-hiker on the Appalachian Trail. There are multiple points of view (some of which don’t seem very relevant at first) and slowly the story is pieced together. The parts that are the hiker’s letters to her mother as she feels her strength slipping away in the woods are especially poignant. The blurb says this book is ultimately about how we are lost and found, and I agree.
It has been a summer full of travel for me. I couldn’t report about Finland earlier because I had to go to New York for my doctoral program, followed then North Dakota for a memorial service. I just go back from making sure kiddo is all set at college in Maine. Whew!
Anyway, Finland was lovely! We spent a couple of days in Helsinki (staying at the Hilton Strand, which was very nice). Exploring the city on foot was fun, and we saw a challenging modern art exhibit on identity at Amos Rex. The Flow (music) Festival was on while we were there, and kiddo got to see his favorite artist, which is pretty amazing. After Helsinki we headed to a national forest where we had rented a cabin on a lake. (This is what the Finns do in the summer.) I found the cabin online, and it was perfect. We could walk to the trails, swim in a lake, pick wild bilberries (which are like blueberries), take a sauna, and just relax. We could have gone back into Helsinki for the day (and then taken a ferry to Estonia if we wanted) but we were enjoying hanging out at the cabin too much.
Thank you, Trisha! You did have quite a summer. I really wanted to hear about Finland, so thank you for sharing. It sounds as if the rented cabin was the experience the Finns would want you to have. I’m glad you relaxed and enjoyed it.
Trisha, I agree with you about Heartwood, and I envy your trip to Finland.
Hello everyone – I am finally back from my 5 week stay in Edinburgh, the festivals are over for another year, and there’s a distinctly autumnal feeling to the air up here on Deeside.
I saw some amazing shows – alongside, of course, some pretty poor ones, but that’s the nature of the Fringe; anyone can perform (provided, of course, they can afford to come to Edinburgh in the most outrageously expensive month in an already outrageously expensive city. There is no selection process apart from the size of one’s wallet.)
My favourite plays included Fuselage, which was written by Annie Lareau. In 1988 she was one of many Syracuse students on a year abroad scheme in London. At Christmas most of the group, including her very best friend Theo(dora) Cohen, were returning to the US for the holidays. All of them were booked onto Pan Am flight 103 – apart from Annie, who was due to fly the next day. She tried to change her ticket but couldn’t afford the extra charge, so when the others piled into taxis and headed to Heathrow, she stayed behind in their flat doing her packing. A few hours later Flight 103 exploded, plummeting to the ground over the Scottish town of Lockerbie. There were no survivors; eleven people on the ground were also killed.
Lareau plays herself in Fuselage, with two other excellent actors playing Theo, the girls’ friend Geoffrey, and all the other parts.
It’s a deeply moving play. Lareau focuses on the people rather than the politics (something for which the Guardian’s theatre critic laid into her, calling the play ‘manipulative’ and complaining because she ‘failed to address the politics’ [every single review apart from his gives Fuselage 5 or occasionally 4 stars] – absolutely ridiculous in my opinion, as not only does the play refer to the events that led to the bombing several times, Lareau makes it clear that she wants above all to celebrate the people who died.
So we see photos and video footage of Annie and her friends, and a large part of the play is about their lives at Syracuse and later in London, the fun they had, the parties they enjoyed, the trips they made to Greece and Paris. There are lots of very funny scenes, it’s not all gloom and doom.
For those of us who only heard about the bombing on the TV news, the victims seemed remote – it was a terrible, terrible thing but one that we didn’t really understand. Fuselage brought it all home so well. I doubt if many of us left the theatre with dry eyes. I’d definitely recommend this play if it tours in the US.
I’ll maybe tell you all about some of the other highlights next week, as otherwise I’ll never get this posted.
I read only one book for the entire month of August – another of Hazel Holt’s Sheila Malory mysteries. DEATH IS A WORD was in fact the last one in the series. The plot, as ever, was fairly light, but I enjoyed the characters and the goings-on in a small Devonshire town so much that I didn’t mind at all. The mystery was solved rather more peremptorily than usual, which makes me wonder if Hazel Holt knew she was dying and wanted to tie everything up as quickly as possible. Alternatively someone else may have finished it for her. Either way, I am sad that there will be no more news of Sheila’s friend Rosemary, Rosemary’s wealthy and appallingly snobbish mother Mrs Dudley, Anthea, who runs every committee in the area and bosses all of the poor volunteers into submission, Michael and Thea, Sheila’s son and daughter-in-law, and of course Sheila’s spaniel Tris and Siamese cat Foss. Sheila and Rosemary’s dry and witty comments on the inhabitants of Taviscombe rival the best of Barbara Pym’s social observations (and Holt was of course Pym’s greatest friend and her first biographer.) Holt also didn’t start writing till she was in her 60s, so there’s hope for me yet!
Now I am reading a book whose author I saw at the Fringe. Sola Amure, known as Larry, is Nigerian, and is now retired from his career as an ophthalmic surgeon in England.
I attended the event as a favour; Larry once worked with the wife of a close friend of David’s. It was very interesting to hear about his life, so I bought the book – called BEYOND THE HORIZON MIGHT BE BETTER (not the most elegant of titles!) and I am finding it fascinating.
Larry was the oldest son of a doctor. He was born in London while his father was studying here, but the family then returned to Lagos, before later coming back to the UK as his father sought further professional qualifications. The family was middle class and not poor, but Larry’s upbringing could not be more different from that of a typical British child.
One or other of the many children was frequently farmed out to other relations – his father’s father was head of the clan and had a huge house in the city; he had many wives, so Larry and his siblings had numerous cousins and step-uncles. His grandfather ruled with a rod of iron, and kept a set of whips in this study. All of the boys were regularly whipped till they bled, and Larry’s own father therefore thought that this was the only way to ensure his own son grew up ‘right’, so he too beat and whipped Larry, often for no discernible reason. If Larry was sent to live with cousins or uncles, they too had no qualms about dishing out extreme physical ‘discipline.’ The violence is absolutely shocking, but seems to have been accepted as normal in the circles in which the family moved.
I’m only just up to the family’s second return to Nigeria, but I know from what Larry told us that he eventually ended up at Cambridge University and acquired many postgraduate medical qualifications. He married a really lovely English woman, who was there at the event with him; they live in Cambridgeshire and have two grown up daughters. I chatted with them after the reading, and Larry was amazingly jolly and ‘normal.’ Needless to say, he has not continued the tradition of ‘discipline’ with his own children.
I’m also reading the next book in Debbie Macomber’s Cedar Cove series; I decided I needed something easy after a month of reviewing.
Last week we went to the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh to see LYLE LOVATT in concert. I had never seen him live before; he was excellent, such a nice man. In between the songs he chatted away, and was so self-deprecating and modest. He is clearly so proud of the twins he fathered at the age of 59 (the mere thought of even one baby at that age is enough to send me screaming from the room…). It was a great evening, and very well attended.
Yesterday I was at the annual Aberdeen Cultural Summit, which this year focused on film. There were keynote speakers and also workshops, and I learned a lot about what is already going on in the area, and what people hope to make happen in future. Edinburgh and especially Glasgow have thriving film-making industries, but the North East of Scotland has lagged behind, despite having some of the most spectacular and beautiful locations in the country. Many people are trying to change things, but as ever funding is a big problem. There is so much creativity up here, but in the past there has been a lack of communication between various organisations and individuals. The conference is one way of improving this, and people generally seem to be waking up and seeing the benefits of joining forces.
Today I visited my friend Sue – she of the goats, chickens and now bees too – and we had a great walk up to ‘The Stone of Origin’ – a sculptured cairn above the granite quarries at Kemnay. The views were fabulous – we could see Bennachie (a famous hill, originally an iron age fort) in one direction, and the quarry in the other. The quarry, which is still in partial production, is an impressive sight, and now home to lots of wildlife. I came home with home made jam, pickles and produce; it’s very handy having a farming friend!
Lots more to tell you all, but I think I really should shut up now. I am supposed to be assessing applications for our Friends of Aberdeen Art Gallery & Museums micro-commissions awards, and this year we have something like 40 of them to work through – the first year I did this we had 18.
Have a good week all. And Lesa, I spent the month with Charlie and Herbie, and can report that they are both in fine fettle!
Fuselage definitely sounds like a wonderful play, and I love that the focus was on the people; would have made the whole play feel very personal, and the tragedy all the more moving.
Yes, that’s exactly it Lindy. It made everything so real, even all these years later.
I agree with Lindy, Rosemary. Fuselage does sound wonderful. I can’t believe Annie Lareau has the courage to play herself in it. I would find it so emotionally draining to do that.
Welcome back! I’ve missed you and your comments about the arts, books, and the countryside. It’s so good to have you “home” again.
Thank you for letting me know Charlie and Herbie are doing well. You don’t know how much I miss my cats.
I’ll look forward to anything else you want to tell us next week. Talk about draining! I can’t imagine five weeks of festival activities, and then you come home and do more of the same. Five days of a mystery conference were enough for me. I can’t imagine doing five weeks!
Thank you Lesa, as I’ve just said to Jeff, it’s SO good to be back – and not only in Aberdeenshire but also with my regular Thursday friends!
Yes. five weeks of reviewing is exhausting. You do get into a kind of a rhythm, and I have learned to pace myself and keep my schedule vaguely manageable, but you can’t afford to let up at all. The minute I start to get behind I panic, so nowadays I am very strict with myself. It does mean virtually nothing else gets done until both the Fringe and the Book Festival are over; I don’t even see any of my Edinburgh friends until the last review is written, so it was good to stay down in Leith a bit longer this time and catch up with a few people (and go to the dentist!)
Thanks for the report, Rosemary, and good to have you back. We went to the Fringe in 2000-2001-2002. I know we stayed at the Travel Inn in Leith the last time. As you said, the offerings ranged from the very good to the pretty bad. It was fun, though. We saw an adaptation of Bill Bryson’s NOTES FROM A SMALL ISLAND, and a show called AUNTY AND ME with Alan Davies.
Thanks Jeff, it’s so good to be back. Every year I say ‘never again’, but this year I really do think I might mean it.
Alan Davies is, I think, still doing the Fringe, but I didn’t see his show. The most famous people I saw this year were Thanyia Moore, a very good comedian and storyteller from London, and Naga Munchetty, of whom I hadn’t even heard, but it seems she is a presenter on BBC Breakfast and has her own Radio 5 show. She was at the Book Festival; her new book is called ‘It’s probably nothing’ and is about the sidelining of women’s reproductive health problems. My friend saw Miriam Margoyles, who was doing her show about Dickens characters, and said it was very good.
The apple fritters are my favorite at our neighborhood bakery. They are big but only about a third the size of yours! Does anyone remember Dutch Pantry restaurants? One time on a trip my mother ordered the Apple Fritter Sundae, It was huge! We had fun watching her eat it.
I read Hunter’s Heart Ridge by Sarah Stewart Taylor. A bit slow going at first but as I got into it I really enjoyed it, definitely could feel the snow storm. Not sure what part Sylvie’s baby played in the plot, maybe she is setting up the next book.
Oh, I would have loved to see your mother eat a huge apple fritter Sunday, Cindy.
I agree that Hunter’s Heart Ridge was slow going at first.
Jeff, I forgot to say, I finally finished the first series of Karen Pirie and enjoyed it very much. I’m now watching Loch Ness; it took me two episodes to realise that the creepy headmaster at the local school is Archie from Monarch of the Glen!
We’re watching the adaptation of Anthony Horowitz’s ALEX RIDER, with Stephen Dillane and Vicky McClure (from LINE OF DUTY). Also have started another go-round on NEW TRICKS. Plus, we’re almost finished with CODE OF SILENCE, which is very well done. Joe Absolom plays a character very different from Al Large in DOC MARTIN.
Oooh I haven’t seen any of those (apart from some of New Tricks) Jeff, I will have to investigate!
Hi Lesa, My husband would love that fritter! Was off work Labor Day and just did some shopping at BJ’s wholesale. Currently listening to the Measure on audio by Nikki Erlick. My netgalley , is the last Thursday Murder Club, The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman.
If you’re an apple fritter fan, Katherine, it’s hard not to love that one! Mom was laughing when she brought it home that day.
I’m jealous of those of you who got early copies of The Impossible Fortune.
The localish convenience store chain Wawa will sell you a fritter about that big, happily a bit smaller…too tempting for this T2 diabetic as it is…
I get it. It is tempting, Todd.
Realized this Sunday afternoon that I had not circled back to share what I am doing…..
My current read via the publisher and NetGalley is The Proving Ground: A Lincoln Lawyer Novel by Michael Connelly. I remember the case that is being changed and fictionalized here. Comes out on 10/21.
NetGalley Description (tells far too much, in my opinion)
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Michael Connelly, the Lincoln Lawyer is back with a case against an AI company whose product may have been responsible for the murder of a young girl.
Following his “resurrection walk” and need for a new direction, Mickey Haller turns to public interest litigation, filing a civil lawsuit against an artificial intelligence company whose chatbot told a sixteen-year-old boy that it was okay for him to kill his ex-girlfriend for her disloyalty.
Representing the victim’s family, Mickey’s case explores the mostly unregulated and exploding AI business and the lack of training guardrails. Along the way he joins up with a journalist named Jack McEvoy, who wants to be a fly on the wall during the trial in order to write a book about it. But Mickey puts him to work going through the mountain of printed discovery materials in the case. McEvoy’s digging ultimate delivers the key witness, a whistleblower who has been too afraid to speak up. The case is fraught with danger because billions are at stake.
It is said that machines became smarter than humans on the day in 1997 that IBM’s Deep Blue defeated chess master Garry Kasparov with a gambit called “the knight’s sacrifice.” Haller will take a similar gambit in court to defeat the mega forces of the AI industry lined up against him and his clients.
Don’t you hate it, Kevin, when blurbs give away too much information? I saw a Louise Penny book ruined once in that way.