It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? (July 26th)

Read:

Accidental Sorcerer by K. E. Mills — this was pleasant enough audio, but I wasn’t sufficiently thrilled to pursue the second book. I’m kind of glad it’s over.

Blood Soup by Kelly A. Harmon – I really enjoyed this novella. Check out the review below.

Plays:

The Wedding Singer: the Musical at Le Petit Theatre duVieux Carre which is one of it not the oldest community theater in the United States! They are getting ready to start their 95th Season.  The Wedding Singer was wonderfully cast and produced. It followed the movie closely.

Reviews Posted:

Maybe This Time by Jennifer Crusie

Blood Soup by Kelly A. Harmon

Reading Now:

I am reading too many books at one time and rather than repeat all the half-finished book from earlier weeks. I’ll just mention that I need to re-check out from the Library the eBook I was reading. The Weed That Strings the Hangman’s Bag ceased to open (as expected) once my 14-day license expired.

Pursuing the first chapters of The Strange Case of the Composer and his Judge I ran across the word myrmidons, which means a loyal follower, esp one who blindly follows orders.

Co-worker loaned me a copy of George Mann’s Ghosts of Manhattan which reminds me a lot of THE SHADOW. It seems to be picking up.

The C. J. Parker book I am reading Fugue Macabre: Bone Dance is soon to be a print book.

Books Received in the Mail:

The Folk Keeper by Franny Billingsley (via BookMooch) because of a great review on Things Means a Lot.

Slow Reading by John Miedema (purchased via BN.com)

Cowgirl Rising: The Art of Donna Howell-Sickles by Peg Streep (purchased via BetterWorldBooks)

The Strange Case of the Composer and His Judge by Patricia Buncker (ARC from publisher via ShelfAwareness)

Thoughts:

Does anyone belong to a Literary Society (I belong to the Northshore Literary Society) of some type? Not a book club, but an organization that promotes literacy in their community, brings in guess speakers, apply for grants to meet goals?

Our Literary Society is trying to expand and more formally organize and I’m looking for suggestions.

What are your formal goals?

What are your favorite activities?

To what to you receive the best public response?

Any other advice?

Thanks in advance for any ideas.

Wish List:

Primal Picnics: Writers Invent Creation Myths for their Favorite Foods (With Recipes) ed. by Jennifer Heath

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It’s Monday! What Are You Reading is organized by Sheila over at Book Journey. Be sure to stop by her site and read the great blogs of the other participates.

Maybe This Time by Jennifer Crusie

Maybe This Time by Jennifer Crusie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is Classic Crusie and it has been so long since we’ve had a single author book from her it was like drinking a cool glass of water ( or was it Amaretto, Andie prefers). I can’t really tell you how many times I laughed out loud! This book is Funny.

The whole time I was reading this book, I couldn’t help but feel the story was familiar. We had the creepy Gothic home, the weird Housekeeper, and the out-of-place nanny. The text mentioned Jane Eyre, but that wasn’t it.

I was enjoying all the colorful characters too much for it to bother me. After all, I was happy to be back with all the Crusie hallmarks. I think the only one missing was the dog, and who needs a dog when you’ve got ghosts! Andie and North had already been married to each other TEN Years before, but it crumbled after only a year. And when Andie goes visits him in order to return 10 years worth of uncashed alimony checks( it is obvious these two aren’t done), she somehow agrees to become a nanny to North’s inherited nice and nephew. Hijinks ensues.

When North’s brother Sullivan aka Southie enters the picture with a nosy reporter things get outrageous. She brings a medium and a skeptic. The the Ex-Mother in-laws show up to protect their interests and, their backstory is one I wouldn’t mind seeing. As if two troubled children, a wacko housekeeper, three ghosts, weren’t already enough the last guests arrive — Andie’s fiancé and North himself.

It is a volcano ready to blow and you will laugh and maybe even cry as this screw ball comedy works itself out. North, hasn’t a clue about ghost, but Andie’s in trouble so he’s going to fix it. There is also a guest appearance from Gabe McKenna that makes you want to go back and read Fast Women (also excellent, it you haven’t read it).

I really hope we don’t have to wait 6 years for another one and I hope we will get to see Southie’s story one day too.

The North and Southie and Lydia dynamic reminded me of Sabrina, but that didn’t fit with the Gothic setting. Since the stories echoes where still nagging at me, I visited Jennifer Crusie’s website and could have thumped myself. There on her home page where the words Turn of the Screw, well duh. This wasn’t a mash-up like all the zombie/vampire + classic literature books that are out now. This was a modern retelling like Dean’s Tam Lin, but with more out-and-out comedy.

I loved Maybe This Time. Hope you do to.