BACKSTAGE MURDER (Shelley Freydont)

Lindy Haggerty agrees to return temporarily to the world of ballet as a rehearsal director of the Jeremy Ash Dance Troupe.  Old friend and fellow dancer, Arabida (Biddy) McFee, currently the rehearsal director, has broken her leg and Lindy is happy to temporarily leave her empty nest and distracted husband to help Biddy out,    She is appalled to discover that difficult, over-the-hill diva Carlotta Devine is the star of the show.  When Carlotta is discovered dead backstage it is just a question of who out of her many enemies might be guilty of the crime.

Lindy is an interesting character and Freydont's dance background enhances the authenticity of the story.  It is  unusual for an amateur sleuth to toy with the idea of infidelity as Lindy does, so it will be interesting to see how  and if that relationship develops as the series progresses.  As for the mystery, it is well-written and holds the reader's interest.  It would especially appeal to fans of dance and theater, but you don't need to be a performer to appreciate Freydont's talent as a mystery writer.

ASPERGER'S ON THE JOB (Rudy Simone)

Did you know that 1% of our population is considered to be on the autism spectrum (CDC 2009), compared to 1 in 10,000 just 20 years ago?  That being said, Simone's wonderful book should be required reading for all employers as well as for any adult with Asperger's Syndrome (AS) or high-functioning autism.  As someone very familiar with the frustrations and anxiety suffered on a daily basis by those with Asperger's, I was especially impressed with Simone's practical, well-organized approach to dealing with the day-to-day issues that stand in the way of fulfilling, successful full-time employment for 85% of those diagnosed.  In general, Aspergians are highly intelligent, focused, and tenacious.  They count many very successful people among their ranks (although we can only speculate about some, since the syndrome was not identified and accepted as a valid diagnosis until 1994), including Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Sir Isaac Newton, and Dan Ackroyd.  However, anxiety, social awkwardness, an inability to read faces and react to emotional and social cues, sensitivity to environmental factors, and a lack of tolerance for "small talk" make getting hired and staying employed a tenuous experience for those on the autism spectrum.

As an adult with AS herself, Ms. Simone knows firsthand that education and understanding are the key to successfully integrating individuals with AS into the workplace.  Her advice to potential employers and employees is based on both personal experience and interviews with more 50 adults diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome who have, for the most part, encountered serious problems in the education and employment arenas.  Chapters cover every conceivable obstacle with real-life, realistic (no sugar-coating or happily-ever-after here) observations about coping with interviews, coworkers, and expectations in the workplace. She also includes a personal job map and a useful list of resources.  If you or someone close to you has been diagnosed with Asperger's, or if you work with anyone on the autism spectrum (and chances are this WILL happen), read this book.  Simone offers tremendous insight into the day-to-day lives of those suffering from Asperger's.  We can all benefit from understanding that not everyone fits into the same mold.  It's really not unreasonable to consider making square holes for the square pegs instead of trying to force everyone into the round ones!  It might even result in a better, more productive workplace and world.

PERFECT LOVE (Elizabeth Buchan) 1995

I took a break from this novel due to Christmas preparations. I plan to get back to it eventually.  Prue, married since the age of 19 to a much older man, is a devoted mother, wife, and aspiring biographer of Joan d'Arc.  When spoiled step-daughter Violet returns from New York with her husband, Jamie, and newborn baby, Prue and Jamie find themselves attracted to each other.  (to be continued)

ALL WOUND UP (Stephanie Pearl-McPhee)

Like author Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, crytoscopophilia (the urge to look in people's windows as you pass by) is one of my favorite pastimes!  No, neither of us is a Peeping Tom; it's not that kind of looking!  It's the kind of looking where you catch a momentary glimpse into someone's life...their decorating taste, their activities, their family dynamics... and you automatically begin to infer things or create scenarios about them.  It's interesting that Pearl-McPhee is so intrigued by this word and its meaning because she provides the reader with much the same experience, albeit with a bit more detail and a lot more humor, through her essays about her life and knitting.

At the age of four Pearl-McPhee was taught to knit by her grandmother, and she has since created a lifestyle and writing career out of this hobby.  I'm a very casual and unskilled knitter, but I do crochet, so I understand her love of color, texture, pattern, and the camaraderie that comes of sharing the love of a craft and the creation of beautiful things with others.  Unfortunately, I also understand her "stash" and how yarn can overtake your whole home.  Just ask my husband and kids, although I've gotten it pretty much under control at the moment by hiding yarn in and behind furniture. I plan to use the author's explanation of "snacks," yarn that you buy in small quantities just to satisfy your craving and prevent yourself from buying enough for a big project, the next time (and there WILL be one!) I am challenged on whether or not I might need to use up the yarn I already have before I buy more.

But, getting back to the book....You don't have to be a yarn enthusiast (but it makes it more fun) to savor and enjoy Pearl-McPhee's observations on teenagers, fashion, high school awkwardness, bras, deadlines, parenting, etymology, mathematics, seasons, the industrial revolution, and addiction, to name a few of her topics.  The author has a successful knitting blog at www.yarnharlot.ca.  She is short, disorganized, poorly groomed and dressed (by her own admission), socially awkward, and didn't get married until after she and her husband had produced three daughters.  She is, on the surface, nothing like me (well, except maybe for the socially awkward and grooming things!), but I feel a strong connection to her nonetheless.  Maybe it's because knitting, despite the fact that it has become wildly popular with the masses, is a traditionally feminine activity, or maybe it's just that her humor targets such universal topics so succinctly.  All I know is that I want more!

YOU BETTER KNOT DIE (Betty Hechtman)

Yarn!  For some reason novels that feature this wonderful substance always make me want more!

Widowed Molly Pink is again embroiled in murder and intrigue at the Shedd & Royal Bookstore.  As the staff prepares for a pre-holiday book signing by the mysterious author of a popular series featuring a romantic crocheting vampire, the community is rocked by the apparent suicide of Larry Perkins.  Larry is a popular investment whiz who has brokered lucrative deals for many of Molly's friends.  He and his wife, Emily, are also Molly's next door neighbors.  After grief-stricken Emily gives Molly a strange crocheted blanket created by Larry's sister, Molly's house is broken into and ransacked, while Larry's investors begin to worry about where their money has gone.  Things just don't add up, so Molly launches an investigation into Larry's disappearance, much to the consternation of her protective and competitive beaus, detective Bernie and lawyer Mason.  Is Larry really dead?  Does Emily know more than she is letting on?  Will coworker Adele ever stop driving Molly crazy?  Will Mason ever finish the sweater he is crocheting for his dog?  Check out this sweet Christmas themed mystery and find out!

40 LOVE (Madeleine Wickham)

I was just thinking that if I had a blog I would write a piece on inappropriate book covers that are obviously geared toward trying to attract readers of a popular genre despite the fact that the novel in question does not fit into that genre.  Then I realized that I DO have a blog!  Hello!  If you have read any of my previous posts you know that this cover manipulation is a sore spot with me, but I guess it's common practice in the publishing industry.

Madeleine Wickham is the actual name of popular chick-lit author Sophie Kinsella.  Kinsella's "Shopaholic' series is hilarious and I have read and enjoyed every one.  As Madeleine Wickham, however, the author's work leans more toward literary fiction, but you'd never know it from this cover, which I cannot seem to successfully attach to this post.  Think Joanna Trollope with an undercurrent of Nancy Thayer.  40 Love is about 3 couples, 2 married and an obnoxious father/daughter duo, who are invited for a weekend of tennis hosted by  Patrick and Caroline at their country home, the White House.  Patrick is a successful investment broker who hopes to cajole his friends into enough new business to earn a 100,000 pound bonus.  His wife Caroline, is a former spokesmodel who is sweet and generous, but slightly too brassy and bright to fit in well with the "old school."  Old friends Stephen and Annie are relatively poor, since Stephen has taken a sabbatical to finish work on his doctorate and they are currently making ends meets with savings and Annie's part-time work.  Their young daughter, Nicola, has suffered a stroke and struggles to keep up with the "normal" kids. Surrounded by his successful friends, Stephen suddenly finds himself feeling financially inferior and, worse, like a failure in life. Charles, who lived with the well-liked, bohemian Ella in his younger days, is now married to heiress Cressida and the father of twins.  His pride in his successful marriage and family life is tested when Cressida receives disturbing news about her inheritance.  Don, an overbearing local would-be hotelier, and his overweight, socially inept but clueless daughter, Valerie, round out the tennis group.  When Ella arrives unexpectedly, at Georgina's invitation, old rivalries and new inadequacies suddenly come front and center and suddenly marriages and friendships are in jeopardy.

If you are a fan of Joanna Trollope, Elizabeth Buchan, and perhaps Anne Tyler, take a deep breath, ignore the cutie in the tennis outfit on the cover, and pick up 40 Love.  I think you'll enjoy it.

DRINKING PROBLEMS AT THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH (Beth Teitell)

As a woman of a certain age, I was very interested in Beth Teitell's hilarious journey through our culture's obsession with youthful appearance.  How many times have we heard the phrase "reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles" or "look and feel younger?"  We live in an era where graceful aging is no longer a goal, but a stigma, and revealing one's true age is akin to admitting that you don't think that learning to read should be a priority in public schools.  TV and print marketing have relegated women over 40, unless they are admirably well-maintained a la Demi Moore (and has that served her well personally or romantically?), to almost non-existent status except in the "youth preservation" area.  Products and procedures to slow the aging process, firm sagging skin, color gray hair, minimize flabby chins, fill in deep lines and reduce fine lines, not to mention rejuvenate sexual abilities (albeit mostly for men), control incontinence, enhance nutrition, lighten age spots, and call for help in an emergency have taken over advertising for the older crowd.  Where are the ads for flattering clothes (without fleece, polyester, or elastic waists), fashionable eyeglasses, movies, hair stylists, and recreational equipment that feature smiling middle-aged people with wrinkles who seem to be actually enjoying life rather than hiding in shame or attempting to disguise their true age (that 35-year-old child might just be a dead giveaway that you aren't actually 40!)?

Teitell's research in writing this entertaining search for the fountain of youth is exhaustive.  She consults skin care experts, dermatologists, plastic surgeons, psychologists, retailers, facial exercise experts, friends, and government statistics in her quest to discover the truth about whether or not looking and feeling younger is actually an attainable goal.  Numerous products, advice, and treatments later, she provides a list of 10 tips to maintain a healthy, more youthful look as you age (in other words, advice on aging gracefully without breaking the bank or spending hours each day maintaining yourself) :  exercise, take care of your skin, use a little makeup, take care of your hair, don't obsess about your age, dress appropriately for the occasion, whiten your teeth, use an age-appropriate vocabulary, sleep, and be charming.  Her ultimate advice?  Inner happiness and sunblock are the keys to a beautiful life.  I couldn't agree more!

WIFE-IN-LAW (Haywood Smith)

Haywood Smith always draws me in to the slightly off-kilter but almost believable lives of her characters.  She also usually makes me laugh out loud!  Wife-in-Law begins with picture-perfect newlyweds Betsy and Greg Callison moving into a new house in a new development circa 1975.  He is an up and coming accountant and she is the perfect 1950's-style wife, complete with a spotless house, a hot dinner, and fresh make-up ready greet her husband when he returns from work every day.  Betsy is excited to find that new neighbors are moving into the house across the street, that is until she discovers that Kat and Zach seem to be hippies, unmarried, laid back, and, perhaps worst of all, politically liberal.  Still, the couples form a close friendship and their children grow up together with Betsy and Kat becoming best friends despite differences in political  philosophies.  When philandering Greg eventually leaves Betsy for his secretary, her life is thrown into turmoil, but she works through her anger and grief and takes it in stride when Greg returns to the neighborhood after 2 years and marries the recently widowed Kat.  Having fully moved on from Greg's betrayal, Betsy has no problem accepting the situation until she makes a discovery that compels her to become involved in her ex's marriage, with life-changing consequences.  This tongue-in-cheek story of marriage and friendship won't disappoint Smith's loyal readers, and I would suggest that Mary Kay Andrews' fans check it out as well.

THEN CAME YOU (Jennifer Weiner)

India Bishop has, unexpectedly, fallen in love with her older, wealthy husband Marcus.  When the couple fails to conceive a baby they turn to Annie Barrow, a young married mother with financial problems, and Julie, a beautiful Princeton student desperate to help her father beat addiction, to help them achieve their dream of parenthood.  Marcus' skeptical grown daughter, Bettina, believes that her step-mother is a gold-digger and sets out to dish up whatever dirt she can find on India's hidden past.  As surrogate Annie's due date approaches, an unexpected turn of events shatters the joy of India's impending motherhood and Bettina is thrust into an unexpected but fulfilling role in baby Aurora's life.

The four women in this novel share a common characteristic, namely desperation.  While the plot is a bit unbelievable and each of the women's situations border on melodrama, Weiner, as usual, manages to pull the threads of the plot together into a well-written and entertaining story.  This would make a great Lifetime movie!

SEW DEADLY (Elizabeth Lynn Casey)

This is the first of Casey's Southern Sewing Circle mysteries, a great cozy series featuring librarian Victoria "Tori"  Sinclair.  Northerner Tori's arrival in Sweet Briar, South Carolina from Chicago is met with some resistance by the established locals.  She has been hired to replace longtime librarian Dixie Dunn, whom she assumed had retired but who had, in fact, been ousted from her position in favor of a newer, more modern approach to library services.  Tori  is invited to attend the local sewing circle and discovers there both warm welcomes and cold shoulders, plus an annoying insistence by one member on using her full first name.  When things start being mysteriously "misplaced" in the library Tori finds herself unprepared for both a visit from a local 3rd grade class (with a dreamy teacher!) and an important library board meeting. Tori and the widowed teacher, Milo, find themselves attracted to each other.  When Tori finds the body of a local girl whose crush on Milo is common knowledge in Sweet Briar, she is immediately the prime suspect in an imagined love triangle.  As she works to clear her name Tori uncovers some not-so-sweet goings on in the town.

Despite the fact that Elizabeth Lynn Casey (real name: Laura Bradford) is neither a Southerner nor a sewer, she creates a wonderful cast of characters in her Southern Sewing Circle ladies.  Practical, motherly Mary Louise, resentful Dixie, Leona, and the rest all promise to become great friends in future installments of the series and I look forward to reading them all!

THE EVIL THAT MEN DO (Jeanne Dams)

American ex-pat Dorothy Martin and her British husband, retired chief constable Alan Nesbitt, have embarked on a walking tour of the Cotswolds.  Interestingly enough, though, they never cross paths with M.C. Beaton's Agatha Raisin!   They do, however (and not unexpectedly), run across a murder when they discover the body of an unidentified man in a deserted quarry during one of their daily jaunts.  The disappearances of both a budding young rock star and a local social worker, who is involved with a shelter for abused women, complicate matters and put Dorothy's formidable powers of deduction (and Alan's patience) to the test.  As usual, Dams has written a charming and well-thought out tale that keeps the reader guessing throughout.  One of the most attractive features of this series is the affectionate relationship between Dorothy and Alan.  Read this series!

THE VERY PICTURE OF YOU (Isabel Wolff)

Predictable plot?  Perhaps, but Isabel Wolff's latest novel is also predictably enjoyable, a relaxing read with appealing characters and an intriguing premise.  Gabriella (Ella) Graham's life was irrevocably altered at age 5 when her father, John Sharp, deserted her mother for another woman and disappeared abruptly from their lives. Now 35 and a successful portrait artist, Ella has a loving adoptive father, Roy, and a younger sister, Chloe, who is seeing Nathan Rossi, a handsome Italian- American currently living and working in London.  Ella's mother, Sue, is a former ballerina whose last performance before a broken ankle ended her career, was as the tragic Giselle. 

Ella has good memories of her early childhood along with unresolved issues related to her loving father's abdication to Australia, and when she suddenly receives a text message from him she resolves to avoid stirring up old hurt feelings by ignoring his suggestion that they reconnect.  Sue is in the midst of planning Chloe and Nate's wedding while Ella, painting Nate's portrait, finds herself battling inappropriate feelings of attraction to her future brother-in-law.  In the midst of Ella's emotional confusion, her mother, always controlling, insists that John Sharp should be relegated to the past and not forgiven for his destruction of his family and betrayal of his wife and daughter.  Wolff adds a couple of nice, but not entirely unexpected, twists to the story that set it apart from your typical chick lit and the addition of step-by-step details about Ella's portrait painting methodology (along with several related sub-plots) will be of interest to anyone that enjoys art.

THE YEAR EVERYTHING CHANGED (Georgia Bockoven)

I wasn't sure when I started this novel that I really wanted to read it (too many other good books lying there waiting to be opened!), but I changed my mind once I got into the story.  Four half-sisters, ranging in age from 49 to 23, learn of each other's exisitence when the are summoned to a meeting with their father, Jessie Reed, who is terminally ill.  Two of them, Elizabeth, the oldest, and and Christina, the youngest, have bitter memories of thier father's disappearance from their lives and hesitate to reconnect with him.  One of the middle sisters,Ginger, was put up for adoption by her famous mother and raised by two people that she always believed were her biological parents, while Julia grew up with a bitter, unpredictable mother who committed suicide when Julia was at her senior prom. 

While Bockoven's novel is not groundbreaking literature, she tells an interesting story, alternating the points of view of each of the sisters as they come to terms with their father's reappearance in their lives, his eventual death, and each other's existence.  In today's world of broken families and casual liasons, their journey through this emotional minefield is probably not all that unusual.  I won't tell you how it all turns out, but I think that if you are a fan of women's literature you will enjoy reading this and finding out for yourself.

AS THE PIG TURNS (M.C. Beaton)

I am sad to say that I abandoned this latest Agatha Raisin mystery after just a few chapters.  I love Agatha's abrasive personality and all of her neighbors and colleagues in the Cotswolds, especially Mrs. Bloxby, but I could not get past the image of Agatha realizing that the pig roasting on the spit at a local fete was actually human.  Local cop Gary Beech, who has had run-ins with many locals, including Agatha, is not well-loved in the area and his tattoo looks very similar to that on the "pig's" haunch.  His incredibly beautiful ex-wife Amy hires Agatha to investigate her former husband's disappearance.

I think that Beaton has a wonderful cast of characters with Agatha, Roy, Charles Fraith, the Bloxbys, and the many and sundry other people who live in the area surrrounding the village of Carsley, where Agatha has settled since taking early retirement.  I wish, however, that Beaton would slow down and fill in a few more details.  I have to admit that her writing style in this particular series, which is very different from the laid-back practicality of her Hamish MacBeth series, does match Agatha's personality, which is an acquired taste.  Agatha's jealousy and tendency to leap to negative conclusions and run roughshod over people and events that hold neither interest nor advantage for her is offset by her loyalty and lovesickness, but I would enjoy a more developed sense of the relationships between the various characters in the series.  Obviously, I would also prefer a different plot than the one she offers in this novel.  If you read the whole thing please feel free to comment and let me know how you liked it!

WORMWOOD (Susan Wittig ALbert)

Susan Wittig Albert's China Bayles series is one of three very well-written, researched, and detailed mystery series that also include  the newer Darling Dahlias (1930 Alabama gardening club) and her historical Victorian-Edwardian mysteries written with her husband under the name of Robin Paige (forensics enthusiast Sir Charles Sheridannd his Irish American author-wife Kate).

In Wormwood, China is invited by friend and fellow herbalist Martha Edmond to help with a series of workshops at Mount Zion Shaker Village in Kentucky.  After a series of family tragedies, China is grateful to accept her friend's offer to relax and regroup while learning about the Shakers' medicinal and culinary herbs.  Of course, China manages to uncover both a murder and some serious financial shenanigans at the village, which is now a spa.  Albert cleverly weaves together past and present in two tales of murder, intrigue, and lust for money, using the Shaker settlement and family history as the common threads tying the two stories together.  Recipes and  various herbal remedies add and extra special something to this already great mystery!

FIRST FAMILY (Joseph J. Ellis)

We have been listening to this wonderful recounting of the marriage of John and Abigail Adams on audio.  Fortunately, both my husband and I enjoy history, otherwise we would never have made it through more than half the book during 2 five hour drives (to visit a friend in the Finger Lakes region of New York State and back).  We did intersperse our listening with conversation, meals, Zac Brown, and Jason Castro, which helped!  I plan to finish off reading the print version of the book.

Ellis based most of this in-depth investigation of the Adams marriage and family life on correspondence between the couple, filling in with information gleaned from other writers (like Thomas Jefferson), historical records, and other sources.  Neither John nor Abigail were considered especially attractive, but they fell passionately in love and married in 1764, when Abigail was 19 and John just shy of his 29th birthday.  Their union was a true partnership, personally and politically, and they were best friends as well as lovers.  Their marriage produced 6 children of whom only one, John Quincy Adams, achieved true happiness and success.  Daughter Abigail (Nabby) made difficult marriage and died of breast cancer at age 48, Thomas and Charles died of alcohol-related problems, Susanna succumbed to a childhood illness, and Elizabeth was stillborn.

First Family holds a wealth of fascinating insights into the Adams' marriage and family life during their 54 years of  marriage.  Did you know that John Adams' mood swings may have been attributable to a thyroid condition, that Abigail nearly fell in love with another man during one of John's long political stints away from home, or that son Charles was assumed drowned when the ship he was scheduled to sail on from England was lost during the journey from England to America?  Abigail only discovered that he was alive, having taken a different ship, months later when he showed up unannounced at the family home in Massachusetts!

It's hard to imagine in these modern times of email, Skype, and video chat that a couple could spend months and years apart, or away from their children, with only occasional letters to sustain the relationships.  The Adams left a valuable legacy of correspondence that makes me wonder about the possibility of future research into the lives of today's leaders.  Will biographers of the Obama's and Bill Gates have access to their personal thoughts and emotions  or will they have to rely on hearsay, historical records, and old issues of People Weekly?

THE LANTERN (Deborah Lawrenson)

Set in a crumbling old mansion in Provence, The Lantern is a true gothic novel.  Eve and Dom are newly in love and have settled in at Les Genévriers, an isolated estate in the south of France, surrounded by lavender fields and numerous relics of the past.  The estate was owned by the Lincel family and has been vacant since the death of Bénédicte, the last surviving daughter, a few years before.  With the home literally crumbling around them, Eve and Dom embark on their life together, planning renovations to the house and grounds and indulging themselves in their hobbies, creating a world just for the two of them.  Eventually, though, Eve finds herself uncomfortable with their isolation and begins to long for social interaction.  She also harbors increasing suspicions about Dom's past and what happened to his former wife, Rachel, who seems to have disappeared without a trace and about whom he refuses to speak.  When two bodies are discovered buried on the grounds of  Les Genévriers, police try to link Dom with the disappearances of several local women and Eve wonders if her own life might be in danger.

Lawrenson does a superb job of interweaving Bénédicte's story with Eve's through her beautiful prose and lovely imagery.  As the reader is transported through Bénédicte's life it becomes less and less clear what is reality and what is not.  Is Les Genévriers haunted?  What about the "ghosts" that visit Bénédicte and the "visitors" that she observes in her house, or the shadowy figures and unexplained noises that seem to pervade Eve's consciousness?  What about the lantern, the symbol of love that figures in both Eve's and Bénédicte's stories?  Lawrenson's debut novel will leave the reader wanting more.

FAREWELL, MISS ZUKAS (Joe Dereske)

This is the 12th and last in Jo Dereske's wonderful Miss Zukas series.  If you are familiar with the series, you know that Miss Wilhelmina (Helma) Zukas is a prim and proper 30-something librarian who is fiercely loyal to the principles of Library Science and extremely organized in her life as well.  She might sound a little obnoxious, but her appeal lies partly in her ability to use her valuable "librarian skills" to solve crime.  Her slightly hard edges are also softened considerably by her quirky friends and family and her ongoing romance with Police Chief Wayne Gallant.

When Helma's elderly Aunt Em's apartment is burglarized one of the perps ends up dead after mysteriously falling over the apartment's balcony with Em's TV.  Did Em push him?  What about the carving knife found on the floor?  Was he working alone or did he have an accomplice who might have wanted him dead?  Aunt Em, whose memory is failing, can't give much information except that a beloved box carved by her father is missing, so Helma sets out to investigate.

Avid readers will especially enjoy the local authors subplot and annoying library staff members.  Everyone who loves a good mystery will be sad that this is Miss Zukas' last hurrah, but the series is wrapped up nicely at the end.  Who knows, Miss Zukas may pop up again!  Author Dereske has changed her mind about continuing it before!

THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS (Vanessa Diffenbaugh)

The Language of Flowers is Diffenbaugh's first novel, beautifully written and emotionally compelling. At eighteen years of age, Victoria Jones is emancipated from the foster care system after having spent years in a group home.  Victoria is a strange character, focused, suspicious, intelligent, and antisocial.  She has a strong affinity for everything connected with flowers, especially the Victorian era custom of using flowers as a means of communication.  After creating a temporary home and garden for herself in a park,  Vanessa is hired on a trial basis by a local florist and finds herself strangely drawn to a reticent flower vendor who seems as familiar to her as the language of flowers that represents their initial  communications.  She also develops a following of customers who believe that her flower arrangements have the power to change their lives.

Diffenbaugh weaves the past and present together in Victoria's story, which is as much about motherhood in all of its aspects as it is about flowers.  Victoria knows nothing about her own mother and at the age of 10 had anticipated adoption by Elizabeth, who longed for a family of her own.  Now Victoria, a misanthropist, views the idea of commitment to another human being, parent, child, or lover, as an impossibility for herself. Mother figures and mother-love permeate the novel despite Victoria's isolation.

This wonderful first novel is like a mixture of different varieties of flowers that blend together into a lovely bouquet.  I'd recommend it wholeheartedly.

A RED HERRING WITHOUT MUSTARD (Alan Bradley)

I can't say enough about the delightful Flavia DeLuce!  This eleven-year-old sleuth is intelligent, perceptive, and scientifically gifted, but still a child in so many ways.  It still baffles me that author Bradley is so adept at stepping into the mind and heart of a precocious young girl.  Having been 11 myself once (back in the days of the Vietnam war and the Apollo missions), I am impressed with Bradley's talent.

After Flavia accidentally burns down a gypsy fortune teller's tent at the local fair, she invites the woman, Fenella Faa, to camp at Buckshaw, her family's estate.  The next day Flavia discovers that someone has attempted to murder the elderly gypsy, whose life she saves.  When she returns to the caravan to search for clues she encounters Porcelain, Fenella's grandaughter, and so begins her investigation.  Despite warnings from Inspector Hewitt, whose respect for Flavia's skills and knowledge are growing with each encounter, Flavia sets out to gather clues to the attempted murder.  In the process she discovers another body and uncovers some shady dealings in the local antiques business.  In the background Flavia's sisters Feely and Daffy continue to torment and torture her while her distant father tries to stave off bankrupcy and the possible loss of the family home, which belonged to her late mother.  Despite her incredible intelligence, Flavia has an endearing vulnerability and is still, in many ways, a little girl looking for love and validation. Highly recommended!

THE DARLING DAHLIAS AND THE CUCUMBER TREE (Susan Wittig Albert)

It takes a little time to get into Albert's Darling Dahlias series, mainly because of the large number of characters, but the author includes a list at the beginning of the novel, which helps.  I enjoyed this book for several reasons beyond the entertaining mystery:
(1)  Set in 1930, the ambiance is refreshingly different from that of the many contemporary and Victorian mysteries popular today.
(2)  The characters are nicely developed and seem true to their era in temperment and interests.
(3)  There is a librarian in the book (although she is not particularly appealing)!

The Darling Dahlias are a garden club based in Darling, Alabama at the beginning of the great depression.  They have recently inherited a clubhouse from the estate of founding member Mrs. Dahlia Blackstone and plan to restore the beautiful gardens around the house.  The Cucumber Tree of the title is a type of magnolia and graces the Blackstone garden.  It also figures in a Civil War era mystery connected with the Blackstone family and more recent activities related to the family legacy. 

When beautiful, blonde Bunny Scott, who sells cosmetics at the local drugstore, is found dead in the wreck of a stolen car, the townspeople assume that she was the accomplice of a car thief, possibly a recently escaped convict from the local prison farm.  Club members Verna Tidwell (widow and secretary to the county probate clerk) and Lizzy Lacy (secretary to Mr. Moseley, a lawyer), who regularly lunched with Bunny, don't believe that she could have been involved in a car theft and launch their own investigation into their friend's death with the help of Myra Mosswell (owner of the local diner and telephone operator), eventually bringing to light the true details of Bunny's death.  This is one garden club that digs up more than dirt!  Check out this series as soon as you can.  You will love the ladies of the Darling Dahlias.

AT HOME WITH THE TEMPLETONS (Monica McInerny)

The Templeton family has sociopathic tendencies, but not in the quirky, humorous way you might expect in a popular novel.  There is neither edge-of-the-seat suspense nor unstoppable action in McInerny's latest.  Instead the reader is treated to a complexly woven tapestry of relationships, family secrets, deceit, betrayal, and denial.  If At Home with the Templetons were made into a movie it could go in many different directions depending on the whim of the director or screenwriters.

Templeton Hall is a family estate in Australia that has been turned into a living history museum by English heir Henry Templeton. Henry's four children serve as weekend docents, guiding tourists and treating them to stories about the family's checkered history and possessions.  Wife Eleanor homeschools the Templeton children, Charlotte, Audrey, Gracie, and Spencer and Aunt Hope, Eleanor's sister, spends most of her time belligerently drunk.  Nina Donovan, a widow, and her son Tom visit Templeton House during an open house for the locals and vow never to return after an altercation with Hope, but as time passes Tom and young Spenser become close friends, as do Nina and Gracie.  Eventually Nina moves into an apartment on the estate grounds and, when Henry and family are mysteriously called back to England, she remains as caretaker of the estate until an unexpected tragedy tears the familes apart.

The novel spans almost twenty years and is filled with unexpected twists and turns and shifting of relationships.  The children grow up and establish themselves in various careers, developing along the way personalities and attitudes that both grate and fascinate.  Everyone, in fact, evolves.  Most readers will enjoy the revelations and surprises as the story progresses through the years.  I know I did!

THE GIRL NEXT DOOR (Elizabeth Noble)

I seem to be very dissatisfield lately with cover art and now titles, too!  Noble's The Girl Next Door is not about one girl and even after finishing it I am confused a bit about who Eve (presumably the title character) and her husband Ed's next door neighbor's actually are.  However, it was a very enjoyable novel with enough depth to hold your interest. 

Eve and Ed move from their idyllic English cottage to an apartment in New York City after Ed accepts a lucrative promotion at his bank.  Ed is thrilled with the fast pace of the city, but Eve misses her garden, her family, and England.  Noble introduces the reader to all of the apartment building's inhabitants by way of a character list at the beginning of the novel, and multiple chapters scattered throughout the book focus on each of the tenants and their interactions with one another.  The tenants include Violet Wallace, an elderly transplanted English woman; Charlotte, a shy, awkward single woman who lives more in fantasy than reality;  an aimless young man living on his trust fund; a male gay couple; a beautiful triathlete; a "perfect" couple with 3 children; a troubled couple with seemingly insurmountable problems in their marriage; and a predatory, sex-obsessed twenty-something woman, among others. 

Overall, I enjoyed the development of the relationships among the characters and the evolution of the tenants themselves.  Each of them changes, some positively, some negatively, as a result of their interactions with the others.  Running throughout the novel are the stories of Eve's pregnancy and Violet's life in America and the friendship that develops between the two women.  Highly recommended!

A NICE CLASS OF CORPSE (Simon Brett)

Where has Mrs. Pargeter been all my life?  I find it hard to believe that I have never before read this excellent series.  There are so many elements that make it appealing, not the least of which are the business dealings of the late, devoted Mr. Pargeter.  Was he a detective,  a jeweler, a burglar, a social worker, or an international spy?  Mr.  Pargeter left his widow well-equipped with enough money, weaponry, tools, jewelry, and business contacts to last for the rest of her life and she makes good use of these when she decides that amateur detective work might be a occupation to keep her mind sharp.  Soon after she moves into the Deveraux Hotel, a residential establishment in Littlehampton for the genteel elderly, Mrs. Pargeter is confronted with the "accidental" death of the quiet, gentle Mrs. Selsby.  Which of the hotel residents, who range from fading movie star to aristocrats fallen on hard times, or staff might have had a hand in Mrs. Selsby's fall down the stairs?  How many more accidents will occur before Miss Naismith, the proprietor, and the police begin to suspect foul play?

What I enjoyed most about Mrs. Pargeter was her level-headed elimination of suspects.  She is intelligent, worldly, and sassy yet demure at the same time.  She is also keenly observant and analytical and frequently calls to mind advice from the late, beloved Mr. Pargeter.  I didn't figure out who did it until the very end.  I can't wait to read the next book in his series!

SUMMER HOUSE (Nancy Thayer)

First of all, I wonder who created the cover art for this novel?  Here it is:
   If you haven't read a description of the novel, your assumption would be that this is pure chick lit, possibly about 2 young women who are friends or sisters spending a the summer at the beach, probably with at least one handsome romantic interest.  Needless to say, I don't like the cover.  I think it misrepresents the book.

In reality, Summer House is about family relationships.  Four generations of the wealthy Wheelwright family gather each summer at the family house on Nantucket, home to ninety-year-old Anne "Nona" Wheelwright.  Her son, Worth, works at the family-founded bank in Boston, as does her son-in-law Kellogg and grandsons-in-law Claus and Douglas.  The story is told from the points of view of three women: Nona, her sixty-year-old daughter-in law, Helen (could they be the leggy girls in the hammock?), and Helen and Worth's 30-year-old daughter, Charlotte.  Worth is disappointed that none of his 3 children have chosen a career in the family banking business.  Son Oliver is a successful architect living in San Fransisco in a committed relationship with his partner, Owen.  Charlotte, the oldest, tried working in the bank to please her father and is now an organic gardener, growing and selling produce on her grandmother's land, to the consternation of her cousins.  Youngest child, Teddy, is 22 and has a history of drug and alcohol problems and now has a wife and a child on the way.  Helen loves her family and is stunned to discover that handsome, successful husband Worth has been unfaithful. 

As the summer progresses and family relationships change and evolve, Helen ponders how to resolve her marriage problems, Charlotte focuses on the future, and Nona, in the twilight of her life, decides that the time has come to face past secrets. Thayer allows her readers to revisit significant events in Helen and Nona's past through dreams and reminiscences, which adds depth and insight to the story.  Is there any romance?  Some, but it is secondary to the overall story.  Is this chick lit? Definitely not, despite the cover.  If you are looking for an intersesting story about the twists and turns of family relationships, friendship, marriage, and parenthood, look no further.  Summer House is highly recommended!

A VILLAGE AFFAIR (Joanna Trollope)

When Alice Meadows meets Martin Jordan's family she falls hopelessly in love.  She and Martin marry and live a pleasant life with their 3 children until they purchase Grey House, a beautiful old village home in rural England.  Suffering from postpartum depression after the birth of her youngest child, Charlie, Alice believes that the move will be good for their marriage and family, that becoming immersed in the activities and eccentricities of village life will give her a new purpose and, perhaps, restore happiness to her increasing stressful relationships.  When exotic, unpredictable Clodagh Unwin returns to Pitcombe after a broken love affair in New York and befriends the Jordan family, life suddenly takes on a new luster and excitement.  Alice, the children, and Martin soon accept Clodagh as part of their family, causing speculation and questions among the villagers.  When details of Clodagh's relationship with Alice are revealed, Alice and Martin's lives are changed forever, their definitions of happiness are transformed, and their future is redefined.  As usual, Trollope delves into the heart and psyche of English life.  Published in 1989, this novel remains fresh and readable today.

SECRET OF JOY (Melissa Senate)

Rebecca Strand is shocked by her father's deathbed confession that he has another daughter.  When Rebecca was 2 years old, a brief affair in Maine resulted in the birth of child whom Daniel Strand has never met. After the death of Rebecca's mother, she and her father formed a close and unbreakable bond, and the realization that Daniel kept a secret so significant sends Rebecca reeling.  Did he love the woman?  Did her mother know?  Why did he fail to acknowledge and support his second daughter?  Rebecca, unfulfilled by her relationship with Michael (she actually loves his mother more than she loves him), decides to travel to Maine to seek out Joy, her sister and only remaining family.  She is desperate to make sense of her emotions and her new relationships, and in the process she finds answers to other dilemmas in her life as well.  This could have been a trite story about a confused young city woman finding happiness and love in small-town Maine, but Senate treats Rebecca's emotional quandaries with sensitivity, humor, and realism.  Senate's latest is enjoyable and a satisfying way to spend a weekend.

JOY FOR BEGINNERS (Erica Bauermeister)

Erica Bauermeister has again succeeded in producing a memorable novel, this one centering on a breast cancer survivor's challenges to her wonderful network of supportive friends to take the plunge and follow their individual dreams.  After a successful 18-month battle with cancer, Kate is encouraged by her daughter to take a white water rafting trip in the Grand Canyon.  After beating death, Kate isn't sure that risking death in the rapids is something that she really wants to do, so she can't quite make up her mind whether to face her terror and take the trip with her daughter or not.  Does she really need to prove something to herself at this point in her life?  With the encouragement of her seven good friends, most of whom helped her through the terrible months of chemo, Kate decides to accept her daughter's challenge, but with one condition.  Each of her friends must also complete a personal challenge decided by Kate.

By now you may be dismissing this as just another "women friends help each other straighten out their lives" novel (not that there are anything wrong with those!), but Bauermeister has created something unique here.  The challenges seem simple: for restless Daria, learn to bake bread; for Sara, wife and mother of three, take a trip by herself; for Marion, get a tattoo; for widow Hadley, build a garden; for Caroline, get rid of her husband's books; and for Ava, the only friend who was not there to help Kate during her illness, complete a 60 mile walk for breast cancer.  Like School of Essential Ingredients, Joy for Beginners is built as a series of related stories with individual chapters devoted to each woman's process of completing her challenge, stepping out of her comfort zone.  At the end I just wanted more and I think you will, too.

THE NANTUCKET DIET MURDERS (Virginia Rich)

Eugenia Potter lacks the abrasiveness of Agatha Raisin and the sass of Stephanie Plum, but she could probably give Miss Marple a run for her money!  You may know that this is the third in the Eugenia Potter series, published in 1985, and that after Virgina Rich's death Nancy Pickard continued the series with The 27 Ingredient Chile Con Carne Murders.  Widowed Arizona rancher Eugenia Potter arrives in Nantucket for a reunion with her old gang and is surprised to see that nearly all of them are newly svelte and decidedly more glamorous than the last time she saw them, thanks to a diet guru who has set up shop on the island.  When two "accidental" deaths occur, Eugenia becomes suspicious of the charismatic diet doctor, Tony, who is raising funds for a diet clinic and whom friend Gussie seems to be considering as a potential fourth husband.  Those who enjoy technology and lots of fast paced action might want to pass on this one, but if you enjoy a good old-fashioned mystery you should consider giving it a try.  The unraveling of clues near the end leads to a surprising, but very logical and well-thought out, ending.  It all made perfect sense and the Nantucket references will be especially relished by anyone who has spent time on the island.

HEAT WAVE (Nancy Thayer)

Verdict: Very enjoyable book, covers a whole range of emotional ups and downs very well, a little too much "romance," a few loose ends.  Nancy Thayer presents life on Nantucket beautifully.  I feel like I understand the seasonal ups and downs, the cultural climate, and the everyday challenges of living on an island.  The characters are well-drawn and, for the most part, likeable.  Even Maud, who steals her best friend's husband, elicits some sympathy, as would a real-life friend caught up in trying to fight an attraction to an inappropriate man.

Carley Winsted is widowed suddenly at the age of 32 when her husband, Gus, suffers a fatal heart attack.  Overcome by grief, she must support her two daughters, 12-year-old Cisco and 5-year-old Margaret, financially and emotionally.  Her equally grief-stricken in-laws, both members of Old Nantucket familes, offer to take in Carley and the girls, but she chooses instead to turn her home (mother-in-law Annabel's family home) into a Bed & Breakfast called the Seashell Inn.  Due to some very bad investments in recent years, Gus has left his family almost penniless.  Carley's 2 best friends, Maud (long divorced and with 2 sons) and Vanessa (married to pediatrician Todd but unable to conceive a child) offer psychological and emotional support until an unthinkable betrayal tears apart the 3 friends.  Carley also cautiously enjoys the attentions of Wyatt, a partner and friend of Gus and his father, worrying about how the girls, her in-laws, and the community might respond to a new man in her life (and her bed!).  Overall, I enjoyed this more than Beachcombers, finding the characters more appealing and more realistic.  Things might be a little bit too predictable here, but you will enjoy the ride so much that you won't care!

A DARK AND STORMY NIGHT (Jeanne Dams)

I just can't get enough of Jeanne Dams' Dorothy Martin.  This series put the "cozy" in "cozy mystery" and Dorothy is a charming and realistic sleuth.  Her relationship with second husband Allen (she was widowed when she moved to England) is comfortable and passionate but tempered by the aches and pains of late middle age.  She has the intelligence of Miss Marple and, like the author, just a little quirkiness related to hats.  In this novel Dorothy and Allen are invited to a beautiful country estate for a Guy Fawkes celebration, where the worst storm in years knocks down centuries-old trees, decimates the garden, and cuts off power and communication.  Of course, a body is discovered after the storm.  To any mystery lovers delight, the skeletal remains are found entwined in the roots of an uprooted tree, so the death is not recent. Who is the body and who buried it under the tree?  Who else will turn up dead?  Of course we know that Dorothy and Allen will figure it all out!  This is a traditional country estate mystery and you won't be able to put it down.  It was a joy from the first page to the last!

SUMMER RENTAL (Mary Kay Andrews)

Three lifelong friends, Ellis, Dorie, and Julia, rent a house on the outer banks of North Carolina for the month of August from the mysterious Mr. Culpepper, and a landlord who communicates solely through email.  In truth, "Mr. Culpepper" is Ty Bazemore, who is desperately trying to hang on to his family home (foreclosure is scheduled for September) and deal with the breakup of his marriage.  He also lives over the garage on the property.  Ellis, Dorie, and Julia have problems of their own (in addition to the dilapitated state of their rental home).  Ellis has been fired from her job, Dorie has been betrayed by her husband, and Julia is a successful model dealing with aging and avoiding commitment to her longtime love.  Add to the mix Maryn, a mysterious stranger on the run from her abusive, well-connected husband, who rents a room from the trio.  All five people are at a crossroads, looking at changes, good and bad, in their lives.  Sometimes a month by the sea is the best prescription!

THE WEDDING SHAWL (Sally Goldenbaum)

I think what appeals to me most about Goldenbaum's Seaside Knitters series is the strong element of friendship among the women - and men - in the novels.  I have to admit that I am getting a little confused about which knitting shop is in which town.  Maybe I need to take a little break from knitting mysteries and regain my sanity!

That being said, the wedding shawl of the title is a circle of love and friendship created by the Seaside Knitters for Izzy Chambers to wear during her wedding to Sam Perry.  Naturally, during the course of the wedding planning (which, along with the creation of the shawl, runs throughout the novel) a murder draws Nell, Cass, adorable Birdie, and Izzy into investigating.  Tiffany, an energetic young beautician, has promised to coordinate the hair and make-up needs of the wedding party, but a few weeks before the big day she is found  dead in her office, supposedly the victim of a robbery.  Tiffany's best friend, Harmony, had died 15 years earlier on the day of their high school graduation, drowned in a local quarry.  Coincidentally, both women had been involved with Fractured Phish musician Anndy Risso, who is now the prime suspect in both deaths.

Goldenbaum writes a decent mystery.  Her clues unfold logically and at the end you find yourself thinking, "Oh, yes.  Of course!"  But the draw here is the loving relationships among the recurring characters.  They are a little bit too perfect (except for the murderer, of course) and the food is a little too delicious and abundant.  No one seems to lack money or time to socialize and there is not an overweight person in sight.  But I say, "Who cares?"  I would love to be a part of this beautiful town and this welcoming, caring group of people.  They are pretty good at ferretting out murderers, too!

DRY GRASS OF AUGUST (Anna Jean Mayhew)

We all remember the simpler times of our childhood, when we trusted that summer days would be long and filled with fun and that those who loved us would be there forever.  In the summer of 1954, Jubie Watts sets out on a road trip with her mother, sisters, little brother, and Mary Luthor, the family's black maid.  Mr. Watts is conspicuously absent.  As the group drives further south on their trip from North Carolina to Florida, Jubie notes an increasing number of anti-integration messages along the way, and Mary is expected to use separate bathrooms (or outhouses) and to sleep in inferior quarters separate from the family.  Mary is acquiescent, subservient, and cooperative in society's desire that she remain as invisible as possible in the deep South.

Jubie is a curious, thoughtful 13-year-old, the hapless victim of her father's alcohol-fueled rages and her mother's self-involvement.  This trip is, in fact, a prelude to possible divorce as Paula, Jubie's mother, flees to her brother's home to consider her marriage and her future.  Paula's treatment of Mary along the journey is problematical.  On one hand, Paula adheres to the local racial segregation rules only loosely, but largely for her own convenience rather than out of indignation.  On the other, she fails to recognize the danger to which  she is exposing Mary to in this alien world of the Klan and intense racial divisions.  When tragedy strikes, Jubie is forced to look at her parents and her world in a different light, knowing that her summers will never again be the carefree summers of childhood.

Mayhew's first novel (at age 71!) is much less complex than "The Help" but examines of the same racial dilemma, the dehumanization of blacks in the south.  It's scary that these things were going on during my lifetime, and in many places still are.  I would heartily recommend Mayhew's wonderful coming-of-age novel.

THE NINE TAILORS (Dorothy L. Sayers)

I have to say that I, like most of the Christie Capers Book Club, could have done without the first 100 pages or so of this acclaimed Lord Peter Wimsey novel.  The level of detail concerning bell-ringing was just too much, but understandable considering Sayers' background as the daughter of the chaplain of Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford and headmaster of the Choir School there. 

That being said, Sayers novel of murder begins as Lord Peter and his man, Bunter, run off the road during a New Year's Eve storm in Fenchurch St. Paul.  Since one of the local church's bell-ringers is incapacitated with influenza, the absentminded Rev. Venables recruits Lord Peter, who, incredibly, has experience as a bell-ringer, to participate in the spectacular nine-hour nonstop bell ringing.  The title, Nine Tailors, efers to the ringing of nine peals when a man dies.  Stranded in Fenchurch St. Paul while his car is being repaired, Lord Peter learns of the death of Lady Thorpe, whose family has been haunted for the past 20 years by the theft of a valuable necklace.  When her husband, Sir Henry dies at Easter, Lady Thorpe's grave is opened for his burial and an additional, unidentified body is discovered buried in the grave.  Lord Peter is on hand to investigate, naturally.  During the course of the novel a year passes, other deaths occur, the mystery of the missing necklace is solved, and Wimsey acquires a ward.  Eventually the final mystery is solved and Lord Peter rides off into the sunset with his faithful man, Mervyn Bunter.  This is a quintessential English mystery from one of the great authors in this genre.  It's well worth it if you can get past the beginning!

THE LOVE GODDESS' COOKING SCHOOL (Melissa Senate)

Anyone who has lost a beloved grandparent or other friend will relate to Holly Maguire's determination to carry on the traditions established by her grandmother, Camilla, the "love goddess" of Blue Crab Island, Maine.  Camilla passes away just 2 weeks after Holly returns to Blue Crab Cove after the sad end of a romantic relationship, and Holly inherits Camilla's house and business, Camilla's Cucinatta.  Despite her grief over her grandmother's death, Holly decides to learn to cook Camilla's famous recipes and keep the business and cooking classes going (minus the "love goddess" psychic predictions).  A childhood nemesis provides some competition, but Holly perseveres, testing recipes and bringing in new business while carrying on with her grandmother's cooking classes, forming unexpected and enduring new relationships in the process.  As one would expect, Holly does finally find a recipe for her own happiness during the course of her adventures with cooking.  This delightful novel would be a perfect way to relax on vacation or a day at the beach.

BEACHCOMBERS (Nancy Thayer)

Three sisters seems to be the theme of my reading lately!  Thayer's "Beachcombers" is set on Nantucket, as expected, where widower Jim Fox has rented his daughters' former playhouse to the recently divorced Marina Warren. The youngest daughter, Lily, lives at home and works for a local publication as a society reporter.  She yearns for a more jet-setting life and enjoys the round of parties and social events that her job requires her to attend.  When middle sister Emma shows up devastated over the loss of her job, her savings, and a bitter break-up with her fiance, Lily is concerned and contacts oldest sister, Abbie, who has been working as an au pair in the UK.  Abbie helped her father to raise her younger sisters after the suicide of their mother when Abbie was 15 years old.

Abbie and Emma, desperately in need of income and concerned about their father's finances, start a company called Nantucket Mermaids, eventually including Lily as well.  During the course of the novel their various assignments, including baby-sitting, reading to the elderly, and gardening, provide an interesting glimpse into Nantucket summer life.  The sisters themselves lack maturity and direction and at times the sibling rivalry becomes almost annoying, but Thayer has a talent for developing a sense of place so strong that the reader can overlook the sisters' whining and their attitude toward their father and his social life.  The ending is just a bit too neat for my taste, but overall this is a great book to take to the beach or read on the porch on a summer evening.

SILVER SCREAM (Mary Daheim)

Seattle bed & breakfast owner Judith Flynn has agreed to accomodate famous Hollywood producer Bruno Zepf and the cast and crew of his latest movie, which will premiere in Seattle on Halloween.  Zepf believes that it is good luck to stay in a B&B the night before a premiere, but several of the Hollywood elite who accompany him disagree.  Unfortunately, Zepf ends up face down in Judith's half-full kitchen sink, the victim of very bad luck indeed.  Judith enlists her cousin Renie to help investigate Bruno's death, hoping to avert a lawsuit or negative repercussions for her business. 

This is the 18th in Daheim's Bed & Breakfast series, but it is the first that I have read.  Judith's mother, Gertrude, who lives in a converted garage and suffers from slight dementia, adds a particularly humorous element to this series, which sort of goes beyond "coziness."  I enjoyed the relationship between Judith and Renie and the eccentricities of the various friends and family members that surround them.  I wonder how many of the murders in this series have actually happened at Judith's Hillside Manor?  Now THAT might have an adverse effect on reservations!  Check out this series if you are looking for something a little bit different.

THE UNCOUPLING (Meg Wolitzer)

In Aristophanes' play, Lysistrata, the women of Greece refuse to engage in relations with their husbands and boyfriends until they agree to end the Peloponnesian War.  As New Jersey drama teacher Fran Heller announces her decision to present Lysistrata as the annual play at Eleanor Roosevelt High School, a spell slowly weaves its way through the homes of students and teachers alike until all of the women of Stellar Plains lose interest in sex.  Even popular English teachers Rob and Dory Lang, who have enjoyed what they consider to be a robust sex life throughout their marriage, suddenly find themselves at odds over intimacy.  Boyfriends are frustrated by their girlfriends sudden lack of interest and even beautiful school psychologist Leanne Bannerjee, who prefers to play the field, finds herself breaking off with all of her boyfriends.

I am a fan of Wolitzer and I enjoyed The Ten Year Nap immensely, but I found The Uncoupling to be a little bit unsatisfying.  I would have liked to see Wolitzer's characters explore the non-sexual aspects of their relationships more instead of settling in to what seemed like resigned, sterile versions of their previous lives.  The characters were interesting, especially Fran Heller, the drama teacher, whose husband, through some mutually satisfactory agreement, lives in the midwest while Fran travels from one teacxhing job to another, always presenting Lysistrata with her students.  I'm not a lover of "spells" and when I finished the novel I didn't feel that I had a good understanding of the "why" of the story.  I would not NOT recommend it, but I noticed that there are some completely opposing reviews out there, so I am not the only one who is confused or conflicted over this book.

THE WEIRD SISTERS (Eleanor Brown)

The Weird Sisters are Rosalind, Bianca, and Cordelia Andreas, ages 33, 30, and 27 respectively. All of them have returned home, purportedly to help their parents cope with their mother's breast cancer treatments.  In reality, Rose suffers from inertia, finding herself so attached to hearth, home, and family that she is unable to leave Barnwell, the college town where she grew up, to follow her much-loved fiance to England when he is offered a temporary position at Oxford.  Bianca (aka Bean), unbeknownst to her family, returns home in disgrace, having been fired from her job after the payroll "adjustments" she made in order to afford her increasingly demanding lifestyle are discovered.  Cordy, after years of wandering the country and in and out of the beds of almost any man  she fancies, finds herself pregnant and uninterested in finding the baby's father, an itinerant artist with whom she shared a meaningless fling.  The three sisters, daughters of a Shakespeare-quoting college professor (too funny, even if you are not a fan of the bard), are named for Shakespearean characters and grew up reading constantly, deprived of television and other normal childhood.  Even now, books are scattered throughout the house and the family seems to just pick them up at random and continue reading wherever the last reader left off.

Brown focuses on the Andreas' skewed family dynamics in this, her debut novel, and it's all about the sisters.  Rose is a martyr, the family organizer, the practical one.  Bean is the needy attention-grabber, the pretty, ambitious one whose need to maintain her standard of living engulfs everything else in her live.  Cordy is the free spirit, the baby of the family who never quite needed to grow up until now.  Individually, they are interesting, but together they are hilarious with a touch of desperation.  Anyone with sisters will appreciate this novel, and anyone who has ever had to return to their childhood home for comfort and a safe haven will sympathize with the Weird Sisters.  The title, by the way, harkens back to the three witches in Macbeth.

DEATH BY CASHMERE (Sally Goldenbaum)

Sally Goldenbaum's Seaside Knitters mysteries will charm any and all cozy fans, especially those who also love yarn and knitting.  This is the first in the series that features Izzy Chambers, former lawyer and owner of the Seaside Knitting Studio, and her impossibly perfect Aunt Nell and Uncle Ben, who somehow manage to stay fit, cook divinely, entertain weekly, and enjoy a wonderful love life, all despite being in their 60's. 

In this "episode," Angelina Archer is found floating in Sea Harbor, the victim of an apparent homicide.  Angie had a wild reputation as a teen and has recently returned to town in the guise of respectable researcher, renting the apartment above Izzy's shop.  Who would want her dead?  Could there be any connection between her murder and her relationship with lobsterman Pete, or with recent thefts from Cass's lobster traps, or could it have something to do with her past or her research?  The Seaside Knitters are anxious to discover the answers.

Goldenbaum does a wonderful job of allowing the reader to unravel the clues as her knitters discuss patterns,  yarns, and knitting projects, a perfect combination, as far as I am concerned.  Don't be fooled into thinking that "cozies" are not "real" mysteries.  They may lack the blood and gore of some of the grittier mysteries, but they make up for it in sense of place and characters that make you want to know them better.

THE IMPERFECTIONISTS (Tom Rachman)

A "perfectionist" is one who demands perfection in all aspects of life and in all people that they encounter.  Nothing less will do.  An "imperfectionist," then, must be one who not only tolerates, but embraces, lack of perfection, in this case with dark humor and all too human shortcomings.  Rachman's novel is a compendium of the stories of employees of a Rome-based English-language international newspaper who almost seem to delight in being flawed.  The newspaper is the common thread running through the novel, which spans decades and generations.  The players range from the newpaper's founder, Cyrus Ott, who furnishes a mansion with art to please his lover, to aspiring Cairo correspondent Winston Cheung, who fails miserably in his quest to find a story worth reporting.  Each chapter features an outrageous headline (how DO they connect to the characters?) and treats the reader to insights into one character's dreams, tragedies, and disillusions.  Rachman has succeeded in creating a literary work worth reading, laced with humor and a gritty, realistic ambience.

SWEPT OFF HER FEET (Hester Browne)

You know, there is a time in one's life for every sort of reading.  As a child I read my way through the children's room of the Westfield Atheneum, always several grade levels ahead of where I was supposed to be.  I read all of Noel Streatfield's shoe books, Johanna Sperie, and all of Louisa Mae Alcott's works.  One of my all time favorites was a book called "Loretta Mason Potts" by Mary Chase, the story of a little girl who went off to play at the Potts egg farm one day and then refused to leave, necessitating her adoption by the Potts family.  I read that one 5 times!  When I was a  teenager I enjoyed horror and vampire stories, then as a young adult I gobbled up the classics, philosophy, and all of the angst-ridden memoirs born of the women's movement.  Through it all I managed to fit in all sorts of mysteries, Victoria Holt, Mary Stewart, Phyllis Whitney, selected nonfiction, and thrillers - medical, political, and legal.  As an older adult I find that women's fiction, cozy mysteries, and good, more mature chick-lit are the most appealing genres to me at this stage in my life.  I refuse to apologize for not currently reading more "meaningful" or educational books.  I already have two master's degrees, two children in or starting graduate school, a 26 year old marriage, and a full time career.  I watch the news every day, read political editorials, and worry about struggling family and friends.  I read for enjoyment and relaxation!

That being said (aren't you glad you asked?), I heartily recommend Hester Browne.  I have written about her novels before and they have never failed to put a smile on my face.  In this, her latest, Evie Nicholson is a single antiques finder and appraiser who is invited, at her sister Alice's suggestion, to Kettlesheer Castle in Scotland to evaluate the family possessions.  The family in question, the McAndrews, including son Robert, are the unexpected heirs to the castle and its land and are having a hard time maintaining the estate in the style to which the community has become accustomed, including hosting an annual ball.  Evie's sister, Alice, is in love with Frasier Graham, whose family estate is a neighbor to Kettlesheer, and she is scheduled to attend the ball..  When Alice mysteriously backs out of the committment, Evie, who has a secret crush on Frasier, is asked to take Alice's place dancing in 8 reels, a difficult proposition for a 30-year-old with 2 left feet.  In the meantime, Evie thinks she is making headway in her quest to find some antiques worth selling at Kettlesheer, or is she?  Is there some romance? Of course.  Are there tradtional Scottish customs and quirks?  Yes!  Do I wish that I could learn to dance reels and spend some time in an old Scottish castle brimming with history and antiques?  I certainly do.  Would I recommend this book?  Absolutely.  I also laughed out loud at times and thoroughly enjoyed being immersed in the modern problems of maintaining a crumbling castle in Scotland.  Enjoy it with a nice cup of tea and some authentic shortbread.  You deserve a break!

DANCING LESSONS (Cheryl Burke)

Cheryl Burke, as any "Dancing With the Stars" fan knows, is  professional ballroom dancer and two-time winner of the coveted mirror ball trophy on that show.  I picked up this biography because I am a die-hard "Dancing" fan and there has been some controversy in the press over Ms. Burke in the past few years:  Does she have a drinking problem?  Was she abused as a child?  How does she feel about the nasty comments that crop up from time to time about her "weight problem?"  Is this biography heavy reading?  Of course not.  Cheryl Burke is an intelligent, hard-working young woman who knows when the time is right to capitalize on her fame.  She is an astute business woman who has opened several dance studios on the west coast and a sensitive, loving sister, daughter, and friend who values family  and relationships.

If you are looking for dirt and scandal, skip this book.  Burke is refreshingly candid about her own vulnerabilities and mistakes, but when it comes to lovers, friends, and dancing partners, she is respectful, positive, and delightfully appreciative of the relationships she has formed and the distinctive personalities and talents of everyone in her life.  This is a pleasant alternative to the typical "tell-all" biographies that are published today.  Despite living in a world hungry for drama and scandal, Ms. Burke has taken the high road.  She does talk about being sexually abused as a child and how this fact colored her subsequent relationships with men, but she relates the facts in a subtle, honest manner without sensationalism or embellishment,  She is a class act and an excellent role model for young women.  An extra added appeal is that she relates each chapter of the book and her life to specific ballroom and Latin dances, describing for the reader the background and basic details of each dance in a very simple and understanable way.  Every fan of "Dancing with the Stars" should consider reading this.  If you are looking for positive roles models who have overcome adversity with grace and intelligence, give a copy to your daughter or niece, especially if they are interested in dance.

DEATH OF A CHIMNEY SWEEP (M.C. Beaton)

I believe that this is the 26th Hamish Macbeth mystery.  I have to say that I didn't enjoy Hamish's adventures this time around as much as I usually do.  First of all, the title bothers me.  There was, indeed, a dead chimney sweep, but his murder was secondary to that of retired Captain Henry Davenport, who bullies his timid wife Milly and is found stuffed up his own chimney with his skull bashed in.  All of the ensuing drama revolves around Davenport's murder and its aftermath.  Why not call it "Death of a Captain" or "Death of a Bully" instead?  Also, I found Hamish less likable than usual in this novel.  For one thing, his illegal activies extended beyond his usual fish poaching, and his integrity is one of the things that I find most attractive about him.  The story also took place over such a long time span (18 months or so?) that you wondered what you were missing in between plot highlights.  Another thing is that there were so many characters outside of the usual villagers that I found it hard to keep track of who and where they were.  I must also admit that I am getting tired of Hamish's obsession with Priscilla.  In the BBC TV series Hamish ends up married to Isabel, the onscreen version of Elspeth, the reporter who almost captured Hamish's heart in previous novels. I thi nk I would like to see Hamish settle down a bit.  If you are a Macbeth fan, by all means read Beaton's latest.  Angela Brody has some interesting developments going on in her life that, naturally, cause trouble for good friend Hamish.  Even though it wasn't my favorite ("Death of a Gentle Lady" will forever hold THAT spot!), I'm glad I read it.

I THINK I LOVE YOU (Alison Pearson)

The first thing that I can think of to say about Allison Pearson's novel, her first in 10 years, is that it was well worth the wait.  I started reading "I Think I Love You" during a trip to Philadelphia and couldn't wait to get home and find the time to finish it.  What a wonderful trip down memory lane for anyone, but especially for those of us who were females growing up in the 60's and 70's!  Song lyrics from Cassidy, Simon and Garfunkel, and other popular groups of the era are strewn subtly throughout the text of the novel, and I could swear that I detected some Wordsworth as well, but maybe that was my imagination.  Pearson has captured EXACTLY the experience of  being a 13-year-old girl during those simpler times, when love meant a wall covered with posters and heartfelt daydreams of meeting the object of our affection, who would instantaneously recognize the depth of our love and would fall in love in return!

Pearson's book focuses on two eras: the early 70's, when the "Partridge Family" was the show to watch and David Cassidy's androgenous appeal was at it's height, and 1998.  Petra Williams, now aged 37 (in 1998), lives in South Wales and is the recently divorced mother of 13-year-old Molly.  After the death of her distant, perfectionist German mother, Greta, Petra discovers an envelope addressed to her in her mother's closet.  The envelope contains an announcement that Petra and her friend Sharon have won the grand prize in a 1974 pop magazine contest, a trip to California to visit the set of the "Partridge Family" and meet their idol, David Cassidy.  Soon after, Petra, a little worse for drink, calls the publisher of the magazine that sponsored the contest and demands her prize.  Pearson switches back and forth from 1974 to 1998, from young Petra to adult Petra, interweaving the story of Bill, the young writer who, in 1974, creates the fantasy of David Cassidy for The Essential David Cassidy" magazine, the bible of the singer / actor's young Welsh fans.  Bill is now the "boss" at Nightengale Publications,", the sponsor of the long-ago contest.

You have to read this novel.  I can't describe the feeling that Pearson conjours up as she weaves fact and fantasy to tell the story of a young girl's love for a teen idol and the hopes, dreams, and disillusionment that define growing up.

MURDER IS BINDING (Lorna Barrett)

New Hampshire, quaint themed book stores, quirky neighbors, a victim who just happens to have an identical twin, and a cat named Miss Marple...what more could a mystery reader ask?  Trish Miles, owner of  a mystery book shop, "Haven't Got a Clue," is horrified to discover a smoldering fire and fellow bookseller Doris Gleason with a knife in her back on the floor of "The Cookery," the shop next door.  Trish is immediately pegged by the local police as the prime suspect in the crime, so she and her contentious visiting sister, Angelica, set out to clear Tricia's name.  Attempting to track down the origins of a rare cookbook stolen from Doris' store, the sudden appearance of Deirdre, Doris' identical twin, and dealing with the collapse of Angela's 5th marriage make Trish wonder why she ever thought that moving to Stoneham, NH after her divorce was a good idea.  This is the first in Lorna Barrett's new Booktown Mystery series.  It's a first rate cozy and will appeal to almost anyone who loves the genre.

WAKING UP IN DIXIE (Haywood Smith)

Elizabeth Whittington's marriage to Howe, scion of their small Georgia town's most prominent family, staled long ago.  Concerned about appearances and about maintaining an intact family for their children, Elizabeth ignores her husband's philandering and emotional distance.  After meeting an old high school friend who makes it clear that he would like to be "more than friends," Elizabeths considers her future and tries to decide if maintaining appearances is worth the sacrifices she has made.  Then Howe suffers a massive stroke, remaining comatose for months.  When he awakes he is a changed man, suddenly concerned with righting past wrongs and repairing his broken marriage.  Can Elizabeth find it in her heart to trust Howe again, to believe that he has really changed?  Over the years Elizabeth has taken second place to Howe's mistresses and his domineering mother, Augusta, even to the point of being unable to  redecorate their home, which displays Augusta's taste in every room.  Spoiled daughter Patricia treats Elizabeth like a second class citizen while adoring her doting father.  Son Garrett is more sensible and sympathetic to Elizabeth's situation.

When Howe offers Elizabeth the chance to move to a place of her own to think through their marriage and her future, she jumps at the opportunity. Thenshe discovers the story behind her  new cottage is once again beset with doubts about Howe and his sincerity about mending fences and re-establishing old  relationships with new ground rules.

Haywood Smith's novels are always entertaining and laced with humor.  Waking Up in Dixie is a novel that deals with serious issues.  The comedic elements are there, but they blend seamlessly into the more serious theme of whether or not people and marriages CAN change and, if they do, whether it is better to salvage the relationship or to shed the baggage and move on.  My only regret in reading this book is that it ended too soon.

A STITCH BEFORE DYING (Anne Canadeo)

Author Jayne Ann Krentz says about Ann Canadeo's latest Black Sheep knitting mystery, "Friendship, knitting, murder...create the perfect  pattern.  Great fun."  I couldn't agree more!  The Black Sheep Knitting mysteries feature a group of close friends, all knitters, rather than a single amateur detective, and it is their relationship that makes the series so enjoyable. 

Maggie Messina, the owner of the Black Sheep Knitting Shop, is asked by her old friend Nadine Gould to run several knitting workshops at a spa resort in the Berkshires.  She has negotiated a cottage on the spa grounds so that the entire group, Phoebe, Suzanne, Dana, and Lucy, can join her for a luxurious, relaxing weekend of knitting and rejuvenation.  The spa is run by charismatic physician-turned- new age guru and best selling author, Dr. Max Fleming.  Lucy and Dana decide to participate in a moonlight meditation retreat, an overnight camp-out atop nearby Mount Wheaton, but when morning comes they awaken in the middle of a police investigation after the body of Curtis Hill, supposedly a travel guide writer, is discovered dead in one of the cabins.  When it is discovered that Hill's death was caused by a malfunctioning heater that had been deliberately adjusted to fill the cabin with carbon monoxide, the conclusion is MURDER. But who was the intended victim?  Suspicion centers on Dr. Fleming's former partner's son, Brian, a caretaker at the spa, and when a second murder is committed the investigation ramps up.

Canadeo has done a wonderful job creating appealing, humorous characters with very definite real-life qualities.  Knitters and non-knitters alike will love this series!

NOW YOU SEE HER (Joy Fielding)

In yet another edge-of-your-seat suspense novel, Fielding keeps the reader guessing until the very last pages.  Marcy Taggart is the grieving mother of Devon, who disappeared in Georgian Bay two years before, and the daughter of a manic-depressive who took her own life when Marcy was fifteen.  When her marriage to uptight orthodontist Peter (who appears as a character only in Marcy's mind and on the telephone) falls apart, Marcy decides to travel to Ireland, their second honeymoon destination, on her own.  While enjoying a cup of tea in a busy pub in Cork with Vic Sorvino, a fellow traveler, Marcy glimpses a girl who looks like Devon on the street outside, and thus begins a series of heart-wrenching gut twisting adventures as Maggie follows lead after lead trying to find Devon, whom she now believes is alive.

There are a lot of questions in this novel:  Is Maggie even sane, or is she losing her grip as her husband and sister believe?  Who in her life can actually be trusted?  Can she trust her own eyes or her feelings for Vic and Liam?  Will she find Devon alive or is she deluding herself completely?

There were times during this novel where I doubted Maggie's grip on reality.  Her overwhelming guilt over her mother's suicide and her perception of her own inadequate parenting drive her life and most of her actions.  In fact, a great deal of the dialog in the book takes place in Maggie's head as she replays old conversations and conflicts, lending credence to the idea that this "psychological" thriller might include more than a touch of "psycho."  Some of Maggie's conclusions and actions seem a little far-fetched to me, but as a mother perhaps on the brink of a breakdown she is amazingly rational and perceptive at times.  This is a real page turner.  I couldn't put it down once I started it.  It was definitely more intriguing than the Oscars broadcast!

THE OUTER BANKS HOUSE (Diann Ducharme)

Ducharme's first novel will appeal to fans of historical fiction and to young adults.  Its powerful sense of place and unusual perspective on post-Civil War life and attitudes in the South make it difficult to put down.

During the summer of 1868, Abigail Sinclair is the 17-year-old daughter of a North Carolina plantation owner nearly ruined by the Civil War.  Despite his financial difficulties, Abby's father builds a cottage on the beach at Nag's Head with the intention that his family will summer their, benefiting from the sea air.  After hiring illiterate "banker" Benjamin Whimble as his fishing guide he enlists his older daughter, Abby, to teach Ben to read and to write.  In return for the lessons and for helping Ben to procure a job at Cape Hatteras, which will enable Ben and his father to give up the hard life as fishermen, Mr. Sinclair asks Ben to find a freed slave, Elijah Africa, rumored to be a preacher on Roanoke Island, now a colony of former slaves.  Elijah is accused of murdering his former owners and needs to be brought to justice, according to Mr. Sinclair.  He can be identified by the letter "B" branded on his shoulder.

The story is told from the perspective of Abigail and Ben in alternating clusters of chapters.  Abigial is mesmerized by the sea and the sand and, eventually, by Ben.  She is sympathetic to the bankers (natives of the Outer Banks) and to the freed slaves who crave education.  One of the most memorable and telling moments in the novel is when Abby and her former wet nurse, now family maid, Winnie, are being introduced to members of the Roanoke colony.  Winnie corrects Abby's belief that "Winnie" is her given name and reveals that she is actually "Asha."  Winnifred is the name given to her by Abby's mother when she was purchased as a slave to work in the plantation house and Abby is shocked to realize that she had never given a thought to where Winnie came from or what she was called.  This was a true "coming of age" moment for Abby, a young woman of intelligence and compassion who finds her true self on the Outer Banks.

We have all read stories about the Civil War and its aftermath.  Ducharme creates what feels like a fresh, first-hand perspective on the attitudes of former slave owners, their families, and freed slaves.  I think that this is one of the shining attributes of "young adult" novels, meaning novels with main characters in their teens.  Youth is more open to new ideas and new persepctives and I like what is presented here.

AND FURTHERMORE (Judi Dench)

"The whole idea of a group of people coming together and working to one end somehow is very appealing to me.  It is the thing I have always wanted to do, and I am lucky enough to be doing it."
Judi Dench's memoir accentuates the positive (to borrow from Johnny Mercer), focusing on her obvious love of family and acting rather than highlighting the tragedies and setbacks in her life.  There is no whitewashing here, merely a recognition that with joy comes sorrow, and, with success, disappointment.  Not that Dench's life has been marked by any out-of-the ordinary tragedies.  In fact, she enjoyed a happy childhood and a successful 30-year marriage to fellow actor Michael Williams, she has a beautiful daughter and beloved grandson, and she has obviously achieved great success in her chosen field.  This memoir is not a celebration of Judi Dench's awards and achievements; it is the story of how she evolved into the person and actress she is today as told in her own words to John Miller.  Full of anectdotes about fellow actors and directors, Dench's story exudes humor, joy, and courage.  There are no scandals, no nasty revelations, no invasions of anyone's privacy.  This book is by Judi and about Judi, but without the ego you might expect from a beloved Oscar-winning actress.  I would recommend this memoir to any fan of Judi Dench and to anyone who is interested in life in the theater.  I thoroughly enjoyed it!

DEATH AT LA FENICE (Donna Leon)

Commissario Guido Brunetti is an Italian treasure with intelligence and insight worthy of Hercule Poirot and the sweetness of a happily married family man.  I read that author Donna Fenice came up with the idea for this wonderful series while actually in a conductor's dressing room at La Fenice (pronouned "La Fayneechay") Opera House in Venice.  She obviously knows Venice, having lived there for years, and there could be no other setting possible for Brunetti's adventures. 

Famed conductor Helmut Wellauer is found dead from apparent cyanide poisoning in his dressing room between acts at La Fenice Opera House in Venice.  Was he murdered by the soprano whom he was blackmailing over her same-sex love affair, threatening the loss of her children to her nasty Spanish ex-husband?  Or was it his much youger wife of 2 years with whom he shared a supposedly idyllic relationship?  Could the perpetrator have been someone from his past who objected to his reported Nazi sympathies or his blatant homophobia?  Commisario Guido Brunetti, with the "help" of his inefficient assistants and his egotistical superior, investigates the crime in this first of a very successful series.  Leon is a superb writer and Brunetti is one of the most appealing fictional detectives to hit the mystery scene.  The twists and turns of this investigation are logical but unexpected.  I can't wait to read more of the Brunetti series.

SEPARATE BEDS (Elizabeth Buchan)

To me, the title Separate Beds screams ROMANCE or CHICK-LIT, but this novel is neither.  It is the sometimes heartbreaking story of a married couple, Tom and Annie Nicholson, who have made mistakes as spouses and parents, grown apart, and are now driven to the breaking point when Tom loses his job with the BBC.  Five years earlier eldest daughter Mia, twin to son Jake, left the family in anger and disgust, vowing never to see them again.  She left in her wake sadness, stress, and a perpetual sense of longing.  Tom's unexpected job loss brings the family to the brink of financial disaster and exacerbates the feeling of failure and uncertainty that permeate the family.  Without the supplementary financing provided by Tom's salary, his mother is forced to leave her retirement home and move in with the family.When Jake's marriage to the elegant and selfish Jocasta breaks up, he also moves back home along with his year-old daughter, Maisie, and finally accepts that his fine woodworking business is not lucrative enough to support himself and Maisie.  Youger sibling Emily, an aspiring writer, has been enjoying the financial support of her parents and is now forced to get a "real" job.  At the heart of this novel is Annie, the wife and mother whose best efforts have always seems to have fallen short in the eyes of her family.  Forced to again share a room and a bed with Tom, Annie is confronted with memories of happier times and an unexpected sense of desire for her husband and the life that they seem to have lost in the great effort of living.

Elizabeth Buchan is always delightful, a sort of combination of Joanna Trollope and Marcia Willett.  If you haven't read any of her novels, I'd recommend that you do.

LOVE LETTERS (Katie Fforde)

I am laughing as I write this because as I was reading Fforde's latest I was thinking, "Rupert and Fenella!  I love British novels with characters named Rupert and Fenella!"  Then I had a sense of déja vu and remembered that I had made the same observation while writing about Fforde's previous novel, Wedding Season.  At least I am consistent!  In fact,  Love Letters features a few of the same characters, Rupert, Fenella, and Hugo. 

What is most appealing about Fforde is that, instead of the typical "single career girl looking for love and success" chick-lit fare, she offers her readers an entertaining cultural experience and a charming glimpse into British life and attitudes.  Yes, there is always a single woman as the main character and yes, she does usually have career issues, but Fforde rarely ventures into the world of Jimmy Choos and shopping sprees.  Instead, her female characters are usually innovative entrepreneurs who happen to stumble upon true love during the process of building a business or a career while immersed in pure Britishness.

Laura Horsely is a shy 27-year-old bibliophile who is about to lose her job in a small bookshop because Henry, the owner and a good friend, is retiring.  When she is offered the opportunity to organize a literary festival at a stately country manor (owned by Rupert and Fenella!) she reluctantly agrees, concerned about her ability to attract prominent authors like Dermot Flynn, her literary idol, to the event.  She and her friend Monica travel to Ireland in an attempt to convince the reclusive and incredibly attractive Flynn, who has not written a new novel in years, to participate in the festival.  You can certainly guess what happens next, but you need to read the novel to immerse yourself in the atmosphere of Ireland, the literary festival, British academics, life in a financially struggling English manor household, and true, strong friendships formed out of common interests and real affection.  You will finish this novel with a smile on your face.

THE OTHER FAMILY (Joanna Trollope)

This is an interesting novel, written in Trollope's usual insightful, British style.  That is one thing that always strikes me about Trollope: the incredible English-ness of her characters and settings.  There are many decent novelists whose stories are transferable to places other than those in which they are set.  They could just as easily take place in Texas or Canada with a few tweaks to place and language, but not Trollope's.  Her characters and setting are SO British that the reader becomes immersed in the every day life and surroundings to the point that it is almost surprising to look up and realize that you are in the United States.

Chrissie Rossiter and her 3 young-adult daughters (Tamsin, Dilly, and Amy) are grief-stricken at the sudden death of Richie Rossiter, famed composer and pianist, father, and husband.  What comes to light in the aftermath of Richie's death is that he and Chrissie never married and that he was, in fact, still married to his first and only wife, Margaret, with whom he had a son, Scott, now 37.   Despite Chrissie's encoragement, Richie would never divorce Margaret to marry her, but over the years they lived as a married couple but neglected to tell youngest daughter Amy about their true circumstances. Richie's will reveals shockingly that he has left his beloved piano and the rights to the music written before he abandoned her to estranged wife Margaret, while Chrissie and the girls face financial uncertainty.  Chrissie was not just Richie's lover and mother to his 3 girls, but also his manager.  She now has to cope with life without him, but also without any means of support, since he was her only client.  Margaret and Scott, still living in Newcastle, attend the funeral and are met with expected cold shoulders from Richie's second family.  Margaret has a successful business as a talent scout and agent, living a comfortable and satisfying life, while Scott is a lawyer who is very curious about the life his father led after leaving them when Scott was 14 years old.  The big question here is whether or not the animosity betwen the new and old families will ever be resolved as they work through their grief.

I have to say that I did not particularly like Chrissie, Tamsin, and Dilly.  They strike me not as women wronged, deceived, or victimized by circumstances, but as self-absorbed and stubborn.  Margaret, Scott, and Amy are delightful characters with a blossoming sense of self-awareness and an excitement about life and the future.  At times this novel is slow-moving, but it is well worth reading.

TO HAVE AND TO KILL (Mary Jane Clark)

This is the first in Mary Jane Clark's new wedding cake Mystery series.  Piper Donovan, the heroine, is a struggling New York actress who decides to move back to her parents' home in New Jersey when her soap opera character is killed off and acting gigs seem to be fewer and farther between than ever.   Piper helps out in mother's bakery (her name is derived from "piping" cake decorations) between acting jobs and getting involved in murders, in this case the poisoning by arsenic of one of the soap's major hearthrobs at a charity auction.  Piper's mother suffers from macular degeneraton and her father, Vin, is a former law-enforcement officer who has obsessively schooled his daughter in self defense and self preservation.  Piper also has a close friend, Jack, who is an FBI agent and promises to become a major romantic interest as the series progresses.  The mystery was interesting, with a large number of logical supects and a great resolution.  This promises to be a fun and entertaining cozy series. If you like Cake Boss and love mysteries, read it!