April roared in with an exploding pandemic, a dangerous fool incapable of leading our country, and extended orders to stay home in Michigan. Normally, the kinds of things that stretch to the limit my delicate balancing act with stability. The good news is I had a family to keep me distracted. Not my own (sadly), but the Tudors. Somehow, the first half of 2020 brings with it ... Read More...
May Midmonth Mini-Reviews
I know it’s not the exactly the middle of May, but I’m hoping you all can cut me some slack. I’m on a hamster wheel of hurry-up-and-wait regarding our move to Michigan and so have to write when I can find time to disengage my analytical brain and tap into my creative mind. I used to be able to activate both at once, but those days are long gone. Anyway, here are some bit and ... Read More...
May Reading Recap
No other way to put it: May was a lovely month. Both the weather and my reading kept me charmed. There were a few misses, but overall it was my best reading month this year. I have no idea how I managed this but somehow, I read A Rule Against Murder, book 4 in the Inspector Gamache series, before reading The Cruelest Month, which is book 3. Mea culpa! Major faux ... Read More...
June Reading Wrap-Up
Quick disclaimer: it never got anywhere near warm enough in Seattle in June for outdoor swimming so this photo is fake news. There was no lounging and reading by the pool—I was wearing socks the last week of the month, but that’s all right for me. I spent three days in the 90° heat with 80% humidity that was Cleveland and it was more than enough to remind me why I love ... Read More...
July Reading Wrap-Up
Based on the calendar I know it was summer, but the only way I believed it was hearing from friends and family how they were melting away in intense heat. Seattle hovered in the 60s or lower for most of the month. I'm not complaining except it is nice to actually see a pedicure when you've gotten one and when it stays chilly I wear socks. Weather aside, what a month. I can ... Read More...
The Marriage Game: A Novel of Queen Elizabeth I
There is no shortage of books written about the Tudors and Elizabeth I in particular, but Alison Weir takes the Queen’s life in a very specific direction in her new novel The Marriage Game: A Novel of Queen Elizabeth I. There is so much of Elizabeth’s life that can be covered but in this novel Weir begins with the year Elizabeth is crowned queen and covers the 45 years of her ... Read More...
