A Cup of Tea and My TBR List

Review: The Collected Regrets of Clover by Mikki Brammer

The Collected Regrets of Clover by Mikki Brammer

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Finished this a couple days ago – just in time for today’s pub day!
Clover is a death doula, someone who helps people through their end-of-life transition. It was a new profession to me, but one that makes sense. She sits with her clients, talks with them, helps them plan their funerals or resolve any final regrets.
Most interesting, to me, were the journals where Clover recorded people’s last words – Advice, Confessions and Regrets. Her attempts to fulfill the advice and rectify the regrets made for an interesting side story to the main narrative.
Clover’s solitary life has always worked for her, but as she connects with her new neighbor, Sylvie, as well as her newest clients – Sebastian, who hires her, and his grandmother, Claudia – she begins to come out of her shell and interact more with the world.
I went into this expecting it to be somewhat depressing, given the subject matter, but it turned out to be a pretty uplifting story. I’ll be passing it along to family and friends for sure.

Since it’s finally been nice enough to enjoy our new deck, I paired this with iced Bigelow Perfect Peach tea. And since Clover, like me, is a bourbon drinker, I added a splash or two of South County Distillers’ bourbon.

The big takeaway from the book, for me, is to live a life that doesn’t end with regrets. So I’m not going to worry about the dishes in the sink or the laundry in the dryer, because if I died tomorrow, I wouldn’t regret those. But I might regret not taking the time to do the things I love. Like writing a poem or drinking a glass of bourbon iced tea as the sun goes down.

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Review: What Happens Next – Christina Suzann Nelson

What Happens Next by Christina Suzann Nelson

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Faith and Heather are best friends for the summer of 1987. When Faith moves away at the end of the summer, she writes multiple letters and never hears back.
Decades later, Faith is recently divorced and watching her daughters go off to spend the summer with their father. At loose ends, she plans to work on her podcast, which has become successful sharing the stories of people who have come through difficult situations with their faith. And then she receives a letter from Heather’s older sister, asking for her help.
It seems Heather didn’t reject Faith’s friendship. She’s been missing since shortly after Faith moved away. And Brooke is asking Faith’s help to find out what really happened all those years ago. Faith returns to her grandmother’s home for the summer, reconnects with old friends and the rest of Heather’s family, and begins to investigate the circumstances of Heather’s disappearance.
Intertwined with the present day narrative, is Heather’s point of view in the weeks leading up to her disappearance. It’s full of so many ‘80s references, that it took me right back to 1987 (when I was the same age as Heather’s sister Brooke) – Count Chocula, Spandau Ballet, Solid Gold Dancers and even The Goonies. It was a little light-hearted break from the darker story that is unfolding through Faith’s investigation.
I’ll admit, I had the ending sort of figured out, but there was enough of a twist that it kept me interested to the end.
I won this book in a contest from Bethany House. All opinions are my own.

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Review: The Keeper of Stories by Sally Page

The Keeper of Stories by Sally Page

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Janice is a house cleaner and collector of stories. Most of her clients are at least friendly toward her, with the exception of Mrs. “YeahYeahYeah” and her husband (Mr. No, Not Now). I loved those nicknames – we all know people like that. When Mrs. YeahYeahYeah hires Janice to clean for her mother-in-law, who we come to know as Mrs. B, Janice becomes more involved and gets drawn into the story that Mrs. B has to tell.

Meanwhile, Janice’s life has begun to spiral a bit as she struggles with her deadbeat husband and a growing attraction to the bus driver who looks like he should be a geography teacher. She bonds with her client Fiona (and her son Adam) through walks with Decius, the fox terrier belonging to Mrs. B’s son. And eventually, she confronts her own story – and begins to make the changes she so desperately needs in her life.

This is more like a 3.5 star for me, I enjoyed all of the characters and the interaction between them. The story moved along and had enough twists and turns to keep me turning the pages for sure.

I won an Advanced Reader Copy of this in a contest, though I can’t remember which. Thanks to Blackstone Publishing.

For a book set in England, there was a surprising lack of tea. But Janice and Mrs. B drank an awful lot of hot chocolate, and Mrs. B’s wine collection made me long for a wine cellar. So I’m pairing this one with a yummy hot chocolate bomb and a glass of wine.

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Review: Weyward by Emilia Hart

Weyward by Emilia Hart

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Loved this book – I always enjoy books with multiple story lines intertwined between past and present. From Altha, on trial for witchcraft, to Violet, struggling to learn the truth about her mother and their connection to the Weyward women, and finally to Kate, hiding away from an abusive boyfriend. As we follow each woman’s discovery of her powerful connection with nature and magic and the world around her, we also see their discovery of the Weyward legacy and what it means to each of them. Fantastic.

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for an advanced copy.

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2022 Wrap-Up

I kicked off 2022 reading the January chapter of Emma Howarth’s A Year of Mystical Thinking and made myself a vision board. It was sort of half-assed, but I did it, and put it where I’d see it every time I sat down at my desk. (This year’s is much better…stay tuned for another post about my plans for 2023.)

I was skeptical, sure, but I’ll tell you what – by the end of 2022, I found myself in a new job – one that couldn’t be more perfect for me if I’d written the job description myself. It wasn’t easy to cut the cord after 26 years in higher ed and make the jump to the hospitality/tourism industry but I love it. I’m having so much fun. Oh, and did I mention I get paid to write about a city I love? How cool is that??

But this is supposed to be my reading recap. I read 176 new books in 2022 – one more than my Goodreads goal. Plus a handful of re-reads, but I don’t count those toward my goal.

I’m still working my way through the Stephen King chronology. I got bogged down for a while with The Tommyknockers, and wasn’t surprised to hear that even he thinks it was awful. Anyway, I continue that journey – I’m closing in on the end of the ’80s. I did get Fairy Tale for my birthday in October, and may sneak that one in soon, rather than waiting until I get to present day.

I did two challenges with The Book Girls Guide – the Lifetime of Reading and The Decades. Lots of great books and it was fun to journey through both time and different ages.

I also joined in the Read Christie 2022 challenge and read 12 Agatha Christie books, which was fun but honestly by the end I was ready for a break. Still, it took me back to my teenage years when I graduated from Trixie Belden to adult mystery books. I’m pretty sure I read every paperback Christie that the Warwick Public Library had.

Oh, and I was doing Italian lessons on Duolingo so I read a bunch of books set in Italy. Aside from that there was book club and audiobooks and anything else that crossed my path. All in all, there were more good books than bad.

Which is a pretty good way to sum up 2022…it was more good than bad.

A “Smash the Patriarchy” reading list

There’s nothing better to me than curling up with a good book and a cup of tea. Even better is pairing a book and a tea. It’s not always easy, but some teas lend themselves to a whole variety of books. Oolo’s Smash the Patriarchy tea, for example, put me in mind of so many books it was hard to know where to start.

One of my personal favorites, from my English major college days, is Lysistrata – an ancient Greek play in which the women of Athens and Sparta team up and refuse to have sex with the men until they end the Peloponnesian War. Greek theater is probably not everyone’s cup of tea, so to speak, but there are probably some modern translations that make it more accessible. It’s worth a read and very funny.

Margaret George’s books take a deep dive into the lives of some seriously powerful women. Helen of Troy continues on the Greek theme, while The Memoirs of Cleopatra, Elizabeth I, and Mary Queen of Scotland and the Isles give us the perspective of a matriarchy – something very rare at the time. Mary, Called Magdalene, portrays a very different view of Mary Magdalene than the image presented of her in the Bible. They are long books, but they are absolutely worth the read. I don’t think there’s any of her books I wouldn’t highly recommend.

Speaking of the Bible, The Red Tent by Anita Diamant provides a look at daily life in biblical times with the story of Dinah, daughter of Jacob. It gives the female perspective of the story of Jacob and Joseph in the Old Testament. The actual red tent, by the way, is where the women live during their menstrual cycles because they are “unclean.” Obviously, period shaming is not cool, but one week a month of hanging with your girls – no men, no kids, no work – couldn’t be all bad.

There are a multitude of WWI and WWII historical fiction books out there that I love, but one that comes to mind is The Alice Network – which tells the story of a network of women spies during World War I, and a young lady looking for her missing cousin in the aftermath of World War II. I didn’t know at the time I read this that the Alice Network was a real thing, which made the story even more impressive for me.

Some obvious dystopian future type books, if you’re into that kind of thing, are The Handmaid’s Tale (along with it’s sequel The Testaments) and The Hunger Games – strong women fighting against some seriously twisted governments. I like to think I’d do the same, but you have to wonder.

And if you’re in the mood for a lighter, Christmassy story, I recommend How Mrs. Claus Saved Christmas – part of Jeff Guinn’s Christmas Chronicles. The whole series is great, but this one in particular features Mrs. Claus defending Christmas against the Puritan Parliament’s attempts to suck all the fun out of the holiday.

Tell me what other books you would recommend for reading while sipping a cup of Smash the Patriarchy tea and check out @heyaoolo on Instagram.

70’s Stephen King…the beginning

Because reading 100 books set in France wasn’t enough to keep me busy (ha ha), I’m also reading Stephen King’s works in chronological order. I actually started this last fall, so it pre-dates the French project.

I’m a huge Stephen King fan since my first read – The Dead Zone – when I was 13. After that, every trip to the library began with a dash to the “Ki” shelf to see if they had anything I hadn’t read.

So many of his early works are on my “favorites” shelf – The Shining and The Stand for sure, although this was my first read of the original edited version of The Stand. It holds up, but I still prefer the uncut version that came out in the 90s. And despite the amusing t-shirt pictured above, I’ll take the book of The Shining over the movie any day. Was Jack Nicholson great? Sure. But the book is so much scarier.

Salem’s Lot, however, was the book in the 70’s collection that scared me the most. I must have read it at some point in my teenage years but didn’t remember much of it. Holy moly is that a terrifying book. We did sit down and watch the movie, and that too was pretty creepy, but it didn’t live up to my imagination. Months after reading this, I’m still having the occasional vampire nightmare. No joke – I had one two nights ago.

Carrie, obviously, is a classic, simply by virtue of being his first book. I actually listened to this one, narrated by none other than Sissy Spacek herself. How could I resist?

I’ve never been a huge fan of short stories, but as collections go, Night Shift is a pretty good one. If nothing else, it spawned a whole lot of movies and TV that I’ve added to my watch list.

And then there are the Bachman books – Rage and The Long Walk. Both horrifying in their own way. Rage is about a teenage school shooter. It’s no longer published, mainly due to the rash of school shootings in recent years. The Long Walk tells the story of a dystopian future in which 100 young men start walking at the border of Canada and Maine…and keep walking until there’s only one left. It’s vague on what the winner gets, but really, by the time you’ve out-walked 99 other guys…are you really a winner?

And so I’ve finished my journey through the 70’s books of Stephen King. Thoroughly creeped out and sufficiently entertained. Moving on to the 80’s…Firestarter is up next.

What’s your favorite early Stephen King?

My French Year…January

As I mentioned in my post about my 2021 goals, I’ve decided to spend the year learning French in Duolingo, and reading books set in France.

After a month of daily Duolingo lessons, I can confidently say, “Le chat mange un croissant.” And more importantly, I have also learned “Ou son les toilettes?” So, I can now ask “Where is the bathroom?” in English, Spanish or French.

The list I am working from is chronological, and I did start with Candide and Dangerous Liaisons – both of which I recognize as classic literature. I can’t say I enjoyed either of them . Candide was a re-read, as I’d read it in one of the many lit classes I took in college. Dangerous Liaisons was new to me, but I found it tedious to read. Not one character in either book was the least bit likeable. I realize they were meant to be unlikeable, but mainly, both books annoyed me.

Just to keep things interesting, I’ve mixed in books I have on hand that are also on the list. Far more intriguing than either of the classics was A Paris Apartment by Michelle Gable. It tells the story of Marthe de Florian – a demimondaine of the 1890’s – and the apartment full of furniture and artwork that she left behind. And of April, who is dispatched to Paris to appraise and assist with arranging the auction, while struggling with a troubled marriage. A collection of diaries takes April through Marthe’s fascinating background. Loosely based on a true story – there really was a Marthe de Florian and her apartment was indeed closed up for more than 70 years.

I also read The Virgin Blue by Tracy Chevalier and Five Quarters of the Orange by Joanne Harris. Both interesting takes on life in a small town in France, especially for those who are a little “different” than the rest.

I’m starting February reading The Red and the Black by Stendhal (in the classics category) and listening to Juliet Blackwell’s Letters from Paris. And eating more croissants than I probably should…but they are so good! Obvious choice of tea for this project is Harney & Sons Paris. Will have to do a little research for other French teas as the year continues.

2020 Recap – Thrillers

I was looking back over my 2020 books and realized there were two categories that a lot of books fell into – thrillers and World War II historical fiction. Watch for another post about the WWII genre…but for now, here’s a recap of some of the best thrillers I read in 2020.

The best of the bunch for me was Lisa Jewell’s Then She Was Gone – Laurel’s daughter Ellie goes missing as a teenager and years later, Laurel meets a man with a young daughter who looks exactly like Ellie. I listened to this one and it kept me fascinated from the very beginning. I sometimes find my mind wandering with audiobooks, but that was definitely not the case here.

The Collector by Nora Roberts was another good read – echoes of Rear Window as it begins with Lila Emerson witnessing a murder across the way. She gets involved with the victim’s brother as they attempt to track down the killer. I also listened to Divine Evil by Nora Roberts which involved a small town and a satanic cult. Super creepy!

Last Day by Luanne Rice and Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris both struck me with the reminder that those perfect lives are not always as perfect as they seem. Last Day was another murder mystery that opens with the body of a pregnant woman abandoned in her air conditioned bedroom. And Behind Closed Doors told the story of a marriage that was not exactly what it appeared to be.

Anne Frasier’s Find Me begins with serial killer Benjamin Fisher volunteering to tell police where the bodies are buried – but only if his daughter (a former FBI profiler) will meet with him. As Reni begins to help the police, memories come back to her of the childhood “game” she played with her father. I read this one in bed on my Kindle and it kept me reading much later at night than I should have.

There were more, I’m sure, but these are the ones that stood out for me. As far as tea to go with them, I have to choose this Plum Deluxe Full Moon Chai (purchased as part of a set to commemorate the final season of Supernatural). I can’t say enough good about Plum Deluxe – they are my favorite tea company at the moment. I’m planning on making another purchase this month as they have Dessert Teas this month. I had a sample of their Red Velvet Puerh recently and will definitely be ordering some!

I’m always looking for a good thriller – have you read any good ones lately?

Bring on 2021

My favorite thing about starting a new year is getting a new planner. There’s something so hopeful about all those empty pages of unplanned activity. I like to sit down with my planner on January 1 and set my goals for the year.

I start pretty much every year with the same two resolutions – Write More and Stress Less. Last year I gave myself 16 goals for the year…I accomplished 2 of them. Not great, but considering the dumpster fire that was 2020, it’s better than nothing.

I do love that Goodreads gives a recap of your reading year. One goal that I did hit last year was to read 155 books. I actually exceeded that thanks to all the down time this past year.

So…my reading goal this year is 175 books. Don’t know if I will get there, but I’ll try. I’ve got lots of reading projects planned for the year.

My book club is reading our way through the 50 states – our first book this year is Come and Get Me by August Norman (set in Indiana). We’ll follow that up with a book set in Hawaii.

I am, of course, still working through the chronological Stephen King list – I’m up to 1979: The Long Walk and The Dead Zone. Both rereads, although it’s been years since I read The Dead Zone. If I remember correctly, it was my first Stephen King and I was somewhere around 12 years old.

While my book club tours the US, I’m diving into France on my own. I had been toying with the idea of learning French on the Duolingo app and accompanying it with a year of books set in France. So, I found this list of 100 books set in France on taleaway.com – and as it turned out 3 of the books listed are in my current TBR top 10, along with another book set in Paris that wasn’t on the list. (Synchronicity, for those of you who follow The Artist’s Way). I may not get to all 100 – to be honest, a couple of them are books I’ve already read and don’t want to read again (All the Light We Cannot See) and there are a few I read in high school or college that I may or may not get to (A Tale of Two Cities), but I’m going to give it my best effort.

If that’s not enough to keep me busy, there’s this blog and those handful of novels I’ve started. I’m really good at writing the first couple of chapters and then my characters start doing things I didn’t expect them to do and I never quite get to where I thought I was going. So one of my goals this year is to actually finish one of them. Not sure if it will be a Hallmark movie romance or a serial killer, but I’m getting through one. Maybe a Hallmark movie romance about a serial killer? Probably not, but you never know.

As for stressing less, well that’s easier said than done. But drinking more tea is always a start, and I’ve got plenty to keep me going there. I always save my vacation days for the time between Christmas and New Year’s – so I’ve had a week of relaxation and very little activity, besides reading, hanging out with my husband, and de-Christmasing our apartment.

Rather than make demanding resolutions about losing weight and drinking more water – which I never do – this year is about fun and interesting goals. What fun things are you looking forward to in 2021?