Category: Uncategorized

My Plain Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows

First line: You may think you know the story.

Summary: You may know the story of Jane Eyre but you may not know the whole story. When Jane goes to live at Thornfield Manor as a governess, she meets the brooding Mr. Rochester. She falls in love with him despite his ever-changing moods and hopes to marry him. However, her dear friend Charlotte Bronte and ghost hunter, Alexander Blackwood, have discovered that Mr. Rochester has some very dark secrets. They must save Jane and fast!

Highlights: I did not know what to expect when starting this book. I have never read Jane Eyre but I have seen several movie adaptations. I knew the basics of the story line but this was vastly different.

To start, one of the characters is the author, Charlotte Bronte. She is a small bespectacled girl with a desire to write stories. She is constantly taking notes and commenting on everything around her. Just as I would imagine she would be. Secondly, there are ghosts and lots of them. Some are just floating around, some cause trouble and others are dear friends of Jane Eyre. Lastly, this story is laugh out loud funny. There are many little remarks that made me chuckle. In addition, there were several Princess Bride references! Yes!

I think I am going to have to go pick up a copy of Jane Eyre now.

Lowlights: Having not read the original work I was not disappointed in the new version. I can see where some readers may not enjoy this because it is so different from the source material. The middle of the story was a little long and drawn out but the ending was fun and worth the read.

FYI: Also in the series is My Lady Jane about Lady Jane Grey.

Still Star-Crossed by Melinda Taub

First line: In Fair Verona’s streets, the sun was hot.

Summary: Weeks after the tragic deaths of Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet, the city of Verona is deep in grief. The city seeks someone to blame and with tensions so high, Prince Escalus must do something to re-build trust and ignite hope. He turns to Juliet’s cousin (and Romeo’s first love), Rosaline, and Romeo’s kinsman, Benvolio, for help. By bringing these two together in matrimony and uniting the houses, Escalus believes the city of Verona will finally find peace. The only problem is that Rosaline and Benvolio can’t stand the sight of each other and blame the other for their loved one’s death. Set against Shakespeare’s brilliant backdrop and filled with infatuation, betrayal, and death, Still Star-Crossed answers the question we all have once the curtain closes on Romeo and Juliet’s story; what happens next?

Highlights: This book is a must for any Shakespeare lover. Taub’s writing mirrors all the good points of Shakespearean language while still making it feel accessible. Our main characters, Rosaline and Benvolio, are exquisite. Rift with prejudice, flaws, and despairing grief, they feel so human and relatable while still capturing the reader’s attention with their gentleness. The betrayals in this story are also incredibly tantalizing as are the villains. Melinda Taub makes Shakespeare’s city of Verona feel so real. She includes little details (some of them references to other plays), and it’s fun to see Romeo and Juliet come to life in a new way.

Lowlights: Obviously if you’re not a fan of Shakespeare or Shakespearean dialogue, this might be a difficult read for you. Also, the betrayal in this story, while believable, was not particularly clever. I figured out who the traitors were about mid-way through. The story does also slow down a little in the middle of the book, and Rosaline’s affection for one particular character is annoying after a while, especially when this character betrays her trust. Overall, though, the flaws of this novel are flaws that any critic of Shakespeare would give one of his plays which shows how closely to Shakespeare Melinda Taub wrote this book.

FYI: This book was actually turned into a TV series on ABC that was executive produced by Shonda Rhimes. I haven’t watched the show yet, and it was canceled after only one season, but it might be worth checking out!

Diana Cooke was “born with the century” and came of age just after World War I. The daughter of Virginia gentry, she knew early that her parents had only one asset, besides her famous beauty: their stately house, Saratoga, the largest in the commonwealth, which has hosted the crème of society and Hollywood royalty. Though they are land-rich, the Cookes do not have the means to sustain the estate. Without a wealthy husband, Diana will lose the mansion that has been the heart and soul of her family for five generations.

The mysterious Captain Copperton is an outsider with no bloodline but plenty of cash. Seeing the ravishing nineteen-year-old Diana for the first time, he’s determined to have her. Diana knows that marrying him would make the Cookes solvent and ensure that Saratoga will always be theirs. Yet Copperton is cruel as well as vulgar; while she admires his money, she cannot abide him. Carrying the weight of Saratoga and generations of Cookes on her shoulders, she ultimately succumbs to duty, sacrificing everything, including love.

Luckily for Diana, fate intervenes. Her union with Copperton is brief and gives her a son she adores. But when her handsome, charming Ashton, now grown, returns to Saratoga with his college roommate, the real scandal and tragedy begins.

Let me start by saying I’ve read and loved all of Goolrick’s books. He has a way of writing human nature and tragedy like no one else. While reading I become consumed and often find myself flipping to the authors picture in the back of the book and wondering how such a kind faced man came up with such heartbreaking stories.

As you can image a book set in Virginia must have some amazing food. Every scene that included a meal had be drooling and running for my kitchen to try to find something, anything that would sate my appetite. There were traditional southern favorites like Paper Bag Fried Chicken  and Ham Biscuits but there were also unknown (at least to me) mentions of Sally Lunn  , a bread that’s similar to brioche and Sugar Toads, a type of puffer fish that is apparently crazy tasty.

If you make any of these recipes or especially if you find Sugar Toads, drop me a note and let me know how delicious it all was!

For the past six months, Arthur Moses’s days have looked the same: He tends to his rose garden and to Gordon, his cat, then rides the bus to the cemetery to visit his beloved late wife for lunch. The last thing Arthur would imagine is for one unlikely encounter to utterly transform his life.

Eighteen-year-old Maddy Harris is an introspective girl who visits the cemetery to escape the other kids at school. One afternoon she joins Arthur—a gesture that begins a surprising friendship between two lonely souls. Moved by Arthur’s kindness and devotion, Maddy gives him the nickname “Truluv.” As Arthur’s neighbor Lucille moves into their orbit, the unlikely trio band together and, through heartache and hardships, help one another rediscover their own potential to start anew.

This is one of those beautifully heart warming stories that really makes you believe everything can work out in the end. If you find yourself down in the dumps or maybe lately you’ve just been reading books that are way too serious, you need this story in your life! Like right this minute! FOR REAL!

And the food. Oh the food! I think food, or perhaps meals are a major character in this book. When Arthur is on his own he keeps it pretty simple. He takes a sandwich to the cemetery everyday for his lunch. Though they tend to be simple I think the fact that he rotates his filling choices shows he still cares a little bit about his noon meal. At dinner Arthur seems to feel more alone and that is reflected in his cooking or lack there of. But I will say I love the way he threw together his beans! I think beans can be one of the most simple and comforting meals. This isn’t Arthur’s recipe but it’s one of my favorite ways to enjoy beans Shrimp with White Beans on Toast. 

Another character, Arthur’s neighbor Lucille, is one heck of a baker and chef. She likes to show her love through food, and she woos Arthur with wonderful confections like her Orange Blossom Cookies  which he thinks about often. When Lucille decides to start teaching a cooking class she agonizes over what her first recipe should be. She settles on her Pistachio Party Cake. I’m not sure what her exact recipe is but I knew she would be appalled if I included one that used a box cake mix! At Thanksgiving Lucille is in full crazy holiday cooking mode! She decides to make 14 things but assures Arthur and Maddy it’s really not that big of a deal since two of the 14 are cranberry sauces. When she finds out there will be a last minute guest she decides she really needs to make Pumpkin Tea Bread, because you can’t entertain without it. Lucille is a lady after my own heart!

The Story of Arthur Truluv truly shows what “Food is Love” really means. I think cooking for and sharing food with those you love is one of the greatest experiences humans can enjoy. Let me know if you make any of the recipes from the book or just enjoy reading it.

The Sunshine Sisters by Jane Green

First Line: All those years when Ronni thought she was sick, all those years convinced that every mole was melanoma, every cough was lung cancer, every case of heartburn was an oncoming heart attack, after all those years, when the gods finally stopped taking care of her she wasn’t scared.

Summary: Ronni Sunshine is a London-born actress who made it to the B list in Hollywood during her prime. Now, years later, her life is coming to an end. Her last wish is to have her three estranged daughters return home to be with her in her final hours. Nell, Meredith, and Lizzy endured a rough childhood, taking second place to Ronni’s career, and now with their mother calling them home, they must face their insecurities, jealousies, and the reconciliation they secretly desire.

Highlights: This book is an excellent summer read! It’s dramatic, but not overwhelming, romantic, but not mushy, and full of juicy gossip, beach-side leisure, and even a little tears. The best element of this book are the characters; they are deep, complicated, and flawed. The relationships between them is so relatable, especially for readers who’ve experienced family drama. While the story isn’t the most groundbreaking, it’s easy to connect with and makes for a quick and enjoyable read.

Lowlights: The weaker parts of the novel are in the middle part of the story which slows down as we experience the sisters’ backstories. The book also gets convoluted at times as people come and go in the story. The story may also not be great for readers who enjoy a lot of action in the plot. Most of the events in the story center on the character’s development so it may read more slowly for a reader seeking a story with constant movement.

FYI: This book is great for lovers of Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs, and authors Celest Ng and Lianne Moriarty. Also, note that this book does have a few steamy sections that would rival erotica, but there aren’t enough to qualify the book itself as a romance.

Many children have grown up in the shadow of Louisiana’s Greenmount State Penitentiary. Most of them—sons and daughters of corrections officers and staff—left the place as soon as they could. Yet Ginny Polk chose to come back to work as a prison cook. She knows the harsh reality of life within those walls—the cries of men being beaten, the lines of shuffling inmates chained together. Yet she has never seen them as monsters, not even the ones sentenced to execution. That’s why, among her duties, Ginny has taken on a special responsibility: preparing their last meals.

I found this book to be beautiful is so many ways. The relationships between the characters, the shifting of perspective, the atmosphere and most importantly the FOOD! Even something as simple as making biscuits seemed calming and magical the way Mikulenacak describes it.  The detail I enjoyed most about this book was finding all of the recipes listed throughout the story in the back of the book. None of them of anything fancy, just southern comfort food but that’s what makes them even more irresistible! I never thought I’d want to make something call Pork Neck Stew so bad in my life! However, if you read this book and still aren’t enticed to make the stew rest assured there are several other recipes I’m sure you will enjoy.

Also, I found this article/interview with Mikulenacak I think you might want to take a peek at.

If you make any of the recipes in the book let me know how they turn out!!