Of Bees and Mist

The newest selection for the Barnes and Noble First Look Book Club

In his first novel, Erick Setiawan casts a spell over the reader with words and descriptions that draw you into the story and won't allow you to forget the people you meet. Although it took me a couple of chapters to be drawn in, I soon became enthralled with the characters and their lives.

This magical novel tells the story of a young woman and follows her as she learns to deal with the negativity and deception that surround her. It is the story of two very different families who are joined through marriage and how they really aren't that different in the end.

This book is one that I would recommend to imaginative readers who likes to escape from the reality of daily life.

Happy Birthday Marie and June Sock

Last night I finished my June socks, and I finished them in just nine days. They look great and I will post a picture and more details about my latest project as soon as I get my computer back from the computer fixing shop. They were the June selection for the Ravelry group, Thrifty Knitter's Sock Group.

Today I went to lunch with my very friends, Mary Jo and Marie. I miss not living in the same neighborhood and seeing them on a daily basis. I think we all miss the "old" neighborhood. Of course, the old neighborhood doesn't exist any longer, so they will all have to move here.

My computer is broken

and boy do I miss it. I'm sitting here at my sister's using her computer while she is on vacation. I took my computer into a new shop to get it fixed ten days ago and it's not a major problem (hopefully, just needs a new back light for the screen). Unfortunately, the "technician" is too busy to get around to fixing it. Now if he had told me that ten days ago, I would have gone elsewhere and if I'd have known eleven days ago that my computer was going to break, I would not have bought a new washer.

I miss keeping up with my on-line friends, but I've read five books and knitted a whole sock since May 24. I think I need to spend a whole lot less time on the computer.

The Divorce Party

by Laura Dave * * * *

Maggie and Nate are planning to marry and Nate's parents are planning to divorce. On the eve of Gwyn and Thomas' divorce party, Maggie finds that Nate has not been honest with her about his past and the fact that his family is part of the uber rich. As Maggie reconsiders her relationship with Nate, Gwyn tries to get Thomas to reconsider the end of their marriage.

The characters in The Divorce Party are real and the insight Ms. Dave shows into their often complicated feelings as they live their lives is truly a party for the reader.

Shadow Dance

by Julie Garwood

* * *
Julie Garwood writes romance books, but she also has the knack for writing a good mystery. Her stories are not unlike the Phyllis Whitney mysteries that I liked to read 30 years ago, with a little romance and sex thrown into the mix.

In Shadow Dance, Ms. Garwood continues the stories of the Buchanan, McKenna, and Clayboure families, that she has written about for years.