The Everday Life

The everyday life:

 

FYI Terri and I will be revamping our blog. This will probably mostly take place over the course of the next few months. Anyway I have been taking notes on what you would like to see more of on our blog. We are listening and please speak up what you would like to see and read more of on this blog.

 

Now in conjunction with this frame of mind. Here is a peek into my everyday life.

Today I got up took my diabetic numbers. Took my ADD meds and made myself a cup of French Vanilla Coffee. I dressed, saw my husband off to work after HE walked the dog. it was 25 out there and I wasn't going to take a walk this morning. Since I didn't walk instead I took everything off the countertop and scrubbed them down. Also using those Clorox Wipes that look like baby wipes. LOL.

Then I did the dishes after the challenging task of cleaning the automatic can opener. I don't know about you but I remember when my mom and grandmother used a toothbrush to clean the can openers. Well not me this morning. Nope you guessed it I used Clorox Wipes.

 

After that I settled in for CBS This Morning and saw topics such as bullying on the Dolphins Team, I watching all the Typhon devastation updates. There were other news stories but I hadn't had enough coffee yet to retain everything.

 

After that I went over my plot points I have a notebook with a list of plot points for my current book. So far I am up to 32 plot points. This is not enough for a 250-300 page book. I will continue to add and remove points as the story unfolds. My working title of the book is "STITCH ME A MURDER"

 

After I read over plot points I gathered up the laundry and started washing clothes. Two people and we always have a lot of laundry. I don't know why or how but I did decide a few weeks ago that I wasn't going to do laundry everyday. So I do the laundry on Monday, Tuesday and either Friday or Saturday.

 

After this I had a breakfast sandwich for breakfast and this one was bacon, egg and cheese. Had more coffee and then finally turned on the computer. I checked email and that is when I got the bright idea to write this blog. LOLOLOL

 

After The Price Is Right I will go into my office and write until I break for lunch. While some may argue this point I stand by that while writing related plot points, research and other writing related tasks are not writing therefore in my world they must remain separate.

 

This is my corner of the world so far today. Oh and I am currently reading EVERY TRICK IN THE BOOK by Lucy Arlington. So far I love this book.

I'm cross stitching a pattern that is Halloween PUT SOME ZOOM IN YOUR BROOM by Sue Hillis.  Have a great day!

 

Pam

Review: The Cure by Athol Dickson

Hardcover: 336 pages

Publisher: Bethany House (July 1, 2007)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0764201638

ASIN: B005Q6MG28

Riley Keep is a homeless alcoholic and has been for a long time. Since a massacre in the jungle where he and his wipe had been missionaries. But even on the streets he hears rumors of a cure for alcoholism in his hometown in Maine. He and his friend make their way back, hoping for a miracle. Only there is a cure, and Riley takes it and tries to build a new life out of it. Only, things in the town go from bad to worse as desperate people demand it.

The book is more than just a search for the cure. It examines the greed to exploit such a cure (announced price per dose $5,000) as well as the greed to possess it and get a new beginning to life. It also examines, Riley's choices and their unintended consequences and the matters of responsibility and self healing. As they say, an alcoholic can stop drinking but the problems that led to the drinking are still there. 

Terri

Review: Mrs. Jeffries Takes Stock - Emily Brightwell

Title: Mrs. Jefferies Takes Stock

Author: Emily Brightwell

Victorian Mystery Series

 

Inspector Witherspoon has a complex case to solve. It seems a group of investors including Inspector Nivens have been duped. They thought they were investing in a mining company. Word came back there was nothing being done as the company was in Colorado in America. Worse the suspect is the murdered man named "Jake Randall" and the money is missing.

 

Inspector Witherspoon has other problems of which include a nasty cold and he's decided to trim the fat in the household budget. Mrs. Goodge is fit to be tied as she has to cook for everyone and her sources. Mrs. Jefferies and the other household staff are more than cook and house keeper-manager they are also unbeknownst to the inspector helping him solve this murder cases.

 

Everyone takes part in helping solve this case but it isn't an easy one to solve. Nothing adds up and then Mrs. Jefferies puts her thinking cap on and little by little a picture starts to emerge of a cold blooded killer.

 

I think the moral of this book is..."Be careful have you treat other for one day you many hang for your actions."

 

As always in this series Emily Brightwell has penned a highly entertaining mystery. I love this cozy historical series as each book can be read as a standalone or part of the whole series. You won't be disappointed.

 

Pam

 

 

Review: The Master

Freddie, a volatile, heavy-drinking veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress

disorder, finds some semblance of a family when he stumbles onto the ship of Lancaster Dodd, the charismatic leader of a new "religion" he forms after World War II.

Cast:

Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, Laura Dern, Ambyr Childers, Rami Malek, Jesse Plemons, Kevin J. O'Connor, Christopher Evan Welch, Madisen Beaty

Director:

Paul Thomas Anderson

Genres:

Drama, Indie Dramas, 20th Century Period Pieces, Period Pieces, Blu-ray

This movie is:

Cerebral

I watched this movie because I love Phillip Seymour Hoffman and I have to admit, he did a superb job.  As did Joaquin Phoenix.  The problem is I loathed Freddy and had little sympathy for his character.  The new "religion" was definitely a cult and the processing sessions interesting but not enough for 2 and a half hours.  It was okay and I was rather disappointed.

Terri

 

Today in History: Bram Stoker was born (11/8/1847)

The only thing more famous than Bram Stoker himself, was his iconic creation:  DRACULA.

The vampire legends and stories had been around for a long time, but it was Abraham (BRAM) Stoker who took the legends along with a bit of history in the form of Prince Vlad III of Wallachia (Vlad the Impaler) and spun a tale that would never be forgotten.

 

The character is terrifying, the setting gothic, the other characters memorable (with Van Helsing becoming a powerful icon in his own right).

 

The movies started in 1922 with Nosferatu and took many popular actors to great heights in horror annuls.

 

We had Lugosi:

and Lee:

 

 

Even Langella:

 

and Oldman:

No matter what form he took, people had their favorites.  Besides movies we had tv, the most current of which features Jonathan Rhys Meyers:

But even with all those, we have more books than we can count.  Many featuring Dracula, Mina, Van Helsing or other characters such as Quincey Morris.  They are scary, sexy and people never seem to get tired of them.

Then there are other vampires, Way Way too many to even guess at.  New books being published all the time.  Some terrifying (Salem's Lot), some reluctant (Forever Knight, Barnabas Collins), some Romantic, and some.....Sparkly (sigh).  But always more of them, continuing to feed our bloodlust and just plain lust at times.  We never seem to get enough of them.

Bram Stoker wrote other stories and most people have never read them.  Because the book Dracula was larger than life, and it struck a cord within us that we still love after all this time.

Thank you 'Bram - I for one am glad you did!  Happy Birthday.

Terri

 

 

 

 

 





Review: A Deadly Cliche' by Ellery Adams

Title: A Deadly Cliche'

Author: Ellery Adams

(A books By The Bay Mystery)

Olivia Limoges is walking her dog on the beach as she does every morning. Today she finds a child's sand pail covering something and as she gets close enough to remove the pail she finds a the head of a dead man.

This is just  the first of many murders and it's soon discovered that the link to these murders is that the murderer is leaving a calling card of clichés.

 

The books by the bay writer's group soon put their head and hearts together and try to find answers for the why and soon it is apparent there are many hidden layers to the murders.

 

Meanwhile Olivia has a mystery of her own. She receives a letter telling her that her father is still alive. She hires her own investigator and if isn't enough her friend Laurel is going through a home and career crisis.

 

Plus Olivia finds herself more and more attracted to Chief Rawlings. Round all of this out with a hurricane and a new project Olivia and her dog Haviland plates are full of more than trying latest recipes.

 

Ellery Adams has penned not only a talented series but she has created characters with depth. Each character brings something to the table whether it is a food table or a writing table they are all interesting and you will grow to love each character for themselves.

 

Pamela

 

Guest Blogger - Alice Duncan

How’d it Get to be November Already???

 

Life is positively flying past, and I don’t approve. Life doesn’t seem to care if I approve or not, so I guess it will continue to fly. Sigh.

 

However, there are two or three interesting bookly things going on in my world. First, ANGEL’S FLIGHT is now a certified audiobook, read by Darlene Allen, and I’ll be giving away copies in this month’s contest. Here’s the cover and the link in case you want to buy it rather than wait until the end of November to find out if you won a copy:

 

Buy it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also, I got a box and a half of ARCs (advanced reading copies) for SPIRITS REVIVED, Daisy Gumm Majesty’s seventh adventure, and I’ll be giving some of those away, too, at the end of the month in my contest. Here’s the cover:

 

 

And there’s yet another audiobook in the works! CACTUS FLOWER, an historical romance novel that always makes me laugh (so be warned) will be released in audiobook format soon. My old buddy Jim Hull narrates this one.

 

 

 

Other than that, life is still full of dogs, although it’s not as full as it used to be, thank HEAVEN. My three foster wiener dogs are now in Albuquerque, awaiting the New Mexico Dachshund Rescue Adoptathon, which will be held on November 9, at the Petco on San Mateo. So if you want to be a good guy (or gal) and adopt a used dachshund, be sure to stop by. I’m planning to be there. It will be nice to get out of Roswell and in a real city! And it’ll be good for the dachshunds in our care, too. Here’s the full skinny:

 

 

 

And that’s about it from here. If you’d like to enter my November contest, during which I’ll be giving away free copies of ANGEL’S FLIGHT, the audiobook, and free copies of the SPIRITS REVIVED ARC, please send me an email with your name and home address. Let me know if you want the audiobook or the ARC. Send it to me at alice@aliceduncan.net and I’ll throw your name into one of two special contest doggie dishes. Then, on November 30, Bam-Bam will draw names from both bowls, and the winners will either be sent a coupon for the audiobook (via email) or an ARC (at their home address). You can read about both books on my web site: www.aliceduncan.net .

 

I think that sounds more complicated than it actually is. Oh, well. Thank you!