Artful Readers Club - May

Another month has zipped by and it's time for my book review.

This month I'm reviewing another cosy by Laura Childs

"Scones and Bones" from her Tea Shop Mystery series.

Theodosia Brown runs the Indigo Tea Shop with Drayton, her tea expert, and Haley, her chef and baking expert.

This series is set in the more genteel surroundings of Charleston and the local Historical Society plays a large part in most of Theodosia's investigations....yes, she's another amateur sleuth.

The starting point for this mystery is a murder that takes place during the theft of a diamond embellished skull cup......a skull cup is exactly what it says...the skull in question is reputedly that of Edward Teach, aka Blackbeard, the notorious pirate.

The book was a lovely light read but I did learn quite a bit about the history of Charleston and the surrounding area.Vivid descriptions of the houses and gardens (and graveyards)in the Historic district brought the city to life.

I also learnt more about tea than I ever imagined I would.....Drayton's descriptions and blends could almost convert me...I'm a non-tea drinker....apart from the occasional cup of Earl Grey or Orange Blossom I loathe the stuff!

The characters are well drawn and include the usual suspects.... a brusque policeman who wishes amateurs wouldn't interfere, the unlikeable female etc. etc.

This story also introduces a new love interest for Theodosia....I'm hoping this one is "the one".

Having enjoyed the book I eagerly read the recipes (but not the tea tips) included at the back....I wanted to make the lemon scones and with the help of FB found out exactly how much a "stick of butter" weighs (4oz if you're interested) but sadly had no buttermilk to hand.


And so to my art work......I couldn't decide whether to run with pirates or the whole tea thing.

In the end I made the only thing possible.........

fruit scones!!


Next month I'm off to Venice, courtesy of "Beastly Things" by Donna Leon.

Artful Reader Club - April

In a change to the advertised programme  book, this month I'm reviewing "Tangled in Divine" by Heather Rainier.

I originally intended to read and review another "cosy" by Laura Childs, then it was going to be # 11 of the Black Dagger Brotherhood but I haven't quite finished it and pictures of hunky vampires (who don't sparkle) are hard to come by.

As most of my reading these days is done on my Kindle and Heather had a new book out I thought why not?

When I first got my Kindle I became aware of genres that I'd never even seen let alone considered. There is a whole world of erotica out there with sub-genres such as paranormal, western, sci-fi, steampunk and my personal favourite...menages...a trois, a quatre....and so on.

The second menage I ever read was "Divine Grace" by Heather...I fell in love with Grace and her men to such an extent that I was loath to read the other books in the series.....how could I read about Divine and not have Grace and her men in the story? I eventually bit the bullet and I'm so pleased I did!

"Tangled in Divine" is # 14 in the Divine Creek Ranch series and tells the story of Gwen Henderson, a champion rider, whose dream of retiring from the rodeo circuit is shattered. Gwen ends up in Divine and meets up with Julian Alvarez and Chris Potter. The story chronicles their growing relationship and the problems Gwen faces through no fault of her own.

The book is suitable for over 18's only as there are, understandably, sex scenes.

These scenes are pretty hot and are an important element of the book. However the focus of all the books in the series (and not all are menages) is relationships. Good ones need working at and trust and honesty are important between partners, regardless of how many there are. The wider community and a sense of belonging (and being supportive) are also stressed.
Divine Creek really is so much more than just a place on a map.
What I love about the series is that you do meet up with the characters from previous books and you see them change and develop.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book - joyous is the word I'd use to describe it.
I laughed and I cried and I'm still giggling several days later when I recall one particular scene in the Dancing Pony.....if you read the book you'll know the one I mean!

And so, on to the art work.....

I did a gel image transfer of some "cowboy country" paper on to a 5 x 7 canvas. I coated this with mod podge and then embellished the life out of it...the stamps are by Unity; the metal tokens are Tim Holtz (capture life's moments was the nearest I could get to "carpe diem", a motif in all the books);buttons are TH and October Afternoon;flowers by Petaloo and the horse is a patch for sewing on to s'thing.

This is my tribute to Gwen and all the other feisty ladies of Divine.

And finally to my friend Gill Parker...I'm so pleased you found "Still Life" (the first book in the series that I reviewed last month) and that you enjoyed it! It really is beautifully written. I hope you enjoy the rest of the series too.

I'm not predicting what I'll be reviewing next month....

Birthday Boy

Happy Birthday to Max my fur baby.....11 today.

Sunbathing.....

Artful Readers Club - March

This month finds us in Canada, in the provinces near Montreal.

"A Trick of the Light" is book 7 in the series featuring Inspector Gamache and his team from the Surete du Quebec.

The story is centred around the village of Trois Pins (Three Pines) and the art world in Montreal.

It starts at an art show in the Musee d'Art Contemporain in Montreal, the first show for Clara Morrow, a middle aged artist who lives with her husband, Peter, in Trois Pins.
This the first shock in the novel as it was Peter who was considered the more talented and more famous of the two.
The second shock is the discovery of a body in Clara's garden the next morning.
The body turns out to be an ex-friend of Clara, a woman who made enemies by the dozen in her role as an art critic.
Part of the puzzle is how she found Clara's house as the village does not appear on any maps....people find it either by chance or by having detailed instructions.

So there you have it....a murder mystery with lots of motives and suspects.

What makes this book stand out in a crowded genre is the quality of the writing. Louise Penny writes with elegance and depth.
Her characters are rounded, and all too human, with the petty vices common to us all.
She explores relationships and the little secrets that remain hidden, even between husband and wife after over 20 years of marriage. Secrets that have the power to destroy as they take on more significance over the years.

What really makes the series for me though are Penny's descriptive powers. I've been hooked since book 1 "Still Life" (come across by chance). I found myself smiling and feeling warm inside as I read. It took me a while to figure out why.
I had a perfectly formed picture of the village in my mind, I could imagine it existing, I wanted to live there.

Penny's descriptions are, quite simply, lyrical.

I've done another collage this month, inspired by the village:

Thanks to Cloth-Paper Scissors for the tutorial by Kristen Robinson on layering.
The paper is Canson mixed media prepared with gesso and acrylic paints. The picture, the flag and the printed papers are from old books, the token from Tim Holtz says "Listen", the Art with everything stamp is by Chocolate Baroque.  
The final touches were bubble wrap circles and a butterfly stamp by La Blanche.

30 Days of Lists - Days 23 - 26

Day 23 - Past injuries....

Day 24 - Pets: Past and Present....

Day 25 - When faced with a tough decision I ....

Day 26 - This time last year I was....

I've been playing with my Gelli plate again but can't show the results as I'm using the prints to make tags for our FB group meeting at Ally Pally next month.....I'm sooooooo looking forward to meeting my cyber friends in person...yay!!

Over the weekend I'm going to be blog hopping to catch up on all your latest posts....

30 Days of Lists - Days 21 and 22 plus a LO.

Day 21 - Today's weather reminds me of....

....certainly not Spring, that's for sure!

Day 22 - Road trip playlist....

....a mixture but all very loud and easy to sing along to!

The Barbra Streisand is "our album"...I bought it for DH and we used to play it every Sunday as he drove me to King's Cross for the train home (we lived apart because of jobs for the first 9 months of our marriage)...I could close my eyes and know exactly where we were on the A40 by the song that was playing.



And now for my latest LO....untitled as yet....another nature photo...

This is for a stitching challenge on Flying Unicorn.
The papers are by Grace Taylor (for Grant Archival)

I'm now off to do some proof reading...hoping to start my Ally Pally tags this evening.

30 Days of Lists - Days 19 and 20

Day 19 - in the next year I will....

Day 20 - I do not regret....

Last night I made a start on a new LO....just need to embellish it....

It was so relaxing to sit and sew on it with one of the music channels playing...mindless pleasure!