No
blog last night partly because it was one of those “I have nothing to say”
days, but also because I started a new and charming cozy mystery and let it
hold my attention. Murder in G Major, by Alexia Gordon, is first in a
series of four Gethsemane Brown Mysteries. Gethsemane is an African-American
classical musician stranded in Ireland by lost luggage and a lost job
opportunity. To earn enough to get back home, she accept the challenge of shepherding
a rowdy boys school orchestra to a championship. A cliffside cottage is
offered, and she moves in, unaware that it is inhabited by the ghost of a
composer she has always much admired. He wants her to clear his name of the
murder of his wife and his own suicide. The Irish setting is fun, Gethsemane is
a compelling character, and the ghost is a pure delight. The covers to all four
books are gorgeous.
But
that’s a digression because my real announcement today is that Finding
Florence is now available from Amazon Books in trade paper or as an ebook. Finding
Florence: An Irene in Chicago Culinary Mystery - Kindle edition by Alter, Judy.
Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com. This
is Irene’s third adventure, and Henny definitely has mixed emotions about
having her back in town. Irene’s friend, Florence, has died, but when Irene asks
about a service, etc., it turns out that Florence’s body is missing. Irene is
obsessed, and Henny’s life is a mess, torn between helping Florence and
struggling to keep her job as a TV chef. The character that surprised me in
this novel is Irene’s lover, the mysterious billionaire Chance Charpentier, also
the father of Irene’s twenty-year old daughter, but that’s another story from a
previous book. Chance turns out to be a perfectly charming, take-charge kind of
a guy. Who knew? I’m so excited about this that I’m already planning Irene’s
next adventure in my head—she’ll visit Texas, though she despises Texas food. Which
reminds me, the new book has both recipes from Irene, French of course, and
Texas recipes from Henny’s mother’s kitchen.
This
morning I woke up thinking there is not a thing in the world I have to worry
about today. I’ve planned an easy chicken salad for supper, I have leftover meatloaf
for lunch, Sophie is well and happy (no chicken bone problems), I know what I
have to do with the project on my desk. Of course, I forgot about the heat—but since
I’m not out running around it doesn’t bother me.
But
what I forgot about big time was America as it is today, with a rogue court
handing out disastrous decisions and a Republican Party determined to cling to
authority at the cost of democracy. All that hit me as soon as I booted up my
computer and checked the news. Do you read, “Wake Up to Politics”? It’s an
online column by Gabe Fleisher, a college sophomore in D.C., Georgetown U. He’s
been writing this bipartisan column since 2011 (which makes him pretty young
when he started it). Today he ran down a list of potential 2024 challengers to
both President Biden and trump, and I have to say everyone on the Republican
list, from Ron DeSantis to Ted Cruz, scared the heck out of me. Check it out if
you’re so minded.
Jordan comes home this evening after a few days in Key Largo, with several girlfriends at the family home of one of the girls. (That's Jordan in front with green glasses, and no, those aren't MAGA hats!) Good get-away for her and some needed relaxation. And Jacob is still at camp, but Christian and I seem to have survived nicely. I’ve cooked quite a bit, got lots of work done, had plenty of visitors. My world does look good—now if we could just do something about the bigger picture.
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