My Latest Reads

I've finished a few books lately.

I finished North and South by John Jakes after returning from my trip to the OC. I loved the book, but at times, I wished it would move faster. I'm still undecided if I will read the rest of the series. I do want to watch the miniseries starring Patrick Swayze. It's so expensive. I'm deciding whether to chance ordering from Amazon or not. I found it on there for under $30, but everywhere else averages $60 and up. Makes me a bit leery. Plus, I've read that several key story elements are missing in the miniseries such as Patrick's character never loses an arm in the Mexican War and his navy obsessed brother is non-existent. Also, some key character's time lines are skewed. I wonder if I'll enjoy the miniseries if it's that much altered.

After reading Kelly Cutrone's book, I went back to my southern fiction table and selected Tragic Magic by Laura Childs. Laura Childs is a mystery author most known for her two bestselling series. One is the Tea Shop Mysteries set in Charleston, SC. The Jessica Fletcher-esk character starring in the series owns a Tea Shop so all over her books include mini tea recipes and facts. The other series is set in New Orleans and stars a woman that owns a Scrapbook Store called Memory Mine. Thus, it's titled the Scrapbook Mysteries. I normally do not read mysteries because I feel like I normally figure them out too early to enjoy them. I was also concerned about reading a book that was in the middle of a very long successful series, but I was very pleasantly surprised. I loved it. I actually was taken off guard when the killer was revealed and I enjoyed the banter between the characters. The book gave enough background throughout for me to easily piece together the character's histories without going backwards to read the previous stories. I did not mind the little Scrapbook comments and influence being a Scapper myself, but I am not so sure about reading the Tea Mysteries. I may talk myself into it just because they are set in Charleston.

Today, I finished a very quick, light, silly read, Poor Little Bitch Girl by the glamorous Jackie Collins. It was all that a Jackie Collins novels characters usually are... rich, sexy, famous, scandalous, and infamous! I delightful read.

Tomorrow, I'll have to find another book. I think I'll step back out of my southern fiction box again.