Elizabeth is Missing (Book Review)

Title: Elizabeth is Missing
Author: Emma Healey

Publication Information: HarperCollins hardcover, 2014

Genre: Contemporary fiction, set in England

Plot: Maud is an elderly woman losing her memory, devoted to her friend Elizabeth. Although confused by much of her daily life, she knows she hasn’t seen Elizabeth lately.  Convinced Elizabeth is missing, Maud is determined to find her.

Outlander – Season 1, Episode 1, Sassenach – Recap

As requested, I’ve gone back to the beginning of Outlander to recap the first episode.   For those who missed the 8-part series on Starz, it will probably be repeated in a marathon showing just before the second half of season 1 begins in April and is also going to be rerun on Christmas.  Outlander is based on Diana Gabaldon’s bestselling historical fiction series.  As I have told many people, as I left Bantam Doubleday Dell in May of 1991, I helped myself to two advance reading copies (arcs) from a pile on the 22nd floor that looked appealing.  One was The Firm by John Grisham and the other was Outlander.  I often think about how BDD (now Random House) launched two incredible franchise authors that year.

 

Episode 1 begins with a voiceover from Claire, the heroine of the series, describing how people disappear every day.  Most such disappearance can be explained, but not all.  (If you need an explanation for time travel, this is the wrong show/series for you.)

Woman with a Gun (Book Review)

Title: Woman with a Gun
Author: Phillip Margolin

Publication Information: Harper Collins, Hardcover, December 2014

Genre: Suspense

 Plot: This is a story within a story inspired by an unusual photograph of a woman in wedding dress approaching the ocean, holding a gun.  Stacey Kim is working as a receptionist at a law firm in New York to pay the bills while she nurses literary ambitions: 

"Stacey’s nonexistent social life and mind-numbing job would not have mattered if she was making progress on her novel, but she wasn’t . . . Each time Stacey stared at the blank page on her laptop she tried to rekindle the hope and excitement she had felt during her first days in New York, but all she felt was despair.

That was about to change."

You’re Welcome vs. No Problem

I am a serial thanker.  This may be partly because of my experience in service industries or due to innate courtesy.  When living in NYC, I always thanked bus drivers profusely, partly to be nice but also convinced that some day one would recognize me running to catch up and would wait for me.  Recently, I have noticed a disturbing phenomenon: the new default response to a thank you from the younger generation is “no problem.”   However, I do not consider that “no problem” is by any means an equivalent to “you’re welcome” or that it is appropriate in all situations.

When someone says “you’re welcome,” she is making an affirmative representation that providing service to you was, if not her privilege, something that gave her satisfaction.  The transaction is cemented by gracious thanks on your side and polite assurance on hers.

In contrast, when someone responds to thanks with a “no problem,” whether courteously or airily delivered, it implies that there was a problem or that he was not overly inconvenienced by the service provided.  “It was not a problem for me to assist you in this way” or “There is no need to thank me because it didn’t cause me a problem.”   Does that individual intend to communicate churlishness?  Probably not (although the service I receive from some would indicate otherwise) but why not send the thanker off feeling appreciated rather than grudgingly tolerated?  Otherwise, why acknowledge the thanks at all? 

Is this generational, mere informality or a real decline in manners?

Outlander – Season 1, Episode 8, Both Sides Now – Recap

This episode begins in 20th century Inverness showing Frank’s side of Claire’s disappearance.  I never cared that much about Frank’s suffering but Ron Moore, the producer of Outlander, decided to fill out that part of the story.  The police tell Frank that they have spent six weeks investigating Claire’s disappearance without results and they have concluded she is still alive, probably with the Highlander Frank saw lurking outside her window.   Frank is furious with their lack of effort and assumptions about Claire, and says emphatically that his wife is not with another man.   

Immediate cut away to Claire with her other man – her new husband, Jamie. 

The Sea Garden (Book Review)

Title: The Sea Garden
Author: Deborah Lawrenson

Publication Information: HarperCollins, hardcover, 2014

Genre: Fiction/Historical Fiction

Plot: This book consists of three interlocking novellas.  In the first story, set in 2013, Ellie Brooke, a landscape architect, has traveled to an island off the French coast to restore a long neglected garden. Her employer is an urbane older Frenchman with an eccentric elderly mother. Ellie’s visit has ominous overtones even before she reaches the decayed home of the de Fayols family, but she experiences the usual gothic intimidation once she arrives: hostility, a host who abandons her, mysterious strangers, her possessions rifled, and she becomes mysteriously dizzy.  Ellie’s narrative ends abruptly.

Outlander – Season 1, Episode 7, The Wedding – Recap

This is the episode everyone was waiting for, whether she (or the occasional he) had read the book or not, and the ratings reflected this anticipation: the highest for any episode.  The Wedding was watched by 3.8 million viewers and broke ratings records for Starz. Pretty amazing for a station people either didn’t know they had (yours truly) or subscribed to just for Outlander.

In the previous episode, Dougal extracted Claire from a vicious confrontation with Captain Randall and told her he couldn’t protect an English citizen but even Black Jack would not dare touch Claire if she were married to a Scot.  Still stunned from being punched in the stomach by someone who so closely resembles her lost husband Frank, Claire reluctantly agreed to marry Jamie – after ascertaining Jamie didn’t object. 

This episode begins with a flashback to Claire and Frank’s wedding: she is about to meet his parents for the first time when he sweeps her off to a registry office, and their kiss fades into Claire and Jamie’s wedding kiss.  Then the newly married 18th century couple is alone at last in their wedding chamber, both nervous.  Claire suggests a drink and Jamie makes a gallant toast.   Although he is clearly very eager to consummate the marriage, he knows she is apprehensive and tells her not to be afraid; he won’t jump her.   She tells him she has some questions and he warily agrees to answer them.   Claire asks why he agreed to marry her.  Jamie flashes back to Ned Gowan and Dougal telling him this was the only way to protect her from Randall.  Dougal then made a lewd comment about Claire (implying anyone would enjoy having sex with Claire) and Jamie said angrily that if she becomes his wife, Dougal will have to refer to her with respect.  “So you married me to keep me safe?” she asks.

“You have my name, my clan, my family and, if necessary, the protection of my body as well,” Jamie promises. Swoon! Claire is nearly as affected as I am, and sits beside him and he is about to kiss her when she panics and asks about his family as a distraction.  Time goes by while they get to know each other slightly better and Claire relaxes.   Rupert and Angus burst in to see whether Jamie has done the deed.  Once Jamie has got rid of them (one hopes he locked the door this time), Claire suggests they go to bed.

“To bed or to sleep?” Jamie inquires with a meaningful look.  “Either way” he offers politely to help her remove her corset.  He undresses her very carefully and they kiss, accompanied by lots of heavy breathing. 

“Where did you learn to kiss like that?” Claire asks, surprised.

“I said I was a virgin, not a monk,” Jamie tells her, with a triumphant smile.

Their first encounter is over quickly, perhaps because Jamie is a novice (albeit very enthusiastic) or impatient but also because they have both been told the marriage must be consummated with witnesses nearby.  Talk about embarrassing!   Jamie and Claire appear very comfortable together afterwards but when she starts feeling guilty about Frank and darts out of the bedchamber to get them food, she is caught off guard by all the MacKenzies who are lying in wait and shout out all sorts of inappropriate questions.  She is barely dressed and frozen with horror but Jamie gallantly guides her back into the bedroom and takes the brunt of the abuse.   

While he is gathering food, Dougal glares at him and says resentfully Jamie hasn’t thanked him properly for his bride.  Dougal is hating Jamie’s wedding night, which is not good uncle behavior.   He warns Jamie not to rush back to Claire or she’ll have too much power over him.  Dougal doesn’t realize Claire already has so much power over Jamie that Jamie repeats the whole conversation to her!  Claire secretly likes that but gulps down some more whiskey anyway (she has been drinking pretty steadily since Dougal told her about the wedding).  Her hard head for alcohol is one of the ways in which she fits right into the 18th century!

Jamie, getting back into the mood, leans over Claire and calls her “mo nighean donn”  (my brown haired lass) for the first time.  More swooning.  He tells her how he obtained a Fraser tartan for their wedding (he had not been seen in one previously because that would be advertising his identity and remember there’s a bounty on his head).  It may be hard for a modern audience to understand how important wearing the tartan was for a loyal clansman, but the English knew, thus banned it after Culloden so as to completely wipe out whatever sparks of rebellion might be left.  There is a flashback to a very improbable chat with stern-looking Murtagh – Jamie says he wants to look his best at the wedding to honor his mother.  Murtagh was sweet on Ellen MacKenzie who chose another man and died when Jamie was a child but when Jamie asks what his mother would have thought of Claire, Murtagh says, "Do I look like a gypsy?"  

Jamie tells Claire he gave Dougal some conditions about their marriage (Dougal in disgust, “It would be easier to kill you both!”): first, that they be married by a priest (they are both Catholic); second, that a special wedding ring be made for Claire from a key he’d been carrying around in his sporran; and third, that someone find Claire a suitable wedding dress.  I could have done without seeing Ned Gowan being “entertained” in the brothel where he locates a dress for Claire, but he certainly found her a lovely gown, although much too low cut.

While Jamie was being so thoughtful, Claire was hung-over, but both she and Jamie look resplendent when it’s time for the wedding.  It’s the first time we’ve seen Jamie dressed up (his hair looks a bit odd) and he is more stunning than she is!   Overcome, she says she doesn’t even know his name!   He looks into her eyes, and says, “James Alexander Malcolm MacKenzie Fraser.”   The wimpy priest Dougal frightened into performing the wedding without bans does his part and they are married in a church we’d all like to visit, full of candles and clansmen in attendance.  At the end of the ceremony Claire is startled when their wrists are slightly cut (by helpful Dougal) and bound together so they can utter a Gaelic vow of unity.  (In the book, Claire and Frank got married at the same church as Claire and Jamie, but London makes more sense.)

After they discuss their recollections of the wedding, Claire is touched by the care Jamie took to make her wedding day memorable and she expresses her appreciation by asking him to remove his shirt so she can show that his scarred back is not repugnant to her.   After a few minutes, Jamie asks her to remove her shift and then gazes at her carefully.

“Have you never seen a naked woman before?” she asks gently.  

“Aye, but not one so close. And not one who’s mine,” he says, and carries her to the bed.  This time Claire uses their encounter to show him what pleases her, to explain about orgasms, and stun him with oral sex.   Afterwards, Jamie falls asleep and Claire ventures outside the bedchamber where Dougal is lying in wait.  He reports that he visited Captain Randall and broke the happy news that Claire had married his nephew.

“I commend you for doing your duty but it needn’t stop you from sampling other pleasures.  I find you to be the most singular woman, Claire.”   He caresses her chin.

“I’m Jamie’s wife!” she protests.  This is absurd!  Has Dougal ever looked in a mirror?  Probably not often, due to a general scarcity.  But, seriously, even if Claire weren’t falling in love with Jamie, why would anyone want to sample Dougal?  In his dreams!

Luckily, Rupert interrupts.  Claire thanks him for getting her wedding ring.  After she returns to the bedchamber, Rupert jokes to Dougal that Claire looks “well ridden” – gross.   This annoys Dougal so much he slaps Rupert and sends him away.

Back in the bedchamber, Jamie wakes up and sees Claire looking melancholy (well, you might feel guilty too if you were a bigamist who enjoyed having sex with your new husband).  He gets up and removes a string of pearls from his handy sporran and drapes them over Claire’s bare shoulders, telling her they belonged to his mother.  They have sex again and this time it shows that Claire really cares about him, and is not merely doing her duty/saving herself from Captain Randall.

The next morning Jamie heads down to breakfast ahead of Claire.  As Claire picks up her wedding dress from the floor, her Frank wedding ring falls out and bounces across the floor symbolically, landing between floorboards.  I was afraid it was going to disappear but Claire pulled it out and put it on her left hand.  She holds her hands out and surveys both wedding rings as the episode ends.

What’s Important About This Episode:

·        This episode is primarily eye candy for the loyal fans and was beautifully done.  The sex scenes were broken up by flashbacks to advance the story (not to mention the dark bedchamber must have been challenging to film in).  There were some humorous interludes in and out of the bedroom (but what was with the creepy cat?).  My friend Carla complains that the miniseries omits the humor that made the book unique, so it was good to see some laughter that didn’t involve pervy clansmen crudeness.

·        Claire feels very guilty about marrying Jamie when she is already married to Frank.  Hence all the scotch.   However, Jamie is sufficiently attractive that anyone would forget Frank temporarily. 

·        It wasn’t quite as obvious in the book that Dougal lusted for Claire (he does have a wife *and* a girlfriend), although he did kiss her on the night of the Gathering, and there’s another incident later on.   But he is delusional if he thinks he’s competition for Jamie. 

·        Diana makes it clear that she wants Claire to be perceived as very comfortable with her sexuality, no matter what century she’s in.  Claire is confident about everything, however.  People are attracted to her not just because she is beautiful but because she is courageous and self-possessed – look at the way she stood up to Captain Randall.  They don’t know she’s a time traveler but they know she’s not like the women they know.

·        Will Claire’s handsome husband make her forget her determination to return to the standing stones?

Starz has just announced that Outlander will return for its midseason premiere on April 4, 2015.  Can't wait!

Images copyright to Starz

The New Moon with the Old (Book Review)

Title: The New Moon with the Old
Author: Dodie Smith

Publication: 1963, Corsair paperback edition 2012

Genre: Fiction

Plot: Since her mother died, Jane Minton has sought live-in positions and has no permanent home so is full of anticipation for her new job as secretary/housekeeper to the attractive Rupert Carrington, a London businessman.  When she arrives, luggage in hand, at the Carringtons’ country home she meets his children, three adults: Richard, a mid-20s aspiring composer; Clare, pretty and ineffective; Drew, determined to write a novel set in the Edwardian era; and 14-year-old Merry, a precocious teen planning to go on the stage. When disaster strikes, Rupert is exposed as an embezzler and flees the country, while the Carrington offspring and Jane must join forces to save their existence at Dome House.

Outlander – Season 1, Episode 6, The Garrison Commander – Recap

In the last episode, just as Claire had become extremely disillusioned with Dougal and his MacKenzie sidekicks, she is offered an escape by a gallant English officer, Lieutenant Jeremy Foster.  Claire hesitates, but tells the Lieutenant that she is the guest of Clan MacKenzie.  He insists that she accompany him to see his commanding officer, and Dougal says he will go with her (although Claire knows he hates the English soldiers).  A foppish English officer (Brigadier General Sir Oliver Lord Thomas) welcomes Claire to his dinner table – he appears to have wandered out of Georgette Heyer – and he and his pals insult Dougal, who says softly they should have stayed in London if they don’t like the local accent.

Claire appears quite at home with the nobility despite having been camping for weeks and wearing the same dress all that time.  At first she revels in the company of her countrymen and they are equally delighted to be entertained by a delicately bred Englishwoman.  Genially, Lord Thomas instructs Lieutenant Foster to escort her to Inverness, and Claire thinks she is home free until Captain Jonathan Randall, our villain, bursts in.  They glare at each other but pretend they haven’t met.  Lord Thomas suggests that Captain Randall bring Claire to Inverness so he can hear about her adventures.  Captain Randall tells Claire about an English private who was killed by the Scots, Isis-style.  While Claire expresses sorrow over his fate, she points out that she encountered some Highlanders who had apparently been crucified by the English without due process.  The English officers don’t see that both sides are exercising vigilante justice, and see Claire’s candid opinions as disloyal.  Captain Randall seizes the opportunity to impugn her morals and accuses her of sleeping with Dougal (in Dougal's dreams!).  Claire says that’s a scurrilous lie, and Randall pretends to apologize.   Claire is so angry she defends the Scots and their right to their own land, which offends her hosts.

There is a skirmish outside the town and Claire offers to help with the wounded, startling the English officers who don’t know she’s a healer.  She warns Dougal to make himself scarce because the English will want someone to blame, then she assists with an amputation without anesthesia (just in case you forgot that medicine in the 18th century is primitive).  When she returns to the elegant dining room, the English officers are all gone except Randall who is being shaved by his batsman.  Claire has a flashback to Frank, using the same blade, but with her affectionate assistance.  Randall dismisses the servant and tells Claire that her outspoken comments make her loyalty questionable.  However, he tells her he wants to apologize for their previous encounters and says he hopes they can start again with honesty on both sides.  “My honesty will match yours, Captain,” Claire replies warily.

Randall states her behavior labels her as a trollop or a spy.  Desperate, Claire makes up a new story, saying she was betrayed by a lover stationed in Scotland.   Randall doesn’t believe her, but says if she gives him evidence that Dougal is raising money for the Jacobites, he will bring her to Inverness.   Claire insists she never heard any discussion of treason.   Randall threatens to torture her to get the information he wants.   Furious, Claire tells Randall she’s heard about his notorious lashing of a young Scot and we get an unpleasant and way too long flashback to Jamie getting flogged while Randall enjoys it.  Jamie’s refusal to beg for mercy made his punishment worse, just as Claire refuses to back down to Randall.   If you had any doubt about Randall's character, hearing him talk about the beauty of the flogging shows you how sick he is.  Claire, revolted but trying not to show weakness, listens to Randall blame war and the Scots for what he has become.   She tells him he can choose to be the man he wants to be, despite what he has done.  He says he can start by escorting her to Inverness but he is toying with her; he calls his servant, Corporal Hawkins, back into the room, but when he helps Claire up, he punches her in the stomach.  As she lies gasping on the floor, he forces the corporal to kick her Kick her, milksop!”  Dougal bursts in just in time to rescue Claire, warning Randall to let her go unless he wants to start a war. here. on this day.   

Randall gives in reluctantly but commands Dougal, “Be sure to deliver her to Fort William by sundown tomorrow, if she is not present at the appointed time, you’ll be accused of harboring a fugitive from English law and you’ll hunted down and punished even unto death, war chief or not.”

How Claire could get on a horse after Randall’s abuse, I don’t know, but they gallop away and she manages stay on while Dougal leads her to a mysterious pool and tells her to drink.   Then Dougal pulls a sword and asks her yet again if she is a spy.   Angrily, Claire denies it.   He tells her he brought her to St. Ninian’s Spring; according to legend, anyone who drinks must tell the truth, so because she drank he finally believes she isn’t a spy.   Dougal explains the only way he can save Claire from Captain Randall is for her to marry a Scot: then the English would have no jurisdiction over her.  Claire refuses and asks suspiciously if she is to marry Dougal but he makes it clear that while he lusts for her (like everyone else), Jamie is the lucky guy.   

When Jamie appears, looking a million times more attractive than Dougal (although Dougal looked pretty good when he rescued Claire from Randall), Claire is reading her own marriage contract drafted by everyone’s favorite 18th century lawyer, Ned Gowan.   Claire is surprised that Jamie is willing to marry her and asks if there isn’t someone he is interested in.    Surprised, Jamie reminds her he has a price on his head so isn’t the most eligible prospect.  She can’t believe he is so willing to go along with Dougal’s plan and finally pulls out her last objection, “Doesn’t it bother you that I’m not a virgin?”   Jamie replies slowly, “Ah, no, so long as it doesn’t bother you that I am.” Shyly he adds, “I reckon one of use should ken what they’re doing!”   Stunned, Claire gulps down some convenient alcohol as Jamie saunters back to the men, who are waiting patiently for the wedding.

What’s Important About This Episode:

·        Claire is torn between the Highlanders who have more or less protected her and the English, her own people, who (by disappearing) allow Randall to mistreat her

·        Claire continues to be freaked out by Randall’s resemblance to his descendant, Frank, one who hates her and one who loves her. 

·        Randall’s obsession with torturing Jamie is made all too clear – both in the flashback and in his delight in recounting it to Claire

·        Fabulous scene with Claire and Randall with incredible tension and great acting on both sides.  Just as in the book, the viewer forgets to breathe and is stunned by Randall’s unexpected brutality at the end.

·        Lord Thomas may be the garrison commander but it is Captain Randall who decides who gets kicked

·        Despite Dougal’s flaws, he protects Claire even when dangerous to do so (partly because she is the clan’s guest and partly because he hates Randall)

·        Claire and Jamie to marry!  Isn’t that what we’ve been waiting for since episode one?!  But what role reversal – it’s the hero who is young and so-to-speak untouched and the heroine who is experienced.

Images copyright to Starz

GI Brides (Book Review)

Title: GI Brides
Author: Duncan Barrett and Nuala Calvi

Barrett and Calvi are also the authors of The Sugar Girls, which chronicled the story of young women working in the factories of East London.

Publication:  HarperCollins Trade Paperback, September 2014

Genre: Nonfiction

Description: The subtitle of this book says it all: The wartime girls who crossed the Atlantic for love.  Between the years 1942 and 1952, about one million American soldiers married foreign women from 50 different countries.  Somewhere between 70,000- 100,000 war brides were British, 150,000 to 200,000 came from continental Europe, and another 16,000 were from Australia and New Zealand.  In this book, Calvi, the granddaughter of one such British war bride, and co-author Barrett take a look at four British women who followed their US husbands back to America after WWII and how they coped with the challenges of their new lives.

  
What I liked: Most of my friends know of my interest in women and war, particularly the work that women did outside the home during WWI and WWII.  I couldn’t put this book down!  While I am a fan of the stories about falling in love with a tall dark stranger, the stories in this book reveal the brash appeal of some of the GIs but the less obvious charm demonstrated by others.  It shows how many GIs were welcomed into British homes because they were far from home, even though many parents worried about their daughters falling for Americans.  The difficulties many of these women experienced when they arrived in the US after the war (or the challenges they had getting to America) are not ignored; instead, the book captures the excitement and the angst of their new lives.   

Audience: Fans of Homefront, one of my favorite TV shows ever, and of Call the Midwife; fans of historical fiction set during WWII. It reminded me of books by Lucilla Andrews, Lilian Harry and Margaret Mayhew. For those who like this genre, I also recommend Ship of Brides by Jojo Moyes.

Source:  I received GI Brides from the TLC Book Tours and urge you to stop by the tour to read other reviews.  

Tuesday, September 9th: BookNAround

Thursday, September 11th: Book Loving Hippo

Wednesday, September 17th: Doing Dewey

Thursday, September 18th: A Novel Review

Monday, September 22nd: Alison’s Book Marks

Wednesday, September 24th: Savvy Verse & Wit

Thursday, September 25th: A Bookworm’s World

Saturday, September 27th: Great Minds Read Alike

Thursday, October 2nd: Book by Book

Wednesday, October 8th: Diary of an Eccentric

Wednesday, October 15th: Sammy the Bookworm

You can buy the book online or at your favorite bookstore.  Highly recommended. 

Outlander – Season 1, Episode 5, Rent – Recap

This is a somewhat depressing episode in which Claire spends weeks on the road with Dougal and his occasionally merry men in what appears to be an annual trip to collect rent from the MacKenzie tenants.  Claire had hoped she would get an opportunity to escape to the Standing Stones of Craigh na Dun but she is still under close guard. Would you want to spend the night in this pitiful tent with no running water and half cooked animal legs to nibble?  Claire escapes down to the water and wistfully recites:

Outlander – Season 1, Episode 4, The Gathering – Recap

As the episode begins, we see Claire running urgently and it seems as if she is making her escape and is about to be shot by a sentry, but after a nervous minute for viewers it turns out she is playing with some castle children – clearly getting the lay of the land and discarding her fichu to mark her escape route.  Falling down, she gets an unpleasant view of what Rupert is not wearing under his kilt, and manages a put down with typical aplomb and sarcasm.  Her two unofficial guards whine about her prolonged playtime with the children because they don’t want to miss any of the festivities (Angus and Rupert resemble Shakespearean buffoons in this episode) and Claire pretends to give in, so they can all return to the castle where everyone is arriving and gearing up for the Clan Gathering.

Diana Gabaldon as Lady Iona MacTavish

Claire stops in the stables, ostensibly to pick out a horse to use at the Hunt the next day which she’ll be attending in her healer role, but really to earmark one for her planned escape that night.  Oh so casually, she asks where Jamie is because there’s nothing like a flirtation when one is planning to steal a horse, and old Alec, always a downer, warns her to leave Jamie alone because of the Gathering.  “I didn’t think I was a bother,” she mutters with annoyance.   Alex tells her she can use a horse called Brimstone, promising its personality belies the name.  We can only hope.

Bergdorf Blondes (Book Review)

Title: Bergdorf Blondes (10th Anniversary Edition)
Author: Plum Sykes
Publication Information:  Harper Collins Trade Paperback, 2014 (originally published 2004)
Genre: Chick Lit

Plot:  This is a satirical look at the beautiful people of New York City, specifically a nameless heroine and her friend, Julie Bergdorf (supposedly the heiress to the department store where I could barely afford to buy Laura Mercier cosmetics), 20-somethings who spend their time partying and wearing designer clothing.  When it seems like everyone they know is getting engaged and glowing attractively, she and Julie decide they too need to find eligible husbands and the rest of the book is about their misadventures as they try out various men as I would try out a new purse.  It is no surprise who the nameless heroine ends up with but it is amazing the poor choices she makes along the way.   It is hard to believe anyone who went to Princeton, even fictionally, could be quite so dimwitted.

What I liked:  The book is entertaining, if implausible; in fact, it is not meant to be taken seriously.  This glimpse of the idle Manhattan rich was a quick read for a hot summer day, and I liked the new packaging.   However, I think it would be more fun to read all day than to party with these heroines!

What I disliked: I enjoy well done chick lit but found this book very silly and predictable, albeit funny at times.  I did not care for all the (admittedly admiring) references to Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, and at first wondered if the book had been written before her death (it had not).  This gave it a dated feel.   And unless you are Daphne DuMaurier, please give your heroine a name, if just for the sake of the reviewer!

Source:  I received Bergdorf Blondes from the TLC Book Tours and urge you to stop by the tour to learn more about Plum Sykes and another of her books, The Debutante Divorcee.   Here are some recent stops:

Wednesday, September 3rd: Reading in Black & White – The Debutante Divorcee

Thursday, September 4th: booknerd – The Debutante Divorcee

Monday, September 8th: Mom in Love With Fiction – Bergdorf Blondes

Sykes was a Vogue editor who moved to NYC so presumably was acquainted with the sort of people in this book.  Most of the people I worked with in book publishing had too much work to go out every night, although there were a few blonde women at Wiley who were hung over every morning...

Early Decision (Book Review)

Title: Early Decision
Author: Lacy Crawford

Publication Information:  William Morrow, Trade Paperback, 2014 (originally published 2013)

Genre: Fiction

Plot: Anne Arlington is the brilliant young woman who advises (mostly) affluent high school seniors on the perfect essay that will make the difference in their college applications.  But while Anne is gifted at helping an inarticulate student find his or her voice (and thus the way to an admissions officer’s heart), she lacks confidence in every aspect of her life – career, boyfriend, and dealing with neighbors and parents.  Distracted by parents zealous on behalf of their privileged children, when will she be able to figure out the key to her own success?

Audience: Fans of chick lit; parents of high school seniors; anyone who remembers procrastinating about college applications

What I liked:  I could not put the book down, although as an alumni interviewer for Harvard myself, there was not much in it that was new to me.  I have often heard that a great essay can make the difference for an applicant, and I enjoyed how this story was told by looking at several different (and surprisingly appealing) applicants in a combination of narrative and essays.  It was extremely funny while simultaneously convincing and at times horrifying.  I am not sure I have met any parents as dreadful as those in this book but I have seen lots of people lose all sense of proportion during their children’s application process.   And in NYC where I used to live the competition begins with preschool admissions, long before college! 

What I disliked: I didn’t understand why Anne was so ashamed of her job, given that admissions consultants can be well paid and successful, and she was clearly very skilled.  Nor did I understand the appeal of her boyfriend, so wondered why she put up with him so long.  She suffered from working at home and not having any friends her own age except former grad school acquaintances.  I got depressed reading about her depression, and was impatient for her to come to her senses. 

Source:  I received Early Decision from the TLC BookTours and recommend it as a fun read.  Click here to buy a copy.   I also urge you to stop by the tour to learn more about the author and see what other reviewers had to say about this book.   

Outlander, Season 1, Episode 3, The Way Out - Recap

The episode begins with a flashback to WWII: Claire and Frank are parting at a train station as she heads for the front to nurse.  Frank is frustrated at this role reversal, that his Intelligence work is an office job and Claire will be the one in danger (perhaps this is the beginning of his feeling of inadequacy to Claire).  He acknowledges that no one can influence her once she’s made up her mind and commands her to return to him after the war (i.e., not to die), and Claire promises.  This was not in the book but I suppose it shows Claire is used to danger, is stubborn, and has never waited for permission from any male to do what she feels is right.  This explains attributes about her that would otherwise seem anachronistic.  Also, it helps explain why she feels compelled to return to Frank when Jamie is much more attractive!

Back to the 18th century.  As if she doesn’t have a busy castle to manage, Mrs. Fitz is helping Claire wash her hair, and is so motherly that Claire confides in her that Frank is not dead but rather hasn’t been born yet.   Claire tells Mrs. Fitz she has fallen through time from 1945 and describes what happened.   Instead of reacting with her typical brusque kindness, Mrs. Fitz is horrified, calls Claire a witch and slaps her.  Fortunately, it turns out to have been a sort of test balloon or daydream – Claire was just imagining how her confession and request for help might be received and didn’t really confide at all.  Tricky, tricky, especially, as her confession has been in the trailer and seemed real. 

Mrs. Fitz tells Claire everyone who is anyone in the Highlands is coming to Castle Leoch for a Gathering in a few days.   She advises Claire that her work as a healer may endear her to Colum MacKenzie, the laird.  Frustrated that Colum is keeping her at Castle Leoch when she wants to return to the Standing Stones, Claire tries to figure out a way to use her 20th century medical knowledge in a non-threatening 18th century way, recognizing that anything too unusual could upset her patients and boomerang on her.    Soon there is a regular procession of patients to Claire’s “surgery” in the bowels of the castle and even Colum, who suffers from Toulouse-Lautrec Syndrome although he doesn’t know it, asks for treatment and Claire provides a soothing massage.  (It’s kind of a joke on the audience that we get to see Colum’s unattractive backside when everyone is yearning for more naked Jamie.)  

In the Hall that night, there is a Very Awkward Triangle, when Claire sits down next to Laoghaire (it is definitely pronounced Leery) and introduces herself, attempting a friendly chat about cute guys, specifically Jamie, who, unaware they are talking about him, comes over and sits between them.   They talk about Colum’s bard (singing soulful songs in Gaelic) and Jamie’s first visit to Leoch when he was a teen, and Laoghaire asks if he remembers her.   Jamie, self-deprecating, says that he was a typical 16 year old then, too impressed with himself to pay attention to snot-nosed kids.  As if it wasn’t bad enough that he is looking at Claire the whole time he is answering her question, Laoghaire takes the “snot-nosed” comment as an insult.  Even worse, Jamie asks Claire to change his bandage (it’s an odd moment to choose, just as the festivities are beginning), and hands Claire’s wine goblet to Leoghaire to dispose of.   Once in Claire’s surgery, Jamie explains that he avoids showing his back to people who will pity him but Claire has shown empathy rather than pity.   Suddenly shy, he tries to leave, but Claire, a bit intoxicated from Colum’s Rhenish wine, insists on taking off his shirt (excuses) and tells him the shoulder is healing nicely.

The next day Geillis and Claire go out looking for herbs, and Geillis tells Claire the local priest is planning an exorcism of Mrs. Fitz’s nephew, Tammas, who has fallen mysteriously ill after visiting an abandoned monastery.  Claire looks skeptical.  “Do you not believe in demonic possession, Claire?” asks Geillis with surprise.  She tells Claire she believes in the powers of magic and asks if Claire has ever found herself in a situation with no real explanation, “a path you’ve never expected.”   Oh yes, thinks Claire, but has enough sense not to confide in someone who has already shown she is a big gossip and is very nosy besides.  Worried about the boy, Claire visits him uninvited, and tells Angus (still following her per Dougal’s orders) that a priest said her healing skills were a gift from God.  Claire thinks Tammas shows symptoms of poisoning, not of possession but his mother would rather rely on the ignorant local priest, Father Bain, who does not like competition and is furious that his dogmatic and quite over the top utterances about Satan are being challenged by Claire.  Claire has made her second enemy in one episode.  She is looking extremely fetching, however, with her hair up and a cowl neck scarf to liven up her demure gown. 

Back at the castle, while Claire is trying to figure out how she can help the boy, she sees Jamie kissing Laoghaire in a corner.*   At dinner, she teases Jamie about his lip being swollen and Jamie steps on her foot to shut her up.  After Jamie leaves in a huff, Alec warns Claire to be careful or Jamie might find himself married to an immature girl (due to the watchful eyes of the girl’s father) when he needs a woman. Hint, hint.  Claire tells herself she isn’t jealous of Leoghaire per se, just misses Frank, but we know that is not true.  Or, at least, not totally true.

The next day Dougal takes Claire to visit Geillis at her home.  Geillis warns Claire to steer clear of Father Bain, who sees women as evil temptresses.   There is a commotion outside, and Geillis explains that her husband, the local magistrate, is dispensing justice to a boy thief.  Arthur is much older than his pretty wife and in poor health.  Claire can’t help mentally diagnosing his condition but is more concerned with begging for compassion for the boy.   To please Claire, Geillis coaxes her husband to spare the boy’s hand, which might otherwise have been chopped off as punishment.  Instead, the boy is sentenced to a mere hour in the pillory with his ear nailed to the framework.   Jamie comes to fetch Claire back to the castle, and Claire is glad to escape Geillis’ inquisitive questions about her background.  When Claire realizes the poor boy has to tear himself loose from the pillory, she asks Jamie to help.   Claire stages a faint to distract the rotten townspeople enjoying the spectacle so that Jamie can free the boy’s ear.  In case anyone is wondering, they make a great team!

Claire asks Jamie to take her to the Black Kirk, the abandoned monastery where Tammas was allegedly contaminated by Satan.  She finds a poisonous plant, and becomes convinced that Tammas ate some, mistaking it for wood garlic (hard to believe there’s only one poisonous plant in that ominous place!).  She asks Tammas’ family if she can give him an antidote, but Father Bain says the boy’s soul will be eternally damned if Claire interferes.  Mrs. Fitz agonizes but tells Father Bain that it’s her sister’s house and Claire can try to save the boy.

“I smell the vapors of hell on you,” sneers Father Bain to Claire – I must use this on a guy at work who is clearly one of Satan’s minions – but she saves Tammas and is praised as a miracle worker by everyone else.   Claire becomes worried about the combination of awe and suspicion that now follows her (way to keep a low profile, Claire), and feels she is no closer to figuring out how to get back to Inverness and is still under surveillance.  Back in the Great Hall where everyone knows your name, Jamie translates the bard’s Gaelic, telling a story about a woman who lived among strangers, touched magical stones and traveled back to a man she had left behind.  “She came back through the stones?” asks Claire tremulously.  Although it’s just a ballad, this is the sign Claire needs that she must escape back to the stones or die trying.

What’s Important About This Episode:

·        The MacKenzie brothers have no secrets: Dougal knows Claire gave Colum a massage and makes a snide comment about taming a feral cat (meaning Claire).  He is so creepy!

·        Claire’s efforts to be nice to Laoghaire are a waste of energy: of course, Laoghaire hates her for capturing Jamie’s interest.  And Jamie is no more perceptive than modern men - he is completely oblivious about Laoghaire’s jealousy of Claire.

·        Claire knows, or should know, it is risky to help Tammas but as a healer she can’t ignore someone in need, even if it means arousing the enmity of Father Bain.

·        Claire and Jamie’s rapport is more than physical, although the chemistry is still palpable.  Their friendship may have begun when she brought him lunch at the stables and he told her about Captain Randall but there is something moving about his telling her she’s one of the few people he will allow to see his back.

* I have always wondered about the incident where Jamie makes out with Leoghaire.   How did it come about?  Did Laoghaire waylay Jamie in some way?  Is he just a normal guy experimenting with a willing young woman?  Is he trying to force an interest in someone more suitable than Claire?  He is not the type to try to make Claire jealous but it works, whether planned or not.

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