"You're gonna make it after all ..."*

Ten Girls to Watch by Charity Shumway (Washington Square Press trade paperback, 31 July 2012).

Dawn West shocked her family when she left her small hometown in Oregon to go to university in Boston, her family was surprised.  They were even more surprised when, after she graduated, she moved to Brooklyn to pursue a career as a writer.

Unfortunately, it's not going so well.  Her on-off relationship is off again, and her ex has a new girlfriend, although he can't quite stop seeing Dawn.  Her roommate who has a dubious relationship with personal hygiene, bras, and paying rent. 

Dawn's only means of income is answering gardening questions for a website called LawnTalk.com.  Althgough she doesn't know anything about lawns or gardening; she has most of the books on the subject checked out of the public library.

At a party, she is introduced to Regina Greene, the editor-in-chief of Charm magazine, who tells Dawn to call her at the office on Monday morning.  Dawn does, not sure if she'll be remembered or not, and is surprised when Regina greets her enthusastically and offers her a job.

Every year, Charm publishes an issue featuring "Ten Girls to Watch", about ten college students who show promise for the future.  This year will be the 50th anniversary of the feature.  Regina plans to throw a gala honoring those women and assigns Dawn to choose ten women from those 50 years to speak at the bash. 

And, just-like-that, Dawn has a future. 

Of course, things don't progress smoothly.  Her first paycheck is so small she signs up for a drug trial to make extra money.  Her roommate disappears.

But she learns she has a knack for communicating with The Girls (as she calls them).  The process of contacting and winnowing takes up a good deal of the narrative, and though some readers have found that somewhat tedious, I found it fascinating.

The story of a small-town girl who moves to the big city to "make it" is not a new one, but Shumway has given it a contemporary twist.  Dawn is today's iteration of  Ann Marie or Mary Richards:  the same, but different.





*From"Love is All Around" by Paul Williams ( theme song to The Mary Tyler Moore Show)


FTC Full Disclosure: Many thanks to the publisher, who sent me a galley for review purposes.

Passion & Prose

On Saturday, I attended a literary conference called Passion and Prose, intended to be the first of an annual event bringing together "passionate romance readers and several dozen of their most beloved romance writers together for a fabulous day of conversation and fun".  

In actuality, there were also mystery, speciulative fiction, and fantasy  writers in attendance, many of whom were young adult authors.  

The morning keynote speaker was Gail Carriger, author of the The Parasol Protectorate series, which she describes as "Jane Austen doing urban fantsy meets P.G. Wodehouse doing steampunk".  Carriger's latest novel is Timeless, the fifth and final book in the series.

Me (l) with the stylish Gail Carriger.

After lunch was a panel called Breathless Reads, consisting of five young adult writers  who have been on tour together for some weeks.  This was the fnal stop on their tour, and thet participated in a delightful discussion moderated by M.G. Lord ( of whom I unfortunately didn't get a photo).

Me with (l-r) Andrea Cremer, Marie Lu, Beth Revis, Jessica Spotsood and Sara Wilson Etienne.

The afternoon keynote speaker was Meg Cabot, author of many books for both adults and young adults, including The Princess Diaries, The Mediator series, and the Heather Wells mystery series.  She's recenly published Overbite, the second in the Insatiable series.

Me, with the charming Meg Cabot (r).

I was able to snag an extra goodie bag from the conference, and I'm delighted to give it (and the contents) to one of my readers.  Please leave a comment here telling me the name of your favorite female author of all time.  Entries (from the US only, please) will be accepted until midnight on Friday, March 2nd.

I'll post photos of the bag and some of fabulous stuff inside it on tomorrow's blog.

Just finished reading...

An Appetite for Murder by Lucy Burdette (Key West Food Critic Mystery #1).*

Hayley Snow moved from New Jersey to Key West with Chad Lutz after knowing him for only a few days. But after only a couple of months, she walked into their bedroom to find him with another woman.

Luckily, she was able to move in with her college friend Connie and help out with her housecleaning business. But her real dream was to be the food critic for the upcoming lifestyle magazine Key Zest. The main problem with this plan was that one of the owners of the magazine is Chad's new squeeze Kristen. Hayley is certain that she can work around this, until one morning the police knock on her door.

Apparently Kristen was killed, and Hayley (for some reason the police won't share with her) is the chief suspect. With no money for a lawyer and no way to prove she didn't do it, Hayley's only choice is to find out who really murdered Kristen.

Hayley is a likeable protagonist, and although the reader often wants to stop her from yet another impulsive action, her motives are believable. Just like many sitcom characters, her escapades go awry (not in as amusing a fashion as occurs on television) and she ends up in trouble.

This is a quick read, mostly because of the urge to know what's going to happen next, and the conclusion is a satisfying one.

The second, as yet untitled mystery in this series will be released in September of 2012.


*FTC Full Disclosure: Many thanks to the publisher, who sent me a copy of the book for review purposes.

Just finished reading...

The Last Word (Books by the Bay #3) by Ellery Adams.*

When last we saw Olivia Limoges, she had just discovered a long-lost half-brother living on a nearby island. Coincidentally, as Olivia is a restaurateur, Hudson runs a diner. Unfortunately, it's not doing too well, and he's having trouble supporting himself and his growing family. Olivia persuades him to move to Oyster Bay and take over her new venture, The Bayside Crab House.

Meanwhile, Olivia meets well-known author Nick Plumley, who is thinking of settling in the town. Invited to visit him at the house he's renting, she's surprised that no one answers when she knocks on the door. Looking through the window, she sees him lying on the floor.

Although something of a "loner", Olivia has an incredibly busy life. She owns two restaurants, belongs to a closely-knit writer's group (which also helps the local police solve crimes), and is helping her newfound relatives get back on their feet.

Unlike many authors who portray their protagonists as having no negative qualities, Olivia has many facets. Although the wealthy woman is generous and philanthropic, she is not above using her resources to ensure that things happen to her liking.

One of the delights of this series is the samples of work from the writer's group. Before each meeting, one member sends a chapter to the others for their critiques. These excerpts are included in the story as Olivia reads and comments on them.

Will any of the group members ever be published? Will Olivia open herself to a romantic relationship? These questions may be answered in the next installment, Written in Stone, a preview of which is included at the end of the book, though no publication date is given.


*FTC Full Disclosure: Many thanks to the publisher, who sent me a copy of the book for review purposes.