Do Not Disturb, Kick Crime to the Curb: All's Well That Ends Well in the Gran Scheme of Things

For our latest book club pick, my sister chose Nita Prose's The Mystery Guest.  It's the follow-up to Prose's The Maid, the heartbreaking yet heartwarming story of an unusual maid who must dust her way out of a murder accusation.  You may recall that I enjoyed The Maid but sometimes found it painful to read.  So I wasn't sure what to expect from The Mystery Guest.

This time, the murder victim is mystery author J. D. Grimthorpe.  Once again, Molly is a suspect -- as is her protégé, the equally awkward Lily.  Also as before, Molly relies on her late Gran's wit and wisdom to make her way out of the mess.  Indeed, Prose alternates between the present and the past, delving deeper into Molly's childhood to help us understand who she is.  And although there are more than a few sad memories, I wasn't as disturbed as I was when reading the first book.  I think it's because I feel that these details, disconcerting though they may be, ultimately lead to light instead of darkness.  

That said, the plot has some intriguing twists, the least significant of which is whodunit.  Because as with The Maid, the point of The Mystery Guest isn't to solve the murder so much as it is to chart Molly's growth.  As Gran (and John Lennon) always said:  

"Everything will be okay in the end.  If it's not okay, it's not the end." 

And it's certainly not the end for Molly.  Because Prose has at least two more maid books coming out. 😏

For the Love of Stuff

Some stuff I made.

Some stuff I bought.

Some stuff I washed.

You get the idea.

The other day on my lunch break I heard John Lennon's "Imagine" on the radio, a song I love (and who doesn't?). But any deep thoughts I might have had were besieged by shallow musing set off by the line "Imagine no possessions. I wonder if you can." Although I did as John instructed, I found myself coming up short. No possessions? No candy-colored bits and pieces crowding every available surface in my house? I was flummoxed by the concept. As a self-professed clotheshorse, shopaholic, collector, and artist I'm a person for whom "things" hold great importance. Sometimes I find myself just staring at a newly purchased knickknack or recently discovered bric-a-bric to be upcycled into a new project. Just last night I sat transfixed by my handmade necklace collection, much to the bf's amusement. (I'm lucky, I think, that he's amused by me.)

So, enough about me. What are a few of your favorite things?