Don't be afraid to sparkle

While browsing in the after Christmas sales on-line (aka Window Shopping Pandemic Style), not looking for anything in particular, and not planning on buying anything, I happened onto a skirt that caught my eye.


I miss shopping.


I miss buying fun, pretty clothes.


And I AM I fool for a good sale.

I am also a fool for glitter.

(If you read my book WHIMSEY, you might remember a certain character by the name of Emmaline and her glitter experiences 😊 I loved writing Emmaline ).



Anyway . . .


After seeing the skirt (50% off, with an addition 40% off at the register and free shipping) I did what one does.


Read the reviews.


And they made me hoot!


They were also a clue as to why this skirt was marked down from a price I would never pay to a price that I would.




For example . . .



glitter disaster



The skirt is pretty but it is BAD QUALITY. Glitter is everywhere!




Spread glitter all over the place?

What a shame. I expected some shine, but not gold glitter that starts falling all over as soon as I took it out of the bag.  The color is so pretty and the tulle light. I would have worn with a chunky sweater. However, don’t think it would be appreciated if I brought glitter everywhere I went. Oh well...

As the previous review states, what a shame. Such a pretty color and the tulle is fairly soft but it is a glitter (plastic particles) explosion. I can't recommend this skirt at all!







But Finally, i read a review written by someone who, apparently, thinks like me. Yay!!!

Have realistic expectations

I bought this in person and came on here to see how it'a styled on different bodies but I never expected to see so many negative reviews! It’s a flowy skirt with lots of movement and layers covered in loose glitter. Of course it will shed! I’m assuming the people who left those reviews have never handled glitter in any capacity. Glittery anything WILL shed, no matter how well it’s made.

So.

I bought the skirt.

Since there IS still a pandemic going on, (although it's obvious there are still people delusional enough not to believe it) I won't be going anywhere any time soon to wear it.

BUT.

The day will come.  

And I'm sure nice restaurants won't mind sweeping up a wee bit of glitter.  

Don't be Afraid

 to 

Sparkle, Honeys!

Merry Christmas from our house to yours

 

For many of us, this is certainly a different sort of Christmas.

But staying home just feels like the right thing for us to do this year. 

However  - -  I have to say - I am loving our little tree!

We put up just one small tree - a small pink (although in many photos it does look purple!) tree decorated with silver and turquoise ornaments, including some small silver Eiffel Tower ornaments and a couple of carousels.  Topped with a turquoise Eiffel Tower.  

'Tis a fun little tree.

What did women like in 2020?

 

I asked a few of my women friends who I know to be discerning readers, and who are well known in the mystery community, if they would share some of their favorite reads of 2020. 

But not just mysteries.

We decided not to limit the books in any way.  Just some favorites we'd like to share with others.

And, with that we ended up with a wonderfully fun mix of fiction, non-fiction, children's books, crime fiction, romance, fantasy, photo books, young adult, etc etc etc.  

Nor did we stick with books published in 2020 which made it fun to see some old classics along with a few books to look forward to in 2021.

Most of you who read Meanderings and Muses know some, if not all, these women.  And what an amazing group they are; readers, book advocates, librarians, teachers, reviewers, publicists, webmasters, bloggers who support authors - male AND female - and the world of books.    

You might run into any of them at any time at a book convention (when we're all able to actually start attending book conventions again).  

Consider this list of holiday recommendations our gift to you.

Marlyn K. Beebe is a librarian, blogger, and book reviewer who lives in Southern California with her husband, and Puck (the jungle panther)

Asebedo, Miranda.  A Constellation of Roses 

Darke, Minnie.  The Lost Love Song 

 Fader, Molly.  The Bitter and Sweet of Cherry Season 

 Harbison, Beth.   The Cookbook Club: a novel of food and friendship 

 Fogelson, Aliza.  The Lending Library 

 Nugent, Suzanne.  Brunch and Other Obligations 

 Roberts, Nora.  The Awakening (The Dragon Heart Legacy #1)

 Verant, Samantha.  The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux 

 Wiggs, Susan. The Lost and Found Bookshop

 Zimmerman, Vicky.  Miss Cecily’s Recipes for Exceptional Ladies 

 Sarah EC Byrne lives in Canberra, Australia. Police have ruled her out as a Person of Interest

The Nancys – RWR McDonald 

The Wife and the Widow – Christian White  

Weather – Jenny Offill  

Invisible Women – Caroline Criado Perez 

Goodnight, Beautiful – Aimee Molloy 

Strangers At The Gate – Catriona McPherson 

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine – Gail Honeyman

See What You Made Me Do – Jess Hill 

488 Rules for Life – Kitty Flanagan 

Worst Case Scenario – Helen Fitzgerald 

Slow Horses (the whole series) – Mick Herron

Little Eyes – Samanta Schweblin

Eight Lives – Susan Hurley

Troubled Blood – Robert Galbraith

Lollyscramble – Tony Martin

Interior Chinatown – Charles Yu

If I Had Two Wings – Randall Kenan

A Thousand Ships – Natalie Haynes

The Index of Self-Destructive Acts – Christopher Beha

The Mermaid of Black Conch – Monique Roffey

  Jen Forbus is a former English teacher and 

blogger who currently works for a small education publisher, shoots sports photography for a local newspaper and reviews children's books for Shelf Awareness. Her reading this year has been driven by current events and

 her review assignments for Shelf. 

Favorite adult books: 

How to Be an Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi

White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide

 by Carol Anderson

UnTrumping America: A Plan to Make America a 

Democracy Again by Dan Pfeiffer

Favorite YA/MG books:

Strongman: The Rise of Five Dictators and the Fall of

 Democracy by Kenneth C. Davis

In the Shadow of the Moon: America, Russia, and the 

Hidden History of the Space Race by 

Amy Cherrix (this doesn't come out until 2021)

Favorite picture books:

The Cat Man of Aleppo by Irene Latham

The Voice that Won the Vote: How One Woman's

 Words Made History by Elisa Boxer

Every Color of Light: A Book about the Sky 

by Hiroshi Osada/Ryôji Arai

 

    M'Lou Greene  - "My grandmother taught me to read at age 3, and I've never stopped!" 

Jess Lourey, Unspeakable Things

Jodi Daynard, A Transcontinental Affair

Attica Locke, Heaven, My Home

Charlaine Harris, A Longer Fall

Keith Snyder, The Night Men

Laura McHugh, Arrowood

Karen Dionne, The Wicked Sister

Amy Sue Nathan, The Last Bathing Beauty

Carl Hiaasen, Squeeze Me

Kate Sekules, Mend! A Refashioning Manual and Manifesto

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works in IT during the day and reads mysteries at night.

Death at the Medical Board by Josephine Bell 

Dead Woman Walking by Sharon Bolton 

To Wake the Dead by John Dickson Carr 

The Boy from the Woods by Harlan Coben 

The Shadow Broker by Trace Conger 

The Harassed Hero by Ernest Dudley 

A Murder of Crows by Margaret Duffy 

Lesser Evils by Joe Flanagan 

Death of an American Beauty by Mariah Fredericks 

Summertime, All the Cats Are Bored by Philippe Georget 

The Country House Burglar by Michael Gilbert 

The Reckless Oath We Made by Bryn Greenwood 

The Man in the White Linen Suit by David Handler 

Dead Man's Mistress by David Housewright 

The Elephant of Surprise by Joe Lansdale 

The Blues Don't Care by Paul Marks 

The Last House Guest by Megan Miranda 

The Right Sort of Man by Allison Montclair 

The Ringmaster by Vanda Symon 

Crush by Phoef Sutton 

  Lesa Holstine, a book lover since she was a year old, is an award-winning librarian and book reviewer who blogs at https://lesasbookcritiques.com. 

Unspeakable Things by Jess Lourey

The Boy from the Woods by Harlan Coben

Carousels of Paris by Kaye Wilkinson Barley & Donald Barley

The Tourist Attraction by Sarah Morgenthaler

Beach Read by Emily Henry

Hide Away by Jason Pinter

The Mountains Wild by Sarah Stewart Taylor

Next to Last Stand by Craig Johnson

The Thursday Murder Club by Richar Osman

Paris is Always a Good Idea by Jenn McKinlay

All the Devils Are Here by Louise Penny

The Awakening by Nora Roberts

The Twelve Dates of Christmas by Jenny Bayless

And, two to watch for in 2021 that I already read -

Tricky by Josh Stallings (Jan)

The Windsor Knot by SJ Bennett (March)

Maddee James, Mistress of xuni.com, loves dogs, books, color, photography, her kids… not in that order. 

1. Untamed, Glennon Doyle

2. A Bitter Feast, Deborah Crombie

3. Maisie Dobbs, Jacqueline Winspear

4. We Are All the Same in the Dark, Julia Heaberlin

5. Every Now and Then, Lesley Kagen

6. Rules for Being Dead, Kim Powers

7. Every Soul a Star, Wendy Mass

8. The Broken Girls, Simone St. James

9. Breaking Point, John Rhodes

10. The Last of the Moon Girls, Barbara Davis

11. The Glory Was I Had Such Friends, Amy Silverstein

12. The Summer List, Amy Mason Doan

Patti Cheney Lang - Reader, wife, librarian, coloring aficionado, both nerd & geek, friend, daughter, sister, aunt, feminist, transplanted Michigander.

Mystery:

Three Hours In Paris by Cara Black

The Plot Is Murder by V.M. Burns

The Gold Pawn by L.A. Chandlar

Dead West by Matt Goldman

Absence of Mercy by S.M. Goodwin

A Royal Affair by Allison Montclair

The Hollows by Jess Montgomery

Blame the Dead by Ed Ruggero

Winter Counts by David Heska Wanbli Weiden

Fantasy:

Master Class by Christina Dalcher

Science Fiction:

The Fated Sky by Mary Robinette Kowal

The Relentless Moon by Mary Robinette Kowal

Fiction:

The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan

Christmas at the Island Hotel by Jenny Colgan

On the Corner of Hope and Main by Beverly Jenkins

Romance:

Paris Is Always a Good Idea by Jenn McKinlay

Forever and a Duke  by Grace Burrowes 

The Tourist Attraction by Sarah Morgenthaler

Nonfiction:

My Life as a Villainess by Laura Lippman

Can't Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop's Blockbuster Year by Michaelangelo Matos

Dru Ann Love is an award-winning mystery blogger at https://drusbookmusing.com/

A Bad Day for Sunshine by Darynda Jones

Erin Mitchell is a reader who is lucky enough to get to work for authors and publishers.

Confessions on the 7:45 by Lisa Unger

Still Knife Painting by Cheryl Hollon

First to Lie by Hank Phillippi Ryan

Scot on the Rocks by Catriona McPherson Out on January 1, 2021

The Nothing Man by Catherine Ryan Howard

Never Far Away by Michael Koryta  Out on February 9, 2021

Another Kind of Eden by James Lee Burke Out on August 17, 2021

Bloodline by Jess Lourey Out on January 1, 2021

Invisible Girl by Lisa Jewell

A Time for Mercy by John Grisham

Inherit the Shoes by EJ Copperman

Kathy Boone Reel  is a book blogger who reviews mystery/crime novels, with an occasional exception, at her blog The Reading Room, but she has been on a bit of a hiatus and now getting back to her passion with a Favorite 2020 Reads, to be posted in the next week.

Turn to Stone by James Ziskin
The Lucky One by Lori Rader-Day
The Lantern Men by Elly Griffiths
Hid from Our Eyes by Julia Spencer-Fleming
The Dutch House by Ann Patchett
Death of a Mermaid by Lesley Thomson
Rules for Being Dead by Kim Powers
The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James
Riviera Gold by Laurie R. King
Exit Strategy by Jen Danna
The First to Lie by Hank Phillippi Ryan
The Last Mrs. Summers by Rhys Bowen
Key Lime Crime by Lucy Burdette
Scot on the Rocks by Catriona McPherson

The Nothing Man by Catherine Ryan Howard

Murder in Retribution by Anne Cleeland
Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier
All the Devils are Here by Louise Penny
Mortmain Hall by Martin Edwards
One by One by Ruth Ware
And Now She’s Gone by Rachel Howzell Hall
Til Death by Annette Dashofy

LJ Roberts has been a reader and professional reviewer of mysteries since 2004. 

• Box, C.J. (2020) – Long Range
• DePoy, Phillip (2019) – Sidewalk Saint
• Disher, Gary (2019) – Peace
• Eskens, Allen (2019) – Northing More Dangerous
• Finch, Charles (2020) – The Last Passenger
• Fredrickson, Jack (2020) – The Black Cage
• Gardner, Ashley (2019) – Death at Brighton Pavilion
• Johnson, Craig (2020) – Next to Last Stand
• Harris, C.S. (2020) – Who Speaks for the Dead
• Leon, Donna (2020) – Trace Elements
• Lovesey, Peter (2020) – The Finisher
• Penny, Louise (2020) – All the Devils Are Here
• Robb, J.D. (2020) – Shadows in Death
• Robotham, Michael (2020) – When She Was Good
• Siegel, Sheldon M.(2020) – The Dreamer
• Stabenow, Dana (2020) – No Fixed Line
• Thomas, Will (2020) – Lethal Pursuit
• Tuti, Ilaria (2020) – Painted in Blood (aka, The Sleeping Nymph)
• Westerson, Jeri (2020) – Spiteful Bones

Maryglenn McCombs Warnock has worked in the book publishing world for over 25 years. She lives in Nashville.

Hanging Falls by Margaret Mizushima 

And here's my contribution - - - 

All the Devils Are Here by Louise Penny

Perestroika in Paris by Jane Smiley

The Awakening by Nora Roberts

The Ladies of the Secret Circus by Constance Sayers

A Time for Mercy by John Grisham

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab

The Velvet Hours by Alyson Richman

The Sweet Taste of Muscadines by Pamela Terry

The Last Correspondent by Soraya M. Lane 

The Wizard's Butler by Nathan Lowell

Pale Morning Light with Violet Swan by Deborah Reed

Magic Lessons by Alice Hoffman 

Paris is Always a Good Idea by Jenn McKinlay 

The Lions of Fifth Avenue by Fiona Davis 

28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand 

South of the Buttonwood Tree by Heather Webber

Happy Reading!

A Different Kind of Christmas

 

Christmas traditions within families change over the years.

This year brings us yet another change.  And it's not a change that is completely by choice.

This year it will be me, Donald and Annabelle.

Home alone in Meat Camp.  Not that that is a bad thing - not at all.  But it is different.  

A pandemic Christmas, for us, means no traveling to be with family.

Packages have been shipped.  Packages have been received.

Tree is up and decorated.

A few Christmas sit-abouts scattered through the house.

Christmas linens and china pulled out of the closet.

The next big decision . . . 

What are we going to eat??

After much discussion, decisions made and decisions changed . . . 

Turkey and dressing and all the sides?

Ham and all the sides?

Beef tenderloin?

Prime rib?

What to do, what to do.

Finally!

A decision made and written in stone.

Christmas Eve dinner will be lasagna.

I make a mean lasagna.

I love making a big pot of sauce and I love the whole construction of layering (and layering again) the thickest, cheesiest, soupiest lasagna in the history of lasagna.  

It ain't pretty.

It does not stand up showing off its layers as lasagna should.

But, damn, it's good.

And it'll be even better the second time on Christmas night.

We should know their names

Nancy Pelosi: "The 126 Republican Members that signed onto this lawsuit brought dishonor to the House. Instead of upholding their oath to support and defend the Constitution, they chose to subvert the Constitution and undermine public trust in our sacred democratic institutions."

That they chose to support trump in an unwinnable, frivolous lawsuit is one thing.  (This after he already lost 50 <or was it 51? I've lost count>).  


That they chose to stand against democracy is another.


We should know, AND REMEMBER, their names.


First, the attorneys general who joined Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton: Eric Schmitt, Missouri; Steve Marshall, Alabama; Leslie Rutledge, Arkansas; Ashley Moody, Florida; Curtis Hill, Indiana; Derek Schmidt, Kansas; Jeff Landry, Louisiana; Lynn Fitch, Mississippi; Tim Fox, Montana; Doug Peterson, Nebraska; Wayne Stenehjem, North Dakota; Mike Hunter, Oklahoma; Alan Wilson, South Carolina; Jason Ravnsborg, South Dakota; Herbert H. Slatery III, Tennessee; Sean Reyes, Utah; Patrick Morrisey, West Virginia.


Second, the House members, including McCarthy, Whip Steve Scalise (La.); Jim Jordan (Ohio), ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee; Kevin Brady (Tex.), ranking member of the Ways and Means Committee; Rep. Gary Palmer (Ala.), head of the Republican Policy Committee; and Mike Johnson (La.).


The rest, listed in order of their home state: 

Alabama (Robert B. Aderholt, Mo Brooks, Bradley Byrne), 

Arizona (Andy Biggs, Debbie Lesko), 

Arkansas (Eric A. “Rick” Crawford, Bruce Westerman), 

California (Ken Calvert, Doug LaMalfa, Tom McClintock), 

Colorado (Ken Buck, Doug Lamborn), 

Florida (Gus M. Bilirakis, Mario Diaz-Balart, Neal Dunn, Matt Gaetz, Bill Posey, John Rutherford, Ross Spano, Michael Waltz, Daniel Webster, Ted Yoho), 

Georgia (Rick Allen, Earl L. “Buddy” Carter, Douglas A. Collins, Drew Ferguson, Jody Hice, Barry Loudermilk, Austin Scott), 

Idaho (Russ Fulcher, Mike Simpson), 

Illinois (Mike Bost, Darin LaHood), 

Indiana (Jim Baird, Jim Banks, Trey Hollingsworth, Greg Pence, Jackie Walorski), 

Iowa (Steve King), 

Kansas (Ron Estes, Roger Marshall), 

Louisiana (Ralph Abraham, Clay Higgins).

Maryland (Andy Harris), 

Michigan (Jack Bergman, Bill Huizenga, John Moolenaar, Tim Walberg), 

Minnesota (Tom Emmer, Jim Hagedorn, Pete Stauber), 

Mississippi (Michael Guest, Trent Kelly, Steven M. Palazzo), 

Missouri (Sam Graves, Billy Long, Vicky Hartzler, Blaine Luetkemeyer, Jason T. Smith, Ann Wagner), 

Montana (Greg Gianforte), 

Nebraska (Jeff Fortenberry, Adrian Smith), 

New Jersey (Gregory Steube, Jeff Van Drew),

New York (Elise Stefanik, Lee Zeldin), 

North Carolina (Dan Bishop, Ted Budd, Virginia Foxx, Richard Hudson, Greg Murphy, David Rouzer, Mark Walker), 

Ohio (Bob Gibbs, Bill Johnson, Robert E. Latta, Brad Wenstrup), 

Oklahoma (Kevin Hern, Markwayne Mullin).

Pennsylvania (John Joyce, Frederick B. Keller, Mike Kelly, Dan Meuser, Scott Perry, Guy Reschenthaler, Glenn Thompson), 

South Carolina (Jeff Duncan, Ralph Norman, Tom Rice, William Timmons, Joe Wilson), 

Tennessee (Tim Burchett, Scott DesJarlais, Charles J. “Chuck” Fleischmann, Mark Green, David Kustoff, John Rose), 

Texas (Jodey Arrington, Brian Babin, Michael C. Burgess, Michael Cloud, K. Michael Conaway, Dan Crenshaw, Bill Flores, Louie Gohmert, Lance Gooden, Kenny Marchant, Randy Weber, Roger Williams, Ron Wright), 

Virginia (Ben Cline, H. Morgan Griffith, Rob Wittman, Ron Wright), 

Washington (Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Dan Newhouse), 

West Virginia (Carol Miller, Alex Mooney), Wisconsin (Tom Tiffany).

Here's a fact that is being ignored and denied by these people.

Joe Biden won. In a fair election.

Simple as that.

December Newsletter - Merry Christmas!

 

Popping in to wish you all a Very Merry Christmas, the Happiest of Holidays and a Joyous, Peaceful, Healthy and Prosperous New Year! We thank you all for your friendship and for your support. 2020 has been a tough one.  Let's lift our glasses in a wish for a less stressful 2021; one where we will find joy and mend some fences. “Christmas Bells” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow I heard the bells on Christmas Day Their old, familiar carols play, And wild and sweet The words repeat Of peace on earth, good-will to men! Kaye and Don and Annabelle   Ho! Ho! Ho! xox info@kayewilkinsonbarley.com

Grumpy.

Yes. 

I'm pretty grumpy today and making no apologies.

People make me nuts.

If you're a person who still thinks this virus is a hoax you're a fool.

If you're a person who refuses to wear a mask you're an asshole.

If you're a person who wants my vote revoked and/or overturned because your guy trump lost the election you're pitiful.  He lost - get over it.

If you really think this latest ploy to overturn the election has a chance in hell you're, at the very least, stupid and uneducated, and delusional.

In the meantime, here's a few photos from a drive Donald and I took around our neighborhood.  And it reminded me that life is, in fact, good.

And will start getting immediately better on January 20th.