The Inn at Eagle Point

Sunday, November 22, 2009

I should have called this Mom weekend, because today I'm doing another Mom themed entry. Today was her birthday party and so I let her pick the book again. Although, she wants it noted on the record that she did not actually pick out yesterday's book. She let me pick from a stack of several books and I picked the book that I thought would be the most fun to mock.


Today's book is the official pick, a semi-trashy novel. Or as my sister likes to call it, tasteful smut.



But before I get to today's blog entry, I have a few party pictures to share.





Here I am getting a little reading done while my Uncle Andy acts like the party animal that he is.









And now it's time for the Mystery pictures to get a little bit less mysterious.


Do you like my Jackie Kennedy dress dear readers? Here I am reading a little bit, before practicing my political wave and asking people to vote for my husband Jack.








Today's book, "It's been years since Abby O'Brien Winters set foot in Chesapeake Shores. The Maryland town her father built has too many sad memories and Abby too few spare moments, thanks to her demanding Wall Street career, the crumbling of her marriage and energetic twin daughters. Then one panicked phone call from her youngest sister brings her racing back home to protect Jess's dream of renovating the charming Inn at Eagle Point. But saving the inn from foreclosure means dealing not only with her own fractured family, but also with Trace Riley, the man Abby left ten years ago. Trace can be a roadblock to her plans…or proof that second chances happen in the most unexpected ways."

Shallow, semi-trashy thoughts:

  • I was very excited to finally be reading a book that my Mother picked out that didn't have a picture of half-naked throbbing people on the cover. Although, it's not nearly as fun to mock books that are only semi-trashy. I prefer the really trashy ones that allow me to say things to Mom like, "Read any good smut lately? What are Trisha and Stefan up to anyway?" Mom used to be slightly offended by this, but now she's learned to go with it and respond with, "As a matter of fact I have." This is usually followed by a complete discussion of the entire plot, including a description of how Trisha is "real independent."

  • After reading several books that my Mother has read, I am finally beginning to understand why she loves these books. Of course, in order to figure that out I had to push aside the crappy plot, the bad writing, the annoying characters, to get to the hear of why she loves these books. 1. The happy ending - Mom responds to an unhappy ending the way an eight year old would (I'm saying that with love) with absolute disbelief and extreme sadness and generally the words, "I don't like this. I don't like this at all." 2. The repetition. - Mom believes that if something is worth saying then it's worth saying at least 3 or 4 times, a hallmark of these books. In fact, there is one point in the book where the author lets us know that "this time is different" - and then, just in case we missed it the first time, she lets us know the same thing 6 sentences later. 3. The excessive, totally unnecessary details. - If I ask my Mother how her days has gone, she will respond with, "I got up, I made the bed, I took a shower, I got dressed, I fed the dog, I ate breakfast, I unloaded the dishwasher . . . and on and on. (Reminder to Mom when she reads this: Gentle mocking is a sign of love.) These kind of books are just filled with pointless details that don't relate to the story in any way.