Rest, Recover, READ

I love making plans and setting goals. My monthly aspirations usually include books I want to read, words I want to write, places I want to go, and various types of exercise I want to incorporate into my schedule. However, after having major surgery at the end of June, my July plans looked a little different. With no yoga classes allowed and very few places I could go, I found myself with a new set of goals: Rest, relax, recover, recuperate, and… READ! Thankfully, books are on the list of approved items when you’re stuck in bed for a few weeks, and I took advantage of the extra time on my hands. I read six books in July. While they weren’t all winners, three of them definitely distracted me from my discomfort and helped me heal.

1. Highway to Hell by Rosemary Clement-Moore

This is the third book in Rosemary Clement-Moore’s Maggie Quinn: Girl vs. Evil series. In this installment, Maggie (who’s still coming to terms with her supernatural powers) and her best friend (who’s also a witch) are on their way to a spring break getaway when car trouble gets them stuck in a small Texas town where cattle are being killed by a mysterious beast. There’s a rumor that the deaths are due to the mythical Chupacabra, but Maggie’s worried they have something much more familiar on their hands: a demon.

Highway to Hell is a fun, snarky, paranormal romp through a rural ranch. The book is equal parts creepy plot, small town atmosphere, and witty dialogue. It’s got just the right amount of YA angst to make the characters’ relationships both hilarious and relatable. My only complaint about this third book is that it’s the last one. I desperately wish Rosemary Clement-Moore had kept the adventure going because I’d gladly follow Maggie and her friends anywhere.

Although you probably don’t have to read the first two books to enjoy this one, you should anyway because they’re all terrific. Start with Prom Dates from Hell and get ready for some otherworldly fun.

2. My Contrary Mary by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows

When I sat down in front of the fireplace in December 2017 to read My Lady Jane, the first book written by these clever ladies, I had no idea what sort of treat I was in for. The Jane books, and now the Mary books, take readers on romantic rides through alternate versions of history and literature in which wrongs have been corrected, villains have been thwarted, and also some people can turn into animals.

My Contrary Mary tells the much-altered story of Mary, Queen of Scots. Like all novels by the “Lady Janies,” the book is told from three different perspectives: Mary, her betrothed Francis, and Ari, daughter of famed seer Nostradamus. The three of them have to overcome everything from suspicious deaths and murder plots to secret identities and the awkwardness of finding oneself married to her best friend when she’s only sixteen. Plus, there are potions, disguises, and lots of modern pop culture references mixed in.

In these historical, magical, humorous, LGBTQ-friendly, YA love stories, all the right characters live happily ever after. I find them delightful. Picture the movie A Knight’s Tale. Now picture the movie A Knight’s Tale wearing your favorite sweatshirt and having a heart-to-heart with its best friend. That’s what these books feel like to me: silly, weird, funny, comfy. Predictable, but pleasantly so.

Although I read the first couple of books in print, I have since started listening to the audio versions, and I highly recommend them. Fiona Hardingham did an excellent job with the narration of this one.

3. Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts by Kate Racculia

A friend sent me a copy of Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts to read while I was recovering, and I’m so glad she did. I’d never heard of this book before, but I swear Kate Racculia wrote it just for me.

Vincent Pryce (with a Y) is an eccentric billionaire obsessed with haunted objects and Edgar Allan Poe. When he dies, he leaves a cryptic obituary written in his owns words inviting anyone and everyone to participate in a treasure hunt to earn a portion of his vast fortune. The players we follow in this exciting game are:

• Tuesday Mooney, a researcher haunted (literally) by the ghosts of her past;
• Tuesday’s friend Poindexter (Dex) Howard, a lost soul who has buried his theater-loving, drag-wearing heart to earn a living in finance;
• Dorry Bones, a teenage girl with a dead mother and a distracted father who lives next door to Tuesday (thus earning the nickname “Nextdorry”).

Add in Pryce’s lovely young widow (who definitely knows more than she’s telling), members of the Arches family (another group of high-drama billionaires who supposedly had a feud with Pryce), and various other related characters, and you get a charming melting pot of unlikely heroes, ruthless villains, and a few people just trying to figure out who they want to be.

Over the course of a few weeks, the characters track down clues, investigate leads, and try to work out the puzzle of Pryce’s mysterious invitation before meeting at his funeral, a costume party on Boston Common on the third Friday in October, where the winners will be revealed. The book takes place all over the city of Boston, which should make it extra fun for readers who live there.

This novel checked so many of my favorite boxes. Smart, compassionate, likable characters? Check. Multiple points of view? Check. Mysteries, puzzles, and treasure hunts? Check. Ghosts? Check. Edgar Allan Poe, Ouija boards, friendship, cats, and references to 90s music and TV shows? Check, check, check, check, check. When I finished it, I just sat staring for a few minutes with a goofy smile on my face. My husband walked by and asked if I’d just finished a good book. He said I had that “afterglow.” (Ha ha! He knows me well.)

Although I ADORED Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts, I don’t necessarily recommend it to everyone. To truly love this book, you need to like quirky characters, have more than a passing acquaintance with Edgar Allan Poe’s work, and be okay with not every mystery being tied up in a nice neat little bow. If that sounds like you, get yourself a copy ASAP.

All three of these novels provided the lighthearted, amusing, engrossing plots I was looking for this month. But there’s no need to wait for an illness or medical procedure to knock you off your feet. These books can be enjoyed anytime! I’m doing well and getting back to a regular routine. August’s goals look a lot more familiar, with yoga classes, word counts, lots of outings, a little travel, and of course, plenty of time to read.

What’s next on your reading list?