Book Review: My Italian Bulldozer by Alexander McCall Smith

My Italian Bulldozer by Alexander McCall Smith
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I picked up this book, knowing by the title that it could be beyond belief. However, I enjoy a bit of fluff and was looking forward to fluff that came with a male lead character. While the title seemed absurd, the description on the back made it seem interesting. I should have paid more attention to the title. There is not much meat to this book and I don’t feel like we get to really know any of the characters.

In the beginning, Paul is feeling sorry for himself because his girlfriend of many years threw him over for her personal trainer. So, he’s lamenting being single and goes to Italy to basically recover and finish his book (he’s a food writer). I hope this is not the “real” Italy. **Spoiler ahead**. He winds up with a bulldozer after he’s arrested because the car he rented isn’t in the parking lot and they accuse him of stealing it! I wish I were making this up. Someone he met at the airport (or on the plane), who is a local, bails him out and talks with the folks at the rental agency. They explain that they are all out of cars, but they’ll rent him a bulldozer! For him to drive to another city and use as car while in Italy! I’m not kidding.

I couldn’t really get past the ridiculousness of renting a bulldozer as a car, thought Paul was kind of a whiny little dude and that a little backbone wouldn’t have hurt. There was a side story about an escaped prisoner that was never fully developed. and, while you could see the ending coming, it just sort of appears -- there was no development leading to this.

If you’ve read and liked Alexander Smith McCall’s books, you may like this. I have not read any of his other books and do not plan on reading them. If you’re looking for a good bit of fluff to read, pass this one up. I was hugely disappointed, but was immensely proud that I was able to finish it as I hate not finishing a book.


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Book Review: Drawing Conclusions by Deirdre Verne

Drawing Conclusions by Deirdre Verne
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’ve gotten a little tired lately of the typical “themed” cozy mystery. At first blush, this book appears to be a cozy, but I wouldn’t classify it as such. There is no gore, but there is some language and some sexy times (nothing over the top, but it’s there). The main character is also a Freegan - we meet CeCe when she and friend Charlie are dumpster diving. They live in what amounts to a commune, established by CeCe, along with three other people - Jonathon and Trina, who are dating, and Becky, who is involved with Charlie.

The book opens with CeCe of the death of her twin brother, Teddy. It turns out to be murder. I’m sad that we never really get to meet Teddy as I think he was a cool guy. CeCe becomes a target, but it’s anyone’s guess as to why. Enter Frank DeRosa, detective. He’s been requested by CeCe’s father, Dr. William Prentice, to solve Teddy’s murder and winds up guarding CeCe, along with two other officers. I like that there isn’t friction between the house and the cops - they all wind up working together. The big catch to all of this is that Teddy was a scientist, working on decoding the human genome, and he worked at a lab basically run by CeCe’s father.

One of the best things about this book is CeCe’s involvement in finding out who killed Teddy is organic. She doesn’t look to get involved, but after she becomes a target, her involvement (and her roommates involvement), just seems natural. It doesn’t hurt that she’s an artist with a gift for faces.

The thing I struggled with in this book was the Freegan lifestyle. I get organic farming. I get communal living. I get not wanting a 9-5 job (CeCe’s an artist and her sketches did help solve the case). I get going with a used car, though I’m not sure why it had to be so ancient as a Gremlin - the gas mileage and pollution from that thing have to not be in line with Freeganism. Why not a used hybrid or even an electric car? I don’t get not using a washer and dryer. I don’t really get dumpster diving for food.

Despite the Freeganism angle, I very much enjoyed this book and look forward to reading the next one in the series. I liked the Detective. I liked how CeCe’s skills contributed to the investigation. I liked how the other cops got along with the housemates. I liked that this was definitely not the run of the mill mystery. Odd main character, but in a way I like that she challenges me a bit. Recommended if you like a good mystery and/or are looking for a change from the “themed” cozy mysteries.


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Recipe Review: Banoffee Scones

It's been awhile since I've posted a recipe review. I have been baking, but not blogging my efforts. Some are go to recipes, like this Peach Vanilla Muffin recipe, from Inspired Taste.  I can't believe I haven't reviewed this recipe on the blog. It is one of my favorite muffin recipes (and I'm a connoisseur of muffins). I love peaches and this recipe uses a fresh peach. Next time I bake them, the review will be done.   

Banoffee Scone (w/ chocolate chips rather than toffee)

Recently, I've been visiting a bakery next to my office (there's not much in the way of food near my office). I only get their poppyseed scone and they've not had them on a regular basis lately. Then, I realized, I love to bake so why not make my own? Which was my goal today. But, I had bananas, so I set out to find a banana scone recipe.  I did not find any in my cookbooks, but the good folks at King Arthur had this recipe. So today, I'm reviewing scones - Banoffee Scones, only mine are not really Banoffee - banana and toffee.  I'm not a huge fan of toffee, hence I don't have any. So, I used chocolate chips instead (Enjoy Life Dairy Free mini chocolate chips). I also used Hemp milk, and half margarine/half butter and two small bananas.  I did brush with milk (hemp) and sprinkle turbinado sugar on the top before baking. I have to say, I'm happy with the results and am glad to have another banana recipe. I'll be doing these again.  If you've looking for something different to bake with your bananas, give this recipe a try.

Book Review: The Weekenders by Mary Kay Andrews

The Weekenders by Mary Kay Andrews
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I’d say this is more like 3.5 stars, but not quite 4. I wouldn’t say it’s the best book by this author, but in the end it wasn’t too bad. Just starting out, though, woo, some highly unlikable characters. The book focuses on Riley, who’s marriage is at an end, and her 12 year old daughter, Maggy. There is her best friend, Parrish, and her husband, Ed, mother, Evelyn, brother Billy, and his partner, Scott, her aunt, Roo, and lastly Nate Milas and his mother, Annie. At the beginning of the book, Riley and Maggy and Parrish and Ed are headed to Belle Isle for the summer. Riley’s family owns a chunk of the island and did most of the initial development. She’s trying to decide how to tell her family, especially her daughter, that her marriage is at an end. And, it’s not like she didn’t try to save it. Things start going wrong and they just keep going wrong. The big disaster is the murder of Riley’s husband, Wendell. Riley comes to learn that there is a LOT she did not know about Wendell. To make matters worse, she winds up having to stay with her mother, who is more in to social niceties and what is “right,” than supporting her daughter.

Turns out her husband stole all of Riley’s money, but it wasn’t really stolen because her father gave him control over Riley’s trust fund! Yes, this woman, among other things was raised by parents who basically felt like men were to be in charge and women were to maintain their place. It didn’t help any that Billy is gay, so basically Wendell became the son they wanted, so he got carte blanche of the family business and everyone pays in the end.

This is not all fluffy, though, it’s still chick-lit. It just addresses things not seen often in these kinds of books - alcoholism, rebellious and ugly tweens, truly awful people. Because, make no mistake -- Wendell was not a good person.

Early on in the book, I couldn’t decide what I thought and read some of the reviews, mostly the bad ones as the good ones were over the top. I now wonder if some of those reviewers even read the whole book. If it’s not for you and you stop, that’s fine. Most who do that, own that in their review. However, the ending of the book and revelation of the killer were not as stated in some reviews. Let me just say, the murder of Wendell doesn’t disappear -- it’s just never front and center, but the Sheriff circles back around throughout the book. Also, I’d like to note that the Sheriff is not the one who reveals the killer to Riley. The story is really about Riley trying to figure out how she’s going to get on with her life after she learns that her husband has literally squandered all of her money. And, deal with a 12 year old who is definitely pushing all her buttons. As much as Maggy annoyed me, this is probably par for the course for a 12 year old, especially one dealing with a new diagnosis of diabetes (what 12 year old wants to be different) and the death of her father, who she adored and who, it seems, adored her. His one redeeming feature.

I liked the characters of Riley and Parrish. I enjoyed their friendship. I liked Riley’s closeness with her brother and Scott. The mom is the mom. Many of us have dealt with mother’s like that and nothing will change them. They are who they are. Aunt Roo was a hoot. We should all have a Roo. I enjoyed the setting of Belle Isle as well. I’ve encountered small towns and have fond memories of one, but it’s like living in a fish bowl. Some reviewers thought the ending was all tied up with a bow. I felt like Riley worked to get her ending. Best scene in the book was Riley quitting her new job and liberating Maggy from her new school. To me, it showed her finally getting back on an even keel and taking charge instead of being dragged in the wake of Wendell’s poor decisions. Maggy redeemed herself a bit; Evelyn, not so much. There is more to Billy than meets the eye and Scott as well.

Ultimately, I enjoyed this book. Some things come out of the blue (like who killed Wendell), but life is like that. If you are a review reader, I’d recommend ignoring the reviews and giving it a go. But, read all of it. Don’t quit 100 pages in -- finish it. And, not just to find out who killed Wendell, but to see how Riley rebuilds her life.


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