October’s book pick was The Tale of Halcyon Crane by Wendy Webb. This book pick was brought by Amy
Book Synopsis:
A young woman travels to uncover a past she never knew was hers in this thrilling, modern, ghost story. A letter upends Hallie’s life. She was raised by her loving father, having been told her mother died in a fire. Her mother, Madlyn, was alive until very recently. Why would Hallie’s father have taken her away? What happened to her family thirty years ago?
Hallie travels to where her mother lived, a remote island in the middle of the Great Lakes. Islanders fix her with stares and unabashed amazement as they recognize why she looks familiar and Hallie realizes her family’s secrets are enmeshed in the history of this strange place. In “The Tale Of Halcyon Crane“, Wendy Webb of Minneapolis, USA has created a haunting story of thrills, vibrant characters, and family secrets.
Book Discussion: Recap curtesy of Amy
If you are early, you are on time! (Jill & Sondra) If you are on time, you are late! (Amy) If you are late, you are really late! (Jen & Shobha) If you are really late, they might keep the kitchen open for you (Karie & guest Meghan!) If you are counting, that’s 6 people plus a guest so attendance was not too shabby, but we missed those who could not join us.
The book was The Tale of Halcyon Crane by Wendy Webb. The restaurant pick was Cajun Queen…for its ghostly reputation.
So first…best server ever! I think his name was John, but maybe it was Bob or Paul? It doesn’t matter. Right away, a wine bottle was at our table and he came by appropriately at the right time for appetizers, food and most importantly refills on drinks which made up nicely for the prior month. As we finally got around to discussion questions, late comers (who maybe not so coincidentally did not finish the book) rushed to the bar to avoid spoilers. That left three of us for discussion questions. Well, three plus a baby screaming in the corner. For once, we were not the loudest in the room.
Despite the fairly lame questions in the back of the book (not a single question about the mysterious house keeper/witch) overall consensus was a thumbs up. This is a quick fun read! Just enough mystery, romance and supernatural and not a major time commitment. Many of us read this in a weekend. There was some debate as to whether Hallie jumped into bed too quickly with Will. A determination was made that she lost her father, found and lost her mother, and inherited a haunted house all within a week so why not? He’s hot, single and a lawyer. And it turns out they have a childhood connection so there’s that.
We were all waiting on pins and needs for Shobha’s mysterious ghost story about Cajun Queen. Which turned out she did not see a ghost after all, but really just a weird hair standing up on the back of your neck feeling when trying to retrieve a lost item from this establishment in the middle of the day. Was it a a credit card? A purse? A shawl? The mystery still remains. Spooky. By the way, Jill is all-in on a bookclub ghost hunter’s adventure overnight. Sondra and I – nope.
Well into our third bottle of wine guess who finally shows up? Karie and Meghan!! They lost their tennis match, but are still winners in our minds. Our excellent server promptly brought their pre-texted meals (despite the kitchen shutting down) and dinner was rounded out by a delicious oreo cheesecake and so-so tollhouse cookie thing. Jen then tries to wake the now-sleeping baby by yelling at it across the room.
So for next month’s picks, this is where I fail you. It was Jill’s turn for them. She brought four selections. We picked the second one in her stapled packed and I cannot for the life of me remember the name of it! Somebody help me fill in the blanks!
As always, it was a lovely evening and we missed those that could not join us. There’s always next month