A Pretty Good Story

Last night, as I was driving home from work, the air was filled with the rich thickness of drying corn. It's an earthy, sinus-aggravating scent that only comes a few weeks out of the year. It's also an indicator for a good rain. The skies darkened this morning and the rain puttered on the windows. Now flood warnings are spouting from the radios and television.

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There's nothing like a good chilly rain to make you want to curl up under a soft blanket with a good book. A good book is like a good friend. One thing I know: I've been blessed with new blog friends this year. This bloggy business is kind of like looking for your glasses in the dark: you're never sure what you'll see when you put them on and you hope for a little light to shine.

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Elizabeth Spann Craig is an author who has commented from time to time on this very blog. (Thanks, Elizabeth!) I've enjoyed seeing what she has to say and I do read her blog:

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http://www.mysterywritingismurder.blogspot.com/

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So when her cozy mystery, Pretty Is As Pretty Dies came out, I was certain to pick it up. For blog readers, this may not seem to be a big deal. But as a librarian by day, I'm inundated with reviews, journals, recommendations, bestseller lists, patron requests and it's general book bliss on most days. I'm not complaining in the slightest. So to purchase a book without print reviews, recommendations and whatnot, is like stepping into a whole new way of looking at books. (That's not to say that Ms. Craig's book doesn't have reviews or recommendations. They just haven't crossed my path. Yet.)

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I read her book on a similar rainy afternoon. I immediately fell in love with her main character, retired school teacher, Myrtle Clover, an octogenarian, who decides to solve the murder of Parke Stockard. By solving the murder, she would prove to her small town community of Bradley, North Carolina, that she's not ready to be dismissed.

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Everyone in Bradley has their own reasons for disliking Parke Stockard, a real estate developer, who wants to change their beloved small town. Even Myrtle has lost column space in the local newspaper to none other than Ms. Stockard. Myrtle's son, Red, the police chief, sends Myrtle on wild goose chases to keep her out of the active investigation. Their prickly relationship provides much humor in their separate quests to find the killer.

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Why do I love Myrtle? First, she's a writer. Gotta love that. Second, her favorite room in her house is her kitchen, which by her standards is, "the scene of many culinary disasters." I can relate wholeheartedly. Third, she walks with a cane. I happened to be walking with a cane at the time of the reading. So I felt a natural kinship with that small part of her personality. Mostly, I liked her because she hadn't lost any of her spunk. I can only hope to have an ounce of her feistiness when I reach my eighties!

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The book is a quick read at 206 pages. The characters are marinated in small town charms and quirks, which I enjoyed reading. The mystery was satisfying. I'm looking forward to the next Myrtle Clover mystery. If you want to know more about where this may fit in the spectrum of good reads, peruse Ms. Spann's recent post on: Dry-Clean Only Books. I think she's on to something there! (The book cover is so charming, too!) I consider this book a great rainy day read.

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Oh! And to conclude my little story, I was waiting for the next rainy day to post the review. I didn't know that I'd have to wait three weeks!

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Pretty Is As Pretty Dies by Elizabeth Spann Craig, Midnight Ink, 2009. ISBN: 9780738714806 in paperback.