It's the weekend! That means it is time for another Sunday/Monday Post. As usual, I will be linking up to:
Sunday Post
Sunday Salon
Stacking the Shelves
Mailbox Monday
It's Monday, What Are You Reading?
Why yes, I did miss this post last week, but I had a very good excuse. I was out of town with friends at Trixie Camp.
What's Trixie Camp, you ask? Excellent question! It's a gather in fans of the Trixie Belden Mystery series. The short version is that this is a Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew type series only more realistic. If you want to read more about it, here's a guide I wrote years ago.
Back in the early days of the internet, I found a fan site dedicated to the series. That soon lead to a message board, and the regulars started forming friendships. We decided to meet up in person, and thus the first camp/convention was born in 2000. Yes, we do talk about the books (informally), but we also talk about other things. We've become friends over the years, so, while Trixie is what brought us together, we talk about much more than that.
Our main activities are always touring the area where we met up. Sometimes, where we meet is directly inspired by locations in the series. Other times, the connection is loose at best. This year, we met in St. Louis, the setting of book 15 in the series, Mystery on the Mississippi (which was also the first book I read). We went to the arch and took a river boat cruise on the Mississippi. Then we did a dinner murder mystery. Finally, we spent some time exploring St. Charles, a nearby historical town.
I spent an extra day in the area since the friends whose wedding I was in last year live nearby in Southern Illinois. They were gracious enough to drive over Sunday, and we went out to Hannibal, Mark Twain country. I enjoyed touring the Mark Twain stuff they have set up.
The one thing about the trip is that it was hot. Close to 100 with humidity. I'm use to those temps here in So Cal, but NOT the humidity.
I haven't been to a Trixie Camp since 2017 thanks to real life getting in the way. But it was nice to be back, reconnect with friends, and meet lots of people who have started coming since then.
Blog Spam Comment of the Week:
I've got another fun blog spam comment to share. Presented without any corrections to spelling or grammar:
Wow, this was such an insightful post! I really appreciate the depth of your perspective and the practical tips you shared. It's inspiring to see content that combines both knowledge and authenticity. Looking forward to reading more from you—thanks for sharing your expertise!"
The best part of this? Once again, they went after one of my ornament reviews. And yes, after that stopped, they shared lots of links.
This Past Week on the Blog:
This Coming Week on the Blog:
Book Haul:
It's been two weeks. Of course, I have books to talk about.
For starters, I picked up two books on the trip. There was a bookstore in downtown St. Charles, and when I stopped in, an author was doing a signing. Magestone is the first in a middle grade fantasy series. I know, not my normal fair, but I do enjoy it. Of course, I got David Burleyson's signature in the book.
I also had to get some Mark Twain book while I was in Hannibal. I wasn't sure what I might or might not have of his books, so I settled on The Wit and Wisdom of Mark Twain as collected by Alex Ayres. Mark Twain is always good for a quote, right?
I've also started to collect some ARCs again. A Murder Most Fowl is the first in a new series by Carmela Dutra. The main characters are twins who are running a chicken themed food truck they just inherited from their aunt. It's set in the San Francisco area, and that appealed to me, too. I mean, I can't pass up a culinary cozy as it is. It comes out in September, so I'll read it closer to the release day.
Meanwhile, I also got Mrs. Claus and the Very Vicious Valentine, the newest from Liz Ireland. I love this series, and I'm looking forward to seeing what the characters are up to in this book. It also comes out in September.
Rounding out the list for this week, I have an ARC that comes out much sooner. Solid Gold Murder is the second Golden Motel Mystery from Ellen Byron. This one will be out at the end of July.
What I'm Currently Reading:
Which is why I am currently reading Solid Gold Murder. I'm planning to review it mid-July, so I'm reading it now. This series is set at a motel in the California Sierra Nevada Mountains. I loved the first in the series, and I'm enjoying this one as well.
That's it for me. Hope you have a great week.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for stopping by. In order to combat spam, I moderate most comments. I'll get to your comment as soon as I can.