キャミー・タング著「戌年」連載小説 プロのドッグトレーナーであるマリ・ムトウは、厄年を迎えている。 犬小屋と訓練所の改築をしながら、いつも不服そうにしている家族と同居することになった。母と姉に言わせれば、犬の毛とよだれかけにまみれる仕事は、家族にとって恥ずべきものだという。彼女は元カレを説得し、数ヶ月間犬を預かってもらうことにした。しかし、彼の兄は、数週間前に彼女が誤って車に追突した、怒り狂ったセキュリティ専門家であることが判明する。 アシュウィン・ケイトウは十分な問題を抱えている。叔母が玄関先に現れ、同居を希望している。彼は彼女にすべてを借りているので、断ることができません。母親が家を出て行った後、ネルおばさんはアシュウィンと弟を引き取り、愛のあるキリスト教の家庭で育てた。しかも、弟のダスティもアパートを追い出され、居場所を求めている。しかし、彼は犬を飼っている。そして、その犬の飼い主は誰だと思いますか? しかし、旧友でオアフ島のノースショアでデイスパを経営する私立探偵のエディサ・ゲレロから依頼を受ける。マリの施設で奇妙な破壊行為があり、3年前に失踪したエディサの妹の財布を発見する。エディサはマリが危険な目に遭っているのではと心配する。警備の専門家であるアシュウィンがすでにマリを知っていることを知ったエディサは、忙しい若い女性を密かに監視することを彼に依頼する。 アシュウィンは、活発でのんびりとしたドッグトレーナーに不本意ながら惹かれていく。彼女は、幸せそうな母親を思い出させる。その母親の裏切りによって、彼は人と距離を置くようになったのだ。マリは、アシュウィンの冷たい外見を見抜き、彼が家族に忠実な男であることを認める。彼は、彼女のキャリア選択を批判するだけの母親や姉とは違う。 マリのバラバラな家庭とアシュウィンのバラバラな家庭の中で、過去を隠そうとする人たちから、彼らの周りに危険が迫ってくるようになる。彼らは、影で動く秘密に光を当てることができるのか? 過去に発表されたパートへのリンクはこちら。 *** 第8章 - 恐ろしくも真っ白な不動産書類 『みんな仲良くできないのかな?』 マリは無用に力を込めて箱に本を投げ入れた。最近、なぜ彼女は人生の中で全員と言い争いをしているのだろう?もしかすると、これは本当に悪いアイデア
Captain’s Log, Stardate 04.22.2006
Blog book giveaway:
My Monday (well, really Tuesday) book giveaway is the Flanagans series (4 books) by Marta Perry.
My Thursday book giveaway is A BABY FOR DRY CREEK by Janet Tronstad.
You can still enter both giveaways. Just post a comment on each of those blog posts. On Monday, I'll draw the winner for the Flanagans series and post the title for another book I'm giving away. Stay tuned.
Continued from Mount Hermon recap, part 5:
In the coffee lounge, Sarah had to leave to teach her Night Owl class, and so Chip left, too. I joined some other friends gabbing, and then I went to the dining hall to get hot tea.
There weren’t many people in there chatting, so I zeroed in on the caffeine. Then I heard a voice, “Camy!”
Chip sat at a round table with three other women, one of them Laura Christianson (my blogging buddy and classmate in the Media Mania class). I met Jenn Doucette, who is a long-time friend of Chip’s, and Karen Kennedy. All of them were from the Seattle, WA area.
(BTW, Jenn just started a blog called Chatter Matters: blogging with hope, humor, and author Jenn Doucette.)
Chip waved at me to sit down. I did. (What can I say, I’m a lemming.) He introduced the women.
“Camy here just signed a 3-book deal with Zondervan.”
Wow, Chip MacGregor just tooted my horn for me. That’s kind of cool.
The three women offered congratulations and ask what the books are about. I told them. Chip started teasing me again about Asian chick-lit. It was rather weird because I’ve only ever seen him tease Steve Laube and Randy Ingermanson like that, and I only met him an hour ago.
Well, heck. If he’s going to dish it out, I can, too.
I turned to the women. “Let me tell you what happened in the coffee lounge when Chip first heard about my 3-book deal...”
I described the “revolted jerk” reaction quite nicely, complete with demonstration. The women found it quite amusing. People turned to stare at the cackling and whooping.
Chip protested, “I didn’t do that.”
“No, maybe it was more like a nauseated shudder.” I gave another accurate demonstration.
More snickers from the peanut gallery.
Chip laughed.
So, despite my laughing-and-pointing, Chip can handle teasing. Good thing for me, huh? Since I’m not smart enough to be respectful to an editor.
Tuesday: Some marketing news I learned.
Blog book giveaway:
My Monday (well, really Tuesday) book giveaway is the Flanagans series (4 books) by Marta Perry.
My Thursday book giveaway is A BABY FOR DRY CREEK by Janet Tronstad.
You can still enter both giveaways. Just post a comment on each of those blog posts. On Monday, I'll draw the winner for the Flanagans series and post the title for another book I'm giving away. Stay tuned.
Continued from Mount Hermon recap, part 5:
In the coffee lounge, Sarah had to leave to teach her Night Owl class, and so Chip left, too. I joined some other friends gabbing, and then I went to the dining hall to get hot tea.
There weren’t many people in there chatting, so I zeroed in on the caffeine. Then I heard a voice, “Camy!”
Chip sat at a round table with three other women, one of them Laura Christianson (my blogging buddy and classmate in the Media Mania class). I met Jenn Doucette, who is a long-time friend of Chip’s, and Karen Kennedy. All of them were from the Seattle, WA area.
(BTW, Jenn just started a blog called Chatter Matters: blogging with hope, humor, and author Jenn Doucette.)
Chip waved at me to sit down. I did. (What can I say, I’m a lemming.) He introduced the women.
“Camy here just signed a 3-book deal with Zondervan.”
Wow, Chip MacGregor just tooted my horn for me. That’s kind of cool.
The three women offered congratulations and ask what the books are about. I told them. Chip started teasing me again about Asian chick-lit. It was rather weird because I’ve only ever seen him tease Steve Laube and Randy Ingermanson like that, and I only met him an hour ago.
Well, heck. If he’s going to dish it out, I can, too.
I turned to the women. “Let me tell you what happened in the coffee lounge when Chip first heard about my 3-book deal...”
I described the “revolted jerk” reaction quite nicely, complete with demonstration. The women found it quite amusing. People turned to stare at the cackling and whooping.
Chip protested, “I didn’t do that.”
“No, maybe it was more like a nauseated shudder.” I gave another accurate demonstration.
More snickers from the peanut gallery.
Chip laughed.
So, despite my laughing-and-pointing, Chip can handle teasing. Good thing for me, huh? Since I’m not smart enough to be respectful to an editor.
Tuesday: Some marketing news I learned.
Comments
(If only he'd take it a little more often, then maybe he'd quit dishing it out so often.)
(Did I just say that?)
(Yes, I do believe I did.)
: )
donna