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
Calm, Cool and Adjusted (Spa Girls book 3) by Kristin Billerbeck
From the back cover:
Silicon Valley chiropractor Poppy Clayton is as calm, cool and adjusted as they come . . . or is she? Known for her bad fashion sense, a love for all things natural and the inability to get a second date, Poppy is beginning to wonder if she might be misaligned herself. Especially since her best friends, Lilly and Morgan, seem to think so. After all, a “normal” woman doesn’t evaluate prospective dates on their liver function and their spiritual balance, does she?
Poppy’s route to self discover will be an unnatural one involving a plastic surgeon (of all people!), a condemned house in Santa Cruz and a wedding date from the dark side. It’s enough to send a girl and her gal pals running for the spa!
Camy here:
This novel does a great job finishing off the Spa Girls series. Poppy is my favorite character of the three, and this book really gets into her head and reveals more of who she is beyond the health-food obsession and bad clothes.
Poppy is STRANGE. But she’s also incredibly unique. More than her weirdness, she values individuality—which is something many young women struggle with—and is a strong heroine.
Poppy’s relationship with her father is one of those intangible push-pull bonds that many of my friends have with their own parents. I think this book will speak to women who have dysfunctional families and help them not to feel so alone. Poppy doesn’t have all the answers, but she does her best to trust God in everything.
At points in the story, I didn’t quite understand why Lilly and Morgan were so insistent on setting Poppy up. However, I thought the author portrayed the unintentional cruelty of married people to singles very well. I really felt for Poppy.
The book also deals with the subject of loneliness for singles very clearly. I could relate to Poppy’s emotions and struggles in this area, since I had felt that myself when I was single.
In true Billerbeck style, I didn’t know which guy Poppy was going to end up with until almost the end of the book, and there were still parts where I was kind of anticipating for the other shoe to drop, so it was an exciting and entertaining read.
The chemistry between Poppy and her suitors is powerful and sizzles off the page—more so than in Lilly’s story in She’s All That, and even more than in Morgan’s story in A Girl’s Best Friend. Yet there is nothing inappropriate about the language, the topics of conversation, or the action—it’s all very clean.
ALERT! SEMI-SPOILER
As someone who grew up in Hawaii, I could totally relate to Simon’s feelings about Hawaii at the end of the book.
Spoiler over
This is a fun book, appropriate for women from junior high school age and up. I think that 20- and 30-somethings will most relate to the plot and characters, but it’s a fast, engaging story no matter what age you are.
From the back cover:
Silicon Valley chiropractor Poppy Clayton is as calm, cool and adjusted as they come . . . or is she? Known for her bad fashion sense, a love for all things natural and the inability to get a second date, Poppy is beginning to wonder if she might be misaligned herself. Especially since her best friends, Lilly and Morgan, seem to think so. After all, a “normal” woman doesn’t evaluate prospective dates on their liver function and their spiritual balance, does she?
Poppy’s route to self discover will be an unnatural one involving a plastic surgeon (of all people!), a condemned house in Santa Cruz and a wedding date from the dark side. It’s enough to send a girl and her gal pals running for the spa!
Camy here:
This novel does a great job finishing off the Spa Girls series. Poppy is my favorite character of the three, and this book really gets into her head and reveals more of who she is beyond the health-food obsession and bad clothes.
Poppy is STRANGE. But she’s also incredibly unique. More than her weirdness, she values individuality—which is something many young women struggle with—and is a strong heroine.
Poppy’s relationship with her father is one of those intangible push-pull bonds that many of my friends have with their own parents. I think this book will speak to women who have dysfunctional families and help them not to feel so alone. Poppy doesn’t have all the answers, but she does her best to trust God in everything.
At points in the story, I didn’t quite understand why Lilly and Morgan were so insistent on setting Poppy up. However, I thought the author portrayed the unintentional cruelty of married people to singles very well. I really felt for Poppy.
The book also deals with the subject of loneliness for singles very clearly. I could relate to Poppy’s emotions and struggles in this area, since I had felt that myself when I was single.
In true Billerbeck style, I didn’t know which guy Poppy was going to end up with until almost the end of the book, and there were still parts where I was kind of anticipating for the other shoe to drop, so it was an exciting and entertaining read.
The chemistry between Poppy and her suitors is powerful and sizzles off the page—more so than in Lilly’s story in She’s All That, and even more than in Morgan’s story in A Girl’s Best Friend. Yet there is nothing inappropriate about the language, the topics of conversation, or the action—it’s all very clean.
ALERT! SEMI-SPOILER
As someone who grew up in Hawaii, I could totally relate to Simon’s feelings about Hawaii at the end of the book.
Spoiler over
This is a fun book, appropriate for women from junior high school age and up. I think that 20- and 30-somethings will most relate to the plot and characters, but it’s a fast, engaging story no matter what age you are.
Comments
I loooooove books with clean, yet sizzling romance.
Yummy!
I just got done with Chapter 15.
I got a little misty eyed as Simon talked to Poppy at her childhood home, but at the end of the chapter I wanted to scream, "What's wrong with you, girl?!" but I didn't, since I didn't want to be heard shrieking from the bathtub--lest my neighbors should think I finally crossed that thin deviding line!
I love this book so far, and I'm sure I will to the end.
Billerbeck NEVER lets me down!