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 05.12.2009
I admit, I eat copious amounts of chocolate when I’m writing. It helps me to write better.
And lately (to Captain Caffeine’s dismay) I’ve become a bit snobbish about my chocolate. My favorite is Vosges Haut Chocolate, which is massively expensive but really really good. I like them because their chocolate is not only high quality, it’s not too sweet and the flavors are very exotic.
For the last book, I ordered truffles from Vosges: Les Fleurs du Chocolat Truffle Collection and a Green Tea Truffle Collection (no longer on the website).
Here’s the Les Fleurs collection:
From the insert:
Out of the bloom
Les Fleurs du chocolate
Botanics in a chocolate hue
Enveloped in the scent of roses, orchids, marigolds and nasturtiums, these blooms are even sweeter than they look. Flowers have long been praised for their medicinal properties—so we decided to pair them with spices, herbs and liqueurs to explore the body-beautiful attributes of Mother Nature’s colorful gifts. Reap the health benefits of the garden.
Camy here: Not so sure about “health benefits of the garden,” but they were darn good!
Siam Citron: jasmine tea + lemongrass + fresh coconut + white chocolate + organic marigold petal
LOVED this truffle! It was really refreshing to bite into it.
Mirabelle Orange: Mirabelle plums + orange flower water + 65% dark chocolate + organic nasturtium petal
Very delicate orange flavor. I’m not astute enough to be able to tell it was a Mirabelle plum, though.
Rose Vert: tarragon + rose water + 65% dark chocolate + organic red rose petal
Very exotic, original flavor. Pleasant, glad I tried it, but I wouldn’t order a whole box of this.
Platanos y Orchidus: orchid vanilla + caramelized bananas + Jamaican rum + 41% deep milk chocolate + organic purple orchid flower
This is my second favorite in the box. The bananas, rum, and vanilla combine for a fantastic flavor on the tongue.
Here’s the Green Collection:
These are all Asian inspired truffles.
Kayoko: Japanese macha tea + white chocolate + cherry blossom
This was good although a bit sweet for my taste. I loved the combination of tea and white chocolate.
Kaffir: Thai kaffir lime + fresh coconut + dark chocolate
Very unusual lime flavor—not typical lime—a really nice citrus sparkle in dark chocolate.
Ellateria: Indian green cardamom + dark chocolate + white poppy seeds
Gingery tasting—apparently cardamom seed is part of the ginger family—which goes well with dark chocolate.
Buddha’s Leaf: Malaysian pandan leaves + dark chocolate + cocoa powder
Easily my favorite in the box, and also the most exotic. I’d never tasted pandan leaves before, and the flavor is unique, a little nutty, a bit vanilla-y. Really pleasing, original flavor to this truffle.
Price: Okay, don’t have a heart attack. These truffles are VERY EXPENSIVE. You can see the prices on the website.
Were they worth it? I think so. The flavors are fantastic and they’re the kind of truffles where you just spend a few minutes only tasting and eating—not watching anything, not reading anything, just experiencing the chocolate.
I think it inspired me in my writing. You can read my dog book (May 2010 from Zondervan) and tell me if it did. :)
I admit, I eat copious amounts of chocolate when I’m writing. It helps me to write better.
And lately (to Captain Caffeine’s dismay) I’ve become a bit snobbish about my chocolate. My favorite is Vosges Haut Chocolate, which is massively expensive but really really good. I like them because their chocolate is not only high quality, it’s not too sweet and the flavors are very exotic.
For the last book, I ordered truffles from Vosges: Les Fleurs du Chocolat Truffle Collection and a Green Tea Truffle Collection (no longer on the website).
Here’s the Les Fleurs collection:
From the insert:
Out of the bloom
Les Fleurs du chocolate
Botanics in a chocolate hue
Enveloped in the scent of roses, orchids, marigolds and nasturtiums, these blooms are even sweeter than they look. Flowers have long been praised for their medicinal properties—so we decided to pair them with spices, herbs and liqueurs to explore the body-beautiful attributes of Mother Nature’s colorful gifts. Reap the health benefits of the garden.
Camy here: Not so sure about “health benefits of the garden,” but they were darn good!
Siam Citron: jasmine tea + lemongrass + fresh coconut + white chocolate + organic marigold petal
LOVED this truffle! It was really refreshing to bite into it.
Mirabelle Orange: Mirabelle plums + orange flower water + 65% dark chocolate + organic nasturtium petal
Very delicate orange flavor. I’m not astute enough to be able to tell it was a Mirabelle plum, though.
Rose Vert: tarragon + rose water + 65% dark chocolate + organic red rose petal
Very exotic, original flavor. Pleasant, glad I tried it, but I wouldn’t order a whole box of this.
Platanos y Orchidus: orchid vanilla + caramelized bananas + Jamaican rum + 41% deep milk chocolate + organic purple orchid flower
This is my second favorite in the box. The bananas, rum, and vanilla combine for a fantastic flavor on the tongue.
Here’s the Green Collection:
These are all Asian inspired truffles.
Kayoko: Japanese macha tea + white chocolate + cherry blossom
This was good although a bit sweet for my taste. I loved the combination of tea and white chocolate.
Kaffir: Thai kaffir lime + fresh coconut + dark chocolate
Very unusual lime flavor—not typical lime—a really nice citrus sparkle in dark chocolate.
Ellateria: Indian green cardamom + dark chocolate + white poppy seeds
Gingery tasting—apparently cardamom seed is part of the ginger family—which goes well with dark chocolate.
Buddha’s Leaf: Malaysian pandan leaves + dark chocolate + cocoa powder
Easily my favorite in the box, and also the most exotic. I’d never tasted pandan leaves before, and the flavor is unique, a little nutty, a bit vanilla-y. Really pleasing, original flavor to this truffle.
Price: Okay, don’t have a heart attack. These truffles are VERY EXPENSIVE. You can see the prices on the website.
Were they worth it? I think so. The flavors are fantastic and they’re the kind of truffles where you just spend a few minutes only tasting and eating—not watching anything, not reading anything, just experiencing the chocolate.
I think it inspired me in my writing. You can read my dog book (May 2010 from Zondervan) and tell me if it did. :)
Comments
I am on a break at work, and my mouth is breaking out over those pics!
If your writing is any indication of what those chocolates will do for the muse, sign me up! Hey, maybe you could distribute them to us wannabe writers and make some extra money on the side...
I guess the bottom line is, whatever inspires you to write better is good, right????
Camy
mamat2730(at)charter(dot)net
I feel I need to make some truffles to satisfy the sweet tooth you gave me.
The asian box of truffles would get me to pick my pen to write short stories again
It's like you said Camy, whatever motivates one to write!
Edwina
Camy