Mysteries almost always have a pronounced darkness. Not so Leslie Meier’s Wedding Day Murder, despite its title. Among Joanne’s vast donation of books were at least ten of Meier’s. I was expecting lightness, as she is unknown to the lovers of the genre who patronize the floating book shop. The murder does not occur until about page 120 of a novel of 236 pages. The narrative focuses on the domestic life of the heroine, a housewife/reporter for the weekly paper of her small town in coastal Maine. In the end, everything works out fine. Most of the characters are wholesome, although they have problems. On the author’s website, her books are described as “cozy mystery.” She has written 20, one per year, featuring the same protagonist, so she must have a solid fan base. I was unable to find any stats on her book sales. There is no page about her at Wiki. Her prose and dialogue are okay. While I respect her penchant for decency, I did not find anything exciting in the work, at least in this part of the series. She must be doing something right if her publisher keeps issuing her books. No doubt the series has tallied at least a million sales. I’ll break 600 soon. On a scale of five, I rate Wedding Day Murder two.
I got off easy at the dentist this year, but not so at the mechanic. Since the forecast was for showers all day, I figured it was the right time to take my 2003 Hyundai in for its annual inspection. I got the return call rather quickly, which meant the news was extremely good or bad. There’s something wrong with the gas line that requires five parts. I am not surprised, as I’ve had problems every time I’ve filled up lately. The pump shuts down every few seconds, which makes a trip to the station really annoying. The bill will be $836. I’m trying to tell myself I’m coming out ahead, given that the dentist didn’t cost me anything.
I just got an email from my literary angel, Victoria Valentine. The 30 copies of Killing won’t arrive until Monday. At least I received a twenty buck payout from mysurvey.com, so today’s news is not all negative.
Just got the call from the shop. The work is done, but more may be needed. If I have the same problem pumping gas, the tank may have to be replaced. Ugh!
Oscar, the mechanic, said it is a common problem, even in Hondas. That’s why parts are easy to find. Unfortunately, the problem doesn’t trigger the Check Engine light on the dashboard. He showed me these little carbon deposits that were in the fuel system. They looked like rat droppings. He hopes he was able to flush them all out. They can find their way to an engine and cause a major headache. I’ll know if they problem was solved next time I go to the pump. I have half a tank right now. I was too bummed to take it to the station. I’ll wait until there’s a quarter left, as I usually do, and hold my breath as I’m pumping. Oscar says I can wait a few weeks.
Read Vic’s stories, free: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
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