Starleigh

I remember my mom clipping a NYT interview of Ann M. Martin at the height of the books' popularity. I think I was 11 or so, so maybe in 1988 or 89? Anyway, I remember distinctly her quoted as saying that the editors wanted a very wholesome and innocent book series and that there were many topics they just weren't going to include, such as the girls getting periods. I think the closest they got to it was Mary Anne getting her first bra.

Does anybody know when the new BSC series on Netflix is scheduled to be released? I'm hoping soon! I read Paperback Crush a couple of weeks ago. What a stroll down memory lane. So many random books that I'd forgotten about came back to me. I was probably most shocked to hear how now famous authors like Rhys Bowen cut their literary teeth by ghostwriting 80s girl series. Oh, and I was also surprised to find out the the author Fran Arrick was a pseudonym for the children's author Judy Angell (of Dear Lola fame). Totally different writing styles!

I definitely got the impression that Rose suffered from mental illness from Prairie Fires. The intense lows, manic highs (those crazy spending sprees and impulsive jaunts to Europe for years at a time, etc) point to bipolar, imo. It would explain so much. But you know who really comes across as greedy and opportunistic in that book? Roger Lea MacBride, her heir.

See the thing about her hair that bugged me was the way she'd wear it hanging down even while doing surgery! I know they didn't scrub down etc the way doctors do now, but still, it would be getting in the way not to mention probably getting blood spattered! Really, what bugged me the most is the way there was no privacy in her examining room. The patient's table was literally right in front of the door to the street. And no privacy curtain!

I'm trying to track down a mini series that I watched in the late 90s. It was some sort of mystery, with the main character who was probably either a cop or a lawyer. He was divorced and had custody of a teenage son. Pretty sure he lived in a houseboat. I recall one plot point where it turned out his ex wife was being blackmailed for some reason and was forced to strip and do a sexy dance for the blackmailer, who was a very powerful (possibly political) figure.

I didn't know there was a Death on the Nile in the works! It was the very first Agatha Christie I ever read, so I have a soft spot for it:) My current read I just finished is Joshilyn Jackson's newest book, Never Have I Ever. It was different than her others, more of a psychological novel of suspense, but I really liked it! It had so many twisty turns in the plot that surprised me, and the ending came together in a way that made total sense. She is so good at writing multi- layered, damaged characters....

Was it Curtain, the last Hercule Poirot? Or maybe The Man in the Brown Suit? I feel like there were a couple where she gave the murderer a voice in a sort of first person narration epilogue. Although I freely admit it's been some time since I read either of those books, so I could be totally off.

Finally caught up! I was a bit disappointed in season 5, it didn't have a compelling villain like the previous seasons. Still looking forward to season 6. I think I read that they haven't even written the script for it yet and it may not come out until 2021:(

A bit off topic, but...is the book worth reading? I loved the other Mary Stewart books when I read them years ago, but I don't remember reading this one. I did try watching the movie not long ago when I was on a nostalgic Hayley Mills movie kick, but I got too bored to finish it.

I'm so glad I was able to help! I wouldn't necessarily have recognized it from your summary until you mentioned that last scene. It is indeed a very memorable one:)

Right, and then Kristy's grandmother moved in to their mansion to be a nanny/housekeeper. Now that I think about it, why didn't the Brewers just hire a live in? They could certainly afford it, and Kristy always described her grandmother as being super independent and active. Why would she want to be tied down with a 2 year old at her age?!

If you still looking for good, similar type regencies, I would recommend Marion Chesney.

Right, I forgot about "Jessi's Babysitter"-- I think I was aging out of the series by then, so I probably only read it once or twice, vs the dozens of times I read the earlier books. And I just remembered how that Mrs. Pike joined a temp agency when Mallory's dad lost his job. It's funny how this thread is recalling so many little bits of trivia I'd forgotten I knew, lol.

Wasn't Claudia's mom the head librarian at the local public library? I think the number of working moms and stay at homes were probably equal. Mrs. Pike, Mrs. Ramsey, Mrs. McGill (until she got divorced) were all SAHM. I read the Sweet Valley Twins in elementary, they were first published when I was in second grade. I remember my seatmate in second grade getting her scholastic book order with SVT #1 and thinking that the girls on the cover looked so grown up, lol. ( I guess the word "sophisticated" wasn't yet in my vocabulary.) I liked them quite a bit, but the BSC, which came out maybe 2 years later were my top series.

I don't know, I think it's more that LMA was determined not to follow the standard romantic formula. The way she wrote it, though, Jo and Laurie had way more chemistry than Jo and the Professor. I never bought that romance, but that's just me. Maybe I should have posted this in the unpopular literary opinion thread, lol.

Jo and Laurie, from Little Women. I'm still mad at Jo for turning him down, they were clearly made for each other.

Just looked it up, I think it's A White Bird Flying. The main character is Abbie Deal's grandaughter, but I don't remember her name. It's been a several years since I last read it. Hope it's as good as you remember!

That's what I always found funny, you would have thought at some point she would have had to move into a wooden shack at least! Was I th only one disappointed when Horace's marriage fell apart? They fought so hard to get married and he worshipped the ground she walked on.

This is a few years late, but the last book you describe is by Bess Streeter Aldrich. I don't recall the title but it's the sequel to A Lantern in Her Hand.

I was under the impression that MHC has been using ghostwriters for years. But maybe I'm mixing her up with another super prolific writer. Anyway, my author that I've stopped reading is Janet Evanovich. When I first started reading the Stephanie Plum books, they were different and funny. By the time she got to the midteens, though, the quality dropped. And I got tired of the never ending love triangle.