The Stupidest Angel

The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror 

by Christopher Moore
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This story is set in Pine Cove, California, the setting of The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove and the angel in the title made an appearance in Lamb. 
This was a laugh-out-loud story and I loved seeing some familiar characters again. 

"There had been a time, during his bong-rat years, when Theophilus Crowe would have stated, with little reservation, that he did not like surprises, that he preferred routine over variety, predictability over uncertainty, the known over the unknown. Then, a few years ago, while working on Pine Cove's last murder case, Theo had gotten to know and fallen in love with Molly Michon, the ex-scream queen of the B-movie silver screen, and everything changed. He had broken one of the cardinal rules--Never go to bed with anyone crazier than yourself--and he'd been loving life ever since." (p. 98)

This book was not on my original Literary Christmas list, but it definitely fits into that project. 

Hello Fall!

Today is the first day of Fall (it begins at 4:44pm EDT to be precise). So, it seems like a good day to report on how I did on my summer reading. I don't usually commit myself to lists of specific books to read in a given timeframe, but the Top Ten Tuesday meme inspired me.
Here is what happened with my summer reading list:

1. A Farewell to Arms by E. Hemingway
   It was my Classics Club spin book and I finished it on time. I gave it one star. I think I was generous.
2. Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe
   I committed to reading this for the 18th Century English Literature event but I couldn't get through it. It was officially abandoned.
3. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
   Read this for Austen in August with Classics Club.
4. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
   Another Austen in August book -- I didn't get to this one. I did read some other Austen stuff though.
5. A Few Green Leaves by Barabara Pym
   I read it, I liked it (3 stars), but didn't have much to say about it so didn't write a review. Same deal with Excellent Women (4 stars).
6. Etiquette and Espionage by Gail Carriger
   Excellent start to a new series from the creator of the Parasol Protectorate.
7. Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurier
   This remains on my to-be-read (TBR) list.
8. Cinnamon Toast and the End of the World by Janet E. Cameron
   This remains on my TBR list and I'm looking forward to it based on Lisa's review. 
9. The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club by Dorthy Sayers
   I finished this one and am still working on my Sayers re-read project.
10. Sacre Bleu by Christopher Moore
    This one belongs to my husband, and is still in his to read pile so I am still waiting for my turn.

I did read a bunch of other books over the summer, but they weren't the ones that I thought I would read when I made the list. Planned reading lists are not my thing. My quilting friends tease me for being unable to follow a pattern without totally changing the design/technique/etc. This may be a related issue.