Crafts and Life

Essential oils distributor Dorcas Wiley is the boss everyone loves to hate. So when she turns up dead, killed by her own trophy, disgruntled saleswoman Cathy Broderick is the obvious suspect in her murder. Despite opportunity, motive and incriminating evidence, Cathy declares her innocence and enlists her mah jongg pals—Sydney Bonner and her cronies Marianne, Micki and Kat—to help save her from the death penalty.

The women have their own issues to deal with in their central Florida town of Serendipity Springs. Kat faces a health challenge, Micki fields a mysterious inquiry from her ex, Marianne has a chaotic anniversary and Syd wrestles with her husband over who’s really in charge. But nothing puts everyday life into perspective like the moment when their investigation brings them face to face with danger.

Oh My Word! After the events of Craks in a Marriage a month ago Sydney, Marianne, Micki and Kat are looking forward to just relaxing and playing Mah Jongg, however Micki is antsy about something, Kat is hiding something from Sydney and Marianne and another member of the Mah Jongg group (Cathy Broderick) is putting Micki's back up!

Cathy has been selling essential oils as a sideline to her retirement, but her husband, Art, is worried about her, so worried that he actually had a word with Trip Bonner, which leads to Trip and Sydney going to see Cathy and Art one afternoon.  Whilst there Cathy breaks down and admits that it is all getting too much, the local distributor is getting them to sell more and more, and varied items not just the Essential Oils, having got that off her chest she seems to relax and is trying to decide whether to cut her losses or stick it out when the question seems to become moot, the arrival of Sheriff Rick to take Cathy in for questioning over the murder of her boss seems scary and Art wants Sydney to look into other possibilities as he (and Sydney) are positive that Cathy is innocent.

So the Mah Jongg posse reassembles – this time with the addition of Trip and Beau and from there on in we have a roller coaster of a ride to find out the truth, and at the same time find out about Micki and Kat as well. 

The first book I gave three stars to, this one is a four if not a four point five and I can't wait for number three in the series! At first I wasn't sure about the idea of Mah Jongg and the fact that all the "sleuths" are retired but these books are fun and well worth the read.

An Interview With A Character

What is your full name?

My name is Sydney Dianne Carstairs Bonner. I am the lead character in the first two “Mah Jongg Mysteries” by Barbara Barrett, Craks in a Marriage and Bamboozled. My middle name comes from my late mother. My late father, Peter Carstairs, insisted if I was to take his last name, I carry her name in the middle. Mom and Dad were married while he served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. When the War ended, he went to school on the G.I. Bill and after earning his doctorate, taught American History at a small four-year college in New England. I grew up in the fifties, when most women stayed home. My mother didn’t. She’d worked for a small printing company while my dad was away at war. When the men came home, her job as office manager went to a returning vet. She was given the choice of unemployment or becoming their bookkeeper. She chose the former, and while my dad taught, she went to school to gain her undergraduate degree in business, marketing in particular. She leveraged her experience at the print shop when she began her own advertising business. I’ll tell you how those affected my own profession in the next question.

Skipping ahead, I met Theodore “Trip" Bonner in my senior year of college when he dated my roommate. She had a wandering eye even while she dated him. One night, she discovered she had doublebooked dates. Trip was the odd man out, and when he learned he’d come in second, he asked me out instead. He never went back to her. We were married a year and a half later. That was over forty years ago. He’s my rock, even though he’s stumbled a few times of late adjusting to retirement.

What is your Profession?

Five years ago, I retired after serving over twenty years as dean of women at the same college where my father taught. I didn’t go into teaching like him. Instead, my mother’s successful career in marketing influenced me when I chose to go the administrative route in college education. I started as a head resident in one of the dormitories, then went on to become director of student housing, then director of student activities and finally dean of women. That type of position has evolved over the past few decades as the distinction between the treatment of men and women in higher education has blurred. Though my title didn’t change, my role did as I became the top advocate for all students on our campus. Trip and I moved to the new town of Serendipity Springs in central Florida after my retirement. Unlike some of my friends who have moved on to second careers after their retirement, I have thus far been content to enjoy social activities, especially the game of mah jongg, and be the kind of homemaker I wasn’t while I worked.

What is your current favourite book or movie?

Since I now live about an hour away from NASA headquarters, I’ve become interested in space travel. I recently saw “The Martian” when it was rerun on television. I was fascinated with the idea of someone being left behind on the Red Planet and having to figure out how to survive on his own for several years until he could be rescued.

My favorite current movie is “Book Club.” Though I don’t belong to a book club, I’m part of another group of four friends of about the same age who play mah jongg together weekly and share in each other’s lives. Two of us have been married for years, but I don’t think we’re having problems in the bedroom as Mary Steenbergen’s character, although I can only speak for myself. Maybe my friend, Marianne, has a different story. Another friend, Micki, is a lot like the Candice Bergen character; she has been divorced for years. And our fourth member, Katrina, though not a widow, is starting to date again, like the Diane Keaton character.  

What is your go to comfort book or movie?

I’m a bit of a romantic when it comes to movies. I turn to “Sweet Home, Alabama” when I need cheering. I like how the two main characters changed their lives for the better after their break-up and then come back together several years later.

If someone was to play you in a movie who would it be? OR what would be the character you would want to be in a book?

I see myself as a “take-charge” woman, so I’d pick someone who has played that type of role in the past. She’d probably be tall, like me. My choices would be Allison Janney, Sigourney Weaver or Christine Baranski.

What is your ideal evening?

Trip and I like to socialize with a small group of friends, either everyone contributing to dinner at our home or eating at one of our favorite restaurants. If the latter, it would be Italian. If the former, after dinner, we’d play a game like “Charades.”