BOOK REVIEW: The Magician's Assistant by Ann Pachett

The Magician's Assistant is the second book by Ann Patchett that I've read (the first being Bel Canto).  The story follows Sabine, the assistant to the magician Parcifal, after Parcifal's death.  It isn't until the will is read that Sabine learns of Parcifal's family in Nebraska, whom Parcifal had lead her to believe are dead.  As Sabine learns more about his family, she finds out more about the man who was Guy Fetters before he became the Parcifal Sabine knew and loved.

At first, I wasn't sure that I would like this book.  The story is a bit slow to gain momentum, and I didn't love Sabine, which made it difficult as she is the narrator.  However, I grew to love many of the periphery characters - Parcifal's partner Phan, his mother, and his sister Kitty - and yearned to find out more about them.

Much of the book focuses on the parallel of the smoke and mirrors and slight of hand present in magic shows with Parcifal and Sabine's relationship, much of which was built on Parcifal's storytelling rather than truth.  Just as the audience doesn't know how the magician does his tricks, Sabine didn't really know as much about Parcifal as she thought.

I found the writing style (at least compared to Bel Canto) fairly plain and not at all thrilling.  I was interested in knowing how the story would end, but there wasn't much in the story pulling me along.

Overall, if you are looking for a book that focuses on family, relational struggles, and the search for self, The Magician's Assistant might be a worthwhile read.  I would give it two out of four stars.

BOOK REVIEW: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Gone Girl opens on the fifth wedding anniversary of Nick and Amy Dunne and is told through journal entries from Amy and first-person narrative from Nick. After taking a morning walk, Nick returns to find his wife has gone missing and it looks like there was a struggle. When the police arrive to investigate, the crime scene looks set up and suddenly Nick is the prime suspect in the ensuring investigation. Nick finds that, just like every other year, Amy created a treasure hunt for him before her disappearance. Following the clues she left brings him closer and closer to finding out the truth about what happened to Amy.

Gone Girl is one of the few books that has literally made my jaw drop. This is the first book that I've ready by Gillian Flynn, and I've never wanted to read a book faster in my entire life! From the very beginning, the suspense is palpable and I wanted nothing more than to know what happened to Amy and whether Nick was as guilty as he appeared. Every character has multiple dimensions, and over time as these facets get revealed, you realize how many layers the story has - it's incredible.

If you enjoy psychological thrillers and amazing storytelling, I would highly recommend this book. You won't be able to put it down until you finish it - probably within 48 hours!

BOOK REVIEW: Serena by Ron Rash

When I first learned that my book club had decided on Serena by Ron Rash for the next month's book club meeting, I was surprised because it wasn't a book that I had heard of before, and yet somehow they were already making it into a movie with Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper! The story, which is about George and Serena Pemberton and their quest to create a logging empire in North Carolina. Their methods are ruthless and their relationship intense. Throw into the mix an illegitimate child, and you've got all things to create a compelling, exciting drama.

I won't go into detail about what actually happens in the story - I don't want to give anything away - but I really enjoyed this book. Strong female characters really appeal to me, and Serena absolutely fit the bill. She is strong, commands attention, and works to earn the respect of their workers. However what makes Serena really special is that she also comes with a hint of mystery and a dash of danger. In other words, stay on her good side or you're in trouble.

The setting - North Carolina in the late 1920s - was also somewhat unique. The US is teetering on the edge of the Great Depression, yet this book focuses on two people who will do anything to become rich in the timber industry. They're fighting against efforts to create the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The historical elements sprinkled throughout the book like this really captured my interest.

In a lot of ways, I could see this book as a Cohen Brothers movie (if it weren't already being made into a movie) because things just keep going from bad to worse for the Pemberton's. The misery just keeps snowballing the farther along you get, until it reaches the point where it almost gets so ridiculous you have to laugh a little. Without giving it away, I loved how the ending dawns on you at about the same moment it likely dawns on the characters - great stuff!

Overall, if you're looking for a book that is dark and intense, romantic and thrilling, this is the book for you. I recommend it!

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Auburn Alamaba: Ariccia Restaurant

Yet again, I am traveling for work.  This time I am visiting a state I've never had the pleasure of visiting before: Alabama.  After many hours of travel to get to Auburn University, I visited the restaurant attached to my hotel.

Ariccia
I have to say, I thought it was a bit strange that the hostess brought me to a table and then asked, "Is this okay, or do you want something farther back?"  I appreciate her asking, but it seemed strange as I'd already seated myself at the table.

Image courtesy of www.auhcc.com

I will say, however, that I really enjoyed the ambiance.  It was dark (but not too dark) and cozy, wasn't too loud and I didn't feel like I was accidentally eavesdropping on anyone or vice versa because the tables were nicely spaced apart.  I also had a nice view of the kitchen area, which I always find enjoyable.  I was quickly served some rosemary bread with olive oil and cracked pepper.  Unfortunately the bread was dry and seemed almost stale, but thankfully the olive oil made it edible.

My server was super friendly, attentive, and knowledgeable of the menu.  I am lactose intolerant, so I will admit going into an Italian restaurant was probably a bit silly on my part, but she was able to point out which items were dairy free or could easily be modified to be dairy free.  I settled for the tagliatelle which has a lovely and not overpowering pesto with pine nuts, sun dried tomatoes and a few sprigs of broccolini.

Overall, despite a few polishes here and there, I really enjoyed my meal and my experience at Ariccia.  I don't know that I'd go out of my way to return, but if I am ever visiting Auburn and staying at the Hotel, I'd certainly consider it for the convenience if nothing else.

Overall rating: 3-stars (out of 5)

***Review cross-posted to Yelp.com*** 

Work trip to Seattle: Restaurant Reviews

I've recently taken a trip to Seattle for work and had the joy of visiting a number of SERIOUSLY delicious establishments.  So, without further ado, here are some reviews of the places we visited.  More are coming soon!

The Pink Door
I love that The Pink Door was part of my Seattle experience!  Our group had originally tried to make an OpenTable reservation for dinner, only to find that the first available time was at 9:00pm...too late for those of us still running on a Central Time clock!  The woman I spoke with said that there is a whole portion of the restaurant that is walk-in only, and suggested we try that, and I am so glad we did!

Finding the restaurant was an Alice in Wonderland experience as there isn't a sign for the restaurant at all - merely a pink door.  If you didn't know any better, you might just think it's the door to someone's home so BE BRAVE! Open the door!

We opted to sit on the patio, and the kitschy ambiance was excellent.  I had the soft shell crab, which was a special of the day, and it was wonderful.  It came with a polenta cake and blistered asparagus, and I also ordered one of their specialty cocktails.  The cocktail I wasn't as jazzed about, but it certainly wasn't awful!  Our waitress was attentive, although borderline on overly so.  Overall each of us was pleased with the meals we selected, though I have the feeling that you could almost select anything on the menu and you couldn't go wrong.

Overall rating: 4-stars (out of 5)
 
Lola
My first morning in Seattle, I ventured out to Lola for breakfast.  I got there close to 6:45 am as I was still running on Central Time and the place was pretty empty since they hadn't been open very long.  That said, I was seated right away.

The ambiance of the restaurant was nice and cozy.  My server brought over coffee quickly and I ordered the Lola breakfast.  At the suggestion of my server, I had feta cheese added to my scrambled eggs instead of cheddar and I could not even believe how wonderful that was!  The smashed garlic fried potatoes were everything I hoped they would be, but I honestly was disappointed by the pork-maple sausage and wished I'd chosen the bacon instead.

Overall, though, having my first Tom Douglas experience at Lola was wonderful, and I can't wait to try the others near Downtown! 

Overall rating: 4-stars (out of 5)

Japonessa
At first I thought "Sushi? With Latin flair? What could that possibly mean?!"  Let me tell you, its the greatest sushi I've had to date!

We settled for four rolls to share amongst the table: Street Fighter II, Tres Diablos, Orange Crush, and Madrid Moon.  I will say, however, that many, many of the rolls were of interest and if I had more time in Seattle (or come back in the future), I have some others in my back pocket to try!

The Orange Crush had an excellent crunch to it and a pretty mild flavor.  The Tres Diablos was probably my favorite - the strawberry habañero sauce was a nice addition...sweet on the front end, spicy on the back end of the bite.  The Street Fighter II wasn't as spicy as I thought it would be with the jalepeño on top, but it had just the right balance of flavors.  The Madrid Moon was a little on the spicier side, but completely different than the other three we had on the table.

If you're looking for great sushi with a twist, I'd highly recommend Japonessa.  I can't speak to anything on the menu that wasn't specialty rolls, but if you're in the market for rolls you honestly can't go wrong. 

Overall: 5-stars (out of 5)


Palace Kitchen
Our group ventured over to Palace Kitchen strictly for dessert.  There were four of us, and we got the washington rhubarb brown betty, chocolate trifle, dahlia triple coconut cream pie and the mango sorbet.  Collectively, these were - in a word - divine!

The brown better was warm and luscious and the melting ice cream added into the experience was perfect.  The chocolate trifle is every peanut butter and/or chocolate lover's dream - so creamy and smooth!  You almost can't eat it all by yourself because it's so rich!  The coconut cream pie is the best I've ever tasted anywhere, and the mango sorbet, while nothing incredibly exciting, was definitely refreshing if nothing else.

I'd love to come back for happy hour or dinner.  The rest of the menu looked intriguing!

Overall: 4-stars (out of 5)

***All reviews cross-posted to Yelp.com***

Welcome!

After many hours of ooh-ing and aah-ing over blogs like Iowa Girl Eats and From My Grey Desk Blog (hi ladies!), I've decided to make an attempt at a blog that has a purpose, rather than just be a home for my rambling. For that, you can visit me over at In Between the Clouds and Sea. For a retro throwback of my time studying abroad in Granada, Spain, visit The dawn in the sky greets the day with a sigh.

Enough with the shameless self-promotion. :) So, what is the purpose I envision for this new blog, you ask? I'd love to share passions with all of you. What might those be?

Reading. Baking. Films. DIY household projects. Travel.

What that means for you is that I'll share my thoughts on books I'm reading and movies I am watching, delicious goodies I am baking, fun DIY projects I happen to be working on, and the fun places I am jet-setting to (or hope to visit someday). Here goes nothing I guess!