I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful weekend. Mine was great but of course not long enough. I got to do some biking, bookbinding, reading and got to see a wonderful demonstration on glass blowing at Wimberley Glassworks. Oh and there was quite a bit of book shopping done as well but I’ll tell you about that another day because tonight I want to mention some of my thoughts on Bad Blood by Lorna Sage which the Slaves of Golconda are discussing.

This memoir is a look at Lorna Sage’s lfie growing up in the small town of Hanmer, on the border between Wales and Shropshire. When I first started reading the book I got the impression that Lorna’s grandmother was a bitter woman but quickly I understand why she behaves the way she does.

Lorna’s grandfather, the vicar of the small village, is a womanizer and a drinker, who I thought seemed to cast himself in the role of victim but perhaps that was his excuse for his behavior. As Lorna’s grandmother finds out about his ways she begins to make his life difficult by blackmailing him and basically the whole family gets a front row seat to the fights.

Meanwhile Lorna thinks her parents also aren’t that suited for married life. Her father is a workaholic and her mother is a terrible housekeeper. The one thing she dreads most is what to cook for her family which ends up in her serving unappetizing meals and wishfully thinking of a meal that could be served in a pill form.

As Lorna grows older she finds it hard to navigate relationships with boys and even girls. It seems she’s most comfortable with her books and and getting in to trouble no doubt, as her grandmother says, it’s the bad blood she inherited from her grandfather.

Despite this being a memoir of Lorna’s growing up I had a bit of a hard time getting to really know her. I felt I was more in tune with her grandmother, perhaps because I just felt like she never had a chance with that husband of hers.

I’m looking forward to sharing more thoughts on this with the Slaves of Golconda. If you think this sounds interesting pop on over at the forum to read more and feel free to join us!

How’s your week been going? Mine has been busy and I’m looking forward to the weekend already. It’s been a good week though as I celebrated a birthday yesterday. We went out for ice cream and I got The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest. Yay.

I haven’t forgotten my book giveaway, so drumroll please…. Thanks to Random.org the winner of Beatrice & Virgil is Cindy S.! Send me your address and I’ll get the book out to you. Thanks you to everyone who left me a comment. I’ve now added a bunch of other books to my reading list. hee.

I’m going to take a couple of days off from the blog to rest up, explore new places, and be a bit crafty. I’m sorry I haven’t been around to blog visit much this week but I’ve been a bit tired so I need to recharge. I wish you all a great weekend and I’ll be back soon with reviews for Rumor Has It, Bad Blood and a few other books.

“Grandfather’s skirts would flap in the wind along the churchyard path and I would hang on. He often found things to do in the vestry, excuses for getting out of the vicarage (kicking the swollen door, cursing) and so long as he took me he couldn’t get up to much. I was a sort of hobble; he was my minder and I was his. He’d have liked to get further away, but petrol was rationed. The church was at least safe. My grandmother never went near it — except feet first in her coffin, but htat was years later, when she was buried in the same grave with him.”

From Bad Blood by Lorna Sage

I wasn’t planning on starting any new books until I finished my last batch (I have finished some) but I just realized that the Slaves of Golconda discussion is coming up soon and I must join in this time. The last two books I had a hard time reading so I put them off but no more excuses. So if I want to finish this book on time I must start now.

Anyway, I think this one will be quite different if that first paragraph is anything to go by. Plus, there’s this little bit I found on the book jacket which just grabs me: From the memories of her family and of the wounds they inflicted on one another, she tells an extraordinary tale of thwarted love, failed religion, and the salvation she found books.

So, if this sounds like something you want to read join us in the discussion next Monday. How about you though? Start any new books today?