“It’s perfecting recipes so that, whenever I have to host a book club meeting, I’ll be able to hold my own with Leah and Kayana. The first time I came here, I stayed in the boardinghouse, so I couldn’t host a meeting, but I’d assumed the responsibility of making drinks or bringing desserts. Last year, I rented a bungalow, but again I didn’t get to host. We had only one meeting, and that was in a converted garden shed at the rear of Derrick’s house. We commandeered it as our she-shed while he grilled surf and turf.”
“Wow! You guys are really fancy.”
Cherie winked at him. “You don’t know the half. We go all out for our meetings. There’s nothing better than good friends getting together to eat, drink, and talk about things they really love. And for us, it’s books.”
“Speaking of books,” he said, pointing to the boxes, “do you have to go through all of them to find what you’re looking for?”
“Not really. I made notations on the sides of the boxes, so once I get bookshelves, I’ll know how to catalog them.”
Reese watched as Cherie knelt and shifted several boxes until she found the one she was looking for. She removed the top and held up a thick hardcover book. “Read and enjoy.”
He took the book, then extended his free hand to help Cherie stand. “It’s a mystery.”
She nodded. “It’s a combination of mystery, crime, and some horror.”
“Are you certain it won’t give me nightmares?”
“I don’t think so. It’s nothing like Stephen King’sIt.”
Reese shook his head. “I refused to read that title because I couldn’t understand why King made the main antagonist an evil clown. Do you know how that can mess with kids’ heads?”
“Don’t forget Chucky, Reese. That’s enough for little girls to swear off playing with dolls.”
“I take it you don’t like horror books or movies.”
“Not particularly. This year, we’ve decided to read books with movie tie-ins.”
“What have you selected?”
“Our first three will beLike Water for Chocolate,Live by Night, andThe Jane Austen Book Club.”
Reese leaned closer to Cherie. “What’s with you and Jane Austen?” he whispered in her ear.
Cherie rounded on him. “What’s wrong with Jane Austen, Reese? Her novels, published two hundred years ago, are still popular today. That should tell you that her work still resonates with today’s readers.”
He shook his head again. “I still don’t understand the obsession with her books after two centuries.”
“Would you say the same about Willie Shakespeare?”
Throwing back his head, Reese laughed loudly. “He’s Willie and not William?”
Cherie flashed a saucy grin. “Yeah. To me, he’s Willie. His plays are two hundred years older than Jane Austen’s novels, and they are still performed by famous actors with major theater companies around the world. What’s good for the goose should be good for the gander.”
“Shakespeare’s different because his plays don’t focus on desperate women looking to marry wealthy men.”
“I’m not denying the man’s literary genius, but do I detect a little cynicism when it comes to love? Austen’s female characters weren’t just looking for wealthy husbands to take care of them because women weren’t allowed to inherit property, but also for love. And that’s very different from the titled men in Edith Wharton’sBuccaneerswho married American heiresses for their money to save their impoverished estates. Not only did they take their money, but some of the women were treated wretchedly.”
“Why did the women marry them?”
“They were daughters of the nouveau riche, and despite their fathers’ wealth, they weren’t accepted by those with old money. So their fathers negotiated deals with men who had titles and vast estates, along with mounting debts, to marry their daughters. Winston Churchill’s mother was one of those women, along with one of Princess Diana’s ancestors.”
Reese was pleasantly surprised when he heard the passion in Cherie’s voice as she discussed books and authors. Aside from his grandmother, he hadn’t met or been involved with any woman who had been an avid reader. Some of them were more interested in the lives of movie or reality-television stars.
“Perhaps I need a refresher course in English lit.”
“Didn’t your high school teach literature?”
He smiled. “Yes, it did, and I did take a literature course in college to fulfill the requirements for English.”
