The Kingdom of Savannah by George Dawes Green

Hello everyone.  I hope you're having a great day.

I have a soft spot in my heart for Savannah.  If you are not from the US, Savannah is an old city in Georgia.  I read Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, when it first came out.  My niece went to the prestigious Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD).  They appreciated her talents, which are unending.  When traveling to Disney World, we would spend the night in Savannah as it's a hefty drive from home yet not exhausting.  Years ago, my parents went to the city for several days, doing the whole tourist thing, and loved it.  Most importantly, we had a beloved dog named Savannah, one of the sweetest Scottish Terriers ever.  Yep, I definitely have a soft spot.

I recently read The Kingdoms of Savannah by George Dawes Green.  I've never read anything by him before but he's quite famous. He wrote the award winning The Caveman's Valentine, which went on to become a movie with Samuel L. Jackson.  He also wrote The Juror, which was an international bestseller and also became a movie, featuring Demi Moore and Alec Baldwin.  I have been missing out. 

The Kingdoms of Savannah is about a woman that disappears and a man that is found dead.  Looking into these ominous events is the Musgrove family.  The matriarch is a bit of an investigator and her children have varying degrees of career sucess, lending their talents toward a solution.  The book features tons of characters as we are introduced to many citizens of Savannah.  Still the reader quickly catches on that while they add to the story, the only characters you really must keep track of are the Musgroves with a couple of exceptions.  While the public image, and certainly my image, of Savannah is mint julips in sizable stately old homes, this story explores another side.  Green expertly shows us the dark side, the forgotten people, the marginalized.  Does it preach about topics, no.  It does, however, have a dark, gritty feeling.  Atmosphere is a huge part of the story, and it is remarkably well done without "it was a dark and stormy night" type of descriptions. The story was involved yet easy to follow and kept me interested the entire way.  A great read that will linger for weeks to come and may have you calling your travel agent.  Have a mint julep for me.

The Shadows by Alex North

Hello everyone.  I hope you are all well.  It occurred to me that despite this being a housewife's blog, I've never actually given out any recipes.  Frankly, most of them it takes me a while to develop so I guard my secrets.  I'll include an easy, well-known recipe today but will put it at the bottom so you that don't speak "kitchen" can avoid it.

I've been reading up a storm and have many books to tell you about.  Today I want to talk about The Shadows by Alex North. If that author's name rings a bell you're not crazy.  Well, you very well may be a loon but you like books, so it doesn't matter. Anyway, awhile ago I received an advanced copy of The Whisper Man, by Alex North. When I opened the package the book came in, it started to sing a creepy song.  After such an unusual introduction to Mr. North and really enjoying The Whisper Man, I was very excited to read The Shadows.  The two books are very different. I viewed The Whisper Man as a true thriller. I always had that creepy "the call is coming from inside the house" feeling....you know like something is about to jump out of your closet at a moments notice. The Shadows is much more of a slow burn. The book has an elaborate story and the feeling is very dark and atmospheric.  Hubby repeatedly asked me if I liked it, I kept saying it was the "Eeyore" of settings in an Alex North kind of way....eerie and unsettling. Still you can't stop flipping pages.  It's about kids that were into lucid dreaming and the evil things those young men used it to accomplish.  Years have passed but now those acts, murders to be specific, are happening again. Is it somehow one of those young men now twenty-five years later or a copy cat? The story is unusual, creative and certainly enthralling.  The characters are interesting and well defined. In addition to a plot I obviously enjoyed, let me pause to take a moment to praise the writing. An interesting story could easily grab my attention without great writing, but in this case the reader is treated to both making the journey to the exciting end all the better.  A very unnerving novel, one you don't want to miss.

On to the recipe:

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

you need:
one boxed spice cake mix
one can of pumpkin, 15 ounces (plain pumpkin NOT pumpkin pie filling)
1 cup chocolate chips

Mix all together.  Fill muffin cups 3/4 full. Makes 14 muffins.

Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.

Additional thoughts:

You may think these won't mix together without some other kind of moisture but they do! 

I use paper muffin liners.

You can add more or less chocolate or change the variety. I usually use dark chocolate chips as it's bold flavor seems to stand up better to the spice and pumpkin.

I often throw in a couple handfuls of cinnamon chips, if I have them.  You could use cinnamon chips and no chocolate.

My sister loves these muffins without anything but cake mix and pumpkin and she puts them in mini muffin pans (adjust cooking time downward).

They would make great cupcakes. Leave out the chocolate chips and instead add a buttercream or cream cheese frosting.  You could even put a bit of cinnamon in the frosting to make it nice and fall-ish. 

Experiment with what your family likes, these are a great place to start and are very forgiving.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip muffins would be perfect while reading the disturbing and oh so good, The Shadows!