Saturday, February 13, 2021

Weekly Mews: Annie News, Cat Tree & Valentine's Surprise

I am linking up to the Sunday Post hosted by Kim of Caffeinated Book Reviewer and The Sunday Salon (TSS) hosted by Deb Nance of Readerbuzz  where participants recap our week, talk about what we are reading, share any new books that have come our way, and whatever else we want to talk about. I am also linking It's Monday! What Are you Reading? hosted by Kathryn of Book Date where readers talk about what they have been, are and will be reading.






What I Am Reading: I am coming down from the reading high after finishing Jasmine Guillory's The Wedding Date earlier this morning. It is one of those feel good books that left me smiling as I reached the last page.

I imagine next I will be picking up this month's TBR Poll winner. I am looking forward to diving in.  Thank you to all who voted! I also am still reading and enjoying Becoming by Michelle Obama. It is slow going because it is my lunch time read during the week, but I hope to get in a little more reading of it this weekend as well. 

Mouse and I are reading Sink or Swim (Whatever After #3) by Sarah Mlynowski together. It's nothing like the Little Mermaid stories I have read or seen in the past. 

What I Am Watching: Mouse had been in the mood to watch some of the Disney Princess movies after having read a couple of the Whatever Ever books, and so we watched the original animated Snow White and Cinderella movies and then the Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella live action movie, starring Brandy and Whitney Houston.

We also watched the most recent episode of WandaVision. I swear that show gets better and better every week. 

Off the Blog: I got a nice surprise this morning when my daughter woke up and told me to stay in bed and that she'd get herself to her Zoom dance classes on time. So that's what I did. I fell back asleep for another hour and then laid in bed reading a bit before finally getting myself up and dressed for the day. I have not been able to do that on a Saturday in a long time. 

The rehearsals for the summer musical Annie started this afternoon. The cast list was announced earlier this week and much to Mouse's excitement, she has a part with an actual name! Her dad and I have done our best to teach her that any part in a performance is important, from the smallest to the lead, that everyone working together, including those backstage and behind the scenes, make a show what it is--otherwise, it wouldn't happen. But, let's face it, to be cast as a character with a name is pretty cool. I am just happy to see her excited about something again. Being so closed off and doing everything virtually has been rough on her. Rough on so many. 

Mouse painted a poster with her Annie character's name.

Friday was a holiday for us. No work or school. It wasn't too eventful. We watched movies, puttered around the house, and enjoyed the down time. The dance studio's booster club put on a Zoom Valentine's Paint Night (more like afternoon) event, which Mouse took part in. Right after she had her regularly scheduled Zoom Girl Scout meeting. 

The Christmas tree is finally down. It's been unadorned for awhile, waiting to be boxed up. In its place is a new cat tree we bought on sale for the cats the end of December. Their old one was broken--too tempting for a not-so-little-anymore someone to try to climb. The base was pretty shredded too from cats' scratching on it. So it was time. Nina loves high places and has barely left the top of the tree since it went up. 

Nina couldn't help but try out the new tree 
before it was put in place by the window

Nina on her perch

We have no special plans for Valentine's Day tomorrow. Anjin gave me a lovely bouquet of flowers and a balloon as an early Valentine's Day gift. We do not usually do much for the day, it being a minor holiday, but this year I did get both him and Mouse a little something. 


I got an e-mail a couple days ago announcing the local city's public libraries will be opening for curbside services on the 23rd of February. Yay! 


Tell me what you have been up to! What are you reading, listening to and watching? How was your week? Do you have anything planned for this coming week?


Thank you for helping me decide what book from my TBR collection I should read next: 

My TBR List is hosted by the awesome Michelle at Because Reading. It’s a fun way to choose a book from your TBR pile to read. The 1st Saturday of every month, I will list 3 books I am considering reading and take a poll as to which you think I should read. I will read the winner that month. My review will follow (unfortunately, not likely in the same month, but eventually--that's all I can promise). 


Thank you to everyone who voted in this month's TBR poll. I was curious to see which would of my Valentine picks would win: the traditional romance, a story about friendship, or one with a more darker flare, a domestic thriller. All three of my choices this week have been getting a lot of praise around the blogosphere, and so I thought it might be a close race. It really wasn't, however. Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce came in with 6 votes, The Ex Talk by Rachel Lynn Solomon earned 8, and The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins cleaned house with 16 votes. 


The Wife Upstairs 
by Rachel Hawkins

A delicious twist on a Gothic classic, The Wife Upstairs pairs Southern charm with atmospheric domestic suspense, perfect for fans of B.A. Paris and Megan Miranda.

Meet Jane. Newly arrived to Birmingham, Alabama, Jane is a broke dog-walker in Thornfield Estates––a gated community full of McMansions, shiny SUVs, and bored housewives. The kind of place where no one will notice if Jane lifts the discarded tchotchkes and jewelry off the side tables of her well-heeled clients. Where no one will think to ask if Jane is her real name.

But her luck changes when she meets Eddie­ Rochester. Recently widowed, Eddie is Thornfield Estates’ most mysterious resident. His wife, Bea, drowned in a boating accident with her best friend, their bodies lost to the deep. Jane can’t help but see an opportunity in Eddie––not only is he rich, brooding, and handsome, he could also offer her the kind of protection she’s always yearned for.

Yet as Jane and Eddie fall for each other, Jane is increasingly haunted by the legend of Bea, an ambitious beauty with a rags-to-riches origin story, who launched a wildly successful southern lifestyle brand. How can she, plain Jane, ever measure up? And can she win Eddie’s heart before her past––or his––catches up to her?

With delicious suspense, incisive wit, and a fresh, feminist sensibility, 
The Wife Upstairs flips the script on a timeless tale of forbidden romance, ill-advised attraction, and a wife who just won’t stay buried. In this vivid reimagining of one of literature’s most twisted love triangles, which Mrs. Rochester will get her happy ending? [Goodreads Summary]

Thank you for voting! I hope you all have a wonderful week! Happy Reading!


© 2021, Musings of a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved. If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

60 comments:

  1. Ooh yes to The wife upstairs ! You know, my sister has a cat the same colour whose name is Nina. And of course, yours couldn't wait to inspect until it was finally settled ^^ Your daughter is growing up, it's at the same time a bit nostalgic to notice when you're a mother but extra time in bed is a major bonus. Enjoy your week :)

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    1. Iza - I spent some time reading The Wife Upstairs last night before bed and am enjoying it. :-) That's neat that your sister has a similar cat with the same name! My Nina still hardly leaves that high perch. I think she likes being above us all, looking down (and where we cannot bother her often LOL). My little girl is growing up way too fast. She's really good about keep track of time and when she needs to be in class, either dance of school. If only she would pick up her room without reminding . . . Haha. Thank you for visiting!

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  2. Congrats to Mouse on getting a character with a name in the musical. I'm sure that's very satisfying for her. And definitely a motivation and mood booster.
    I see my students being more and more 'down' every week here, and it makes me so sad. I try to find different and more fun things to do with them, but I also have to cover the program.
    Have a wonderful week ahead, stay safe and healthy.

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    1. Linda - Thank you! She is super excited. I really feel for children right now, not being able to be with their friends or in the physical classroom. It's been almost a year now. I know as a parent I am trying to keep my daughter connected as best I can, but it's not the same as being able to do things in person. I imagine it's a struggle for teachers in more ways than one. Teaching students virtually--so many distractions you have to compete with. Thank you for stopping by!

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  3. I still didn't get around to The Wife Upstairs. I'm counting on someone in the Book Club buying it! LOL!!

    Your Christmas tree is down, and your cat tree up. Yea!! Good balancing act.

    I didn't see your poll last week and would have voted for Miss Benson's Beetle, so don't throw it off the pile completely. It's a lovely read!

    Have a good week and happy Valentines Day!

    Elza Reads

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    1. Mareli (Elza) - I hope you enjoy The Wife Upstairs when you do read it. I think the cats are much happier with the cat tree than they were with the Christmas tree. LOL

      I hope you have a good week too. Thank you for visiting!

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  4. Congrats to Mouse! I hope she enjoys the rehearsals, sounds exciting to be a named character in a play!

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    1. Eustacia - Thank you! The first rehearsal seemed to go well. She said she learned her one line, but then promptly forgot it. LOL At least there is time. Thank you for stopping by!

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  5. The Wedding Date has been on my TBR forever now. I definitely have to get to it soon. I am glad you had few early V day presents already! Have a great week ahead.

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    1. Gayathri - I hope you enjoy The Wedding Date when you read it! I hope you have a great week too. Thank you for visiting!

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  6. Huge congratulations to Mouse on getting a named part. I hope the rehearsals go really well for her. And the cats' tree is marvellous - what a wonderful perch! I hope you have a lovely week, Wendy:)

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    1. Sarah - Thank you! She enjoyed her first rehearsal. Both cats seem to have taken to the cat tree, thankfully. It's much taller than I expected. LOL I hope you have a great week too. Thank you for stopping by!

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  7. Wendy, so nice Mouse is getting more independent and gave you an extra treat Saturday to read in bed. Pretty Valentine's flowers too. I want to read The Wife Upstairs but, am waiting my turn as I don't really want to buy that one but, I'm curious. Have you read, The Nature of Fragile Things? It's new, historical with a bit of mystery and friendship - I know you would like it! Have a great day.

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    1. Diane - She's pretty good about keeping track of when she needs to log into school or dance, which is really nice. I haven't yet read The Nature of Fragile Things, but I do have a copy. I couldn't resist that time period and setting. I hope you have a great day too. Thank you for visiting!

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  8. I love that cat tree, and the books in the background! And those flowers. You are off to a great week.

    Enjoy those books, too. I loved The Wife Upstairs.

    Have a great day and week...and here are my WEEKLY UPDATES

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    1. Laurel-Rain - The cats seem to love the cat tree too. LOL I hope you have a great week too. Thank you for stopping by!

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  9. Congrats to Mouse! Hopefully with the vaccine roll out she’ll be back to in person activities soon!
    Enjoy The Wife Upstairs

    Wishing you a great reading week

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    1. Shelleyrae - Thank you! She won't be back in school until August at least--if schools are open then. Hopefully they will be. Thank you for visiting!

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  10. I didn't vote for it, but I bet your thriller will be perfect for this crazy time we are in. Enjoy Wife Upstairs. I'll enjoy hearing more.

    I'm also glad to see how much you enjoyed The Wedding Date.

    Congratulations to your daughter on winning a part with a name. I remember the pride I took in winning the role of Letty (I still remember my character name 47 years later!) in our senior play. I had four lines!

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    1. Deb - Thank you! My daughter is so excited. I still remember the part I played in an elementary school production many many years ago too. LOL Memories in the making. :-) So far The Wife Upstairs has been an enjoyable read. Thank you for stopping by!

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  11. Congratulations to Mouse!! That is exciting and you are right - so many come together to make the show a success but nothing beats playing a named character. I'm sure she'll nail it!

    Love that cat tree. We would love to have a cat join our home but we already have a dog that doesn't like other four-legged creatures (or any non-human for that matter) so not looking to start a war at home.

    I hope to watch WandaVision at some point. I'm usually slow to get into Marvel shows or movies but always end up loving them after.

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    1. Athira - Thank you! She's thrilled. I love seeing her so happy about something. :-)

      I keep trying to talk my husband into adopting another dog. It's been years since my Riley passed away, but he isn't really open to the idea. Technically we aren't supposed to have more than two pets per our Home Owners Association--and we already have two cats.

      I hope you enjoy WandaVision when you watch it! The bonus to putting off watching it is you don't have to wait a week between each episode!

      Thank you for visiting!

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  12. What a great cat tree! I need to get one for my girl.

    And how wonderful for your daughter to get a named part in a production!

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    1. Jinjer - The cats are loving the new cat tree. :-) Thank you for stopping by!

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  13. Wendy, I am glad to hear you had a nice, restful week with your family and cats, with some lovely treats for you all. 😊 Mine was a quiet and cold week of work, snow and reading. I have reading the romantic suspense, Madam, Will You Talk? by Mary Stewart and watching the true-crime drama, The Pembrokeshire Murders.

    Take care and happy reading in the coming week. 🙂

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    1. Jessica - It sounds like you had a nice weekend, even if a cold one. I hope you have a great week too. Thank you for visiting!

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  14. Enjoy the Wife Upstairs! It's a quick and good read.

    When my daughter was young, our favorite movies to watch together were Fairytopia and Mermadia. Neither of us liked Barbie dolls. Ever. But there was something about those movies that captured our attention over and over again.

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    1. Helen - Thank you! I am enjoying The Wife Upstairs so far.

      My daughter never really got into Barbie dolls all that much either, but she also liked Fairytopia and Mermadia and all those movies at one time. :-)

      Thank you for stopping by!

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  15. Wow, that cat home looks so elaborate. lucky!

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    1. Trin - As much as the cats are playing on it and sleeping on it, I think it was a good investment. LOL Thank you for visiting!

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  16. Sounds like you are all doing well with all these covid restrictions. It sure is tough, especially for the kids. I hope you enjoy The Wife Upstairs as much as I did, it was a good one. My granddaughter is in love with some Mermaid series on Netflix. She is only four, and is really in to mermaids right now. Have a great week Wendy and Happy Valentine's Day.

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    1. Carla - We are managing as best we can. Some days are easier than others. So far I am really enjoying The Wife Upstairs. My daughter has watched every mermaid series she could find on Netflix over the past few years. LOL I hope you have a great week too. Thank you for stopping by!

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  17. I love the cat tree. Such a pretty kitty. And a Happy Valentine's Day to you and yours.

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  18. That is so exciting with Mouse getting a named part. How sweet and responsible for her to get to her Zoom class herself. I've heard good things about The Wife Upstairs but haven't read it. I did enjoy The Ex Talk. Happy Valentine's Day Wendy.

    Anne - Books of My Heart This is my Sunday Post

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    1. Anne - She's become really good about logging into her classes, school and dance alike, without my needing to remind her. I still look forward to reading The Ex Talk at some point. It sounds too good to pass up. :-) Thank you for visiting!

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  19. That's great about Mouse getting a part with a name - like you said, everyone matters, but it is gratifying to earn something more central. And especially with the challenges of being remote, I'm sure this is a nice surprise for her.

    I have been meaning to read Becoming for a while now, I hope you're enjoying it.

    So I grew up watching the original Rodgers and Hammerstein - before Brandy reprised the role. But I love that version too - I love that they gave a black version for little girls.

    Hope you have a great week!

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    1. Berls - Thank you. She's so excited about the part. :-)

      I am enjoying Becoming. It's slow going since I'm only reading during my lunch break, but it is good so far.

      I really love the Brandy version of Cinderella. It had been years since I'd seen it, but it holds up very well. And my daughter enjoyed it.

      I hope you have a great week too. Thank you for stopping by!

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  20. Congrats to Mouse for getting a nice role in Annie! Such a fun show😁 Hope your week is a good one😁

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    1. Tammy - Thank you! I was kind of hoping they'd chose to do something less enticing given we're still in a pandemic and don't know if they'll be able to perform live together come summer--but the kids are just so excited about it . . . I hope you have a great week too. Thank you for visiting!

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  21. Congratulations to Mouse! How exciting! And oh my gosh that cat tree- I love! I need to get one of those :):)

    I hope the wife Upstairs is great!

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    1. Greg - Thank you! The cat tree is proving to be very popular in our house. :-) Thank you for stopping by!

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  22. Glad your library is opening. Hopefully this will all be history soon.

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    1. RAnn - It's about time! I am sure they have good reason, but I've been jealous hearing how everyone else gets to go to their libraries and I haven't been able to even do curbside. LOL Thank you for visiting!

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  23. I'm glad that The Wife Upstairs won in your poll! I'll be interested to hear your thoughts. Hope you had a lovely Valentine's Day!

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    1. Diana - I am enjoying The Wife Upstairs so far! Thank you for stopping by!

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  24. Congrats to Mouse! I love the painting. What fun! Glad The Wife Upstairs won and that you got that wonderful extra hour of sleep. Have a great week!

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    1. Victoria - Thank you! She was so proud. :-) I hope you have a great week too. Thanks for visiting!

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  25. I really loved THE WEDDING DATE. That whole series is excellent, but it kind of builds on itself so you need to read it in order. The most recent one is, in my opinion, the best--but I've enjoyed them all.

    WandaVision is so amazing. It has been so long since there was a TV show that everyone in our family would sit down and watch together (I mean, there is The Masked Singer, but the hubs won't watch that and I only watch it to humor the kids). We're a big Marvel family and it sounds like the Marvel series will come one right after each other, so our Friday nights are booked for the foreseeable future.

    My cat would be very jealous of that tree if she saw it! After years of begging my husband, I finally just bit the bullet and bought one for Alice a few years ago and she loves it. I can't believe we went for so long without one!

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    1. Melinda - The Wedding Date was such a good read. I really enjoyed it. I read Royal Holiday last year and now need to go back and read the in-between book. I wasn't as smitten with Royal Holiday.

      My daughter's even really gotten into WandaVision. We all love it. :-) I am looking forward to seeing all the Marvel series. My husband and I are fans too.

      Cat trees are in investment, aren't they? But they are worth it. My cats are really taken with theirs.

      Thank you for stopping by!

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  26. Congrats to your daughter! I've heard good things about The Wife Upstairs. I hope you enjoy it. Come see my week here. Happy reading!

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    1. Kathy - Thank you! The Wife Upstairs is good so far. :-) I can see why it's getting so much praise. Thank you for visiting!

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  27. Congratulations to Mouse on her part! How exciting! And, that is more like a cat castle! :) We don't celebrate Valentine's day in a big way either. We would typically go to the bookstore but not this year. We did get chocolate though and my husband baked some chocolate chip cookies so that made me happy!

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    1. Iliana - Thank you! She's super excited. Yes, it is definitely more of a castle. It's so tall! I don't think I expected that. Chocolate chip cookies are the best. :-) Thank you for stopping by!

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  28. Awww, congrats to your daughter on scoring a named part in the musical. That's so exciting! That new cat tree is great too. I know mine would have a ball on something like that where he's high above the dog and can taunt him, lol.

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    1. Suzanne - Thank you! Now the hard work begins. LOL The cats are going crazy with the cat tree. I'm really glad they like it. Nina especially likes being way up high and away from a certain 9 year old who likes to pick her up constantly. LOL Thank you for visiting!

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  29. Congratulations to Mouse! That's so exciting and you and your husband must be so proud of her!

    I'm glad The Wife Upstairs won the vote and I look forward to reading your review, Wendy.

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    1. Melody - Thank you! We are very proud of her. :-) Thank you for stopping by!

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  30. That sounds like a perfect Saturday morning. And congratulations for your daughter. That's awesome news.
    Have a great week and happy reading.

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