Unwrapping Christmas: Mia’s Prince

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Furoshiki

This is the second one in the gift wrapping series and the business is still burbling along quite nicely. Of course it is, we are still rehashing the week before Christmas from the first movie with the 4 women preparing for the Christmas Gala.  I still don’t have any faith in the long term viability of their gift wrapping shop when it’s not gift-giving season. We will never get to see how the women fare during the barren retail desert of January and February. But thankfully in this one we don’t get even a hint of any of Tina’s stupid woes securing The Alford House as the venue. This is all about Mia who is in charge of the decorating and the catering among other things. I liked this one a lot better than the first one for several reasons. For one, I actually liked Mia and Kathryn Davis did a nice job with the character. She had challenges with getting the decorations right (the idiot vender sent her “Marlins” instead of “Garlands”) and the caterer will cancel at the last minute to provide a crisis and some suspense. But her problems were not self-inflicted and did not suck all of the air out of the movie. They stayed in the background with Mia yelling over the phone and sighing occasionally, but by and large she just handled it with no muss or fuss. The main story was how gentle, romantic, and too sweet for her own good, Mia, learns to stand up for herself and not let people take advantage of her good nature.

Mia is a dreamer and a hopeless romantic who loves to read. Her favorite book is an early 19th century novel called Christmas at Derbyshire. Think Jane Austen but more romantic and cliché. She has been saving for over a year working her little gift-wrapping fingers to the bone to buy a first edition from her local book shop. So right from the start, I liked and empathized with Mia. In the midst of competently preparing for the gala, two things happen. Her sister, who has always overshadowed and dominated her, shows up unexpectedly and steamrolls her into letting her crash at her apartment for several days as she just lost her Chef job. Along with her cat to which which Mia is allergic. This forces Mia to spend the night at the shop on the couch. She is awakened by a handsome guy knocking on the window because of a gift-wrapping emergency. He thinks the store is open because Mia fell asleep reading (awh) with the lights on. It is the prince of … : Mia’s Prince! Or a reasonable facsimile.

Beau Cavanaugh (Nathan Witte) is from a wealthy and socially prominent family. He is very nice with kind soft eyes and is immediately smitten with sweetie-pie Mia. It’s mutual, once Mia realizes the next morning that she didn’t just dream him up and he is a real guy. His mother Claire, however, is a stone-cold (w)itch. And therein lies the drama. Besides Mia not being good enough society-wise for her son, it turns out that she has engineered a forced engagement between Beau and Penelope, the daughter of a prominent white family who has her own secret romance going with another guy. (Very 19th Century!) Beau and Penelope are good friends, but, as Beau explains to Mia, he is really not engaged. Except he is, because Backboneless Beau is too much of a wuss to stand up to his terrifying mother, even when she books the wedding venue and sets the date for the wedding without consulting him or Penelope! Mia, bless her, puts her foot down, tells him off, very eloquently I might add (twice!), and breaks up with him. And guess what? When Beau finally stands up to Claire about Mia, Mom basically tells him, “what took you so long to stop being a wimp?” Lanette Ware, who plays the mother, steals every scene she is in.

As for the Gala, despite Mia’s challenges with the decorations and the caterer, we already know it goes off without a hitch because of the movie last week. The main focus is how Mia irons out her problems with her overbearing sister, and what happens when she finds out that the beloved first edition she has been faithfully saving for gets sold out from under her. I won’t spoil it for you (Hahaha) but it was neatly wrapped up with a pretty bow on top. And a kiss under the Mistletoe. Taking 1/2 a star off for Beau being such a weakling.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10.

Lost Man’s Lane

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By Scott Carson

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“Hold fast, Marshmallow. The Weller is en route.”

Librarians change lives. They may even save some.

Very short review (for me, anyway). A quick take, if you will.

Fantastic Book. Poignant, Funny, Scary, A love story, Mysterious, Astonishing. Very very very satisfying ending. All loose ends tied up with a little happy twist during the wrap up. Loved all of the characters. The female ones in particular were strong and admirable. The stars of the show to my mind. This could be a homage to Stephen King (who loved it. Of course.) I was really drawn in to the fictional world, and I looked forward to coming back to it every time I put it down. That is rare for me.

To add to the personal connection I found in this book, it is set in 1999 when my oldest son was the same age as Marshall, the narrator and main character.

But if snakes freak you out, maybe give it a pass.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

May 27, 2025

Unwrapping Christmas: Tina’s Miracle

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Can We Please Just Wrap This Up?

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In looking at the previews for this one, I was very much afraid that this was going to be an example of one of my Hallmark pet peeves, which I call Bad Business. The movie is based on four young (ish) women who run a “year-round” “gift wrapping” business. This didn’t seem to me to be a viable venture. But as it turns out, the business is not in trouble, at least so far (there are 3 more weeks to go-it’s a series.) In fact, it is quite successful. Could this be the miracle in Tina’s Miracle? The women are aware of concepts such as “publicity”, “marketing”, they use “technology”, and have “merchandise”. They also have developed some alternative income streams such as helping customers choose appropriate gifts (hopefully they usually charge for this), and as we learn later, they design and manufacture custom gift paper. This last one by means of a magic copy machine/transmogrifier which was so cool, I can’t snark at it. It is on such solid footing as a business that they are hosting the annual Christmas Gala at the largest charity gala of the year. So this movie was not good, but not because of “Bad Business.”

The crux of the plot is that they have lost their venue, Alford House, due to the property being sold and the new owner not wanting to have any more events scheduled because of insurance and lawyers. The venue is a historical mansion and is dear to the heart of Tina, the head gift wrapper and the organizer of the gala, and her father, who is the caretaker of the beautiful old home. In one of the first scenes of the movie Tina becomes friendly with a young teen in a gift store and meets her handsome and nice father, Michael Alonzo, the love interest, who seems quite taken with her as well. He is a rich and successful investment firm owner. Coincidently, his company has been the owner of the Alford House for over 80 years, and has taken great care of it. He is the one who has sold the house to the guy who is not letting it be the venue for the gala!

The reason this movie did not work for me was because of the same old tactics Hallmark writers use to stretch out the plot to fill the 88 or so minutes of movie time and create drama: Self-Sabotage, Jumping to Conclusions, Lack of Urgency in accomplishing a goal, and Absurd Happenings that only happen because it’s expedient to the plot. To create romantic and dramatic tension, Tina blames the handsome loving father, Michael, the former owner of the property, who really is only an innocent bystander. They never approach the de facto owner and decision maker (they have not closed yet, but all of the contracts between the two corporate heads have been agreed and signed off on.) She labels Michael a heartless “snake” and greedy corporate “tyrant” based on inaccurate gossip that only tells half the story and hearing a few snatches of his end of a phone conversation. (Jumping to Conclusions.) She has a chance to talk to him when he brings his daughter to her gift wrapping shop but is rude and cold to him instead of using a charm offensive to try to win him over to her side and use his influence. She has a second chance because he asks for her help in buying a gift. They agree to meet the next day, but once again, she is rude and walks off (Self Sabotage and Lack of Urgency, also, Very Dumb). With the urgent deadline quickly approaching (all of the supporting venders are threatening to pull out) and blowing her chance to talk to him twice, she actually gets a third chance because he is so nice and accommodating. She meets him at Alford House with her father and despite her continuing prickly behavior he and her father bond over wainscotting. Michael calmly explains the facts of the matter to her that have been self-evident the whole time, and she finally gets hit with a burst of rationality. He agrees to do what he can to help her. It turns out that Michael thought the house was going to be preserved but the new owner lied to him about his plans and it is going to be torn down. Even though his character has been salvaged and she has won the powerful businessman’s agreement to help, she has to be talked into having a friendly dinner with him and his daughter. Tina, Michael, and his daughter Haley are well on the way to becoming a happy family when Michael finds out that Tina was involved in a conspiracy to dig up some dirt on him. Oh my.

Not to spoil the plot or anything, but they make up after Tina apologizes. In trying to save the house, they had decided to try to get the house on a historical register, and in the process, find out that Michael’s company never had the right to sell the house in the first place! The house is not only saved, but will be turned into a school for kids with learning disabilities. Michael’s daughter has dyslexia.  There was some other crazy stuff  like Michael trying to buy back the house from the bad owner even though it hadn’t even been closed on yet, and the professional gift wrappers being allowed to compete in a gift wrapping competition against a bunch of amateurs. And the sole judge being the husband of one of the contestants! (Absurd Happenings). Also, it turns out the house  was built 150 years ago by one of Michaels ancestors (which Michael didn’t even know and was another big coincidence (otherwise known as “Fate” in Hallmark World). It was deeded to the community but somehow Michael’s Family’s company bought it anyway 30 or 40 years later. Back from the community? From their own family? We never know. Where were the lawyers when they needed them? But now the community owns it (somehow), and I guess Michael is going to buy it back from them. Again.  

Fresh from his adventures on Machu Picchu last week, I really like Alec Santos who played Michael Alonzo. He is very attractive and I like his acting. Unfortunately, I’ve never warmed to Natalie Hall, who plays Tina. She starred in 3 Hallmarks in 2022 and hasn’t been seen since. I liked her in the last one, which was a Christmas movie, so I was kind of looking forward to seeing her again and hoping that she would build on the good impression she made on me at that time. Nope, not yet.

Rating: 5 out of 10.

A Machu Picchu Proposal

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Which does not take place on Machu Picchu

This is the last of the Passport to Love series before we once again experience Christmas in July at Hallmark next week. Time flies. Dan and Katie are twins and throughout the movie they throw out terms like Twin-Tuition, Twin Talk Time, Sacred Circle of Truth, and put their fists on their hearts as a gesture of solidarity. So that was annoying. They also are alike in that they both have been raised to believe that planning and organization are the keys to a happy successful life. Spontaneity and impulsiveness make them very uncomfortable. No prizes for guessing the kind of people they end up with by the end of the movie.

Dan, who does something with cutting edge technology,  is going to Peru to visit his girlfriend and meet her family before proposing to her at Machu Picchu. That’s the plan, anyway. Katie is a high school Home Economics teacher. That gave me pause. I didn’t know that they even still taught “Cooking and Sewing” in highschool. And that is Katie’s own description of her field. Dan finds her in her classroom testing out Bolognese sauce during the summer break in preparation for her fall classes. He wants Katie to help plan the proposal which must be amazing and spectacular and because she speaks Spanish and he doesn’t. Even though this is a spur of the moment invitation which is just the kind of thing that Katie dislikes, he guilts her into going with him. Something about her weighing one more pound than him when they were born. And off they go.

When Dan and Luciana, his girlfriend, meet up in her hometown, they find that she has surprisingly (yep) invited an old friend from school, Carlos, to hang with them. Carlos, like Luciana, is easygoing, a free spirit, and prone to spur of the moment changing of plans. And, true to form, by virtue of his ability to make friends everywhere, Carlos has without consultation committed the four to a “behind the scenes” VIP tour of Machu Picchu for that very day. Poor Dan! Poor Katie! They are not happy about having to cancel their meticulously planned out visit/marriage proposal that was to take place on Thursday, after Dan has met Luciana’s family and asked her father permission to ask for her hand. Luciana, however, is thrilled with the new plan, and Dan and Katie’s concerns (they have already bought the tickets) are waved away. They go to the ancient lost city, Dan gets altitude sickness, Katie can’t work the camera, and the proposal is thwarted. And so it goes.

That proposal did not work out and neither do the subsequent attempts at other tourist destinations in the area. The brother and sister blame Carlos for these failures, but it is mostly their own fault. Dan gets drunk, gets a rash from an alpaca poncho, drinks a glass full of a milk-based Peruvian drink when he is allergic to dairy, and they lose the engagement ring while making chocolate. In addition to the cocoa bean tutorial, the viewer is treated to all kinds of interesting activities and some great scenery. In no particular order, we visit the Mara salt mines and learn about that, the city of Cuzco, the Sacred Valley, learn about Rainbow Mountain, visit Pisac, the spiritual center of Peru, visit an alpaca farm, make empanadas, and eat all kinds of other local delicacies, including bugs. Katie and Dan decide that they must keep the proposal a secret from impetuous unpredictable Carlos and that the occasion must be photographed with Dan’s state of the art 360 degree live-streaming camera. The upshot is that by the almost end of the movie Luciana is still unproposed to but Katie and Carlos have formed a romantic attachment. Katie has learned to be more spontaneous which leads her to set up the perfect proposal for her brother so, thank God, Luciana gets asked for her hand in marriage. But NOT at Machu Picchu!  And, even though Dan has been kind of a drag throughout the movie (including an ugly and senseless argument with Katie), for some reason, she accepts. Honestly, I fear for the relationships of both couples, once they return to Chicago. Katie learns to appreciate spontaneity, but Carlos doesn’t change a bit. Luciana and Carlos have more in common. They even visit romantic Rainbow Mountain together without their ostensible love interests! I was amazed why neither Katie nor Dan seemed to be at all threatened by their relationship. Which was very mature of them. I guess?

Usually, Rhiannon Fish really leans into a “wide-eyed dorkily hapless” schtick with her acting style. This movie is no exception, though she does tone it down just a bit in this one. Alex Santos, who plays Carlos, is very cute and charming. But apparently my unease over his relationship with Rhiannon will prove justified. He will already have moved on next week as the love interest of Natalie Hall in the first of the July Christmas movies. Glad to see him again so soon, however unfortunately timed, Hallmark.

Rating: 6 out of 10.

Knave of Diamonds

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By Laurie R. King

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“I loved my big brother,” the younger man said at last. “He stood up for me, even sometimes when he shouldn’t have. And his wife was the greatest person in the world. Judith always treated me like a trusted friend, even though she must have known I could be pretty crooked. I loved my nephew, Levi, who was a weird kid with a brain like a clock. He’d have done great things for the world. And…” He reeled his gaze in from the far distance to meet Holmes’ eyes. “I love my niece. I let her down when she needed me, and the decisions I made after that might not have been the right ones. But I won’t do it again. Not with anything that matters.” Oh, Jacob, Holmes thought sadly. You just had to add that caveat at the end, didn’t you?

While all of Laurie R. King’s mysteries, after Dreaming Spies have been top tier for me, the one before this one, Lantern’s Dance was on the level of her earlier books and one of the later ones, The Murder of Mary Russell. There definitely have been some peaks and valleys along the way, as is to be expected in a long series. But as with another historical mystery series I was devoted to, Anne Perry’s Charlotte and Thomas Pitt books, they will continue to be auto-buys for me on both Kindle and Hardcover as long as they continue.

In this one, we are re-introduced to Mary’s long lost Uncle Jake. We had met Jake before in a short story, Mary’s Christmas. (Found in Mary Russell’s War.) That little adventure occurred when Mary was 11 years old and her brother and parents were still alive. Reading that story first is not necessary, but would add to the enjoyment of this book. Jake, who was disowned from the Russell Family for bad behavior, shows up on Russell and Holmes’ doorstep after they have returned home from the wedding of Holmes’ son, Damian Adler. Significantly, Jake appears after Holmes leaves to meet with his brother Mycroft at his request about an “old case that had come to life.” As it turns out, Mycroft wants Holmes’ help in locating the stolen Irish Crown Jewels. New information has come to light in this case that Holmes originally investigated back in 1907. His recommendations were ignored, and the jewels were never recovered. The robbery is true history and the mystery of what became of the Jewels is still unsolved to this day. LRK always incorporates real historical figures and events into her books. It is a big part of their appeal for me.

Meanwhile, back in Sussex, Jake asks Mary’s help in locating the same jewels. He was an accomplice in their theft which just might be one reason why Jake has taken pains not to cross paths with the great detective. Even though it goes against her own ethical values and will potentially put her at odds with her husband, Mary decides to accompany Jake to Ireland to try to find the treasure. Despite everything, he was her childhood hero and she still feels love and loyalty towards him. But unbeknownst to Jake, Mary ensures that Holmes will follow them by leaving him clues as to her whereabouts. And that she is safe. When Holmes returns to their empty home and reads Mary’s seemingly innocuous note, it doesn’t take him long to figure it all out. He has no interest in assisting Mycroft find the jewels, but he is very very interested in the health and safety of his wife. Mary and Jake are not alone together in their quest for long.

The books in this series are usually told primarily from Mary’s first person point of view. Sometimes we also switch to Sherlock Holmes’ 3rd person perspective. In this one we also have Jake’s 1st person account of the adventure and it is interesting to see glimpses of Russell and Holmes through his eyes. I love the way Laurie differentiated the first person narration of Mary and her Uncle Jake. Mary says “One could hear America in his voice.” And this was true on the page as well.

My enjoyment of the book was somewhat compromised in that I really did not like Jake right from the get go, and my dislike did not diminish much as the book went on. I found myself rooting for some kind of takedown. I found him shifty and smug, and his supposed charm was lost on me. He is never truthful with Holmes or Mary unless it suits his interests. The fact that they saw through him from the beginning and still he persisted in trying to obfuscate made me feel contempt as well as distaste. We weren’t meant to trust him or take him at face value, so maybe those feelings were unfair. Even the reveal of his true motives at the end did not restore him to my good graces.

As always in the books, Holmes and Mary spend a good deal of time apart, but that only heightens the anticipation for when they meet up again. I’ve long since stopped hoping for warmth or any obvious loving intimacy between the two. In fact, I don’t know what I would think if their feelings for each other were conspicuous rather than between the lines. This is what passes as grand romance between the two:

He stared at me, seated firmly on a man’s back, then saw the front of my coat. “You’re bleeding!” he exclaimed.
I looked down at my front, and my hands. “It’s not mine. The dogs—” But to my surprise, he yanked me to my feet, and flung his arms around me. Then, more reassuringly, he stood back and seized both my shoulders to berate me.

After the matter of the Jewels are satisfactorily disposed of, we are left to wonder if we will ever see Jake again. I wouldn’t bet against it. But I hope it won’t be for a while. Another character is introduced in this one that I know will become a fixture, at least for a while. And we still have Mycroft’s reaction to the secret revealed in the last book to look forward to. The perfect ending. **4 1/2 stars**

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Villa Amore

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Fixer Upper

Some years ago there was a movie called Under the Tuscan Sun with Diane Lane, Lindsay Duncan, and Sandra Oh, which I very much enjoyed. It, like this one, is about a woman disappointed and hurt by love who goes to rural Italy to recover, and ends up impetuously buying a small villa and restoring it to its former glory. In both movies, they slowly but surely become part of their communities, and there is romance, old people, and a pregnancy of a side character (sorry Sandra Oh, you stole the show. No offence intended) to deal with. Everything is set against the difficult but ultimately rewarding restoration of the old home. Of course, there are many differences, but this review is not a “Compare and Contrast” essay question so I will stop there. I’m just saying, if you enjoyed the quiet pace and captivating atmosphere of the older movie, you will probably like this one, if you like to watch Hallmarks.

Liara’s fiancé dumps her in the final stages of preparing for their wedding. They were going to go to Italy for their honeymoon because that is where her mother and late father met. Her mother convinces her to go on her honeymoon by herself and encourages her to try to visit the little town where she and Liara’s father fell in love. There was a pretty villa there that he had promised to buy for her one day. Bless their hearts. Young Love. Liara takes her mother’s advice and we have some beautiful shots of Rome. It hasn’t changed a bit. She meets a handsome American with dual citizenship (Kevin McGarry) helping his cousin in his bakery and she is surprised that his Nonna lives in the same little village that her mother visited. On a whim she decides to go there and sees advertisements for a group of old Italian villas that are on sale for 1 euro each. And what do you know but there is the same villa that her parents had always had a photograph of in a place of honor among them! She decides to buy it as a symbolic gesture for her Mom to fulfil her youthful dream. It’s only 1 euro, right? What could go wrong? Snicker. At some point she will re-sell it at her leisure since she doesn’t plan on living there. She is going back to Chicago tomorrow. What an idiot. As Leo, the handsome American, points out, she didn’t read the fine print. Or think this through at all. It turns out that she signed off on investing in completely renovating the building and she only has 3 months to complete it as she is an American and her visa will expire in 90 days. If she doesn’t follow through, she will be persona non grata throughout Europe.

90 days may not seem much time for restoring a dilapidated falling apart estate in a foreign country in real life, but it is an eon in Hallmark time. A similar daunting project was completed in Hallmark’s Tis the Season to be Irish in under two weeks. (Seemingly.) I really liked the relatively slower pace of this one. The restoration, the romance and Liara’s slow integration into the community was given time to develop which added an authenticity seldom seen in Hallmarks. The villa, which does not even have running water or electricity, is slowly (but fastly in the end) brought into shape with ex-lawyer and current contractor/handyman, Leo’s, help and results in an enviably beautiful home. She makes friends. In the process, Liara starts to struggle with the idea of returning to her career in Chicago and leaving the life she has found in Italy and her romantic relationship with Leo. Happily and mysteriously, Liara is in the enviable position of not having to consider money and how to get it in this movie. Also there is a donkey, olive trees, and she finds a letter from her father in a box of old mail. It all comes to a head when her ex finds her in Italy and wants to resume their relationship like nothing happened and a major real estate development firm shows interest in buying her property. 

One thing I really liked was what happened when her ex-fiancé showed up unexpectedly. Usually the new love interest will misinterpret some interaction between the ex-couple and go flouncing off in a huff, resulting in the big misunderstanding. That didn’t happen here. Instead, Leo starts to tell him off and almost punches him for what he did to Liara. Liara stops him and tells him off herself. He says “my bad” and goes away. No big last 15 minute romantic conflict!

Eloise Mumford who played Liara is a bit of a hit or miss with me. Comedy is not her forte. And there were some scenes in this movie which could have been played for more humor. Unfortunately, the actress’s resting face is “On the Verge of Tears.” Sometimes this works and sometimes it doesn’t. Also I wish that Liara’s mother had been more involved in the story. She doesn’t come to Italy until all is settled as part of the epilogue. I would have liked to have seen her earlier helping with the renovation and healing from the death of her husband.

All in all there was a lot to appreciate in this one including the cinematography. It stepped outside the box in more ways than one. But, for me, it was missing that special spark that makes it a top tier Hallmark.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

Cover Story

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by Mhairi McFarlane

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I’ve only given one of Mhairi’s books less than 4 stars and that was a long long time ago. I’ve loved them all but the last 2 were 4 star reads for me and the one before that, although 5 stars, had some really uncomfortable unpleasant things happen to our heroine, and it was quite light in the romance department. This one is back to 5 stars, and I am so happy about that. Often a favorite author kind of plateaus for me for a while. Sometimes permanently, or even starts spiraling downward. The books are still good, sometimes great even, but with reservations. Sometimes I can tell it is really through no fault of their own, but I just get too familiar and less enchanted with their ways. I find myself giving them an extra 1/2 star or more out of loyalty.

MM’s stories, including this one, often rest on her often used foundation of a very competent, funny, charming girl in her workplace who runs into trouble. Family is usually a significant part of the story and she usually has one or more ride or die friends. Though humor is never more than a page or two away, serious issues are tackled, and things can get fraught.

This story was very layered with a lot going on in addition to a very satisfying romance. Our heroine, Bel, is an investigative journalist, and part of the story is her trying to take down a corrupt politician who also is a sexual predator. To do this, she has to go undercover and befriend a Paris Hilton type young socialite in order to get into her laptop. We meet lots of interesting well rounded people in this thread that surprise and entertain. There is mystery and a lot of suspense because there is a lot at stake. I was very invested in Bel’s hoped for takedown of this guy. And success was very much a long shot.

A new arrival to Bel’s two person office/outpost is Connor, a new intern who quit his previous lucrative but high-pressure career in finance to start over again as a journalist. His first impression of her is “Helena Bonham Carter via the police cell drunk tank.” Not surprisingly, they don’t get on. To Bel and her partner in crime, Aaron, Connor comes across as aloof, superior and disapproving, and they treat him accordingly. Connor and Bel’s romance is a slow long burn as they get to know each other and discover what’s behind the curtain. When Connor inadvertently walks in on Bel in the early days of her undercover work she is forced to not only take him into her confidence, but wrangle him into posing as her boyfriend.

And there’s more! Both Connor and Bel are both dealing with troublesome exes. Bel, with two, one being a very scary psychopathic stalker. And let’s not forget the family and friends!

Often when a book includes a few disparate plot lines, one or more become distractions. Often it is the romance part which gets sidelined. Not so in this one. Connor and Bel become involved key players in each other’s work and personal dramas, which put the romance front and center. Their investigation, and their personal lives both provide suspense, excitement and Mhairi’s always reliable laugh out loud humor. Even minor characters, if not all multi-dimensional or complex, are at least entertaining and interesting. We even have some mystery of the “ Yikes! WTF is going on here?!!” variety and some pretty surprising twists.

At around the 70% mark, I was about to put the book down and go to bed, when things got even more interesting and the ante got upped. I couldn’t put it down, it didn’t let up, and I finished it that night. Although there is an almost inevitable misunderstanding that threatens to keep the two from their happy ending, it does not last long, and one risks all by some timely soul-baring which becomes mutual. It was very satisfying and refreshing. I didn’t want to say goodbye to Connor, Bel, and their lives.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

To Barcelona, Forever

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Part II. Just Add Saffron.

Ok so now it’s Anna’s turn to find her soulmate in Barcelona (or vicinity). In the first movie of this two-parter an author (Anna) and the translator of her book (Erica) met in Barcelona and became best friends. Erica found true love with her best friend (No, not Anna-another one-a guy) and Anna found her true calling, which was not a novelist but a food writer. Erica is the true novelist. Or is she? A publisher has given her a book deal without her even having to submit a proposal or even a vague idea for a novel, and she has not written a word. Yes, it’s the dreaded Hallmark Writer’s Block. But we’ll put a pin in that one because this movie is about Anna who has spent the last 5 months traveling around Europe blogging about food. She has attracted the interest of a food magazine who is willing to give her a real job if she can blow off their socks with a groundbreaking article on something to do with food.

Anna visits a gourmet shop and the shop owner suggests a teeny tiny jar of the world famous saffron that he is the exclusive purveyor of. When she finds out the price, she laughs in his face “Does it come with its own private chef?” and makes another sarcastic remark or two. Unfortunately, the owner of the saffron farm, Javier Estrella, is standing right behind her. Meet Cute Alert!  He is very offended and she is very abashed. She wants to write about his saffron and his family who for generations have been producing the world’s finest example of the venerated spice. That’s a big nope. Besides the disdain he feels for Anna, his family takes privacy to an almost pathological level. Even the village they live in is so secret, no one can find it, “unless they want you to. And they don’t.” We’ll put a pin in that one too. Well, one thing leads to another, the disdain does not last long, and the sparks just fly off these two. They have a magical evening which ends with a kiss. On her way to Portugal the next morning, Anna’s car breaks down right outside Javier’s secret village (What are the odds?-It must be fate). Javier is horrified to find her lugging her luggage down the street, thinking she followed him. As it turns out, Javier was in Barcelona to meet a matchmaker his mother set him up with. He promised her he would get married before the next harvest in a couple of weeks and start having babies to continue the family legacy. His family will think Anna is his fiancée (they work fast in this neck of the woods). Instead of telling his mother the truth they decide to compound the problem and have Anna pose as his fiancée so his mother will have her heart broken later rather than sooner, and broken worse by getting her hopes up and of course she will grow to love the super charming Anna. In turn, Javier will let Anna publish her article about the family business, on the condition he approves of it once it’s written. Orphan Anna grows to feel a part of the warm tradition-loving family and romance, conflict, misunderstandings, hurt feelings, drama, comedy, and a festival ensue. And Erica and Nico from the first movie show up adding to both the fun and the tribulations which follow.

Thanks to the performances of Ashley Williams and Miguel Bracco, who played Javier, this movie won me over pretty quickly with their first scene together. Their chemistry (hate that word, but what can you do?) between the two really made the romance work. Their banter was funny, thanks to both their delivery and the writer (Julie Sherman Wolfe). Ashley brought her Golden Retriever puppy dog personality somewhat to heel, and nailed her character’s vulnerable introspective side. The easy rapport between Ashley Williams and Alison Sweeney was a natural. What took them so long?  The saffron aspect was interesting and educational.

It was not problem free, of course. Few Hallmarks are. There were the usual cliches, nonsensical decisions, and other questionable occurrences only for the sake of plot and drama. And the casting was a little off the wall. This included the actor playing Javier’s father being the same age as Ashley Williams, his future daughter-in-law (presumably). The Mom was also very youthful and hip looking for such an old-fashioned character. And other things we won’t dwell on. It will be a banner day when Hallmark embraces the real ages of their talented and popular lead actresses and gives them roles which acknowledge that yes, even women in their 40s and 50s can find romance and adventure. Which I would guess is their target market, by the way. Insert “shrug” emoji.

Rating: 7 out of 10.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

/ Rebekahrox / 2 Comments

By J. K. Rowling

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“Not kill you, sir, never kill you!” said Dobby, shocked. “Dobby wants to save Harry Potter’s life! Better sent home, grievously injured, than remain here, sir! Dobby only wanted Harry Potter hurt enough to be sent home!”

**Original thoughts, 2018, on the American Audible version**

Going through all of the HPs, listening on Audible. I have listened to the Stephen Fry Philosopher’s Stone, but all the rest I have are the Jim Dale versions. I much prefer the Stephen Fry, as Jim Dale has some odd intonations and I don’t like his pronunciation of Voldemort and other words. Sometimes Dale sounds really whiny and wheedling, especially with the children’s voices.

**re-read on kindle 06/2025**

Even though this remains a Harry Potter that is not a favorite of mine, it cannot be skipped. It is the introduction of Dobby, Lucious Malfoy, Tom Riddle, Ginny Weasley, Arthur Weasley, the first Horcrux, The Burrow, Polyjuice Potion, the Sword of Gryffindor, Borgin and Burkes, Aragog, Moaning Myrtle, and Fawkes. And probably some others I don’t remember. It gives so much context to many momentous events to come. So many aspects which have far reaching influence on our key players’ final outcomes and fates start here. Nevertheless, it still comes across as a children’s’ book (which it is, of course) but, for me, minus much of the wonder, and, though there were some funny lines, humor, of its predecessor. I almost think the movie surpassed the book in many areas particularly in its portrayal of Dobby. It brilliantly captured the amazing, almost impossible, mix of annoying and adorable, funny and tragic, victim and victor.

And a few things took me out of the book. I couldn’t get over why Harry was shunned and suspected of being the Heir of Slytherin when Draco Malfoy should have been the obvious suspect of everyone from the start.

Then someone shouted through the quiet. “Enemies of the Heir, beware! You’ll be next, Mudbloods!” It was Draco Malfoy. He had pushed to the front of the crowd, his cold eyes alive, his usually bloodless face flushed, as he grinned at the sight of the hanging, immobile cat.

But there is no reaction to this outburst! Where is the outrage? It is a harbinger of Harry being celebrated one minute and vilified the next that repeats itself throughout the series.

Also the whole Polyjuice Potion scheme was a very high risk, low reward plan. It could only succeed in possibly satisfying the trio’s suspicion of Draco’s guilt or innocence, but would prove nothing to anyone else and could never accomplish anything.

Hermione’s infatuation with the nincompoop Lockhart seemed very out of character.

Of course Chamber of Secrets is part of Harry Potter so I liked it a lot. I am enjoying noticing things I didn’t notice before. Listening to books on Audible holds many joys, but you miss some detail and subtleties. This is my second time reading Harry Potter in “print” on Kindle and it’s been quite a few years. I am enjoying all of the re-discoveries. One of these worth noting is the part where Harry first hears the name “Riddle”. He thought it sounded vaguely familiar. He knew he had never heard it before but it “still seemed to mean something to him almost as though Riddle was a friend he’d had when he was very small and had half forgotten.” Chilling. It’s a clue and dark foreshadowing as to what is going on with the connection between Harry and Voldemort that will gradually be revealed in the coming books.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

To Barcelona, With Love

/ Rebekahrox / 6 Comments
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The Ashley and Alison Show

This was almost really good. The plot was a fairly fresh take on the iconic Cyrano de Bergerac love triangle. Roxanne with Steve Martin was mentioned. Anna, played by Ashley Williams, is a romance writer whose latest book is a big flop. That is because she is not a good writer. Case in point. She sets the book in Barcelona, Spain and she has never even been to Barcelona. But that’s OK because “she walked the streets” courtesy of Google Maps Street View. Her first book was successful only because she had a wonderful editor who fixed it. Her publisher does not want to have anything more to do with her. Until the soaring sales figures from Barcelona come in. Shockingly, instead of being exposed there as being phony and inauthentic to the native Catalans, it is a big hit. That’s because of…Erica. Erica, played by Alison Sweeney, is an expat American who has lived and worked in Barcelona for 10 years. She is a literary translator who is the one who translated Anna’s book into Spanish. Except she didn’t just translate it she rewrote it completely. “I didn’t mean to!” Her knowledge and love for the city shown through and she put in a lot of symbolism and other stuff, making it an almost instant modern classic in Catalonia. She is best friends with a very handsome bookseller, Nico, with whom she is secretly in love. He absolutely loves the book and invites the “author”, Anna, to Barcelona to promote it at his bookstore. Anna is thrilled, especially when she gets to Spain and gets a load of handsome and sexy Nico. They start crushing on each other.  Erica and Anna become friends and it isn’t long before Anna realizes, humorously, that the Spanish version of the book is nothing like the English version that she wrote. “Dolphins? I don’t remember writing anything about Dolphins?!”. The whole truth comes out and Anna and Erica decide to keep the secret so as not to ruin the bookstore event. And all of this is with the full blessing of the publisher, as long as Erica keeps to her non-disclosure agreement. I was relieved not to have to deal with a lot of faffing around with zero communication, lies, or threats of exposure. Well OK, Nico was out of the loop, but that was necessary to the romance, and the women’s efforts to keep up the deception were amusing. And although not realistic, Anna did not get cranky about Erica taking over her book. It only made her realize that she was not that kind of writer. Besides, she still got credit for it.

As Anna, Erica, and Nico tour around Barcelona, it becomes more and more clear to everyone that Erica is the one who should be with Nico, not Anna, with whom he has nothing in common. It was a slow burn romance and nicely done. What makes this movie, beside the beautiful setting, is the character of Anna and the performance of Ashley Williams. While her super-smiley perky sparkles personality and acting style can wear thin very quickly, she was perfectly cast as the exuberant extrovert Anna to whom no one is a stranger. Williams really leans into her signature acting style in what is almost a self-parody. She attacks people she sees reading her book, introduces herself as the author, holds up her photo on the book jacket to prove it, and insists on signing it for them. It was funny. She is more interested in food and eating than sight-seeing. It isn’t long before she knows more about where to eat in Barcelona than the natives do. As it turns out, Anna may not be able to write romantic fiction, but she’s a genius at writing about food. How will Anna and Erica, who is the true novelist, get their careers and love lives on the right paths? 

This movie was fun because the veteran Hallmark writer, Julie Sherman Wolfe,  kept it light-hearted and romantic, avoiding stupid misunderstandings, festering secrets, and hostile threats from bullying bosses that this type of plot could very well have fallen into. A case could be made that the two talented actresses were too old for their parts. At one point Erica hints that she is still looking to start a family. And Ashley’s part as a budding writer who still hasn’t found her niche is more suitable for someone in their 20s or early 30s. But these were minor points and easily pushed to the side. And, we are in good hands with the two talented Hallmark veterans. Plus Alison Sweeney and Alejandro Tous were a good match. The only thing that brought the movie down was Erica taking way too long to claim what she deserved in her career and personal life. She made hiding and denying practically an art form. Not my favorite.

As it turns out this was the first part of a movie duo. Next week it’s Anna’s turn to get the guy in Barcelona. I’m looking forward to it.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.