Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (jnol74) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 11:43:38 GMT

LeeLee333 wrote:
Glad to know that Olivia is okay Jackie!

I'm in Victoria right now, staying at a beautiful boutique hotel with hubby, two kids and my sister, Kim!! We are here for 11 days before we fly to Manitoba for a week. Kim watched Sebastian for us while we went on a whirlwind househunting quest: about 30 houses in 2 days were viewed. We made an offer this morning which was immediately accepted. We...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (booksalot) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 07:56:31 GMT

Oh Lee, the house sounds like the perfect dream house for your family. I bet you'll enjoy living in the burbs with other young families where you can trade off running errands and watching kids once you get to know them better. I can't remember when you are moving but you certainly didn't waste any time finding a house. Now you can enjoy the rest of your vacation.

Say hi to Kim for us!!

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (LeeLee333) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 23:39:25 GMT

Glad to know that Olivia is okay Jackie!

I'm in Victoria right now, staying at a beautiful boutique hotel with hubby, two kids and my sister, Kim!! We are here for 11 days before we fly to Manitoba for a week. Kim watched Sebastian for us while we went on a whirlwind househunting quest: about 30 houses in 2 days were viewed. We made an offer this morning which was immediately accepted. We bought a nice, new home that has a fenced yard so I think it will be a good family home....

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (jnol74) — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 12:26:33 GMT

booksalot wrote:
Big sigh of relief, huh Jackie? Glad it's all good.

You bet! Thanks, Anne. She called yesterday and talked for 45 minutes and wouldn't let her mother have the phone back without throwing a fit first! She gabs so fast on the phone, though, I can barely...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (booksalot) — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 18:33:47 GMT

Big sigh of relief, huh Jackie? Glad it's all good.

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (jnol74) — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 17:34:03 GMT

We finally heard back from our daughter about Olivia. They were all outside where Olivia was playing in her little pool, and we were happy to hear she is doing just fine. We figured she'd be ok, but it was definitely nice finding out for...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (jnol74) — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 16:13:01 GMT

Thanks for letting me know what your reading plans are! I think I'll go ahead and start "Swan Song" when I'm finished with this other book I'm reading. I just found it the other day after forgetting where I'd put...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (LeeLee333) — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 08:01:10 GMT

Don't worry about reading the fourth Flemming book as I won't forget it any time soon. It'll be a slower one as it's quite a detailed (and a little boring) storyline this time. It just isn't grabbing me like the other ones. I'll still read it though. Read whatever you feel like! I'll probably start a second book too (like Ariana Franklin's latest).

I'm terrible for calling my parents but they are equally terrible for calling me! My husband's...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (jnol74) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 19:43:29 GMT

booksalot wrote:
Jackie, I'm sure everything with Olivia is fine and as you say, no news is good news. It's sad kids don't think about things from our perspective and keep us as informed about the Grands as we might like them to. I'm happy to hear you have to sit on your hands sometimes too.

I've never read Swan Song and I would be willing to buddy read that one with you. I can't get to it...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (booksalot) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 15:41:39 GMT

Jackie, I'm sure everything with Olivia is fine and as you say, no news is good news. It's sad kids don't think about things from our perspective and keep us as informed about the Grands as we might like them to. I'm happy to hear you have to sit on your hands sometimes too.

I've never read Swan Song and I would be willing to buddy read that one with you. I can't get to it in the immediate future but if you think you might like to have someone along for the...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (jnol74) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 14:43:26 GMT

LeeLee333 wrote:
Sheesh. I don't know what to say Jackie. That's not true. I ALWAYS have something to say! lol.

I'm a very cautious mother to the point of smothering and it drives my husband nuts. Some friends of ours tease me all the time for being so "paranoid" etc... However, I've noticed that a lot of my other mother friends are equally protective. You said it so perfectly. It's...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (LeeLee333) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 19:50:59 GMT

Sheesh. I don't know what to say Jackie. That's not true. I ALWAYS have something to say! lol.

I'm a very cautious mother to the point of smothering and it drives my husband nuts. Some friends of ours tease me all the time for being so "paranoid" etc... However, I've noticed that a lot of my other mother friends are equally protective. You said it so perfectly. It's such a hard balance between letting your children learn how to do things on their own...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (jnol74) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 19:38:39 GMT

booksalot wrote:
Oh Jackie, what a terribly scary story. I pray that Olivia continue to be fine and a bit more careful around those stairs. It can certainly be a frightening thing when grandchildren (and children) wind up in the hospital. We've been through so much of that this year with Stanton being in and out constantly. He's doing really well now and is looking forward to a summer of fewer Dr visits...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (booksalot) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:28:51 GMT

Oh Jackie, what a terribly scary story. I pray that Olivia continue to be fine and a bit more careful around those stairs. It can certainly be a frightening thing when grandchildren (and children) wind up in the hospital. We've been through so much of that this year with Stanton being in and out constantly. He's doing really well now and is looking forward to a summer of fewer Dr visits and no more hospital stays.

Warm thoughts your way.

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (jnol74) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:01:24 GMT

If I don't participate more than I have today, I'm pooped from sitting in a chair here trying to doze a bit last night after my daughter called from the hospital early in the evening telling us Olivia was taken to the emergency room yesterday afternoon after she'd fallen down the stairs at their house. They did a CT scan and thought they saw a small brain bleed, but also thought it might be artifact from the scan since poor...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (jnol74) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:36:07 GMT

I found it strange that Jane killed her husband after we saw how tender they once were to each other. The scene where Jane's husband, Jonathon, admits he wants to die and take his wife and daughter with him seemed unrealistic to me. Sort of out of nowhere (I just didn't feel like I was that invested in their story to find it believable). I thought Renee showing up with a gun was unrealistic. I didn't like the character of Debba...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (booksalot) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:23:43 GMT

I wonder if Russ's mom will somehow intervene and set things back on a even keel.

Same. I liked the first one much better than the second. The third was pretty good but I skimmed a lot at the end as I didn't want to know all of the sad details regarding the children. I found that storyline a bit too much for my weak mind!! I don't typically enjoy series so I'm not surprised that I'm cooling off a bit regarding these books. I like getting to...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (LeeLee333) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 20:12:15 GMT

booksalot wrote:
5. Have you noticed Russ's habit of continuously cleaning his glasses in all 3 of the books? He must have the cleanest lenses on the planet! LOL! I also think it's funny when he starts to use a swear word in front of Clare and then catches himself before the whole thing comes out. But...Clare has also had a few "moments" herself! image Too funny. It just makes her character more likeable to me...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (LeeLee333) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:06:12 GMT

I don't know how many of these I can answer but I'll give it a try.

1. ...it sounds like Russ and Linda have a pretty good marriage.

I think they probably HAD a good marriage but sometimes "good" means boring! Linda is beautiful but they have nothing in common.

I think the tension building between Clare and Russ is part of what makes the books so good and enticing. I seem to recall a mention in...

Re: Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (LeeLee333) — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 19:44:09 GMT

1. After reading the ending of book 3, what do you think is going to become of Russ's marriage to Linda? Yowza! The chemistry between Clare and Russ is too good to be ignored, but then it also sounds like Russ and Linda have a pretty good marriage.

You know, at first I thought it was cute that they were attracted to each other and no big deal. By the end of the third book, however, I'm a bit annoyed with Clare as she is really pushing it with Russ imo. She KNOWS he's...

Julia Spencer-Flemming's "Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne" crime series

feeds@yuku.com (jnol74) — Fri, 08 May 2009 17:24:14 GMT

I'm reading the first 3 in the series, and plan on reading all 6 eventually, back-to-back, with the 7th not due out till October of this year.

If anyone cares to join me, the first 3 titles are: "In the Bleak Mid-Winter" (I've read this one), "A Fountain Filled with Blood" (I'm just beginning this one), and the third is "Out of the Deep I Cry".

If we get a discussion going from these 3 and anyone would...