What Makes Life Worth Living?

January 6, 2015 / Ajmorse / Leave a comment

These last couple of day have been stressful for us. My car is in the shop, it is 7 degrees outside, and until I get paid next week, I have about $2.

Life is not exactly easy when you live paycheck to paycheck, and although I am trying to look on the positive side, sometimes I do start to hyperventilate. The man in my life, although he pretends to be all manly and tough most of the time, said it this way: “We have each other, babe.”

And as corny as that sounds, I had a thought about it. It may seem like the end of the world when you can’t pay your bills, but it’s really not. Sure, you get behind, it happens. But life is in the people you love, in the people who love you and in the times you share together.

Love doesn’t pay the bills, but it sure does remind you what makes life worth living. And that’s all I need for the time being.

Oh, and brownies:

I made these tonight with this recipe here, (with my own tweaks of course) and I think these will go well with a cup of hot coco, yes? 🙂

I counted on my fingers before bed…I have a at least fifteen friends and family that love me. I am not without love in my life. I am poor, but I am not worthless.

These thoughts of failure, life stresses and worthlessness made me think of what Clarence writes in George’s book in the end of It’s a Wonderful Life:

“Remember, George: no man is a failure who has friends.”

No…they are most definitely not. I hope everyone is keeping warm, and positive this cold, Tuesday night.

Happy Writing everyone!

Masterchef Junior Season 2 Finale Recap: And the Winner is…

December 22, 2014 / Ajmorse / Leave a comment

Season two’s finale was a showdown between Logan and Samuel, to see whose creativity and flavors in the kitchen wowed the judges more. Samuel likes sophisticated dishes and unique flavors, while Logan excels in presentation and his signature bow-tie.

Photo credit: Fox.

Whoever wins will be the youngest Masterchef Junior ever. Samuel is 12, while Logan, who is 11, claims that this night is the most exciting night ever in his childhood! Wow.

They both have ten minutes to go back in the pantry and get the things they need to create their three course meal. As expected Samuel’s menu is a risk and very complicated. He’s using liquid nitrogen! They have 90 minutes to create their amazing three-courses.

We see some input from some of the top ten competitors: Sam doesn’t know who’ll win because Logan and Samuel are both great cooks. Abby thinks Logan’s menu is super difficult and that he’s going to win, while Mitchell announces that this battle is going to be epic!

Finally we get to see the kid’s imaginations run wild – so far, that hasn’t been the case in the past several episodes. The kids have been limited on what they could create, we definitely missed the creativity that comes from mystery box challenges, or free range of the pantry where they can pick and choose at will.

And these little home cooks are creative and inventive. Logan uses a smoking gun to smoke his aioli, and says that it’s every boy’s dream: fire and a Nerf gun. Samuel uses liquid nitrogen to quick freeze his raspberries and then he smashes them into little pieces. Gordon says he looks like a sou chef from Breaking Bad. The judges comment that they might be witnessing the future of cooking.

The 90 minutes is up and both Samuel and Logan’s dishes look fantastic. Logan says he’s very proud that he got everything on the plate that he wanted. Samuel says (as he looks down at his dishes) that he knows he’s come a long way on this journey. It’s difficult to see who is going to win this challenge, all their dishes look excellent.

Samuel is first to present his appetizer. He made south-east Asian chicken oysters with pickled cucumber and crispy rice. Gordon says the chicken is cooked perfectly but that there is too much vinegar. Graham says he likes the idea of the dish better than the actual flavor. On the other hand, Joe likes the flavor and the vinegar. He says it’s a ying-yang type of dish that takes him right back to Singapore.

For Logan’s appetizer he made grilled spot prawns with olive capers and smoked saffron aioli. Joe asks if he feels strongly about this dish, and Logan replies with: of course, how could I not? Where do these kids get their confidence from? Gordon says the spot prawns are cooked beautifully. Graham comments that it’s a great dish but the olive capers overpower the other flavors on the plate. Joe, once again, disagrees and likes the olive flavor on top of the aioli and says that the dish is a hit on every level. You can tell Logan is very pleased, but Samuel has a hard time keeping a poker face.

For the entrees, Samuel made pan-seared arctic char with coconut saffron curry. He pours the curry sauce at the table for the judges. Joe cuts into the fish, and says that Samuel has cooked it perfectly. Graham says that the fish is so good that it can practically stand on its own even without the other ingredients. He also says that the coconut curry is heavy, and he would want the fish to stand out more. Gordan says that there are professional chefs that can’t even cook fish like that.

Logan made salt-crusted branzino stuffed with lemon, thyme and butter with chimichurri and roasted vegetables. Joe says that the fish is cooked perfectly, but the chimichurri is a little bit aggressive. Although, it looks like Logan’s dish might be more successful, Gordan says its anyone’s game because they both cooked their fish perfectly but they applied the wrong sauce.

Now, for the dessert! And both of their desserts look excellent! Samuel made a kaffer lime panna cotta with passion fruit and raspberry. Graham tastes first and says its like getting punched in the mouth…in the best way possible. It’s like edible perfume and the raspberry adds a nice textural aspect to the dish. Gordan says that all the flavors go together wonderfully and Joe comments that using the star anise in the dish was crazy brilliant and very delicious. It looks like it is anyone’s game at this point!

Logan made a meyer lemon madeleine with a berry compote and goat cheese mousse. Gordan says visually, that it is brilliant but that the madeleines could have been cooked longer. Joe says that its a great ending to the dishes that he just made.

The judges reiterate that regardless of the results they should walk out into the kitchen with their heads held high because they both made some fantastic dishes. It seems to be a tough call, as neither of them had any big mistakes. At this point, it seems that Samuel’s menu was a bit more complicated than Logan’s, however, Logan seemed to have flavors that worked a lot better.

After an agonizing, drawn out pause, the judges finally announce the winner and it is: Logan!

Photo credit: Fox

You can tell that Samuel is very disappointed, but Gordan says that he should be proud of what he accomplished. It looks like Logan’s dishes overall tasted better than Samuel’s, but what a finale! Finally, we got to see some beautifully presented dishes and some creative flavors. It seemed like this was the flare we have been missing all season long from the rest of the contestants. Was it because they were limited because of the challenges? I think so!

I hear they are casting already for the third season of Masterchef Junior, but well done Logan! A well-deserved win!

Masterchef Junior Season 2 episode 6 Recap: Salmon Filets and Abby

December 22, 2014 / Ajmorse / Leave a comment

I got a little behind on my Masterchef Junior episodes, and before I recap the finale, here is a recap of episode six:

Everyone is excited about being in the top four. Abby says that they have to be careful, because even the tiniest mistake could send you home. Adaiah wants a girl to win, because a boy won last year.

Photo credit: FOX

Joe says that if they excel at the challenges that are thrown at them, any one of the kids has a chance to be the biggest fish in the culinary pond. Naturally, this is a segue into what the kids will be working with: fish. They all head back to the pantry and each grab a fish, which happens to be a very large Alaskan salmon. The kids are sweet, and Samuel offers to help Abby with her fish, which is pretty big for an eight year old. He helps her put it at her station. She sighs with relief.

Gordon quickly demonstrates how to filet a salmon effectively, and how many filets they should be expecting to get when they are done. He buzzes through it quickly and warns them to pay attention because he’s only going to show them how to do it once. All of the kids look a little wide-eyed and intimidated.

For their next challenge, they have 30 minutes to filet their salmon like Gordon showed them. Whoever has the most filets at the end of the challenge has a big advantage in the next round and possibly a spot in the finale.

Already you can see that Abby is at a disadvantage because she might not be strong enough. She seems to be having problems cutting her fish. Samuel seems to be doing fine. Adaiah as well. It looks like Logan didn’t cut his salmon close enough to the bone and it looks like there was a lot of fish wasted.

Adaiah wins the challenge as her filets are perfect. Already it is clear that Adaiah and Samuel did the best, while Abby and Logan struggled in this challenge. Maybe age really does matter?

In the next challenge, each of them have 45 minutes to cook a filet using the ingredients that is given to them, but there is a catch: they don’t know what those ingredients will be. In the pantry, there are four refrigerators. One with 100 ingredients, one with 50, 25 and five. Adaiah’s advantage is that she gets to choose who has what ingredients.

Surprisingly, she gives the 100 ingredients to Abby and takes the 50 for herself. The 25 she gives to Samuel because she knows he likes to cook with upscale ingredients and there isn’t that much to choose from in that refrigerator. Poor Logan gets stuck with the five ingredients.

The judges comment that they really don’t need a lot of ingredients to make a fantastic dish. Abby, surprisingly, says the same exact thing when she mentions that she doesn’t need 100 ingredients. She can’t seem to figure out what she needs for her dish, and keeps running back into the pantry.

Logan is first to present his dish which is an olive oil poached salmon with potato rosette and broccoli rabe. Gordon says that poaching the salmon was a very bold move and not something that you see very often at their level, but he is impressed because the salmon is cooked perfectly. His broccoli rabe is not really cooked, though.

Photo Credit: FOX.

Abby is next and admits that having the 100 ingredients was actually hard for her. She made a mango and orange glazed salmon with carrot puree. Abby’s salmon is a little dry, but Gordan says that the carrot puree tastes delicious. Gordon tells her that it wasn’t her best salmon dish. But they offer a lot of encouragement too, and Joe says that if she turns out as great of a chef as she is a young lady, then she is going to make some amazing dishes. How sweet!

Samuel made pan-seared salmon with tomato confit and cilantro shallot gremolata. Graham says that he has some great flavors but that the flesh of the salmon is slightly over-cooked. Gordon says that it tastes fantastic but the filet is too small.

Adaiah makes Asian-style salmon with garlic broccoli and green bean stir-fry. Joe says that the salmon is cooked perfectly, but that she burnt the garlic on the broccoli. But when it comes down to it, it is the little details that make all the difference, and Adaiah and Abby are sent home.

This leaves two boys in the finale: Logan and Samuel. Not who I thought would be the top two in the finale, but we will see how it goes. It is difficult to see the two girls sent home; especially Abby who cries. Samuel says that he is happy he is in the finale, but he doesn’t like to see the friends that he has made go home. The judges remind them that this is just the beginning and they will accomplish so much more in the years to come.

Especially Abby, who is so sweet and so talented. She even makes Joe cry. She also gets a kiss on the cheek from Gordon Ramsay. Now, how many Masterchef junior’s can claim that? I think it was a difficult goodbye for everyone, but they managed to get through it with some watery smiles.

I wanted to see a girl in the finale as well, but it looks like a tough competition in the next episode when Logan and Samuel go head to head and we see who will be the next Masterchef junior!

Masterchef Junior Season 2 Episode 4 Recap: Fried eggs, Restaurant Dreams and Over-cooked Protein

December 1, 2014 / Ajmorse / Leave a comment

Tomorrow night premieres a new episode of Masterchef Junior, so how about a quick recap of last week’s episode?

Credit: Greg Gayne/Fox

Right from the beginning the kids are asked what they would do if they won the $100,000 and the Masterchef junior trophy. Adaiah said she would buy guitars, a piano, and a dirt bike. Oona would go to Vegas, and Abby would buy a bunch of horse posters. Gordon says she could buy her own horse, but Abby replies she doesn’t have enough room in her back yard. (Tehehe).

The first challenge: to make a perfect sunny-side up egg. No brown edges, no over-cooked yoke. Poor Oona and Abby seem to struggle. Sean, of course, has the most eggs. He wins the challenge with ten perfect eggs. Abby has the less, with just two eggs.

But there is a twist to the next challenge. They can only use the same amount of ingredients in their next dish as how many eggs they managed to cook. Looks like Abby is going to have to step it up some! Gordon gives her a hug and says that she can do it. (So adorable).

The kids are asked about their dreams of having their own restaurants. They are all so very creative. Abby wants to have a vet clinic/restaurant which specializes in healthy food. She said she’s going to name it “Horses and Courses.” Oh, we love you Abby! Logan wants an underwater bistro. And as Samuel is talking about his french restaurant which is (not surprising) called “Le Samuel,” he tucks the plans to his establishment back into a briefcase. Seriously? Where did they find this kid?!

For their next dish, the kids have one hour to create the signature dish that they would want in their restaurant. We also learn in this bit that Graham was most inspired by Gordon Ramsay in his career. We also learn that Sean wants a restaurant called “The Drunken Cow,” because he specializes in cooking with meat and likes to cook with wine a lot. Wait a minute, this kid is like…twelve.

Abby, who had only two ingredients, makes salmon with asparagus five ways and the judges are impressed because the salmon is perfectly cooked. Sean is next with the most ingredients at ten, he made a rib eye steak with paprika crema and potatoes. His steak is slightly overcooked, but graham likes the sauce. Levi makes a pan-seared salmon with a mustard maple glaze and broccoli done two ways. His salmon is also over-cooked. C’mon guys!

Adaiah is next with her yogurt-crusted lamb chop which she made with sweet potatoes and orange sauce. Graham likes the flavor of the orange and how everything comes together. Oona only had four ingredients as well, and she makes scallops two ways with ginger oil and cauliflower puree. Her dish is the most presentable, but half of her scallops are over-cooked.

Logan makes flat iron steak marinated in soy sauce and ginger with bamboo rice. The steak is perfectly cooked and well-seasoned, according to Joe, but the rice is over-cooked and missing salt. Gordon says that they are a little bit underwhelmed by his dish, poor fellow. I guess the days of sugar-coated niceties are over. He still gets a hug from Ramsay. What is even more touching is the other kids that get emotional in reaction to Logan’s disappointment. Even though it is a competition, its so sweet that these kids are also friends.

Josh is next to present his dish and he made curried duck a l’orange with cilantro rice. The duck is slightly over-cooked and Graham says that the cilantro wasn’t needed, that he should have used another ingredient instead to perfect the dish.

Samuel is last to present his dish, and already the judges aren’t impressed. He had his choice of eight ingredients and Gordan says it looks like he has only three ingredients on the plate. He made a five-spice seared duck with pesto cucumber and zucchini puree. But the earlier critiques are only to add to the drama, because Gordan says that the duck is cooked perfectly. Finally! Someone who didn’t over-cook their protein!

This makes me wonder yet again if last season’s kids were a fluke? Was it staged? Because so many of the contestants seemed to have mistakes tonight.

The two that had astounding dishes: Abby and Samuel. Samuel says that it is time to buy into the Le Samuel stock because it’s going to be an up day in the stock market. Okay, even as arrogant as that sounds…it is still amusing.

Sean, Oona, Levi and Josh are in the bottom four. Sadly, at the end of the night, Josh and Levi get sent home. This is unfair, I think, because Levi overall has had more successful dishes than many of them, but Oona is their entertainer, so of course she can’t go home yet!

Looks like a restaurant take-over in the next episode! Here’s a sneak peak:

The Hunger Games, Mockingjay Part 1 Review: Jennifer Lawrence IS the Mockingjay

November 25, 2014 / Ajmorse / Leave a comment

If you haven’t read the books, or haven’t seen the latest Hunger Games movie, Mockingjay Part 1, beware there are spoilers ahead.

The last time we saw Katniss Everdeen, was in Catching Fire after she had destroyed the arena and was picked up by the rebellion. In Mockingjay Part one, Katniss is left to pick up the broken pieces of her sanity, and to come to terms with the things she didn’t know existed before: namely, the rebellion and district 13.

In the excitement to remove her from the crumbling wreckage of the quarter quell, Peeta was captured by the capitol. District 12 was destroyed, and the remaining survivors find sanctuary in District 13. Although destroyed on the surface many years ago, district 13 managed to survive underground with the leadership of President Coin, who runs their district with strict military precision.

This is something that’s difficult for Katniss, because she is sick of being told what to do, and where to go, especially when all she wants to do is escape the pain of the people she has lost. She agrees to be the Mockingjay, a symbol of the rebellion, only if Peeta and the other victors that were captured are rescued from the Capitol. The Mockingjay will be promoted in a series of promos to help encourage the districts to join the cause and fight against the Capitol.

What is most noticeable about this movie: the intensity. Everything has been brought up about ten notches. The first two films are mostly told from Katniss’ perspective, which is true to the novel, but for the fist time, we get a more elaborate view of the events that are happening outside of Katniss’ point of view. We see exchanges between President Coin, (Julianne Moore) and game maker, Plutarch Heavensbee (Phillip Seymore Hoffman), and also scenes between Plutarch and Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks). There are also, numerous shots of the rebellion that happen in the other districts as well.

Emotions are high; fear, and anger and heartache simmer just below the surface and it’s not difficult to catch the emotion behind the revolution, the need to fight for the right to live. This change in perspective makes sense, as Katniss’ state of mind is not always completely together, and it is clear that there is something larger at stake here.

Katniss is often joined by her old friend Gale, (Liam Hemsworth) and new friend Finnick Odair (Sam Claflin), but she obtains new friends in her entourage; the most surprising (and bad-ass looking) is one member of her camera crew, Cressida (Natalie Dormer) who some might know as Margaery, on Game of Thrones.

If the great cast might not draw you in, how about the soundtrack? Lorde recorded four songs for the film and even Jennifer Lawrence has her own track. Although she claims she is a terrible singer, the song she sings in the film, “The Hanging Tree,” is hauntingly beautiful and almost eerie in the way it lingers in your mind afterwards. There is no other actor alive (I believe) that would be able to play the role of Katniss so well.

“Fire IS catching.”

Here’s a look at J-Law’s awesome singing:

Why MasterChef Jr. Is the Best Cooking Show on TV

November 6, 2014 / Ajmorse / Leave a comment

I was going to write up my own review, but this one is about what I was going to say, anyway! And better said, too! I want to add though, that I thought last season felt more staged. It was definitely more dramatized – whether or not on purpose, I don’t really want to think about that too much, but at any rate, I was very happy to see “Big Al” return and offer his advice to this new season’s batch of kids!

The Faces that We Wear

October 26, 2014 / Ajmorse / Leave a comment

It’s easy to seem like an angel on social media – especially when all that you post is positive things: your boyfriend giving you flowers, going out to dinner, making food, shout-outs to friends you haven’t seen in a while.

Me at Clear water beach, Fl. (I love these sunshiny pictures of myself).

What is important is the face that you wear when no one else is around. And for me that includes: Sunday morning hair all lop-sided to one side, standing in front of the refrigerator in a nightie, gnawing on cold chicken wings and pizza.

(Oh, and I forgot to add the little happy dance I do when I eat something that is yummy.)

The point? We all present ourselves in a different way depending on where we are…and if you are the rare individual who is able to treat everyone with the same type of sauce, then good for you. You are rare and few in between.

Most of us don’t have that luxury. We wear our professional faces to work, our worried ones find comfort from Mom, the harassed need-a-glass-of-wine look we share with our girlfriends (or maybe that’s just me), and our significant others see everything in between, bare skin and all.

And maybe that’s the point I’m trying to make. We may wear different faces to different people but its the face that you wear when you are around your significant other and yourself that is the most important of all.

He or she is the one who should know your faults, should know what makes you cry, should know that you’re not always an angel, despite how hard you try to be. 😉

Its our faults that make us who we are. I know I’m not perfect. I’m stubborn. I’m whiny. I suck at housework. I’m grumpy in the early morning, I take three-hour naps and I’ll eat food until it makes me sick; drink wine on a week night.

Yet, despite my flaws, I have managed to find someone who loves me in spite of all those things. (And I didn’t even mentioned the winter blues that I get.) He puts up with me and I with him, and isn’t that true definition of belonging?

To love someone’s insides and outsides, despite the many different faces that we wear. Love is a many splendid thing. And sure, love is blind.

But maybe that’s the point: No one is perfect. And we should never pretend to be.

Pancake Saturday!

October 25, 2014 / Ajmorse / Leave a comment

I think I have a secret desire in life to make every pancake known to man…case in point: today’s breakfast!

Chocolate chip and apple pancakes. (I was going to make orange pancakes, but I didn’t have any orange juice. They sound fantastic though!)

I like making them small…they look so cute on the plate.

And they are wonderful when paired with any side…Like breakfast sausage, of course.

Today is a lazy Saturday, and I thought I’d take a moment and enjoy it. I don’t get them very often, but when I do, they are glorious. 🙂

I like the sleepy feel of a Saturday morning, when you can shut off your alarm and sleep in. When the sunshine creeps its way into the window, promising freedom…either relaxation in the unexpected warmth, or adventures in the bright sunshine, in the air and the blue sky, of a moment where you can look up and bask in the empty spaces.

A lot happens on a Saturday, or not at all. It’s your choice to do what you will. Maybe shopping, maybe baking…maybe a day trip to the mountains or ocean (if there is one close by). Maybe its the day where you buy antiques…you are forever looking for that pepper shaker that matches the salt shaker that your grandma has.

Maybe its the only day you get to spend time with your kids; so you take them to the park, buy them fast food and send them back to Mom with stinky stains on their shirts and smiles on their faces.

Maybe its a project day: time to get that painting done on the house that you haven’t had time for. Change the oil in your car.

If you are an artist, maybe its the day you paint, or a writer: the day you work on crafting that story that needs a lot of work. Maybe you write a letter to a friend you haven’t seen in a while.

Or maybe, you have to work. And another day is your “Saturday.”

But whatever the case, Saturday is like a gift…something that brings us joy the moment the day unwraps it for us.

I like to spend mine with good food, company and my projects. I have some laundry to get done, to finish painting some picture frames and a story that needs a plot. Today is already a busy day, and I don’t intend to waste it.

How do you like to spend your Saturday, or days off? 🙂

15 Minute Journaling: The Butterfly

October 8, 2014 / Ajmorse / Leave a comment

I wanted to post last night, but work has kept me busy the last few days. That’s why I think it’s a good idea to relax, and just let the words take me – time for a 15 minute journaling session.

And for those of you who don’t know, “15 Minute Journaling” is something I used to do in one of my creative writing classes in college. The teacher would write a prompt on the board, and then we would write in our journals for 15 minutes.

It’s amazing how many stories have come out of those sessions, and amazing how much of a stress reliever it can be sometimes.

15 Minutes here I go! But first I need to find a writing prompt. Google brought me to this page > http://www.writersdigest.com/prompts < Writing prompts on writersdigest.com.

They remind me of the prompts my teacher used to give us. Quirky and not at all like the norm. My writing prompt app never gives me the idea of writing about a character with an extra arm…everything is so normal. Ah, what defines normal anyway?

Here we go. 15 Minutes on the clock please! Feel free to write along if you want! This is the one I chose:

“A Few Sips Off” – You take a few sips of your drink and feel different. That may be because your torso has an extra arm protruding from it. Another sip, another arm. Then a wing. What happens if you finish the drink?

I asked the magician to give me a potion to make me beautiful. In my mind, I had it all figured out: a dress shimmering a blue and green, like the tail of a mermaid, a pretty version of the Cinderella dress. This isn’t what I asked for.

I choked on the last few drops. It tasted like copper, like the time I bit my tongue and blood poured into my mouth. It was sweet and metallic and I gagged. I looked down at the vial that had held the purple liquid in horror. It crashed to the ground and shattered into a million bits as my fingers began to change. I was shrinking! My arms became long and black and hairy. Two arms sprouted from each side of my torso. My jeans and t-shirt disappeared. My long body was black and green-blue iridescent. I cried out as wings sprouted from my back, long and blue and black. My face elongated and my vision blurred. I had freaking antennas on my head! Was I a butterfly? I felt the wings on my back flit nervously and air brushed my face.

Source: desktopnexus.com

I felt cold, and clammy and brand new. Like the new skin on a wound just beginning to heal after someone ripped the band-aid off. I wasn’t ready for this bright new world. I tried to speak but nothing came out. My vision had doubled, and then quadrupled. I had been standing next to the table in my dining room…now I was standing on top of it. The table shuddered underneath my feet as I watched a huge form coming my way. It was the dark shadow of my tall, older brother coming to the kitchen for a snack.

Would he see me? Would he squish me? Or am I to remain like this forever? Beautiful and tragic? No, tragically small. Forever contained in this simplistic beauty, but as powerless as I was before.

Help me big brother, I cried silently and jumped up and down, my wings lifting me to one spot and then the next. Help!

***Oh, interesting. I have a few more minutes on my 15, but I think I will leave it at that.

What inspires you guys to write? Any writing prompts that you like to use?

Happy Writing!

Review: In Beauty’s Veins, by K. Starling; a book about friendship, women, and self worth

October 4, 2014 / Ajmorse / 1 Comment

Later on today, I will be posting an interview with K. Starling herself, about her new novel, self-publishing and her writing process, but first a review:

Novel: In Beauty’s Veins, by K. Starling

Genre: Fantasy / science fiction

Audience: Any woman who cares about the rights of her fellow women, although guys might be drawn to its interesting world and unique take on vampires.

Review:

When I first picked up K. Starling’s book, In Beauty’s Veins, I joked that it had some heft to it, but little did I know that later I would also be using this phrase to refer to its content. Here we have a novel that touches on many themes: A woman’s rights and sexuality, self-worth, friendship, forgiveness, revenge, monsters, death, and healing…just to name a few.

To find this all in one novel is like finding a gem amongst the stones. There’s just so much in this novel to think about.

In Beauty’s Veins is a novel about the journey of four women all united by a Healer named Daphne, who comes to the not exactly desirable town of Halfawaise with the intentions of finding a lost neighbor and to become a healer there. She is of course met with some road blocks: the town medic, who doesn’t want another Healer in his town and the suspicion that follows her title: Is she really a Healer that the Legends talk about?

It doesn’t help that another legend follows her there, when Berri, one of the women who befriends Daphne, discovers someone who was attacked by a Vampyre. As Daphne tells her story to her new friends, suddenly the things that used to be legend aren’t legend anymore.

Told in a mixture of third and first person perspective, Daphne, the Healer, manages to heal more than just flesh and blood; she touches each woman’s heart and soul. Especially Berri, who was accused many years ago of murder and has no friends.

Through Daphne’s story, we learn how the world should be, (and the way it often isn’t); how important sometimes one friend is to a person truly alone in the world. How a woman should be defined by how she sees herself, not her sex.

It challenges the concept of who is a monster: a vampire, who by definition is a monster, or a human, who rapes and kills? It touches on right and wrong. Could an action so innocent, really cause so much harm? And how important it is to love yourself in order to love others.

This is a novel worthy of a good book club, as there are a lot of things to talk about afterwards. Here you will find a world that is truly different than anything I have read out there. Starling has weaved a tale that’s so refreshing in its complexity, in the character’s friendships and the compassion they show towards one another.

Here’s a peak at the map to this world in the inside cover:

K. Starling’s In Beauty’s Veins can be found on amazon, here. And look for updates on her website: www.kxstarling.com.

Stay tuned for more K. Starling this evening!

A. J. Morse

Some fiction, some poetry, and a lot of writer's block.

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