Rebecca M. Douglass, Author

Participating today in the fantastic Marvelous Middle Grade Mondays blog hop hosted by Greg Pattrige of Always in the Middle . Check out his blog for a list of additional middle grade reviews. I've been discovering some great reads there.   Title: Half Moon Summer 
Author : 
Elaine Vickers. Read by Mark Sanderlin and Charley Flyte Publication Info : 
Peachtree, 2023. Audiobook by Listening Library, 4 hours. Source: Library 

Publisher’s Blurb: 

 Two seventh graders discover it takes more than grit and a good pair of shoes to run 13.1 miles. You’ve got to have a partner who refuses to let you quit. Drew was never much of a runner. Until his dad’s unexpected diagnosis. Mia has nothing better to do. Until she realizes entering Half Moon Bay’s half-marathon could solve her family’s housing problems. And just like that they decide to spend their entire summer training to run 13.1 miles. Drew and Mia have very different reasons for running, but these two twelve year olds have

Bet you thought I was never going to get around to posting some photos, or anything else this weekend!  Back in August, I spent 12 days walking another segment of the WA PCT (Pacific Crest Trail). Today we'll look at the 1st three days and a bit, while I had company. We entered near the Crystal Mountain ski resort, and climbed the Goat Lake trail to the PCT at Barnard Pass. Since we had a late start, the first night was just under 4 miles--and 2200' of climb--to Goat Lake, one of innumerable lakes so-named in the Cascades (and probably the Rockies and anywhere else mountain goats hang out). The "trail" to the lake seemed to be mostly a matter of following where the elk had led, which wasn't altogether comfortable. In fact, we didn't even go to the lake, which was kind of a sad puddle. We found a camp a quarter mile away not far from a bunch of springs feeding a decent creek. The sun that had plagued us on the long, hot climb gave way to fog by dinner time, a p

  It's the first Wednesday of the month, and time for another IWSG post, with a discussion of writing rules.   Purpose:   To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! Posting:   The first Wednesday of every month is officially   Insecure Writer’s Support Group   day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time - and return comments. This group is all about connecting!   Don't forget you can post your link on the IWSG Facebook page !   Let’s rock the neurotic writing world! Our Twitter handle is @TheIWSG and hashtag is #IWSG     The awesome

 Thanks to Great Escapes Virtual Tours for a chance to read this mystery.     In the Event of Murder (A Starlit Bookshop Mystery) Cozy Mystery 2nd in Series Setting – Colorado Publisher ‏ : ‎ Crooked Lane Books (August 20, 2024) Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 304 pages ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1639100709 ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1639100705 Digital https://amzn.to/3xRh1X8 It’s the star-studded event of the season in Silvercrest, Colorado—but some of the guests might not make it to the last dance alive in the second charming installment of the Starlit Bookshop mysteries from Agatha Award-winning author Cynthia Kuhn. Nestled on the banks of a breathtaking Rocky Mountain river and dotted with delightful boutiques and galleries, Silvercrest, Colorado, is a book lover’s paradise. Bookseller and literary event planner Emma Starrs is looking forward to attending the annual Silvercrest Library Gala, a glamorous evening with celebrities including the legendary Whitney Willton, currently on the hit crime sho

 I'm delighted to review another installment in the ever-enjoyable Shady Grove mysteries.     Title: A Run for the Mystic: Shaky Grove Mysteries Book 8 Author : Ada Bell Publication info : Empress Books, 2024. 212 pages. Publisher's Blurb: Aly's racing to find a killer... When Aly’s boyfriend Cal gets her spur-of-the-moment tickets to watch his cousin ride at the local track, it’s off to the races! She’s forced to rein in the excitement after one of the jockeys is murdered. Once the dust settles, the local police turn their attention to Cal’s cousin, and Aly gets saddled with the task of finding the real killer. Cal doesn’t believe his favorite relative would hurt anyone, but Jacob entered the race under suspicious circumstances. Cal begs Aly to use her physic powers to clear Jacob’s name. Unfortunately, one obstacle after another slows her down: Heightened security at the track makes it difficult to get close enough to the evidence to induce a vision. No one wil

I'm pretty sure this was originally written in 2015. In any case, it's a semi-fictional account of an actual storm we experienced in Kings Canyon NP that summer. It's a quick read at 360 words. Fear and Trembling in a Tent  It's midnight in the Sierra Nevada mountains, and suddenly we are not sleeping. The weather was pleasant when we went to bed, and two days of hard hiking made it easy to drop off. I wouldn’t have been surprised had I slept soundly all night.   Thor and Odin and the crew have a different idea. The first boom of thunder—if it was the first; it was the first I woke to hear—is loud and close. The flashes of lightning sear the retina even with the eyes closed. We count off the seconds between flash and boom. Do the math. Two miles. One. Half a mile. A quarter. Then: holy shit it’s in the tent!   It isn’t. The mind knows that, because the mind is still there to think about it. But when the gap between lightning and thunder drop

 Since I'm out hiking, it seemed only right that my flashback stories should be from the mountains, as it were. This 770-word gem is from 2016. A Minor Navigational Error   "I'm cold, dear."   "You're always cold. That's the trouble with you females. You can’t handle the weather at all."   "It's July. It shouldn't be this cold here. Are you sure we're in the right place?"   He made an exasperated noise. "Of course I'm sure."   She sighed in her turn. "You're always so certain you are right."   "I am Zeus, after all. A god. Remember?"   Hera hated it when he brought that up. Anyway, she was a god, too. "Well, yes, dear, but..." She didn't finish the sentence. They both knew she was thinking about Leda. That had taken some tricky explanations on his part, and she had really only pretended to believe him. But he'd had to claim it