Status Updates From Mystic Rose

If only the book weren't so boring it could've been good.

My door will be open.

Thank goodness the war is over. Perhaps the hero can return and we can wrap this up.

Cats and books, the old maid's friends and companions.

The house goin' catch next. We goin' be burned up roasted like a barbecue-

Lance, you are up to evil.

Yellow jack.

That boy goin' find hisself face down in a swamp one day, and ain't nobody goin' know how he got there.

They's more'n one way to to skin a skunk.

Do. It.

I only hope they remember which vixen they're chasing.

If you mean me --

Darn you job, I had to put the book down and go to work! *shakes fist*

Poor Grant, he's really trapped for life by that scheming hitch Lorna.

A man cannot commit adultery with a dead woman, son.

Now let me up. This is no bed of roses I'm lying in, you know.

Strong start. Twitchy stepmother and conniving step siblings. Love the mystic rose twist - a rose that would only grow in the family's ancestral graveyard in England, and now in Carolina. No where else.

"I found something else in her quarters, Star. Something weird & terrible. A group of tiny figures, one for each member of the family. Perfect replicas modeled in beeswax, immediately recognizable. Horrifying. I destroyed them." ....Slave rebellions & voodoo go together like peanut butter & jelly. :P

Let's review, shall we? Douchebag A hatches destined-for-failure Cunning Plan(tm) with Douchebag B. Plan fails as destined. Douchebag A is then murdered by Douchebag B, after which Douchebag B is shot in the back while attempting to rape the heroine. Final score... Karma: 2. Douchebags: 0.

'The pathetic pleas wrung Star's heart, impressing the full horror of her folly upon her as perhaps nothing else could. She had brought tragedy not only on herself & the shining shield of Lamont, but on two loyal slaves. She had involved Dink & Mauma in her predicament & made liars & cheats of them, accomplices to her crime.'

Mr Lamont suddenly notices his stepson lusting for forbidden fruit: "I've been blinded by your true character for years, but no longer. My eyes are wide open now. I see through you & ahead of you, & I warn you to be extremely careful. Go now to your pleasures & pursuits. But remember what I said, boy. Never forget it!"

'Passing the parlor, Lance glanced at his stepsister. His hooded eyes partially concealed his jealousy, but still it was visible in the selfish, possessive way he looked at her. He had no more use or friendship for Captain Stewart than for Grant Russell or any other man who so much as looked at Star seriously.' ....Well, I think we know where this little plot point is headed. :P

Karla, I'm finally starting the last loaner. HURRAH FOR ME! :D