Librarian Syd Murphy flees the carnage of a failed marriage by accepting an eighteen-month position in Jericho- a small town in the Appalachian Mountains of Virginia.  Her plans to hide out and heal her woulds fall by the wayside as she gets drawn into the daily lives of the quirky locals.  She becomes fast friends with Maddie Stevenson, the enigmatic physician who has returned to the backcountry community to take over her late father’s medical practice.  Together they learn that life and love can have as many twists and turns as a country road.  

REVIEW
I was so obsessed with this book for awhile, that an old friend used to joke that it was my new girlfriend, Jeri Cho. I do admit that I spent an enormous amount of time with her. But what did she give me in the end?  She gave me a broken heart. We had a booty call a few months later (Ann McMan wrote a collection of short stories Sidecar, one of them featuring Maddie and Syd). Then, we got back together shortly after that (Ann McMan wrote a sequel, Aftermath) but it just wasn’t the same. I read somewhere that the author was planning on continuing the series with another book in 2015. It hasn’t happened yet, but I’m really hoping it will sometime in the near future. I need closure, Ann McMan!

This book earned a lot of awards and recognition, and for damn good reason. It’s one helluva novel. Not only is it a GREAT story, but it’s GREAT writing. Jericho is the complete package: engaging plot, compelling three-dimensional characters (layers upon layers, like yummy 7-layer bean dip), and smart dialogue. The banter between Maddie and Syd is witty, playful, and intellectually flirtatious. Their chemistry is really off the pages.

The romance develops slower than most lesbian novels and that helps it feel more organic and authentic.  You’re at the edge of your seat (or edge of your bed, depending on where you’re reading) eagerly anticipating Maddie or Syd to grow some ovaries and profess their love and affection for each other.  When they FINALLY come together, it’s like the feeling you get when you’re listening to a long progressive house song and the bass drops.  Oh, the feels!

If you enjoy reading books that include any of the following: small-town living, hot doctors, sexy librarians, Katharine Hepburn, Adirondack chairs, classical music, wine, strong coffee, Cheetos… READ JERICHO! Even if you don’t, read it any way. Especially, if you’re planning on relaxing in a cabin during the winter season, and you’re longing to curl up with a good book that will make your insides feel like Christmas.

By the way, is anyone else in California excited that El Nino is coming?! I can’t wait to see the snow up in Big Bear!  It’s going to be amazing!

SOUNDTRACK
1.  Gwyneth Herbert – Only Love Can Break Your Heart
2.  Bach – Suites for Unaccompanied Cello
3.  Leftover Cuties – When You’re Smiling
4.  Rimsky-Korsakov – Scheherazade
5.  Lake Street Drive – You Go Down Smooth
6.  Renee Fleming – La Rondine from Puccini’s Canzone di Doretta
7.  Ella Fitzgerald – Dream a Little Dream of Me
8.  Beethoven – Piano Sonata 8 in C-Minor, Movement I
9.  Joni Mitchell – A Case of You
10.  Ella Fitzgerald – I’m Beginning to See the Light
11.  Melody Gardot – Our Love is Easy

CHEERS!
This book is best read with a….

JUSTIN MALBEC RESERVE 2013