Jane -- dd and I love the 2011 film version of Jane Eyre. We think it stays quite close to the book and some of the moor scenes were filmed in a favourite walking area of ours.

http://www.crimefictionlover.com/2013/07/a-guide-to-karin-fossums-inspector-sejer/ I have found a great new mystery series by Karin Fossum, the Inspector Sejer mysteries. They are Norwegian with one more to be translated into English. I was able to find the first one titled Eva's Eye. At first it seemed a bit choppy which might have been in the translation but was more likely due to my reading with an accent or stylistic because of the stress the main character was under. After a quarter of the way through it had smoothed out so..... Inspector Sejer is a true gentleman police detective. What a lovely person, no other way to describe him. The author also worked some highly interesting ideas into the fabric of the book. Things like why create art that no one wants to buy or understands as your primary job? Also why it was acceptable to be a pr*stitute as a choice. It was a good mystery with lots to think about.

NEM was hard to navigate from my perspective it always took me a couple of minutes to find the right book for what dd needed to do next. That being said dd loved NEM and after I quit trying to direct what she did next and just graded, it went beautifully. The number of problems never bored her. We did everything in the two main student books. For year 3 I switched to DM to have a teacher's guide for me. Dd did it all but did not love it and considered it a bore. Far too many repetitive problems. Asked for NEM for year four. Much of year 4 was a repeat so she breezed through it quickly but preferred it. Need to add my ds does not like NEM much. Hasn't tried DM.

LoTR is a book that definately improved when I got older. As a teen I made it through the Hobbit and the first bit of the fellowship and quit. Didn't love them or hate them, blah... Fast forward 20 or so years and my neighbor was obsessed by the movies. I kept trying to tell him they just were not "right" but couldn't really explain why(20 years and not reading them all will do that ;) ) so I got the whole set and preceded to finish them all in two or three weeks with two toddlers. Loved them that time through. I did manage to get him to at least read the Hobbit and he has read the rest and now agrees with me. Dc's are pretty big fans but ds likes the movies and dd the books. Dh has watched the movies once.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/digestive_biscuit Think of digestives as very nice and really good Graham Crackers. The sugar and fat content are way higher I think. They come chocolate covered etc and everyone has a couple of packs to pull out in case someone stops in and tea is needed. They are more filling then graham crackers imo.

Scones very greatly too. Never seen a triangle shaped one here. This http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/4622/classic-scones-with-jam-and-clotted-cream would be considered rather fancy but very nice here. Cheese and fruit scones are the norm. Cookies are the new in thing with British teens. Think Mrs. Fields type varieties with biscuits in teens eyes now being digestives etc. Many of dds friends are spending tons on cookies. They have been thrilled to discover dd can make good ones -- an American background has its uses.

Jane -- I hope you start feeling better soon. Just a general Olympic question -- Aren't the opening ceremonies today? I think BBC starts coverage at 3 today per the commercial.

Too be honest I am just talking having to do my turn on the tea rota at any social gathering not high tea. Tea is a way of life here...... One od d example that happened a couple of years after we moved here, while at a home ed gathering a friend got a phone call that her dh was badly injured(he is fine now) and being loaded in an ambulance. I naturally asked what I could do. Expecting to be handed her dcs to drop at her mom's. She asked me to make her a cup of tea????? Seriously tea. She drank her tea, handed off the kids, and was gone. The British affection for their tea never ceases to amaze me. :lol:

I finished the second Sigma Force "Map of Bones" by James Rollins. It was a fun fast paced read. I loved all the searching for the artifact and solving the clues bits -- very Indiana Jones. It was also very kind to my geography challenge as they seemed to hop all over, Italy, Switzerland, and Egypt, were new additions for me.

Happy Birthday!

In regards to the tea discussiion -- For tea I think it may be regional whether people in high tea drinking areas use the ball strainer or loose in the pot. Within a few minutes of leaving my house I could buy several outside the pot strainers, unless the antique store had a tea ball I suspect it would be off to a larger town. It is also very important when the milk goes in the cup, before or after. I personally cannot tell the difference but when serving here it makes people much happier for it to go in first. ;) I am assured it tastes better.

Eliana --I am praying that your daughter and baby continue to do well. :grouphug:

Sarum was fil's favorite too. He actually brought it with him when we all visited the site and read me his favorite parts. I really should have read it then.

Tress -- I can't like your post. I can't imagine the stress. :grouphug:

Amy -- I am so sorry for your loss.

Phoenix -- I read the Pillars of the Earth a couple of weeks ago and loved it. Personally, while I disliked the violent character greatly I did some research and he was actually a real knight who did at least some of what his character does. While reading a couple of times I thought "Ok I get he is detestable" but I think it was probably necessary given the span of events that happens with few characters. I currently have World Without End the sequel in the stack and can't wait to get started, the only thing keeping be back is my elibrary book queue is filled with things with long holds lists and they seem to all be good. It is a good dilemma to have but....... Another potential author is Edward Rutherford who my dear father in law adored. He learned a great deal from his books and loved telling me his tidbits. A recently bought (yes bought -- normally a library girl) Sarum to read in honor of him. Hoping it might be good for dc's. He has several spanning histories. http://www.edwardrutherfurd.com/edward-rutherfurd-books.html

I would not have had a problem with my dc's at 10 or 11. That being said someone somewhere made a comment about how they were inappropriate because the main character lies and is sneaky. No worse then countless other YA novels imo. The content is pretty clean--as in can't think of a single thing. Flavia is a motherless highly gifted little girl living in a home where few acknowledge her existence positively, when you remember that much of her bad habits are forgiven. Since I think you are considering them as a read aloud I think you will all enjoy them.

The third Flavia book was my least favorite of all. Totally loved the next in the series. Occasionally these books go down a rabbit trail that can be a bit cringe worthy for me but then they seem to magically right themselves and I end up loving the story.

Just went through all the Sharyn McCrumbs at goodreads and nothing sounds right. This https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/sharyn-mccrumb/if-id-killed-him-when-i-met-him/ could be it but I didn't think it was part of her MacPhearson series. Obviously I need to start reading to figure this out. ;)

One thing positive to be said for James Patterson is I can read his books very quickly. My librarian,that I am hoping is still my librarian when I return home, gave me the latest Private LA to read. Someone else here reads these. Anyway an easy read but his main victims???? are very much like a popular Hollywood couple that even I have heard of. I found that a bit too much...I suspect they aren't pleased.

I am glad you enjoyed Rosewood Casket. I read it when it first was published and remember it as being sad and a bit odd. That was the one with the arsenic eaters, I think?

I just finished a book by a new to me author. Jacqueline Carey appears to write several popular series and has a relatively new series called Agent of Hel, as in the Norse goddess. I read the first one "Dark Currents" and enjoyed it. For those of you who read paranormals it was sort of Kevin Hearne meets Kim Harrison in the nicest possible way. The story takes place in a small Michigan resort town which I loved because I grew up in one. I spent a lot of time wondering about werewolves in my childhood woods and magical creatures all around. The clues lead me to believe this "town" is near South Haven for others with MI connections. The book also mentions Blue Moon ice cream which I am now craving. It was a good page turning read with no dragging bits. I am already on the wait list for the next one! :) http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dark-currents-jacqueline-carey/1110865402?ean=9780451414830

My "likes" are not working so let me just say you all have been having a fascinating discussion. :)

Now for the Inferno and 13th century challenges. I have downloaded a copy of Inferno and hope to manage to read it this month. It was my favorite part of a religion course I took in college so curious to see what I think of it now. I hated the class and the book saved my grade. ;) I am hoping to use a book by Lynn Kurland http://www.lynnkurland.com/books-by-lynn-kurland/the-more-i-see-you/ for my 13th century challenge. I think I have that one in my stash in the States which I should be exploring at the end of this week. I know I have a few of them left. I gave my best friend quite a stack a couple of years ago. So we shall see. I think I may have the book Robin is reading too. Hopefully something will be waiting for me. I also have a hold on an Elizabeth Chadwick 3 book trilogy. The first one starts at the very end of the 12th century and I am hoping that by number three it will be the 13th. I can't find a truly accurate description but they do sound good.

:lol: When I joined this group last year it appeared you were all reading and loving Atwood. I tried Blind Assasin and Handmaid's Tale and just could not do it. I didn't want to post that I did not get the enthusiasm. It is fascinating that not everyone loves those books. No offence to those that do I wish I had enjoyed them. Not going to attempt to add Robin's quote about not enjoying male author's romance type novels but it made me wonder if that was why I didn't care for "A Reliable Wife" which I still can't beleive I didn't like. It had great potential and story wise I should have loved it. I didn't like a single character and I think the reader was meant to care about the wife. Maybe my dislike was because it was a man writing what I would consider to be romance/romatic suspense? This was apparently a popular book......just pondering.