...You are sitting the first class section of a trans-Pacific flight.
...Your airplane suddenly breaks in two pieces in mid-air.
...You survive, along with a handful of other passengers.
...the only thing you were able to save is your carry-on bag (with your reading glasses).
...which Betty Neels books are in it?
Here's my list (subject to change):
- Caroline's Waterloo - a must have. My absolute favorite. Absolutely. One of my favorite scenes in Neeldom: "give me a needle and thread and I'll do it myself" - I can't get enough. AND not only does she rescue a lame donkey, it's a PREGNANT lame donkey. Genius.
- Cassandra By Chance - it's like having two books!
- The Secret Pool - the only Neels that brings an actual tear to my eye. Yes, I know that's just sloppy of me, but I can't help it.
- The Fortunes of Francesca - she's plucky and adventury.
- The Course of True Love - hero talks heroine into engagement to discourage a stalker.
- Discovering Daisy - lots of hero point-of-view.
Which Neels are on your list?
[Betty Keira] Mine are thus:
- Winter Wedding--homicidal little sister? You betcha! The others on this list can come and go but this is immovable.
- Mathilda's Wedding--Love the image of her raking leaves with a sack tied around her waist and him driving by. Also, passing out in the lobby is pretty awesome.
- The Hasty Marriage--I know this isn't a crowd pleaser but the pleasant glow of our hero's future abjection in the long years ahead would keep me warm nights.
- An Old Fashioned Girl--I adore the soft-footed housekeeping and the bowls of flowers she sets down as she nips around his/her house.
- Caroline's Waterloo--When he drives back to the airport after he walks in on her pounding out Christmas carols with the servants just so she can still surprise him, I fall in love again for the very first time.
Harry Potter 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, AND 7. If I had to leave one or two it would be GOODBYE FIVE and then three if I haaaaaaaaaad to.
ReplyDeleteIs her real name Betty J.K. Neels Rowling? I don't think so.
ReplyDeleteFace it, Zombie Bride, you're going to have to read a Neels sooner or later. You can borrow one from Betty Marcy...she won one last week.
This list is subject to change depending on the time of the year/season, and it's not in order:
ReplyDeleteThe Convenient Wife --I have read this book at least 10 times, which is strange because it's a "newer" Neel, 1990, and I tend to prefer the older ones;
Caroline's Waterloo -- Oh yeah, the Christmas carol scene gets me every time;
Dearest Love -- It's the 2 letters, one in the beginning and one in the end;
The Moon for Lavinia -- Noticing the trend here? I prefer Betty's completely implausible Marriages of Convenience to all else;
The End of the Rainbow -- He rebuilds the nursing home for her, I love it! (And it's a MOC);
The Secret Pool -- I hesitated on this one. Sometimes it makes the list, sometimes it doesn't. I have a love/hate relationship with it (I don't want to give away the plot to anyone who hasn't read it, but I think this one is definitely an "outlier"); but since I have re-read it at least 4 or 5 times, it's probably safe to assume it's a keeper and a "dark" favorite.
Others hard to leave off the list: Fate is Remarkable; Stars Through the Mist; The Promise f Happiness; An Unlikely Romance; The Final Touch -- all of the them MOCs!
Finally, I need to get my hands on a copy of Esmeralda, it's the only Betty I don't think I've read!
I do love a MOC. Betty Debbie also loves "The Secret Pool"--she tears up every time!
ReplyDeleteI love The Final Touch too...
You guys are saps on "The Secret Pool"--although the mice bridal party is a nice touch.
ReplyDeleteSince I only have 5 Neels, they're my faves! Ask me again when I have more :)
ReplyDeleteThis is hard, and I know I asked for it. But the fact of the matter is, I love them all a lot and have a hard time bringing the sort of critical mind-set necessary to rank any of The Canon.
ReplyDeleteSo for now, I'll say I want Fate is Remarkable and Cassandra By Chance in the bag, and I'll add to those as we go along. (I believe The Secret Pool might go in; I do love a good sob at the end of a book.)