At this point, do I even have to say it? Probably not but I will anyway lol I LOVED this book! ❤️ 

"Godfrey mighty! Ain't this heat killer? Haven't seen anything so jo-jeezly since eighty-seven."

I'm sorry, the fuck did you just say, Mort?? I have no idea what 'jo-jeezly' is lol I've never heard such a thing before! This book features quite a few of such expressions, though.

Never been to Maine, so I have no idea if this is accurate. I trust Donald, though. I also didn't know they had to deal with heat like that, either. In my mind, it's pleasant there all year 'round lol

(I went outside and placed the pitcher on a table on my brick patio, where the sun would steep it to perfection.)

😲 Do people actually do this? Use the sun to make tea? This is very interesting and I would like to try this, buuuuttt our sun is so harsh I think it might shatter the pitcher lmao

"Eight-thirty in the morning and already it's eighty-five. Can't hardly breathe with the humidity. Not fit for man or beast."

I feel this in my soul, Mort. The heat is one thing, but the humidity just destroys you. Like, you step outside and start sweating bullets! It weighs on you, pressing you down and sapping your energy like a ghost draining a battery. It's so horrible.

(There would be no escaping - literally - the hard fact that this place, not too far from one of the most beautiful cities, was home to mothers, daughters, sisters, and granddaughters. Women. I felt a sudden sense of kinship because, after all, I was one of them.)

So, I've always seen people talk about the 'bond of sisterhood' and women often defend women like their lives depend on it. I have never and will never understand this concept. How can you automatically feel a bond with someone you don't even know JUST because they happened to be born female as well??

Most of the times I've been hurt or betrayed, it's always been a woman. Women, in my experience, are catty and two-faced by nature. They talk sweet to your face and promise to always be by your side but then they stab you in the back and act like they never even knew you.

I'm not saying all women are bad, but you can't say there's not a huge chunk of women that are trash. So tell me, how am I supposed to be part of the 'sisterhood' and immediately feel a bond with a stranger just because they're female? Why should I trust them based solely on that premise? Why should I go out of my way to help them just because they're female, even if they don't deserve my help?

It makes no sense to me and I don't understand why women protect each other like they owe them their life. It's usually shitty women being protected, too...

"Keep me in mind if you're looking for a collaborator on your autobiography. Maybe I could be your Boswell."

"But your name is Hudson."

"I'll change it."

😂 I don't know why this line got me the way it did but I laughed too long at this. This reporter is such a good character with a lovely personality, I love him.

(The last time I'd ordered peanut butter and jelly, the waitress in the Boston luncheonette told me it was only offered on the children's menu. Since I wasn't a child, I couldn't have one.)

This is the dumbest shit I ever heard. First, a PB&J is not exclusive to children, my mom eats em all the damn time. Second, who is she to tell a paying customer what they can and can't eat?? Who cares if it's on the kids menu? It ain't like that shit is free, she's still gonna pay for it.

"If  you insist upon becoming involved in the real thing, I suggest you apply for a job with the Yard."

"I'd love to."

Am the only one that feels excited by this idea? Imagine a spin-off book where Jess is just a member of Scotland Yard! Maybe it's a dream book or something. That would be so fucking fun and interesting! 

(I felt giddy. Did I look foolish? Childish? No matter. Times in our lives when we get to feel like children again are too precious to let pass.)

This is another thing I don't get. As a child, everyone wants to grow up and we often get told that we need to grow up. When we're finally older, we're still told to grow up and stop acting like a child. Why is being childish such a bad thing?

Why is having fun and trying to recover some of that fun from our youth frowned upon? Life is fucking hard and stressful and painful. What's the harm in being a little childish if it helps bring joy to a world that trys so hard to push you down? 

It's like people judge you based on how 'childish' they deem your hobbies or actions to be. It's so fucking dumb.

(I'd thought about calling Mort or Seth back home to discuss the incident, but didn't want to worry them. In the past, when I'd called from a distant city to report an attempt on my life, or some other imbroglio in which I'd become embroiled, they'd responded by jumping on a plane and racing to my side.)

I LIVE FOR THIS SHIT. There is very little in this world that can make me happier than a strong friendship like this! This is what I need more of, men and women being close FRIENDS who love each other without being IN LOVE with each other!

Books seem to forget that men and women can be friends without catching feelings. There's a reason they used to be kept apart, because people thought men and women couldn't be just friends, which is total bullshit. It's so hard to find books where men and women are close without catching feelings for each other. I hate it so much 😮‍💨 romance ain't everything, ya know.

(She was either a crazed fan, or a woman who should have stopped using drugs years ago.)

Listen, I have been in the anime community since I was a small child and discovered adult swim had a forum. I've also been in the kpop community for many years. And I've also watched many police body cam videos of suspects tweaking.

They are literally the same 😂 The only difference between this is one takes drugs which alters their behavior and one doesn't take drugs proving that they are literally just insane. 

"Besides, it will broaden my horizons, but not my waistline. When you think about it, you don't see many fat Japanese men or women."

"Sumo wrestlers?"

"There's an exception to everything."

Where is the lie, though? 😆 I can only think of a handful of Japanese people who were overweight that I've seen. What is their secret?? 

"That crazy city's no place for you to be hangin' around. They got more crazies out there per square inch than a nuthouse."

As someone who lives in Florida and who has survived all the Florida man memes... I am very happy to see another state get made fun of like this 😂 Take that, California!

"I believe in taking charge of one's life. I don't believe in luck. I think we make our own luck. On the other hand, there are things beyond our control."

"Like an earthquake."

"Like an earthquake."

Jess always gives the best advice 🥺 She's a born mentor.

"I almost think it was better before you came to see me, Mrs. Fletcher. You gave me hope. It was easier when I didn't have any."

Hope can make or break a person. I've seen hope keep someone from sinking beneath the depths. But I've also seen hope destroy someone, keeping them from trying to swim on their own because they're too busy hoping to find a life preserver. 

Hope is a powerful, dangerous thing.

"Of course, I'd be pleased if Angela Lansbury played me in a film version of my book."

Oh, Jess 🤭 

Angela made this character, honestly. She did such a fantastic job playing this character. She BECAME Jessica Fletcher. She embodied the spirit and soul of the character.

I believe in rebirth after death and I hope she was reborn into a wonderful life without too much hardship. May she rest in peace 🕊️ Thank you, Angela, for giving me and so many others a character we can love and look up to for generations to come.

"Beep me if you need help, or just want to talk."

"I'll feel like a doctor. Or a drug dealer."

"A thin line between them at times."

Ooooh George be out here calling everybody out 🤭

God, this book was fantastic, I didn't want to put it down!