Where Is Your Bookmark? (A Peek Into These Violent Delights)

This weekend will be crazy busy for us. Mouse has two dance performances, one Saturday and one Sunday; we have dozens upon dozens of cookies to bake; last minute shopping to do; and a house to get ready for the upcoming Christmas holiday. My mom will be arriving in town Friday afternoon. We are looking forward to seeing her. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Hopefully we can all get in a little reading as well.

This month's MyLitBox selection was These Violent Delights by Victoria Namkung. It seems a timely novel given current events. I dove in pretty quickly. I had hoped to be further along than I am now (#COYER Winter Switch starts tomorrow after all!), but I am only about half way through. 

At Windemere School for Girls, one of America’s elite private schools, Dr. Gregory Copeland is the beloved chair of the English Department. A married father with a penchant for romantic poetry—and impressionable teenage girls—he operates in plain sight for years, until one of his former students goes public with allegations of inappropriate conduct. With the help of an investigative journalist, and two additional Windemere alumnae who had relationships with Copeland as students, the unlikely quartet unites to take him down.

Set in modern-day Los Angeles, These Violent Delights is a literary exploration of the unyielding pressures and vulnerabilities that so many women and girls experience, and analyzes the ways in which our institutions and families fail to protect or defend us. A suspenseful and nuanced story told from multiple points of view, the novel examines themes of sexuality, trauma, revenge, and the American myth of liberty and justice for all. [Goodreads Summary]

A weekly meme where readers share the first sentence of the book they are reading and say what they think. Hosted by the wonderful Gillion Dumas of Rose City Reader.

"What is the point of a high school reunion when you can already see who got fat and bald on Facebook?" asks Caryn, the intern working with me this semester, and I can't help but laugh because she's right. 

I went into this book with high expectations having never heard of it before. The opening does not exactly grab me though, I admit. And while it gives nothing away about the plot or what is to come, it does put one in the mind of memories of high school, which is likely what the author was going for--intentionally or not.

A weekly meme in which readers share a random sentence or two from page 56 or 56% of the book they are reading. Hosted by the wonderful Freda of Freda's Voice.

"I'm so glad you reached out." I pass her a napkin. "Of course I wish it never happened, and that we were meeting under different circumstances, but it's nice to know I'm not alone."

This particular passage from page 56 of the novel is likely a common refrain among survivors of abuse or assault. There is something about being able to connect with someone who went through a similar experience that cannot be equaled talking to someone who has never been through it.

What do you think? Is this a book you would like to read?

 I hope you all have a great weekend! Be sure and tell me what you are reading and are up to!


Some photos from my recent visit to the Mission Inn, a historic hotel. It's gorgeous at night this time of year, with all the lights and holiday decorations. I haven't yet been this year after night fall, but hopefully will get a chance before the year is out.

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