Category Archives: What’s new

The Mystery Guest (Molly the Maid #2) — very good!

5/5 stars from Marsha S!

So nice to have dear Molly the maid back to solve a new murder at the Grand Hotel. Molly’s unique way of looking at the world is her blessing and curse and readers can’t help but root for her as she overturns tropes (the maid did it …. she’s just a maid … she’s not very bright) as quickly as she can make a bed. The characters in this novel are deliciously Dickensian and the key to the murder is in Molly’s childhood. Satisfying and cozy. This mystery is the perfect companion to a warm fire and a good cup of tea.

January speaker: Susan Gamble, journalist

Susan Gamble’s long career in journalism began in 1979 at the Brant News. She went on to become one of the first female television news photographers, working with her husband at CKCO-TV in Kitchener, travelling around Ontario capturing events on her wind-up Bell and Howell camera at first, and later on video, for the evening news.  In 1980, Susan began writing for the Brantford Expositor, first in the real estate section, and later with a light-hearted column called Word Has It. Susan covered scams, local interest stories, and events featuring Brantford people from many walks of life. Her columns were heart-warming, informative and often amusing, and had a loyal readership. Eventually, Susan took on the role of investigative reporter, winning several Ontario Newspaper Awards, and a nomination for a Canadian Newspaper Association Award.

Susan will talk to us about her career in journalism, her Expositor column, as well as her work as a court reporter. Susan will also inform us how to be more discerning consumers of news in the age of disinformation. Susan will join us on zoom on January 24, 2024.

Member shortlisted for national literary award

Congratulations to Marsha S., member and author, who is shortlisted for the 2024 Kobzar Book Award for her recent book Winterkill.

The $25,000 KOBZAR™ Book Award recognizes outstanding contributions to Canadian literary arts by authors who write on a topic with a tangible connection to Ukrainian Canadians…This year’s KOBZAR™Book Award entries showcase titles which highlight issues that impact Ukrainians as a people in Canada. —Kobzar Book Award

The winner will be announced on March 21, 2024.

Walking group and Murdoch Mysteries!

Today was the first walk of the fall and we were nearly foiled in our exercise plans because our scheduled trail was being used to film a scene for Murdoch Mysteries. The road was blocked with a flashing police car, but they did let us park further down and sneak onto the trail. It was interesting to sneak a peek of the cricket game in progress and the old cars!

The walk was fabulous. Perfect weather.

Dining out interest group

The Dining Out Group celebrated in style after 30 months of “Pandemic-caused Interest Group lock down”.

We dined at The Twisted Lemon in Cayuga. All eight of us swooned over the delicious dishes that were artistically presented complete with colorful and edible nasturtiums. We are very grateful that Chef/Owner Dan and his team weathered the last few years of Covid and maintained their standard of excellence in food, service, and ambiance.

It is important to note that Twisted Lemon is only open for dinner these days. They have an outdoor dining area, but it is good to go early if you dine inside as it gets noisy when there are large parties of people (present company excluded of course!)

We strongly recommend this restaurant as one of the very best in the area.

Here are some restaurants we’ll be exploring in the coming months:

Good Earth Food & Winery, Beamsville
Langdon Hall,  Cambridge
Gran Sasso, Brantford
Olde School, Brantford
Devlin’s, Mount Pleasant
La Cantinella, St. George
Cambridge Mill, Cambridge