Ann Davis-Rowe

🍴: LAST WEEK OF FAST PRE-THEATRE MEALS HUZZAH

Mon – lobster tails with fanciedup boxed mac and cheese, arugula salad

Tues – steak and eggs, side salad

Wed – southwestern salad with grilled chicken

Thurs – cooking for one because I had a late meeting and Hampton had final dress meant a take on Marry Me beans + chicken…. because I made a pot of Rancho Gordos over the weekend so we would have for a quick meal and hadn’t used them yet.

Fri – boneless pork chops and more of those prepped white beans, this time sautéed with some diced zucchini and bell pepper.

Sat – fresh TJ’s lemon and ricotta ravioli with the end of packs of prosciutto and mushrooms.

Sun – ok, this meal was so good, it’s getting its own post. Stay tuned!

🥃:

🐶: Raspberry gets so angry when someone gets close to her if she’s not in the mood (fun fact, she totally snapped and got my arm as I settled onto the couch to post this tonight), but when she is…

📚: Last week, I mentioned one chilly and atmospheric mystery, and this week brought another good one in In the Woods Somewhere by Sam Evans, pub date 6/24/25. There is a sequel coming, and I can’t wait to see what happens with Stevie and her life choices.

Vaguely warmer and still focused on leading ladies making interesting choices:

• The Remedy, Shade Owens, pub date June 2025. A woman whose life has fallen apart due to chronic illness miraculously (?) is gifted a way out with several others. Are things too good to be true? I’ve read a few things from Owens now and am waiting for her to get a bigger publisher and following.

• Our Last Resort, Clémence Michallon, pub date 7/8/25. Yet another excellent locked room/locked resort mystery. I want to stay at the Ara and also to read this type of tight and twisty tale every weekend forever. Multiple times.

• title withheld to protect the guilty. This was the only non-ARC, and my least favorite. How are you going to name a character Alex Hamilton… and then have him do literally nothing. Also, a sculpture very explicitly described as glass when it got broken at the top of the plot was suddenly “ice” when a suspect was questioned at the end. Not to mention a massive swath of improper possessives; I needed to red pen all the misplaced apostrophe-esses. And this was a properly published book by a long-time, #1 NYT bestselling author! Glad I didn’t have to review it

🎭: Let’s not dwell on everything theatrical this week…

Hampton’s production of Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead is up and running! I know many people think of him as a Serious Actor, but I love when he gets to be goofy onstage. And when paired with an existential Stoppard monologue or twelve, even better.

Special shoutout to the tragedians, a little speaking but very important group of players in the world of the play. I know they had a few people drop out early on but, hot dog, the ones who stayed in it were In. It. Each one was committed and focused and darn fun to watch. “No small parts, only small actors” was never more obvious.