I'll See You Again; Rhett Butler's People; The Man Who Died Twice

 

This one was so sad. I was reading it at work on my lunch break and had to stop and take it home because I was crying so hard. If you saw the documentary "There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane", then you know most of the story. 

Diane Schuler went the wrong way on the Taconic State Parkway in 2009 and killed eight people, including herself, her daughter, and her three nieces: Emma, Alyson, and Katie. Warren, Diane's brother, and his wife, Jackie, were naturally completely devastated that their three little girls were gone. Even worse when the toxicology report came back that Diane was drunk and high. 

Jackie experienced a lot of survivor's guilt, berating herself for not being able to protect her three girls, even though she'd never seen Diane drink or do drugs. She had no reason not to trust her. Her story of grief was heartbreaking. She and Warren created the Hance Family Foundation to raise money for causes dear to their hearts, like increasing confidence in young girls, and they had another daughter a few years later. It's amazing that they were able to stay together and start over, as it were. So terribly tragic. 

Something a little less gut wrenching: "Rhett Butler's People". I've read this one before but it's been years and I didn't remember a lot of it. I do remember liking it much more than the first GWTW sequel that came out "Scarlett", by Alexandra Ripley. I didn't care for that one at all. 

"Rhett Butler's People" tells Rhett's side of things, starting with his childhood at a rice plantation in Charleston. Overseer Isaiah Watling is furious when Rhett calls out his son Shadrach, to duel, when Shadrach accuses Rhett of getting his sister, Belle, pregnant. Rhett kills him and as a result is tossed out of his father's home, no longer welcome. 

It does cover some of the events in GWTW, told from Rhett's point of view (the bit about the yellow silk shawl is particularly heartbreaking and it stuck with me--I remembered it from reading the book the first time). And then after GWTW ended. A much more hopeful ending although not entirely happy. 

Scarlett was such a dope. Ashley was totally wrong for her. Jeez.

The second Tuesday Murder Club book was fun and much easier for me to follow than the first one.

The pensioners from Cooper's Chase are back. Elizabeth's first husband, Douglas, is in protective custody after stealing 20 million pounds of diamonds from a gangster named Martin Lomax. I can't say too much more without giving away vital plot points, but it was a wild ride with lots of good red herrings along the way.