Roaring into the Twenties

This past week I blissfully traveled back in time to the era of the Roaring Twenties. I hopped across the ocean to Melbourne, Australia where I followed the adventures of a daring lady detective as she investigated crimes of various kinds most involving acts of murder. Then I skipped back across the pond to Manhattan where I followed a young flapper by the name of Evie O'Neill on a series of adventures dealing with the mystical occult to help her stop a serial killer before he succeeded in bringing about the end of days.

It was a full week. I was mesmerized by the fashions of the time, the jazz music that made me want to hum and tap my feet, and the giddiness of the young people embracing a new modern era of wonders. How is this possible you might ask?

Well it all began with a mystery series I became engrossed in called Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries. It is actually an Australian TV series that is based on books written by Kerry Greenwood about a certain Miss Phryne Fisher, lady detective. (First name is pronounced Fry-on-nee). Miss Fisher is thoroughly, what was referred to in the day as, a modern. In other words, she wears her dresses short, and considers herself the equal to any man and feels free to do as she likes as a single, independent, woman of means. After enduring a horrific war with the rest of her generation there is little Phryne won't do or try. She is determined to live her life to the fullest and so far in the series she has. As a lady detective she has proven adept at racing cars, flying planes, cracking open safes, and doing fan dances, all in the name of solving the case and catching a murderer. Netflix only has season one available to watch right now. But my mom loves this series so much she bought season 2 and let me borrow it. So all last week I got to continue my Miss Fisher fix. I also now own two of the books by Ms. Greenwood and plan to enjoy following Phryne's adventures in them.

As I was watching Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries by day, I started reading Libba Bray's latest trilogy, The Diviners. I'd read one of her earlier trilogies set in the turn of the last century and really liked it. So when she came out with The Diviners set in the 1920s I was very intrigued. Then I found a copy of the book on discount at my local bookstore and bought it. As I was already caught up in the thrill of the era on TV, I figured it was the perfect time to delve into this YA novel set in the same time period. I was not disappointed. The Diviners was a page turner from start to finish. It kept me up far later at night than I should have been reading because I simply couldn't put it down. Ms. Bray perfectly captures the enthusiasm and cynicism of the times. As you follow the characters, a group of seventeen-year-olds coming to terms with their supernatural powers, you are caught up in a whirl wind of parties, nightclubs serving bootleg gin, shows such as the Ziegfield Follies, and the outcroppings of cults and fanatics determined to pull society back from a new modern outlook on life. Evie O'Neill the main character has never felt she belonged anywhere. When she is shipped off to live with her uncle in New York City she decides this is her chance to create her own path, her own destiny. Despite her many mishaps she learns to embrace who she is and stop hiding her abilities. Along the way she meets other young people with secrets and powers of their own. Together this group of young and brave moderns must find a way to stop an unknown evil from bringing about the apocalypse. And while the end leaves you satisfied that they have stopped a crazed killer, you still feel that there is more to the story and another round of baddies still out there for the Diviners to fight. It was a terrific book and I'm only sorry the sequel won't be out until spring of next year.

All in all it was a most thrilling week. I might have to go back and revisit the past again before the next season of Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries comes out on DVD or the next Diviners book comes out. But for now I will content myself with another series of books, The Twisted Lit. series, that are modern retellings of Shakespeare plays. Right now I'm reading Tempestuous by Kim Askew and Amy Helmes which is loosely based on The Tempest. 

We are such stuff, As dreams are made on...-William Shakespeare, The Tempest