The Friday 56 (179) & Book Beginnings: Ghost Squad by Claribel A. Ortega

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Book Beginnings is a weekly meme hosted by Rose City Reader that asks you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you're reading.

Synopsis from Goodreads...

Coco meets Stranger Things with a hint of Ghostbusters in this action-packed supernatural fantasy.... For Lucely Luna, ghosts are more than just the family business. 

Shortly before Halloween, Lucely and her best friend, Syd, cast a spell that accidentally awakens malicious spirits, wreaking havoc throughout St. Augustine. Together, they must join forces with Syd's witch grandmother, Babette, and her tubby tabby, Chunk, to fight the haunting head-on and reverse the curse to save the town and Lucely's firefly spirits before it's too late. With the family dynamics of Coco and action-packed adventure of Ghostbusters, Claribel A. Ortega delivers both a thrillingly spooky and delightfully sweet debut novel.

Beginning: "Lightning struck, and a brilliant white light bloomed, illuminating the night sky outside of Lucely Luna's bedroom window."

56: "The trees surrounding Lucely began to blend together until the entire scene looked like a Van Gogh painting."

Comments: I had a lot of fun reading Ghost Squad. It was a ghost story that was very charming and also spooky. What are you reading this week?

Favorite Recipe: Tortillas

Besides birthday cakes, I did some other baking. So far I’ve made cookies, cheesecake, brownies and other dishes/desserts. Most of those recipes are ones I’ve talked about before, except for tortillas. Everyone else on my twitter and Instagram timelines is out there making sourdough bread, and here I am over here just making tortillas (sadly, I don’t have any sourdough starter…). This Homemade Tortilla recipe from The Brewer & The Baker is my current go-to recipe for making tortillas.
(Note: I use a modified version of this recipe, which I tested out the ingredient amounts for over time until it suited my needs. However, I recommend sticking to the recipe before making any adjustments, because it’s fine the way it is. I also only use cooking oil or Olive oil when I make them, instead of shortening or butter….)

Tortillas, for me, have been a pretty forgiving type of bread to make. There’s no yeast involved, and the rest time is short compared to other bread types. This recipe is quick and easy, and the results always have a great taste.

(Note: I use a countertop griddle to cook mine, but I’ve also made them in a skillet on the stove.)
One thing I adhere to when making tortillas, is to keep them covered. They can seem a little stiff or crunchy around thinner edges when they come off the pan. But letting them sit covered and in their own steam, really softens them up.

I had two uses for these: for tacos and for pizza. For tacos, I make them a little smaller so there was more of them. When I made them for pizzas, I divided the dough four ways and rolled them to be vaguely-rectangular in shape—around personal pan size. (Note: I cooked the tortillas before putting the toppings on them, and the only other cooking I did after that was to broil it in the oven on the lowest setting to melt the cheese. It comes out like a thin-crust pizza.)

What have you been baking recently? If you found any good recipes, leave your recommendations in the comments.

**(This post was written in early May)**

Music Monday (118): Bree Runway, Brandy, Mary J. Blige, Missy Elliott, Wyclef Jean, Ashanti, and more...

   Rules:

• Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Lauren Stoolfire at Always Me that asks you to share one or two songs that you've recently enjoyed. For the rules, visit the page HERE 

Breana: My pick this week is one of my favorite songs by Bree Runway: All Night.

Andrea: I haven't had the chance to post for the past few weeks, so I hope this post finds everyone safe and well. My song choice for this week is Wake Up Everybody (2004) by Brandy, Mary J. Blige, Missy Elliot, Wyclef Jean, Ashanti & Various Other Artists. Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes originally released this song in 1975. Although the original song was released over 4 decades ago, it is so relevant to today. I look forward to finding out what everyone is listening to this week.

 Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes-Wake Up Everybody 

Brandy, Mary J. Blige, Missy Elliot, Wyclef Jean, Ashanti & Various Other Artists-Wake Up Everybody 

What are you listening to this week?

Short Stories I Read In April

Today, I’m here to talk about the short stories, miscellaneous posts, and podcast episodes I read and or listened to in April.

Go Fish by Ian Rogers (Tor.com, April 15, 2020)

One of the first short stories I read in April was Go Fish by Ian Rogers. It was a pretty entertaining story. At times, it was spine-tinglingly scary. It also read like an episode of Xfiles. Instead of extraterrestrials though, there were ghosts and a number of paranormal and horror elements.

An Explorer’s Cartography of Already Settled Lands by Fran Wilde (Tor.com, April 22, 2020)

This story was the first one I’ve read by Fran Wilde. It was about a navigator who was mapping a landscape that was already inhabited. This story was an absolute treat. It was enthralling, somewhat haunting, and atmospheric. The Navigator’s perspective was fascinating, and I enjoyed the different sections of the story where each “map”—or landscape/people—were described. This one was all around an enjoyable story.

From around the web…

• Illustrating Flyaway: Kathleen Jennings on Creating Art and Prose Together (Kathleen Jennings; Tor.com, April 1, 2020)
• Short Stories and Sad Endings: A Conversation with Martha Wells (Arley Sorg; Clarkesworld, Issue 163, April 2020)
• Now Is the Perfect Time to Sit Down and Watch Bedknobs and Broomsticks (Emmet Asher-Perrin; Tor.Com)
• Printrun Podcast Episode’s #127 and #128
• Science VS Science Fiction: Not The Solar System We Grew Up With (James Davis Nicoll; Tor.Com, April 24, 2020)
• The Power of Equine Names (Judith Tarr; Tor,Com, April 20, 2020)

Sketchbook: Watercolor...

  

Comments: Like most people, I currently have more time on my hands. So I did a couple of random watercolor sketches in one of my smaller unfinished sketchbooks. The reference photos I used were ones I took of the faux plants around my house. My use of watercolor (Sakura Koi) here was mainly to block in the general shapes before I went in with colored pencil....