Customer Reviews

Rewriting Monday

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Pepper Malone was a reporter in Chicago but she made a mistake which ended her career. Out of money and out of options, she winds up in Bailee, TX (population 15,007).
Her aunt Wilma is in a nursing home recovering from a broken hip so she's able to stay in Wilma's trailer. With only $245.00 to her name, she doesn't have very many choices.

Pepper gets a job at the Bailee Bugle - a weekly newspaper. Her boss is Mike McCulloch who would rather be teaching but as he's the last of his family he has no choice but to run the paper. Her co-workers are also a little odd but eventually grow on her and that becomes a problem because Pepper prefers to go through life with no commitments or ties.

Shortly after she arrives, someone starts making serious threats against the paper. Is it the paper or has her past caught up with her?

I enjoyed the interaction between all the characters. Pepper and Mike, of course, but also Wilma, Mike's niece Morgan and Lorie and Heath. It all brought small town people and values to life. It would be great to visit Bailee, TX again.

If you like this book, you will also enjoy her previous one "Twisted Creek".

Pepper Malone has been reduced to this - moving to a small town with an even a smaller newspaper. All it took was one bad decision, and she has had to change her entire life. Determined to make the best of it, she convinces the good looking editor of the town newspaper to give her a job. Beggars can't be choosy, Pepper decides as she quickly becomes aware of the differences between this job and the one she left behind. She is also intrigued more than she wants to admit, and a lot of her attention can't help but be focused on her `boss', Mike McCulloch.

Mike McCulloch is a true hero in my book. His job, his life, and all of his waking moments were changed when his brother and sister-in-law unexpectedly passed away. Understandably unprepared for the tragedy, Mike is shocked, but he still does his duty - loyal to a fault but dreamy to boot, Mike is exactly who Pepper Malone needs in her life. Burning out and being falsely accused of giving sexual favors has a way of changing a person - Pepper takes the bull by the horns but doesn't allow it to run her life.

With a terrific story and two subplots happening at the same time, REWRITING MONDAY is the type of release I have grown to expect from Jodi Thomas. It was touching, realistic, and well written. I laughed and cried and breathed a happy sigh when finished. REWRITING MONDAY is definitely a book to read and savor.

Natalie S.

After the fiasco that almost killed her in Chicago, reporter Pepper Malone leaves the Windy City financially broke and more critical spiritually broke as she broke the journalist rule by getting too close to the story; under the covers is too close. She goes to her mother's hometown of Bailee, Texas near Dallas. Realistically Pepper knows she cannot face the music of Chicago or start over in Dallas. New publisher Michael McCulloch hires her as a reporter for his family paper the Bailee Bugle.

Mike knows his journalist dreams were buried with his late father and older brother as the family paper needs him to survive. However, someone obviously wants the Bailee Bugle to fail and is willing to kill to achieve the goal. Pepper believes the threats are aimed at her, but Mike thinks otherwise.

With a nod to screwball journalist comedies like The Front Page, His Girl Friday and Teacher's Pet, but with a much more serious tone, Jodi Thomas provides a strong thriller. Fans will say we like Mike who shows passion and tenderness as he sacrifices his dream, but wins a greater prize: the love of Pepper; that is if they survive. Pepper is much more complex, but readers will admire her courage as she considers flight rather than fight like she recently did, but with Mike's support and love stays. REWRITING MONDAY is a superb journalistic romantic suspense.

Harriet Klausner

Interesting plot, great characters, a good read. A very peppy heroine, and cool hero. No heavy duty steamy scenes if you're looking for that. But still lots of heat between Pepper and her guy. I usually like the steamy stuff but I will be reading more of Jodi's books.

Jodi Thomas' newest novel, REWRITING MONDAY, pits a small town newspaper editor against a former Chicago reporter. Each has ghosts to exorcise not knowing that their future is with each other.

Pepper Malone has been reduced to this - moving to a small town with an even a smaller newspaper. All it took was one bad decision, and she has had to change her entire life. Determined to make the best of it, she convinces the good looking editor of the town newspaper to give her a job. Beggars can't be choosy, Pepper decides as she quickly becomes aware of the differences between this job and the one she left behind. She is also intrigued more than she wants to admit, and a lot of her attention can't help but be focused on her `boss', Mike McCulloch.

Mike McCulloch is a true hero in my book. His job, his life, and all of his waking moments were changed when his brother and sister-in-law unexpectedly passed away. Understandably unprepared for the tragedy, Mike is shocked, but he still does his duty - loyal to a fault but dreamy to boot, Mike is exactly who Pepper Malone needs in her life. Burning out and being falsely accused of giving sexual favors has a way of changing a person - Pepper takes the bull by the horns but doesn't allow it to run her life.

With a terrific story and two subplots happening at the same time, REWRITING MONDAY is the type of release I have grown to expect from Jodi Thomas. It was touching, realistic, and well written. I laughed and cried and breathed a happy sigh when finished. REWRITING MONDAY is definitely a book to read and savor.

Natalie S.

Having read "Twisted Creek" I was really looking forward to Jodi's next book. Well "Rewriting Monday" has surpassed all of my expectations. Great story, wonderful characters, and Jodi's writing style makes for a truly enjoyable reading experience. This is definitely my idea of a good, no make that a great, book. Fair warning....don't start this book unless you have a good chunk of time because you will not want to put it down!

STORY BRIEF:
Pepper was a top Chicago newspaper reporter. She was incorrectly accused of sleeping with someone to get a story and lost her job. She temporarily moves to a small town in Texas to lick her wounds and decide what to do while visiting her aunt. Mike is editor of the small town newspaper the Bailee Bugle. His family owned the newspaper for several generations. His brother Dave was supposed to take over the business. Dave and his wife died in a car crash ten years earlier. Mike's father died a month later. Mike had to leave his teaching job elsewhere to come back to run the paper and raise Dave's three-year-old daughter. The Bugle has an opening, and Pepper takes the job temporarily. Mike is shy around women. Pepper is comfortable with one-night stands and wants no strings. They become friends and then more. A secondary story involves Lorie who runs the bakery/restaurant and her estranged husband Keith, an FBI agent. Lorie lost her baby at birth. Keith couldn't handle the grief and left her. Keith wants back in Lorie's life but she has never forgiven him for leaving. A third story involves a bad guy who wants to harm the newspaper, Mike, or Pepper. There are several instances of property damage and anonymous phone calls.

REVIEWER'S OPINION:
Although there is a bad guy providing some mystery and suspense, I would not classify this book as mystery/suspense. It's more about some bad things happening to good people which get resolved at the end of the book. The purpose of the book is interesting characters and conversations among the townspeople. It describes a small town way of life. I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Mike and Pepper. It was touching - he was shy. I enjoyed the renewal of the relationship between Lorie and Heath. He always loved her. She needed to be able to forgive. What the book was missing for me was more emotional reaction. I didn't feel enough while reading. I would have liked to feel more anticipation, happiness, laughter, surprise or delight. Even at the end, I didn't experience the feel good feeling I usually get from happy endings. I've been spoiled by other authors, so I'm looking for more. For example, I recently read A Month From Miami. I had a lot of warm feelings while reading that book, which is also about good relationships and good people in a small town. Rewriting Monday just didn't touch me enough. These books are also similar in their lack of sexual content - which may be of interest to some readers.

I had a problem with the bad guy. He had certain motivations and wants, but the things he did were not logical to achieve those. If I were he, I would not have done some of the things he did. I felt like the author was having him do bad things to different people to confuse the reader rather than to achieve his goals.

DATA:
Story length: 343 pages. Swearing language: none. Sexual language: none. Number of sex scenes: none. Setting: 2008 Bailee, Texas population 15,000. Copyright: 2009. Genre: contemporary romance.

CAUTION SPOILER:
I was angry over one incident. A common romance formula is the couple gets together, has a fight to separate and then gets together again. Following is the incident that separated Mike and Pepper. The FBI agent told Pepper she should break up with Mike and leave town so that Pepper would be out of danger. A second reason was that this would give Mike one less person to worry about. So Pepper walks up to Mike and says she is moving away this weekend. That's it. She doesn't even tell him why she is leaving. His heart sinks at the rejection. Then later he has a talk with her, and she decides to stay after all. I was furious. What kind of separation is this? It did not sit well with me.

THIS BOOK WAS EXCELLENT. THIS WAS THE FIRST BOOK I HAVE READ WRITTEN BY JODI THOMAS AND BECAUSE I ENJOYED IT SO MUCH, I WILL READ MORE.

This belongs in the "beach book" genre with a good, well-paced story, well-developed mystery, satisfying characters, and predictable romance. If I could have given it 3-1/2 stars, I would, but not quite a 4. Perfect for a bedtime, forget-the-cares-of-the-day, fast read. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Pepper Malone is a young journalist who was rising fast as a big-city reporter, but who made an error in judgment that sent her scrambling for escape to the little West Texas town of Bailee where her only remaining relative is an elderly aunt in a nursing home and where she hopes an obsessive and mob-connected lover won't find her. She signs on to be a reporter for the local paper, owned by a third generation McCulloch--Mike--who is raising his daughter, Morgan, after the death of his wife.

Threats to the paper have turned into acts of violence, and the local police--with the help of an FBI agent whose interest in the town is for the safety of his ex-wife who still lives there and for whom he still carries a torch--are racing to solve the mystery before anyone is seriously hurt. The threats galvanize both Mike and Pepper and pushes them into a reliance--and ultimately trust--in each other as the relationship turns from professional to personal.

One of the most delightful scenes in the book is when the mystery assailant seriously wounds an alley dog who interrupts his vandalism. Pepper calls on her crusty aunt, who is knowledgeable about first aid and animals. Aided by a fellow-nursing home resident and former boyfriend, they engineer a spur-of-the-moment escape from the nursing home to perform veterinary services. The escapade gives the feisty elders a great adventure and saves the dog's life.

I see that other reviewers have covered the story well. I will just add my two cents. Jodi Thomas really writes a good story. She makes the characters come to life, makes them someone you want to know and the town a place you want to live. My only complaint on the story is the oh, so brief mention of Twisted Creek. I wish she would have skipped mentioning TC at all or expanded TC to a bit more in the story line. I really liked Morgan, she knew who the hero was all along. I loved the sub story with Lorie and Heath. I liked the history of the town. I even liked switching from the first person to third every few chapters which would normally bother me but didn't. After I finished reading this book I felt like I do when I sit with a warm cup of cocoa all snuggled in a blanket.