Wicked Smart

The Vanessa Munroe novels have quickly become a favorite of mine, having somewhat filled the hole left by the end of the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series. So while looking for a book to take on vacation with me this summer, I was thrilled to find The Mask. On this go-round Vanessa has joined her lover in Japan after he takes a rather mundane job in security for a biomedical company.  Shortly thereafter he is framed for the murder of one of the employees and it is up to her to save him from a life in Japanese prison. As always, I enjoyed the fast pace action as Munroe has to kick ass and take names to save her boyfriend, however, this time around it was plagued by what I felt were unnecessary emotions. I personally did not understand why she took such great offense to some of the things Bradford had done and said.  In their line of work, deception is a must and with the well spoken trust that has been built between them in the previous novels, her heartbreak and misgiving

Like most in the Seattle area, I have an affinity for Asian food, whether that be Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Thai or Vietnamese.  My go-to in times of sickness is a steaming hot bowl of Pho.  My go-to restaurants with friends vary based on our similar loves - one friend and I always meet to share some Chinese, my work husband and I visit the local teriyaki joint at least once a week. One of my favorite Vietnamese dishes is the bahn mi sandwich.  The tender meat partnered with the crisp pickled vegetables and perfectly crunchy bread always hits the spot.  I was so excited when the Banh Mi Handbook was released, I looked forward to getting my hands on it and trying my luck at home. The Banh Mi Handbook is a smaller cookbook, but don't let size fool you.  This book is chalk full of recipes, stories and insight in sandwich variations.  It is the perfect size to be called a "handbook". It provides you with options to fit your varying level of skill and/or time in the k