Next time your significant other calls you “crazy,” just tell him/her to go read Gone Girl and then rethink that statement. Oh, you think going through your text messages while you were in the shower makes me crazy, do you?? Read Gone Girl and you’ll find my mild snooping downright endearing, you ass hole! I want to give examples, but I won’t ruin the book for anyone. It’s nuts though. Read it. Now.

In fact, it was such a page-turner that everyone at Boozy Book Club had finished it (compared to our first meeting, when absolutely no one finished). Don’t worry though—BBC is still an absurd excuse for a book club. Lots of wine. A serious SnapChat session. And at one point, “Ughh, I’m so bad at reading” was even said out loud. (For the record, not by me.)

Of course, the best part of any book club is the food. It was borderline torture for me because I had just started my dairy-free 30-day challenge, but I consoled myself by going HAM on the sweet potato hummus and guacamole that my friend made. My other friend, who brought caprese sliders, made a few with avocado instead of mozzarella, so I was able to enjoy those, too.

I wanted to make a dish that was relevant to the book, and since Nick and Amy eat lobster each year on their anniversary, I went with a lobster crostini with hollandaise sauce and a tomato-champagne reduction. I couldn’t even taste-test the damn thing because of the butter in the sauces, but I’ll be definitely making them again and sharing the recipe when I can actually eat dairy.

Have you guys read Gone Girl? What’d you think??

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When I decided to move to Southie from the pricier North End, the biggest draw for me was all the extra space I’d be able to afford. I LOVE entertaining, and the idea of being able to fit tons of party guests into my apartment made me giddy. My first thought after signing the lease in September was boozy book club. Hosting a monthly book club makes me feel mature, and hosting a boozy book club reminds me that I’m not. It’s perfect!

For the first book club gathering, which was last Thursday, we read The 19^th Wife: A Novel by David Ebershoff. No one finished the book in time. Everyone finished their wine. It was just as I imagined it would be.

Although no one had finished the book (I came the closest, though!), we still managed to have a lively discussion about polygamy (The 19^th Wife is a novel about the history of the Mormon religion and the sects today that still practice plural marriage), and one of my friends even came prepared with an excerpt she’d highlighted.

So. Mature.

In preparing the menu, I originally wanted to incorporate some traditional Mormon recipes, but after doing some research and finding they’re best known for Jell-O molds and casseroles (what the…?), I decided to go in a different direction. Beehives are often used to symbolize the polygamist household, and one of the prominent buildings in Utah under Brigham Young was even called the Beehive House. Bingo! I decided to incorporate honey into my Boozy Book Club menu with raspberry goat cheese crackers with a honey drizzle (recipe will be on the blog later this week!). I also served cheese with crackers and apple slices, and some pita chips with my sweet potato hummus recipe. These have nothing to do with The 19^th Wife. Oh well.

I’m happy to report that I now have finished reading the book, and I would highly recommend it. The concurrent storylines, one fiction and one historic, were fascinating to me because polygamy is such a crazy concept for me to wrap my mind around. I honestly don’t think my faith in anything could outweigh the devastation I would feel if a man I loved and married took other wives. I’d either completely give in to depression or start plotting my husband’s demise. Most likely the latter because that’s the type of wonderful human being I am. This struggle between faith and emotion is played out in both the founding days of the Mormons and in present day throughout the book. And did I mention there’s a murder mystery thrown in there?

Next month’s Boozy Book Club read is Gone Girl, which I’ve heard is amazing. What are you guys reading these days? Any suggestions for my wine book club?

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