The Pig Comes to Dinner a Novel: Book 2

I wasn't too fond of the end of this book, but the author shows great creativity in his storyline. Who would think a pig could hold so much sway over people? LOL. I'm looking forward to the third book in the series and any book that makes you anxious for more is a good book, indeed.

It was four start at the beginning, but as the pages were read, turned, and wallowed in with snorting glee, it soon became a full 5-star book. True, I'm an Irish descendant, but County Donegal, not County Kerry. True I grew up on a farm and we only owned one pig. Ghosts I seldom go looking for, but in this book, they became as real and acceptable to the reader as they did to Kitty McCloud and Kieran Sweeney, who now shares their castle haunt. True again, I'm a male, but this is not a sappy, emotional, bedroom-scene juicy romance. It's an honest, couple-in-love, story that happens to take place in an old castle, haunted a bit by another romantically inclined couple that were hung by the rope until dead, many years before. He's a harpist, she's a weaver, so all of the romantic arts and crafts are included in this country setting of one of the most beautiful locations in all the world, County Kerry, Ireland. I've been there. I've also been to Dingle Town, a location yet rich in the Gaelic language common use, including all traffic signs. OK, so in "THE PIG COMES TO DINNER" we have a common but sweet couple newly married and moving into a very old castle. Of course the appearance of Taddy and Brid (the ghostly pair you'll learn to love) create the need to discover the secrets behind the castle, behind the family feud, and behind the deaths of the young pair that now haunt the abode. What about the PIG? Well in Ireland, pigs are seldom seen, a true reason for which I never understood while visiting, nor is it disclosed in this romantic comedy by Caldwell. Maybe I'd know more if I'd read the first of the trilogy first, a task I now have before me. It didn't make any difference in my enjoying this book, being out of order. I did notice in this book, and references to the pig's past, that this particular pig fails to remain secluded. It was noted that the pig was gifted because the pig behavior included it occasionally flirtatiously accommodated other she-pigs. One of the best ways to recommend a book is to quote favorite lines such as: "Kitty's jealous belief that Kieran is romantically involved with the executed girl, Brid." "'There's a pig standing in my way staring at me.' Lord Shaftoe paused, then, with offended astonishment, added, 'Oh, and now it's--well, really!'" "The musicians' instruments were already in place at the far side of the wooden platform, the boards raised so that the slap and stomp of the dancer's feet would resonate and thrum beyond the percussive sounds that characterized the Kerry dances. Guinness in kegs was at the ready..." Joseph Caldwell, author, is quite the Irish seanchai (storyteller). Next is "THE PIG ENTERS HOG HEAVEN".

This book is a love song to Ireland: its West coast, stories, people and the quirks of those people. The book is subtle and should be savored. Not your typical fast-paced thrill a minute, but much better. It includes the author's reflections on the life of a writer. I read this before the original in the trilogy. I'm on my way to Barnes & Noble to pick up "The Pig Did It."

The Pig Comes to Dinner is the delightful sequel to The Pig Did It, Joseph Caldwell's hilarious farce about love, Ireland and pigs. The story begins a short time after the first book's dramatic climax. Kitty and Kieran have married and moved into Castle Kissane, an ancient structure (something between a fortress and a barn) with a horrifying past. While the turret might seem a perfect place for Kitty to write her "corrections" of famous novels (in which the original writers have somehow gotten their plots wrong), she soon discovers that her new home is haunted. As if ghosts weren't enough to disturb her concentration, the castle is due to blow itself up--at any moment. While The Pig Comes to Dinner features an engaging cast of characters, it is not quite as funny as The Pig Did It. For all her quirkiness, Kitty is not a strong enough central character to hold the plot together. Aaron, the lovelorn writer (now turned swineherd), was sorely missed in this book, not only for his truly over-the-top self pity, but for the contrast that his uniquely American perspective provided in The Pig Did It. In spite of its flaws, this is a book well worth reading. Caldwell is a gifted writer, and his dry, ironic wit is without compare. I look forward to reading the last book in the trilogy.