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Judy Nedry
Author, Blogger, Theatre Critic
AVAILABLE NOW!
blackthorn
With blackthorn staff
I draw the bound
All malice and bane
I thus confound.
— Unknown
My Books
Blackthorn
AND THEN, A BODY
Blackthorn is the first gothic thriller by Judy Nedry. In this modern-day gothic novel set on the scenic Columbia River Gorge, Sage Blackthorn revisits demons from her past and confronts a multitude of new ones when she returns to her childhood home to solve the mystery of her brother’s death.
the man who wasn’t there
BLISTERING HEAT ISN’T GOOD FOR GRAPES … OR PEOPLE
James Ryder has it all. A founding pioneer of the Oregon wine industry, he has the stately good looks of a gentleman farmer, the perfect family, an ample bank account, and the prestige of owning one of Oregon’s oldest and most respected wineries. His youngest daughter has taken up the torch to become the second-generation winemaker at Ryder Estate.
The Difficult Sister
MURDER IN THE MIST
The Difficult Sister is the second mystery/suspense novel from Judy Nedry featuring Emma Golden. This latest adventure takes Emma and her friend, Melody, to a remote, southern Oregon coastal town to search for Melody’s missing, ne’er-do-well younger sister, Aurora. However, they quickly both realize that at the very least, Aurora is in some sort of major trouble and may even be dead.
an unholy alliance
WHAT WINE PAIRS BEST WITH MURDER?
An Unholy Alliance introduces Emma Golden, a self-styled has-been who is invited to write a book on her beloved Oregon wine country, and manage a bed and breakfast for a friend. All seems ideal until Emma encounters her verbally abusive ex-husband, Dwight McCourt, shortly after settling in at the B&B. She discovers that she still harbors unresolved feelings for him.
Book Reviews
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The Difficult Sister is not the cozy you might expect given that it involves two fifty-something women on a trip to the Oregon Coast. This second mystery by Judy Nedry is darker and edgier than its description suggests.
The Difficult Sister
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Expecting a pleasant time with old friends and acquaintances, Emma finds herself again dealing with death. From the moment I began this book to the final paragraph, I was unwilling to put it down.
Man Who Wasn't There
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The author is clearly talented. The first-person narrative is intriguing all the way through because her character is interesting.
The Difficult Sister
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Overall – a really interesting book and something a bit different from my usual crime fiction reads. The sideshow with Emma’s involvement in her friend’s troubles helped fleshed the story out and give it more meat on the bones and added to my overall enjoyment. I’m looking forward to Nedry’s second book – The Difficult Sister (I could say that’s something I know all about, but that would be mean, so I won’t……oops, already have)
An Unholy Alliance
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My favorite part was the main character, Emma Golden. She is a middle-aged divorcee who acts as a real person would act. She is put out by a friend volunteering her to help a sick acquaintance but she is busybody enough to try and figure out who killed the acquaintance's husband. This is the first book in the series that I have read but I will look for the others so I can spend more time with Emma.
Man Who Wasn't There
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This third of the EG series didn't disappoint. Again, we are treated to a core group of independent women who are the centerpiece of this latest mystery. It is refreshing to read such a book, especially in these days of vapid "chick lit". The Oregon wine country serves as a compelling setting for this mystery; with an insider's keen sense of history and detail, it comes alive as a fascinating subplot.
Man Who Wasn't There
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Thoroughly enjoyed this book and the prior one, A Difficult Sister. Emma feels like someone I've known and I'll miss her until the next book. The pace of action suits me and kept me reading late into the night. Loved the Oregon setting - I lived there many years and the descriptions triggered lovely memories. Highly recommend.
Man Who Wasn't There
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This mystery was great fun to read. I enjoyed visualizing the Oregon wine country. Emma is a very real character and I feel I know her. The dialog is well done and the book moves along at a good clip.
Man Who Wasn't There
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The first of what is now a trilogy that follows a recovering alcoholic writer, Emma Golden, who is working on a book about the wine industry in Oregon (where the author was also an early vintner). Nedry's main character is an accidental detective chasing down the murderer of a showy new winery owner, who isn't a nice person. Emma is funny, pushy and not afraid to step on toes. Light and entertaining.
An Unholy Alliance
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Stuff, as they say, happens. Bullets fly. People die. Evil happens. There will be mud, "one slow sucking step after another". We are a long way from almond croissants and that gives The Difficult Sister an intriguing, palpable edge.
The Difficult Sister
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An unlikely murder occurs at the most prestigious annual gathering of the Oregon wine industry. Emma Golden, a woman of a certain age with an uncanny ability to solve such crimes, goes to work in this third book of the eponymous series by Judy Nedry. Nedry, a longtime wine writer, and resident of the Willamette Valley, brings the Oregon wine world to life in vivid detail as the backdrop for Emma's sleuthing. She also tells a suspenseful story.
The Man Who Wasn't There
Theater Reviews
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The undoing of America 2000-2008
It didn’t take much. Some loose footing here, a push there. And then, in 2008, everything we’d been working toward since the end of World War II was gone. Many were caught off-guard, and that is the simplified summary of Lynn Nottage‘s 2017 Pulitzer-Prize winning play Sweat. Profile Theatre‘s searing production of Sweat, directed by Christopher Acebo, […]
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Smart ghost!
Portland is blessed with so many fine small theatre companies. Theatre Vertigo is just one of those that offers quirky low-budget productions that surprise and delight. Sometimes all it takes is a few unmatched sheets. And yet, so much can happen. Vertigo’s latest offering, Savannah Reich‘s Stupid Ghost, is a comedy about ruining the lives of […]
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The dark world of Susan Hendrix
For Susan Hendrix (Taylor Jean Grady), a young World War II bride living with her husband Sam (Daniel Zubrinsky) in 1944 Greenwich Village, the world is always dark. Blinded in an accident, Susan met her husband in hospital where she was recovering. He suffers from PTSD as a result of his war experiences, and now […]
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A gender of one
Hedwig and the Angry Inch, John Cameron Mitchell (book) and Stephen Trask‘s (music and lyrics) drag show cum Broadway musical, is now onstage in the Ellyn Bye Studio at Portland Center Stage at the Armory. With Delphon “DJ” Curtis Jr. as Hedwig and Ithica Tell as Yitzhak, Hedwig’s most recent husband, the story follows Hedwig […]
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The Miracle Worker graces Twilight Theater stage
William Gibson‘s timeless American classic The Miracle Worker is now onstage at the Twilight Theater Company in North Portland. It is based on Gibson’s 1957 Playhouse 90 teleplay of the same name, which he based on Helen Keller’s autobiography, The Story of My Life. The play debuted on Broadway in 1959 and won several Tonys including Best Play. […]
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Not your usual dinner theatre–The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart
We’re in a pub. A Scottish pub. Here’s your food. The bar is over there. Big, round tables. Gobs of jolly people. Fine, energizing, Scottish music provided by Katie Jane Lubiens and Adam Easley. And then, we meet Prudencia Hart (Amy Newman), happily motoring through the snowdrifts to a conference in the Scottish Border area […]
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A rollicking Regency rom-com (with pianoforte)
It is approaching Christmas, 1815, and Elizbeth Darcy (Cindy Im), nee Elizabeth Bennet of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice fame, has introduced a Chrismas tree into the hallowed halls of Pemberley. Mr. Darcy (Isaac Lamb) is near-horrified. “We are not recently German,” he declaims. Portland Center Stage greets the holiday season with Lauren Gunderson and Margot Melcon‘s […]
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Profile Theatre explores the Lynn Nottage/Bertolt Brecht connection
Tonight through Sunday, December 7, Profile Theatre presents concert stagings of two plays in rotating repertory. Lynn Nottage’s Pulitzer Prize-winning drama Ruined set in the Democratic Republic of Congo was originally inspired by Bertolt Brecht’s infamous anti-war modernist classic, Mother Courage and Her Children. Profile has staged the stories side by side. Both are performed […]
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An 1885 Christmas mystery
Strange happenings are afoot at Glancing Bright, a stately Victorian country house, home of Lady Constance Ashford (Rebecca Morse), a distressed and nearly helpless widow. Thankfully, there is Tomkins (Rick Warren) at her side, should she be stricken with The Vapors. It’s Christmas Eve, 1885. Lady Ashford’s daughter Cynthia (Caralynn Shields) hopes to become engaged […]
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Night time in the department store
Broadway Rose Theatre Company has kicked off the holiday season with its original musical It Happened One Christmas. Written, directed, and choreographed by Broadway Rose Managing Director Dan Murphy, the show is a revue of Christmas songs–some old, some new, some traditional, and some you’ve never heard of–fashioned around a simple story line. Who knows what […]
A Writer’s Life
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So many books, so little time…or Part II of the sometimes semi-annual book roundup
Thank HEAVENS for audiobooks! Not only have they spared me endless hours of listening to news too dreadful to contemplate while driving, but also they make it possible for me to read several more books per year! In 2018 I read 48 books. In 2019 I read 73. My pleasure in reading has gotten a […]
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January 2020 Newsletter
Ghosts of Christmas Past December was its usual pain in the rear, but aside from that annoyance my sacred inner curmudgeon managed to fully enjoy one very fine concert, a day baking cookies, two Solstice celebrations, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day with family, old friends, and some new ones. Christmas used to be my favorite […]
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November 2019 Newsletter
The State of the State It was a busy month for being Out There instead of In Here. I gave three presentations to various groups on “Setting as a Character”, wrote eight play reviews, discovered a new-to-me author I very much enjoy, and attended two dear friends from far-flung places. Renie Steves is a food […]
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October 2019 Newsletter
The State of the State September came and went in a flash as Portland-area theatres opened their new seasons and kept me busy attending plays and writing reviews. It brings a rush of pleasure when theatres open their doors each season, with great excitement for new works and seeing some familiar plays as well. September […]
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Are you ready?
Friday the 13th is your lucky day! This Friday, September 13, I am featuring a Friday Freebie of my recently re-released book, An Unholy Alliance, the first book in the Emma Golden Mystery Series. Here’s how it works: Any time after midnight Thursday night until midnight Friday night you may order your Ebook copy of An Unholy Alliance absolutely […]
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September 2019 Newsletter
The State of the State It’s the day after Labor Day. The pool closed today. Students returned to school. The mornings are cooler. We think about bringing in the sheaves, and warm fires. It’s the end of something. Right? Not for me. Ever since I was a schoolgirl, September has signaled New Year. Each […]
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August 2019 Newsletter
The State of the State July was a month of wonderful summer weather punctuated by a couple thunder and lightning storms and a grand adventure to southeastern Oregon. Steen’s Mountain is about as far into the middle of nowhere as one can get, so I don’t undertake these little jaunts on my own. My sister […]
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July 2019 Newsletter
The State of the State Omar and I met twelve years and three months ago at the Oregon Humane Society. After looking at all the cats in the place, some of them twice, I happened to glance into the cat play area where I spotted a magnificent animal stretched out on one of the platforms, […]
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The sometimes semi-annual book round-up and newsletter
The State of the State A friend of mine who shall remain nameless in the interests of privacy is under the weather and likely to be so for a while. Since she is not able to garden, she asked me to compile a summer reading list to keep her from going insane. It only makes […]
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June 2019 Newsletter
The State of the State We live in scary times. It’s probably relative. The problem is, we know so much more than we did before good old cyberspace rolled in and took over our lives. For myself, I want to know what’s going on so I can decide what to do next. That’s the rationale. […]
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May 2019 Newsletter
The State of the State Friday night I watched the Blazers play the Nuggets in the NBA playoffs. It was a home game, and I was hooked up to a friend’s ESPN, all by myself save for a dog and a bowl of ice cream. What started as just another game ended in an epic […]
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April Newsletter
The State of the State When I worked at Newberg High School some eons ago, I used to wear a “No Whining” button–one of those circles with the line through it. I loved those kids. We’d have poetry readings at my house once a month and I’d make dessert. Poems were read and critiqued and […]