It’s been a crazy two weeks for both of us, with Eloise trying to fit in all of the summer fun before school starts again, and Dinah going between Boston and Rhode Island! We survived a direct hit from Tropical Storm Henri over the weekend, and are trying to spend a few days together before we head back to our real lives.

Monday Missive: August 23

What We’re Reading and Watching

• The View Was Exhausting was a GOOP recommendation that I was so excited to check out. Win is trying to keep herself at the top of the Hollywood A-List and constantly battling against the prejudice she faces as a woman of color. Enter Leo-a super hot playboy who’s also her on again/off again pretend boyfriend that she calls whenever she needs to drum up publicity or public good will. The book wasn’t perfectly executed but I did enjoy the depiction of the behind the scenes PR machinations and was ready to date Leo myself if Win didn’t wise up. -E

• I read the latest horror-movie style book from Riley Sager, Survive the Night, about a girl named Charlie who drops out of college after her roommate is murdered, and during the shared ride home, starts to suspect the driver might be the killer. There were definitely some interesting twists, but I saw most of them coming at some point, just based on how the events unfolded. If you like a scary murder movie/ book, definitely check it out! - D

• I also read Too Good to Be True by Carola Lovering (author of Tell Me Lies, which is being made into a Hulu series) and loved it! It was the perfect twisty relationship story, about a woman in her 20’s who falls in love and quickly gets married to a man who isn’t all that he seems. It was juicy and told from different perspectives, with a Gone Girl feeling, but not quite as violent. - D

• I’m trying to watch Nine Perfect Strangers on Hulu because I’m a big Nicole Kidman fan and a Liane Moriarty fan (the show is based on her book of the same name), but I’m having a hard time getting into it. Has anyone else watched it? Do I need to power through? -E

What We’re Buying

• This design of this dress and top from Tuckernuck are so versatile and the green color is perfect for the summer to fall transition. -E

• I also ordered this dress and shoes from J. Crew thinking that they would be great for now but would also work once September hits . -E

• I went to a trunk show at Wm. Cole (one of our favorite local boutiques for home goods and accessories) and fell totally in love with the caftans from Alexandra Wood Designs. The prints are perfect and they are nice enough to wear on the beach or to dinner. - D

• The end of summer wardrobe emergency has felt very real, so I bought myself a few new pieces to tide me over. One that I really love is this navy floral dress from Target, that I will be able to wear into the fall. It has some stretch and give, so you can probably size down, especially if you are in between sizes. - D

What We’re Making

• Our mom threw me the cutest golf themed birthday party and I can’t wait to share about on our Festive Friday post! It involved my absolutely favorite Sundried Tomato Dip from the Barefoot Contessa which you should go out and make immediately if you haven’t had it before. It’s so so good with veggies and with potato chips. -E

• We made the Chinese Chicken Salad from Barefoot Contessa just in case we lost power during the Tropical Storm Henri and couldn’t cook, which is exactly what happened and it turned out to be perfect picnic dinner in the candlelight! -E

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