Miranda Blue Calling

by Michelle Curry Wright

She's the breezy voice on the telephone, bringing life into the lonely days of her elderly clients ... But who's calling Miranda Blue? Not a soul -- which is the way Miranda likes it. From her sweet,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060561432
• ISBN13: 9780060561437
• Release Date: March 2004
• Publisher: Avon Books
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.3" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Original Plot

Miranda Blue is a book I picked out thinking it would be humorous and light, and up to a point I was not disappointed - well possibly for the first chapter. Instead I found that our heroine is a woman, like a lot of us, who have a tendency in falling for the wrong man. Finally, after expressing the wrong sentiment in trying to break off a relationship, she's left both physically beaten and emotionally battered. She then decides to take off to a remote spot in Otnip, Colorado where she has promised herself a moratorium on any involvement with the male species. Starting up a business she could operate from home-- calling and checking on the elderly and homebound -- Miranda has successfully secluded herself with only one neighbor to contend with. Unfortunately that one neighbor, Billy Steadman, just happens to be a handsome devil with a charming way about him. Billy himself had chosen to isolate himself, after his loving wife had died nine years earlier. Now, after seeing Miranda, Billy was ready to reenter the world of the living, only Miranda was doing her best at keeping him out. Thinking originally that this would be more of a humorous chick-lit type, I was treated to a more poignant and thoughtful tale. Miranda, was a wounded soul, very cautious after failing at relationships with men. Over the phone, she could be more open, yet she still hid and held herself back. It took the combined efforts of some of her elderly clients and friends of Billy to finally bridge over the misconceptions that both held of one anther as they slowly (ever so slowly) came together. While I did find this an interesting and original plot - it's lack of action made it a much slower read than I would like. The originality of Miranda's business - touching base with the elderly - I found quite admirable though, so for those looking for something a little bit more original than the norm would enjoy this. --- Marilyn, Official Reviewer for www.historicalromancewriters.com ---

Great Book

I loved this book! The characters are engaging and charming. The love story unfolds subtly at first but becomes very involving as the story comes to its climax. I find myself thinking about the characters and wishing I could peek in at them again. I'm buying copies for my sisters and some friends. It's a great summer read!! Don't miss it!

Miranda Blue--sweet notes and intriguing dissonances

First take on Miranda Blue is a fun, breezy read with clever patter and quirky characters--not unlike a 1940's Cukor movie. Think Myrna Loy meets Melvyn Douglas out on the range. But within the Girl meets Boy, Girl Disses Boy, Girl Seeks Boy plot are some intriguing musings about the fundamentals. About escape and withdrawal, about ambivalance and bluster, and about the courage of becoming a grown up. Miranda is a sharp, smart, compelling charmer--who despite having more edge than a badlands butte has lived a largely passive life. Not that she hasn't been places and experienced things. But she is someone to whom things happen, the proximally worst being beaten by a thuggish boyfriend. To stop any more things from happening, Miranda retreats to the middle of nowhere Osnip, CO. And soon she finds herself with a suitor, in the form of her similarly smart, edgy, emotionally wounded and otherwise reclusive neighbor. This is familiar ground for Miranda--she's been found, she's being pursued, and she can both outwardly disdain and inwardly enjoy the more-than-neighborly interest that is routinely on her doorstep. This is an admittedly lean social-, not to say romantic, diet Miranda is on (interesting that her seeker is a gifted farmer, who attempts to woo her with food). And for a while the kabuki between Miranda and Billy (the farmer with flare) creates the teasing tension of all charged romances. But Billy knows he wants more, and dares to break through the banter barrier. (No small feat for a guy whose favored read is the Maltese Falcon, in which the hero recruits reason and rules to overcome his attraction to a homicidal hottie). Yet despite Billy's declarations, Miranda continues to balk, until at some point the anesethesia of her social isolation is no longer enough. The question is, is Miranda willing to assume the active tense? Is it enough for her to wait for a second chance, or will she instead make things happen? Get the book and find out. You may be gently surprised at who that blue girl resembles.

A Charming Story of the Irresistible Power of Love

Miranda Blue, as quirky and engaging as her name suggests, spends her days as a telephone companion to the elderly and infirm. She keeps the details of each client on a series of index cards and knows the cares, concerns and interests of each one, providing them with friendship and intellectual stimulation while struggling valiantly to keep the details of her own personal life private. It's a job, and so much more, for which Miranda is perfectly suited. She cares about her clients and makes it a point to be there for them. It's also a business that allows her to be her own boss and live in the middle of nowhere.Now why, you might ask, would a young, attractive woman choose to remove herself from society and reside in the small Colorado town of Otnip (yeah, it's Pinto spelled backwards) away from all human contact except that which she has with her clients? Perhaps to escape from a know-it-all sister or recover from a string of failed relationships with bad boys, the most recent of which culminated in physical abuse. The thing is, while Miranda Blue is trying to get away from it all, her only neighbor, a sexy, single greenhouse farmer, is busy trying to get close to her.Billy --- a widower, grower of hydroponic tomatoes, teacher of meditation and keeper of fish --- has made a poor first impression on Miranda but a great impression on her dogs. Along with perpetuating his bad boy image by telling her that he grows marijuana, he has the misfortune to be hauled off by the police in front of Miranda's wide and wondering eyes. That's enough for her! No matter that he's the most interesting, attractive (and irritating) man she's seen in a while --- her resolution stands. No more bad boys!Billy is not taking no for an answer, though, and he'll do whatever it takes to get close to the intriguing and enchanting Miranda --- even if he has to resort to spying on her with a telescope, where he sees more than he intended, insinuating himself into her life and even using her dogs to get closer to her. When a woman like Miranda comes along, a man like Billy will do what it takes to win her heart.You'll enjoy getting to know Miranda and Billy and find yourself rooting for love to win out in the end as you turn the pages of MIRANDA BLUE CALLING. Michelle Curry Wright --- a native of Seattle, Washington and a current resident of Telluride, Colorado, where she lives with her husband Gary and daughter Celine --- brings us an agreeable cast of characters, a quirky heroine and a charming story of the irresistible power of love. --- Reviewed by Amie Taylor

Great chick-lit

Six years as a Broadway icon for failure makes Miranda Blue wonder if she should leave Manhattan for her home town of San Francisco or her childhood vacation spot in Colorado. Her sister just back from India adds to Miranda's need to look within, but somewhere else. She realizes she has failed with men and failed with everything except the city transit system to include the ferry. Since San Francisco feels like the west coast equivalent of where she is now, Miranda decides to go rural, vowing no men as she relocates to Otnip, Colorado.Knowing she has a gift of gab, Miranda starts a telecommunication service for senior citizens. Her neighbor, Billy Steadman is a hunk, but his garden house efforts to reach her are rejected by Miranda who adheres to her no male pledge. Billy tries to get to her heart through her dogs and she cannot help but feed his fish. As the temptation of Billy rises, Miranda decides to ignore her resolution and take the plunge, but alas he has a secret and soon leaves without word ending their relationship before it can forge into anything permanent.MIRANDA BLUE CALLING is an engaging chick lit tale starring a delightful protagonist whose wit and observations keep the tale focused. Miranda is a terrific lead character while the somewhat enigmatic Bill is a steady counterbalance trying to break down her resistance using every trick in the book especially her canines and his fish. Fans of insightful character studies will want to call Miranda Blue as she struggles to do what is right for herself.Harriet Klausner