The time an old man tried to beat me to the assigned seating

Finding out that Kathy Reichs was doing a book tour was really exciting.  I had just finished reading all of her Temperance Brennan books, save for the newest one, Flash and Bones.  I am also a huge Bones fan and was stupid thrilled that she was going to be in La Jolla for a night, promoting the second book in her YA Virals series. 

I won't bother going into details about the hideous employee at Warwick's that I had to deal with.  I won't mention the snide remarks he constantly made under his breath [which weren't that quiet] or the constant hateful glares he made to my chest tattoo [which I can't really blame him for staring at, it is amazing].  I will mention that it was such a horrible experience and he was such a detestable man that I actually started an account at Yelp to comment on it. 

I also looked at Kathy's tour schedule to see if we could go somewhere else to see her.  I never wanted to set foot in that bookstore again.

No such luck.  Anyhoo...

The night of the signing, we got down to the bookstore about 45 minutes before it was scheduled to begin.  There was a sign outside of the locked bookstore doors.

We were early enough to find parking right in front of the store, and just decided to wait in the car to watch everyone queue up.  At the time we bought the books needed for the signing, we got tickets  numbered 2 and 3 for the event and were told that it was for the "preferred" seating.

One of the best things I think I've ever witnessed was watching an older couple stand almost on top of the door before they opened.  She eventually walked down to get coffee or something and left him standing there with his cane.  Every time someone would walk up to the glass doors to look inside the store, he would cough and move to stand in front of them. He even gave people dirty looks if they wanted to take pictures of the sign.

About 10 minutes before the event was about to start, they let us inside[of course the older couple were first through the doors].  I was extremely trepidatious.  As much as I wanted to see/meet/talk to Kathy Reichs I did not want to deal with Mr. Cranky Pants.  Thankfully, he was no where in sight.  We picked up our books, confirmed our tickets and were led to our seats, numbered 2 and 3.

Which were right in front of the podium.  Most importantly, right in front of the old man. Of course, I know that I shouldn't have been so gleeful about that, but I really was.

Kathy and her son, Brenden, came out.  Kathy took the podium while Brenden [who co-wrote the series with her] stood off to the side. 

She gave her background, briefly talked about her involvement with Bones and then gave the synopsis to the first book in the YA series, Virals.  She also touched on the plot of the new book, Seizure, but didn't go into details as to not ruin it for the readers. 

There was a short Q&A session, mostly focused on how Kathy and Brenden write together, and an endearing story about a puppy with Parvo [of which we never actually learned the outcome].  I found their relationship of mom/son to be completely on display.  While he definitely respects her [and it shows], he loves to pick on her.  Her humor and wit is very dry.  I saw a lot of Temperance Brennen in Kathy.

When the signing started, we were asked to fold our chairs and move them to start the line.  I finally looked behind me to see that there was a decent sized crowd. Probably about 25 or so people sitting down and another 20 or so standing.  Everyone was very polite and got into line while Kathy and Brenden got situated.

As a side note, I had asked Mr. Cranky Pants if Kathy would be willing to sign a Temperance Brennan book even though she was promoting the other series.  He didn't give a very nice answer [surprise, surprise], so I took matters into my own hands.  I contacted Kathy on Twitter to ask.  She answered "of course". 

Armed with my book in hand, I walked up to the table.  I thanked her for signing my book and told her that I appreciated her time.  She didn't really make small talk.  Maybe I was just a little star struck... I do have my Masters degree in forensic science and she is one of only 50 forensic anthropologists in the world. 

My husband got the copy of Seizure signed and what I found amusing is that while Kathy signs the title page, Brenden signed the "Thank you" page.  At the back of the book.  He said it was because it is the only place his name is printed. 

We left Warwick's slightly mollified.  The staff that was on hand for the evening with Kathy and Brenden were friendly and fabulous. 

I bought books for signing later in the week.

And I deleted my review at Yelp when I became a book club member