Flexible: A Novel of Mystery, Drama, Rehabilitation, Spiders, and the Occasional Head Wound

Collapsible #2

by Ruth Buchanan

Summer's over, and Rachel Cooper is back! Limping staunchly into the fray, she's determined to develop flexibility in more than just her stiff ankle. With Lynn and Ann at her side, she tackles the challenges of the new school year with her own unique blend of panicked bravado. With new students, new classes, and--could it be?--the possibility of new love in her life, she's already got plenty to keep her flailing. But there's more. While fulfilling her role as director of the school's fall play, she begins to suspect that not all the drama is playing out onstage. Uncovering a series of unsettling clues, she works to solve the backstage mystery before the final curtain falls.

Genres: Fiction

143 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 12, 2018

About the author

Ruth Buchanan is a Christian freelance writer and the author of seven books, four stage plays, and countless articles and essays. She is the Director of Literary Services at Build a Better Us.

Stars based on subjective enjoyment rather than merit.

Reviews

[Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am the author. I just finished proofing the audio files files for the upcoming audiobook release and can say without hesitation that Chris is my favorite student.

[Kaley Rhea · Rating 5 out of 5]

I see you, Ian Smith. I see you.

Okay, I love Rachel Cooper. In addition to being hilarious and hapless, she's just comes across as very real. She does all the things we (I'm recklessly including everyone on the planet because this is my review, and I can) do in terms of turning low-stakes things into VERY HIGH IMPORTANT SHARP STAKES THINGS and letting the more crucial life items drift out of focus. And she perfectly encapsulates the eternal weirdness and irritating uncertainty of out-of-your-twenties-singleness.

She'll take you on a journey, and you won't mind at all. But you'll want to wear a helmet.

I'm deeply suspicious of Call-Me-Matt.

Ann Cooper is sweeter to horses than to people, and I don't even get horses, but I LOVE it.

Shakespeare references!

Lee can come here for a hug.

And once again, I see you, Detective Smith.

5 stars. Need Book 3. That is my whole review.

[T · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thoroughly enjoyable book. I was drawn into Rachel's dithering, but I so wanted her to begin to connect with the people around her and learn from them. Looking forward to seeing Rachel grow in the next installment.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with her first book about Rachel Cooper, Collapsible, Ruth has created taut dialogue and another fun plot. This time the plot doesn't hang on a possible serial killer, but a possible suicide among Rachel's students. I admit, I knew who it was pretty early in the book.

Ruth writes the classroom and the trials of being a teacher spot on. If you want to understand teaching teenagers (or trying to), read this. All the reasons we'd rather drag ourselves to school half dead than write plans for a sub are right there.

I laughed out loud a lot, so if you need something to lift your mood, grab these books. Her desciption of Florida in August made me not mind Indiana in January quite so much.

[Kristen Parnell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Be flexible, or you’ll get bent out of shape. That’s advice a principal gave me when I started teaching, and I had to laugh as I watched Buchanan’s main character Rachel, a literature teacher, literally get bent out of shape for her inflexibility. I loved her character’s growth in this story, painful though it was at times. Through her series of comedic mishaps, Rachel grows to recognize her own “hamartia” or flaw and how it affects her relationships. Buchanan also weaves together a suspenseful storyline of finding a suicidal student amid the drama of a school play. Flexible is an enjoyable read all around!

[Fayelle]

This is an excellent 2nd book in the series, even better than the 1st! I love how the characters have been developed and I'm actually feeling more sympathy for Rachel... she's complex and as we go along she's growing on me a lot more than I thought she would.

All the characters are becoming more important to me, and I think about them long after I put the book down.

I am also REALLY looking forward to the 3rd book!

[Emily Conrad · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining read!

A little romance, a little literature, and a little mystery combined with a lot of humor made for a light and entertaining read. Though Rachel seems to have much worse balance than I do, I could relate to her relational issues and enjoyed following along as she stumbled her way through friendships and suitors. I've already got Book 3 loaded on my Kindle and I'm looking forward to reading!

[Maria Elmvang · Rating 4 out of 5]

A 4.5 star review.

Honestly? I think I liked this even more than the first book in the series. I loved the acting, I loved the English classes (and got a small thrill out of the fact that I, myself have taken a class on that very Shakespeare play, given by the author herself!), I loved the kids, I liked that Rachel's relationships with Sharon, Lee and Ian was explored further. All meaning that I finished the book and turned right on to the next book in the series!

[Bonnie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another win for Ruth Buchanan! She’s realistic, romantic, humorous, scary, and probably a whole list of other adjectives! Love Rachael the teacher, klutz, questioner, rescuer, understander, and crazy main character! Easy relaxing read. This is my reason for reading! Love it!

[Erin Unger · Rating 5 out of 5]

A continuation of great.misunderstandings and a little mystery.

I loved this book! It had a good mix of mystery, misunderstandings, and funny. Buchanan has such a knack for seeing things in an interesting way. I will definitely be reading more of her books.

[Amy Dunham]

I am lucky to have gotten to read this and book #1 of the Collapsible series in advance. Ruth is excellent at character development while maintaining an air of mystery. Her dialogue is quick and conversational and the action moves at a steady clip. I am never bored while reading her books and this was no exception. "Flexible" was short, fun, and I gobbled it up on a short road trip. The ending caught me off guard and I found myself saying "no!" causing some concerned sideways glances from my husband.

I highly recommend "Flexible" (and the Collapsible series) if you are looking for something light, heart-warming, with a healthy dose of suspense.

[Gretchen Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shakespeare, drama, and a close up look at a teacher's love for her students. Heartwarming and humorous, but etched with some heartbreak.

[Sarah Malone · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a former teacher, I enjoyed the way Buchanan captures what conversations are really like in a classroom! She also does a wonderful job of capturing how balancing multiple aspects of life (teaching, friendship, church commitments, and romance) can be challenging. I have come to adore the characters in this series.

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful book to finish out the year!

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Winsome and Endearing!

While still lighthearted, the drama in book two takes on a slightly more serious tone. Relationships can be nuanced, and we must guard against making assumptions. However, no matter how many times we fall, a true friend will always lift us up and help take the focus off ourselves.

[Laura Hughes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second in a three part series about the hilariously disastrous events of Rachel, a character with many flaws. So far through the series she becomes aware that these disasters are of her own making. She learns and grows through each and strives to change. This has been a fun series to read and I hope we get to see Rachel get out of her own way and learn from her mistakes.

Note: I received the publisher's review copy but was not required to provide a positive review.

[Priscilla Baldwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just finished the second book in what I hope is an ongoing series. I enjoyed the main character even more than in Collapsible, particularly as she teaches Shakespeare to her high school students which made me smile and laugh. I know the author and can only thank her for writing such a fun and also insightful book about the perils of maturing, once again!

[AddyF · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ruth has done a great job on this series. The dialogue is just right, and I like the character development we in see in Rachel. Ruth knows how to use romance, mystery and comedy all together to weave a great story.

Full disclosure: Ruth is a personal friend.