Wrinkly Bits

Geared toward people of a certain age-whatever that age might be-Cruise Time, Gail Cushman's first of three novels in her Wrinkly Bits trilogy, takes you on a cruise that's filled with humor, life, and love. Audrey and Griff Lyons are retired Idaho farmers who have been married nearly fifty years and have settled into the humdrum monotony of tolerating each other. But all that changes when Griff tells Audrey to dig out her bikini because a luxurious cruise awaits. In the first moments of the trip, Audrey spies Logan, a retired podiatrist, who immediately falls head over feet in love with her and sets off what turns out to be a series of spicy hijinks. The Lyons are joined by their friends Phyllis and Gus, retired schoolteachers ready to try anything. Phyllis searches for new and adventurous things while her husband Gus seeks relaxation, beer, and babes, but with his excess girth, the finding babes isn't in the works until he meets Dr. Lewis, who has her own lust for meaty men. Steve, a retired dentist, married his trophy wife Carlee twenty years ago, but with her acquired wrinkles and crinkles, she is less appealing and is clearly alcoholic. The three couples, all over sixty, rediscover their gusto for life, not to mention their libidos, on their way to sites unseen on the high seas.

Out of Time is the second book in Gail Cushman's Wrinkly Bits trilogy and humorously ponders the concepts of love through the years. Logan, a retired podiatrist is smitten with Audrey. Like a love-struck puppy, he follows her home from a cruise, but she and husband Griff have been married for nearly fifty years and her marriage vows still reign supreme even though she's been lonely and isolated for decades. Griff is a good man, and she loves him, but the spark went out of their marriage long ago. Realizing she has fallen deeply in love with Logan, she finds herself wondering if there is a chance for a better life, even this late in her game. Audrey and Griff's adult children live a state away and ask Audrey to babysit, leaving Griff, who is on the mend from an injury, at home. Logan seizes his opportunity and accompanies Audrey across state lines. Audrey's adult children are dumbfounded to find her with another man and rush back to Hunter to implore retired schoolteacher Phyllis to care for Griff. Phyllis, who can't resist a new adventure, launches her Academy of Romance, to teach Griff how to be romantic, proving that you can get carried away by love and libido no matter your age.

In book three of Gail Cushman's Wrinkly Bits series, Wasting Time, Audrey and Logan decide that the way to assert their independence and gain their children's attention is to run away from home and escape to Sun Valley, Idaho. While cold weather interrupts their attempt at a honeymoon, they still enjoy the respite, sans children. But, their grown children, weary of waiting for them to come to their senses, decide to ski in Sun Valley, where all are reunited. Audrey and Logan are happy, but their children? That's another story entirely.