Sorry for the delay in posting. I've been in a non-writing mood:( But definitely been reading and have a few books I'd like to share! As the title of this post might suggest, the books I've read have taken me further into my mind than I'd like but have also lightened my heart.
My first-time with these authors:
You Don't Want to Know by Lisa Jackson - Lots of pages with intricately woven characters and storylines (past and present) but that's not the crazy part. The crazy comes in Jackson's talent for creating such vivid characters that the pages fly by and you realize that your rear is asleep and you should feed your family. Ava hasn't been the same since her son Noah was last seen - missing, kidnapped, dead?? Ava has to make her mind her own again or she'll never find out what really happened to Noah and want evil is lurking in, around and across the waters at Neptune's Gate.
Adam by Ted Dekker - I seeeeeee you. John 10:10 Believe!
(really looking forward to reading Forbidden by him and Tosca Lee for book club.)
Authors that fit like a cozy robe:
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn - Nick meet Amy. Amy meet Nick. Get ready to be sucked into their world. A place of romance and youth; of failures and deceit. Each chapter brings you closer and further from the truth of love. (Sharp Objects and Dark Places are Flynn's other novels. I recommend all 3, but Sharp Objects is my favorite.)
Spring Fever by Mary Kay Andrews - Ah, Andrews is back with more sass and kick-ass! Annajane will make you laugh and gasp and Mason will make you feel sexy. Enjoy!
Currently reading:
The Fine Color of Rust by P.A. O'Reilly - I'm currently calling her the Joshilyn Jackson of Australia - spunk, laughter and the God's truth! (Thanks Atria books for the Galley Alley copy!!)
Synopsis from goodreads.com:
Set in the Australian bush, a wryly funny, beautifully observed novel about friendship, motherhood, love, and the importance of fighting for things that matter. Loretta Boskovic never dreamed she would end up a single mother with two kids in a dusty Australian country town. She never imagined she’d have to campaign to save the local primary school. She certainly had no idea her best friend would turn out to be the crusty old junk man. All in all, she’s starting to wonder if she took a wrong turn somewhere. If only she could drop the kids at the orphanage and start over . .
And thanks to RareBird Lit I'm reading a nonfiction book that I never thought I would and I am enthralled.
The Ascension of Jerry by Chip Jacobs
from the dust jacket:
Bumbling hitmen. Burning corpses. A threatened son. Life in hiding. Jerry Schneiderman’s orderly world evaporated when his business partner was executed by an assassin in 1979 Los Angeles, and the buzzard-eyed ringleader came for him. Though the killers behind the murder-for-hire corporation were nabbed, the trauma annihilated Jerry’s family and strip-mined his trust. Recovery only came years later with Jerry’s improbable rebirth as a prank-loving activist who defended the weak by milking his scars.
Up next!
Broken Harbor by Tana French - While she usually leaves me with unsatisfying endings, I keep coming back. As soon as I'm done with my current reads, I'll be heading back to Ireland to see what trouble "Scorcher" has gotten into this time. (French's other books (read in this order): In the Woods, The Likeness, and Faithful Place (my fave so far).)
Synopsis (from goodreads.com):
Mick "Scorcher" Kennedy, the brash cop from Tana French’s bestselling Faithful Place, plays by the book and plays hard. That’s what’s made him the Murder squad’s top detective—and that’s what puts the biggest case of the year into his hands.
On one of the half-built, half-abandoned "luxury" developments that litter Ireland, Patrick Spain and his two young children are dead. His wife, Jenny, is in intensive care.
Shine, Shine, Shine by Lydia Netzer - Our September book club read and I'm trying to hold off till then so I remember every detail. Friends and family have read and loved it. Looking forward to giggles and tears:)
Synopsis (from goodreads.com):
Sunny Mann has masterminded a life for herself and her family in a quiet Virginia town. Her house and her friends are picture-perfect. Even her genius husband, Maxon, has been trained to pass for normal. But when a fender bender on an average day sends her coiffed blonde wig sailing out the window, her secret is exposed. Not only is she bald, Sunny is nothing like the Stepford wife she’s trying to be. As her facade begins to unravel, we discover the singular world of Sunny, an everywoman searching for the perfect life, and Maxon, an astronaut on his way to colonize the moon.
