I made it a point to try and read a lot more in the summer and I wanted to keep it fairly light reading. These books run the gamut from beachy, chick-lit to thriller, murder mysteries. Some people would say that murder mysteries are not light reading but I think that it depends. There are some thrillers that are really dark and heavy. In my opinion, the books that I have chosen here don’t fit the mold of dark and heavy even when the subject matter itself might be heavy.
I will say that I enjoyed each of the books for different reasons. They all held my interest, most were finished fairly quickly, and I was happy with the resolution. If you’re looking for a fun distraction that will have no meaningful impact on your life, try 1 or 2 of these books!
Reading
Honey Don’t List-Christina Lauren
Synopsis: Carey Duncan has worked for home remodeling and design gurus Melissa and Rusty Tripp for nearly a decade. A country girl at heart, Carey started in their first store at sixteen, and—more than anyone would suspect—has helped them build an empire. With a new show and a book about to launch, the Tripps are on the verge of superstardom. There’s only one problem: America’s favorite couple can’t stand each other.
James McCann, MIT graduate and engineering genius, was originally hired as a structural engineer, but the job isn’t all he thought it’d be. The last straw? Both he and Carey must go on book tour with the Tripps and keep the wheels from falling off the proverbial bus.
Unfortunately, neither of them is in any position to quit. Carey needs health insurance, and James has been promised the role of a lifetime if he can just keep the couple on track for a few more weeks. While road-tripping with the Tripps up the West Coast, Carey and James vow to work together to keep their bosses’ secrets hidden, and their own jobs secure. But if they stop playing along—and start playing for keeps—they may have the chance to build something beautiful together.
Synopsis: Young Saffyre Maddox spent three years under the care of renowned child psychologist Roan Fours. When Dr. Fours decides their sessions should end, Saffyre feels abandoned. She begins looking for ways to connect with him, from waiting outside his office to walking through his neighborhood late at night. She soon learns more than she ever wanted to about Roan and his deceptively perfect family life. On a chilly Valentine’s night, Saffyre will disappear, taking any secrets she has learned with her.
Owen Pick’s life is falling apart. In his thirties and living in his aunt’s spare bedroom, he has just been suspended from his job as a teacher after accusations of sexual misconduct—accusations he strongly denies. Searching for professional advice online, he is inadvertently sucked into the dark world of incel forums, where he meets a charismatic and mysterious figure.
Owen lives across the street from the Fours family. The Fours have a bad feeling about their neighbor; Owen is a bit creepy and suspect and their teenaged daughter swears he followed her home from the train station one night. Could Owen be responsible? What happened to the beautiful missing Saffyre, and does her disappearance truly connect them all?
The Family Upstairs-Lisa Jewell
Synopsis: Be careful who you let in.
Soon after her twenty-fifth birthday, Libby Jones returns home from work to find the letter she’s been waiting for her entire life. She rips it open with one driving thought: I am finally going to know who I am.
She soon learns not only the identity of her birth parents, but also that she is the sole inheritor of their abandoned mansion on the banks of the Thames in London’s fashionable Chelsea neighborhood, worth millions. Everything in Libby’s life is about to change. But what she can’t possibly know is that others have been waiting for this day as well—and she is on a collision course to meet them.
Twenty-five years ago, police were called to 16 Cheyne Walk with reports of a baby crying. When they arrived, they found a healthy ten-month-old happily cooing in her crib in the bedroom. Downstairs in the kitchen lay three dead bodies, all dressed in black, next to a hastily scrawled note. And the four other children reported to live at Cheyne Walk were gone.
Synopsis: X: The number ten. An unknown quantity. A mistake. A cross. A kiss…
Perhaps Sue Grafton’s darkest and most chilling novel, X features a remorseless serial killer who leaves no trace of his crimes. Once again breaking the rules and establishing new paths, Grafton wastes little time identifying this deadly sociopath. The test is whether private investigator Kinsey Millhone can prove her case against him—before she becomes his next victim.
Synopsis: In 1979, four teenage boys from an elite private school sexually assault a fourteen-year-old classmate—and film the attack. Not long after, the tape goes missing and the suspected thief, a fellow classmate, is murdered. In the investigation that follows, one boy turns state’s evidence and two of his peers are convicted. But the ringleader escapes without a trace.
Now, it’s 1989 and one of the perpetrators, Fritz McCabe, has been released from prison. Moody, unrepentant, and angry, he is a virtual prisoner of his ever-watchful parents—until a copy of the missing tape arrives with a ransom demand. That’s when the McCabes call Kinsey Millhone for help. As she is drawn into their family drama, she keeps a watchful eye on Fritz. But he’s not the only one being haunted by the past. A vicious sociopath with a grudge against Millhone may be leaving traces of himself for her to find…
Note: There will NOT be a book Z as author Sue Grafton died in December 2017.
The Songbook of Benny Lament: A Novel
Synopsis: New York, 1960: For Benny Lament, music is his entire life. With his father’s deep ties to the mob, the Bronx piano man has learned that love and family can get you in trouble. So he keeps to himself, writing songs for other musicians, avoiding the spotlight…until the night his father brings him to see Esther Mine sing.
Esther is a petite powerhouse with a gorgeous voice. And when Benny writes a hit song and performs it with her, their collaboration thrusts the duo onto the national stage…and stirs up old issues and new scrutiny that the mob—and Benny—would rather avoid.It would be easier to walk away. But the music and the woman are too hard for the piano man to resist. Benny’s songs and Esther’s vocals are an explosive combination, a sound that fans can’t get enough of. But though America might love the music they make together, some people aren’t ready for Benny Lament and Esther Mine on—or off—the stage.
Watching
NBA Playoffs & Finals
If you know me, you know that I am a sports fan even if my team is not in the post-season. When my team isn’t playing, my job is to root for either the underdog or against a hated team! All Los Angeles team fall into the hated category so I very heartily cheered for the teams playing again the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers. The Clippers went further into the post season than did the Lakers. The Lakers ultimately lost to the Phoenix Suns in the first round. The Clippers beat the Mavericks in the first round of the playoffs and then lost to the Phoenix Suns in the 2nd round.
The finals were the Milwaukee Bucks vs the Phoenix Suns. You would think that I would happily root for the Suns but I was actually rooting for the Bucks. Now, I have nothing against the Suns but I really like a couple of the players on the Bucks plus they had not won a championship in 50 years!! Honestly, I would have been okay with either team winning but in the end the Milwaukee Bucks took home the championship trophy in 6 games. The series was quite exciting with several big leads, several lead changes and games finally ending up within less than a 6 point victory!
Younger-Hulu
I have been watching this series since it started in 2015. It was originally on TV Land until this final season when it moved over to Hulu. The premise of this show is that a recently divorced 40 year old woman ends up lying about her age to get a job in publishing which is notoriously ageist. She says that she is 26 years old. Of course, there are lots of issues that arise including the main character not being social media savvy, running into people from her old life who know that she is NOT 26 years old, and just generally trying to fit into this world that she has not been a part of for over a decade. Complicating issues is that she has an adult daughter that she doesn’t/can’t talk about. Of course, her lie will eventually come out and then it’s a brand new ball game.
The show is really well written and acted. It also takes place in New York City (which is featured a lot) and the fashion is fantastic.
If you haven’t seen it, I definitely think it is worthy of binge watching the entire series.
Listening
Afterglow-Sarah McLachlan
Firecracker-Lisa Loeb
These two albums are old and continue my tradition of listening to more older music than new! These albums are from 2004 & 1997! I tend toward the female singer songwriters including Sara Bareillis, Anna Nalick, and Adele just to name a few. I have tried listening to current tunes but I just don’t care for them. I know I sound like an old, grumpy lady saying that but it’s true. Music is important to me though and I will continue to listen even if it’s to older tunes.
Ledisi-Apple Essentials
I like listening to Apple Essential albums because it generally gives a wide range of popular songs without having to go to each album. Of course, one of the negatives of this is that you might miss out on some great but obscure or not popular song. However, getting a nice cross section from different albums is a plus. And, if it turns out that I like a lot of songs from the same album then I can just download it. This is why I pay the $9.99 every month!! I am that person who will download an entire album for just one song!!
I do need to work on managing my playlists better though.
Do you see anything on this list that intrigues you? Do you have any summer/beach read recommendations? Share in the comments.
