Friday 10 June 2011

'It's Friday, Friday, gotta get down on Friday...

...Everybody's lookin' forward to the weekend.'

Say what you like about that song, it's seriously catchy. Anyway, every Friday the nice people at Paper Hangover give a blog prompt. This week's prompt is your five best summer reads.

Summer reads conjures up visions of lying on a beach, under a baking hot sun. That's a far way from the weather here which, even for an Irish summer, is disappointing. We've had thunder and lightening this week (twice), hailstones (twice) and rain every day. Still, here are the books I'd recommend for summer.

1.Sophie Kinsella Can You Keep A Secret?


This book is really good fun, and laugh out loud funny. It follows Emma Corrigan, a woman who goes on an airoplane and, thinking that some mid-flight turbulence means that she's going to die, she tells a stranger beside sitting next to her all her secrets. When she survives, she goes into work to find out that the stranger was in fact her boss and he now knows all the things that she keeps secret, like her tactics for skiving off work. Emma goes into damage limitation mode, and ends up tying herself up in more knots. Sophie Kinsella is a fantastic writer, and this is one of my go-to feel-good books.



2. Marian Keyes This Charming Man

Marian Keyes is my favourite women's fiction author, and this is in my opinion her best book. It has her trademark wit throughout, yet deals with a very dark theme in a sympathetic way. I've loved her books ever since I read Rachel's Holiday when I was thirteen. This story is told from multiple points of view, including in an abrupt diary-style from Lola's POV, which you either love or you hate. Can't recommend this book enough.







3. Jodi Picoult My Sister's Keeper


This isn't quite as light as the other's, but it's a great book. I love the way Picoult manages to put over multiple sides of the same story, and can make you see where all her character's are coming from in amazingly difficult situations. Plus, her style of writing is so beautiful it makes me want to cry with envy. Sigh!







4. Richelle Mead Succubus Blues (Georgina Kincaid Series)


I love Richelle Mead. She writes really witty urban fantasy that keeps you reading late into the night to see what happens. Five of the six books in this series have been released, and the sixth book is coming out in August. The premise is that the heroine, Georgina, is a succubus who falls in love with a mortal man. Unfortunately, she can't touch him in case she takes away his soul. Add in some adventure and danger, and you have a great series.



5. Richelle Mead Vampire Academy Series


This is Mead's YA series, and it's excellent. The protagonist has a lot of conflict going on but, unlike some other YA novels, has ambitions outside of her love life which I really like. I have read most of these books in one sitting, they are totally escapist and this series inspired me to write my own YA novels.







What about you, have you any summer book recommendations? Hope everybody has a great weekend :)

13 comments:

  1. I haven't read any of these. Ack!

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  2. Hi Christine - great list!!!

    I love Richelle Mead as well - haven't read her Succubus series yet, but did read all of the VA books. I'm also lucky that she lives here in Seattle and happened to meet her last December for her Last Sacrifice book tour (even sat with her husband for quite awhile and chatted - you'll have to check out my pics on the WB!).

    Anyhow. Looks like some great reads to add to my list!

    Oh and the weather here in Seattle? Not sunny either. Overcast, probably in the mid 50's, and just begging to rain. But just wait, July 5th is just around the corner and that always seems to bring the first day of Summer!

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  3. @Erin: I am so jealous! I love Richelle. I've read her blog for years! I'll definitely check out those pics :)

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  4. I haven't read any of these! Thanks for the recommendation of them as I need some new books to read! It is cold and rainy today after several days of super hot and humid!!

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  5. LOVE Sophie Kinsella! I haven't read that one yet, but it's sitting on my bookshelf! May just crack it open this summer! :)

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  6. Thanks for the list--they all look good! I'll have to add them to my TBR pile. Have a great weekend!

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  7. GREAT list, Christine - thanks! I haven't read a lot of these, so I can add them to my list :)

    I"m reading The Girl in The Steel Corset at the moment - salacious, bodice-ripping fun!

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  8. Ever since the Vampire Academy series book got banned by school libraries before it was written I've been wanting to read it! Thanks for the reminder!

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  9. Oooh! I love Sophie Kinsella! Have you read her latest "Twenties Girl"? Really well done.
    Thanks for the other suggestions :) I hear many people were disappointing with the film rendition of "My Sister's Keeper". Did you see it?

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  10. I lurve Kinsella's books. She has some of the best examples of voice around, IMO.

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  11. I've heard a lot of recommendations for Marian Keyes...I'll have to check her out!

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  12. I haven't had much time for reading for a while, but I'm looking to get back into it. Maybe I'll check some of these out!

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  13. Let's hear it for banned books!

    I'm digging into the past for first pass at summer reading ...my choice is Rebecca West's This Real Night (follow up to The Fountain Overflows).

    I loved E. Nesbit as a child, and West strikes me in this trilogy as E. Nesbit for grownups. Is anyone here a Nesbit fan?

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