Who doesn’t love a good Laura Lippman?! After I’m Gone was a good one. Gripping and fast, I was through it in two days. While it wasn’t my favorite of her books, I did enjoy it and it was great for the beach. My reviews are getting shorter and shorter as I read more and more at the beach. With this trip nearing an end, I suspect I won’t be getting through as much material. It’s been nice while it lasted!

Well. I don’t know where this recommendation came from, but I am glad I found this book at the library last week. I don’t think that it otherwise would have risen to the top of my list, but, boy am I glad I grabbed it. A fast-paced thriller was just what I needed to speed me through. I read this in about a 10 hour period. I loved it. A great, hair-raising tale, I couldn’t stop reading until I had found out what happened. And, I couldn’t have figured out all the (ridiculous) plot twists if I had tried. A super beach read, I highly recommend for a fun and quick summer choice.

I plowed through At the Bottom of Everything by Ben Dolnick. It was a compelling story, but I felt like I had read a similar story before. Thomas wasn’t a character I liked and I never really did feel like I understood why Thomas and Adam were friends, but it was a quick and satisfying read. Good for the beach.

I read a number of positive reviews of Alena by Rachel Pastan. It was on the shelf at the library, so I eagerly grabbed it. Unfortunately, the best part of this book was the cover. Those lovely paint swatches feel like real paint. Otherwise, I found the book lacking. It was tedious to get through until the last 50 pages where all the action happened. I liked finding out what had happened to Alena (who mysteriously disappears before the book begins), but I could have left this one on the shelf. Here’s hoping that the next selection is better.

Well, I gave this one a few days and about 1/3 of the way into it, I said, forget it. Big Brother by Lionel Shriver has an interesting premise – sister sees her brother for the first time after a few years and he has gained 100s of pounds. She and her husband are becoming increasingly estranged and the large brother wedges them apart even further. I just couldn’t get into this book and it took too long for the explanation for the enormous weight gain to happen. While I wanted to find out, summer’s too short and I didn’t care enough to continue. It’s not that surprising, at the end of the day, since I also gave up on Shriver’s We Need to Talk About Kevin. So, onto the next one, Alena…

I was so excited to find a bunch of books on my “to read” list at the little library in Kill Devil Hills, NC. Small town libraries are so much fun and so nice when out of towners don’t know about them. I thoroughly enjoyed Loving Frank and was excited to read Under the Wide and Starry Sky, the newest book by Nancy Horan. I fell immediately into this story. I suspect that, if I had read it during the school year, at home, I might have abandoned this one. Not that the story wasn’t fascinating, and not that it wasn’t well-written, but because it was a bit long and dragged in parts. However, being at the beach and having more devoted time to read both at night and during the day, I thoroughly enjoyed this book about Robert Louis Stevenson. Like Loving Frank, it provided a fascinating glimpse into the life of a man I knew very little about. I recommend this one if you have time on your hands. It’s a good one.

My book group recently chose The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown. I was excited that it was immediately available at the library. And, halfway through, I was glad I hadn’t paid anything for it. I slogged through most of the story. The characters weren’t very likable and I couldn’t really figure out why they didn’t like each other either. In the last 25%, however, it picked up and I found myself wanting to find out what was going to happen to the girls and their mother. It got better, but not better enough for me to recommend it. Perhaps it’s because I’m an only child and I can’t quite get the sibling thing. But, even with that, the story was just lacking. I didn’t care enough and it was painful to get to the end.

I was excited to read Sweet Water by Christina Baker Kline, because I had so loved Orphan Train. But, it was as if these two books were written by entirely different people. Sweet Water was trite, simplistic, and predictable. And, the mystery was not even that interesting once you found out what it was. The characters weren’t well developed, and there was a great deal missing in this story, which had potential, but fell flat. I had to reread the last pages twice and then I was convinced that there was something wrong with my Kindle since it ended so abruptly – it seemed like a mistake. I wouldn’t bother with this selection or I would save it as a beach read. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

When I Found You was a great read. It was quick and didn’t require much mental energy. Just what I was looking for at the end of a busy school year. The other nice thing was that this title was only $3.99 from the Kindle store or free for Amazon Prime members. Can’t beat that. Was it predictable? A little. Could it be sappy and a little too neatly tied up at the end? Yes, but it was just right for this time for me and I enjoyed the premise and the characters (mostly). I would recommend if you are looking for something not too deep or something for the beach.

I received a free excerpt of The Storied Life of A J Fikry and read it in the dentist’s office. And, I was hooked. This was a wonderful story, filled with good characters, who I liked, and a great storyline. I thoroughly enjoyed it and would highly recommend it. It’s nothing deep, but it’s a delightful story about a bookstore and the people who surround it. A real treat is found on these pages.