I've got this very bad habit of wanting to start reading new books even when I've not yet finished reading something I've been working on (even when I am really enjoying what I'm reading). I'm also 
really good at rationalizing this desire. In the case of Georges Simenon's Bar on the Seine my excuse is it's a Blog a Penguin Classic book. They give you six weeks to read the book and then report back your thoughts on the title that was randomly selected. I lucked out, as not only is the Simenon a slim little paperback, but I've wanted to read him for some time now. He seems like an important mystery writer and I'd like to read broadly in the genre, and especially all the 'must-read' authors. My copy is from the UK, and it looks like the book on the left. The US version, on the right, is much more noir-ish looking. At first I preferred the US cover and was disappointed to get the UK edition, but I have to say it's growing on me. It's a nice compact size and fits easily in the hand.
Simenon wrote something like 70 books over the course of his long writing career. I'm not at all familiar with Inspector Maigret. Has anyone read any of his mysteries? What I do know--he is a French detective. He is married, and in this novel, which is set in Paris in the hot summer month of July (not sure of the year, perhaps the 30s?), Madame Maigret has traveled to Alsace for her yearly visit to her sister. 
She expects Maigret to follow, but won't be surprised when he doesn't show up at the station. He seems to be a bit of a workaholic. I'm hoping that as I read more, his character will fill out. I like having a strong visual image of my protagonist, but I realize I'm not starting with the first Maigret mystery and therefore might be missing out on his back story. I'll save plot descriptions for later, but I have fallen into this story very easily and am curious to know more and keep reading. I love the feeling of place I am getting from this novel. I want to travel to Paris and drink Pernod, though I don't think I'd like the taste (but doesn't it sound very exotic?).
I finally decided to start reading Megan Chance's The Spiritualist. Mostly it was a matter of just picking it up and reading a few pages and it caught my attention, so I'm willing to keep going. Besides the book is set in the upstairs/downstairs world of 1850s New York City, and there are supposed to be elements of the occult and supernatural in the story as well. Why does everything sound so tempting right now? To make matters worse I stopped by the library today to pick up a few more holds. And I have several other miscellaneous books sitting in a little pile by my bed that I've been contemplating starting. Don't be surprised is something else new pops up here in the next few days. The only cure for this chronic condition is finishing a book every now and then, which I'd really like to do sometime soon. I'm working on it anyway.