Lately a number of my reading selections have been guided less by my own choice and more by a couple of book groups I belong to. While I love the groups and especially the members whose enthusiasm for reading is very infectious, I do feel like I have wandered away from the books I most feel like reading.
A friend asked if I had a summer reading project in the works, which in previous years I have planned and looked forward to enormously. I had not given it much thought this year, however. I have been feeling limited in my reading time, and as a slow reader in general, book club books (some I have really enjoyed and others less so) take away from my own reading piles. I think I am going on hiatus from the book groups this summer and going to indulge in a very loosely themed (and rather last moment) summer reading project.
I think it is time to get back to my favorite genre--mysteries and thrillers. Some of these are authors or books I have long had on my shelves. Some are newish releases and some are older authors just discovered. In any case mysteries seem the perfect distraction this summer. I love a good puzzle. Some of the books are not straightforward puzzles/mysteries, I think all of them will fit nicely into the psychological realm.
Search the Shadows, Barbara Michaels -- "Abandoning her carefully planned future, Haskell Maloney seeks the truth behind her past: Who is her real father? Was her mother's fatal car crash really an accident? Her search leads her to the study of Egyptology, where watching from the shadows of a cold museum, a ruthless killer waits to strike."
Lonely Hearts, John Harvey -- "In this detective story two women are murdered after having a blind date with a man contacted through the personal column in the local paper. Inspector Resnick soon discovers that the likely murderer is an academic at the university who follows him and his girlfriend to the most unlikely places."
Goodnight, Irene, Jan Burke -- "When a fellow reporter is blown up while investigating an unsolved murder from 1955, Irene Kelly is determined to solve the mystery despite the threat of death."
The Hours Before Dawn, Celia Fremlin -- Virago Modern Classic! "This novel, one of the "Virago Crime Classics", combines humour with a look at the danger and suspense in the tyranny of motherhood. It also explores the redeeming power of love."
Rock, Paper, Scissors, Alice Feeney -- "Things have been wrong with Mr and Mrs Wright for a long time. When Adam and Amelia win a weekend away to Scotland, it might be just what their marriage needs. Self-confessed workaholic and screenwriter Adam Wright has lived with face blindness his whole life. He can't recognize friends or family, or even his own wife.Every anniversary the couple exchange traditional gifts--paper, cotton, pottery, tin--and each year Adam's wife writes him a letter that she never lets him read. Until now. They both know this weekend will make or break their marriage, but they didn't randomly win this trip. One of them is lying, and someone doesn't want them to live happily ever after.Ten years of marriage. Ten years of secrets. And an anniversary they will never forget."
Cecile is Dead, Georges Simenon -- "In the dreary suburbs of Paris, the merciless greed of a seemingly respectable woman is unearthed by her long suffering niece, and Maigret discovers the far-reaching consequences of their actions."
Signs of Life, Anna Raverat -- "Ten years ago, Rachel had an affair. It left her life in pieces. Now, writing at her window, she tries to put those pieces together again. She has her memories, recollections of dreams, and her old yellow notebook. More than anything, she wants to be honest. Rachel knows that her memory is patchy and her notebook incomplete. But there is something else. Something terrible happened to her lover. Her account is hypnotic, delicate, disquieting and bold. But is she telling us the truth?"
The Lamplighters, Emma Stonex --"Inspired by a haunting true story, a gorgeous and atmospheric novel about the mysterious disappearance of three lighthouse keepers from a remote tower miles from the Cornish coast--and about the wives who were left behind."
The King of Fools, Frederic Dard -- "A fiendish tale of passion, betrayal, and murder in Edinburgh, Scotland--from the master of French noir."
Strong Poison, Dorothy L. Sayers -- "The classic mystery that first featured Harriet Vane, companion sleuth to the dashing, perennially popular private investigator, Lord Peter Wimsey, from the mystery writer widely considered the greatest mystery novelist of the Golden Age."
The Heights, Louise Candlish -- "The Heights is a tall, slender apartment building among warehouses in London. Its roof terrace is so discreet, you wouldn't know it existed if you weren't standing at the window of the flat directly opposite. But you are. And that's when you see a man up there--a man you'd recognize anywhere. He may be older now, but it's definitely him.But that can't be because he's been dead for over two years. You know this for a fact.Because you're the one who killed him."
Nightshift, Kiare Ladner -- "A riveting debut novel of complex female friendship and obsession, following one young woman's decision to abandon her normal life and join the otherworldly, nocturnal existence of London's nightshift workers."
Not shown (am waiting for my copy to come in the mail) A Tidy Ending, Joanna Cannon -- "Linda lives on a nice, normal street.
She has a nice, normal husband and a nice, normal life. But Linda isn't entirely satisfied. And then the murders start."
A proper baker's dozen of very enticing reads. I always dream big with books, so my pile is larger than what I can realistically read. My goal is to read 6-7 over the course of the summer. I am starting with Nightshift, which I was so excited to get months ago!