Two More Vacation Reads

As I mentioned in a previous post, we didn't do tons of sightseeing or activities on our vacation, but I did get some leisure reading done, and that made me happy.

I had read Julie Kramer's first book in a new mystery series, Stalking Susan, last year and thoroughly enjoyed it. This series is set in Minnesota, a locale I always enjoy reading about because of its familiarity, and the mystery was suspenseful and hard to put down. Kramer's latest book, Missing Mark, is equally as engaging as the first in the series. It always takes me a minute or two to remember where the last book left off, but after a brief refresher I quickly was able to take up with Riley, the television reporter who happens to have a penchant for locating dead bodies. In this latest installment Riley is looking for a good story to raise viewer numbers and is interested in the story of the bride who is selling her wedding dress without ever getting to wear it. Turns out the groom to be has gone missing and with that Riley is off and running on her next mystery.

The Penny Pincher's Club by Sarah Strohmeyer was another vacation read that I found light and fun, yet with a bit of a message at the same time. I am familiar with Strohmeyer's work because I have read some of her "Bubbles" mystery series, a fun Janet Evanovich-ish series about a hairdresser detective. The Penny Pincher's Club follows Kat, a forty-something housewife with a penchant for shopping. When she comes across an email from her college professor husband's research assistant indicating the two of them are having an affair and he will be leaving her in a few short months, she realizes she has to get her finances in order - especially after she realizes how much a divorce costs. So, Kat, for the first time in her life becomes frugal. She joins the Rock River Penny Pincher's Club which teaches her a lot about finance and becoming fiscally responsible for her spending. Strohmeyer also adds a bit more to the story by bringing in Liam, Kat's ex-fiancee, who is a millionaire and could offer Kat some security for her future. I know this book was just a fun read, but there's a lot of truth to Strohmeyer's story and perhaps in our current economic situation many of us could learn a little from Kat.