Despite the fact that my reading has slowed down a little and I've felt meh about many books I've started, the books that I've actually read from cover to cover have been great. These three are my recommendations for you this week:
Tomorrow There Will Be Sun by Dana Reinhardt - this might be my first beach book of the season, although it is one that can be enjoyed anytime it is read. I've read Reinhardt's YA novels and enjoyed them, so I was excited to see she had an adult novel coming out. Jenna has planned a 50th birthday trip for her husband and another couple to Puerto Vallarta. The characters aren't really likeable, yet Jenna, as a nearly 50 year old woman, was someone I felt like I could relate to a little. Her teenage daughter, Clem, provided challenges because Jenna wanted to know what was going on in her life, yet Clem wanted privacy. Jenna struggled with her marriage and trusting her husband who worked closely with a beautiful younger woman, and some of her behavior was related to her insecurities. This is very much a character driven novel and even though I don't know that I would be friend with any one of the characters, I was engaged with the story and interested to see how things would resolve.
My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing - Narrated by the husband, we watch a couple try to keep the spark alive in their marriage by killing women together. As the story unfolds we learn about their marriage: how they met and fell in love, and a little about Millicent's childhood and how she was bullied by her sister, Holly. This entire story is crazy with lots of twists and turns. I tore through it and handed it off to my husband who I watched shake his head at nearly every page. There are so many psychological thrillers out there and I've read some that fade quickly from my memory, but My Lovely Wife is one that I'll be remembering for a long time.
The Girls at 17 Swann Street by Yara Zgheib -I haven't read a book about eating disorders in a long time, but it's a topic I've always found fascinating. Most of the novels I have read have been YA, so I was interested to see an adult novel that tackles this subject. Anna was a professional dancer who left Europe with her husband to live in Missouri. Depression and anorexia cause her weight to plummet to just 88 pounds when she finally begins treatment. At Swann Street there are other grown women with eating disorders, all fighting for their lives as they attempt to fight their disease. This is a fast read, and Zgheib does a good job of showing that eating disorders are a mental illness that need attention to overcome.
What have you been reading lately? Any books you'd recommend?
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