Monday Mini-Reviews: My May Of Little Reading

This May may go down as the month I read the least in decades.  There is so much going on at the end of the school year with my own crazy school schedule and then my daughters' activities as well, that I have had little time to read. When I do have a free moment, I find myself not feeling at all like picking up a book, which is a little out of the norm as well. I am just exhausted.  

However, I am still reading, just slowly. And because last Monday I reviewed the new Mary Kay Andrews book and the week before that I posted my blast from the past from May 2008, I have a few titles I can still share. 

Under the Table by Stephanie Evanovich is a fun, quick romance.  There's nothing too thought provoking in this novel, but I still enjoyed it.  Zoey has moved to NYC, leaving behind her jerk of a husband as she works on what she wants for her future.  She begins catering for some dinners and meets Tristan Malloy, a wealthy bachelor who is the definition of nerd. With Zoey's help Tristan has a makeover, which perhaps works too well considering Zoey is interested in him now as well.  I'm OK with a little predictability in stories and there weren't any huge surprises, yet I found it entirely enjoyable.

Miracle Creek by Angie Kim - I've seen a lot about this book and finally curled up with it myself.  I loved every single page.  Told in the viewpoint of various characters, an immigrant family has come from South Korea to make a better life for themselves.  Pak, the patriarch, runs an experimental medical treatment device that provides pure oxygen to patients who go for "dives" in the hopes that a variety of conditions such as autism and infertility can be cured. 
The device explodes killing two of its patients and the mother of the deceased child is put on trial for murder, yet it seems no one is telling the truth and there is plenty of evidence pointing in many directions. This book is so good.  It reminded me a bit of Midwives by Chris Bohjalian, and I am going to press this into the hands of many friends.

How Not To Die Alone by Richard Roper - I have been hearing a lot about the revival of the rom com lately and this book is one example that the rom com is alive and well.  Andrew's day job involves helping find the families of people who have died alone.  His own personal life is also lonely, although his co-workers believe Andrew to be a happily married father of two. Long ago Andrew lied during his interview about his personal life and over the years he has worked at his job, the lie has continued to grow.  However, it's getting harder to keep this facade going and when Peggy is hired, Andrew begins to come alive a little more and wish that he and Peggy could perhaps try to have a relationship. This one fits nicely into the rom com genre. I loved Andrew, despite his lies and insecurities.  Anyone looking for a good story and lovable characters should pick this one up.

Hopefully I'll find a little more reading time in the near future.  No guarantees, though, until school is out.  13 more days with kids!