Summer Reads #1: Sixth Grave on the Edge

A few years ago I started keeping track of the books I read over my summer vacation, just for fun to indulge the book nerd that claims a pretty sizable chunk of my inner residence. This summer, at the suggestion of a few folks, I am going to blog about just some of my reads, mainly because blogging about 20-25 (on average) books would seriously cut into my reading time.

Now, I approach my summer reading with some strategy. I need a mix of genres and titles, required texts and trashy palate cleansers, hard covers and downloads. I never leave the house without a book, which means that I always carry a bag that can fit a book or my Kindle, though my latest phone with the Kindle app works in a pinch. I'm not afraid to read more than one book at a time, especially if one is particularly long, tragic or work-related. I have titles on a reserve list from the library, a fully stocked e-library on my device, and several thrift store finds on my night stand at the ready. My prime reading hours are afternoon rest time and an hour or so after the rest of the house is asleep, though I catch quite a few pages in the backyard or at the park. I am a fast reader, and I never finish a book without starting a few pages of the next one.

My first book of the season was Sixth Grave on the Edge, by Darynda Jones, part of an urban fantasy series about a private investigator who discovers that she is the Grim Reaper and must assist the departed in whatever prevents them from crossing over. Oh, and she has fallen in love with the son of the devil, who is really a good guy despite his demon tendencies. It really is a trashy as it sounds, which is why I started with it to clear away all remnants of in-depth analysis of To Kill a Mockingbird and As I Lay Dying. This book, and series really, is entertaining and easy to read, without too much violence and gore. But it is not among my favorites, a few of which I have listed below.

The urban fantasy and paranormal romance genres are ones I enjoy as pure escapism, but not all books alike, so I put together my own guidelines for what I like to read.

1. Beware of urban fantasy that takes itself too seriously. There should be a bit of irreverence in books about vampires, witches and werewolves.
2.  The alternative world needs to make sense, with consistent rules about how all things magical and mystical work.
3. The characters shouldn't be too quirky and annoying. That really applies to all genres (hello, Janet Evanovich!), and is one of the reasons why this first book was merely okay.
4. Another one that applies to all genres, the main character should not be stupidly impulsive, thinking she is the only person who can solve the problem, which puts her in grave danger that requires a man to come and save her. Again, a problem with this series by Jones.

If you want to read some good, trashy in the best sense of the word books in urban fantasy, try some of these of these:

The Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher
Think private investigator noir with a wizard on the streets in Chicago.

The Hollows series by Kim Harrison
This one is close to my heart, mainly because it is set in my old stomping grounds of Cincinnati.

The Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris
This is the series that the show True Blood is based on, but the books are NOT as dark, bloody or gratuitously sexual as the series!

Let me know if you end up reading any of the books on my list or any of the suggestions above. I love to talk literature, even on my summer break:)

Summer Reads 2014

Finished:
       Sixth Grave on the Edge, by Darynda Jones

Currently Reading:
       Middlesex, by Jeffery Eugenides

Next Read:
       The Good Lord Bird, by James McBride

Rhubarb Pie

It seems like many a time I've started a blog post with some iteration of "I'm back," and this one isn't so different. I'm never really gone you know; it's just a matter of sitting down a putting the words to screen;)

This year has been a dark and difficult one for us. Surgery, unemployment, injury, more injury, a horrific winter as the frosty cherry on top it all. The lessons from it all are pretty universal: pain sucks, losing a job strains a family, the polar vortex is a menace. BUT people are kind and you soon learn who you can really count on to be in your corner and if you're lucky, which we are, you emerge into the light with scars that will eventually fade under the strength of survival.

The light for us is healing with good medical care. The light for us is a new job with old friends. The light for us is a late spring with blossoms near perfection.

And so we have celebrated our gratitude in the warmth of this light, in big and small ways. We threw a "We Survived the Winter" party. We adjusted to a new routine with two working parents. We made a pie with rhubarb fresh from the garden on a sunny afternoon.

I'm sure that there is a whole enduring the sour to appreciate the sweet connection between my pie and the paragraph above, but I'm moving forward from that trope to another theme I always seem to circle back to on this blog: gratitude.  I am so grateful to be moving into the summer with plans for science experiments, new recipes and a full garden. And as I reflect on the joys of renewed joy and energy, I'll try to put the words to the screen when I have the chance.