It's Monday 4/30! What Are You Reading?

Whoa. How did it get to be the end of April already? And the temperature was in the 30's this morning! Of course, the forecast says we'll be close to 90 by the end of the week, so I guess April was still winter, and May will be summer - what happened to spring?

OK, enough weather ranting. Last week was a good productive week. I got lots of writing done - both here on the blog and for my freelance work. I was catching up after our vacation and also getting ready for another trip this week. I will be driving to Vermont at the end of the week for Booktopia 2018! It's an amazing book event that my mom and I enjoy most years, when we can manage it - there's still time to sign up, if you want to join the fun! I can't wait to spend time with my mom, see our old friends from previous Booktopias, meet the authors and spend time with them...and talk books ALL weekend!

Here's what we've all been reading at our house this past week:

• I finished The Anatomy of a Miracle by Jonathan Miles, a Booktopia selection. It's a novel written as if it were an in-depth investigative report of a true story, about a young man on the Mississippi Gulf Coast who was paralyzed in Afghanistan and suddenly just stands up from his wheelchair and walks. The book delves into many different aspects of the story - his doctor at the VA, the Catholic church's investigation into whether this constitutes a miracle, a reality TV show made about him, and the backstory of his life before. It was completely unique and very good - insightful and funny, about what it means to live in our modern world.
• Now, I am reading another Booktopia book, All the Beautiful Lies by Peter Swanson. I chose this mystery/suspense novel next because I was in the mood for something fast-paced - and this really fit the bill! I have been staying up way too late each night reading this story about a recent college graduate who returns to his hometown in Maine when his father dies only to find his much-younger stepmother coming onto him and a mysterious young woman wandering around town who seems to be involved somehow. The lies and secrets pile up in this suspenseful and somewhat creepy novel. I hope to finish it today - it's been a fast, compelling read!
• My husband and I finished listening to The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn, which we started on our road trip. It's sort of a modern version of the Hitchcock movie Rear Window. In this case, it features a woman named Anna with agoraphobia who hasn't left her house in 11 months. She amuses herself in part by watching her neighbors from her window, and one day she sees a horrible crime. She tries to report it to the police, but the people involved deny it happened and no one believes her, due to her unstable mental condition, loads of medications, and a heavy drinking habit. Lots of suspense over whether it really happened or not! We enjoyed it, and it kept surprising us.
• Now, I am listening to a middle-grade audio book, Posted by John David Anderson, about a middle school that bans cell phones. A boy nicknamed Frost and his three misfit friends start a trend of using sticky notes to communicate, and a new girl named Rose changes things for all of them. So far, it's warm and funny and very enjoyable.
• My husband, Ken, is reading a novel I gave him for Easter (books for all occasions here!), Fifty Mice by Daniel Pyne. It's a thriller with an intriguing plot: a man has been put into Witness Protection and moved to a community on Catalina Island in CA, but he doesn't remember what dangerous information he knows.
• Our son, Jamie, 23, is still reading the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. He is on book 7, A Crown of Swords. He loves this epic fantasy series. He has been slammed with make-up work and job hunting, but he has less than a month to go to graduation!

Blog posts from last week - a catch-up week!

TV Tuesday: Good Girls - a fun new show about 3 suburban moms who become criminals to save their families

Fiction Review: The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn- suspenseful psychological thriller

FREE Audiobooks - SYNC Summer 2018 Begins! - free audiobooks all summer - still time today to grab the two for week 1!

Fiction Review: Anatomy of a Miracle by Jonathan Miles - a unique, intriguing, funny novel about a possible miracle

Two Recent Travel Articles - links to two travel articles I wrote that were recently published

Saturday Snapshot: Southeastern Virginia in Spring - highlights from our recent trip

What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.


What are you and your family reading this week?  

You can follow me on Twitter at @SueBookByBook or on Facebook on my blog's page.  

I'm missing those lazy vacation days with plenty of reading time!