It's Monday 9/23! What Are You Reading?

First Day of Fall? HA! It's going up to 90 degrees F here today (again). Where's that lovely cool fall weather so I can enjoy wearing jeans, socks, and sweatshirts and take long walks outside without getting super sweaty? Ugh. Guess I have to stay inside and read...

Not as much reading time as I'd like last week. Somehow, I ended up with a week filled with five medical appointments (two for my father-in-law which also involve driving 20 min each way to pick him up and drop him off, and three for me), 2 book groups, and a huge grocery shopping trip after being away the week before. Because of my chronic illness, I am normally very careful not to schedule so much at once, so I have quiet days at home every week...but not last week! Luckily, I was fully over my bronchitis and feeling pretty good, though I "crashed" by the end of the week. It was HOT here this weekend, but we had a nice, quiet catch-up weekend at home, plus a relaxing Sunday evening to just chill.

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

I am focused on dark fall reading for the RIP 2019 Challenge and am still reading The Outsider by Stephen King. You would think I had enough of these hefty books with my Big Book Summer Challenge, but I had heard great things about this novel from everyone, including my husband. I hadn't read a King novel in a while, but I am enjoying this one very much. The basic premise is that a beloved town coach and father of two is arrested for a horrific crime against a young boy, and the police have loads of forensic evidence proving this man did it. But did he? As with all King novels, this one is completely compelling, keeping me reading too late at night. I am nearing the end now, and I think there is a big showdown between good and evil coming up!

I forgot to mention this last week, but I just finished a middle-grade graphic novel, This Was Our Pact by Ryan Andrews. This was decidedly less creepy than the King novel! It's a very sweet story, with just a hint of spookiness, about a group of boys who make a pact to follow the glowing paper lanterns their town sends down the river every year on the fall equinox. Most of the boys give up, but two of them (one who is an outcast), are committed to their quest. Along the way, they encounter talking animals, astounding sights, and plenty of magic. It's a fun adventure story, but it's also a story of true friendship, as the boys bond over their shared goals.

Now, I have moved onto another graphic novel, Old Souls by Brian McDonald (author) and Les McClaine (illustrator). This one is definitely for adults, not kids, with a dark but enthralling concept. A man who is a husband and father works at the mall and meets an old homeless man in the food court. Without really understanding why, he buys the man lunch every day, until one day, the old man tells him that he was the younger's man's grandmother in a past life in China. He says they were separated when the Japanese attacked and then he (she) was killed, and he has spent this life trying to find his long-lost grandson. The younger man does sometimes have dreams of being a small Chinese boy lost in a crowd. This book is so good and so completely fascinating so far! I read Audrey Rose by Frank De Felitta when I was a teenager and have been captivated by the idea of reincarnation ever since. In fact, this graphic novel is making me want to re-read Audrey Rose - yes, I still have the paperback on my shelf from almost 40 years ago! You hang onto the good ones.

On audio, I finished listening to The One Safe Place by Tania Unsworth, a chilling middle-grade audio book that I downloaded from SYNC this summer. In a near-future drought-stricken world, a boy named Devin makes his way to a nearby city he's never visited. Devin's grandfather has just died, and Devin knows he can't take care of their farm by himself. In the city, he finds loads of other children on their own, scrambling to get by and half-starved. When he and his new friend, Kit, are offered a place at the Gabriel H. Penn Home for Childhood, they are thrilled to find the remote rural compound filled with beautiful private rooms, plentiful food, and every toy a child could ever want. Something seems off about the place, though, and soon Devin discovers a horrifying secret. He must work with his new friends to find them all a way out of this nightmare. It was original and compelling, with a satisfying ending.

Now, I am listening to Miracle Creek by Angie Kim, an audio book I have been looking forward to after hearing so many rave reviews earlier this year. It's about a Korean-American family that runs a business offering hyperbaric oxygen therapy treatments, mostly to children with autism or cerebral palsy but for adults and for other health conditions, too. In the very first chapter, their "submarine" aka oxygen chamber blows up, killing and injuring the patients inside. Chapter 2 jumps right into the court case, months later, though there are flashbacks to each of the characters before the explosion. It's great so far and pulled me right in. I want to know what really happened and more importantly, why.

My husband, Ken, finished reading a gift from me, The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon, a book I had heard great things about since its release in 2014. It's a super-creepy ghost story set in Vermont, with dual timelines. In 1908, a woman named Sara was found dead in the field behind her house, just months after her daughter's death. Now, in present day, nineteen-year-old Ruthie lives in that same farmhouse with her mother and sister. When Ruthie's mother disappears, Ruthie finds an old journal of Sara's hidden in her mother's bedroom. Ruthie begins reading it and also gets sucked into the historical mystery. Can she find her mother in time to stop history from repeating itself? Ken says it is gripping and intriguing, and he read it pretty quickly. Sounds good to me and perfect for fall!

Now, Ken is reading Receptor by Alan Glynn, the sequel to the novel, The Dark Fields, which was the inspiration for the movie Limitless. Oddly, neither of us read the original novel, but we did both watch the movie and the TV show (my review at the link) adapted from it, so we know the general premise and plot and wanted to read this sequel. From what I've read of the description, it is actually more of a prequel, telling about the origins of MDT-48, the "smart drug" at the heart of Limitless. I think Ken is enjoying it so far.

Our 25-year-old son, Jamie, finished a fantasy novel I picked out for him at at Northshire Bookstore during Booktopia: The Magic of Recluce by L.E. Modesitt, Jr., book one of the Saga of Recluce series. He says he had some doubts since there is some technology in this world and guns have been invented (he prefers pre-tech fantasy), but it turned out OK because guns are almost obsolete in this story due to the growth of magic. He thoroughly enjoyed that first book, but he's not sure which book in the series to read next because apparently, they are not in chronological order. Book two seems to be more of a prequel, set 100 years before the first book. I told him I had the same concerns about book 2 of The Passage (The Twelve), which is set 100 years after the first book...but I ended up enjoying that one and the last book of the trilogy.


While he's mulling that over, he switched to a new series on his Kindle, What Remains of Heroes by David Benem, book one of Requiem for Heroes. This is another epic fantasy series - that's what he loves! It sounds like an intriguing set-up, and Jamie is enjoying it so far.


 



Blog posts from the past week:

2019 Big Book Summer Wrap-Up - another fabulous challenge for me and the other participants!

Fiction Review: Only Human by Sylvain Neuvel - final book in The Themis Files trilogy was excellent, with a satisfying ending

Saturday Snapshot: Hudson River Valley - some photo highlights from the first part of our vacation - what a beautiful place!

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.

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

What are you and your family reading this week?