May 30, 2015

Sunday Salon: Reading in Rainy Weather

Welcome to the Sunday Salon where bloggers share their reading each week. Visit The Sunday Post hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer. Also visit Mailbox Monday 

We're having lots of rain, which is good for the grass and flowers, but which bows down the rambling rose bush already heavy with spring flowers. Early spring is still with us as the temps will drop 30 degrees tonight, from the 80s to the 50s. Just when I thought I could put away blankets and warm clothes!

Good weather for reading, inside or outside when it's warm and dry in the 80s or raining outdoors. I'm so unused to the warm weather and greenery now that I feel as if I'm on vacation somewhere else :)

From the mailbox
From Poisoned Pen Press, two uncorrected proofs for review. 


The Hog's Back Mystery: Inspector French #10 by Freeman Wills Crofts
British Library Crime Classics, to be released July 7, 2015 by Poisoned Pen Press
The Hog’s Back is a ridge in Surrey and the setting for the disappearance of several locals. A doctor vanishes, followed by a nurse with whom he was acquainted, then a third person. Inspector French deduces murder, but there are no bodies. Eventually he is able to prove his theory and show that a fourth murder has been committed.

The American title is 'The Strange Case of Dr Earle'. (publisher)


Antidote to Venom: Inspector French #17 by Freeman Wills Crofts
To be released July 7, 2015; Poisoned Pen Press
In an English city zoo a murderer plans to use snake venom to kill an old professor, hoping to inherit a fortune. In this unusual detective story we are shown the planning of the crime. 

When Inspector French is called in to solve the mystery we learn how an ingenious murder has been committed and follow the actions of the guilty men. (publisher)

From the library:
The Cat Sitter's Whiskers: A Dixie Hemingway Mystery #10 by Blaize and John Clement
Published March 31, 2015; Minbotaur Books
Pet sitter Dixie Hemingway is on the prowl again in the newest installment of Blaize Clement's series of cozy mysteries, now written by her son, John Clement, using Blaize's notes and ideas for future adventures. 

Set in the sleepy beach-side town of Siesta Key, Florida, THE CAT SITTER'S WHISKERS catches up with Dixie as she heads off for work one morning in the dimly lit hours before sunrise. Dixie soon finds herself hopelessly trapped in a murky world of black market antiques, dark-hearted secrets, and murderous revenge… a mystery only she can solve. (publisher)

Currently reading: 
Love May Fail by Matthew Quick, to be released June 16, 2015; Harper
Genre: contemporary fiction
Portia Kane is having a meltdown. After escaping her ritzy Florida life and her cheating pornographer husband, she finds herself back in South Jersey, a place that remains largely unchanged from the years of her unhappy youth. Lost and alone, looking for the goodness she believes still exists in the world, Portia sets off on a quest to save the one man who always believed in her—and in all of his students: her beloved high school English teacher, Mr. Vernon, who has retired broken and alone after a traumatic classroom incident. (publisher)
I am enjoying this one, more than I thought I would. It borders on literary fiction, with lots of references and quotations from literature - Albert Camus, Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, etc. One of the protagonists is an English high school teacher, after all. 

Finished reading:
Accidents of Marriage by Randy Susan Meyers, contemporary fiction
The Strange Library by Haruki Murakami, fantasy
Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave, contemporary fiction
Ming Tea Murder by Laura Childs, mystery
The Third Wife by Lisa Jewell, contemporary fiction
The Lake Season by Hannah Roberts McKinnon, contemporary fiction

What's new on your book shelf?


20 comments:

  1. I like the sound of Love May Fail. Let's see if I can find a copy. Thanks!

    Here's my Sunday Salon!

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    1. Enjoying this and want to read his other books too, Deb Nance.

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  2. Poisoned Pen Press always has good books. Enjoy them and all of your books.

    I hate rain too.

    ENJOY your Sunday.

    Elizabeth
    Silver's Reviews
    My Blog

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    1. More rain today, Elizabeth. It looks lusciously green outside, but I think I'll stay in and read.

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  3. Love the covers of your Poisoned Pen Press editions! It will be a rainy day of reading here, too.

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    1. Still raining, JoAnn. I'm moving furniture around as well as reading.

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  4. I loved Accidents of Marriage, The Lake Season, and The Third Wife. I have Eight Hundred Grapes on my stack of ARCs. Enjoy your week, and here are MY WEEKLY UPDATES


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    1. Lovely set of books for spring reading, Laurel!

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  5. I like the looks of The Hog's Back Mystery and The cat Sitter's Whiskers (nice cover on that one). I know what you mean about the weather, we had hot too end of last week, then it got cold for the weekend. It's starting to clear up now tho- at the end of the weekend. Naturally... :) Have a great week!

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    1. The cat sitter series is one of my favorites, Greg.

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  6. It is extra cozy to read when it's raining! Enjoy your new books, Harvee. They look and sound wonderful.

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    1. The rain has stopped, Suko, but I'm still reading :)

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  7. I'm a big fan of Matthew Quick and need to read Love May Fail soon. Hope you love it!

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    1. I liked most of Love May Fail but think it went on too long, into another story altogether, where it lost me, until the parts came together at the end.

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  8. I bet those Poisoned Pen books are terrific!

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  9. I think The Hog's Back Mystery sounds good!

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  10. I think I have a different Matthew Quick floating around the house somewhere.

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    Replies
    1. Hope you get a chance to read it sometime and tell us about it.

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