# Summer 2015 'Beach Read' Bonanza



## kchaystack (Jun 16, 2015)

SO this comment by DeeAnna got me thinking: What are my soapy friends reading?  

Other than FO descriptions, swirl techniques on blogs, and MSDS sheets. 



			
				DeeAnna said:
			
		

> Susie -- No, I'm reading a series by J.R. Rain. The main character is Samantha Moon, vampire private eye for hire. I'm on book 10 of 10, so I might look up the Hamilton book you mentioned.



Oh the LK Hamilton Anita Blake books.  They started out SO GOOD! 

But by book 7 or 8...  it seemed that the trash factor shot way up.  There are more than 20 in the series now...  but I have not read them in years.

There is also her Meredith Gentry books.  Those are more about the fae, and they started out REALLY trashy.  But, I must confess - I liked them.


I am currently waiting for the new Raven's Shadow book by Anthony Ryan to come out in July.  I also am looking forward to a new series by Jim Butcher who writes the Dresden Files. I just finished the latest book my Marie Brennan.


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## snappyllama (Jun 16, 2015)

I'm reading "A Son of the Circus" by John Irving.  I must have missed it when it came out years ago...


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## dixiedragon (Jun 16, 2015)

Anita Blake is great up through Obsidian Butterfly. After that it's all plot holes and very lame smut.

In the vein of urban fantasy:
ML Hanover (first one Unclean Spirits)
Jim Butcher (Dresden Files - #1 Storm Front)
Darynda Jones (#1 First Grave on the right)


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## Seawolfe (Jun 17, 2015)

The southern vampire series by Charlain Harris - the books that True Blood is based on. Helped me survive 2 weeks crossing the Pacific


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## not_ally (Jun 17, 2015)

I really like the True Blood books, too, Sea.  It was sad to say goodbye to Sookie etal after the last one.  Weird how you get attached to fictional characters.


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## topofmurrayhill (Jul 2, 2015)

not_ally said:


> I really like the True Blood books, too, Sea.  It was sad to say goodbye to Sookie etal after the last one.  Weird how you get attached to fictional characters.



I burst into flames in the sunlight. Just sayin'.


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## not_ally (Jul 2, 2015)

As long as you don't burst into sparkles, it's all good.  Although I think you might miss that reference, TOMH, you don't seem like you would be a Twilight fan 

I was going to make up a reading list and stagger you all with my erudition, but honesty got the better of me.  Plus I could imagine the eye rolling.  In truth, since starting to make soap, I do that instead of reading.  I am going to have to find a balance, though, I miss my Kindle.

I have Eleventy Leven posts (oh, I guess times ten)!  Ok, my fellow geeky readers, whose birthday celebration does that remind you of?


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## Viore (Jul 2, 2015)

I'm halfway through Dante's Divine Comedy but I haven't picked it up in a while, and my goal is to read the third Percy Jackson series before the 4th series starts in October. Did I mention I work in a children's school library?  I "borrowed" the Percy Jackson series over summer to finish reading, but I don't think I'll have enough time now.

On my kindle I'm reading The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, by one of the Bronte sisters.


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## Susie (Jul 2, 2015)

Someone on here suggested Faith Hunter's Jane Yellowrock series.  It is awesome!  

I also enjoy all of Ilona Andrews' series.  

Devon Monk has a series that is sadly undersold.  It really is a great series, but someone(publisher? agent?) is just not getting her name out there.  If you are a fan of urban fantasy, you would be doing yourself a favor picking up that series.(No, that is not me.  Nor do I know the author personally.)


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## dixiedragon (Jul 2, 2015)

I've read the Devon Monk series. I found her idea interesting, but I don't think she did enough world building in her own mind, so when she started writing she has these gaps. Her magic system definitely needs work - it's a neat idea, but it needs work. I also felt like each book was sort of the same, and the questions/problems presented in the first book never really got resolved.


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## Obsidian (Jul 2, 2015)

Has anyone read the necroscope series by Brian Lumley? They are a completely different kind of vampire story, no pretty boy romances here. I'm also a huge fan of  Piers Anthony and Dean Koontz.


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## Dorymae (Jul 2, 2015)

I read a lot of fantasy books, anything with magic, dragons, fairies, elves, dwarves, etc. 

I recommend anything by Mercedes Lackey and also a recent series I read by Morgan Rice (the sorcerers ring). She also wrote a vampire series I have not yet read.


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## IrishLass (Jul 2, 2015)

I'm pretty boring- I pretty much stick to non-fiction for the most part, except for the occasional old classic every now and then (e.g., the Bronte sisters, Mark Twain, Tolkien, CS Lewis, etc...).

I just finished reading Cary Elwes's book entitled, 'As You Wish', about his experiences during the filming of 'The Princess Bride' (a very entertaining read, btw). Next on my list is Mark Twain's 'Roughing It', a semi-autobiography about his experiences travelling all over the US in his younger years. 


IrishLass


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## SplendorSoaps (Jul 2, 2015)

I'm on the 7th (of 8 ) Outlander books by Diana Gabaldon. They made a show out of it that's on Starz right now. The show is good, but the books are absolutely incredible. I'd HIGHLY recommend reading them, although beware that the rest of your life might take a back seat as you become immersed in the story! The series has romance, historical fiction, battles, family drama, fantasy, you name it.


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## Susie (Jul 2, 2015)

IrishLass said:


> Next on my list is Mark Twain's 'Roughing It', a semi-autobiography about his experiences travelling all over the US in his younger years.
> 
> 
> IrishLass



My husband is reading that, and I just downloaded it to my Kindle.  Y'all do know that there are LOTS of old(but awesome) books that are free on Kindle, right?


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## lizard1232 (Jul 6, 2015)

Obsidian said:


> Has anyone read the necroscope series by Brian Lumley? They are a completely different kind of vampire story, no pretty boy romances here. I'm also a huge fan of  Piers Anthony and Dean Koontz.



YES! I love this series.


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## lizard1232 (Jul 6, 2015)

If you have a kindle or the app, the _Bitterwood_ trilogy is interesting and has all sorts of unexpected things going on in it. The whole trilogy is available for less than 5 bucks and I couldn't put it down because I had to find out what was going to show up next. It's a fantasy/sci-fi/theology theme, but in a completely unexpected way.


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## jcandleattic (Jul 6, 2015)

Susie said:


> My husband is reading that, and I just downloaded it to my Kindle.  Y'all do know that there are LOTS of old(but awesome) books that are free on Kindle, right?



YES!! And new ones come out on the top 100 list every Tuesday (or at least they used to, I haven't really looked in a long time) My book list - aka spreadsheet - got out of control and too  hard to keep track of once it hit twelve thousand books. LMAO YES 12K books - not all ebooks, but all my books compiled in one comprehensive - sort of - list.

Right now I'm in the middle of the 4th Game of Thrones book, and honestly, I'm bored with it. The first 3 were GREAT, but this 4th one, well, it's taken me more than 2 months to just read half of it. (It only took me a month to read the first 3 total) 
I think I'm going to start the Outlander series after this, and then I'm not sure. There are a couple Rick Riorden books I might want to read. We'll see...


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## kchaystack (Jul 6, 2015)

I have been watching the Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell mini series on BBC America, so I will have to read that soon.  I also have really enjoyed Melissa Scott's Lynes and Mathey series - another setting in Victorian England with magic.  

The Game of Thrones books...  sigh.  I so want to love them dearly.  But I am scared that dear old Mr. Martin hates his own characters.  Or loves to upset his fans by killing off their favorite character.  I do love the Wild Cards books he edits.  But I think I have suffered my last heartbreak from him.


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## jcandleattic (Jul 6, 2015)

kchaystack said:


> I have been watching the Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell mini series on BBC America, so I will have to read that soon.  I also have really enjoyed Melissa Scott's Lynes and Mathey series - another setting in Victorian England with magic.
> 
> The Game of Thrones books...  sigh.  I so want to love them dearly.  But I am scared that dear old Mr. Martin hates his own characters.  Or loves to upset his fans by killing off their favorite character.  I do love the Wild Cards books he edits.  But I think I have suffered my last heartbreak from him.



I have the BBC mini series DVR'd, but haven't started watching it yet. 

GoT - it is NOTHING like the shows, so don't judge off that. The first season is close, but after that, they veer off so much that it hardly resembles the books at all. 
For me at least, so far, there has only been 2 - maybe 3 characters that I liked enough to say "oh no, not them" when they perished. But that could just be me...


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## shunt2011 (Jul 6, 2015)

I love to read and read a lot. I read 3 books over the 4 days I just had off. I love murder mysteries with a little sex thrown in.


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## cm4bleenmb (Jul 7, 2015)

My mother always used to say that once I learned to talk I didn't shut up until I learned to read, and then she couldn't get my nose out of a book. I will read just about anything if it looks interesting but I tend towards fiction. I was a fan of fantasy before it was cool (I was in 6th grade when I read Bram Stoker's Dracula) but lately I'm feeling that the whole fairies/witches/vampires/werewolves thing is being done to excess.

I've actually run across some pretty decent stuff through the freebies on Bookbub. I've also hit some real duds. I used to have this thing where I _had_ to finish it once I started, but life is too short to read bad books.:smile:

I've recently finished the Fever series by Karen Marie Moning--I am in love with her writng style. I just downloaded a free collection of books by Mary Shelley (of Frankenstein fame) to my Kindle. I started The Bonfire of the Vanities but I'm not sure I'll stick with it. A Prayer for Owen Meany is on my bedstand, although now I can't remember who recommended it--or why. And I'm reading some soap making book from 1902 that I found because DeeAnna linked it in a comment on a website that someone referenced in a thread here. LOL


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## dillsandwitch (Aug 23, 2015)

A few of my lastest reads are  the Black Dagger Brotherhood series, Midnight Breed series, Tarien Soul series and being the geek I am, the EDA books of Doctor Who. I tried to read the Anita Blake series but got bored somewhere in the 8th or 9th book. My brain melted and dribbled out of my ears halfway through the second book of ice and fire series. I'd like to try it again but am way to busy for such an involved read. one day. maybe


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## DeeAnna (Aug 25, 2015)

Okay, I've downloaded the first four Outlander books for my kindle tonight. I'm starting into my very busy time of year (now through Christmas) and I'm going to be tired a lot and will often feel overwhelmed with the press of work and deadlines. I need an escape from reality as a reward, and I think I've found it. You guys are enablers ... enablers, I say! And I thank you for it!


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