I didn’t think I had read too much this month but now that it’s time to take a look at my finished books, I’m pleasantly surprised to say I finished seven. I had a really great reading month despite the fact that I’ve also been pretty busy with my job search, family stuff and you know, life.

Here’s what I read: The Child by Fiona Barton, Notes from a Public Typewriter by Michael Gustafson & Oliver Uberti, The Widows of Malabar Hill by Sujata Massey, Murder on Union Square by Victoria Thompson, Woman Last Seen in Her Thirties by Camille Pagan, This Could Hurt by Jillian Medoff and Seeing People Off by Jana Benova.

Mystery, non-fiction, fiction and fiction in translation. I loved the variety of books and my two standouts were Notes from a Public Typewriter and This Could Hurt. I hope I can tell you more about these soon but if you have these books on your shelf or radar, make sure to move them up on the list.

I have another book I’m almost done with but I don’t think I’ll get to finish it tonight.

As far as next month is concerned I think I’m ready to read books set in cold places. Our temperatures are already going to be the 100s. Needless to say, for me my hiking shoes and bike are put away until October. Ha.

Anyway, that’s a wrap for May. Now to see what good books June will bring. Hope you guys have a great weekend and more book talk soon!

I hope you’ve all had a wonderful weekend. I celebrated a big birthday (50!) on Friday so we decided to take a little trip. We spent a couple of days in Bastrop and went for a nice hike in Bastrop State Park on Saturday. Several years ago about 96% of the park was affected by wildfires but due to all the conservation efforts there are lots of signs of re-growth. I loved encountering different wildflowers and loved seeing/hearing so many birds. Of course by the time we were done with our three hour hike we were desperately in need of A/C and cold water. It is hot in Texas already.

But moving on to the books. I’ve been meaning to tell you about these books that arrived in my mailbox. I am excited about these and think I’ll enjoy them.

Everything That Follows by Meg Little Reilly. A novel of moral complexity about friends who must choose between self-preservation and doing the right thing in the wake of a fatal boating accident. Set in the moody off-season of Martha’s Vineyard. If you are going to a beach this summer this might be the book to take with you. I won’t be going to a beach but I can dream with this setting right?

In the Distance With You by Carla Guelfenbein. Vera Sigall, now eighty years old, has lived a mysterious, ascetic life far from the limelight of literary circles. This powerful character has a profound effect on those around her. Spanning from modern-day Chile to the 1950s, ’60s and through the years of the Pinochet dictatorship, the novel reveals successive mysteries and discoveries.

The Crossing by Jason Mott. Twins Virginia and Tommy have been on their own since they were orphaned at the age of five, surviving a merciless foster care system by relying on each other. Twelve years later, the world begins to collapse around them as a deadly contagion steadily wipes out entire populations and a devastating world war rages on.

Very different books but all three sound interesting. What do you think?