How is everyone’s Sunday going so far? Hopefully you’ve got a day of reading planned ahead or maybe a bit of book browsing at the bookstore? I’m meeting up with a friend later today and have a few errands to run but I do plan to make some headway into the books of the moment. Here’s what I’ve been reading these days:

Sucks to be Me by Kimberly Pauley. Yes, another teen vampire novel is on the scene. In this case Mina’s parents, who are vampires themselves, want her dead. You see, they had been hiding her from the Vampire council but now that the council knows that she knows vampires exist they are asking for her to decide if she wants to become a vampire as well or have her memory erased. And, Mina thought the hardest thing she’d have to decide is what to wear to prom! So far this book is really lighthearted and fun. Quite different in tone from the Stephenie Meyer books but stands up on its own. I should finish with this soon so will have a review coming up.

This Dame for Hire by Sandra Scoppettone. I’ve had this one on my shelves for years I think and when I signed up for the First in the Series challenge I thought it would be a good choice. Why did I wait so long to read this? This mystery is totally grabbing my attention. We’ve got a secretary with a lot of moxie who’s had to step in and run the detective agency she works for when her boss is sent overseas to fight in the big war. I feel like I just stepped into the 1940s New York myself.

Farewell Navigator by Leni Zumas. The stories in this collection are good. Sometimes so good they make me cringe a bit at just all the awkwardness of their protagonists or the situations. I’ve also decided to make this one count as one of my choices for the Short Story challenge so I promise to tell you more about this when I’m done but if you like offbeat I can already tell to you get this book.

The Toss of a Lemon by Padma Viswanathan. For Sivakami, being a widow in a Brahamin household must be difficult. She has no say in her affairs. She is not welcome at weddings because a widow would be a bad omen. She must be made as unattractive as possible because a woman whose husband dies before her is, in some cosmic, karmic way, responsible for his death, and must be contained. While I’m fascinated by Sivakami’s character I feel like much of the story is actually centered on her children and their trials and tribulations. I wish I could read more into Sivakami’s thoughts. Perhaps that’s why this book feels to be dragging a bit.

So those are the books I’m currently reading. I promise to tell you more about them when I finish them. And, how about you, how’s your reading going?

Aside from a biscotti and a hazelnut latte, I really didn’t plan to buy anything at the bookstore but then I saw the latest edition of Poets & Writers magazine and I couldn’t resist.

You know how much I love the poetry of Billy Collins so this issue was a must-have. If you haven’t read any of his poetry, check out this poem.
So, I purchased my magazine, did a bit of book browsing and then it was time to settle down with The Toss of a Lemon. I feel like I’m finally making a bit of headway with this book. It’s big and I’ve got a couple of other books going on so that’s why it’s also taking me a while to finish it.

Before I left the bookstore I picked up the Fall edition of Discover Great New Writers newsletter. I can’t wait to dip into that. Oh my wish list is going to explode.

Anyway, I hope you have a great weekend. I plan to do some reading, bookbinding and maybe I’ll even get my act together and join in the Sunday Salon. For now, it’s time for me to go spend some time with my new magazine.