My (indoor) Beach Read Book Haul!

I know that the term “beach read” has its positive and negative meanings but in this case, my definition of this well worn phrase simply refers to relaxing books during the heat of summer.

Speaking of heat, it was a thrill to discover that Book of the Month Club chose S.A. Cosby’s latest thriller King of Ashes as a main selection for June! Having skipped May, this was a great surprise for my summer reading pile.

We are introduced to Roman, the eldest son who goes home to his family upon learning that his father was in a serious car accident that landed him in a coma. Once there, he quickly discovers that this wasn’t an accident, due to his younger brother Dante owing a huge debt to some local bad guys.

As it turns out, money isn’t enough to keep his family out of trouble so Roman decides to offer his talents at making financial fortunes for others to the underworld figures after Dante. 

Motivated by not only protecting his brother but his sister Neveah(who is looking into another family mystery)as well , Roman is a lot tough than his new clients realize and that’s to their disadvantage, not his!

I throughly enjoyed Cosby’s Razorblade Tears and have no doubt that this novel will be an awesome page turning ride to take. His last book, All the Sinners Bleed, is being made into a movie as we speak and surely someone will turn this one into the epic cinematic drama that it deserves to be:

Fortunately, I was able to pair KOA with the follow-up to A Fate Inked in Blood, Danielle L. Jensen’s A Curse Carved in Bone.

Reluctant shield maiden Freya must deal with not only the betrayal by Bjorn(the son of the ambitious king she was forced to marry) but the prophecy that shoves her towards a blood soaked destiny.

Forming an unlikely alliance in order to find the seer who marked her for divine power, Freya is determined to make her own path yet knows that brutal measures may have to be taken. Plus, her heart still yearns for Bjorn but should she love or trust him at all?

This is the second  half of a duology so while I am glad to get the full action packed story , I hope this isn’t the last we see of Freya. Jensen knows how to pump up the volume on the romance as well as the adventure elements of her work , making her leading lady a warrior queen worth watching out for:

After those books arrived (along with an Ali Hazelwood that I haven’t gotten to yet), I struck gold at the library by finding a book that I have been wanting to read for some time now.

The House of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson follows two young women in the 1950s , starting with Ruby, who has her heart set on becoming a doctor. Upon being kicked out of her mother’s house, she stays with her Aunt Marie while pursuing an opportunity to get a college scholarship.

However, an unexpected romance with Shimmy, the son of her aunt’s landlord puts a few obstacles in that career path  for Ruby with society‘s bigoted views on interracial relationships for one. An unplanned pregnancy is another that leads to some terrible times for her.

Our other heroine is Eleanor, already enrolled at Howard University and studying to be an archivist at the school’s library. When she falls in love with William , a handsome medical student, her future feels bright indeed.

His family has other ideas about who William should be with, especially since the difference in social class and race between Eleanor and William is strongly noticeable. Nevertheless, she is determined to make her life with him but at what emotional cost?

This novel was a Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick, which put it on my radar but the solid word of mouth praise this book has received from readers is what makes me want to dive into this swirl of storytelling voices that creates an impression of what the world is like for women of color in America both then and now:

I was really in the mood for historical fiction that day because the next book that caught my eye on the library shelf was Diva by Daisy Goodwin, a look at the love life of famed singer Maria Callas.

She was at the height of her career when introduced to millionaire Aristotle Onassis, finding a kinship with him due to their mutual background of childhood struggles.

Their romance lasted several years only to be eclipsed by Aristotle leaving her for Jacqueline Kennedy, no stranger to tragic moments herself. The affect that this betrayal had on Maria was a harsh blow even for someone whose fame came from songs of sorrow and despair.

I don’t know much about Callas beyond the basics but Goodwin has a knack for showing the inner emotional workings of her characters, both truly fictional and based on historical figures as well. This certainly could be a great introduction to Callas’ legacy; we shall see:

This isn’t the only summer reading on my plate as another book box is on the way(yes, I ordered from Aardvark again, despite wanting to take a book break! I am weak on this front for sure) and my SciFi Summer readathon is off to a good start(should’ve read Nnedi Okorafor much sooner, her writing is so damn good!).

I’m also making good time with my current library read (The Sentence by Louise Erdrich) but trying not to rush through it just to start one of my newer library loan(is  it just me or has anyone else done this?).

Also needing some relief from the ever increasing awful news headlines out there yet staying informed enough to keep an eye out on the state of things. *sigh* I long for the day when such hideous behavior isn’t a daily event but hopefully that day will come sooner than expected.

In the meantime, I will do my best to maintain my spirits and share some good word about great books for others to enjoy. Summer entertainment is meant to give us all a mental vacation and whether it’s the big screen or the small, drama is definitely more bearable when it’s in fictional form: