Fa(V)e #SummerReads of 2018

Summers start out with the best intention to read on those lazy days off and bank holiday weekends. But the call of the outside if often too strong for us, and most of the time we push reading to the side for exploring the outdoors … and naps! But, we always get a book or … 10 in, and these are our favorite reads of summer 2018.

Kim …

Jade City, Fonda Lee

This book was just kickass from the start. It features a reluctant heroine and a bit of a screw off hero. They come together in a big and fierce way. I loved it.

When a powerful new drug emerges that lets anyone—even foreigners—wield jade, the simmering tension between the Kauls and the rival Ayt family erupts into open violence. The outcome of this clan war will determine the fate of all Green Bones—from their grandest patriarch to the lowliest motorcycle runner on the streets—and of Kekon itself.

[Buy Jade City @ Amazon]

Force of Nature, Jane Harper

This is the second book in the Aaron Falk series. It’s a really different kind of murder mystery than the first book but I loved it just as much as The Dry.

Five women reluctantly pick up their backpacks and start walking along a muddy track. Only four come out on the other side.

[Buy Force of Nature @ Amazon]

Tanya – I enjoyed most of the books I read this summer – and my 3 favorites are from 3 different genres – contemporary, dark fiction / horror and science fiction.

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, Gail Honeyman

This book is an EXCELLENT character focused novel, and Eleanor Oliphant is quite a character. You will feel all the feelings because this book is funny and silly yet sad and sombre.

Meet Eleanor Oliphant: She struggles with appropriate social skills and tends to say exactly what she’s thinking. Nothing is missing in her carefully timetabled life of avoiding social interactions, where weekends are punctuated by frozen pizza, vodka, and phone chats with Mummy.

[Buy Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine @ Amazon]

The Outsider Stephen King

King twisted me up inside with this one as I followed along with the plot – and yes – for bringing Holly into the drama (from Mr. Mercedes). Loved this one – just go pick it up.

An eleven-year-old boy is found in a town park, hideously assaulted and murdered. The fingerprints (and later DNA) are unmistakably those of the town’s most popular baseball coach, Terry Maitland, a man of impeccable reputation, with a wife and two daughters. Detective Ralph Anderson, whose son Maitland coached, orders an immediate and public arrest. Maitland is taken to jail, his claim to innocence scorned. Maitland has a foolproof alibi, with footage to prove that he was in another city when the crime was committed. But that doesn’t save him either.

[Buy The Outsider @ Amazon]

Binti (Series), Nnedi Okorafor

This is an award winning novella, and I can’t even describe how good it is. The world is so fantastical and imaginatively written. DO listen to the audiobook narrated by Robin Miles. You’ll get a feel for the pronunciation and more of a feel for the nuances of each character. There are 3 books in the series and they should be read in order.

Her name is Binti, and she is the first of the Himba people ever to be offered a place at Oomza University, the finest institution of higher learning in the galaxy. But to accept the offer will mean giving up her place in her family to travel between the stars among strangers who do not share her ways or respect her customs.

[Buy Binti @ Amazon]

Which was the top book from your summer reading?