What I'm Reading

What better way to kick off the library's Summer Reading Program than a review of the things I'm currently reading? Over the weekend I finished a couple of books, one older, one new; tore through a memoir by a famous son of famous parents; and began a historical thriller.

--from 1997, Night in Eden, by Candice Proctor. Historical romance. Convicted and transported to New South Wales, Bryony Wentworth finds herself drawn to Hayden St. John, the enigmatic landowner who's arranged for her to be wet nurse to his infant son. It's been a while since I read a genre historical romance, and this one delivered on all the levels I expected it to.

--just published, Losing Mum and Pup: A Memoir. Christopher Buckley recalls the nine-month period between the deaths of his parents, William and Patricia Buckley. The author draws a very personal portrait of two complex and at times contradictory personalities. They loved each other to the end, but often didn't speak for weeks at a time. They were a glamorous couple, but Bill was "a bit of a slob," while Christopher never found Pat more beautiful than when she was gardening in jeans and an old T-shirt. You'll laugh; you'll cry. Don't miss the chapter where Christo tells his dying mother, "I forgive you."

--also just out, The Secret Speech, the follow-up novel to Tom Rob Smith's blockbuster debut Child 44. It's 1956 and the Soviet Union is beginning to loosen up just a fraction three years after the death of Stalin. Former secret policeman Leo Demidov struggles to adjust to new political and personal realities. I've just started this book (only on p. 28), but I have no doubt I'm going to relish this as much as I did Child 44.

What about you? What are you reading?

--Nora