What are you reading the week of August 17, 2014?

[Enthusiast]

Sorry, readers. Honestly, I had too much fun on Saturday evening so I missed starting this weekly thread—too much Irish whiskey.

I am reading Don Winslow's The Winter of Frankie Machine. I guess I'm going to read all these books by Winslow. He has a real knack.

I get the feeling Don was deeply engaged in the DEA or organized crime at one time. He must have been a surfer too.

[closeupready]

1. Clive Cussler's "Lost City" - okay so far, but

not really impressed with his creativity or attention to detail. The story is fun, though, which is probably all most readers want from a writer like him - kind of a contemporary H. Rider Haggard.

[Curmudgeoness]

2. "Green City in the Sun" by Barbara Wood

I was so impressed with her "Virgins of Paradise" that I decided to read this one as well. Just started by so far it isn't as compelling.

[scarletwoman]

3. I've been back in the Shetland Islands.

I'm about 20 pages from the end of White Nights, the second book of Ann Cleeves' Shetland Island series. And I'm totally bummed that I haven't got any other books coming in from my library.

I got books 3 and 4 of the Shetland series a couple weeks ago and devoured them. I thought they were really wonderful. I finally got books 1 and 2 last week, and once I finish #2, I'm stuck again. the 5th book in the series wasn't in the library system yet when I ordered the first four. And now there's a 6th book in the series - but who knows how long it will take for that one to be available.

Anyway, besides reading Raven Black last week, the first of the Shetland series, I finished the 4th book in Nele Neuhaus' Bodenstein & Kirchhoff series - the only 4 books by this author currently available in English translation, apparently. There's a 5th book in the series slated for January 2015 - but that will take ages to make its way to my rural linteribarary sytem.

It's a terrible thing, being both a book addict and a fast reader - I generally go through 3-4 books a week. My tiny local library simply can't keep up.

/end whine

[Enthusiast]

5. You are a voracious reader, scarletwoman!

Eventually, after working my way through many recommendations, I will get started on the Ann Cleeves' Shetland Island series. I'm looking forward to them.

What would we ever do without our books?

[scarletwoman]

8. Just thought I'd let you know that I totally lucked out!

Book #5 of the Shetland Island series magically appeared at my library on Tuesday! Saved from a bookless wilderness! I'm nearly done with it - this being Thursday (yes, I AM a "voracious reader&quot - but two other books I had on order showed up today, so I won't be bereft of reading material for the weekend. (wheew!)

Northern Ireland is my next stop. Author Brian McGilloway, his Inspector Benedict Devlin series. I read #s 1-3 years ago, then lost track. So now I've got #s 4 & 5 of the series at hand. As I recall, I was very favorably impressed with the earlier three, so I'm looking forward to renewing my acquainance with Inspector Devlin.

[fadedrose]

10. Without books

What would we ever do without our books?

Probably a little more cleaning

[Enthusiast]

11. There is that.

[pscot]

4. Michael Dibdin

I've discovered Aurelio Zen. I'm also rereading Simenon, what's left of him in print.

[libodem]

6. The Heist

It's pretty funny and adventurous. Janet Evonovich and Lee Goldberg.

[Enthusiast]

7. That sounds good, libodem.

I lost track of the Stephanie Plum adventures. And I might have missed one along the line. But I found them to be highly entertaining and silly. Just the right formula sometimes.

[fadedrose]

9. THE SHAMAN SINGS by James Doss

I've read this before, in fact, twice, the whole series of 17.

But with ISIS and Michael Brown, the Mideast, Russia and Ukraine, I needed something to relax with and didn't want to tackle something I had to really concentrate on.

I am on about page 50, and notice things I never noticed before, and the writing is topnotch.

Did you ever finish the series, D (2013)?

[Enthusiast]

12. I have yet to finish the series.

Next one is 14 out of 17. I bought the entire series so they would be nice and handy.

Nice to see you, fadedrose.