The Books I'm Reading Now
I'm reading a bizarre, dark set of short stories by a former Late Show with Stephen Colbert writer, Jen Spyra; Rachel Griffin's young adult fantasy novel The Nature of Witches, in which witches control the weather and find romaaaance; and I'm listening to Fallen, my first book in Linda Castillo's thirteen-book Kate Burkholder series--each of which is set in Amish country.
Which books are you reading and enjoying these days, bookworms?
01 Big Time: Stories by Jen Spyra
This book! I'm not sure what to say (or even to think) about this book so far.
Spyra is making me verrrry uncomfortable as I read her collection of stories, which are satirical, dark, edgy, bizarre, and often outrageous.
This isn't your typical humor book, and I'm curious about what unsuspecting readers may think if they go into this one without an awareness that dark subjects are played up for amusement. Spyra may be aware of the line that separates questionable from likely offensive, but she often leaps over it.
02 The Nature of Witches by Rachel Griffin
In the world of Griffin's young adult fantasy novel The Nature of Witches, witches control the weather. And (this part of the storyline may feel familiar) climate change is causing weather patterns to spin out of control. Destructive blizzards, devastating tornadoes, desperate heat, and shockingly bitter cold are threatening the land around them--and endangering the lives of witches and shaders (regular humans) alike.
Luckily, Clara is the most powerful witch in a generation. But she doesn't have a clue how to control her power, and she's destroyed some of those closest to her while trying to test it.
There are lovely moments of humor interspersed with the action and lots of (literally) flowery language; the characters at times talk extensively about flowers and plants.
I received a prepublication digital edition of this book courtesy of Sourcebooks Fire and NetGalley.
03 Fallen: A Novel of Suspense (Kate Burkholder #13) by Linda Castillo
I'm listening to the audiobook version of Linda Castillo's mystery-suspense novel Fallen. This is the first book I've read in Castillo's thirteen-book Kate Burkholder series--all set in Amish country--although these have been on my to-read list for a long time.
A rebellious young woman who left her Amish culture behind and became estranged from her family has returned to Painters Mill, Ohio. But her homecoming ends almost immediately in tragedy: she is brutally murdered in a motel on the outskirts of town.
Chief of police Kate Burkholder, who was once part of the local Amish community herself, is called in and is shocked to identify the victim as Rachael Schwartz, a fun-loving, mischievous free spirit she had babysat years earlier.
The crime against Rachael is so vicious as to seem personal, and Kate must try to determine why Rachael returned to town, uncover her buried secrets, and figure out who would have wanted her dead.
I received a prepublication audiobook of this title courtesy of Macmillan Audio and NetGalley.