What Fiction are you reading this week, June 22, 2025?

[hermetic]

This discussion thread is pinned.

I am reading People of Darkness by Tony Hillerman. Really good mystery dating back to 1980. Suspenseful. When Chee met Mary..

Listening to The Ghostway, also by Hillerman from 1985. I'm sure enjoying these old tales, having read many of the newer books.

Looks like we're in for a heat dome this week so minimize direct sun exposure, wear loose and light-colored clothing, and stay hydrated. Just plunk yourself down in front of a fan with a good book and a glass of ice water.

[ChazII]

1. Carmel Pecan Roll Murder

by Joanne Fluke. It is light reading with no message but with this past week I don't want any theme or heavy messages.

[hermetic]

3. I hear ya

Feel the same.

[honeylady]

2. Knights of the Black Swan by Victoria Dannon

Great sicfi series. I am on my third reading. Can get for free with Kindle Unlimited.

[mentalsolstice]

4. I finished A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara.

I can’t say I’m glad I read it because it’s not that kind of book. Let’s just say I appreciated it. I would not recommend it to anyone unless I knew them really well and that they could handle the material.

I needed a palate cleanser, so now I’m reading Truly Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty.

Stay cool everyone!

[cbabe]

5. Lethal Prey by John Sandford

New title. Lucas and Virgil solve a cold case with detective smarts and true crimes crowdsourcing.

Great idea. Feels kinda flat. Sandford even reuses plot tactics like fire bombing Virgil’s home.

Also, The President is Missing by Bill Clinton and James Patterson.

Probably not the best choice for these times. Talky political thriller as a computer virus is prime to take down the world. Plus a traitor in the White House.

I really liked the Hillerman books. Road trip in my mind.

[txwhitedove]

6. True pic. That was my dresser til I bought a bookcase on FB Marketplace. Now need another.

Finished reading When We Believed in Mermaids by Barbara O'Neal. Lovely book of family that I really. cared about. No murder mystery, but a who done it and why of family drama, and love. Great description of New Zealand.

Now reading a non-fiction, Wise Gals: the spies who built the CIA and changed the future of espionage by Nathalia Holt. "In the wake of World War II, four agents were critical in helping build a new organization that we now know as the CIA. Adelaide Hawkins, Mary Hutchison, Eloise Page, and Elizabeth Sudmeier, called the “wise gals” by their male colleagues because of their sharp sense of humor and even quicker intelligence, were not the stereotypical femme fatale of spy novels. They were smart, courageous, and groundbreaking agents at the top of their class, instrumental in both developing innovative tools for intelligence gathering—and insisting (in their own unique ways) that they receive the credit and pay their expertise deserved."

[Jeebo]

7. "She's Not Sorry" by Mary Kubica

Not my favored genre — I usually prefer science fiction — but she spins a pretty good yarn, so it seems I get around eventually to reading her novels.

— Ron

[Jilly_in_VA]

8. Just finished

Steal Across the Sky by Nancy Kress. It was interesting but about a hundred pages too long and I didn't like the ending at all. Now I'm reading (and about to finish) Thrones in the Desert by Doug Peterson. It's not my usual genre but it's kind of interesting. It concerns a group of fictional people who may have been affected by the presence of Jesus of Nazareth. Also not my usual fare.

[hermetic]

11. Not for me, either.

But, thanks anyway. Some who pass this way might find that to their liking.

[Number9Dream]

9. Finished "Thunderhead" by Preston & Child (mini spoiler alert)

Thanks for the thread, hermetic.

At hermetic's recommendation, I read "Thunderhead" by Preston & Child. Even as a huge Preston & Child fan, I had not been aware of this book. Only one of my local libraries had a copy (Inter-library loan). This was the first 'Nora Kelly' book, and it was very good. The native American witches were very creepy. Visual western scenery. On the negative side... if you're fond of horses, most of the horses in the story do not fare well. Still.. Highly recommend.

[hermetic]

10. Yeah, the horses' fate was hard to take

but the rest of the story was really great. Those guys sure know how to tell a story. Glad you liked it.

[rsdsharp]

12. Finally finished Bernard Cornwell's Stonehenge.

I thought I’d read it before, but it must have been another novel about the building of Stonehenge.

I’m now reading Don’t Forget Me, Little Bessie by James Lee Burke. Burke is beginning to worry me. This is the third straight book with spirits or demons. His language has always been as elegant as his plots are dark, but he seems to be becoming more preoccupied with death and it’s other side.

[hermetic]

13. Well, he is almost 90

And we seem to be living in a country filled with demons, so....I guess you can't be too surprised. I've never read any of his novels but that one sounds really good. Perhaps it's time I started reading some. I AM finding it harder to find really great books any more, other than those by my 6 favorite authors. Thanks for your input.