What Are We Reading This Summer?

My Summer Reads

What are you reading this summer? For readers, this is a very important question. Summer is supposed to be a time when we relax. Vacation time. Beach time. If nothing else, summer is a state of mind. However you chose to look at it, summer is different from the rest of the year. The weather is hotter, often scorching hot. In tropical climbs like Florida, summer brings tropical storms and dreaded hurricanes.

For those of us who live in Florida, summer is six months long (winter is two weeks at most). So what dates do I use for a Florida summer? I'll stick with the summer tourist season, from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend. So before I go off on another tangent, let's get down to the real reason for this post, What are we reading this summer?

Now first off I can hear my mother asking, "We? Do you have a mouse in your pocket?" She used to drive me nuts with that question as a kid.  Funny, all these many years later, she hasn't asked me that question lately. Okay, I told you, I have a tendency to go off in different directions.

What are we reading this summer? I really want to know. I, for one, have read some great books, many of them Indies and I've reread some old favorites. So I'm going to share them with you, just in case you care to know. On the other hand, I really want to know what you're reading too. Have you found some exciting/thrilling/enchanting/memorable reads?

As a writer/reader I don't have as much time to read as I'd like. Things like plugging away on my work(s) in progress, marketing my books that are already published, editing (yeah, I hate that part), blogging (I love that) and Tweeting (just plain fun). Reading fits in there somewhere. "So many books, so little time."

So now we're down to the "I'll show you mine and you show me yours." Sheesh! We're talking books silly. I'll tell you what I've been reading this summer and what I hope to read before the season is over and you'll (hopefully) do the same via the comments below. This is also a time where you can shamelessly mention your own books too (as suggested summer reads) and even include your blog addy and Twitter ID. Readers need to know what great books are out there.

Here's a list of all my reads since Memorial Day weekend. I heartily recommend every single one of them. This is the order in which I read them.

Golden Boy by R. G. Lawrence
Judgement Tramp by J. D. Currie
Eye of the Storm by Denise Moncrief (short story)
Hurricane  (A Novel of the 1900 Galveston Hurricane) by Janice Thompson
Drinking with Dead Women Writers by Elaine Ambrose & A. K. Turner
Hurricane, A Short Story by R. Narvaez
The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Stay Close, Novac! by Jan Romes
Sullivan's War: Prologue - Sergeant Riley's Account by Michael K. Rose
Sullivan's War: Book 1 - All Good Men Serve the Devil by Michael K. Rose
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury

I'm currently reading (almost finished) the following:

Short Stories by Michael K. Rose
Wool (Omnibus Ed.) by Hugh Howey (soon to be an awesome movie)

Whew! Now that I've listed them all, that's more books than I'd realized. I'm a night owl and have a difficult time falling asleep, so I do most of my reading at night. Though sometimes I take a break for much of a day and just read. That's how I relax and how I rejuvenate my brain.

Now here's my wish list of the books I hope/plan to read by summer's end (not necessarily in the following order):

Tales from the Spanish Mustang by Benjamin X. Wretlind
Summer with Fidel by R. G. Lawrence
Sullivan's War: The Complete Adventure by Michael K. Rose
The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury (read previously in my college years)
Mark of the Loon by Molly Greene
Treasure Me by Christine Nolfi
Bluewater Vengeance by C. L. R. Dougherty
Land of the Noonday Sun by Carmen DeSousa
Haunting Refrain by Ellis Vidler
Kiss Me by Jan Romes
The River Between (The River Series, Bk 1) by Jacquelyn Cook (I have the whole series)
Bradbury Stories by Ray Bradbury (may take me all year to read the 100 short stories)

Note - This is just my short-list for summer reading and is bound to change with the addition of other books I discover along the way. Reading, after all, is a wonderful journey of exploration and enjoyment. I'm always asking myself, "What should I read next?" That's the joy of it, not knowing which path you'll take next.

I'm now the proud owner of two Kindles: my old Kindle Keyboard (still running after 2+ years) and my new Kindle Fire (a birthday present last week from my husband). I have more eBooks than I can count on my Kindles and archived in the cloud. With the exception of the Ray Bradbury books, all I'm reading these days are Indie books on my Kindles. Once again I attest that "Indies Rock!"

Please take a few moments of your time to comment below. What enjoyable/notable books have you read so far this summer? What do you hope to read before summer is out? Do you have a book(s) of your own you'd like to recommend for a summer read? We readers want to know these things, so please jump in with the books you think we'd love to read this summer. Thanks so much! I'm looking forward to your summer reads.