Need a good beach read

Parent Cafe
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<p>SouthJersey mom - Sarah Addison Allen’s books are all standalone, so it doesn’t matter which one you read first.</p>

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<p>I second the Stephanie Plum series. I love it :)</p>

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<p>How about Jeffrey Deaver ? All his books are real page-turners !</p>

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<p>SJCM: </p>

<p>SAA’s books stand-alone. However, one of the main characters in Garden Spells reappears briefly in The Peach Keeper. I enjoyed the brief follow-up glimpse of Claire. </p>

<p>I liked The Sugar Queen but it takes place in the Fall/Winter - and evoked that season so well. At least, I think it might have … I’m from a part of the country that really doesn’t have Fall/Winter. (And maybe that’s why it caught my attention.)</p>

<p>The Girl Who Chased the Moon takes place in the summer, I believe. </p>

<p>I don’t think you can go wrong really - if you’re okay with magical realism. (I have a friend that thinks it’s just weird. ;))</p>

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<p>If you like Ridley Pearson, try Jeffrey Deaver & Lee Child. If you like Stephen King, try Dean Koontz- a little more positive outlook!</p>

<p>If you want to sink into a big thick historical fiction, try an old James Clavell- Shogun, Noble House, TaiPain. My Dh does not read fiction, but we started Noble House on a long drive trip, he had me put it on his i-pod so he could finish eh other 26 hours of the book (56 total!). He has found it both interesting and amusing</p>

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<p>A fun series, with a great antrihero, is the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher. Although by no means serious litereature, it has wonderful plots. I also find it fun to read a series and watch a writer improve before your eyes. I feel the same way about Kim Harrison novels. </p>

<p>Make it a third for the Outlander series.</p>

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<p>I highly recommend [the</a> Red Dwarf series](<a href=“Red Dwarf - Wikipedia”>Red Dwarf - Wikipedia), by Grant Naylor (actually two people: Rob Grant and Doug Naylor). It’s sci fi, so maybe not what the OP had in mind, but I do think it’s great summer reading. I am not usually a sci fi reader, so for anyone else who doesn’t regularly read that genre – well, I still think it’s well worth a try. Every book in the series is a very enjoyable page-turner. (There is also a Red Dwarf tv series, but I prefer the books.)</p>

<p>Would an adventure book fit here? If so, I recommend two by Donald Westlake: [Kahawa[/url</a>] and [url=&lt;a href=“http://www.amazon.com/High-Adventure-Donald-Westlake/dp/1931755086/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1309557366&sr=1-2]High”&gt;http://www.amazon.com/High-Adventure-Donald-Westlake/dp/1931755086/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1309557366&sr=1-2]High</a> Adventure](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Kahawa-Donald-Westlake/dp/0446403431/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1309557223&sr=1-1]Kahawa[/url”>http://www.amazon.com/Kahawa-Donald-Westlake/dp/0446403431/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1309557223&sr=1-1). Both books are fast-paced and engrossing. Westlake’s Dortmunder series is also a lot of fun. One more by Westlake that is a quick and really fun read: [Trust</a> Me on This](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Trust-Me-This-Donald-Westlake/dp/0892961767/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1309556716&sr=1-2]Trust”>http://www.amazon.com/Trust-Me-This-Donald-Westlake/dp/0892961767/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1309556716&sr=1-2).</p>

<p>Finally, anything by Elmore Leonard.</p>

<p>Note: Unfortunately, the Red Dwarf books and Westlake’s Kahawa and High Adventure could be hard to find. I think I bought mine on ebay, but they might also be available in your local public library.</p>

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<p>I didn’t even know Red Dwarf was a book series. The TV series was a hoot.</p>

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<p>Thanks Ig and Zee for suggestions!</p>

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<p>When I read the books, I didn’t know there was a TV series! But wikipedia tells me that the TV series came first.</p>

<p>I have read online debates about which is better, the TV series or the books. I came to the conclusion that it depends on which one you read/saw first. I read the books first, so I prefer them a little bit to the TV series. Having said that, I have watched a lot of the TV series on dvd (I see it’s now also available on Netflix Watch Instantly), and I agree it’s a hoot! I especially liked Danny John-Jules’ Cat.</p>