Beach Reads

image via dailycal

Spring Break has a whole new meaning these days. It used to mean partying all night and sunbathing all day. During one college Spring Break I snuck away to Mexico with friends, unbeknownst to my parents. I was a naive kid back then. Now I have kids! This year Hubs and I took our girls to Turks and Caicos for some family fun.

We had nonstop quality time together on the beach, at the pool and at family meals. Fortunately I was able to squeeze in some reading as well. My beach read for the week was Golden Girl. Liv asked me to read it aloud so we enjoyed much of the novel together. I skipped over some inappropriate details, but for the most part she and I followed along with the story of protagonist Vivian Howe watching her family from the afterlife and using three "nudges" to help her grown kids. This was my first Elin Hilderbrand book and it was perfect for our Caribbean vacation. Hilderband is known as "the queen of beach reads." My local bookseller recommended Golden Girl for its strong voice. I did appreciate the novel's voice as well as its setting (Nantucket), relatable characters and creative storyline.

In addition to Golden Girl, I recently read Fake and Sorrow and Bliss. Fake is the second book from Erica Katz. I'm a big fan of Katz's writing. Fake centers on a young artist, Emma, trying to forge her path in the competitive NYC art scene. She gets taken under the wing of an art collector, and she encounters some glamorous yet questionable scenarios. The book has surprising twists, depth and entertaining elements.

Sorrow and Bliss was intense. The main character has an unspecified mental illness, a close-knit, yet dysfunctional, family and some turbulent romantic relationships. The novel is well-done, at times funny and at times cringe inducing. I think the depression parts hit a bit too close to home, as I've had my own bouts of darkness. But overall the book is fresh, unique and wise. I dogeared some pages containing sage quotes, but my copy got wrecked in a Turks rainstorm. Hopefully I gleaned enough wisdom during my one read.

Happy Spring Break,
AES