Summer Reads

It has been dismally hot lately, almost uncharacteristically early (90+ weather in spring, I'm looking at you), which means that most of my indoor free time lately has been spent drinking cool beverages, not moving, and reading as much as possible.  Here are some of the books that have been in rotation lately:

A Dangerous Place by Jacqueline Winspear

Thoughts so far: I really love the main character (Maisie Dobbs), the time period (post-WWI, pre-WWII), and the location (Gibraltar).  It hasn't been easy to figure out where and what Miss Dobb's investigating is leading to, which I think is a good thing so far.  On the other hand, the writing is a little bit lacking and has slowed down for me midway through.  I snuck a peek at some Goodreads reviews of the book, and others agree - but say that the earlier books in the series are much better.  I'm sticking with it, in the hope that it will be worth it in the end and that I'll get the chance to check out some of the earlier books in the series.

Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel

Thoughts so far: I am definitely not knowledgeable about this period of time (in terms of names and places - sorry, History teachers), so it's a bit tricky to keep track of the characters, why they're significant, and what they do.  There's definitely a bunch of re-reading of pages and flipping back to the chart(s) at the beginning of the book.  That said, I don't mind that it's a slower read since the writing is lovely.  The characters are certainly brought to life.

The World On A Plate: 40 Cuisines, 100 Recipes, and the Stories Behind Them by Mina Holland

Thoughts: Loved this one - got it as a birthday present, and can't wait to try many of the recipes inside.  Hopefully I'll get a review up soon, but in the meantime, I liked the fact that she lists normal kitchen things as essentials (no expensive KitchenAid stand mixers or international brand blow-torches listed), the charts with information about the history behind certain spice blends or grapes, and the short chapters and blurbs on each of the regions and recipes. 

What have you been reading lately?