TOP FIVE WEDNESDAYS

I recently stumbled on this GoodReads group that proposes a weekly meme whose aim is to give a list of Top Five… anything, as long as they are book related. It sounds fun, and something I can manage even with my too-often-limited time.

This week’s meme is: SUMMER READS and it can include beach reads, fun reads, or any book you associate with summer for whatever reason. So let’s get started…

Summer, or better yet, a beach vacation, means a LOT of time for reading: no distractions, no demands on my time, and the opportunity to read books that require total immersion or those that I’ve kept shifting down the queue. This is the reason I usually keep more “demanding” reads for the times when I can go on vacation, since my idea of rest is exactly this: the beach, a comfortable recliner and an absorbing book. Paradise…  🙂

This year I lined up a few books I intend to read during my long-awaited week at the beach: I hold no hope to be able to read them all, but I will carry them in my faithful reader and I’ll let inspiration decide.

Iain Banks – Excession: it’s been a while since my last Banks book, and I’ve meant to read this fifth Culture volume for some time now. From what I hear it’s a complex story, one that will require some concentration, but I can hardly wait to visit this universe again. And how could I not be intrigued by huge, sentient ships’ minds whose names are “Unacceptable Behavior”, “Yawning Angel” or “Shoot Them Later”?

Daniel Abraham – The Dragon’s Path: after enjoying Abraham’s Long Price Quartet, I’ve been curious about this huge fantasy series (The Dagger and the Coin) that saw the publication of the fifth and final book only recently. If this first volume will grab hold of my imagination, as I hope, I know I will not have to wait long years to see its conclusion, and that’s a comforting thought.

N.K. Jemisin – The Fifth Season: most of the reviews I read about this book spoke highly of Jemisin’s new series, so I might break my self-imposed rule to finish the Inheritance Trilogy first and take a peek at this one first. Considering my previous experiences with this author, I know I will be swept away by her storytelling all the same…

Peter Hamilton – The Neutronium Alchemist (Night’s Dawn #2): after finally breaking the ice with The Reality Dysfunction, I’m quite invested in this massive science fiction trilogy that spans huge distances and presents many mysteries and a terrifying new kind of invasion. This second book’s page number is even higher than the first one’s: the perfect choice for a time of leisure.

Brandon Sanderson – The Final Empire (Mistborn #1) – I must confess I’ve long been wary about Sanderson’s books because of his link with the Wheel of Time series, which I didn’t enjoy, but a couple of samples of his writing – a short story contained in an anthology, and the beautiful novella The Emperor’s Soul – changed my mind and I’m now more than ready to explore his works.

Not bad as a summer vacation plan, isn’t it?