Travel Book List

I thought I would share my reading list from when we were on our travels (June-October). I absolutely love reading books, and this trip gave me an opportunity to read a lot. When we were staying in the cabin at Melkevoll Bretun in Norway, we both read for hours every day, and I think we read five books each over the course of those 12 days.

I love getting book recommendations from people as well, so please feel free to share any recent favorite reads of yours in the comments section.

BOOK LIST:

Acqua Alta & two others in the Commissario Guido Brunetti mysteries series by, Donna Leon

Spies of Warsaw and The Foreign Correspondent by, Alan Furst

Changing Places by, David Lodge

The High Window by Raymond Chandler

Unseen Academicals by, Terry Pratchett

City of Thieves by, David Benioff

Billion Dollar Brain by Len Deighton

Child 44 by, Tom Rob Smith

Peyton Place by, Grace Metalious

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by, Stieg Larsson

Jaws by Peter Benchley

Gorky Park by, Martin Cruz Smith

River of Love by, Barbara Cartland

Lush Life by, Richard Price

Dune Road by, Jane Green

Royal Flush by, Lynda La Plante

Almost Dead by, Lisa Jackson

Open by Andre Agassi

As you probably can see, by the end of the trip I kind of just started reading trash, books that had been left behind by previous people in the places we were staying. But there was just a point where all I wanted was to read something easy, fun and escapist; page-turners with a lot of exclamation points.

Of all of these books, I have to say that City of Thieves by David Benioff was my hands-down favorite. So beautifully written, I couldn't put it down.

I really love Alan Furst's writing, but his endings baffle me. They feel like he was writing away, and then suddenly either decided he was bored with the story and characters or he just had no idea what to do with what he had created , so he just suddenly wrote "And then they all died." Or "and then, they all moved to France and ate cheese. The End" As a reader I was left wondering what had just happened and why the book had ended 100 pages too soon.

The Raymond Chandler was another favorite; no one can turn a phrase or create a metaphor quite like him. And those dames....

I think Jaws may possibly be one of the worst books even written, and I am amazed at how it was turned into such a terrific film.

Finally, I know Len Deighton is not as famous here as he is in the UK, but if you like Cold War spy novels, you must give him a try. I firmly recommend the ones that feature Bernie Samson. There is a series of nine books in sets of three: Berlin Game, Mexico Set, London Match; Spy Hook, Spy Line, Spy Sinker; Faith, Hope & Charity.

Now it's your turn: have you read any of the books on this list? Any other faves you think people should know about?