I read Vanish this past week and the week before that Body Double, both by Tess Gerritsen. (#4 & #5 in the Rizzoli & Isles series). Body Double was good. Vanish was too, but a little disturbing. But what I'm noticing about Gerritsen's books is that they are all so much more than murder mysteries. Each book has a different theme. Vanish was focused on sex trafficking. Body Double had to do with kidnapping of newborn babies. None of them are enjoyable topics, but each book is at least interesting and unique. That's something very good about her books. I like the TV series, but the books are way better.
Earlier in the summer I read The Apprentice & The Sinner which were also very good.
While traveling to and from Myrtle Beach I listened to some audio books. In the past I've zoned out while listening to books while driving so I didn't think I would make it. But I've been getting into book swapping on goodreads and I accidentally swapped for the CD version of Swimsuit by James Patterson instead of the actual book. When I received it in the mail I was disappointed at first, but then decided to put it on my iPod and listen on my car ride down to SC. It went very well and made the 10 hour drive go by much faster. I paid attention the whole time. It wasn't the greatest book and it wasn't even a good James Patterson book, but it entertained me for that short time. On the ride home I listened to Postcard Killers which was pretty morbid but also did it's job for the trip.
When I came home from Africa I finished Drop Shot and Fade Away within a few weeks of each other. This was book #2 & #3 of the Myron Bolitar series. I enjoy this series more than I enjoyed Harlan Coben's other book I read; Caught. These books are funny and suspenseful. I recommend them as a good "non-gory beach read".
Knowing Scripture was a nice little book by R.C. Sproul. It was rejuvenating. It encouraged my passion for scripture and it's a book I would recommend to a friend. Plus it was short and simple so you can ready it quickly. Another plus is R.C. Sproul is rock solid.
We are helping out on the leadership team for the young married couples group at our church. It's called The Union. One of the other leaders recommended doing Love & War by John & Stasi Eldredge as a study. I hadn't even heard of it and I really like Wild @ Heart and Captivating so I decided to read it on the plane ride back from Africa. It was great. There might be some skeptics who don't like John Eldredge's philosophy, but I hope they can look past that to read this book. It was really great. I was shocked to learn about all the crap Stasi & John went through in their own marriage. They have really overcome a lot. The chapters on how Satan destroys marriages was really opening. It's so easy to buy into lies and make agreements that we think are based on truth when they aren't. I think every couple should read this book. The DVD series seems kind of cheesy so we haven't decided if our group is going to go through it. But the topics and teaching are very relevant.
While in Africa I read No Mercy by John Gilstrap. It only cost me $3.99 kindle edition and it was a good book. It's about a Private Investigator-slash-Vigilante who is investigating the disappearance of his ex-wife's current husband. It gets pretty messy and it's entertaining the whole time. I plan on reading the follow-up book Hostage Zero soon. I already have that on my kindle which I got for cheap.
While in Africa I got read a book about Africa called Dead Aid. It's written by Dambisa Moyo who is a woman from Africa. I forget where, but I think she's from Zimbabwe. It was fascinating and it was cool to see first hand the issues that she talked about in the book. But it definitely convinced me that throwing money at Africa and just giving the people things isn't helpful. There is so much more going on there then one book can explain, but I think the author zeroes in on the problems and 4 practical solutions.
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