Great Books for Your Beach Bag

I have had a string of great books to read lately. Many of them would be perfect for a day at the beach.

First up is The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro.
The letter turns Grace Munroe’s life upside down: ‘Our firm is handling the estate of the Mrs Eva D’Orsey and it is our duty to inform you that you are named as the chief beneficiary in her will. There is only one problem. Grace has never heard of her. The mystery leads Grace to an abandoned perfume shop on the Left Bank that helps her unravel the heartbreaking story of her mysterious benefactor, an extraordinary woman who bewitched high society in 1920s New York and Paris.

Ten Trees and a Truffle Dog by Jamie Ivey will delight fans of Peter Mayle's A Year In Provence.
 This is the true story of an English couple who move to Provence and build a house on land that also has a truffle grove. Add a baby and a puppy and chaos ensues. All the funny goings on kept me up much too late.

A Spear of Summer Grass by Deanna Raybourn

The daughter of a scandalous mother, Delilah Drummond is already notorious, even among Paris society. But her latest scandal is big enough to make even her oft-married mother blanch. Delilah is exiled to Kenya and her favorite stepfather's savanna manor house until gossip subsides.

Fairlight is the crumbling, sun-bleached skeleton of a faded African dream, a world where dissolute expats are bolstered by gin and jazz records, cigarettes and safaris. As mistress of this wasted estate, Delilah falls into the decadent pleasures of society.

Against the frivolity of her peers, Ryder White stands in sharp contrast. As foreign to Delilah as Africa, Ryder becomes her guide to the complex beauty of this unknown world. Giraffes, buffalo, lions and elephants roam the shores of Lake Wanyama amid swirls of red dust. Here, life is lush and teeming—yet fleeting and often cheap.

Amidst the wonders—and dangers—of Africa, Delilah awakes to a land out of all proportion: extremes of heat, darkness, beauty and joy that cut to her very heart. Only when this sacred place is profaned by bloodshed does Delilah discover what is truly worth fighting for—and what she can no longer live without.

Now if we could only get some sunny days worthy of a trip to the beach...