Hope to Read Pile

Today isn't Thursday. That means I'm not going to discuss the nonfiction title I'm reading after eight days and ten mysteries. I'll discuss that tomorrow with "What Are You Reading?" Instead, I'm going to mention the three books on my "Hope to Read Pile". Most people have a To Be Read Pile. I have piles and piles of those books in three rooms. But, the Hope to Read Pile are the next three books I hope to get to when I finish this nonfiction book.

First up is Anne Tyler's Clock Dance. It's next because it's a library book, and there are people on the waiting list. And, let's face it. I don't always finish the literary novels I start, so I need to try this one, and see if it's what I want to read. 

Here's the description from Barnes & Noble's page. "A delightful novel of one woman's transformative journey, from the best-selling and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer."

"Willa Drake can count on one hand the defining moments of her life. In 1967, she is a schoolgirl coping with her mother's sudden disappearance. In 1977, she is a college coed considering a marriage proposal. In 1997, she is a young widow trying to piece her life back together. And in 2017, she yearns to be a grandmother but isn't sure she ever will be. Then, one day, Willa receives a startling phone call from a stranger. Without fully understanding why, she flies across the country to Baltimore to look after a young woman she's never met, her nine-year-old daughter, and their dog, Airplane. This impulsive decision will lead Willa into uncharted territory--surrounded by eccentric neighbors who treat each other like family, she finds solace and fulfillment in unexpected places. A bewitching novel of hope, self-discovery, and second chances, Clock Dance gives us Anne Tyler at the height of her powers."

*****

I'll definitely read the second book, Linda Castillo's new Kate Burkholder, A Gathering of Secrets. I would have already read it if I hadn't been on deadline because I'm a big fan of this series. Here's a quick summary, again from Barnes & Noble.

"A deadly fire exposes the dark side of Amish life in this harrowing new thriller in the New York Timesbestselling series."

"When a historic barn burns to the ground in the middle of the night, Chief of Police Kate Burkholder is called in to investigate. At first it looks like an accident, but when the body of eighteen-year-old Daniel Gingerich is found inside—burned alive—Kate suspects murder. But who would want a well-liked, hardworking Amish man dead? Kate delves into the investigation and discovers Daniel had a dark side. He was a sexual predator. His victims were mainly Amish women, too afraid to come forward, and he’s been getting away with it for far too long. Now someone has stopped him, but who? The women he victimized? Their boyfriends? Their parents? 

As Kate wades through a sea of suspects, she’s confronted by her own violent past and an unthinkable possibility."

As I said, I know I'll read this one.

*****

I really liked Louise Miller's novel, The City Baker's Guide to Country Living. I'm looking forward to her second one, The Late Bloomers' Club. I'm not going to quote quite as much on this one. There are too many spoilers in the summary.

"A delightful novel about two headstrong sisters, a small town's efforts to do right by the community, and the power of a lost dog to summon true love."

"Nora, the owner of the Miss Guthrie Diner, is perfectly happy serving up apple cider donuts, coffee, and eggs-any-way-you-like-em to her regulars, and she takes great pleasure in knowing exactly what's "the usual." But her life is soon shaken when she discovers she and her free-spirited, younger sister Kit stand to inherit the home and land of the town's beloved cake lady, Peggy Johnson."

*****

I'm finishing the book I'm reading. Then, I hope to read these three books before I plunge back into reviewing forthcoming mysteries. In the publishing world, October really isn't too far away.

Do you have a pile for those books you're going to read next? What's on your "Hope to Read Pile"?