Beach Reads—Sunny, Funny and Surfside

By Linda Lovely

When I head to the beach, I want love and laughs, not tears. I’m on vacation. Time to forget the real world, the tragedies in the news, the weeds in my garden, the deadlines that loom.

So how do I select what books to pack? A promise of laughs is my number one criteria. No tear-jerker endings. No torture scenes. No unresolved issues.

If possible, the books are set somewhere waves can lap at my heroine’s feet. All the better to imagine myself in her flip flops with shared sand between our toes.

If you have similar preferences for your vacation reads, I highly recommend two books: The Secret Language of Leah Sinclair, written by Robin Weaver, a fellow Romancing the Genres blogger, and Dying for a Daiquiri, written by humorous romance author Cindy Sample.

I don’t pay a lot of heed to classifications, but I guess The Secret Language of Leah Sinclair falls into the YA (young adult) paranormal category, since one of its main characters is a talking dolphin and the heroine is a sixteen-year-old.

Am I a young adult? Uh, hardly. Am I going to attempt a conversation with a dolphin? No. But I thoroughly enjoyed this seaside romp. It made me recall both the angst and joy of being a teenage girl with a world full of possibilities and potential. Plus, Rocket, Leah’s dolphin companion, is a snarky delight, who mangles the English language in wonderfully perverse ways.

Here’s a synopsis minus any spoiler: Leah’s secret best friend, Rocket—a dolphin— confides that criminal activity threatens his pod. He wants Leah’s help. But she fears she’ll end up a CIA test subject if her secret ability slips. So what can she do? She risks telling Chase, her teen heartthrob, who joins her in battling dangerous thugs. Too bad Chase has the hots for another girl. Worse, if he reveals Leah’s secret, she may end up swimming with the fishes—permanently. Here's a link to the ebook on Amazon: amazon.com/dp/B00I5P3VZ8   

My second book choice, Dying for a Daiquiri, is a romantic laugh-laced who-done-it set in Hawaii, an exotic locale that author Sample fully exploits for atmosphere and hijinks. This is the third book in Sample’s “Dying” series, featuring single soccer mom Lauren McKay.  

The plot? A best friend’s destination wedding lures Lauren, her mom, and more of our heroine’s zany friends

to the Big Island where Lauren’s brother owns a restaurant/club. Soon, however, the death of a dancer makes Lauren’s brother a murder suspect. Naturally, it’s not long before the killer wants to put the skids to Lauren’s snooping.

Dying for a Daiquiri will make you hanker to visit Hawaii, where spectacular sunsets accompany those daiquiris. You’ll also want to order life-size posters of the two hunks vying for Laurel’s kisses. Best of all, you’ll laugh out loud at this single mom’s humor and pluck—even when her life’s hanging by a thread.

Sample serves up a cocktail of vacation adventure, sexy interludes, raucous laughs, and mystery. A perfect vacation from reality in any season. Here's a link to the ebook on Amazon: amazon.com/dp/B00FK5UW4Y 


Of course, I also would love you to check out Dead Line, the first book in my Smart Women, Touch Luck series of romantic thrillers. Here's a link to the ebook on Amazon:  amazon.com/dp/B00K6T429U

There's a tropical setting (Jamaica) in this one, too, but more suspense (and heat) than laughs.

Summer Giggles

Ahh, summer. Vacations. Time off. A chance to escape work-a-day worries and lose yourself in a good book. Given that our blog is “Romancing the Genres,” it’s not surprising that several of my fellow genre-istas have named spicy romances as favorite summer reads. And I wholeheartedly agree that a hot novel is très apropos for lounging on a sunny beach. Yet what’s summer without laughter? That’s why humor is a must for my top-of-the-list escapist reads.   

Even better, I can have my cake and eat it, too, since romance and humor co-exist quite nicel. My favorite escapist reads add supense/thrills to the humor, romance combo. Janet Evanovich has the formula down pat with her Stephanie Plum series. How can you not laugh at the image of Stephanie’s sidekick Lulu on the Atkins diet, her pockets stuffed with pork chops (I think I remember that correctly) being chased down the street by dogs? Along with the giggles Evanovich delivers not one but two hunks—the mysterious Ranger and the sexy Joe Morelli—and ample suspense.

Other romance authors with comedic gifts include Cindy Sample, Ann Charles and Jennifer Cruisie. Sample’s Dying for a Date features a single soccer mom with a knack for going on blind dates with men who soon become stiffs (not in a good way). Charles' debut Nearly Dead in Deadwood is a hoot, again with a single mom trying to make a living and manage romance despite dead bodies and ghosts. Sample and Charles both have continued the hijinks with fun follow-up titles. Cruisie’s Faking It is another of my favorites. It features a hero and heroine who meet in a closet while breaking into a house to steal (for noble reasons, of course). I also need to put in a plug for Blue Ridge Fear by Robin Weaver, scheduled for release later this year. I had an opportunity to read an advance copy and loved Weaver’s ability to blend her main character’s witty observations with real suspense.

I need to tip my hat to some male authors as well. Carl Hiaasen, Donald Westlake, and Dave Barry know how to make me chuckle every time.

So what books do you pick up when you want a summer pick-me-up that includes laughs? I want to keep as many of those authors around as possible.