What the Crafties are Reading

Vicki Bylin: I'm reading Not a Fan by Kyle Idleman. A friend recommended it. Awesome book about deepening one's faith. I'm about halfway and savoring every word, every concept.

Patty Smith Hall just finished 'The Temporary Wife' by Mary Balough. It's one of her earlier novels and while it was good, I can see the progression Balough has made with her storytelling and writing. It serves as encouragement for a newbie author like me!

Lenora Worth: I'm reading "Shattered Silence" (an ARC) by Margaret Daley. Very suspenseful and intense so far!!! :)

Pamela Tracy: I'm reading The Lost Girls of Johnson's Bayou by Jana DeLeon. It's an Harlequin Intrigue,and quite honestly the cover sold me. I'm about a third of the way through the book.

Lacy Williams: I'm reading "The Witness" by Grace Livingston Hill. I got is as a Kindle freebie and the first chapter sucked me in.

Sandra Orchard: I'm reading Saving Hope by Margaret Daley, because I love Margaret's books. :)

Merrillee Whren: I’m reading When Sparrows Fall by Margaret Mosely. She was a Golden Heart finalist with me in 2003.

Carrie Turansky: I am reading To Marry An English Lord, by Gail MacColl and Carol McD. Wallace, for research….and The Maid of Fairbourne Hall, by Julie Klassen, for fun.

Missy Tippens: I'm reading a non-fiction book at the moment, Hidden in the Rubble: A Haitian Pilgrimage to Compassion and Resurrection by Gerard Thomas Straub. A friend loaned it to me recently while my son was on a mission trip to Haiti.

Winnie Griggs: I'm currently reading The Baby Who Saved Dr. Cynical - the first Mills & Boon Medical Romance by my good friend Connie Cox. I'm about 1/2 way through and finding it's a great emotional read.

Christine Johnson: I'm reading A Hope Undaunted by Julie Lessman because it's set in the 1920s. Since I write books set in the early 20s, I generally avoid fiction depicting that time period. Weird, I know, but it's me. At the moment I'm working in another era, so I can enjoy Julie's take on the 1920s. Also, this is the first novel I'm attempting to read on an ereader. I still love the feel of paper, the smell of a new book, and the gorgeous cover art, which I get to enjoy every time I glance at a print book. The ereader does have the advantage of larger font size. Sigh...I guess that's a sign of age.

Karen Kirst: I'm reading Linda Goodnight's Harlequin Romance The Least Likely Groom. Loving the hero Jett! (Awesome name, right?)

Jean C. Gordon: I'm reading Smitten, Love is on the way. I'm having a hectic week and the short, cute, heartwarming novellas are just right for the few minutes a day I can catch to read.

Naomi Rawlings: I'm reading Engaging the Earl by Mandy Goff. It's one of this month's Love Inspired Historical releases. And I'm loving the combination of society wit and serious expectations.

Linda Goodnight: I'm re-reading Forgiving, an old historical romance by Lavyrle Spencer, my all-time favorite author. I'm re-reading it because I love her word choices, metaphors, and her powerful characterizations and emotion -- and because her stories are just so beautifully woven.

Louise M. Gouge: P. D. James's Death Comes to Pemberly because my husband gave it to me for Christmas. Regarding style, it is totally "told." We're all over the place in POVs, and there is an assumption that the reader knows the characters from Pride and Prejudice. All that being said, it's a lot of fun to read. I'm about halfway through.

Debby Giusti: I'm reading Brandilyn Collins' OVER THE EDGE, about the Lyme Disease war. A fascinating suspense! I did an in-depth article on Lyme in my freelance days and actually interviewed the PhD who endorsed her book. Love reading Brandilyn's fiction tale of what is actually happening to so many folks. I can't put it down. As you probably now, Brandilyn has Lyme so she has lived this story. An excellent read that I highly recommend.

Sherri Shackelford: My 12 1/2 year old daughter has asked to read The Hunger Games, so I just downloaded the book to my kindle. I'm only on page one...but that's what I'm reading.

Margaret Daley: I'm reading Love Finds You in Sunflower, Kansas, by Pamela Tracy because it is by one of my favorite people.

Terri Reed: I'm reading Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins. This is the third book in the Hunger Games trilogy. I started the series because my kids were reading them and I wanted to see what it was that had them so enthralled. I expected to not like the books for several reasons. The books are written in 1st person POV. I'm not a fan of 1st person POV. And not only that but the author alternates between present tense and past tense, which felt very clunky at first. It took me several chapters to become used to this style of writing. I also expect the subject matter to be a turn off. It is violent and gut wrenching. However, the author does a super job at making the reader care about the characters, despite their flaws. The pace of the stories are breath stealing, the tension high, and there are so many twists and cliff hanger endings that the reader can't help, but want to know what's going to happen next. I'm also reading FOR YOUNG MEN ONLY by Jeff Feldhahn and Eric Rice. This is a book that helps young men understand the mind of young women. You're probably wondering why I'm reading this...my son will be fifteen soon. Since I plan to give him this book as when I'm done, I wanted to know what the book said so I could follow up with discussions. When my daughter was this ageI gave her the book FOR YOUNG WOMEN ONLY by Shaunti Feldhahn and Lisa Rice. I read it first so we could talk about the information inside. I wish there had been books like these out when I was a teenager trying to navigate my way through relationships.

So, now you know what the Crafties are reading... how about you? What are you reading and what do you thinking about it and why.