I usually don't read books unless I am on vacation. Since I'll be away for nearly 2 months, I am figuring that I better get 5 books to bring along to Germany.

What "page turners" have some of you read in the last few months. I am planning to join a book club so I can get the 5 books at a minimum cost.

Interested in the typical "guy" books. No Horror, please.

Spy novels. Conspiracy Novels. Murder Mysteries. They would be just fine.

Any thoughts???

Thanks

Mysteries by Charles Todd, especially his earlier ones. Lanchester's "The Debt to Pleasure" is bizarre but very good. Ian Pears' "An Instance of the Fingerpost." "Undaunted Courage" (non-fiction, but fascinating). Patricia Cornwall's recent book theorizing about the Jack the Ripper murders. I could go on for pages!

Hi

The Travis McGee novels by John D MacDonald

The Smiley books by John Le Carre

Anything by PG Wodehouse

Anything by Mark Twain

The Robert B Parker Spenser books

Anything by Dashiell Hammet, Raymond Chandler or Mickey Spillane

The James Bond books

OOPS

left out all of the Sherlock Holmes stories.

Most modern writers and their bilge are worthless so some of these were read a while ago but meet your criteria:

"Michael Collins" by Tim Pat Coogan
"Benjamin Franklin" by Walter Isaacson
"WW II Trilogy" by Evelyn Waugh
"Seven Ages of Paris? by Alistair Horne-how Paris got to be Paris?fascinating, amusing read

Similar thread a couple of days ago :
http://www.fodors.com/forums/pgMessa...xt=page+turner

And http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...amp;tid=102351

Best wishes,

Rex

My husband is a big fan of Alan Furst's spy novels set in pre-WWII Europe (Furst is often compared to Le Carre). Since you will be in Germany, these might be right up your alley.

Winnepeg,

I second the recommendation of P.G. Wodehouse for fun and (a bit silly but hilarious) amusement. I have a craving for especially the Jeeves/ Bertie Wooster series.

For murder mysteries you might want to take a look at two Swedish authors:
Henning Mankell
Ake Edwardson

I know for a fact that there are English translations of Henning Mankell around, I unfortuantely cannot tell so about Ake Edwardson.

Both write crime stories with significant depth to them, i.e. a closer investigation of changes in society and the personal feelings of their heroes, detectives Kurt Wallander (Mankell) and Martin Winter (Edwardson).
Especially Mankell has been topping the Top 10 lists in recent years with every new book he brought to the market.
Both are even more fun if you read them in the order they were published, but this is no necessity.

Have fun
hsv