Summer Reading

I've had a rush of summer reading – well, let's just call it reading: not much sign of summer here – and it's made me realise how much I miss feeling besotted by a good book. I've done a lot of work reading over the winter, which is always thought-provoking and demanding, but it  makes me feel as if I have to be on my best behaviour, so in the last couple of weeks I've let my hair down and romped through My dear, I Wanted to Tell You by Louisa Young (which knocked my socks off so much that I've blogged about it elsewhere), Waiting for Sunrise by William Boyd (detailed, intense, with an aftertaste that stayed with me), The Night Rainbow by Claire King (luscious, full of melancholy echoes, but with beautiful, sunlit prose) and two books by Ian Rankin because I was on holiday and never read crime fiction and – why not?

Piled up beside my bed, waiting to be devoured, I've got Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan, Ancient Light by John Banville, Toby's Room by Pat Barker and The Beginner's Goodbye by Anne Tyler. What treats in store!

I'd be really interested to hear what's on your bedside table at the moment, or what kind of book you think makes the perfect summer read...