I've forgotten what I like to read

[insidevoice]

I've been  thoroughly entrenched in baby and toddler land for a few years, and while  I used to read anything I could get my hands on, I haven't read much lately, and miss it terribly.  I was given a Kindle as a gift, along with a gift card to load some books on to it (my mom is so amazing!) but I am totally overwhelmed by trying to choose... 

Any suggestions for great books?  I love mysteries for light reading, and often when looking for a mindless escape as a teenager I grabbed one on my Mom's Agatha Christie mysteries. I have a hard time narrowing down a genre, as when I am reading regularly, I tend to read voraciously.  So, if there is something you have enjoyed lately, please pass it along.  I need to find my way back to a love of reading. 

[ollyoxenfree]

For British mystery series, I like

-P.D. James (Inspector Dalgliesh), 

- Elizabeth George (Inspector Lynley - the early books, the latest ones have been terrible) 

- Ruth Rendell (Inspector Wexford)/ aka. Barbara Vine - standalone thriller/mysteries  

- Val McDermid - Tony Hill/Carol Jordan series, but her best books are her standalones - A Place of Execution, A Distant Echo etc. 

- Denise Mina

If you like blood-thirsty, sex-crazed psycho procedurals, try some American series by Karin Slaughter and Tess Gerritson.  I find I tire of these quickly.  A good antidote is the cozy mystery series with Inspector Gamache, set in Quebec, by Lousie Penny.  Dennis Lehane is terrific. 

Of course, the biggest recent mystery phenomenon is the Swedish trilogy by Stieg Larsson, starting with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I enjoyed them, but I found it a little tough to get into at the beginning.  If you like the dark, ominous Scandinavian style, try the Kurt Wallender books by Henning Mankell.

On a non-mystery note, I like Nick Hornby, Kazuo Ishiguro, Kate Grenville, Tim Winton, Margaret Atwood, and Timothy Findlay - they can all be counted on for a good read. 

For quick, torn-from-the-headlines type of reading, there's Jodi Picoult. After the 3rd or 4th book, she's pretty predictable though.