Disclosure: I received these books to review. This post contains affiliate links; the opinions shared here are 100% mine.

Summer is the time for mind candy.  My kids love to watch endless loops of The Lego Movie.  Sometimes I even let them eat oatmeal creme pies for breakfast.  As for my own standards, I am okay with staying in pajamas all day and just puttering around on the iPad. This is so me, in my dream world:

Reading books in the summer is akin to breathing air.  I read perhaps one book per day….sometimes two.  Most of the time I keep things pretty light in the summer but this week there were some heavy hitters on my bookshelf.  The first was Perfected from Entangled Teen. This book tiptoes quietly into a world where genetically enhanced people are bred to serve as pets for the affluent. Weirded out yet? You haven’t heard the half of it.  The story is told from the perspective of Number Eight, the girl who was “sold” to a congressman and his family.  She considers herself to be at their service, trying to please and befriend as she tries to acclimate to their world.  The whole idea gives me the creepy crawlies.  However, let’s step back for a moment and consider that our society does celebrate and recognize people for certain characteristics.   Is it such a stretch to think that someday those traits might be sought out in distinguishing some parts of the population?  I hope not, but it wouldn’t surprise me.   Look at the symbolism in the book cover; doesn’t it just give you pause?  There are some gaps in the story that made it a bit confusing.  I wondered if I had missed a prequel of sorts.  At first, there’s not a lot of background given to the type of dystopia Ella (number Eight’s given name) finds herself in so the reader is left to guess at the missing information.  As the story progresses, the knots unravel a bit more.  The story itself is so heartbreaking and controversial, yet totally engaging.  I hope the story continues because I want to see what happens next!  This is a great book for middle ages and would generate some interesting conversations with teens.

The next book in my stack was Veil of Secrets, a political thriller that goes behind the scenes of a fictional presidential campaign.  Due to release on July 8, this book really toys with the mind.  Part of this is because it’s a busy maze of scenarios, running here-there-and-everywhere trying to keep up with the demands of a political agenda.  There are so many characters to keep straight in Veil of Secrets that I felt like making an attendance book.  It was difficult to relate to any one character in particular, probably because my life is so different from the high-profile personas in the book.  No one in my life has a trust fund, goes on tours, or regularly shuttles off between Nashville and D.C. for their line of work.  The most intriguing part of the story was the hacking mystery that kept escalating to huge proportions.  The biggest struggle I had with Veil of Secrets was knowing whose side to be on.  If I felt so conflicted, as an outside person reading this fictional story, I can’t imagine how difficult it would be to live this kind of life.

You might think that Sharing Christ With the Dying would be a heavy-hearted sort of book.  While it does center around a rather sad subject — approaching death with a loved one — it’s actually quite practical.  The book focuses on offering comfort and peace to those who are nearing the end of their life.  By organizing documents,caregivers can have a measure of normalcy in their lives.  The book also reminds caregivers to take care of themselves.  I really liked the positive approach that author Melody Rossi took with Sharing Christ With The Dying.   The words reached into my heart and helped me to understand how a loved one might feel when they are dependent upon others for help.  This is an excellent resource for anyone dealing with the ins and out of caring for a dying loved one.

So I feel as though I’ve done some hard work this week. My brain has been sufficiently exercised. Now I deserve some total chick lit.  Be back soon with some more mind candy!