While the Northern Hemisphere turns into one giant block of ice under the polar vortex, those of us in southern climes are sweating through a summer heatwave. Now, there are several books on my summer reading pile that have gone unread.
Why? Because they’re all set in Australian summers, and when I’m already overheated I find a book full of even hotter weather just makes me feel worse. So, I’m going to tailor my reading to the season.
If you need to be warmed up, Australian writers are just the thing. Try Jane Harper’s mystery The Dry where a family is murdered in a drought-stricken country town. Or for more heated small town claustrophobia, nothing beats The Dressmaker by Rosalie Ham.
If on the other hand you need to cool down, try Cold City, Cathy McSporran’s tale of a mentally ill woman who jumps realities through a series of alternate Scotlands suffering under a new ice age. Or Jasper Fforde’s Early Riser, also set in an alternate and considerably colder Britain where humans have evolved the ability to hibernate through the worst of winter.
What are your picks for raising or lowering your literary temperature?
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