The Summer Psychic - Jessica Adams

What would you do if you were interviewing a shaggy, Australian psychic who predicted the future by gazing into a bucket of seawater and one of the first things that he said was that the two of you would get married by the following summer? Local Brighton reporter Katie Pickard is sent to interview Jim Gabriel in his cubbyhole at the back of a crystal and psychic shop, when she is given this piece of news about her future, along with a whole raft of global predictions for the years to come.

Unfortunately for Katie, Jim Gabriel has never given these types of messages about future world events before, so how accurate are they?  Also, she soon discovers that the newspaper that she works for is in imminent danger of closing down, and so loses interest in the psychic story and Katie is put under pressure to come up with stories that will sell papers fast. Katie's woes are compounded when she discovers that Courtney Creely, the slightly sinister witch who works in the shop where Jim gazes into his bucket has a book of spells that includes one that promises an instant and unpleasant end for any woman who comes between her and Jim Gabriel.

But as Katie has just discovered that her old heart throb, the slightly disreputable but still glamorous rock musician Pete Oram, has just split up from his wife and she starts a relationship with him, she couldn't possibly be in any danger from Courtney's spells could she?  But as the scramble to save the newspaper goes on, Jim Gabriel starts confiding more and more in Katie, and Pete proves that the road to true love can indeed be rocky and not quite what she thought it would be, will Katie be able to keep her job, her sanity and ultimately find the true love that she deserves?

So as this is a seaside yarn, why not get some fish and chips still in the newspaper and a can of coke and sit back and find out how Katie deals with Courtney, when she manages to wangle a job with Katie's boss bringing her coven with her, supports Jim as his predictions make it into the media and eventually force him into retreat in Hastings, and navigates her troubled romance with the rock star on the rebound, Pete Oram. So will Jim Gabriel's predictions come true?

Skin Tight - Carl Hiaasen

Carl Hiaasen books are definitely an acquired taste and you most certainly need to be in possession of a very sick sense of humour to enjoy them. Fortunately I do and I find his satirical, humorous novels set in South Florida totally hysterical.

Skin Tight delves into the murkier realms of cosmetic surgery among the rich and famous in Florida. An area where expensive surgeons are not all they seem and are apt to make mistakes, even fatal ones. The emergence of one of these carefully buried mistakes and the ruthlessness of those who want it to stay hidden, cause investigator Mick Stranahan to have several bad days, where he is compelled to kill some people, who for some reason all of a sudden seem to want to kill him.

The first one - Tony the Eel - is quickly and efficiently dispatched with the spear-like snout of a Marlin, but the others who follow like Chemo, the abnormally tall psycho with an unfortunate skin condition and a weed strimmer as a prosthesis on one arm and the crooked cops Salazar and Murdock are harder to get rid of.

Stranahan has to pick through a web of lies and distortions to find out who and why someone suddenly wants him dead. Dealing with black-mailing nurses, ego-maniac TV presenters, crooked County Commissioners and good cops and bad cops, he has to try and stay alive and uncover the truth.

A more eclectic and outrageous set of characters you could never wish to find between the covers of a book. And as always Hiaassen comes up with some very original ways to be maimed or murdered!

A rollicking, laugh-out-loud read that pokes a sly finger into the underbelly of modern society. Order a cold American beer and a side of fried clams and prawn!