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The season of pleasure reading is upon us, and the publishing world has readied a handful of thrilling titles to be released just in time for the summer heat. After surveying the crop, here are our picks for fun reading in the sun.

Irish playwright Martin McDonagh makes his feature film writing and directing debut with "In Bruges" (opening February 8 at Landmark's Hillcrest Cinemas), a darkly comic tale of two hitmen on holiday in the idyllic European city that calls itself “the Venice of the North.” Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell play the Irish killers. McDonagh previously worked with Gleeson on his Oscar-winning short "Six-Shooter."

Sookie is a bar waitress in a small Louisiana town. She has a secret "affliction," she can read minds. For her, it can be a real curse. She answers unasked questions. Having a boyfriend is all but impossible -- imagine hearing the unedited thoughts of a high school boy making a move on you. One day a tall, dark and handsome man walks into the bar and sits down. His mind is silent. Sookie is instantly drawn to him. He's different. He's a vampire.

Barbara Kingsolver's new novel weaves together a story of personal awakening with larger themes of environmental stewardship and climate change. Heroine Dellarobia Turnbow's life begins to change when she sees a strange vision in the Appalachian hills — a lake seemingly afire.

With more films than ever before, the Latino Film Festival is tops on our list for this weekend, but there's also treasure hunter's holy grail in Balboa Park. Whatever you're looking for, we've got ideas for you this Culture Lust weekend.

Things We Lost in the Fire

claims a real life source of inspiration for its story of a young man who discovers a clever way of saving his family's shoe business. Charlie Price (Joel Edgerton, the young Uncle Owen from

From the opening credits (which flip through pages of a book on paganism intercut with scenes from later in the film),

China has more than 30 million bloggers, by some estimates. A few are political. Some are unusual, such as Mumu, a Communist Party member who has clips of herself doing sexy dances. But the typical Chinese blogger is more like Jasmine Gu ("It's all about me, myself and my life.")

The Soska Twins Shatter Female Stereotypes