Well, it was bound to happen. I have hit a bit of a reading lull, or at least it feels that way, somehow. There have been a few titles that I've finished within a day or two this past month, but everything else has been mostly read simultaneously, a few pages at a time--to me, that just feels less fulfilling. Anyone else?
In any case, here we go!
A Man Called Ove, by Frederik Backman. I've held off on this one, which I know so many people have read and loved, because I knew my bookclub would read it and I wanted to wait. So now we've met, and I've read it! Ove is the neighborhood curmudgeon, keeping the world at arm's length and subscribing to a merciless sense of fair play. We meet him on one of his darkest days, which is turned around by a chance annoyance--a new family moving in, and making a hash of things in the process. Ove, who has not let anyone into his life in such a long time, soon finds himself surrounded by people who need him, and it is only most reluctantly that he acknowledges his need for them, too. A fast read, and an inspiring one. I very much enjoyed it, and it made for excellent discussion with the book club members.
A Breath After Drowning, by Alice Blanchard. Child psychiatrist Kate Wolf is devastated when one of her young patients commits suicide. Still reeling, she takes on a new patient, a girl abandoned at the hospital by her mother. Her confidence shaken, Kate doubts her ability to help her new patient, only to find the girl and her family have ties to Kate's own past, forcing her to acknowledge her own personal tragedy. While the plot here is fascinating, I found the style abrupt, almost as though too much of the story had been edited out--it felt like there were holes and that I was having to infer an awful lot. Sadly, not my favorite.
Leave No Trace, by Mindy Mejia. Ten years ago, a man and his son disappeared into the acres of forest in Minnesota near the Boundary Waters, and the townsfolk have presumed them dead for years. Now, the son has reappeared, found ransacking an outdoor equipment store. Violent and uncommunicative, he's sent to the local psychiatric facility where he chooses only to communicate with speech therapist Maya. He's still unwilling to share all of his secrets: where they've been, why they disappeared, why he came back. And Maya certainly has secrets of her own, including the reason she wants to help him return to the wild and his father. Beautifully written in taut, spare prose, this is a suspense novel to be savored--I didn't want to miss the smallest detail.
Lost Girls: an unsolved American mystery, by Robert Kolker. In 2010, the remains of five young women were found on the same Long Island Beach, all of them sex workers who had once used Craigslist to post their ads. Kolker investigates their individual pasts, their disappearances, the police investigation, and the nearby gated community which appears to be peopled with very private citizens, all with something to hide. The five women are all believed to have been killed by the same person, called the Long Island Serial Killer or LISK (sometimes also called the Gilgo Beach Killer or the Craigslist Ripper). I'm on a true-crime jag, and this was compellingly written. The case is currently still unsolved.
Something in the Water, by Catherine Steadman. I read this on a recommendation from a coworker, who said she couldn't put it down. I can concur, it was absolutely gripping. In a novel where you start at the end and work backward, we meet Erin while she's digging a grave for her husband. It is only as we track back her relationship with her husband, their recent wedding and their honeymoon in Bora Bora that we slowly get the picture of how she has come to this desperate situation, a young documentary film-maker, now a widow, hiding a body in the English countryside. Steadman's debut is excellent, and I look forward to her next outing.
Orphans of the Carnival, by Carol Birch. Julia Pastrana was a wonder of her time, a queen of the freakshow, touring New Orleans, New York, London, Vienna, and Moscow. Today, she would be diagnosed with hypertrichosis terminalis, but in the mid 1800s, physicians declared she was half brute, half human--as an act, she was often called the Bear Woman. Fluent in English, Spanish and French, Julia was also an accomplished musician and dancer with an excellent singing voice. Leaving the small Mexican village where she grew up in hopes of a better life with the sideshow troupe in New Orleans, Julia seeks happiness and perhaps love, which she finds with Theodore Lent. Based on a true story and framed in Birch's flavorful prose, this was a delectable read.
The Home for Unwanted Girls, by Joanna Goodman. Maggie is a young woman in Quebec in the 1950s, her mother French and her father English. Caught between two worlds, she is pushed to reject her French background, only to fall for a French boy who lives on a neighboring farm. Maggie becomes pregnant and is sent away, forced to have her baby in secrecy and give her up immediately. Elodie grows up in Quebec's impoverished orphanage system, only to have all orphanages turned into mental institutions by governmental decree--as a result, Elodie and thousands of orphans like her are declared mentally ill. Told in two parts that intertwine but never touch, the stories of Maggie and her daughter are hauntingly poignant. I'd recommend this to readers who liked Lisa Wingates's Before We Were Yours.
Tuesday, October 30, 2018
Tuesday, October 23, 2018
Meg's Picks: November 2018, part 2
I've mentioned before, these are often my favorite posts: full of new titles that might be off the beaten track a bit but still very worthy of the spotlight. If you're tired of the same-old-same-old, here are a few to take into consideration...
Come With Me, by Helen Schulman. Schulman, author of the 2011 bestseller This Beautiful Life, returns here with a thrilling and somewhat alarming tale of the possibilities of technology. Stanford junior and tech start-up genius Donny has developed an algorithm that may allow people to access their "multiverses", the lives they might have had if life choices had been played out differently. One of his first test subjects is PR part-timer Amy Reed, whose daydreams often drift to a simpler, less encumbered life, one without her out-of-work husband and rowdy children. As the testing draws her daydreams frighteningly close to the surface, Amy and her family have to make some serious choices. Dark comedy fans should absolutely check this out.
The Shadows We Hide, by Allen Eskens. In this sequel to 2014's The Life We Bury, Joe Talbert returns to investigate the murder of the father he never knew, and to reckon with his family's past. What he discovers upon arriving in his father's small hometown is that no one has much to say about the deceased except that his death was long overdue. Upon further digging, it seems the man had been a cheat and generally nasty character. But Joe must continue to dig, both to solve the murder as well as to fill in the missing pieces of his own family history. I'm recommending this to fans of Jane Harper (The Dry, etc.).
Once A Midwife, by Patricia Harman. This new addition to Harman's popular Hope River series (The Midwife of Hope River, etc.) follows midwife Patience Hester through World War II, facing trouble when her husband Daniel refuses to fight after seeing too much bloodshed in the first world war. This earns him not only the scorn of his neighbors, but also a prison sentence, leaving Patience behind to support their family, raising their four young children in his absence. Historical fiction fans looking for a different take on WWII fiction might want to add this to their reading lists.
Come With Me, by Helen Schulman. Schulman, author of the 2011 bestseller This Beautiful Life, returns here with a thrilling and somewhat alarming tale of the possibilities of technology. Stanford junior and tech start-up genius Donny has developed an algorithm that may allow people to access their "multiverses", the lives they might have had if life choices had been played out differently. One of his first test subjects is PR part-timer Amy Reed, whose daydreams often drift to a simpler, less encumbered life, one without her out-of-work husband and rowdy children. As the testing draws her daydreams frighteningly close to the surface, Amy and her family have to make some serious choices. Dark comedy fans should absolutely check this out.
The Shadows We Hide, by Allen Eskens. In this sequel to 2014's The Life We Bury, Joe Talbert returns to investigate the murder of the father he never knew, and to reckon with his family's past. What he discovers upon arriving in his father's small hometown is that no one has much to say about the deceased except that his death was long overdue. Upon further digging, it seems the man had been a cheat and generally nasty character. But Joe must continue to dig, both to solve the murder as well as to fill in the missing pieces of his own family history. I'm recommending this to fans of Jane Harper (The Dry, etc.).
Once A Midwife, by Patricia Harman. This new addition to Harman's popular Hope River series (The Midwife of Hope River, etc.) follows midwife Patience Hester through World War II, facing trouble when her husband Daniel refuses to fight after seeing too much bloodshed in the first world war. This earns him not only the scorn of his neighbors, but also a prison sentence, leaving Patience behind to support their family, raising their four young children in his absence. Historical fiction fans looking for a different take on WWII fiction might want to add this to their reading lists.
Thursday, October 18, 2018
Meg's Picks: November 2018, part 1
Surprising new reads from beloved authors, coming soon to a library shelf near you!
Fire & Blood, by George R.R. Martin. Sorry, Game of Thrones / A Song of Ice and Fire fans, this isn't book six, which has been "in process" for over seven years now. Instead, this is a bit of a prequel to Martin's epic series, focusing on the history of House Targaryen, 300 years prior to the series opener. (Which, if you ask fans, is approximately how long it's taking Martin to get The Winds of Winter finished. Sorry, George, but you're killing us!) So, with a bit of luck, this will help tide us over during the interminable wait. Beginning with the legendary Aegon the Conqueror who, as the presiding member of the last remaining house of dragonlords to survive the Doom of Valyria, took up residence on Dragonstone and crafted the Iron Throne. What really happened during the Dance of Dragons? What was Westeros like when dragons ruled the skies? The real stories behind the legends are now revealed.
Robert B. Parker's Blood Feud, by Mike Lupica. When polled, fans of legendary Robert B. Parker voted overwhelmingly that they wanted to see more of his sole female protagonist, Boston PI Sunny Randall, last featured in 2007's Spare Change. Written by Edgar finalist Lupica (Too Far, etc.), Sunny's first outing in over a decade finds her at odds with her ex, Mafia bookie Richie Burke, only to have the situation made more complicated when Richie is shot in the back over an old conflict with the Irish mob. Despite warnings to avoid the situation, Sunny jumps in with both feet, determined to put to rest the ghosts from Richie's past...and her own. From what I've heard, Lupica will be writing a followup, so keep an eye out.
Fire & Blood, by George R.R. Martin. Sorry, Game of Thrones / A Song of Ice and Fire fans, this isn't book six, which has been "in process" for over seven years now. Instead, this is a bit of a prequel to Martin's epic series, focusing on the history of House Targaryen, 300 years prior to the series opener. (Which, if you ask fans, is approximately how long it's taking Martin to get The Winds of Winter finished. Sorry, George, but you're killing us!) So, with a bit of luck, this will help tide us over during the interminable wait. Beginning with the legendary Aegon the Conqueror who, as the presiding member of the last remaining house of dragonlords to survive the Doom of Valyria, took up residence on Dragonstone and crafted the Iron Throne. What really happened during the Dance of Dragons? What was Westeros like when dragons ruled the skies? The real stories behind the legends are now revealed.
Robert B. Parker's Blood Feud, by Mike Lupica. When polled, fans of legendary Robert B. Parker voted overwhelmingly that they wanted to see more of his sole female protagonist, Boston PI Sunny Randall, last featured in 2007's Spare Change. Written by Edgar finalist Lupica (Too Far, etc.), Sunny's first outing in over a decade finds her at odds with her ex, Mafia bookie Richie Burke, only to have the situation made more complicated when Richie is shot in the back over an old conflict with the Irish mob. Despite warnings to avoid the situation, Sunny jumps in with both feet, determined to put to rest the ghosts from Richie's past...and her own. From what I've heard, Lupica will be writing a followup, so keep an eye out.
Thursday, October 11, 2018
Reading Ahead: November 2018, part 4
It's mystery season! If you're looking for a suspenseful tale to keep you company on a chilly November night, here are a few you can look forward to!
You Don't Own Me, by Mary Higgins Clark & Alafair Burke. This sixth novel in Clark's bestselling Under Suspicion series (and the fifth co-authored by Burke) finds the cold-case television show host Laurie Moran happily planning her future with her fiance. Then she's approached by the Bell family, who are desperate to have their son's case, that of a distinguished doctor who was shot dead in the driveway of his Greenwich Village home five years earlier, featured on Laurie's show. Since Dr. Bell's murder, his widow has lived under a cloud of suspicion, depicted as a mentally unstable gold-digger by the media. She sees the show as an opportunity to clear her name once and for all. But once Laurie dives in, she'll find that the good doctor had secrets of his own... Series fans are already lining up for this one--have you placed your request yet?
Kingdom of the Blind, by Louise Penny. Penny's hugely popular Inspector Gamache series continues in this latest entry, following 2017's Glass Houses, after which Gamache found himself suspended from the force. Of course, suspension or no, when Gamache is enlisted to be an executor for a stranger's estate and a key beneficiary turns up dead, he cannot help but investigate. Series fans who have been waiting for an entry that features psychologist-turned-bookseller Myrna Lander more prominently during one of Gamache's cases in Three Pines will be delighted with this newest title.
Look Alive Twenty-Five, by Janet Evanovich. Trenton's Red River Deli is one of the best around--famous for its pastrami and coleslaw...and now for its disappearing managers, as three of them have gone missing in the last month. The only clue? For each of them, one shoe has been found. The police are baffled. Locals have speculated that it might be aliens. But one thing's for sure--their new manager, Stephanie Plum, is going to get to the bottom of it.
You Don't Own Me, by Mary Higgins Clark & Alafair Burke. This sixth novel in Clark's bestselling Under Suspicion series (and the fifth co-authored by Burke) finds the cold-case television show host Laurie Moran happily planning her future with her fiance. Then she's approached by the Bell family, who are desperate to have their son's case, that of a distinguished doctor who was shot dead in the driveway of his Greenwich Village home five years earlier, featured on Laurie's show. Since Dr. Bell's murder, his widow has lived under a cloud of suspicion, depicted as a mentally unstable gold-digger by the media. She sees the show as an opportunity to clear her name once and for all. But once Laurie dives in, she'll find that the good doctor had secrets of his own... Series fans are already lining up for this one--have you placed your request yet?
Kingdom of the Blind, by Louise Penny. Penny's hugely popular Inspector Gamache series continues in this latest entry, following 2017's Glass Houses, after which Gamache found himself suspended from the force. Of course, suspension or no, when Gamache is enlisted to be an executor for a stranger's estate and a key beneficiary turns up dead, he cannot help but investigate. Series fans who have been waiting for an entry that features psychologist-turned-bookseller Myrna Lander more prominently during one of Gamache's cases in Three Pines will be delighted with this newest title.
Look Alive Twenty-Five, by Janet Evanovich. Trenton's Red River Deli is one of the best around--famous for its pastrami and coleslaw...and now for its disappearing managers, as three of them have gone missing in the last month. The only clue? For each of them, one shoe has been found. The police are baffled. Locals have speculated that it might be aliens. But one thing's for sure--their new manager, Stephanie Plum, is going to get to the bottom of it.
Tuesday, October 9, 2018
Reading Ahead: November 2018, part 3
This is the prime season for easy, entertaining reads. Here are a few that readers are already beginning to line up for.
Beauchamp Hall, Danielle Steel. Steel's latest features a young American woman who finds adventure, professional satisfaction, and love when she becomes involved with the filming of a Downton Abbey-type television program near London. And she's a long way from her roots in small-town Michigan. Lots of heart, lots of fun, perfect for Steel's fans. Also available in Large Print.
Master of His Fate, by Barbara Taylor Bradford. Bradford kicks off a new historical fiction series set in Victorian England in her latest novel. James Lionel Falconer is young, charming and confident, rising from his start as an assistant in his father's Camden Town market stall to a high position in a classy trading company. While personal tragedy nearly undoes James, it's a royal summons that ultimately will let him prove his worth. Bradford fans will be delighted with her new cast of characters.
Night of Miracles, by Elizabeth Berg. This sequel to Berg's hugely popular The Story of Arthur Truluv follows Lucille Howard, who is now teaching baking classes out of her home to help fill her time after a personal loss. She reaches out to a new resident and hires her as an assistant, and helps other neighbors who are experiencing personal struggles. If your preference is warm, comforting, easy reading to curl up with this time of year, this is just the thing. Also available in Large Print.
The Noel Stranger, by Richard Paul Evans. Second in Evans's Noel collection, following The Noel Diary (2017). Maggie, newly divorced and still reeling from her ex-husband's arrest for bigamy, decides to buy a Christmas tree to try and cheer herself up. She's soon swept off her feet by the charming Andrew, who delivers the tree to her home. But when Andrew proves to have some dark secrets of his own, Maggie has to decide whether to trust in the possibility of love again or run for the hills. Can love conquer all?
Beauchamp Hall, Danielle Steel. Steel's latest features a young American woman who finds adventure, professional satisfaction, and love when she becomes involved with the filming of a Downton Abbey-type television program near London. And she's a long way from her roots in small-town Michigan. Lots of heart, lots of fun, perfect for Steel's fans. Also available in Large Print.
Master of His Fate, by Barbara Taylor Bradford. Bradford kicks off a new historical fiction series set in Victorian England in her latest novel. James Lionel Falconer is young, charming and confident, rising from his start as an assistant in his father's Camden Town market stall to a high position in a classy trading company. While personal tragedy nearly undoes James, it's a royal summons that ultimately will let him prove his worth. Bradford fans will be delighted with her new cast of characters.
Night of Miracles, by Elizabeth Berg. This sequel to Berg's hugely popular The Story of Arthur Truluv follows Lucille Howard, who is now teaching baking classes out of her home to help fill her time after a personal loss. She reaches out to a new resident and hires her as an assistant, and helps other neighbors who are experiencing personal struggles. If your preference is warm, comforting, easy reading to curl up with this time of year, this is just the thing. Also available in Large Print.
The Noel Stranger, by Richard Paul Evans. Second in Evans's Noel collection, following The Noel Diary (2017). Maggie, newly divorced and still reeling from her ex-husband's arrest for bigamy, decides to buy a Christmas tree to try and cheer herself up. She's soon swept off her feet by the charming Andrew, who delivers the tree to her home. But when Andrew proves to have some dark secrets of his own, Maggie has to decide whether to trust in the possibility of love again or run for the hills. Can love conquer all?
Thursday, October 4, 2018
Reading Ahead: November 2018, part 2
Publishers have been saving some real winners for next month--new titles by some of our patrons' favorite authors, guaranteed to please!
Heads You Win, by Jeffrey Archer. After his father is assassinated by the KGB in 1968, teenager Alexander Karpenko flips a coin to decide where he and his mother should immigrate: New York or London. What follows is both versions of what might have happened depending on that flip. Sort of a Sliding Doors meets coming-of-age tale, resulting in a fun and fast-paced novel. Also available in Large Print.
Nine Perfect Strangers, by Liane Moriarty. Can ten days at a health resort really change your life? Nine strangers are about to find out. Some have come to the remote Tranquillium House to lose weight, others to reboot their lives after personal and/or professional setbacks. For a former best-selling romance novelist, the character that most intrigues her is the charismatic and eccentric owner and director of the resort. What she and the other guests will be asking before their stay is over is: should they surrender to the process or should they run while they still can? This latest by Moriarty (Big Little Lies, etc.) is perfect for readers seeking a wickedly smart page-turner.
Tony's Wife, by Adriana Trigiani. It's the 1940s and Chi Chi Donatelli and Saverio Armandonada fall in love over the course of one perfect summer at the Jersey Shore. Both dream of singing with greats like Glenn Miller and Benny Goodman, but after they marry, the question arises: which of them will put aside their dreams in order to raise a family? Trigiani is a huge reader sweetheart with past favorites like The Shoemaker's Wife and Lucia, Lucia--I highly recommend placing your request now!
Heads You Win, by Jeffrey Archer. After his father is assassinated by the KGB in 1968, teenager Alexander Karpenko flips a coin to decide where he and his mother should immigrate: New York or London. What follows is both versions of what might have happened depending on that flip. Sort of a Sliding Doors meets coming-of-age tale, resulting in a fun and fast-paced novel. Also available in Large Print.
Nine Perfect Strangers, by Liane Moriarty. Can ten days at a health resort really change your life? Nine strangers are about to find out. Some have come to the remote Tranquillium House to lose weight, others to reboot their lives after personal and/or professional setbacks. For a former best-selling romance novelist, the character that most intrigues her is the charismatic and eccentric owner and director of the resort. What she and the other guests will be asking before their stay is over is: should they surrender to the process or should they run while they still can? This latest by Moriarty (Big Little Lies, etc.) is perfect for readers seeking a wickedly smart page-turner.
Tony's Wife, by Adriana Trigiani. It's the 1940s and Chi Chi Donatelli and Saverio Armandonada fall in love over the course of one perfect summer at the Jersey Shore. Both dream of singing with greats like Glenn Miller and Benny Goodman, but after they marry, the question arises: which of them will put aside their dreams in order to raise a family? Trigiani is a huge reader sweetheart with past favorites like The Shoemaker's Wife and Lucia, Lucia--I highly recommend placing your request now!
Tuesday, October 2, 2018
Reading Ahead: November 2018, part 1
Thrillers are the name of the game this fall! Wondering what will find its way onto the best-seller's lists in a hurry? Read on!
Past Tense, by Lee Child. Jack Reacher heads to rural New Hampshire, seeking any information concerning his late father, Stan Reacher. All he finds is an old case file regarding an assault, in which Stan Reacher was mentioned. Jack, being Jack, finds himself stepping in to stop a townie from beating a woman, humiliating the man publicly in the process. As Jack deals with the ensuing revenge posse, 30 miles away, a Canadian couple has car trouble and is forced to stay over at a small motel, a motel which becomes stranger and more ominous by the minute. This should prove an extremely satisfying installment in Child's long-running, popular series. Also available in Large Print.
Long Road to Mercy, by David Baldacci. Baldacci kicks of a new series in his latest, featuring Atlee Pine, an FBI agent and criminal profiler who specializes in serial killers. The case in her debut? A steadily lengthening list of missing persons in the area surrounding the Grand Canyon. I'm expecting this to recruit even more fans to Baldacci's camp.
Sea of Greed, by Clive Cussler and Graham Brown. After an explosion in the Gulf of Mexico destroys three oil rigs, Kurt Austin and the NUMA Special Projects Team are tasked by the President to investigate. The trail quickly leads to a billionaire in the field of alternative energy whose goal is to end the age of oil. But is she an environmental hero...or a rogue genetic engineer?
Target, by James Patterson. An elite squad of killers is on the loose--six assassins. In the wake of a leader's fall, Alex Cross joins the crowd of mourners, only to witness a sniper's bullet strike a target at the heart of DC. Cross's wife, Bree Stone, recently elevated to chief of DC detectives, must solve the case quickly or lose her position. The FBI, the Special Service, and Cross himself are all on the case, with Cross orchestrating one of the largest manhunts on record. But was this the only target? Or are the killers just getting started?
Past Tense, by Lee Child. Jack Reacher heads to rural New Hampshire, seeking any information concerning his late father, Stan Reacher. All he finds is an old case file regarding an assault, in which Stan Reacher was mentioned. Jack, being Jack, finds himself stepping in to stop a townie from beating a woman, humiliating the man publicly in the process. As Jack deals with the ensuing revenge posse, 30 miles away, a Canadian couple has car trouble and is forced to stay over at a small motel, a motel which becomes stranger and more ominous by the minute. This should prove an extremely satisfying installment in Child's long-running, popular series. Also available in Large Print.
Long Road to Mercy, by David Baldacci. Baldacci kicks of a new series in his latest, featuring Atlee Pine, an FBI agent and criminal profiler who specializes in serial killers. The case in her debut? A steadily lengthening list of missing persons in the area surrounding the Grand Canyon. I'm expecting this to recruit even more fans to Baldacci's camp.
Sea of Greed, by Clive Cussler and Graham Brown. After an explosion in the Gulf of Mexico destroys three oil rigs, Kurt Austin and the NUMA Special Projects Team are tasked by the President to investigate. The trail quickly leads to a billionaire in the field of alternative energy whose goal is to end the age of oil. But is she an environmental hero...or a rogue genetic engineer?
Target, by James Patterson. An elite squad of killers is on the loose--six assassins. In the wake of a leader's fall, Alex Cross joins the crowd of mourners, only to witness a sniper's bullet strike a target at the heart of DC. Cross's wife, Bree Stone, recently elevated to chief of DC detectives, must solve the case quickly or lose her position. The FBI, the Special Service, and Cross himself are all on the case, with Cross orchestrating one of the largest manhunts on record. But was this the only target? Or are the killers just getting started?
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