I always get a little nervous when authors who write a particular type of book very well decide to try something new. Sometimes, it ends up working out well, but there are also those times when it turns out to be a flop. Fortunately, After the End, the latest novel from renowned thriller writer Clare…
Kate Hope Day’s If, Then is one of those books with a super interesting synopsis that promises to engage the reader in a gripping story that asks deep and meaningful questions. I’m not always interested in reading that sort of thing, as I generally enjoy books that aren’t quite so cerebral. Still, I’ve often found…
Everyone knows Daisy Jones & The Six, but nobody knows the reason behind their split at the absolute height of their popularity . . . until now. Daisy is a girl coming of age in L.A. in the late sixties, sneaking into clubs on the Sunset Strip, sleeping with rock stars, and dreaming of singing…
Come with Me by New York Times best-selling author Helen Schulman is a granular look into the life of one family. At its core, it’s a dive into the struggles of family life, and shows us how temptation can lead us astray. But it’s also a story about the dangers of technology, about the fact…
In Family Trust, Kathy Wang introduces readers to the Huangs, a Chinese family living in Silicon Valley and struggling to achieve the ever-elusive American dream. It’s a novel that deals with cultural identity as well as the complicated bonds between family members, and I’m very glad I read it. For years, Stanley Huang has told…
When I heard of Shyam Selvadurai’s novel Funny Boy, it went to the top of my TBR pile. A boy who grows up during the ethnic unrest of the ‘80s in Sri Lanka, and gradually realizes he’s gay? Plus, he migrates to Canada? I’m straight and female, but otherwise, I could relate. Warning : spoilers…
I’ve been interested in mythology since I first started learning about it back in high school, and I’ve always been particularly fascinated by stories that center around the Trojan Wars. I’ve read several wonderful accounts over the years and I’m always looking for another one to sweep me away, so I was pleased at the…
House Girl has been nominated for the Edinburgh First Book Award and is listed as one of The Observer‘s “New Faces of Fiction”; one of The Millions‘ “Most Anticipated Books of the Year” ; one of The Guardian‘s “Best Summer Books” and one of Library Journal‘s “Books to Anticipate.” It’s safe to say it is one…
Claudia Dey’s punchy, surprising and rather intensely unique Heartbreaker takes a look at the life of Pony Darlene Fontaine, who must go on a rather enormous and heroic quest to discover what’s happened to her mother, Billie Jean. Dissatisfied with her conscripted life and possibly feeling suicidal, Billie Jean walks away from her family during…
Set during the Korean War and the years beyond it, Crystal Hana Kim’s If You Leave Me explores both the split between duty and romantic desire and the way choices can echo through the generations for years to come. Lee Haemi is a sixteen year old refugee from South Korea living in a camp by…