While Susan Rigetti’s crime fiction novel Cover Story is not the best book I’ve read recently, it was engrossing and I couldn’t put it down. It has strong Inventing Anna vibes, and if you are enjoying all the con artist shows that are currently streaming as much as I am, I confidently recommend this book.…
Amanda Pellegrino’s novel Smile and Look Pretty exposes the precariousness of industries which rely on the exploitation of assistants to maintain status quo. Cate, Lauren, Max and Olivia are four close friends who are all assistants to powerful figures in various entertainment industries. These twenty-something women all had big dreams when starting their careers, and…
Julie Otsuka’s new book, The Swimmers, is a little bit of a puzzle. It is beautifully written, and heartbreaking in its clarity. Is it a novel? Is it essays? Is it a collection of three novellas? Maybe it does not matter what it is, but it is a little jarring when the first “novella” or…
True Biz is Sara Nović’s latest novel, and takes the reader on an amazing journey. The story is told from the perspective of three narrators. One is February Waters, the headmistress at an Ohio boarding school for Deaf students. February is a hearing ally to the Deaf community, who grew up with a Deaf mother.…
Sally Hepworth’s latest novel, The Younger Wife, is an engaging domestic suspense story that will appeal to everyone who loves Sally’s writing as much as I do. The book begins at the wedding of Stephen Aston and Heather Wisher, and the narrator is an unnamed wedding guest. Stephen’s adult daughters Tully and Rachel are bridesmaids,…
The Fashion Orphans by Randy Susan Meyers and M.J. Rose [This book is so new no libraries own it yet. Please check back here to see about future availablity] In this novel by co-authors Randy Susan Meyers and M.J. Rose, estranged sisters Gabrielle and Lulu find themselves thrown together to solve some mysteries around their…
How Do I Un-Remember This?: Unfortunately True Stories Podcaster Danny Pellegrino’s new book will make you laugh-out-loud one minute, and shed some quick tears the next. Danny shares memories of growing up in the 1990s as a “closeted kid” in a small town in the midwest, and we learn how the internet and reality television…
The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi, is the first book in the Jaipur Trilogy, and is currently being adapted for a TV series. The novel tells the story of Lakshmi, who escaped an abusive marriage at age seventeen and fled to the city of Jaipur. She establishes herself as a henna artist to the women…
The Sisters Sweet by Elizabeth Weiss. The Sisters Sweet is the debut novel of author Elizabeth Weiss. The story is set in Chicago in the 1920s and 1930s, and narrated by Harriet. Harriet and her twin sister Josie are the daughters of Maud and Lenny. Maude is a former Vaudeville performer, whose rise to fame…
Bookshop of the Broken Hearted by Robert Hillman This beautiful, heartbreaking story takes place in a small Australian town in 1968. Tom Hope, a farmer, is a dependable, solid man who suffers many painful losses. Tom’s wife, Trudy, leaves him, and then shows up a year later pregnant with another man’s child. Tom loves the…
Was Told It Would Get Easier by Abbi Waxman I Was Told It Would Get Easier is Abbi Waxman’s latest novel, and while I recommend it to fans of her books, be aware that it is not as great as The Bookish Life of Nina Hill. I Was Told It Would Get Easier is told…
A Little Hope by Ethan Joella A Little Hope is a beautifully written novel, with an unusual balance of joy and heartbreak. The book begins with a young family, Greg and his wife Freddie, and their young daughter Addie. Greg and Freddie are reeling from Greg’s recent diagnosis of multiple myeloma, and trying to keep…
Several People Are Typing This book was my book group’s January pick, and it is an unusual choice for my book group. We are divided on our opinions of the book, but we all agree that it is very thought-provoking. All of the dialogue and action is told through the Slack messages of employees at…