Contemporary Archives - The Gilmore Guide to Books

More Than Enough by Anna Quindlen

Catherine — Wed, 04 Mar 2026 08:03:27 +0000

Open Anna Quindlen’s new novel More Than Enough and you’ll meet Polly, a happy middle-aged woman. Her husband adores her and she him, she’s an English teacher at all girls’ school, and she has three stalwart, loving friends. Friends who give her a DNA test kit as a gag gift. When there’s a match for […]

The post More Than Enough by Anna Quindlen appeared first on The Gilmore Guide to Books.

Best Offer Wins

Catherine — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 08:32:48 +0000

For anyone who’s purchased a house in a competitive market the subject of Marisa Kashino’s novel Best Offer Wins won’t come as a surprise: the lengths a buyer will go to win the house of their dreams. Think buying a home is just about paying the price the owners are asking for it? Then you’ve […]

The post Best Offer Wins appeared first on The Gilmore Guide to Books.

Missing Sam by Thrity Umrigar

Catherine — Tue, 10 Feb 2026 08:12:42 +0000

It’s the July 4th weekend when Ali‘s wife Sam goes missing on her early morning run in their upscale Cleveland Heights neighborhood. Her disappearance sets in motion events that keep Thrity Umrigar’s new novel, Missing Sam, at a slow burn over the mystery, but ignites a blaze in the response the community has to the […]

The post Missing Sam by Thrity Umrigar appeared first on The Gilmore Guide to Books.

Heart, Be at Peace

Catherine — Thu, 04 Sep 2025 07:15:20 +0000

Two five-stars in one week?! What’s going on over here at The Gilmore Guide? Well, the reviews have been pretty few and far between this summer so I felt like giving everyone another outstanding reading option was the least I could do. I’ve been enthralled by Irish authors for years now and one of […]

The post Heart, Be at Peace appeared first on The Gilmore Guide to Books.

Culpability by Bruce Holsinger

Catherine — Tue, 15 Jul 2025 07:32:04 +0000

When Culpability begins the Cassidy-Shaws are heading to one of their children’s sports tournaments when their minivan is hit by another car veering into their lane, resulting in two fatalities. The car is self-driving with the son, Charlie, at the wheel. His father, Noah, an attorney, is next to him while his mother, Lorelei, and […]

The post Culpability by Bruce Holsinger appeared first on The Gilmore Guide to Books.

King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby

Catherine — Thu, 26 Jun 2025 07:51:42 +0000

I’ve been an S.A. Cosby fan since his debut, Blacktop Wasteland so was eager to read his newest novel, King of Ashes. Once again, Cosby settles in the small-town South, this time with a prodigal son forced to return home after his father is in an accident that leaves him in a coma. Roman Carruthers […]

The post King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby appeared first on The Gilmore Guide to Books.

Twist by Colum McCann

Catherine — Fri, 13 Jun 2025 07:25:22 +0000

Anthony is a burned-out journalist whose personal life has cratered as well. In an effort to escape his personal problems and resuscitate his professional life he takes an unusual assignment. Twist is his months-long foray on a boat that’s responsible for repairing the deep-sea cables through which 95% of the world’s data travels. I […]

The post Twist by Colum McCann appeared first on The Gilmore Guide to Books.

Heartwood

Catherine — Wed, 02 Apr 2025 07:15:23 +0000

…the act of walking while carrying the weight of my pack had wrung all the sadness out of me, the sadness for myself and for the world, and that in that moment, I was totally without stress, confusion, or agitation, and that I was perfectly, blamelessly, whole. The trail transformed me. The Appalachian Trail […]

The post Heartwood appeared first on The Gilmore Guide to Books.

This is a Love Story

Catherine — Mon, 17 Feb 2025 08:46:46 +0000

For someone who’s been leery about literary fiction for the past six months I have two novels this week that epitomize the genre and what I love about it. With Central Park as the backdrop, This is a Love Story unfolds in alternating chapters from the novel’s three main characters: Abe, Jane and Max. Abe […]

The post This is a Love Story appeared first on The Gilmore Guide to Books.

Penitence: A Novel

Catherine — Mon, 03 Feb 2025 08:17:33 +0000

When Penitence begins 13-year-old Nora is alone in a jail cell after turning herself in for killing her 14-year-old brother. An opening like this has the heft to carry a traditional thriller/mystery whether as a police procedural (solving the crime) or a courtroom drama (Nora on trial). Instead, debut author Kristin Koval forges a completely […]

The post Penitence: A Novel appeared first on The Gilmore Guide to Books.