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Holly by Stephen King

December 18, 2023

holly

I know many people have moved towards cozy holiday reading in the last month, but my reading has remained varied and a little bit dark. So, I have a compromise today: a book with a Christmas-y title, but written by the master of suspense and horror. It’s Stephen King’s Holly and while it won’t warm your heart it does involve hearts and is no more terrifying than the news these ... Read More...

4 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: contemporary life, horror, mystery, suspense

Those We Thought We Knew

December 15, 2023

those we thought

The residents of Jackson, a quiet county in the North Carolina mountains, are happy believing racism is largely in their past. Until that is, reality intervenes in David Joy’s new novel, Those We Thought We Knew. Joy uses the perspectives of three local characters: two white law enforcement officers and one Black woman to strip the veneer from a place and people who thought ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, literary, racism, Southern life

Check & Mate

December 8, 2023

check

Mallory is only 18 but she already has an unwanted reputation. She’s the only person to have beaten Nolan Sawyer, the 20-year-old World Chess Champion who hasn’t lost in over three years. Some would be thrilled, but Mallory hates chess and hasn’t played since that infamous game. This is the board upon which Ali Hazelwood arranges her players in Check & Mate, a young adult ... Read More...

2 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: contemporary life, rom-com, young adult

The Flatshare: A Novel

November 29, 2023

flatshare

In the same way I’m always up for a well done rom-com movie I sometimes need the same thing in my reading. The end of this year has found me unable to commit to anything with too much darkness or character study. Thankfully, a friend recommended The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary. This light story takes the unusual premise of two strangers ‘sharing’ an apartment without ever seeing ... Read More...

2 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: contemporary life, London, rom-com, vacation reading

Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

November 27, 2023

tom lake

I’m not sure I’ve ever started a review with an apology to the book and, possibly, the author. There’s a story here, so please be patient. I’ve always enjoyed Ann Patchett’s books, both fiction and nonfiction so I thought I was ready for her latest, Tom Lake, when it came out in August. A friend kindly loaned me their print copy. I tried it and loved its beginning, but print ... Read More...

9 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, family, literary

Day by Michael Cunningham

November 21, 2023

day

A single day revisited for three years is the scaffolding that supports Michael Cunningham’s new novel, Day. The years are significant as they bracket the pandemic and lockdown, but this is not a COVID novel of suspense, terror, or disaster. Rather it’s snapshots of one family at three critical points in their lives as individuals and as a family unit. Dan and Isabel live in a ... Read More...

4 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, contemporary life, literary

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