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I, Medusa

May 25, 2026

medusa

Is there anything worse than being the ugly duckling in a family of gorgeous women? Yes. You could be mortal and they could be goddesses. That’s life for 17-year-old Meddy in I, Medusa by Ayana Gray, a refreshing retelling of the Greek myth about the monster Medusa. Meddy is a tomboy who loves books and dreams of escaping their isolated island for Athens. Her only vanity is ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, debut, fantasy, mythology, retellings, vacation reading

Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke

May 18, 2026

Natalie is a God-fearing women living a righteous life on a massive cattle ranch in Idaho. She is a loving wife and mother to five happy, healthy children with a sixth on the way. That she monetizes her life and that it might not be as “real” as she portrays it is the crux of Caro Claire Burke’s debut novel, Yesteryear. Especially when Natalie wakes one morning to find herself ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, debut, women

Saoirse by Charleen Hurtobise

April 1, 2026

saoirse

A teenage girl in fear for her life steals both money and a passport to get out of the U.S. and into Ireland in the 1990s. This is the beginning of the novel Saoirse, but it’s nowhere near the beginning of the life of Sarah, the main character. That unspools slowly throughout the book as the years pass and Sarah morphs into Saoirse. She goes from a toxic childhood to a woman ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, debut, Ireland, literary

Family of Spies

March 23, 2026

family

Here we are nearing the end of March and this is my first nonfiction review. That’s a pretty good summation of my 2026 nonfiction reading so far. I’m staying as far away from reality as possible. However, when I saw Family of Spies by Christine Kuehn at the library it looked intriguing enough that I picked it up. Once home, I jumped in and read the book straight ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Non-fiction Tagged: book clubs, history, WWII

Lady Tremaine

March 10, 2026

lady

The wicked stepmother has been a mainstay in fiction since before the Brothers Grimm became grim. No fairy tale was complete without one, but the one in Cinderella was particularly vicious and cruel. So easy to hate. Maybe too easy? Author Rachel Hochhauser decides to remedy that in her novel, Lady Tremaine. This is not a modernization of the original story, but a recasting, a ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, historical, retellings

Good People by Pameena Sabit

February 23, 2026

good people

When the Sharaf family emigrated from Afghanistan to the United States in the 1980s they were met by an Afghan community that understood not only the terrors of war they’d escaped, but the hardships they would face in building a new life in a foreign country. They were welcomed and aided in their early years of extreme poverty. It’s startling then that when tragedy befalls the ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, cultural, debut, mystery

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