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Leave the World Behind

October 12, 2020

leave

When Clay, Amanda and their children, Archie and Rose, arrive at the secluded house they’re renting on Long Island they’re thrilled to be escaping Manhattan for a week in the summer. The house is beautiful with a pool, woods, and the ocean not too far away. No people, no noise, and barely any cell phone reception. The family quickly shifts into vacation mode. This is the ... Read More...

8 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: contemporary life, literary, suspense

Monogamy: A Novel by Sue Miller

September 25, 2020

monogamy

  Recently, my reading has involved both unusual plots and characters. Today I’m back with Sue Miller’s Monogamy, a novel that is, appropriately for this week, about grief. Annie McFarlane’s husband, Graham, dies of a heart attack in the night next to her in their bed. A large, boisterous man with an appetite for life he leaves a gaping hole in the lives of everyone who ... Read More...

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

The Boys’ Club: A Novel

August 17, 2020

boys

Klasko & Fitch is a massive law firm where the best of the best work, so Alex Vogel is thrilled to be hired there. When she learns the most powerful and lucrative group in the firm is Mergers & Acquisitions, she signs up. She’s energized, not intimidated, because Alex always likes to win. The Boys’ Club is a high-octane debut novel about this first-year associate’s ... Read More...

2 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: contemporary life, debut, new adult, New York City

Thin Girls: A Novel

August 14, 2020

thin

The opening pages of Thin Girls take place in a treatment facility for people with anorexia. The key protagonist, Rose is sharing her thoughts on group therapy and they fairly crackle off the page with intelligence and sharp, incisive humor. She is 23 and has been at the facility for over a year, something she sees as a badge of honor. The only visitor she has is her identical ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, contemporary life, debut, literary, social issues

Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan

June 8, 2020

exciting

At 22 Ava decides the best way to have a happy life is to move as far from Dublin as possible. She chooses Hong Kong where she is hired by a private elementary school to teach English grammar. She makes one friend, Julian, who is an investment banker, but what begins as friendship segues into something else. What that is is hard to define in Naoise Dolan’s subtle, but sharp ... Read More...

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

April Reading Recap

May 1, 2020

april

What to say about April? That I had very little clue the month was ending because I’m lucky if I can remember what day of the week it is? That, despite having nowhere to go I read fewer books this month than any other month this year? I have no answers, except that we’re not in Kansas anymore. Normal is another world and anyone who thinks they can click their heels when these ... Read More...

6 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Feature Tagged: literary, mini-reviews, mystery, thriller, women

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