I’m back with more books I loved in 2024. On Friday I shared the fact that almost all my 5-star favorite books for the year were backlist, but I still wanted to give a shoutout to this wide variety of new releases I thought were wonderful. Each provided me with the escape I wanted in a year that was a lot to handle. Mysteries and thrillers came on strong for me ... Read More...
My 9 Favorite Books in 2024
As I started reviewing my reading year there was one stat that jumped off the chart at me. Of the 13 five-star books I read this year my favorite 9 were backlist (published before 2024). I’m sure publishing analysts could provide an easy explanation (fewer books published in an election year) or a psychologist something more detailed (possibly around escape and avoidance) but ... Read More...
Swift River: A Novel
Swift River is both the title of Essie Chambers’ debut and the town where the novel is set. It’s about Diamond Newberry, a 16-year-old girl who stands out, but not for her flashy name or sparkling personality. She’s morbidly obese and ever since her father disappeared 7 years ago she’s the only Black person in town. Her white mother is of little help. She doesn’t drive and ... Read More...
July Reading Wrap-Up
Hello, lovely readers! I’m sorry for my absence at the end of July but a whole lot of life—some of it very happy, some of it not so much—got in the way of my reading and reviewing. The happy was a family wedding and the not-fun was experiencing COVID for the first time. Wow. Even being fully vaccinated I’ve been laid low. You know it’s bad when even reading is beyond me. ... Read More...
Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
When I was young I was fascinated by the cultures of the Mayans and Aztecs so discovering a fantasy trilogy set in the pre-Columbian Americas when the fantasy genre is working well for me felt fortuitous. Black Sun begins with a mother mutilating her young son because she believes him to be a god. The past with its violence against tribes like his is about to come full circle ... Read More...
The Same Bright Stars by Ethan Joella
As evidenced by Wednesday’s review I’m always up for dark dark fiction if there’s humor somewhere in the horror. At the same time, I appreciate a gentler approach—slice-of-life novels if you will. Ethan Joella’s The Same Bright Stars fits in this quieter space perfectly. Jack Schmidt has been in the restaurant business since he was a little boy. Now in his early 50s he’s begun ... Read More...
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