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The Pirate Queen by Ariel Lawhon

September 9, 2026

pirate

Hello, fall! It may not be here officially, but in the book world this week is one of the busiest for new releases. And this year looks to be huge with fall novels coming from popular authors like Hernan Diaz, Barbara Kingsolver, Jodi Picoult, Elin Hilderbrand, Emily St. John-Mandel, Bonnie Garmus, and Kate Atkinson. I’m happy to add Ariel Lawhon to the list.  I was late to the ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: 16th century, book clubs, historical, Ireland, women

The Top of the World by Ethan Joella

August 20, 2026

top of the world

When Maggie’s older brother, Chip disappears for the summer after the end of his senior year in high school it’s a big deal. Because it’s probably the last summer he’ll ever have and she and her parents are left alone and wondering if they’ll ever see him again. They do, but he never says anything about his time away. A year later Maggie seeks some kind of closure around his ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, coming-of-age, family, historical fiction, vacation reading

A Hymn to Life: Shame Has to Change Sides by Gisèle Pelicot

July 16, 2026

hymn

Gisèle Pelicot is the French woman whose husband of 50 years spent the last decade drugging and raping her and inviting strangers to repeatedly do the same while he recorded it. All of which she recounts in her memoir A Hymn to Life because this woman, who survived years of degradation and brutality without any memory of it, had the strength to confront it in graphic detail via ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Non-fiction Tagged: book clubs, France, memoir, true crime, women

Whistler by Ann Patchett

June 25, 2026

whistler

What begins as offhanded teasing between a wife and husband turns into a momentous occasion that unfolds across the pages and years in Ann Patchett’s exquisite new novel, Whistler. Daphne and her husband are at the Metropolitan Museum when they notice an elderly gentleman following them. Jonathon jokes that he’s staring at Daphne, and it turns out he is, but only because he was ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, literary, vacation reading

Ruins by Lily Brooks-Dalton

June 4, 2026

ruins

What if there was another advanced civilization on Earth, older than ours, that has remained undiscovered?  Ember is an archeologist who believes this to be true and has spent her life trying to find proof of this pre-historic society. In Ruins, after years languishing in academia, she finally receives an artifact from a colleague supporting her thesis. She’s given funding for ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, literary, science fiction, vacation reading

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

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