The Gilmore Guide to Books

Connecting Books and Readers One Review at a Time

  • Home
  • About Me
  • Reviews
    • Reviews by Author
    • Reviews by Title
    • Reviews by Genre
  • Podcast
  • Policies
    • Review Policy
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Policy

Lost Lambs by Madeline Cash

July 22, 2026

lost

How wonderful to find a novel that had me laughing out loud by page 10. Lost Lambs by Madeline Cash drops you right into the deep end of a deeply dysfunctional family from the perspective of their parish priest as he meets with their youngest daughter. They no longer come to church, the parents are stuck in a rut of vitriolic mutual dislike, and their three teenage daughters ... Read More...

Leave a Comment
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: debut, family, humor, vacation reading

Home of the American Circus

August 21, 2025

american circus

Home of the American Circus begins with Freya’s rent being overdue and her appendix bursting. These two events give her no choice but to leave Maine where she lives and head back to her hometown in New York. And not just the town, but her childhood home which was left to her by her parents. Once there she reunites with her best friend, a troubled musician who is also living ... Read More...

Leave a Comment
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, childhood, family, literary

Culpability by Bruce Holsinger

July 15, 2025

culpability

When Culpability begins the Cassidy-Shaws are heading to one of their children’s sports tournaments when their minivan is hit by another car veering into their lane, resulting in two fatalities. The car is self-driving with the son, Charlie, at the wheel. His father, Noah, an attorney, is next to him while his mother, Lorelei, and two younger sisters are in the backseats. There ... Read More...

2 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, family, technology, vacation reading

The Bright Years

April 29, 2025

bright years

Four generations of one Texas family unfold on the pages of Sarah Damoff’s intimate debut, The Bright Years. What begins with the simple act of falling in love turns into something deeper and more profound as secrets and addiction pull apart the loving trio of father Ryan, mother Lillian, and daughter Georgette (Jet), leaving each to manage the fallout. The novel is told in ... Read More...

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

Penitence: A Novel

February 3, 2025

penitence

When Penitence begins 13-year-old Nora is alone in a jail cell after turning herself in for killing her 14-year-old brother. An opening like this has the heft to carry a traditional thriller/mystery whether as a police procedural (solving the crime) or a courtroom drama (Nora on trial). Instead, debut author Kristin Koval forges a completely different path in what becomes a ... Read More...

Leave a Comment
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, debut, family, literary, mystery

This Motherless Land

January 27, 2025

motherless

A loving, happy, Nigerian family is torn apart when a daughter survives a horrific car crash that leaves her mother and brother dead and her father’s grief makes him hate her for surviving. This is This Motherless Land and Funke is the daughter, who at eight finds herself on a plane to England to live with her mother’s white family, people she’s never met and knows almost ... Read More...

Leave a Comment
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, childhood, cultural, family

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 26
  • Next Page »
  • Bluesky
  • Email
  • Goodreads
  • Instagram
  • Substack

Save time and subscribe via email

No time to keep checking for new reviews? Enter your email address to subscribe and receive notifications of new posts by email. No spam!

Bookshop

Currently Reading

Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle
Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle
by Emily Nagoski
The Dutch House
The Dutch House
by Ann Patchett
Wild Game: My Mother, Her Lover, and Me
Wild Game: My Mother, Her Lover, and Me
by Adrienne Brodeur

goodreads.com

Affiliate Disclosure

I’m an affiliate for Bookshop. If you click on a link that takes you to their site and make a purchase I’ll earn a small fee, which goes towards the costs of maintaining this site. Your support is appreciated. Thank you!

Archives

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License.

Theme Design By Studio Mommy · Copyright © 2026

Copyright © 2026 · Beyond Madison Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in