family Archives - The Gilmore Guide to Books

The Top of the World by Ethan Joella

Catherine — Thu, 20 Aug 2026 07:29:35 +0000

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 […]

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Lost Lambs by Madeline Cash

Catherine — Wed, 22 Jul 2026 07:17:40 +0000

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 […]

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Home of the American Circus

Catherine — Thu, 21 Aug 2025 07:18:22 +0000

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 […]

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Culpability by Bruce Holsinger

Catherine — Tue, 15 Jul 2025 07:32:04 +0000

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 […]

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The Bright Years

Catherine — Tue, 29 Apr 2025 07:42:44 +0000

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 […]

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Penitence: A Novel

Catherine — Mon, 03 Feb 2025 08:17:33 +0000

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 […]

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This Motherless Land

Catherine — Mon, 27 Jan 2025 08:30:06 +0000

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 […]

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Instructions for a Heatwave

Catherine — Thu, 16 Jan 2025 08:13:21 +0000

In 1976 England was in the midst of a terrible drought and heat wave. It’s an inauspicious and unexpected time for a happily married, retired man to go missing, but Robert does, taking only his keys and his passport. His wife Gretta is left in a frazzled state and his adult children have all been […]

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Blue Sisters

Catherine — Mon, 23 Sep 2024 07:27:34 +0000

Often a dysfunctional marriage makes the bonds between siblings stronger than usual. This is the case for Avery, Bonnie, Nicky, and Lucky Blue, whose childhood was spent in one such household in Coco Mellors new novel, Blue Sisters. As adults, they embraced vastly different lifestyles, but had maintained their closeness until Nicky died. Her loss […]

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June Reading Wrap-Up

Catherine — Fri, 28 Jun 2024 07:32:35 +0000

That’s it for June, another month in the books (sorry couldn’t resist). We’ve been fortunate here in Seattle with weather that’s been chillier than usual, but with plenty of sunshine. For someone who doesn’t like too much heat it’s been perfect. Apologies to all of you sweltering in various parts of the country. It’s also […]

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