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

The Transition by Luke Kennard

January 15, 2018

transition

What if you had broken the law and rather than being sent to prison you could opt into a program that would make you a better person? The upside is it’s not prison, you get to keep your job, you have no living expenses, and when you’re finished after six months you’ll be provided with a down payment on a new home and will be on your way to personal and profession success. The ... Read More...

9 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: contemporary life, debut, Farrar Straus Giroux, marriage

Mrs. Osmond by John Banville

December 15, 2017

osmond

  “You seem to me, Miss Archer, a person possessed of a large potential; do be careful not to underspend your resource.” I read Henry James’s Portrait of Lady a long time ago, but still remember how bad I felt for its heroine, Isabel Archer. She’s a young American who goes to England and comes into a small fortune, is taken in by a worldly older woman who educates ... Read More...

4 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: classics, historical fiction, Knopf, literary, marriage, women

George & Lizzie by Nancy Pearl

October 6, 2017

george

  George and Lizzie of Nancy Pearl’s debut novel, George & Lizzie are one of those couples that can only be attributed to opposites attract. George is open, gregarious, and endlessly upbeat. Lizzie is quiet, self-absorbed, and largely aimless in what she wants to do with her life. George comes from loving parents and a nurturing environment while Lizzie has grown up ... Read More...

10 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: coming-of-age, marriage, new adult, Touchstone

The Resurrection of Joan Ashby

September 1, 2017

resurrection

  When Joan Ashby is in her early twenties she is acclaimed as a writer to watch. Her short stories win awards, she is interviewed and profiled, and all await her first novel. She knows this is her one true gift and so even when she marries Martin, a man she loves deeply, it is with the agreement that there will be no children. Which is fine until Joan is pregnant. ... Read More...

4 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: family, Flatiron Books, literary, marriage, midlife

It’s Monday, August 21st: What Are You Reading?

August 21, 2017

reading

  I can’t start this post by saying it’s just another Monday. Here in Seattle the sun is going to be 95% obscured by the moon. Kind of crazy if you think about it. I’ve read all sorts of things about what happens. Not the mystical end-of-world things, but that in the natural world it causes birds and other nocturnal animals to begin their preparations for sleep and that ... Read More...

9 Comments
Filed Under: Feature, Reading Tagged: children, family saga, Flatiron Books, Knopf, literary, marriage, women

Great Summer Reading: Standard Deviation

June 28, 2017

standard

I don’t know any other way to begin this review than to say I’m pretty sure Katherine Heiny and I would be besties if we met. Not just because of the first name thing, but because cocktails and snarky conversation on the foibles of the human condition would abound if we ever got together. Which is such a lie because I am always tongue-tied in front of authors I admire, but ... Read More...

10 Comments
Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: contemporary life, Knopf, literary, marriage, midlife

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • …
  • 4
  • 5
  • 6
  • 7
  • 8
  • …
  • 10
  • 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