Tag: fiction

September 2025 Part Two:

September 30, 2025

Book #64:

The Identicals by Elin Hilderbrand (Length: 433 pages).  I really enjoyed this one! Set in both Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, the two main characters are identical twin sisters: Harper and Tabitha Frost. They are estranged, due in part to Parent Trap-style machinations years ago and part due to emotional traumas. This is a very fun read, with Hilderbrand’s strong writing per usual; it is a bit cheesy in parts but the propulsive plot and writing style makes this one more memorable than most of her books. 4.5 stars from me.

Book #65:

The Carpool Detectives by Chuck Hogan (Length: 336 pages). I’m OBSESSED with this non-fiction book! I listened to this one on audio, and it’s definitely the way to go here. At the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, four stay at home moms investigated a cold case murder of a couple whose car had gone over the guardrail into a deep ravine outside of Santa Monica, California. Because it was COVID lockdown, everyone who was a potential witness (including the case detectives) were at home and the women just cold-called them, starting to break this complex case open. This is so well-written and reads like a murder novel. It’s propulsive and you won’t be able to stop reading or listening. The audio was excellent here, with the reading of the group chats adding extra interest. This is absolutely a five-star book. Let me know if you pick this one up!

Book #66:

The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods (Length: 448 pages).   There seem to be so many fiction books with the words “Bookshop” or “Bookstore” in them and apparently, I’m on a quest to read all of them. This particular novel has a blend of magical realism and romance and is set in two time periods: the 1920s through 1950s and present day. Opaline Carlisle is a woman in Ireland who opens a bookshop in the 1920s, which was very unusual for the time period. And in present day, Martha and Henry are two young people in Ireland who are connected to and are looking for this bookshop which has mysteriously vanished. This is a sweet story with likeable characters, but it’s a bit over-dramatic in parts. I enjoyed the focus on books here, especially those written by the Bronte sisters. This is a memorable, fun read. 4 stars.

Book #67:

Is She Really Going Out With Him? by Sophie Cousens (Length: 367 pages). Romantic comedies with older protagonists are rare, and I’m so happy when I pick one up that’s actually really well written, as this one is. Anna Appleby is 38, freshly divorced with two kids, and works as a journalist for a local magazine called Bath Living, about the goings on in Bath, England. To save her job, Anna agrees to write a dating column with the premise of her kids choosing who she dates and what they are to do on the date. There is of course, a separate love interest, and the chemistry between Anna and this person is fantastic. The dialogue is witty and charming, and I thought about these characters even when I wasn’t reading this. 5 stars.

Book #68:

A Marriage at Sea by Sophie Elmhirst (Length: 251 pages). This non-fiction account of an English couple, Maralyn and Maurice, who were lost at sea in 1973 after their boat capsized en route to New Zealand, thanks to a breaching whale. Forced to survive on an inflatable raft and small dinghy, this is partially an adventure story but it’s mostly about them as people and as a couple. This is a riveting, fast read and well-paced (although it does slow down a bit in the last third). 4 stars from me.

Book #69:

The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion by Beth Brower (Length: 208 pages). This volume is the best volume so far! Emma is trying to figure out options for her financial future, but this takes a backseat as her friendship with a trio of 3 different men continues to deepen. This quartet recognizes they have a unique chemistry together and it’s fun to see this develop. Emma, of course, gets into more hilarious adventures and her witty repartee shines even more here. These are so well-written and just so funny. I find myself smiling as I read them. 5 stars, of course.

August 2025–Part Two

September 1, 2025

Book #55:

Practice Makes Perfect by Sarah Adams (Length: 338 pages).  This is the second novel in the When in Rome romance series. Will, the bodyguard to pop star Amelia from Book 1, and Anne, flower shop owner and soon-to-be sister-in-law to Amelia, take part in the fake dating trope here. It’s cheesy, but there’s a reason it’s used so often in romances–because it works. I loved the townspeople and the fun banter here. (The scene at the Little League game had me laughing out loud). There are some annoying edits that were missed which are so distracting (ie, pumping the “breaks”) but those aside, I really enjoyed this fun read. Four stars.

Book #56:

The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion-Volume 1 by Beth Brower (Length: 127 pages). What a fun read! I heard about this series on a few different book podcasts, so I decided to give the first volume a try, and I’m SO glad I did. These are the delightful “journals” of a young woman living in 1883 London. Emma is a feisty and likeable protagonist with a quirky sense of humor. This one is a VERY quick read, but apparently the volumes get longer as the series develops which is a great thing. You will not be able to stop at volume 1 if you’re anything like me. My local library doesn’t have this series yet, which is a downer, but the entire series is available on Kindle Unlimited if you have access that way. A solid five stars from me.

Book #57:

You Could Make This Place Beautiful by Maggie Smith (Length: 336 pages).  This is a memoir written by the award-winning poet, Maggie Smith. The focus here is the author discovering her husband’s infidelity, and her recovery from that. Told in essays or vignettes, the author looks back at how they started and tries to discover what went wrong. The writing is (obviously) gorgeous here, with no sentence wasted. The entire memoir is about divorce, however, so it may not be for every reader. However, there is so much to ponder and learn about oneself, even if you’re not going through a divorce yourself. (Also, this would make an excellent gift for someone you care about who is going through one, if you think they’d benefit from it). 4 stars.

Book #58:

The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley (Length: 383 pages).  This book is so much FUN! It’s a romantasy, heavier on the fantasy, world-building, and quite chaste when it comes to the romance part. (Although in no universe is the writing PG or even PG-13). Two sworn enemies are forced to work together to overcome their own obstacles. For her, it’s to find funding for a vaccine for a pox killing children, and for him, to save his magic and by extension, his life. She’s a scientist and he’s an assassin for hire, and their chemistry is fantastic, if extremely slow building. The writing is so strong here, with witty banter and lushly drawn worlds. There are so many laugh out loud lines and clever wordplay (various pubs serve as way stones for travel between places and their names are fantastic). This does end on a bit of a cliffhanger as it’s a duology. Five stars from me!

July 2025–Part Two

August 1, 2025

Book #49:

The Favorites by Layne Fargo (Length: 433 pages).  This is billed as a novel about revenge, sabotage and romance through the lens of ice dancing and is a favorite of many readers. There’s a lot of drama, on almost every page, with the thru line of the protagonist, Katarina, determined to win an Olympic gold medal, come hell or high water. I will say that overall, this is a fun and frothy read, so it’s perfect for the pool or the beach, but I honestly could not stand the protagonist and found it hard to root for her (and to care whether or not she earned that medal). 3.5 stars from me.

Book #50:

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans (Length: 291 pages). I ADORE this epistolary novel so much. This well-written novel tells the story of Sybil’s life told solely via her letters to various people (friends, family, authors, former coworkers). Sybil is a retired attorney and judicial law clerk and she’s very self-aware, which is refreshing. As cranky as she can be, she’s supremely lovable (and beloved). This is such a memorably story and way to tell her story and this would be great discussion fodder for a book club. It’s a short and fast read too, and easy to consume in a few sittings. 5 solid stars from me.

Book #47:

The Names by Florence Knapp (Length: 336 pages).   Bear, Julian and Gordon . . . these are the 3 different names that the baby’s mother Cora is considering for her child. There are three storylines, each based on what happens to the child (and Cora) based on which name he bears and the author checks in with the child (and his family) every 7 years. I absolutely LOVED this book. Domestic abuse is the thru line of this novel and starts from the jump, but it’s not the main narrative and it isn’t too graphic. How these three storylines evolve is a literary feat and I could not stop reading. It’s like a choose your own adventure/life but make it literary fiction. I can’t stop thinking about (or recommending) this incredible novel. 5 stars from me.

July 2025–Part One

July 15, 2025

Book #45:

The Only One Left by Riley Sager (Length: 400 pages).  Like many readers, I am hot and cold on this author as they’ve turned out some winners and some true duds. In this mystery, a young woman is hired as a caregiver for an older woman who is accused of killing her family 50 years prior. (In fact, there’s a creepy nursery rhyme that the locals chant about the horrific murders . . . a la Lizzy Borden). Leonora Hope, the older woman, is mute and can only move her left hand (and thus is able to type). Caregiver Kit is curious about whether Leonora did, in fact, kill her family, and her investigation drives the plot. The twist here is very clever, and I enjoyed the wild ride. It didn’t ever lag for me, and I thought the writing is strong. 4 stars.

Book #46:

Ascension by Nicholas Binge (Length: 352 pages). This is an odd novel: part thriller/mystery, part science fiction and it features Harold Tunsmore, a physicist who is invited on a mountaineering expedition on a brand-new mountain that no one has ever seen before. This mountain, which has appeared out of the ocean and is taller than even Mount Everest, is the scene of a prior expedition where all but 2 people have died. One of the 2 survivors happens to be Harold’s ex-wife. There are scary monsters and a creeping sense of dread here . . . both are elements I enjoy in my horror novels. On balance, I’d say this is well-written, memorable and weird, and I still can’t decide if I’ve actually enjoyed it. 3 stars.

Book #47:

Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld (Length: 406 pages).  After loving this author’s American Wife, I was excited to pick up this novel, one of her earlier works. Lee Fiora, a scholarship student from South Bend, Indiana, attends Ault School, a very prestigious boarding school outside of Boston in the 1980s, and this is her account of all 4 years there, written from her perspective as a young adult. Lee is a VERY insecure teenager and is not likeable (like many teenagers) and most of this novel is entirely too navel-gazing, but that’s also sort of the point. This novel is propulsive and very readable (much like American Wife) and cements this author as someone I’ll continue to read. (I also read Romantic Comedy but that wasn’t a favorite). 4 stars from me, but if you’re a reader who has to like the protagonist, skip this one.

Book #48:

Say Everything by Ione Skye (Length: 304 pages).  I listened to this memoir by the female lead in the iconic 1987 move “Say Anything”. I had read it’s a fantastic read on audio, and that’s absolutely correct. A must listen for any self-respecting Gen X-er, this is a very self-aware memoir by a woman who was raised by a single mom in the music/Hollywood scene. Ione is very open about her relationships with musicians here, namely Anthony Kiedis of Red Hot Chili Peppers and Adam Horovitz of the Beastie Boys. Well-written and a fun look behind the scenes of the 80s and 90s movie and music scenes. 4 stars.

June 2025–Part One

June 17, 2025

Book #36:

Elizabeth of East Hampton by Audrey Bellezza and Emily Harding (Length: 384 pages).  I don’t remember how this book came onto my radar but it’s a fun Pride and Prejudice retelling set in East Hampton. Lizzy has paused her career dreams (to be a journalist) to run her family’s bakery, Bennet Bakery, after her father’s stroke. Her four sisters are side characters here. This is a cute novel with witty dialogue, great chemistry between Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet and a believable plot to move events along. This is the second in a series, and the characters from the first series (an Emma retelling) appear here. 3.5 stars from me.

Book #37:

Heartwood by Amity Gaige (Length: 316 pages). This literary thriller set on the Appalachian Trail ticks all the boxes for me. It also happens to be a Read with Jenna pick, and I tend to enjoy most of the books she picks. A woman goes missing on the A.T. and the wardens and community come together to try to find her. This is SO well-written with a propulsive plot. The author skillfully brings multiple character arcs together; I read this in print, and I’m wondering if the audio version would be confusing given these multiple characters. I adore non-fiction accounts of hiking this trail (as my multiple reviews of these books attest to) so this novel was a fantastic read for me. The setting, however, is not the focus here, the characters are. 5 solid stars from me and this absolutely will be in my top 10 books of this year for me.

Book #38:

Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty (Length: 505 pages).  I listened to this one. The premise is an older lady walks down the aisle of a flight in Australia telling each passenger when and how they are going to die. When the first few passengers do, in fact, die in the manner and in the timeframe of when the lady predicted, this mystery gets interesting. I loved the audio narrator but given there are so many characters here, it did get a bit confusing to keep track of each. So, I’d recommend print for this fun read. The resolution of the mystery is a bit obvious and renders this less a mystery than general fiction, but given I enjoy Moriarty’s writing style and her portrayal of characters, I really enjoyed this beach read. 4 stars.

Book #39:

The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern by Lynda Cohen Loigman (Length: 320 pages).  I really enjoyed this novel. It’s very sweet without being cloying, mainly due to the straightforward writing style. The premise here is the protagonist, Augusta Stern, works in her father’s pharmacy in 1920s Brooklyn, when her mother dies. Her great aunt Esther moves in to help care for Augusta and her sister Bess. Esther happens to possess the gift of homeopathic healing (using herbs) and runs a side business helping those in the neighborhood who aren’t being healed by the traditional medicines Augusta’s father dispenses. The novel alternates between this timeline and 1987, when Augusta at the age of 80 moves into an assisted living community in Florida, where she runs into her teenage love, Irving Rivkin, the pharmacy delivery boy. I really enjoyed the alternating timelines here as they propelled the plot forward. This is one novel I found myself thinking about when I wasn’t reading it, which is the sign of a good read to me! 5 stars.