You know those books that have such great characters that they crawl into your heart and settle there? The Exiles by Christina Baker Kline is one of them. Spanning years and distance and set against the backdrop of British colonization, it tells the stories of three women on the receiving end of that brutality.Evangeline, Hazel, and Mathinna are memorable for their stories, but they tug on your heartstrings even more so because they are based on real people. There’s Evangeline, a governess sentenced to prison after her pregnancy is discovered; Hazel, a young midwife also sentenced for a minor infraction; and Mathinna, an orphan ripped from her home as an experiment in “taming the natives” by the wife of the new … Keep Reading
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‘Midnight Library’ and the Power of Regrets
Do you ever think about where you’d be if you did that ONE thing differently? If you, say, changed your major to match your passions, rather than your expectations? Or if you’d taken that leap of faith and moved to that far off city where you knew no one? The possibilities for how your life could have unfolded are endless, and it's hard not to think about them, sometimes. That's the premise of The Midnight Library by Matt Haig and it's a good … Keep Reading
‘The First Day of Spring’ is a Powerful Debut Novel
When Chrissie was 8, she killed a little boy. Twenty years later, she’s a mom trying to do what’s best for her daughter. But how do you forgive yourself for something so awful? Or are some acts so terrible that there’s no coming back? Do the standards for redemption change if you killed someone as a child, rather than adult?Equal parts disturbing and heartbreaking, The First Day of Spring by Nancy Tucker is told through alternating points … Keep Reading
‘The Last Thing He Told Me’ Infuses Freshness Into the Familiar
Let me start off by saying I really enjoyed The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave. My last few books have been duds so I was nervous about continuing my “losing streak”, but this one hit the spot. On its face, the story is tried-and-true: girl meets boy, boy has secrets, girl seeks truth and surprises abound; but Dave infuses freshness into it by going in an unexpected direction. Her approach strikes a balance between the familiar and the … Keep Reading
From the Archives
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James (Book Review)
Last week was gloomy and rainy, so I was in the mood for a good, short ghost story. I'm a big wuss when it comes to this genre, but Rory at Fourth Street Review assured me that, as far as horror goes, this one isn't so bad. She's right, although if I had seen this version of the cover before reading the book, I definitely wouldn't have picked it up.Despite its scant 120 pages, The Turn of the Screw is by no means a quick read. It's been … Keep Reading
Andrew Porter’s Debut is ‘In Between’ Plausible and Pleasant
Andrew Porter's In Between Days is about the disintegration of a family after a series of unfortunate events. If I had to pick a genre, I would say that it is adult fiction that could appeal to YA fans, as well (the cover is much more YA'ish than the book itself). Told from alternating perspectives, the story is centered around Chloe, the young twenty-something daughter that is sent home from school for reasons that only come to light … Keep Reading
The Weight of Blood by Laura McHugh (Book Review)
I don't read a lot of crime fiction, but something about the cover of The Weight of Blood by Laura McHugh drew me in (despite the fact that it's compared to Gone Girl). Plus, the synopsis reminded me of The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon, which I loved, so I decided to give it a go. In short, this is a novel about two missing women, decades apart, and the precocious teenager that links the two. Set deep in the Ozark mountains where you're … Keep Reading