In 2012, Liza Klaussmann (a #30Authors contributor) wowed me with her novel, Tigers In Red Weather, which was my absolutely favorite book that year. So when I found out that she had another coming out, I was overjoyed. Her latest, Villa America, did not disappoint and I'm thrilled that her second novel lived up to my (high) expectations.Villa America is about real-life Sara … [Read more...]
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
I put off reading All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr because I tend to be disappointed by popular, prize-winning books. It's not that the books aren't good, it's just that there's so much hype surrounding them that I'm usually left a bit deflated. But when I was asked to hop on a plane to California to check out the new Audiobooks.com integration with Buick, I … [Read more...]
‘Fall of Giants’: More Fact Than Fiction
When I finished Fall of Giants, the first in Ken Follett's latest trilogy, I was filled with happiness. It was a stunning book filled with accurate historical accounts of the events surrounding World War 1 and the characters where rich and real to me. About five minutes later, I started to panic a little for the exact same reason - the book was over and I would never again get … [Read more...]
Unwind With The Red Garden by Alice Hoffman
In 1750, the small town of Bearsville, MA was founded. Settled deep in the Berkshires of Massachusetts, a small group of people who left the big city for a better life settled down and made it their home. They had a tenuous beginning, fraught with bitter winters and nearly starving to death, but one woman named Hallie Brady saved them all from an untimely death. So begins … [Read more...]
‘Secret Keeper’ Is the Story of Love Lost and Found
Kate Morton has proven once again that she is the master of historical fiction, dual narratives, and punching you right in the gut. I have yet to read a book by her that I didn't like and most of them I've loved but this is, perhaps, her greatest accomplishment yet.The Secret Keeper is about Laurel, who has spent her life wondering about a violent incident committed by her … [Read more...]