The Light Pirate

  But here it was: happening more quickly than anyone had anticipated. Florida, returning to herself. Swamps that had been dredged and drained and developed reappeared, bubbling back up to the surface in parking lots and on highways and in gated neighborhoods. Sinkholes opened up and swallowed entire blocks whole. Houses and roads and crops disappeared into the edges of the ever- encroaching wild. The Light Pirate isn’t a book I would normally choose to read, but that’s the beauty of being in a book club… stepping outside one’s comfort zone. The only other dystopian books I’ve read are The Hunger Games and Divergent novels—this genre isn’t really my go-to. […]

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Black Cake

Eleanor Bennett left a puzzling inheritance for her children, Byron and Benny. It includes a note, a USB drive with an audio recording, and a traditional black cake from a family recipe found in the freezer. In her message, Eleanor shares the story of her life. In 1965, a young woman fleeing an arranged marriage and suspicion of murder disappears into the surf. Cutting all ties, she crosses oceans, reinvents herself, and makes heartbreaking choices to take control of her life hoping to reunite with her first love. Byron and Benny haven’t seen each other in years. Can they set aside their differences to deal with their mother’s hidden past? […]

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The Runaway Wife

Have you ever wanted to run away from home… as an adult? I must admit I’ve entertained the idea, but I am such a chicken! Who would rescue me when disaster strikes? What would I do with my little sweet little lap dog? One evening while mashing potatoes for dinner, Connie McColl decides she’s had enough. She’s tired of her husband’s constant rounds of golf, tired of her children expecting her to babysit their unruly kids at the drop of a hate, and. She’s tired of solving one family crisis after another. When is it her turn to live? So Connie packs a bag, gets in her little green car […]

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Hello Beautiful

Ann Napolitano, the brilliant writer behind Dear Edward (2020), has done it again with her latest novel, Hello Beautiful. While I normally steer clear of Oprah’s Book Club picks, Ann Napolitano is phenomenal, so I gave it a go. We meet William Waters as a young boy in a house silenced by tragedy. His parents can hardly look at him, so it’s a relief when he earns a scholarship to college far away from his childhood home. He soon meets Julia Padavano, an ambitious young woman. He is soon engulfed in her boisterous close-knit Italian family, and embraced by sisters Sylvie, a romantic bibliophile, Cecelia, an aspiring artist, and Emeline, […]

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Sisters of Night and Fog

“Like the devil, the Nazis know that to divide is to control and conquer.” ― Erika Robuck, Sisters of Night and Fog. Told in alternating chapters, Sisters of Night and Fog follows two very different women as they risk it all for the French Resistance. American Virginia d’Albert-Lake lives in France during the German occupation. She, her French husband, Philippe, and others work to save Allied pilots. Meanwhile, nineteen-year-old Englishwoman Violette Bushell marries French Legionnaire Étienne Szabo. When he leaves to fight the Germans in Egypt, she joins Winston Churchill’s Special Operations Executive and goes undercover in France. The two women meet when they are arrested and taken to Fresnes Prison near […]

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Demon Copperhead

“The wonder is that you could start life with nothing, end with nothing, and lose so much in between.”—Barbara Kingsolver, Demon Copperhead. This is my third book by Barbara Kingsolver. Prior to Demon Copperhead, her most famous book was probably The Poisonwood Bible, the story of a missionary family in the Belgian Congo in 1959. It’s a novel I’ll never forget. I also enjoyed Prodigal Summer, in which she uses her knowledge of nature to weave together three stories of life in Appalachia. Neither compares to sheer brilliance to Demon Copperhead. I know this will be one of my favorite reads of 2023—maybe ever. Barbara Kingsolver’s monumental historical novel about […]

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BOOTH

Booth delves into the intricate history of the family connected to one of America’s most infamous figures, John Wilkes Booth. Junius Booth, a renowned British stage star, escapes with his “wife” Mary to rural Maryland despite being married to another woman. Over sixteen years, they raise ten children in a bohemian lifestyle, characterized by vegetarianism, anti-slavery beliefs, literary pursuits, and free-thinking. Junius’s constant travel for his acting career leaves Mary to care for the children and the home. His alcohol-fueled infidelity plunges Mary into severe bouts of depression, leaving the children to rely on each other. The Booths move from rural Maryland to Baltimore in 1846, where they establish themselves […]

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South Asian Heritage Month

Did you know it’s South Asian Heritage Month? Well, now you do! South Asian Heritage Month is held annually from July 18 to August 17 to honor, recognize, and appreciate South Asian history and culture. Countries included in this region are Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives. This year’s theme is “Stories to Tell,” and what better way to learn about these countries than by reading a good novel? To encourage you in that endeavor, I’ve put together a list of some of the greatest books set in these countries—won’t you join me in traveling remotely through these novels? I’ve only read a couple of […]

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February 2023 Picks and Pans

This month was surprising. I normally don’t have as many 3-star ratings, but that’s just the way the cookie crumbles or the ball bounces. Each of these books was good in its own way, some just weren’t great. Have fun adding to your TBR list!   A World of Curiosities by Louise Penny “Happiness as an act of defiance. A revolutionary act.” ― Louise Penny, A World of Curiosities Louise Penny’s latest installment in the bestselling Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series marks a triumphant return for the beloved detective. In this eighteenth book, Three Pines emerges from a harsh winter, setting the stage for a special celebration. However, the return of siblings […]

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Signal Moon

Lily Baines,a young debutante, wearies under the weight of wartime Britain. Swapping her elegant white gloves for a radio, she embarks on a daring journey as part of the Women’s Royal Naval Service in 1943. Assigned to intercept enemy naval communications and forward them to Bletchley Park for decryption, she stumbles upon an unexpected transmission. Matt Jackson is a spirited young American naval officer in 2023. His ship is taking heavy fire in the treacherous North Atlantic when he radios for help. Could he be communicating with a woman in the middle of WWII? Living on opposite sides of an eighty-year chasm, Lily and Matt must find a way to […]

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