The nitty-gritty: A bleak futuristic pandemic story that felt a little too familiar for comfort and lacked emotion and drive. I’m sorry to say this book just didn’t work that well for me, which is a shame because I loved Burke’s Semiosis. It took me a solid two weeks to read it, as I picked […]
The nitty gritty: Brutal and beautiful, heartbreaking and healing, Betty is an extraordinary coming-of-age story that I won’t soon forget. Depending on which way the wind is blowing, the snow comes in. At first the flurries melt before they land. Then they pile lightly like dust, bringing their cold in. I can see my mother’s […]
The nitty-gritty: A weird, wild ride of a story about five sentient teddy bears who must work together in order to survive in the wide, wide world. Did Buddy have two sides? Did every teddy? He was both magical and ordinary—Made in America but Surface Washable. He had both a Real Silk Heart and Polyester […]
The nitty-gritty: History, witchcraft and romance collide in Louisa Morgan’s beautifully written story about a secret family lineage. I’m a big fan of Louisa Morgan’s “witch” books, and it’s a given that I’ll read every one she writes. The Age of Witches is another winner, with a wonderfully immersive story and solid writing. I fell […]
The nitty-gritty: Beautifully written and carefully plotted, The Glass Hotel was an unusual and emotional read. Like many other readers, I loved Station Eleven and have been curious to see what Emily St. John Mandel would do next. Even though I didn’t have a review copy of The Glass Hotel, I was determined to read […]
The nitty-gritty: Clever and addictive, full of poignant emotion and colorfully drawn Southern characters, Grady Hendrix’s latest is a must read for everyone who loves a well told story. At this point in the month, I would normally be frantically trying to finish all my March review books. Thankfully, I have a weird sense of […]
The nitty-gritty: Lovers cursed by a witch find themselves reliving their lives, over and over, in Constance Sayers’ sparkling and gripping debut. Don’t let the beautiful, ethereal cover fool you. A Witch in Time has some very dark themes mixed in with a romance plot about a trio of people who are connected through time […]
The nitty-gritty: The zombie apocalypse meets Watership Down in Kira Jane Buxton’s glorious, emotional and hysterically funny debut. This book will change the way you think about animals, life and death, and may even give you a deeper appreciation of Cheetos® I fluttered my gular, hating the part of me that they recognized, desperately wanting […]
The nitty-gritty: Sinners rejoice! Mamatas’ latest is a big, brash, bawdy tale of sin, violence and laugh-out-loud humor, complete with time travel, swords, angels and art galleries. “I thought Jewish people didn’t believe in the afterlife,” said Jennifer. “I thought Russian Orthodox girls didn’t believe in fucking strangers, or experimenting with lesbianism and then breaking […]
The nitty-gritty: A perfect mash-up of fantasy and science fiction, this book is an ambitious tale full of sparkling characters, political maneuvering, a cool magic system and much more. Oh, and Kreshti ferns! OK, I was not prepared to love this as much as I did! I’ve read several reviews where the reviewer did not […]