Tag Archives: Book Review/Discussion

Book Review: The Wedding People by Alison Espach

When I first heard about this book, I was intrigued by the premise—a woman goes to a fancy hotel to kill herself, but it turns  out to be a destination wedding week and the bride keeps her from following through, because she doesn’t want her wedding to be ruined. In a world where it seemsContinue reading “Book Review: The Wedding People by Alison Espach”

Book Review: Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton

If you are looking for a novel that combines environmental activism, ambiguous moral decisions, an evil billionaire, and plenty of twists and turns, this is it.  The opening is a little slow, but don’t stop reading!  Once Catton has the players on the board, the game is afoot! Meet Mira, the de facto leader ofContinue reading “Book Review: Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton”

Book Review: The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell

The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell is historical fiction at its best.  Besides riveting readers with a ticking clock to a murder, O’Farrell places us firmly in Renaissance Italy with a woman who is young, with limited agency, and trapped in a world she is not completely equipped to understand. Lucrezia is nothing if notContinue reading “Book Review: The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell”

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett

Janice Hallett uses complex structure in her novels to great effect and the Alperton Angels is no exception.  Hallett’s mysteries are like matryoshka dolls, every layer reveals something, but it isn’t until the last one that the full picture emerges. In the Alperton Angels, she takes a fictional cold case and has the reader followContinue reading “The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett”

The North Woods by Daniel Mason

This literary stroll through history is a great book if you are wondering what makes a book literary.  In it, the author uses  the frame of a piece of property to tell several stories that seem at first to be unrelated, but by the end, everything is connected! It is literary because it defies genreContinue reading “The North Woods by Daniel Mason”

Book Review: The Fury by Alex Michaelides

I cannot lie, I like a dark and twisty tale.  Having read The Maidens, a previous novel by this author, I was willing to give this one a go.  So glad I did!  This one is much more well developed than The Maidens, which I found a little predictable.  The Fury is like Agatha ChristieContinue reading “Book Review: The Fury by Alex Michaelides”

Book Review: If We Were Villains by M. L. Rio

I have had my eye on this one for a while.  It has been staring at me from the English Language shelves in my favorite Tallinn bookstore, and the best bookstore in the world, Rahva Raamat for quite some time.  Two things tipped me over the threshold to go ahead and buy…1. It was onContinue reading “Book Review: If We Were Villains by M. L. Rio”