Three Books I'm Reading Now, 6/1/26 Edition

The Books I'm Reading Now

I'm reading favorite author Maggie O'Farrell's newest novel (out tomorrow), historical fiction about an Irish father and son after the Great Hunger, Land; I'm listening to Matt Dinniman's wild science fiction ride about robots, AI, deadly videogames, and a fight for survival, Operation Bounce House; and I'm listening to Jane Costello's sweet novel about a fortysomething widow's second chance at happiness, Forty Love.

What are you reading, bookworms?

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01 Land by Maggie O'Farrell

Maggie O'Farrell is a favorite author of mine, and in her newest novel, she offers a historical fiction work centered around Ireland just after the Great Hunger.

Tomás and his son Liam are working for the Ordnance Survey to fully map Ireland. It's 1865 and the country is still reeling from devastating famine. British soldiers expect a completed Ordnance Survey, but Tomás has had an unexpected encounter that causes him to shut down.

Liam, only ten years old and a reluctant participant in the work, must figure out how to finish the job and get his father home.

Maggie O'Farrell is also the author of The Marriage Portrait, Hamnet, I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death, The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, Instructions for a Heatwave, This Must Be the Place, and others.

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02 Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman

The author of Dungeon Crawler Carl presents a fast-paced, bizarro, humor-filled science fiction novel featuring robots, AI, videogames, and a fight for the planet.

Colonist Oliver is a rancher working alongside his sister, playing in a mediocre band with his best friend called The Rhythm Mafia, and courting his serious girlfriend. Communication and travel between Earth and the planet New Sonora may be established again, and Oliver and friends welcome the advancement.

But surprise invaders bring mayhem, danger, and potential destruction for the community and possibly the whole planet. Intelligent agriculture robots turn out to be capable of much more than Oliver and friends realized; they prove essential to understanding the battles and corporate enemies; revealing the "game" controlled by those on Earth, Operation Bounce House; and protecting the humans as best they can.

I'm listening to an audiobook version of this title courtesy of Libro.fm and Penguin Random House Audio.

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03 Forty Love by Jane Castello

Jules is a fortysomething widow, single mom, and a busy buyer for a chain of lifestyle stores. She's lived next to the local Liverpool tennis club for years but hasn't played since she was a young woman whose love for the game was crushed before she ever got comfortable playing.

A run-in with her old school crush Sam, her daughter's move from home, and stress and uncertainty at work, along with the beginner-team's desperate need for players, lead Jules to reluctantly decide to give tennis another go.

The new source of friendship, challenge, release, confidence, and time with Sam might just offer Jules a new beginning she didn't know she could even hope for.

You might also like these other Bossy reviews of books about tennis.

I received a prepublication audio version of this title courtesy of Libro.fm and Zibby Publishing.