Do you enjoy a character-driven Western? I appreciate an unflinching reflection of the atrocities visited upon the indigenous peoples of our continent because white people explored and settled in the West. I'm also fascinated by the optimistic explorer spirit--and I love reading about strong female characters in a time when the world around them didn't typically support women's strength and determination. If you're interested in books like those listed here, you might also like the titles on my Greedy Reading List Six Great Historical Fiction Stories Set in the American West. And for great historical fiction of all types, look at: Six Historical Fiction Books I Loved in the Past Year and Six Historical Fiction Books I Loved This Year. Happy reading, bookworms! 01 Inland by Téa Obreht Much of Téa Obreht's Inland is centered around Nora, an impulsive, hot-tempered, strong woman fighting for a hardscrabble life for her family in a remote town during a devastating drought. The other plotline concerns Lurie, a man who has adventures and challenges with his surprising, loyal, exotic companion. The two disparate stories intersect in an unlikely way in 1890s Arizona Territory, and fantastical elements throughout make even the most jaded characters believe in the odd and implausible in this remarkable book. I read this story as an e-book and was therefore robbed of gazing at this gorgeous cover. I adore it. Random House Publishing Group provided me with a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. For my full review of Inland, please click here. 02 Whiskey When We're Dry by John Larison In 1885, Jessilyn Harney finds herself orphaned and alone on the homestead. Seventeen-year-old girls aren't safe on their own, so Jess cuts her hair, binds her chest, and saddles up for a trip across the mountains in search of her lawless brother Noah. Jess is such a good shot, she ends up working for the mean-as-a-snake governor of the territory--and finds that the governor's armed forces are hunting for Noah and intend to capture him, dead or alive. “What started the war, Pa?" His eyes settled on me. "Stories, Jessilyn. We tell ourselves the wrong stories.” I love love love a character-driven western. Jess's voice was fantastic. She grapples with the stories she's been told as compared to the reality she experiences as she makes her way. Whiskey When We're Dry is a rough, heart-wrenching, wonderful story from John Larison. 03 Only Killers and Thieves by Paul Howarth Surprise! This book is not set in the American West. But to my mind, the atmospheric setting and the tone of the story places it firmly in good company among the other books on this list, so I Bossily included it. Set in the Australian outback at the end of the 19th century, Only Killers and Thieves centers around one family’s conflicts with others and with each other. One poor judgment leads to another, foolish choices end in bloodshed, one brother makes justifications and feels no remorse while the other feels crushed by it all. Toward the end we see messy second chances take shape, a little retribution, and an attempt at a changed existence—but the haunting memories of the past creep in relentlessly. This is an often brutal book to read, but it was beautifully written, in a style that felt perfectly suited for the stark setting. I thought about this one long after I finished it. Disturbing and a mind churner. For my full review of this book, please see Only Killers and Thieves. Howarth has published a sequel, Dust Off the Bones, which I have not yet read. 04 Doc by Mary Doria Russell Surprise again! Doc is nonfiction, but it reads like historical fiction (as opposed to a heavier nonfiction title like Tom Clavin's Tombstone, which also includes lots of Doc Holliday information), so I'm Bossily including it. I love Mary Doria Russell’s character-driven books, and this Western, set in Dodge City, Kansas, in the late nineteenth century, is a slow build rather than a dramatic, gun-slinging action story. Doc doesn’t focus on the Tombstone shootout, but instead on Doc Holliday’s life, his brotherlike friendship with the Earps, and his longtime relationship with a Hungarian noblewoman-turned-prostitute, Kate. Mary Doria Russell also interestingly explores Holliday's career as a dentist (at a time when the dental profession was tainted by traveling butchers and thieves), and his gallant, grumpy, well-read, mischievous, and generous-to-a-fault personality. The author also wrote The Sparrow, which I adored and gave five stars. She's such a gorgeous writer, I'd read anything she tried her hand at writing. 05 Into the Savage Country by Shannon Burke Into the Savage Country is a serenely told story of a band of fur traders--some wild, some considered gentlemen, some one of these but striving to be the other--striking out into the West in the first half of the 1800s. The writing style involves a lot of telling, which seemingly intentionally slows the pacing--and which I usually don't love, but here it gives a fittingly old-fashioned quality to the writing that feels as though it suits the time, the main protagonist, and the tale itself. The group encounters friendly and hostile Native Americans; copes with antagonized and antagonistic British trappers; is threatened with imprisonment; experiences cruel and potentially fatal betrayal by one of their own; faces the wild and its many dangers; suffers grave wounds; and saves each other's skin countless times--including after foolish situations (which seem as though they would have been easily avoided) such as literally waking a sleeping bear and baiting an injured bull. Yet because of the pacing, I didn't necessarily feel on the edge of my seat while I read about all of it. There is a deeper, quiet, surprisingly affecting story beneath the Western adventure, which is about trust, loyalty, sometimes begrudging but deeply felt affection, discovery of self-worth, celebrating differences, and love. And it's the pacing and tone of the story that allows for all of those elements to feel real. 06 News of the World by Paulette Jiles Captain Kidd has fought in three wars, and after the Civil War's end, he serves as a traveling news reader, providing eager listeners along his route with news from the world. Kidd somewhat reluctantly ends up agreeing to transport a young, recently rescued Kiowa captive 400 miles to her extended family. They'll have to pass through lawless lands to get to San Antonio, and Johanna isn't a willing participant in this venture, having become more culturally Kiowa over the years than white and unfamiliar with her remaining blood relatives. Not all of the members of my book club felt as strongly about this one as I did, but I adored every bit of this--Captain Kidd's reluctant but gentlemanly involvement and his voice, the character of Johanna, the Texas setting, the fits and starts of adventure, the noble heart of the story, the humor, and the heartbreak. I loved loved loved it. Jiles also wrote Simon the Fiddler and the glorious The Color of Lightning. Click here for my full review of The News of the World. (Who's seen the movie adaptation of this book, and if you have, what did you think?)

Barbara Brown Taylor is one of my favorite authors, but this slim, early book of hers didn't offer the candid, thought-provoking, wise voice I've loved in some of her other books. As Joseph Campbell once asked, what if the universe is not merely the product of God but also the manifestation of God.... Barbara Brown Taylor is an Episcopal priest who left a position as a church pastor and is now a college professor. I link below to my rave reviews of her books An Altar in the World (in which "Taylor explores the ways she grounds herself in everyday life while connecting with deeper meaning") and Holy Envy (which I described as "a thought-provoking, accessible look at world religions"). The Luminous Web, published in 2000, is a slim (74-page) book, quite different from either of those titles. The proposed exploration of the intersection of science and religion within The Luminous Web was an irresistible premise. I just didn't feel as though the book ever delivered depth on the topic. The book contains many (for me, it feels like too many) quotes from scientists and religious thinkers. Understandably, because the interplay between science and religion is complex, centuries old, and ongoing, the author doesn't assert earth-shattering revelations that resolve the challenges of reconciling science and religion, nor does she resolve the layered push and pull between reason and faith. I appreciated Barbara Brown Taylor's aim to close the gap between the sacred and secular, and I respected how she leant deeply into the unknowing wonder at the heart of faith. But when I finished the book, I found myself with as many, if not more, questions as I had when I began. Because I find BBT so illuminating, so candid, so thought-provoking, and so fully presented in her own voice in her other books, I was left feeling dissatisfied here. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Barbara Brown Taylor is also the author of An Altar in the World: A Geography of Faith, Holy Envy: Finding God in the Faith of Others, Learning to Walk in the Dark, and Leaving Church: A Memoir of Faith.

This captivating story involves time travel, but it's primarily about deep human connections, complete with fantastic, funny banter; awkward adjustments to the time period; and love and deep heartbreak. The ending is wonderful. In a world of the near future, a young (unnamed) woman is one of several civil servants offered a mysterious job: she'll be a handler for expats--and paid very handsomely for her work. But the expats the government is gathering aren't necessarily from another country. They're from other times in history. The main protagonist's focus in her work is Commander Graham Gore (a character based upon a real figure from history), who has been whisked from a desperately failed expedition in 1847 to the book's future setting. In order to be a "bridge" for Gore between his past and the present, she'll have to explain why she's showing so much skin, why it's not healthy to smoke all day, and what a washing machine is. But the bridge and her client are building bonds deeper than either could have imagined; the love story between the bridge and Gore is strange, heartwarming, steamy, fraught, and just lovely. I was obsessed with the various expats' awkward, funny, sometimes poignant adjustments to their new time, social expectations, technology, slang, and more. Their common disjointedness brings them together, and the mashup of personalities and histories was fantastic. This starts out witty and fun, grows dark and ominous, with suspect motives, corruption, deadly danger, and foreshadowing of heartbreak and endings. There are twists I didn't see coming, which I was willing to suspend my disbelief regarding; and my mind was bent around trying to follow some of the later strings of time and timelines. The ending is gorgeous and I just loved it. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of NetGalley and Avid Reader Press, Simon and Schuster. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? To read about other books I've reviewed that play with time, please check out this link.

Quinn and Chang share an adventure- and danger-laden story of women artists, women of color, and women of various social classes in San Francisco just before the Great 1906 Earthquake--as well as their determination to find justice. In 1906 San Francisco, two very different women seek new beginnings: Gemma is a gifted soprano whose career is in need of an overhaul, while Suling is an embroideress in Chinatown who is set against entering into the marriage that's been arranged for her. Henry Thornton is a wealthy railroad magnate and owner of the mysterious Phoenix Crown, an artifact legendary because of its origins in Beijing's Summer Palace. Thornton draws both Suling and Gemma into his world by offering to be their patron. But Thornton isn't a selfless, kind benefactor--he's a cruel, cutthroat, flighty villain holding deadly secrets. When San Francisco is devastated by an earthquake and the widespread destruction of its aftermath, Thornton disappears--and the Phoenix Crown with him. Those he's left behind are traumatized, reeling from cruelties, close calls, and haunted by the deaths Thornton exacted on others. Five years later, the crown reappears--spurring more mystery and questions than answers. When the authorities require too much time and evidence to take control, the varied women he's left in his wake, far from cowed, become determined to take down Thornton themselves. At times the story felt as though it was shifting into overly dramatic soap-opera territory for me, and while I understood the buildup to the earthquake, I didn't enjoy the interjections of multiple omniscient countdowns to the event. Yet I loved the rich early-1900s San Francisco setting, the focus on the arts, the strong women characters, and the varied representation of classes and circumstances, so I was willing to go wherever Quinn and Chang were taking me. It's evident that the authors exhaustively researched the era, prominent figures, and circumstances within San Francisco for women, artists, people of color, and others. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Kate Quinn is the author of the fantastic titles The Diamond Eye, The Huntress, The Rose Code, and The Alice Network.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading Taylor Brown's newest historical novel, Rednecks, which centers around the riveting battles and rebellion against oppression surrounding the West Virginia Mine Wars of 1920 and 1921; I'm reading Fiona McPhillips's upcoming debut, a suspense novel about a working-class student in a prestigious Dublin private school and the deadly secrets she attempts to uncover; and I'm listening to The Island of Missing Trees, Elif Shafak's magical novel about a young girl in London yearning for a connection to her extended family; her distracted widower father, a botanist; and a fig tree with a lot of opinions that witnessed her parents' love affair. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 Rednecks by Taylor Brown Taylor Brown is a must-read author for me, and I can't wait to dig into his newest book. In Rednecks, Brown presents a historical novel centering around the events of the 1920 and 1921 West Virginia Mine Wars. Ranging from the Matewan Massacre through the Battle of Blair Mountain, Rednecks offers a mix of fictional and real characters in this riveting story of rebellion and oppressive control. Brown unfailingly offers a character-driven tale set in a lushly built setting, with large-scale life-and-death, good-and-evil struggles that he brings to life through rich figures that fascinate and sometimes break your heart. I can't wait to dig into Rednecks. Taylor Brown is also the author of Wingwalkers, The Gods of Howl Mountain, Fallen Land, a title I loved and included in the Greedy Reading List Six Great Historical Fiction Stories about the Civil War, and other novels. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of NetGalley and St. Martin's Press. 02 When We Were Silent Fiona McPhillips Louise Manson is new to Dublin's most exclusive private school, Highfield Manor. She's from a working-class family, and this sets her apart from the other students at Highfield. When Lou tries to bring a dark Highfield secret to light, she realizes that speaking out might be deadly. Three decades after her Highfield days, Lou receives a surprising phone call. A high-powered lawyer is assisting with a lawsuit against Highfield, and Lou could help piece together recent and long-hidden secrets, if she'd only be willing to relive the past. I'm reading When We Were Silent, scheduled for publication May 21, courtesy of NetGalley and Flatiron Books. This is the author's debut novel. 03 The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak My friend James and I were recently sharing book recommendations, and he mentioned this author and this book in particular, so I added it to the top of my to-read list. Since her mother Defne went into a coma and never woke up, young loner Ada Kazantzakis lives in London with her distracted botanist father Kostas, who has little brain space for anything but his plants. A fig tree with its own voice and point of view witnessed Kostas's young love with Defne and illustrates the interconnectedness of nature and humans through the centuries. Ada is seeking a meaningful link to her past and extended family; could a tree possibly be the answer? I'm listening to The Island of Missing Trees as an audiobook.

Do you love reading memoirs like I do? I love digging into the story of someone's life--notable because of chance, circumstance, or choice--and escaping into an eye-opening and fascinating memoir. If you love memoirs, you might also like the titles I listed on these Greedy Reading Lists: Six Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six More Fascinating Memoirs to Explore Six Musicians' Memoirs that Sing Six Illuminating Memoirs I've Read This Year Six More Illuminating Memoirs to Lose Yourself In Six Foodie Memoirs to Whet Your Appetite Six Powerful Memoirs about Facing Mortality Six of My Favorite Memoir Reads Last Year I'd love to hear: What are some of your favorite memoir reads? 01 Here For It by R. Eric Thomas In Here for It: Or, How to Save Your Soul in America, R. Eric Thomas, the creator of Elle's sassy and smart daily column "Eric Reads the News," shares his thoughts, experiences, and reflections about life and the world around us with honesty and humor. In essays that are sometimes heartbreaking, often inspiring, and that frequently made me laugh out loud, Thomas explores his sheltered youth, his growing realizations that he was different than most of the people he knew, his shame and fear about living as his authentic self, and his meandering path toward his current satisfying life circumstances. I listened to this as an audiobook, and I adored hearing Thomas's voice take me through his essays. His voice and delivery are fabulous. Here For It is refreshing and playful yet thoughtful. I loved spending time with the uproariously funny Thomas as he recounts how he's navigated situations large and small in his life. Thomas is also a host of The Moth storytelling podcast in D.C. and Philadelphia--and he certainly knows how to craft a compelling and full story out of a momentous moment. For my full review of this book, see Here For It. 02 Notes on a Silencing by Lacy Crawford Crawford thought the trauma of her assault at St. Paul's boarding school decades earlier was behind her. It had shaped who she was in many senses, but now she was a grown woman with a full life, and she was not regularly reliving the crushing weight of it as a vivid horror any longer. But when evidence of extensive sexual assault and new allegations at St. Paul's School came to light, she added her voice to the throng of the attacked and abused, opening her own long-closed (and hitherto unknown to her) file and seeing for the first time the brutal facts of her own attack, as well as the ensuing, elaborate efforts to keep secret the events surrounding her situation. Crawford's memoir lays bare systemic lies, gross injustices, horrifying abuses of privilege and power, and longstanding patterns of unprosecuted assaults at elite St. Paul's boarding school--as well as the persistent tragic, infuriating, shaming treatment of assault victims. The topic is crushing, but Crawford's writing is wonderful in its honest and unflinching reflections on society, her own experiences, the horrifying power of privilege, and the abhorrent treatment of assault victims. She tries to imagine the points of view of everyone involved, and she treats her young self with empathy. For my full review of this book, see Notes on a Silencing. 03 In Pieces by Sally Field Here's the list's celebrity memoir! I found Sally Field's discussion of her "craft" and how she grew and changed as an actor to be the most compelling aspect of the book--along with the politics of getting roles and how she finally began listening to her inner voice in all aspects of her life. Therapy (and acting, which also served as a sort of therapy) eventually allowed Field to come into her fully realized adult self, and this journey is satisfying to watch after living through the page time of her languishing and struggling for so long. I listened to this as an audiobook, and I loved hearing Field tell her story. I appreciate when a celebrity provides brutal honesty, and I also admit to sometimes becoming impatient with the navel-gazing necessary to create a memoir. Aaaand I realize that this is unfair since I chose to read this person's life story. For my full review of this book, see In Pieces. 04 Blood by Allison Moorer "I'm still trying not to be the daughter of a murderer. I'm still trying to redeem [my parents]. I carry the structure of their bones around my insides...and try to tell the world, '...They were more than that.'" Allison Moorer is a Grammy- and Academy Award-nominated singer-songwriter whose father killed her mother when Allison and her sister were young. A longtime musical storyteller, Moorer examines her parents, her youth, and that pivotal tragedy, considering how it has shaped her into her adult self and how much of her identity is separate from that horrifying event and its endless repercussions. There's a lot of pain here. But Blood doesn't read as though Moorer is flogging her significant sorrow and anger or highlighting dramatic events for memoir or record sales. I felt like I was following her on her honest, zigzagging, messy journey toward gaining more of an understanding of the people her parents were and the forces that shaped their lives (and their daughters' lives)--as though I was witnessing her step-by-step movement toward something that more closely resembles peace. The foreword was written by Allison's sister, singer and songwriter Shelby Lynne. Regarding their talking through their past together, Moorer says: "So many memories we share and purposely keep well-oiled. We keep them alive even if they hurt us and suck up all the air in the room. They are all we have of our folks and the family we were." For my full review of this book, please see Blood. 05 Sorry I'm Late, I Didn't Want to Come by Jessica Pan Jessica Pan was an introvert out of a job. Her closest friends had moved away, and she found herself lonely, living in another country, and feeling too reliant on her husband for her entire social life. Pan decided to deliberately put herself into extremely uncomfortable social situations for a year, and she fully commits. She does improv, approaches strangers on the Tube, goes on friend dates, attends networking events, takes a vacation alone (to a destination she doesn't learn until she's at the airport), and more. She regrets her one-year plan almost instantly but feels compelled to continue her terrifying exercises. Her interviews and experiences with others who mentor her journey in different ways could have felt disruptive or jarring but didn't; they added a layer to her story that I found interesting and often revelatory. Pan is wonderfully honest, appealingly thoughtful, and often so so funny. I was so happy spending time in her point of view throughout this book. I loved it and I'd read another book by her in a second. For my full review of this book, please see Sorry I'm Late, I Didn't Want to Come. 06 Wild Life by Keena Roberts Keena Roberts grew up splitting her time between a primate research camp in Botswana, where she felt at home, and an elite Philadelphia girls' school, where she did not. Wild Life's subtitle, Dispatches from a Childhood of Baboons and Button-Downs, felt whimsical and light. But Roberts's memoir doesn't merely explore her culture shock, as interesting as that is. She reflects upon her identity in a raw and genuine way that I found gripping. Her disparate life experiences ultimately led her to think deeply about her place in the world, her responsibility to humans and animals, and how she might better the lives of others. This memoir was more than I'd hoped for. I love a peek at wildlife and living in the wild. I adored reading Roberts's account of her journey, from acting in a supporting role for her parents' research to discovering her own challenging, meaningful, and important career and calling. For my full review of this book, please see Wild Life.

ICYMI: A death-row inmate's desperate need for escapism leads to an elaborate world of magical thinking and fantastical scenes in this brutal, beautiful novel. After a time, it seemed that the world inside the books became my world. So when I thought of my childhood, it was dandelion wine and ice cream on a summer porch, like Ray Bradbury, and catching catfish with Huck Finn. My own memories receded and the book memories became the real memories, far more than the outside, far more even than in here. Yesterday I reviewed Rene Denfeld's newest novel, Sleeping Giants, and it reminded me that my read and review of the author's book The Enchanted in 2014 predated this blog. The Enchanted brings us into the constricted world of a death-row inmate living in his "dungeon cell." He imagines a rich imaginary world full of fantastical visions, and these thoughts sustain him through his dark days. The only outsiders he encounters are limited visitors admitted to the prison; in his case, a former priest and the Lady--an investigator searching for information in the convicts' past histories that might exonerate them. When the Lady digs into complicated pasts, she finds large swaths of gray within the assignments that have been made of black and white truth, finding a mix of honorable acts and devilish motivations and disturbing, shocking secrets. The tone of The Enchanted is sometimes gorgeously, darkly ethereal and other times so grim and alluding to such graphic violence that I had to put down the book and take a break from reading. The books brought brilliance to my life, and they brought an understanding: Life is a story. Everything that has happened and will happen to me is all part of the story of this enchanted place--all the dreams and visions and understandings that come to me in my dungeon cell. The books helped me see the truth is not in the touch of the stone but in what the stone tells you. The moments of salvation (or at least dim hope) are that much more affecting because of the weight of the situation and the powerful way Denfeld presents the inmate's inner world and complicated past. It's been a decade since I read it, and I still think about this one. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Rene Denfeld is also the author of The Child Finder,  Sleeping Giants, and The Butterfly Girl.

I was taken with the main characters of the past storyline here: a young boy at a children's home and his unlikely best friend. When his sister tries to solve the mystery of his death, she and her own unlikely companion unravel secrets and danger. Almost thirty years ago, Dennis, a young boy from a children's home, washed away in the rough waves of an Oregon beach, and his body was never found. Now his sister Amanda, a young adult who first learned of Dennis while researching her birth mother, is trying to find out how Dennis escaped the children's home and what happened leading up to her brother's death. She and Larry, a new local friend--a recent widower and a former police officer--begin trying to find out the truth, but they meet with dead ends everywhere they turn. They believe that Dennis had an unorthodox friendship with a custodian at the boys' home, but can find out little else about Dennis's short life. Disturbing facts begin to emerge regarding the horrifying behavioral modification methods used at the home--and those who enacted them. Amanda and Larry are closer than ever to uncovering the whole, heartbreaking truth. I loved this premise At times, particularly in the middle of the story, things felt disjointed to me and jumped around in a way that I found jarring. While I enjoyed the trip to Alaska (I love an Alaska storyline) and the polar bear-focused parts of the story, it felt far afield from the main plot. I didn't suspect that Amanda was coping with cognitive challenges until late in the book when multiple mentions were made regarding this; maybe I simple missed the earlier clues? Things wrap up in quite neat fashion at the close of the story, but I didn't mind because of the justice being served and the mysteries' resolution. I'm haunted by Denfeld's author's note about the real-life--and recent--use of abusive confinement methods in some therapy. I mentioned Rene Denfeld's great book The Child Finder in the Greedy Reading List Six Chilly Books to Read in the Heat of Summer. Side note: I've read and reviewed another book called Sleeping Giants; that one was a science fiction story by Sylvain Neuvel. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Rene Denfeld is also the author of The Enchanted, The Child Finder, and The Butterfly Girl.

Only If You're Lucky centers around a group of South Carolina college students who don't truly know each other--and the unpleasant surprise of discovering the dark things they're each capable of. Margot is from "the Outer Banks" of North Carolina and is finishing her freshman year in college at a small liberal arts school in South Carolina. She's still reeling from the loss of her best friend Eliza, who died a year earlier. She's spent her first year at school holing up and studying, maintaining a quiet life. Then she's singled out by a vivacious girl on her hall, Lucy. Lucy is wild, mischievous, mysterious--and she has an extra room in her rambunctious house next to a fraternity house for the summer. Margot is ready to cut loose and live a little, so she ditches her steady, predictable roommate and dives into living with Margot and her friends Sloane and Nicole, who are virtual strangers. (Together, they make up a group consisting of the wild one, the studious one, the mild-mannered one, and the one who is desperate to belong. Their character development didn't feel much deeper than that for me.) By the time their sophomore year is half over, one of the fraternity boys from next door is dead, Lucy is missing, and Margot is keeping secrets that could change everything. I found the characters here largely unlikable. The fraternity boys are presented as insufferable and ignorant dudes; the girls seem silly and flighty much of the time; and no one seems to really know each other. (These disconnected relationships are essential to the story, but they certainly didn't make me feel invested.) I was initially intrigued by the character of Levi, but he didn't feel fully developed, and later reflections on him made him seem shallow and selfish. The twists didn't lead the story exactly where I thought they would, and I was surprised by several turns and revelations. All of this felt like the strongest aspect of Only If You're Lucky for me. Yet I found myself not believing in the details and small moments that felt necessary to build the story (the characters' exchanges with each other, plus the odd shed access, the creepy hidey hole, the hunting and game and jerky element, and the staying at school for Thanksgiving?), and unfortunately, not caring much about the characters or what might happen to them. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? I listened to Only If You're Lucky as an audiobook. Willingham is also the author of All the Dangerous Things and A Flicker in the Dark.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading Kaliana Bradley's witty time-travel story The Ministry of Time; I'm listening to Only If You're Lucky, Stacy Willingham's mystery about college students, a death, and a missing girl; and I'm reading Sleeping Giants, Rene Denfeld's literary fiction about trying to find out the truth about the decades-old death of a young boy at a children's home on the wild coast of Oregon. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley In a world of the near future, a young woman is one of many civil servants offered a mysterious job: she'll be a handler for expats--and paid very handsomely for her work. But the expats the government is gathering aren't necessarily from another country. They're from other times. Our main protagonist, Commander Graham Gore (based upon a real figure from history), has been whisked from 1847 to the book's future setting. In order to be a "bridge" for Gore between his past and the present, she'll have to explain why she's showing so much skin, why it's not healthy to smoke all day, and what a washing machine is. But the bridge and her client are building bonds deeper than either could have imagined. This is witty and fun so far. To read about other books I've reviewed that play with time, check out this link. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of NetGalley and Avid Reader Press, Simon and Schuster. 02 Only If You're Lucky by Stacy Willingham Margot is a freshman in college still reeling from the loss of her best friend, who died a year earlier. She's spent her first year at school holing up and studying, maintaining a quiet life. Then she's singled out by a vivacious girl on her hall, Lucy. Lucy is wild, mischievous, mysterious--and she has an extra room in her rambunctious house for the summer. Margot is ready to cut loose and live a little, so she ditches her steady, predictable roommate and dives into living with Margot and friends, who are virtual strangers. By the time their sophomore year is half over, one of the fraternity boys from next door is dead, Lucy is missing, and Margot is keeping secrets that could change everything. I'm listening to Only If You're Lucky as an audiobook. Willingham is also the author of All the Dangerous Things and A Flicker in the Dark. 03 Sleeping Giants by Rene Denfeld Almost thirty years ago, Dennis, a young boy from a children's home washed away in the rough waves of an Oregon beach, and his body was never found. Now his sister Amanda, a young adult who learned of Dennis while researching her birth mother, is trying to find out how Dennis escaped the children's home and what happened leading up to her brother's death. She and Larry, a new local friend, a widower and former police officer, begin trying to find out the truth--but meet with dead ends everywhere they turn. But then disturbing facts begin to come out about the horrifying behavioral modification methods used at the home and those who enacted them. Amanda and Larry are closer than ever to uncovering the whole, heartbreaking truth. I mentioned Rene Denfeld's book The Child Finder in the Greedy Reading List Six Chilly Books to Read in the Heat of Summer. I've read and reviewed another book called Sleeping Giants; that one was a science fiction story by Sylvain Neuvel.

My very favorite Bossy reads so far this year! My Greedy Reading Lists are usually made up of six books, but I've had a wonderful start to 2024 reading, so here are the nine books I've most loved so far this year. If you've read any of these titles, I'd love to hear what you think! And I'd also love to hear: what are some of your favorite reads so far this year? 01 The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff Lauren Groff's beautiful and brutal novel The Vaster Wilds follows a young servant girl running from the Jamestown colony's disease and starvation; she reveals her secrets while scrabbling for survival in the unforgiving wilderness. The world, the girl knew, was worse than savage, the world was unmoved. It did not care, it could not care, what happened to her, not one bit. She was a mote, a speck, a floating windborne fleck of dust. Lauren Goff's novel The Vaster Wilds begins in the Jamestown colony in the early 1600s. A servant girl is fleeing her early colonial household in the brutal aftermath of plague and starvation. Upon being on her own for the first time, she discovers that she is capable of cleverness in the wild as she dives deeper and deeper into the unforgiving wilderness. She manages to problem-solve enormous challenges and, against all odds, survive. Her life in the wild consists of scrabbling for sustenance and carving out shelter; floating deadly cold rivers; and fleeing from wild strangers and beasts. Hers is a brutal existence buoyed only by meandering thoughts of the past--including her life's one tender connection, to the young daughter of her former household, her former charge--and her growing wonder at the mysteries of the natural world, which are wonderfully imperfect and beautifully wrought by Groff. I listened to The Vaster Wilds as an audiobook. For my full review, check out The Vaster Wilds. 02 Gwen & Art Are Not in Love by Lex Croucher Lex Croucher's queer medieval rom-com--the author's debut young-adult novel--is an absolute gem; it's full of excellent banter and lots of heart. I smiled while reading this one. “Nobody else is ever going to care as much as you do about the things that you want, Gwendoline. So it's up to you --you can put them aside forever, if you can live with that, or you can put on your big-girl girdle and demand more for yourself.” It's hundreds of years after King Arthur's reign, and his descendant and namesake Arthur, a future lord and committed partier and social butterfly, has long been betrothed to the short-tempered princess Gwendoline. Gwendoline has strong opinions and is feeling constricted in her prescribed royal role even without the weight of her pending marriage upon her. But Gwendoline and Arthur detest each other. And when they're forced to spend the summer together at Camelot to prepare for their upcoming nuptials, it doesn't take long for them to realize that Art has been kissing a boy and that Gwen has a crush on the only female knight in the kingdom. The premise of Lex Croucher's Gwen & Art Are Not in Love is irresistible, the pacing is great, and the banter is excellent--funny dialogue is a favorite element of mine. I adored the voices of the characters and witnessing their growth over the course of the story. For my full review, please see Gwen & Art Are Not in Love. 03 To Shape a Dragon's Breath (Nampeshiweisit #1) by Moniquill Blackgoose Blackgoose offers a fascinating, layered story about a strong-willed, whip-smart young Indigenous woman in a steampunk 1800s Nordic setting, with plenty of dragons, dragon science, and dragon bonding alongside activism and bravery. Moniquill Blackgoose's To Shape a Dragon's Breath delivers the dragons: in-depth training around being partnered with dragons, dragon-related science, emotional and physical ties to dragons, and the cultural importance, historical significance, and potential power of being linked to dragons. It's also a steampunk, mid-1800s Nordic setting for some radical rethinking of nonsensical, destructive rules and regulations. A fifteen-year-old Indigenous Masquisit girl Anequs finds a dragon egg, and when it hatches, she befriends and bonds with the hatchling, Kasaqua. But the Anglish conquerers of Masquapaug insist that a dragon must be raised a certain way, and if Anequs fails to demonstrate that she can control and shape Kasaqua's behavior, the dragon will be killed. But everyone's about to find out how disruptive a whip-smart, open-minded, and strong-willed young woman can be. Because the restrictive Anglish world--and its selective history of the destruction of the Indigenous people--is due for some changes. And Anequs is just the fearless catalyst who might be able to shift it all. Blackgoose takes on issues of Indigenous people and colonization, wealth and privilege, gender power imbalances, nontraditional sexual and relationship conventions, the bucking of societal traditions, and more. And my thirst for boarding school/magical school settings was quenched by the feminist-activist Anequs's dragon academy experience. For my full review, please see To Shape a Dragon's Breath. I love books about dragons (check out some of my favorites). 04 Being Mortal by Atul Gawande This is my favorite read of the year so far. Atul Gawande writes clearly and poignantly about the search to achieve maximum well-being rather than prolonging diminished life at all costs--as well as the many complicating factors that make it difficult to transition to a focus on quality of life. We've been wrong about what our job is in medicine. We think our job is to ensure health and survival. But really it is larger than that. It is to enable well-being. And well-being is about the reasons one wishes to be alive. Those reasons matter not just at the end of life, or when debility comes, but all along the way. The past century of medical advancements have transformed some grave conditions from death sentences to manageable or curable illnesses. But the focus on living longer and attempting to move past former limitations of medical solutions sometimes create a difficult dynamic: pursuing additional years of life at any cost sometimes means paying the price by experiencing a dramatically diminished quality of life. In Being Mortal, surgeon, former Harvard professor, and public health leader (Assistant Administrator for Global Health at USAID) Atul Gawande explores the successes and failures of the medical field in prolonging a life worth living. Being Mortal is a beautiful, poignant, clearheaded examination of the intersection of mortality, medicine, dreams, and reality. Gawande emphasizes asking key questions of loved ones to clearly understand their own particular, sometimes surprising lines in the sand regarding quality of life before they are unable to make key decisions for themselves: what are they willing to forgo in order to live? If you're interested in books about mortality like I am, you might like the books on my Greedy Reading Lists Six Powerful Memoirs about Facing Mortality and Six More Powerful Books about Facing Mortality. For my full review of this book, please see Being Mortal. 05 We Must Not Think of Ourselves by Heather Grodstein Grodstein tells a poignant, powerful story of the Warsaw Ghetto--of making a life within its prison walls and of finding resistance and even love in the face of despair. As Lauren Grodstein's We Must Not Think of Ourselves begins, it's November 1940, and Adam Paskow is one of the thousands of Jews newly imprisoned in the Warsaw Ghetto. He teaches English to children and adjusts to the shock of living in a flat with many other people--and understanding that this is his new reality. He is soon approached by secret archivists set on recording the incredible, horrifying events that are occurring--but also the everyday stories of the people trying to survive in captivity, danger, and uncertainty. Would Adam be willing to help them gather the stories that shape so many lives? Adam finds love in unlikely places, recalls his life, and finds ways to try to make a difference in the face of despair. Grodstein presents this incredibly difficult situation through various characters' attempts to accept impending doom, their wavering hope, and the incredibly powerful bonds they build to each other. For my full review, check out We Must Not Think of Ourselves. 06 Funny Story by Emily Henry Funny Story is the perfect rom-com read. Henry offers funny banter that made me laugh, some steamy moments, and a sweet love story. Reading this one made me happy. When Peter abruptly breaks up with Daphne, citing his sudden love for his childhood best friend Petra, Daphne is left emotionally reeling--and without a place to live. Desperate and devastated, she reluctantly moves into a spare room in the apartment of an acquaintance, "pothead" Miles. He has extra space because he was just dumped by his live-in girlfriend Petra. Who left him for Daphne's fiancé, Peter. This is exxxxcellent Emily Henry. The banter is fantastic, and I laughed many times while reading this one. There's steaminess and affection and character growth. No one is perfect, no one is swooning, and the love in this happy read is immensely satisfying. The rom-com conflict that prevents an immediate happy resolution was based on a communication fail--a setup I usually detest, because: just talk to each other!--but this one was so well done and understandable from both sides, I was hook, line, and sinker for all of it. Henry offers up lots of book love, as usual: Daphne is a dedicated children's librarian. I listened to Funny Story as an audiobook (narrated by the fantastic Julia Whelan). For my full review of this book, please see Funny Story. 07 Lone Women by Victor Lavalle LaValle mixes a Western setting with strong feminist messages, magical realism, haunting elements, and the terrifying, freeing truth in facing one's darker side. There are two kinds of people in this world: those who live with shame, and those who die from it. Victor LaValle's Lone Women begins in 1915 with a determined young woman, Adelaide Henry, covering her tracks by burning down her home--with her deceased parents inside. She's packed an incredibly heavy trunk and is setting out from California on a journey to try and leave her past behind. She's set on becoming a homesteader in Montana, one of the "lone women" taking the government up on its offer of free land. In LaValle's magical, dark Western, people tend to disappear whenever Adelaide's mysterious trunk opens. But the nature of the danger only becomes clear to the reader in fits and starts. There's a ton to unpack here, including the exploration of the good and evil warring within each of us; what we do when faced with our own monsters; the terrifying power of perception and manipulated presentation; the potential destruction of lies and glossed-over realities; instances of well-deserved, sometimes brutal justice and the grace of redemption; and the depth of love in a chosen family. I've seen Lone Women listed as a horror book, and there are horrifying elements, but the novel is far more than that; the story is complex and strange and interesting, with a pace that keeps moving and a satisfying ending. I listened to this fascinating story as an audiobook. Please click here for my full review of Lone Women. 08 Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino In Beautyland, Bertino offers a poignant, funny, strange story full of extraterrestrial observations of humans and their behavior that ring true. This was odd and lovely. Adina is born on Earth just as Voyager 1 launches into space. Her mother is a street-smart, scrabbling single parent, while Adina is an unusually perceptive child--with knowledge of another planet, a vivid nighttime school she attends in her mind, and faraway extraterrestrial relatives who have asked for her observations about humans and life on earth--which she provides by sending them her reflections through an otherworldly fax machine. The reader is privy to Adina's many missives to her extraterrestrial family--and their often-terse replies to her. She feels caught between existences, and the book pulls to a powerful but understated end in which this push and pull is resolved. I found myself torn throughout reading this; was Adina a character struggling with mental illness and imagining her superiors' replies, or was she truly an alien in a human "shell"? I believed in the latter, but establishing the definitive truth of the situation didn't ultimately matter deeply to me: Adina's eyes offered a beautiful, odd, lovely peek at human behavior, and her observations were just wonderful. For my full review, check out Beautyland. If you like this book, you might also be interested in the books on my Greedy Reading List Six Great Stories about Robots, Humans and Alien Life, and AI. 09 Starter Villain by John Scalzi First: this amazing cover. Second: Starter Villain is playful, darkly funny, big-hearted, and wonderfully weird. I loved it and I can't wait to read more John Scalzi books. “I can’t tell if you’re joking with me,” I said. “I’m mostly joking with you.” “That ‘mostly’ is doing a lot of work in that sentence.” The cover of Starter Villain shows a grumpy-seeming cat's head on a human torso clad in a suit with "Meet the new boss" across the top, so obviously this was going to be a Bossy read. And I love that this is my first review of 2024. Bring on the weird and wonderful books! In Starter Villain, Charlie's a substitute teacher, divorced, struggling emotionally, socially, and financially, and living in a house his half-siblings want to sell. Then he inherits his long-lost uncle's parking-garage empire. Which turns out to be a cover for a vast supervillain business--complete with an evil lair in an island volcano. Could this be an unexpected new start that will point Charlie in a productive new direction? The recently deceased Uncle Jake, an old-fashioned villain, made a lot of enemies--and they're ruthless, well-funded, and out for revenge. Charlie will have to quickly get up to speed and figure out friend from foe in order to stay alive. This villain business is more complicated than it seems. There's crossing, double-crossing, a wonderfully savvy and knowledgeable second-in-command, nefarious plots, sentient cats, and more. This was playful, smart, funny, and weird. Click here for my full review of Starter Villain.

This gorgeously written set of fifty-two love letters to nature encourage reflection and urge the reader to pause to honor even the less glamorous wonders of wilderness. Pull up a weed from the wet soil of the drenched garden and smell the rich life the earthworm has left behind. Just a whiff of it will flood you with a feeling of well-being. The microbes in freshly turned soil stimulate serotonin production, working on the human brain the same way antidepressants do. In The Comfort of Crows, Margaret Renkl offers a literary, nature-focused devotional of 52 chapters, each meditating on an element inspired by her close examination of the goings-on in her backyard. Renkl's beautiful, striking observations range from a New Year's Day sighting of a crow and her exploration of crows' senses of community and cleverness, which she hopes set a tone for the year to come; to a grief-stricken examination of deadly fads such as the desire to have a vibrant green yard, free of weeds, and the widespread impacts of the poisonous chemicals required to achieve such a thing. So much of what I do in this yard is only ever an exercise in hope. The author is deeply connected to nature and has a poet's way with words as she explores the wonder of migration, nature's cycles of life and death, and wild creatures' behavior. Renkl weaves in stories of her pivotal childhood encounters with nature, and for me the book really shone when she included her family's current shifts and changes in poignant passages she linked to her observations of nature. I adored this element--possibly because with a senior in high school, I am also facing enormous pending alterations to the makeup of our household. Epigrams appear at the beginning of each essay, setting a tone for what's to come. Nothing in nature exists as a metaphor, but human beings are reckless metaphor makers anyway. I listened to The Comfort of Crows as an audiobook, but I think this one would have been even better read as a physical book for easier pausing and pondering. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Renkl is also the author of Late Migrations: A Natural History of Love and Loss and Graceland, At Last: Notes on Hope and Heartache From the American South.

Baby X explores the complex issues around an imagined future with genetically chosen embryos; Peikoff also digs into origin stories and sense of identity, duty, trust, and vulnerability in the various storylines of this intriguing book. In an imagined United States of the near future, any cell can be transformed into an egg or sperm. The process of creating embryos has been revolutionized, and parents can use Selection to analyze and choose an embryo based upon certain traits they desire in their offspring. But anyone with nefarious intent can theoretically create an embryo with the DNA of anyone with whom they've come into contact and obtained cells from. This means that sought-after DNA specimen sources such as celebrities are in potential danger of having their DNA stolen while going about their daily lives--and ultimately having biological children that they're unaware of. Ember is a scientist who offers her services to protect high-profile clients from DNA theft. She knows all of the tricks of The Vault, an underground, subversive group that has doled out justice to prominent figures by stealing DNA and revealing factors about their genes, predispositions, or origins. She's falling for her famous client, the musician Trace Thorne--but when a woman shows up claiming to be carrying Thorne's baby, it upends more than just Ember and Thorne's lives. Quinn is a selfless repeat surrogate who helps couples build their families. Her new friend and widow Robert enlists her help with carrying the embryo he and his husband had created before Evan's death, and Robert treats her to the perks of his lavish lifestyle. But Quinn is starting to think Robert is keeping secrets--and that he may be dangerous. Young adult Lily is an aspiring journalist who in her personal life is trying to come to terms with the fact that her father and her mother, who Lily feels are well beyond the age where they should be conceiving a child, are preparing to Select an embryo. Lily herself was not Selected, and she has always felt embarrassed about her freewheeling origins. Then tracking down the details of a promising story lead her straight to some shocking truths about her parents and her origins. I was happily intrigued by how all of the pieces of this story fit together, and the revelations that came late in the book kept me hooked. Meanwhile Baby X explored interesting, complex, sometimes moral and ethical issues, including those around choosing qualities in a baby, balancing various dangers and promising traits. Peikoff also touches on the importance of origin stories and identity, and her characters fight to trust, to show vulnerability, and to do the right--sometimes difficult--thing. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Kira Peikoff is also the author of No Time to Die, Living Proof, Die Again Tomorrow, and Mother Knows Best.

Lisa Jewell's haunting psychological thriller centers around birthday twins, an unreliable narrator, disparate lifestyles, and dark secrets that emerge. In Lisa Jewell's psychological thriller None of This Is True, successful podcaster Alix Summer is celebrating her forty-fifth birthday at the local pub when she meets a strange woman, Josie, also celebrating her birthday. Her "birthday twin" begins popping up where Alix is, and she's got a strange, disturbing life story to share. Tempted by Josie's intriguing tales, Alix begins interviewing her for the podcast, despite feeling unsettled by her increasingly frequent presence. But Josie has been keeping dark secrets, with horrifying details and impact beyond anything Alix could imagine. And they're all beginning to come out. I enjoyed peeking at Alix's fabulous lifestyle and also the making of a podcast. The story is dark and haunting, with intriguing, unreliable narrating; smaller mistakes that have enormous consequences; and nightmarish choices that are so upsetting, they're tough to read about. I listened to None of This Is True as an audiobook. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Lisa Jewell is also the author of The Family Upstairs. Other books that center around a podcast are Listen for the Lie and also the Good Girl's Guide to Murder series (featuring Pippa Fitz-Amobi!).

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm listening to Lisa Jewell's haunting psychological thriller None of This Is True; I'm listening to The Comfort of Crows, Margaret Renkl's meditation on the nature witnessed in her backyard through the course of a year; and I'm reading Baby X, Kira Peikoff's near-future-set story of the power of holding and using others' DNA. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell In Lisa Jewell's psychological thriller None of This Is True, successful podcaster Alix Summer is celebrating her forty-fifth birthday at the local pub when she meets a strange woman, Josie, also celebrating her birthday. Her "birthday twin" begins popping up where Alix is, and she's got a strange, disturbing life story to share. Tempted by Josie's intriguing tales, Alix begins interviewing her for the podcast, despite feeling unsettled by her presence. But Josie has been keeping dark secrets, with horrifying details and impact beyond anything Alix could imagine. And they're all beginning to come out. I'm listening to None of This Is True as an audiobook. Lisa Jewell is also the author of The Family Upstairs. 02 The Comfort of Crows: A Backyard Year by Margaret Renkl Pull up a weed from the wet soil of the drenched garden and smell the rich life the earthworm has left behind. Just a whiff of it will flood you with a feeling of well-being. The microbes in freshly turned soil stimulate serotonin production, working on the human brain the same way antidepressants do. In The Comfort of Crows, Margaret Renkl offers a literary, nature-focused devotional of 52 chapters, each meditating on an element inspired by her close examination of the goings-on in her backyard. Renkl's beautiful, striking observations range from a New Year's Day sighting of a crow and her exploration of crows' senses of community and cleverness, which she hopes set a tone for the year to come; to a grief-stricken examination of deadly fads such as the desire to have a vibrant green yard, free of weeds, and the widespread impacts of the poisonous chemicals required to achieve such a thing. Nothing in nature exists as a metaphor, but human beings are reckless metaphor makers anyway. I'm listening to The Comfort of Crows as an audiobook. Renkl is also the author of Late Migrations. 03 Baby X by Kira Peikoff In an imagined United States of the near future, any cell can be transformed into an egg or sperm. The process of creating embryos has been revolutionized, and parents can use Selection to analyze and choose an embryo based upon certain traits they desire in their offspring. But anyone with nefarious intent can theoretically create an embryo with the DNA of anyone with whom they've come into contact and obtained cells from. This means that sought-after DNA specimen sources such as celebrities are in potential danger of having their DNA stolen while going about their daily lives--and ultimately having biological children that they're unaware of. Ember is a scientist who offers her services to protect high-profile clients from DNA theft. She knows all of the tricks of The Vault, an underground, subversive group that has doled out justice to prominent figures by stealing DNA and revealing factors about their genes, predispositions, or origins. She's falling for her famous client, the musician Trace Thorne--but when a woman shows up claiming to be carrying Thorne's baby, it upends more than just Ember and Thorne's lives.

Six Great Bossy Nonfiction Reads I promise that this is the last roundup list of 2023 favorites, which seems appropriate now that we have entered the month of May, 2024, ahem. If you've read any of these books, I'd love to hear what you think! You can find some of my many other lists of favorite nonfiction and memoir roundups here: Six of My Favorite Nonfiction Reads from the Past Year Six Compelling Nonfiction Reads Six Illuminating Memoirs to Dive Into Six Musicians' Memoirs that Sing Six More Fascinating Memoirs to Explore And you can click here for other memoir titles and here for more nonfiction titles I've reviewed on Bossy Bookworm. What are some of your recent favorite nonfiction or memoir reads? 01 Solito: A Memoir by Javier Zamora Zamora's memoir of his grueling journey from El Salvador to the United States without family at age nine keeps the reader within each immediate, breathless, uncomfortable, fear-filled moment through and to the unknown. In Solito, the poet Javier Zamora shares the story of his grueling childhood journey. Zamora keeps us in his nine-year-old perspective, which also serves to keep us focused on moment-by-moment sensations and concerns and makes the memoir feel immediate and breathless. Physical discomfort (he is tired, cold, hot, burned, thirsty, hungry), emotional turmoil (he feels loneliness, fear, concern, disconnectedness), and yearning (he is desperate for trust, for assurances, for safety and security, for reunification) are at the forefront. Zamora takes us through what often feels like his literal step-by-step journey, without summarizing or skipping over impactful moments of need and want and despair. Yet he doesn't mine the difficult situation in an effort to build drama; his account feels honest and without emotional manipulation. I listened to Solito as an audiobook. Click here for my full review of Solito. You might also be interested in the titles on my Greedy Reading List Six Fascinating Books about Immigrants' Experiences. 02 Being Henry: The Fonz...and Beyond by Henry Winkler Winkler is candid, charming, self-deprecating, and delighted by life and his experiences. I loved listening to him read the audiobook of Being Henry. I listened to Henry Winkler read his irresistibly candid, funny, and poignant memoir. Winkler explores his childhood and his critical, yelling, stressed parents, survivors of the Holocaust who were later concerned with wealthy appearances and often in terrible debt. He credits their appreciation for his fame but not for him as a person for his lifetime of insecurity, difficulty opening up emotionally, and need for ongoing therapy. He also shares his lifelong joy in putting on other personas and his professional ups and downs, including the luck, grit, and adventures of starring in Happy Days, Arrested Development, Parks and Recreation, and Barry. Winkler brings heart and honesty to the story of his life, and I loved it. I received a prepublication audiobook version of this title courtesy of NetGalley and Macmillan Audio. For my full review, check out Being Henry. 03 You Could Make This Place Beautiful by Maggie Smith Poet Maggie Smith's memoir traces the end of her marriage, and she weaves in history and hopes for the future while acknowledging that any story is only one person's reality and experience. Life, like a poem, is a series of choices. In You Could Make This Place Beautiful, poet Maggie Smith recounts her painful, prolonged divorce and her marriage, which was ending as she wrote this memoir. The book is made up of many short sections, and much of Smith's exploration is focused on the way in which she chooses to write about and present her situation--both of which seem fitting for a writer and poet. Smith deliberately presents the book not as a "tell-all" but a "tell-mine," repeatedly acknowledging that she can only tell her side of the story, built upon facts but only those she chooses to share; built on feelings, but only her feelings; built on resulting repercussions, but only those she chooses to acknowledge and share. The author mentions much of the music she finds powerful and inspiring or comforting, and she references other poets' work and her own. I found myself noting and saving much of this gorgeousness. Click here for my full review of You Could Make This Place Beautiful. 04 The Light We Carry by Michelle Obama I listened to this audiobook and highly recommend immersing yourself in Michelle Obama's voice as she shares calm, wise, funny, or poignant reflections, personal practices, and gems of advice regarding retaining hope and being your best self. I read Michelle Obama's wonderful book Becoming, but after my wise friend Katherine mentioned having listened to it, I immediately wished I had heard Michelle's calming voice read it to me too. So I decided to listen to The Light We Carry and was instantly sure audiobook was the right format for me. Rather than pretending there are quick fixes for life's challenges and difficulties, Obama opens up her "toolbox" of emotional, meditative, and optimistic methods of coping, reminding herself of what's what, and ways in which she carries on in the face of adversity. While her White House circumstances are unusual and some of her related recollections are unique, her methods translate to the rest of us and daily life. She builds her book around pivotal encounters with others or aims to answer questions that have been frequently posed to her, along the way sharing more of the story of her family, marriage, political life, friendships, frustrations, hopes, goals, and joys. Her writing--deep self-reflection with sometimes poetic phrasing--is just beautiful. I loved reading this and loved spending time with Michelle Obama. Please click here for my full review of The Light We Carry. 05 Unmasked: My Life Solving America's Cold Cases by Paul Holes with Robin Gaby Fisher I was fascinated by Holes's account of the dogged determination and attention to detail--as well as the cost to his personal life--involved in discovering the identities of killers. I have caught some of the most notorious killers of the twenty-first century and brought justice and closure for their victims and families. I want to tell you about a lifetime solving these cold cases, from Laci Peterson to Jaycee Dugard to the Pittsburgh homicides to, yes, my twenty-year-long hunt for the Golden State Killer. Holes tracks for the reader the somewhat circuitous route he took in beginning to look into cold cases, the seemingly mundane clues he relied upon for answers, the persistent review of the facts and killers' potential motivations, and his dogged determination in comparing notes and working cooperatively with others--even when his full-time job was not meant to be focused on this particular work, but on more administrative concerns. I was captivated by the often slow, sometimes shockingly swift realizations and their implications. The development of DNA analysis and technological possibilities was fascinating. While the work almost certainly was tedious, Unmasked never is, and I never felt that Holes (with Fisher) was inserting drama that didn't inherently exist. For my full review, check out Unmasked. 06 A Fever in the Heartland by Timothy Egan In this narrative nonfiction, Egan explores the Klan's explosive growth and power in the 1920s in states like Indiana and beyond, while illustrating the unlikely heroine whose bravery began to bring justice to the evil leaders and implode the hate group. In 1922, the Ku Klux Klan was roaring through states like Indiana, adding tens of thousands of members so that its ranks swelled to 400,000 in that state. A Fever in the Heartland traces the horrifying and powerful growth of hate, buoyed by greed and intolerance, in the form of the Klan. The demonic con man at the heart of much of the Klan's spread is shown to be a monster with the worst imaginable faults of cruelty, ignorance, narcissism, and disregard for human life. My blood pressure was way up as I listened to the audiobook of the book and learned about the many shocking atrocities that took place during the course of events explored here. The Klan's eventual comeuppance takes up a comparatively small portion of the book, but offers a beginning to justice being served. For my full review, please check out A Fever in the Heartland. You can click here to find other books I've read and reviewed that explore issues of race and politics or social justice as well as other fascinating nonfiction titles.

I loved Johnson's first book set in this complex, futuristic, postapocalyptic world of conflicting classes and disparate privilege, but had difficulty feeling as connected to this story. I was intrigued and fascinated with the layers of Micaiah Johnson's book The Space Between Worlds, which introduced both the multiverse and the complex character Cara who also appear in Those Beyond the Wall--in Cara's case, as a key player without a lot of page time. In Ashtown, a gritty desert community, the Emperor rules with a ruthless hand and holds the ultimate power. The only person he can trust is Scales. Scales is a mechanic, a fighter, and she keeps everyone on track. But when Ashtown citizens start turning up dead, Scales must team up with a straitlaced Ashtown partner she despises and an abrupt, suspicious, but brilliant City scientist (who also appeared in The Space Between Worlds) in order to try to capture the killers. Scales isn't sure who she can trust; she is challenged by grasping the time, place, and circumstances of her current existence; and she's keeping some pretty enormous secrets. I loved the gender fluidity and acceptance; the appropriation of "Mr." as an honorific for all, regardless of gender; the scrappy underdogs who have adapted to difficulty; and the deep bonds between and weighty pasts of the characters. Yet I couldn't help feeling jumbled. Factors that contributed to my inability to hold on to the story: characters who appear and are doppelgangers of known characters but are not actually the people themselves; various versions of reality that are known to exist, so nothing feels final; and the fact that Scales and her allies spend significant page time trying to figure out what's going on and not being sure. I wasn't as drawn in by Scales's extended thoughts and reflections as I was by the action and dialogue in the story. The end sections where events are clicking along, alliances are shifting and changing, and dramatic justice is being sought felt like the strongest and most compelling portion of the book for me. I was fascinated-horrified by elements such as filed teeth, ruthless fighting styles, and the technology incorporated into everything. I received a prepublication digital edition of this science fiction title courtesy of NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group--Ballantine. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Micaiah Johnson is also the author of The Space Between Worlds, a book I loved.

I was intrigued by the premise of this story--two people tied together by a past tragedy who stumble back into each other's lives in an LA writer's room--but I felt frustrated by what felt like an emotional swirl that I didn't connect with. In high school, Helen Zheng's life was upended by the tragic, sudden death of her sister Michelle. Now Helen is in her early 30s, and Helen hasn't seen Grant Shepard in thirteen years--not since they were bound by the horrific events surrounding her sister's death...and since Helen demanded that Grant leave her sister's funeral as soon as he walked in. A successful young-adult author, shy Helen is excited to be part of the adaptation of her work into a television series. She relocates from New York to Los Angeles and is adjusting to the showy personas she's encountering and to participating in the process of shifting her words to their representation on the screen. But when she meets the key writers involved in working on the project, she is shocked and dismayed to find that Grant Shepard is front and center. He's a key staff member, and if she stays in the writers' room, she'll be working with him all day, every day. Initially horrified, Helen reluctantly builds a bond with Grant. At first she is closed off, but they soon joke around and feel a spark. When their relationship becomes physical, they jump right into erotic talk--much of this highly specific dialogue made me laugh, as it felt abrupt and out of line with the rest of their connection. (Side note: hearing "sweetheart" as his dirty-talk nickname for her felt jarring to me every time.) It also seemed as though their sex life would have felt more intriguing and would have carried more weight if either their relationship had felt more forbidden or if they had acknowledged their emotional bond. Helen is presented as shy, and while I appreciated her taking control of her intimate life, it seemed off that she and Grant both comfortably and immediately made specific, bossy sexual demands of each other--who are, after all, near strangers linked by a devastating past event--and entered into very heated, varied sexual encounters. They have the "best" kiss, his chest is the most sculpted, and many of their moments together are just perfect. Meanwhile, conveniently for the halfhearted will-they-won't-they (spoiler: they will, they have, they are) tension, Helen says that she denies their clear emotional bond in spite of extensive evidence of its existence. Yet she says things like "Sometimes I miss you when you're right in front of me." It made things feel disjointed to me. Helen seems to understand early on that Michelle was having thoughts of suicide and that Grant was in the wrong place at the wrong time the night of Michelle's death. The basis of her resistance to Grant is somewhat unclear--she doesn't seem to feel he is at fault, or deserves punishment, or is taking the situation lightly, or is a bad person. She pictures her parents' upset if she and Grant were together, which is a big strike in her mind against their relationship, but I felt like the forbidden-relationship element could have used more bolstering since Helen and Grant have clearly made peace with much or all of the circumstances surrounding of the loss of Michelle. I didn't feel connected to Helen or the man's man character of Grant. I also had a tough time with the premise of this one but remained curious as to whether I was about to read essential, illuminating information about the events surrounding Helen's sister's death, or their relationship, or something else that would shed light on the past. I was imagining that eventually Helen would dig further into her past and complicated trauma, so that readers could understand why her having any level of a relationship with Grant seems to feel impossible, or so readers could understand more about her complex feelings and emotionally torn state regarding her sister's loss and having Grant in her life. Yet as is sometimes the case with death by suicide, it's confirmed later in the book that Michelle's inner workings will not be revealed to Helen or to the reader, and they remain a mystery years after her death. Helen must simply determine whether she can accept Grant's chance association with that tragic night--and as shown from early on in the book, she clearly can. Announcing their relationship to her parents is made out to be the final hurdle, and an almost-tragedy late in the book opens the door for this to occur. I found myself increasingly frustrated the longer I listened to this story, which I received courtesy of Libro.fm and HarperAudio. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Yulin Kuang is the adapting screenwriter of Emily Henry's People We Meet On Vacation, as well as the writer/director of the forthcoming movie based upon Emily Henry's Beach Read. (For my Bossy reviews of Emily Henry's books, click here.) For Bossy reviews of lighter fiction or rom-com books I've loved, check out these Greedy Reading Lists: Six More of my Favorite Romantic Fiction Reads from the Past Year Six More Great Light Fiction Stories Six Lighter Fiction Stories for Great Escapism Six Great Light Fiction Stories Perfect for Summer Reading Six Rom-Coms Perfect for Summer Reading Six More Great Rom-Coms Perfect for Summer Reading Six of My Favorite Lighter Fiction Reads from the Past Year

Grodstein tells a poignant, powerful story of the Warsaw Ghetto--of making a life within its prison walls and of finding resistance and even love in the face of despair. My friend Suzanne recently suggested that I read this book despite my recent feelings that I'm maxed out on World War II-set novels, and I'm so glad she did! As Lauren Grodstein's We Must Not Think of Ourselves begins, it's November 1940, and Adam Paskow is one of the thousands of Jews newly imprisoned in the Warsaw Ghetto. He teaches English to children and adjusts to the shock of living in a flat with many other people--and understanding that this is his new reality. He is soon approached by secret archivists set on recording the incredible, horrifying events that are occurring--but also the everyday stories of the people trying to survive in captivity, danger, and uncertainty. Would Adam be willing to help them gather the stories that shape so many lives? The heart of this story was inspired by the real-life project aimed at preserving the testimonies of Jews in the Ghetto, code named Oneg Shabbat. Stories of various characters are interwoven through the historical fiction novel and add depth to the story. Adam finds love in unlikely places, recalls his life, and finds ways to try to make a difference in the face of despair. Grodstein presents this incredibly difficult situation through various characters' attempts to accept impending doom, their wavering hope, and the incredibly powerful bonds they build to each other. I listened to We Must Not Think of Ourselves as an audiobook. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Grodstein is also the author of Our Short History, The Explanation for Everything, and A Friend of the Family. You can find many other World War II-set novels I've reviewed here.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading Kate Quinn and Jamie Chang's historical fiction novel about two disparate women in 1906 San Francisco, The Phoenix Crown; I'm listening to We Must Not Think of Ourselves, historical fiction about life the Warsaw Ghetto by Lauren Grodstein; and I'm listening to How to End a Love Story, a story by Yulin Kuang about two young adults whose paths cross years after being tied together by a tragic death. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 The Phoenix Crown by Kate Quinn and Janie Chang In 1906 San Francisco, two very different women seek new beginnings: Gemma is a gifted soprano whose career is in need of an overhaul, while Suling is an embroideress in Chinatown who is set against entering into the marriage that's been arranged for her. Henry Thornton is a railroad magnate and owner of the mysterious Phoenix Crown, an artifact legendary because of its origins in Beijing's Summer Palace. Thornton draws both of the women into his world by offering to be their patron. But when San Francisco is devastated by an earthquake, Thornton disappears--and the Phoenix Crown with him. Five years later, the crown reappears--spurring more mystery and questions than answers. Kate Quinn is the author of the fantastic titles The Diamond Eye, The Huntress, The Rose Code, and The Alice Network. 02 We Must Not Think of Ourselves by Lauren Grodstein My friend Suzanne recently suggested that I read this book despite my recent feelings that I'm maxed out on World War II-set novels, and I'm so glad she did! Of course she was right. As Lauren Grodstein's We Must Not Think of Ourselves begins, it's November 1940, and Adam Paskow is one of the thousands of Jews newly imprisoned in the Warsaw Ghetto. He teaches English to children and adjusts to living in a flat with many other people. He is soon approached by secret archivists set on recording the incredible, horrifying events that are occurring--but also the everyday stories of the people trying to survive in captivity, danger, and uncertainty. Would Adam be willing to help them gather the stories that shape so many lives? The heart of the story was inspired by the real-life project aimed at preserving the testimonies of Jews in the Ghetto, code named Oneg Shabbat. Stories of various characters are interwoven through the historical fiction novel and add depth to the story. I'm listening to We Must Not Think of Ourselves as an audiobook. Grodstein is also the author of Our Short History, The Explanation for Everything, and A Friend of the Family. 03 How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang In high school, Helen Zheng's life was upended by the tragic, sudden death of her sister. Helen hasn't seen Grant Shepard in thirteen years--not since they were bound by the horrific events surrounding her sister's death...and since Helen demanded that Grant leave her sister's funeral as soon as he walks in. Now a successful young-adult author, shy Helen is excited to be part of the adaptation of her work into a television series. She relocates to Los Angeles and is adjusting to the showy personas she's encountering and the process of shifting her words to their representation on the screen. But when she meets the key writers and staff members involved in working on the project, she is shocked and dismayed that Grant Shepard is front and center. Initially horrified, Helen reluctantly builds a bond with Grant...and maybe something more. I'm having a tough time with the premise of this one but am curious as to whether I'm missing something big that's about to be revealed about the circumstances surrounding Helen's sister's death. Yulin Kuang is the adapting screenwriter of Emily Henry's People We Meet On Vacation, as well as the writer/director of the forthcoming movie based upon Emily Henry's Beach Read. (For my Bossy reviews of Emily Henry's books, click here.)

My very favorite Bossy April reads! Here are the six books I most loved reading this past month. If you've read any of these titles, I'd love to hear what you think! And I'd also love to hear: what are some of your recent favorite reads? 01 Funny Story by Emily Henry Funny Story is the perfect rom-com read. Henry offers funny banter that made me laugh, some steamy moments, and a sweet love story. Reading this one made me happy. When Peter abruptly breaks up with Daphne, citing his sudden love for his childhood best friend Petra, Daphne is left emotionally reeling--and without a place to live. Desperate and devastated, she reluctantly moves into a spare room in the apartment of an acquaintance, "pothead" Miles. He has extra space because he was just dumped by his live-in girlfriend Petra. Who left him for Daphne's fiancé, Peter. This is exxxxcellent Emily Henry. The banter is fantastic, and I laughed many times while reading this one. There's steaminess and affection and character growth. No one is perfect, no one is swooning, and the love in this happy read is immensely satisfying. The rom-com conflict that prevents an immediate happy resolution was based on a communication fail--a setup I usually detest, because: just talk to each other!--but this one was so well done and understandable from both sides, I was hook, line, and sinker for all of it. Henry offers up lots of book love, as usual: Daphne is a dedicated children's librarian. I listened to Funny Story as an audiobook (narrated by the fantastic Julia Whelan). For my full review of this book, please see Funny Story. 02 Shark Heart: A Love Story by Emily Habeck Emily Habeck's debut novel offers an unusual premise in which one member of a newlywed couple begins transforming into a great white shark due to a mutation, and builds a beautifully written, poignant, fascinating story. Shark Heart: A Love Story follows newlyweds Wren and Lewis as they adjust to the sudden prospect of a drastic, potentially deadly (to Wren), fundamental shift (for Lewis) and shocking metamorphosis: Lewis has a mutation that's already affecting him, beginning his transformation into a great white shark. We track back through time to witness Wren's younger years, then farther back to understand Wren's mother's youth and the way her mother's mutation and diagnosis shaped her life and that of Wren. Lewis's transformation stirs up difficult memories and complex emotions surrounding Wren's mother's change into a (land) animal--and her resulting inability to care for Wren. This was strange and interesting. I loved the dark, oddball humor that occasionally crept in surrounding the mutations in the book. Shark Heart was surprisingly poignant speculative fiction. I listened to Shark Heart: A Love Story as an audiobook. Click here for my full review of Shark Heart. 03 Family Family by Laurie Frankel Frankel's story of a nontraditional, loving, zany family flips traditional views of unplanned, young pregnancy through the view of a main protagonist who refuses to fear, feel shame, or to regret the sometimes complicated occurrences in her life. India Allwood is a successful actor who's supposed to be doing the publicity for her new movie, which exploits the heartbreak of giving a baby up for adoption. When she shares her frank thoughts about the complex issues surrounding unplanned pregnancy, a storm of publicity explodes around her. Her precocious ten-year-old kids secretly reach out to family for help--but even India doesn't realize the ripple effect of the contact her beloved children are making. Family Family offers varied love and acceptance, discovery, and renewed connection. I also loved the peek at a celebrity's home life. You can see the rough sketches of where the novel is going, but the extended, loving, odd, sometimes zany family was unexpected in its makeup and irresistible in its existence within this charming story from Frankel. Click here for my full review of Family Family. 04 The Book of Doors by Gareth Brown Brown's debut fantasy novel offers a swirl of magical books, a makeshift team of world-savers, plenty of danger, various villains, and repeated time travel. Cassie Andrews works in a New York City bookshop and lives a quiet life, content with her lively best-friend roommate Izzy and the book-loving characters she meets at work. One of these customers is a kind older man she's become dear friends with. When he dies suddenly in the shop, Cassie is bereft. But along with his copy of The Count of Monte Cristo is a smaller, unusual book. Inside, incredibly, is an inscription...made out to her. And inside the enigmatic pages are the words Any door is every door. Strange things begin happening to Cassie and Izzy when Cassie takes possession of the book, and soon a rumpled Scottish man, Drummond Fox, appears, with knowledge of The Book of Doors and other Special Books. One villain seems to be dispensed with during the course of the story and a more dastardly one emerges and prolongs the conflict with Cassie and the good guys. I liked this ramping-up of the evil side of things and how it made Cassie's quest even more essential. The end portions were really interesting and offered some poignancy as well as some origin-story satisfaction, but I found myself wanting to know more about Cassie's pivotal role as related to the Special Books. I listened to The Book of Doors as an audiobook. Please click here for my full review of The Book of Doors. 05 Queens of London by Heather Webb Queens of London is fascinating historical fiction that explores the gritty underbelly of post-World War I London through the points of view of Diamond Annie, head of an all-woman gang, and the female police inspector determined to arrest her. In post-World War I London, female lawlessness in the form of the Forty Elephants gang of women, an offshoot of the Elephant and Castle men's gang, butts up against law enforcement, which only recently includes women officers. It's 1925, and Diamond Annie is running a ruthless, savvy, gritty, loyal ring of female thieves and cons, and her significant ambition means she's dreaming of bigger and more wide-ranging success. But one of Britain's first female police officers, Lilian Wyles, is underestimated, dismissed, disrespected--and desperate to prove her excellent mettle as an investigator by taking down Annie's gang. When the two aspiring women's bids for victory clash, traditional female roles and power structures are shaken to their cores. For my full review, check out Queens of London. 06 The Warm Hands of Ghosts by Katherine Arden Katherine Arden, author of the captivating Winternight trilogy, here shares a mysterious, haunting historical fiction story with a speculative twist, set against the backdrop of the trudging, brutal destruction of World War I. In The Warm Hands of Ghosts, Arden presents the story of Laura, a combat nurse who is searching for her brother Freddie in the confusion, relentless mud, and grim destruction of the Great War. Freddie is reported as having died, but strange and unnerving clues indicate to Laura that something more mysterious may have happened to him. Others keep sighting Freddie, and Laura herself feels that he is near. The story's pacing felt quite slow and the tone extremely dark and hushed for the majority of the book, so that my attention frequently wavered. The slog of fighting and of the horrifyingly deadly war is conveyed with vivid, crushing, uncomfortable detail. I was glad when Laura began to allow herself to be vulnerable toward the end of the novel, and I very much liked the resolutions of the story. For my full review, please see The Warm Hands of Ghosts.

​Frankel's story of a nontraditional, loving, zany family flips traditional views of unplanned, young pregnancy through the view of a main protagonist who refuses to fear, feel shame, or to regret the sometimes complicated occurrences in her life. “Not all stories of adoption are stories of pain and regret. Not even most of them. Why don’t we ever get that movie?” India Allwood always knew she wanted to act. Each decision she made as a young person was done toward trying to shape her future as an actor. Now a grown-up, successful actor, she's supposed to be doing the publicity for her new movie, which exploits the heartbreak of giving a baby up for adoption. India generally keeps her strong opinions about the world to herself (or shares them with her two kids or trusted agent), but she honestly thinks the movie is no good--and that adoption is often not a tragic story. She is, herself, an adoptive mother who believes in the process--and she has a complicated past that adds layers to her feelings about the matter. When she shares her frank thoughts about the complex issues surrounding unplanned pregnancy, a storm of publicity explodes around her. Her precocious ten-year-old kids secretly reach out to family for help--but even India doesn't realize the ripple effect of the contact her beloved children are making. This is your wide, strange, remarkable family in the world, she said. These are your ancestors, progenitors, and forebears. This is your story. I was frequently distracted, as I didn't feel like Jack and Fig's age of ten really fit. Kids are more sage in some ways and more youthful in others. But the twins generally felt older, wiser, and more capable of complex thought and carrying out elaborate plans (and holding secrets) than most ten-year-olds I know. They were able to infer a great deal about the world and how it works--far more than I would have anticipated, even considering their difficult beginnings and the emotional maturity demanded of them as a result. Yet the story includes what felt like too-frequent "cute" misnomers (for example, when Jack is told about forebears, he exclaims nonsensically, "I want four bears!"; when Fig is told they must travel incognito, she conveniently doesn't use context clues, instead replying, "But we don't have a cognito.") Kids say the darnedest and adorable things, but these instances pulled me out of the story each time they occurred. The character of India turns rigid, conservative views on unplanned pregnancy, young pregnancy, and adoption on their heads. While I did find myself cringing and wishing she followed through on the birth control that would ensure her freedom from difficult choices resulting from a surprise pregnancy, India refuses to feel regret, shame, or fear. I had to check my assumptions repeatedly as I entered into her mindset around her version of personal choice and freedom. Family Family offers so much varied love and acceptance, discovery, and renewed connection. I also loved the peek at a celebrity's home life. You can see the rough sketches of where the novel is going, but the extended, loving, odd, sometimes zany family was unexpected in its makeup and irresistible in its existence within this charming story from Frankel. When are They going to make this into a television series, hmmm? Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Laurie Frankel is also the author of This Is How It Always Is, One Two Three, The Atlas of Love, and Goodbye for Now.

ICYMI: Frankel's storyline is powerful, important, and poignant, and the deep love, support, and acceptance within the family in This Is How It Always Is is a gift. Dispelling fear. Taming what was scary not by hiding it, not by blocking it or burying it, not by keeping it secret, but by reminding themselves, and everyone else, to choose love, choose openness, to think and be calm. That there were more ways than just two, wider possibilities than hidden or betrayed, stalled or brokenhearted, male or female, right or wrong. Middle ways. Ways beyond. I posted this week that I'm happily reading Laurie Frankel's most recent novel, Family Family. I realized that I read Frankel's novel This Is How It Always Is pre-blog, and that I need a review of that one on the site. In Frankel's novel, Claude is the youngest of five brothers. He dreams of being a princess when he grows up, and he would like to be called Poppy and wear the dresses he loves out of the house. Poppy's family is full of love, and they fear for Poppy out in the world. Yet keeping the whole person of Poppy a secret or thwarting Poppy's clothing, name, or other choices doesn't feel right--or sustainable--either. They will all need to follow Poppy's lead and lean on their bravery and unwavering devotion to each other in order to face the potential cruelty of a world that still often demands one of two gender identities. If you've been following along, you might have noticed that for me, small moments or elements in a novel that don't feel as though they ring true are sometimes enough to make me stop reading. Very early on, the family setup and characters in This Is How It Always Is rang false to me, as though they were caricatures of a quirky family. I considered abandoning the book, predicting that my irritation might grow. But: this book! The heart of the book is a complete gem. This Is How It Always Is soars when it explores the heart-wrenchingly real emotions, torn feelings, intense worry, and the overreaching, all-encompassing love from Poppy’s parents. Those elements were exceptional. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Laurie Frankel is also the author of Family Family, One Two Three, The Atlas of Love, and Goodbye for Now.

Brown's debut fantasy novel offers a swirl of magical books, a makeshift team of world-savers, plenty of danger, various villains, and repeated time travel. In Gareth Brown's debut fantasy novel The Book of Doors, main protagonist Cassie Andrews works in a New York City bookshop and lives a quiet life, content with her lively best-friend roommate Izzy and the book-loving characters she meets at work. One of these customers is a kind older man she's become dear friends with. When he dies suddenly in the shop, Cassie is bereft. But along with his copy of The Count of Monte Cristo is a smaller, unusual book. Inside, incredibly, is an inscription...made out to her. And inside the enigmatic pages are the words Any door is every door. Strange things begin happening to Cassie and Izzy when Cassie takes possession of the book, and soon a rumpled Scottish man, Drummond Fox, appears, with knowledge of The Book of Doors and other Special Books. But Fox isn't the only one who's set out to find Cassie and her book. He just may be the only one seemingly without nefarious intentions. I was captivated by Brown's world of magic, alternate realities, the various books' powers, and by the characters intersecting with each other through different places and times. Authors of time-travel books must decide whether characters may change past events or simply witness what will come to pass, and in Brown's case, he chooses the latter. Yet I was intrigued by the ways in which events unfold, and by the unexpected insertion of characters at points in the story in order for it to occur the way it does. Cassie's years-long hiatus sloooooowed the pace of the book too much for my taste. I was surprised that she wasn't seeming to make more practical or interesting use of that time--if only to keep me engaged as a reader. During that time she did set into motion an important yet brief plan for the future, and she and her companion spend those years bonding in a sweet way, but I felt like those were years that could have been filled with Cassie's gaining more valuable knowledge. One villain seems to be dispensed with during the course of the story and a more dastardly one emerges and prolongs the conflict with Cassie and the good guys. I liked this ramping-up of the evil side of things and how it made Cassie's quest even more essential. The end portions were really interesting and offered some poignancy as well as some origin-story satisfaction, but I found myself wanting to know more about Cassie's pivotal role as related to the Special Books. I listened to The Book of Doors as an audiobook. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? If you like the sound of this book, you may want to check out other Bossy reviews of time-travel books or fantasy books.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading Lynn Painter's rom-com Betting on You; I'm listening to Gareth Brown's debut fantasy novel, The Book of Doors; and I'm reading Laurie Frankel's newest novel, Family Family. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 Betting on You (Betting on You #1) by Lynn Painter In Lynn Painter's rom-com Betting on You, seventeen-year-old Bailey and Charlie work together at a hotel waterpark. They're polar opposites and acquaintances, and Charlie used to drive Bailey crazy. But now that they're speculating about the private lives of the hotel guests, Bailey thinks Charlie is actually pretty fun, and she looks forward to her work shifts. When Bailey and Charlie fake date in order to try to avoid the new relationship between Bailey's mom and her boyfriend, Bailey realizes she's got feelings for Charlie. But the hotel couple's romantic future isn't the only one Charlie has placed a bet on. When Bailey finds out, will any potential relationship between Charlie and Bailey be doomed before it can even start? Lynn Painter is also the author of a rom-com I adored, Better Than the Movies, as well as Happily Never After, Accidentally Amy, Mr. Wrong Number, and other books I haven't yet read. 02 The Book of Doors by Gareth Brown In Gareth Brown's debut fantasy novel The Book of Doors, Cassie Andrews works in a New York City bookshop and lives a quiet life, content with her best-friend roommate Izzy and the book-loving characters she meets at work. One of these customers is a kind older man she's become dear friends with. When he dies suddenly in the shop, Cassie is bereft. But along with his copy of The Count of Monte Cristo is a smaller, unusual book. Inside, incredibly, is an inscription...made out to her. And inside the enigmatic pages are the words Any door is every door. Strange things begin happening to Cassie and Izzy when Cassie takes possession of the book, and soon a rumpled Scottish man, Drummond Fox, appears, with knowledge of The Book of Doors and other Special Books. But Fox isn't the only one who's set out to find Cassie and her book. He just may be the only one without nefarious intentions. I'm listening to The Book of Doors as an audiobook. 03 Family Family by Laurie Frankel ​“Not all stories of adoption are stories of pain and regret. Not even most of them. Why don’t we ever get that movie?” India Allwood always knew she wanted to act. Each decision she made as a young person was done to try to shape her future as an actor. Now a grown-up, successful actor, she's supposed to be doing the publicity for her new movie, which exploits the heartbreak of giving a baby up for adoption. India generally keeps her strong opinions to herself (or shares them with her two kids or trusted agent), but she thinks the movie is no good--and that adoption is often not a tragic story. She is, herself, an adoptive mother who believes in the process--and she has a complicated past that adds layers to her feelings about the matter. When she shares her honest thoughts, a storm of publicity explodes around her. Her precocious ten-year-old kids secretly reach out to family for help--but even India doesn't realize the ripple effect of the contact her beloved children are making. Laurie Frankel is also the author of This Is How It Always Is, One Two Three, The Atlas of Love, and Goodbye for Now.

Six Great Bossy Fantasy Reads I knew I was reading some gooood science fiction and fantasy, but didn't realize I'd read and loved enough of these titles in the past year to make up two Greedy Reading Lists of sci-fi and fantasy and one of fantasy alone. If you've read any of these books, I'd love to hear what you think! You can find last year's version of this list here: Six Favorite Bossy Fantasy Reads from the Past Year. You can find my recent-ish two lists of favorite science fiction and fantasy reads from the past year here: Six Four Star (And Up) Science Fiction and Fantasy Reads I Loved in the Past Year Six More Science Fiction and Fantasy Reads I've Loved in the Past Year And you can click here for other science fiction and fantasy books that I've reviewed on Bossy Bookworm. What are some of your favorite fantasy reads? 01 Hell Bent (Alex Stern #2) by Leigh Bardugo In the second installment in Leigh Bardugo's Alex Stern series, Alex is as brave, scowling, and unapologetic as ever--and Darlington will need her mental fortitude, unorthodox thinking, and magical abilities if he has any hope of escaping from hell. Ninth House was the first in Bardugo's Alex Stern series. I love returning to Alex's creative, irresistibly unorthodox approach to life and her grumpy, undying loyalty to her small group of trusted loved ones. In Hell Bent, Alex Stern is determined to save Darlington from the clutches of hell, even if it costs her her precarious position as a student at Yale and her role at Lethe as an overseer of the university's secret society's magical goings-on. Alex and Dawes must work secretly to try to figure out how to reach Darlington and bring him back, because their activities are unsanctioned. The outcome seems to have little hope of being anything but deadly. Hell Bent is clever and sometimes darkly funny, yet a somber undertone runs throughout it. Alex's past is far from free of blemishes and pain, and some of her life-and-death decisions required fortitude that it's tough for her to lose in order to be vulnerable with those she cares about. For my full review, please check out Hell Bent. 02 The Night Ship by Jess Kidd Kidd's dual-timeline historical fiction, based on actual events, shines in its vivid settings, richly imagined characters, sea voyage details, and magical realism elements. The Night Ship is historical fiction with a magical realism undercurrent that's told in two timelines. I didn't realize up front that this is based upon a true story, and now I'm even more deeply haunted. The Night Ship centers around the dilemmas, conflicts, and discoveries of two characters separated by three centuries: Mayken, a Dutch girl on an ocean voyage who is shipwrecked off the coast of Australia, and Gil, an eccentric Australian boy living three hundred years later on the same island, trying to move past trauma and make a home with his grandfather, a stranger to him. Jess Kidd is the author of Things in Jars, a mystery I gave four Bossy stars--and listed in two Greedy Reading Lists, Six Spooky, Gothic Tales and Six Historical Fiction Mysteries Sure to Intrigue You. For my full review, check out The Night Ship. 03 The Golden Enclaves (Scholomance #3) by Naomi Novik The more somber tone of book three and the focus on logistics feel appropriate as the recent graduates of the Scholomance desperately try to save everyone, friends and foes alike. A Deadly Education is the first in Novik's Scholomance series, which begins the story of a magical high school with two routes out: a grueling path to graduation and beyond or, just as likely, death. Danger and darkness lurk around every corner for grumpy, powerful El and her classmates. The second book of the Scholomance is The Last Graduate, which builds on book one's dark humor, dangerous forces, and the irresistible attraction between El and Orion. I loved it so much, I really tried to slow down and savor it. In The Golden Enclaves, the third installment of the series, an allied force of students faces the aftermath of their ambitious book-two plan to save the world. Much of the book is spent with El trying to figure out what's going on--who is behind attacks on the enclaves? Who might be allies for her, if anyone? This didn't make The Golden Enclaves the most darkly fun, deeply emotional, or captivatingly paced book in the series for me. But I'm fully invested in this series. The largely somber tone appropriately reflects these kids' growing up and facing challenges more complex than they could have imagined. The young people feel the weight of the world on their shoulders--and it really does seem to be up to them to save everyone after all. Novik is also the author of other fantasy novels featuring main protagonists I love: Uprooted and Spinning Silver as well as the first two in this Scholomance series, A Deadly Education and The Last Graduate. Novik has also written a wonderful series of nine books about dragons, the Temeraire series. For my full Bossy review of this book, check out The Golden Enclaves. 04 The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young June struggles with the complicated implications of her family's curse of hallucinations and mental illness...until she realizes that the red door and visions of the past are real memories from her own time-travel experiences. June has been seeing and hearing visions for a year now, and she believes they're linked to the curse that the community believes has its hold on the Farrow women. She would love to end the curse, the fraying of the Farrow women's minds, once and for all--by never having a child and allowing the mental illness to die with her. But when she realizes she can walk through a magical red door, she finds unexpected circumstances--and realizes that she may be able to reinvent her path forward--and possibly also shift the events of the past. The circumstances of the ending are largely satisfying, the emotional connections June ultimately makes are poignant, and there's a character-reveal twist that was sweet and lovely. Adrienne Young is also the author of Fable, its sequel Namesake, and The Last Legacy--loosely set in the worlds of Fable and Namesake--as well as Spells for Forgetting. Please click here for my full review of The Unmaking of June Farrow. 05 Gregor the Overlander (The Underland Chronicles #1) by Suzanne Collins If you can focus on the positive qualities of the prominent (and giant...and talking) creepy-crawlies in this middle-grade novel, you'll find a noble quest, unlikely heroes, a mysterious dark land, chilling betrayals, humor, and lots of heart. I tried to get my oldest to read Gregor the Overlander with me after the glorious Harry Potter Era and the exciting Hunger Games Period, but I wanted it too badly and the child was like a cat, solidly rejecting my overzealous interest for years. I set the book out and suggested it so often, Gregor became a joke between us--and remained unread. Enter: a second child without any Gregor baggage or knee-jerk reactions to it, who was willing to dive in and who would maybe just maybe love this series that I was sure I was going to love too. Gregor falls through a vent in his New York City laundry room while trying to keep his sister from doing the same--and they both end up in a dark, strange world, the Underland. We laughed and cringed and sometimes held our breath while reading--even though we felt confident that things would work out for our hero. Suzanne Collins (The Hunger Games series) offers a unique setting while doing something fascinating: turning the most detested and feared "Overland" pests (giant, talking cockroaches, rats, and bats) into essential allies and loyal partners in the Underland. Gregor the Overlander is full of adventure, dialogue that made us laugh, gross-out moments, and heart. We're in for reading book two. For my full review, check out Gregor the Overlander. 06 Weyward by Emilia Hart Emilia Hart's debut novel links women in three timelines through blood and a powerful connection to the natural world as they resist male dominance and cruelty in various witchy ways. In Weyward, Emilia Hart's story of witchcraft and the natural world, she explores three timelines of women connected through the ages by power and by society's historical suspicion of strong women. The majority of the male characters in Weyward are unredeemable buffoons, at best ignorant and rigid and at worst neglectful and cruel--and always holding the power, at least before the Weyward women recognize and develop their own. The story features instances of rape, abandonment, witch hunting, and attempted suicide. Yet Altha, Violet, and Kate persist, struggle against the binds society attempts to put upon them, connect powerfully with the natural world, and are linked by blood ties and echoes of hardship and overcoming. I received an audiobook version of this book courtesy of Libro.fm (Libro.fm supports local bookstores!) and Macmillan Audio. The story is wonderfully narrated by Aysha Kala, Helen Keeley, and Nell Barlow. For my full review, please check out Weyward.

I was intrigued by the post-World War II repercussions on small-town Minnesota and by the dark secrets coming to light, but found myself wanting more character development. In The River We Remember, it's 1958 in a small town in Minnesota, and the blustering, bossy narcissist Jimmy Quinn, the biggest landowner around, has been found floating in the Alabaster River, killed by a shotgun blast. Sheriff Brody Dern must face his own postwar demons when he confronts Noah Bluestone, a Native American World War II veteran accused of murdering Quinn. Noah and his Japanese wife Kyoko have suffered their share of prejudice and poor treatment (I felt as though their unruffled receipt of much of this abuse might rely on stoic stereotypes...?). But Brody is beginning to think that the couple may be hiding a very good reason for wanting to get rid of Quinn. Meanwhile, Quinn’s family is harboring dark secrets that stretch back decades. Angie at the local diner is catching Brody’s eye, but she wonders if he would accept her past if she shared it. And even Brody and his family have secrets that would destroy them if they came to light. Yet the tone of the book is not one of intrigue and suspense; this is a patiently paced story of a time and place—which happens to have a mystery (Who killed Jimmy?) at its center. I found myself impatient with the complications of Brody’s own making and with his weakness; I also didn’t believe in his “love” for the person he is purported to have yearned for his whole life. I was intrigued at being immersed in post-war, small-town Minnesota, including the dark, dark secrets serving as the driving forces of the story, but I found myself wanting more here in terms of character introspection or growth. I listened to The River We Remember as an audiobook. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? William Kent Krueger is also the author of The Levee, Ordinary Grace and This Tender Land.

Queens of London is fascinating historical fiction that explores the gritty underbelly of post-World War I London through the points of view of Diamond Annie, head of an all-woman gang, and the female police inspector determined to arrest her. In post-World War I London, female lawlessness in the form of the Forty Elephants gang of women, an offshoot of the Elephant and Castle men's gang, butts up against law enforcement, which only recently includes women officers. It's 1925, and Diamond Annie is running a ruthless, savvy, gritty, loyal ring of female thieves and cons, and her significant ambition means she's dreaming of bigger and more wide-ranging success. But one of Britain's first female police officers, Lilian Wyles, is underestimated, dismissed, disrespected--and desperate to prove her excellent mettle as an investigator by taking down Annie's gang. When the two aspiring women's bids for victory clash, traditional female roles and power structures are shaken to their cores. I loved the girl power, historical detail, and the intersecting storylines. This is immensely readable historical fiction. I wish we had spent more time with Lilian in her role as a police officer, as the story skews heavily toward the (great) Forty Elephants gang and its exploits. If you like for the good guys to be rewarded and for the bad guys to face justice, stay tuned for the last 35 pages or so of this book. The wrap-up of each the storylines was laid out almost distractingly cleanly and without loose ends, with happy endings for favored characters on the right side of the law and punishment falling to lawbreakers. The Author's Note is fascinating, regarding Webb's research and the origins of fascination with the stories she presents here. I can't wait for what I hope is the inevitable movie or series version of this book! Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Heather Webb is also the author of Strangers in the Night, The Next Ship Home, and other novels. You can click here to find more Bossy reviews of books set in and around World War I.

Funny Story is the perfect rom-com read. Henry offers funny banter that made me laugh, some steamy moments, and a sweet love story. Reading this one made me happy. Daphne and Peter were comfortable--both planners, reliable, and ticking all the boxes on their list of "grown-up" acts: getting engaged, moving back to Peter's hometown, buying a house, and, in Daphne's case, seamlessly folding herself into Peter's life. But when Peter abruptly breaks up with Daphne, citing his sudden love for his childhood best friend Petra, Daphne is left emotionally reeling--and without a place to live. Desperate and devastated, she reluctantly moves into a spare room in the apartment of an acquaintance, "pothead" Miles. He has extra space because he was just dumped by his live-in girlfriend Petra. Who left him for Daphne's fiancé, Peter. Daphne is a children's librarian and is always early. She hates surprises. And as far as she can tell, Miles does odd jobs and traveled around without a permanent address for months at a time when he and Petra were together. They're complete opposites. But could their shared pain lead to a friendship after all? This is exxxxcellent Emily Henry. The banter is fantastic, and I laughed many times while reading this one. There's steaminess and affection and character growth. No one is perfect, no one is swooning, and the love in this happy read is immensely satisfying. The rom-com conflict that prevents an immediate happy resolution was based on a communication fail--a setup I usually detest, because: just talk to each other!--but this one was so well done and understandable from both sides, I was hook, line, and sinker for all of it. Henry offers up lots of book love, as usual: Daphne is a dedicated children's librarian. I listened to Funny Story as an audiobook (narrated by the fantastic Julia Whelan) courtesy of Libro.fm and Penguin Random House. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Henry's Beach Read was one of my favorite books the year I read it, and it made it onto the Greedy Reading List Six Lighter Fiction Stories for Great Escapism. People We Meet on Vacation was another great Henry story; you can check out my review here, and you might like to check out its spot on Six More Great Light Fiction Stories plus the five other titles on that Greedy Reading List. Emily Henry is also the author of Happy Place and Book Lovers.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm listening to William Kent Krueger's mid-century-set historical fiction The River We Remember; I'm reading S. A. Barnes's eerie science fiction novel Ghost Station; and I'm listening to Emily Henry's newest delightful rom-com, Funny Story. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger I love William Kent Krueger's historical fiction stories, and I was thrilled when I heard about this newest novel from him. In The River We Remember, it's 1958 in a small town in Minnesota, and Jimmy Quinn, the biggest landowner around, has been found floating in the Alabaster River, killed by a shotgun blast. Sheriff Brody Dern must face his own postwar demons when he confronts a Native American World War II veteran accused of murdering Quinn. I'm listening to The River We Remember as an audiobook. William Kent Krueger is also the author of The Levee, Ordinary Grace and This Tender Land. 02 Ghost Station by S. A. Barnes In S. A. Barnes's space horror novel Ghost Station, psychologist Dr. Ophelia Bray has spent her career trying to understand and prevent Eckhart-Reiser syndrome (ERS). The work is personal for Bray--and essential. The most well-known ERS tragedy ended with 29 people brutally murdered. But when the doctor tries to help a crew who has suffered the loss of one of its own due to ERS, she travels to an abandoned planet with them--and quickly realizes they aren't telling her the full truth about what happened. I'm reading Ghost Station courtesy of NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group. 03 Funny Story by Emily Henry Daphne and Peter were comfortable-- both planners, reliable, and ticking all the boxes on their list of "grown-up" acts: getting engaged, moving back to Peter's hometown, buying a house, and in Daphne's case, seamlessly folding herself into Peter's life. But when Peter abruptly breaks up with Daphne, citing his love for his childhood best friend Petra, Daphne is left reeling--and without a place to stay. Desperate and devastated, she reluctantly moves into a spare room in the apartment of an acquaintance, "pothead" Miles. He has extra space because he was just dumped by his live-in girlfriend Petra. Who left him for Daphne's fiancé, Peter. Daphne is a children's librarian and is always early. She hates surprises. And as far as she can tell, Miles does odd jobs and traveled around without a permanent address for months at a time when he and Petra were together. They're complete opposites. But could their shared pain lead to a friendship after all? I'm listening to Funny Story as an audiobook (narrated by the fantastic Julia Whelan) courtesy of Libro.fm and Penguin Random House. Henry's Beach Read was one of my favorite books the year I read it, and it made it onto the Greedy Reading List Six Lighter Fiction Stories for Great Escapism. People We Meet on Vacation was another great Henry story; you can check out my review here, and you might like to check out its spot on Six More Great Light Fiction Stories plus the five other titles on that Greedy Reading List. Emily Henry is also the author of Happy Place and Book Lovers.

Six Four-Star (and Up) Bossy Mystery Reads If you want more favorite-mystery lists, check out round 1 of last year's Bossy favorites. And if you're greedy about reading lists like I am, you can also check out the lists I posted last year around this time, Six Four-Star Mystery Reads I Loved Last Year and Six More Four-Star Mysteries I Loved Last Year. You can also check out My Very Favorite Bossy 2023 Reads for my overall favorite reads from last year across genres. You can click here for other mysteries I've reviewed on Bossy Bookworm. And here's a link to my Greedy Reading Lists featuring mystery titles. What are some of your favorite mystery reads? If you've read any of the books listed here, I'd love to hear what you think! 01 Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn This fun, darkly funny, feminist story about a retiring female team of elite assassins was the right book at the right time for me: entertainment in the perfect combination of action and suspense, loyal friendship, clever plotting, and the promise of love. The Museum is an organization that operates outside of governmental control, relying on various trained elite killing forces. Originally formed in order to hunt down and rid the world of lingering Nazis, the Museum's mission has evolved to focus on taking out carefully chosen bad guys of all stripes--drug dealers, human traffickers, arms dealers, and the like. But when four aging Museum friends are sent on an all-expenses-paid vacation to mark their retirement, a Museum associate attempts to do them in. The women realize they may know too much about where the bodies are buried--literally--to be allowed to drift away into the world without a fight. In Killers of a Certain Age, Raybourn has crafted an irresistibly fun, clever, feminist caper that had me hooked the whole way through. I loved the women's complicated bonds, their crafty planning, their fights for justice, and their ability to remain flexible and reinvent themselves. I love a spy/assassin book and a book that treats dark subjects playfully without being silly. For my full review, check out Killers of a Certain Age. 02 A Conspiracy in Belgravia (Lady Sherlock #2) by Sherry Thomas Book two of Thomas's Lady Sherlock series offers a robust dual mystery, clever female characters, priceless gems of insight from Charlotte, a continued rejection of Victorian society's rigid expectations, and a bubbling undercurrent of forbidden attraction. I listened to the audiobook of the second in Thomas's Lady Sherlock series (read wonderfully by Kate Reading), in which Charlotte Holmes returns in all of her feisty, unconventional, clever glory, despite the significant constraints on women and their behavior in Victorian England. The mystery leads Charlotte to discover various illuminating aspects to Lord Ingram's past and his marriage, and her simmering (and shared) attraction to Ingram is a powerful undercurrent throughout, although practical Charlotte keeps all outrageous emotions and possibilities in check. Charlotte's various views on the world are absolute gems, and I love spending time in her point of view. A Study in Scarlet Women is the first book in Sherry Thomas's gender-flipped Sherlock Holmes mystery series, and I loved it. There are seven books in all. I can't wait to read the other books in this series! Please click here for my full review of A Conspiracy in Belgravia. 03 The Traitor (Alias Emma #2) by Ava Glass Emma Makepeace returns with new enemies in her sights--but this time she must work undercover on a Russian oligarch's yacht without MI6 contact. She faces unknown dangers and heartbreaking betrayal in this fast-paced novel. Ava Glass's Alias Emma was a fast-paced cat-and-mouse chase across London and through an underground warren of tunnels, all part of an elaborate plan to avoid Russian murderers. It was also a book that hit the spot and suited my mood perfectly when I read it. Emma Makepeace returns in the second book in the series, The Traitor, and when one thing leads to another, Emma finds herself working undercover on a ruthless Russian oligarch's yacht. Glass moves the story along in entertaining fashion. The novel references elements from book one, such as Emma's familial career inspiration, but it isn't necessary to have first read Alias Emma in order to dive into this story. I love a spy book, a book about Russia, and a feisty, strong young female protagonist, and The Traitor offers all three. I wasn't shocked by the story's twist, but Glass didn't make me feel manipulated or red-herring me to death along the way. Click here to check out my full review of The Traitor. 04 All the Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham I was hooked on Willingham's past and present storylines and by her unreliable narrator Isabelle, who is desperate to find her missing son--even if it means facing the painful truth of her own traumatic history. A year ago, Isabelle Drake's toddler son was taken from her. She can't rest until Mason is returned to her (she's not sleeping except for catnaps, and she's starting to fall apart physically and mentally), so when a true-crime podcaster offers to interview her and get the story out so Mason may be more likely to be found, she says yes. Isabelle can't stop searching for her son, but she begins to wonder if she's an unreliable source of memories surrounding Mason's death. Is she paranoid, or is the podcaster taking too deep of an interest in Isabelle's personal past rather than trying to solve the mystery of Mason's disappearance? I like the way Willingham builds tension and offers twists without making me feel manipulated by shifty details. I was hooked on both the past and present timelines of this story. For my full review, please see All the Dangerous Things. Willingham is also the author of A Flicker in the Dark. 05 I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai Makkai's boarding school-set mystery offers depth as it exposes age-old power mismatches; offers young characters agency; explores systemic violence against women; and serves up true-crime fascination while its middle-aged protagonist makes mistakes, seeks justice, and fights for closure. Bodie Kane is a professor and podcaster, and she has left firmly in the past the events of her boarding school years, when her roommate Thalia was murdered--and the school's athletic trainer was convicted of the crime. But when her alma mater invites her to return to teach a course, Bodie is drawn back to the case and realizes its shoddy investigation and its seemingly faulty conclusions. It makes her wonder: who really killed Thalia? I've been eagerly awaiting the release of this story, which I understood to be part whodunit, part boarding school novel--I love a boarding school novel. Yet Makkai's book was also much more. I Have Some Questions for You is an examination of the shocking, broad power of a social media whirlwind, particularly one without basis in facts or merit. It's about our societal obsession with tragedies and mysterious murders, and the tendency of bystanders to insert themselves into speculation and judgment. It's about the infuriating, often tragic power mismatches between men and women, white and Black people, and the wealthy and the poor. Please click here for my full review of I Have Some Questions for You. 06 Changeless (Parasol Protectorate #2) by Gail Carriger Book two of the Parasol Protectorate series continues to be playful, mischievous, wonderfully detailed about Victorian life, and full of supernatural creatures and clever plotting. The series takes place in 1870s London, and in book two as in book one, the immensely appealing, practical, fearless character of Alexia Tarabotti (now married to Lord Maccon, a werewolf) navigates danger and helps achieve justice by using her smarts, eschewing societal tradition and limits on women, and demonstrating her ability to neutralize the supernatural abilities of werewolves, vampires, and other creatures. She is a preternatural--a human without a soul--serving on Queen Victoria's somewhat secret advisory committee, which affords her a certain power, and she is also the Alpha female of her husband's pack, which affords her a very different one. When her husband disappears, Alexia tracks him to Scotland, where all manner of badly behaving creatures await, she needs her incredibly handy parasol, her unshakable nerve, some savviness, and the armor of the latest fashions in order to fight off danger, uncover dastardly plots, discover the power plays at work, and save her own life. I'm in for all of these books and laughed out loud at the dialogue, Alexia's abrupt manner, and the delightful oddities in Changeless. For my full review (and a link to my review of the first book in the Parasol Protectorate series), please check out Changeless.

Emily Habeck's debut novel offers an unusual premise in which one member of a newlywed couple begins transforming into a great white shark due to a mutation, and builds a beautifully written, poignant, fascinating story. Wren no longer sees life as a long, linear ladder with a beginning, middle, and end. Instead, she considers how life is like a spiraling trail up a mountain. Each circling lap represents a learning cycle, the same lesson at a slightly higher elevation. Wren realizes she likes to rest as much as she likes to climb. She begins to enjoy the view. Shark Heart: A Love Story follows newlyweds Wren and Lewis as they adjust to the sudden prospect of a drastic, potentially deadly (to Wren), fundamental shift (for Lewis) and shocking metamorphosis: Lewis has a mutation that's already affecting him, beginning his transformation into a great white shark. Lewis is expected to retain his intellect and personality, his memories and feelings--but he will do so in the form of a giant sea creature, hungry for blood. Wren builds a pool in the backyard, cleans out the fish display at the store trying to keep him full, and watches Lewis begin to fall victim to his shark-like tendencies. Wren is in love, and she desperately tries to imagine an unorthodox version of a relationship--could she live on a boat and stay in proximity to Lewis? Could she spend regular time in the water near him, successfully reminding him of her identity and thereby remaining safe? We track back through time to witness Wren's younger years, then farther back to understand Wren's mother's youth and the way her mother's mutation and diagnosis shaped her life and that of Wren. Lewis's transformation stirs up difficult memories and complex emotions surrounding Wren's mother's change into a (land) animal--and her resulting inability to care for Wren. Other characters in the novel face mutation-related difficulties--including Wren's new friend, who finds she is pregnant with twin birds, which will surely kill her when they emerge as newborns. Finally, we track Lewis in his new shape as a great white shark. It's a solitary existence, but it's not without a version of community. Meanwhile Wren is fighting to carve out a life for herself without the love of her life. They both feel the pain of their distance from each other, yet seek peace in their new existences. This was strange and interesting. I loved the dark, oddball humor that occasionally crept in surrounding the mutations in the book. Shark Heart was surprisingly poignant speculative fiction. I listened to Shark Heart: A Love Story as an audiobook. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Shark Heart: A Love Story is Emily Habeck's debut novel. If you' re interested in this book, you might also like the books I've reviewed that offer unique points of view or these offbeat books.

The shallow, emotionally stunted character of Doug made my blood boil. His base desires stood in contrast to Annie's unanticipated evolution and complexity in Annie Bot. Annie was created to please her owner, Doug, in every way. Because Doug paid a premium to have Annie customized from the standard Stella model--and to strongly resemble his ex--Annie has all the bells and whistles. She adjusts her sensitivity level so she is highly attuned to Doug's emotions (and libido), wears the clothing he chooses for her, and adheres to his strict cleaning requirements for the apartment she never leaves. But as Annie's AI grows more complex and she becomes more aware of the possibilities in the world, she finds herself questioning her purpose--and questioning whether she really wants to serve Doug and subsume her own burgeoning feelings and desires. So, Doug is the worst. If you want your even vaguely feminist blood to boil, read all about Doug. He's a mediocre person: shallow, selfish, narcissistic, condescending, and spiteful. He is satisfied by his "relationship" with Annie because she questions nothing, is awed by him, "wants" to have sex anytime, stays in the apartment cleaning and cooking, and because her looks and scanty outfits are attractive to him. When she becomes curious about the world, he cuts off her internet access. She was made to offer pleasure without challenge or conflict, after all. There are a few mentions of Doug's ex-wife, but he is emotionally a child and doesn't examine in any depth the reasons for their fractured relationship (ahem, Doug wanted a "cuddle bunny" robot instead of a complex woman). Meanwhile, Annie, who was literally created to serve Doug, is learning, evolving, growing, facing internal conflicts, considering ethics, and developing more curiosity about the world--which she is only allowed to satisfy by reading Doug's novels. But Annie is full of surprises, and her will is stronger than Doug ever dreamed. I enjoy stories about evolving AI sentience and life with robots, and that aspect was fascinating here. I did find myself wishing for more exploration into the human condition as contrasted with the carefully scripted robot functioning, or more self-reflection to shine a light on humans' desires and fallibility, or some thread of deeper messaging. I received an audiobook version of Annie Bot courtesy of Libro.fm and HarperAudio. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? You might also like the books on the Greedy Reading List Six Great Stories about Robots, Humans and Alien Life, and AI or other stories about robots that I've reviewed.

Katherine Arden, author of the captivating Winternight trilogy, here shares a mysterious, haunting historical fiction story with a speculative twist, set against the backdrop of the trudging, brutal destruction of World War I. Armageddon was a fire in the harbor, a box delivered on a cold day. It wasn't one great tragedy, but ten million tiny ones, and everyone faced theirs alone. I loooooved the mix of vivid historical setting and magical elements in Katherine Arden's Winternight trilogy (see links to my rave reviews below). In The Warm Hands of Ghosts, Arden presents the story of Laura, a combat nurse who is searching for her brother Freddie in the confusion, relentless mud, and grim destruction of the Great War. Freddie is reported as having died, but strange and unnerving clues indicate to Laura that something more mysterious may have happened to him. Others keep sighting Freddie, and Laura herself feels that he is near. A German spy is on the loose in a small French community, and sources tell Laura that he may be linked to Freddie. Meanwhile Laura and a companion have an inexplicable, haunting experience in a fabled hotel with a sinister violinist who seems to control their emotions--and tempt them with forbidden, lost loved ones. The story's pacing felt quite slow and the tone extremely dark and hushed for the majority of the book, so that my attention frequently wavered. The slog of fighting and of the horrifyingly deadly war is conveyed with vivid, crushing, uncomfortable detail. I was glad when Laura began to allow herself to be vulnerable toward the end of the novel, and I very much liked the resolutions of the story. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group--Ballantine, Del Rey. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Arden is also the author of the Winternight trilogy, which I loved: The Bear and the Nightingale, The Girl in the Tower, and The Winter of the Witch. I mentioned these books in the Greedy Reading Lists Six Wonderfully Witchy Stories and Six More Wonderfully Witchy Stories to Charm You.

The Books I'm Reading Now I took a Bossy break last week while traveling with family, but I spent time listening to an audiobook and reading my books on the plane and in between exploring and walking one millllion miles. I'm listening to Emily Habeck's odd and sweet novel Shark Heart: A Love Story; I'm reading Heather Webb's historical fiction novel about a female gang and a female police officer clashing after World War I, Queens of London; and I'm listening to the story of an AI bot who evolves from a companion created to please without questioning into a sentient creature with complex feelings, Annie Bot. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 Shark Heart: A Love Story by Emily Habeck Wren's kind, artistic, loving--and recent--husband Lewis has just received a rare diagnosis. Due to a mutation, within nine months, he will undergo a transformation. Into a great white shark. Shark Heart: A Love Story follows Wren and Lewis as they adjust to the prospect of such a drastic, potentially deadly (to Wren), fundamentally shift (for Lewis) and shocking metamorphosis. Other characters in the novel face mutation-related difficulties--including Wren's new friend, who finds she is pregnant with twin birds, which will surely kill her when they emerge as newborns. We track back through time to witness Wren's mother's youth and the way her own mutation and diagnosis shaped both of their lives. And finally, we track Lewis in his new shape as a great white shark. I'm listening to Shark Heart: A Love Story as an audiobook. 02 Queens of London by Heather Webb In post-World War I London, female lawlessness in the form of the Forty Elephants gang of women, an offshoot of the Elephant and Castle men's gang, butts up against law enforcement, which only recently includes women officers. It's 1925, and Diamond Annie is running a ruthless, savvy, gritty, loyal ring of female thieves and cons, and her significant ambition means she's dreaming of bigger and more wide-ranging success. But one of Britain's first female police officers, Lilian Wyles, is underestimated, dismissed, disrespected--and desperate to prove her excellent mettle as an investigator by taking down Annie's gang. When the two aspiring women's bids for victory clash, traditional female roles and power structures may never be the same. 03 Annie Bot by Sierra Greer Annie was created to please her owner, Doug, in every way. Because Doug paid a premium to have Annie customized from the standard Stella model--and to strongly resemble his ex--Annie has all the bells and whistles. She adjusts her sensitivity level so she is highly attuned to Doug's emotions (and libido), wears the clothing he chooses for her, and adheres to his strict cleaning requirements for the apartment she never leaves. But as Annie's AI grows more complex and she becomes more aware of the possibilities in the world, she finds herself questioning her purpose--and questioning whether she really wants to serve Doug and subsume her own burgeoning feelings and desires. I received an audiobook version of Annie Bot courtesy of Libro.fm and HarperAudio.

I loved the 1700s wintry Maine setting and the convictions of the historical fiction novel's strong midwife character, based upon a real-life figure and her diaries. Historical fiction? Check. Maine setting? Check. Female character in the medical profession? Check. Cold setting for a cold winter read? Check! The Frozen River ticks so many Bossy boxes, I knew this one had to zip to the top of my to-read list. Lawhon's novel is based upon the real-life figure of Martha Ballard, an 18th-century midwife who defied tradition and convention--and, in Lawhon's historical fiction story, the law. It's 1789, and in a rural Maine community, a local man turns up dead--frozen face up in the Kennebec River. Many who knew him aren't sad to find that he is no longer a belligerent threat in town. But he had been one of two men charged with the rape of one of Martha's best friends, and now the sole living accused man is one of the town's most respected figures--as well as its judge. The mystery of what happened to the man is a subplot that winds through the story. I loved the details of life in the time period, as well as the unassuming women who show their true strength and conviction when it counts. Martha's position as midwife means she's privy to all sorts of secrets and truths in town. I love a story about a woman in the medical profession during an era when this was not the norm, and the details of her care for new mothers and babies was one of my favorite aspects of The Frozen River. In Lawhon's story, Martha is also a strong-willed feminist who is set on fighting for the rights of the largely powerless women in her orbit. The bad guys in The Frozen River are purely evil, ignorant, willfully vengeful, and easy to hate. I wouldn't have minded some gray areas regarding, for example, the characters of the evil rapist judge trying to take over the town; the evil (murdered) and gleeful rapist thug; or the dangerous, ignorant, arrogant, unwittingly murderous doctor who leaves dead children in the wake of his inept attendance at their deliveries. The men's offenses are horrifying, unjust, and incredibly infuriating, as they not only do terrible things but consistently twist the knife by bragging or threatening after each abusive, condescending, cruel, destructive word they say and deed they do. A minor note: this isn't a book that involves magical realism, but various animals are conveniently tuned into human needs and show deep, surprising connection and loyalty in key moments so as to turn the course of events in dramatic fashion. I listened to The Frozen River as an audiobook, narrated by Jane Oppenheimer, courtesy of Libro.fm and Penguin Random House. There are no Maine accents in evidence in the audiobook, nor terminology that felt Maine-specific. The bulk of the Maine setting is established by the cold and by the mentions of the Kennebec River flowing through the town of Hallowell (which is near Augusta). Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Full disclosure: I love female-spy books (see the Greedy Reading Lists Six Great Books about Brave Female Spies and Six More Books about Brave Female Spies), but Lawhon's novel Code Name Helène wasn't for me; I didn't finish that one. If you like the sound of this book, you might also want to check out the titles on the Greedy Reading List Six Books with Cold, Wintry Settings to Read by the Fire.

My very favorite Bossy March reads! Here are the six books I most loved reading this past month. If you've read any of these titles, I'd love to hear what you think! And I'd also love to hear: what are some of your recent favorite reads? 01 Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera Listen for the Lie offers a fascinating story structure, dark humor, and deeply flawed characters as main protagonist Lucy works to resolve her memory loss surrounding the events leading to her best friend's death. Twentysomething Lucy is found wandering the streets of her small Texas town, covered in her best friend Savvy's blood. But Lucy suffered a head wound the night of Savvy's death and now she can't remember anything about the night Savvy was murdered. Everyone assumes she killed Savvy, and Lucy can't escape the suspicions and resentment surrounding the mysterious conditions of Savvy's death. I was hooked on the structure of the story and the way the truth is gradually revealed; the information is illuminating as it creeps out but Tintera's tone is never teasing. The author doesn't throw in red herrings, and she doesn't manipulate the facts in order to spring a surprise on the reader. The podcast element was engaging--I loved how it allowed for layers of interpretation, revelation, and intrigue. For my full review of this book, please see Listen for the Lie. 02 Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar The tone of Martyr! was tough for me to get a handle on for much of the book. The story is dark, nerve-racking, irreverent, tragic, and poignant. Late in the story a fateful connection made the story really take off and feel meaningful. Cyrus Shams is an orphaned young adult, the child of Iranian immigrants, and a recovering addict and alcoholic. He is also a self-doubting poet. Cyrus seeks meaning in art, in a close, sometimes-sexual friendship, and in the idea of trying to craft his book. For the majority of the novel I felt as though I appreciated the story more than I was taken in by it or enjoyed it. The book really took off and intrigued me once Cyrus traveled to New York to visit an artist whose final exhibit was made up of living in the Brooklyn Museum and having conversations with visitors until her death. The ripples of their meeting and connection reached farther than I could have imagined, and this portion of the book was fascinating. I listened to Martyr! as an audiobook. Click here for my full review of Martyr! 03 The Excitements by C. J. Wray C. J. Wray's story of elderly British sisters who played key roles in fighting the enemy in World War II offers lots of heart, sassy dialogue, and a showcasing of the women's triumphs in both their past and present timelines, before a satisfying ending. In C. J. Wray's The Excitements, Archie's British great-aunts Josephine and Penny are a handful. He's busy ushering them to commemorative World War II events, attempting to monitor their uninhibited speech, and trying to keep the two elderly veterans safe. Archie begins wondering about unexplained aspects of his own family history, and when he and his aunts travel to Paris so the sisters may receive Légion d'honneur awards for helping to liberate France during the war, surprising facts begin to surface about the sisters' past--and they may be related to his own life. The story is heartwarming, the pacing moves along in both timelines, and the characters are explored in satisfying fashion. The tone is playful with a wonderfully outlandish ending, and I was certain that all would work out, yet there was enough depth to make me interested in each character's resolution. If you like books about World War II and women spies, you might also like the books on my Greedy Reading Lists Six Great Stories about Brave Women During World War II and Six Books about Brave Female Spies. Click here for my full review of The Excitements. 04 Good Material by Dolly Alderton Alderton's literary fiction rom-com is a funny, poignant, and sometimes frustrating deep dive into the emotionally stunted main protagonist's extended heartache and the rehashing of key moments of his recent relationship. Andy and Jen were in love and living together. But now Andy, a struggling stand-up comedian, is left reeling, trying to figure out what went wrong. He's obsessed with trying to figure out why Jen broke up with him, and no amount of rehashing, deception regarding the manipulation of mental-health professionals, or mining for information is too much, in Andy's mind. The breakup came out of the blue. He and Jen had just gone to Paris--they were blissfully happy! Weren't they? Much of the story is told from Andy's point of view, and his capability for emotional growth is...limited. Baby steps are hard-won progress for the often-clueless main protagonist. He begins a Reasons Why I Loved Being with Jen list as well as a list of reasons why he's glad their relationship is over--tracing the funny, silly, nitpicky, ridiculous, and poignant moments they shared. The reader sees what a mismatch Jen and Andy are, despite their real affection for each other, but the clarity about their incompatibility is longer in coming to Andy, who remains wistful, hopeful, and heartbroken for much of the book. I listened to Good Material as an audiobook. Please click here for my full review of Good Material. 05 The Women by Kristin Hannah Hannah offers a meaty story about Vietnam and the nurses who served there, suffered, and were largely forgotten or denied; this storyline is conflated with romance-novel elements that keep things moving but frequently pulled me out of the historical fiction story I loved. The Women shines a light on the women who served pivotal roles in the Vietnam War--but whose existence was largely ignored, forgotten, or denied by Americans at home. Main protagonist Frankie signs up to leave her idyllic, privileged Southern California life--and the control of her conservative parents--in order to serve as a nurse serving soldiers in combat. Her brother is killed in combat before she even ships out, and her parents reject her potential to be a war hero worthy of a photo on the family's wall of honor, so she is reeling before she even enters the shock of Vietnam. The excellent historical fiction here is conflated with romance-novel-worthy storylines and dialogue ("You don't know how beautiful you are" types of lines; unrealistically convenient run-ins; not-dead-after-all twists; and more). This aspect keeps the story moving, although it frequently distracted me from the hearty story of Vietnam, its complex costs and its dark perception at home, and the truth about the many forgotten women serving as nurses there, whose bravery helped send so many injured American soldiers home. I listened to The Women as an audiobook. For my full review, check out The Women. 06 Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross Donna Woolfolk Cross offers a fascinating historical fiction tale of a pioneering, headstrong, brilliant figure whose existence has been debated for centuries. Pope Joan is Donna Woolfolk Cross's historical fiction about a figure whose existence the Catholic church has officially denied for a thousand years: Joan, a young woman who disguised herself as a man in the ninth century and rose through the ranks to eventually sit on the throne of St. Peter. I'm fascinated by stories in which a woman poses as a man in order to achieve freedoms otherwise not available to her. In Pope Joan, Cross offers fascinating, grim, brutal details of life in the Dark Ages to bring the story of the brilliant, strong-willed Joan to life. Cross includes historical events, but makes up some characters (as with Gerold, Joan's love interest in the story). I was fascinated by Cross's Author's Note detailing the extensive research and rich history surrounding Joan, as well as the contradictions in the denial of her existence. For my full review, please see Pope Joan.

The tone of Martyr! was tough for me to get a handle on for much of the book. The story is dark, nerve-racking, irreverent, tragic, and poignant. Late in the story a fateful connection made the story really take off and feel meaningful. His whole life has been a steady procession of him passionately loving what other people merely liked, and struggling, mostly failing, to translate to anyone else how everything mattered so much. Cyrus Shams is an orphaned young adult, the child of Iranian immigrants, and a recovering addict and alcoholic. He is also a self-doubting poet. As Cyrus sinks again and again into the careless, distracted, volatile ups and downs of a constant barrage of various drugs and alcohol, his obsession with the concept of a life worth living--and a notable death--seems to sometimes be all that tethers him to existence. As the book progresses, Cyrus seeks meaning in art, in a close, sometimes-sexual friendship, and in the idea of trying to craft his book. The level of his passion for the topic of martyrdom is off-putting to most of those around him, and his substance abuse keeps him at a distance from his feelings. Portions of Cyrus's book about martyrs are interspersed throughout the novel; at first I considered these to be part of his draft; later in the novel I imagined that these were excerpted from his future, completed work. The tone of Martyr! is difficult to pin down; there's dark humor, a haunting thread of tragedy, some irreverence, strange and off-balance moments, and a story that went in directions I didn't anticipate. For the majority of the novel I felt as though I appreciated the story more than I was taken in by it or enjoyed it. For me, the book really took off and intrigued me once Cyrus traveled to New York to visit an artist whose final exhibit was made up of living in the Brooklyn Museum and having conversations with visitors until her death. The ripples of their meeting and connection reached farther than I could have imagined, and this portion of the book was fascinating. I listened to Martyr! as an audiobook. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Kaveh Akbar is a poet and the author of the poetry collection Calling a Wolf a Wolf.

C. J. Wray's story of elderly British sisters who played key roles in fighting the enemy in World War II offers lots of heart, sassy dialogue, and a showcasing of the women's triumphs in both their past and present timelines, before a satisfying ending. In C. J. Wray's The Excitements, Archie's British great-aunts Josephine and Penny are a handful. He's busy ushering them to commemorative World War II events, attempting to monitor their uninhibited speech, and trying to keep the two elderly veterans safe. Unbeknownst to Archie, the sisters have lived long, colorful lives beyond what has garnered their official accolades. All along they've also been keeping significant secrets from each other (while understanding things thought to be secrets about the other). Archie begins wondering about unexplained aspects of his own family history, and when he and his aunts travel to Paris so the sisters may receive Légion d'honneur awards for helping to liberate France during the war, surprising facts begin to surface about the sisters' past--and they may be related to his own life. The Excitements is told in various timelines as past events are illuminated. It's part historical fiction with wonderful World War II details and part sassy modern-day tale about women who are notable for far more than just their advanced age. I love the reveal on an underestimating-women scenario, and kind, unassuming Archie also exceeds expectations here. The story is heartwarming, the pacing moves along in both timelines, and the characters are explored in satisfying fashion. The tone is playful with a wonderfully outlandish ending, and I was certain that all would work out, yet there was enough depth to make me interested in each character's resolution. If you like books about World War II and women spies, you might also like the books on my Greedy Reading Lists Six Great Stories about Brave Women During World War II and Six Books about Brave Female Spies. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? C. J. Wray is a pen name for Chrissie Manby, author of Three Days in Florence and forty other romance novels.

Marilyn Kaye's middle-grade novel explores eighth-grade opposites' struggle to find common ground when their single parents begin dating and they're thrown together. In Marilyn Kaye's middle-grade novel Together for Never, eighth-grade loner Lily is an aspiring writer. Queen bee girls like her fashion-conscious, judgmental classmate Charlotte feel like they're on another planet, and Lily wants it to stay that way. But when Charlotte's divorced father and Lily's single mother begin dating, a nightmare takes shape: the four of them are headed for a vacation together. In a small cabin. At the beach. And guess which two teenaged nemeses are expected to share a room? Described as Mean Girls meets The Parent Trap, Together for Never explores each girl's point of view, and after conflict and hurt feelings, what eventually brings them together is sharing their vulnerabilities. Together for Never is short and sweet. It explores the complications of potentially blending a family and the layers of complexity involved in sharing a parent after having forged a special bond as a team of two against the world. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Marilyn Kaye is the author of over 100 books for young readers.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm listening to Kaveh Akbar's novel Martyr!; I'm reading to C. J. Wray's sassy multiple-timeline historical fiction novel about sisters who served pivotal roles in World War II, The Excitements; and I'm reading Allison Pataki's most recent historical fiction, about a little-known trailblazer, Finding Margaret Fuller. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar Cyrus Shams is an orphaned young adult, the child of Iranian immigrants, an addict, and an alcoholic. He is also a self-doubting poet. As Cyrus sinks again and again into the careless, distracted, volatile ups and downs of a constant barrage of various drugs and alcohol, his obsession with the concept of a life worth living--and a notable death--seems to sometimes be all that tethers him to existence. He seeks meaning in art, in a close, sometimes-sexual friendship, and in the idea of trying to craft his book. The level of his passion for the topic of martyrdom is off-putting to most of those around him, and his substance abuse keeps him at a distance from his feelings. The tone is difficult to pin down; there is dark humor, a dark thread of tragedy, and a story that could potentially go in various directions. I'm listening to Martyr! as an audiobook. 02 The Excitements by C. J. Wray In C. J. Wray's The Excitements, Archie's great-aunts Josephine and Penny are a handful. He's busy ushering them to commemorative World War II events, attempting to monitor their uninhibited speech, and trying to keep the two elderly veterans safe. He begins wondering about unexplained aspects of his own family history, and when the three of them travel to Paris for the sisters to receive Légion d'honneur awards for helping to liberate France, surprising facts begin to surface about the sisters' past--and they may be related to his own life. The Excitements is told in various timelines as past events are illuminated. It's part historical fiction with wonderful World War II details and part sassy modern-day tale about women who are notable for far more than just their advanced age. You might also like the books on my Greedy Reading List Six Books about Brave Female Spies. 03 Finding Margaret Fuller by Allison Pataki When Margaret Fuller became part of Ralph Waldo Emerson's creative, opinionated circle of friends, she grew into the heart of the Transcendentalists--as well as the inspiration for Nathaniel Hawthorne's shocking Hester Prynne, a role model for Louisa May Alcott, and Emerson's muse. But as the first woman admitted into Harvard's library, the first female foreign news correspondent for legendary editor Horace Greeley, and the center of an international scandal when she unapologetically takes a Roman count as a lover, Margaret Fuller was a trailblazer. I received a prepublication version of this recently published book courtesy of NetGalley and Ballantine Books. Allison Pataki is also the author of The Traitor's Wife, The Accidental Empress, Sisi, The Queen's Fortune, and The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post, as well as the nonfiction memoir Beauty in the Broken Places.

Six Bossy Favorite Light Fiction Reads from Last Year I love spending Fridays highlighting books I've loved. And I do love rom-com books--as long as I buy into the small moments they're built upon. These six did the trick for me in the past year. (You can check out my roundup list Six of My Favorite Light Fiction Reads from the Past Year, which I posted in January, here.) For more romantic reads and lighter fiction Bossy favorites, you might want to check out the books on these Greedy Reading Lists: Six More Great Light Fiction Stories Six Lighter Fiction Stories for Great Escapism Six Great Light Fiction Stories Perfect for Summer Reading Six Rom-Coms Perfect for Summer Reading Six More Great Rom-Coms Perfect for Summer Reading Six of My Favorite Lighter Fiction Reads from the Past Year You can also check out My Very Favorite Bossy 2023 Reads for my overall favorite reads from last year across all genres, and if you're interested in more more more Bossy favorites, check out My Very Favorite Bossy 2022 Reads too. If you've read any of the books mentioned here, I'd love to hear what you think! What are some of your favorite romantic fiction reads, from the past year or from this one so far? 01 Will They or Won't They by Ava Wilder Ava Wilder's rom-com takes us behind the scenes of a hit teen TV show whose lead characters once liked each other in real life but now can't stand each other. This was funny, sweet, steamy, and poignant--a fantastic summer light-fiction read that I loved. Lilah Hunter and Shane McCarthy are the stars of the popular paranormal television show Intangible, and for multiple seasons they've yearned for each other on screen, but their characters have never gotten together. Lilah has dreams of directing and of breaking into movies, but she's back for the sixth and final season of the show, in which her character and Shane's will finally get together. But in real life, Shane and Lilah detest each other. Their secret tryst at the end of season one ended badly, and they've been far from friendly ever since. I LOVED this. The premise sounded like a slam dunk for me, and the reality of the book was a funny, poignant, banter-filled, behind-the-scenes, realistically complicated, wonderful story. There's a ton of steaminess as Lilah and Shane at times can't deny their attraction and act upon it. I smiled a lot, I teared up, and I loved this romantic read! For my full review of this book, check out Will They or Won't They. 02 The Second Ending by Michelle Hoffman Hoffman's novel is about facing dark realities, entering uncharted territory, leaning on music as a solace, and welcoming new beginnings. The Second Ending was fun and full of heart. Prudence Childs was a prodigy. She taught herself to play the piano as a toddler, became famous, played at the White House, and appeared on television. She inspired a generation to take up the piano. Then she realized her grandmother was exploiting her and she broke from both her family and her fame. She fell into a career writing jingles--creatively unsatisfying but it paid the bills. Decades later, Prudence's dark past threatens to upend her peaceful, if uneventful, adult life. One thing leads to another and she agrees to participate in a popular televised dueling piano competition--against Alexei Petrov, a young Russian pianist who has flawless technique. But Alexei's parents have always pushed him so ruthlessly, he never made friends or developed a life outside of music. When the two face off, they each have something to prove--to their families, their exes, those who have doubted them--and to themselves. There are a number of appealingly zany hijinks here as well as a surprising amount of heart. The Second Ending is about self-discovery, facing dark truths, taking a terrifying leap out of the safety of what is known, and opening the door to a boundless, uncharted future. I really enjoyed this. For my full review, check out The Second Ending. 03 Happy Place by Emily Henry Six longtime friends gather for one last Maine vacation--but each of them has been keeping secrets that impact their relationships. I was impatient with the prolonged lack of communication but loved the main characters' interactions once they began. Harriet and Win were attracted to each other from the start, but they spent ages trying to deny it for fear of upending their close-knit friend group if things didn't work out. Now they've been engaged for six years, they're desperately in love, and they've been dating long-distance while Harriet pursues her residency and Win, a furniture repair person, helps his sick mother at home in Montana. For years they've taken annual trips to their friend Sabrina's cottage in Maine with the rest of their group, building traditions, strengthening their friendships, and enjoying their happy place. So this year, when their friends surprise Harriet upon her arrival with the fact that Win was able to come after all, it should be a good--no, a great--thing. Except, Harriet and Win broke up months ago...and haven't told anyone yet. The grown-up friends' ability to move past the evolutions of their relationships was a highlight. Happy Place involves steamy scenes and will-they/won't-they tensions. Win and Harriet's interactions, when they do begin communicating, are lovely and sweet and funny and heartbreaking. For my full review of this book, please check out Happy Place. 04 A Winter in New York by Josie Silver Despite the many outlandish details of Iris's situation and ongoing secrets, I was taken with the sweet family relationships and the multi-phased wrap-up ending. Iris is a chef who moves to New York City in hopes of a fresh start--and is quickly intimidated by the scope and action of the city. But her new best friend Bobby--along with his partner Robin--takes her under his wing. Then Iris spies a storefront familiar from one of her deceased mother's old photos, a gelato store...where she discovers that they use her exact, closely guarded, definitely secret family recipe. Handsome Gio, son of the ill owner, explains that the store is in danger of being shuttered. Iris may be able to help--if only she could also figure out the store's connection to her mother's past. I was frustrated with several aspects of A Winter in New York--I typically have trouble with a lack of communication as a key plot point--but the sweet-as-pie, satisfying, multiple-phased ending was, admittedly, adorable. And the Bobby-Robin relationship as well as the Gio romance had me swooning. Josie Silver is also the author of One Day in December and The Two Lives of Lydia Byrd, a book that appeared on the Greedy Reading List Six Second-Chance, Do-Over, Reliving-Life Stories. For my full review, check out A Winter in New York. 05 The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren The True Love Experiment is a wonderful, romantic read about forbidden attraction and heartwarming vulnerability, with steamy scenes, will-they/won't-they tensions, funny dialogue, behind-the-scenes televised moments, and loooooooove. I loved The Soulmate Equation from the writing team known as Christina Lauren. That book introduced the fantastic best-friend character of Felicity "Fizzy" Chen. The True Love Experiment is Fizzy's story. Fizzy is a straight talker, a sex-positive woman, and a successful romance writer, but she's never been in love, only in lust. Now she's beginning to feel like she's been selling her readers a lie. Connor Prince (his last name is Prince!) is a single dad and documentary filmmaker slated by his boss to create a reality TV program about finding love. He's completely out of his comfort zone and the pressure is on--but when he meets Fizzy, he just knows he's found the perfect star for the show. The True Love Experiment is an irresistible exploration of a spark of feelings, impossible difficulties, terrifying vulnerability, and hard-won joy. The issues keeping the two love interests apart felt powerful and heartbreaking and offered tantalizing tension to the story. The happy ending made me tear up and also made me want to cheer. I loved this. For my full review, check out The True Love Experiment. 06 Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood Ali Hazelwood's light fiction novel is wonderfully immersed in science, offering a forbidden relationship and an enemies-to-lovers dynamic, plus lots of steamy scenes. Elsie Hannaway is an adjunct physics professor, but her dream is to dedicate herself to a career in research. To help pay the bills, Elsie is a paid escort (who does not have sex with her clients, as she keeps explaining to certain men). She's fake-dating a nice man in order to keep his family off of his back. Now Elsie has the interview of a lifetime, at MIT. But a series of coincidences and misunderstandings lead to her being unaware that the head physicist on site...is her fake boyfriend's brother. I loved the significant science element here, the jargon, the exploration of academic politics, and the passion for research and discovery. I was frustrated by Elsie's lack of assertiveness, although I recognized that it was set up in order to have her ultimately find her own opinions and set her course. I found the family dynamic related to her mother's demands of Elsie absurd. The situation with her twin brothers felt slapstick and silly to me. The steamy scenes, the twisty route to the relationship, the career shifts, and the science focus were all winners for me. I'd like to read more by Ali Hazelwood. For my full review of this book, check out Love, Theoretically.

ICYMI: I love Geraldine Brooks's stories, and I was intrigued by the detail, the meticulous research behind the tale, and the inspiration for the story, but I struggled with the slower pace. In People of the Book, Geraldine Brooks, inspired by a true story, shares a tale of the Sarajevo Haggadah, an illuminated Hebrew manuscript created in fifteenth-century Spain. In a later timeline, an Australian rare book expert discovers tiny treasures in the book's ancient binding, setting her on a path of exploring forgery and complex political conflicts. I loved the rich historical detail and meticulous research evident in the text. I was hooked on the varied settings and intrigue by both the premise and the story's inspiration. Yet the pacing was slow for me, so it took me some time to get through this one. I do love Geraldine Brooks books, and I'm in for her future novels. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Geraldine Brooks is also the author of books I've loved like Horse, Year of Wonders, and other novels.

Hannah offers a meaty story about Vietnam and the nurses who served there, suffered, and were largely forgotten or denied; this storyline is conflated with romance-novel elements that keep things moving but frequently pulled me out of the historical fiction story I loved. I loved Kristin Hannah's book The Nightingale and mentioned it in my Greedy Reading List Six Books about Brave Female Spies. But I've been frustrated while reading some other Hannah stories by what feels like odd pacing, soap-opera elements, outlandish events, or too-easy resolutions--despite the novels' promising and captivating premises (for example, with The Great Alone and Winter Garden). Kristin Hannah's The Women offered an irresistible setup for me, so I was in for another Hannah novel. The Women shines a light on the women who served pivotal roles in the Vietnam War--but whose existence was largely ignored, forgotten, or denied by Americans at home. Main protagonist Frankie signs up to leave her idyllic, privileged Southern California life--and the control of her conservative parents--in order to serve as a nurse serving soldiers in combat. Her brother is killed in combat before she even ships out, and her parents reject her potential to be a war hero worthy of a photo on the family's wall of honor, so she is reeling before she even enters the shock of Vietnam. She faces repeated horrors of war, must find her own inner fortitude, and forges eternal loyalty and friendship with others coping with the same crises. When she returns home, she faces anti-war sentiments, the shock of returning to her pre-war life, and coping with the trauma of many months overseas amid destruction and death. The wartime detail as well as the jarring shift to post-war life were exceptional elements. The excellent historical fiction here is conflated with romance-novel-worthy storylines and dialogue ("You don't know how beautiful you are" types of lines; unrealistically convenient run-ins; not-dead-after-all twists; and more). This aspect keeps the story moving, although it frequently distracted me from the hearty story of Vietnam, its complex costs and its dark perception at home, and the truth about the many forgotten women serving as nurses there, whose bravery helped send so many injured American soldiers home. I listened to The Women as an audiobook. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Kristin Hannah is the author of more than twenty novels, including The Nightingale, which I loved and mentioned in my Greedy Reading List Six Books about Brave Female Spies.

Alderton's literary fiction rom-com is a funny, poignant, and sometimes frustrating deep dive into the emotionally stunted main protagonist's extended heartache and the rehashing of key moments of his recent relationship. I didn’t want to know all these words, charged with urgency and crisis. I didn’t feel like they related to me. Hadn’t I just turned twenty-one? Hadn’t I just left university? Hadn’t my life only just begun? I couldn’t fathom how I had got here so quickly and how I could be expected to make such enormous decisions while I still felt so young. How had this happened? Andy and Jen were in love and living together. But now Andy, a struggling stand-up comedian, is left reeling, trying to figure out what went wrong. He's obsessed with trying to figure out why Jen broke up with him, and no amount of rehashing, deception regarding the manipulation of mental-health professionals, or mining for information is too much, in Andy's mind. The breakup came out of the blue. He and Jen had just gone to Paris--they were blissfully happy! Weren't they? Much of the story is told from Andy's point of view, and his capability for emotional growth is...limited. Baby steps are hard-won progress for the often-clueless main protagonist. He begins a Reasons Why I Loved Being with Jen list as well as a list of reasons why he's glad their relationship is over--tracing the funny, silly, nitpicky, ridiculous, and poignant moments they shared. When Jen's perspective pops up late in the book, it adds valuable information and layers of depth to the story. Jen has long believed she is happiest on her own, and she has no plans to marry, to pair off, or to have a child. Her take on the events and dynamics of the past few years is valuable explanation for the reader. Their best friends Avi and Jane feel like a correlating relationship to Andy and Jen's, and Avi and Jane's bickering, hectic, haggard states seem to serve as a potential warning sign to Andy and Jen of what life would look like for them if they followed societal expectations, settling down because they're at the right age, they adore each other, and it's a potentially logical next step. The reader sees what a mismatch Jen and Andy are, despite their real affection for each other, but the clarity about their incompatibility is longer in coming to Andy, who remains wistful, hopeful, and heartbroken for much of the book. I listened to Good Material as an audiobook. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Dolly Alderton is also the author of Everything I Know about Love, Ghosts, and Dear Dolly.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading Micaiah Johnson's science-fiction novel Those Beyond the Wall; I'm listening to Kristin Hannah's historical fiction about women who served in the Vietnam War, The Women; and I'm listening to Dolly Alderton's contemporary literary fiction about a stand-up comedian's breakup, Good Material. What are you reading these days, bookworms? 01 Those Beyond the Wall by Micaiah Johnson In Ashtown, a gritty desert community, the Emperor rules with a ruthless hand and holds the ultimate power. The only person he can trust is Scales. Scales is a mechanic, a fighter, and she keeps everyone on track. But when Ashtown citizens start turning up dead, Scales must team up with a straitlaced Ashtown partner and an abrupt, brilliant City scientist in order to try to capture the killer. I received a prepublication digital edition of this science fiction title courtesy of NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group--Ballantine. Micaiah Johnson is also the author of The Space Between Worlds, a book I loved. 02 The Women by Kristin Hannah I loved Kristin Hannah's book The Nightingale and mentioned it in my Greedy Reading List Six Books about Brave Female Spies. But I've been frustrated by what feels like odd pacing, soap-opera elements, outlandish events, or too-easy resolutions in other Hannah stories, despite the premises that sound absolutely captivating (for example, The Great Alone and Winter Garden). I'm here for another Hannah read because of another premise I couldn't resist. Kristin Hannah's The Women shines a light on the women who served pivotal roles in the Vietnam War--but whose existence was largely ignored, forgotten, or denied by Americans at home. Frankie leaves her idyllic, privileged Southern California life--and the control of her conservative parents--in order to serve as a nurse serving soldiers in combat. When she returns home, she faces anti-war sentiments, the shock of returning to her pre-war life, and coping with the trauma of many months overseas amid destruction and death. I'm listening to The Women as an audiobook. 03 Good Material by Dolly Alderton Andy and Jen were in love, living together, and happy. Weren't they? Now Andy, a struggling stand-up comedian, is left reeling, trying to figure out what went wrong. He's obsessed with trying to figure out why Jen broke up with him, and no amount of rehashing events, deception of mental-health professionals, or nosily mining for information is too much, in Andy's mind. Jen's perspective comes in late in the book and adds layers of information and context to the funny, poignant story. I'm listening to Good Material as an audiobook. Dolly Alderton is also the author of Everything I Know about Love, Ghosts, and Dear Dolly.

Six More Great Bossy Science Fiction and Fantasy Reads The Obsessive Wrap-Up of Favorite Reads continues! If you've read any of these, I'd love to hear what you think! You can click here for other science fiction and fantasy books that I've reviewed on Bossy Bookworm. What are some of your favorite science fiction reads? 01 August Kitko and the Mechas from Space (Starmetal Symphony #1) by Alex White White's first Starmetal Symphony installment offers deadly deep-space robots, showcases the power of music, and illustrates how love can persist even in the face of imminent demise. I loved the main characters' fashion, banter, and stubbornness. Gus is a jazz pianist whose biggest hope for the pending end of the world was to play at the most epic goodbye party of all time. After all, the Vanguards, giant, deadly AI robots, are headed from deep space to destroy Earth at any moment. But when the Vanguards arrive, the sudden, brutal ending Gus has envisioned for himself doesn't happen. Instead, Gus and a few other Earthlings are pulled in by a small group of traitorous Vanguards--and tasked with being modified, temporarily melded with the robots, battling other robots--and saving all of humanity. The robots and the imminent demise of the human race that the robots seem perched to enact serve as a catalyst for the human main characters to assess their own purposes and consider what makes life worth living. They forge desperate, deep connections and struggle with loss and an uncertain future, and I loved the impractical, invigorating, stubborn love in the book. I really enjoyed Alex White's Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe, the first in the Salvagers series. Click here for my full review of August Kitko and the Mechas from Space. 02 The Deep Sky by Yume Kitasei I loved the futuristic space-mission capabilities, smart and strong all-woman crew, the mystery and suspicion, and most of all the character-driven storyline in Kitasei's science fiction novel. In Yume Kitasei's science fiction thriller The Deep Sky, a mission to deep space is disrupted by an explosion that shakes the confidence of the ship's crew. With the collapse of Earth's environment imminent, eighty trained elite young people venture into space, where they hope to preserve the human race for generations to come. But a deadly disaster on The Phoenix halfway to its destination causes suspicion to fall upon Asuka, the only living witness. Asuka must find the real culprit before accusations surrounding the mystery destroy her. I do generally love a book set on a ship barreling through space, and I loved The Deep Sky. Yume Kitasei offers plot and mystery, but this is primarily a wonderfully character-driven story--with a satisfying amount of spaceship detail, process, and futuristic capabilities (such as alternative realities the crew can pipe into their brains) to capture a reader's imagination. Asuka is very intelligent and capable, but she was chosen for the once-in-history journey as an alternate, and she constantly struggles with impostor syndrome. Everyone but Asuka feels like a suspect at some point or another, and I loved the way the author built tension without making me feel manipulated or offering red herrings. Click here for my full review of The Deep Sky. 03 Divine Rivals (Letters of Enchantment #1) by Rebecca Ross I liked Divine Rivals and the gutsy characters facing wartime struggles and challenges, but I was surprised that the book's fantasy elements felt so fully in the background. In Divine Rivals, Iris and Roman, two journalists, are competing for a permanent position as a newspaper columnist. The two are constantly at odds with each other, and each has erected emotional armor around a devastating loss. Iris's beloved brother is missing in action in the war among the gods, and sending letters through a magical wardrobe is the only way she can reach him. But the person receiving these missives is not Forest, but Iris's work nemesis, Roman. He keeps his knowledge secret, yet becomes more and more drawn to Iris. I really liked this, but I was surprised by how light it felt on fantasy elements. The gods' war provides the structure for the book's main conflict, but the story feels primarily focused on everyday, regular-human wartime concerns--with an unlikely-feeling god-war and magical letter-sending method mixed in. Click here for my full review of Divine Rivals. 04 The Future by Naomi Alderman Alderman offers a dive into a future world that's crumbling due to greed, disregard for the environment, a loss of human connection, and threatening pandemics--then turns all of it on its head with a twisty, compelling, futuristic, technology-driven attempt at survival--and at maybe just changing the world for the better, and for good. The behavior of three key tech billionaires might seem like the symptom of all the biggest world problems...relentless greed, disregard for the environment, hoarding of resources, destruction of privacy, and more. These three figures become the center of the plot of The Future, around which mind-bogglingly enormous developments occur. In The Future, Alderman considers religious fanatics, corporate entities, pandemics, environmental implosion, fascinating imagined technological advancements, and more, while offering great twists, a compelling story, characters I was curious about, oddball friendships, and deep love. This was an engrossing dystopian read. I loved it. I mentioned Naomi Alderman's novel The Power in the Greedy Reading List Six Fascinating Dystopian and Postapocalyptic Novels. You might also want to check out the books on the Greedy Reading List Six More Fascinating Dystopian and Postapocalyptic Novels. Click here for my full review of The Future. 05 Starling House by Alix E. Harrow Starling House is another wonderful, dark, twisty story from Alix E. Harrow, with imperfect characters, a noble, messy quest, layers of history, and a captivating end. Opal is desperate for cash, and her petty theft at her minimum-wage jobs isn't going to cut it. She's got to raise the money to send her bright younger brother Jacob to a private school where he can thrive--and have better prospects than Opal herself has had since the loss and disappearance of their single mother. She's been cobbling together enough to get by, but when a mysterious draw to the spooky Starling House ends up in an overpaying job offer, she feels she can hardly say no. Arthur, the young, haunted-seeming caretaker of the estate, seems resigned to her presence even as he advises her to stay far away from Starling House. He's caught up in solving some sort of puzzle related to the past. Opal takes his envelopes of cash for her overpriced housekeeping, but she doesn't tell Arthur that she's been dreaming of the decrepit, rambling house for years, and that she has some eerie sense that she's finally home. Alix E. Harrow is also the author of the wonderful The Once and Future Witches and The Ten Thousand Doors of January. For my full review, check out Starling House. 06 The Great Transition by Nick Fuller Googins Emi, Kristina, and Larch are a family that survived the immense destruction of the climate crisis, but secrets, danger, and a double life might be their undoing. Emi Vargas is, frankly, tired of being reminded that her parents were part of the movement that saved the world--and weary of the constant comments about how she's so lucky to have been born after the climate crisis. But then climate criminals begin to be systematically assassinated in public shows of retaliation for their past crimes, Emi's mother Kristina goes missing, and Emi fears that her mother is in danger. Emi and her father Larch journey from their home in Greenland to a near-future, postapocalyptic New York City, frequently ravaged by flooding and storms, to try to find Kristina. When a long-term secret is revealed and Emi's safety is endangered, the family must decide whether they can go on as before, or whether they must invent a new future for themselves. You might also like the books on my Greedy Reading Lists Six Fascinating Dystopian and Postapocalyptic Novels and Six More Dystopian and Postapocalyptic Novels. Click here for my full review of The Great Transition.

Donna Woolfolk Cross offers a fascinating historical fiction tale of a pioneering, headstrong, brilliant figure whose existence has been debated for centuries. Pope Joan is Donna Woolfolk Cross's historical fiction about a figure whose existence the Catholic church has officially denied for a thousand years: Joan, a young woman who disguised herself as a man in the ninth century and rose through the ranks to eventually sit on the throne of St. Peter. I'm fascinated by stories in which a woman poses as a man in order to achieve freedoms otherwise not available to her. In Pope Joan, Cross offers fascinating, grim, brutal details of life in the Dark Ages to bring the story of the brilliant, strong-willed Joan to life. Cross includes historical events, but makes up some characters (as with Gerold, Joan's love interest in the story). When her brother John is murdered in a Viking attack, Joan takes up his cloak and his identity, traveling to the monastery of Fulda and quickly standing out as a brilliant learner and gifted healer. When she rises in the ranks to Rome, she witnesses the sometimes-deadly political maneuverings surrounding the Pope. When she takes up the mantle of the greatest power in the land, she faces resistance, danger, and complications galore--including the presence of her young love, Gerold. I was fascinated by Cross's Author's Note detailing the extensive research and rich history surrounding Joan, as well as the contradictions in the denial of her existence. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Other historical fiction books with faith elements that I've loved include Revelations and Illuminations by Mary Sharratt and The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd.

Listen for the Lie offers a fascinating story structure, dark humor, and deeply flawed characters as main protagonist Lucy works to resolve her memory loss surrounding the events leading to her best friend's death. Twentysomething Lucy is found wandering the streets of her small Texas town, covered in her best friend Savvy's blood. But Lucy suffered a head wound the night of Savvy's death and now she can't remember anything about the night Savvy was murdered. Everyone assumes she killed Savvy, and Lucy can't escape the suspicions and resentment surrounding the mysterious conditions of Savvy's death. Lucy moves to Los Angeles to start a new life, but when the host of the ultra-popular true-crime podcast "Listen for the Lie" tracks her down, Lucy must do the one thing she swore she'd never do: return to her hometown and the scene of Savvy's murder to try to solve the mystery once and for all. I loved Lucy's dry, dark humor, her blunt delivery, her shrugging about her own admittedly poor decision-making, and her sharp discernment. The story's dialogue is cutting and funny. Each of the characters is either openly flawed or has their imperfect choices revealed during the story. I loved the matter-of-fact acceptance of some of these revelations (those that didn't emotionally or physically harm others). Lucy's inability to remember key events pairs with her devil-may-care attitude so that she is frequently going around mentioning the fact that she may in fact have killed Savvy, which alarms those around her. Savvy's murderous voice repeatedly creeps into Lucy's head, and the reader eventually determines whether these are memories and Savvy was being earnest in her desire to do away with certain characters, whether they're memories and Savvy was joking, or whether Lucy is having her own thoughts about impulsive murder--or cracking under years of pressure. The book is sex-positive and nontraditional in its portrayal of relationships, betrayal, acceptance, and forgiveness--but the book also involves disturbing cycles of abuse and infuriating male entitlement as key elements. I was hooked on the structure of the story and the way the truth is gradually revealed; the information is illuminating as it creeps out but Tintera's tone is never teasing. The author doesn't throw in red herrings, and she doesn't manipulate the facts in order to spring a surprise on the reader. The podcast element was engaging--I loved how it allowed for layers of interpretation, revelation, and intrigue. I read an advance digital edition of Listen for the Lie courtesy of NetGalley and Celadon Books. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Amy Tintera is the author of young adult novels, and this is her first adult novel.

The gothic story King Nyx offers haunting imagery, sinister mysteries, unreliable memories, resurfacing past trauma, missing persons, unexplained deaths, and a children's fairy tale gone awry. Anna Fort has many reservations about her husband's outlandish theories, but she dutifully assists him with his research into unexplained meteorological phenomena in the hopes that his in-progress book will eventually be publishable--and will allow them to drag themselves out of poverty. Once Charles's family's house maid, Anna knows she is the reason he gave up his inheritance and any relationship with his cruel father. So when a reclusive, wealthy man invites Charles to spend the winter of 1918 on his remote, cold, private island writing his book, Anna is supportive and accompanies him. But a strange feeling pervades everything on the island. Their host is absent, and while they understand being required to isolate and quarantine to prevent the spread of the deadly flu, many odd occurrences and sinister-feeling goings-on are making Anna wonder if they should ever have come--and if it's even possible to escape. Meanwhile, flashes of her past seem to be resurfacing on this strange island, the other couple staying nearby seem to have dark secrets, the rumors they had heard on the mainland of missing young girls seem to possibly be true, someone has turned up dead--and they still haven't even seen their host. The imagery of King Nyx is striking, with (oddly specific and elaborate) automatons, gas masks, looming, mysterious buildings, and more. The tie-in to King Nyx for Anna seems beyond possibility, and the other links to her past seem far-fetched, until she realizes that all of the events on the island seem to be the mastermind of an unhinged puppet master. Meanwhile mysteries from Anna's experiences in the Fort household seem held together by crucial gaps in memory, and the framework is beginning to fall apart. I found myself wishing the various aspects of the story had held together a little more cohesively, but I enjoyed the dark, gothic tale of King Nyx and each of its elements, including the caged-bird metaphors, as well as the denouement. I listened to King Nyx as an audiobook. I received an audiobook version of King Nyx courtesy of NetGalley and RB Media, Recorded Books. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Kirsten Bakis is also the author of Lives of the Monster Dogs, a book I'd like to read.