translates the singular voice she displayed in her candid, darkly funny memoir into fiction with a story fascinating, deeply uncomfortable scenario in which Waldo, a young woman--legally underage at 17 when the story In Half His Age  McCurdy offers a complicated story about an illegal, inappropriate, mystifying, all-encompassing atrocities of the relationship that drives the book somehow separately and compartmentalized from the story Korgy, who takes up so much of her emotional energy and so much page time in the book, ultimately seems

and cutthroat choices, pushing toward what feels like an inevitable, disastrous climax to the campy story We can see what Jessamyn is unaware of in this campy story: her acting may be sound, but her singing I often have a tough time reading about protagonists who are making poor choices, but the book's dark

historical fiction from a favorite author of mine, Christina Baker Kline, which is based on the real story by Christina Baker Kline In The Foursome, Kline offers the imagined reality of the astonishing true story , seeming impossibilities, and outsiders' desire for salacious details in this sympathetic, layered story schooler in 2000, dreaming of writing for Saturday Night Live, but working at her local video rental store We see glimpses of Eddie's past and Bella's history as well, as their bonds grow deeper in this story

with three thousand of their most dedicated fans, American Fantasy; and I'm reading Sarah Damoff's story also the owner of the Books are Magic bookstore in Brooklyn, New York, and she's the author of This Time

More Science Fiction Faves I love character-driven science fiction stories. Sci-fi books can be so lovely and weird and immersive, and the stories can dive into so many fascinating She can travel through the multiverse, but only to worlds where another version of herself no longer This was a fascinating story that offered satisfying character depth. She's hacked into the game plenty of times and glitched the system to work in her favor.

men in a rowboat struggle to rescue a family trapped by the rising waters of the Mississippi after a storm The river balloons to 80 feet wide, and three convicts and their leader arrive at the ancestral home The story is narrated by J.D. You might also like the books on the Greedy Reading List Six Wonderfully Witchy Stories and Six More Wonderfully Witchy Stories to Charm You. 03 Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano William grew up in a family

is immediately evident once again, and they revisit old memories, compare notes, and treasure their time Ann Patchett is also the author of Tom Lake, This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage, State of Wonder,

surgically alter her facial features for a sum that might keep her family financially stable for a time In no time at all, she would be a craver again. I felt stressed while reading this story, with its focus on consumerism and extreme disconnectedness

read by a wintry fire, but the heat of summer has recently hit where I am, and the idea of reading a story The elements that feel potentially familiar or could have felt overused from use in other stories (a I still think about Disappearing Earth from time to time, long after reading it. Hurley's images is incredible; the glass plate negatives lasted through months on ice floes, a week's travel The books on the Greedy Reading List Six Captivating Nordic Stories would also fit nicely here.

Osman I was delighted by the poignancy, humor, and layers in the first installment of this series of stories In this first installment in Osman's mystery series (the second one also appears on this list), the story I was surprised by how charming, intriguing, layered, and lovely this story was. I loved the key elements of this story: the capable con woman, the past coming back to haunt her, the I don't love the title--although it does indicate the dynamic--but I was hooked on the story.

After the World Falls Apart I have a fascination with postapocalyptic (set in a time after a disaster ) and dystopian (set in a time of darkness and desperation) books, and I think it's for the same reason I'm captivated by wartime stories: the books are about characters being pushed to their limits by an Carey's story is also hopeful, but not in the way I might have expected. This is one of my all-time favorite books.

I loved this premise At times, particularly in the middle of the story, things felt disjointed to me While I enjoyed the trip to Alaska (I love an Alaska storyline) and the polar bear-focused parts of the story Things wrap up in quite neat fashion at the close of the story, but I didn't mind because of the justice Side note: I've read and reviewed another book called Sleeping Giants; that one was a science fiction story

fiction about music, you might also like the titles I included in the Greedy Reading List Six Rockin' Stories Pony Confidential by Christina Lynch In alternating points of view, Christina Lynch offers a playful story So far this is a cute--at times a little too cute for my taste--mystery that seems sure to be headed

Here are six personal stories that I found captivating! I'm intrigued by stories of those who have left constricting faith systems. Scorah tells a fascinating personal story of growth and fear and change. That said, I have a tough time reading memoirs in which someone is fighting cancer, and this one may Now I'd like Miller to write more books about varied topics, because I like spending time in her head

At almost 650 pages long, there's enough page time for Link to build various realities, tear them down I received a prepublication edition of this book (which was published this time last year, oops!) More Bossy love for oddball novels and second-chance stories For more oddball novels, check out the titles

Bossy Bookworm 01 The Moth Presents All These Wonders: True Stories about Facing the Unknown All These There's another complementary book of stories from The Moth as well, The Moth Presents Occasional Magic : True Stories about Defying the Impossible. Songteller includes previously unpublished photos, behind-the-scenes stories and memories. 05 The Bird Think by Jennifer Ackerman It says a lot about how many birders are on my gift list that I had a tough time

I scheduled a little Bossy break from posting until today so I could have lots of family time, but instead The book is fully epistolary, as the story is told in a book-long letter from Benjamin to Tot. Story Collections to Wow You and Six More Short Story Collections I Loved. It's satisfying that Robin gets the majority of page time as she bravely infiltrates the UHC and works It was time for something new.

efforts she enters into with her eccentric friends, and how Galland deftly places the reader in the story's place and time with rich details.

Chris Whitaker's novel All the Colors of the Dark  builds a story of a deep friendship between two young And I was intrigued by the disparate-seeming story that soon emerges, beginning with the premise of a There's yet another somewhat separate-feeling story of an outlaw, and a study on prison life, as well Yet the cast of characters is colorful, and I enjoyed the time I spent with them.

William has always leaned on Lucy for support, despite the fact that he has been married two other times Now William has uncovered a family secret that shakes him, and he asks Lucy to travel with him to investigate The people Lucy has built her life around admiring and has spent her time clinging to as steady presences

How to Date a Superhero (And Not Die Trying) is a charming, irresistible young adult story about superheroes Astrid is always on time, always. How to Date a Superhero (And Not Die Trying) is a wonderfully romantic story about finding your own true Cristina Fernandez has crafted an irresistibly charming story that I absolutely adored. tone is very different, but the superhero element of this book reminded me of Hench, a darkly charming story

Mason's novel isn't simply a historical fiction story linked through timelines. The book builds to be an often-sinister, Gothic-feeling story with various interconnected repercussions Mason's newest novel tells the story of a New England house in the woods by tracking those who live in The tone is spooky and the story moves at a measured pace. Mason's gorgeous writing (the final chapter is a particular knockout), but I did take a long time to

boundaries they can push and how many lines they're willing to cross in order to uncover the truth in time enslaver, and when he turns his attention to her in lascivious ways, she fears that new horrors are in store Ward's language is frequently poetic, and the cruelties throughout the story are difficult to read.

favorite elements were the action sequences, the opportunities for humor, and the pacing of this 640-page story sometimes-clumsy dialogue, yet the promise of the dragon element kept me reading with fingers crossed that the story I do love a dragon book, and the second in the Empyrian series offers more page time for the talking dragons, some surprises, and a more deftly paced story, with stronger character development--along with I have been since the night the snow fell in your hair and you kissed me for the first time.").

True Biz is a coming-of-age story, a beginner's primer on Deaf culture, and a captivating novel about Students at the residential River Valley School for the Deaf are trying to get through finals, maintain True Biz is a coming-of-age story that also explores the importance society places on language; past

01 Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn This fun, darkly funny, feminist story about a retiring Glass moves the story along in entertaining fashion. career inspiration, but it isn't necessary to have first read Alias Emma in order to dive into this story I wasn't shocked by the story's twist, but Glass didn't make me feel manipulated or red-herring me to I was hooked on both the past and present timelines of this story.

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading Our Woman in Moscow, Beatriz Williams's story of Cold War espionage He'd rather she settle down and marry, have kids, and stop traveling the world and working to boost her accents--twentysomething Breen emerges from her average life in Philadelphia to realize she is part of a storied

annoyance at the bards' reported tales of Odysseus as he extends his outrageously complicated and indulgent travels vulnerable in order to try to save each other, and they carve out meager existences as they bide their time

This story picks up immediately after those events, alluding to various ongoing emotional impacts and parenthetical sections (a structure familiar from other books) felt like they were bogging down the story abruptly ended thoughts added to my inability to feel like I had a handle on and investment in the story and trying to come to terms with its near-death experience, yet the page time spent on insecurity, fear The end section of the story involves fast-paced reactions and conflicts, with SecUnit doing its thing

Like all marriages, Lotto and Mathilde's is made up of two stories: each of their unique experienced As time passed, their dynamics became more complicated, tangled in the messiness of growing up together In the end, I was more taken with the writing voice than the story being told, and the writing made me

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading Amor Towles's collection of short stories and a novella, Table 01 Table for Two: Fictions by Amor Towles In Table for Two: Fictions, Amor Towles offers six short stories The six New York-set stories all take place around the year 2000, and they consider the impacts of chance But the girls' emotional pain naturally creeps through from time to time, and it's bringing up uncomfortable

Some of these circles are somewhat glossed over--and the pacing flagged at times for me as the protagonists The heart of the story is the hesitant, guarded, fraught dynamic between Alice and Peter and their halting The pacing flagged for me throughout the middle of the story, during the slog through various avenues

And if the latter, why were his friends willing to travel with him, much less remain friendly on a regular There are tiny moves forward until a big shift that occurs at the end of the book, and the timing and Greta spends a lot of time day drinking (and night drinking) on the cruise, and she uses alcohol to connect new beau, to dull the pain of her mother's death, to soften her annoyance at her father, and to kill time

This romantic light fiction story includes sibling conflicts, loss, betrayal, a love that seems impossible I loved the playful tone, the ghost angle within this light fiction, romantic story, and the focus on on purpose, and the convenient dismissal of inconvenient elements (the missed deadline driving the story's initial tension that was all but forgotten for a time). and Six More Great Light Fiction Stories.

The author was inspired by a true story. The story is based upon a real account of a Southern woman who helped a Union soldier during the Civil of detail of life at the time. I love Dunlap's writing and the way the author crafted this story. For more family stories you might like, please check out the Bossy reviews at this link .

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm listening to Liane Moriarty's story of the aftermath a plane full of psychic From the overworked dad trying to make it home in time for his daughter's musical, to the mother of two Over time, these free demons have evolved into grumbling lackeys for the Eternal King.

ICYMI: Sittenfeld shapes fully realized, fascinating characters that stuck with me in the ten stories of course, that of all the feelings of my youth that would pass, it was this one, of an abundance of time At the start of this collection I was concerned that this was going to be a short story collection about The ten stories in You Think It, I'll Say It explore expectations related to gender and relationships If you enjoy short story collections, you might like to check out Six Short Story Collections to Wow

Libby Jones was adopted as an infant and she has long wondered at the true story of her parents. inspires varied and complicated questions about the possibly disturbing events that transpired around the time In the final lines (where the idea of travel and of unraveling the final threads of the story are introduced

Year Inside College Admissions by Jeffrey Selingo I have a rising high school senior, so maybe it's time serving as mediator between wealthy vacationers temporarily in the park and the working-class full-time Heller is also the author of The Guide, The River, and The Painter. 03 A Conspiracy in Belgravia (Lady

loved book one, but this one had such a different feel for me, I didn't feel the connection to that story's of each chapter felt like a forced attempt to connect this book to Better Than the Movies , but this story Painter spends significant page time on what is essentially the idea that one character or the other But for me, the story didn't support these romantic, sexy fantasies--I remained somewhat irritated by Multiple other small moments in the book felt similarly dubious and therefore drew me out of the story

complex issues around an imagined future with genetically chosen embryos; Peikoff also digs into origin stories Then tracking down the details of a promising story lead her straight to some shocking truths about her I was happily intrigued by how all of the pieces of this story fit together, and the revelations that Peikoff also touches on the importance of origin stories and identity, and her characters fight to trust Kira Peikoff is also the author of No Time to Die, Living Proof, Die Again Tomorrow, and Mother Knows

Deepti Kapoor's Age of Vice shifts through time and points of view to explore outrageous wealth, ruthless From bustling New Delhi to dusty small towns, Kapoor's story tracks intertwined stories of servants, heirs, gangsters, and journalists in this story, which is both a gritty thriller and also a story of The story spins maniacally toward a crescendo of tragedy in Kapoor's long, often brutal tale (the print sights and sounds--as well as the starkness of its class divides--serves as a constant backdrop to a story

friends with her younger across-the-hall neighbor Helen, who is coping with dementia, and Gretel's three-times-married-and-divorced They are not allowed to touch each other but may speak, and they share stories of their past lives, bicker over the slight variations in how they may prepare their food, and simply kill time until their almost

But his adoptive mother Ruby, an infamous character and four-time widow, was determined for him to inherit The story is told partially through illuminating letters from Ruby laying out the unflinching facts of As in the other Hawkins novels I've read, the story's relationships, hidden truths, and setting feel like the main elements; character development isn't a crucial part of the story's progression. The Heiress has a satisfying ending that also retains some of the story's intrigue among the main characters

Upon being on her own for the first time, she discovers that she is capable of cleverness in the wild life in the wild consists of scrabbling for sustenance and carving out shelter; floating deadly cold rivers

The first in the Legends & Lattes series is a cozy fantasy story about new beginnings, the transformative It was time for something new. This is a sweet, cozy fantasy story that feels like a big hug; it's a love letter to coffee, to the beauty The short story "Pages to Fill" (also a prequel) is included at the end of Legends & Lattes.

Lorne as well as SNL  and its past and present players, and in Lorne , she shares the deeply researched story Despite having been the one who requested a copy of this title, I (possibly unfairly) at times wondered The structure works well to tell this story.

If you like stories about brave women during wartime, you might also like the books I listed on the Greedy Reading List Six Great Stories about Brave Women During World War II . This World War II-era story of female pilots and spies is written in two points of view. The premise hooked me, but I loved Graudin's execution of the story even more. -type closure for both felt too convenient, and even a little dismissive of the complexities of the time

But Restell's story also swirls with weighty issues still relevant today--women's rights and autonomy Wright positions Restell's career and wealth within the volatile events of the time--particularly society's Petticoats, Strangulating Scarves, and Other Deadly Garments Throughout History, She Kills Me: The True Stories

The author was inspired by a true story. In Curtis Sittenfeld's first short-story collection, You Think It, I'll Say It , she offered ten stories If you enjoy short story collections, you might like to check out Six Short Story Collections to Wow Henry brings her signature warmth, great banter, and sultry romance to this story within a story. got a little teary during some of the characters' vulnerability at the end, and I laughed out loud at times