In Other Lands is the epitome of glorious young adult fantasy—there’s a portal; there are mermaids, elves really about personal growth, knowing your own mind and holding convictions, demonstrating loyalty to others interests at heart, forging unlikely bonds, becoming vulnerable to love, and making (and suffering through others ’) mistakes and forgiving and being forgiven—with an otherworldly backdrop of battles, learning other

1930 in the Kentucky Appalachians, and Amanda Rye is a traveling packhorse librarian, a widowed young mother , and somewhat of a local to the region, albeit estranged from her pastor father and her mother due to The MacInteers--tough yet tender mother Rai, her clever daughter Sass, playful young adult Finn, and second chances at love, avoidance of punishment for our heroes' missteps when they tell the truth about others Other books I've loved about traveling librarians include The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek and The

That fateful night, Chris had come across as more aloof--but he had been grieving the loss of his mother Check out these other Bossy reviews of books by Abby Jimenez . 02 Lady Tremaine by Rachel Hochhauser perspective of the "evil" stepmother, who is actually a strong, determined woman set on protecting her daughters Lady Tremaine to use the respectability of her deceased husband's title to secure invitations for her daughters Steve Cavanagh is also the author of Kill for Me, Kill for You as well as eight other titles in the

and there is a sense of community as they collaborate with, clash with, support, and challenge each other body autonomy, pregnancy challenges, and societal and professional issues for women who might become mothers More from Audrey Blake Now I’ll definitely read the other two in this series by Audrey Blake, The Girl in His Shadow and The Surgeon’s Daughter.

In 1982, a young mother in a loveless marriage finds happiness in a socially unacceptable relationship , and the legal backlash causes her to lose custody of her beloved young daughter. Maggie is unaware of the particular circumstances around her parents' divorce and the reason for her mother's Sera's former mentor is wreaking havoc, grasping at ever-increasing power, and frightening other witches

Eowyn Ivey offers elements familiar from her other two novels--a cold, unforgiving setting; magical realism Birdie's a single mother to Emaleen and a waitress in a small Alaskan town. Arthur, a recluse who only comes into town at the change of seasons--and who others avoid as actively Arthur is unlike anyone Birdie and her daughter have ever met; his speech pattern is unusual, and he the unpredictability of a wild spirit, she also draws a long-simmering danger toward herself and her daughter

school English teacher who leans on her close-knit, longtime book club for support, reason, venting, and laughter She wonders if her difficult relationship with her mother could be due to secrets around her biological bond with a young woman while feeling distance from her brother and even more cold feelings toward her mother After so many years, they have reads on each other's personalities and preferences in many ways, but some combinations of them also keep each other at an emotional distance.

friends are concerned about him, his therapist urges him to explore unexamined feelings around his mother's a dark edge to his humor and mixing grief, the sobering reality of facing mortality, and bursts of laughter His upcoming book (scheduled for publication in spring 2027) is nonfiction centered around his mother's

grown daughters as Lara recounts the surprisingly layered story of her youthful romance with an actor In Ann Patchett's newest novel, Tom Lake, Lara's three young-adult daughters reunite at the family's But when Lara shares aspects of a life lived before her children existed, her daughters are led to consider scattered and became something else...until one morning you're picking cherries with your three grown daughters Lara shields her daughters from only a few select elements of the story, which begins as a demand for

When Gette is a grown woman, she conveniently recalls a moment when she was a very young child and her mother cried when reading a story to her, and she specifically recalls that the book was Are You My Mother? Because we spend the majority of time in Lillian's point of view (we later hear from Ryan and daughter

She shares her deceased mother's tried-and-true herbal remedies, and he teaches her about surgery and Along with Helene ("HH") and Frank's correspondence, the gradual expansion of Helene's communication to others working in the shop, Frank's wife, and, ultimately, his daughters, paint a poignant picture of the significant roles the pen pals played in each other's lives.

Lingate was found dead under suspicious circumstances below the cliffs of Capri, leaving behind her young daughter Helen, determined to get to the bottom of her mother 's death, begins to dig into the truth, uncovering Patric Gagne always knew she didn't feel emotions the way other people did. She wasn't concerned with consequences, danger, or other people's feelings. When she was a girl, she adhered to her mother's rule of always telling her the truth--but the truth

She's days away from bringing her daughter and aging father to meet her husband in Michigan. Majumdar twists the situation between thief and mother, continually shifting the reader's loyalties as She's somewhat of a loner, part of a beloved family, and a merchant's daughter, but she's plainly dressed But when the king personally arrives at her workshop, desperate for help with his sole surviving daughter rural Sawyer, Tennessee, teenaged Cash mows lawns and lives with his beloved grandparents since his mother's

I loved the father-daughter bond, and Opal is a wonderfully quirky, self-possessed young person. Raine was a wealthy orphan--one of two daughters born to a white British father and an Indian mother, and her three grown daughters as Lara recounts the surprisingly layered story of her youthful romance In Ann Patchett's newest novel, Tom Lake, Lara's three young-adult daughters reunite at the family's But when Lara shares aspects of a life lived before her children existed, her daughters are led to consider

out early on that she faces the impending loss of her sight, that she is somewhat estranged from her daughter Mad and her mother have run their farm in Coalfield, Tennessee, ever since Mad's father disappeared twenty relationship issues, while young Vera tries to simply make a friend at school and find her biological mother In 1982, Dawn, a young mother in a fine but loveless marriage finds happiness in a socially unacceptable relationship, and the legal backlash causes her to lose custody of--and contact with--her beloved young daughter

Her bitter mother has just had another baby, and her various other siblings are fighting for resources Her home life is hectic, hardscrabble, and emotionally cold, but she has never known life to be any other She has plenty to eat, useful work to do, she learns to love books, she finds laughter. of the story collections Antarctica and Walk the Blue Fields as well as the novella The Forester's Daughter

Jack Troy and his oldest daughter Ronnie are coping with complicated family dynamics in their drafty, Ronnie, a single and dutiful daughter, has grown up in the shadow of her father, who has long been set But an unwed mother in that time and place has little chance of keeping a child once the Church has a You can find Bossy reviews of other novels set in Ireland here and more reviews of literary fiction

She wasn't concerned with consequences, danger, or other people's feelings. When she was a girl, she adhered to her mother's rule of always telling her the truth--but the truth seemingly made her mother (and everyone else) upset. partner, parent, or daughter. yearning to exert violence on others.

hasn't before, she grows fully into herself, and she has difficult conversations she's avoided (the daughter-in-law /mother-in-law discomfort and rehashing of old grievances resolves messily-beautifully, in satisfying You might also want to check out these other Bossy reviews of books about books and books that deal with

She's a little creaky and sore, sure, but she's ready to be reunited with the team, which includes her mother and the rest of her family, plus many others involved in the complex project. But Divya is too busy crafting strong female main protagonists (complete with working mother guilt, which young adult science fiction novel Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves, young Sena has lost both of her mothers His personal situation is complicated by his grief for his recently deceased daughter, and he aims to

also the author of books such as The Jackal's Mistress, Hour of the Witch, Skeletons at the Feast, and others NetGalley and Doubleday Books. 02 Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monaghan Single mom Dolly Brick (her mother Add in complications like her solemn promise to her daughter to return home soon, her best friend's lies

The lonely, broken characters reach out to each other. The situation quickly becomes dark and twisted, and Slaughter builds tension without red herrings or In Karin Slaughter's We Are All Guilty Here , Emmy Clifton is a police officer for whom the job is all So when Emmy's best friend's teen daughter Madison brushes her off, then shows up, needy and asking for Jane is a young single mother and a librarian at the New York Public Library.

In one timeline, an abused wife makes a stand for a whimsical name suggested by her daughter Maia, Bear produces a vastly different boy, a significantly shaped sister Maia, drastically different paths for mother Supporting characters make easter-egg appearances in other timelines. Time I love a story that plays with time through alternate timelines, time travel, second chances, or other

Michelle Moran is also the author of Cleopatra's Daughter. 02 James by Percival Everett In James , Percival James is secretly teaching other enslaved people to read; sneaking to delve into the library of books Percival Everett is also the author of Erasure , Assumption , Wounded , The Trees , and other books. path to figuring out her life that mainly entails defying most of the stereotypes of a young single mother father; she loses two roommates due to the baby's crying; she receives little practical help from her mother

imaginable at her two main protagonists, best friends living in the Deep South, both without their mothers Both grew up without mothers, but then their paths diverged. Annie became increasingly fixated on her mother's absence, and her search for her place in the world live day-to-day life because of her obsession with her mother's absence. On the other hand, Niecy's mother died in a tragic manner, so there's no hope of a second chance at a

Both grew up without mothers, but then their paths diverged. live day-to-day life because of her obsession with her mother's absence. Lady Tremaine is single-minded about protecting her daughters and trying to secure futures for them in Lady Tremaine to use the respectability of her deceased husband's title to secure invitations for her daughters She and her beloved partner and two daughters live peacefully, and Saoirse often paints the members of

She works alongside her family, also caring for the plantation owners' daughter Violet and gaining cursory Nineteen-year-old Jakob Novis is engaged in top-secret work alongside other bright minds, trying to crack father died long ago, and Lizzie just couldn't stand to leave the last country where they saw their mother When Lizzie finds a secret notebook of her mother's, she becomes more determined than ever to solve the You can find my reviews of other World War II-focused books here , and you can also check out my review

small town, where tragedy in the form of evil white men took their father from them and left their mother The other twin marries a dark-skinned black man and lives as a black woman. months in the life of an extended family--including a stolid patriarch and matriarch, a free-spirited daughter , a spunky and fantastic granddaughter Gussie, a daughter with another grandchild on the way, a deadbeat She is facing her mother’s decline in health and exploring her own identity and meaning in her life,

straddles the line between novel and memoir in a work whose heart is a love letter to her extraordinary mother family home in New England and travels to her mother's favorite city, London. in order to share scenes from her mother's extraordinary spirit and life. The blurred line between fact and fiction allows the true heart of the book, a daughter's wonder, grief , joy, and yearning for her lost mother, to shine.

Sophie Chen Keller's love story to music and the bonds between mothers and sons plunges the reader into Song is a poor, single, devoted mother who secretly brings her young son River with her when she cleans Mother and son spend days, then weeks, then months and longer searching for each other, even as their from quitting piano altogether and becomes set on winning a famous competition in order to garner his mother's wherever she is--the book shifts into an urgency that mirrors that of the earlier, traumatic scenes when mother

I'm reading Virginia Evans's charming epistolary novel The Correspondent ; and I'm listening to Karin Slaughter's Anyhoo, I feel like this book and I have been circling each other since early May, and I am so delighted In Karin Slaughter's We Are All Guilty Here , Emmy Clifton is a police officer for whom the job is all So when Emmy's best friend's teen daughter Madison brushes her off, then shows up, needy and asking for Karin Slaughter is the author of approximately 25 books.

Tales of Brave World War II Women Other titles I considered listing here were the Bossy five-star read Are there any others you would include on a list of World War II heroines? The golem and heron and other ethereal elements could have been distracting, but they worked to add a I was fascinated by the two points of view (mother and daughter) and the two time periods (World War and compromises, and she is fearful of Trudy's potential reaction to the heartbreaking truths of her mother's

I'm reading Liz Moore's newest mystery, set in a 1975 Adirondack summer camp where the young camper daughter Sarah Rees Brennan is also the author of the fantastic character-driven young-adult fantasy In Other For other books that take a sympathetic, darkly playful view of a villain, check out Hench and Starter She's Barbara Van Lear, the daughter of the owners of the camp where many local residents work. In the seven years since, Belle's mother has reinvented herself as a society woman and has remarried,

In 1982, Dawn, a young mother in a fine but loveless marriage finds happiness in a socially unacceptable relationship, and the legal backlash causes her to lose custody of--and contact with--her beloved young daughter Maggie is unaware of the particular circumstances around her parents' divorce and the reason for her mother's Benjamin Rask is a ruthless, outrageously successful Wall Street tycoon, and his beloved wife Helen is the daughter relationship issues, while young Vera tries to simply make a friend at school and find her biological mother

imaginable at her two main protagonists, best friends living in the Deep South, both without their mothers Both grew up without mothers, but then their paths diverged. Annie's almost-constant focus on her mother's abandonment began to feel overpowering; she is unable to live day-to-day life because of her obsession with her mother's absence. She and her beloved partner and two daughters live peacefully, and Saoirse often paints the members of

Since her mother Defne went into a coma and never woke up, young loner Ada Kazantzakis has continued Elif Shafak is also the author of There Are Rivers in the Sky, Three Daughters of Eve, The Forty Rules of Love, The Bastard of Istanbul, The Architect's Apprentice, and many other novels.

A friend's borrowed, rambling home becomes a refuge for unwed mothers and mothers-to-be, with the women spending moments with those lost to us) or evil (creating a whirlwind of negative feeling that shapes others I loved the father-daughter bond, and Opal is a wonderfully quirky, self-possessed young person.

I’m dying to know how closely Anita Abriel’s book traces the inspiring events from her mother’s incredible For my full review of this book, please see Florence Adler Swims Forever . 05 Call Your Daughter Home But she and the other characters were developed fully. Their sparks of joy are often related to their relationships to each other. For my full review, please see Call Your Daughter Home . 06 The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue Donoghue

Cordelia is careful not to upset her mother. It's just the two of them, and in their world, her mother rules. The only creature she trusts is her mother's white horse Falada, to whom she tells all of her private But, she finds, to her heartbreak, even Falada is under her mother's control. She is made to be magically "obedient" to her mother, and as such she is incapable of warning others.

I omitted two other titles that likely deserve to appear here as well: I left off Calamity Club because Tehran is historical fiction that begins in 1950s Tehran, where young Ellie lives in opulence with her mother But after her father's untimely death, daughter and mother quickly face the hard reality of women's inability own lives, the friends dramatically diverge in their life goals--marriage for one, activism for the other body autonomy, pregnancy challenges, and societal and professional issues for women who might become mothers

the memoir from actress Jennette McCurdy about being raised by a manipulative, emotionally unstable mother Jennette became a child actress at 6 in order to please her mother, pushing down her own anxiety and disinclination to be the center of attention--and eventually committing to her mother's idea of "calorie Her mother's volatile emotions; upsetting and controlling manner; pushy actions; mental, emotional, and physical abuse; and disturbing codependence with her young daughter make for an uncomfortable read.

She and her partner and two daughters live peacefully, and Saoirse often paints the members of her beloved school English teacher who leans on her close-knit, longtime book club for support, reason, venting, and laughter Quindlen is also the author of After Annie , One True Thing , Every Last Thing , Object Lessons , and other

Within the complex web of his father's harsh manner, his mother's abandonment, his childhood best friend's and to those in other Strout books. A run-in with her old school crush Sam, her daughter's move from home, and stress and uncertainty at The man turns out to be Eddie Triplett, Daphne's long-lost stepfather, the second of her mother's three nor heard from after a car accident that occurred when she was a young girl and Eddie and Daphne's mother

young Meg, who suffers cruelty in an orphanage after the disappearance and abandonment of her beloved mother body autonomy, pregnancy challenges, and societal and professional issues for women who might become mothers Lady Tremaine is single-minded about protecting her daughters and trying to secure futures for them in Lady Tremaine to use the respectability of her deceased husband's title to secure invitations for her daughters You might also be interested in Bossy reviews of other retellings.

Birdie's a single mother to Emaleen and a waitress in a small Alaskan town. She's days away from bringing her daughter and aging father to meet her husband in Michigan. Majumdar twists the situation between thief and mother, continually shifting the reader's loyalties as fallibility, whether through sacrificing or trying to protect each other. Seventeen-year-old Charlie, the twins, their father Noah, and their mother Lorelei, an AI leader, are

Her mother is presented sympathetically while coming off as odd, and Lockwood herself takes on a somewhat Her mother confided her darkest secrets to young Brodeur as though she was a friend, and she drew the But the story was ultimately more about an emotionally stunted mother, her codependence on her adolescent daughter, and how the author unraveled the many smothering ties to the woman whose conditional love is a measured writer who thoughtfully considers her youth, her infatuation with and reliance on her mother

Yet some characters make undeniable, unlikely, essential connections with each other. The real-life story of the challenge of Brown's education, his extremely dedicated mother, and his labored (He points to letters on a laminated board and waits for his mother to confirm his words; this is how thoughts and feelings and how he dictated the entirety of this novel, and this obviously requires his mother Other Books You Might Like You might also be interested in my Bossy reviews of other novels featuring

in a squirrelly example of "everything is for sale," those with enough money (Mind Capital) can buy others Our unnamed narrator inherits his mother's banned memories, and he enters into her saved collection while We dip in and out of his perspective and are immersed with him in each of his mother's curated memories The novel illustrates the bravery of unassuming mothers, the way stories offer hope, and how sharing For other Bossy reviews of books about memory, check out the titles at this link .

Phil is a supportive and relaxed dad, in contrast to Sibyl, the mother of the Samuelson clan, who isn't very patient, frequently seems irritated and even revolted by her daughters, and often makes critical set scenes of the times, and for the sprawling interconnected characters and their caring for each other

Patchett's newest novel Whistler, about a reconnected stepfather and stepdaughter who are dear to each other The man turns out Daphne's long-lost stepfather, the second of her mother's three husbands, and a beloved State of Wonder, Run, Bel Canto, The Dutch House, The Magician's Assistant, These Precious Days, and other Then his gruff father calls him home to their rural Scottish island to help take care of Cal's mother's mother, who is sick and lives with Cal's father--her ex-son-in-law.