But search parties, flyovers, and rescue dogs come up empty day after day. witness to 76-year-old, wheelchair-bound Lena's retirement-community existence and her rigid existence after

exploring, while also delving into our main protagonist's deep grief and fight to find her footing again after The books become a touchstone each month during that first difficult year after Joe's death.

It seemed very odd that Millie--who is so focused on goals, doing her duty, behaving in a manner that's beyond reproach, and keeping her head down--didn't feel squirrelly about this setup, and that she didn't ever are just versions of what she was willing to go along with--without asking any questions--from the very After an unlikely moment of tragedy upends everything, each character seems to misinterpret it and also this culminating situation of neglectful, inept damage that is ultimately inflicted by practically every

01 Kin by Tayari Jones Jones throws every issue imaginable at her two main protagonists, best friends accounts that feel whitewashed or wiped of women due to sexism, Cleopatra recognizes that those who come after Waldo is a seventeen-year-old senior working at Victoria's Secret after school, binge-buying cheap clothing Evans mentioned another epistolary book, the 1970 classic memoir 84, Charing Cross Road , and I hadn't ever

Jen Hatmaker's memoir explores her shock, grief, then growth after the end of her marriage, which she family and friends, her discovery of her own strength, and the midlife renaissance she experienced after

those days boiled down into one intense burst of color, or to have the pin removed from the thorax every different boy, a significantly shaped sister Maia, drastically different paths for mother Cora, and altered

author Maggie O'Farrell's newest novel (out tomorrow), historical fiction about an Irish father and son after of mine, and in her newest novel, she offers a historical fiction work centered around Ireland just after years but hasn't played since she was a young woman whose love for the game was crushed before she ever

01 Woman of Light by Kali Fajardo-Anstine There is one every generation, a seer who keeps the stories Little Light” Lopez is a tea leaf reader and laundress in 1930s Denver who is trying to fend for herself after job, offering incredibly lucrative terms and making demands in return about the story's release only after Robin is trying to keep the household afloat after the deaths of his parents, to support his bright,

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading a favorite author's upcoming novella, The Summer War by Naomi 01 The Summer War by Naomi Novik Naomi Novik is one of my very favorite authors, and I'm excited to read her upcoming novella The Summer War , to be published September 16. The key might lie within the centuries-old war her people have waged against the summerlings--and the

listening to How to End a Love Story, a story by Yulin Kuang about two young adults whose paths cross years after 01 The Phoenix Crown by Kate Quinn and Janie Chang In 1906 San Francisco, two very different women seek and owner of the mysterious Phoenix Crown, an artifact legendary because of its origins in Beijing's Summer

shaped by choices out of our control and her reckoning with the way in which she considers her body after Harriet Kline Kline's poignant, lovely book explores a family's emotional missteps and enduring love after Harriet Kline's This Shining Life tracks Ollie's attempts to make sense of things after his father Rich's The author saved every one of her grandmother's voicemails, and here she uses them--along with emails Alexander shares the trauma surrounding this enormous loss--which occurred days after Ghebreyesus's fiftieth

My very favorite Bossy February reads! between details of a life of moneyed ease and an abandonment on an unforgiving, uninhabited island after Marguerite is heir to a fortune, but after she is orphaned, she grows into a young lady while her guardian Her voice is a striking, uniquely nasal Southern drawl, and her Netflix special "I'm Every Woman" features But after his younger sister Lizzie evades her grandmother's attempts to bring her from England to the

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 This was funny, sweet, steamy, and poignant--a fantastic summer light-fiction read that I loved. year, when their friends surprise Harriet upon her arrival with the fact that Win was able to come after

doing so may require her to jump into Green's timeline, and she knows that there's no assurance she'll ever A meeting of the two characters could alter their lives forever. I was very close to abandoning the book. But I'm glad I stuck with it. later point of view made for a far more cohesive story--and that's saying something, as the novel is, after

Are the strange coordinates she's receiving on her phone after seven years a message from Luke? Niall, the single-minded, lovable oaf of a hostage negotiator reels after the siege. While Camilla struggles to manage her single-parenting life and career after the tragedy, Luke's disappearance

Not every title fits neatly in this category; one is a grandmother's story as told by a granddaughter After long months of mystery and suffering, she received a diagnosis: acute myeloid leukemia and a rare various early road bumps he encountered, and his dogged determination--which was admittedly shaken after relationship with his father to sharing how he attempted to cope with the loss of his mother decades after He takes the reader on a roller coaster of emotions, and I love every bit of it.

The ending isn't unexpected, but it does feel hard-fought and satisfying. 04 Life After Life by Kate In Life After Life, Atkinson focuses her literary fiction lens on the character of Ursula, her relationships I read (listened to) the immersive story about do-overs from Kate Atkinson, Life After Life, at the recommendation Click here for my full review of Life After Life. 05 In Five Years by Rebecca Serle Dannie is on the aimed to help her sleep during this difficult time induces an incredible side effect: when she sleeps after

The messy resolutions felt appropriately hard-fought after the characters' extended struggles. Sonia is living away from her Indian family while she studies writing in Vermont, and after growing up

Night We Met (Say You'll Remember Me #2) by Abby Jimenez Larissa made a split-second decision one night after After her stepdaughter garners the attention of royalty , Lady Tremaine discovers a destructive secret

We don't know what we're buying until after we experience it. neuroscientists and psychologists that the teenage brain is still maturing throughout high school...every Jeffrey Selingo is also the author of College Unbound and There Is Life After College.

But when Frank's brother shoots a dog going after the family's sheep, the gunshot sets into motion events Broken Country is a study of an extreme, life-and-death-stakes fallout after heartbreaking tragedy,

, and just as I do every year, I loved my historical fiction reads in 2023. to bite her tongue, and she feels like the poor treatment her husband shows her may be deserved, as after life's purpose is meant to be made up of motherhood, catering to her husband's needs, and keeping house, after best (and only) friend Jacob is sent to serve overseas in the Korean War, Blackburn promises to look after The two had eloped just months after meeting, which led to Jacob's being disowned by his wealthy family

The story explores cycles and links through history, considering how each of us may live on after we're The intersection of the two characters alters their lives forever.

Danger and darkness lurk around every corner for grumpy, powerful El and her classmates. In The Golden Enclaves, the third installment of the series, an allied force of students faces the aftermath are separated; greed, power plays, and corruption are as present in the worldwide magical enclaves as ever the weight of the world on their shoulders--and it really does seem to be up to them to save everyone after

Lila has planned her million-dollar wedding down to the last detail, and Phoebe's depression and her very For the rest of our lives, every time one of us goes somewhere and doesn’t return on time, doesn’t let After meeting for the first time, Michael, a recently divorced teacher, studious and thoughtful, and Marnie, a playful copy editor who prefers solitude after her own divorce, fall into a companionable rhythm I loved this literary fiction--the increasing vulnerability and search for connection after heartache

My very favorite Bossy April reads! But when Frank's brother shoots a dog going after the family's sheep, the gunshot sets into motion events Broken Country  is a study of an extreme, life-and-death-stakes fallout after heartbreaking tragedy, Garg offers an honest, funny account of overcoming sobering challenges and determining her own destiny after If Raybourn keeps writing this series, I'll read every last installment.

I loved every bit of this story. Rumors, long-simmering conflicts, clashing loyalties, and Barnes's personal tragedy all complicate the best (and only) friend Jacob is sent to serve overseas in the Korean War, Blackburn promises to look after The two had eloped just months after meeting, which led to Jacob's being disowned by his wealthy family

After being involved in multiple disasters in only her first day of classes, she fears college may become And there's an interesting boy she keeps running into, regardless of which paths and options she alters yourself on the line for other people, the bravery of falling in love, and the importance of treasuring every Meanwhile Frida gives birth to a child, Wanda, who she names after the storm, and who has a special gift that she couldn't hack medical school--she just didn't go the first day, or the second, or any day after

Masks bestow upon the wearers the instincts, abilities, and reaction times of the animals after which But the mask Wylla is after also turns out to be sentient, and if she's going to wear the mask, she'll

The cruelty is real, and tough to take, but when, after the first grim, nerve-racking section ends, we Context doesn't erase the horrors that we read about initially, but it softens some of the blows after

Atkinson is also the author of Case Histories, Behind the Scenes at the Museum, Life After Life, Human Time to Panic by Kevin Wilson Sixteen-year-old aspiring writer Frankie is just trying to get through summer

Bay, Alabama, seems to attract the strongest of hurricanes, and the only building that's withstood every wrapped-up, satisfying ending although (as becomes apparent in relatively early foreshadowing) not every

inspiration follow--along with danger and and uncertain implications for the future in this atmospheric, eerie In a near-death experience, Thomas hallucinates an afterlife, encounters his father, and understands (I wasn't convinced that this experience and the "return to life" that occurs afterward weren't all part to reflect a recovery from almost dying and a fresh start with hopeful new directions indicated for every This slim story (the book is 176 pages) is eerie and unforgettable.

with his peers, reflecting on the works and his reactions to them, and searching for and finding peace after Patrick Bringley, a former New Yorker  staffer, after facing the tragic death of his beloved brother, spent in full-time work standing and observing and contemplating seems to have allowed him some healing after

After Tova Sullivan's husband died, she began working the night shift at her local aquarium as a custodian 03 How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question by Michael Schur In How to Be Perfect

dare from her daughter, she hopped onto an open mic stage, spouted off comedic takes on her life, and after Garg offers an honest, funny account of overcoming sobering challenges and determining her own destiny after At the very beginning the pacing felt a little uneven to me, but then Garg hit her stride, and I was

exploring, while also delving into our main protagonist's deep grief and fight to find her footing again after The books become a touchstone each month during that first difficult year after Joe's death. Cleo and Ethan find themselves in a nightmare of grief: their daughter Daisy dies at the hospital soon after After a time the mystery is no longer a mystery; the main unknown is which form the community's renegade

and community in a crisis and in common suffering, and figuring out the impossible: how to move on after Edward tries on the mantle of taking responsibility for every life lost; he wallows in the despair of Nothing is too easy here, nor is it ever melodramatic in Napolitano’s hands. I loved this book. of dying, death, appreciating the beauty of the impermanence of our lives, planning for loved ones after

she rides her mule Eugenia through all the hollers and up through the mountains, delivering sought-after local schoolchildren) by the local doctor and his colleagues, initially so insistent about studying every

fantasy novel: a wonderfully oddball main protagonist, a strange adventure, a mystery to be solved, and simmering . 03 Awake: A Memoir by Jen Hatmaker Jen Hatmaker's memoir explores her shock, grief, then growth after The messy resolutions felt appropriately hard-fought after the characters' extended struggles. Sonia is living away from her Indian family while she studies writing in Vermont, and after growing up

mother's three husbands and a beloved figure from Daphne's childhood--whom she never saw nor heard from after This is lovely, poignant, and unexpected--and it's possibly my favorite Ann Patchett novel ever, certainly

01 Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle Every time Daphne Bell meets a potential love interest, she receives Rebecca Serle is also the author of One Italian Summer, In Five Years, and other novels. 02 Listen for

After a canceled flight, a carload of people head on a cross-country journey to the "poppy fields," as One had a rejected application, one is a hopeful participant, one lost a brother after he spent time

They were all in the closet, with the minuscule footed pajamas and hand-knit baby hats, and every day Award-winner Redeployment , the author shares short stories about war and the jarring entry into life afterward powerful emotions, troops haunted by decisions and unforeseen dangers, painful adjustments to life after

his family's cattle farm in Iceland, appreciating the beauty of nature, the relief in green shoots after But he yearns to see more of the world, and after he journeys to Reykjavik to study at the university

Lockwood notes that she is not a Christian but is very much “of” the church because of her upbringing But it's truly unlike anything I have ever read, and the second section, which is an enormous departure wonders about whether she has a claim to beloved extended relatives who shaped her life but are not, after issues; and she considers her potential legacy to her own child—all while panicking about who she is after This is every reader's catch-22: the more you read, the more you realize you haven't read; the more you

pleasure, and saw that I was on the brink of squandering a wondrous gift, the gift of being allowed, every day, to wander this vast sensual paradise, this grand marketplace lovingly stocked with every sublime

I've been listening to two great, very different books and reading a third. After Hitler's invasion of Russia, Mila becomes a lethal hunter of Nazis who earns the nickname Lady to herself, she's kind of cynical, she doesn't have a lot of friends, and she's holding true to form after favorite romantic, light stories in the Greedy Reading List Six Great Light Fiction Stories Perfect for Summer

In Sloane Crosley's memoir Grief Is for People , she explores life after the loss of her closest friend with his peers, reflecting on the works and his reactions to them, and searching for and finding peace after Patrick Bringley, a former New Yorker  staffer, after facing the tragic death of his beloved brother, adored this element--possibly because with a senior in high school, I am also facing enormous pending alterations Hamptons store Barefoot Contessa--necessitating extended time apart from Jeffrey and, eventually, a very

Trace Temple is a disillusioned, angry young man whose family lost its ranch after hard times.