Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth

 

I picked this one up because I needed something different than the heavy lit fic or not so heavy rom com’s that are my usual fare. To be fair, I do not read horror and am not big on thrillers because my imagination is so active, and I have trouble sleeping with all the horrible possibilities. But Darling Girls was highly recommended, so I dove in.

First, if you are triggered by child abuse, this is not the book for you. The characters are former foster kids who are placed with a woman who is not what she appears to be, a sweet, lovely woman. The story is told from three viewpoints (through most of the bool.) Three young girls are fostered by Miss Fairchild. The girls forge a sisterhood of protection when they must revisit all they suffered as children to help solve a crime.

As all good thrillers, this is a page turner. The characters are complex and damaged, and it will take until the last page to figure this one out.

Lucky by Jane Smiley

 

So great to have a new novel by Jane Smiley!  Her main character in Lucky, Jodie Rattler is so authentic I needed to check early in the book to see if this was an actual memoir, or in fact, fiction. Detail oriented and epic in the timeline, we learn about Jodie’s music, musical career (and many of her lover’s and walks at the various places she lived!) At times heartbreaking, at times filled with love and optimism, and always filled with the kind of existential angst those of us who grew up in the sixties experienced firsthand, Lucky is a snapshot of the age through one woman’s life.

The ending surprised me, and I struggled with it. I admit it simply may be a bit beyond me. Other than that, I enjoyed reading Lucky. Thanks to NetGalley and Alfred Knopf for the advance readers copy. The book was published April 23, 2024

 

The Evolution of Annabel Craig by Lisa Grunwald

 

  Lisa Grunwald has the unique skill of bringing historical periods to life as though they are the current events. The Evolution of Annabel Craig is no exception. Annabel is a happy, observant Methodist who prays on her knees every night. Born in 1910 and raised amid Prohibition and the infancy of the Women’s Movement, Annabel lives on a strawberry farm. While her family works the farm, her father runs it. As soon as the season is over, her mother travels the countryside teaching women how to preserver tomatoes. Annabel, her only child, goes along, and learns important lessons at her mother’s side. But Annabel’s parents succumb to the Spanish flu in 1918 and Annabel must leave her bucolic countryside. She moves to Dayton Tennessee, with the camera she inherited from her father. Along with a budding career in photography, she also meets and marries John Craig, a local lawyer who will go on to be part of the defense team, led by Clarence Darrow, of John Scopes. 

The “Scopes Monkey Trial” didn’t put on trial the details of evolution, but the battle of science and faith. As I read, the parallels to the struggles of America in 2024 echo the struggle of 100 years earlier. We have had our pandemic and now we have polarized belief again centralized around science and reality against constructionists who believe that veering away from the literal interpretation of the Bible will be our ruin.

As a lawyer, I felt the lows and highs of the defense team, but I don’t think I needed that background to appreciate the complexity and fear Grunwald was able to instill in her wonderfully drawn characters. I cheered for Annabel along the way, as she more closely resembles the “liberal” that is so often eschewed today. She wants to understand, and she wants to make room for her beliefs. I hope you read it to see how she does.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Penguin Random House, for this review copy. The Evolution of Annabel Craig publishes on April 16 ,2024.

 

Off the Air by Christina Estes

 

Off the Air by Christina Estes

Award winning journalist Christina Estes gives a detailed and frank view inside news organizations, both local and network. She knows her subject matter and shares the good, and the ugly, of this profession. Her protagonist, Jolene Garcia, is hot on a story concerning the death of a right-wing, radical, radio personality. The competition is palpable, and none of the characters are particularly likable. Estes paints a cutthroat business in a polarized world.

Yet the book has bright spots-- I was particularly amused by the protagonists relationship with her goldfish, Oscar.--and the mystery is complicated. There are plenty of misleading clues to keep the reader from figuring it out too soon. If who-dunnits are your jam, you’ll like this one. Estes is a skilled writer. Her style is journalistic, meaning you won’t get much depth with the characters and though the landscape is rich, the setting is minimal.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s for the review copy. The book was published on March 26, 2024.

 

Dominoes by Phoebe McIntosh

Layla is a light skinned Londoner whose mother is Jamaican and whose father is black. Her best friend and grandfather are also black, but Layla’s boyfriends have almost exclusively been white. When she gets serious about Andy McKinnon, her best friend’s tolerance of the situation, especially in the year of the George Floyd’s death, disappears. Since Andy and Layla have the same last name, and since Andy’s ancestors are proud Scots, Sera, the best friend, posits that Andy’s ancestors actually owned Layla’s. That is enough for Sera to render Andy and Layla forbidden to marry. But Andy and Layla love each other.

 

Layla is not immune to the Sera’s concern. The book lets the reader follow both the research and logic that these characters must go through to determine what is right. Sera is consumed by anger, fueled by continued persecution and discrimination still prevalent against black people. Layla has the guilt of one who “passes” and yet, she doesn’t want to be angry. “’

“Action is more important than anger,” Layla discovers, but what action is right for her?

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for this thought provoking and interesting read. Dominoes was released on March 12, 2024.

The Underground Library by Jennifer Ryan 5*

 

 

I admit that I have read so many books set in World War II that I am a skeptic whenever a new one comes out. That said, I loved this book. The characters are well drawn and having finished the book, I find myself wishing I were still reading it, because I miss them.

The story gives color to the facts of war. Women join the workforce because the men are off fighting. Romances are condensed, rushed, and focused. The main character, Juliet, is an ambitious young woman from a well-off family who only wish for her to marry well, Juliet loves books though, and is thrilled to find a position at the Bethnal Green Library in London, at the beginning of the Blitz. She is full of ideas, which are not received well by the men in charge. Operating with some subterfuge, Juliet enlists the assistance of woman in the community…all wonderful characters themselves, to implement her ideas.

Then the library is bombed, and thus begins the underground library.

This is a wonderful story for anyone who loves books, libraries, and women with their own mind. While it is reminiscent of The Paris Library, by Janet Charles, (another good book!) this book is different in spirit and the setting of London is unique and endearing. Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine/Random House for the review copy. This book releases March 12, 2024.

Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle: 4 stars

 

 Daphne is a thirty-three-year-old Hollywood professional who has secrets. The one that frames this delightful novel is the one about the papers she receives periodically, containing only a name and a period of time. These are the relationships she experiences, with men she has recently met. The source of the papers is not revealed, and there are enough of them to convince Daphne that they are factual. Whether they are because that is fate, or because she goes into them focused on the expiration date, is for the reader to decide.

The other secret gives gravitas to why Daphne lives this way, and as a reader, I wish we’d been told about it earlier in the book…sorry, no spoilers here. Frankly, I was tired of reading about her romantic exploits by the time we find out why, despite Serle’s lovely writing.

It is well written and an easy read, with a premise I’ve not read before. A nice book that is more than fluff, but not so much more that it exhausts me, as some books have this year! Thanks to NetGalley and Atria for the review copy!

Great Expectations by Vinson Cunningha

 

Great Expectations is the story of the author’s recruitment to the first Obama campaign, detailing the issues he faced as a fundraiser. It’s an authentic and readable work, and the author’s voice speaks with first-hand authority. He is young when the story begins, his early twenties. He tends to fill the gaps of what must have been a challenging time with diversions—religion, basketball, friends, and lovers. The story shines by giving us an inside look at what really goes on in a campaign, even one fueled by what was supposed to be a grass roots movement. It also shines as the authors considers his own place in the world. He stands for not only the young people who were such a force in the Obama campaign, but also for his black friends, neighbors, and family. There are some wonderful segments discussing historical issues, as well as this remarkable time in the USA. Cunningham is an excellent writer, and I look forward to reading more of his work. Thanks to NetGalley and Hogarth, and imprint of Random House, for the review copy. The book was released on March 12, 2024.