Current Reviews
FAIRY TALE, by Stephen King
Fairy Tale is not even close to my favorite Stephen King novel, but the first 100 or so pages alone are like a charming, compelling novella; and worth the entire book. Then, the author leads us into an elaborate fantasy world. He creates situations, invents characters who are fascinatingly original and vividly imagined, and then somehow combines them into narratives that seem almost believable; and then weaves anecdote and events into captivating, compelling yarns.
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GLASS HOUSES, by Louise Penny
In Glass Houses Chief Inspector Gamache becomes involved in a complicated murder case that includes drug dealing between Quebec and Vermont as well as personal relationships in the distant past. At the heart is a cobrador, or a figure from the ancient past in Europe, who is "a conscience" for people who have misbehaved. Gamache's plan to solve it all involves officials in the police world, the courts, and the little world of Three Pines.
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THE BERRY PICKERS, by Amanda Peters
Set in 1962, a Mi'kmah tribe family travels from Nova Scotia to Maine to harvest berries as migrant workers. This has been a regular summer event for them, but one afternoon, the family's youngest child, four-year-old Ruthie, disappears. All efforts to find Ruthie fail and, her six-year-old brother Joe, the last one to see her, is haunted about this for the rest of his life.
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THE WOMEN, by Kristin Hannah
This novel centers on the life of Frances "Frankie" McGrath, a San Diego debutante who has been living a somewhat sheltered life with her conservative parents on the beach on Coronado Island. When her beloved brother, Finley, is killed in action in Vietnam, Frankie is inspired to do her part and enlists as an Army nurse against the strong wishes of her parents. Pushed by the doctors, she becomes a first-class nurse in a front-line field hospital experiencing the frantic and difficult job of keeping severely wounded soldiers alive.
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TOMORROW, AND TOMORROW, AND TOMORROW, by Gabrielle Zevin
This is a classic bildungsroman, a coming-of-age story, a journey of loss, friendship, and personal growth. The characters are complex and experience universal feelings that we all go through during life and the author, Gabrielle Zevin, captures them and writes this novel spanning 30 years beautifully.
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