Tag: literary fiction

— Adult, ARC review, book review —

Cracked Pots by Heather Tucker (ARC Review)

December 29, 2022

The unforgettable and tender new novel from the author of the acclaimed Indie Next List pick The Clay Girl Natasha, the perfect girl, from the nicest family, has vanished … For once in Ari Appleton’s life, this mayhem is not the fault of her twisted mother or dead father — or is it? From the waning flower-power ’60s in Toronto, through her East Coast university years, Ari fights to discover who she is and what it means to be the child of an addicted mother and depraved father. With wit, tenacity, and the incessant meddling of Jasper — the seahorse in her head — Ari rides turbulent waves of devilry and discovery, calamity and creation, abandonment and atonement on a journey to find her true self, and to find Natasha. Cracked Pots is a story about a girl broken by both cruelty and truth. It is a revelation: that destiny is shaped in clay, not stone. It is also a celebration: of rising after the blows, gathering the fragments, and piecing together a remarkable life through creativity, kindness, and belonging… Read More Cracked Pots by Heather Tucker (ARC Review)

— Adult, ARC review, book review —

Red Island House by Andrea Lee (ARC Review)

May 4, 2021

Shay is surprised when her husband Senna declares his intention to build her a spectacular dream house on an idyllic beach in the tropical island nation of Madagascar. But the Red Island House casts a spell from the moment she sees it, and before she knows it Shay has become the somewhat reluctant mistress of a sprawling household, caught between her privileged American upbringing and education, and her connection to the continent of her ancestors. At first, she’s content to be an observer of the passionate affairs and fierce ambitions and rivalries around her. But as she and her husband raise children and establish their own rituals on the island, Shay finds herself drawn ever deeper into an extraordinary place with its own laws and logic, a provocative paradise full of magic and myth whose fraught colonial legacy continues to reverberate. Soon the collision of cultures comes right to Shay’s door, forcing her to make a life-altering decision.… Read More Red Island House by Andrea Lee (ARC Review)

— monthly wrap-up —

Monthly Wrap-Up (December 2016)

January 1, 2017

Somehow 2017 has snuck up on us, and 2016 has come to an end. While some of us celebrate the memories and achievements from the past year, others are glad to see 2016 go. And then there are those who feel a little bit of both, and I am one of those people.

— Adult, book review —

The Conjoined by Jen Sookfong Lee [Review]

December 8, 2016

Title: The Conjoined Author: Jen Sookfong Lee Type: Fiction Genre: Literary Fiction, Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Publisher: ECW Press Date published: September 13, 2016 Format: Paperback Page Count: 272 Source: Publisher A physical copy of the book was kindly provided by the publisher, in exchange for an honest review. Summary: On a sunny May morning, social worker Jessica Campbell sorts through… Read More The Conjoined by Jen Sookfong Lee [Review]