I finally got around to reading one of the most talked about books of 2020, and before I get into my review of TJ Klune’s The House in the Cerulean Sea (TOR 2020), I want to briefly touch on the problematic aspects of the novel, or as is the case, of the author. During anContinue reading “The HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA – TJ Klune”
Author Archives: Tommi Powell
SALT TO THE SEA – Ruta Sepetys
Ruta Sepetys’s Salt to the Sea (Penguin Books 2016) was a bit of a surprise. It’s been hanging out on my TBR for several years now, but I didn’t much know what to expect when I finally picked it up. As I’ve never read Sepetys before, I’m not sure if the snapshot-style alternating narration isContinue reading “SALT TO THE SEA – Ruta Sepetys”
LEGENDBORN – Tracy Deonn
Before I get into my review of Tracy Deonn’s Legendborn (Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2020), I want to recognize that it may be biased and cloaked in an unexpected connection. I was 17 when my father was killed. My acceptance to UNC arrived just under two months later. That August, when I moved into myContinue reading “LEGENDBORN – Tracy Deonn”
THAT SUMMER – Jennifer Weiner
The title of Jennifer Weiner’s That Summer (Atria Books 2021) immediately brought a smile to my face as I recalled another That Summer. When the novel started with “She is fifteen years old that summer,” I was reminded even more of Sarah Dessen’s 1996 novel about fifteen-year-old Haven, a novel set at the beach duringContinue reading “THAT SUMMER – Jennifer Weiner”
NO HEAVEN FOR GOOD BOYS – Keisha Bush
Keisha Bush’s No Heaven for Good Boys (Random House 2020) is one of the more delicate and devastating debut novels I’ve read in a long while. The tragedy of it is exquisitely crafted, clinging to the reader like small, dirty hands begging for money, or a hungry child suckling at his mother’s breast. It’s aContinue reading “NO HEAVEN FOR GOOD BOYS – Keisha Bush”
THE GILDED ONES – Namina Forna
The cover of Namina Forna’s The Gilded Ones (Delacorte Press 2020) is a work of art from the way the light hits the warrior’s cheeks, to the details in her hair, to the ombre choice of the backdrop. (Having read the book, I wish her hair had been left naturally in the “soft cloud” aroundContinue reading “THE GILDED ONES – Namina Forna”
THE WISE WOMEN – Gina Sorell
Actress-turned-author Gina Sorell’s second novel, The Wise Women, will be released by Harper on 4/5/2022. (I rec’d an advanced copy through a Goodreads giveaway. Thank you!) It’s a hug of an “everything works out in the end” story about mothers, daughters and sisters. There were some missed opportunities in developing the fragile and complex relationships,Continue reading “THE WISE WOMEN – Gina Sorell”
INTERIOR CHINATOWN – Charles Yu
Charles Yu’s Interior Chinatown (Pantheon Books, 2020) was a bit of an unexpected delight. It’s witty and dark, entertaining and heartbreaking, insightful and inventive. I didn’t expect it to be as hilarious as it was, but Yu’s smart writing in this script format brings a lot of truth layered in comedy. Willis Wu is anContinue reading “INTERIOR CHINATOWN – Charles Yu”
EVEN AS WE BREATHE – Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle
“And now it seems possible that love is the only thing that will outlive us all, but only if we continue to tell its story.” Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle’s Even as We Breathe (The University Press of Kentucky 2020) is a layered and fragile history, cloaked in mystery and romance, that is executed in a wayContinue reading “EVEN AS WE BREATHE – Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle”
SKIN OF THE SEA – Natasha Bowen
“Here is a story. Story it is…” Billing Natasha Bowen’s Skin of the Sea (Random House 2021) as Children of Blood and Bone meets The Little Mermaid does it a bit of disservice; just because a book centers around Yoruba spirits (Orisa/Orisha) doesn’t mean it has to be compared to every other book that alsoContinue reading “SKIN OF THE SEA – Natasha Bowen”
A Girl Named Tommi 