I read Metallic Red (2020) by Jennifer Ann Shore back in October, and I absolutely adored it. When the sequel, Yes, Your Majesty, became available for pre-order, I didn’t hesitate; I was eager to get back to Mina’s world. Mina, a half-human / half-vampire, had just become Queen of Appalachia at the close of MetallicContinue reading “YES, YOUR MAJESTY – Jennifer Ann Shore”
Author Archives: Tommi Powell
NEXT YEAR IN HAVANA – Chanel Cleeton
I picked up Chanel Cleeton’s Next Year in Havana (BERKLEY 2018) a few months ago because of the cover and the title. While I wish the “Reese’s Book Club” label wasn’t on it, this cover, in particular the colors, is quite captivating; the fact that the story itself outshines the cover is high praise. NextContinue reading “NEXT YEAR IN HAVANA – Chanel Cleeton”
THREE DARK CROWNS – Kendare Blake
“I will kill my sisters just as easily, Natalia,” Katherine says. “I promise. Though perhaps when I am finished, they will not look like they are sleeping.” Kendare Blake’s Three Dark Crowns (HarperTeen 2016) has been on my radar for a few years, but it only recently made its way to my physical TBR. IContinue reading “THREE DARK CROWNS – Kendare Blake”
GLAMOUR GIRLS – Marty Wingate
My “women at war” reading list has continued into 2021, finding me in England during WWII with Marty Wingate’s Glamour Girls (January 12, 2021, Alcove Press). Wingate, a cozy mystery writer, slid quite easily into the historical genre, and Glamour Girls is a quick and easy read with much of the violence of war (andContinue reading “GLAMOUR GIRLS – Marty Wingate”
YELLOW WIFE – Sadeqa Johnson
I love a good historical novel, particularly a well-researched novel that stands out both for its writing style and for a unique story that doesn’t feel regurgitated. While I admittedly gravitate more toward historical fiction with hints of magical realism (Remembrance and Conjure Women from last year being excellent examples), Sadeqa Johnson’s Yellow Wife (1/12/2021)Continue reading “YELLOW WIFE – Sadeqa Johnson”
AND THE MOUNTAINS ECHOED – Khaled Hosseini
I don’t know how I’ve managed to go so long without reading anything by Khaled Hosseini, but here I am in 2021 reviewing my first book by this master storyteller. And the Mountains Echoed (Riverhead Books 2013) is a novel I am unlikely to forget in this lifetime or the next. The decisions the charactersContinue reading “AND THE MOUNTAINS ECHOED – Khaled Hosseini”
THE GIRL WHO DRANK THE MOON – Kelly Barnhill
I read forty-seven books in 2020, and my last read of the year ended up one of my top two. I knew I’d like Kelly Barnhill’s The Girl Who Drank the Moon (Algonquin Young Readers, 2016), but I didn’t anticipate it even being in my top five. Yet I found this novel of an “enmagicked”Continue reading “THE GIRL WHO DRANK THE MOON – Kelly Barnhill”
THE NEW WILDERNESS – Diane Cook
Diane Cook’s The New Wilderness (Harper (August 11, 2020)) rounds out my 2020 Booker Prize shortlist selections. This book has been heralded as the “environmental novel of our time” by Booker judge Lemn Sissay, but I’d like to think our time could do better. I think I’ve actually read better. (Barbara Kingsolver, anyone?) Cook isContinue reading “THE NEW WILDERNESS – Diane Cook”
SHUGGIE BAIN – Douglas Stuart
He wanted to crush her with his secrets the way she had once done him with hers. “What’s wrong with me, Mammy?” He asked quietly. 262 Douglas Stuart’s debut novel, Shuggie Bain (Grove Press, 2020) was recently awarded the highly coveted Booker Prize. It’s my favorite book award, and I try and read some ofContinue reading “SHUGGIE BAIN – Douglas Stuart”
I AM NOT YOUR PERFECT MEXICAN DAUGHTER – Erika Sánchez
“But how do we live with these secrets locked within us? How do we tie our shoes, brush our hair, drink coffee, wash the dishes, and go to sleep, pretending everything is fine?” (284-285) Once upon a time, I was an immigration attorney. Many of my clients were “undocumented” or had “undocumented” parents. The pointContinue reading “I AM NOT YOUR PERFECT MEXICAN DAUGHTER – Erika Sánchez”
A Girl Named Tommi 