2019 release – A Girl Named Tommi

THE TRAVELERS – Regina Porter

“So, I followed her cue and became Guildenstern. I didn’t need to look at the lines to play the part. None of us did, except maybe Mom, who never learned the words ‘cause someone in the family had to be a spectator in the madness.” It’s fitting that I picked up Regina Porter’s The TravelersContinue reading “THE TRAVELERS – Regina Porter”

THE NIGHT TIGER – Yangsze Choo

While I have all three Yangsze Choo novels on my TBR, I opted to read The Night Tiger (Flatiron 2019) first. As the story of the ghost bride is referenced in this novel, I should have likely read Choo’s debut before The Night Tiger, but I don’t think it was necessary. (That may change onceContinue reading “THE NIGHT TIGER – Yangsze Choo”

THE BOOK WOMAN OF TROUBLESOME CREEK – Kim Michele Richardson

“How many times had the hunger pangs tempted him? Set his belly afire for the wanting? Yet, his love for words and books was stronger.” Kim Michele Richardson’s The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek (Sourcebooks 2019) is historical fiction set in the 1930s in Troublesome Creek, Kentucky – deep in the heart of Appalachia. TheContinue reading “THE BOOK WOMAN OF TROUBLESOME CREEK – Kim Michele Richardson”

GET A LIFE, CHLOE BROWN – Talia Hibbert

Disclaimer: I don’t typically listen to audio books because it’s not my preferred way to read. In fact, until today, the only audiobook I’ve read was Alison Smith’s Name all the Animals and that was back in 2005. (Fantastic memoir. If you haven’t read it – check it out!) Talia Hibbert’s Get a Life, ChloeContinue reading “GET A LIFE, CHLOE BROWN – Talia Hibbert”

MIDNIGHT AT THE BLACKBIRD CAFE – Heather Webber

Heather Webber’s Midnight at the Blackbird Café (Tor-Forge 2019) is Southern magical realism novel of family and second chances that is as sweet as tea should be. If you liked The Book Charmer (Karen Hawkins, Dove Pond series), you’ll love this. It’s that same type of candy read, set in a sleepy Southern town withContinue reading “MIDNIGHT AT THE BLACKBIRD CAFE – Heather Webber”

WE WENT TO THE WOODS – Caite Dolan-Leach

I probably wouldn’t have picked up Caite Dolan-Leach’s We Went to the Woods (Random House 2019) had I seen the comparison to Donna Tartt. I don’t know if Dolan-Leach studied the literary brat pack from Bennington, but her work is certainly reminiscent of that particular group of writers and their self-absorbed and unlikeable characters whoContinue reading “WE WENT TO THE WOODS – Caite Dolan-Leach”

Kwame Mbalia – TRISTAN STRONG PUNCHES A HOLE IN THE SKY

The books that have written themselves on my skin and in my heart are far too many to name in this space. The point is books matter. Stories matter. When I read about Kwame Mbalia’s TRISTAN STRONG PUNCHES A HOLE IN THE SKY, my pulse quickened because I was excited. When I read the book’sContinue reading “Kwame Mbalia – TRISTAN STRONG PUNCHES A HOLE IN THE SKY”