“If you have a baby goat, you always lead with ‘I have a baby goat.’” Brimming with Disney references and its own kind of magic, Abby Jimenez’s Part of Your World (Grand Central Publishing 2022) is the sweetest kind of romance. If you’ve been here for a bit, you know I don’t typically do romance. Continue reading “PART OF YOUR WORLD – Abby Jimenez”
Tag Archives: BOTM
AGE OF VICE – Deepti Kapoor
Billed as India’s response to The Godfather, Deepti Kapoor’s Age of Vice (Riverhead Books 2023) is a gangster novel meets political commentary kissed with a romance wrapped in a family saga. In short, it’s a muddled, confusing thrill ride of extreme violence and unlikeable characters. Even though a bit sloppy at times and in seriousContinue reading “AGE OF VICE – Deepti Kapoor”
QUEEN OF THIEVES – Beezy Marsh
“After all, gangland was a man’s world.That’s what they thought.But us women, well, we knew different.This is our story.” Oh, what promise the prologue to Beezy Marsh’s Queen of Thieves (William Morrow 2022 – Originally published in Britain by Orion Dash 2021) held. Oh, what a roaring disappointment. The premise is great. Inspired by aContinue reading “QUEEN OF THIEVES – Beezy Marsh”
BABEL – R.F. Kuang
My first read of 2023 was Babel by R. F. Kuang (Harper Collins 2022). Before I get into the review, I must mention the Harper Collins strike. Employees with the company have been on a strike since November, and they are striking for fair wages, stronger diversity commitments, and union rights. To read more aboutContinue reading “BABEL – R.F. Kuang”
THE WILDERWOMEN – Ruth Emmie Lang
I’ve heard such good things about Ruth Emmie Lang, and I recently picked up both Beasts of Extraordinary Circumstance and The Wilderwomen. I love magical realism, found families, and broken familial relationships. I was certain I would love The Wilderwomen (St. Martin’s Press 2022). And I tried. Oh, how I tried. But I wanted toContinue reading “THE WILDERWOMEN – Ruth Emmie Lang”
THE STARDUST THIEF – Chelsea Abdullah
“To him, stories were truths painted over in gold.” “The Sandsea is a rip in the world, made from a fire so fierce it has never stopped burning. That kind of magic – you must stay away from it. Do you understand, Sweet Fire?” Most of us are familiar with the classic One Thousand andContinue reading “THE STARDUST THIEF – Chelsea Abdullah”
OTHER BIRDS – Sarah Addison Allen
“Maybe I thought that if I just collected enough words, I could totally rewrite myself one day.” “Stories aren’t fiction. Stories are fabric. They’re the white sheets we drape over our ghosts so we can see them.” Sarah Addison Allen’s Other Birds (St. Martin’s Press 2022) is full of whimsy and the best kind ofContinue reading “OTHER BIRDS – Sarah Addison Allen”
AS LONG AS THE LEMON TREES GROW – Zoulfa Katouh
“Every lemon will bring forth a child, and the lemons will never die out.” Zoulfa Katouh’s As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow (Little, Brown & Co 2022) is a love letter to Syria, each page solidifying that the “where” is always so much a part of the “who” when it comes to identity. TheContinue reading “AS LONG AS THE LEMON TREES GROW – Zoulfa Katouh”
THISTLEFOOT – GennaRose Nethercott
“May there always be wine, may there always be smokes, may the jesters be kings and the kings become jokes.” “I do not want you to think that what comes after is your fault. I do not want you to think that the ending could have been changed. It is not your fault. It isContinue reading “THISTLEFOOT – GennaRose Nethercott”
BRONZE DRUM – Phong Nguyen
“Gather around, children of Chu Diên, and be brave. For even to listen to the story of the Tru’ng Sisters is, in these troubled times, a dangerous act.” The bones of Phong Nguyen’s Bronze Drum (Grand Central Publishing 2022) were exhilarating; it was an easy BOTM pick for me. Historical fiction, cloaked in myth andContinue reading “BRONZE DRUM – Phong Nguyen”
A Girl Named Tommi 