Maggie Conrad’s husband of ten days is sent overseas in WW1 and never comes home. A second suitor is lost at sea in Nova Scotia’s August Gale. Turning thirty, and on her own, she resolves to make a life for her herself and her younger brother, Ivan. Against her wishes, ... more >
Jennie: I was alerted to the terrific debut The Flatshare by Janine’s review last year, and read it myself earlier this year. Janine gave it an A-, but I liked it so much I gave it a straight A, which is rare for me. When she suggested we review O’Leary’s ... more >
Jessica and Emily Burnstein have very different ideas of how this college tour should go. For Emily, it’s a preview of freedom, exploring the possibility of her new and more exciting future. Not that she’s sure she even wants to go to college, but let’s ignore that for now. And ... more >
This follow-up novel to Hillwilla explores how disparate characters can grow to need and depend on one another In Hillwilla, Beatrice Desmond, a former Bostonian Ivy Leaguer, found herself in midlife on a llama farm in remote West Virginia. Clara Buckhalter, a troubled young girl, drew Beatrice out of her ... more >
Beatrice Desmond, 55, lives on a remote farm nestled in a deep hollow in southern West Virginia. Her troubled past–an alcoholic father, growing up borderline poor, a suicidal husband–along with her loyalty to a deceased friend, drove her to this lonely existence. She soldiers on, accompanied by her wry sense ... more >
Rose is not a happy young woman; she is closed off and angry and she hates her job. But her life changes drastically when she inherits her father’s bakery in a small town in Brittany. Returning to a place that brought her both joy and grief forces her to confront ... more >