On a beautiful fall morning in Paris, things are not normal. Kate Moore, expat American in Paris, mother of two, and clandestine CIA agent, senses it almost immediately. There are sirens in the distance, too many, coming closer, and she wonders if this is the day her world will begin to fall apart. Over the…
Professor Chandra, noted Cambridge economics professor, has been passed over for the Nobel Prize. Again. Estranged from his family, and realizing that the prize may be forever out of his reach, he finds himself adrift. After an unexpected bicycle accident, he takes a temporary position in Orange County and tries to reconnect with his ex-wife…
Martin Scarsden is a journalist whose career has stalled. After surviving a terrifying incident in the Middle East, he has returned to his job in Sydney but is struggling with PTSD. His editor, hoping to give Martin a way back, sends him to Riversend, a drought-ridden rural Australian town, where a mass shooting occurred a…
Have you heard about our Adult Winter Reading Club this year? If you read two "Up Lit" books between January 15 and March 15, we'll enter you into a drawing to win a $50 gift card! What is "Up Lit," you ask? Kind of what it sounds like - uplifting books that tell stories of…
I have to admit, the premise of this book did not initially attract me. A mermaid? In 18th century London? But the reviews were fantastic and the cover is stunning, so when I heard a publisher's representative rave about the book, I thought I'd give it a try. I'm so glad I did! Imogen Hermes…
Liane Moriarty is one of the most popular authors around. Besides Big Little Lies, which has become a big HBO miniseries, almost all of her other books have already been optioned for Hollywood. I think people love her work because her characters are so relatable and her stories are so clever. Moriarty succeeds again with…
“Marsh is not swamp. Marsh is a space of light, where grass grows in water, and water flows into the sky.” Author Delia Owens These are the first lines of Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens, one of the best books I’ve read this year. The marshes and swamps of coastal North Carolina are…
In 1940 London, as the German army mercilessly bombs the city, young Emmy Lake takes a job at a women’s magazine for the advice columnist Henrietta Bird. Large and intimidating, the elderly Mrs. Bird brooks no complaints and does not accept any letters that involve "Unpleasantness." Her list of unacceptable topics is extensive, covering anything…
I don’t usually read short stories, but I couldn’t resist this collection because Curtis Sittenfeld is one of my favorite authors. The short story format was a good change for me, and I was surprised at how refreshing it was to be able to read in this way. Short stories are also a great format…
Big Angel is the patriarch of a sprawling Mexican-American family. He’s the one everyone looks up to, the one who sets the rules – kind of like the Godfather. However, he is dying of cancer and starting to look at the world a little differently. The House of Broken Angels takes place over two days…
