By Catherine Coles
Want to know what book releases to watch out for in the coming months? The following are some ‘hot off the press’ or ‘almost off the press’ books that you may want to keep on your radar. Fortunately, you can reserve them today by visiting www.CountyLibrary.ca and placing a hold.
The Child by Fiona Barton is the author’s follow up to last year’s hit The Widow. Like The Widow it follows multiple perspectives in the midst of a criminal investigation and deals with themes relating to motherhood and kidnapping. When the body of a baby is discovered during a construction project in a gentrifying area of London, investigative reporter Kate Walters (introduced in The Widow) tries to get to the bottom of the baby’s identity and who buried it decades before.
White Fur by Jardine Libaire is a love story but not the least bit romantic. Set in the 1980s in New Haven, Connecticut and New York City, it chronicles the relationship of Jamey and Elise. Jamey is a preppy boy from one of the country’s wealthiest banking families while Elise is a rough around the edges girl from the wrong side of the tracks. They meet, as neighbours, while Jamey is studying at Yale — and it is lust at first sight. The love, which starts off pretty one-sided, only comes later on. Gritty, raw and steamy, White Fur takes the classic star-crossed lovers trope, and sours it a little. The ending is weak, in my opinion, but this is still worth reading if you like complex characters and lush writing.
Stay with Me by Ayobami Abebayo, a heart-wrenching novel set in 1980s/90s Nigeria, almost has the quality of a tragic folk tale. It follows Yejide and her husband Akin, an adoring couple who is struggling to conceive. While they initially shunned the concept of polygamy, Akin faces intense pressure from his family to have children and finally agrees to accept a second wife. The betrayal, jealously and desperation felt by Yejide leaps from the pages. What follows is a series of events that will bestow tragedy after tragedy upon their family. If you are looking for an intense, character-driven read, this debut is certainly worthwhile.
Watch Me Disappear by Janelle Brown is about a mother, Billie, who disappears during a solo hike at a nature reserve in Northern California. Her teenage daughter believes she is alive, while her husband is trying to get some closure by having the courts recognize her death in absentia. As they come to terms with her disappearance, it becomes clear that enigmatic Billie was a woman with a lot of secrets, a sketchy past and a serious independent streak — but was she troubled enough to abandon her family? While this is being marketed as a thriller, I would say it is better described as a domestic drama — a gloomier version of Where Did You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple.
The Secrets She Keeps by Michael Robotham is probably the best psychological thriller I have read this year. It is packed with twists which, of course, makes it tricky to describe as well as difficult to put down. On the surface, it is about two pregnant woman living in a London suburb. Agatha, who works in a grocery store, is fixated on Megan, an affluent mother who seemingly has it all. They are strangers, but not for long. This is a chilling novel about obsession, secrets and lies — a great choice for fans of British author Harriet Lane.
George and Lizzie is the debut novel of Nancy Pearl, arguably the world’s most famous public librarian. Set in the 1980s/90s, George and Lizzie is mostly the story of Lizzie, who as a teenager slept with the entire high school football team on a lark. This haunts her, as does her relationship with her aloof psychologist parents and her breakup with her first love, Jack. In a post-Jack world, Lizzie somewhat reluctantly begins a relationship with George, a man from a lovely family who is very patient with Lizzie in spite of her dark moods. Even as they become more serious, Lizzie cannot let go of her past – and it puts her future with George in peril. This short, quirky novel is definitely a character study. The first half is a bit slow going but thankfully it picks up when the stories of George and Lizzie intersect. It reminded somewhat of The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides, but it is quite a bit lighter.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me with Advance Reader Copies of these titles in exchange for honest reviews.
Catherine Coles is the Manager of Library Services for Lennox and Addington County.