Posts Tagged ‘novels’
A good writer should be able to fool his readers
“What is important is to invent a story and to make the spectators believe it.” —Tahar Ben Jelloun I like this quote from contemporary Moroccan author Tahar Ben Jelloun. This is exactly how an author creates a successful novel – by creating characters, a story and an environment that draws us in immediately and has…
Read MoreBook review: The Nanny
I enjoyed this novel told through multiple narrators, with its Gothic elements and an engaging backstory that slowly reveals itself as the novel progresses. Laura Holt fled England, her privileged life and her titled parents as soon as she could, eventually settling half a world away in California. But tragedy and financial woes force her…
Read MoreBook review: Half a World Away
Loved, loved, loved this book. So pleased it was my first novel of 2021, and that I discovered author Mike Gayle through this highly enjoyable tale. The cover blurb says it best : Same city. Different streets. Same mother. Different lives. The story of Kerry Hayes and Noah Martineau is the story of fate, the…
Read MoreAnother year, another Goodreads Challenge
In 2020, I truly took my Goodreads Reading Challenge down to the wire – only reaching my goal of the 45 novels I’d set out for myself in a more optimistic January of 2020 on the next-to-last-day of 2020. Even so, it was still a nice feeling to have met my goal. I love the…
Read MoreA 2020 in books
I usually finish my annual Goodreads Reading Challenge with plenty of breathing room, but 2020 has been anything but a usual year. So I’m still uncertain if I’ll meet my annual goal as the year rapidly comes to a close. Chances are – with yet another government-mandated shutdown (because science), I will. Nevertheless, I’ve read…
Read MoreBook review: Miss Iceland
I picked this novel up in a bookstore this past summer. I liked the cover and the book blurb, and I liked that it was translated from Icelandic. I’m always eager to discover good translated literature. Luckily, this was a great discovery. Miss Iceland is the sixth novel by Icelandic novelist Audur Ava Ólafsdóttir. Miss…
Read MoreEnjoying a book in the mountains before Lockdown II
It’s starting again. Back in the spring, Italy had its big Corona virus lockdown. Now that cases are ticking up again, there’s been talk of a repeat. We have a little place in the mountains of Abruzzo we often visit in the autumn for hiking and biking escapes. The threat of another lockdown, and the…
Read MoreBook review: Critical Incidents
I discovered UK author Lucie Whitehouse with her first novel, and have since read all the novels she’s published. I always enjoy her writing, although the qualty of the novels has varied, and at times I’ve felt it diffcult to really get into the mindset of her protagonists or to fully suspend disbelief for some…
Read MoreShiny, new books!
When I’m back in the US (or any English-speaking country), I’m always excited to go book shopping. My short trip to America this summer was no exception. Shopping in my depressingly closed-down country was tough, but I still managed. I did find some books I’m interested in reading now that I’m back home. The only…
Read MoreCongratulations to the winners of 2020 International Booker
I always keep an eye out for the long-list, short-list and winner of the annual Booker Prize. This week I was pleasantly surprised to learn there is an International Booker Prize. Somehow, I had somehow missed this prize aimed at translated literature. The nice aspect of this prize is that the translated work, which must…
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