I’m a diehard Diane Chamberlain fan, and THE LAST HOUSE ON THE STREET might have displaced NECESSARY LIES as my favorite of her novels. From page one, the tension in this dual timeline story is that of a psychological thriller. Straddling 1965 and 2010, the creepy tone of the primary setting—a secluded, densely-wooded lot in a…

My book pick for Valentine’s Day is THE CHARM OFFENSIVE. This unforgettable delight is a biracial love story that hits every emotional chord and packs a serious punch on issues of sexuality and mental illness. Funny, sweet, tender—with heartbreaking interior monologues—it’s my favorite gay rom-com since RED, WHITE & ROYAL BLUE. Charlie has the physique of…

I’m drawn to gritty YA novels, and Mindy McGinnis’ HEROINE held me in its grip from the first line: “When I wake up, all my friends are dead.” Mickey Catalan is the catcher for an all-girls, undefeated high school softball team on the cusp of making history. To the outside world, she’s a local celebrity…

My first read of 2022, THE GIRL WHO COULD BREATHE UNDER WATER, reminded me why Erin Bartels is one of my favorite authors. If I could, I would give it more than five stars. Kendra Brennan is crippled by self-doubt and writer’s block. Her debut novel, which fictionalized  teen trauma that continues to haunt her, has…

ONCE THERE WERE WOLVES is a powerful story of anger, fear, and violence; healing, trust, and love. Unlike anything I’ve ever read, it weaves together the brutality of humans, the mystery of wolves, and the raw beauty of the natural world. Underneath runs a gentle thread about the way families and wolf packs communicate with…

THE NEXT THING YOU KNOW  releases in March 2022, and it’s a novel to pre-order. I finished reading an advanced copy multiple books ago, and the lead characters continue to haunt me. Two broken people trapped in the past and lost in the present, Mason and Nova share a powerful, memorable story. At thirty-six, indie…

I’m a fan of Stephen King’s writing, but as a founding member of Wusses-R-Us, most of his novels are outside my comfort zone. Until BILLY SUMMERS. How can you not fall for a hitman who hides behind a dumb self, while thinking about Zola’s THERESE RAQUIN?  Yes, he reads the classics … but uses comic books…

THE PEOPLE WE KEEP is a unique coming-of-age story about resilience, the power of music, the need to belong, and the quest to find—and accept—the family of your heart. There are many wonderful characters in this book—generous souls who reach out to the lost and broken young heroine, April. But April’s journey is a solitary…

Set on Oak Island, North Carolina in the mid 1980s, WHEN GHOSTS COME HOME is a haunting story about family, prejudice, and small-town conflict. It’s part historical novel, part murder mystery, and part southern fiction. I read it slowly to enjoy the setting, the writing, the subtle rise in tension. But I had to fight…

A KIND OF MIRRACULAS PARADISE is a unique work of nonfiction about mental illness. When Sandra Allen was studying for her MFA in writing, her Uncle Bob, a hermit she barely knew, mailed her the story of his life as a paranoid schizophrenic. The single-spaced manuscript was typed in all caps with run-on sentences and…