Tag Archives: authors

Three Lives of Cate Kay by Kate Fagan

15 Friday Aug 2025

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Cate Kay is a pseudonym for the author of a global bestseller being adapted into a movie at the beginning of this novel. As the book progresses, we learn more about the real woman behind the name and the childhood friendship that shapes her life. Full of interesting characters, this story is told through multiple perspectives and I highly recommend the audiobook.

“An electrifying story of a bestselling author’s secrets. Fagan fascinates with her enigmatic and shape-shifting protagonist, and the tightly woven plot will keep readers on the edge of their seats. It’s a blast.” —Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

“An emotionally driven thriller that explores friendship, love, and the pitfalls of fame. I couldn’t stop reading this twisty, big-hearted novel. The Three Lives of Cate Kay is simply unputdownable! Kate Fagan is a masterful storyteller.” —Emiko Jean, New York Times bestselling author of The Return of Ellie Black

“An addictive page-turner infused with humor and heart, The Three Lives of Cate Kay balances the dishy allure of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo with the empathy of Slow Dance. A joy to read from first page to last.” —Melissa Albert, New York Times bestselling author of The Hazel Wood

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Yellowface by R.F. Kuang 

26 Tuesday Sep 2023

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June and Athena have known each other since college. Both aspiring writers, Athena has found great success, while June has not. When Athena dies unexpectedly, June takes one of her manuscripts and publishes the book as her own. Chaos ensues! This is a darkly funny, cynical take on race, the publishing world, and cancel culture.

“Her magnificent novel uses satire to shine a light on systemic racial discrimination and the truth that often hides behind the twisted narratives constructed by those in power.” — Booklist (starred review)

“At once a brilliant satire that mixes horror and humor; a nuanced exploration of race, heritage, identity, and diversity in publishing; and an honest look at the hell that is social media, this might just be Kuang’s best.” — Boston Globe

“This is a great read. Crime, satire, horror, paranoia, questions of cultural appropriation. Plenty of nasty social media pile-ons, too. But, basically, just a great story. Hard to put down, harder to forget.” — Stephen King, #1 New York Times bestselling author

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Did Ye Hear Mammy Died? : a Memoir by Séamas O’Reilly 

19 Friday Aug 2022

Posted by in 20th century, Biography, memoir

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This memoir is narrated by Séamas O’Reilly, who was five when his mother died and left behind a husband and eleven children. While this tragic event is the focus of the book, it is also a really funny, uplifting story about how the siblings and their dad carried on, living in Northern Ireland during the Troubles. 

“I laughed out loud reading Did Ye Hear Mammy Died, especially at the bits that recalled for me the way my own family laughs to keep from crying…It’s rare to read about good fathers in memoirs, and O’Reilly’s portrait…is hilarious and moving….It is this thread of refusal to be pitied, to have what happened to his family reduced to ‘a tawdry bit of sentimental fluff for people to tut along to and say how sad,’ that makes Did Ye Hear Mammy Died? so rousing. That it is also deadly funny is an extra treat.”―NPR

“Northern Ireland in the time of the Troubles is often cast into a narrative that doesn’t allow room for joy or delight…O’Reilly’s recollection is a splendid paradox, both cheery and heartbreaking.”―Booklist, Starred

“In this joyous, wildly unconventional memoir, Séamas O’Reilly tells the story of losing his mother as a child and growing up with ten siblings in Northern Ireland during the final years of the Troubles as a raucous comedy, a grand caper that is absolutely bursting with life.”―Patrick Radden Keefe, NYT bestselling author of Say Nothing and Empire of Pain

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The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz

03 Friday Sep 2021

Posted by in Fiction, mystery, suspense, thriller

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When a failed writer hears an amazing idea for a novel, he never imagines he’ll one day get the chance to take it for the plot of his own book. His book is a huge success, but someone else knows that it wasn’t really his idea. This suspenseful novel was a real page turner!

“As a longtime fan of Korelitz’s novels (including “You Should Have Known,” which was made into HBO’s “The Undoing”), I will say that I think The Plot is her gutsiest, most consequential book yet. It keeps you guessing and wondering, and also keeps you thinking: about ambition, fame and the nature of intellectual property (the analog kind).”―The New York Times Book Review

“Deep character development, an impressively thick tapestry of intertwining story lines, and a candid glimpse into the publishing business make this a page-turner of the highest order. Korelitz deserves acclaim for her own perfect plot.”
―Publishers Weekly (STARRED Review)

“’The Plot’ is wickedly funny and chillingly grim…it deserves to garner all the brass rings.”―The Wall Street Journal

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Friends and Strangers by J. Courtney Sullivan

27 Monday Jul 2020

Posted by in 20th century, Fiction, United States

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Elisabeth is a new mother who has just moved with her husband to a college town in upstate New York. There, she hires a new babysitter named Sam, a college student who struggles to fit in with her wealthier peers. The two women share a close bond, but their different situations and backgrounds occasionally cause tension. This thoughtful, well written novel explores motherhood, class, and friendship.

 “Sullivan’s intimate, incisive latest explores the evolving friendship between a new mother and her babysitter… Readers will be captivated by Sullivan’s authentic portrait of modern motherhood.”—Publishers Weekly

“Sullivan… writes with empathy for her characters even as she reveals their flaws and shortcomings. And while the story she tells focuses primarily on two women from different backgrounds and at different stages of life, it also illuminates broader issues about money, privilege, and class; marriage, family, and friendship; and the dueling demands of career and domesticity with which many women struggle. This perceptive novel about a complex friendship between two women resonates as broadly as it does deeply.”—Kirkus, starred review

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Writers & Lovers by Lily King

27 Friday Mar 2020

Posted by in Fiction, romance

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A 31-year old woman lives in a tiny apartment and works a stressful waitressing job as she grieves the unexpected death of her mother. Along with her financial struggles and tumultuous romantic relationships, she also yearns to be an author. I loved the characters in this story, the beautiful writing, and the Massachusetts setting (most of it takes place in Cambridge).

“[I]ntimate and vulnerable… Lily King’s novel follows a deeply relatable protagonist navigating a whole menu of crises surrounded by a cast of genuine, vivid characters… the book occupies a small space, but packs it to the brim with humanity.” ―Entertainment Weekly

“[F]unny and romantic and hard to put down, full of well-observed details of restaurant culture and writer’s workshops. It’s hard to imagine a reader who wouldn’t root for Casey.”―Library Journal, starred review

“King leaves no barrier between readers and smart, genuine, cynical, and funny Casey. A closely observed tale of finding oneself, and one’s voice, while working through grief.”―Booklist (starred review)

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A Ladder to the Sky by John Boyne

07 Monday Oct 2019

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Here is a book with characters you will love to hate.  A relentlessly immoral man having tasted literary fame once will stop at nothing in his pursuit of success.

“Boyne’s mastery of perspective, last seen in 2017’s The Heart’s Invisible Furies, works beautifully here….Boyne understands that it’s far more interesting and satisfying for a reader to see that narcissist in action than to be told a catchall phrase. Each step Maurice Swift takes skyward reveals a new layer of calumny he’s willing to engage in, and the desperation behind it….so dark it seems almost impossible to enjoy reading A Ladder to the Sky as much as you definitely will enjoy reading it.” —NPR

“Boyne expertly explores notions of originality and authorship through multiple first-person accounts of the despicable Swift. As a result, his latest novel is absorbing, horrifying, and recommended.”– Library Journal (starred review)

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