Tag Archives: family secrets

The Scrapbook by Heather Clark (debut)

10 Monday Nov 2025

Posted by in Historical Fiction, History, mystery

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“What a novel. . . . Clark has achieved an impressive feat in this beautiful and powerful novel examining the nature of intergenerational trauma, inherited guilt and all-consuming love.” —The Jewish Chronicle

“Clark’s first novel combines historical fiction with a thoughtful examination of a classic rite of passage for many young adults: falling in unrequited love. . . . Clark deftly interweaves Anna and Christoph’s interactions with glimpses of their grandfathers’ lives during the war, adding depth to the story. . . . Clark is at her best.” —Library Journal

“Phenomenal. . . a unique blend of literary and historical fiction as well as a penetrating exploration of philosophy, art, historical responsibility and guilt in the context of war. . . . The Scrapbook is worthy of reading and rereading as Clark serves up romance, history and political philosophy in ways that could hardly be more relevant.” —BookPage (starred review)

“Historical fiction strikes a complicated balance, between a need to recreate with some accuracy events in the past while at the same time communicating the relevance of those facts to the present. Heather Clark situates a contemporary love story in the shadow of—and with capacious insight into—German history both during and immediately after the Second World War. Clark navigates difficult conceptual ground with remarkable ease, making the complex legacy of the war appreciable to readers in the present.” —Matthew Longo, author of The Picnic

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The Magnificent Ruins by Nayantara Roy

07 Tuesday Jan 2025

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2024 debut author! Roy is a master storyteller with believably super-flawed characters right out of the gate. I will be breathlessly waiting for her next book!

“The Magnificent Ruins gripped me from the first page and moved me to tears on the last. A wise, beautiful and haunting story about difficult mothers and daughters, the complications of family life, and redefining the meaning of home, this novel will stay close to my heart for a long, long time to come.”―Thrity Umrigar, bestselling author of Honor and The Museum of Failures

“Shakespearean in scope and cinematic in vision, The Magnificent Ruins is a rare feast of a novel about the power, burden, and gift of inheritances both concrete and intangible. I read it with hunger—absorbed by Lila De’s story, invested in her family’s dynamics, and craving complete immersion in the colors, flavors, and politics of the complex Kolkata they call home—and finished it utterly satisfied. Nayantara Roy writes as her heroine lives: with courage and devotion, intelligence and skill.”―Rachel Lyon, author of Fruit of the Dead and Self-Portrait with Boy


“The Magnificent Ruins utterly transported me to the Lahiri family’s Kolkata. I felt as though I were occupying a room in their house, bearing witness to its fading glory, the political unrest beyond its gates and—most vividly—the tangle of relatives whose complicated love is at the heart of the story. Nayantara Roy brings these characters to life with such humanity and conviction that I believed they were real, and I missed them intensely when I reached the end.”  ―Sheila Sundar, author of Habitations

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The God of the Woods by Liz Moore

19 Monday Aug 2024

Posted by in adventure, detective, Fiction, Historical Fiction, mystery, suspense, thriller, United States

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A literary mystery set at a summer camp, where two siblings vanish years apart. Well written and haunting.

“A rare gem, an immersive and enthralling literary thriller: a novel about love in the aftermath of tragedy, and about families of the very best—and the worst—kind.”—Paula Hawkins, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Girl on the Train

“Liz Moore’s extraordinary new literary suspense novelreminds me of Donna Tartt’s 1992 debut, The Secret History. . . . [T]he vital connection for me was a reading experience where I was so thoroughly submerged in a rich fictional world, that for hours I barely came up for air. . . . The precision of Moore’s writing never flags. . . . Unforgettable.”—Maureen Corrigan, Fresh Air, NPR

“Rich in background detail and secondary mysteries . . . this ever-expansive, intricate, emotionally engaging novel never seems overplotted. Every piece falls skillfully into place and every character, major and minor, leaves an imprint.”—Kirkus, STARRED review

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The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins

07 Friday Jun 2024

Posted by in Fiction, suspense, United States

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This was a hoot – great fun and I didn’t see a few (of the many) twists and turns coming.

“Featuring unreliable narrators and twists throughout, Hawkins’ latest continues her reign as the queen of slow-burn domestic thrillers. This is a page-turner that readers will find hard to put down and is perfect for fans of stories with ambiguous morals and dysfunctional families.” ―Booklist

“Hawkins does an excellent job keeping readers off-balance throughout. Nonstop twists and surprises make this a true thrill ride…a delicious tale of murder, greed, and the ties that bind.” ―Publishers Weekly

“Rachel Hawkins delivers another read-in-a-sitting knockout. The Heiress has it all―murder, secrets, Gothic vibes, and one of the most deliciously twisted families ever put to page. I loved it!” ―Riley Sager, New York Times bestselling author of The Only One Left

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The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

27 Saturday Jan 2024

Posted by in detective, Fiction, Historical Fiction, mystery, United States

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“The thing about picking a handful of berries is that each one is different—some are sweet, some sour, some extra juicy. The Berry Pickers is just like a handful of berries. It’s an unassuming novel filled with so much sweet, so much sour, so much juice. Reading this book, I was only ever hungry when it ended.” —Morgan Talty, author of Night of the Living Rez

“The strength of Amanda Peters’s novel lies in its understanding of how trauma spreads through a life and a family, and its depiction of the challenges facing Indigenous people . . . [A] powerful message about truth, forgiveness and healing.” —Marion Winik, The Washington Post

“A harrowing tale of Indigenous family separation . . . [Peters] excels in writing characters for whom we can’t help rooting . . . With The Berry Pickers, Peters takes on the monumental task of giving witness to people who suffered through racist attempts of erasure like her Mi’kmaw ancestors.—Eric Nguyen, The New York Times Book Review

“Peters beautifully explores loss, grief, hope, and the invisible tether that keeps families intact even when they are ripped apart. A poignant debut from a writer to watch.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“A marvelous debut. The Berry Pickers has all the passion of a first book but also the finely developed skill of a well-practiced storyteller. …The Berry Pickers is a triumph.” —Katherena Vermette, author of The Strangers

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Little Monsters by Adrienne Brodeur

27 Wednesday Dec 2023

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Author of her own family story, Wild Game : My Mother, Her Secret, and Me, Brodeur is no stranger to family secrets.  This is her debut novel and I found it absorbing.  She knows Cape Cod nature so intimately that it is absolutely a character in the book –  a soothing backdrop to the events.

“A juicy portrait of a wealthy family on the brink of disaster. . . Little Monsters simmers with tension as secrets explode out into the open. . . Tensely constructed and absorbing. . . A consummate summer read, which somehow evokes smooth beach glass and hot pink sunsets with nary a mention of either.” —The Washington Post

“[An] engaging and neatly plotted novel. . . Little Monsters is so alluring, with its sense of looming familial implosion within a cultural implosion. . . Brodeur is very deliberately examining a small family horror story within a larger political context.” —The New York Times

“Shimmering. . . With this intricate story, Brodeur distinguishes herself as a novelist of the first rank.” —Publishers Weekly, *Starred Review*

“This smart, page-flipping novel has more secrets than you could successfully hide from your Sunday school teacher. . . [with] shades of Succession. . . Little Monsters offers the pleasures of a smart, absorbing debut novel.” —The Boston Globe

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Olga Dies Dreaming by Xochitl Gonzalez

25 Friday Aug 2023

Posted by in Fiction, Humor

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Siblings Olga (a wedding planner) and Prieto (a politician) are lifelong New Yorkers navigating their careers and personal lives when they begin receiving messages from their mother, who left them years ago to return to Puerto Rico. Olga Dies Dreaming is both funny and serious, weaving the culture and history of Puerto Rico into a story about love and family.

“Vibrant and raw…Olga Dies Dreaming delivers a roller coaster’s worth of beautiful highs and lows. All told, it’s an experience worth savoring.” ―BookPage

“Liberation is at the heart of Olga Dies Dreaming. The story’s driving tension derives from questions of how to break free…The book’s title is an allusion to the poem “Puerto Rican Obituary,” by Pedro Pietri, which contains the lines “Olga / dies dreaming of a five dollar raise.” But Gonzalez’s Olga will not go meekly to such a fate. Sometimes we must free ourselves ― even from dreams.” ― New York Times Book Review

“Atmospheric, intelligent, and well informed: an impressive debut.” ―Kirkus, starred review

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Small World by Laura Zigman 

07 Wednesday Jun 2023

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Small World is a treasure: a family story that is wistful one moment, witty and wry the next. Few novelists write as beautifully about the damaged heart and the wounded soul as Laura Zigman, or understand the emotional bonds of siblings and sisters. I loved this novel.”— Chris Bohjalian, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Flight Attendant

“I absolutely loved Small World — a wise, warm, and often hilarious exploration of sisterhood and community, set against a nuanced portrait of one family’s tragic past.” — Shelby Van Pelt, author of Remarkably Bright Creatures

“A tender story of two sisters who, both in midlife and both recently divorced, move in together. . . A moving story about the power of family secrets, sisterhood, and memory. Readers of authors such as Jodi Picoult, Barbara Kingsolver, or Kristin Hannah will be affected by Zigman’s skillful and sensitive chronicling of a sisterhood simultaneously affected by the past and finding a new future.” — Booklist

“Entrancing. . . . Zigman does a stellar job of creating well-rounded characters, and a satisfying ending tops off her well-crafted paean to sisterhood. Readers will love this.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“[Zigman] excels at depicting the emotional push and pull of sibling relationships. . . Yet she never loses her sharp sense of humor. . . A compassionate, often funny examination of shared family grief and love.” — Kirkus Reviews 

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Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson

28 Friday Apr 2023

Posted by in detective, Fiction, murder, murder and investigation, mystery

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Quirky and silly – at times a little convoluted – but still great fun! Felt like an Australian “Knives Out”.

“I absolutely LOVED it. It’s so engaging, entertaining and charming. I don’t think I’ve ever read anything like it. It was SUCH a fun read.”  — Marian Keyes

“Exceptionally clever and amusing. … Stevenson carries off this tour de force with all the aplomb of a master magician who conducts his tricks in plain view.”? — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Exceedingly clever… Read it once for fun and then again to see how it was done.” — CriminalElement.com

“I absolutely loved it. Utterly original, hugely entertaining, and a must-read for every fan of the mystery genre. What an exceptionally fresh, smart, funny book—I’ve never read anything like this before.” — Jane Harper

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Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson

02 Monday May 2022

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Bereft at their mother’s death, Benny and Byron have the shock of their lives when the lawyer tells them their mother left a voice message revealing a heartbreaking story that they never knew.  The instructions to them were to share the family traditional black cake when the time was right.  A mother’s wisdom: we can’t choose what we inherit … but we can choose who we become?

“Fans of family dramas by Ann Patchett, Brit Bennett, and Karen Joy Fowler should take note. Black Cake marks the launch of a writer to watch, one who masterfully plumbs the unexpected depths of the human heart.”—BookPage (starred review)

“Wilkerson uses one Caribbean American family’s extraordinary tale to probe universal issues of identity and how the lives we live and the choices we make leave ‘a trail of potential consequences’ that pass down through generations.”—Booklist (starred review)

“Exquisite and expansive, Black Cake took ahold of me from the first page and didn’t let go. This is a novel about the formation and reformation of a family, and the many people, places, and events that can shape our inheritances without our knowing. A gripping, poignant debut from an important, new voice.”—Naima Coster, New York Times bestselling author of What’s Mine and Yours

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