Tags
families, FBI, investigation, missing persons, Sausalito (CA), Secrecy, stepdaughters, thriller fiction
The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave
13 Wednesday Oct 2021
Tag Archives: Secrecy
What We Carry: a Memoir by Maya Shanbhag Lang
05 Friday Mar 2021
Posted in 20th century, Biography, memoir, Non-fiction
Tags
autobiography, East Indian American women, family, mothers and daughters, Secrecy, women authors
If our family stories shape us, what happens when we learn those stories were never true? Who do we become when we shed our illusions about the past? (Amazon)
“A gorgeous memoir about mothers, daughters, and the tenacity of the love that grows between what is said and what is left unspoken.”—Mira Jacob, author of Good Talk
“A profoundly moving memoir about secrets and trauma . . . In exquisite prose, Maya Shanbhag Lang writes about her extraordinary mother and the cruel circumstances that complicate their relationship. At its heart, What We Carry is about one of the greatest gifts any parent can give a child: the power to save yourself.”—Will Schwalbe, New York Times bestselling author of The End of Your Life Book Club
“Part self-discovery, part family history. . . [Lang’s] analysis of the shifting roles of mothers and daughters, particularly through the lens of immigration, help[s] to challenge her family’s mythology. . . . Readers interested in examining their own family stories . . . will connect deeply with Lang’s beautiful memoir.”—Library Journal (Starred Review)
Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy
13 Saturday Feb 2021
Posted in 20th century, action, adventure, Fiction
Tags
environmental degradation, ocean travel, sea stories, Secrecy, terns migration, women scientists
The premise of Migrations is one that doesn’t seem too far-fetched: in the not too distant future, many of the world’s animals have gone extinct. Franny, a woman determined to follow a rare flock of birds, convinces the captain of a fishing ship out of Greenland to take her along. As the journey progresses, the crew — and the reader — learn more about Franny’s complicated past. This book is beautifully written, and offers plenty of food for thought about our current climate change crisis.
For fans of Flight Behavior and Station Eleven, a novel set on the brink of catastrophe, as a young woman chases the world’s last birds―and her own final chance for redemption – Amazon
“[Migrations] could be taking place in two years or 20 years, but it could just as well be happening today…A consummate blend of issue and portrait, warning and affirmation, this heartbreaking, lushly written work is highly recommended.”―Library Journal (starred review)
“Transfixing, gorgeously precise…[The] evocation of a world bereft of wildlife is piercing; Franny’s otherworldliness is captivating, and her extreme misadventures and anguished secrets are gripping.”
―Booklist (starred review)
The Last Flight by Julie Clark
25 Friday Sep 2020
Posted in 20th century, Fiction, thriller, Travel
A woman decides to leave her abusive husband by disappearing to start a new life. At the airport, she meets another woman, also in dire straits running from her past. On a whim and to cover their tracks even further, they swap airline tickets. Then, one of the planes crashes….. I thought it was very well done.
“The moral dilemmas that the multifaceted, realistic characters face in their quest for survival lend weight to this pulse-pounding tale of suspense. Clark is definitely a writer to watch.” – Publishers Weekly, starred review
“The Last Flight sweeps you into a thrilling story of two desperate women who will do anything to escape their lives. Both poignant and addictive, you’ll race through the pages to the novel’s chilling end. A must read of the summer!” – Kaira Rouda, internationally bestselling author of Best Day Ever and The Favorite Daughter
“A tense and engaging womancentric thriller.” – Kirkus Reviews, starred review
Black Water Lilies by Michel Bussi translated from the French by Shaun Whiteside
10 Friday Jul 2020
Tags
detective, Giverny (France), man-women relationships, murder investigation, mystery, opthamologists, Secrecy
A thrilling tale of murder that takes place in Claude Monet’s gardens in Giverny, France. The location provides a lush backdrop to this intricately plotted mystery that takes place over just 13 days in 2010. The ending is astonishing and you’ll be desperate to find others to discuss the outcome!
One of France’s most celebrated crime authors and winner of more than 15 major literary awards, I rushed to read his first novel, After the Crash.
“A work of genius befitting the masterpiece by Monet at its heart…. Bussi cleverly breaks all the perceived rules of plotting in a story containing riddles within riddles…. But every loose thread is meshed neatly together in the final pages until the jaw-dropping big reveal at the end. The result is simply stunning.”―Daily Express (UK)
“Bussi’s portrait of the difficulties of investigating a closed community is fascinating, and the novel ends with one of the most reverberating shocks in modern crime fiction.”―The Sunday Times (UK)
Odd Child Out by Gilly MacMillan
06 Wednesday Dec 2017
This is a new writer for me. Best friends Noah Sadler and Abdi Mahad have always been inseparable. But when Noah is found floating unconscious in Bristol’s Feeder Canal, Abdi can’t–or won’t–tell anyone what happened. Noah is British. Abdi is a Somali refugee. And social tensions have been rising rapidly in Bristol, England. The writer keeps the tension at high pitch, a real page turner. Against this background of fear and fury two families fight for their sons and for the truth. The writer’s empathy for her characters is spot-on. (Includes reading discussion questions.)
“Macmillan captivates readers with a story just as addictive as her first… [and] shines when exploring the intricacies of relationships… Fans of Tana French, Ruth Ware, and Gillian Flynn will become completely entrenched in the unfolding details.” (BookPage)
“With lovely prose, depth of character and an intelligent narrative, Macmillan lifts the level of suspense with stiletto-like precision: a tiny graze here, a shallow cut there and, eventually, a thrust into the heart. At once profoundly unsettling and richly rewarding.” (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
The Dry by Jane Harper
24 Monday Apr 2017
Tags
Australia, best friends' death, drought, federal agent, homecoming, homicide investigation, Secrecy, truthfulness and falsehood
This is a #1 international bestseller. I could not put this book down! The author writes in beautiful, descriptive language and, at the same time, keeps socking the reader between the eyes with the revelations that unfold in this story of an investigation into a family murder in an outback country town in Australia – a town that seeps with anger, bitterness, violence, and oppressive heat. I can’t believe this is a first novel.
“A stunner…It’s a small-town, big-secrets page-turner with a shocker of an ending….”–Booklist, starred review
“Devastating debut…a suspenseful tale of sound and fury as riveting as it is horrific.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review
“A nail-biting thriller…A chilling story set under a blistering sun, this fine debut will keep readers on edge and awake long past bedtime.”–Kirkus, starred review
22 Britannia Road by Amanda Hodgkinson
18 Friday Apr 2014
Posted in Historical Fiction
English writer Hodgkinson won high praise from reviewers when her debut novel was released in 2011. This is a poignant story that chronicles the struggles of a young Polish couple to recover their lives after several years of separation and suffering during the Second World War.
“Silvana Nowak and her seven-year-old son, Aurek, endure many hardships when German troops invade Warsaw in 1939. Six years later, British soldiers rescue them from the isolated forest in which they’re living and transport them to England, where they rejoin Silvana’s husband, Janusz, an RAF veteran. After successfully adapting to his new country, Janusz hopes to make a fresh start for them at 22BritanniaRoad in Ipswich. Fiercely protective of her son, world-weary Silvana’s hair has become gray. Aurek, a half-wild boy with no memories of traditional home life, has difficulties with school and sees Janusz as the enemy. Alternately presenting each of the Nowaks’ viewpoints on present and past, the novel courageously addresses tragic occurrences and lingering aftereffects. Both adults are hiding things, including complicated extramarital romantic feelings, and suspense steadily builds toward the surprising revelation of Silvana’s most painful secret. A stellar example of literary WWII fiction.” — Johnson, Sarah (Reviewed 04-01-2011) (Booklist, vol 107, number 15, p34)
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