Clear by Carys Davies.
Fascinating characters and a complex plot based on the historical clearings of residents on remote Scottish islands by the landlords who wanted the land for sheep grazing. In 1843, a man is sent to clear the last resident of remote island where neither man speaks the same language. That is the beginning of a beautiful relationship.
I read The Mad Wife. Thanks for the info on Sonia and Sunny. That one is on my TBR.
I am reading Love, Sex and Frankenstein by Caroline Lea. She has made Byron, Shelley and Mary Shelley three of the most unlikeable characters in recent reads!! Really liked The River is Waiting (Wally Lamb) and All the Colors of the Dark. At my book club we were talking about our mothers not letting us read Forever Amber when we were teens, so we are reading it and finding it rather mild!
I’m nearing the end of Sonia and Sunny. It’s still unknown if they will or won’t unite. Lots of anguish but the story is engaging.
Trust your instincts 
I finished the book (Apostle’s Cove) that’s part of a long series by William Kent Kruger- the “Cork” Cochrane books. Cork is a former County Sheriff now retired into private detective work. The setting is very interesting because he is part native American and resides in an area bounded by the local “rez”. This series is about 20 books long, but I have only read up to about book 9 so this was a jump into the future. But the good thing is, this book can stand alone as a novel because it goes back in time and you learn a lot about his past. The books are mysteries- usually an unsolved murder- and the characters are delightful.
I said this was a “comfort” book for me; even thought it deals with murders, I’ve become familiar with all the characters in “Cork’s” life, watched them grow up and experience all the joys and tragedies of life too. So, it may sound weird, but this series is a comfort for me- like visiting your home town!
My mother always talked about that book- Forever Amber. She got a copy to re-read it, probably in her 80’s. When she died at 90, this is one of the books I took with me- yet to tackle as it is very long. But one day, I will get to it for sure!
That book was subversive to our mothers!! They probably read it in secret! Reading it now I wonder what all the fuss was about!
I remember reading it when I was high school age. I don’t have any memories of it other than I really liked it. It’s a title that stuck with me. I guess I was captured by Amber’s ambition to survive. I’ve heard it was scandalous, but I don’t recall that. Perhaps I should go back and look at It.
Welcome! Remarkably Bright Creatures is a good book. Interested to learn that it has been adapted for Netflix…but I’m also one of three people in the world who don’t subscribe to Netflix so that will pass me by. Still, the book was a great read, and movie adaptations sometimes fail to live up to the visual images I’ve built through reading.
This week I have started Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar. It’s a book that keeps me reading because there’s always something in the next chapter that extends the depth of the one before.
I was pleased to find One Day, Everyone Will Have Been Against This by Omar Akkad readily available as an ebook from my library. The first chapter brings a scathing indictment against a world complicit in the maintenance of a power dynamic that kills, I don’t know yet where it will go from here.
My current audio selection is Dust Child by Nguyen Phan Que Mai. I’m only part way into it, and I’m hoping it will become as compelling as The Mountains Sing which I read with a book group some years ago.
I finished Amity by Nathan Harris on audio. I liked that book almost as much as The Sweetness of Water. Harris has found a groove with sibling pairs that allows him to explore the depth of the relationships. Even though Coleman and June are separated throughout a good portion of the book, flashbacks give a good grounding in their history together, and Coleman’s development thoughout the novel moves surely out of that history. I don’t know if Nathan Harris would be available for a book discussion on BB, but I’d like to see that happen.
Glad you enjoyed Whalefall! Keep an eye out for the movie which is supposed to be in the works for next October release. Hope they can do right by the book’s combination of thrill and emotion. Also have been thinking of John Irving lately, my fave is “…Owen Meaney”, Cider House Rules is lovely and quite unique from Irving I think.
I just finally, finally made by way through Angel Fall by Daniel Kraus. Let me say I really like his writing in general. I don’t think anyone could make the visuals from WWI any more startling or vivid than he does. His take on the angel and the meaning she took on for each of the doughboys is the crux of the story and I could have done with more of that. The lead-in to that was too gruelingly long for this readers taste.
This novel, for me, was similar to watching an action movie with 20 straight minutes of car crashes, restaurant explosions, warehouse fires, runaway train crashes, Russian mafia torture, etc…I glaze over after about 3 minutes. I appreciated the imagination of the storyline and am sure his descriptions set a necessary scene in the view of many. I cannot say I liked this read or would recommend it to my book club for example - based not on the writing, but the writing dictated by the subject matter.
I’m now reading All the Broken Places, an older book by John Boyne. I thought of him now I guess because he also writes about people and wartime. (The Boy in Stiped Pajamas, The Absolutist). He’s so good at revealing people through their actions and how other people respond to them. The Absolutist might be my favorite.
Hi Anthony. I finally read The Invisible Child last month. Not only is it HEAVY, but also heartbreaking. It certainly gave me a different perspective on how challenging it is for the poorest and disadvantaged population to survive; and how some of our “helpful” policies contribute negatively to their daily lives. But I was super impressed with how love of family helped keep the family mostly together. Though I don’t excuse or condone some of the behaviors, I feel compelled to be less judgmental.
Make that one of four who don’t subscribe to Netflix but the next time I visit my daughter I’ll try to watch Bright Creatures.
I just started reading The Correspondent by Virginia Evans and so far it’s quite enjoyable and references many places in the Mid-Atlantic region that I’m very familiar with.
It is messing with me as a middle school teacher. I had not considered the effects of poverty on one’s mindset until now.
Finally finished Sonia and Sunny this afternoon. Enjoyed the story. There was more mysticism than I had expected, but it didn’t detract.
Hello! I’m new but excited to join. I’m currently reading Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid and I’m loving it so far. I had heard mixed reviews so I was skeptical, but it’s really enjoyable.
This week, 0I am reading The True Story of Raja the Gullible by Rabih Alameddine and listening to The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto by Mitch Albom, and I am really enjoying both. Both are life stories of unusual people, and are escapist for me; one has an ironic slant and the other is, so far, an uplifting story. I just finished Heartwood by Amity Gaige, which I also really enjoyed. I used to backpack a lot, but didn’t know about things like trail names and the culture of through-hiking. My short-list TBR includes Audition by Katie Kitamura*, Raising Hare* by Chloe Dalton, The Lonliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kieran Desai, and The Emperor of Gladness by Ocean Vuong. I love to hear about what others are reading and their impressions, as well as new suggestions for my ever-growing TBR pile.