Hooray, It’s Time for New Books!

Florence Darrow is misanthropic low-level publishing employee who dreams of being a famous writer. After she is fired from her job, she is surprised to receive an offer to be Maud Dixon’s assistant. The reclusive author published a highly acclaimed bestselling novel and Florence would love to work by her side and learn from her. But ‘Maud Dixon’ is really Helen Wilcox, and only Helen’s editor and now Florence know that. Florence accepts the job and moves into Helen’s secluded home, where Helen is desperately trying to finish her second novel. Shortly after, Helen flies them to Morocco to do more research for her book. But then there is a horrible car accident, and Florence wakes up in the hospital with no memory of what happened, or where Helen is… I loved this book! It moves at a whiplash pace, and it’s funny and suspenseful at the same time.

Jamie and Zoe are strangers who recently awoke with no memory of who they are or how they got there. And oh yeah—they now have superpowers! Jamie uses his powers for evil, erasing people’s minds to pull what he considers victimless crimes: bank robberies. Zoe spends her days catching criminals instead. When something happens while they’re both at a support group for people with memory loss leads, they realize their fates are linked. Together, they seek the truth of their pasts and the origin of their powers, while becoming besties along the way. We Could Be Heroes is a refreshing take on superpower origin stories, full of adventure, laughs, and heart. I enjoyed reading a happy, kind hero story for a change.

Let me say up front: This is a dark, often violent collection, but it’s also a brilliant, compelling collection. I wouldn’t be telling you about it if it wasn’t incredible. Goldberg expands on the stories of characters from his Gangsterland novels to create taut, funny, unforgettable tales about family, crimes, and human connection. And don’t worry, you don’t have to have read the novels to read these stories. You just have to be ready to have your mind blown. This is perfect for fans of Donald Ray Pollock, William Boyle, and Harry Crews.

The Rib King takes place in two parts in the early 20th century. The first part is set in the prestigious home of a once-affluent white family. As the African American staff try to come up with ways to stretch what little they have to work with, there is fighting over recent changes to the staff. August Sitwell has worked for the Barclays since he was a young orphan, but his feelings about his employment and the world are starting to change. And the second section is set ten years later, after a horrific crime at the home, and follows one of the former maids, Jennie, as she attempts to grow her own beauty care business, but keeps finding her dealings overshadowed by her time at the home. I cannot decide which section I enjoyed more! It was such an exciting juxtaposition. The further I got in the second section, the more I saw the genius of the first as well. It’s such a powerful novel that I immediately read it again because I didn’t want to lose that feeling it gave my brain. 

This is a touching space opera romance! Prince Kiem is a wild child-turned-adult and an embarrassment to the royal family. So the Emperor decides to marry him off to the widower of a prince on the Empire’s newest vassal planet to keep the peace. Count Jainan doesn’t want to marry any more than Kiem, but they see it as their duty. But soon Kiem learns that Jainan’s husband’s death may not have been an accident. And despite the fact that feelings start to grow between them, Jainan is a suspect. Is Kiem putting himself in danger by marrying Jainan, or can he help him solve his previous husband’s death and save the empire? This is an exciting and tender book about responsibility, love, and grief.

This book is like if the Coen Brothers wrote and directed episodes of Northern Exposure. It’s a crime novel about who owns the past. A young anthropologist who gets caught up a bungled theft, after she accidentally sees the priceless items. The inept thieves are a pair of esoteric brothers, well known to the local police. But their inability to carry out the job correctly means a cleaner has to come to town, and he’s ten times scarier than anyone else. This is a thrill but also one of the funniest books I have read in years. It has several intense chase scenes, fantastic dialogue, and a lot of smart discussion about who owns history.

Remy is a Chorister aboard a nuclear submarine, one of many of an order of monks who have been circling the globe since the annihilation of the world above. The monks are in possession of the last nuclear missile and are waiting for a sign from God to launch it. But when the chaplain gives Remy the key to the missile before he dies, it’s because he no longer thinks they should launch it—and he only trusts Remy to keep it from happening. But the caplain’s power-mad replacement is hellbent on releasing the last bomb and ending everything, and even resorts to using Remy’s best friend as a pawn to try and get what he wants. Can Remy save what is left of the world and keep the key out the hands of the new caplain? I thought this was perfectly paced and it seemed entirely plausible.