Frothy summer novels have gone the way of the SPF 60. In their place: meaty reads for sweater weather.
Roam
Nelson is a three-legged beagle/poodle who travels the country on a quest to find his way back to previous owner Katey, the great love of his life. Alan Lazar, a platinum-selling musician/composer slumming as a debut novelist, writes in a way that is as joyous and sorrowful as a song. Original music from the author accompanies the charming portrayal of one loyal dog’s grand adventure — but he had us at beagle/poodle.
Light from a Distant Star
Thirteen-year-old Nellie Peck, the heroine of Mary McGarry Morris’s new novel, is a spunky cross between Harper Lee’s Scout and Harriet the Spy. Morris, who delighted us with Songs in Ordinary Time, spins a haunting coming-of-age story that weaves in secrets, betrayals, and a brutal crime. Lesson learned: Eavesdropping on the private conversations of adults can reveal truths even they fail to recognize.
The Forgotten Waltz
“These things happen all the time. You catch a stranger’s eye, for a moment too long, and then you look away.” Thus goes the first interaction between married-to-others Gina and Sean. Set in Dublin and crafted by Irish Booker Prize winner Anne Enright, the story of their obsessive, passionate affair seduced us from the start and made us complicit in the wreckage that followed.
Unreal Estate
You know you want to press your nose up against the windows of those fabulous Beverly Hills, Holmby Hills, and Bel Air megamansions. Author Michael Gross gets you access with his juicy, secret history of L.A.’s wealthiest, glitziest, over-the-top enclaves. Get behind-the-scenes details of the lurid luminaries of La La Land with an engaging read that starts with the mob history of Beverly Park.
It’s going to be a long winter. Go ahead and add the rest of our new books to your reading list.
Photo: Courtesy of Atria Books
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