Category Archives: Literary Fiction

The Paris Hours, by Alex George

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This is first and foremost a work of literary fiction. I inhaled the pages because of the enhanced prose; every word and sentence was bewitching.
The author took one day in the life of four characters and turned it into a beautiful story. Set in post-WWI Paris, four ordinary people begin an ordinary day until their paths cross.

Below is the book summary provided by the publisher:

Mostly, the first few chapters start out with the characters everyday routines. Some ordinary stuff. But the polished language made these everyday things seem fascinating. As the story progresses, their past is revealed in flashbacks. Secrets, regret, loss, and betrayal loom in the shadows as each character continues throughout their day.

Chapters are short and the pacing is good. The cast of characters is colorful and engaging. It took me a few chapters in the beginning to remember which character was which. Chapters are narrated by each of the four different characters.

If you do not like prolific writing or if you want mega fast-paced, then this probably isn’t for you.

The Paris Hours is a May 2020 Indie Next List Pick. Visit Alex George’s website to learn more.

Read Publisher Weekly’s review of The Paris Hours.

Visit the publishers page for more information about The Paris Hours.

Read Bookweb’s Q &A with Alex George about his previous book, A Good American.

Follow Alex George on Twitter or Facebook.

Thank you to Flatiron books for sending me an advance print copy. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

Valentine, by Elizabeth Wetmore

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“Gloria could be any of our girls….”

( Synopsis above provided by the publisher.)

“Why don’t we give a shit about what happens to a girl like Glory Ramirez?”

Yes, it start’s out the day after a young teen’s rape, but it doesn’t stay there. This character driven novel orbits around race, gender, and integrity in Odessa, Texas in 1976 as seen through the female perspective only.

Rape details are not disclosed. The emotional and physical aftermath on Gloria (also known as Glory) are affirmed, but Gloria is given only 3 chapters in the book. It tends to focus on the emotional effects. There were not a lot of gruesome details.

This is primarily a literary novel that basks in a bounty literary elements. If you are looking for a quick read, this is not it. Each sentence was constructed to drive home a deeper meaning, intensify the essence of a character, or to advance the atmosphere. There were moments during the first half, that moved at a slower pace because of the excessive use of language. In the end, those longer descriptions and narrations really made me feel like I knew these women though. Some of them I won’t forget.

Chapters alternate point of view without pattern and are told from women living in Odessa during this time. The main characters are typically effected by that night Gloria was raped, either as distant witness or a community member. But, other women chime in with chapters (unrelated to Gloria’s case) to solidify a setting that reflects gender inequity.

Valentine is Elizabeth Wetmore’s debut novel. Visit her website.

Read this essay from Elizabeth Wetmore about her book, Valentine.

Check out BookPage’s interview with Elizabeth Wetmore about growing up in Odessa, Texas.

Read Publisher Weekly’s review of Valentine.

Read the Washington Posts’ review of Valentine.

Follow Elizabeth Wetmore on Instagram.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

Then The Fish Swallowed Him, by Amir Ahmadi Arian

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“The union is not a political organization. We just want our rights. We don’t care who is in the government.”

Yunus is a fourty-four year old bus driver in Tehran. Gathered at a bus drivers strike, things quickly intensify and chaos ensues. Violence breaks out and one thing leads to another. Yunus is arrested and sent to Evin Prison where he fights to hold onto the truth. The corruption of the justice system is exposed during his time in prison and later when he goes to trial.

“As soon as politics touches you, you are contaminated for good. It’s a virus that never gets cured.”

After he is arrested, stories alternate between interrogations and flashbacks. The flashbacks occur during the 1970’s-2005 for Yunus. Most flashbacks focus on his relationships. Though there are flashbacks, the majority of the book takes place in Evin prison.

His time in prison when he was alone without his interrogator made me slightly bored. For example, there were pages about his turd, masturbation, and another about a string. (Though very well-written pages about his turd.) At these moments, it felt like it was taking a long time to reach the resolution. The character Yunus is not a very interesting character. It’s hard to really make a strong connection with him because he is such an unremarkable guy. The political situation surrounding him keeps it interesting.

The prose is beyond beautiful. It is the star of the book and caused me to look forward to reading more. I loved Amir Arian’s use of language and will be looking for his next book.

Then The Fish Swallowed Him is Amir Arian’s first English novel. Read more about it here.

Read or listen to NPR’s interview with Amir Arian about this novel.

Then The Fish Swallowed Him made Book Riot’s list for the top 20 books to read in 2020.

Follow Amir Arian on Twitter.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

Pride of Eden, by Taylor Brown

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“My opinion, the only good cage is an empty cage.”

Anse runs a nonprofit wildlife sanctuary in Sapelo Island, Georgia. He considers the sanctuary animals like family. But after his prized lioness Henrietta attacks him and is shot in order to save his life, Anse’s world is turned upside down and he is questioned by all those around him. Anse seeks to replace his lioness by rescuing other exotic wildlife that are in danger or being abused nearby. How far will Anse go to save the abused and caged? Is risking his friends lives worth saving the life of an animal?

Chapters alternate without pattern between characters and animals. The prose is rich in figurative language and the premise is original.

Overall, this was just an okay read for me. It has a strong premise. The foundation of the novel lays concretely in animal rights and measures the value of animals. But, to me there was nothing beyond that. Although I thought Anse was interesting, I didn’t feel connected to him or the rest of the characters. The storyline skipped around and I was confused about several scenes; I found myself re-reading quite often in order to grasp some sort of understanding of what exactly was happening. Had the storyline been stronger, I would have enjoyed it more because I did like the dialogue concerning the unfortunate realities that animals face. The ending left me feeling underwhelmed.

Triggers include animal abuse.

Visit author Taylor Brown’s website.

Read Publisher Weekly’s review of Pride of Eden.

Taylor Brown is the author of Gods of Howl Mountain and Fallen Land.

Read an interview with Taylor Brown for his book Gods of Howl Mountain.

Follow Taylor Brown on Twitter.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of Pride of Eden. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

These Ghosts are Family, by Maisy Card

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The connection of ancestors and how the dead still effect the living is explored in the tangled web of Irene Paisley and Stanford Solomon’s family. Generations of family members are navigating their life decades and centuries later based on their past ancestors. A domino effect is seen when their Jamaican family members continue to comb through secrets, history, and lineage.

Each chapter goes through a story about a different family member. The multi-generational saga is weaves through different time periods and different family connections.
Jamaican history, plantation life for slaves, and the exploitation of women in 19th century Jamaica is explored throughout the novel as the characters try to atone with the ghosts of their past.

The first chapter starts off a bit confusing. It front-loads all of the characters and many events making it hard to separate who from who and what from what. But after that short introduction, everything fell into place. The Jamaican dialogue was hard to understand sometimes, but I could figure out what was happening overall.

I enjoyed this debut novel and recommend it historical fiction readers.

Visit author Maisy Card’s website.

Refinery29 article recommends These Ghosts are Family.

Bustle recognizes These Ghosts are Family as an immigrant experience novel.

Follow Maisy Card on Twitter.

I received an advance readers copy through Netgalley and Edelweiss. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

Apeirogon, by Colum McCann

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“They seemed the most unlikely of friends, even beyond the obvious, one being Israeli, the other Palestinian.”

Rami and Bassam’s story is humbling. Centered around the Israeli-Palestine conflict, Rami and Bassam relive the day that each of their daughters died at the hands of a oppressive barrier that has effected more than just a perimeter. After each lose a daughter to violence, they learn to find solace in their grief and overcome the boundaries defined by their government.

“…everyone knew at least one child who was killed, and most of us knew several. You get used to it, sometimes you think it’s normal.”

It is a somber read with graphic gory scenes from beginning to end. Rami and Bassam’s recollections and revelations were heartbreaking. Just when I thought my heart couldn’t break anymore, it did. But the power and value behind the words is undeniable.
(The speeches they gave on pages 217-240 were unequivocal and would provide great dialogue for panel discussions and Socratic Seminars.)

There are only sections; most sections are about a paragraph in length, some sections are one sentence, some might be a small photo, though other sections are the length of a regular chapter. With a total of 1,001 sections, there are no chapters or parts.

It is a blend of fiction and nonfiction. For example: the story will be describing the anniversary of the time of deaths for the girls, so the very next section then discusses how the Greeks measured time in antiquity. Or, another example: there is a flashback when Salwa and her daughter are watching Arabian horses, so the next section goes into facts about Arabian horses. The fiction and nonfiction weave back and forth relying on each other. It jigsaws, using the previous section to build on the next section. The sequence is ornamental but blends cohesively.

I loved the book. It changed the way I think. When I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about it. It had a profound impact on me.

“Truth is, you can’t have a humane occupation. It just doesn’t exist. It can’t. It’s about control.”

Visit Colum McCan’s website.

The Hollywood Reporter describes Colum McCan’s novel, Apeirogon.

Read The Guardian’s review of Apeirogon.

Colum McCan won the National Book Award for his 2009 novel, Let The Great World Spin.

Follow Colum McCann on Facebook.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

Eden Mine, by S.M. Hulse

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Most of the story moves to a steady beat. Not fast-paced, just moderately balanced. But then the end just hits you, and the emotions pour.

The use of eminent domain has been enforced on their property, and Jo, a twenty-two year old paraplegic, narrates life in small town Eden, Montana after her older brother detonates a bomb in a nearby town that injures many in response to the land acquisition. Her brother, Samuel, was known for anti-government extremism, but now Jo is left to pick up the pieces since Samuel has gone into hiding.

“Samuel told me that after our mother’s death, the women of Prospect supplied him with food for weeks. No one has brought me anything now; apparently there is no casserole that says “Sorry your brother’s a terrorist.””

The description provided for this book might make it seem like it’s centered around terrorism, extreme politics, and eminent domain; but, it’s actually about how these actions affect the main character, Jo. It is character driven. Her narration brings these effects to light because of her brother. Throughout the story, the reader sees how Jo reacts to and questions her brothers poor choices. Her growth as a character is illuminated through her decisions the days following the bombing.

“…while I might not be my brother, and might not be responsible for what he has done, he is still my brother.”

I enjoyed Pastor Asa’s character. His struggle to find meaning in the bombing where his daughter was injured was tragic. Acumen involving religion and faith were tested through Asa’s character.

“I wonder what part of him that is a pastor is at war with the part of him that is a father.”

Some other things you might want to know: There are no chapters and no “Parts”. There are only page breaks. While Jo is the narrator, occasionally Samuel will briefly interlude as if speaking to Jo; Samuel’s thoughts are in italics. There are vivid descriptions of Montana, meaning at different parts in the story there are several paragraphs devoted to describing this setting. There is a considerable amount of dialogue centered around God and theology.

Eden Mine is S.M. Hulse’s second novel. Read Publisher’s Weekly review of Eden Mine.

Read Boston Globe’s review of S.M. Hulse debut novel, Black River.

S.M. Hulse’s debut novel Black River was the winner of the 2015 Reading the West Book Award, a 2016 PEN/Hemingway Finalist, an Amazon Best Book of the Month, and an Indie Next List Pick​.

Visit S.M. Hulse’s website to learn more about her books and awards.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of Eden Mine. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon | Goodreads Review|

Nothing More Dangerous, by Allen Eskens

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“Boady, the men who beat and murdered those people for all those years, do you think they simply disappeared because someone passed a law?”

A colored, divorced woman, Lida Poe, goes missing in the small town of Jessup, Missouri in the 70’s. The town is painted in racism and composed of prejudice beliefs. Growing up in Jessup, teenage Boady Sanden considers himself an average young man and doesn’t realize the segregation and discrimination until he befriends his new neighbors and sees the reaction from certain town members. Boady begins to recognize his own racial thoughts while he and his new friend, Thomas, get pulled into the middle of the Lida Poe murder case. Was there more to her murder case than what was being disclosed?

“You’ll never change what a person thinks in their head or what they feel in their heart by passing a law. If a man doesn’t want to look at who he is deep down, he’s not going to much care what the law says about it.”

I really loved the setting of the novel and watching Boady purge the racial stigmas that he had grown up hearing and believing. The friendship he creates with Thomas, his neighbor, was my favorite part of the novel. While the book obviously centers on overcoming prejudices in the 1970’s, the target for the reader is identifying and conquering our own prejudices, even including predispositions, whatever those might be.

The focus of the story isn’t the murder of Lida Poe, but her murder is used in the growth of the plot and character development. The story centers around Boady and his surroundings; like his peers in school who are blinded by racism and let those feelings drive their actions.

**There is a lot of racial slander in this novel. Violence and hate crimes occur.**

Pictured below is the face of young Emmett Till who is mentioned in the book a few times during the dialogue. Beaten, drowned, and then burned alive, read about the murder of Emmett Till here.

Allen Eskens is the author of award-winning book The Life We Bury.

He is a best-selling author. Nothing More Dangerous is his sixth book. To view all of his books, and the order to read them in, click here.

Follow Allen Eskens on Facebook.

| Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

Stateway’s Garden, by Jasmon Drain

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“She was a mother of two, who wished at that moment to forget her children and live a life with this man, in his dreams, dreams she didn’t know black men even considered.” -Jasmon Drain, Stateway’s Garden

Tracey and his older brother, Jacob, know nothing other than growing up in Chicago’s housing project known as the Stateway Gardens. Surrounded by crime and poverty, Tracy holds on tight to his dreams of a bright future. While some see the building as a symbol of failure, Tracy remembers it as home.

The book is told in separate stories rather than chapters. All of the stories revolve around or are somehow related to Tracy and Jacob.

Overall: Initially, the stories were hard to get into it. I had a hard time reading the first part of this book; it felt choppy and I felt removed from the characters because of the narration style. The only story in the beginning that I liked was “Solane”. I didn’t like any stories again until after halfway. Admittedly, the last few stories were hard to put down. At that point, both Tracy and Jacob were older and no longer children. Things then began to come to life. In the end, I was all in my emotions and completely invested in the characters. I wish the entire book had been that way  so I could have gotten to know them better during their childhood.

Stateway’s Garden is Jasmon Drain’s first book. Read more about it here.

More about the Stateway Gardens:

Click here to read short accounts as told by the residents who lived there.

A view of Stateway Gardens First floor:

Drug dealers place of word in the Stateway Garden. Click here to read the article.
A view of April’s kitchen in her Stateway Garden apartment. Click here to read the full story.

|Purchase on Amazon | Goodreads Review |

The End of the Ocean, by Maja Lunde

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Synopsis for End of the Ocean taken from Goodreads:

Mostly, I was bored. There was good descriptive writing, but it lacked an engaging storyline. It covers the timely issue of climate change, but overall the story lacked a concrete direction and was tediously executed.

The story is told in two time periods. Signe’s narrative is told in 2017. Signe, a seventy year old woman in Norway, mostly recalls flashbacks from her childhood throughout her young adult life; her memories reflect the growing climate change and the power of water. David’s narrative is told in 2041 in France, a time when water is scarce and refuge camps account for the majority of the land.

I enjoyed David’s chapters more and felt the desolate atmosphere was adequately mirrored, but the story for David ultimately went nowhere. I liked learning about the importance of water in our climate through Signe’s chapter, but (again) the direction for her chapters were ambiguous. The setting was there but the story was not.

There are sex scenes and the topic of abortion is explored.

I received an advanced copy from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions are my own

Maja Lunde is an author based in Norway. Visit her website to learn more.

Maja Lunde’s novel The History of Bees was a best seller about climate change. Watch the book trailer below.

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