Flip through February with fascinating fiction

Somehow, we have a month with only fiction – so unusual. There is variety in the collection, so I hope you find something to pique your interest.

 

“Killers of a Certain Age” by Deanna Raybourn. Newly retired killers for hire (they only kill very bad people) find themselves on the receiving end of the gun. Diabolical plots and violence ensue, but the stars are the 60–something-year-old women who perpetrate the action. Fast moving, fun read.

 

“The Crocodile Bride” by Ashleigh Bell Pedersen. Heart-breaking and tender scenes throughout this novel of a young girl in a swampy neighborhood in 1982 Louisiana as she negotiates her family situation.

 

“Foster” by Claire Keegan. When Ann Patchett tells you that she gifts this book to everyone, you know it is must-read material. Very short – it was originally a short story in The New Yorker. A young Irish girl is sent to live with relatives for a bit. She finds out what familial love can be and that she is worthy of it. Masterful writing.

 

“A Dangerous Business” by Jane Smiley. Smiley is one of my favorite authors and she gives us a great story here. The dead bodies of young women are showing up in 1851 Monterey, California. Eliza Ripple decides someone needs to find out what is happening since the local police are showing minimal interest. The historical context of the developing West, and the looming Civil War are woven into the story.

 

“The Whalebone Theatre” by Joanna Quinn. Epic story of a young girl and her cohorts who are raised in an ethically questionable English household. When World War II comes calling, their military ancestry prompts them all to do their part. Two of them go to work as spies on the Continent. With characters named Cristabel, Flossie, and Digby, who can resist!

 

“All the Dangerous Things” by Stacy Willingham. Mount Pleasant’s own blockbuster author has published her second book. It is set in Savannah so readers here will feel comfortable in the locale, but don’t get too comfy – there are a lot of fiendish twists in this tale!

 

“Daughters of the New Year” by E.M.Tran. The story of an immigrant Vietnamese family in New Orleans. The three sisters have little to no appreciation of their parents, particularly their mother’s years in Vietnam. The immigrant experience of adversity and survival always inspires. There is also humor in the depiction of the mother’s expectations of her daughters. 

 

“Remarkably Bright Things” by Shelby Van Pelt. The feel-good story of the year. A fresh look at average people trying to live a decent life and do right in their community. Sweet, but never cloying. Read this and gain a new optimism about your fellow man.

 

“No Plan B” by Lee Child. For Jack Reacher fans, and you know who you are. Your secret is safe with me.

 

“The Bandit Queens” by Parini Shroff. Outrageous tale of revenge by mistreated wives in a small village in India. Reputation is everything. This debut novel is a sharply written tale of friendship, love and self-respect. Not good as an audiobook, as the narrator sounds like a SoCal teenager.

 

“A History of Fear” by Luke Dumas. Creepy, dark story set in Edinburgh. You learn a college student has died at the outset, but who did it and why is slowly revealed. If you seek a good mystery, this is for you.

 

“Picture in the Sand” by Peter Blauner. After 9/11, a young Egyptian American boy feels compelled to forgo his Ivy League acceptance to flee to Syria and join a “holy war.” His grandfather, in an effort to persuade him to return home, uses email to relate his own story of resistance in the 1950s in Cairo. Some very graphic scenes of torture are part of a compelling story and have a realistic ending.

 

Sign up for updates at beckysbookclub.com.