First the bought. Dare I admit these are just the highlights. I randomly picked from my pile of new books I've been accumulating over the course of spring and summer. I have a few of you to blame for some of the books in this and and pile below. I could name names but I have a feeling you will know who you are. I meant to do a separate 'mystery' new books post and maybe I still will as I bought a few of those, too, these past couple of months as part of my mystery and crime binge. In no particular order and running from top to bottom:
McTeague by Frank Norris - Set in turn-of-the-century San Francisco this novel captures the "seamy side of American urban life with graphic immediacy".
The Dark Backward by Gregory Hall - Romantic suspense--a story about a woman who marries the perfect husband who makes her blissfully happy. "And as she moved ever deeper into a labyrinth of lies, lust, greed, and violence, Mary could be sure of only one thing: What she did not know could kill her . . ."
The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald - a Puffin Classic that I'd never heard of. "Climb the mysterious stairway with Princess Irene . . ." Maybe one for this fall and RIP?
Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson - "Set against the aftermath of the 1745 Jacobite Rebellion, the gripping drama of Kidnapped—originally published in 1886—takes readers to the danger and intrigue of a Scotland sundered by revolution."
Perdita by Hilary Scharper - "After a love affair that ends in tragedy, Garth Hellyer throws himself into his work for the Longevity Project, interviewing the oldest living people on the planet. But nothing has prepared him for Marged Brice, who claims to be a stunningly youthful 134. Marged says she wants to die, but can’t, held back by the presence of someone she calls Perdita." I've got two books already on the go for the Canadian Reading Challenge, but as soon as I finish one this is up next--I can't wait to read it.
Firebird by Susann Kearsley - "Nicola Marter was born with a gift so rare and dangerous she keeps it buried deep. When she encounters a desperate woman trying to sell a small wooden carving called 'The Firebird,' claiming it belonged to Russia's Empress Catherine, it's a problem. There's no proof. But Nicola held the object. She knows the woman is telling the truth." Kearsley is always good and I pretty much will buy whatever she writes. I'm looking forward to this one!
The Young Clementina by D.E. Stevenson - "Beloved author D.E. Stevenson captures the intricacies of post-World War I England with a light, comic touch that perfectly embodies the spirit of the time. Alternatively heartbreaking and witty, The Young Clementina is a touch tale of love, loss, and redemption through friendship." I could easily and happily start this one, right now! I have yet to read D.E. Stevenson, though I now have three of her books--this and two of the Miss Buncle stories. I see that Sourcebooks is reissuing more of her books, too.
Lillian & Dash by Sam Toperoff - "In this carefully crafted novel, Dashiell Hammett and Lillian Hellman come to life and recount their wild three-decades long affair in alternating narratives.
An Unfinished Woman: A Memoir by Lillian Hellman - In keeping with a theme! " . . . she recalls the New Orleans of her childhood, early adventures in book publishing, the high life in Depression-era Hollywood, travels through Russia, Spain, and Germany on the eve of World War II, encounters with Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Dorothy Parker, and her long relationship with her 'most beloved friend', Dashiell Hammett. This won the National Book Award.
Lee Krasner: A Biography by Gail Levin - ". . . Levin has written a dynamic and moving portrait of a brilliant woman, a most welcome work that recovers Krasner's voice and allows us to understand how her life intersected with and informed her art."
Women in England, 1760-1914: A Social History by Susan Steinbach - "A grand sweep of a book, a well-written and unexpectedly entertaining look at 'the long 19th century' from women's points of view." (The Independent).
The Spirit of London by Paul Cohen-Portheim - "A fascinating glimpse at pre-war London, the book was written by an Austrian who lived in London, 'to convey the atmosphere and spirit of London; it is a book about what London stands for and what it means'."
Lots of good summer reading for my most recent library finds.
Glaciers by Alexis Smith - "Glaciers follows Isabel through a day in her life in which work with damaged books in the basement of a library, unrequited love for the former soldier who fixes her computer, and dreams of the perfect vintage dress move over a backdrop of deteriorating urban architecture and the imminent loss of the glaciers she knew as a young girl in Alaska."
Rutherford Park by Elizabeth Cooke - "Beautiful, melancholy and richly detailed, Rutherford Park elegantly depicts the lives within an English country house on the cusp of a new age. Elizabeth Cooke evokes classic authors like Vita Sackville West and Frances Hodgson Burnett."—Natasha Solomons, author of The House at Tyneford.
Lighthouse Bay by Kimberley Freeman - "From the author of Wildflower Hill, this breathtaking novel travels more than a century between two love stories set in the Australian seaside town of Lighthouse Bay.
Easy by Tammara Webber - "A groundbreaking novel in the New Adult genre, Easy faces one girl's struggle to regain the trust she's lost, find the inner strength to fight back against an attacker, and accept the peace she finds in the arms of a secretive boy." Is YA literature now called 'New Adult genre'? I've not heard that term before. I don't usually read YA books, but someone raved about this and it ended up in my library request queue.
The Night Rainbow by Claire King -"Elegantly written, haunting and gripping, The Night Rainbow is a novel about innocence and experience, grief and compassion and the dangers of an overactive imagination."
Flora by Gail Godwin -"This darkly beautiful novel about a child and a caretaker in isolation evokes shades of The Turn of the Screw and also harks back to Godwin's memorable novel of growing up, The Finishing School. With its house on top of a mountain and a child who may be a bomb that will one day go off, Flora tells a story of love, regret, and the things we can't undo.It will stay with readers long after the last page is turned."
See, it's piles like these that make reading plans like this so difficult. With each book I picked up just now I kept thinking, 'now this one I really need to start soon . . .' I'm going to try and remain focused, but if one or two of these books finds its way to my nightstand this weekend, don't be surprised.
Happy reading everyone. I hope you have an equally enticing pile of books close at hand this weekend!