Anne Hart

What is your favorite sister relationship portrayed in a book?  My old-time favorite was the sisters in Little Women.  Recently it was the sisters in The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth.  I love sister stories so I was excited for False Witness by Karin Slaughter.  I’ve read a few of her books but this one felt different.  I loved Leigh and Callie with their complicated sister relationship.  Callie is a drug addict employed part-time at a vet surgery.  She works there so she can get drugs.  Leigh is a criminal defense attorney.  While Leigh’s work is inundated with face masks or hand sanitizer, it’s as if they don’t exist in Callie’s.  Yet Callie is still suffering the after-effects of The virus.  There’s a constant internal dialogue going on because their past has come back to haunt them.  Callie was brutally raped and beaten by a monster named Buddy.  The times the scene is repeated in the book feels like hundreds....

Have you ever stood up for someone at work?  In When Darkness Comes by John Anthony Miller one of the main characters, Rachel does this not just to her boss but also to the French Police and the Nazi officers!  (the epic scene is on page 122) And she’s only 16!  I loved this historical fiction set in France during WWII.  Several things set this book apart from all the other historical fiction WWII books.  First, the dynamic duo cousins named Paul and Claire.  Not many books celebrate cousins and this one beautifully portrays their familial love from the time they were children romping in the fields to adults fighting the Nazi occupiers in France.  Second, not many books give you the perspective of the “bad guy” yet in When Darkness Comes we meet the astute businessman Julian Junot.  This deeply layered character will have you in tears.  Third, the strong heroine Rachel shows not just self-sacrifice but self-love.  She reminded me ...

Do you like closed-door romances or sound the alarm, hot, spicy, and spell it all out sex scenes?  Previously I was a completely closed-door romance reader.  That has changed though.  The romance in Going Public by Hudson Lin is like going to a hot springs and you have to go in a toe at a time to get in but once you're in it's ecstasy.   Elvin is the personal assistant to Ray in the cutthroat corporate world of business.  Ray, wealthy in his own right, works his butt off taking companies public.  He has to do complete audits of the corporations to ensure any ghosts in their cleaning closets stay hidden or find somewhere else to haunt.  Elvin helps him with not just the business audits but also makes his breakfast, sends Ray’s one-night stands on their way, and deflects unwanted coworkers. Elvin has secretly had a crush on Ray for quite some time.  Ray has basically been sleeping with everyone he could.  Ray starts having feelings for E...

The intrigue with words and how one simple word can change a story had me from the start.  In PANDORA’S JAR, @nataliehaynesauthor  takes a historical look at 10 women featured in Greek mythology.  I loved her book A Thousand Ships and I’m hoping the research in this book on Medusa inspired Natalie Haynes to write a book featuring the snake-headed femme fatale.  Thank you, Partner  @bibliolifestyle @harperperennial   Synopsis: In Pandora’s Jar, the broadcaster, writer, stand-up comedian, and passionate classicist turns the tables, putting the women of the Greek myths on an equal footing with the men. With wit, humor, and savvy, Haynes revolutionizes our understanding of epic poems, stories, and plays, resurrecting them from a woman’s perspective and tracing the origins of their mythic female characters. She considers Helen of Troy, whose marriage to Paris “caused” the Trojan war—a somewhat uneven response to her decision to leave her husba...

Do you name your cars/bikes/modes of transportation?  I named mine the White Knight.  In The Valley and the Flood, the main character Rose names her car Stanley.  I picked this book up purely because of the cover.  I didn’t realize it was YA fantasy.   Rose gets stranded in the desert thanks to Stanley breaking down.  She walks to a little town Lotus Valley.  It’s a year since Rose’s best friend Gaby died and all of a sudden Rose starts rehearing the last voicemail her friend left her.  The part of the story which takes place in Lotus Valley is weird thanks to several “prophets”.  One of them named Cassie has predicted Rose is going to cause their Valley to flood.  Rose starts seeing things within the landscape. Thanks to counseling, Rose has some methods to deal with her fears and the things she sees.  The book is weird and some things are so beautifully written that you appreciate the weirdness.  I enjoyed this odd lit...

Did you stop and smell the roses today?  According to Gigi/Celeste, you should “always remember to stop and smell the roses”, p. 45.  Hello, Goodbye is a multi-generational story about loss, first love, family, and friendship.  15-year-old Hailey befriends her grandmother, Gigi in the summer she will never forget.  This read is for teens and adults alike who appreciate the lessons adults can learn from teens and the wisdom adults can impart to teens. Gigi and Hailey try to solve their family secrets that have caused trauma for three generations.  The wit and witticisms of Gigi are imparted in a way Hailey can appreciate.  This isn’t the type of young adult book written by an adult through rose-tinted glasses to tell teens to appreciate their family.  This is an emotional story written in retrospect by an adult who remembers exactly what it’s like to be a teenager.  Lovers of Twilight by Stephenie Meyer and The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzg...

A young adult story about teens trapped in a snowstorm.  The complex teens are great representations of different personalities.  I loved the sibling relationship between Sam and her little brother Stu.  Lily, the smart girl is dating Stu.  Gavin and Brittany are popular kids in the school.  I loved Hunter with his Texas drawl and survival knowledge.  Sam is dreading senior ski weekend and having to watch after her brother because of his back problems and past injuries.   Brittany is the one you love to hate with her annoying preachings.  The writing was great at building the teen characters as similar yet so different.  The character development does take quite a while due to the number of characters.  But the plot quickens about halfway through the book as they get stranded on a snowy road and try to go for help.  The dog in the story Champion is my second favorite character.  If you can imagine six teens trekking thro...