The Cat, the Owl and the Fresh Fish by Nadine Robert
When reading the title I read, The Cat, the Owl and the Fresh Fish as “The Cat and Owl” making me think this was going to be an Owl and Pussycat remake. Was it going to be “modern” or keep to the classic format? Was it going to be long, short or…. Oh, wait it has this fish thing going on, too. Well maybe I will read then (I thought) as it is going to be different. It is not an Owl and Pussycat story. […]
Behind the Scenes by Karelia Stetz-Waters
When business consultant Rose is hired to help frazzled director Ash make her return in Hollywood, a romance begins to bloom between the pair – now if only they can manage not to get in their own ways! I was in the mood for a cute sapphic romance this winter season, and Behind the Scenes delivers in spades. Rose and Ash have excellent chemistry, and there are a pair of adorable, ever-hungry pugs, but what really sold me on this book was the humor. There’s […]
The Candy House by Jennifer Egan
I finally read A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan in 2018, and it was one of my favorite books of the year–and probably in my top ten ever. It was such a delightful surprise. Earlier this year, I heard there was something of a sequel coming out. I was excited but also worried that it would not live up to my expectations after the first book. However, I faced my fears and picked up The Candy House (2022) because there was no way I was going […]
Public Secrets by Nora Roberts
After being rescued from her abusive mother, Emma goes on to live a charmed life with her father and his wife – at least until a tragedy befalls the whole family. This is an older Nora, and one I picked up because the premise reminded me of those family saga/career girl dramas from the 80s that I love, and indeed I wasn’t disappointed in that regard. In many ways this is a coming-of-age story for Emma, and there was plenty of drama and excess to […]
Fathers and Children by Ivan Turgenev
Turgenev’s Fathers and Children comes from that lush mid-19th century literary period in Russian literature that also includes the authors Gogol (Dead Souls) and my favorite, Goncharov (Oblomov, in which we spend 500 pages with the world’s laziest man). There are more famous authors in this period, but they don’t appeal to me the way these three do. There is something soothing about the slow pace of life in these books that really appeals to me. The protagonists are members of the lesser aristocracy, but […]
Cleansed by Sarah Kane
CW: mental illness, drug use, suicide, bodily mutilation I read this play because a friend of mine issued an open casting call for auditions. This is not the first Sarah Kane play that this theater has put on in the last few years, so I wanted to see why there was such a focus on this playwright. If this play is any indication of Kane’s other works, the best word to describe her writing is “daring.” Between the characters, plot points, and stage directions, Kane […]
