BookBrowse | Book Reviews and Recommendations

Amity: A Novel
by Nathan Harris

Beautifully written historical fiction (8/17/2025)

Amity is Nathan Harris’ second book. And while I didn’t love it the way I did The Sweetness of Water, I still strongly recommend it. Taking place in 1866, it follows Coleman and June, a recently freed brother and sister from New Orleans to Mexico. Their former owner left …more

My Documents: A Novel
by Kevin Nguyen

Prescient (8/13/2025)

I only became aware of My Documents when it was chosen as the book selection for our week at Chautauqua. But how eerie that this book, which obviously had to have been written even before Trump was elected, has become so prophetic. The premise is that after a terrorist …more event, for which several Vietnamese men are responsible, the US passes a bill calling for the internment of all Vietnamese living in the U.S. Nguyen draws as his inspiration the Japanese internment during WWII, the refugee camps after the Vietnamese War and current day immigration centers (although Alligator Alcatraz was not yet conceived at the time). But it’s not just the idea of rounding people up. There’s a whole segment on Google and how it’s in collusion with the government. Paramount, anyone?

The story tracks five relatives - 2 full blooded Vietnamese siblings who are detained, two half-Vietnamese siblings who receive exemptions and their father who goes on the run. Their stories are interspersed with the reports Ursula writes.
A few things struck me. The willingness of Ursula, the reporter, to publish things she has to know will backfire on her relatives. Yet, her ambition consistently wins out. The fact that she’s only half Vietnamese and can “pass” as white also figures into the story. Meanwhile, her half-sister, Jen, is left to pick up the pieces of her life at the detention center and after.

Nguyen does some clever things, like making the guards Hispanic. And all along, many folks, even those running an underground delivery service, do things just because it’s a job and they’re getting paid. His commentary on how quickly things pass from the public’s ability to care hits home.

The story slows once the internment is undone and I was less impressed with the final quarter. The story is dark, poignant, terrifying, yet at times humorous. I can’t wait to hear the author discuss it.

I only became aware of My Documents when it was chosen as the book selection for our week at Chautauqua. But how eerie that this book, which obviously had to have been written even before Trump was elected, has become so prophetic. The premise is that after a terrorist event, for which several Vietnamese men are responsible, the US passes a bill calling for the internment of all Vietnamese living in the U.S. Nguyen draws as his inspiration the Japanese internment during WWII, the refugee camps after the Vietnamese War and current day immigration centers (although Alligator Alcatraz was not yet conceived at the time). But it’s not just the idea of rounding people up. There’s a whole segment on Google and how it’s in collusion with the government. Paramount, anyone?

The story tracks five relatives - 2 full blooded Vietnamese siblings who are detained, two half-Vietnamese siblings who receive exemptions and their father who goes on the run. Their stories are interspersed with the reports Ursula writes.
A few things struck me. The willingness of Ursula, the reporter, to publish things she has to know will backfire on her relatives. Yet, her ambition consistently wins out. The fact that she’s only half Vietnamese and can “pass” as white also figures into the story. Meanwhile, her half-sister, Jen, is left to pick up the pieces of her life at the detention center and after.

Nguyen does some clever things, like making the guards Hispanic. And all along, many folks, even those running an underground delivery service, do things just because it’s a job and they’re getting paid. His commentary on how quickly things pass from the public’s ability to care hits home.

The story slows once the internment is undone and I was less impressed with the final quarter. The story is dark, poignant, terrifying, yet at times humorous. I can’t wait to hear the author discuss it. (less)

The Emperor of Gladness: A Novel
by Ocean Vuong

Beautiful and poignant (7/27/2025)

The Emperor of Gladness is a beautifully written, poignant story. But I feel I made a mistake listening to, rather than reading, it. The writing is fabulous and I longed to be able to linger over it.
It’s an Odd Couple type of story - 19 year old Hai and 82 year old Grazina. …more

Strangers in Time: A World War 2 Novel
by David Baldacci

Too predictable (7/27/2025)

3.5 stars, rounded down
I was torn about listening to this book. I’m tired of WWII themed historical fiction. But I adored Calamity of Souls. And there’s a mystery component to the book, which always draws me in. In the end, I found it was a mixed bag - good characters but a …more

The Good Liar: A Novel
by Denise Mina

Steady pace, good characters (7/27/2025)

It’s been a while since I’ve read anything by Denise Mina, but I’ve liked the ones I’ve read. I’m adding this one to the list. The plot was solid, the characters fully fleshed out. Dr. Claudia O’Sheil is about to blow the lid open on how her forensic evidence falsely …more

Lightning Strike: Cork O'Connor Mystery Series #18
by William Kent Krueger

Prequel to the Cork O’Connor series (7/12/2025)

William Kent Krueger is one of the finest contemporary writers in the US and one of my personal favorites. He has a real way with young male characters finding their way in the world. This story is a prequel to his Cork O’Connor series.

Within the first sentence of the …more

Bring the House Down: A Novel
by Charlotte Runcie

A whole new spin on the Me, Too situation (7/12/2025)

Bring the House Down takes a whole new spin on the Me, Too situation and does it brilliantly. Alex, a popular theatre critic, known for his savage reviews, writes a one star review of a one woman show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Then he goes out for a meal, picks up …more

The House Is on Fire
by Rachel Beanland

What I want from historical fiction (7/10/2025)

A favorite of 2023

The House is on Fire is Rachel Beanland’s sophomore effort and I was even more pleased with it than her debut, Florence Adler Swims Forever. The story covers the fire on December 26, 1811 at the Richmond Theatre. Plantation owners came to Richmond in …more winter for their social season. Thus, the theater was especially full on the 26th. The fire was the worst urban disaster of our young country, resulting in the death of 72 individuals, mostly women.

The story starts with the night of the fire and progresses from there. I wasn’t sure how Beanland would maintain any suspense once the fire was over and done, but boy, was I wrong. The story centers around four characters - Jack Gibson , a young stagehand; Sally Henry Campbell, daughter of Patrick Henry and newly widowed; Cecily Patterson, a young black slave who was acting as a chaperone for her young white mistress but was required to sit on a different floor, and Gilbert Hunt, an enslaved blacksmith who ends up helping rescue 12 white women from the theater. Each of these four made decisions at the crisis point which affected not just themselves but others. By switching between their POVs, the story maintains a brisk pace. Each of the four is also fully drawn and I was equally engaged by each of their stories.

The book does a wonderful job of showing the places of women and blacks in southern society. For example, when a young wife breaks her leg jumping from the window and the surgeon announces only her husband can give permission for her leg to be amputated. And, of course, black women are chattel to be used in whatever way a man wants. Let’s just say most of the men in the story don’t come off in a good light. There aren’t a lot of heroes in this story, at least white ones. But there are several heroines.
The writing is clear and succinct and it was easy to envision each scene. Beanland has the ability to give the reader a firm grasp on the time and place. There are several aspects of this story which have been fictionalized, but Beanland spells them out in her Author’s Note. She gives a rationale for each of those modifications. Overall, this is exactly what I want from historical fiction. It taught me about a moment in history that I previously knew nothing about while telling a good story.

My thanks to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for an advance copy of this book. (less)

The Great Believers
by Rebecca Makkai

Poignant and gripping (7/10/2025)

What an amazing, gripping book. The Great Believers tracks two different story lines. Mid 1980s Chicago, the AIDS epidemic is in full swing and Yale’s friends are falling ill and dying. Things truly go wrong at his friend Nico’s funeral when an ill placed word by Fiona, …more

The Elements: A Novel
by John Boyne

Powerful and thought provoking (7/9/2025)

Once again, John Boyne has crafted a book that drew me in and kept me enthralled. It is a powerful book. In The Elements, four interconnected stories explore sexual crimes and the different parties involved - the enabler, the accomplice, the perpetrator and the victim. The …more

A Disappearance in Fiji
by Nilima Rao

Well researched and easy to envision (6/26/2025)

4.5 stars, rounded up

This well crafted, wonderfully researched historical mystery takes the reader to 1914 Fiji. Akal Singh is a young police sergeant who has been banished from Hong Kong to Fiji. He has yet to be received into the good graces of his boss. But a delegation …more

When the Cranes Fly South: A Novel
by Lisa Ridzén

Heartbreaking (6/26/2025)

2025
“At dinner one day, I snapped and asked what the hell the point of life was if I was too old for a dog.” Truly. I hate to think of the day I’m no longer capable of having a dog.
Bo is 89, is still living at home but with the help of caregivers. His wife has Alzheimer’s …more

People Like Us: A Novel
by Jason Mott

Amazing writing (6/26/2025)

It’s been a while since I’ve read anything by Denise Mina, but I’ve liked the ones I’ve read. I’m adding this one to the list. The plot was solid, the characters fully fleshed out. Dr. Claudia O’Sheil is about to blow the lid open on how her forensic evidence falsely …more

The Good Liar: A Novel
by Denise Mina

Well developed characters (6/26/2025)

It’s been a while since I’ve read anything by Denise Mina, but I’ve liked the ones I’ve read. I’m adding this one to the list. The plot was solid, the characters fully fleshed out. Dr. Claudia O’Sheil is about to blow the lid open on how her forensic evidence falsely …more

Daikon: A Novel
by Samuel Hawley

Fabulous alternative historical fiction (6/26/2025)

Daikon combines the best of alternative historical fiction and a thriller. The premise is that in WWII, the Americans had not two but three atomic bombs ready to drop on Japan. But the first plane is shot out of the sky and the bomb doesn’t detonate and is recovered by the …more

The White Crow: Philomena McCarthy #2
by Michael Robotham

Engrossing (6/26/2025)

4.5 stars, rounded up

The White Crow is an engrossing, fast paced second book in the Philomena “Phil” McCarthy series. Phil is a police constable, but she’s also the daughter of a well known criminal boss. Talk about walking a fine line! One night on patrol, she sees a child …more

The Uproar: A Novel
by Karim Dimechkie

Perfect for book clubs (6/26/2025)

I will admit to grabbing an advance copy of The Uproar because of that wonderful cover and understanding it was about trying to temporarily rehome a dog. Not just any dog, Judy is a 150# Bull Mastiff with numerous health concerns. Sharif and his wife Adjoua are expecting …more

King of Ashes: A Novel
by S. A. Cosby

Excellent audio experience (6/21/2025)

S. A. Cosby has done it again. I would award this more than five stars if I could. He excels at writing dark southern thrillers that pit regular folks against the forces of evil. In King of Ashes, Roman returns home to Jefferson Run, VA after his father is in a serious car …more

Broken Country (Reese's Book Club)
by Clare Leslie Hall

Great book club selection (6/21/2025)

Broken Country grabbed me from the first pages and never let me go. It was so intense; such an emotional land mine of a book. It starts when a dog attacks a herd of sheep and is shot dead by one of two farming brothers. Turns out Gabriel, the dog’s owner, has just returned …more

Wild Dark Shore: A Novel
by Charlotte McConaghy

Haunting mystery (6/21/2025)

With Wild Dark Shore, Charlotte McConaghy has once again crafted a haunting mystery based on climate change.

A family of four are the final inhabitants on an island in the Southern Ocean, near to Antarctica. Even they are due to leave, once they finish packing up the seed …more