Every Secret Thing by Ann Tatlock. A little too sweet for my tastes, this story about secrets, and recovered love, and unfulfilled dreams might be a treat for some other palates.
The Blood of Lambs by Kamal Saleem (with Lynn Vincent). Memoir of a former PLO terrorist, converted to Christianity and sworn to defend America by alerting Americans to the danger of terrorists among us.
The Trap by Joan Lowery Nixon. YA murder mystery. Nothing to write home about, but it’s an OK way to spend an hour or two.
Gringolandia by Lyn Miller-Lachmann. Semicolon review of this YA novel set in Chile and in the U.S. among Chilean refugees, here.
Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson. I’m fairly sure this book looks inside the mind of a certain kind of adolescent male fairly accurately; I’m not sure I want to go there again anytime soon.
Wife of the Gods by Kwei Quartey. I’ve got to get a review written and posted of this mystery novel set in Ghana. Short version: good, but not anything like the Alexander McCall Smith books it’s compared to on the back cover.
Lavinia by Ursula K. LeGuin. The story of the Trojan hero Aeneas’s second or third wife (was Dido a wife?), Lavinia, a Latin princess for whom he founded the city of Lavinium, later part of Rome. THe book was OK, but I remember Ms. LeGuin as a more exciting and interesting writer.
Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George. Semicolon review here plus a short list of favorite novelized fairy tales.
Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson. R-e-a-l-l-y sure I don’t want to go here again anytime soon.
Tuck by Stephen Lawhead. I didn’t think this third book in Lawhead’s Robin Hood trilogy was as good as the first and second, but it did provide a satisfying ending
Ancient Highway by Bret Lott.
The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje. I actually didn’t finish this Booker Prize-winning novel. Wikipedia says “the narrative is non-linear,” and I think that’s what wore me out so that I stopped halfway and never returned.
The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery. Odd, but the ending was satisfactory.
The Well and the Mine by Gin Phillips. Semicolon review here.
Amazing Grace: The Story of America’s Most Beloved Song by Steve Turner. Great book. Recommended. I’ll be writing more about this one as my hymn posts progress.
The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation: Volume 1, The Pox Party by M.T. Anderson. Finally, I read this one. It’s wonderfully evocative of the time period (American Revolution) with the language of the narrator reflecting the era and sadly educational (slavery), but I really wonder how many young adults, much less children, would make it through the first chapter.