The Burning Side by Sarah Damoff
Goodreads blurb: From the author of The Bright Years, the story of April and Leo, a couple on the brink of collapse. When their house goes up in flames, family secrets and thorny histories emerge as they are forced to decide what is worth salvaging.
When April and Leo’s house burns in the middle of the night, they escape with their two young children and the quiet knowledge that the fire is not the only thing threatening their family. They retreat to April’s childhood home in Dallas, where her spirited parents and siblings provide both comfort and complication.
As the family reckons with the aftermath—grief, guilt, logistics, and memories scorched and intact—the fire exposes the cracks already forming in April and Leo’s marriage. The novel unfolds in alternating perspectives: from April, who feels the crushing weight of motherhood, marriage, and self-blame; from Leo, a high school history teacher shaped by a lonely, fractured childhood; from Deb, April’s generous and no-nonsense mother who has to contend with her husband’s recent Alzheimer’s diagnosis; and from flashbacks that trace April and Leo’s relationship from its earliest days of connection to the devastating decisions that led them here.
A family saga suffused with humor, longing, and heartbreak, The Burning Side is about what we inherit and what we choose, about forgiveness and the ache of being known. It is, above all, about the meaning of home and the costs of long love.
This is an ARC review thanks to a gift from the publisher.
My take: 4.5 out of5. This book is heartbreaking, frustrating, and incredibly real all at once. So much of the conflict comes down to miscommunication, but it never felt forced—it felt like watching deeply wounded people struggle under the weight of years of trauma and unresolved issues. Honestly, every single person in this book could benefit from therapy, and that’s exactly what makes it so compelling. I especially loved the parents’ relationship, which had a Notebook-level kind of heartbreak that absolutely wrecked me. It’s not always an easy read, but the emotional payoff is more than worth it. And thank goodness for Josie, who is a bit of a loose cannon and provides just enough levity to keep the whole thing from becoming completely overwhelming
The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett
Goodreads blurb: In 1933 Oxford, Mississippi, Prohibition is on the wane, and the Great Depression is tightening its grip. Poor and rich folks alike have fallen on hard times, even as the old social order remains. For women on the margins, the options are few and the price of dignity and self-determination is unbearably high.
Eleven-year-old Meg, one of the unadoptable “big girls” at the Lafayette County Orphan Asylum, fights each day to keep her spirit unbowed. Birdie, unmarried and outspoken, has come to Oxford on a mission to ask her social-climbing sister to help the struggling family she’s left behind. And Charlie is a woman with a past, running low on luck but driven by fire, fury, and grit. When their fates converge, they come up with an audacious plan to take back control of their lives. Together, they form an unlikely sisterhood—but in a place and time where hypocrisy is rife, women’s freedom is fragile, and making an enemy can have dire consequences, will the price they pay for their outrageous risk-taking be too high?
The Calamity Club will make you laugh, cry, and cheer—an epic testament to resilience, friendship, and the fierce, funny women who know that calamity can be the spark of new beginnings. This is Kathryn Stockett at her most confident, heartfelt, and hilarious—the triumphant return of one of the most beloved storytellers of our time.
my take: 4.25 out of 5. Let’s start with the obvious: this is a wonderful book, but why on earth is it so long? It’s a chunker, and it takes a while to get to the part where it really shines. If you’re struggling at the beginning, stick with it—I was right there with you—but I firmly believe it could have been a few hundred pages shorter. Ironically, once it finally got really good, it ended too fast. I needed fewer pages upfront and a little more at the end—an epilogue, an extra chapter, something. Instead, it just barreled into the ending, and I spent most of it crying.
I adored Birdie, while her sister remained pretty much detestable to me from beginning to end. Mrs. Tarte, however, was an absolute delight every time she appeared. The book tackles a lot of issues around race, and I’ll admit there were moments when I had to stop and Google some of the characters because I wasn’t always sure how they were meant to be read. That may have been more of an audiobook issue than a book issue, though.
And one of my favorite quotes of the year has to be: “Find the person who will keep the dogs away from you.” Honestly, I might need to start living by that advice.
Score by Kennedy Ryan
Goodreads blurb: You never forget your first love. Isn’t that what they say? Verity Hill knows this truth intimately. She didn’t simply miss Wright “Monk” Bellamy when they parted ways in college. She’s haunted by his touch. Every kiss, any lover since—it’s a shadow of what they had.
Time heals all wounds. Isn’t that what they say? Monk doesn’t believe that for a second. He wasn’t simply betrayed when he and Verity split. He was devastated, with parts of him left behind in the ruins of all that was destroyed.
More than a decade after their disastrous breakup, Verity and Monk must work together on the set of an epic Harlem Renaissance biopic. With Monk, now a world-class musician, creating the score, and Verity, an award-winning screenwriter, penning the script, there’s Oscar buzz before shooting even begins. This once-in-a-lifetime project could catapult them both to new heights, but can they can put the past behind them for the sake of the film…for the sake of something more?
My take: 4 out of 5.Kennedy Ryan knows how to write a romance that absolutely grabs you, and this one was no exception. I never read the first book in the series, but I had no trouble following along or connecting with the story. What I loved most was watching both characters grow—not just in their relationship, but in their art and careers as well. The romance was beautiful, but the heavy focus on mental health sometimes pulled me out of it a bit, which is probably why I didn’t rate it even higher. Still, it’s a gorgeous love story, especially for readers who love music, film, and watching two creative people find their way back to themselves and each other.
A Study in Sparkling by Jodi McAlister
Goodreads blurb: From the acclaimed author of An Academic Affair comes a steamy romance about a single mum who’s absolutely not looking for another relationship . . . only to fall for the younger owner of her favourite wine bar.
Fiona Fisher thought she had it a loving husband, three kids, and a life far away from the suffocating expectations of her family. But when her husband reveals that he’s leaving her for his secret second family, Fiona is left devastated and humiliated.
Satoshi Tsukamoto wants it all. He’s the owner of a popular wine bar, and he’s studying for the hardest test in the the Master Sommelier exam. There aren’t enough hours in the day for anything else – except maybe Fiona, his favourite customer, and the woman he’s head-over-heels in love with.
On paper, Fiona and Satoshi make no sense. He’s eight years younger than her and has no time for romance. She’s a single mother and doesn’t know if she’ll ever be able to trust anyone again. But how can Fiona resist when Satoshi suggests they give into their mutual attraction to let off some steam? And how can Satoshi resist when the woman he adores is finally within his grasp – even if they’ve agreed to keep things casual?
This is an ARC review thanks to a gift from the publisher.
My take: 3.5 out of 5.I really enjoyed An Academic Affair, and this felt like a solid continuation of that story. You could read it as a standalone, but I think you’d miss some of the context and character history that make it more rewarding. The wine-world setting was absolutely catnip for me—between the wine store, the bubbles, and all the wine talk, it was pretty much tailor-made for my interests.
So why isn’t this a 4- or 5-star read? Honestly, the romance just didn’t quite land for me. I adored the setting, but I never fully bought into Fiona and Satoshi as a couple. Their chemistry didn’t leap off the page, and Satoshi never really felt like a compelling romantic lead. Maybe it was just me, but more than once he gave off “gay best friend” energy rather than “MMC” vibes.
That said, I do think this may be a very personal reaction. If you enjoyed An Academic Affair, I still recommend giving this one a try. It’s a great continuation, the wine-country atmosphere is wonderful, and it’s fun to see where the story goes next.
Whistler by Ann Patchett
Goodreads blurb: The acclaimed, prize-winning #1 New York Times bestselling writer returns with a moving, luminous novel that reminds us of the sweetness and impermanence of life and the power of connection to defy time.
When Daphne Fuller and her husband Jonathan visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art, they notice an older, white-haired gentleman following them. The man turns out to be Eddie Triplett, her former stepfather, who had been married to her mother for a little more than year when Daphne was nine. Now fifty-three, Daphne hasn’t seen Eddie for many years, not since the fateful event that changed the direction of both their lives. Meeting again, time falls away; while their relationship was brief, it had a profound impact on them both, and now that they are reunited, they have no intention of ever being separated again.
Whistler is a story about two adults looking back over the choices they made, and the choices that were made for them. It’s a story about bravery, memory, the often small yet consequential moments that define our lives, and the endless stream of loss that in time comes for us all. Beautiful in its simplicity, it is ultimately about how love endures, and how the feeling of being known by one other person, even for a short period of time, can change everything.
my take: 4.25 out of 5I honestly don’t know how to categorize this book. I was talking about it with a friend and realized I couldn’t quite explain what it was about or even what happened—I just knew I absolutely loved it. That’s the magic of Ann Patchett: she can take seemingly ordinary lives and make them completely captivating. The way everything comes together in the end is beautiful, and her exploration of family, the choices we make, and the ways those choices ripple through a lifetime is incredibly moving. The recurring “Whistler” thread that ties the story together is brilliant and showcases her absolute mastery as a writer. Is it her most exciting book? No. But is it beautiful, thoughtful, and impossible to put down once it gets its hooks into you? Absolutely.
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