Leaving home is a contradiction in terms; we can never truly leave behind the place that shaped us, nor the people who played a part in our molding. Never Coming Back explores that most unbreakable bond forged at home, the bond between mother and daughter.

In this emotional continuation of the story she began in Shadow Baby, Alison McGhee transports us back to the Northern woods of Sterns, New York, and the Winter women, Tamar and Clara. Clara had escaped to Florida after college and lived there for years until Tamar’s recent erratic behavior is given a name—Alzheimer’s. Early onset. Not words anyone ever wants to hear, especially someone who feels the weight of words like Clara does. As her mother’s mind and thoughts shrink, Clara’s expands with memory and feeling and unanswered questions.

In Clara’s recollections, we see Tamar before her illness took hold: acerbic and guarded, burdened by life experience as well as the choices she made that she was unable to help her daughter understand. The precocious 11-year-old Clara in Shadow Baby has turned inward, defending herself against (and because of) tragedy. Curious as a child, with a never-ending wellspring of wonderings, now-32-year-old Clara hides her deeper adult anguish behind well-chosen words, sarcastic “Jeopardy” references and a wire tattoo symbolically holding her together. Her anger at Tamar’s potential role in Clara’s breakup with Asa, her first love, fuels Clara’s initial interactions with her mother, until Clara slowly begins to see with a new perspective—someone else’s perspective, her mother’s perspective.

McGhee’s own gift for words takes you to the very heart of this tense yet tender relationship. Through vivid and meandering dips into memory, McGhee draws us into Clara’s rapidly shifting thoughts as she tries to piece together previous assumptions with new discoveries. Encouraged by her friends and Tamar’s confidante, Annabelle, Clara learns more fully the true power of words, both spoken and heard. On this journey of return, Clara finds herself on the path toward redemption, acceptance and love.

In Alice Hoffman’s 1995 novel, Practical Magic, sisters Sally and Gillian share a strong sibling bond and a complicated relationship with magic. Their story is rooted in family history and a legend that includes witchcraft, feuds and rejection dating back 200 years.

In The Rules of Magic, Hoffman’s prequel to Practical Magic, we learn about the family’s more recent history: the backstory of Aunt Frances and Aunt Jet, Sally and Gillian’s mysterious guardians. Young Franny is redheaded and feisty; she loves science and looks for logical explanations for everything, even their bizarre family traits that can’t be explained. Bridget, called Jet, is shy and so beautiful that boys are literally willing to die to be with her. Their brother, Vincent, is a mysterious heartbreaker, tormented by visions of the future and carrying more secrets than his sisters can imagine. The three siblings are tied together by blood, magic and a curse that dooms any romantic partner they ever love.

Their story is set in the 1960s, and Hoffman weaves cultural and historical references into the novel. It’s the summer solstice meets the “Summer of Love”; spells and potions and superstition rub elbows with riots and music festivals and bellbottoms. Hoffman handles this commingling beautifully, and the fact that her fantasy is grounded in reality makes it feel grittier and more tangible.

The Rules of Magic fills in the blanks for Practical Magic fans, but it works perfectly as a standalone as well. It’s clear why Hoffman is a favorite for fantasy readers: She creates interesting mythologies; she’s able to weave magic into the modern world; and she alludes to the magical properties of herbs and everyday items without overexplaining them and overcomplicating her narratives.

The Rules of Magic is ostensibly about three family members who find all their love stories star-crossed. But the devotion that draws them together as a family forms a bond that proves indestructible and may ultimately be the key to finally breaking the curse that’s haunted their family for generations.

This article was originally published in the October 2017 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

An unusual encounter turns into a serendipitous yet life-changing situation in Eva Woods’ latest uplifting work of women’s fiction.

The last thing Annie Hebden wants is a friend. At 35, Annie is down in the doldrums, having had her fair share of troubles in the past and now dealing with her mom, who is in the advanced stages of dementia. Annie is in the middle of sorting out an issue with the hospital staff regarding her mom’s care when a strangely dressed gal named Polly Leonard strikes up a conversation with her. The following morning, Polly shows up on Annie’s doorstep. Polly, who has a brain tumor and only three months to live, insists on brightening Annie’s life by challenging her to experience 100 days of happiness.

Annie is dubious at first, but she is pleasantly surprised when the daily challenges lighten her mood. Although Annie makes great strides with the project, what remains is whether or not she can complete the challenge before Polly’s time is up.

Inspired by the “100 Happy Days” challenge, Woods presents a hilariously uplifting and heartwarming story of hope in the midst of despair. Her easygoing writing style engages the reader from the get-go, turning a 400-page novel into a light read. While Annie and Polly stand at the forefront, Woods weaves in an interesting, well-developed supportive cast, many of whom act as foils to build up Annie’s character.

Lightly reminiscent of the movie The Bucket List but successfully avoiding hackneyed scenes, Something Like Happy includes a little bit of everything—even the hope of romance. This is an enjoyable read that needs to spread far and wide.

This article was originally published in the September 2017 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

From bestselling novelist Gabrielle Zevin (The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry) comes a fresh take on a classic theme. Young Jane Young features witty yet compassionate storytelling from four women at different stages of their lives, each relating to the same event that uprooted them in profound and personal ways.

Twenty-year-old Aviva Grossman is a congressional intern in South Florida with a budding career in politics. When her affair with a married congressman is discovered, her name is smeared across media outlets nationwide. In a final display of their uneven power dynamic, the blame of the affair disproportionately falls on Aviva. The congressman is consistently re-elected, while Aviva struggles to find work even out of state. The scope of her transgressions would never have tarnished her entire adult life if not for the unfortunate timing of the ubiquity of the internet and an anonymous (albeit transparent) blog she kept of the affair. Drawing appropriate parallels to Hester Prynne, Aviva decides to flee South Florida to a remote town in Maine, in the hope of beginning a new life on her own terms.

Through the relatable, entertaining perspectives of Aviva, her mother, Aviva’s teen daughter and the congressman’s wife, Zevin presents a complex and intelligent story without becoming dense. The novel’s readability does nothing to diminish the quality of its themes. The feminist message is straightforward, from its overt discussion of the topic to the presentation of its male characters, who are the supporting cast to a group of strong, unforgettable leading women.

Zevin works creatively with arrangement, allowing the story to develop nonlinearly. She uses brilliantly unusual formats, such as a series of outgoing emails to a pen pal as a way for a precocious teen to speak candidly. The final section is told through a playful choose-your-own-ending format, which, tellingly, only provides one choice—a simple yet profound way to look upon the past.

This article was originally published in the September 2017 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

New York Times bestselling author Susan Wiggs’ new novel, Map of the Heart, opens with what should have been just another day in the life of former adrenaline junkie Camille Palmer. In the wake of her husband Jace’s horrendous death, Camille has constructed a stifling, safe life for her daughter, Julie, and herself. Years have passed since Jace died, but Camille has been so busy hanging onto his memory and trying to wrap her ninth grader in figurative cotton batting that she’s completely overlooked the signs that Julie is in trouble.

Even once events force Camille to realize she’s smothering her child, she can’t let go of the fear she’s lived with since watching her husband die. She resists getting sucked into her father Henry and Julie’s excitement when the arrival of a mysterious package gives them a glimpse into their family’s past, even as it raises more questions than provides answers. Camille reluctantly accompanies her family to Henry’s hometown in the south of France. Conversations there with old acquaintances, as well as concerted attempts to unravel the mysteries of her father's childhood, eventually lead the family back to the final years of World War II. And with the help of the one man she hasn’t been able to ignore, a retired Naval officer and now historian who specializes in repatriating the missing remains of soldiers, Camille may find a far brighter future than she ever envisioned for herself.

Wiggs seamlessly weaves a multigenerational story that will make you laugh, make you cry and leave you with a sigh of satisfaction as you turn the final page.

In 2013, Edward Kelsey Moore introduced an indomitable and unforgettable trio of headstrong African-American women in his bestselling debut, The Supremes at Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat. Lifelong best friends Odette, Clarice and Barbara Jean—known collectively as the Supremes—won the hearts of readers worldwide as they navigated life’s ups and downs with grit and good humor. After four years, fans will jump for joy that Moore’s long-awaited sequel is finally here.

In fictional Plainview, Indiana, life hasn’t changed much for our heroines since we last left them: Odette and her husband still have a rock-solid marriage; Barbara Jean and her high school sweetheart are enjoying a second chance at love; and Clarice is experiencing a welcome renaissance in both her marriage and her concert pianist aspirations. The three women still meet for their weekly post-church catch-up lunch at Earl’s diner, and it seems that after the tumult of the previous novel, they’ve found their grooves and are sailing through their golden years. All this changes, however, when Clarice’s mother falls madly in love with the owner of the local blues joint/gentlemen’s club/general house of ill repute (much to the bemusement—and amusement—of the town). Their wedding brings home legendary bluesman El Walker, even though he swore decades earlier he’d never return to Plainview. El’s performance at the wedding is the calm before a truly epic storm that rips open tender wounds from the past and catches the Supremes and their families in its terrible wake.

Like its predecessor, The Supremes Sing the Happy Heartache Blues is an uplifting read that tugs at readers’ heartstrings and elicits enthusiastic chuckles in equal measure. Moore masterfully balances sorrow and humor, scandal and earnestness, to create a soul-nourishing narrative that entertains and captures life’s richness. With a colorful cast of characters and touching meditations on family, faith, love and loss, this sparkling sequel will satisfy fans while welcoming new ones to the fold with open arms.

This article was originally published in the July 2017 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Judy Reene Singer, author of previous works such as Still Life with Elephant and Horseplay, has delivered something entirely new with In the Shadow of Alabama, a raw and emotional family drama that spans generations.

Rachel Fleischer is a horse trainer who begrudgingly agrees to attend the funeral of her estranged father, a withdrawn and angry man who left her with few good childhood memories. But a stranger approaches Rachel at the funeral, offering her an apology and an opportunity to learn more about who her father was—particularly during his time as a Jewish soldier in charge of an all-black battalion during World War II.

Traveling easily between present day and 1940s Alabama, when Jim Crow and racial violence reign, readers experience Rachel’s journey to discover the man her father was before the war changed him. In scenes that can be gut-wrenching, we see Martin Fleischer grapple with the astounding racism and violence he comes into contact with on American soil, and watch understanding and compassion grow as he learns more about the men he’s supposed to lead.

The most resonant moments of In the Shadow of Alabama focus on the unseen side of war stories: the aftermath of the war and the families who have to cope with a traumatized loved one. As Rachel learns more about her father, she, her critical mother and indulged younger sister find a measure of closure regarding the explosive man who overshadowed their early years. Though the book’s conclusion is far from neat or happy, this is a deftly painted portrait of real life, one that was inspired by Singer’s own experiences with her father. Filled with beautifully drawn characters, In the Shadow of Alabama is a thought-provoking and emotionally engaging novel that will keep readers thinking.

Love often exceeds the power of words, but Karen Neulander is doing her best. Whenever she has a spare moment, Karen tries to write her way to telling her son how deeply she adores him. Someday, she won’t be there to say it herself.

Karen has stage IV ovarian cancer, and it’s only a matter of time before she leaves 6-year-old Jake to face the world without his mother by his side. She’s made plans for her son’s care after her death, but Karen also wants him to know her. She is the parent who loved him and cared for him no matter what. She’s been his only parent—until recently.

As Karen faces a terminal diagnosis and tries to reconcile her son’s life without her, Jake asks for the one thing she’s reluctant to give: his father. See, Karen’s pregnancy was a surprise, and her then-boyfriend, Dave, was uninterested in becoming a father. After Karen told Dave she was pregnant, his bad reaction led her to cut him out of her life forever.

That was the plan, anyway. But how can she deny Jake a chance to meet the person who provided the other half of his DNA? Surely it’ll be a one-time meeting, Karen convinces herself.

If only life were so simple.

Our Short History is the book Karen writes as she grapples with mortality, love and the fear that her ex will take Jake away before her final days. It’s a meditation on love and grief, and lauded novelist Lauren Grodstein (A Friend of the Family) plunges into both beautiful and ugly emotions without hesitation. That’s real life, after all. Even when we want the best for someone, our own self-interest and insecurities can arise. It’s what we do afterward that can truly reveal love.

This article was originally published in the April 2017 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Meredith Oliver is the girl who got left behind. A normal teenager semi-successfully navigating the shark-infested waters of middle school, she is in a sandwich shop when the most popular girl in school is kidnapped at gunpoint. “Get up,” the man says to Lisa Bellow, who dutifully follows him out the door. Meredith, frozen with fear, doesn’t even see the man’s face or car.

Meredith is sure Lisa doesn’t know her, even though they’ve gone to school together since elementary school and their lockers are next to each other. The most contact they’ve had in recent years was when Lisa directed Meredith—in true mean-girl style—to sit differently on her cafeteria chair so her butt didn’t hang over the edge.

The Oliver family has already seen its share of tragedy—older son Evan was a promising baseball player until an errant fly ball ended his dreams. Their parents, Claire and Mark, stagger under the weight of the kidnapping, simultaneously thrilled that Meredith was spared by the kidnapper and guilty that another girl is likely gone forever.

“No, she didn’t care one bit who Lisa Bellow was; the only important thing about Lisa Bellow, to Claire, was that she, not Meredith, was the girl who was taken. Certainly it would be better if she were found alive, better for Meredith, but all that really mattered was that Meredith was alive. Meredith was safe. Meredith, her baby, her baby girl, was down the hall.”

Once Lisa is taken, Meredith begins envisioning Lisa trapped in a dark, cold apartment with her abductor and abuser. The visions soon morph as Meredith grows desperate to reach Lisa before it’s too late. She retreats into her own mind, searching for clues that might lead her to Lisa.

The second novel from writer Susan Perabo (best known for her short stories) is wrenching, a dark yet beautifully told story of family, fear and grief. In the end, the question isn’t whether Meredith can save her classmate, but whether the Olivers can save Meredith.

This article was originally published in the March 2017 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Kavya and Rishi Reddy, successful Indian-American immigrants living in a charming Berkeley bungalow, have the sort of life that Checo and Soli are hoping for as they set out to cross the border from Mexico. Yet Checo and Soli, teenagers with little more than uncompromising determination and invincible spirit, have the one thing that Kavya and Rishi do not. Ignacio El Viento Castro Valdez, conceived somewhere in the deserts of Mexico, is the lucky boy that unites the two couples’ stories.  

Just when Soli thinks she might make it in America, she gets caught and put in immigration detention with a likely outcome of deportation back to Mexico. As a U.S. citizen born after Soli’s arrival, her 1-year-old son, Ignacio, enters the foster care system and is placed with Kavya and Rishi, who are unable to have a biological child. Like any good parents, the Reddys take on their new role wholeheartedly, forgetting that Ignacio is someone else’s child. 

At its core, Shanthi Sekaran’s compassionate second novel is a spectacular saga of motherhood and the choices we make to achieve it. Supporting the main cast are side characters who lend intriguing perspectives born of their own culture and belief systems: the Cassidys, who employ Soli; Uma, Kavya’s traditionally minded mother; and Silvia, the cousin who takes Soli in. 

Lucky Boy resonates, raising important questions about our society and our responsibility to those who seek the American dream, even as it forces you to ask, “What would I do?” This is a multidimensional story with lots of emotion, humor and love, and it will appeal to parents and non-parents alike. Like M.L. Stedman in The Light Between Oceans, Sekaran presents a complex moral dilemma that leaves readers incapable of choosing sides. Lucky Boy is a must-read.

This article was originally published in the January 2017 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

Wally Lamb won readers’ hearts with his New York Times bestselling novel (and Oprah Book Club selection) She’s Come Undone. Four bestsellers later, he returns with I’ll Take You There. 

The novel follows film professor Felix Funicello, a divorced father who runs a Monday-night movie club for his film students. One evening, Felix encounters the ghost of Lois Weber, an American silent film actress and director. Felix follows her on the ride of his life, revisiting scenes from his past that are projected onto a movie screen. As Lois takes him back through time, Felix realizes that he has been charged with uncovering a dark secret at the heart of his family. 

Lamb’s previous work has been quite sensitive to women, painting endearing portraits of female characters who have been ignored, shamed and often mistreated. He builds on that tradition in I’ll Take You There, a love letter to feminism and to trailblazing women—real and imagined—who have graced the silver screen or stood behind the camera.

This article was originally published in the December 2016 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

At a time when race relations loom larger in the public eye than any decade since the 1960s, New York Times bestselling author Jodi Picoult has plunged into the deep end of the conversation with Small Great Things, a tale of prejudice, tragedy, justice, privilege and conflict.

The title comes from a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: “If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.” And for the most part, the book’s protagonist, nurse Ruth Jefferson, is the personification of that ideal. Unfortunately, fate deals her a nearly unwinnable set of cards when she is alone in the nursery as young Davis Bauer goes into cardiac arrest. Normally, her instincts would kick in immediately, but this baby is different: He’s the son of white supremacist parents who have explicitly directed that no person of color be allowed to care for him. And Ruth is black. For a few critical moments, Ruth wonders whether she should violate the order and potentially lose her job, or jump in, knowing that she will soon be able to turn him over to another nurse.

Unfortunately, Murphy’s Law ruled the nursery that night.

After a code blue is called and an expert team—including Ruth, who is pressed into service despite the directive—races through its paces to try to save young Davis, but the baby dies. Running through the postmortem in her head, Ruth wonders if her initial hesitation contributed to the child’s death.

She’s not the only one. Ruth gets charged with one count of murder and one count of negligent homicide. Suddenly the respected nurse is just another defendant, whose future hangs on the ability of her white public defender, Kennedy McQuarrie, to figure out some strategy that will keep her client out of jail.

While riveting, this is by no means an easy book; all the players have virtues and flaws, and uncomfortable questions are raised on virtually every page. And while a few of her characters embody behaviors that some might find formulaic, Picoult navigates the waters like a seasoned journalist, afflicting the comfortable and comforting the afflicted, trying to do the small things in a great way. The first step to solving a problem is recognizing it; the second is trying to speak about it honestly, and whatever readers think of the result, Picoult has made a genuine effort here, as she details both in her author’s note and her acknowledgements. It’s a laudable attempt, and no small thing.

Thane Tierney lives in Inglewood, California, and tries to steer clear of both hospitals and courts.