Gilda is a gay atheist in her twenties, depressed and anxious, when she shows up at a Catholic Church for a therapy session, and ends up with a receptionist job. It’s a pretty dark story; Gilda’s brain doesn’t stop questioning everything, dwelling especially on death, and it is like a bleak comedy of errors, but the humour brings light, and it is also touching. There are elements of mystery, observations on modern life, kindness and hope.
A secret circus created by a daemon so as to look after his family. The circus would appear only to those who had a ticket and featured a tragic cast performing wonderful acts, it was both beautiful and cruel. Add to this Lara, who in present day Virginia knows she has a little magic but not the full extent of her family’s story and its connection to the secret circus. I did get swept up into the story, but the ending fell flat for me – it was not as dramatic as it could of been and everyone was so accepting of the magic.
Anna listens to true crime podcasts. As Anna’s husband is leaving her with their children and best friend she hears a familiar name in the podcast, someone she met in her secret past life. She decides to investigate with her best friend’s famous & anorexic husband. This mystery had a very mixed cast of characters that was off putting for me and made for a very unrealistic plot, but it still had me reading to find out the ending.
Alex is a promising young theatre director in London when her fiancé is killed trying to protect someone. Unable to come to terms with it, she moves from London to Edinburgh, where an old college lecturer friend offers her a job teaching drama-therapy to troubled kids. She takes a class of five older teenagers through some Greek tragedies and as they explore feelings through the plays, she shares a little too much about herself, which leads to trouble. It definitely fits into the psychological suspense/thriller area, but is pretty gentle; not terribly disturbing and with likeable characters. One whole star for accent, a bonus of listening to the audiobook, I think the story itself doesn’t quite deliver the punch expected of it.
This is a story told in two parts; 1960s Uganda where Hasan is dealing with the loss of his wife and changes to his place in society with Idi Amin’s regime, and current day London where Sameer is trying to find the balance between his high-powered law career, his family’s expectations and his deeper hopes. It’s about the impact of the expulsion of East-Asians from Uganda, racism, family ties, belonging, and love. I found it lush and atmospheric, thought-provoking and hopeful.
Don’t Touch my Hair is about how black hair is never just hair. I found this utterly riveting; the fascinating, shocking, sad, wondrous, rich history of black hair. Apart from the mathematical section, I found it very accessible, with personal details mixed in with lesser known historical facts, taking in slavery, science, colonisation, cultural appropriation, and so much more. Educational in the very best way, and while enjoyable is probably not the most appropriate word, I did enjoy it very much.
Marian is a pilot who wishes to circumnavigate the globe over both north and south poles. Her journey is just a small part of this novel as it traces her entire life. I enjoyed Marion’s story through prohibition America, WWII and her relationships. We are also introduced to Hadley a fallen Hollywood star who is chosen to play Marian in a film. As I was reading through the story I thought Hadley’s story did not add anything to the novel, but by the ending it all made sense. At times uncomfortable to read and although Marian was not a character I entirely loved it was an interesting journey.
Such a story for our times, really funny, terribly sad, and so much like life. Martha struggles with her mental health and her upbringing, but her husband loves and cares for her, until she learns something that makes things really fall apart. It’s about modern life, love, marriage, parenthood, and responsibility. It reminded me a little of My Year of Rest and Relaxation, and Rabbits for Food, but was more hopeful than either of those; less bleak, and so funny, with a London and Oxford setting.
Kings Cross in the 60s makes a vivid background for this story. Polly brings her daughter Gina, who was being looked after by her mother in New Zealand, to live with her. Rhoda and Star are Polly’s housemates, and together with Gina’s babysitter and Polly’s friend Evie form a family. The relationships between them temper the other issues explored in the novel – addiction, sexuality, abuse and the tough life of living in Kings Cross.
Three teenaged girls marry three brothers in Punjab in 1929, but as they are separated from the men by day, working in the china room, and only brought together in the darkness, they do not know which of the brothers is their husband. A young man in 1999, comes to his uncle’s house in Punjab to try and get clean before he goes to university, and becomes intrigued by his great-grandmother’s story. It is a heart-wrenching and beautiful story of oppression, desire, racism, love, and the need for freedom.
rrlreads 