Can I get a hurrah for linked short story collections? Frying Plantain by Zalika Reid-Benta is a quiet yet decisive book that doesn’t gloss over the first and second generation immigrant experience in Canada. And instead of getting a disjointed look at these experiences through a raft of different characters, we follow one person, Kara…
My faithful readers will know all too well how much I love a Ruth Ware book. I’ve had my minor complaints about them over the years, but it’s never enough to put me off reading her. I still get excited each and every time I hear she’s written another, and thank god she’s productive because…
I was first introduced to the music of Tegan and Sara by an old (and short-lived) boyfriend from my university days. He loved them, and their hit song “Walking with a Ghost” was one I immediately added into my playlist. I still have a few of their songs on my iTunes account, and when they…
The Institute by Stephen King is the perfect book to mark the beginning of the spooky season, and even though there are no ghosts in his latest release, there are more than a fair share of ghouls that are terrifying enough to haunt your dreams. Fair warning to those considering this as a future read;…
I wasn’t really planning on reading The Testaments by Margaret Atwood for a few reasons; it had been ages since I’d read The Handmaid’s Tale, I hadn’t seen the television adaptation of it, and I figured everyone else would be reading this book, so why should I? But then, I was offered the opportunity to…
Written by the “grand dame of Dutch literature”, Sleepless Night by Margriet de Moor is 122 pages of reminiscing and remembrance. Translated from the Dutch by David Doherty, it follows a widow over one sleepless night as she bakes a Bundt cake in the dead of winter, recalling the unfortunate and early death of her…
I read Elevator Pitch by Linwood Barclay in a place far far away from any kind of elevator. I was staying in a cabin in Northern Ontario, dodging mosquitoes but blissfully distant from any and all high rises. Barclay’s name is well known to me, as I’ve read previous books by him AND listened to…
I’ve made it pretty clear that I’m getting sick and tired of the unreliable female narrator trope in thrillers these days. This cliché is so overused that I can feel my temper rising as I make my way through a novel that uses this technique to generate cheap twists. Thankfully, I am so happy to…
Bafflingly, Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams has been called “A black Bridget Jones” by Kirkus Reviews, which in my mind, does a huge disservice to this taut, intelligent and dark read. Although the protagonist is searching for Mr. Right, men are clearly not the solution to any of her problems, in fact, the author uses her…
Every Little Piece of Me by Amy Jones is a book that will make you cringe. You’ll cringe because of the character’s actions, you’ll cringe because you’ll recognize the destructive behaviour they consistently engage in, you’ll cringe because you’ll see how your activity on the internet can cause these negative reactions, and you’ll cringe because…
The Last Neanderthal by Claire Cameron is a unique sort of book; one of the two narratives it includes is told from the perspective of a Neanderthal, someone who doesn’t have developed language capabilities or a significant matter of reference that is relatable to us modern-day humans. Aside from a few necessary exceptions, (Cameron allows…
I’ve always been aware of Ernest Hemingway’s ‘not-so-positive’ reputation. I studied him in school, and was vaguely aware he had a bunch of marriages and an obvious drinking problem, so I had always thought of his personal life as a bit dark. Reading Love and Ruin by Paula McLain, a work of fiction based on…
