Library Journal First Novels #9

Here is another first time novelist that was highlighted in Barbara Hoffert's article in Library Journal.

Weeping Underwater Looks a Lot Like Laughter

by Michael J. White

Here is the Barnes and Noble synopsis:

A smart, darkly funny, yet poignant debut novel about coming of age without coming undone. Seventeen-year-old George Flynn-an all-around decent guy-has just moved with his family to Des Moines, a place where he knows no one and is pretty much nobody. Despite this inauspicious start to his junior year, he soon finds his niche, falling in with the unique, enchant­ing Schell sisters. Emily, an aspiring actress and free spirit, becomes the object of George's mostly unrequited yearnings. But it's Katie, with her quirks, her scathing deadpan humor, and her brave battle with multiple sclerosis, who really gets George hooked on the Schells. When an out- of-the-blue trag­edy strikes, upsetting the delicate balance of all their lives, George must figure out a way to help Emily in order to save himself. Told with both razor-sharp wit and deep empathy from George's later adult perspective, this is a moving, memorable debut novel about friendship and first love-about dealing with grief and trying to grow up without losing yourself along the way.

Wow -- this sounds great! Have you read this?

Library Journal First Novels #7

Recently, Library Journal published an article written by Barbara Hoffert that listed first time writers with novels that are coming out this summer. I scoured through the lists and added many to my TBR list and thought I would highlight some of the novels here at Barney's Book Blog.

Bijou Roy

by Ronica Dhar

Here is the Publisher Weekly review from Barnes and Noble :

In her deft debut, Dhar examines the consequences of secrets shared between families against the politically charged backdrop of modern India. As the eldest of two daughters, U.S.-raised Bijou Roy struggles to fulfill traditional male roles for the burial of her father, Nitish, culminating in a trip with her mother and sister to Calcutta to scatter his ashes. In the unfamiliar country, each step of the process reinforces Bijou's alienation, from the people and culture as well as from her mother, who continues to keep Nitish's past shrouded in secrecy. It's only after meeting Naveen, the son of Nitish's oldest friend, that Bijou begins to comprehend her father's political entanglements and the reasons her parents migrated years before. As she learns more about her father, Bijou predictably gains insight into her own character, but Bijou's struggle to reconcile tradition with the demands of the modern world is propelled by skillful, luminous prose.

This sounds fantastic. Is this on your TBR list?

Library Journal First Novels #5

Recently, Library Journal highlighted first time writers whose novels are being released this summer. After scouring the list to find some great novels to add to my TBR list, I decided to highlight a few here on Barney's Book Blog. (Thanks to Barbara Hoffert and Library Journal for the fantastic article!)

Life After Yes

by Aidan Donnelley Rowley

Here is the Barnes and Noble description:

This is the story of Quinn—born Prudence Quinn O'Malley—a confused young Manhattan attorney who loses her father on that tragic September morning that changed everything. Now, at an existential crossroads in her life, Quinn must confront impossible questions about commitment and career, love and loss. Her idealistic beau desperately wants a wedding, and whisks her away to Paris just to propose. But then Quinn has a dream featuring judges and handcuffs and Nietzsche and Britney . . . and far too many grooms. Suddenly, her future isn't so clear. Quinn's world has become a minefield of men—some living, some gone, and traversing it safely is going to take a lot more than numerous glasses of pinot grigio.

Doesn't this sound great?

Library Journal First Novels #4

Here again is another novel that caught my eye on Library Journal's list of First Novels by Barbara Hoffert.

Falling Is Like This

by Kate Rockland

Here is the description from the Macmillian website:

Tabloid-writer Harper Rostov breaks up with her boyfriend only to fall into the arms of Nick Cavallaro---certified punk-rock God who is considered a genius by fans and critics alike. Harper’s newly single heart gets an overdose of chemistry from the Hitchhiker’s Revenge guitarist as she falls for his intoxicating charisma. Over the course of a single week, Harper is swept up in their sexual energy and the allure of the band. But soon she can’t help wondering if what she thought she wanted---what she left her sweet, caring boyfriend for---is everything she’d hoped it would be. Plotted with precise timing and set against an incredibly vivid portrait of the ever-changing East Village, Falling Is Like This is a comedic and touching account of the whirlwind affair with a rock star every girl dreams about.

I totally need to pick this one up. Have you read this book?

Library Journal First Novels #3

While reading Library Journal, I came across a great article by Barbara Hoffert of first time writers who have novels out this summer. I scoured the list for novels that caught my eye and thought I would highlight them here on Barney's Book Blog.Still Missing
by Chevy Stevens

Here is the description from Barnes and Noble:

On the day she was abducted, Annie O’Sullivan, a thirty-two-year-old realtor, had three goals — sell a house, forget about a recent argument with her mother, and be on time for dinner with her ever-patient boyfriend. The open house is slow, but when her last visitor pulls up in a van as she's about to leave, Annie thinks it just might be her lucky day after all.Interwoven with the story of the year Annie spent as the captive of a psychopath in a remote mountain cabin, which unfolds through sessions with her psychiatrist, is a second narrative recounting events following her escape — her struggle to piece her shattered life back together and the ongoing police investigation into the identity of her captor.

Really want to read this one. How about you?

Library Journal First Novels #2

In the latest edition of Library Journal, Barbara Hoffert spotlights first time novelists that have hot releases coming to your bookstore this summer. Of course, I had a fantastic time checking out all the books on the Pop Fiction and Literary lists, so I would like to highlight a few that caught my eye.

Following Polly

by Karen Bergreen

Here is the description from the Macmillian website:

Would you call Alice Teakle a stalker? Or just someone with an, um, healthy obsession with golden girl Polly Linley Dawson? No one much notices Alice: not her boss, not the neighbors, not even her Mother. Besides, everyone follows Polly: her business selling high-end lingerie you can imagine only her elegant self wearing, her all-over-the-social-pages marriage to movie director Humphrey Dawson, her chic looks, her wardrobe. Alice just follows her a little more….closely. And when she loses her job and starts to follow Polly Dawson one Manhattan autumn afternoon, Alice stumbles on the object of her attention sprawled dead on the floor of a boutique. Alice is forced to become truly beneath anyone’s notice. Invisible, in fact. Because she’s accused of murder. But can another obsession help save Alice with the fallout? Charlie is Alice’s longtime unattainable crush. He might be able to help her out of the mess she’s in…in return for a favor or two, that is. And how will Alice find out if Charlie is really the man Alice thinks he is?

What do you think? Is Following Polly on your TBR list?

Library Journal First Novels # 1

In the latest edition of Library Journal, Barbara Hoffert spotlights first time novelists that have hot releases coming to your bookstore this summer. Of course, I had a fantastic time checking out all the books on the Pop Fiction and Literary lists, so I would like to highlight a few that caught my eye.

Perfect Reader

by Maggie Pouncey

Here is a description from the Random House website:

At the news of her father’s death, Flora quits her big-city magazine job and returns to Darwin, the quaint New England town where she grew up, to retreat into the house he has left her, filled as it is with reminders of him. Even weightier is her appointment as her father’s literary executor. It seems he was secretly writing poems at the end of his life—love poems to a girlfriend Flora didn’t know he had. Flora soon discovers that this woman has her own claims on Lewis’s poetry and his memory, and in the righteousness of her loss and bafflement at her father’s secrets—his life so richly separate from her own in ways she never guessed—Flora is highly suspicious of her. Meanwhile, Flora is besieged by well-wishers and literary bloggers alike as she tries to figure out how to navigate it all: the fate of the poems, the girlfriend who wants a place in her life, her memories of her parents’ divorce, and her own uncertain future.

This sounds fantastic! What do you think?