BookBrowse | Book Reviews and Recommendations

Reviews by Julie R. (Jefferson, ME)

A Lesson in Secrets: A Maisie Dobbs Novel
by Jacqueline Winspear

A Female Detective Icon (3/11/2011)

Dectective stories often evolve via fierce horrific scenes of violence - not so of Jacqueline Winspear's, "A Lesson in Secrets" - as old friends from preceding books encourage the reader to become the sleuth in sorting through clues to solve the murder. If you enjoyed the …more

The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul: A Novel
by Deborah Rodriguez

A Cup of Friendship (11/3/2010)

This book centers around more than wine aka "tea" and friendship. To be sure, Sunny, the main character, has created a place where both Afghans and visitors can relax and share cultures and friendship, and the "tea" house becomes a central part of the setting. However, the …more

The Blind Contessa's New Machine: A Novel
by Carey Wallace

The Blind Contessa's New Machine (6/10/2010)

This passionate love story of Contessa Carolina Fantoni, Turri, her lover, and Pietro, her husband, explores the conflict between individual expression and societal traditional mores. The strength of this novel lies in its charming description of the natural world through …more

Baking Cakes in Kigali
by Gaile Parkin

Cakes and conversations in Africa (6/6/2009)

Angel Tungaraza, main character of Baking cakes in Kigale, serves her customers by baking cakes to bring them pleasure and by offering personal advice to solve their problems. Over a cup of tea, with wit and wisdom, she seeks out her customers' needs, but slyly suggests her …more

Cutting For Stone
by Abraham Verghese

Cutting for Stone (1/9/2009)

In his prologue, Mr. Verghese establishes an epic storyline, designates a narrator, introduces the main characters and invites the reader to try to solve the mystery of family relationships. With such an inclusive introduction, what is left to fill the remaining 543 pages? …more

Broken Colors
by Michele Zackheim

A True Coloring (2/3/2008)

The plot of "Broken Colors", developed through natural dialogue and internal monologue, provides the impetus for the direction of this novel. In an easy descriptive style imbued with charm, wit and pathos, Michele Zackheim creates her heroine, Sophie Marks, as a resourceful, …more

BookBrowse Book Club

The Devil Finds Work
by James Baldwin

A book-length essay on racism in American films, by "the best essayist in this country" (The New York Times Book Review).

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The River Knows Your Name
by Kelly Mustian

A haunting Southern novel about memory and love, from the author of The Girls in the Stilt House.

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The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris
by Evie Woods

From the million-copy bestselling author of The Lost Bookshop.

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Real Americans
by Rachel Khong

From the author of Goodbye, Vitamin, a novel exploring family, identity, and the shaping of destiny.

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The Seven O'Clock Club
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Happy Land
by Dolen Perkins-Valdez

From the New York Times bestselling author, a novel about a family's secret ties to a vanished American Kingdom.

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The Fairbanks Four
by Brian Patrick O’Donoghue

One murder, four guilty convictions, and a community determined to find justice.

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