The plot of Metropolis revolves around an accident at a storage facility in Boston. Chapter by chapter we meet the cast of characters and learn that some of them are illegally living in their storage units, unbeknownst to the facility's owner. I felt I knew and understood some of the characters better than others, but the ones who were well fleshed out were fine examples of the principle that, for the most part, no one is all good or all bad. The psychological twists and turns kept me guessing, and I felt satisfied with the way the story ended. This was the first book I had read by this author, and it made me want to read her previous books.

If you are a woman who felt like an outcast in school, you will recognize the characters at the Temple House girls' school. The usual cliques are already settled in when Louisa, a scholarship student, arrives at the school. Adolescent girls can be mean, and Louisa is intelligent but socially undeveloped and is used to being known as the smart girl at her local school. She finds the rules at Temple House, official and unofficial, confusing.

She finally becomes friendly with Victoria, a fellow student who doesn't really fit in either. Another main character is a handsome, charismatic art teacher. The story alternates between Louisa's point of view and that of a journalist who, 25 years after the events in the story, is writing a piece on the things that happened at the school then.

We gradually learn more about Louisa's brief time at Temple House. The tension builds throughout, and at the end all is revealed. I was disappointed by some loose ends, but overall, I enjoyed the book and look forward to seeing more from this author.

Big Girl Small Town takes the reader through a week in the life of Majella O'Neill, a woman in her 20s who works at a chip shop and lives with her alcoholic mother. Majella's father disappeared years before, during the time of the Troubles. Her grandmother, her father's mother, has been murdered, and the police are searching for her murderer.

The book is written in a series of vignettes under headings denoting things Majella either likes or doesn't (mostly the latter). We meet the chip shop's other employees and customers, all residents of Majella's small town, Aghybogey.

Majella knows what she doesn't like about each customer, but needs Marty's insights and taste for gossip to flesh out her understanding of their lives. She tells us that she has difficulty figuring out people's emotions from looking at their faces, a sign that she may be on the autism spectrum.

Majella is a sympathetic main character with much to say, mostly about her likes and dislikes. I found the book enjoyable but wished when I had finished reading it that more of the loose ends had been tied up.

It's rare to read a book and see yourself on every page. I said, "Exactly!" or "Me too!" very often while reading this novel. Hieroglyphics takes place during what seems to be a fairly short period in the lives of Lil and Frank, an elderly couple who have retired to North Carolina from Massachusetts to be close to their daughter. We learn about Lil and Frank's relationship and life stories both from current events, such as Frank's interactions with a family living in the house he grew up in, and from Lil's journal entries. There are some surprises, but what I enjoyed most about this book was the familiarity of their thoughts and feelings. Jill McCorkle is a wonderful writer, and in Hieroglyphics she has once again given us her best.

Vox is a work of dystopian fiction that takes place in the not too distant future. Jean McClellan is a linguist who, like all American women, has had her speech allowance limited to 100 words a day by the government, that is, men. We watch as Jean's family begins to fall apart under the stress. When she gets the opportunity to go back to work temporarily, it leads her right into the inner workings of the oppressors. I found this book frightening, mostly because the events that take place in it seem all too possible in America's current political climate. To quote Jean's graduate school roommate, "Think about what you need to do to stay free."

Two separate groups of hikers embark on a corporate retreat in the Giralang Ranges in Australia. They all return except for one. What happened to Alice? Federal Police Agent Aaron Falk and his partner Carmen Cooper are already working with Alice on another matter, and they become involved in trying to find her. This atmospheric tale builds slowly to a climax, as we alternately live through the events of the retreat with the hikers and investigate with Falk and Cooper. My test for a good read is that it must make me want to read the author's other work. I'll be reading Ms. Harper's first book, The Dry, soon.

I've heard it said that the human body is completely replaced every 7 years. I kept being reminded of this while reading The heart's invisible furies because in this book we are taken through the main character's life from 1945 to 2015, catching up with him every 7 years to find that his life has changed dramatically. We see, through Cyril's eyes, how attitudes toward gender roles and sexuality change and stay the same in Ireland, Amsterdam and New York. I found Cyril's story fascinating, a very satisfying read.

The prose in this book is so beautiful, I loved reading it from the very beginning. Although the story the author tells in this debut novel is often dark, the writing style made me want to keep going no matter what happened. The Barrowfields is a coming of age story narrated by a young man growing up in the Appalachian town that was his father's place of birth. How he got there and how he reacts to the things that happen to him and his family are the basis for this novel. I look forward to reading more by this new author.

Is it possible to build a house on your own, with only two teenagers, a preteen and a toddler to help? Ask Cara Brookins. She and her children spent nine months doing just that. Cara got herself out of an abusive relationship (or two) and decided to help her family survive and thrive by creating something of their own. Alternating chapters tell about the abusive relationship and how she dealt with it, followed by chapters in which the reader learns about the process of building a house from the ground up. The book is often disturbing, but more often uplifting and inspiring. It is an amazing story that centers around Ms. Brookins' strength and love for her children, and her desire to help them get beyond the past and move into the future as healthy adults.

What if the Civil War had never happened? How would we deal with the issue of slavery in the modern world? That is the premise of this book by an author who, until now, I hadn't heard of. Winters has re-imagined our world just as it is, with one huge difference-- slavery still exists in four states. He has created a believable, and frightening, story about what might happen in our country if those four states were still stuck in their pre-Civil War attitudes and behaviors. We see the world through the eyes of Victor (or is that his real name?), a black man who struggles with the world as it is and what he is forced to do to live in that world. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and I now plan on reading the rest of Winters' books. Thank you, BookBrowse, for introducing me to this author.

The midnight watch is a well-written historical novel that isn't just a rehashing of the story of the sinking of the Titanic. Rather than focusing on the doomed ship, its passengers and crew, David Dyer looks at this familiar catastrophe from the point of view of those aboard the SS Californian, a ship that was close enough to see the Titanic's distress flares and Morse signals, yet did not go to her aid.

Through the eyes of a reporter looking for a new angle and a look at that fateful night as seen from the Californian, we imagine what may have happened to keep the ship from trying to save the more than 1500 people who died, most of whom were poor third class passengers. The addition of details about the reporter's life and a look at what the disaster may have been like for a family in steerage aboard the Titanic add verisimilitude to the story.

The Midnight Watch is an entertaining and enlightening read. I look forward to more from this author.

Kyung Cho, Shelter's main character, is a South Korean American who struggles with what happened during his childhood. The ways in which he deals with this and how his life, and the lives of those around him, change after a traumatic event in his parents' lives provide the focus of this book. As with real people, no one is all good or all bad. The dialogue is believable, and the descriptions produce a vivid picture of each character in our minds. Jung Yun is a talented writer. I eagerly look forward to her next book.

Although I enjoyed Naomi Ragen's latest novel, it wasn't as good as her others. The story was interesting, but I didn't find the characters very believable, especially the main character. I found myself more absorbed in the character of the lead detective on Daniella's case. She was more consistent in her behavior, and I felt I understood her much better than I did Daniella or Shlomie. With that said, I have always enjoyed Naomi Ragen's books and found this a worthwhile read because I learned some things about Kabbalah and cults. Some of the descriptions of child abuse are difficult to get through, but this was still, for the most part, an enjoyable read.

As a retired librarian, I have always loved books about books and librarians. That's what made me want to read this book. A book is at the center of this novel, but there is so much more. The author has certainly done her homework, and the history of carnivals has obviously been well researched. The reader slips easily into the atmosphere of the carnival at the very beginning of its existence in America hundreds of years ago, and slips just as easily back to the present in alternating chapters. The characters come alive, with the strengths and flaws of real people. I was caught up in this weaving together of two stories from the very beginning and found it impossible to guess what would happen at the end. The book of speculation is a wonderful debut. I hope to see more from Ms. Swyler.

Many of us have wished we could be something we weren't. This is the basis for Stephanie Clifford's debut novel, Everybody Rise. The main character, Evelyn Beegan, falls into the trap of wanting to move into the world of the elite of modern day New York. Evelyn was so real to me that I kept wanting to shake her and tell her to wise up. Everybody Rise is a window into a world that seems like a throwback to a much earlier time. It is well written, engaging, and a thoroughly enjoyable read.