Thank you for the beach mention! My current solution to the heatwave (before I leave for Ponza later this week) is a stash of Bombay Gin & tonics tins lined up in my fridge 💙
Not sure if this book has already been mentioned but enjoying Marina Warner’s Esmond and Ilia: an unreliable memoir. Ilia Terzulli was an Italian WWII war bride (from Bari) who married a British officer, Esmond Warner. Fascinating read!
I have been really been enjoying the Lady Sherlock Series (I have been listening to on Audible, but I am sure they would be a fun read too). Each book is better than the previous.
If you haven't read the rest of Gillian Flynn's books (besides Gone Girl) they're all of them exciting page turners. Sticking with the theme of female protagonists who perhaps aren't perfect angels, all three LS Hilton books, starting with Maestra. For a mystery, all of the Robert Galbraith books!
With the trip to Sicily looming ahead I recommend reading Susan Sontag’s The Volcano Lover. She writes about the area in the 1770’s. Also she reminds us of what it is to be a collector.
Heartily join in endorsing Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus. Brie Larson has optioned it for a film. Also: Matrix by Lauren Groff, and on the non-fiction shelf, The Beauty of Dusk by Frank Bruni.
Instead of Jonathan Kellerman, try his son Jesse. “ The Brutal Arts”, “Trouble” and “The Executor” are all fantastic. Regarding the Pavlova I bake mine on a Fan Setting without any upper or lower heat on 105C or 220F for 60 - 90 mins and then also leave in oven until completely cool. Stays lovely and white that way.
I’m going to second the recommendation for Lessons in Chemistry. Some heavy topics but done in a light and completely readable way. I’ve heard the audio book is good too. Another recommendation would be A River Enchanted. The writing was lyrical. The Last Thing He Told Me is another good one.
Hi Elizabeth - for a very fun (but also will make you reflect) read, I can't recommend Emma Straub's new book “This Time Tomorrow” any more highly — her character Alice, an admissions assistant at a posh NY private school, goes out for her 40th birthday, has a bit too much to drink, does some TIME TRAVEL — and ends up in her bed at her dad's house (where she grew up) on the morning of her 16th birthday back in 1996. It's a love song from a daughter to a father, full of fun '90s reminiscences, the time travel is done in a fun way, and it hits on a whole different level when you learn that Emma wrote during the the first year of the pandemic, when she did turn 40, and that she was 16 in 1996 — and that her father, a writer (the father in the book is also a writer) was sick in the hospital as she wrote the book. It's fun and thoughtful at the same time, i raced through it.
Thank you for the beach mention! My current solution to the heatwave (before I leave for Ponza later this week) is a stash of Bombay Gin & tonics tins lined up in my fridge 💙
Not sure if this book has already been mentioned but enjoying Marina Warner’s Esmond and Ilia: an unreliable memoir. Ilia Terzulli was an Italian WWII war bride (from Bari) who married a British officer, Esmond Warner. Fascinating read!
I have been really been enjoying the Lady Sherlock Series (I have been listening to on Audible, but I am sure they would be a fun read too). Each book is better than the previous.
Recently read and recommended:
The Aosawa Murders - Riku Onda
Crossroads - J Franzen
Beautiful World, Where are You - Sally Rooney
Luster - Raven Leilani
The Vanishing Half - Brit Bennett
Girl, Woman, Other - Bernardine Evaristo
The Margot Affair - Sanae Lemoine
Il Morso della Vipera by Alice Basso, really engrossing giallo set in Fascist Turin.
The Paris Library by Janet S Charles.
If you haven't read the rest of Gillian Flynn's books (besides Gone Girl) they're all of them exciting page turners. Sticking with the theme of female protagonists who perhaps aren't perfect angels, all three LS Hilton books, starting with Maestra. For a mystery, all of the Robert Galbraith books!
With the trip to Sicily looming ahead I recommend reading Susan Sontag’s The Volcano Lover. She writes about the area in the 1770’s. Also she reminds us of what it is to be a collector.
Heartily join in endorsing Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus. Brie Larson has optioned it for a film. Also: Matrix by Lauren Groff, and on the non-fiction shelf, The Beauty of Dusk by Frank Bruni.
Hi Elisabeth
Instead of Jonathan Kellerman, try his son Jesse. “ The Brutal Arts”, “Trouble” and “The Executor” are all fantastic. Regarding the Pavlova I bake mine on a Fan Setting without any upper or lower heat on 105C or 220F for 60 - 90 mins and then also leave in oven until completely cool. Stays lovely and white that way.
Please post a link for the espresso maker. Thank you
Where can one get that beautiful espresso maker??
Where can I find the painted espresso maker? di3ane@gmail.com
I’m going to second the recommendation for Lessons in Chemistry. Some heavy topics but done in a light and completely readable way. I’ve heard the audio book is good too. Another recommendation would be A River Enchanted. The writing was lyrical. The Last Thing He Told Me is another good one.
Hi Elizabeth - for a very fun (but also will make you reflect) read, I can't recommend Emma Straub's new book “This Time Tomorrow” any more highly — her character Alice, an admissions assistant at a posh NY private school, goes out for her 40th birthday, has a bit too much to drink, does some TIME TRAVEL — and ends up in her bed at her dad's house (where she grew up) on the morning of her 16th birthday back in 1996. It's a love song from a daughter to a father, full of fun '90s reminiscences, the time travel is done in a fun way, and it hits on a whole different level when you learn that Emma wrote during the the first year of the pandemic, when she did turn 40, and that she was 16 in 1996 — and that her father, a writer (the father in the book is also a writer) was sick in the hospital as she wrote the book. It's fun and thoughtful at the same time, i raced through it.
Thoroughly enjoyed Someone by Alice McDermott: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17332207