NEW BOOK REVIEWS

The Astral Library

Review: I chose The Astral Library because I recently started exploring magical realism, which is quickly becoming one of my favorite genres. I've also read most of Kate Quinn's books, and I always find them immensely satisfying. However, the characters are what truly drew me in. Alix felt real to me; although she is smart and careful, she conceals a lot within herself. ... More

Book Summary: From New York Times bestselling author Kate Quinn comes a gorgeously written fantastical adventure which poses the question: Have you ever wished you could live inside a book? Welcome to the Astral Library, where books are not just objects, but doors to new worlds, new lives, and new futures. Alexandria "Alix" Watson has learned one lesson from her barren childhood in the foster-care system: ... More

Mad Mabel

Review: Mad Mabel follows the story of 81-year-old Elsie, who has worked hard to bury her past as "Mad Mabel," the youngest person in Australian history convicted of murder over 60 years ago. However, when an elderly neighbor is found dead, her dark history resurfaces. Before she realizes it, her quiet suburban life is completely upended ... More

Book Summmary: There are two kinds of people no one ever expects to be murderers: little girls and old ladies. Meet Mad Mabel. Elsie Mabel Fitzpatrick is eighty-one years old. She's lived on her idyllic street, Kenny Lane, for sixty years--longer than anyone else. Aside from being a curmudgeon who minds everyone else's business, few would suspect that Elsie has a past that she has worked exceedingly hard at concealing. Because when it comes to murder, ... More

PBR's Book Club Pick

The Women on Platform Two
By Laura Anthony

Book Summary: In 1970s Dublin, all forms of contraception are strictly forbidden, but an intrepid group of women will risk everything to change that in this heartbreaking, powerful, and ultimately uplifting novel inspired by a little-known true story. Dublin, 1969: Maura has just married Dr. Christy Davenport and dreams of starting a family. But as her husband's violent temper emerges, Maura begins to fear that her home may never be safe for a child. .... More

Review: I couldn't stop listening to this audiobook, and if you love historical fiction, you won't either. This compelling novel explores the struggles of Irish women fighting for access to contraceptives. Set in 1970s Dublin, where birth control was illegal, it brings to life a pivotal moment in history. Told through dual timelines, the narrative follows Maura and Bernie in the 1970s, and Saoirse in the present day. Each woman has her own reasons .... More

Praise: "A family drama at its core steeped in love, loss, explorations of grief and trauma. The Women on Platform Two is based on a true story of the brave women who were tenacious enough to stand up for change ... You'll have so many great discussion topics for book club and will leave feeling fired up." - Glamour

"Based upon a little-known true event, this haunting and emotional story . . . could not be timelier. Women in the United States are not the only ones who must fight to protect personal rights, and this powerful novel will remind readers of the fragility of those freedoms." - Library Journal, starred review More

Book Club Questions - The Women on Platform Two By Laura Anthony

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Spot Light Books

YA Fantasy (ages 12+)

A Forgery of Fate Hardcover
By Elizabeth Lim

Book Summary: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - A breathtaking romantic fantasy inspired by Beauty and the Beast about a girl who paints the future and a cursed dragon lord, bound by love and deception in a plot to bring down the gods. From the New York Times bestselling author of Six Crimson Cranes! More

True Crime / Murder

Black Dahlia
By William J Mann

Book Summary: Illuminating and captivating, New York Times bestselling author of Tinseltown and Bogart offers the first definitive account of the Black Dahlia murder-the most famous unsolved true crime case in American history-which humanizes the victim and situates the notorious case within an anxious, postwar country grappling with new ideas, demographics, and technologies ...More

Praise: "The empathetic Mann does an excellent job of humanizing Short, the 22-year-old murder victim, in the context of postwar Los Angeles... Mann's Black Dahlia book may have just replaced John Gilmore's nonfiction volume Severed and James Ellroy's fictionalized take The Black Dahlia in the true crime canon." -Library Journal (starred review)

"A meticulous and humane reconsideration of one of America's most sensationalized unsolved murders... Mann sets out to restore complexity and dignity to a woman long reduced to tabloid caricature... For true crime devotees and Black Dahlia obsessives, this is a must."-Publishers Weekly (starred review) ...More

Backlist Book

Backlist books are valuable because they help readers discover timeless classics and lesser-known gems. They provide insight into an author's earlier work, highlighting their growth and creativity. Plus, their established readership often indicates quality and lasting appeal.

City of Thieves
By David Benioff

Book Summary: From the critically acclaimed author of The 25th Hour and When the Nines Roll Over and co-creator of the HBO series Game of Thrones, a captivating novel about war, courage, survival - and a remarkable friendship that ripples across a lifetime. During the Nazis' brutal siege of Leningrad, Lev Beniov is arrested for looting and thrown into the same cell as a handsome deserter named Kolya ... More

Celebrity Book Club Picks

Reese Witherspoon's Book Club Pick

Lady Tremaine
By Rachel Hochhouse

Book Summary: Twice-widowed, Lady Etheldreda Verity Isolde Tremaine Bramley is solely responsible for her two children, a priggish stepdaughter, a razor-taloned peregrine falcon, and a crumbling manor. Fierce and determined, Ethel clings...More

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Reese Witherspoon's Winter YA Pick

Beth Is Dead
By Katie Bernet

Book Summary: When Beth March is found dead in the woods on New Year's Day, her sisters vow to uncover her murderer. Suspects abound. There's the neighbor who has feelings for not one but two of the girls. Meg's manipulative best friend. Amy's flirtatious mentor. And Beth's ....More

GMA's Book Club Pick

The Secret Lives of Murderers' Wives
By Elizabeth Arnott

Book Summary: A remarkable trio whose lives have been cracked wide open by their husbands' crimes unite to catch a serial killer in this dazzlingly captivating novel. Beverley, Elsie, and Margot are not your average housewives. They are all wives of convicted killers. During ....More

More Good Morning America Book Club Picks

GMA's YA Pick

Her Hidden Fire
By Cliodhna O'Sullivan

Book Summary: In the first book of a heart-pounding, Irish-inspired debut romantasy series set in a world of dragons and magic, one girl must make an impossible decision: watch the boy she loves get exiled for lack of magic, or pass her formidable powers off as his own. ...More

Read With Jenna Book Club Pick

Wait for Me
By Amy Jo Burns

Book Summary: From the author of Mercury and Shiner comes a novel about the bond between two female folk singers, the love stories that haunt them, and the music that brings them together to burn bright. Young folk singer Elle Harlow reaches the height ...More

Oprah's Book Club Pick (#121)

Kin
By Tayari Jones

Book Summary: A magnificent new novel from the bestselling, award-winning author of An American Marriage-Tayari Jones has written an unforgettable novel that sparkles ...More

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