“Written in beautiful prose…Captivating, thoughtful, and tense, a great read for those who enjoy psychological thrillers and complex puzzles. Highly recommended.”
—New York Journal Review of Books

Fierce Little Thing
By Miranda Beverly-Whittemore
Genre: Fiction/Psychological Thriller
Paperback, 352 pages
Available July 27, 2021 from Flatiron Books

Synopsis: Saskia was a damaged, lonely teenager when she arrived at the lakeside commune called Home. She was entranced by the tang of sourdough starter; the midnight call of the loons; the triumph of foraging wild mushrooms from the forest floor. But most of all she was taken with Abraham, Home’s charismatic leader, the North Star to Saskia and the four other teens who lived there, her best and only friends.

Two decades later, Saskia is shuttered in her Connecticut estate, estranged from the others. Her carefully walled life is torn open by threatening letters. Unless she and her former friends return to the land in rural Maine, the terrible thing they did as teenagers—their last-ditch attempt to save Home—will be revealed.

I’ve been hearing a lot of buzz about this book so I’m excited to get a copy of it from the publisher. I love stories of how characters having to confront something from their past. Of course in a psychological thriller this usually turns into a race to save yourself. Let’s see how this one turns out. Have you read this book or anything else by the author? Would love to hear if this is going on your summer read list.

It’s time to dream of Paris and travel via books thanks to Tamara from Thyme for Tea who is once again hosting Paris in July.

While I’ve never been to Paris or France for that matter (I’m not counting a brief layover at the Paris airport several years ago), I’ve long had dreams about traveling there which no doubt began when I started studying French when I was around 14 years old.

Here are the books I’m considering for the month long blogging event:

The Readers’ Room by Antoine Laurain, translated by Jane Aitken, Emily Boyce and Polly Mackintosh. A debut crime novel arrives at a Parisian publishing house and everyone in the readers’ room agrees it is something special. Guess what? It is! I read this one over the weekend and it’s a great book. I’ll tell you more about it soon.

The Pleasing Hour by Lily King. A novel about an American au pair in Paris who finds comfort with a family however soon becomes entangled in a love affair.

Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay. This is a historical novel about a ten-year-old girl living in Paris who is taken with her parents by the France police as they go arresting Jewish families in the middle of the night. I remember when this was all the rage in blogland and I just never got around to it.

A Novel Bookstore by Laurence Cossé, translated by Alison Anderson. Tucked away in a corner of Paris, Ivan and Francesca decide to open a bookstore devoted solely to good literature and their love of books but their great success will lead to hatred by the publishing elite. Lately I’m in the mood to read books about books/bookstores. I think it’s because now that we are going out a bit more I want to make up for the lost time of last year when I didn’t visit any bookstores or libraries!

The Hunchback of Notre-Dame by Victor Hugo. What needs to be said about this classic? My copy of this book is actually quite special as a dear friend gave it to me. She bought it for me at the Shakespeare and Company bookstore.

Let me know if you are participating in Paris in July and if you have any good recommendations. Along with good reads I hope to try out a French recipe or two and maybe watch a movie or tv show set in Paris.