February 2023 - Staff Reading Suggestions
THE VILLA
by Rachel Hawkins
Six weeks in an Italian villa makes for an ideal summer for best friends Chess and Emily, except the secrets they’ve been keeping from each other are threatening everything. The villa has secrets of its own, uncovered by writer Emily as she works on a new book. “Houses Remember” is the first line of a book written at the Villa, and this one has seen it all.
-Beth and Laura C
THE SWEET SPOT
by Amy Poeppel
Just what a long winter needed... a light hearted book with interesting characters and at the beginning, an unpredictable course. I really grew to love the Aston-Shaw family and then how all the characters intertwined.
Betrayal, revenge, confusion, and despair all wrap up in forgiveness and community around a baby. "The sweet spot is where duty and delight converge"
-Missy
THE EXILES
by Jane Harper
What has happened to the woman who left her six-week-old infant in her stroller at a festival and seemingly disappeared? Another winning Australian mystery from Jane Harper with an ending you won’t see coming. 
-Di
THE LAUGHTER
by Sonora Jha
In three words: modern day Lolita. I despised Professor Harding more with each page. His obsession with a younger Pakistani-Muslim professor is played out against the backdrop of a campus rife with protests over diversity and privilege. This story is a train wreck I couldn’t look away from.
-Martha
THE HOUSE OF EVE
by Sadeqa Johnson
Taking place in the 1950s, the lives of two women intersect in a way neither ever imagined. 15-year-old Ruby is determined to be the first of her family to go to college and to escape the poverty she has grown up with and Eleanor is a young college student attending Howard University. As unexpected challenges and prejudices continue to put their dreams in question, the strength and resilience of these women and the bonds of female friendship and motherhood will leave you thinking about their story long after you turn the last page.
-Kirsten
HAYLEY ALDRIDGE IS STILL HERE
by Elissa R. Sloan
(Direct to Paperback)
I liked this better than the author's previous novel Cassidy Holmes. Really easy read, though very cliche. It is Britney Spears meets Drew Barrymore meets Harvey Weinstein meets Cory Monteith. Hayley is a young TV star growing up in Hollywood and ends up in a conservatorship. The novel is Hayley giving her twin daughters her full story. Great spring break read for people who want something easy and light.
-Erin
LOOKING FOR JANE
by Heather Marshall
This debut novel grabbed me from the first page. Told in the voice of three women separated by generations, this illuminating novel shares the love, heartbreak and determination of young women dealing with unplanned pregnancies and abortion rights. 
-Martha
I HAVE SOME QUESTIONS FOR YOU
by Rebecca Makkai
(releases 2/21)
The newest novel by Lake Forest’s own, Rebecca Makkai, examines the issue of assault against women and this nation’s fascination with true crime podcasts. Bodie Kane, now 40, must relive her tumultuous years at a New Hampshire boarding school, when the man convicted of killing one of her classmates in 1995 petitions for a new trial. . Makkai’s powerful writing will have you thinking about this one for a long time.
-Laura S
EVERYONE IN MY FAMILY HAS KILLED SOMEONE
by Benjamin Stevenson
Ernest’s Aunt Katherine organizes a mandatory family reunion at a remote ski lodge. Even fam favorite brother Michael is expected, as he’s being released from prison the same day. Ernest is the one who put Michael in prison, but they aren’t the only Cunninghams with a notorious past. There’s more to the Cunninghams’ story than even they realize, and the family gathering turns into a whodunnit murder mystery weekend. Laugh out loud funny, written by an author who is also a stand up comedian.
-Beth
SMALL WORLD
by Laura Zigman
Family drama about two sisters living together after both divorce. They are both damaged from a very dysfunctional childhood. The story illustrates the best and worst of sibling relationships Simultaneously quirky, funny and heartbreaking.
-Martha
TWO STEPS ONWARD
by Graeme Simsion and Anne Buist
(Direct to Paperback)
Graeme Simsion, author of The Rosie Project, and his wife, Anne, craft a charming story about love, life and friendship while walking along the Chemin d'Assise and Via Francigena to Rome from rural France. Perfect beach read for upcoming travel!
-Diana
RIVER SING ME HOME
by Eleanor Shearer
The gripping story of a “freed” slave in Barbados who is determined to find her children that have been sold to other plantations around the Caribbean. Based on historical fact and inspired by the author’s own family stories. Rachel’s life is heartbreaking, yet hopeful and explores how far a mother will go and the different freedoms her children found. Loved!
-Di
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