This week, our book club members are discussing Francesca McDonnell Capossela's Trouble the Living, a dual-timeline novel bridging the gap between a daughter's relationship with her mother in Northern Ireland during the Troubles and her relationship with her own daughter in Southern California many years later.
In Editor's Choice, we explore a debut mystery stuffed with suspense and historical detail, Ritu Mukerji's Murder by Degrees, in which Dr. Lydia Weston fights 19th-century sexism and investigates the circumstances surrounding the death of a patient.
Plus, we're taking a look back at First Impressions titles reviewed this year, while also looking ahead to the best nonfiction for book clubs in 2024!
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With best wishes,
The BookBrowse Team
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Discussions are open to all to view and participate, so if you've read a book, click on "discuss."
If you have not, we suggest you go to "about the book" to avoid spoilers.
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Trouble the Living
by Francesca McDonnell Capossela
From the Jacket
It's the final years of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, and Bríd and her sister, Ina, try to maintain a stable life in a divided country. Pushed by her mother's fanaticism and a family tragedy, Bríd joins the IRA and makes a devastating choice.
Years later, her guilt and tragic history still buried, Bríd is an overprotective mother raising her sensitive daughter, Bernie, in Southern California. When mother and daughter are forced to return to Northern Ireland, they both must confront the past, the present, and the women they've become.
From the Discussion
"I enjoyed this novel. I appreciate the way it treats the Troubles without glorifying them. I felt that the characters were realistic and I was interested in their lives. The novel made me think about relationships and loyalties and would make for a great book club discussion." —cathyoc
"I absolutely loved this book. I particularly enjoyed how the author seamlessly leads us between timelines and countries. I was immediately drawn to the characters, with all their flaws, transgressions and incredible challenges." —melissa c.
"I really liked this book. ... I thought the era in Irish history was explained in such a way that I was able to be in the characters' shoes through many of their experiences. Beautifully written...would recommend to my book club." —janeh
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Murder by Degrees
by Ritu Mukerji
Lydia Weston is among the first wave of female physicians and professors in the United States. Dedicated to her work, she spends her days treating the sick and teaching the next generation of young doctors at Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania. Her routine is thrown into chaos, however, when the body of her patient and would-be friend, Anna Ward, is pulled from the river. Having somewhat taken Anna under her wing — introducing her to the wonders of literature and encouraging her desire to pursue education — Lydia feels a strong personal stake in the mystery of her death.
Though initial clues point to suicide, Lydia's expert autopsy skills uncover hints of foul play, sparking a murder investigation that will soon expose an intricate web of secrets and lies with implications that ripple throughout the wider community of Philadelphia. Determined to uncover the truth and gain justice for Anna, Lydia works closely with the police on the case despite the personal risk this brings. All the while, she fends off the sexism of patients and fellow doctors alike as she strives to prove herself a qualified and capable physician. ...continued
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This issue of The BookBrowse Review contains reviews and "beyond the book" articles for 12 titles, including A Haunting in Hialeah Gardens by Raul Palma, One Puzzling Afternoon by Emily Critchley and The Prince and the Coyote by David Bowles.
We also bring you book club recommendations, author interviews, previews of noteworthy upcoming releases and more.
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Ritu Mukerji's Murder by Degrees, our featured Editor's Choice book this week, is only one of approximately 300 titles in our 19th Century category, where you can find both a wide selection of historical fiction set in the 1800s and interesting nonfiction about people and events of the period.
This is just one of 100+ themed categories you can explore on BookBrowse to find the perfect read for your book club or yourself. Members can access all categories, while non-members have limited access.
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Look Back on First Impressions 2023 | |
Reading other people’s opinions on a book is a fun way to decide whether you want to read it yourself. With BookBrowse’s First Impressions program, you can dive into a variety of personal perspectives on new titles, enjoying honest reviews from multiple independent readers to form an idea of a book similar to what you might gather from a casual conversation with a group of friends.
We make sure our First Impressions reviews and ratings are free from any connections to an author or outside influences by exclusively featuring feedback from members who opt in to the program and receive books assigned by an algorithm months ahead of publication. So you can browse high-quality comments with confidence and feel excited about choosing your next read!
In 2023, our First Impressions program covered more than 50 books. We invite you to peruse these reviews as well as ones for hundreds of other titles in our archives.
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Best Nonfiction for Book Clubs in 2024 | |
Looking for nonfiction to read with your book club in the coming year? It can be tricky to track down quality nonfiction that has real discussion potential, so we've created this list to give your group a head start on your picks for 2024.
Our selections include two books portraying lesser-explored elements of World War II from unique angles, an engaging story of sisters separated by the Chinese Civil War, an eye-opening account of women fighting discrimination at MIT, an intimate and socially conscious portrait of George Floyd, and the dramatic telling of a North Carolina community's battle for justice against a multinational corporation. We hope these books spark fruitful conversations!
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With so many new books published every month, it's difficult to find the standouts, the ones which are really worth your time. This is why hundreds of thousands of readers rely on BookBrowse to do the hard work of sifting though the multitude of titles to find the most promising new books, with a focus on books that entertain, engage and enlighten. | |
BookBrowse Highlights is one of our four free newsletters. We also offer Publishing This Week every Sunday, and Book Club News and Librarian News monthly.
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