I read this book as a buddy read with Katie and Shaina, which was actually a really good thing, because I don’t think I would have stuck with it if I hadn’t been accountable to two other people. Which would have been my loss, because once I got past the initial world-building and slow beginning, it
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THE SUNDAY REVIEW | THE RED NOTEBOOK – ANTOINE LAURAIN
I can’t recall where I heard about this book, but I wish I did so I could thank the blogger who pointed me to such a brilliant discovery. This book had everything I was in the mood for when I picked it up: books, whimsy, mystery, Paris and a fair dose of extraordinary circumstance.
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THE SUNDAY REVIEW | THE GOLD EATERS – RONALD WRIGHT
Ronald Wright’s newest book is a brilliant and epic work of historical fiction set in 16th century Peru. It begins with a young Peruvian boy called Waman. Waman lives in a small fishing village on the coast with his parents and cousin, Tika. At the cusp of manhood, Waman is itching to experience the
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THE SUNDAY REVIEW | THE READERS OF BROKEN WHEEL RECOMMEND – KATARINA BIVALD
There’s nothing I love more than meeting a character in a book who shares my love of reading. From Helene Hanff in 84 Charing Cross Road to A.J. Fikry and Amelia in The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry to Matilda in Roald Dahl’s beloved book of the same name to Anne in Anne of
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THE SUNDAY REVIEW | PURITY – JONATHAN FRANZEN
I’ve been seeing Jonathan Franzen’s books around for years, but to this point hadn’t actually read any of them (admittedly their length intimidated me somewhat). So when the book fairy (AKA Random House Canada) delivered an ARC of his upcoming novel, Purity, to my mailbox, it seemed that fate had intervened. I went into
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BOOK REVIEW | BREAM GIVES ME HICCUPS – JESSE EISENBERG
Every once in a while, you just need some comic relief. I’ve laughed my ass off at Jesse Eisenberg’s comic portrayals over the years, my favourite of his films was Zombieland – because of course – but I also enjoyed Adventureland and admired his acting chops in The Social Network. He’s firmly earned a place
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RELEASE DAY REVIEW | EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING – NICOLA YOON
I’ve been hearing about this book for months now, just waiting until I could get my hands on a copy. But I didn’t actually know much about it other than everyone was loving it up. When it arrived in my mailbox, I immediately tore into it. 24 hours later, I was done. It’s the
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THE SUNDAY REVIEW | LUCKIEST GIRL ALIVE – JESSICA KNOLL
Luckiest Girl Alive is unlike any other book I’ve read. Don’t get me wrong, there are elements to it that will feel familiar. But taken as a whole it completely surprised me. The book begins with a perfect girl. She’s got a high-powered job working for a magazine in New York, she’s pretty and
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THE SUNDAY REVIEW | WIND/PINBALL – HARUKI MURAKAMI
Haruki Murakami’s newest book is actually a set of two novels (or novellas) that were the very first stories he ever wrote. This is the first time in years these two stories have been available in print – much less in English – and they provide a fascinating glimpse of this venerable writer’s beginnings.
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THE SUNDAY REVIEW | ARMADA – ERNEST CLINE
Armada is the long-anticipated (by me, anyway) follow up to Ernest Cline’s futuristic video-game drama, Ready Player One. The first thing I need to tell you is that I’m not a gamer. I’m not even much into sci-fi. But I absolutely loved Ready Player One. Sure, there was a lot about video games, but
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THE *SUNDAY REVIEW | ALIVE – SCOTT SIGLER
From New York Times bestselling author Scott Sigler comes something utterly new: a gripping sci-fi adventure trilogy in the vein of The Hunger Games, Divergent, and The Maze Runner. A group of young adults awake in a mysterious enclosed space with no knowledge of who they are or how they got there…and an indomitable young
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THE SUNDAY REVIEW | A LITTLE LIFE – HANYA YANAGIHARA
Brace yourself for the most astonishing, challenging, upsetting, and profoundly moving book in many a season. An epic about love and friendship in the twenty-first century that goes into some of the darkest places fiction has ever traveled and yet somehow improbably breaks through into the light. Truly an amazement—and a great gift for
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BOOK REVIEW | IN THE UNLIKELY EVENT – JUDY BLUME
In her highly anticipated new novel, Judy Blume, the New York Times # 1 best-selling author of Summer Sisters and of young adult classics such as Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, creates a richly textured and moving story of three generations of families, friends and strangers, whose lives are profoundly changed by
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THE SUNDAY REVIEW | THE FEVER – MEGAN ABBOTT
The panic unleashed by a mysterious contagion threatens the bonds of family and community in a seemingly idyllic suburban community. The Nash family is close-knit. Tom is a popular teacher, father of two teens: Eli, a hockey star and girl magnet, and his sister Deenie, a diligent student. Their seeming stability, however, is thrown
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THE SUNDAY REVIEW | FINDING AUDREY – SOPHIE KINSELLA
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Shopaholic series comes a terrific blend of comedy, romance, and psychological recovery in a contemporary YA novel sure to inspire and entertain. An anxiety disorder disrupts fourteen-year-old Audrey’s daily life. She has been making slow but steady progress with Dr. Sarah, but when Audrey
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THE SUNDAY REVIEW | A GOD IN RUINS – KATE ATKINSON
In Life After Life Ursula Todd lived through the turbulent events of the last century again and again. In A God in Ruins, Atkinson turns her focus on Ursula’s beloved younger brother Teddy – would-be poet, RAF bomber pilot, husband and father – as he navigates the perils and progress of the 20th
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THE SUNDAY REVIEW | THE SHORE – SARA TAYLOR
Welcome to The Shore: a collection of small islands sticking out from the coast of Virginia into the Atlantic Ocean. Where clumps of evergreens meet wild ponies, oyster-shell roads, tumble-down houses, unwanted pregnancies, murder, storm-making and dark magic in the marshes. . . Situated off the coast of Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay, the group of
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THE SUNDAY REVIEW | LIFE AFTER LIFE – KATE ATKINSON
“Is there Life After Life, chance after chance to rewrite one’s destiny? That is the question posed by Atkinson’s tale and brought to life by the miracle of her talent.” —Toronto Star What if you had the chance to live your life again and again, until you finally got it right? During a snowstorm
