Winter is the ultimate reading season. There’s no doubt about it. Gray skies, snowstorms, hot drinks warming our hands – the perfect recipe for a day inside reading a good book. One of my goals in the new year is to share new books each month that you can consider adding to your reading list. Every book I recommend will be one that I’ve read and loved – no shots in the void.
First up, for those of you who like mysteries with a cultish twist, you will want to pick up a copy of A History of Wild Places by Shea Ernshaw immediately. Ernshaw crafts an entrancing tale about Travis Wren, a man who can access memories through touching objects. This unusual talent makes him an excellent private investigator. When he’s hired to find a missing girl, he also disappears in the forest he suspects she got lost in. A History of Wild Places is quest to find truth and community - with plenty of surprises along the way.
For fans of Lisa Jewel and Emma Cline.
Up next is Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel. Trigger warning – this is a pandemic story. It had been on my TBR list since it was published in 2014 until I finally read it at the start of the new year. At the center of the novel is the traveling symphony, a group of musicians fighting to keep art alive in a post-apocalyptic world. This is an astonishing, emotional story about human resilience. It hits extremely close to home given the state of our world over the last two years. The fact that that she was able to create a story about the collapse of civilization and have readers walk away feeling hopeful, speaks to Emily St. John Mandel’s talent.
For fans of Rumaan Alam.
My most recent read was The Maid by Nita Prose. Prose is an all-star editor who has helped a ton of NYT bestselling authors rise to fame, so it’s a real treat to be able to read the story she’s had floating around in her head. The Maid is told from the perspective of quirky hotel maid, Molly (think Eleanor Oliphant), as she finds herself in the middle of a murder committed a room that she’s responsible for cleaning. I felt angry, scared, curious, overwhelmingly happy – a wide range of emotions while reading this book. With an endearing cast of characters and a clue-like feel, this one is a must-read that will keep you glued to the page until the very end.
For fans of Agatha Christie and Gail Honeyman.
The last one I’ve got for you this month is We Are Water by Wally Lamb. Wally (we are clearly very close and are on a first name basis) is my all-time favorite author, so I have no choice but to include one of his novels in our first recommendation posts. We Are Water is a story about the ways in which a broken family copes with a dissolving marriage. It’s very much about strength and resilience in the face of tragedy. It’s sad but uplifting. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry. Another read that will gift you with a full range of emotions – but, I’ll warn you, grab a box of tissues before diving into this one.
For fans of Johnathan Franzen.
It looks like there are a ton of new releases on the horizon, which I’m totally excited to read and report back.
**This post was originally shared to Charlotte Readers Podcast’s community blog.