The Books I'm Reading Now
I'm reading The Goddess of Warsaw, Lisa Barr's dual-timeline historical fiction set in 1943 Warsaw and 2005 Los Angeles; I'm listening to Wellness, Nathan Hill's darkly funny, poignant exploration of modern marriage and present-day obsession with fitness and happiness; and I'm listening to Ali Hazelwood's paranormal romance, Bride.
What are you reading these days, bookworms?
01 The Goddess of Warsaw by Lisa Barr
In Lisa Barr's newest historical fiction, The Goddess of Warsaw, the author tells a story in two timelines.
In 1943 Warsaw, socialite Bina Blonski is imprisoned in the ghetto with her husband and thousands of her fellow Jewish citizens. She becomes a spy and begins to resist against the Nazis--but when she falls for another resistance fighter (her brother-in-law), things get even more complicated.
In 2005 Los Angeles, Sienna Hayes is a Hollywood actress looking to direct. When she meets Golden Age movie star Lena Browning, she becomes determined to make a documentary about Lena's life. But Lena is actually Bina--and her life has been far more complex than almost anyone knows.
I received a prepublication edition of this title courtesy of Harper Perrenial and Paperbacks and NetGalley.
02 Wellness by Nathan Hill
Jack and Elizabeth are strangers living across an alley in a gritty artists' area of 1990s Chicago, and they're immediately and powerfully drawn to each other.
As they grow older, their mutual rejection of societal expectations begins to soften. They marry, have a baby, and aim to own a house.
But somewhere along the way, they lose sight of each other--and of themselves.
Nathan Hill pokes fun at the absurd extremes of the search for modern wellness while considering individuals' views of fulfillment and whether two people can come together in a marriage, change, grow, and stay happy without subsuming their dreams and desires.
So far Wellness is darkly funny, intriguing, and, at times, poignant.
I'm listening to Wellness as an audiobook.
03 Bride by Ali Hazelwood
In Ali Hazelwood's Bride, an alliance between a Vampyre and an Alpha Werewolf builds into a paranormal loooove story.
Misery Lark is the only daughter of the most powerful Vampyre in the region, and she'd prefer to literally and figuratively stay in the shadows--but she's been called to take part in the building of a peacekeeping alliance between the Vampyres and the Weres--in the form of an arranged marriage between Misery and a Were.
Lowe Moreland is the Alpha of the Weres, and he's as unpredictable, volatile, and unforgiving as any Were stereotype Misery has ever heard.
But Misery has her reasons for willingly entering into this marriage--and she's willing to do anything to reach her secret goals.
I'm listening to Bride as an audiobook. Ali Hazelwood is also the author of Love, Theoretically and other books.