Adult Fiction

First-Time Caller

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by B. K .Borison
First sentence: “Love is a lie.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: There is swearing, including multiple f-bombs, and some on-page sex. It’s in the Romance section of the bookstore.

Aiden is the host of a local call-in Romance advice show in Baltimore, but he’s lost his way. He’s gotten snippy with the callers, lost his will to care about their problems, and – possibly worst of all – has lost his faith in love.

Lucie is a single mom who’s not unhappy with her life. She’s co-parenting with her child’s dad and his husband, she’s got a good job as a mechanic. Except her 12-year-old daughter thinks differently. So, when her daughter calls in to Aiden’s show asking for help with her mom’s love life, he’s intrigued. And, after getting annoyed/upset/frustrated, Lucie is also intrigued. And what if, in the middle of trying to find someone for Lucie, they discover that maybe they don’t want to find someone else?

I haven’t read Borison’s work before, but I loved the cover of this one (yes, I do judge a book by it’s cover sometimes), and so I picked it up when it was on sale at the store. And I wasn’t disappointed! It’s such a delightful romance, with everything I want: fun characters, snappy dialogue, and a romance worth having (plus some spicy scenes!). It’s a good thing I liked this, because I have her other two books on my pile to read as well!

The Unselected Journals of Emma Lion, Vols 2 and 3

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by Beth Brower
First sentence (vol 2): “Aunt Eugenia’s mandate was waiting with a degree of importance when I awoke this morning.”
First sentence (vol 3): “A noise woke me from my dreams this morning.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy them there!
Others in the series: Vol 1
Content: There is nothing untoward in the books (maybe a bit of drunkenness). They are in the Fiction section of the bookstore.

One of the nice things about the journals is the next one picks up right where the last one left off. Which is why I ended up buying them all; I didn’t want to wait! Volume two is May and June – in which Emma goes on an Adventure and rescues Jane Eyre (the book) from the clutches of the strict headmistress of the school for girls she used to go to. We also learn a bit more about her relationship with Maxwell (who has been killed in Afghanistan). There are increasing connections (which continue in volume 3) with The Tennant (Mr. Pierce) the Duke of Islington, Roland, and Young Hawkes (the parish rector). Of course, there is Aunt Eugenia compelling Emma to be the foil for the lovely Arabella, /money woes, and always Cousin Archibald being his usual nasty self.

I think Volume 3 delighted me more – there was a ridiculous scavenger hunt for tickets to an impromptu Julias Cesar (so silly!) in mid-July, and a couple of delightful parties. Emma deepened her relationship with Mr. Pierce (going back the early 2000s – which team am I on?), and Cousin Archibald hilariously falls down the stairs and breaks a leg.

The most delightful thing about these is that, even though there is not much plot, the characters are SO delightful, Emma is such a charming narrator, the setting – St. Crispain’s – is such a quirky, fun, silly place that I can’t help but be charmed on every page. I know I will be sad when I reach the end of the eight volumes, but for now, I’m thoroughly enjoying this!

Audiobook: The Scorpio Races

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by Maggie Stiefvater
Read by Steve West & Fiona Hardingham
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Or listen at Libro.fm
Content: It’s violent. But, if there’s a kid, say, 11 years old or so, who is interested in dark fairy-type tales, I’d give it to them. It’s in the Young Adult Bestsellers section of the bookstore.

Because this story isn’t this story without the first sentence: “It is the first day of November, and so, today, someone will die.”

I haven’t reread this in a handful of years, but I seem to be on a Stiefvater kick this year (seven of her books and counting!) and I couldn’t pass up the chance to listen to this one. And, like it always is, it’s an excellent story. The narrators did a wonderful job with the story, and I loved being back on Thisby in the thick of things again.

I adore Stiefvater’s work, and this is absolutely no exception.

Audiobook: Every Step She Takes

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by Alison Cochran
Read by: Cindy Kay & Jeremy Carlisle Parker
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Or listen at Libro.fm
Content: There is swearing, including multiple f-bombs, and on-page sex. It’s in the Romance section of the bookstore.

Sadie Wells needs a change. She’s been running her grandmother’s antique store (which was left to her when grandma died) since she was 21, and at 35, she feels stuck. So, when her travel-influencer younger sister gets a broken foot, Sadie jumps at the chance to take her place walking Portugal’s Camino de Santiago as part of a tour.

Mal, who had a falling out with her father 20 years ago, is back in Portugal on the heels of a breakup with her girlfriend, and is avoiding the aftermath of her father’s death (and his leaving his wine company to her). She has sworn off falling for yet another girl, and yet there is Sadie, who is having a gay awakening, and Mal can’t seem to resist the pull.

Can Sadie find herself and maybe help Mal make a change along the way?

I have decided that it really doesn’t matter what Cochran writes. I will read it. This was delightful – found family, discovering oneself, and travel in a gorgeous country, coupled with Cochran’s trademark wit and depth. I adored everything about this, from the delightful narrators to the story. Here’s to late bloomers and people discovering their authentic selves.

I loved it.

Wolf Worm

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by T. Kingfisher
First sentence: “The rail station was very new, the paint still bright on the lettering that read Siler Station.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Release date: March 24, 2026
Review copy provided by the publisher.
Content: There are some pretty gross moments, so it’s not for the squeamish stomach. I will be in the Horror section of the bookstore.

Sonia Wilson is a naturalist and an artist, but since it’s 1880 and she doesn’t have a husband, and her father recently passed, she doesn’t have many options for work. She grew tired of teaching at a girls’ boarding school, and so when a job opened up in rural western North Carolina with a naturalist looking for an artist to complete his book, she took the job. What she got, however, was much more than she bargained for.

(Read: There’s something very creepy going on in the woods.)

I don’t read horror. I don’t like being creeped out, I don’t like being grossed out. And yet, I adore Kingfisher. I haven’t read any of her horror before (maybe I will after this one), but when this one came across my desk, I couldn’t say no.

On the one hand, it was very creepy, and VERY gross. A lot of that gross was natural grossness; if you are made squeamish by bugs, this may not be for you. But it did get pretty disgusting. On the other hand, Kingfisher (like always) gave us a heroine who was smart, practical, independent, and a critical thinker. Sure, she was probably too curious for her own good, but she was a delight. And it was shot through with Kingfisher’s wit and the way she is able to create a sense of place. It’s not a delightful read, but it is a compelling one.

Just don’t read it at night.

Audiobook: The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion, Volume 1

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by Beth Brower
Read by Genevieve Gaunt
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Or listen at Libro.fm
Content: It’s just charming; there’s nothing untoward. It’s in the Fiction section of the bookstore.

It’s 1883 and Emma M. Lion is back at Lapis Lazuli (I hope that’s spelled right; I don’t have the book to check!), the house she has rightfully inherited but that her cousin (by marriage) currently occupies. She’s escaped being the companion of her cousin’s sister for the past three years, and as she’s almost at her majority, is starting to find her way again. Of course, it’s not easy: she’s being pressed into helping her actual cousin (her father’s sister’s daughter) go on the marriage market, which she’s not looking forward to. And it doesn’t help that both of her parents have passed, and her cousin has spent nearly all of her inheritance (on clothes!). How will she make do?

I’ve seen people reading this on Bookstagram, and they’ve become obsessed. I probably would have let it pass me by except an old blogging friend of mine bullied me (well, she put it on hold at the library on Libby where we share a card, and said, You will read this) into listening to it. And, I have to say: I’m obsessed. Immediately upon finishing it, I put all eight volumes on order at the store, and I’m planning on plowing through them all. They are a delight. The narrator for this one is a delight. It’s exactly what I needed when I needed. It made me utterly happy. It’s absolutely worth the obsession.

If you haven’t read them yet, hunt them down and read them. It’s absolutely worth it.

Audiobook: Soul Searching

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by Lyla Sage
Read by Jason Clarke and Samantha Brentmoor
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Or listen at Libro.fm
Content: There is on-page sex, plus lots of swearing, including many f-bombs. It’s in the Romance section of the bookstore.

Collins Cartwright has come back to her hometown of Sweetwater Peak to help her family. Or so she says. In actuality, she’s lost her ability to talk to ghosts and she’s run out of photography gigs, and she’s unhappy. So, she’s come back to find herself. What she ends up doing is working for Brady Cooper, a new resident in Sweetwater Peak. And what starts out rough turns into something… more.

First off: the narration on this one is fantastic. They did Lost and Lassoed together, and were honestly one of the best parts of that book. I adore their voices, and they have fantastic chemistry. This was another dual narration, which I’m not terribly fond of, but I liked it in this instance. And while this is a super slow burn – it lacks the usual three-act romance structure – I enjoyed getting to know Brady and Collins. I liked the town that Sage created, and her take on ghosts was quite interesting. It’s a non-spooky ghost story, with a bit of a mystery that Collins solves by the end.

And Sage knows how to write a good romance. I’m definitely on board to see where she goes next with this series.

Someone You Can Build a Nest In

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by John Wiswell
First sentence: “Each year when Shesheshen hibernated, she dreamed of her childhood nest.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: There is a lot of gore and a high body count, plus a lot of swearing, including f-bombs. It’s in the Science Fiction/Fantasy section of the bookstore.

Shesheshen is a shapeshifter, residing outside the town of Underlook. Sure, she kills people once in a while, but a monster has got to eat. But, one day she is rudely awakened by monster hunters who gravely injure her. (Rosemary. Who knew?) She rushes off (after killing one of them, of course) and finds Homily, a human who is extraordinarily kind. Unfortunately, Homily believes that the monster of Underlook has cursed her family, and so is hunting it. Shesheshen is sure she hasn’t cursed anyone, but since she’s coming to like Homily, she decides to stay and help. Things unravel from there.

This is a hard plot to summarize, because not much happens. On one hand, it’s a simple love story: two characters coming to love themselves and each other and figure out ways to stand together against the world. (Ah, the villain of the story is a doozy.) It’s very simple, but it’s also very weird. To make the monster – to make someone as odd, weird, and potentially scary – the main character is a remarkable thing. Sure, people are dying, people are scared of Shesheshen, but she just wants to live her life. It’s weird, it’s sweet, it’s violent, and it’s charming.

I adored it.

The Bookshop Below

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by Georgia Summers
First sentence: “
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Review copy pilfered from the ARC shelves at work.
Release date: November 18, 2025
Content: There is a lot of violence and swearing, including many f-bombs. There is also one closed-door sex scene. It will be in the Science Fiction/Fantasy section of the bookstore.

Cassandra Fairfax never expected much out of her life once she left Chiron’s bookshop. She was a thief – dealing mostly in the magic books that had once been her livelihood at the bookshop- and, with one bad night, she was a killer. But then she got a letter from Chiron willing her his bookshop – again, something she never expected. Except, he was murdered. And the magic bookshops on the river are failing. And maybe Cassandra isn’t cut out to live a non-criminal life. Then again: maybe she’s the only one who can save the magic from disappearing from the world altogether.

I thoroughly enjoyed this one. I really liked the magic system – there are magic books (not ones with instructions, but regular books that just happen to have magic properties) that can be bought (not necessarily with money) in bookshops that you can only find if they are needed. There are readers – Cassandra is one – who can read from the books and make the power come out. It’s dangerous – there’s an instance early on when a reader read a sleeping-beauty-like book, and it was taking over the house and the owners had to go in and fix it. It wasn’t hard to follow, and Summers did a good job implementing the benefits and detriments as she went along, so by the final conflict, there was a lot at stake.

And it kept me interested. I liked the characters – and there are many intriguing characters to like and dislike – and while I thought for a while that Summers wasn’t going to be able to wrap the story up, she did in a very satisfactory way.

I’d love another book in this world, not because it needs one, but because I’m fascinated with the world she created.

Highly recommended.

Last Night at the Lobster

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by Stewart O’Nan
First sentence: “Mall traffic on a gray winter’s day, stalled.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: There is swearing, including multiple f-bombs. It’s in the adult fiction section of the bookstore.

In a rundown mall complex in a rundown town in the Northeast, employees at a Red Lobster are having their final night. Corporate decided to shut the restaurant down, and the manager – Manny – was forced to let go of everyone but five that are coming with him to Olive Garden. Most of his employees don’t show up for the last shift, four days before Christmas, which is fine, since a blizzard set in. They’re slow, they’re shorthanded, but dang it, Manny is going to see this last shift through.

It’s a short, reflective novel, taking place over the course of 12 hours or so. Manny is regretting the end of his affair with a waitress, juggling all the employees who didn’t show up, and wondering if he chose the right people or did the right thing. Not much happens – there are customers, and anyone who has worked a service job recognizes them. But, it’s a beautifully written book, and so I didn’t mind the lack of plot so much.

It’s set at Christmas, but I’m not sure it’s a Christmas book. It’s very melancholy, and it shows the effects of decisions made by suits in faraway places. It makes you think about capitalism and the working class and the way we treat service workers. It’s a good book, even if I don’t think I truly loved it.