Death and All That Follows by Javier Piñol Serra follows twins Sara and Nico as they return to their hometown of Santa Magdalena after their mother’s sudden death. Sara is all business. She is a lawyer who is always moving toward the next goal, while...

“Professionals don’t have feelings, don’t have thoughts. They don’t have an autonomous life outside their function.” Perhaps some don't, but the professional in Fabio Amabili's novel, There's A Young Man Dressed In Blue, is a human being first and foremost. The protagonist is Avvocato Floriani,...

In Lonnie Busch’s The Anything Room, after his son Kenny leaves home, widower Martin Moffett moves into a small bungalow. There, he discovers a concealed doorway in a spare room that leads into a living moment from the past where his late wife Noreen still...

Conniption Creek by Earl L Carlson tells the story of the unfortunate residents of Conniption City, a town built in a valley that functions like a "topographical Venus flytrap." The village was founded by swindlers who lured prospectors with fake gold, leaving only the feckless...

Liberty Landing by Gail Vida Hamburg begins with the story of Gabe Khoury, a determined young immigrant who arrives in the Midwestern town of Azyl Park with little more than resolve and a fierce will to survive. Once a displaced young man stepping off a...

She Was Here: The Marginalia of Rossana Averni by G. C. Marti is an exploration of the aftermath of a gifted teenager’s hospitalization following a suicide attempt. Set in Venice, the story unfolds over eight days, focusing on three of Rossana’s teachers as they...

In Under An Indiana Sky by Lynne Hugo, Denise Brown balances work, parenting, and the care of her disabled mother when her concern about her sister Angie begins to grow. Angie spends more time with Brock Varon, a man who lives alone in a rural...

The Girl Who Counted Numbers by Roslyn Bernstein is a fast-moving story of discovery, growing up, acceptance, and romance. It takes place in 1961 during the time of the Eichmann Trials that were held in Jerusalem. The main character is Susan Reich, who is sent...

In Hans Brunner’s Forever Day, Felix Joseph–Maria Fuchs leaves his family’s Swiss hotel and boards a liner bound for Australia, expecting a season abroad yet encountering a decision that will not release him. On the voyage, he meets Janine, a schoolteacher returning to Victoria, and...

Cody Redman’s life has gone sideways in ways that feel both absurd and painfully familiar in Rod Drought’s Phoenix Rising, Lemuria Down. Once a viral YouTube star, Cody is now scraping by with his roommate, living in a tiny apartment filled with takeout boxes. Everything...