Whimsical and lyrical: Lucy Wood's short stories will touch the curious and sensitive reader who is willing to believe. Houghton Mifflin, 2012 If you like your stories to be rooted in realism, Diving Belles is not for you, but if you enjoy discovering the extraordinary in the ordinary,
This was one of the first Orange Prize nominees that I bought. Last year, two debut novels on the longlist made my personal shortlist. (Anna Peile's and Samantha Hunt's) Serpent's Tail, 2012 I had high hopes for this novel and, in many ways, I was rewarded for my
From the title, readers might guess that Khanh Ha's first novel, Flesh, will be of a visceral nature. And from the cover image, with a young woman's neck and shoulders and long braid disappearing into wafts of smoke, readers will suspect a romantic tale. Once they learn that it takes
Abhay sits on the grass in front of a bar, on the opening page of And Laughter Fell From the Sky. Harper Collins, 2012 The five-lane highway across from Kent State University is as hectic as the afternoon rush in Grand Central Station was, one hundred years ago, in
Let me begin by saying that the cover of this novel is perfect. Juliet, with her eyes closed: she could be anywhere, but in assembling an understanding of the world around her, images from her time in Nicaragua serve as a foundation. And the vivid imagery: the combination of photographs
