I loved Carlos Ruiz Zafón's entire Cemetery of Forgotten Books series, and I was so sad to hear about his passing in 2020. His final publication is The City of Mist, a brief collection of short stories that harkens back to the setting and themes of that series. Highlighting new characters and real historical figures... Continue Reading →
I'm always looking for books by Peruvian authors and set in Peru. My husband is originally from Lima, and I lived with him there for about one year. Peru's most famous author is Mario Vargas Llosa, a Nobel Prize winner with decades of beloved novels to his name. For my first foray into his work,... Continue Reading →
This month's reading challenge has been to read books in translation. High on my list was At Night All Blood Is Black by David Diop, translated from French by Anna Moschovakis. It's set during World War I, and although I usually avoid war fiction, this drew me for its focus on a Senegalese man's descent... Continue Reading →
A few years ago, my sister took a trip to Bucharest, Romania. She picked up some souvenirs while there, and knowing how much I love books, she decided the perfect gift for me would be a book translated from Romanian. She selected Life Begins on Friday by Ioana Pârvulescu, first published in 2009 before its... Continue Reading →
I have NetGalley to thank for introducing me to The Fugitives by Jamal Mahjoub. While perusing the upcoming books, I discovered this novel about musicians from Sudan. It was love at first sight for me, so I was elated when I was approved for an ARC. Though The Fugitives was published in the U.K. a... Continue Reading →
For my 2022 Reading Challenge, my theme for January is books in translation. The first audiobook I chose for that challenge is The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa, originally written in Japanese. The English translation for it arrived in the U.S. in October 2018, though I picked it up more recently. As a lifelong... Continue Reading →
For several months, I've been eagerly anticipating the release of The Siren of Sussex by Mimi Matthews. The first in her new Belles of London series, I was drawn to several things that make it stand out compared to other historical romances: It stars a half-Indian protagonist, features an interracial and interclass relationship, and highlights... Continue Reading →
Sonali Dev is an author I've been wanting to read for the past few years. Her Jane Austen retellings - featuring Indian characters and contemporary settings - have all caught my eye, and it's just a matter of time before I buy them all and finally give them my full attention. Though I haven't done... Continue Reading →
Amanda's Book Corner 