Contemporary Novels by Reliable Authors

Lucy by the Sea     Elizabeth Strout     (2022)  Pulitzer-winner Strout has helped her readers examine many of the complexities of the human condition in her eight previous highly acclaimed books. Now, in Lucy by the Sea, she looks at the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, through the eyes of Lucy Barton (a character she’s developed in My Name is Lucy Barton, Anything is Possible, and Oh William). Lucy’s ex-husband, William, is a scientist who sees how dangerous the coronavirus is. In early March 2020, he insists that Lucy leave New York City for a rental house on the coast of Maine. In first-person narrative, Lucy details the interactions she has with family and friends during 2020 and early 2021. Lucy by the Sea is the first discussion of the pandemic I’ve read that truly captures the sense of desperation and loneliness that the pandemic has wrought. One quote: “I could not stop feeling that life as I had known it was gone.” (245)

The Master Bedroom     Tessa Hadley     (2007)  Kate Flynn is brilliant, brash, and beautiful—never boring. She takes a leave from her teaching job in London and goes back to her home town in Wales to care for her elderly mother, who has dementia. Kate’s entanglement in the lives of old friends allows the author to explore the complexities of desire, ambition, and generational ties. I’ve been bingeing on the well-crafted books by Britain’s Tessa Hadley; they are among my favorites, as you can see in this recent post.

The Sweet Remnants of Summer     Alexander McCall Smith     (2022)  In this 14th offering in the Isabel Dalhousie series, it’s a warm September in Edinburgh. Isabel and her “dishy” husband, Jamie, get themselves involved as mediators—or possibly interveners—in two interpersonal dramas in the worlds of art, music, and wine. Glimpses of Isabel’s personal life, and of her job as editor of a philosophy journal, punctuate the gentle, easygoing story. I’ve reviewed novels in this series previously. The setting and the characters rank high for me in McCall Smith’s voluminous catalog of titles.

History and Mystery: Short Reviews

First, a few historical novels.  

Free Love     Tessa Hadley     (2022) You can rely on Hadley’s novels to unflinchingly probe the dynamics of modern British family life. In this one, she travels back to swinging 1967 London to observe the conventional Fischer family falling apart in the wake of the sexual revolution. The shocking liaisons and their aftermaths drive the plot, but I found myself lingering on the evocative metaphors in Hadley’s descriptive settings. Who knew that British weather could be so beautiful?

The Sense of an Ending     Julian Barnes     (2011)  Tony Webster, a retired Briton who is amicably divorced, receives an unusual legacy that brings to mind painful scenes from his time in secondary school and at university. This ruminative short novel about memory, regret, forgiveness, and revenge was made into a movie in 2017.

Violeta     Isabel Allende     (2022) Translated from the Spanish by Frances Riddle. The prolific Allende has been criticized in some reviews for lack of character development in Violeta. I don’t agree. Violeta Del Valle tells her captivating life story in first person, from her birth in 1920 during one pandemic to her death in 2020 during another. The backdrop is the political upheaval of this century in the history of an unnamed South American country that is very much like Chile. See also my review of Allende’s In the Midst of Winter.  

Next, some mysteries, one of which is a historical mystery and two of which take place at weddings! 

A Comedy of Terrors     Lindsey Davis     (2021)  I’ve reviewed the Flavia Albia mystery series as among my favorites, and this entry is no exception. Although the novels have more violence than I usually tolerate, the first-century Roman ambience is irresistible, the rapid-fire dialog brings the characters fully to life, and the plots will challenge the most sophisticated mystery reader. As an added treat, A Comedy of Terrors, set during the celebration of Saturnalia (the winter solstice), features the holiday revelries of private investigator Flavia Albia and her extended family.

The Guest List     Lucy Foley     (2020)  A British power couple are staging an elaborate wedding on a remote island off the coast of Ireland, but this is no rom-com. It’s a cleverly plotted murder mystery that unfolds with a see-sawing narrative from the standpoints of the wedding planner, the bride, the best man, the sole bridesmaid, a plus-one guest, and the groom.  

Destination Wedding     Aaron Stander     (2020) This is the eleventh of the Sheriff Ray Elkins mysteries set in the northwest of Michigan’s mitten. On the shore of Lake Michigan, severe weather causes havoc for the wealthy guests at a wedding and almost conceals a concurrent suspected murder and art theft. The local color can’t be beat, and the copyediting problems that marred previous titles in the series (as noted in my review) have been mostly resolved.