Little Fires Everywhere, which I received for Christmas. It’s the first novel I’ve read where I lived in each location featured in the book. One of the main characters (Mia) and I even graduated from high school together! (Or would have, if she were real.) IMO the author nails it on all counts. Hoping for a sequel . . .
I just finished Little Fires Everywhere and I was less than enamored with it. The writing felt very formulaic and most of the characters (with the exception of Mia) were stereotypical, one-dimensional and frankly not very believable. In fact I found the first 100 pages painfully boring to get though; it finally picked up 2/3 of the way in but even then it was predictable. I would have abandoned it were it not my book club’s choice. Not my cup of tea.
@Consolation pls don’t hate me, book 2 is a big let down from book 1, it is getting way “fantastical” and made me even dislike the book in the end. Count Rostov and most other characters in the book r one-dimensional…
@makemesmart I’m just hoping to disagree! Having progressed well into Book Two, so far I do. The book’s charms have not released their grip on me. Yet. 
I liked it right up to the end. The way the book is structured is very interesting. (Take a look at the time line.) While there is nothing that couldn’t happen in it, it’s obviously not quite realistic either. The book is clearly meant to be at least partly a metaphor. I thought the CC book discussion was great and would be worth reading when you are done with the book.
Actually, it reminds me to some degree of The Grand Budapest Hotel.
Sorry all to be jumping in here out of the blue (haven’t been on CC in a couple of years 
) but I’m about 120 pages into “The Nightingale” by Kristin Hannah and find it to be SLOW…This novel came with high recommendations but it’s missing me so far. Do I need to hang in there and the plot/story will be more interesting if I push on through? Really looking for an engaging book and thought this would be it but…? FWIW, I LOVED “All the Light We Cannot See” and “The Goldfinch”. Thanks
I enjoyed “The Nightingale” so hang in there… it does take some time to set the scenes and move the story along.
“Woman in the Window” did not disappoint- page turner!
@swimdogmom I found The Nightingale to be a reasonably good read, but certainly nowhere near the class of All the Light We Cannot See or even The Goldfinch (for all its problems). So personally I’d say that if it isn’t grabbing you, that it is probably not worth persisting, unlike the other two. You won’t be missing anything great, as you would have been with ATLWCS.
I just finished A Gentleman in Moscow, which I adored. If you want an engaging book, I would highly recommend it.
Lincoln in the Bardo is my bookclub’s latest. Very strange and unique. Enjoyed the read but wouldn’t want to read a lot of books like this.
I just finished Operation Thunderbolt by Saul David, an account from multiple viewpoints of the Entebbe Airport hostage rescue attempt in 1976. I thought it was fascinated and compelling. I had a vague idea that there had been some kind of hostage situation at Entebbe, but really didn’t know much about it at all going in. I guess I was 14 when it happened, and we weren’t a family that discussed or watched the news when I was growing up. I wasn’t clear on the players or what happened, or how it ended. That made it a more interesting read (someone who knows the story still would probably find it interesting, but I was turning the pages just to find out what happened). I’d suggest that is a good way to go into it (don’t research if you don’t already know the story). And skip the dedication page at the front – it gives some info away about the results of the raid.
I just finished Carnegie’s Maid. It is a work of historical fiction about the Irish immigrant housemaid to Andrew Carnegie’s mother. She forms a bond with Carnegie and inspires his massive philanthropic endeavors. I recommend it if you have a Pittsburgh connection or particular interest in the history of Andrew Carnegie. I grew up in Pittsburgh and went to CMU so I really enjoyed this quick, light read.
I liked Lincoln in the Bardo a lot. Once you get the rhythm of it, it gets pretty readable. Overall I adore George Saunders. His short story collection Tenth of December has some stories that just about broke my heart.
My father served in Uganda in the 1980s. It was more than a bit unsettling to see the bullet holes in the walls at the airport.
As to the thread topic just finished re-reading Pride and Prejudice for the CC Book Club. It is of course the best book I’ve read in the last six months.
And @ignatius , who first recommended this book in 2014 (!), I finally read Kushiel’s Dart. I had forgotten that I’d been warned it was not for the squeamish and judgement or that it is incredibly long, but after I got past the beginning, where it felt a little bit too much like high class porn, I really ended up enjoying it. I loved the world she created, which is like Europe, with some interesting differences. I’m always intrigued by worlds which have a different set of gods and what the author chooses to do with them. I will be reading the sequels, though not right away.
@garland have you tried the audio version? I kind of want to give it a try since I have read the visual version. On goodreads many people complained of not able to finish the audio-book and I just could not imagine listening to Bardo first time in that format. Would have my head churned. Lol
@makemesmart --I enjoyed the print version, though I heard Saunders did a good job with the audio. I’m more of a reader than listener. As I said, I found the book very enjoyable to read, though it took concentration. I can’t imagine how the different voices and letters and such are conveyed in the audio format.
Don’t wait so long that you forget characters. Let’s just say, the political intrigue continues.
I know that problem. I just finished Clariel Garth Nix’s prequel to his other Old Kingdom books. I pretty much remembered nothing and it was very frustrating!
I am with those who did not get the incredibly high praise for A Gentleman in Moscow. I thought the writing was good, but I could not quite suspend belief enough to really get lost in the story. Horrible things were happening all around Moscow. How did he survive? How did those events not impact his life more directly? His range of emotion was very limited.
I really liked the Nightingale, even though it is not great literature. I thought it was an easy read, so I would say hang in there and it does start to move more quickly.