You probably already know that when it comes to fiction, I'm pretty picky. I need a well-crafted story; strong, likable characters; and above all, good writing. I tend to gravitate toward historical fiction for a number of reasons, not least of which is for moralistic reasons. These are the novels that fulfill at least most of my criteria and that I'm looking forward to reading.
First up, two books I've seen recommended by several book bloggers I trust. A Gentleman in Moscow is a chunkster about a man put under house arrest in a hotel in Russia.
Be Frank with Me is contemporary fiction about a woman who is sent from a publisher to be a handler for a novelist's son, Frank, so the novelist can write her second big best-seller.
Book two in the Kopp Sisters series has just been released, but I have yet to read book one, Girl Waits with Gun. The novels are set in the early part of the 20th century, and the main character is a deputy sheriff.
A Curious Beginning is the first in Deanna Raybourn's Veronica Speedwell mystery series set in 1880s London.
I'm always looking for fiction I might enjoy on audio, and Julian Fellowes' (of Downton Abbey fame) new novel, Belgravia, seems like something I'd like. It's set in 1840s London and deals, I believe, with the change in English society at the time. (Don't you just love that cover?!)
Enchanted Islands blends fiction and memoir, which excites me and makes me nervous at the same time. It's about a woman who becomes an undercover intelligence officer sent to the Galapagos Islands during World War II. I think this would also be good on audio.
Outrun the Moon is a middle grade/YA novel set in 1906 San Francisco. The main character, Mercy Wong, weathers the great earthquake, among other things.
And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer is a novella by the man who brought us A Man Called Ove. It's set to come out November 1.
I absolutely loved Monica Wood's memoir When We Were the Kennedys about losing her father as a girl. And I've heard good, gushing things about her novel, The One-in-a-Million Boy about a boy who has an ambition to get into the World's Record book.
I've also heard wonderful things about The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper, but it reminds me so much of A Man Called Ove's plot, I'm a little wary.
And for some "chick lit." I intend to read Jojo Moyes' Me Before You soon, but I have to admit the plot of The Girl You Left Behind (being historical fiction) interests me more.
I've added The Rosie Project to my list in an effort to read some of the more popular fiction books.
Where'd You Go, Bernadette is also on my "read soon" list (though it will probably be next year), but I'm also interested in Maria Semple's new book, Today Will Be Different (out Oct. 4).
Have you read anything on my list? What did you think?
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