As someone who grew up on a steady and beloved diet of Nancy Drew mysteries, it is heartwarming to see that they still appeal to the next generation. Thanks Dani for the wonderful review - and for renewing my faith in the power of a good old fashioned mystery.

‘Nancy Drew, your average 18 year old girl, has her life flipped upside down by a thrilling mystery. It all starts one day as she’s driving and manages to see a little girl fall from a stone wall. After rescuing the little girl and bringing her home she meets the girl's two aunts. This is where Nancy learns of old Josiah Crowley who has recently passed. The two aunts tell Nancy how they expected an inheritance since that is what the old man himself had told them and some other relatives and family friends, but alas there was no money left for them. Josiah Crowley’s entire estate had been left to the stuck up Topham family, who Josiah hadn’t even been fond of. Leaving most to believe that there had to be a later will.

This is enough to stir Nancy who ends up on a nail biting adventure filled with sleuthing, robbers, new friends and a solid mystery. The mystery of an old man with a secretive way of writing his last will, so secretive that it stumps almost everyone except for Nancy Drew.

I picked this up mostly for the nostalgia factor. But I had forgotten what a joy this series is to read. I’ve always loved mysteries and grew up reading Nancy Drew and watching the Nancy Drew movies of the 2000’s so I can’t see a world where I don’t like this book. This book is fun, light and a page turner, especially great for this time of year. I love that the main character is a young woman who manages to be a good person all while outsmarting the antagonist and saving the day in the end. I find this especially impressive since the books first came out in the 1930’s. What I also really love about these books is that even though they make a series they are great stand alones as well!

So grab a Nancy Drew book, get comfy and see if you can figure out the mystery before Nancy does.

- Daniela Sarah Gram

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Lucy Barton returns and it’s great to have her back!

In ‘Oh William!’ Lucy has just lost her beloved husband David and finds herself spending time with her former husband William, the philandering father of her daughters with whom she has remained friendly. William is also struggling and in the midst of it all receives a genealogy gift which leads him (and Lucy) to Maine in search of his mother’s little known past and a well kept secret.

Brief recaps of Lucy's history from the previous books are deftly woven into Oh William! adding to the patchwork that is her life from impoverished, traumatic childhood to succesful author.

‘Oh William!’ is a novel / fictional memoir, a form that is a perfect fit for Lucy’s personality. From the very start you become the willing companion to Lucy’s attempts at figuring things out as she goes along.

This is an intimate, at turns surprising, at turns quite moving novel, where our main character is constantly asking herself questions in a quest to better understand herself and others.

‘Please try to understand this:

I have always thought that if there was a big cork board and on that board was a pin for every person who ever lived, there would be no pin for me.

I feel invisible is what I mean. But I mean it in the deepest way. It is very hard to explain. And I cannot explain it except to say - oh, I don’t know what to say. Truly it is as if I do not exist, I guess is the closest thing I can say. I mean I do not exist in the world.’

In Oh William!, Elizabeth Strout proves once again that she is a master of a non linear form that relies less on plot and more on defining moments in time and in relationships - moments that seem random at first but turn out to be pivotal. And once again we are gifted with characters so interesting, multilayered and complex, so real, that we don’t quite know how to feel about them. Just as in real life.

As Strout herself has said about the novel: “I am never really interested in Good or Bad, but instead in all the murky imperfections of people that make up their lives.”

Happy reading - and message us to reserve a copy!

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Wonderfully reviewed for us by Christine 🙏

‘The Tenth Muse is a beautiful novel about identity, ambition, discovery, and belonging.

The story is told by Katherine, a gifted mathematician, as she recounts events from her life and career. Growing up in post-WWII America, she has had to fight for everything she has accomplished and has struggled with feelings of never truly belonging; as a child, her Chinese mother set her apart in the local Caucasian society, in school she was punished for her intelligence, and as a female mathematician trying to succeed in the male-dominated world of academia, she has had to work twice as hard to prove her worth. As she sets out to forge her professional path, family secrets come to light which send her on a journey to discover her own origins and understand her family history and legacy in post-war Europe.

Katherine is a fascinating leading character who refuses to compromise on her ambitions even though they come at a high price, and whose determination to carve out a space for herself in a male-dominated environment is unrelenting.

The Tenth Muse is a beautiful, warm, and moving story and the book is an easy, comfortable read which I highly recommend.’

Happy Monday and Happy reading!

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Reviewed by Books & Co regular reviewer Lotte 🙏

‘Sunday Brennan, now 29, left her New York City life and family for a writing career in LA leaving behind her Dad, brothers and high school sweetheart and fiancé, Kale.

After a car crash, her brother Denny, always her protector, takes her back to New York, but going home is never easy. People want answers to why she left, her brother has made disastrous business decisions for the family business and Kale is now married with a son.

This is a true family drama at it’s very best - complex, dysfunctional and very loving - with a super flow in the writing (this is a debut, btw !) The story is broken up into chapters that are each narrated by a different family member. A great idea that works really well. The Brennans is a great read and could make it into my top 10!’

Happy Monday and happy reading!

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