The After Party, A Novel by Anton Disclafani.

  The After Party, A Novel by Anton Disclafani. Riverhead Books
(Penguin Random House), 2016. Adult fiction.


By far, this fictional tale has been my favorite guilty pleasure this summer! Set in 1950's Houston, it details life of several high society women and the secrets they keep. The liquor flows, the diamonds sparkle, and in the midst is beautiful and rich Joan Fortier. Her faithful sidekick, Cece Buchanan, thinks she know Joan well. Alternating between their time at Lamar High and just afterward to 1957 when Cece is married and has a small son, the tale winds through the River Oaks' debutantes with chauffeurs and maids to do their bidding.


The author has obviously done her homework. From the description of the diving boards at the now gone Shamrock Hotel to the delicacies served in the homes, the details ring true. It's interesting that the main characters share a first name with Joan Robinson Hill, the real Houston socialite whose life and death were the subjects of Tommy Thompson's Blood and Money, a Houston classic. The writing is smooth and, although clues are dropped along the way, even readers who suspect the ending will be happy with the way things are neatly tied up by the end.

What Was Mine by Helen Klein Ross

 What Was Mine: A Novel by Helen Klein Ross. Gallery Books (Simon & Schuster, 2016) Adult fiction.


When Lucy and her husband cannot have their own child, Lucy's marriage falls apart and she is stressed out to the max. One day at IKEA, she sees a four month old girl alone in the store and Lucy picks her up and just walks out with her. The whole novel is how Lucy takes care of Mia, eludes the press, the police, and the baby's parents.  Only when Mia is grown does she learn what happened to her and seeks to reconcile her emotions and learn how to become part of the families who love her.


Told from the perspectives of Lucy, her husband Warren, the birth mother Marilyn, Lucy's sister Cheryl, the birth father Grant, Wendy the Chinese nanny, neighbors, coworkers, and Mia herself, the story moves forward engagingly. Each character lends an important view and details that ring true. At times, it seems a little implausible that Lucy could actually navigate medical, educational, and social situations with lies and creative thinking, but she does. The differences between Marilyn and Grant's children and their family and the life Mia has lived is almost jarring. Mia really has two mothers who love her dearly and would do almost anything to secure her happy future. But how can anyone over come the kidnapping and its long aftermath?  Ross will keep readers wondering until the very end.

The Graces by Laure Eve

  The Graces by Laure Eve. Amulet Books (Abrams), 2016. Young Adult. Fiction.


When River Page begins high school in a new town, she meets the intriguing Grace teens. Rumors abound about the wealthy, rather distant, beautiful twins Fenrin and Thalia and their younger sister Summer. Are they really witches? When someone disappears, they all need all the magic they can get!


The book is filled with typical teen angst and the quest to make friends and to fit in with others. River hints at her own "otherness", but it's sometimes hard to tell what's real and what's just in her head. At times, the story is a little like We Were Liars (beautiful, rich kids with another teen who wants to be part of their family) with some magic woven through it. Eve does weave a powerful tale that teens who like witchy and vampirey topics will find appealing.

June: A Novel by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore

June: A Novel by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore. Crown, 2016. Adult fiction. A good choice for summer reading! Friendships, love, mystery, and movie magic! Mourning her grandmother in Ohio, Cassie Danvers receives news that she is heir to a Hollywood star’s fortune. The book alternates between 1955 and 2015 as readers learn about Cassie, her grandmother, and a long ago movie that was filmed in small town Ohio. The man’s very famous daughters are not thrilled with the developments and all the girls have many questions. Are they family or not? In exchange for an honest review, I received this book from Blogging for Books . More Info Author Bio

Kick: The True Story of JFK's Sister and The Heir to Chatsworth by Paula Byrne.

  Kick: The True Story of JFK's Sister and The Heir to Chatsworth. Paula Byrne. HarperCollins, 2016. Adult Nonfiction.  (July, 2016 publication).


Although Kathleen Kennedy was born the second daughter and fourth child of Rose and Joe Kennedy, she acted as the older sister to the other siblings and as the equal to Joe, Jr. and John F. Kennedy. Because of older sister Rosemary's disabilities, Kick's vivid personality and lively spirit especially stood out. (Read Kate Clifford Larson's Rosemary, the Hidden Kennedy Daughter for that story.) In this well researched tale, Byrne tells how Kathleen fell in love with Cavendish while her father was ambassador to England and later returned to live there. Her short marriage to Billy Cavendish was controversial because he was Protestant and she was Catholic. A young woman with Kick's faith did not take lightly never being welcome at communion or confession again. Tragically, both her brother, Joe, Jr. and her husband were killed during WWII. Kathleen found love again, but, alas, with a married man. Both were killed in a plane crash. Many readers already know these facts, but the way that Byrne weaves the facts with accounts from people, letters, and other documents makes this an interesting history of both Kick and the Kennedy family. Byrne mentions the book is dedicated to her own sons and to her grandfather, Robert Kennedy.

Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson

Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson. Imistad (an imprint of HarperCollins), 2016. Adult fiction (billed on the galley as Woodson's lst adult novel in 20 years).


A coming of age story about four girls in 1970's Brooklyn, New York, this tale takes a close look at what happens when dreams meet reality. The narrator (Autumn), her younger brother, and father have moved to the city from rural Sweet Grove, Tennessee. The children watch life outside their window as they grow up. Angela, Gigi, and Sylvia become fast friends  with Autumn when it's time to go to school. Each of the girls has different talents and think that they are safe as a group, but they know the dangers that lurk in the streets. As teenagers, they take different routes. Sylvia is pregnant. Gigi gets and then flubs the role of a lifetime. Angela dreams of being a movie star. And, Autumn escapes to university in Rhode Island. Their paths are not straight and readers will be the richer for having walked for a few moments with these girls.

Commonwealth by Ann Patchett

Commonwealth by Ann Patchett. HarperCollins, 2016.
                                   Adult fiction


Ann Patchett does not disappoint with her smooth storytelling and intricately crafted characters. When I picked up this galley at Texas Library Association, the cover really didn't tell much about the book, but based on Patchett's other work, I grabbed it. Coming out in September, 2016, the book will only enhance the reputation of bookstore owner and author Ann Patchett. Looking for a family drama for the autumn? This is it!


Two families live in the same community and their lives intertwine. No one can predict, though, that the two marriages will break apart as one mother and one father fall in love with each other. Pulled from California to Virginia to live with a new father, one set of children grow up with visits from the other set of children. The two "abandoned" parents do the best that they can with their own lives.  The novel takes off as the five adult children adapt and come to grips with their childhoods. Each  character is very different, but readers will care about both their pasts, some of which are revealed only as adults, and their futures, which happen both because of and in spite of, their shared pasts.