This was strange and beautiful and left me feeling like I might have overlooked something. I immediately thought I should probably start it over again to dig at its true meaning, and the thing is, I actually would do it.

This is one of those books that if I share a synopsis, it spoils the whole thing. I’d recommend going in blind, so how to review this book?

This was a bit of a fever dream. The unnamed main character brings readers an unreliable point of view and this story about the roles she plays—literally in the theatre as an actress and also as a wife, friend, and maybe mother?—descends into delusion. At least that's what it felt like to me.

This book was heart-wrenching and asked the very poignant question, how much difference does one seemingly simple decision make? Literally, what’s in a name? And what legacy do parents leave for their children? How do patterns and trauma affect generations?

Abe and Jane have been together for decades. The book opens with them reflecting on their marriage, remembering the idyllic early days, the tough ones in the middle, and cherishing their current moment. Jane is an artist and Abe is a writer. They're parents to Max. They're partners. They've walked through it all.

Annie is 37-weeks pregnant, belatedly buying a crib at IKEA on her first day of maternity leave when the hypothesized Cascadia earthquake hits. She does the only thing she can do, and tries to make her way across the decimated city of Portland, Oregon in search of her husband, Dom.

Lillian went to high school with Madison, until Lillian took the fall for Madison’s bad behavior and got expelled. For years they’ve kept in touch through letters, Lillian staying stagnant and not achieving much while Madison soared: prestigious college, married to a senator, etc.

Tilda is fifty-two years old when she suddenly realizes her little finger is missing. Well, it isn’t missing, but it isn’t… visible? At a visit to the doctor she’s diagnosed with invisibility, a disorder that is common among women her age, but rarely discussed. What follows is a magical realist story of Tilda’s journey to rediscover herself.

While historical fiction isn’t usually my top choice of genre, I was intrigued by this one’s description and setting.

Meghan Davis has done it again, making unsuspecting victims of her readers, fooling us with a campy vampire cover and description, and punching us in the gut with the full spectrum of human emotion.

This was an interesting take on a second-chance. While I wouldn't categorize it as strictly romance, more contemporary fiction, it centers on Charlie and Vivian now in their sixties, who were married forty years ago.