The Heirs, by Susan Rieger. Crown, 2017 When Rupert Falkes, wealthy New York lawyer, dies, it leaves his family a bit at loose ends. His five sons- all middle aged men successful in their own fields- define themselves very strongly by their family relationships. Widow Eleanor reacts with calmness and proceeds to redecorate their home, which further ( Read more... )

The Roanoke Girls, by Amy Engel. Crown, 2017 Lane Roanoke gets a call in the middle of the night, a call she did not expect or welcome: one from her grandfather, Yates. His reason: her cousin Allegra is missing. So against her better judgement, Lane goes where she’s sworn never to go back to: the Roanoke farm in Kansas. Eleven years before, she had ( Read more... )

The Seed Collectors, by Scarlett Thomas. Soft Skull Press, 2016 “The Seed Collectors” anchors on a mysterious plant on a mysterious island that can only be accessed by helicopter (how then are there aboriginal people there?). The plant makes seed pods that carry the gift of enlightenment- and death. That’s the other problem- since the person dies ( Read more... )

Black Rabbit Hall, by Eve Chase. G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2016 ‘Black Rabbit Hall’ starts off fairly slow; Lorna and her fiancé are looking for a wedding venue in 1999 or so, and Pencraw (the Black Rabbit Hall of the title) in Cornwall is first on her list, despite its decrepit condition and odd owner and manager. In 1968, young teen Amber Alton and her ( Read more... )

A Sudden Light, by Garth Stein. Simon & Schuster, 2014 When Jones Riddell goes bankrupt and loses his house, he and his wife have a trial separation. Rachel returns to her home in England, while Jones takes his son, Trevor, back to the Riddell family home: North Estate and the Riddell House on Puget Sound, just outside Seattle proper. At the turn ( Read more... )

Rooms, by Lauren Oliver. HarperCollins, 2014 This is a story with ghosts in it, but it is not a traditional ghost story. There are no chains rattling, no dishes being thrown, no bleeding walls. Two ghosts inhabit the house of the late Richard Walker: Alice and Sandra. They spend most of their time getting on each others nerves, until Walker’s ex- ( Read more... )

Habits of the House, by Fay Weldon. St. Martin’s Press, 2012 Ever since reading (and watching the TV series) ‘The Forsyte Saga’ in my teens I’ve had a passion for late Victorian/Edwardian British stories. I was very excited to receive a copy of ‘Habits of the House’ set in 1899 ( Read more... )