Literary Brooding

Bunny Monica Awad  305 pages, Paperback, First published 11 June 2019 Samatha is an outsider at an elite US College called Warren, she is majoring in their creative writing course. As part of her classes, attends a workshop with a group of women who call each other Bunny. Samantha loathes them and with her friend Ava ridicules their entitlement and speaking as one. When Samantha is invited and attends one of the Bunnies ‘smut salon’, well everything changes. This is a delightful mash of the Secret History, Mean Girls, Heathers and Fight Club. Where the lines of reality are blurred and at times completely obliterated. For everything is in the eye of the beholder and Samantha is one hell of an unreliable narrator. Samantha is character who is extremely complex, and you are never sure if she is the victim or the villain. For there are times when Samatha is extremely passive and other times when she is on the front foot. What becomes clear is that Samantha is lonely, is seeking accepta...

North Is the Night (Tuonela Duet, #1) by Emily Rath  Expected publication date 16 January 2025, 592 pages, Hardcover In a small Finnish village two young women Aina and Siiri know their place, they are to help with the foraging and harvesting of food and to find suitable partners. They pay their respects to the old Finnish gods, are wary of the new God being introduced from Sweden which abhors current customs and practices. Life if not ideal but there is a rhythm and familiarity that is comforting. Rumours are rife of young women being snatched from their families and it is suspected that that the gods maybe involved. When Aina and Siiri find themselves pursued by a god and Aina is taken, Siiri is determined to bring her friend back, no matter the cost. The story centres around two young women Aina and Siiri who each tell their story through alternating chapters. Initially it is Siiri who shines through, as she is loyal to her roots, fiercely protective of those she cares for ...

Blob: A Love Story Maggie Su 256 pages, Hardcover, Expected publication January 28, 2025 At 23 years of age, Vi’s life is a mess, she is in a dead-end job, has no boyfriend, no friends, her apartment is a pigsty, she has dropped out of college and lies to her family. Life is looking pretty bleak for Vi. Invited out one night by her work colleague Rachel to a drag show. Vi discovers in the back alley of the club. next to rubbish bin, a blob with black eyes. In a drunken moment Vi feels a connection to the blob and takes it home. The blob morphs into Bob, who is well-endowed and with a set of abs. With all this perfection forming in her living room, life should become peachy for Vi, but no, things manage to go astray.  This is not a long novel but there is a lot packed in. The central character, Vi is beautifully crafted.  For she is everyone at 23 years of age, a complete disaster. That age where everyone thinks you have your life planned out, but really you are faking it until...