Dream State by Eric Puchner: Literary Fiction/Adult Fiction

 Literary Fiction Titles

Dream State by Eric Puchner, Feb. 18, Doubleday

Genre: literary fiction, adult fiction, romance

Review: Set in Montana, this literary novel was a fantastic read. There is a love triangle of sorts between three people - Cece and Charlie, and Charlie’s best friend Garrett, who steals Cece from him right after their wedding. The book follow the three through most of their lives into their later years. 

Cece as a new bride does not join her new husband Charlie in California, but stays behind in Montana with Garrett, her new-found love. Throughout life, Cece finds herself both happy and unhappy. Garrett, whom she later marries in place of Charlie, says that Cece rescued him from a dismal time and saved him by marrying him. Charlie experiences regret throughout life, with several failed marriages and heartache with his son, Jasper.  He does, for whatever reason, work hard to keep Cece and Garrett in his life. 

The lifelong relationship between these three people are what the book is all about. Personal choices, consequences, and love and friendship are the important themes.

I gave this book five stars, and though this was a library borrow for me, I would want to own this novel in my own library.

Fireworks Every Night, June 2023, Random House.

A young woman trapped in a deeply dysfunctional family in the seedy wilds of 1990s South Florida has to make a choice—save her family, or save herself—in this “riveting” (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution) novel from the acclaimed author of Lay the Favorite.

Pool Fishing, Sept. 15, 2025; Kelp Books, NetGalley

"In prose that crackles, DeMarco-Barrett spins the most deliciously noir stories spanning the deadly undertow of Palm Springs pools to animal rescue missions turned eco-terrorism. I loved it! - Halley Sutton, author of Hurrican Blonde 

What are you reading, watching, or listening to this week? 

Memes:  The Sunday Post, It's Monday: What Are You Reading, Sunday Salon, and Stacking the Shelves, Mailbox Monday

Coming in June and September - Poetry and Novels

 September 2025 books 

It's still April, National Poetry Month, but I found a book with poems and other writings by Nikki Giovanni. 

The New Book, Nikki Giovanni, Sept. 2, 2025, William Morrow, NetGalley

Genre: prose, poems, letters

Nikki Giovanni’s extraordinary new collection—a landmark of American literature—speaks to the fury of our current political moment while reflecting on the tragedies and triumphs of her early life.

"If there was a need for poetry that galvanized and inspired, there was also a demand for poetry that comforted and unified — and Ms. Giovanni provided on both counts." — The Washington Post

 

Pick a Color by Souvankham Thammavongsa,(September 30, 2025; Knopf Canada; NetGalley

Genre: adult fiction, Canadian fiction, Laotian 

Giller Prize and O. Henry Award winner, her novel is about loneliness, love, labour, and class, following a nail salon owner as she toils away for the privileged clients who don't even know her true name.

Pick a Color is by author Souvankham Thammavongsa, who also writes poetry and short stories. She was born in the Lao refugee camp in Nong Khai, Thailand, and was raised and educated in Toronto where she now lives. ..

 

Far and Away by Amy Poeppel
June 24, 2025; Atria, NetGalley

Women's fiction, humor, chick lit

Description

The “absolutely hilarious” (Real Simple) Amy Poeppel delights once again with a charming new novel about a house swap gone wonderfully awry.

Perfect strangers Lucy in Dallas and Greta in Berlin have agreed to a house swap—and boy, are they going to regret it.

What's on your reading list for summer, autumn? 

Watching TV but Not Reading Much: An Update

 Watching TV movies has become my passion this spring, beginning during the cold, grey days of a never-ending winter. From Korean and Chinese and Japanese drama, I have skipped to Spanish/Mexican drama, and have watched two and a half so far.

This has meant less reading of books and ebooks. 

However, I have added poetry to my current interests as recent posts show, and recently began this ARC novel, the title  immediately appealing to me.

I'm at the beginning of French Leave, (Sept. 25, 2024; Pegasus, NetGalley) which seems a mystery novel in addition to being contemporary women's fiction. 

Book description:

Martha's life as an intelligent, highly successful social worker is shattered when her husband is killed suddenly in a hit and run accident.

Although the police are initially interested because of Thierry's government connections, the case is quickly closed and Martha is left dealing with grief, a disturbing loss of certainty and a nagging thought that she needs to know what happened on that fateful day.

As she tries to move on, more questions than answers arise and Martha begins to unravel. Will a move to France help or make things worse?

It's holding my interest so far, especially with the suspense of what really happened to her husband. 

The Gallery Assistant by Kate Belli won't be published until October 14, 2025 by Atria, but I was so eager for a psych thriller that I read the NetGalley ARC right away. 

My review: Chloe Harlow wakes up in her own apartment after an all night party, not remembering how she got home or what happened during the party. She has had black out periods before because of excessive drinking, but her situation is now serious as the host of the party, an up and coming artist, a friend of hers, died at that party.

Chloe's own sleuthing leads her to discoveries regarding the gallery where she works and art owners, painters, and works of art. What she finds out during the book shocks her and puts her in danger as well.

Well crafted and suspenseful, the novel is entertaining, with a likeable main character who is both vulnerable and savvy. 

 Next book on my list

Eat, Post, Like by Emily Arden Wells, will be published June 3, 2025 by Avon. I will be reading the NetGalley ARC.

After her accountant boyfriend, James, dies tragically, Cassie Brooks finds his notebook that tells her he is more than an accountant. His detailed notes and diary suggest he is the anonymous restaurant and food expert who is well known in the city. 

When Cassie accepts a food invitation on behalf of James, her journey into the world of food begins. I am wondering  how this book will end and if she will be successful in successfully carrying on what James had started. 

What are you reading, watching, or listening to this week? 

Memes:  The Sunday Post, It's Monday: What Are You Reading, Sunday Salon, and Stacking the Shelves, Mailbox Monday

April - Reading Basho's Haiku during National Poetry Month

 

Graphic by The Lawrenceville School

I bought a book of poetry for a  young friend who is a budding poet just starting to make clever verses that rhyme. Poetry Is Not a Luxury has enough short poems to pique his interest in works that don't necessarily rhyme but are excellent views into the poets' minds.

Along the way, I decided to buy myself a book of poems as well.

On Love and Barley -Haiku of Basho, Jan. 7, 1986, Penguin Classics. 93 pages with 253 haiku poems. 

Description: Basho, one of the greatest of Japanese poets and the master of haiku, was also a Buddhist monk and a life-long traveller.  His poems combine 'karumi', or lightness of touch, with the Zen ideal of oneness with creation. 

Each poem evokes the natural world - the cherry blossom, the leaping frog, the summer moon or the winter snow - suggesting the smallness of human life in comparison to the vastness and drama of nature. 

Basho himself enjoyed solitude and a life free from possessions.  His haiku are the work of an observant eye and a meditative mind.

Excerpts from the book:

8

Spring night,

cherry-

blossom dawn.

12

Spring rain -

under trees

a crystal stream

I will read Basho's haiku, 253 of them in this collection, whenever I'm in the mood for short, poetic observations of nature.

Are you planning to read any poetry this month?

More Poetry: Three Collections of Poems

 More poetry

 

How About Now: Poems by Kate Baer, downloaded from NetGalley, publication Nov. 4, 2025; Harper Perennial.

Description: A young woman's journey to middle age and self-discovery - the third full length poetry collection by Kate Baer. 

Theme: confronting the march of time in a shifting age.

I'm looking forward to these poems and the theme. Baer is a New York Times best selling author, of What Kind of Woman.

 Window and Mirror by Ted Virts, April 8, 2025; Atmosphere Press, downloaded from NetGalley

Description: What are we doing here? The present political situation, the southern U.S. border, the death of the poet's father, the news, and a description of Christmas as an artichoke. 

I am curious about this collection of poems, the themes of the present crises as it affects the poet.

The Inferno by Dante Alighieri, translated into the Jamaican by Lorna Goodison who has used Jamaican phrases and expressions to turn Dante's poem into one that would appeal to a modern Caribbean audience.

As I grew up in Jamaica, I am more than eager to read this poet's version of Dante's The Inferno and to see the Italian poem become a Caribbean version. 

Publication on June 10, 2025 by the Literary Press Club of Canada, and downloaded from NetGalley.

 What poetry books have you discovered recently?

Meme: It's Monday: What Are You Reading