As a wise Maisie Peters once said, we woke up and it’s October. Fall is here, Intermezzo is on the shelves, and all the best books of 2024 lists are nearing closer by the day.
We have three fun reviews for you today, including buzzy new romance publisher 831 Stories’ debut novel, Big Fan. We were lucky enough to attend the launch party and had a blast chatting with authors and other bookish creators, only to be delighted by how fun and sexy the book is when we got home. Also check out our recommendations for a fun alternate reality marriage novel and a collection of nonfiction books about writing.
Eat a honeycrisp apple,
Barbara, Kelsey, and Madeline
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Barbara
Accessible can mean more than one thing in the romance genre. 831 Stories, the new imprint from Claire Mazur and Erica Cerulo, is experimenting with form as one of those ways. They hope that the same audience who is inclined to start a new mini-series over a full TV series will also gravitate towards literature in bite-size form. Focus group of one, here! I finished Big Fan, their debut novella written by Alexandra Romanoff, in one sitting. And I had a blast.
Big Fan centers on Maya, a fallen-from-grace political advisor looking to rebuild her reputation with an underdog gubernatorial candidate. It just so happens that the star power her candidate wants to recruit to amplify her platform in the race is Charlie Blake, the lead singer from the boyband Mischief, and Maya’s biggest celebrity crush. This book was fun because the celebrity meets normal person trope is alive and well. The main character has a career that was remotely interesting (and would probably make for a Suits-esque melodrama). The dialogue was vulnerable and moved the plot along, without feeling overly witty. It didn’t feel like character development was compromised with secondary characters. And there was absolutely no ambiguity about what was going to happen between Maya and Charlie. But this novella was also great because it was well written. And I feel like I spend more time than I should justifying why I like reading romance novels, mostly commercial ones, that aren’t very well written.
Best if you liked: The Idea of You, Funny You Should Ask
Read when you cancel plans, regardless of if he calls
Kelsey
Why did it take me nearly two months to read The Husbands by Holly Gramazio? Who knows. I had almost no excuse either because one of those months was August. What was I even doing? Somehow summer always slips away, feeling like a treadmill turned all the way up, leaving me no choice but to sprint and hold on tight. Then I blinked and it was October.
Not having finished The Husbands was starting to become my personality as my TBR was stacking up with books I could not wait to read (All Fours, Intermezzo), so this past weekend on a particularly dreary Sunday morning, I finally reached the end. The funny thing is that I actually liked the book and would even go so far to recommend it, so here I am. The novel is magical realism in that the main character, Lauren, comes home from a night out and her husband is standing at the top of the stairs. When she left, she was not married… but everyone in her life, husband included, is operating as if they have been together for years. Her phone is filled with text messages and photos of them together, including their wedding, though Lauren has never met this man before. He goes to get something from their attic and a new husband comes down. Basically, Lauren has a magic attic where each time her “husband” goes up, a new one comes down and her universe changes. Some husbands are immediate nos, and some she keeps around for a few days until she thinks she “hears something in the attic”, and “returns” them. The scope of the plot is a little narrow as Lauren’s life seems to only revolve around her husbands, but ultimately it is a silly read about questioning if you are making the right choices in a world of endless possibilities. Do not let my glacial reading deter you from giving this book a shot.
Read after a wave of decision paralysis
Best if you liked: Ghosts, Cult Classic
Madeline
Given the subject matter of this newsletter, it may not be particularly surprising that I am currently working on a novel of my own. I think this is the first time that I’ve put that in writing—ack!. In any case, I’ve been searching over the past year for books about writing that will help me with my creative process, in terms of living a more creative life and improving my craft, without making me cringe. I’ve found a few books about writing that have really made a difference, so I thought I would share them here, since I’m sure some of our subscribers are working on books themselves (or are looking for the push they need to start one).
Most recently, I read Still Writing by Dani Shapiro, which I found inspiring and validating without being condescending. I’ve read one of her other books (her memoir, Inheritance), so I was comforted to hear her voice again, and loved the personal anecdotes she wove in. My favorite takeaway: a cell phone break may seem like the equivalent of taking a cigarette break from writing, but it’s quite the opposite! Taking a pause is necessary, but going on your phone or computer will take you out of the moment entirely. I knew this already, of course, but this phrasing finally made it stick. And no, I’m not going to pick up smoking, but I do think about my writing breaks differently now.
I also enjoyed Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott—she reminded me how important a writing community is and made me grateful for my Read Receipts gals and my writing group. And finally, Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert. I was skeptical about the woo-woo nature of this book, but for the most part, it ended up really working on me. Timing is so important with everything, including with writing. I hope one or all of these titles helps you with your process; I’m always open to suggestions, too.
Read after scrolling through your notes app diary entries
Best if you liked: Everything is Copy, How to Write an Autobiographical Novel
All books can be found at Books Are Magic, McNally Jackson, Greenlight Bookstore, and other independent bookstores, but if you don’t live near one, you can also click the links to support independent bookstores through Bookshop.org.
Congrats, Madeline!!! Making the public statement is seemingly the scariest part, but I've found it so rewarding to have people know you're working on something and be invested in you and the work