When in Doubt, Add Butter

Straight from the book cover's inside flap is a description of our next selection, When in Doubt, Add Butter by Beth Harbison - who just so happens to be another favorite author of the Chicken Lit Bookclub:

"From the New York Times bestselling author of Shoe Addicts Anonymous and Always Something There to Remind Me comes a delicious new novel about the search for true love and all the ingredients that go into it."

And what exactly are readers saying about the book?  Here are a couple of online snippets:

“When in Doubt, Add Butter is an airy, happy story where the bad things are uncomfortable but not too bad, and the good things are easy and happy. I think this book is less of a beach read, but a better choice for a rainy day or when you need something to cheer you up... When in Doubt, Add Butter is a happy story that shines softly, recommended to anyone looking for a few hours of escape and a lovely ending. ”
–  E. Griffin

"Like many of the other reviewers, I really enjoy Beth Harbison's characters. Gemma has a unique voice, and the DC setting is a fun change from the usual NYC/LA plots that appear in books like these. This was a great poolside read, and though the plot is not even close to being plausible, I enjoyed the novel. Harbison has a way of writing characters that readers truly root for and care about, and Gemma is indeed compelling. Fun book! ” –  Kristen

 Looks to be the perfect escape-y kind of choice to follow up our last @600 page trilogy selections.  We're so ready for this one.

Shadow of Night

... and now, as promised, we are ready to continue on with the All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness.  We are now reading the second book in the series called Shadow of Nightand if this book is anything like the first, we are in for a serious treat.

Looks like our hopes are confirmed - check out these reviews:

“Enchanting, engrossing, and as impossible to put down as its predecessor, Shadow of Night is a perfect blend of fantasy, history and romance.  Its single greatest flaw is, after almost 600 pages, it’s over.  If you’ve already read and enjoyed A Discovery of Witches, picking up Shadow of Night is an absolute requirement.  Otherwise, pick up both, and consider your summer reading list complete.” – The Miami Herald

"We literally fell head over stilettos in love with volume one in the Trilogy Of Souls series – it even kick-started the GLAMOUR.com book club because of our enthusiasm! If you loved Twilight but need to sink your teeth into a much more meaty, intelligent and feisty story – with an addictive love thread to boot – then read A Discovery Of Witches quick to whet your appetite for book two.” – Glamour Magazine UK)

 So there you go.  Reading this book is "an absolute requirement."

The Dog Stars

Taking a little break before reading the second book in the All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness, our next novel is called The Dog Stars written by Peter Heller. Yes, this story is a complete about face in comparison to the Trilogy but promises to be just as powerful, nonetheless.

Speaking of which, here are just a couple reviews as proof of such powerfulness:

“Gripping…Heller’s surprising and irresistible blend of suspense, romance, social insight, and humor creates a cunning form of cognitive dissonance neatly pegged by Hig as an 'apocalyptic parody of Norman Rockwell'—a novel, that is, of spiky pleasure and signal resonance.” – Booklist, Starred Review

"A heart-wrenching and richly written story about loss and survival — and, more important, about learning to love again….'The Dog Stars' is a love story, but not just in the typical sense. It’s an ode to friendship between two men, a story of the strong bond between a human and a dog, and a reminder of what is worth living for. As Hig ponders early in the novel: 'So I wonder what it is this need to tell. To animate somehow the deathly stillness of the profoundest beauty. Breathe life in the telling.' ” – Minneapolis Star Tribune

 Let the reading adventure begin.