New York City

Hot Desk

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Hot Desk by Laura Dickerman

This engaging dual timeline novel is set in the publishing world in New York City. Two young editors, Rebecca and Ben, work for rival publishers and reluctantly share a desk. They are both trying to meet with a literary legend’s widow for rights to publish a short story collection and one last novel. There are flashbacks to 1982. How is 1982 a historical time period already? Back then, Rebecca’s mom and her best friend Rose are interns at The East River Review, a journal published from the townhouse of the same literary legend, Edward David Adams, known as the Lion.

The book sections set in 1982 are chaotic, exhilarating, and full of secrets. Also, not very friendly for young women aspiring to be writers or editors. AIDS is not yet named, but definitely scary. 2022 is messy, but with situations such as hot desking, working remotely part-time, Zoom meetings where someone always needs prompting to unmute and large publishers buying smaller publishers. Rebecca helps her friend Stella run a dinner club with Rebecca’s charming grandmother, which is getting online buzz. Rebecca and Ben exchange cryptic heated texts, especially about a cactus on their shared desk that neither claims. An immersive read, this is an accomplished first novel.

Brenda

Mrs. Christie at the Mystery Guild Library

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Mrs. Christie at the Mystery Guild Library by Amanda Chapman

Not the historical mystery I was expecting, but a very cleverly written contemporary mystery set in New York City. Tory Van Dyne, a book conservator, lives and works in a large house that belonged to her grandmother and overlooks Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. Tory’s flat occupies the top two floors, and she works in the basement. The other two floors house the fictional Mystery Guild Library, which includes the Christie Room. This room duplicates the personal library of Agatha Christie, the queen of mysteries.

Tory is stunned to encounter a woman in the Christie Room who introduces herself as Mrs. Max Mallowan, or Agatha Christie. She claims to be visiting from Eternity and has returned to help Tory solve a mystery. When told there isn’t a mystery, the woman assures her that a crime will be committed soon. In a short time, the Christie Room becomes a weekly gathering place for amateur sleuths and Detective Sebastian Mendez-Cruz, along with a small dog. Tory introduces her cousin Nic, librarian Adrian, and young Mairead to Mrs. Mallowan. After two suspicious deaths, the group has much to discuss, usually over cocktails, with a Shirley Temple for Mairead. Mrs. Mallowan, when not quoting fictional detectives, says that she’s no longer a teetotaler.

Tory mostly stays home, traveling by bus to Sunday dinners with her family or to a favorite bookstore. But now she expands her horizons, attending an occasional event and getting closer to her friends in the Christie Room. Very smart, Tory gradually learns to accept advice and finds that she can be brave when needed. This book is the first in a planned series. If you can accept the presence of Mrs. Christie, readers are in for a witty and memorable mystery.

Brenda

The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern

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The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern by Lynda Cohen Loigman

After her mother’s death, Augusta Stern’s Great Aunt Esther moves into the family apartment above their drugstore. Solomon Stern is the pharmacist, older sister Bess sells cosmetics, Irving Rivkin is the delivery boy, and Augusta is a cashier who learns about medicine and healing from her father and her aunt. Esther treats patients in the apartment with soup and herbs. The book title is a bit misleading, as neither Esther or Augusta makes a love elixir, although there is a bit of magical realism to Esther’s methods.

Set in Brooklyn in the early 1920s, and in south Florida in 1987, this is a heartfelt and enjoyable historical novel. It’s unusual in that the same main character is featured in both timelines. At almost 80, Augusta is still working as a hospital pharmacist, having altered her birthdate. She is finally ready to retire and her niece Jackie finds her an apartment at Rallentando Springs, a development for seniors, most of them Jewish, that includes a swimming pool and a book club. Augusta swims in the pool daily, and is stunned to meet Irving, who was her teenage sweetheart. She also encounters her late friend Evie’s handsome husband Nathaniel, who is not friendly with Irving. I appreciated that the seniors here are depicted as vibrant, active, and fairly healthy.

The author was inspired by the story of her husband’s great grandmother Goldie, a pharmacist, and by her father’s move to an assisted living residence in south Florida. Daily life in Prohibition era Brooklyn really comes to life and it was fun to read about the fashion trends of the 1980s. I found this book to be quite a good read, though her previous book, The Matchmaker’s Gift, is my favorite.

Brenda

Maria

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Maria: A Novel of Maria von Trapp by Michelle Moran

Fran, an aspiring writer, works for Oscar Hammerstein in 1959. He is completing the final songs for a new Broadway show, The Sound of Music, starring Mary Martin. Maria von Trapp, unhappy with the script, comes to New York City to request some changes. Fran is sent to take her to lunch and they end up meeting several times. Maria doesn’t like how her late husband Georg is portrayed as a stern parent and thinks that the whole second half of the show is pure fiction. Also, Liesl is really Rupert. Maria was the stricter parent, after being raised by her grandmother in her aunt and uncle’s home. Maria’s father was a musician, who gave her a guitar.

Fran’s story as a working girl in 1959 New York is also quite interesting, as is her romantic life. Maria shares highlights of her life story with Fran, who gets to know Maria and her youngest daughter, and takes detailed notes for Oscar, who is ill. The last song he writes for the show is “Edelweiss,” not actually an Austrian folk song. The real-life stories of Maria and the von Trapp family make for a compelling read, and should appeal to readers of biographical fiction or fans of The Sound of Music.

Brenda

Drunk On All Your Strange New Words

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Drunk On All Your Strange New Words by Eddie Robson

Lydia has a rare aptitude: she can hear the alien Logi speak, in her head, and translate for them. She recently graduated from a special college where she studied their language, which appears to the reader as English. The Logi can hear her internal speech as well, but they can’t read each other’s thoughts. This science fiction novel is set in the future, in Manhattan and in Halifax, near Manchester, England. The problem with translating for the Logi, or just talking soundlessly with them, is that it makes the human translator feel intoxicated after a while.

Lydia’s assignment is with Fitzwilliam, the Logi’s cultural attaché in New York City, and they attend operas, plays, concerts, and after parties. Once Lydia was so incapacitated after translating that she took a bad fall, but Fitz caught her. There is a crime in which Lydia is a suspect. With secret help from Fitz, Lydia investigates. Another Logi, Madison, demands so much additional help from Lydia that she has trouble focusing. Sea levels have risen since our time, and the tip of Manhattan is now surrounded by a tall sea wall. Back in Halifax, Lydia is seen as rather posh, especially by people who live in 3-D printed shacks that aren’t durable. Lydia’s mother plays and reviews virtual reality games, and helps Lydia with her investigations. Her brother Gil used to modify old cars and drive them on back roads with Lydia. Modern cars all use Smart Steer, but Lydia can override the software and takes a diplomatic car for a very wild ride in Manhattan.

The Logi are intriguing characters. Their world is warmer than our, and they all wear hats, mostly concealing head spikes. Often, they wear a face wrap, possibly like the atmoscarves worn on Jupiter in Malka Older’s The Mimicking of Known Successes. Lydia has smart glasses where she reads her news feeds. She has the truthiness level set high, at 80, but occasionally looks at popular Chime feeds with low truthiness levels to keep up with trending topics. This is a compelling read, thought-provoking and with a very convincing near future setting. Readalikes include New York 2140 by Kim Stanley Robinson and The Road to Roswell by Connie Willis.

Brenda

Bright Lights, Big Christmas

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Bright Lights, Big Christmas by Mary Kay Andrews

Kerry, a freelance graphic artist, very reluctantly agrees to spend a month with her brother Murphy in New York City to sell the Christmas trees Murphy and their father Jock grow in the mountains of North Carolina. Jock is recovering from a heart attack, and her mother Birdie, thinks she needs to get out more since her job was eliminated in a corporate merger. A change of scene does sound good, and Kerry has fond memories of past Decembers in New York. But driving her dad’s old Ford truck to New York City while towing a vintage camper has her uneasy, and the camper’s plumbing doesn’t even work.

The Tollivers have been selling Frasier fir trees in Greenwich Village for over 35 years, and local business owners and residents help with setup, electricity, hot coffee, and bathroom breaks. And Murphy’s dog Queenie is a sweetie, though it turns out that Murphy snores, loudly. After the opposite of a meet-cute, Kerry is charmed by local Patrick and his young son Austin. Also welcoming are a mom of toddler twins, a restaurant hostess who gets Murphy to smile, and an older man who brings Queenie treats and gives Kerry advice on improving her sketches for an illustrated winter story she’s making with young Austin.

The hours are long, the weather gets colder, Kerry’s decorated wreaths keep her very busy, and showers and meals are as regular as she’d like. But the hospitality of the neighborhood is awesome, apart from rival Christmas tree sellers. Charming, funny, and heartwarming; a delightful holiday read even on a beautiful fall day.

Brenda

The Neighbor Favor

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The Neighbor Favor by Kristina Forest

This enjoyable contemporary romance is set in New York City. The first part of the book is all emails from Lily, an editorial assistant, to her favorite Black British fantasy author. Lily has a very demanding boss and two sisters who keep setting her up on dates, a cute young niece, and a cat. Author Strick now works as a travel journalist and writes emails from his assignments in several different countries.

Several months later, Lily is staying with her sister Violet, saving up money to rent a studio apartment, when she meets a handsome book-loving neighbor names Nick, who has a sparsely furnished apartment on the same floor. Lily and Nick become friends, and there are definitely sparks between them. It’s hard not to root for them to get together. The world of a writer and a woman who longs to edit children’s books make for very appealing reading.

Brenda