The Love of My Life
By Rosie Walsh
Emma loves her husband Leo more than anything. They have a beautiful daughter and have spent the past decade building a lovely home. Emma has recently gone into remission, and the couple are often reminded of their deep connection and gratitude for her current health. Leo is an obituary writer for the city’s newspaper and Emma is a well-known marine biologist and spokeswoman on BBC. Leo can’t seem to resist his nature of soothing his own fears by writing a column for Emma, hopefully not to be published for many years to come. As he quietly digs deeper into her past, Leo finds pieces of a puzzle that do not fit together. It doesn’t take long before his anxiety has him exposing horrifying emails and text messages. He begins to doubt if he knows his wife at all. When a well-known actress goes missing, Emma mysteriously has a secret relationship with the woman’s husband, an outspoken and rather brash radio host named Jeremy. The more Emma tries to explain each finding, the more twisted her lies become. A mysterious love story that makes even the most mundane details appear sinister.
This Time Tomorrow
By Emma Straub
Alice is about to celebrate her birthday. She has a job at the school she attended as a girl, a somewhat likable boyfriend and a rent-controlled apartment. Things are not great, but good enough. Then Alice’s father falls ill. An accomplished and famous author, her father raised Alice on his own and has been a source of joy throughout her 39 years. As Alice sits by his bedside in the ICU, she cannot imagine life without him. Drinking way too much on the eve of her big 4-0, Alice heads to Pomander Walk, her idyllic childhood home on the Upper West Side. When she wakes in the morning, Alice doesn’t feel quite right. Glancing down, she sees a young woman’s body, and an unlined face in the mirror reflects her 16-year-old self. It’s her birthday – in 1996. After adjusting to this mind-blowing time hop, Alice continues to relive the day. Searching for a way to change her father’s outcome, every choice she makes sends her future into a tailspin. A wonderfully written time-travel drama filled with lovable characters and heaps of life lessons.
By Sarah Lotz
The Impossible Us
Everything is falling apart for Nick, a struggling writer whose wife has suddenly left him for his best friend. When Nick sends off a scathing email to a client who frequently owes him money, his life turns upside down. Bee receives this email and responds to let him know he’s got the wrong email address. A witty banter ensues (think “You’ve Got Mail”) quickly turning to flirtation and late-night heart-to-hearts. The two finally decide it is time to meet in person. But Nick never shows – and Bee never appears. Initially both angry and hurt, the two dive back through their hundreds of messages, and glaring red flags are everywhere. Shockingly, they are not in the same time or universe. Desperately wanting to meet each other but also filled with a strong desire to make everything right, Nick and Bee go out on a limb and commit to ideas that seem utterly impossible. This alternate-world, time-travel-ish premise is superbly original and filled with wonderfully quirky, clever characters. Beautifully written, this fun romantic journey will fill you with wonder. It is a love story like no other.
