Fiction Deedi Brown Fiction Deedi Brown

When the Tides Held the Moon

When the Tides Held the Moon was a fun, queer, found-family historical fantasy. I had a few quibbles with it, but ultimately I had a good time and would recommend it to anyone who felt drawn by the premise.

Read More
Fiction, Recommendations Deedi Brown Fiction, Recommendations Deedi Brown

The Antidote

Karen Russell writes exactly my flavor of weird literary magical realism, so it’s no surprise that I loved The Antidote. But it’s not the presence of those elements that does it here — it’s the way she weaves them together.

Read More
Fiction Deedi Brown Fiction Deedi Brown

This Strange Eventful History

This Strange Eventful History was longlisted for the 2024 Booker Prize. Parts of it were more engaging for me than others, but overall, I enjoyed it. Audio is definitely the way to go here, IMO!

Read More
Fiction Deedi Brown Fiction Deedi Brown

Our Evenings

Our Evenings has a lot of things going for it, in terms of being a winner for me: It follows a character across their entire life, it depicts that life with tenderness and care, it has a strong first-person voice. And while it didn’t land with me 100%, I netted out on liking it.

Read More
Fiction, Recommendations Deedi Brown Fiction, Recommendations Deedi Brown

The Safekeep

I’d owned a copy of The Safekeep since before it was published (thanks, Avid Reader Press!), but for whatever reason it just never bubbled up to the top of my TBR — until it was nominated (and then shortlisted) for the Booker Prize. And WOW, am I glad for it. I loved this one.

Read More
Fiction, Recommendations Deedi Brown Fiction, Recommendations Deedi Brown

My Friends

My Friends had been on my TBR for months, so I was especially excited when it was nominated for both the Booker Prize and the National Book Award. I had a ton of friends who had loved it, so it was no surprise that I loved it too.

Read More
Fiction Deedi Brown Fiction Deedi Brown

The Most

The Most wasn’t on my radar until it was nominated for the National Book Award, but it’s on everyone’s radar now. It’s definitely a quick and fun reading experience, even if it doesn’t really say anything new.

Read More
Fiction, Recommendations Deedi Brown Fiction, Recommendations Deedi Brown

There Are Rivers in the Sky

Elif Shafak is one of my favorite authors writing today — she combines lush, gorgeous storytelling with incredible research and a drop of the fantastic to give us a reading experience like no one else. And There Are Rivers in the Sky is no exception. In fact, it’s my favorite of her novels to date.

Read More
Fiction Deedi Brown Fiction Deedi Brown

The House of Doors

I didn’t go into The House of Doors with any expectations outside of those that go with its Booker Prize nomination, and yet I still found myself pleasantly surprised. It had a lot of momentum — I was invested and really enjoyed it.

Read More
Fiction Deedi Brown Fiction Deedi Brown

Night Watch

Night Watch is written with lovely prose, but unfortunately, it was just not my cup of tea. Stomach-turning scenes and an unsatisfying ending left me unhappy with it.

Read More
Fiction Deedi Brown Fiction Deedi Brown

The End of Drum-Time

Quiet, immersive, and culturally rich, Drum-Time gives us a heartbreaking look at the intersections of both modernity and tradition and faith and identity.

Read More