Three perfect autumn mysteries
Plus the best horror of the year, stories from multiple perspectives, and thoughts on Blonde
Hey, readers!
Louise turned one on Friday, and it was another reminder of how strange time can be. On the one hand, this year was so…freaking…long. On the other hand, I can’t believe she’s one! Officially out of the baby stage and into toddlerhood—although she’s not doing any toddling yet, so I’m going to keep calling her a baby for now.
This first year of motherhood was more difficult than I imagined, but also more fun than I had even hoped. I just love being with Louise! While I’m definitely hoping to get more time for myself in the years to come, I am so grateful of all the days and hours I got to spend with Lou in her babyhood. I’m also really proud of how I managed to read and keep FictionMatters and Novel Pairings (so proud of my co-host and fellow new mom Chelsey, too!) going throughout this chaotic rollercoaster of a year.
And thanks to all of you for being here and supporting my work! Getting to chat books with you has been life-giving and helped me feel like me even though our world was turned upside down. I never take for granted my good fortune to call this bookish business my job, and I hope to keep putting great books into your hands for many years to come!
This week in books.
This week I read…
The Cloisters by Katy Hall. The Cloisters is an autumnal mystery with a scholarly setting in the vein of If We Were Villains and The Maidens. While not technically a campus novel, it has that feel with its grad school bound protagonist, Ann Stilwell. After she arrives for an internship at The Cloisters (the isolated medieval museum at the very top of Washington Heights in NYC), Ann finds herself immersed in a project researching the history of divination and the art of tarot, and throughout the book there is a blurring of the academic and the mystical. Like in many novels in this microgenre, we learn from the opening prologue that things have gone very wrong for Ann, and Hall propels the story forward with hints towards this looming mystery. While I didn’t find the mystery itself particularly compelling, the research and detail Hall put into describing The Cloisters was transportive enough to leave me satisfied with my trip to this one-of-a-kind museum. Amazon | Bookshop | Libro.fm
Comfort Me With Apples by Catherynne M. Valente. A wonderful reader recommended this to me as another woman-centered, slightly horrific fable after I professed my love of Chouette last week. I started and finished this slim novella under the covers with my nightlight and found it to be a deliciously intriguing puzzle with a clever reveal. Our narrator is Sophia—a woman so desperately in love with her husband she’s certain she was made for him. She is perfectly, unassailably happy until a nagging little voice in her head makes her notice something she shouldn’t. With such a short book, that’s all I feel comfortable saying in a review. I’m not even going to define the genre because I don’t want to take away from any of the pleasurable surprises in its taut 100 pages, but I will say it touches on the gruesome and is a great October read. Amazon | Bookshop | Libro.fm
The Cutting Season by Attica Locke. I’ve been on a quest lately to see if I ever enjoy crime fiction and—if so—what kinds of mysteries work for me. This is a complicated entry into my unofficial database because there was a lot to love here, but also quite a bit that didn’t work for me. The book is about Karen—the manager of a former plantation that is now used as an events space. Karen is Black and she and her 9-year-old daughter Morgan have complicated feelings about Karen’s place of work, which they also call home. When a dead body is found on the premises, life gets incredibly complicated for Karen, her daughter, and her employees and as the mystery unravels, so do long-held resentments and racial animosities. What I loved about this book was the characterization. Locke masterfully depicts this cast of intriguing characters through small details that tell you precisely who someone is. Additionally, the setting was expertly painted and the social commentary felt completely authentic to the characters and story without making it feeling like an issues book. What I didn’t like was the mystery 😂. It was certainly well-done — I guess I just don’t care enough about whodunnits to carry me through this many pages. But if you do like mysteries and character-driven stories, I would recommend adding this backlist gem to your TBR. Amazon | Bookshop | Libro.fm
Now I’m reading…
Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng. I loved Ng’s debut Everything I Never Told You and liked (although, not quite as much) her megahit Little Fires Everywhere. This dystopian novel is a departure from both in terms of genre, but has the same heart, strong writing, and themes of motherhood, identity, belonging, and what we keep hidden. I’m enjoying it immensely so far! Amazon | Bookshop | Libro.fm
Babel by R.F. Kuang. It seems like everyone is reading this right now, and for good reason. As a chunky campus novel in conversation with The Secret History and Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell, this is a perfect fall read. Kuang’s writing is utterly absorbing—I knew I was in good hands after the opening author’s note—and I am completely here for the nerdy asides about translation and language. It’s going to take me some time to get through this one, but I can already say I recommend it if you love stories about outsiders, meditations on language, or books with a dark academia vibe. Amazon | Bookshop | Libro.fm
If you are an international reader or just prefer UK covers, you can also order books through my Blackwell’s affiliate page!
Links I love.
Annie Ernaux won the Nobel Prize for Literature. I’m excited to explore her work!
The National Book Awards released their shortlists.
I’m not a big horror novel reader, but I can get behind a scary short story collection. If you are into this genre, check out Vulture’s list of the best horror novels of 2022.
I love a story told from multiple perspectives so I added quite a few from this list to my TBR.
Some excellent books released in paperback this week.
This review made me eager to read Thistlefoot.
I read Joyce Carol Oates’ Blonde years ago but I haven’t watched the new Netflix film yet. I really valued this critique of the movie and why some of its problems may stem directly from its source material.
End notes.
Four things making me happy this week:
Our Washington, DC trip. It’s always a pleasure to visit family, but it’s increasingly special now that Louise is around and more sentient. It’s such a delight to watch her engage with her family.
Vulture’s Into It Podcast. I’ve been looking for a good pop culture podcast, and recently stumbled upon this one. I like the smart way host Sam Sanders breaks down timely topics like racial representation in fantasy stories and the ethics of true crime.
Breaking out my Blundstones. If the Nisolo huaraches are my go-to summer shoes, Blundstones have to be my shoes of the fall. I wear them almost every day and they keep my feet toasty and dry. I love that they look cute with almost anything I wear, but they aren’t dressy. I can wear them with jeans and my favorite sweater, or leggings and an oversized sweatshirt. They are truly the perfect boot.
Autumn walks. Fall is the best season for outdoor strolls, and I’m loving getting out to admire the turning leaves in the crisp air.
Louise’s corduroy overalls. I mean…what could be cuter?
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Readers, thanks for sticking with this newsletter through the first year of Lou’s life! For questions, comments, or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to reach out by emailing fictionmattersbooks@gmail.com or responding directly to this newsletter. I love hearing from you!
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Happy reading!
Sara
I think I have to get my hands on The Cloisters now!
I'm very excited for The Cloisters. Feels like a peak fall book.