Book Club News: August Issue
Hello Book Clubbers,
This month, we bring you ongoing discussions of a couple of entertaining mysteries. Jackie McMahon’s The Cloak and Dagger Club pays tribute to classic golden age whodunits, while How to Kill a Crime Writer by Sarah Lotz takes a cozier (and much less traditional) approach.
We also feature Fredrik Backman’s My Friends, newly released in paperback. Check out all our content related to this BookBrowse Best of Year selection, including a reading guide, a “beyond the book” article on Mary Oliver and “The Summer Day,” and more.
Have you and your book club ever discussed the trend of “women looking away” on book jackets, especially with historical fiction? We explore this phenomenon and its progression in a new article.
Plus, stay up to date on all of our latest and upcoming discussions and Ask the Author interviews, including one that’s open for your questions right now!
Thanks for reading,
The BookBrowse Team
P.S. You can now purchase books through BookBrowse and save 5% as a free member or 20% as a paying member. To receive these discounts, make sure you’re signed in to your account. Select Buy Now for featured books below, or choose “BookBrowse” from the Buy This Book menu for any book on the website. (Not yet a member? Join today!)
Book Club Discussions
Discussions are open to all! If you’d like to participate, you can do so by creating an account here. Please note that discussions can contain spoilers.
The Cloak and Dagger Club by Jackie McMahon
From the Jacket
Inspired by Agatha Christie's real-life Detection Club, a murder among a group of golden age mystery writers meets a second chance romance in this debut novel from author Jackie McMahon.
From the Discussion
“I think book clubs who like to read and solve mysteries would like this book.” —Ann_H
“I found the book to be a very engaging, enjoyable read. I have not read a lot of Agatha Christie-type novels, but I thought this one was interesting.” —Catherine_O_Callagha
See what people are saying in response to this question: Christine asks Frank about Lucy, and he responds by asking where she goes on Sundays. She backs off, saying, “I see your point. Friends can still have secrets.” What did you think of this? What are your thoughts about sharing secrets with friends?
How to Kill a Crime Writer by Sarah Lotz
From the Jacket
After the untimely death of her bestselling crime novelist mother, a young woman teams up with the fictional "ghost" of the heroine from her mother's series in order to solve her mother's murder.
From the Discussion
“I would definitely recommend this for a cozy reader. It is set in a small village with interesting characters and cats. Lots of red herrings and clues throughout.” —Joy_B
“Sarah Lotz does a great job balancing mystery with emotion, making the story about more than just solving a crime. The writing was easy to follow, the pacing was excellent, and I never found myself getting bored.” —Angela_B
See what people are saying in response to this question: Niamh often compares people to desserts, and she herself thinks she’d be a box of cake mix that no one’s bothered to make yet. Any thoughts about what kind of dessert you’d be?
Featured Paperback
Stay on top of paperback releases for your book club with our Recent Paperbacks section, and discover additional content for featured titles, including reviews, “beyond the book” articles, and discussion questions. Below is just one new paperback we recommend.
My Friends by Fredrik Backman
Fredrik Backman's latest novel, My Friends, is a touching story that revolves around four fourteen-year-old friends during one glorious, adolescent summer. In a working-class coastal town, Joar, Ted, Ali, and a boy only known as "the artist" bond over being misfits, odd ones out who are constantly attacked by their peers. Joar, the leader of the group, decides that the artist is the only one of them that has a chance to be something better, to escape their bleak future. He encourages—demands—that his friend enter an art contest, convinced he'll win and that the victory will be his ticket to a better life. … continued
Review by Kim Kovacs
The “Women Looking Away” Jacket Phenomenon
If you’re a regular reader of historical fiction, chances are you own at least a few books with images on their jackets of female-coded figures whose faces are obscured in some way. Book covers presumably depicting their women characters looking away, walking away, viewed from below the neck, or featured in silhouette has become a persistent phenomenon that shows no signs of stopping anytime soon.
A 2019 article by Ann Foster for Book Riot pinpointed a trend of “women looking away” covers specifically in World War II fiction, starting with The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society (2008) by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows and continuing from there. … continued
Got A Club of One’s Own?
Breeze past the usual book club pitfalls, and enjoy good books and good company.
Whether you're dreaming of starting your first book club or looking to breathe new life into an existing one, A Club of One's Own gives you all the tools you need for meaningful discussions, comfortable chemistry, and more. Expanding on our 2019 Inner Lives of Book Clubs, we offer you a practical, inclusive, and inspiring guide to building a book club that lasts.
This guide and others draw from more than two decades of book club research and editorial content. View them all in our Curated Guides.
Discussions & Ask the Author Interviews
Discussions are open to all, so please join us! If you would like to receive a message when a particular discussion opens, you can sign up for a one-time notification. You can also find inspiration for your book club among our more than 200 past discussions.
Currently, we’re discussing Too Old for This by Samantha Downing, among other books.
Starting next week, we feature The Vanishing Place by Zoë Rankin.
BookBrowse regularly hosts Ask the Author sessions in our community forum. We invite you to follow along and post your own questions in any interviews that interest you.
Join us for our conversation with Lynn Cullen, author of the BookBrowse First Impressions selection When We Were Brilliant, ongoing through Wednesday.
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