April 2024 Book Vote
This month's genre: Contemporary Fiction
Welcome to April's book vote.
Take a look at the synopses below and vote for the one that appeals to you most as a Gloss Book Club selection.
Each month we spend a considerable amount of time researching books to include in our vote, we consider a wide range of factors such as global availability, price per market, author diversity, book length, and reader review ratings. It's not a quick process, but it's an important one. We hope you'll enjoy our selections.
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Familia: A Riveting and Unforgettable Novel of Sisterhood
by Lauren E. Rico
Pages:320
Synopsis
What if your most basic beliefs about your life were suddenly revealed to be a lie? In this compelling, emotional novel, two young women are brought together by a genealogy test and a haunting question that shakes their understanding of what family is and who they truly are . . .
As the fact checker for a popular magazine, Gabby DiMarco believes in absolute, verifiable Truths—until they throw the facts of her own life into question. The genealogy test she took as research for an article has yielded a baffling result: Gabby has a sister—one who’s been desperately trying to find her. Except, as Gabby’s beloved parents would confirm if they were still alive, that’s impossible.
Isabella Ruiz can still picture the face of her baby sister, who disappeared from the streets of San Juan twenty-five years ago. Isabella, an artist, has fought hard for the stable home and loving marriage she has today—yet the longing to find Marianna has never left. At last, she’s found a match, and Gabby has agreed to come to Puerto Rico.
But Gabby, as defensive and cautious as Isabella is impulsive, offers no happy reunion. She insists there’s been a mistake. And Isabella realizes that even if this woman is her sister, she may not want to be.
With nothing—or perhaps so much—in common, Gabby and Isabella set out to find the truth, though it means risking everything they’ve known for an uncertain future—and a past that harbors yet more surprises . . .
Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting AKA The People on Platform 5
by Clare Pooley
Pages:352
Synopsis
“Every day Iona, a larger-than-life magazine advice columnist, travels the ten stops from Hampton Court to Waterloo Station by train, accompanied by her dog, Lulu. Every day she sees the same people, whom she knows only by nickname: Impossibly-Pretty-Bookworm and Terribly-Lonely-Teenager. Of course, they never speak. Seasoned commuters never do.
Then one morning, the man she calls Smart-But-Sexist-Manspreader chokes on a grape right in front of her. He’d have died were it not for the timely intervention of Sanjay, a nurse, who gives him the Heimlich maneuver. This single event starts a chain reaction, and an eclectic group of people with almost nothing in common except their commute discover that a chance encounter can blossom into much more. It turns out that talking to strangers can teach you about the world around you--and even more about yourself.
How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water
by Angie Cruz
Pages:195
Synopsis
Cara Romero thought she would work at the factory of little lamps for the rest of her life. But when, in her mid-50s, she loses her job in the Great Recession, she is forced back into the job market for the first time in decades. Set up with a job counselor, Cara instead begins to narrate the story of her life. Over the course of twelve sessions, Cara recounts her tempestuous love affairs, her alternately biting and loving relationships with her neighbor Lulu and her sister Angela, her struggles with debt, gentrification and loss, and, eventually, what really happened between her and her estranged son, Fernando. As Cara confronts her darkest secrets and regrets, we see a woman buffeted by life but still full of fight.
Structurally inventive and emotionally kaleidoscopic, How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water is Angie Cruz’s most ambitious and moving novel yet, and Cara is a heroine for the ages.
The Herd
by Emily Edwards
Pages:352
Synopsis
You should never judge how someone chooses to raise their child.
Elizabeth and Bryony are polar opposites but their unexpected friendship has always worked. They're the best of friends, and godmothers to each other's daughters - because they trust that the safety of their children is both of their top priority.
But what if their choice could harm your own child?
Little do they know that they differ radically over one very important issue. And when Bryony, afraid of being judged, tells what is supposed to be a harmless white lie before a child's birthday party, the consequences are more catastrophic than either of them could ever have imagined . . .
32 Comments
The Herd
Rule of commuting
T’m voting for “How Not to Drown…”. I feel like I can really relate to this story!
Both “Familia” and Iona Iverson’s “Rules For Commuting” sound interesting.
Iona Iversons Rules for commuting
“How Not to Drown,” sounds interesting.
Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting AKA The People on Platform 5
They all sound good.
Familia
Familia is what spoke to me the most.
Familia!
This month is a very hard choice. I am choosing …Rules for Commuting, but I’ll definitely read…How Not to Drown.
The Herd and Iona’s rules for commuting sound great 🙂
How to Drown in a Glass of Water
I vote for Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting AKA The People on Platform 5. It sounds very interesting.
Rules for Commuting
I’d be most interested in reading ‘How not to drown in a glass of water’.
Familia
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Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting and The Herd would be my choices. I seem to easily connect with the stories .
Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting sounds utterly charming. I wantto immediately board that train. A must read.
These all look good to me! I voted for “The Herd”, but I’m going to put “Rules for Commuting” on my TBR list.
The Herd
The Herd
As an introvert, I can relate to an aspect of this story. Sounds like a fascinating read!
Vote: Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting AKA The People on Platform 5
I’ve heard great things about Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting!
How not to drown in a glass of water, just seems appealing.
Iona!
Normally I find a book that really stands out to me with the book vote, but this month all of these look like great reads!
Hoping for anything but Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting. I’ve read it already and it just wasn’t my cup of tea…too forced.
How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water looks very good.
Rules For Commuting
Rules for Commuting