This week, I’m reading two new thrillers, one is due for publication in June, the other was published in February. One is a wilderness thriller, wrapped in secrets, the other is a fresh twist on Dark Academia. One is by an author who I’ve read and enjoyed before, the other is a debut novel. Both novels are told through the eyes of strong women whose pasts are putting their present at risk.
I’m hoping to find characters that make me care about them in addition to page-turning tension and effective plot twists
‘The Nature Of Disappearing’ (2024) by Kimi Cunningham Grant
Kimi Cunningham Grant’s last novel ‘These Silent Woods‘ (2021) was one of my top twelve reads of 2022.
I loved the prose, the people, the ideas and the storytelling in ‘These Silent Woods‘. I’ve been waiting patiently for her next book to come out, so I’m excited to have received an ARC ebook version of ‘The Nature Of Disappearing‘ (2024) in return for an honest review.
I’ve already read the first couple of chapters and I know I’m in for another great read.
Kimi Cunningham Grant is the author of These Silent Woods, Fallen Mountains, and Silver Like Dust.
She has twice won a Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Memorial Prize in Poetry and received a Pennsylvania Council on the Arts fellowship in creative nonfiction. She lives with her family in Pennsylvania.
Her new novel, The Nature of Disappearing, will be published on 18th June 2024. You can preorder it here.
‘Everyone Who Can Forgive Me Is Dead’ (2024) by Jenny Hollander
The wonderfully gothic title of this book calls to me, It speaks of irredeemable sin and deep guilt. The UK cover, on the other hand, seems to be reaching for an old-fashioned ‘Sex In The City‘ feel that I hope isn’t indicative of the tone of the writing. I much prefer the original cover (as shown on the right).
I also like the idea of the story being told through the eyes of a Brit making her living on the US East Coast. That offers a lot of scope for cultural dissonance.
This debut novel seems to draw on the experience of the author, at least in terms of settings, so, in addition to a good plot and a lot of tension, I’m hoping for relatable characters, an insider view of both work and academic environments and a strong sense of place.
Jenny Hollander is the director of content strategy at Marie Claire, where she oversees the brand’s daily coverage, as well as the #ReadithMC book club. Before moving to Marie Claire, she worked at Bustle.
A graduate of the Columbia University School of Journalism, Jenny spent ten years in New York before moving back to her hometown of London.
Everyone Who Can Forgive Me Is Dead is her first novel.
Mike Finn's Fiction 
These Silent Woods sounds intriguing. I look forward to seeing what you think
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