Book #49 of 2024: The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff A brutal piece of historical fiction about an abused servant girl in colonial Virginia who flees that famine-struck settlement into the nearby woods. Author Lauren Groff’s prose is as wickedly sharp as ever, and she pulls no punches in describing both the natural and human …
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Book #362 of 2021: Matrix by Lauren Groff This title is an interesting exploration of a woman fiercely marshaling what power she can as a nun in 12th-century England, at a cost of forgoing any real hope at emotional intimacy with anyone around her. It’s a fictionalized treatment of the life of the anonymous poet …
Book #153 of 2018: Florida by Lauren Groff The short stories in this collection are not all set in the title locale, but Florida’s presence looms large over the characters even when they leave its oppressive humidity in search of a more hospitable clime. Author Lauren Groff, a ten-year Florida transplant, has absolutely nailed the …
Book #37 of 2016: Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff I like that this book spans decades while focusing closely on only two characters, so that you get a strong sense of how their lives change over time. And the central gimmick is neat: the first half of the novel shows the marriage of these …
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