The Running Bibliophile

Wild Dark Shore  by Charlotte McConaghy  takes place on a remote island of Shearwater. Dominic Salt and his three children are the caretakers of the island where it houses the world's largest seed bank. They're all that remains after the researchers fled the island due to rising sea levels until a woman named Rowan is washed ashore. As the Salt family takes care of the woman, they begin to realize Rowan isn't telling the truth about why she's there. This novel was chosen by one of the book clubs I belong to for our June discussion. I thought the premise of the story was intriguing, and I was excited to dive into it. However, I struggled in the first few chapters because it just wasn't capturing my attention. Once the plot began to unfold, the story became more compelling, the suspense kept building, and I found myself eagerly turning the pages to find out what would happen next. McConaghy does a fantastic job of showing the reader the story instead of telling it. I ...

Such A Clever Girl  by Darby Kane  opens with the friends and family of Xavier Tanner gathered for the reading of his will when his granddaughter, Aubrey (presumed dead for the last fifteen years), suddenly walks through the door. Her unexpected appearance reignites the rumor mill surrounding the mysterious disappearance of her family all those years ago. It also draws a teacher, a  café owner, and a psychologist back together for the first time since that day. What secrets have they been keeping, and how are they connected to the Tanner family disappearance ? Told mainly from the perspective of Stella, Marni, and Hannah, the author slowly weaves a hellacious story of secrets, lies, and things that aren't as they seem. As the reader navigates the story, they're presented with flashbacks and tidbits of information of what happened to the Tanner family that connect these three women together who otherwise wouldn't be connected. Add in an occasional bit of information from t...