by Kristin A. Oakley | Oct 4, 2026 | Books and Movies, For Readers, For Writers, Newsletter, Writer's Book Club
Land, is a historical novel by Maggie O’Farrell (author of Hamnet) of a family and their struggles while living in Ireland in 1865. The book had a slow start and then had a dramatic turn, which hooked me. British soldiers hire land surveyor Tomas who enlists the...
by Kristin A. Oakley | Sep 6, 2026 | For Readers, For Writers, Newsletter, Writer's Book Club
Before I moved into my condo last year, I gave away books that I had had a long and never read. I’d finally realized I never would. But there were some books I still kept, determined to read them. This month’s Writer’s Book Club reviews one of those...
by Kristin A. Oakley | Jun 14, 2026 | Books and Movies, For Readers, For Writers, Newsletter, Writer's Book Club
Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister is my favorite book of 2026 (so far), and one of the best books I’ve read in the last decade. I listened to the audio book version of this psychological thriller twice, narrated by Leslie Sharp who did an excellent...
by Kristin A. Oakley | May 17, 2026 | Books and Movies, For Readers, For Writers, Newsletter, Writer's Book Club
It’s been a while since I’ve read one of Robert Crais’ Elvis Cole/Joe Pike books, and I’d forgotten how much I love them—the humor, the smart, competent characters, the twists. His latest novel, The Big Empty, doesn’t disappoint. Ex-con...
by Kristin A. Oakley | Mar 22, 2026 | Books and Movies, For Readers, For Writers, Newsletter, Writer's Book Club
For this month’s Writer’s Book Club, I’m tackling the spooky thriller We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer. I enjoyed listening to the audiobook (expertly read by Jeremy Carlisle Parker and Corey Brill). In We Used to Live Here, Eve and her...
by Kristin A. Oakley | Feb 22, 2026 | Books and Movies, For Readers, For Writers, Newsletter, Writer's Book Club
I picked up this month’s novel, Detour, at the independent bookstore Arcadia Books in Spring Green, Wisconsin, and couldn’t wait to get to it. Jeff Rake, creator of Netflix’s Manifest, and bestselling author Rob Hart, wrote the tale of six people...
