Like a lot of authors, I not only write, I love to read, too. Several years ago, long before I finished my first book, I started a book club with several friends at work. I didn't know any of them particularly well, but over time, we've bonded in special ways, discovering books that have made us laugh, cry, and grow along the way. It's morphed into something very different from our first formal book club, where we sat rigidly in a circle of chairs and discussed Julie and Julia by Julie Powell, taking turns as we went around the circle to contribute one polite thought about the book club guide questions asked. That group of women is unrecognizable from the group of friends who gather in each other's kitchens today, pouring wine and having deep discussions about our current book choices.
There are many benefits to having a book club.
- First, you'll discipline yourself to read more books. There were all levels of readers when we first started our book club. Some of us were hardcore booklovers who enjoyed classics and award-winning books, who had been serious readers for years. Others were casual readers who picked up a book occasionally but might not even finish it. You might think that such a wide range wouldn't be conducive to a good book club, but all of us became better readers for the journey and we learned to value each other's opinions.
- You will begin to read "outside the box" of your normal book choices. I'll admit, as an avid reader, it was difficult to accept some of the choices that were offered. But I quickly found that there's something to be learned from nearly every book we've discussed. We haven't stuck with a single genre, either. We've read fiction and nonfiction, mysteries, romances, literary novels, and classics; everything from Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea by Barbara Demick (my favorite so far) to The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, a surprising and thought-provoking book.
- You'll discuss things in books that can address your own emotional needs. Each of us has found books that we are passionate about, books that take us on common journeys and speak to the issues we face today. For every life twist and turn, there is comfort in knowing that others have gone before us and light torches for our path.
- You'll make—and strengthen—friendships. Readers (and writers) are so often introverts who are shy about making friends. We struggled through our first few book club meetings dealing with that very problem, and have come through it as more confident and happy women.
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If it's the last thing she ever does, Iris will find Sophie's killer and make her pay.
On a cold December night in Cornwall, nanny Karen Peterson disappeared with three-year-old Sophie Flynn. The next day, the child’s body was found on a riverbank in Penhale Wood.
A year later, Sophie’s mother, Iris Flynn, appears on the doorstep of investigating officer Rob McIntyre, determined to make him reopen her daughter’s case. McIntyre has his own personal demons, but Iris hijacks his life in order to find the woman she thinks is responsible for Sophie’s death. Following the slimmest of leads, they are soon confronting ghosts from the past and a chameleon-like killer who will do anything to stay hidden.
Praise: "An entertaining contemporary crime novel about love and revenge."—Library Journal (starred review) and Debut of the Month
"A real gem . . . This is an excellent mystery and readers are in for quite a surprise at the end." —Suspense Magazine
"[An] eminently readable debut."—Kirkus Review
"A tightly sequenced tale with the many flashbacks expertly woven in."
—Reviewing the Evidence
Julia Thomas (Oklahoma) is a graduate of Northeastern State University and an educator. She is married to Will Thomas, author of the Barker and Llewelyn mystery series (Minotaur Books). The English Boys is her debut novel.
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