A thoughtful but uneven feminist classic, There’s No Turning Back follows eight women at a Rome college as they navigate ambition, freedom, and the expectations shaping their futures.
Review: There’s No Turning Back by Alba de Céspedes
Category: Literary Fiction
Review: People of Means by Nancy Johnson
Across 1962 Nashville and 1992 Chicago, People of Means explores racism, ambition, activism, and the generational weight of fighting for change. Read my review of Nancy Johnson’s emotionally incisive novel.
Review: Life Hacks for a Little Alien by Alice Franklin
A funny, tender, and deeply compassionate novel about a lonely neurodivergent girl searching for her place in a world that has always felt impossible to decode. Alice Franklin’s distinctive second-person narration makes this debut intimate, unforgettable, and moving.
Review: The Best We Could Hope For by Nicola Kraus
Nicola Kraus’s The Best We Could Hope For is an absorbing, emotionally layered family drama exploring motherhood, abandonment, buried secrets, and the lasting consequences of parental choices.
Review: Beyond the Fields by Sharin Bhatti
A hopeful story of resilience and second chances, Beyond the Fields follows a woman forced to rebuild her life after tragedy. While I wanted more depth from the characters and setting, Dipti's emotional journey and quiet strength make this a heartfelt, one or two-sitting read.
Review: Homeseeking by Karissa Chen
An epic and emotionally resonant historical novel, Homeseeking by Karissa Chen explores love, displacement, and the meaning of home through the lives of two soulmates separated by decades of Chinese history.
Review: Good Joy, Bad Joy by Mikki Brammer
Joy has always played by the rules, until her best friend receives heartbreaking news. Warm, funny, and deeply moving, Good Joy, Bad Joy is a celebration of friendship, second chances, and discovering it's never too late to embrace life.
Review: Rosarita by Anita Desai
Can we ever truly know the people we love? Anita Desai's Rosarita is a lyrical, thought-provoking novella exploring memory, identity, family secrets, and the lasting echoes of history through an unforgettable second-person narrative.
Review: The Day My Soul Died by Rishi Vohra
Rishi Vohra’s The Day My Soul Died is a heavy but worthwhile novel about trauma, resilience, and what justice can look like after sexual violence.
Review: Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke
This 5-star read left me staring at the wall asking, “What in the world did I just read?”