Monday, November 15, 2021

Brooklyn Neo-Noir, Burgundy Boats, and Big Sur -- MAILBOX MONDAY

 

MAILBOX MONDAY

So many books have come into my house since I last put up a Mailbox Monday post that I can't begin to catch up. Work and life got in the way of book blogging, which happens. Now when there is a short, perhaps illusory, lull between work insanity and the holidays, I'll try posting more often.

The three books that came into my home last week all look wonderful. I want to read them immediately! I will settle for as soon as reasonably possible. 

What books have come your way lately?

MY MAILBOX MONDAY BOOKS


Shoot the Moonlight Out by William Boyle, brand new from Pegasus Books. At first glance, this new crime novel reminds me of a Brooklyn-themed Dennis Lehane book and looks amazing! It starts in 1996 with a run in with criminals that ends in tragedy then the main story takes place in the summer of 2001, right before 9/11. I like the slightly vintage vibe, the Brooklyn setting, and the whole neo-noir feeling. 

Hubby just read Lehane's blockbuster, Mystic River, so I gave Shoot the Moonlight Out to him to see how it stands up. Stand by for his report. 



To Live and Die in the Floating World by Stephen Holgate. This one came out last month from Blank Slate Press. It looks great! An American working on a tourist barge in France has an affair with a gangster's girlfriend. 

At first glance, that reminds me of a Burgundy-themed Dog Soldiers by Robert Stone. But since I may be the latest person to read that 1975 National Book Award winner, I may be the only one who can make the comparison.  

Read my review of Stephen Holgate about his earlier novel Tangier, here


On the Edge by Edward St. Aubyn, author of the Patrick Melrose novels. This is a reprint of his 1998 novel satirizing New Age goofiness, set in Big Sur. It's the first American edition of the book. 

I was excited to find this in a Little Free Library on my walk to work the other day. I read Lost for Words, his satirical novel about book awards that won the Wodehouse Award for best comic novel, which he wrote after Mother's Milk, the penultimate Patrick Melrose novel was shortlisted for the Booker Prize but didn't win. Lost for Words was brilliant and got me to binge the five Melrose novels, which were excellent, but so sad. 



YOUR MAILBOX MONDAY BOOKS
 
Join other book lovers on Mailbox Monday to share the books that came into your house last week. Visit the Mailbox Monday website to find links to all the participants' posts and read more about Books that Caught our Eye.

Serena of Savvy Verse & Wit, Martha of Reviews by Martha's Bookshelf, and Velvet of vvb32reads graciously host Mailbox Monday.


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