Welcome to Litsy!

I need to catch up on my reading. The Names is for IRL Bookclub, and it‘s very good, nearly finished. 👍🏻 Then it‘s onto #PersephoneClub and The Exiles Return.

In three alternate timelines, Cora goes to register her newborn son's name. Cora's husband Gordon is a highly respected surgeon who is domineering and abusive at home, controlling every aspect of her life; whether she names her son Gordon as he has ordered or defies him has implications not just for her son's future but for their entire family. An engrossing and often heart-breaking story of the devastating impact of domestic violence.

Every debut these days seems to be labelled with “debut of the year “ & rarely does it live up to the hype , but then one little gem crops up and blows your socks off ! Wow ! What a book, I pre ordered this upon publication because I‘d read a lot of great reviews pre release , podcasters and YouTubers / book tubers all raving about it & they were right. Very hard to find an “original “
Idea now for a story & plot line

“The Names" is a powerful debut—honest, emotional, and deeply real. It explores identity, legacy, and how small choices can change everything. The stories and characters stick with you well after the last page. The domestic violence can be very descriptive at times.

When your trying to read in the garden 🪴 engrossed & your puppy 🐶 is staring at you to go walkies 😆

What a debut! The unusual structure (three sliding door lifetimes based on a name— in 7 year increments) works so well to make this such a pageturner! I loved seeing the overlaps of this innovative structure play out— and this could have easily been a one-sitting read if life hadn‘t intervened! Definitely a discussion-starter and a memorable read! I may have some thoughts about the ending, but would hate to spoil it! Begs to be discussed!

Ohh, I really enjoyed this grid, and I can‘t stop thinking about the tagged.

5 ⭐️= Loved It, want to shout out loud about this book! I do/will own/keep a physical copy. A+
4 ⭐️= Liked it, would love to discuss. Solid B
3 ⭐️= Meh, no need to discuss. Avg C
2 ⭐️=Nope D
1 ⭐️=DNF F

The Names is a bold, inventive novel structured around three possible lives of one protagonist—each shaped by a different name. It‘s thought-provoking and unlike anything I‘ve read, though often confusing. I‘m still unsure about the epilogue, but the originality made it worth the read.

I found the premise intriguing, and the book held my interest. I cared for each version of the characters,but overall I found the book depressing. I didn‘t cry reading it. When I was done I felt dread and cried.

This is one of the most interestingly structured books I‘ve ever read, and I think it‘s quite a marvel. (*Huge, huge trigger warnings for domestic violence)

In no way is the book a romance but, man, what a quote…

“And she‘d carried on, unaware. Of him, and this special thing. Unaware, too, of what it is to have that person in your life, that person who will plan surprises, who will try to fix wings to your back.”

This book is powerful. If one is to judge a book by its bookclub discussion worthiness, this hits every mark. I‘ll be monitoring bookish podcasts so I can be a fly on the wall to those discussions. I could do nothing but read in one setting the trajectories of Cora and her children‘s lives following the 3 distinct names she bestowed on her infant son.

This book is everywhere on my feeds right now! It was heavier on the domestic abuse than I‘d expected and the author has imposed a lot of constraints on the way the story is told. Still an impressive and well-narrated debut.

The first hour of this 9.5 hour audiobook is full on physical and verbal domestic abuse, and I am not here for it. It feels like this is less how a boy‘s life is impacted by different potential names and more the impact of his abusive father‘s reaction to said names. I don‘t care to read a book that gives an abuser that kind of power.

What's in a name? Potentially quite a lot! This is good. Not feel-good- because some of it is difficult to read- but interesting, well written, and thought-provoking. I'll watch for more by this author.

A little pre- work reading this morning, and a million flowers on our snowball bush, started the day off right. This is good, so far, but some scenes are hard to read.

Read THE NAMES now. You'll thank me.

Three different names, three different outcomes.

This is a story about "what ifs" in the same vein as the movie Sliding Doors.

I liked it ?

I‘m about a third of the way through this and it‘s really packing a punch. Lots to think about.

Fast read. Solid 4 stars. I liked the alternate versions of this family‘s lives. Recommend.

1. The tagged book. My BOMC pick
2. No. I do quick ones for Goodreads if I win a book but I don‘t like doing them.

@Eggs #WondrousWednesday

A great month for #botm imo! Thank you to the person who nominated The Bombshell for #CampLitsy25 and put it on my radar! Speaking of CL it has been so good seeing everyone‘s votes. Check @BarbaraBB profile for a link to the longlist and voting form. There is definitely still time to vote!

I am finally starting to feel a bit better and am hopefully headed to Parnassus and Nashville for an afternoon off later this week!

Brought this #ARC home from work today. Looks good!