An absolutely absurdist romp for dog-loving mystery fans.
A mysterious manuscript tells the story of a vendetta leading to a perplexing crime culminating in unexplained deaths.
Detective Conner Chantree sheepishly brings his superior officer a pieced-together bundle of papers he claims may indicate that a murder was committed in a case that was recently closed. Nearly the rest of the novel offers the contents of this manuscript, which purports to tell the tale of a feud between the Lamberts and the Gaveys, two families in the village of Swaffham Tilney, England. The narrative reveals that the two families are already enemies due to bad blood over a house as well as accusations of bullying between the two teenage daughters, but it leans sympathetic to the Lambert side as it describes how things get really nasty when daughter Tess Gavey reports to the police that she has been bitten by Champ Lambert, the other family’s Welsh terrier. Mother Sally Lambert will do anything to save her Champy, especially as she still mourns the unfortunate death of their first dog, Furbert, after he ate a peach pit. So she teams up with Corinne Sullivan, a wealthy eccentric who previously caused great friction in Swaffham Tilney due to the Agatha Christie Book Club War. Together with Sally’s eager kids, her reluctant husband, and the loyal Champy, the women set out to prove him innocent—or else go on the lam. There is a great deal of charm here; Sally in particular, and the way she relates to her children both furry and otherwise, is the epitome of a fierce maternal love that grounds the more ridiculous moments of the story. While Parts 2 and 3, which comment somewhat self-consciously on the rest of the novel, feel like a satirical bridge just a little too far, Hannah has surely written a true original—not an easy feat. “Quirky” might be a generous—or possibly reductive—description, but readers who love this book will love it.
An absolutely absurdist romp for dog-loving mystery fans.Pub Date: Jan. 20, 2026
ISBN: 9781464264306
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.
A lifetime’s worth of letters combine to portray a singular character.
Sybil Van Antwerp, a cantankerous but exceedingly well-mannered septuagenarian, is the titular correspondent in Evans’ debut novel. Sybil has retired from a beloved job as chief clerk to a judge with whom she had previously been in private legal practice. She is the divorced mother of two living adult children and one who died when he was 8. She is a reader of novels, a gardener, and a keen observer of human nature. But the most distinguishing thing about Sybil is her lifelong practice of letter writing. As advancing vision problems threaten Sybil’s carefully constructed way of life—in which letters take the place of personal contact and engagement—she must reckon with unaddressed issues from her past that threaten the house of cards (letters, really) she has built around herself. Sybil’s relationships are gradually revealed in the series of letters sent to and received from, among others, her brother, sister-in-law, children, former work associates, and, intriguingly, literary icons including Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry. Perhaps most affecting is the series of missives Sybil writes but never mails to a shadowy figure from her past. Thoughtful musings on the value and immortal quality of letters and the written word populate one of Sybil’s notes to a young correspondent while other messages are laugh-out-loud funny, tinged with her characteristic blunt tartness. Evans has created a brusque and quirky yet endearing main character with no shortage of opinions and advice for others but who fails to excavate the knotty difficulties of her own life. As Sybil grows into a delayed self-awareness, her letters serve as a chronicle of fitful growth.
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780593798430
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
A pleasant if not entirely convincing tribute to the power of art.
A French art historian’s English-language fiction debut combines the story of a loving relationship between a grandfather and granddaughter with an enlightening discussion of art.
One day, when 10-year-old Mona removes the necklace given to her by her now-dead grandmother, she experiences a frightening, hour-long bout of blindness. Her parents take her to the doctor, who gives her a variety of tests and also advises that she see a psychiatrist. Her grandfather Henry tells her parents that he will take care of that assignment, but instead, he takes Mona on weekly visits to either the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay, or the Centre Pompidou, where each week they study a single work of art, gazing at it deeply and then discussing its impact and history and the biography of its maker. For the reader’s benefit, Schlesser also describes each of the works in scrupulous detail. As the year goes on, Mona faces the usual challenges of elementary school life and the experiences of being an only child, and slowly begins to understand the causes of her temporary blindness. Primarily an amble through a few dozen of Schlesser’s favorite works of art—some well known and others less so, from Botticelli and da Vinci through Basquiat and Bourgeois—the novel would probably benefit from being read at a leisurely pace. While the dialogue between Henry and the preternaturally patient and precocious Mona sometimes strains credulity, readers who don’t have easy access to the museums of Paris may enjoy this vicarious trip in the company of a guide who focuses equally on that which can be seen and the context that can’t be. Come for the novel, stay for the introductory art history course.
A pleasant if not entirely convincing tribute to the power of art.Pub Date: Aug. 26, 2025
ISBN: 9798889661115
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Europa Editions
Review Posted Online: June 7, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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