Ninth House (2019), written by Leigh Bardugo, is based on the creepy and very real secret societies at Yale (it’s always Yale!). In this dark, twisted fantasy, the fictional Ninth House looks over the other (very real) societies (like George Bush’s society “Skull and Bones”) to make sure they aren’t fully murdering townies and of course something goes wrong. Come for the magical rituals, murder, ghosts, fentanyl, potions, the rich and privileged, the poor and victimized; stay for a young, flawed protagonist who grows on you. No pointy hats if you’re into that sort of thing. But it’s very much the kind of stuff you can imagine Jared Kushner is up to at this moment.
books
Two girls go missing, the townsfolk have clashing reactions
Julia Phillips’ Disappearing Earth (2019) starts out as a classic two-girls-go-missing story set in a small Russian province. Except each chapter becomes less and less about the two girls and more about the surrounding people affected by the mystery. Each have their own interesting backstory, with the missing girls as just an anchoring detail in their already intricate lives.
Sisters are doing it for...others
Mrs. Everything (2019) by Jennifer Weiner is a fictional story about two sisters who couldn’t be any more different as they navigate a changing America. Born in the 1940s to a loving family, sisters Bethie and Jo find themselves growing apart and coming of age during the women’s liberation movement. Sacrificing self-identity is at the heart. This book will make you angry. But sometimes that’s just the kind of mood you’re looking for.
Male rage on the debate team
Cleverly written (so much that I think the author knows it), The Topeka School [2019] explores themes including toxic masculinity and male rage, white boy rap, and white vs. blue collar tensions. Jumping back and forth in timeline, the story follows a white collar family - a son, who is a sharp high school debate champion who is consumed by rhetoric, his mother, a famous feminist author who constantly receives death threats, and her father, a psychologist at a Foundation that seems questionable - and then a blue collar kid who runs into trouble. To be honest, this one went over my head but Obama recommended it. Please read it and then explain it to me.
If Black Mirror was charming
in books, short stories, fiction
Exhalation (2019) is a collection of wildly imaginative, inquisitive, and delightful short stories. Each one looks at humanity’s questions in varying science fiction context. Ted Chiang asks what is love if not effort in the form of adopting digital animals. He looks at the pros and cons of memory documentation and how it messes with our truths in the form. He searches for human’s purpose on earth through the lens of archeology and astrology. And he makes it completely enjoyable to read. If you’re going to read any book this year, make it this one.
FBI and police badly botch a cross-country chase to catch sociopath serial killer, mainly because he’s gay
in books, true crime
Vulgar Favors: The Hunt for Andrew Cunanan, The Man Who Killed Gianni Versace (1999) is not really about Gianni Versace, but I’m sure the publisher said the name will help with the marketing. Rather, it’s the story of a fame-seeking serial killer and an inept police and detective force that searched for him. Maureen Orth, author and investigative journalist, follows Andrew Cunanan, his exploitive relationships within the gay community and his infamous cross country run to what other place than Florida. Murder, greed, celebrity, sex, car chases, drugs, yachts, family secrets - it’s no wonder it got picked up by Ryan Murphy. I couldn’t watch the tv show (too gory) but was fascinated by the story and read this instead. Pick your poison!