Author: Alexia Gordon

A deadly pandemic. Protests against racial injustice. Unemployment at levels not seen since the Great Depression. Seismic social upheaval. Wrapping your mind around 2020 presents challenges most of us never imagined facing. Many of us struggle to find the energy to get excited about anything. We’re so overwhelmed, it’s tough to find things to feel good about. Fortunately, books exist. Whatever your preferred format, paper, electronic, or audio, books can help you process what’s happening around you, learn about experiences and perspectives different from your own, help put your fears into perspective, or provide respite. Books, in short, can make you feel good. Here are a few that do that for me: A Step So Grave by Catriona McPherson. Set in the 1930s, this offering in the Dandy Gilver series pays homage to Golden Age Detective fiction without sacrificing a contemporary feel. Hollywood Homicide by Kellye Garrett. A cozy with a Black amateur sleuth. ‘Nuff said. Lies She Told by Cate Holahan. A domestic thriller with a strong, independent female protagonist who drives the action instead of reacts to events. Fer de Lance by Rex Stout. His entire Nero Wolfe series, actually. Because Archie Goodwin. The Return of Retief by […]