Victor LaValle weaves elements of fairy tales, myth and good old-fashioned horror into his latest novel, The Changeling, a chilling tale of a shattered family. Apollo Kagwa, a rare-books dealer in New York City, is married to Emma Valentine. As new parents to a boy named Brian, they're often tired and frazzled. But Emma's outlook worsens—she becomes short-tempered and distant, even from Brian—and the change is a harbinger of things to come. Emma's bleak mood culminates in a terrible, life-altering incident, after which she disappears without a trace. When Apollo crosses paths with a stranger who may know what became of Emma, he embarks on a remarkable hunt that leads him to a lonely island and a cemetery, among other spooky locales. LaValle skillfully blends genres in this unforgettable narrative of one man's struggle to make sense of the world. Named a top book of 2017 by Time and USA Today, this haunting story stays with the reader long after the last page is turned.

THE CURTAIN RISES
Colm Tóibín's House of Names is a masterful retelling of the ancient Greek tale of the House of Atreus, which was brought to life in the plays of Euripides, Aeschylus and Sophocles. Taking a cue from the work of those dramatists, Tóibín's novel follows Clytemnestra, who, with the help of her lover, plans the murder of her husband, King Agamemnon, to avenge his sacrifice of their daughter during the Trojan War. The novel also recounts the stories of Clytemnestra's son, Orestes, who is living in exile, and her other daughter, Electra, who is driven by demons of her own. Comprised of four sections that focus upon each of the main characters, the book's structure produces a rich, multilayered effect that underscores the duplicity and deceit endemic to the relationships of Clytemnestra and her kin. Chosen as a best book of 2017 by NPR, Tóibín's latest novel—his 11th—is a gripping work of fiction filled with drama and betrayal.

TOP PICK FOR BOOK CLUBS
With her taut, suspenseful novel I Found You, British author Lisa Jewell has produced a nail-biter that will appeal to fans of Paula Hawkins' The Girl on the Train. In the fictional seaside town of Ridinghouse Bay, single mother Alice Lake encounters a strange man on the beach. He has no memory of how he arrived there, and Alice takes him to her home and tries to help him. The man may have connections to Lily Monrose, a Ukrainian living in London whose new husband recently disappeared. When Lily learns from the police that the man on the beach was carrying a false passport, she sets out to find him and learn his true story. Jewell entwines these strands with a narrative set 23 years in the past involving teenagers in Ridinghouse Bay who attract the attention of another strange man. She skillfully ties the threads together in an unforgettable mystery that keeps the reader guessing until the end.

 

This article was originally published in the March 2018 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

In a windswept British seaside town, single mom Alice encounters a man sitting on the beach near her home. The lightly dressed stranger has no idea how he got there and recalls nothing of himself. A standard opening for an amnesiac tale right? Against her better judgment, Alice invites him inside. Here begins an intriguing story of a young bride, a lonely single mother, and perhaps a murder that happened decades earlier. Drawn to this visitor, Alice has mixed feelings about his memory returning, but as the days go by, the man gets disturbing flashes of his former self. Meanwhile, in London, newlywed Lily frantically searches for her husband, who fails to come home one evening, but the clues she finds make her second guess her marriage. As the mysterious man, "Gray," peels back his clouded memory, a thoroughly compelling story unfolds. Who is he? What happened at this seaside town in his teenage years? VERDICT Jewell (The Girls in the Garden) is a wonderful storyteller. Her characters are believable, her writing is strong and poetic, and her narrative is infused with just enough intrigue to keep the pages turning. Readers of Liane Moriarty, Paula Hawkins, and Ruth Ware will love. [See Prepub Alert, 10/31/16.]—Susan Clifford Braun, Bainbridge Island, WA