A Book A Week

It’s become something of an annual tradition for me to read the latest novel from John Sandford. I first discovered his writing nearly 20 years ago through the Virgil Flowers series and followed those books faithfully as they were released. When Sandford shifted his focus more heavily to his long-running Prey series, I followed him there as well. No matter the series, he has a knack for crafting quick-paced crime thrillers filled with sharp plotting and witty banter. So naturally, I knew I’d be picking up his latest, Revenge Prey. And lucky for me, his publisher was kind enough to provide a copy.

Lucas Davenport is paired with fellow U.S. Marshal Shelly White to escort a former high-ranking Russian intelligence officer out of a Minneapolis safe house. After providing the U.S. with information about Russian operatives embedded within the government, the man and his family have spent the last three years in witness protection. Now, they’re finally being relocated to a permanent home.

From the outside looking in, Natalie has the perfect life. She lives on the picturesque Yesteryear Ranch, tucked into the quiet hills of Idaho. Her husband, Caleb—a ruggedly handsome cowboy—runs the agricultural side of the farm, while Natalie raises their six seemingly perfect children. She shares their simple, rustic, all-natural lifestyle with over eight million followers, who watch with envy.

But if social media has taught us anything, it’s that nothing is ever quite as it seems.

In reality, Natalie relies on a team of nannies to wrangle the kids while she maintains her carefully curated image. Her live-in producer, Shannon, ensures everything runs smoothly behind the scenes. And Caleb? He’s never successfully grown a plant or kept an animal alive. Natalie secretly employs real farmers to keep the ranch functioning under the cover of night. Oh, and Caleb is also having an affair with Shannon.

This picture-perfect life is nothing but a façade, and it’s about to collapse.

After discovering the affair and Shannon’s sudden resignation, Natalie retreats to her bedroom, overwhelmed. When she awakes the next day, something is…off. She’s still in the same house, but Caleb is older—years older—and strangely competent. The children are there, but they aren’t her children. And all the modern conveniences that sustained her life are gone. No nannies. No producer. No electricity. No running water.

Has Natalie somehow slipped into the very past she’s been pretending to live in? Or is something far more unsettling at play? Whatever this is, if she wants to salvage her life—and the empire built on it—she’ll have to find a way out.

With Yesteryear, Caro Claire Burke bursts onto the literary fiction scene with a debut that may be one of the most original novels I read all year. There’s a sharp, biting irony in forcing a character to confront the harsh realities of the lifestyle she’s built a brand on promoting, but the exploration of hypocrisy is only the beginning of what Burke has in mind.

Burke alternates between Natalie’s present-day predicament and glimpses into her past, gradually constructing the version of her we meet at the novel’s start. It’s a smart, effective structure that deepens our understanding of an admittedly complex and often frustrating protagonist. As Natalie struggles to make sense of her situation, the novel expands into a thoughtful meditation on motherhood, womanhood, religion, politics, and the performative nature of life in the age of social media.

I found myself completely absorbed, eager to uncover the truth behind what was happening. The answer is as bold as you might expect from a novel this daring, though I suspect the ending will prove divisive for some readers. Even so, I was captivated from beginning to end. Yesteryear is a striking debut novel that will almost certainly make my list of favorite reads of the year.

For more information, visit the author's website, Amazon, and Goodreads. 

(2026, 28)

There’s no denying that the landscape of local news has shifted dramatically in recent decades. I remember my parents watching the evening broadcast on Channel 5 religiously, the local anchors serving as a trusted, familiar source of information. These days, I don’t even have traditional TV. I rely instead on streaming services for entertainment. And I couldn’t tell you the last time I sat down to watch a local newscast. It’s simply easier and faster to get updates on my phone than to wait for a scheduled broadcast.

But even as the medium evolves, local news endures. It’s within that ever-changing world that Jessie Garcia sets her latest thriller, The Fair Weather Friend, drawing inspiration from the high-pressure environment of a Detroit newsroom.

Faith Richards has become a bona fide local celebrity. As the evening news meteorologist, she’s charmed viewers with her sunny personality and playful traditions—most notably her weather-themed earrings that match each forecast. She’s even earned a devoted following who affectionately call her their “Fair Weather Friend.” Sure, Faith mostly reads from a national report sent to the newsroom, but her expertise, or lack thereof, hardly matters. She’s engaging, likable, and exactly the kind of personality that keeps viewers tuning in.

But when Faith fails to return to the air after a dinner break between broadcasts, concern quickly sets in. And when her body is discovered the next day, that concern turns to shock. How could someone so visible, so beloved, end up the victim of such a brutal crime? As the investigation unfolds, it soon becomes clear that there may have been far more to Faith than met the eye.

With The Fair Weather Friend, Jessie Garcia delivers a suspenseful whodunnit that keeps the twists coming. The narrative shifts between multiple perspectives—Faith herself, an intern, an adoring fan, a coworker, and even a stalker—each adding a new layer to the mystery. Their connections to Faith are revealed gradually, with key pieces held back until the final moments, making for a story that’s as playful as it is unsettling.