Book Reviews

As Valentine's day approaches, we bring you three novels that take ideas of romance far beyond flowers and chocolate — from a wicked wager with a hot rogue to a fake date that turns into real love.

Francisco Cantú's new book about his years in the Border Patrol combines brutal personal reminiscences with detached academic interludes, a dreamlike narrative halfway between memoir and tone poem.

Matt Haig's new novel isn't exactly about time travel — it's about a slow-aging man who travels through time just by staying alive for centuries. And yes, he meets Shakespeare (who has bad breath).

Reading Zadie Smith's big-hearted, eloquent new essay collection is a lot like hanging out with a friend who's just as at home with pop stars as she is with philosophers.

Maggie O'Farrell's first book of nonfiction is a memoir — by turns thrilling and agonizing — of all of her brushes with death. And there have been many, from childhood illness to deadly riptides.

Critic John Powers says Mick Herron's latest novel sucks you in from the opening page, and a Netflix series imported from Germany is both fun and binge-able.

Nina Sadowsky's day job is high-level Hollywood producer, and it shows in the cinematic drive of her new thriller. But the book's nonstop action leaves little time for details of place and character.

Rape has become a standard feature in crime novels — sometimes treated with nuance, sometimes with voyeurism. Sarah Vaughan's Anatomy of a Scandal approaches it with unexpected attention and care.

Kim Purcell's new novel is structured as a long, beautiful, despairing letter from a young woman to her missing boyfriend, written as she spurs her friends and neighbors into action to find him.