The East End by Jason Allen
Eloquent exploration into the world of Hamptons, full of contrasts and secrets. We follow two main storylines: the family who is struggling with poverty, alcoholism, and domestic violence, and the family who is struggling from the excess of wealth. The two families struggle with moral dilemmas, love affairs, substance abuse, and some very difficult choices until the very end. The author explores each character masterfully and dramatically, making this an irresistible read. While this novel has strong thriller elements, I would place it firmly into a literary category.
The Perfect Wife by JP Delaney
It’s difficult to review this book without giving away spoilers. While the author says he tried to avoid a techno-thriller as a genre, it does feel exactly like a techno-thriller. I would best describe this as a literary sci-fi/thriller. What it truly reminded me of was the sci-fi books I read back in the 1980s and 1990s. The sci-fi stories that were written before we fell in love with technology and forgot the dangers associated with it. The story questions the ethics of technology, science, and psychology and will make you question your own beliefs a thousand times. I absolutely couldn’t put this one down and I now crave more stories like this. One particular interesting storyline of this book is treatments for autism and the author shares his personal story of having a child with autism and searching for the right treatment at the end of the book.
Elena Mikalsen, Ph.D. Author/Psychologist 