A few years ago Sarah Weinman thought she was going to have a career in science, possibly of the forensic variety. But then she launched the crime and mystery fiction blog Confessions of an Idiosyncratic Mind as a way of procrastinating on her master’s thesis, and it literally changed her life’s path. We can respect that. We also respect her opinions on books across all genres, so much so that we’ve asked Weinman to recommend a new one for you to check out each Wednesday. (It’s amazing that she finds the time. The woman read 462 books last year.) Learn more about her latest pick — which is allegedly one of the best books she’s read all year — after the jump, and leave us your review in the comments if you’ve already read it.
THE MOONFLOWER VINE by Jetta Carleton
“There is a lengthy essay I’m building towards writing later on this year, but right now I want to revel in how much I simply adore this novel, the only one Carleton ever published and one, by rights, that ought to have the same audience and perennial impact that TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, published two years earlier, had on the American consciousness. There are characters to feel tremendous empathy for, hidden secrets and treacherous lies, but there is also the bone-thick bonds of familial love that endure no matter what, through how many years. I haven’t felt this lost in a book for quite some time.”
– Sarah Weiman