Fiction

"Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities. Truth isn't." — Mark Twain

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  “Pretty Big Once”: W. R. Burnett’s Cynical Americana

  W. R. Burnett’s multifarious fiction exposed the fatal emptiness of American ambition.

  Aug 12, 2022

  • Fiction

  • Noir

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  “Benefiting from the Unfairness”: On Lisa Taddeo’s “Ghost Lover”

  Elizabeth Barber reviews Lisa Taddeo’s new collection of stories, “Ghost Lover.”

  Elizabeth BarberAug 11, 2022

  • Fiction

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  “The Important Thing Is to Keep Moving”: A Conversation with Tom Perrotta

  Sean Hooks talks with Tom Perrotta about his new novel “Tracy Flick Can’t Win”.

  Sean HooksAug 11, 2022

  • Fiction

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  Strength of Convictions: On Dervla McTiernan’s “The Murder Rule”

  Glenn Harper reviews Dervla McTiernan’s “The Murder Rule,” a legal thriller about a law student’s complicated personal ties with a project that’s working to overturn a convicted murderer’s death sentence.

  Glenn HarperAug 6, 2022

  • Fiction

  • Noir

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  The Sublime Danielle Steel: For the Love of Supermarket Schlock

  Dan Sinykin reconsiders the career of Danielle Steel.

  Dan SinykinAug 3, 2022

  • Fiction

  • LARB Lit

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  It’s Not Me, It’s You: On Sloane Crosley’s “Cult Classic”

  Randy Rosenthal reviews Sloane Crosley’s new novel “Cult Classic."

  Randy RosenthalAug 3, 2022

  • Fiction

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  “Almost Tangible Presence”: On Yuri Felsen’s “Deceit”

  Sarah Gear disentangles “Deceit,” a 1930 novel of ill-fated attraction in Paris by Russian émigré Yuri Felsen, translated by Bryan Karetnyk.

  Sarah GearAug 1, 2022

  • Fiction

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  “A Language So Musical and Magical”: On Volodymyr Rafeyenko’s “Mondegreen: Songs about Death and Love”

  Lillian Posner reviews Volodymyr Rafeyenko’s newly translated novel, “Mondegreen: Songs About Death and Love.”

  Lillian PosnerAug 1, 2022

  • Fiction

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  “All Fiction Is Intellectually Autobiographical”: A Conversation with Jared Marcel Pollen

  Seth Katz speaks with Jared Marcel Pollen about his debut novel, “Venus&Document.”

  Seth KatzJul 29, 2022

  • Fiction

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  On a Skeleton in the Smithsonian: A Conversation with Geraldine Brooks

  Rachel Barenbaum talks with Geraldine Brooks about her new novel, “Horse.”

  Rachel BarenbaumJul 24, 2022

  • Fiction

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  “An Exquisite, Terrifying Awareness”: On Iris Smyles’s “Droll Tales”

  David Breithaupt reviews Iris Smyles’s new collection, “Droll Tales.”

  David BreithauptJul 23, 2022

  • Fiction

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  “The Echo of a Distant World Calling”: On a New Collection of Fradl Shtok’s Stories

  Aviya Kushner reviews a new translation of Fradl Shtok’s short stories, “From the Jewish Provinces.”

  Aviya KushnerJul 22, 2022

  • Fiction