PHANTASMAGORICAL, SURREALIST Irish tragicomic novel is 600+ pages of wild characters and hilarious metaphysics. B PLUS

SKIPPY DIES
Faber and Faber
2010

HOLLYWOOD DEMYSTIFIED–its financial ins and outs, in any case–in clear, detailed prose. Eye-opening! A MINUS

THE HOLLYWOOD ECONOMIST: THE HIDDEN FINANCIAL REALITY BEHIND THE MOVIES
Melville House Publishing
2010

APPEALING, thought-provoking history of marriage counseling in the US, from its 1930s origins to today. B PLUS

MORE PERFECT UNIONS: THE AMERICAN SEARCH FOR MARITAL BLISS
Harvard University Press
2010

FASCINATING TRUE TALE of an unsung Civil War hero–a daring spy for the Union whose 1911 suicide made headlines. B PLUS

DOUBLE DEATH: THE TRUE STORY OF PRYCE LEWIS, THE CIVIL WAR’S MOST DARING SPY
Walker & Company
2010

MURIEL SPARK illuminated in this intensely researched bio of the famously enigmatic Scottish writer. B PLUS

MURIEL SPARK: THE BIOGRAPHY
Norton, W. W. & Company, Inc.
2010

CANDID MEMOIR OF ADDICTION by a literary agent reveals so much that many readers may find it uncomfortable. SOLID B

PORTRAIT OF AN ADDICT AS A YOUNG MAN: A MEMOIR
Little Brown and Company
2010

VIVID DESCRIPTIONS of New England (as ever from Joyce Maynard) don’t redeem preposterous switched-babies plot. C MINUS

THE GOOD DAUGHTERS
William Morrow
2010

PRIVATE DETECTIVES hunt a serial killer. Fifth in a deftly done series; strong characters, vivid NYC setting. B PLUS

MISTER X
Kensington Publishing Corporation
2010

OLD-SCHOOL HORROR with a Great Depression setting and a spaghetti-Western feel; spooky despite overwriting. SOLID B

MR. SHIVERS
Orbit
2010

THE END OF A MARRIAGE and its impact on a group of female friends; nothing too new, but well observed moments. SOLID B

LOVE IN MID AIR
Grand Central Publishing
2010