Everybody's Fool by Richard Russo

I love funny, true, heart-tugging literary fiction about small towns and the people you meet who live in them. Every town's unique, yet there's a commonality in all of them.

Sully's a crusty geezer with a short life expectancy due to a bad heart. Rub is Sully's needy best friend - Rub's also the name of Sully's mangy little dog because he loves barking orders and seeing which of them responds. Then there's Sully's former lover Ruth, who owns the diner, and her husband the junk man. Get the picture?

The other part of the story lies with police chief Doug Raymer, who's coming unraveled faster by the minute as the story goes on. He starts out by obsessing over his dead wife while standing at attention in the sun in uniform during a funeral, where he eventually faints and lands in the fresh-dug hole. That's just the start of his problems.

I loved, loved, LOVED this book. I adored this book. It's smart and funny, and the audiobook narration by Mark Bramhall was stellar. That's not to say I couldn't see through the plot in several places (I right away knew the identity of Becca's lover), but I was willing to overlook that for the startling turns the plot made elsewhere.

There are a few loose ends not wrapped up at the end, but I'm also OK with that. This was the second time Russo has presented us with life from North Bath, New York, so perhaps we can hope for more someday (but I won't hold my breath: there were 22 years between "Nobody's Fool" and this one).

Perfect Match

by Kristan Higgins

You might start this book thinking, "Oh, poor, Honor Holland."  Yes, she finds herself in a barroom battle with her best friend. Yes, the man she's loved for years rejects her. Yes, she decides an arranged marriage is her only hope toward motherhood one day.  She winds up with a freaking hottie who's incredibly intelligent.  Poor Honor, my foot.

She takes on pseudo-motherhood to a boy who is not quite a stepson.  Luckily for Honor and Tom, the bond with this teenage boy is a strong factor in making the marriage work.   Like any teen, Charlie is struggling with evolving friendships, bullies, and his own world view.  He's never had much in the way of a truly loving family other than Tom.  When suddenly thrust into the Holland clan, there is a definite adjustment period regarding unconditional acceptance. 

Higgins' characters are funny, snarky, and terrible liars.  Somehow, they manage to fool even the toughest critics of the relationship.  Of course, with this arranged marriage, there is a period of utter loneliness for two individuals who crave more love, nurturing, and, yes, sex, than they believe is available.  Don't worry fans, Higgins makes quick work of that misconception. 

The Best Man

by Kristin Higgins

The only thing that could have made this a sweeter love story is chocolate.  Faith could be viewed by those around her as a sad character.  She's epileptic, and lost her mother at a young age.  To top that off, she was left at the altar by the man who had claimed to love her since high school.  How was she supposed to know he was gay?  She has always blamed his best friend, Levi for the whole incident, because he appeared to be the only person on the planet who noticed.

After fleeing home for years, Faith has returned to find everyone is just as she left them, except for one.  Levi is now home from the Army, and chief of police.  She can handle the pity, and probably even regain the friendship she's held so dear with her ex.  The real question is, can she forgive the man who was always on the sidelines of her life?

Higgins is one of my favorite authors.  Her tender stories bring a smile, and often a few tears as they are savored like a glass of wine from the Blue Heron winery run by Faith's family.