Renée Rosen

Renée Rosen is the bestselling author of White Collar Girl, What The Lady Wants: A Novel of Marshall Field and the Gilded Age and Dollface: A Novel of the Roaring Twenties as well as the young adult novel, Every Crooked Pot.

Her new novel is Windy City Blues.

Recently I asked Rosen about what she was reading. Her reply:

Lately a few books have really knocked my socks off so let me share them with you.

The One Man by Andrew Gross

I devoured this book because it’s simply impossible to put down. Set against the grim backdrop of Auschwitz during WWII, this is a historical thriller told in stunning detail with characters that will have you fully vested in their journey. Writing about the Holocaust would be a monumental challenge for any author and Gross traverses this difficult subject and material with an enormously skillful hand.

I have recommended this book to countless people who have shared in my high praise of this novel. The One Man is a major accomplishment by a major author.

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

I adored this author's debut, Rules of Civility and was anxiously awaiting Towles’ second novel. You might not think that 400 plus pages taking place in one seemingly static setting—that being the Metropol Hotel in Moscow—would make for much of a novel. But oh, it does. This is the story of the ever-charming Count Alexander Rostov who is placed under house arrest by the Bolsheviks.

The prose is top notch, clever and lyrical. His characters are alive and endearing. Though this book is very different from his gorgeous debut, the same brilliance is apparent on every page. One can only imagine what he’ll write next!

The Virginity of Famous Men by Christine Sneed

If you appreciate the skill and artistry that goes into writing a short story, this collection will blow you away. Sneed is an award-winning writer and for obvious reasons. She goes deep into the human condition and explores the quirky nature of her characters and the complicated and sometimes outrageous predicaments they find themselves in.

With each new story, this collection builds momentum and has a cumulative effect so that by the time you reach the end, you feel you’ve peered almost indecently into the personal lives of her characters. Some of Sneed’s stories are so dense and heartfelt, they pack more emotion than many novels I’ve read.

Visit Renée Rosen's website, blog, and Facebook page.

--Marshal Zeringue