Atria | Book Chatter

My Friends
By Fredrik Backman
Atria, May 2025, 448pp.

The Short of It:

A keeper. Whether it’s on audio, in paperback or hardback. Get yourself a copy.

The Rest of It:

The title is appropriate. My Friends promises to be a buddy story, and let me tell you, it does not disappoint. Think Stand by Me or Stranger Things but without the Demogorgons.

Louisa received a postcard of three children on a pier and from that moment on she has been obsessed with that image. More so, because she is an artist herself. Oh sure, she doesn’t see herself as one but her obsession with that image brings her to the museum where that painting is hanging on a gallery wall.

So begins the story. Louisa’s rough upbringing lends her a raw, tattered edge that most see as trouble. She looks homeless because she is. At just 18 years old, she’s seen things and although she has found love once before, the idea of ever finding it again seems impossible. She’s guarded and hides behind her hair most of the time.

One day in an alley, after fleeing a tense situation that she got herself into, she meets a “homeless” man who changes everything for her. Just their meeting sparks something inside of her. Who is this man? And what wisdom does he hold?

I don’t want to give the story away because it’s an amazing story of friendship and love. A buddy story for sure but so much more. These characters are so real, I felt like I knew them. They each represent someone we know. Guaranteed.

Get yourself a copy. You won’t be sorry. There is so much here about love and art and friendship. It brought a tear to my eye a few times.

Highly recommend.

Source: Borrowed
Disclosure: This post contains Bookshop.org affiliate links.

Friends and Liars
By Kit Frick
Atria, December 2, 2025, 272pp.

*No Spoilers*

The Short of It:

This was a fun, crazy, spin on a whodunit.

The Rest of It:

It’s been five years since heiress Clare Monroe tragically died on New Year’s Eve at her family’s opulent Italian palazzo. Since that time, her college friends have harbored a dark secret—their lies and betrayals led to Clare’s untimely death.

What happened that fateful night was a horrible accident, but Luca, Harper, Sirina, and David are guilty, nonetheless. And their desperate decision to conceal the truth destroyed their once-close bond.

Guilty? But of what? There are multiple secrets this group is hiding so when they receive an invitation to celebrate their long lost friend Clare, they don’t even know how to immediately react. Go? Certainly not. But an all expense paid trip to Italy? How can you turn that down?

So, they go. What they don’t understand is exactly WHO organized the trip and why they were all called to gather again. But soon, like on the first night, they begin to receive “gifts” in each of their rooms. All, have double meaning. As they come together for the strict itinerary they’ve been given, they begin to whisper to each other. Suddenly alarmed and confused.

Clare’s family is filthy rich and they flaunt it every chance they get. The accommodations are plush, the meals and drink, lavish, helicopters at the ready to fly them off to their next adventure. But in those in-between moments, they begin to panic.

Gifts turn into notes and detailed instructions and pretty soon, everyone is doubting everyone. They all miss Clare but they all had a role in what happened that fateful night and the guilt begins to eat at them, causing bickering and hurt feelings.

I was happily surprised by this story. It’s twisty but not in a “red herring” way. The twists were plausible. Set in a palatial home in Italy with the beautiful coast as their view? Good food and drink? I am so there for it.

I felt that this was a solid read. A real page-turner.

Source: Review copy provided by the publisher.
Disclosure: This post contains Bookshop.org affiliate links.

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