Victoria Zackheim

This was not what I was expecting. Maybe I didn't read the cover blurb closely enough. I just saw the names of some favorite authors and how they 'cope with the perplexing world and what keeps them up at night.' What I got were those same authors, and more, telling some of their most personal stories and how those stories made them into the writers they have become. Well done, intriguing and worth a read (or two).

Review of uncorrected page proofs

In this anthology, twenty authors bring their own real-life mysteries and secrets to the written page. From heartwarming to captivating to heartbreaking, all offer insight into the thoughts of those who pen tales of mystery and intrigue for the enjoyment of readers everywhere.

Each writer offers thoughtful contemplation and commentary, some on the mystery and magic that is writing while others address the intricacies encountered along the road to publishing show more success. Still others offer heartbreaking accounts of child abuse or war or puzzling health issues. There are stories about a haunted apartment, a ghostly visitation, a stalker, a mystery child in a photograph as well as musings on the mysteries and surprises of motherhood, expectations, and relationships.

As a collective, the authors offer thought-provoking commentary on writing, on mystery, on life. Although a varied collection, readers will find much to ponder in each of these insightful and interesting contemplations.

Authors included:
Tasha Alexander, Cara Black, Rhys Bowen, Lynn Cahoon, Steph Cha, Jeffrey Deaver, Carole Nelson Douglas, Robert Dugoni, Hallie Ephron, Connie May Fowler, Sulari Gentill, Rachel Howzell Hall, Ausma Zehanat Khan, William Kent Krueger, Caroline Leavitt, Kristen Lepionka, Martin Limón, Anne Perry, Charles Todd, and Jacqueline Winspear

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Perseus Books, Basic Books / Seal Press and NetGalley
#PrivateInvestigations #NetGalley show less

I loved this collection. The essays are painfully honest, well-written, but most of all moving and relevant. They will stay with me for some time.

This is the second anthology I've read by Victoria Zackheim -- the other is The Other Woman -- and both are excellent.

For Keeps is a marvelous collection by women for women, and I found it to be a thoroughly satisfying read. As with any collection, some pieces are better than others, but on the whole, these essays are compelling, intelligent, insightful, and inspiring. I laughed and cried right along with the writers, and even when they wrote about experiences I didn’t wholly understand or identify with, I gained something from their pieces. I heartily recommend For Keeps for women readers and anyone show more interested in women’s studies, gender, body image, and the complex relationships women have with our bodies. I also think it would be a fantastic resource for older adolescent readers who are beginning to face many of the issues presented in the essays and who would enjoy hearing from older, wiser women who have been there and lived to tell about it.

Read my full review at The Book Lady's Blog. show less