Among the 25 books reviewed this week: P.T. Deutermann's The Last Paladin, in which the World War II crew of the U.S.S. Holland investigates the possible existence of a 1,000-mile-long Japanese submarine "picket line"; Inventing the It Girl: How Elinor Glyn Created the Modern Romance and Conquered Early Hollywood by Hilary A. Hallett, who posits that Glyn's calling card was "her ability to give even the raciest stories an aristocratic gloss"; and Thirst by Varsha Bajaj, "a moving, hopeful story" that brings awareness to the world water crisis and social inequality.
In The Writer's Life, Antonia Angress discusses her debut novel, Sirens & Muses, centering on students at an elite New England art school.
--Jennifer M. Brown, senior editor, Shelf Awareness