There were plenty of buzz books in 2015 that made the big “Best of” lists at the end of the year. I liked some of them, not quite enough to include them in my Top Ten, but certainly enough to encourage others to give them a try.

I liked this, and in some places I even loved it, but found the novel uneven. I wish the excellence of the first part would have carried into the second. Still, if you like novels about relationships, this is good.

I like the idea of a group of flu survivors trying to hold on to humanity by promoting art. Still, post-apocalyptic plots, like vampire novels, seem to have run their course. And personally, I’ve never cared for Shakespeare (I know, I know) so that plot point didn’t delight me. If you can’t get enough of the post-apocalypse and/or are a big Shakespeare fan, this one is for you.

Compelling thriller with an unreliable narrator. But after finishing it, I didn’t think about it any more. Still, if you need to pack something for a vacation read, this should be it.

I found the plot the most interesting when it focused on the pre-war years. The childhoods of Marie-Laure and Werner were fascinating.  The other parts felt a bit forced and flat. If you like big historical romances, this will work for you.