Is This A Cry For Help? – Emily Austin

   Full disclosure: this book is a tribute to libraries and librarians! Darcy is a 32-year-old librarian who is recovering from a sick leave precipitated by the death of a former partner. So part of the story is a professional analysis of her insecurities and her need to please others. And there are important library challenges to principles of intellectual freedom and inclusivity due to censorship demands. So, a book that deals with important contemporary issues.

PS: Emily Austin also wrote Everyone in this Room will Someday be Dead

Everyone In This Room Will Someday Be Dead – Emily Austin

Gilda suffers from paralyzing anxiety with chronic panic attacks producing disjointed thought patterns. In short, her life is a messy disaster. And then she, a lesbian atheist, accidentally gets a receptionist job in a Catholic Church where she becomes obsessed with the death of her predecessor. The author of this first novel successfully navigates a tricky balance between hilarious events and some truly pathetic behaviour, so a story of angst and uncertain redemption.