Dec. - Lavender House by Lev A.C. Rosen

(*** Meetings are always on the 2nd Sunday of the month)

Chosen from the banned book list, this month we will read and discuss "Lavender House" by Lev A.C. Rosen.

Book Description:
"Lavender House, 1952: the family seat of recently deceased matriarch Irene Lamontaine, head of the famous Lamontaine soap empire. Irene’s recipes for her signature scents are a well guarded secret—but it's not the only one behind these gates. This estate offers a unique freedom, where none of the residents or staff hide who they are. But to keep their secret, they've needed to keep others out. And now they're worried they're keeping a murderer in.

Irene’s widow hires Evander Mills to uncover the truth behind her mysterious death. Andy, recently fired from the San Francisco police after being caught in a raid on a gay bar, is happy to accept—his calendar is wide open. And his secret is the kind of secret the Lamontaines understand.

Andy had never imagined a world like Lavender House. He's seduced by the safety and freedom found behind its gates, where a queer family lives honestly and openly. But that honesty doesn't extend to everything, and he quickly finds himself a pawn in a family game of old money, subterfuge, and jealousy—and Irene’s death is only the beginning.

When your existence is a crime, everything you do is criminal, and the gates of Lavender House can’t lock out the real world forever. Running a soap empire can be a dirty business."

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Please join us for some good discussion and social time. Due to the ongoing crisis we will be hosting this meeting virtually using Zoom. The night of the event you will be able to access the discussion using the provided link. Please be advised that the waiting room function will be on. We encourage all participants to experiment with the platform before the event, if you have any questions please contact one of the organizers in advance and we will do our best to assist you.

There is never any pressure to have the book completed (or read at all) in order to participate. We would just love to have you, and it can be enjoyable to hear about the book and talk to some cool people.

If you would like to continue to support Books, Inc. and prefer not to go in person you may order your book through their website at https://www.booksinc.net (I don't know if it is still possible to receive the 15% book club discount if ordering online, sorry).

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Book Selection:

At this meeting we will be discussing and voting upon a book for a future meeting. Please spend some time beforehand thinking of any books that might be appropriate for the group to read. The only criteria is that any book recommended should be written by a queer individual and/or contain queer subject matter. However, it is highly encouraged that books offered for consideration be representative of diverse perspectives and communities.

Before making a suggestion, please take a moment to check the list of books previously read by this group to make sure your selection can be considered:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1aN4BaPn1buIHZ1lryih4lMduPt4ShEIdaQLCyea3okQ/edit?usp=sharing