Books like Absolution by Alice McDermott

In an elite New England college, a charismatic classics professor lures a group of eccentric students into obsessive study, leading them from intellectual curiosity to corruption, betrayal, and ultimately murder.

After being murdered at fourteen, Susie Salmon watches from heaven as her family, friends, and killer grapple with grief and justice, revealing how love and forgiveness shape a family's future.

A historical novel set in the 12th century, focusing on the building of a cathedral and the surrounding community's fortunes amidst historical events of the time.

Jennifer Egan’s interlocking narratives weave the lives of Bennie Salazar, a former punk rocker turned record executive, and Sasha, a restless young woman, across decades and continents, exploring music, memory and the fragile threads that bind us.

A story of war, love, and unexpected connections in Chechnya, exploring the shared past of a doctor, a child, and a hospital.

Four young children discover a mysterious letter buried by a knight during a mass killing in the woods in 1327, but its secrets threaten the future of their lives and the kingdom of England.

A woman's story spanning the pivotal moments of the 20th century from the Spanish flu epidemic of 1918-1919 to the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020.

A story of art, love, and the color blue.

After being adopted by a quirky Dublin couple who treat him only as a house‑guest, Cyril embarks on a life‑spanning quest to discover his origins, his place in Ireland, and the meaning of true belonging.

James Salter's 'All that is' is a captivating and sometimes devastating labyrinth of love and ambition. A deeply intimate portrait of the emotional and physical experiences of being alive. Set during the golden decades following World War II, the book captures Salter's lifelong obsession with capturing the intimate, ephemeral spaces that all of us hold and leave behind on paper. After serving as a young officer in Okinawa during the war, Philip Bowman returns home to a small publishing house in New York. The frenetic social scene of New York in the post-war era is a backdrop for the story, where Bowman feels at home. However, his enduring love seems to elude him. When he meets a woman who captivates him, Bowman embarks on a journey that he never intended to take. The book is celebrated for its lyrical evocation of a post-war world imaginatively rendered and beautifully written.

In 1984, twenty‑five‑year‑old Alice Forrester, struggling with anorexia, faces heart failure and is admitted to Seaview Hospital’s eating‑disorder clinic, where she encounters a diverse group of patients and staff all battling the disease.

Olive Kitteridge follows a retired teacher in a small Maine coastal town as she navigates love, loss and the quiet complexities of middle‑age life.

A Brooklyn-born Irish‑American woman’s life—her family, neighborhood, and daily trials and triumphs—is traced from childhood through old age in this coming‑of‑age bildungsroman.

It is 1974 when Leni Allbright's impulsive father Ernt decides the family is moving to Alaska. But the Alaskan winter is just as unforgiving as Ernt, and life quickly becomes a struggle for survival.

A moving portrait of Billy Lynch, whose life was haunted by alcoholism yet celebrated by family and friends, who gather in his Bronx hometown to remember him and honor his widow Maeve's resilience after his death.

A thrilling sequel to 'The Eight', featuring a family reunion, a mysterious chess service, and a heart-pounding quest for power.

After This follows a Manhattan couple as they build a traditional Catholic family while their children navigate the turbulence of 1960s America—sexual liberation, the Vietnam draft, and personal rebellion—offering an intimate portrait of a changing society.

A speculative twist on a frontier crisis, "Outlawed" blends alternate history with the looming threat of influenza, exploring how communities and midwives confront disease, infertility, and social marginality on the American West's frontier.