"Hardscrabble Road"

 This book consists almost completely of conversations and interior monologues. There is very little action, although the plot is convoluted and simple at the same time. The best part of the book for me was the things people had to say about the state of the modern world, and I think the author was balanced in her depiction of liberals and conservatives, or as she had one character say, "The older I get, the more I think the distinctions are wrong. Left and right. Conservative and liberal. It's not that. It's libertarian and authoritarian. It's people who want freedom and people who want control."

The characters are interesting and colorful. They include a Benedictine nun who's also a lawyer, a two-time Nobel winner, a Rush Limbaugh type, a young man who works with the homeless, and Gregor Demarkian a retired FBI agent who's called the Armenian-American Hercule Poirot.