Table for Two

 

Table for Two by Amor Towles

Fiction

2024

Finished on June 1, 2025

Rating: 3.5/5 (Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

From the bestselling author of The Lincoln Highway, A Gentleman in Moscow, and Rules of Civility, a richly detailed and sharply drawn collection of stories set in New York and Los Angeles. 

The millions of readers of Amor Towles are in for a treat as he shares some of his shorter six stories set in New York City and a novella in Los Angeles. The New York stories, most of which are set around the turn of the millennium, take up everything from the death-defying acrobatics of the male ego, to the fateful consequences of brief encounters, and the delicate mechanics of compromise which operate at the heart of modern marriages. In Towles’s novel, Rules of Civility, the indomitable Evelyn Ross leaves New York City in September, 1938, with the intention of returning home to Indiana. But as her train pulls into Chicago, where her parents are waiting, she instead extends her ticket to Los Angeles. Told from seven points of view, “Eve in Hollywood” describes how Eve crafts a new future for herself—and others—in the midst of Hollywood’s golden age. Throughout the stories, two characters often find themselves sitting across a table for two where the direction of their futures may hinge upon what they say to each other next. Written with his signature wit, humor, and sophistication, Table for Two is another glittering addition to Towles’s canon of stylish and transporting historical fiction.

I very rarely read short stories mainly because I don't enjoy them as well as novels. I feel that by the time I'm invested in the plot, and have come to care about the characters, the finale is upon me. I did, however, enjoy Amor Towles's stories in this recent release, many of which have an O. Henry feel to them with an unexpected twist at the conclusion of the tale. 

The second half of Towles's book is a novella that picks up where his debut novel, Rules of Civility, ends. I wish I had re-read that book before reading Eve in Hollywood. Towles provides some backstory, but I would have liked more. It's been over six years since I read the author's Rules of Civility, and the details are more than a little fuzzy. Also, the ending of the novella felt convoluted, and I wish I had kept better track of the role of each of the characters. Thus, the less than stellar rating. I must say, though, that his writing is marvelous, filled with subtle wit, and vivid imagery that places his reader directly into the setting. I'm tempted to read his earlier works again!

Speaking of which, you can find my reviews for those tooks here:

Rules of Civility (4.5/5)

A Gentleman in Moscow (5/5) - read twice

The Lincoln Highway (3.5/5)