One of my very favorite things, reading-wise, is hitting on a new series as it starts. Does it sort of suck waiting for a year for a new book? Absolutely. But the anticipation? The feeling of finally holding that new installment in your hands and settling in with it? Those feelings are the drug of the bibliophile.
You may remember me going on about the first novel in Ellison Cooper's series, Caged, featuring FBI Senior Special Agent Sayer Altair. In fact, I couldn't keep that one to myself, either. The sequel, Buried, picks up six months later as SSA Altair heads back into the field after riding the desk following an on-the-job injury. As fate would have it, her first day starts with a bang, taking her immediately to a mass grave deep in a national park that soon proves likely to be the dump-site of another killer. Though the remains date back over the last two decades (around the time a local teen went missing) cold cases meet active case when another body is found, this one quite recent. The ties that bind will bring Altair full circle, back to a subject she's been studying and who might just be able to help her stop the predator before he can bring down more prey.
For readers who love engrossing page-turning thrillers with plenty of plot-twists, I cannot recommend Ellison Cooper highly enough. Fans of Tess Gerritsen, Lisa Gardner, Thomas Harris and Karin Slaughter should absolutely add Cooper to their lists, ASAP.
Showing posts with label suspense. Show all posts
Showing posts with label suspense. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 23, 2019
Thursday, July 11, 2019
Meg's Picks: August 2019, part 1
There are so many things I want to talk about that are coming up, I had to start early!
City of Windows, by Robert Pobi. This buzz-worthy series launch introduces retired FBI agent (and astrophysicist) Dr. Lucas Page. In the field, Page was best known for his ability to survey a crime scene and allow him to break down the topography to math and statistical probabilities, like being able to pinpoint the origin of a sniper shot in the middle of a city. But the loss of a leg, an arm, and an eye during a shootout put an end to his FBI career, as well as his first marriage. There's nothing wrong with his brain, though, and ten years later he is teaching at Columbia University and writing books. He's reluctant to put his new life on the line when he's called upon to help investigate the shooting of his former partner, but old loyalties run deep. A tense plot and unique protagonist make this a good bet for a breakout thriller this summer.
The Doll Factory, by Elizabeth MacNeal. Psychological suspense meets 1850's London in this sharp new novel. A chance encounter in a crowd is a brief, forgettable encounter for alluring artist Iris, but for curiosity collector Silas, it is the beginning of an obsession--one that will only deepen and darken as Iris's star begins to rise among the city's artists. Fans of Caleb Carr's The Alienist should be placing their requests now.
Inland, by Tea Obreht. Obreht made quite a name for herself with 2011's award-winning novel The Tiger's Wife. She returns now with a tale set in late-1800s Arizona, where Nora waits on the family farm while her husband treks for water to revive their failing farm. Her two older sons have vanished after a fight, leaving Nora to fend for herself when a local outlaw starts making his presence known. If your ideal summer read is full of larger-than-life characters and gorgeous prose, look no further.
The Perfect Wife, by J.P. Delaney. Five years ago, Abbie suffered a terrible accident and is finally coming back to consciousness with the help of new technology. She's a wonderful mother and a talented artist and certainly will be again, or so says the man who claims to be her husband. The catch? It's not really Abbie--the real Abbie disappeared and was never found. The Abbie who is waking up is actually a companion robot or "cobot", developed by the original Abbie's husband. It's as she begins to uncover her namesake's secrets that things start to get scary. Tech suspense with a twist.
City of Windows, by Robert Pobi. This buzz-worthy series launch introduces retired FBI agent (and astrophysicist) Dr. Lucas Page. In the field, Page was best known for his ability to survey a crime scene and allow him to break down the topography to math and statistical probabilities, like being able to pinpoint the origin of a sniper shot in the middle of a city. But the loss of a leg, an arm, and an eye during a shootout put an end to his FBI career, as well as his first marriage. There's nothing wrong with his brain, though, and ten years later he is teaching at Columbia University and writing books. He's reluctant to put his new life on the line when he's called upon to help investigate the shooting of his former partner, but old loyalties run deep. A tense plot and unique protagonist make this a good bet for a breakout thriller this summer.
The Doll Factory, by Elizabeth MacNeal. Psychological suspense meets 1850's London in this sharp new novel. A chance encounter in a crowd is a brief, forgettable encounter for alluring artist Iris, but for curiosity collector Silas, it is the beginning of an obsession--one that will only deepen and darken as Iris's star begins to rise among the city's artists. Fans of Caleb Carr's The Alienist should be placing their requests now.
Inland, by Tea Obreht. Obreht made quite a name for herself with 2011's award-winning novel The Tiger's Wife. She returns now with a tale set in late-1800s Arizona, where Nora waits on the family farm while her husband treks for water to revive their failing farm. Her two older sons have vanished after a fight, leaving Nora to fend for herself when a local outlaw starts making his presence known. If your ideal summer read is full of larger-than-life characters and gorgeous prose, look no further.
The Perfect Wife, by J.P. Delaney. Five years ago, Abbie suffered a terrible accident and is finally coming back to consciousness with the help of new technology. She's a wonderful mother and a talented artist and certainly will be again, or so says the man who claims to be her husband. The catch? It's not really Abbie--the real Abbie disappeared and was never found. The Abbie who is waking up is actually a companion robot or "cobot", developed by the original Abbie's husband. It's as she begins to uncover her namesake's secrets that things start to get scary. Tech suspense with a twist.
Tuesday, July 2, 2019
Reading Ahead: August 2019, part 1
Various flavors of suspense are on the menu for next month. Which will be your favorite?
The Last Widow, by Karin Slaughter. Readers haven't seen GBI special agent Will Trent since 2016's The Kept Woman, but the wait is finally over. Here he and Sara Linton, GBI medical examiner and Will's fiancee, must do battle with a group of radical homegrown terrorists bent on wreaking catastrophe on the state's capitol...just for starters. Slaughter is one of my favorites--this new title cannot get here quickly enough!
Outfox, by Sandra Brown. FBI special agent Drex Easton, hero of 2018 bestseller Tailspin, returns on the trail of a serial killer who has been preying on wealthy single women for decades. The quarry is cunning, leaving no clues, just a string of missing women and emptied bank accounts. He follows a lead and goes undercover, only to find himself falling for the suspected killer's next victim. If you like your suspense with a healthy dose of heat, Brown has you covered.
A Dangerous Man, by Robert Crais. Crais's latest picks up with investigators Elvis Cole and Joe Pike, following 2017's The Wanted. Pike rescues a young bank teller from two abductors, and then things get complicated. The abductors wind up dead, the teller vanishes, and Elvis does some digging to try and find out why the woman was targeted in the first place. Then things start to get really interesting...
The Turn of the Key, by Ruth Ware. Ware has a beautiful touch when it comes to modern gothic, and this updated retelling of Henry James's The Turn of the Screw is the perfect combination of classic elements and modern creepiness. Rowan Caine describes, in a series of letters to a lawyer from where she sits in prison, how she took a nanny position with the Elincourts because it solved both her job and living situation woes in one easy step. But the well-behaved girls were less so once their parents left, and the house's smart control system was no longer working as intended. High on the creeping dread factor, this is guaranteed to keep you up past your bedtime.
The Last Widow, by Karin Slaughter. Readers haven't seen GBI special agent Will Trent since 2016's The Kept Woman, but the wait is finally over. Here he and Sara Linton, GBI medical examiner and Will's fiancee, must do battle with a group of radical homegrown terrorists bent on wreaking catastrophe on the state's capitol...just for starters. Slaughter is one of my favorites--this new title cannot get here quickly enough!
Outfox, by Sandra Brown. FBI special agent Drex Easton, hero of 2018 bestseller Tailspin, returns on the trail of a serial killer who has been preying on wealthy single women for decades. The quarry is cunning, leaving no clues, just a string of missing women and emptied bank accounts. He follows a lead and goes undercover, only to find himself falling for the suspected killer's next victim. If you like your suspense with a healthy dose of heat, Brown has you covered.
A Dangerous Man, by Robert Crais. Crais's latest picks up with investigators Elvis Cole and Joe Pike, following 2017's The Wanted. Pike rescues a young bank teller from two abductors, and then things get complicated. The abductors wind up dead, the teller vanishes, and Elvis does some digging to try and find out why the woman was targeted in the first place. Then things start to get really interesting...
The Turn of the Key, by Ruth Ware. Ware has a beautiful touch when it comes to modern gothic, and this updated retelling of Henry James's The Turn of the Screw is the perfect combination of classic elements and modern creepiness. Rowan Caine describes, in a series of letters to a lawyer from where she sits in prison, how she took a nanny position with the Elincourts because it solved both her job and living situation woes in one easy step. But the well-behaved girls were less so once their parents left, and the house's smart control system was no longer working as intended. High on the creeping dread factor, this is guaranteed to keep you up past your bedtime.
Thursday, June 27, 2019
Meg's Picks: July 2019, part 2
Summer reads come in all shapes and sizes. If your preferences run serious or suspenseful, these might just be what you were looking for!
The Nickel Boys, by Colson Whitehead. Whitehead's 2016 novel The Underground Railroad won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the 2016 National Book Award for Fiction. So if we're eager to see what comes next, I think that's only natural. Here, the strand of history he's dramatized follows two boys sentenced to a hellish reform school in Jim-Crow era Florida, based on an actual reformatory which operated for 111 years. If you prefer your summer reads serious and intense, you cannot miss this.
Lock Every Door, by Riley Sager. Riley Sager is totally a staff darling here at the library. We loved his debut, Final Girls, and his sophomore novel, The Last Time I Lied. We absolutely anticipate a hat-trick with Lock Every Door, in which Jules's new job as an apartment sitter in one of New York's oldest and most glamorous buildings may just cost more than it pays...
Stone Cold Heart, by Caz Frear. Frear is another new favorite, following her stellar suspense debut last summer, Sweet Little Lies, with a second novel featuring Detective Constable Cat Kinsella. She's back at London Metropolitan Police with her wisecracking partner Parnell, both of them trying to avoid the ire of boss DI Kate Steele. It's all business when they catch a case, though, involving a young Australian woman who's turned up dead following a party thrown by her new boss. The lead suspect's alibi is his wife, and she contradicts him, but which one is lying, and why? Murder is only the beginning of the mystery here.
Someone We Know, by Shari Lapena. Following 2018's An Unwanted Guest. Someone has been sneaking into houses, and their inhabitants computers, in a quiet suburb in upstate New York. They've been learning their neighbors' secrets, and perhaps sharing them. Who is he? What might he have learned? After two anonymous letters show up, rumors circulate, suspicions grow, and then a woman is found murdered. How far will these nice, unassuming neighbors go in order to keep their secrets?
The Nickel Boys, by Colson Whitehead. Whitehead's 2016 novel The Underground Railroad won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the 2016 National Book Award for Fiction. So if we're eager to see what comes next, I think that's only natural. Here, the strand of history he's dramatized follows two boys sentenced to a hellish reform school in Jim-Crow era Florida, based on an actual reformatory which operated for 111 years. If you prefer your summer reads serious and intense, you cannot miss this.
Lock Every Door, by Riley Sager. Riley Sager is totally a staff darling here at the library. We loved his debut, Final Girls, and his sophomore novel, The Last Time I Lied. We absolutely anticipate a hat-trick with Lock Every Door, in which Jules's new job as an apartment sitter in one of New York's oldest and most glamorous buildings may just cost more than it pays...
Stone Cold Heart, by Caz Frear. Frear is another new favorite, following her stellar suspense debut last summer, Sweet Little Lies, with a second novel featuring Detective Constable Cat Kinsella. She's back at London Metropolitan Police with her wisecracking partner Parnell, both of them trying to avoid the ire of boss DI Kate Steele. It's all business when they catch a case, though, involving a young Australian woman who's turned up dead following a party thrown by her new boss. The lead suspect's alibi is his wife, and she contradicts him, but which one is lying, and why? Murder is only the beginning of the mystery here.
Someone We Know, by Shari Lapena. Following 2018's An Unwanted Guest. Someone has been sneaking into houses, and their inhabitants computers, in a quiet suburb in upstate New York. They've been learning their neighbors' secrets, and perhaps sharing them. Who is he? What might he have learned? After two anonymous letters show up, rumors circulate, suspicions grow, and then a woman is found murdered. How far will these nice, unassuming neighbors go in order to keep their secrets?
Thursday, June 13, 2019
Reading Ahead: July 2019, part 3
If variety is the spice of life, then this summer's book list is quite spicy!
Lady in the Lake, by Laura Lippman. Modern psychological insights meet classic noir in Lippman's latest, set in 1960's Baltimore. Thirty-something housewife Maddie separates from her husband after an old friend reminds her of all she used to long to be, beyond marriage and motherhood. She relishes her newfound freedom, her own apartment, her affair with a city patrolman. It's only when she manages to leverage her story concerning a murdered child and her correspondence with the killer into a position with the Star that Maddie really hits her stride. If a sophisticated crime novel is your favorite brand of summer reading, this should absolutely hit your list.
The Golden Hour, by Beatriz Williams. Willams's latest is an epic foray into one of the most enigmatic couples in history, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, as seen through the eyes of a young woman who arrives in the Bahamas in 1941 determined to work her way into their inner circle. Williams is fast becoming a favorite staple for summer reading enthusiasts.
Window on the Bay, by Debbie Macomber. This standalone romance from Macomber finds college friends Jenna and Maureen now divorced empty nesters, each encouraged by their children to try dating again. Maybe it's time to dust off their passports and travel? Or maybe romance is right in their own backyard, just waiting to surprise them. A comfortable, easy read.
Surfside Sisters, by Nancy Thayer. Keely was eager to leave Nantucket behind to follow her dream of becoming a writer. Now a successful novelist with all that accompanies it, living in New York, keely's starting to reconsider what's important to her. A relationship gone sour has resulted in some serious writer's block, made worse when her editor rejects her latest novel. The slower, calmer pace of island life may be just the cure for what ails her.
I'll be picking up next week with my Meg's Picks posts--hint: there's a LOT of them for July! See you then!
Lady in the Lake, by Laura Lippman. Modern psychological insights meet classic noir in Lippman's latest, set in 1960's Baltimore. Thirty-something housewife Maddie separates from her husband after an old friend reminds her of all she used to long to be, beyond marriage and motherhood. She relishes her newfound freedom, her own apartment, her affair with a city patrolman. It's only when she manages to leverage her story concerning a murdered child and her correspondence with the killer into a position with the Star that Maddie really hits her stride. If a sophisticated crime novel is your favorite brand of summer reading, this should absolutely hit your list.
The Golden Hour, by Beatriz Williams. Willams's latest is an epic foray into one of the most enigmatic couples in history, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, as seen through the eyes of a young woman who arrives in the Bahamas in 1941 determined to work her way into their inner circle. Williams is fast becoming a favorite staple for summer reading enthusiasts.
Window on the Bay, by Debbie Macomber. This standalone romance from Macomber finds college friends Jenna and Maureen now divorced empty nesters, each encouraged by their children to try dating again. Maybe it's time to dust off their passports and travel? Or maybe romance is right in their own backyard, just waiting to surprise them. A comfortable, easy read.
Surfside Sisters, by Nancy Thayer. Keely was eager to leave Nantucket behind to follow her dream of becoming a writer. Now a successful novelist with all that accompanies it, living in New York, keely's starting to reconsider what's important to her. A relationship gone sour has resulted in some serious writer's block, made worse when her editor rejects her latest novel. The slower, calmer pace of island life may be just the cure for what ails her.
I'll be picking up next week with my Meg's Picks posts--hint: there's a LOT of them for July! See you then!
Tuesday, June 11, 2019
Reading Ahead: July 2019, part 2
A selection of new suspense for your perusal!
Game of Snipers, by Stephen Hunter. Hunter's latest Bob Lee Swagger novel, following 2017's G-Man, finds storied marksman Swagger, now 72 and retired, enjoying the solitude of his Idaho ranch. That peace is interrupted by a stranger, Janet McDowell, who comes to Swagger for help: track down the man who killed her son, a task that will require him to assemble his old team and work with both the FBI and Mossad in a race to the epic showdown implied by the title.
Good Girl, Bad Girl, by Michael Robotham. Robotham's new haunting thriller features a forensic psychologist, Cyrus Haven, who is preoccupied by two major cases. One is the case of a murdered young figure skater, cut down just as her star was on the rise. The other is to assess the fitness for release of a highly vulnerable teen from a children's home--she was found six years ago, hiding in a North London home when a murder had recently occurred. At that time, she was malnourished and so traumatized she couldn't remember her name. Though the two girls' cases are vastly different, Cyrus soon discovers the very adult problems of each were absolutely enough to incite violence. If one girl already died for such secrets, might the other still be in danger?
Bark of Night, by David Rosenfelt. When lawyer Andy Carpenter finds out that his veterinarian has been instructed to euthanize a perfectly healthy French bulldog, Truman, he's understandably angry and agrees to take on Truman as part of his canine rescue program. When they check the dog's microchip, however, they discover that the man who dropped him off was not his owner, and then his real owner is found murdered. And then the man who ordered Truman's demise is also found murdered...
The Shameless, by Ace Atkins. Years ago, teenager Brandon Taylor walked into the woodlands of Mississippi and was found a week later, dead of what was ruled a self-inflicted gunshot wound. But a cold-case podcaster and her producer are in town now, questioning the ruling and asking after files and evidence that seem to have gone missing. Sheriff Quinn Colson (last seen in 2018's The Sinners) wants to help, but an old case that was supposedly closed will have to take a back burner to his current concerns: a crime syndicate running guns, drugs and a human trafficking ring through the county, and a racist gubernatorial candidate whose campaign seems to be funded by the syndicate. If Quinn can't shut the whole thing down, fast, trouble is going to make itself right at home in the county, for good.
Game of Snipers, by Stephen Hunter. Hunter's latest Bob Lee Swagger novel, following 2017's G-Man, finds storied marksman Swagger, now 72 and retired, enjoying the solitude of his Idaho ranch. That peace is interrupted by a stranger, Janet McDowell, who comes to Swagger for help: track down the man who killed her son, a task that will require him to assemble his old team and work with both the FBI and Mossad in a race to the epic showdown implied by the title.
Good Girl, Bad Girl, by Michael Robotham. Robotham's new haunting thriller features a forensic psychologist, Cyrus Haven, who is preoccupied by two major cases. One is the case of a murdered young figure skater, cut down just as her star was on the rise. The other is to assess the fitness for release of a highly vulnerable teen from a children's home--she was found six years ago, hiding in a North London home when a murder had recently occurred. At that time, she was malnourished and so traumatized she couldn't remember her name. Though the two girls' cases are vastly different, Cyrus soon discovers the very adult problems of each were absolutely enough to incite violence. If one girl already died for such secrets, might the other still be in danger?
Bark of Night, by David Rosenfelt. When lawyer Andy Carpenter finds out that his veterinarian has been instructed to euthanize a perfectly healthy French bulldog, Truman, he's understandably angry and agrees to take on Truman as part of his canine rescue program. When they check the dog's microchip, however, they discover that the man who dropped him off was not his owner, and then his real owner is found murdered. And then the man who ordered Truman's demise is also found murdered...
The Shameless, by Ace Atkins. Years ago, teenager Brandon Taylor walked into the woodlands of Mississippi and was found a week later, dead of what was ruled a self-inflicted gunshot wound. But a cold-case podcaster and her producer are in town now, questioning the ruling and asking after files and evidence that seem to have gone missing. Sheriff Quinn Colson (last seen in 2018's The Sinners) wants to help, but an old case that was supposedly closed will have to take a back burner to his current concerns: a crime syndicate running guns, drugs and a human trafficking ring through the county, and a racist gubernatorial candidate whose campaign seems to be funded by the syndicate. If Quinn can't shut the whole thing down, fast, trouble is going to make itself right at home in the county, for good.
Thursday, June 6, 2019
Reading Ahead: July 2019
I know, we're already talking July! But this summer's books just cannot wait any longer! And some of your favorite best-selling authors are leading the charge!
The New Girl, by Daniel Silva. Legendary chief of Israeli intelligence Gabriel Allon (last seen in 2018's The Other Woman) has spent much of his life fighting terrorists. Now, he's the one man who can be trusted to track down the men who have brutally kidnapped the daughter of the much-maligned crown prince of Saudi Arabia and rescue the young woman in question. In the process, Gabriel and the prince become uneasy allies in a secret game that may change relations in the Middle East forever. If you like your espionage plotted at breakneck speed, this is for you.
Under Currents, by Nora Roberts. At a distance, the Bigelow family looks like perfection: successful surgeon father, stylish wife, two children who excel. But those children, Zane and Britt, know the truth: appearances can be very deceiving. As Zane's father's abuse becomes more severe, and his mother ever complicit, Zane tries to protect his little sister, even as he counts down the time until he can be free of this oppressive household. It's only after one final act shatters the facade that Zane realizes that there is both pain and freedom in facing the truth, and he vows to do better as he forges a new life and starts a family of his own. How long will it be, though, before darkness looms again in his life?
Labyrinth, by Catherine Coulter. The new FBI thriller from Coulter (Paradox, 2018, etc.) finds Agent Sherlock navigating the winding roads of West Virginia only to lose control of her vehicle. She's knocked unconscious, but upon waking, she's sure she remembers someone else involved in the accident. Perhaps he is involved in the string of local murders she's investigating?
Smokescreen, by Iris Johansen. When forensic sculptor Eve Duncan learns that a guerilla attack on an African village has left a number of children burned beyond recognition, she races to the site to lend a hand in identifying the bodies for their desperate families. Upon her arrival at the site, however, she soon realizes that something even more dire is afoot. Series fans won't want to miss out.
Shamed, by Linda Castillo. Castillo returns to Painter's Mill and Police Chief Kate Burkholder as an Amish woman has been murdered and her young grandchild kidnapped. Kate now needs answers from the tight-lipped Amish community, and quickly, as she learns that long-kept secrets may be responsible for a current crime-spree. If you're looking for an Amish cozy, this isn't it--Castillo's Amish suspense series is gritty and deeply engrossing.
The New Girl, by Daniel Silva. Legendary chief of Israeli intelligence Gabriel Allon (last seen in 2018's The Other Woman) has spent much of his life fighting terrorists. Now, he's the one man who can be trusted to track down the men who have brutally kidnapped the daughter of the much-maligned crown prince of Saudi Arabia and rescue the young woman in question. In the process, Gabriel and the prince become uneasy allies in a secret game that may change relations in the Middle East forever. If you like your espionage plotted at breakneck speed, this is for you.
Under Currents, by Nora Roberts. At a distance, the Bigelow family looks like perfection: successful surgeon father, stylish wife, two children who excel. But those children, Zane and Britt, know the truth: appearances can be very deceiving. As Zane's father's abuse becomes more severe, and his mother ever complicit, Zane tries to protect his little sister, even as he counts down the time until he can be free of this oppressive household. It's only after one final act shatters the facade that Zane realizes that there is both pain and freedom in facing the truth, and he vows to do better as he forges a new life and starts a family of his own. How long will it be, though, before darkness looms again in his life?
Labyrinth, by Catherine Coulter. The new FBI thriller from Coulter (Paradox, 2018, etc.) finds Agent Sherlock navigating the winding roads of West Virginia only to lose control of her vehicle. She's knocked unconscious, but upon waking, she's sure she remembers someone else involved in the accident. Perhaps he is involved in the string of local murders she's investigating?
Smokescreen, by Iris Johansen. When forensic sculptor Eve Duncan learns that a guerilla attack on an African village has left a number of children burned beyond recognition, she races to the site to lend a hand in identifying the bodies for their desperate families. Upon her arrival at the site, however, she soon realizes that something even more dire is afoot. Series fans won't want to miss out.
Shamed, by Linda Castillo. Castillo returns to Painter's Mill and Police Chief Kate Burkholder as an Amish woman has been murdered and her young grandchild kidnapped. Kate now needs answers from the tight-lipped Amish community, and quickly, as she learns that long-kept secrets may be responsible for a current crime-spree. If you're looking for an Amish cozy, this isn't it--Castillo's Amish suspense series is gritty and deeply engrossing.
Tuesday, May 28, 2019
Meg's Picks: June 2019, part 2
New novels from favorite authors and debuts are on the horizon. What's on your reading list?
Searching for Sylvie Lee, by Jean Kwok. I adored Kwok's debut, Girl in Translation (2010), and given the buzz about her upcoming novel, I'm extra excited. Amy Lee's family was too poor to keep her older sister Sylvie, who was then raised for some time by a distant relative. Now an adult, Sylvie has disappeared, and as Amy starts to retrace Sylvie's steps in an effort to find her, she uncovers a number of her sister's deeply buried secrets. For those who like a page-turner with strong family ties, this should be at the top of your list for summer reads.
Conviction, by Denise Mina. Mina, who is best known for her series of novels set in historical Glasgow (The Red Road, etc.), moves seamlessly into the present with a timely new novel of suspense. Anna McDonald left her past behind in London and started over in Glasgow, which was great, until it wasn't. Now her husband's run off with her best friend, Estelle. Anna and Estelle's former rock-star husband fall in together on a road-trip that follows the true-crime podcast they're binge-listening...until Anna's past looms up on all sides. A story in a story that is getting some excellent advance praise.
Girl in the Rearview Mirror, by Kelsey Rae Dimberg. I'm always on the lookout for the next debut smash, and I think this might be just such a novel. Finn Hunt is bored with her office job and jumps at the chance to nanny for Phoenix's first family, the Martins. Philip is being groomed to take on his father's seat in the Senate, and Marina is a museum director who oozes class and glamor. Finn's new life as nanny to four-year-old Amabel makes her feel protective of the family she views as completely ideal...until a stranger hands her information that shatters her illusions and may yet bring down the family's dynasty. This is one to watch!
The Most Fun We Ever Had, by Claire Lombardo. Speaking of brilliant debuts to watch next month, Lombardo's thriller is garnering huge praise already. David and Marilyn meet and marry in the 1970s, raising four daughters in a rambling suburban Chicago home that had belonged to Marilyn's father. The daughters all find professional success of one sort or another, but decades later, none of them have yet found the spark shared by their parents, even after forty years of marriage. Each of the four sisters struggles in different ways, and sibling rivalries and secrets are never far below the surface over the course of the story, one year in the Sorenson family. Expect your friends to be talking about this one.
Searching for Sylvie Lee, by Jean Kwok. I adored Kwok's debut, Girl in Translation (2010), and given the buzz about her upcoming novel, I'm extra excited. Amy Lee's family was too poor to keep her older sister Sylvie, who was then raised for some time by a distant relative. Now an adult, Sylvie has disappeared, and as Amy starts to retrace Sylvie's steps in an effort to find her, she uncovers a number of her sister's deeply buried secrets. For those who like a page-turner with strong family ties, this should be at the top of your list for summer reads.
Conviction, by Denise Mina. Mina, who is best known for her series of novels set in historical Glasgow (The Red Road, etc.), moves seamlessly into the present with a timely new novel of suspense. Anna McDonald left her past behind in London and started over in Glasgow, which was great, until it wasn't. Now her husband's run off with her best friend, Estelle. Anna and Estelle's former rock-star husband fall in together on a road-trip that follows the true-crime podcast they're binge-listening...until Anna's past looms up on all sides. A story in a story that is getting some excellent advance praise.
Girl in the Rearview Mirror, by Kelsey Rae Dimberg. I'm always on the lookout for the next debut smash, and I think this might be just such a novel. Finn Hunt is bored with her office job and jumps at the chance to nanny for Phoenix's first family, the Martins. Philip is being groomed to take on his father's seat in the Senate, and Marina is a museum director who oozes class and glamor. Finn's new life as nanny to four-year-old Amabel makes her feel protective of the family she views as completely ideal...until a stranger hands her information that shatters her illusions and may yet bring down the family's dynasty. This is one to watch!
The Most Fun We Ever Had, by Claire Lombardo. Speaking of brilliant debuts to watch next month, Lombardo's thriller is garnering huge praise already. David and Marilyn meet and marry in the 1970s, raising four daughters in a rambling suburban Chicago home that had belonged to Marilyn's father. The daughters all find professional success of one sort or another, but decades later, none of them have yet found the spark shared by their parents, even after forty years of marriage. Each of the four sisters struggles in different ways, and sibling rivalries and secrets are never far below the surface over the course of the story, one year in the Sorenson family. Expect your friends to be talking about this one.
Tuesday, May 21, 2019
Meg's Picks: June 2019, part 1
I have to say, sometimes the length of time I have to hold back on these lists is crazy-making! I've had some of these titles on order for months, and I am so excited I finally get to share now that they're on the near horizon.
After the End, by Clare Mackintosh. Latest by Mackintosh (Let Me Lie, etc.) is an emotional page-turner about impossible choices, and the different paths that life can take. Based loosely on her own experiences, this departure from her normal mystery-thrillers follows the journey of couple Max and Pip Adams as they must make heart-rending decision regarding the care of their terminally ill son. Make sure you bring your tissues!
Recursion, by Blake Crouch. Crouch, author of Dark Matter and the Wayward Pines trilogy, follow Dark Matter's Barry Sutton as he investigates a technology that was originally created in order to preserve our most beloved memories, and which now is also being used to implant false memories, shredding reality and ruining lives. I'm recommending this for fans of Andy Weir (The Martian) and Michael Crichton.
The First Mistake, by Sandie Jones. Author of 2018 reader favorite The Other Woman, Jones brings readers a new novel of domestic suspense. Alice is happily remarried to Nathan after the death of her first husband, and grateful for her good friend Beth. But she's growing suspicious about Nathan's long stretches away on business. Then she starts to wonder about just how reliable Beth is, after all. Deftly paced suspense with a roller-coaster's worth of twists and turns--if it's not on your list, it should be!
The Islanders, by Meg Mitchell Moore. Moore (The Admissions, etc.) follows the lives of three strangers who connect one summer on Block Island. Anthony's second novel has been a flop, and he's retreated to house-sit and hopefully jump-start the work on his comeback novel. Island bakery owner Joy is trying to juggle keeping her small business solvent while single-parenting her teenage daughter. And Lu is supposed to be riding herd on her young sons, but is more and more absorbed by a side-project she's keeping a secret from everyone including her husband. Moore is a reliably engaging storyteller, so you won't want to miss this.
Tuesday, May 7, 2019
Reading Ahead: June 2019, part 2
Suspense? Mysteries? Sure!
The Last House Guest, by Megan Miranda. Latest from the author of The Perfect Stranger (2017) and All the Missing Girls (2016). Avery Greer, resident of coastal Littleport, ME, is good friends with Sadie Loman. This is mostly unusual because locals like Avery don't normally mix much with the wealthy summer visitor set. After a decade of summers spent as BFFs, the friendship ends...but only because Sadie is found dead. The death, ruled a suicide, doesn't keep some folks (the local detective and Sadie's brother, for starters) from feeling like Avery might have been involved. It's up to Avery to prove her innocence once and for all. A gripping thriller with a strong female lead? Yes, please!
The Sentence is Death, by Anthony Horowitz. In 2018's meta-mystery, The Word is Murder, a defrocked Scotland Yard detective turned private investigator named Daniel Hawthorne got aid from a novelist named Anthony Horowitz. (No relation.) Now, the duo is back, this time investigating the untimely demise of celebrity divorce attorney Richard Price, clobbered in his home with a pricey bottle of wine.
The Last House Guest, by Megan Miranda. Latest from the author of The Perfect Stranger (2017) and All the Missing Girls (2016). Avery Greer, resident of coastal Littleport, ME, is good friends with Sadie Loman. This is mostly unusual because locals like Avery don't normally mix much with the wealthy summer visitor set. After a decade of summers spent as BFFs, the friendship ends...but only because Sadie is found dead. The death, ruled a suicide, doesn't keep some folks (the local detective and Sadie's brother, for starters) from feeling like Avery might have been involved. It's up to Avery to prove her innocence once and for all. A gripping thriller with a strong female lead? Yes, please!
The Sentence is Death, by Anthony Horowitz. In 2018's meta-mystery, The Word is Murder, a defrocked Scotland Yard detective turned private investigator named Daniel Hawthorne got aid from a novelist named Anthony Horowitz. (No relation.) Now, the duo is back, this time investigating the untimely demise of celebrity divorce attorney Richard Price, clobbered in his home with a pricey bottle of wine.
Thursday, May 2, 2019
Reading Ahead: June 2019, part 1
Summer always means truckloads of new fiction titles, and if you're the kind of reader that thrives on an embarrassment of choices, this is only the beginning!
Big Sky, by Kate Atkinson. Atkinson brings back former policeman-turned-PI Jackson Brodie (last seen in 2010's Started Early, Took My Dog), who is now living in Yorkshire and grappling with the mysteries of parenting. Brodie himself had a difficult childhood, making his journey through co-parenting a teenager a particular challenge. Add that to a case surveilling an adulterer and a chance encounter interrupting a suicide, and Brodie has himself quite a full plate. Series fans will not want to miss this. New to the series? Start with 2004's Case Histories.
Backlash, by Brad Thor. Scott Harvath, ex- Navy SEAL and current Secret Service agent, was last seen in 2018's Spymaster. Now, he finds himself far from home, surrounded by his enemies, and badly double-crossed. Worse still--no one is coming to help him. No one even knows where he is. His immediate goal? Survive. His ultimate goal? Revenge.
The Oracle, by Clive Cussler and Robin Burcell. Sam and Remi Fargo. Married couple. Professional treasure hunters. (Last seen in The Gray Ghost, 2018.) Now, they're chasing an ancient scroll which may or may not be cursed: When a long-lost kingdom fell centuries ago, the sacred scroll's location was lost, as well. The Fargo's most recent archaeological dig has produced some clues, though, send them on an adventure to find the scroll and lift the curse, though not without running afoul of bandits and kidnappers in the process. Some real Indiana-Jones-type stuff here for adventure fans.
Big Sky, by Kate Atkinson. Atkinson brings back former policeman-turned-PI Jackson Brodie (last seen in 2010's Started Early, Took My Dog), who is now living in Yorkshire and grappling with the mysteries of parenting. Brodie himself had a difficult childhood, making his journey through co-parenting a teenager a particular challenge. Add that to a case surveilling an adulterer and a chance encounter interrupting a suicide, and Brodie has himself quite a full plate. Series fans will not want to miss this. New to the series? Start with 2004's Case Histories.
Backlash, by Brad Thor. Scott Harvath, ex- Navy SEAL and current Secret Service agent, was last seen in 2018's Spymaster. Now, he finds himself far from home, surrounded by his enemies, and badly double-crossed. Worse still--no one is coming to help him. No one even knows where he is. His immediate goal? Survive. His ultimate goal? Revenge.
The Oracle, by Clive Cussler and Robin Burcell. Sam and Remi Fargo. Married couple. Professional treasure hunters. (Last seen in The Gray Ghost, 2018.) Now, they're chasing an ancient scroll which may or may not be cursed: When a long-lost kingdom fell centuries ago, the sacred scroll's location was lost, as well. The Fargo's most recent archaeological dig has produced some clues, though, send them on an adventure to find the scroll and lift the curse, though not without running afoul of bandits and kidnappers in the process. Some real Indiana-Jones-type stuff here for adventure fans.
Tuesday, April 9, 2019
Reading Ahead: May 2019, part 1
I know, I've been MIA. A dreadful combination of reader's block (even librarians get the blues) and writer's block (it's been 5 years and over 700 posts. Sometimes a woman needs a break!). In any case, I'm working on shaking off both of these hindrances and appreciate your patience in the meantime.
The titles for next month just won't wait any longer, though, so here are the brief versions of a few you might want to reserve now:
The Last Time I Saw You, by Liv Constantine. Constantine's debut, The Last Mrs. Parrish, was on bestsellers' lists and was a huge favorite of library staff and patrons alike. The author, actually two sisters who write together, returns here with a new page-turner: when her high-society mother is murdered, Dr. Kate English's perfect world begins to crumble. She leans heavily on the shoulder of an old friend to get her through the mourning, but then finds that the murderer may not be done...not by a long shot.
Keep You Close, by Karen Cleveland. Cleveland is another author whose debut, Need to Know, absolutely wowed us with plot twists galore. We're delighted she's back with a new novel of deception and betrayal--when single parent and FBI analyst Stephanie finds a gun in her teenage son's room, she is beyond unprepared. Then a colleague on the domestic terrorism squad turns her shock into a spiral of terror and conspiracy with three little words: "It's about Zachary."
The Never Game, by Jeffery Deaver. Author of the best-selling Lincoln Rhyme series kicks off a new series here featuring professional "reward seeker" Colter Shaw. Shaw, son of a survivalist and an extraordinary tracker, works with law enforcement to help find missing persons. But in this seemingly simple case of a young woman's disappearance in Silicon Valley turns into something much bigger than anyone could have guessed.
Cari Mora, by Thomas Harris. Best known for his novels featuring the diabolical Hannibal Lecter, Harris treats readers to a new thriller with another unforgettable heroine. For years, ruthless men have sought the legendary twenty-five million in cartel gold. In fact, it lies hidden beneath a mansion in Miami Beach. Cari Mora, the house's caretaker, is a woman who has escaped the war in her native country, though not unscathed. When the frontrunner in the race to find the gold comes up against Cari, he will find himself up against a skilled survivor the likes of which he hadn't ever expected...
The Night Before, by Wendy Walker. Connecticut author Wendy Walker is a library favorite! Laura has led a troubled life, from a tragedy when she was young through a number of terribly failed romances, the last of which sent her running from her Wall Street job to lick her wounds in the home of her sister Rosie, located in the Connecticut suburb where they grew up. Laura isn't content to brood for long, though, and soon goes out with a man she met on a dating site. Except she never comes home, and Rosie's starting to worry...not just about what he may have done to Laura, but what she may have done to him.
The titles for next month just won't wait any longer, though, so here are the brief versions of a few you might want to reserve now:
The Last Time I Saw You, by Liv Constantine. Constantine's debut, The Last Mrs. Parrish, was on bestsellers' lists and was a huge favorite of library staff and patrons alike. The author, actually two sisters who write together, returns here with a new page-turner: when her high-society mother is murdered, Dr. Kate English's perfect world begins to crumble. She leans heavily on the shoulder of an old friend to get her through the mourning, but then finds that the murderer may not be done...not by a long shot.
Keep You Close, by Karen Cleveland. Cleveland is another author whose debut, Need to Know, absolutely wowed us with plot twists galore. We're delighted she's back with a new novel of deception and betrayal--when single parent and FBI analyst Stephanie finds a gun in her teenage son's room, she is beyond unprepared. Then a colleague on the domestic terrorism squad turns her shock into a spiral of terror and conspiracy with three little words: "It's about Zachary."
The Never Game, by Jeffery Deaver. Author of the best-selling Lincoln Rhyme series kicks off a new series here featuring professional "reward seeker" Colter Shaw. Shaw, son of a survivalist and an extraordinary tracker, works with law enforcement to help find missing persons. But in this seemingly simple case of a young woman's disappearance in Silicon Valley turns into something much bigger than anyone could have guessed.
Cari Mora, by Thomas Harris. Best known for his novels featuring the diabolical Hannibal Lecter, Harris treats readers to a new thriller with another unforgettable heroine. For years, ruthless men have sought the legendary twenty-five million in cartel gold. In fact, it lies hidden beneath a mansion in Miami Beach. Cari Mora, the house's caretaker, is a woman who has escaped the war in her native country, though not unscathed. When the frontrunner in the race to find the gold comes up against Cari, he will find himself up against a skilled survivor the likes of which he hadn't ever expected...
The Night Before, by Wendy Walker. Connecticut author Wendy Walker is a library favorite! Laura has led a troubled life, from a tragedy when she was young through a number of terribly failed romances, the last of which sent her running from her Wall Street job to lick her wounds in the home of her sister Rosie, located in the Connecticut suburb where they grew up. Laura isn't content to brood for long, though, and soon goes out with a man she met on a dating site. Except she never comes home, and Rosie's starting to worry...not just about what he may have done to Laura, but what she may have done to him.
Tuesday, March 26, 2019
Meg's Picks: April 2019, part 3
So many great new titles to read in the coming month! As if the choices weren't hard enough, here are two more that are on my radar.
The Red Daughter, by John Burnham Schwartz. In the 1960s, Joseph Stalin's daughter Svetlana Alliluyeva defects to America, running from her father's brutal legacy. Her escort? Young lawyer Paul Horvath, furnished by the CIA. Her life in America is not what she had expected, filled with stumbling blocks and mistakes, and she ultimately turns to Paul for help--even as the CIA keeps tabs on their relationship. Schwartz's father was that young lawyer, and here has crafted a fictional account of these events based on his own research and his father's reminiscences. For fans of Amor Towles (A Gentleman in Moscow, etc.) and Paula McLain (The Paris Wife, etc.), this should absolutely be on your list.
I Know Who You Are, by Alice Feeney. Feeney's follow-up to the extremely popular Sometimes I Lie (2018) stars actress Aimee Sinclair, who everyone seems to think they know from...something? It's hard to be almost famous, almost known. But one person knows Aimee very, very well--both who she is...and what she has done. And when her husband disappears, she doesn't know what to think or how to act. Of course the police think she's hiding something, and she is, but it's an older, darker secret, one that someone out there seems to know. If Aimee is going to survive this, she's got a lot of digging to do. Psychological suspense fans are already lining up--are you one of them?
The Red Daughter, by John Burnham Schwartz. In the 1960s, Joseph Stalin's daughter Svetlana Alliluyeva defects to America, running from her father's brutal legacy. Her escort? Young lawyer Paul Horvath, furnished by the CIA. Her life in America is not what she had expected, filled with stumbling blocks and mistakes, and she ultimately turns to Paul for help--even as the CIA keeps tabs on their relationship. Schwartz's father was that young lawyer, and here has crafted a fictional account of these events based on his own research and his father's reminiscences. For fans of Amor Towles (A Gentleman in Moscow, etc.) and Paula McLain (The Paris Wife, etc.), this should absolutely be on your list.
I Know Who You Are, by Alice Feeney. Feeney's follow-up to the extremely popular Sometimes I Lie (2018) stars actress Aimee Sinclair, who everyone seems to think they know from...something? It's hard to be almost famous, almost known. But one person knows Aimee very, very well--both who she is...and what she has done. And when her husband disappears, she doesn't know what to think or how to act. Of course the police think she's hiding something, and she is, but it's an older, darker secret, one that someone out there seems to know. If Aimee is going to survive this, she's got a lot of digging to do. Psychological suspense fans are already lining up--are you one of them?
Tuesday, March 12, 2019
Reading Ahead: April 2019, part 1
Thrillers are thick on the ground, so if you're looking for fast reads with twisted plots, read on!
Redemption, by David Baldacci. Baldacci's latest in his Memory Man series featuring Amos Decker (The Fallen, 2018, etc.) hearkens back to Decker's early days as a detective. After a dozen years, the man who approaches Decker during a visit to his hometown of Burlington, Ohio is totally unrecognizable. His name, however, is one that Decker cannot every forget: Meryl Hawkins was the first man Decker ever arrested for murder. Hawkins continues to maintain he never committed the murders, and doubt begins to nag at Decker enough to review the old case, only to find a connection to a new crime in progress, one that he may be able to prevent if he can move quickly enough...
Saving Meghan, by D.J. Palmer. D.J. (Daniel) Palmer's newest novel finds devoted mother Becky Gerard working diligently to help her fifteen-year-old daughter Meghan, who has been in and out of hospitals and doctors' offices with a series of unexplained illnesses. Meghan's father, Carl, begins to worry that Becky is obsessed. The medical team begins to question whether Becky is demonstrating signs of Munchausen by proxy, with Meghan as her victim. Is Meghan really sick? Is something more sinister at work here? As suspicions grow and pit one character against another, one will have to risk everything to expose the truth.
Willing to Die, by Lisa Jackson. Eighth in Jackson's To Die series, following 2017's Expecting to Die, follows detectives Alvarez and Pescoli as they investigate the murders of Dr. Paul Letham and his wife, Brindel, who are found dead in separate beds in their beautiful San Francisco home.
Someone Knows, by Lisa Scottoline. Not guilty doesn't always mean innocent in Scottoline's latest. When Allie Garvey heads home after twenty years away, it's for the funeral of a childhood friend. And in addition to the expected sadness, Allie's also overwhelmed with dread--going home means seeing two people she'd hoped never to see again. The three of them have kept a terrible secret ever since a night of partying in the woods one night resulted in a prank gone tragically wrong. Teenage Allie thought getting caught would have been the worst thing, but adult Allie knows better--living decades with her guilt has been devastating. Back at the proverbial scene of the crime, Allie must dig back into her past to uncover the truth once and for all, if only to unburden herself. But the truth may just be more shocking than she could have ever imagined... Early reviews are saying that Scottoline has outdone herself this time, so this may just be the one to pick up this spring.
Redemption, by David Baldacci. Baldacci's latest in his Memory Man series featuring Amos Decker (The Fallen, 2018, etc.) hearkens back to Decker's early days as a detective. After a dozen years, the man who approaches Decker during a visit to his hometown of Burlington, Ohio is totally unrecognizable. His name, however, is one that Decker cannot every forget: Meryl Hawkins was the first man Decker ever arrested for murder. Hawkins continues to maintain he never committed the murders, and doubt begins to nag at Decker enough to review the old case, only to find a connection to a new crime in progress, one that he may be able to prevent if he can move quickly enough...
Saving Meghan, by D.J. Palmer. D.J. (Daniel) Palmer's newest novel finds devoted mother Becky Gerard working diligently to help her fifteen-year-old daughter Meghan, who has been in and out of hospitals and doctors' offices with a series of unexplained illnesses. Meghan's father, Carl, begins to worry that Becky is obsessed. The medical team begins to question whether Becky is demonstrating signs of Munchausen by proxy, with Meghan as her victim. Is Meghan really sick? Is something more sinister at work here? As suspicions grow and pit one character against another, one will have to risk everything to expose the truth.
Willing to Die, by Lisa Jackson. Eighth in Jackson's To Die series, following 2017's Expecting to Die, follows detectives Alvarez and Pescoli as they investigate the murders of Dr. Paul Letham and his wife, Brindel, who are found dead in separate beds in their beautiful San Francisco home.
Someone Knows, by Lisa Scottoline. Not guilty doesn't always mean innocent in Scottoline's latest. When Allie Garvey heads home after twenty years away, it's for the funeral of a childhood friend. And in addition to the expected sadness, Allie's also overwhelmed with dread--going home means seeing two people she'd hoped never to see again. The three of them have kept a terrible secret ever since a night of partying in the woods one night resulted in a prank gone tragically wrong. Teenage Allie thought getting caught would have been the worst thing, but adult Allie knows better--living decades with her guilt has been devastating. Back at the proverbial scene of the crime, Allie must dig back into her past to uncover the truth once and for all, if only to unburden herself. But the truth may just be more shocking than she could have ever imagined... Early reviews are saying that Scottoline has outdone herself this time, so this may just be the one to pick up this spring.
Thursday, February 28, 2019
Meg's Picks: March 2019, part 3
It's debut day here on Meg's Picks! Love trying new things? Want to branch out from your same old rotation of authors? Want to know what your friends are going to be talking about reading? Try one (or all!) of these!
The Woman in the Dark, by Vanessa Savage. In this creepy psychological debut, Patrick and Sarah move their family from Cardiff back to Patrick's childhood home in South Wales. They're disturbed to discover that the once magnificent Victorian house has been vacant the last 15 years, after the last family who lived there was murdered, leaving only one survivor. And the man responsible for the heinous crime is fresh out of prison. Unease will grow, both for the family and the reader, from the moment they walk in the door. I'm recommending this for fans of Shari LaPena's The Couple Next Door.
If, Then, by Kate Hope Day. In the quiet town of Clearing, Oregon, four neighbors begin to see themselves in parallel realities. For dedicated surgeon Ginny, seeing a beautiful coworker in bed with her husband makes her begin to doubt the stability of her marriage. Her scientist husband Mark grows increasingly paranoid due to visions of pending devastation. Brilliant scholar and new mother Cass is just getting back to working on a project that could make her career, only to see herself newly pregnant again. And Samara, mourning the passing of her mother and marveling at her father's ability to cope effortlessly, wonders about the secrets her parents have kept from her when her visions show her mother alive and well. For readers who enjoy imaginative, speculative fiction like Chloe Benjamin's The Immortalists and family-driven suspense like Celeste Ng's Little Fire's Everywhere.
House on Fire, by Bonnie Kistler. A drunk driving accident leaves one member of a blended family dead and another charged with manslaughter in this tightly plotted debut. While this series of events alone would be enough to cripple any family, it is followed by a series of half-truths and altered versions of events that causes a divide that may never be mended. Fans of Jodi Picoult would do well to pick this up.
Save Me from Dangerous Men, by S.A. Lelchuk. Nikki Griffin isn't your typical PI. Her office is above her bookstore, and in her downtime, she tracks dangerous men, the kind who hurt the women they claim to love. Nikki's regular PI work, this time following disgruntled tech employee Karen, suspected of selling secrets, begins to fall into the category of "in danger" and Nikki is forced to blow her cover to save Karen. In the process, though, Nikki will find herself on the run, as well. For readers who can't get enough Lisbeth Salander or Jack Reacher.
The Woman in the Dark, by Vanessa Savage. In this creepy psychological debut, Patrick and Sarah move their family from Cardiff back to Patrick's childhood home in South Wales. They're disturbed to discover that the once magnificent Victorian house has been vacant the last 15 years, after the last family who lived there was murdered, leaving only one survivor. And the man responsible for the heinous crime is fresh out of prison. Unease will grow, both for the family and the reader, from the moment they walk in the door. I'm recommending this for fans of Shari LaPena's The Couple Next Door.
If, Then, by Kate Hope Day. In the quiet town of Clearing, Oregon, four neighbors begin to see themselves in parallel realities. For dedicated surgeon Ginny, seeing a beautiful coworker in bed with her husband makes her begin to doubt the stability of her marriage. Her scientist husband Mark grows increasingly paranoid due to visions of pending devastation. Brilliant scholar and new mother Cass is just getting back to working on a project that could make her career, only to see herself newly pregnant again. And Samara, mourning the passing of her mother and marveling at her father's ability to cope effortlessly, wonders about the secrets her parents have kept from her when her visions show her mother alive and well. For readers who enjoy imaginative, speculative fiction like Chloe Benjamin's The Immortalists and family-driven suspense like Celeste Ng's Little Fire's Everywhere.
House on Fire, by Bonnie Kistler. A drunk driving accident leaves one member of a blended family dead and another charged with manslaughter in this tightly plotted debut. While this series of events alone would be enough to cripple any family, it is followed by a series of half-truths and altered versions of events that causes a divide that may never be mended. Fans of Jodi Picoult would do well to pick this up.
Save Me from Dangerous Men, by S.A. Lelchuk. Nikki Griffin isn't your typical PI. Her office is above her bookstore, and in her downtime, she tracks dangerous men, the kind who hurt the women they claim to love. Nikki's regular PI work, this time following disgruntled tech employee Karen, suspected of selling secrets, begins to fall into the category of "in danger" and Nikki is forced to blow her cover to save Karen. In the process, though, Nikki will find herself on the run, as well. For readers who can't get enough Lisbeth Salander or Jack Reacher.
Thursday, February 21, 2019
Meg's Picks: March 2019, part 1
Need something new, maybe something a little different than your same old, same old? Here are a few titles coming out next month that just might help jolt you out of that rut!
In Another Time, by Jillian Cantor. Cantor (The Lost Letter, Margot, etc.) follows multiple timelines as she tells the story of German bookstore owner Max Beissinger and earnest Jewish violin student Hanna Ginsberg. It's 1931 when the two meet and their chemistry is instant. Their love is soon tested by a dramatically shifting political climate, and by a secret that Max is keeping, one that he hopes may save Hanna as Germany becomes too dangerous for her to stay... I'm recommending this one for fans of Kate Atkinson's Life After Life and Audrey Niffenegger's The Time Traveler's Wife.
The Wolf and the Watchman, by Niklas Natt Och Dag. After night watchman Mickel Cardell pulls a body from a lake, a series of time-sensitive events unfold as he and police investigator Cecil Winge race to find a killer. This suspenseful tale takes the pair all over 18th-century Stockholm, exploring redemption and justice even in the bleakest places as they question mercenaries, beggars and madams. Rich and poor, pious and fallen, living and dead--all will be connected to the body pulled from the lake. I'm recommending this debut from Och Dag to fans of Caleb Carr's The Alienist.
Beautiful Bad, by Annie Ward. When Ian and Maddie meet, Ian is serving in the British army and Maddie is a travel writer visiting a friend overseas. Now, almost twenty years later, the two are married and have a young son--from all outward appearances, their marriage in Middle America is perfect. In the aftermath of a camping accident, however, Maddie is left physically and emotionally scarred. Therapy for her anxiety includes writing exercises to work out Maddie's long list of fears and anxieties, her tumultuous past with Ian, and what finally brings police to the scene of a shocking crime. Recommending this for fans of Ruth Ware (The Woman in Cabin 10, etc.), Paula Hawkins (The Girl on the Train, etc.), and Liane Moriarty (Big Little Lies, etc.).
In Another Time, by Jillian Cantor. Cantor (The Lost Letter, Margot, etc.) follows multiple timelines as she tells the story of German bookstore owner Max Beissinger and earnest Jewish violin student Hanna Ginsberg. It's 1931 when the two meet and their chemistry is instant. Their love is soon tested by a dramatically shifting political climate, and by a secret that Max is keeping, one that he hopes may save Hanna as Germany becomes too dangerous for her to stay... I'm recommending this one for fans of Kate Atkinson's Life After Life and Audrey Niffenegger's The Time Traveler's Wife.
The Wolf and the Watchman, by Niklas Natt Och Dag. After night watchman Mickel Cardell pulls a body from a lake, a series of time-sensitive events unfold as he and police investigator Cecil Winge race to find a killer. This suspenseful tale takes the pair all over 18th-century Stockholm, exploring redemption and justice even in the bleakest places as they question mercenaries, beggars and madams. Rich and poor, pious and fallen, living and dead--all will be connected to the body pulled from the lake. I'm recommending this debut from Och Dag to fans of Caleb Carr's The Alienist.
Beautiful Bad, by Annie Ward. When Ian and Maddie meet, Ian is serving in the British army and Maddie is a travel writer visiting a friend overseas. Now, almost twenty years later, the two are married and have a young son--from all outward appearances, their marriage in Middle America is perfect. In the aftermath of a camping accident, however, Maddie is left physically and emotionally scarred. Therapy for her anxiety includes writing exercises to work out Maddie's long list of fears and anxieties, her tumultuous past with Ian, and what finally brings police to the scene of a shocking crime. Recommending this for fans of Ruth Ware (The Woman in Cabin 10, etc.), Paula Hawkins (The Girl on the Train, etc.), and Liane Moriarty (Big Little Lies, etc.).
Tuesday, February 19, 2019
Reading Ahead: March 2019, part 3
Gothics, suspense, historical fiction are all on the menu next month. Ready for a new favorite?
The Island of Sea Women, by Lisa See. Mi-ja and Young-sook are best friends living on the Korean island of Jeju, though they come from very different backgrounds. When they are old enough, they begin working with their village's all-female diving collective. As time goes on, however, (the story begins in the 1930s during a period of Japanese colonialism and runs to present day) their country is caught between warring empires, pitting family against family, the force of dark secrets tearing at their friendship. Fans of See's earlier work (The Teagirl of Hummingbird Lane, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, etc.) won't want to miss this.
The Night Visitors, by Carol Goodman. When Alice flees a relationship gone dangerous with her ten-year-old son Oren in tow, she meets up with social worker Mattie. Mattie doesn't take the pair to a shelter, however, but home to her ramshackle house in the woods. While Mattie's heart is in the right place, and she has plenty of room, Oren also reminds her very much of her younger brother, who died thirty years ago. And Mattie isn't the only one harboring some unsettling secrets. Goodman is a personal favorite, and this latest gothic thriller is already on my to-read list this spring.
All the Wrong Places, by Joy Fielding. After being let go from her advertising job due to a merger, and breaking up with her cheating boyfriend, Paige Hamilton is in serious need of some personal validation. On impulse, she signs up for a dating app, the same one her friend Chloe uses, it turns out. When both women, as well as another person close to Paige, start dating Mr. Right Now, no one could predict that something so innocuous could have such dangerous consequences...
The Mark (The Big Kahuna) , by Janet Evanovich and Peter Evanovich. FBI Agent Kate O'Hare and charming con-man Nicolas Fox team up again on another case that the FBI would ordinarily shrug off: finding a missing Silicon Valley billionaire, nicknamed The Big Kahuna. Beyond the man's greedy trophy wife and shady business partner, neither of whom seem terribly interested in the man's whereabouts, the investigation's only real lead seems to be the beach bum son, living the dream in Hawaii. What can Kate and Nick do but go undercover, posing as a married couple in the laid-back surfer community. Expect lots of Evanovich's signature humor here.
Silent Night, by Danielle Steel. The daughter of Hollywood royalty, Paige Watts has channeled her own acting aspirations into her daughter's career--by age nine, Emma has the lead role on a hit TV show. But after the unthinkable happens, Emma goes to live with her aunt Whitney, who chose a very different path from sister Paige. This isn't a bad thing, because Emma needs all the help she can get in the wake of tragedy, and her road to healing will change her, and everyone around her.
The Island of Sea Women, by Lisa See. Mi-ja and Young-sook are best friends living on the Korean island of Jeju, though they come from very different backgrounds. When they are old enough, they begin working with their village's all-female diving collective. As time goes on, however, (the story begins in the 1930s during a period of Japanese colonialism and runs to present day) their country is caught between warring empires, pitting family against family, the force of dark secrets tearing at their friendship. Fans of See's earlier work (The Teagirl of Hummingbird Lane, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, etc.) won't want to miss this.
The Night Visitors, by Carol Goodman. When Alice flees a relationship gone dangerous with her ten-year-old son Oren in tow, she meets up with social worker Mattie. Mattie doesn't take the pair to a shelter, however, but home to her ramshackle house in the woods. While Mattie's heart is in the right place, and she has plenty of room, Oren also reminds her very much of her younger brother, who died thirty years ago. And Mattie isn't the only one harboring some unsettling secrets. Goodman is a personal favorite, and this latest gothic thriller is already on my to-read list this spring.
All the Wrong Places, by Joy Fielding. After being let go from her advertising job due to a merger, and breaking up with her cheating boyfriend, Paige Hamilton is in serious need of some personal validation. On impulse, she signs up for a dating app, the same one her friend Chloe uses, it turns out. When both women, as well as another person close to Paige, start dating Mr. Right Now, no one could predict that something so innocuous could have such dangerous consequences...
The Mark (The Big Kahuna) , by Janet Evanovich and Peter Evanovich. FBI Agent Kate O'Hare and charming con-man Nicolas Fox team up again on another case that the FBI would ordinarily shrug off: finding a missing Silicon Valley billionaire, nicknamed The Big Kahuna. Beyond the man's greedy trophy wife and shady business partner, neither of whom seem terribly interested in the man's whereabouts, the investigation's only real lead seems to be the beach bum son, living the dream in Hawaii. What can Kate and Nick do but go undercover, posing as a married couple in the laid-back surfer community. Expect lots of Evanovich's signature humor here.
Silent Night, by Danielle Steel. The daughter of Hollywood royalty, Paige Watts has channeled her own acting aspirations into her daughter's career--by age nine, Emma has the lead role on a hit TV show. But after the unthinkable happens, Emma goes to live with her aunt Whitney, who chose a very different path from sister Paige. This isn't a bad thing, because Emma needs all the help she can get in the wake of tragedy, and her road to healing will change her, and everyone around her.
Thursday, February 14, 2019
Reading Ahead: March 2019, part 2
Lots of suspense series and sequels to be had next month. Are your favorites on the list? Or will you discover a new favorite? Read on!
Black and Blue, by David Rosenfelt. This is the third entry in Rosenfelt's thriller series featuring New Jersey state police office Doug Brock, following Blackout and Fade to Black. Brock has been working hard to recover after being shot in the line of duty, but between lingering amnesia and solving two murder cases, his recovery hasn't been particularly restful. Now a new murder fits the MO of one of Brock's old, cold cases and he must retrace steps he doesn't remember taking to solve the case before the killer can strike again. Rosenfelt is steadily building on to his fan base, so if you're a thriller reader in search of a newer series to jump in on, here's your chance!
Wolf Pack, by C.J. Box. Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett returns in this nineteenth series outing. The good news is that Pickett has his job back after the adventures of The Disappeared (2018). The bad news is that he's discovered that someone is using a drone to kill wildlife, and that someone turns out to be the wealthy, mysterious man dating Joe's own daughter, Lucy. When Joe tries to get the drone's owner to abide by some rules, he's met with resistance, not just from the owner, but also from the FBI and the Department of Justice. On full alert now, Joe also has a vicious group of cartel assassins, known as the Wolf Pack, in the area who are bent on taking down Lucy's new beau, and anyone he's associated with...
The Malta Exchange, by Steve Berry. Former Justice Department operative Cotton Malone returns in Berry's latest novel, on the trail of some potentially history-shaking letters between Winston Churchill and Benito Mussolini that vanished in 1945. This leads him to the Knights of Malta, now controlled by the Secreti as the election of a new pope looms. Fans of Dan Brown, if you're not reading Steve Berry, you should be!
The Last Act, by Brad Parks. Based on the real life case of Wachovia Bank, this latest by Parks finds an out-of-work stage actor Tommy Jump about to pose as a felon to go into a low-security prison and cozy up to Mitchell Dupree, a banker arrested for laundering money for a particularly vicious Mexican cartel. This may just be the hardest role of Tommy's life, if he survives. For thriller readers who like a twisty plot and lots of surprises, this should absolutely be on your reading list this spring.
Crown Jewel, by Christopher Reich. Bestseller Reich brings readers a new new Simon Riske novel (following his debut in 2018's The Take). Here, the restorer of high-end automobiles who moonlights as a problem solver to the wealthy is working for Toby Stonewood, managing partner of the Casino de Monte-Carlo. The casino is losing millions and Toby is sure he's being cheated, but cannot figure out the culprit, turning to Simon to unravel the mystery. What follows is a 007-worthy tale of fast cars, rich women, Bosnian bad guys, and the beauty of Monaco. Perfect.
Dark Tribute, by Iris Johansen. Number 25 in Johansen's long-running Eve Duncan series. Despite a tragic childhood, violin prodigy Cara Delaney has finally found her stride in her career as a professional musician and in her relationship with her guardians, forensic sculptor Eve Duncan and ex-Navy SEAL Joe Quinn. Cara's sense of peace is upended when she's kidnapped by a man who has a score to settle with her family. With everyone she loves in immediate danger, Cara will have to use every skill she has to stay alive and protect those closest to her at all costs.
Black and Blue, by David Rosenfelt. This is the third entry in Rosenfelt's thriller series featuring New Jersey state police office Doug Brock, following Blackout and Fade to Black. Brock has been working hard to recover after being shot in the line of duty, but between lingering amnesia and solving two murder cases, his recovery hasn't been particularly restful. Now a new murder fits the MO of one of Brock's old, cold cases and he must retrace steps he doesn't remember taking to solve the case before the killer can strike again. Rosenfelt is steadily building on to his fan base, so if you're a thriller reader in search of a newer series to jump in on, here's your chance!
Wolf Pack, by C.J. Box. Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett returns in this nineteenth series outing. The good news is that Pickett has his job back after the adventures of The Disappeared (2018). The bad news is that he's discovered that someone is using a drone to kill wildlife, and that someone turns out to be the wealthy, mysterious man dating Joe's own daughter, Lucy. When Joe tries to get the drone's owner to abide by some rules, he's met with resistance, not just from the owner, but also from the FBI and the Department of Justice. On full alert now, Joe also has a vicious group of cartel assassins, known as the Wolf Pack, in the area who are bent on taking down Lucy's new beau, and anyone he's associated with...
The Malta Exchange, by Steve Berry. Former Justice Department operative Cotton Malone returns in Berry's latest novel, on the trail of some potentially history-shaking letters between Winston Churchill and Benito Mussolini that vanished in 1945. This leads him to the Knights of Malta, now controlled by the Secreti as the election of a new pope looms. Fans of Dan Brown, if you're not reading Steve Berry, you should be!
The Last Act, by Brad Parks. Based on the real life case of Wachovia Bank, this latest by Parks finds an out-of-work stage actor Tommy Jump about to pose as a felon to go into a low-security prison and cozy up to Mitchell Dupree, a banker arrested for laundering money for a particularly vicious Mexican cartel. This may just be the hardest role of Tommy's life, if he survives. For thriller readers who like a twisty plot and lots of surprises, this should absolutely be on your reading list this spring.
Crown Jewel, by Christopher Reich. Bestseller Reich brings readers a new new Simon Riske novel (following his debut in 2018's The Take). Here, the restorer of high-end automobiles who moonlights as a problem solver to the wealthy is working for Toby Stonewood, managing partner of the Casino de Monte-Carlo. The casino is losing millions and Toby is sure he's being cheated, but cannot figure out the culprit, turning to Simon to unravel the mystery. What follows is a 007-worthy tale of fast cars, rich women, Bosnian bad guys, and the beauty of Monaco. Perfect.
Dark Tribute, by Iris Johansen. Number 25 in Johansen's long-running Eve Duncan series. Despite a tragic childhood, violin prodigy Cara Delaney has finally found her stride in her career as a professional musician and in her relationship with her guardians, forensic sculptor Eve Duncan and ex-Navy SEAL Joe Quinn. Cara's sense of peace is upended when she's kidnapped by a man who has a score to settle with her family. With everyone she loves in immediate danger, Cara will have to use every skill she has to stay alive and protect those closest to her at all costs.
Thursday, February 7, 2019
Reading Ahead: March 2019, part 1
I know, I can't believe we're talking about March already, but it'll be here before you know it. And it is bringing so many great new fiction titles with it, I hope I can manage to pack them all in here!* Let's get started!
Run Away, by Harlan Coben. What will one family do to save their daughter from self-destruction? That's just what Coben's latest novel explores, in terrifying detail. Simon Greene watches a struggling street performer in Central Park, a young woman who won't accept the help she so obviously needs. This young woman is his daughter, Paige, and she disappears again, after Simon has an altercation with her abusive boyfriend, Aaron. Then Aaron turns up dead, and Simon has to descend into a world of drugs, violence, secrets and the missing in order to try and save Paige, once and for all. Early reviews have called this a thriller that begs to be read in one sitting, so clear your calendar!
The Perfect Alibi, by Philip Margolin. Convicted of rape owing to solid DNA evidence, a college athlete is granted a new trial when a second rape is committed while he is behind bars, yet the DNA matches that of the first case. Then his lawyer vanishes and the lawyer's partner is murdered. Defense attorney Robin Lockwood reluctantly steps up to the plate even as circumstances get even more dire. Margolin is great with a plot that twists and turns, and fans should be in for a real treat with new lead Lockwood.
The Last Second, by Catherine Coulter & J.T. Ellison. This writing duo's latest entry in the Brit in the FBI series, following 2018's The Sixth Day, pits special agents Nicholas Drummond and Michaela Caine against the eccentric treasure-hunting head of France's version of SpaceX, Galactus, and his power-mad second in command, who has placed a nuclear device on a recently launched satellite. Coulter and Ellison have drifted pretty seamlessly into SF territory, potentially winning themselves a more diverse readership in the process.
Blood Oath, by Linda Fairstein. Book number 20 in Fairstein's long-running Alexandra Cooper series! If you're new to the series and want to start at the beginning, Cooper debuted in 1996 with Final Jeopardy. Cooper, now the ADA of the Manhattan Sex Crimes unit, is finally back to work after a leave of absence and is quickly brought in on the case of Lucy, who testified years ago at a landmark federal trial, and now reveals that she was assaulted by a prominent official during that time. Fairstein herself was a pioneer in sex crimes investigation, bringing additional depth and plausibility to the novel.
*In the interest of space and time here on the old blog, I'm going to stop including reviews for James Patterson titles, though the library will obviously continue to order them. With several Patterson titles being issued within the same month more and more often lately, I've decided use this space to do a bit more highlighting of authors who don't have quite the same status...yet!
Run Away, by Harlan Coben. What will one family do to save their daughter from self-destruction? That's just what Coben's latest novel explores, in terrifying detail. Simon Greene watches a struggling street performer in Central Park, a young woman who won't accept the help she so obviously needs. This young woman is his daughter, Paige, and she disappears again, after Simon has an altercation with her abusive boyfriend, Aaron. Then Aaron turns up dead, and Simon has to descend into a world of drugs, violence, secrets and the missing in order to try and save Paige, once and for all. Early reviews have called this a thriller that begs to be read in one sitting, so clear your calendar!
The Perfect Alibi, by Philip Margolin. Convicted of rape owing to solid DNA evidence, a college athlete is granted a new trial when a second rape is committed while he is behind bars, yet the DNA matches that of the first case. Then his lawyer vanishes and the lawyer's partner is murdered. Defense attorney Robin Lockwood reluctantly steps up to the plate even as circumstances get even more dire. Margolin is great with a plot that twists and turns, and fans should be in for a real treat with new lead Lockwood.
The Last Second, by Catherine Coulter & J.T. Ellison. This writing duo's latest entry in the Brit in the FBI series, following 2018's The Sixth Day, pits special agents Nicholas Drummond and Michaela Caine against the eccentric treasure-hunting head of France's version of SpaceX, Galactus, and his power-mad second in command, who has placed a nuclear device on a recently launched satellite. Coulter and Ellison have drifted pretty seamlessly into SF territory, potentially winning themselves a more diverse readership in the process.
Blood Oath, by Linda Fairstein. Book number 20 in Fairstein's long-running Alexandra Cooper series! If you're new to the series and want to start at the beginning, Cooper debuted in 1996 with Final Jeopardy. Cooper, now the ADA of the Manhattan Sex Crimes unit, is finally back to work after a leave of absence and is quickly brought in on the case of Lucy, who testified years ago at a landmark federal trial, and now reveals that she was assaulted by a prominent official during that time. Fairstein herself was a pioneer in sex crimes investigation, bringing additional depth and plausibility to the novel.
*In the interest of space and time here on the old blog, I'm going to stop including reviews for James Patterson titles, though the library will obviously continue to order them. With several Patterson titles being issued within the same month more and more often lately, I've decided use this space to do a bit more highlighting of authors who don't have quite the same status...yet!
Thursday, January 10, 2019
Reading Ahead: February 2019, part 2
Thrillers, mysteries, big cities, small towns--we have a bit of something for everyone today.
The Next to Die, by Sophie Hannah. Bill Dead Mates is the new serial killer making headlines: he picks of pairs of best friends, one at a time, presenting them with a little white handmade book before each murder. People are scared, especially comedian Kim Trebbick, who was handed one such book at a recent gig. Only Kim hasn't got any friends to be murdered with, so was that stranger really the killer? Or is there something even more nefarious at stake?
Connections in Death, by J.D. Robb. This latest entry in Robb's (aka Nora Roberts) long-running Eve Dallas series finds the lieutenant's old friend, night-club owner Crack, dating Roarke's latest hire, Dr. Rochelle Pickering. When Rochelle's brother is found dead of an apparent overdose in her apartment, Eve and her team of detectives delve into the dirty underground of NYC sex clubs, drug dealers, and gang wars, a world where double-crosses and dirty deals reign supreme. A fast-paced plot and a familiar cast of characters make this series a fan favorite.
A Justified Murder, by Jude Deveraux. In this sequel to Deveraux's 2018 A Willing Murder, amateur sleuths Sara Medlar, her niece Kate, and friend Jack Wyatt find themselves reluctantly drawn into a new murder investigation, this one of a sweet older woman, Janet Beeson. Janet, it appears, has been shot, stabbed, and poisoned. In a small town where gossip moves quickly, the trio are quickly embroiled, searching for a killer among their friends and neighbors. Who knows more than they're saying? Almost everyone, it seems. Deveraux's delve into the mystery genre seems to be paying off!
The Next to Die, by Sophie Hannah. Bill Dead Mates is the new serial killer making headlines: he picks of pairs of best friends, one at a time, presenting them with a little white handmade book before each murder. People are scared, especially comedian Kim Trebbick, who was handed one such book at a recent gig. Only Kim hasn't got any friends to be murdered with, so was that stranger really the killer? Or is there something even more nefarious at stake?
Connections in Death, by J.D. Robb. This latest entry in Robb's (aka Nora Roberts) long-running Eve Dallas series finds the lieutenant's old friend, night-club owner Crack, dating Roarke's latest hire, Dr. Rochelle Pickering. When Rochelle's brother is found dead of an apparent overdose in her apartment, Eve and her team of detectives delve into the dirty underground of NYC sex clubs, drug dealers, and gang wars, a world where double-crosses and dirty deals reign supreme. A fast-paced plot and a familiar cast of characters make this series a fan favorite.
A Justified Murder, by Jude Deveraux. In this sequel to Deveraux's 2018 A Willing Murder, amateur sleuths Sara Medlar, her niece Kate, and friend Jack Wyatt find themselves reluctantly drawn into a new murder investigation, this one of a sweet older woman, Janet Beeson. Janet, it appears, has been shot, stabbed, and poisoned. In a small town where gossip moves quickly, the trio are quickly embroiled, searching for a killer among their friends and neighbors. Who knows more than they're saying? Almost everyone, it seems. Deveraux's delve into the mystery genre seems to be paying off!
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