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In the Shadow of Vesuvius
by Tasha Alexander
In this new installment in Tasha Alexander's bestselling Victorian series, Lady Emily and her husband Colin uncover a mystery in the ancient city of Pompeii.
Some corpses lie undisturbed longer than others. But when Lady Emily discovers a body hidden in plain sight amongst the ruins of Pompeii, it still comes as quite a shock.
Eager to explore ancient sites and modern archaeological digs, Lady Emily jumps at the chance to accompany her dearest childhood friend Ivy Brandon on an excursion to Italy. Soon old friends are joined by new, including the American siblings Benjamin and Calliope Carter (he, a moody painter, and she, a freethinking archaeologist capable of sparring with even the Duke of Bainbridge's most devious flirtations). But when the two women, along with Emily's devoted husband Colin Hargreaves, uncover a corpse and the police dismiss the murder as the work of local gangsters, Lady Emily leaves behind museum tours and villas to investigate.
But an artful murderer is nothing compared to the sudden appearance of a beautiful young woman who claims a shocking relationship to the Hargreaves family. As Colin warms to the girl, Emily must endure an endless stream of slights and snubs. Someone else has it out for Emily, too, someone who keeps sending her threats. Undaunted, Lady Emily's desire to unearth the truth takes her from Pompeii to Naples, to ancient times and back again. But how far below the surface can she dig before she risks burying herself along with the truth.
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Naked Came the Florida Man
by Tim Dorsey
The “compulsively irreverent and shockingly funny” (Boston Globe) Tim Dorsey returns with an insanely entertaining tale in which the inimitable Serge A. Storms sees dead people and investigates a creepy urban myth that may be all too real.
Though another devastating hurricane is raking Florida, its awesome power can’t stop the Sunshine State’s most loyal son, Serge A. Storms, from his latest scenic road trip: a cemetery tour. With his best bro Colman riding shotgun, Serge hits the highway in his ’69 gold Plymouth Satellite, putting pedal to the metal on a grand tour of the past. Beginning in Key West, the sunshine boys’ odyssey includes a forgotten mass grave in Palm Beach county holding the remains of African Americans killed by the Great Hurricane of 1928, and the resting place of one world-famous television dolphin (RIP Flipper) from the 1960s.
But one deadland—a haunted old sugar field—holds more than just the bones of those who’ve passed. For years, local children have whispered about a boogeyman hiding among the stalks. Could it be the same maniac known as Naked Florida man who’s been raising hell all over the place?
There are few things Serge loves more than solving a good mystery and bestowing justice on miscreants who sully his beloved home’s good name. With his partner bong boy, Florida’s psycho superhero will find the truth in this hilariously violent delight—packed with history, lore, and plenty of motel antics—from the insanely ingenious Tim Dorsey.
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First Cut: A Novel
by Judy Melinek
A young rookie medical examiner. A suspicious case. An underworld plot only she saw coming.
For San Francisco’s newest medical examiner, Dr. Jessie Teska, it was supposed to be a fresh start. A new job in a new city. A way to escape her own dark past.
Instead she faces a chilling discovery when an opioid-overdose case contains hints of something more sinister. Jessie’s superiors urge her to close the case, but as more bodies land on her autopsy table, she uncovers a constellation of deaths that point to an elaborate plot involving drug dealers and Bitcoin brokers.
Autopsy means “see for yourself,” and Jessie Teska won’t stop until she has seen it all—even if it means that the next corpse on the table could be her own.
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The Obsidian Murders
by Thomas King
From the award-winning and #1 bestselling author of The Back of the Turtle; Green Grass, Running Water and The Inconvenient Indian.
Thumps DreadfulWater’s world is turned upside down when Nina Maslow, the producer of a true-crime reality-TV show, turns up dead after working on a cold case that Thumps has spent years trying to forget. What’s more, someone seems set on taunting Thumps, leaving reminders of the Obsidian murder case around town. Is it possible that the elusive serial killer who murdered his girlfriend and her daughter all those years ago has resurfaced in Chinook? Or is this the work of a copycat looking to mess with Thumps by stirring up memories from his past?
Dragged back into a case that has haunted him for years, Thumps DreadfulWater is determined to solve the mystery of the Obsidian murders. But as he works the case, he begins to realize just how dangerous the person he is dealing with is—and that he might be the next target.
Thumps DreadfulWater, the sly, wry, reluctant investigator of Cold Skies and A Matter of Malice, returns in another irresistible mystery that only Thomas King could create.
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Summoned to Thirteenth Grave
by Darynda Jones
Grim Reaper Charley Davidson is back in the final installment of Darynda Jones’ New York Times bestselling paranormal series!
Charley Davidson, Grim Reaper extraordinaire, is pissed. She’s been kicked off the earthly plain for eternity – which is the appropriate amount of time to make a person starkraving mad. But someone’s looking out for her, and she’s allowed to return after a mere hundred years in exile. Is it too much to hope for that not much has changed? Apparently it is. Bummer.
She’s missed Reyes and her daughter, Beep, but now that she’s back on earth, it’s time to put to rest burning questions that need answers. What happened to her mother? How did she really die? Who killed her? And are cupcakes or coffee the best medicine? It all comes to a head in an epic showdown between good and evil in this final smart and hilarious novel.
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Books You May Have Missed
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| A Friend Is a Gift You Give Yourself by William BoyleWhat it is: a masterful road-trip caper featuring three generations of female characters on the run; there's also stolen mob money, dark humor, and delightful dialogue.
Who's in the car: Rena Ruggiero, a mob widow, who's lived on the same Brooklyn block her entire life; Lacey “Wolfie” Wolfstein, a retired porn star and grifter; and Lucia, the 15-year-old granddaughter Rena hasn't seen in years due to her estranged relationship with her daughter.
For fans of: Elmore Leonard, Donald E. Westlake, Carl Hiaasen, Tim Dorsey, Joe R. Lansdale, and the film Thelma and Louise. |
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Cold Waters
by Debbie Herbert
Everyone thinks fourteen-year-old Violet is a murderer. After more than a decade in a psychiatric ward, Violet returns to her broken-down hometown of Normal, Alabama, to claim her dead mother’s inheritance and help her overworked sister care for their unstable, alcoholic father. Violet, still haunted by that night eleven years ago, endures horrific flashbacks and twisted hallucinations while townsfolk spit accusations—and for all she knows, they’re right.
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| Something Read, Something Dead: A Lighthouse Library Mystery by Eva GatesWhat happens: Librarian (and maid of honor) Lucy Richardson helps her favorite cousin, Josie, plan a simple wedding -- but after Josie's overbearing relatives arrive in North Carolina's Outer Banks to upgrade the wedding plans, someone says "I do" to murder.
Series alert: This is the 5th Lighthouse Library mystery; the well-reviewed 6th, Read and Buried, came out in October.
For fans of: Miranda James' Cat in the Stacks mysteries -- like those books, this is a cozy series with Southern small-town charm, a pleasing cast of characters (including a cat), and a librarian detective. |
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| The Stranger Diaries by Elly GriffithsWhat it's about: Clare Cassidy, a high school teacher and single mom of a teenager, is shocked when someone kills a co-worker and leaves behind a quote from the Gothic author who is Clare's special interest.
For fans of: Gothic-inspired stories, Willkie Collins, and cleverly plotted bookish mysteries, like Anthony Horowitz's Magpie Murders series.
About the author: Though this is her first standalone novel, acclaimed author Elly Griffiths writes both the Ruth Galloway mysteries, starring a forensic anthropologist, and the Magic Men series, set in 1950s Brighton. |
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| The Lost Man by Jane HarperWhat it's about: In Australia's isolated Outback, Cameron Bright lies dead near an old tombstone, miles away from his car and hours away from his home and that of his nearest neighbor, his brother Nathan. As Nathan deals with his loss, he tries to figure out what happened to Cameron in this slow-burning, twisty tale that deals with loneliness, abuse, and family secrets.
Try this next: For another Australian mystery set in a rural area, try Candice Fox's Crimson Lake, or, though it's not a mystery, Tim Winton's The Shepherd's Hut, which does feature a death, a troubled family, a person on the run, and a vividly depicted harsh Australian setting. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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