|
|
Thrillers and Suspense February 2023 |
|
|
|
|
| The Personal Assistant by Kimberly BelleWhat it's about: Instagram influencer Alex Hutchinson is known for her unapologetic personal brand, but her latest post has gone viral for all the wrong reasons. Even worse, it could only have been posted by Alex’s personal assistant, who vanished right after the post went live.
Read it for: the intricate plotting and characterization of Alex, who is flawed but compelling.
Reviewers say: “This taut and twisty domestic thriller will keep readers guessing until the very end” (Booklist). |
|
| Among Wolves by Erica BlaqueStarring: Sophia Claire, who is fully aware of her pharmaceutical CEO husband Robert's many flaws but cannot believe that he's responsible for the string of murders he's just been accused of.
The poison pill: Each victim had two things in common -- one, she was once one of Robert's lovers and two, her cause of death was an overdose of an opoid developed by Robert's company.
For fans of: Tarryn Fisher and Shari Lapena. |
|
| Seventeen by John BrownlowWhat it's about: An elite hitman known only as Seventeen receives orders to dispatch his predecessor but things go catastrophically wrong, exposing a plot against both killer and target that they'll have to join forces to resist.
Is it for you? Author John Brownlow is clearly a spy novel enthusiast and plays with the genre in both appreciative and irreverent ways, creating a tone that might not appeal to all readers. |
|
| Before You Knew My Name by Jacqueline BublitzHow it started: Wisconsinite Alice Lee and Australian Ruby Jones arrive in Manhattan at the same time to start new lives, renting apartments that are only a few blocks away from each other.
How it's going: Their paths never cross until Ruby discovers Alice's body in Riverside Park. After Alice is declared a Jane Doe, an understandably shaken Ruby feels compelled to investigate the identity of this young woman and what really happened to her.
Read it for: the “keenly rendered characters and poignant prose” (Publishers Weekly); the narrative focus on Alice instead of her killer. |
|
| A Ghost of Caribou by Alice HendersonSeries alert: A Ghost of Caribou is the third wilderness thriller featuring wildlife biologist Alex Carter.
This time: While investigating the possibility that the mountain caribou might not be extinct after all, Alex gets pulled into a complex case outside her jurisdiction after a forest ranger’s body is found in a local park.
Reviewers say: “Environmental crime fiction doesn't get much better than this” (Publishers Weekly). |
|
| Welcome to the Game by Craig HendersonWhat it is: a fast-paced and gritty crime novel about former rally racer Spencer Burnham, a flawed, spiraling widower who gets more than he bargained for after taking “just one job” as a getaway driver.
What goes wrong: Spencer's daughter is kidnapped by a local crime lord in order to force him to take more work, kicking off a thrilling, action-packed gambit to save her.
For fans of: the Fast and Furious franchise; 1981 neo-noir film Thief starring James Caan. |
|
| Find Him by Jake HinksonWhat it's about: Eighteen-year-old mother-to-be Lily is determined to track down her missing fiancé Peter and joins forces with her uncle Allan, the black sheep of the family, to get the job done.
Read it for: the compelling relationship that uncle and niece develop as Allan leans into his role as Lily's protector.
Try this next: Presidio by Randy Kennedy. |
|
| The Ingenue by Rachel Kapelke-DaleThe setup: Former piano prodigy Saskia Kreis had a difficult relationship with her recently deceased mother, whose affairs she has returned home to settle.
What goes wrong: Saskia won't inherent the family because her mother willed it to a former colleague, a man who Saskia loathes -- and with good reason.
Is it for you? The ingenue deals frankly with grooming, sexual abuse, and the trauma that survivors like Saskia carry into adulthood. |
|
| The Break by Katie SiseWhat it's about: After the traumatic birth of her daughter, Rowan O’Sullivan grows suspicious of June, the part-time babysitter hired to help during her recovery. After June's sudden disappearance Rowan feels vindicated, but why do her neighbors say they heard screaming coming from her house? And why is her memory growing increasingly fractured?
Who it's for: readers who enjoy alternating perspectives and unreliable narrators.
Reviewers say: "With this white-knuckle journey, Sise shows her mastery of suspense" (Publishers Weekly). |
|
| A Sliver of Darkness by C.J. TudorWhat it is: a compelling and creepy collection of short stories by British thriller author C.J. Tudor.
Stories include: “End of the Liner, ” about a woman trapped on a sinisterly cheerful cruise ship; “Final Course, ” in which friends gather for a dinner party at the end of the world; and “I'm Not Ted,” about the shocking consequences of a case of mistaken identity.
For fans of: gritty writing, fast-paced storytelling, and horror-influenced suspense. |
|
Contact your librarian for more great books!
|
|
|
Atlantic County Library System | 40 Farragut Avenue, Mays Landing, NJ 08330
Phone: (609) 625-2776 | www.atlanticlibrary.org
   |
|  | Atlantic County Executive Dennis Levinson
Atlantic County Board of Commissioners, Maureen Kern, Chairwoman |
|
|
|