Culpeper County Library271 Southgate Shopping Center, Culpeper, Virginia 22701 | 540-825-8691https://www.cclva.org |
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Must-Read Books December 2025 |
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| Good Spirits by B.K. BorisonIn this cozy contemporary spin on A Christmas Carol, antique store owner Harriet York receives a visit from the Ghost of Christmas Past in the form of handsome Irish fisherman Nolan Callahan, who died 100 years ago. As the two revisit Christmases past, Harriet discovers she might not be the only one who needs help, and that her store may hold the key to freeing Nolan's spirit. For fans of: Just Like Magic by Sarah Hogle; The Ghost and Mrs. Muir; Hot Frosty. |
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| King Sorrow by Joe HillBlackmailed into stealing rare books, college student Arthur Oakes and his friends summon King Sorrow, a powerful dragon from a supernatural realm. The creature saves them -- but their bargain binds them to provide an annual human sacrifice, unleashing dark, magical consequences that shadow their lives for decades. Try this next: The Dissonance by Shaun Hamill.
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| The Gun Man Jackson Swagger by Stephen HunterIn 1897 Arizona Territory, sharpshooter and Civil War vet Jack Swagger takes a job guarding deliveries to and from Mexico for prosperous rancher Colonel Callahan. But not everything is as it seems in this western by Pulitzer Prize winner Stephen Hunter, which is “reminiscent of Larry McMurtry” (Booklist). For fans of: Hunter’s Bob Lee Swagger novels; William W. Johnstone’s novels. |
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| The Intruder by Freida McFaddenWhen a bloodied girl appears on Casey’s doorstep during a violent storm, her quiet cabin in the New Hampshire woods becomes a trap. The girl’s mysterious past and deadly secrets soon put Casey in mortal danger. Alternating perspectives heighten the suspense as survival, trust, and hidden truths collide in this tense, pulse-pounding thriller. |
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| A Case of Life and Limb by Sally SmithThe Christmas Eve peace of the Inner Temple, the picture-postcard home of London’s elite lawyers, is disturbed when Sir William Waring receives a beautifully wrapped package containing a severed human hand. Brilliant Gabriel Ward, a fellow Temple resident, investigates while also working on a sensationalistic defamation case in this entertaining follow-up to A Case of Mice and Murder. Try this next: Claudia Gray’s The Murder of Mr. Wickham. |
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| The Dentist by Tim SullivanDS George Cross, who’s autistic and detail-oriented, investigates an unhoused man’s murder in South West England. Noticing clues that others miss and with help from his partner DS Josie Ottey, George unearths links to an old killing in this acclaimed series starter and bestselling police procedural from the United Kingdom. For other books with neurodivergent detectives, try Brandy Schillace’s Netherleigh mysteries or Daniel Aubrey’s Orkney mysteries.
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The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald
by John U. Bacon
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A work of spectral beauty destined to be a classic. Readers of Sebastian Junger's The Perfect Storm, Erik Larsen's Dead Wake, and Nathaniel Philbrick's In the Heart of the Sea will love this deeply reported tale. --Hampton Sides, New York Times best-selling author of The Wide Wide Sea and In the Kingdom of Ice The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald' has been told and retold by authors and bards. But never has it been told better than by Mr. Bacon in this colorful and compelling book.... Dead men tell no tales, but their loved ones do. Mr. Bacon tracked them down and listened. --John J. Miller, Wall Street Journal On the fiftieth anniversary of the Edmund Fitzgerald's sinking, the bestselling author of The Great Halifax Explosion tells the definitive story of the Mighty Fitz.
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Presidential Seclusion: The Power of Camp David
by Charles Ferguson
Behind the gates of Camp David--where presidents find solitude, forge diplomacy, and shape history in absolute secrecy. The Presidential Retreat Camp David is shrouded in mystery, and rightfully so. The hidden retreat atop the Catoctin Mountains is the one place the President, First Family, and invited guests can gather in absolute secrecy for relaxation, rejuvenation, and world-changing decisions. Because of this dedication to privacy, and a desire to maintain the mystery and exclusivity of the last bastion of solitude for the President, few comprehensive accounts exist detailing the storied history of Camp David and the role the Spirit of Camp David plays in world affairs. Presidential Seclusion provides an exclusive account of the mysterious and storied retreat. Extensively researched from Presidential Archives as well as from the pages of Presidential memoirs, this non-partisan, informative account weaves exclusive stories into a tapestry revealing the importance of Camp David on diplomacy and world history. Written by the former Camp David Historian, this personalized tour of the exclusive retreat makes tree-shrouded trails, majestic vistas, and rooms where history happened over the last 80 years accessible to everyone. As you read, the Spirit of Camp David is revealed to infuse everyone who works and visits the President's private mountain retreat, mainly how Camp David personally affected its primary guests, the fifteen First Families fortunate to call the private retreat a second home.
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1929: Inside the Greatest Crash in Wall Street History--And How It Shattered a Nation
by Andrew Ross Sorkin
With the depth of a classic history and the drama of a thriller, 1929 unravels the greed, blind optimism, and human folly that led to an era-defining collapse--one with ripple effects that still shape our society today. In 1929, the world watched in shock as the unstoppable Wall Street bull market went into a freefall, wiping out fortunes and igniting a depression that would reshape a generation. But behind the flashing ticker tapes and panicked traders, another drama unfolded--one of visionaries and fraudsters, titans and dreamers, euphoria and ruin. With unparalleled access to historical records and newly uncovered documents, ... Andrew Ross Sorkin takes readers inside the chaos of the crash, behind the scenes of a raging battle between Wall Street and Washington and the larger-than-life characters whose ambition and naivete in an endless boom led to disaster--
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Into the Fire
by Ann Brashares
Former best friends Henry, Frances, and Lukas thought they'd managed to restore history to its original path after their antics with a time-bending radio went awry. But they're still trapped in Westfallen, the version of present-day America where the Axis won WWII, living an alternate--and much darker--version of their lives. Henry has to work at the Home for Incurables, Lukas is on hard labor all day, and only Frances, whose parents are members of the Nazi elite, gets to go to school and move freely. And since they and their friends in 1944 destroyed the radio, they have to find cruder and ever-more-desperate ways to communicate across time. Frances uses her privilege in Westfallen to gather as much information as she can, while Henry tries to turn Lukas into a local baseball hero to save him from being sent away to a work camp. But the deeper the three friends and their 1944 counterparts dig into how Westfallen came to be, the more they begin to attract unwanted attention from people with a vested interest in making sure this version of history becomes permanent--at any cost--
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The Picasso Curse
by Dan Gutman
When Edwin Hodge discovers a priceless Picasso sketch hidden in a poster frame, he becomes an overnight celebrity, but it might just ruin his life--
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| Winging It by Megan Wagner Lloyd; illustrated by Michelle Mee NutterTwelve-year-old Luna doesn't want to move across the country with her dad, especially not to move in with the strict grandma she hardly knows. But after discovering old nature journals from the mom she never knew, Luna finds unexpected connections to her new home. Cartoony art and honest emotions make this graphic novel a strong choice for realistic fiction fans. |
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Help Me Find My Hamster!
by Brooke Hartman
Readers, your help is needed--something terrible has happened! The narrator is missing their pet hamster, and the snuggable, huggable pint-sized pet was spotted in this book. Fuzzy floof ears, a nibble nubbin nose, precious peanut paws, and a bitty button tail seem to hint that it's somewhere nearby. But do itty bitty ears always belong to a hamster? When you spot a soft snoot or cute padded paws, will they be attached to a pocket pet, or something much wilder? Watch out! You never know what could be lurking around the corner. That tuft of a tail might just belong to a grizzly bear's behind! Prepare to laugh along as clues to the narrator's missing furry friend reveal ever larger and wilder creatures in this surprising story that encourages readers to stretch their imagination, make predictions, and always expect the unexpected.
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| The House Saphir by Marissa MeyerArmand hires Mallory, who can talk to ghosts, to exorcise his ancestral estate. Mallory plans to swindle him out of his money, but instead she finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation, and Armand is a suspect. This creepy novel is a witty retelling of the Bluebeard myth. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Culpeper County Library271 Southgate Shopping Center, Culpeper, Virginia 22701 | 540-825-8691https://www.cclva.org |
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