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Thrillers and Suspense August 2019
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A Nearly Normal Familyby M. T. EdvardssonWhat it's about: in this Swedish author's US debut, the Sandells, a seemingly perfect family, find their lives shattered when their daughter Stella is arrested for stabbing a man on a playground. Luckily...: Stella's mother is a defense attorney and her father is more than willing to provide a false alibi. Each family member takes a turn narrating the story of the crime, its aftermath, and their role in it all. Read if you like: legal thrillers like those by Michael Connelly and Lisa Scottoline.
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Assassin of Shadowsby Lawrence GoldstoneWhat it is: a fictionalized account of the investigation of the assassination of President William McKinley by anarchist Leon Czolgosz. Starring: Secret Service agents Walter George and Harry Swayne, who have a lot of questions: how did a suspicious character like Czolgosz get so close to the president? Why didn't any of McKinley's bodyguards try to protect him? Who were the two men Czolgosz visited in the weeks before the assassination? Read it for: a massive conspiracy, satisfyingly unraveled, that doesn't stretch the facts too outrageously.
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What it's about: the final show down between FBI Agent Jane Hawk and the conspirators who murdered her husband and are plotting nothing short of world domination. Series alert: this is the fifth and final in Koontz's Jane Hawk series; since frequent allusions are made to past books, you may want to start at the beginning, with The Silent Corner. Reviewers say: "The Night Window" is a fitting conclusion to Jane’s story, but readers will no doubt find themselves wishing this superb series could continue for another five volumes. (Booklist – starred review)
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What it's about: Operation Dragonfly, a fictional secret mission that sent five American spies to Nazi-occupied-France – but from which only four returned. Twenty years later, a case officer finds a clue that the fifth member may have survived after all. Don't miss: surprising glimpses into the lives of the French under German occupation, and the lives of the Germans occupying France. Reviewers say: "Complex, epic, and rich in historical detail—an uplifting story of finding friendship behind enemy lines." (Kirkus)
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Starring: Jane O'Malley, who decides to move to a small town on the northern California coast after her daughter is killed by a distracted driver and her husband leaves her. But then: young girls from the area start turning up dead, casting newcomer Jane under suspicion – and, deserted by her local friends, drives her deeper into her bond with a mysterious couple. For readers who like: slow, psychological suspense; intricate plots; and moody protagonists who make one bad decision after another.
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The setting: Baltimore, 1966, a city torn apart by racial strife and home to Cleo Sherwood, who was recently found in a lake months after her disappearance. The lead: Maddie Schwartz, a housewife who aprubtly leaves her family to obsessively pursue Cleo's story as a newly-hired journalist; she is supported by Cleo's ghost and a chorus of Baltimore natives including a jewelry store clerk, a schoolgirl, a Baltimore Oriole, and the first African-American policewoman, among others. The reviews: "The racism, classism, and sexism of 50 years ago wrapped up in a stylish, sexy, suspenseful period drama about a newsroom and the city it covers." (Kirkus, starred review)
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Red Metalby Mark GreaneyWhat happens: a high-ranking American Marine joins a team of international military elites to prevent a Russian strike against Europe. The evil plan: Russia, intent on keeping control of a rare-earth mine in Kenya and taking its "proper place" on the world stage, destroy Western satellites, cutting off communication in and out of Europe. On Christmas Day, what appear to be civilian trains deliver offensive troops and tanks throughout Europe, blindsiding NATO. The good guys: Marines, like Lt. Col. Dan Connolly, who figures out what the enemy is up to, and sets things to right in about a week – long enough for intense battle scenes, but short enough to keep the fictional fight fun.
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| Gone Too Long by Lori RoyThe setup: Imogene Coulter, the estranged daughter of a high-ranking Klansman, returns to her small Georgia town after her father's death and makes an earth-shattering discovery in the basement of a seemingly abandoned house.
What goes wrong: The secret Imogene unearthed is one her father's followers will do anything to keep quiet, and unfortunately her father's followers include the rest of her family and half the town.
About the author: Lori Roy is the author of other compelling thrillers, including Let Me Die in His Footsteps and her Edgar Award-winning debut Bent Road. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Demarest Free Public Library |
90 Hardenburgh Ave. |
Demarest, New Jersey 07627 |
(201) 768-8714 |
demarestlibrary.org |
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