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Thrillers and Suspense February 2020
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| The Tenant by Katrine EngbergStarring: retired professor and aspiring crime novelist Esther de Laurenti, who ends up on the list of suspects when one of her tenants is found dead -- which sounds a lot like the plot of Esther's novel.
Read it for: the quirky cast of characters, like the mismatched pair of detectives investigating Esther; the complex twists and turns that the plot takes as it unfolds at a rapid clip.
For fans of: Ruth Ware, Erin Kelly, and other authors of character-driven thrillers. |
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| How Quickly She Disappears by Raymond FleischmannWhat it's about: This historical thriller follows 1940's housewife Elizabeth Pfautz, who is lured into an intricate web of secrets after a stranger tells her he knows what happened to her twin sister Jacqueline, who disappeared when they were children.
Read it for: the stark and well-rendered Alaska setting, the isolation of which only underlines the lack of choices Elizabeth finds herself forced to confront. |
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| The Better Liar by Tanen JonesWhat it is: a fast-paced and compelling psychological thriller of fraud and family dysfunction, told from multiple (unreliable) perspectives.
The setup: Leslie hasn't seen her estranged sister Robin in a decade, but she needs to find Robin in order to claim her much-needed share of an inheritance. Luckily, she's tracked Robin down. Unluckily, Robin appears to have died of an overdose.
The doppelganger: On her way out of town, a grief-stricken Leslie meets a waitress named Mary who looks enough like Robin that she just might be able to get the job done... |
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Just Watch Me
by Jeff Lindsay
What it is: an engaging caper novel starring Riley White, a flawed but compelling master thief with a reputation for audacious and daring heists.
The thrill is gone...Riley is starting to feel like his job is getting too easy so he sets his sights on an impossible target: a museum exhibit of the Iranian Crown Jewels, and the layers of security protecting them.
Read it for: Riley's parkour skills, complex moral code, and occasional acts of vigilante justice a la Robin Hood.
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Reputation
by Sara Shepard
What it's about: When the hacked emails of the students, faculty, and staff of the elite Aldrich University are leaked online, tensions on campus escalate until someone is driven to kill a prominent medical professor.
Why you might like it: the story's multiple perspectives make each narrator a complex blend of sympathetic and suspicious.
About the author: Although Sara Shephard is best known for her young adult series Pretty Little Liars, she has written other works of adult fiction such as Everything We Wanted and The Elizas.
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| Watch Me Disappear by Janelle BrownWhat it is: the moody and intricately plotted story of Billie Flanagan, a Berkeley wife and mother who is much more than she seems -- something her family finds out after she vanishes on a solo hike.
What happens: As the first anniversary of her disappearance approaches, Billie's husband Jonathan is still deep in mourning. Then one day their daughter Olive begins to see "visions," which convince her she can communicate telepathically with her mother.
Reviewers say: "brilliantly layered" and "tender and biting" (Booklist). |
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The dead girls club : a novel
by Damien Angelica Walters
What it is: Decades after her friend’s obsessive belief in a witch’s ghost led to tragedy, Heather receives her late friend’s necklace in the mail and discovers that she is being targeted by a vengeful killer. By the award-winning author of Paper Tigers.
Reviewers say: "One of the most finely crafted works of the century so far...The author has a way with words that is inescapable and utterly unforgettable, deviously soothing and darkly ominous." -- Horror DNA
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Stiletto : a novel
by Daniel O'Malley
What it is: A sequel to The Rook finds Myfanwy Thomas brokering an alliance between the Checquy defense organization and the supernatural Grafters to prevent an otherworldly war. Reading-group guide available. 50,000 first printing.
Reviewers say: 'Endlessly imaginative and stupendously diverting' Australian Women's Weekly
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| Mangrove Lightning by Randy Wayne WhiteWhat happens: Marine biologist Marion "Doc" Ford and his hippie sidekick Tomlinson head deep into the Everglades to help a local fishing guide who is convinced his family is cursed for something that happened there during Prohibition.
Series alert: Mangrove Lightning is part of the long-running series of thrillers starring the Doc, whose previous career with the NSA and natural curiosity make it tough to stay away when things get weird -- and in Florida, things always get weird.
Why you might like it: the endearing cast of quirky characters, and the equally colorful setting that is almost a character itself. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Grand Ledge Area District Library 131 E Jefferson St Grand Ledge, Michigan 48837 (517) 627-7014https://gladl.org |
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