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The Art of Theft
by Sherry Thomas
When Mrs. Watson resolves to uncover long-kept secrets on behalf of a friend, Charlotte Holmes infiltrates a glamorous Yuletide ball to prevent the sale of a priceless work of art. By the best-selling author of The Hollow of Fear.
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| Curious Toys by Elizabeth HandWhat it's about: After her sister disappeared two years ago, 14-year-old Pin, who lives near 1915 Chicago's Riverview amusement park with her fortune-teller mother, began posing as a boy for safety reasons. Now, after finding a girl's body in the park, she teams with reclusive artist Henry Darger to track down a serial killer.
Read this next: For another gritty mystery set at a carnival, try Stephen King's 1970s-set Joyland. For another strong female detective who cross-dresses due to society's restrictions, try E.S. Thomson's Jem Flockhart mysteries, set in a vividly depicted 1850s London. |
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| Word to the Wise by Jenn McKinlayWhat happens: Connecticut librarian Lindsey Norris helps a newcomer find books, and he begins stalking her. When he's killed, the police arrest Lindsey's tour-boat captain fiancé and she tries to find the real killer
Reviewers say: "Rarely does a clean-as-a-whistle cozy qualify as riveting, but this one definitely does" (Publishers Weekly).
Series alert: This is the 10th in the Library Lovers series, and while anyone can enjoy it, those who want to watch relationships develop should pick up the 1st entry, Books Can Be Deceiving. |
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| The Chestnut Man by Søren SveistrupWhat it is: a chilling, suspenseful Scandinavian crime novel featuring two newly partnered Copenhagen police detectives, Naia Thulin and Mark Hess, who don't get along at first.
What happens: A serial killer leaves dolls made of chestnuts and matchsticks at murder scenes and Thulin and Hess follow forensic clues linking the case to a politician’s kidnapped daughter.
For fans of: Stieg Larsson, Jo Nesbo, Jussi Adler-Olsen, or Helene Tursten. |
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Tell Me No Lies : A Lady Dunbridge Novel
by Shelley Noble
A sequel to Ask Me No Questions finds the irrepressible Lady Dunbridge tackling Gilded Age Manhattan when the Plaza Hotel and Metropolitan Museum of Art are overshadowed by romance, scandal and murder. By the best-selling author of Lighthouse Beach.
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Invitation Only Murder
by Leslie Meier
Invited to an eccentric environmentalist billionaire’s property that has been stripped of modern conveniences, reporter Lucy Stone interviews the estate’s less-than-happy residents before her host’s daughter is killed in a suspicious fall.
Series alert: This is the 26th entry in the Lucy Stone mystery series. Want to start at the beginning? Try Mistletoe Murder.
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Holiday Country House Mysteries
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| Jane and the Twelve Days of Christmas by Stephanie BarronWhat it's about: Spending part of the snowy 1814 Christmas holidays at the country home of the Chute family (and happily away from her parsimonious brother and his hypochondriac wife), Pride and Prejudice author Jane Austen teams with a fellow guest, artist Raphael West, after a murder occurs and an invaluable political treaty goes missing.
Read this next: If you enjoy this well-researched 12th in a historical mystery series, try Anna Dean's mysteries starring Dido Kent, who has a background similar to Jane, or Carrie Bebris' Mr. and Mrs. Darcy mysteries, which star Austen's characters but include hints of supernatural elements. |
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| The Ghost of Christmas Past by Rhys BowenWhat it's about: Just before Christmas 1906, Molly Murphy Sullivan is struggling with depression in the aftermath of trauma and miscarriage.
What happens: Molly, her police detective husband, and their two-year-old son are gathered with friends at a Hudson River mansion when a 13-year-old girl claiming to be their hosts' long-missing daughter appears.
Who it's for: Readers who enjoy compelling stories featuring strong women will appreciate this 17th series entry; for those who want to start with book one, pick up Murphy's Law. |
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I am Half-Sick of Shadows
by C. Alan Bradley
After the whole village of Bishop's Lacey descends on Flavia de Luce's family's estate during a raging blizzard to watch the filming of a movie, a person ends up dead, strangled by a length of film, and the 11-year-old budding chemist must find the killer.
With the snow raging outside and Buckshaw locked in, the house is full of suspects. But Flavia de Luce is more than ready to solve the wintry country-house murder. She'll have to be quick-witted, though, to negotiate the volatile chemicals of a cast and crew starting to crack--and locked in a house with a murderer!
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| Murder in the Dark by Kerry GreenwoodStarring: the Honourable Phryne Fisher, a wealthy, free-spirited, and always glamorous flapper who grew up poor and now dabbles in PI work.
What happens: Phryne makes sure to attend after she's anonymously warned off the Last Best Party of 1928, a five-day gathering thrown by self-indulgent brother-and-sister twins at an Australian manor house -- and she's soon investigating a murder.
Movie buzz: Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears, a feature film based on the atmospheric Phryne Fisher series, of which Murder in the Dark is the 16th entry, comes out in 2020. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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