| The Last Time I Saw You by Liv ConstantineWhat it's about: The complicated reunion of two estranged childhood friends, surgeon Kate English and crime novelist Blaire Barrington, who reconcile after the murder of Kate's mother.
What else could go wrong? The grief and upheaval of the unresolved murder puts pressure on Kate's marriage; Kate's father's behavior takes a bizarre turn; and someone has started leaving Kate creepy "gifts" that appear to be related to her mother's death.
Author alert: Also known for The Last Mrs. Parrish, Liv Constantine is a shared pseudonym of novelists (and sisters) Valerie and Lynne Constantine. |
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| Like Lions by Brian PanowichWhat it is: the gritty and compelling return of sheriff Clayton Burroughs, who is trying to balance staying out of his family's drug business with mourning the recent deaths of his brothers.
Series alert: Like Lions is the sequel to Bull Mountain, Brian Panowich's first novel about the Georgia-based, meth-distributing Burroughs clan.
Reviewers say: "This is hillbilly noir at its finest" (Publishers Weekly). |
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The man who came uptown
by George P Pelecanos
Michael Hudson spends the long days in prison devouring books given to him by the prison's librarian, a young woman named Anna who develops a soft spot for her best student. Anna keeps passing Michael books until one day he disappears, suddenly released after a private detective manipulated a witness in Michael's trial. Outside, Michael encounters a Washington, D.C. that has changed a lot during his time locked up. Once shady storefronts are now trendy beer gardens and flower shops. But what hasn't changed is the hard choice between the temptation of crime and doing what's right. Trying to balance his new job, his love of reading, and the debt he owes to the man who got him released, Michael struggles to figure out his place in this new world before he loses control.
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Who is Vera Kelly?
by Rosalie Knecht
"New York City, 1962. Vera Kelly is struggling to make rent and blend into the underground gay scene in Greenwich Village. She's working night shifts at a radio station when her quick wits, sharp tongue, and technical skills get her noticed by a recruiter for the CIA. Next thing she knows she's in Argentina, tasked with wiretapping a congressman and infiltrating a group of student activists in Buenos Aires. As Vera becomes more and more enmeshed with the young radicals, the fragile local government begins to split at the seams. When a betrayal leaves her stranded in the wake of a coup, Vera learns the Cold War makes for strange and unexpected bedfellows, and she's forced to take extreme measures to save herself. An exhilarating page turner and perceptivecoming-of-age story, Who Is Vera Kelly? is a novel that introduces an original, wry and whip-smart female spy for the twenty-first century"
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The Iceman
by Peter T. Deutermann
In 1942, off the port city of St. Nazaire in occupied France, a United States Navy S-class submarine assigned to the Royal Navy lurks just outside the borders of the minefield protecting a German U-boat base. Lieutenant Commander Malachi Stormes, the boat's skipper, patrols dangerously close to the minefield entrance and manages to trap and sink three outbound U-boats in one spectacular attack. Britain decorates him, the U.S. Navy promotes him and then gives him command of a brand new class of submarine, a fleet boat called Firefish. Based in Perth, having been driven out of the Philippines by the Japanese juggernaut, the Perth boats are the only American forces capable of hitting the Japanese in the western Pacific. Stormes, with his cold, steely-eyed focus on killing Japanese ships, is an enigma to his officers and crew, especially when it becomes clear that he is willing to take huge chances to achieve results. Firefish sinks more ships than any Perth boat on her first war patrol, but Stormes' unconventional tactics literally frighten his crew. Driven by a past steeped in the whiskey-haunted violence of the Kentucky coal fields, whose psychological scars torment his sleep and close him off from personal relationships, Stormes is nicknamed The Iceman. His crew is proud of their boat's accomplishments, but wonder if their iron-willed skipper will bring them home alive.
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| The Paris Diversion by Chris PavoneThe premise: After the events of Chris Pavone's previous novel The Expats, semi-retired CIA operative Kate Moore is trying to enjoy her new life in Paris with her husband Dexter.
The problem: A jihadi wearing a suicide bomb shows up outside the Louvre, announcing his intent to blow himself up.. But is the man who he says he is?
The clock is ticking: The entire novel takes place over a 24-hour period, ratcheting up the tension as Kate races against time to discover the truth. |
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| Delta-V by Daniel SuarezWhat it is: a richly detailed techno-thriller set in the near future, when the first step for a billionaire looking to exploit mining possibilities in space is to set up a Kickstarter.
Featuring: Nathan Joyce, the billionaire in question; James Tighe, a skilled cave diver recruited for the voyage to a mineral-rich asteroid; Lukas Rochat, a novice lawyer who stumbles upon a secret about Nathan that could put the success of the whole operation in jeopardy. |
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A Place to Lie
by Rebecca Griffiths
In Summer 1990, Caroline and Joanna are sent to stay with their great aunt, Dora, to spend their holidays in a sunlit village near the Forest of Dean. The countryside is a welcome change from the trauma they know back home in the city; a chance to make the world a joyful playground again. But in the shadowy woods at the edge of the forest hide secrets that will bring their innocence to a distressing end and make this a summer they will never forget. Years later, a shocking act of violence sends Joanna back to Witchwood. In her great aunt's lonely and dilapidating cottage, she will attempt to unearth the secrets of that terrifying summer and come to terms with the haunting effects it has left on her life. But in her quest to find answers, who can she trust? And will she be able to survive the impending danger from those trying to bury the truth?
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| The Three Beths by Jeff AbbottPrime suspect: Jake Dunning, who the police are convinced is responsible for his wife Beth's disappearance one year ago, despite a lack of evidence.
What happens: Jake and Beth's adult daughter Mariah spots a woman she believes to be her mother in a crowd, and as she starts digging into her mother's case she discovers that two other missing women might be connected -- two women also named Beth.
Who it's for: anyone who likes having an intricate puzzle to solve, with the possibility of lots of misdirection along the way. |
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| The Sleepwalker by Chris BohjalianWhat it's about: the disappearance of Annalee Ahlberg, whose previous episodes of sleepwalking have led her into dangerous and compromising situations.
On the case: Annalee's daughter Lianna, who drops out of college to support her family and discover what happened to her mother; police detective Gavin Rikert, who is assigned to the investigation but has more than one conflict of interest.
Author alert: Although Chris Bohjalian is better known for his literary fiction, he has been making recent forays into suspense with books like The Guest Room and The Flight Attendant. |
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| The Destroyers by Christopher BollenWhat it's about: disaffected rich kid Ian Bledsoe jumps at his childhood friend Charlie Konstantinou's invitation to be his guest for the summer on the idyllic Greek island of Patmos. Too bad for Ian that Charlie soon goes missing, and that such a small island has so many places to hide.
Read it for: the large cast of authentic and flawed characters, including many of the colorful residents and tourists on the richly described Aegean island.
Did you know? Patmos is primarily known for its association with the Book of Revelation -- an apocalyptic connection that author Christopher Bollen doesn't shy away from. |
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| Don't You Cry by Mary KubicaStarring: Chicago party girl Quinn Collins, who discovers one very hungover morning that her roommate Esther has disappeared; 18-year-old barista Alex Gallo, who grows consumed with learning about the mysterious new girl who just arrived in his small Michigan town.
Why you might like it: Don't You Cry features intricate plotting and alternates between Alex and Quinn's perspectives. The characters and their concerns might also appeal to readers of young adult fiction.
Read this next: She Was the Quiet One by Michele Campbell. |
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| Bring Me Back by B.A. ParisThe premise: Finn McQuaid's girlfriend Layla Gray went missing more than a decade ago, and over the years Finn has grown close to Layla's sister Ellen -- a relationship that eventually turns romantic.
The problem: When Finn and Ellen announce their engagement, Russian nesting dolls (which are a reminder of Layla) begin appearing around their home. Then they begin hearing of Layla sightings around town.
Read it for: Finn, an unreliable narrator; the complex relationship between Ellen and her sister; the slow-burning pace that grows more and more intense over time. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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