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Book Chat's Recommendations May 2025 |
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The Night Inspector
by Frederick Busch
When William Bartholomew, a maimed veteran of the Civil War, becomes involved with a Creole prostitute in 1867 New York City, he discovers the continuing underground trade in black people, a case that embroils him with Boston newpaperman Samuel Mordechai and a deputy customs inspector named Herman Melville. 30,000 first printing. Tour.
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Wild dark shore
by Charlotte McConaghy
On a remote island near Antarctica, the Salt family's fragile existence is upended by the arrival of Rowan, a mysterious woman who washes ashore during a storm, forcing them to confront rising dangers and the hope of rebuilding trust amidst isolation and loss.
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Snow
by John Banville
Investigating the murder of a 1957 County Wexford priest, Detective Inspector St. John Strafford navigates harsh winter weather and the community's culture of silence to expose an aristocratic family's dangerous secrets. By the award-winning author of The Seas.
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The Chilbury Ladies' Choir : a novel
by Jennifer Ryan
Letters and journals reveal the struggles, affairs, deceptions and triumphs of five members of a village choir during World War II as they band together to survive the upheavals of war and village intrigue on the English home front. A first novel.
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We all live here
by Jojo Moyes
Lila Kennedy juggles a broken marriage, rebellious daughters, a crumbling house, and an elderly stepfather when her estranged father unexpectedly shows up after thirty-five years, forcing her to confront unresolved feelings and discover unexpected lessons about love and family amidst her chaotic life.
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The seaside sisters
by Pamela M. Kelley
Retreating to her aunt's oceanfront house in Chatham, Cape Cod, for the summer to get her creative juices flowing, best-selling author Hannah and her sister Sara spend the summer making friends, rekindling romance and opening themselves up to the magic of books and the beach. Original.
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White Bird : a novel : a wonder story by R. J. Palacio"Expanding on characters in Wonder, this heartrending graphic novel tells the story of Julian's Grandmère who, as a young Jewish girl, was hidden by a family in a Nazi-occupied French village during WWII, demonstrating how kindness can change hearts, build bridges and save lives. Simultaneous eBook. Illustrations. "
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A map to paradise
by Susan Meissner
Blacklisted actress Melanie Cole and her maid, Eva, form an unlikely alliance to uncover the mystery surrounding their agoraphobic neighbor's disappearance, leading them to a surprising discovery about themselves and their shared past.
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Beautiful ugly
by Alice Feeney
A year after his wife Abby mysteriously disappeared, author Grady Green, still consumed by grief, retreats to a remote Scottish island only to encounter a woman who looks exactly like the wife he lost. 150,000 first printing.
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The night we lost him : a novel
by Laura Dave
As Nora and her estranged brother Sam form an uneasy alliance to unravel the mystery of their father's death, they start putting together the pieces of their father's past and uncover a family secret that changes everything.
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Still life
by Sarah Winman
In 1944 Tuscany, as Allied troops advance, a young English soldier has a chance encounter with a middle-aged art historian with whom he finds a kindred spirit and who sets him off on a course of events that will shape his life for the next four decades.
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Small pleasures : a novel
by Clare Chambers
When Gretchen Tilbury claims that her daughter is the result of a virgin birth, Jean Swinney, a feature writer on a local paper, sets out to prove whether Gretchen is a miracle or a fraud—an investigation that sends dark ripples across all their lives with unimaginable consequences. 50,000 first printing.
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The road to tender hearts : a novel
by Annie Hartnett
Sixty-three-year-old lottery winner PJ Halliday sets out on a cross-country trip to reunite with his high school sweetheart, bringing along his estranged brother's orphaned grandchildren, his drifting adult daughter and a death-predicting cat.
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Rabbit cake
by Annie Hartnett
A debut novel by an award-winning writer follows the darkly comic experiences of a precocious 12-year-old girl named Elvis who worries about her troubled family and tries to figure out her place in the world in the aftermath of her mother's accidental death. Original.
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Unlikely animals : a novel
by Annie Hartnett
Emma Starling, a natural-born healer who lost her way, and her father, who is dying from a mysterious brain injury, team up to find Emma's former best friend from high school who has gone missing, setting in motion a miracle the town needs. Illustrations. Maps.
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The seven year slip
by Ashley Poston
In Red Mountain, where everyone's lives are intertwined like the vines in the town's beautiful and renowned vineyards, the secrets of four complicated people are revealed, and they each wonder if this town filled with eccentrics will rally around them—or turn their backs. Original.
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The Island of Worthy Boys
by Connie Hertzberg Mayo
In Boston at the turn of the century, two indigent adolescent boys, Aidan and Charles, are brought together by a common desire: earning enough money each day to feed themselves (and, in Aidan’s case, his mother and sister). Together, they achieve this goal by robbing drunken sailors in the brothel district of the city—until one night they accidently kill their victim. To avoid arrest, they leave the city, conning their way into an island school that only accepts boys with squeaky-clean pasts. But the pressure of keeping their stories straight soon fractures their friendship—and when the cracks begin to show, they find out that they are not as safe from the law as they had hoped.
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Every Tom, Dick & Harry : a novel
by Elinor Lipman
Emma Lewis reluctantly takes over her parents' estate-sale business, facing her quirkiest job yet involving clearing a scandalous B&B, but as she navigates its colorful clients, she discovers unexpected paths to fulfillment and happiness. (general fiction). Simultaneous.
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Upon a starlit tide
by Kell Woods
In 1758 Saint-Malo, Lucinde Leon, the rebellious daughter of a wealthy shipowner, discovers a world of faerie magic, love, and betrayal after rescuing a drowning man, drawing her into a dangerous web of secrets, power and the pull of the sea.
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People of means : a novel
by Nancy Johnson
From the acclaimed author of The Kindest Lie, a propulsive novel about a mother and daughter, Freda and Tulip, each seeking justice and following their dreams during moments of social reckoning—1960s Nashville and 1992 Chicago.
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Iron Lake : a novel
by William Kent Krueger
Cork O'Connor has lost both his wife and his job as sheriff and falls into a profound emotional isolation. As a wild blizzard buries his lakeside town, a despised though influential resident is found dead, and a young Ojibwe Indian boy seems to have left home in a hurry. Cork has never taken Indian legends to heart, but when an old sage warns him that a cruel spirit with a heart of ice is near, all that changes.
This is the first book in the series. There are now 20 books in this series by this New York Times bestselling author.
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A solitude of wolverines : a novel of suspense
by Alice Henderson
Targeted by aggressive locals who would sabotage her research on a Montana endangered wildlife sanctuary, biologist Alex Carter reports evidence of an injured person to indifferent authorities before uncovering the activities of a serial killer. 40,000 first printing.
This is the first book in the Alex Carter series. There are now 4 books in this series written by a wildlife researcher, geographic information systems specialist and bioacoustician.
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Kills well with others
by Deanna Raybourn
When a mole in the elite assassin organization the Museum leaks names to an Eastern European gangster who's murdering agents, assassins Billie, Helen, Mary Alice and Natalie?—?senior in status and age?—?must root out the organization's mole and hunt down their new nemesis.
This is the second book in this series after Killers of a Certain Age.
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