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Agrippa: A Novel of Ancient Rome's Descent Into Dictatorship
by Robert Harris
He was born feet first, a dangerous way to enter the world. His mother did not survive, and the nickname Agrippa--mother killer--stuck. But the schoolyard taunting only served to harden his resolve and hone his predilection for aggression. In time, the name lost its sting and became instead a mark of his invincibility. It came to shape his destiny. Agrippa was a mere commoner, but when he defended a bullied young boy, Octavius, he set his life on an entirely new path, for Octavius turned out to be the nephew of Julius Caesar himself. Caesar took a liking to the young Agrippa and relied on him to protect Octavius. Then Caesar was murdered in the Senate. The fate of the Republic hung in the balance. Octavius inherited the empire in name only. To assume the mantle, he would have to fight for it. Agrippa was the brawn and Octavius was the guile. Together, they would be unstoppable. As enthralling and full of intrigue as Robert Harris's bestselling novel Conclave, Agrippa is his monumental return to the world of ancient Rome on the precipice of dictatorship--a novel for our times.
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| Meet Me in the Garden by Nina LacourIn 1944 New Orleans, 18-year-old Odette, from a Creole family, and her cousin Delphine share secrets, including Odette's affair with a woman and Delphine's with a married white man. To avoid Jim Crow, Odette and her sisters move to California. Passing as white, Delphine moves, too, eventually running into Odette. Inspired by the author's Creole family, this novel is "a masterpiece" (Booklist). Read-alikes: Did You Hear About Kitty Karr? by Crystal Smith Paul; Kin by Tayari Jones. |
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| The Parisian Heist by Jo PiazzaIn 1996 Paris, American art student Emma cleans the home of Stella Swanson, the widow of a notorious billionaire art dealer, who shares family secrets, leading Emma to plan an art museum heist. In 1891, newly widowed Jo van Gogh inherits worthless paintings by brother-in-law Vincent and champions them with help from new friend Claire. Narrated by Emma and Claire, this atmospheric dual-timeline novel is "a satisfying caper with brains and heart" (Publishers Weekly). For fans of: Joan Fernandez's Saving Vincent. |
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The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies
by Kate Westbury
Oxford, England, 1951 - The Honorable Ginevra Bishop likes red lipstick, clever retorts, and earning top marks in her tutorials. She's following her mother's footsteps by studying at Oxford, eager to prove she's more than a debutante. Sidney Braithwaite likes brooding, Latin, and ignoring his nightmares. He's determined to forge a new life for himself at Oxford, far from his childhood mining village and free from memories of the war. Though Gin and Sidney have little in common, the British Security Service is keen to unite her charm with his espionage experience: there's a Soviet spy at the university, and the agent tracking them down was poisoned. MI5 wants Gin and Sidney to pick up the trail and identify the informant before more sensitive information is compromised. As a team, the pair of undergraduates clash in personality, upbringing, and taste--but have a connection neither can deny. Gin and Sidney must unite their respective talents to follow the clues before they're caught in the traitor's crosshairs...if the sparks flying between them don't blow up the operation first.
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The Pirate Queen
by Ariel Lawhon
Grace O'Malley was born to be a sea captain. But despite her natural skill on the water, Grace learns early that her dreams of a life at the helm are not compatible with the expectations of her noble family. As the only daughter of a powerful chieftain, her role is to secure a strong alliance and bear children. But when she's sent to foster with a nearby clan, Grace falls for a clever and open-minded second son--a man she cannot have. Married off against her will to a brutal warrior, Grace performs her duty, all the while gathering followers loyal to her, and consolidating her husband's power, only to be ousted from his lands. But this betrayal offers Grace the opportunity to return to sea, finally leading clan O'Malley's mighty fleet. Just as she finds true independence, Queen Elizabeth's incursions into Ireland grow bolder and Grace must fight to defend her land, her ships, and the people she loves most against the cruel and power-hungry English deputies, who will stop at nothing to check her influence. Keenly observed and fiercely written, Ariel Lawhon's new action-packed novel channels the untamed beauty and harsh realities of sixteenth-century Ireland, as seen through the eyes of an unforgettable heroine who rightly became the Pirate Queen of Ireland.
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The Last Woman of Warsaw
by Judy Batalion
1938: Fanny Zelshinsky is a sophisticated, modern daughter of the city's Jewish elite who wants nothing more than to be recognized as a legitimate artist by her family, her radical professor whom she idolizes, and the world at large. And all while she wonders if she is really going to go through with her wedding. Meanwhile, Zosia Dror has left behind her small northeastern shtetl and religious family in the wake of violence. Part of a budding youth movement that believes in social equality and creating a Jewish homeland, all she wants is to not get distracted by the glitz and hubbub of the city--or by the keen eyes of a certain tall, handsome comrade. When legendary artist Wanda Petrovsky--both a member of Zosia's movement leadership and Fanny's beloved photography professor--goes missing, the two young women are thrown together in the pursuit of the elusive firebrand. Is Wanda simply hiding, or is her disappearance connected to the rise in antisemitic laws and university practices? Fanny and Zosia may be the most unlikely of allies, but they must bridge their differences to help someone they both care for--and dodge the danger mounting around them in the process.
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The Hired Man
by Sandra Dallas
1937. It's been seven years since the dust storms started in Colorado. Folks can barely remember a time when the clouds were filled with rain instead of dirt, and when the fields were green instead of brown. High school student Martha Helen Kessler and her family are luckier than most; they still eke out a living from the land. Even so, evidence of the Dust Bowl's grim impact on families, especially on the women who bear the brunt of their husbands' frustration and their children's hunger, is everywhere. When Martha Helen's compassionate mother insists they take in Otis Hobbs, a handsome drifter who saves a local boy from a vicious storm, she quickly discovers a darker side to their rural community. Suspicion, jealousy, and prejudice grip their neighbors - and emotions reach a frenzy after Martha Helen's best friend, Frankie, disappears and is then found murdered. Ultimately, Martha Helen is forced to make sense of her conflicting feelings and loyalties in order to help find retribution and to reconcile the difference between the law and justice. Full of period detail and Sandra Dallas's trademark focus on the lives of women, The Hired Man entertains and ultimately surprises.
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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