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Week of October 25, 2021

New in Paperback

Week of October 25, 2021

Paperback releases for the week of October 25th include Linwood Barclay's FIND YOU FIRST, a riveting thriller in which the possible heirs of a dying tech millionaire are mysteriously being eliminated, one by one; I’LL BE SEEING YOU, a beautifully written memoir by Elizabeth Berg, who tells the poignant love story of caring for her parents in their final years; ROBERT B. PARKER’S SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME by Ace Atkins, a new Spenser mystery that finds the legendary Boston PI and his young protégé, Mattie Sullivan, taking on a billionaire money manager running a network of underaged girls for his rich and powerful clients; and Bryan Washington's debut novel, MEMORIAL, a funny and profound story about family in all its strange forms, joyful and hard-won vulnerability, becoming who you're supposed to be, and the limits of love.

All That Glitters by Danielle Steel - Fiction

October 26, 2021

Nicole “Coco” Martin has been given every opportunity in life. Having inherited her mother’s stunning beauty and creativity, along with her father’s work ethic and diligence, she has the world at her feet. Her graduation from Columbia is fast approaching, and with it the summer job of her dreams working at a magazine. Between work, leisurely weekends at her family’s home in Southampton, and spending as much time as possible with her best friend, Sam, life couldn’t be better --- until tragedy strikes. Coco’s beloved parents are killed in a terrorist attack while on vacation in France. Now devastated and alone, Coco must find a way to move forward and make her way in the world without the family she loved.

Battle Ground: A Novel of the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher - Urban Fantasy

October 26, 2021

Harry Dresden has faced terrible odds before. He has a long history of fighting enemies above his weight class. The Red Court of vampires. The fallen angels of the Order of the Blackened Denarius. The Outsiders. But this time it’s different. A being more powerful and dangerous on an order of magnitude beyond what the world has seen in a millennium is coming. And she’s bringing an army. The Last Titan has declared war on the city of Chicago, and has come to subjugate humanity, obliterating any who stand in her way. Harry’s mission is simple but impossible: Save the city by killing a Titan. And the attempt will change Harry’s life, Chicago and the mortal world forever.

Blink of an Eye by Iris Johansen and Roy Johansen - Mystery/Thriller

October 26, 2021

Delilah Winter is one of the hottest pop stars on the planet, so how in the world was she kidnapped right in the middle of a show at the famous Hollywood Bowl? If anyone can figure it out, it's Dr. Kendra Michaels, who works with local and federal authorities on only the most impossible cases. She agrees to lead the race to rescue the young singer before time runs out. Joined by Jessie Mercado, the singer's former bodyguard and a military hero, Kendra closes in on the hideout location but not before casualties mount up. Desperate for leads, Kendra must set aside her personal feelings when agent-for-hire Adam Lynch also volunteers his special skills to aid in the search. But as the abductor's true purpose becomes clear, the trio uncover a plot they never could have imagined --- leading to a showdown they won't soon forget.

Blood Runs Coal: The Yablonski Murders and the Battle for the United Mine Workers of America by Mark A. Bradley - True Crime/History

October 26, 2021

In the early hours of New Year’s Eve 1969, in the small soft coal mining borough of Clarksville, Pennsylvania, longtime trade union insider Joseph “Jock” Yablonski and his wife and daughter were brutally murdered in their old stone farmhouse. Behind the assassination was the corrupt president of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA), Tony Boyle, who had long embezzled UMWA funds, silenced intra-union dissent, and served the interests of Big Coal companies --- and would do anything to maintain power. The most infamous crimes in the history of American labor unions, the Yablonski murders catalyzed the first successful rank-and-file takeover of a major labor union in modern US history.

Britain at Bay: The Epic Story of the Second World War, 1938-1941 by Alan Allport - History

October 26, 2021

Here is the many-faceted, world-historically significant story of Britain at war. In looking closely at the military and political dimensions of the first crucial years of World War II, Alan Allport tackles pressing questions such as whether the war could have been avoided, how it could have been lost, how well the British lived up to their own values, and ultimately, what difference the war made to the fate of the nation. In answering these questions, he reexamines our assumptions and paints a vivid portrait of the ways in which the Second World War transformed British culture and society. BRITAIN AT BAY gives us a fresh look at the opening years of the war, and illuminates the integral moments that, for better or for worse, made Britain what it is today.

Christmas in Peachtree Bluff by Kristy Woodson Harvey - Fiction

October 26, 2021

When the Murphy women are in trouble, they always know they can turn to their mother, Ansley. So when eldest daughter Caroline and her husband, James, announce they are divorcing --- and 15-year-old daughter Vivi acts out in response --- Caroline, at her wit's end, can’t think of anything to do besides leave her with Ansley in Peachtree Bluff for the holidays. After all, how much trouble can one teenager get into on a tiny island? Quite a lot, as it turns out. As the “storm of the century” heads toward Peachtree Bluff, Ansley and her husband, Jack, with Vivi in tow, are grateful they’re planning to leave for the trip of a lifetime. But Vivi’s recklessness forces the trio to shelter in place during the worst hurricane Peachtree has ever seen.

Crossings by Alex Landragin - Fiction

October 26, 2021

On the brink of the Nazi occupation of Paris, a German-Jewish bookbinder stumbles across a manuscript called Crossings. It has three narratives, each as unlikely as the next. And the narratives can be read one of two ways: either straight through or according to an alternate chapter sequence. The first piece is a never-before-seen ghost story by the poet Charles Baudelaire, penned for an illiterate girl. Next is a noir romance about an exiled man, modeled on Walter Benjamin, whose recurring nightmares are cured when he falls in love with a storyteller who draws him into a dangerous intrigue of rare manuscripts, police corruption and literary societies. Finally, there are the fantastical memoirs of a woman-turned-monarch whose singular life has spanned seven generations.

D (A Tale of Two Worlds) by Michel Faber - Fantasy

October 26, 2021

It all starts on the morning the letter D disappears from language. First, it vanishes from Dhikilo’s parents’ conversation at breakfast, then from the road signs outside and from her school dinners. Soon the local dentist and the neighbor’s dalmatian are missing, and even the Donkey Derby has been called off. Though she doesn’t know why, Dhikilo is summoned to the home of her old history teacher Professor Dodderfield and his faithful Labrador, Nelly Robinson. And this is where our story begins.

Find You First by Linwood Barclay - Psychological Thriller

October 26, 2021

Tech millionaire Miles Cookson recently has been diagnosed with a terminal illness, and there is a 50 percent chance that it can be passed on to the next generation. Two decades ago, a young, struggling Miles was a sperm donor. Somewhere out there, he has nine kids, and they might be about to inherit both the good and the bad from him. Aspiring film documentarian Chloe Swanson embarks on a quest to find her biological father, armed with the knowledge that 22 years ago, her mother used a New York sperm bank to become pregnant. When Miles and Chloe eventually connect, their excitement at finding each other is overshadowed by a series of mysterious and terrifying events. One by one, Miles’ other potential heirs are vanishing --- every trace of them wiped, like they never existed at all.

Golem Girl: A Memoir by Riva Lehrer - Memoir

October 26, 2021

In 1958, amongst the children born with spina bifida is Riva Lehrer. At the time, most such children are not expected to survive. Her parents and doctors are determined to "fix" her, sending the message over and over again that she is broken. Enduring countless medical interventions, Riva tries her best to be a good girl and a good patient in the quest to be cured. Everything changes when, as an adult, Riva is invited to join a group of artists, writers and performers who are building Disability Culture. They insist that disability is an opportunity for creativity and resistance. Emboldened, Riva asks if she can paint their portraits --- inventing an intimate and collaborative process that will transform the way she sees herself, others and the world.

Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots - Science Fiction/Adventure

October 26, 2021

Anna does boring things for terrible people because even criminals need office help and she needs a job. Working for a monster lurking beneath the surface of the world isn’t glamorous. But is it really worse than working for an oil conglomerate or an insurance company? In this economy? As a temp, she’s just a cog in the machine. But when she finally gets a promising assignment, everything goes very wrong, and an encounter with the so-called “hero” leaves her badly injured. So, of course, then she gets laid off. When people start listening to the story that her data tells, she realizes she might not be as powerless as she thinks. It’s not too long before she’s employed once more, this time by one of the worst villains on earth. As she becomes an increasingly valuable lieutenant, she might just save the world.

I'll Be Seeing You: A Memoir by Elizabeth Berg - Memoir

October 26, 2021

Elizabeth Berg’s father was an Army veteran who was a tough man in every way but one: He showed a great deal of love and tenderness to his wife. Berg describes her parents’ marriage as a romance that lasted for nearly 70 years. But then her father developed Alzheimer’s disease, and her parents were forced to leave the home they loved and move into a facility that could offer them help. It was time for their children to offer practical advice, emotional support and direction, to the best of their abilities. The mix of emotions on everyone’s part could make every day feel like walking through a minefield. Then came redemption.

Mad at the World: A Life of John Steinbeck by William Souder - Biography

October 26, 2021

The first full-length biography of the Nobel laureate to appear in a quarter century, MAD AT THE WORLD illuminates what has made the work of John Steinbeck an enduring part of the literary canon: his capacity for empathy. Pulitzer Prize finalist William Souder explores Steinbeck’s long apprenticeship as a writer struggling through the depths of the Great Depression, and his rise to greatness with masterpieces such as THE RED PONY, OF MICE AND MEN and THE GRAPES OF WRATH.

A Matter of Life and Death: A Robin Lockwood Novel by Phillip Margolin - Legal Thriller

October 26, 2021

Joe Lattimore, homeless and trying desperately to provide for his young family, agrees to fight in a no-holds-barred illegal bout, only to have his opponent die. Lattimore now finds himself at the mercy of the fight's organizers, who blackmail him into burglarizing a house. However, when he breaks in, he finds a murdered woman on the floor, and the police have received an anonymous tip naming him the murderer. Robin Lockwood, an increasingly prominent young attorney and former MMA fighter, agrees to take on his defense. The murdered woman's husband, Judge Anthony Carasco, has an alibi, and Lattimore's fingerprints are discovered at the scene. But Lockwood is convinced that her client has been framed.

Memorial by Bryan Washington - Fiction

October 26, 2021

Benson and Mike have been together for a few years, but now they're not sure why they're still a couple. When Mike finds out that his estranged father is dying in Osaka just as his acerbic Japanese mother, Mitsuko, arrives in Texas for a visit, Mike picks up and flies across the world to say goodbye. In Japan, he undergoes an extraordinary transformation, discovering the truth about his family and his past. Back home, Mitsuko and Benson are stuck living together as unconventional roommates, an absurd domestic situation that ends up meaning more to each of them than they ever could have predicted. Without Mike's immediate pull, Benson begins to push outwards, realizing he might just know what he wants out of life and have the goods to get it.

A New World Begins: The History of the French Revolution by Jeremy D. Popkin - History

October 26, 2021

The French Revolution’s principles of liberty and equality still shape our ideas of a just society --- even if, after more than 200 years, their meaning is more contested than ever before. In A NEW WORLD BEGINS, Jeremy D. Popkin offers a riveting account of the revolution that puts the reader in the thick of the debates and the violence that led to the overthrow of the monarchy and the establishment of a new society. We meet Mirabeau, Robespierre and Danton in all their brilliance and vengefulness; we witness the failed escape and execution of Louis XVI; we see women demanding equal rights and Black slaves wresting freedom from revolutionaries who hesitated to act on their own principles; and we follow the rise of Napoleon out of the ashes of the Reign of Terror.

Night in Tehran by Philip Kaplan - Thriller

October 26, 2021

Based on real events, NIGHT IN TEHRAN places an idealistic American diplomat in a turbulent, US-hating Tehran in the days leading up to the Iranian Revolution. Backed by the CIA, and trailed by a beautiful and engaging French journalist he suspects is a spy, David Weiseman's mission is to ease the Shah of Iran out of power and find the best alternative between the military, religious extremists and the political ruling class --- many of whom are simultaneously trying to kill him.

The Night of the Fire by Kjell Eriksson - Mystery

October 26, 2021

Police inspector Ann Lindell has left the Uppsala police and is living a quiet life, producing local cheese in a small town in Uppland. But life in the country is not as idyllic as it seems. On New Year’s Eve, someone sets fire to the former village school that is now a home for asylum seekers, and three people are killed. Ann Lindell’s investigative instincts come back to life, and soon she takes on the case. She is contacted by a person who has been involved in a previous investigation and wants to warn her. His message is short and clear: Many will die. A few weeks later, a bomb explodes in a suburb of Stockholm.

Robert B. Parker's Someone to Watch Over Me: A Spenser Novel by Ace Atkins - Mystery

October 26, 2021

Ten years ago, Spenser helped a teenage girl named Mattie Sullivan find her mother's killer and take down an infamous Southie crime boss. Now Mattie is a college student with a side job working for the tough but tender private eye. Her first big case involves a 15-year-old girl assaulted by a much older man at one of Boston's most prestigious private clubs. The girl, Chloe Turner, only wants the safe return of her laptop and backpack. But like her mentor and boss, Mattie has a knack for asking the right questions of the wrong people. Soon Spenser and Mattie find ties between the exploitation of dozens of other girls from working class families to an eccentric billionaire and his sadistic henchwoman.

Rhythm of War: Book Four of The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson - Fantasy

October 26, 2021

After forming a coalition of human resistance against the enemy invasion, Dalinar Kholin and his Knights Radiant have spent a year fighting a protracted, brutal war. Neither side has gained an advantage, and the threat of a betrayal by Dalinar’s crafty ally Taravangian looms over every strategic move. Now, as new technological discoveries by Navani Kholin’s scholars begin to change the face of the war, the enemy prepares a bold and dangerous operation. The arms race that follows will challenge the very core of the Radiant ideals, and potentially reveal the secrets of the ancient tower that was once the heart of their strength.

Savage Road: A Hayley Chill Thriller by Chris Hauty - Political Thriller

October 26, 2021

When a series of devastating cyber attacks rock the United States, Hayley Chill is tasked by the “deeper state” to track down their source. NSA analysts insist that Moscow is the culprit, but that accusation brings plenty of complications with Hayley directing the president as a double agent against the Russians. With increasing pressure on the president to steer him towards a devastating war, it’s up to Hayley to stop the mysterious computer hacker and prevent World War III --- while also uncovering some shocking truths about her own life.

The Secret of Snow by Viola Shipman - Fiction

October 26, 2021

When Sonny Dunes, a SoCal meteorologist, is replaced by a virtual meteorologist that will never age, gain weight or renegotiate its contract, the only station willing to give the 50-year-old another shot is the very place she has been avoiding since the day she left for college --- her northern Michigan hometown. Sonny grudgingly returns and finds her past blindsiding her everywhere. She throws herself headfirst into covering every small-town winter event to woo a new audience, made more bearable by a handsome widower with optimism to spare. But with someone trying to undermine her efforts to rebuild her career, Sonny must make peace with who she used to be and allow her heart to thaw if she’s ever going to find a place she can truly call home.

Serpentine: An Alex Delaware Novel by Jonathan Kellerman - Psychological Thriller

October 26, 2021

The LAPD pressures homicide lieutenant Milo Sturgis to cater to the demands of a mogul: a hard-to-fathom, megarich young woman who is obsessed with reopening the coldest of cases --- the decades-old death of the mother she never knew. A mysterious woman was found with a bullet in her head in a torched Cadillac that has overturned on infamously treacherous Mulholland Drive. No physical evidence, no witnesses, no apparent motive. And a slew of detectives have already worked the case and failed. But as Sturgis and psychologist Alex Delaware begin digging, the mist begins to lift. Too many coincidences. Facts turn out to be anything but. And, as they soon discover, very real threats lurking in the present.

Survival Instincts by Jen Waite - Psychological Thriller

October 26, 2021

Twenty-something Anne meets the man of her dreams right out of college, but after they get married, Anne notices that her husband begins acting differently. Why is Ethan suddenly so moody? And will their marriage endure? Ten years later, Anne and her 12-year-old daughter, Thea, are safely living in Vermont. When Thea takes to brooding and showing classic signs of teen angst, a trip to the White Mountains of New Hampshire --- accompanied by Anne’s mother, Rose --- seems like the perfect chance to bond. But a man follows the three women on a hike at a nature reserve and drags them at gunpoint to an abandoned cabin in the woods. Just like that, their peaceful weekend away turns into a fight for survival.

The Unheard by Nicci French - Psychological Thriller

October 26, 2021

Maybe Tess is overprotective, but passing her daughter off to her ex and his new young wife fills her with a sense of dread. It hurts to see him enjoying married life with someone else. Still, she owes it to her daughter Poppy to make this arrangement work. But Poppy returns from the weekend tired and withdrawn. And when she shows Tess a crayon drawing --- an image so simple and violent that Tess can hardly make sense of it --- Poppy can only explain with the words, “He did kill her.” Jason insists the weekend went off without a hitch. Doctors advise that Poppy may be reacting to her parents’ separation. And as the days go on, even Poppy’s disturbing memory seems to fade. But a mother knows her daughter, and Tess is determined to discover the truth.

The Usual Santas: A Collection of Soho Crime Christmas Capers foreword by Peter Lovesey - Mystery/Short Stories

October 26, 2021

Nine mall Santas must find the imposter among them. An elderly lady seeks peace from her murderously loud neighbors at Christmastime. A young woman receives a mysterious invitation to Christmas dinner with a stranger. Sherlock Holmes' one-time nemesis, Irene Adler, finds herself in an unexpected tangle in Paris while on a routine espionage assignment. Jane Austen searches for the Dowager Duchess of Wilborough’s stolen diamonds. These and other adventures in this collection of 18 holiday stories will whisk readers away to Christmases around the globe --- from a Korean War POW camp to a Copenhagen refugee squat, from a palatial hotel in 1920s Bombay to a crumbling mansion in Havana.

Verity by Colleen Hoover - Psychological Thriller

October 26, 2021

Jeremy Crawford, the husband of bestselling author Verity Crawford, has hired struggling writer Lowen Ashleigh to complete the remaining books in a successful series that his injured wife is unable to finish. Lowen arrives at the Crawford home, ready to sort through years of Verity’s notes and outlines. What Lowen doesn’t expect to uncover in the chaotic office is an unfinished autobiography Verity never intended for anyone to read --- page after page of bone-chilling admissions, including Verity's recollection of the night her family was forever altered. Lowen decides to keep the manuscript hidden from Jeremy, knowing its contents could devastate the already grieving father. But as Lowen’s feelings for Jeremy begin to intensify, she recognizes all the ways she could benefit if he were to read his wife’s words.

The Wicked Widow: A Wicked City Novel by Beatriz Williams - Historical Romance

October 26, 2021

June 1925: Audacious Appalachian flapper Geneva “Gin” Kelly prepares to trade her high-flying ways for respectable marriage to Oliver Anson Marshall. But just as wedding bells chime, the head of the notorious East Coast rum-running racket turns up murdered at a society funeral, and their short-lived honeymoon bliss goes up in a spectacular blaze. June 1998: When Ella Dommerich’s ninetysomething society queen aunt Julie ropes her into digging up dirt on Senator (and Presidential candidate) Franklin Hardcastle, she couldn’t be less enthusiastic. But then the Hardcastle secrets lead to a web of shady dealings Ella has uncovered in her job as a financial analyst, and the bodies start to tumble out of the venerable woodwork.