Adult

Someone has put a blade in the back of the Amazing Tattooed Woman, and Willowjean “Will” Parker’s former knife-throwing mentor has been stitched up for the crime. To uncover the truth, Will and her boss, world-famous detective Lillian Pentecost, travel to the circus, where they find a snake pit of old grudges, small-town crime and secrets worth killing for. Will called Hart & Halloway’s Traveling Circus and Sideshow home for five years, and Ruby Donner, the circus’s tattooed ingenue, was her friend. To make matters worse, the prime suspect is Valentin Kalishenko, the man who taught Will everything she knows about putting a knife where it needs to go. To uncover the real killer and keep Kalishenko from a date with the electric chair, Will and Ms. Pentecost join the circus in sleepy Stoppard, Virginia.

The internationally famous bandleader Peter Duchin's six decades of performing have taken him to the most exclusive dance floors and concert halls in the world. He has played for presidents, kings and queens, as well as for civil rights and cultural organizations. But in 2013, Duchin suffered a stroke that left him with limited use of his left hand, severely impacting his career. Days of recuperating from his stroke --- and later from a critical case of COVID-19 --- inspired Duchin to reconsider his complicated past. More than a memoir, FACE THE MUSIC offers a window into the era of debutantes and white-tie balls, when such events made national headlines.

A young and ingratiating assistant to a movie star makes a blunder that puts his boss and a major studio at grave risk. A long-married couple hires an escort for a threesome in order to rejuvenate their relationship. An assistant at a prestigious literary journal reconnects with a middle school frenemy and finds that his carefully constructed world of refinement cannot protect him from his past. A Bush administration lawyer wakes up on an abandoned airplane, trapped in a nightmare of his own making. In these and other stories, Tom Bissell vividly renders the complex worlds of characters on the brink of artistic and personal crises --- creative types who see things slightly differently from the rest of us.

The small town of Salem has been quiet for months --- or so Bishop and his elite Special Crimes Unit believe. But then Hollis Templeton and Diana Hayes receive a warning in Diana's eerie "gray time" between the world of the living and the realm of the dead that a twisted killer is stalking Salem, bent on destroying in the most bloody and horrifying way possible the five families that founded the town. The stakes are high, especially for new friends Nellie Cavendish and Finn Deverell, both members of the Five. This time Bishop and his wife, Miranda, will lead the team to hunt down a vicious killer and uncover a dark and ancient curse haunting Salem.

After a dangerous adventure has him traveling up and down the coast, Stone Barrington is looking forward to some down time at his Manhattan abode. But when an acquaintance alerts him to a hinky plot being hatched across the city, he finds himself eager to pursue justice. After the mastermind behind it all proves more evasive than anyone was expecting, Stone sets out on an international chase to places he's never gone before. With the help of old friends --- and alluring new ones --- Stone is determined to see the pursuit through to the end, even if it means going up against a foe more unpredictable than he has ever faced.

After saving the kidnapped heir to the British throne, gentleman spy and MI6 legend Alex Hawke is due for some downtime. He has a new custom-built sailing yacht and a goal: to get closer to his son, Alexi, during an epic cruise across the seven seas. But fate and the chief of MI6, Lord David Trulove, have other plans. There’s an unholy alliance of nations that are plotting to attack Western democracies. The wily intelligence leader plans to use Hawke to drive a knife into the heart of this conspiracy. From an island base off Cuba to a secret jungle lair deep in the Amazon, on the land and the seas, the master spy and his crew of incorrigibles are in for the fight of their lives --- the fight for freedom.

The Man is happy. The Woman is happy. That means Gatz is happy. He'd like to forget about the trouble he made to get them back together and focus on the future. The Woman and New Man are about to get married, after all. But when The Woman loses her job because of some bad press about the two of them, her confidence is broken and she can't help but feel resentful towards New Man when his own career stays intact. The Man is doing better, too, thanks to the New Woman in his life, who just so happens to be a writer as well. But two authors in the same relationship can sometimes be one too many, and they find themselves getting quite competitive with each other.

Secretary of State Frank Malone has been kidnapped from his Cairo hotel --- his security detail wiped out. President Natalie Cohen is left with several unacceptable options. It's time to think outside the box, and that can only mean one thing: the revival of the Presidential Agent program. Cohen calls for Charley Castillo to come out of retirement to direct a new Presidential Agent, one Captain P. K. "Pick" McCoy, USMC. Charley may be too old to kick down doors and take names, but Killer McCoy is just the man to get the job done. Together, they will track the kidnapped secretary from Cairo to sub-Saharan Africa. The only problem is that one man can't hope to win against an army of terrorists. Good thing there are two of them.

The most revered detective in Paris puts his skills to the test in three thrilling cases. Very handsome and charming French detective Luc Moncrief joined the NYPD for a fresh start, but in “French Kiss,” someone wants to make his first big case his last. In the heart of the holiday season, priceless paintings have vanished from a Park Avenue murder scene. Now, Moncrief must become a quick study in the art of the steal --- before a coldblooded killer paints the town red --- in “The Christmas Mystery.” And in “French Twist,” gorgeous women are dropping dead at upscale department stores in New York City. Moncrief and Detective Katherine Burke are close to solving the mystery, but looks can be deceiving.

56 days ago. Ciara and Oliver meet in a supermarket queue in Dublin and start dating the same week COVID-19 reaches Irish shores. 35 days ago. When lockdown threatens to keep them apart, Oliver suggests they move in together. Ciara sees a unique opportunity for a relationship to flourish without the scrutiny of family and friends. Oliver sees a chance to hide who --- and what --- he really is. Today. Detectives arrive at Oliver's apartment to discover a decomposing body inside. Can they determine what really happened, or has lockdown created an opportunity for someone to commit the perfect crime?