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Reviews

Reviews

by Kelley Armstrong - Fiction, Horror, Supernatural Thriller, Suspense, Thriller

When Samantha Payne’s grandfather dies, she figures she won’t even get a mention in the will. After all, she hasn’t seen him in 14 years, not since her father took his own life after being accused of murdering a child at their lakefront cottage. Her grandfather always insisted that her father was innocent, despite Sam having caught him burying the child’s body. But when she does attend the reading of the will at the behest of her aunt, she discovers that her grandfather left her the very valuable lakefront property where the family cottage sits. There’s one catch: Sam needs to stay in the cottage for a month. To finally face the fact that she was wrong and her father was innocent, in her grandfather's words. When her aunt goes missing a couple of days into their stay, Sam begins to question everything again.

by Chanel Cleeton - Fiction, Historical Fiction, Women's Fiction

London, 2024: American expat Margo Reynolds has been hired to find a mysterious book published over a century ago. With a single copy left in existence, it has a storied past shrouded in secrecy. Havana, 1966: Librarian Pilar Castillo has devoted her life to books. So when a neighbor fleeing Cuba asks her to return a valuable book to its rightful owner, Pilar will risk everything to protect the literary work entrusted to her care. Boston, 1900: For Cuban school teacher and aspiring author Eva Fuentes, traveling from Havana to Harvard to study for the summer is the opportunity of a lifetime. It leaves her little time to write, but a moonlit encounter with an enigmatic stranger changes everything. The story that pours out of her is one of forbidden love, secrets and lies. Although Eva cannot see it yet, the book will be a danger and salvation for the lives it touches.

by Clare Mackintosh - Fiction, Psychological Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Thriller

The Hill is the kind of place where everyone wants to live: luxurious, exclusive and safe. But now someone is breaking and entering these Cheshire homes one by one, and DS Leo Brady suspects that the burglar is looking for something, or someone, in particular. Over the border in Wales, DC Ffion Morgan recovers the body of an estate agent from the lake. There's no love lost between Ffion and estate agents, but who hated this one enough to want her dead --- and why? As their cases collide, Ffion and Leo discover that people will pay a high price to keep their secrets behind closed doors.

by Virginia Evans - Fiction, Women's Fiction

Throughout her life, Sybil Van Antwerp has used letters to make sense of the world and her place in it. Most mornings, around half past 10, Sybil sits down to write letters --- to her brother, to her best friend, to the president of the university who will not allow her to audit a class she desperately wants to take, to Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry to tell them what she thinks of their latest books, and to one person to whom she writes often yet never sends the letter. Sybil expects her world to go on as it always has. But when letters from someone in her past force her to examine one of the most painful periods of her life, she realizes that the letter she has been writing over the years needs to be read and that she cannot move forward until she finds it in her heart to offer forgiveness.

by Julia Kelly - Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Mystery, Mystery

When a British Intelligence informant in Portugal mysteriously disappears just after hinting that he has vital information about German plans that could tip the balance of World War II, typist-turned-field agent Evelyne Redfern and her dashingly irksome partner, David Poole, are sent headed to Lisbon to find him. Once they land, Evelyne and David aren't even able to leave the airport, before she discovers one of their fellow aeroplane passengers murdered and uncovers a diary with a clear link between the victim and their missing informant. With their mission in jeopardy before it can truly begin, Evelyne and David fight to keep their cover intact as they descend deeper into the shadows that surround Lisbon’s glittering collection of wealthy expats and dangerous spies.

by Melinda Leigh - Fiction, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller

In a quiet suburban neighborhood in upstate New York, single mom Kelly Gibson is slain in her home --- the victim of a rage killing. Right away, Sheriff Bree Taggert has three persons of interest: an angry soon-to-be ex-husband, a furtive rebound boyfriend, and an obsessive neighbor. But as Bree and investigator Matt Flynn work together to narrow the field, there’s a shocking twist in the case: a second woman is murdered in the same brutal fashion. While investigating, Bree is attacked and left for dead. When another woman is kidnapped, Bree and Matt must act quickly to unravel the deceptions in Kelly’s life and death and find a killer before someone else dies.

by Kitty Zeldis - Fiction, Historical Fiction

Anne Bishop seems like a typical Vassar sophomore --- one of a popular group of privileged WASP friends. None of the girls in her circle has any idea that she’s Jewish, or that her real first name is Miriam. Pretending to be a Gentile has made life easier. As Anne, she no longer suffers the snubs, snide remarks and daily restrictions Jews face. But her secret life is threatened when she becomes fascinated by a girl not in her crowd. Delia Goldhush is sophisticated, stylish, brilliant and unashamedly Jewish. Knowing that her growing closeness with Delia would be social suicide if it were discovered, Anne keeps their friendship quiet. Delia seems to understand --- until a cruelty on Anne’s part drives them apart and sends them scattering to other corners of the world, alone and together. 

by Hank Phillippi Ryan - Fiction, Psychological Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Thriller

Debut sensation Tessa Calloway is on a whirlwind book tour for her instant bestseller, All This Could Be Yours. She receives standing ovations from adoring fans while her husband, Henry, and their two children cheer her on from their brand-new dream house. But there's a chilling problem with Tessa's triumphant book tour. She soon discovers she is being stalked by someone who's obsessed not only with sabotaging her career, but also with destroying her perfect family back home. Tessa fears that the fallout from an impossible decision she once made appears to be coming due. And she’s realizing that every high-stakes bargain comes with a high-stakes price. If Tessa can't untangle who's threatening to expose her darkest secrets, she'll lose her career, her family --- and possibly her life.

by Laura Shepherd-Robinson - Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Mystery, Mystery

Following the murder of her husband in what looks like a violent street robbery, Hannah Cole is struggling to keep her head above water. Her confectionary shop on Piccadilly is barely turning a profit, and her suppliers are conspiring to put her out of business. Henry Fielding, the famous author-turned-magistrate, is threatening to confiscate the money in her husband’s bank account because he believes it might have been illicitly acquired. And even those who claim to be Hannah’s friends have darker intent. Only William Devereux seems different. A friend of her late husband, Devereux helps Hannah unravel some of the mysteries surrounding his death. But their friendship opens Hannah to speculation and gossip and draws Henry Fielding’s attention her way, locking her into a battle of wits more devastating than anything she can imagine.

by Poppy Alexander - Fiction, Romance, Women's Fiction

Capelthorne’s Books may be a tad run-down these days, but to Jules Capelthorne, the wonky, dusty world of literary treasures is full of precious childhood memories. When her great-aunt Florence gets too frail to run it alone, Jules ditches her junior publishing job in London and comes home to make the bookshop’s 100th birthday a celebration to remember. But Jules quickly discovers that the bookshop is close to bankruptcy, and the lease on the building is up for renewal. To make matters worse, the owner of the property is the insufferable Roman Montbeau. The Montbeaus and Capelthornes have feuded for years. Jules may not be able to splash the cash on promotions and marketing like the Montbeaus, but she has some ideas of her own. Plus she has a tenacity that just may win the hardest of hearts and the most hopeless of conflicts.