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Reviews

Reviews

by Jesse McKinnell - Fiction, Humor

Joel Peterson's rock bottom is deeper and darker than he ever imagined, but with the help of the ghost of Kurt Cobain, he hatches a plan to capture the attention of his estranged family and reclaim his life. DEAD CATS is a dark comedy that tracks the descent of Peterson, a once-successful dentist and proud member of the upper middle-class as he falls into a spiral of drugs and vanity. When a car crash leaves him battered and homeless, he finds comfort in the restless lost soul of Cobain. Together, the two cut a path across southern Maine, chasing the meaning in their lives, desperately trying to be the men they expected to become.

by Anne Perry - Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Mystery, Mystery

When kidnappers choose a broken-down waterside slum as the site of a ransom exchange for the wife of wealthy real estate developer Harry Exeter, the Thames River Police and Commander William Monk shadow Harry to the spot to ensure that no harm comes to him or his captive wife. But on arrival, Monk and five of his best men are attacked from all sides. Certain that one of his colleagues has betrayed him, Monk delves into each of their pasts, one of which hides a dreadful secret. Soon facing a series of deadly obstructions, Monk must choose between his own safety and the chance to solve the mystery --- and to figure out where his men’s loyalty really lies.

by John Verdon - Fiction, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller

Tensions have been running high in White River as it approaches the anniversary of a fatal shooting of a black motorist by a local police officer. In the midst of the turmoil, a White River police officer is shot dead by an unknown sniper, and local authorities approach Dave Gurney to conduct an independent investigation of the shooting. More killings occur in what appears to be an escalating sequence of retaliations. But when Gurney questions the true nature of all this bloodshed, his involvement is suddenly terminated. Despite intense opposition from the police, as well as from dangerous fanatics lurking in the shadows, he begins to uncover an astonishing structure of deception.

by Charles Todd - Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Mystery, Mystery

The Great War has ended, and battlefield nurse Bess Crawford has been assigned to a clinic for amputees. She does her best to help them, but it’s clear that they have nothing to go home to. Their officer, Captain Williams, writes to describe their despair, and his own at trying to save his men. Bess feels compelled to look into their situation, so she travels to Wales but is told Williams has left the valley. Fearing that he intends to kill himself, Bess follows Williams to an isolated, storm-battered peninsula. Deserted by her frightened driver, Bess is stranded among strangers suspicious of outsiders. She quickly discovers these villagers are hiding something, and she’s learned too much to be allowed to leave.

by Andrew Gross - Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Thriller, Suspense, Thriller

New York, 1930s. Morris, Sol and Harry Rabishevsky grew up poor and rough on the Lower East Side, until the death of their father forced them to fend for themselves and support the family. Morris apprentices himself to a garment manufacturer; bookish Sol drops out of accounting school; and Harry believes he can help out by learning the ways and means of a charismatic local crime figure. Later, when Morris and Sol find career success and decide to create their own business, Harry can’t be lured away from the glamour and prestige that comes from being a “button man” --- a gun man --- for Louis Buchalter, now the most ruthless mobster in the city. When Buchalter sets his sights on the unions that control the garment factories, a fatal showdown becomes inevitable, pitting brother against brother.

by Clive Cussler and Boyd Morrison - Adventure, Fiction, Suspense, Thriller

Nearly 2,000 years ago, an Eastern emperor charged a small group with safeguarding secrets powerful enough to change the history of mankind. They went down in legend as the Nine Unknown Men --- and now two rival factions of their descendants are fighting a mighty battle. Both sides think they are saving the world, but their tactics could very well bring about the end of humankind. Soon, Juan Cabrillo and his team of expert operatives aboard the Oregon find themselves trapped between two power-hungry adversaries, both of whom are willing to use shocking means to accomplish their goals.

written by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien and illustrated by Alan Lee - Fantasy, Fiction

In the Tale of THE FALL OF GONDOLIN are two of the greatest powers in the world. There is Morgoth of the uttermost evil, unseen in this story but ruling over a vast military power from his fortress of Angband. Deeply opposed to Morgoth is Ulmo, second in might only to Manwë, chief of the Valar: he is called the Lord of Waters, of all seas, lakes and rivers under the sky. But he works in secret in Middle-earth to support the Noldor, the kindred of the Elves among whom were numbered Húrin and Túrin Turambar. Central to this enmity of the gods is the city of Gondolin, beautiful but undiscoverable.

by Sarah Pinborough - Fiction, Psychological Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Thriller

Lisa lives for her daughter Ava, her job and her best friend Marilyn. But when a handsome client shows an interest in her, Lisa starts daydreaming about sharing her life with him, too. Maybe she’s ready now. Maybe it's time to let her terrifying secret past go. However, when her daughter rescues a boy from drowning and their pictures are all over the news, Lisa's world explodes. As she finds everything she has built threatened, and not knowing who she can trust, it's up to Lisa to face her past in order to save what she holds dear. But someone has been pulling all their strings and is determined to see Lisa and Ava suffer. Because long ago Lisa broke a promise. And some promises aren't meant to be broken.

by Sophie Hannah - Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Mystery, Mystery

Hercule Poirot returns home to find an angry woman waiting to berate him outside his front door. Her name is Sylvia Rule, and she demands to know why Poirot has accused her of the murder of Barnabas Pandy. Poirot has no idea what she’s talking about and has never even heard of this man. Shaken, Poirot goes inside, only to find that he has a visitor waiting for him --- a man called John McCrodden, who also claims to have received a letter from Poirot that morning, accusing him of the murder of Barnabas Pandy. Poirot wonders how many more letters of this sort have been sent in his name. Who sent them, and why? More importantly, who is Barnabas Pandy, is he dead, and, if so, was he murdered?

by Wendy Corsi Staub - Fiction, Psychological Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Thriller

May 1968: In Harlem, a church janitor finds an innocent newborn in a basket. Meanwhile, in Brooklyn, an elusive serial killer prowls slumbering families, leaving a trail of blood and a twisted calling card. October 1987: Amelia Crenshaw embarks on a search to discover the truth about the birth mother who abandoned her, never suspecting she’s on a collision course with a killer. Detective Stockton Barnes, a brash young NYPD detective, trails a missing millionaire whose disappearance is rooted in a nightmare that began 20 years ago. The past returns with a brutal vengeance as a masked predator picks off victims whose fates intertwine with a notorious murder spree solved back in ’68. Or was it?