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Week of July 26, 2021

New in Paperback

Week of July 26, 2021

Paperback releases for the week of July 26th include FAITHLESS IN DEATH, the 52nd installment in J. D. Robb's series starring NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas, which revolves around a supposed lover’s quarrel turned fatal that has larger --- and more terrifying --- motives behind it; WHITE IVY by debut novelist Susie Yang, in which a young woman’s crush on a privileged former classmate becomes a story of love, lies and dark obsession, offering stark insights into the immigrant experience; THE KINGDOM, a tense and atmospheric stand-alone thriller from Jo Nesbø about two brothers, one small town and a lifetime of dark secrets; Liz Nugent's LITTLE CRUELTIES, a biting and masterful novel of psychological suspense that explores the many ways families can wreak emotional havoc across generations; and AGENT SONYA, Ben Macintyre's page-turning history of a legendary secret agent, a woman who influenced the course of the Cold War and helped plunge the world into a decades-long standoff between nuclear superpowers.

Agent Sonya: The Spy Next Door by Ben Macintyre - History

July 27, 2021

In 1942, in a quiet village in the leafy English Cotswolds, a thin, elegant woman lived in a small cottage with her three children and her husband, who worked as a machinist nearby. Ursula Burton was friendly but reserved, and spoke English with a slight foreign accent. By all accounts, she seemed to be living a simple, unassuming life. Her neighbors in the village knew little about her. They didn’t know that she was a high-ranking Soviet intelligence officer. They didn’t know that her husband was also a spy, or that she was running powerful agents across Europe. Behind the facade of her picturesque life, Burton was a dedicated Communist, a Soviet colonel and a veteran agent, gathering the scientific secrets that would enable the Soviet Union to build the bomb.

All the Little Hopes by Leah Weiss - Historical Fiction

July 27, 2021

Deep in the tobacco land of North Carolina, nothing has been the same since the boys shipped off to war and worry took their place. Thirteen-year-old Lucy Brown is precocious and itching for adventure. Then Allie Bert Tucker wanders into town, an outcast with a puzzling past, and Lucy figures the two of them can solve any curious crime they find --- just like her hero, Nancy Drew. Their chance comes when a man goes missing, a woman stops speaking, and an eccentric gives the girls a mystery to solve that takes them beyond the ordinary. Their quiet town, seasoned with honeybees and sweet tea, becomes home to a Nazi prisoner-of-war camp. More men go missing. And together, the girls embark on a journey to discover if we ever really know who the enemy is.

Bone Chase by Weston Ochse - Supernatural Thriller/Dark Fantasy

July 27, 2021

There were giants on the earth in those days --- at least that’s what the Bible says. But where are they? Did they ever really exist at all? When out-of-work math teacher Ethan McCloud is sent a mysterious box, he and his ex-girlfriend begin to unravel a mystery 10,000 years in the making --- and he is the last hope to discovering the world’s greatest conspiracy. Chased by both the Six-Fingered Man and the Council of David, Ethan must survive the chase --- and find the truth.

The Book of Hidden Wonders by Polly Crosby - Fiction

June 27, 2021

Romilly Kemp and her eccentric painter father have happy but sheltered lives in a ramshackle mansion in the English countryside. When her father finds fame with a series of children’s books starring Romilly as the main character, everything changes: exotic foods appear on the table, her father appears on TV, and strangers appear at their door, convinced the books will lead them to a precious prize. But as time passes, Romilly’s father becomes increasingly suspicious of the outside world until he begins to disappear within himself. She returns to his illustrations, looking for a way to connect with her ailing father, and finds a series of clues he has left just for her. This treasure hunt leads her to a shocking secret that is crucial to understanding her family.

The Boy in the Field by Margot Livesey - Fiction

July 27, 2021

One September afternoon in 1999, teenagers Matthew, Zoe and Duncan Lang discover a boy lying in a field, bloody and unconscious. Thanks to their intervention, the boy’s life is saved. In the aftermath, all three siblings are irrevocably changed. Matthew becomes obsessed with tracking down the assailant, secretly searching the local town with the victim’s brother. Zoe wanders the streets of Oxford, looking at men, and one of them, a visiting American graduate student, looks back. Duncan, who has seldom thought about being adopted, suddenly decides he wants to find his birth mother. Overshadowing all three is the awareness that something is amiss in their parents’ marriage.

The Breaker: A Peter Ash Novel by Nick Petrie - Thriller

July 27, 2021

When Peter Ash --- a man wanted by two governments --- spots a suspicious armed man walking into a crowded market, he knows he can't stand by and do nothing. The young gunman appeared to have one target and one mission, but when he escapes, it seems there is more to the encounter than meets the eye. Peter's hunch is proven correct when a powerful associate from his past appears with an interest in the crime, and an irresistible offer: if he and his girlfriend June solve this mystery, Peter's record will be scrubbed clean. While Peter and his friend Lewis trace the gunman, reporter June digs into the victim of the incident, a man whose face rings a bell in her memory.

The City We Became by N. K. Jemisin - Urban Fantasy

July 27, 2021

In Manhattan, a young grad student gets off the train and realizes he doesn't remember who he is, where he's from, or even his own name. But he can sense the beating heart of the city, see its history and feel its power. In the Bronx, a Lenape gallery director discovers strange graffiti scattered throughout the city, so beautiful and powerful it's as if the paint is literally calling to her. In Brooklyn, a politician and mother finds she can hear the songs of her city, pulsing to the beat of her Louboutin heels. And they're not the only ones.

The Dreamcatcher Codes by Barbara Newman - Fantasy

July 27, 2021

Powered by the elements earth, air, fire and water, and secret messages from mystical dreamcatchers, four girls join forces on a quest to recover the stolen piece of the coveted Crystal Horseshoe. Snatched by a giant raven during a raging storm, this sacred talisman holds the Codes of Nature and is the very key to its survival. Maia from the North has been called by Sophia, Guardian of Mother Earth, to find and lead the Crystal Warriors on this daring path into the unknown. Falcon, Ava and Yue complete the circle of four, and together they bravely face what lies ahead. But time is running out, and their search is threatened by shapeshifters in the sky who want the crystal destroyed. Will this fierce cowgirl sisterhood, with mythical horses by their side, overcome the destructive forces of greed and heal Mother Earth?

Faithless in Death by J. D. Robb - Mystery/Thriller

July 27, 2021

The scene in the West Village studio appears to be a classic crime of passion: two wine glasses by the bed, music playing, and a body with a bashed-in head. But when Eve Dallas tracks down the wealthy Upper East Side woman who called 911, the details don’t add up. Gwen Huffman is wealthy, elegant and tearful over the trauma of finding the body. But why did it take an hour to report it? And why is she lying about little things? As Eve and her team look into it, they find that the lies go well beyond murder --- and soon they’re getting the FBI involved in a case that involves a sinister, fanatical group and a stunning criminal conspiracy.

A House Is a Body: Stories by Shruti Swamy - Fiction/Short Stories

July 27, 2021

Dreams collide with reality, modernity with antiquity, and myth with identity in the 12 arresting stories of A HOUSE IS A BODY. In “Earthly Pleasures,” a young painter living alone in San Francisco begins a secret romance with one of India’s biggest celebrities, and desire and ego are laid bare. In “A Simple Composition,” a husband’s professional crisis leads to his wife’s discovery of a dark, ecstatic joy. And in the title story, an exhausted mother watches, hypnotized by fear, as a California wildfire approaches her home. Set in the United States and India, they reveal small but intense moments of beauty, pain and power that contain the world.

I Hold a Wolf by the Ears: Stories by Laura van den Berg - Fiction/Short Stories

July 27, 2021

Both timeless and urgent, the 11 stories in Laura van den Berg’s first story collection since her prize-winning book THE ISLE OF YOUTH confront misogyny, violence and the impossible economics of America. In “Lizards,” a man mutes his wife’s anxieties by giving her a LaCroix-like seltzer laced with sedatives. In the title story, a woman poses as her more successful sister during a botched Italian holiday, a choice that brings about strange and destructive consequences, while in “Karolina,” a woman discovers her prickly ex-sister-in-law in the aftermath of an earthquake and is forced to face the truth about her violent brother.

The Kingdom written by Jo Nesbø, translated by Robert Ferguson - Mystery/Thriller

July 27, 2021

Roy and Carl, brothers from a small mountain town, have spent their whole lives hiding from the darkness in their pasts --- Roy by staying put and staying quiet, and Carl by running far away. Roy believed his little brother was gone for good. But Carl has big plans for his hometown. And when he returns with a mysterious new wife and a business opportunity that seems too good to be true, simmering tensions begin to surface and unexplained deaths in the town’s past come under new scrutiny. Soon powerful players set their sights on taking the brothers down by exposing their role in the town’s sordid history. But Roy and Carl are survivors, and no strangers to violence. As the town’s long-buried past begins to surface, Roy will be forced to choose between his own flesh and blood and a future he had never dared to believe possible.

Little Cruelties by Liz Nugent - Psychological Thriller

July 27, 2021

William, Brian and Luke: three boys, born a year apart, trained from birth by their wily mother to compete for her attention. They play games, as brothers do…yet even after the Drumms escape into the world beyond their windows, those games --- those little cruelties --- grow more sinister, more merciless and more dangerous. And with their lives entwined like the strands of a noose, only two of the brothers will survive.

The Man Ban by Nicola Marsh - Romantic Comedy

July 27, 2021

Harper Ryland has been on a self-imposed man ban for the last 12 months after a particularly horrible breakup. Instead, she's focusing on her career as an up-and-coming food stylist. Harper's latest gig is her best friend's wedding. When the Best Man, Manny Gomes, belittles her hard work, she decides to lead him on the entire wedding and then humiliate him in sweet revenge. When the Anglo-Indian doctor shows up in New Zealand a week later, while Harper is on her first international job, it's the last thing she needs. But when suave Manny steps in to help after an unfortunate disaster, his chivalry gets under her skin a little, and Harper discovers that lifting her ban while overseas is exactly what the doctor ordered.

The Marsh Bird by Anne Brooker James - Fiction

July 27, 2021

Woven with murder, mystery and magic, THE MARSH BIRD is a compelling story of a young, orphaned, multiracial girl from Louisiana and a white teen abandoned as an infant and raised by a local white fisherman, both embraced by the residents of a rural, Gullah Geechee sea island community. Set among descendants of those once enslaved in the lush marshes of the Lowcountry coast of South Carolina and Georgia, this is an unforgettable love story, and a tale of survival that proves it is the bonds of love and care that create a family.

The Night She Disappeared by Kevin O'Brien - Psychological Thriller

July 27, 2021

Seattle TV reporter Anna Malone awakens to her phone ringing. She rarely drinks, and this hangover is brutal. Why can't she shake the feeling that something terrible happened last night? And why can't she recall any of it? What Anna does remember: an awkward restaurant meal with her married lover, Russ Knoll, and his unsuspecting wife, Courtney. Russ' phone call reveals that Courtney is missing, and as days go by with no trace, he comes under police scrutiny. Anna already suspected that Courtney might have a darker side. Is she truly missing? Perhaps the sudden disturbances in Anna's life aren't accidental after all. But no scenario that she imagines can compare to the twisted game unfolding around her.

Radar Girls by Sara Ackerman - Historical Fiction

July 27, 2021

In the dizzying aftermath of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Daisy Wilder enlists in a top-secret program, replacing male soldiers in a war zone for the first time. Under fear of imminent invasion, the WARDs guide pilots into blacked-out airstrips and track unidentified planes across Pacific skies. But not everyone thinks the women are up to the job, and the new recruits must rise above their differences and work side by side despite the resistance and heartache they meet along the way. With America’s future on the line, Daisy is determined to prove herself worthy. And with the man she’s falling for out on the front lines, she cannot fail. From radar towers on remote mountaintops to flooded bomb shelters, she’ll need her new team when the stakes are highest.

Royal by Danielle Steel - Historical Romance

July 27, 2021

As the war rages on in the summer of 1943, causing massive destruction and widespread fear, the King and Queen choose to quietly send their youngest daughter, Princess Charlotte, to live with a trusted noble family in the country. Despite her fiery, headstrong nature, the princess's fragile health poses far too great a risk for her to remain in war-torn London. Third in line for the throne, 17-year-old Charlotte reluctantly uses an alias upon her arrival in Yorkshire, her two guardians the only keepers of her true identity. In time, she settles comfortably into a life out of the spotlight, befriending a young evacuee and training with her cherished horse. But no one predicts that in the coming months, she will fall deeply in love with her protectors' son.

Safe in My Arms by Sara Shepard - Domestic Thriller

July 27, 2021

Andrea, Lauren and Ronnie all see themselves as good, loving moms who are trying their best, but they each arrive at the Silver Swans preschool Welcome Breakfast with something to hide. They already feel like impostors among the school's community of polished parents. But then notes appear in their children’s backpacks after the first day at school. Notes that indicate that someone knows their deepest, darkest secrets and needs them gone. Does someone not want them in the community? Or is it something more menacing --- does someone know everything? When the principal of the school is the victim of an almost-fatal attack, it quickly becomes clear that the Silver Swans community is not as flawless as the brochures and website would have you believe.

Then She Vanished by T. Jefferson Parker - Thriller

July 27, 2021

Private Investigator Roland Ford has taken a job for a fellow Marine and a rising politician, Dalton Strait. His wife, Natalie, has gone missing, leaving behind a cryptic plea for help. Strait has made many enemies during his time in politics, all of whom could be looking for revenge. But as Ford digs into the details of a troubled marriage, Natalie's disappearance becomes more and more complicated. Meanwhile, the bombings in the city intensify, with a mysterious group known only as the Chaos Committee claiming responsibility. Ford soon learns that the seemingly random attacks may be connected to the case he's on --- and suddenly, his hunt for a missing woman might decide the fate of an entire city.

Three Words for Goodbye by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb - Historical Fiction

July 27, 2021

When estranged sisters Clara and Madeleine Sommers learn that their grandmother is dying, they agree to fulfill her last wish: to travel across Europe together. They are to deliver three letters, in which Violet will say goodbye to those she hasn’t seen since traveling to Europe 40 years earlier. Clara sees the trip as an inconvenient detour before her wedding to millionaire Charles Hancock, but it’s also a chance to embrace her love of art. Budding journalist Madeleine relishes the opportunity to develop her ambitions to report on the growing threat of Hitler’s Nazi party and Mussolini’s control in Italy. A shocking truth about their family brings the sisters closer together, but as they reach Vienna to deliver the final letter, old grudges threaten their reconciliation again.

Universe of Two by Stephen P. Kiernan - Historical Fiction

July 27, 2021

Graduating from Harvard at the height of World War II, brilliant mathematician Charlie Fish is assigned to the Manhattan Project, where he works on designing and building the detonator of the atomic bomb. But he suffers a crisis of conscience, which his wife, Brenda --- unaware of the true nature of Charlie’s top-secret task --- mistakes as self-doubt. Once the bombs strike Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the feelings of culpability devastate him and Brenda. At the war’s end, Charlie receives a scholarship to pursue a PhD in physics at Stanford, but the past proves inescapable. Haunted by guilt, Charlie and Brenda decide to dedicate the rest of their lives to making amends for the evil he helped to birth into the world.

The Vacation by T. M. Logan - Psychological Thriller

July 27, 2021

Kate and her three best friends are spending a week with their families in a luxurious villa in the south of France. But soon after arriving, she discovers an incriminating text on her husband’s cell phone. A text revealing that he’s having an affair. And that the other woman is one of her best friends. But which one? Trapped in paradise with no one to trust, Kate is determined to find out who has put her marriage --- and a lifelong friendship --- in jeopardy. But as she closes in on the truth, she realizes that the stakes are higher than she ever imagined. Everyone on the trip has secrets…and someone may be prepared to kill to keep theirs hidden.

We Are All the Same in the Dark by Julia Heaberlin - Psychological Thriller

July 27, 2021

It’s been a decade since Trumanell Branson disappeared, leaving only a bloody handprint behind. Her brother, Wyatt, was cleared of wrongdoing by the police, but he was tried and sentenced in the court of public opinion and is in a new documentary about the crime. When Wyatt finds a lost girl dumped in a field of dandelions, making silent wishes, he believes she is a sign. The town’s youngest cop, Odette Tucker, believes she is a catalyst that will ignite a seething town still waiting for its own missing girl to come home. But Odette can’t look away. She shares a wound that won’t close with the mute, one-eyed mystery girl. And she is haunted by her own history with the missing Tru.

White Ivy by Susie Yang - Fiction

July 27, 2021

Raised outside of Boston, Ivy Lin’s immigrant grandmother relies on Ivy’s mild appearance for cover as she teaches her granddaughter how to pilfer items from yard sales and second-hand shops. Thieving allows Ivy to accumulate the trappings of a suburban teen --- and, most importantly, to attract the attention of Gideon Speyer, the golden boy of a wealthy political family. But when Ivy’s mother discovers her trespasses, Ivy is sent to China, and her dream instantly evaporates. Years later, Ivy is back in Boston and bumps into Sylvia Speyer, Gideon’s sister. Just as she is about to have everything she’s ever wanted, a ghost from Ivy’s past resurfaces, threatening the nearly perfect life she’s worked so hard to build.