Staff Choices

I am a very long term fan of David Baldacci’s books but, must admit, that with some of the more recent stories, I felt that his usual punch was missing. Then along came To Die For and the Travis Devine series  it was as though all had been revitalised. A great plot, very well scripted with constant twists and turns. Most stories have a hero and in this instance it is Travis Devine but there are several other characters who fall into the hero category as well and 12/13 year old Betsy Odom rounds out the “team”. A great read, well worth picking up.

Still reeling in the wake of her divorce, Phoebe takes a trip to The Cromwell- a coastal hotel in the Northeast that’s always been one of her bucket list destinations. Unlike the typical hotel guest, Phoebe doesn’t have strolls along the shoreline in mind, rather, she has come to the hotel for a much more morbid reason. When she arrives at The Cromwell, it is to find that the venue has been bought out for a wedding. Phoebe is determined to accomplish what she came for, but perhaps the bride has other plans for her. 

The Wedding People explores a myriad of themes, but at its core, it is a novel about friendship and loneliness. Phoebe and Lila, despite their differences, are united by a shared sense of disillusionment. Both women are grappling with the expectations placed on them by society, and their unlikely friendship becomes a lifeline in a world that feels increasingly alien. Espach deftly explores the idea that even in the midst of a crowd, one can feel utterly alone. It’s about what happens when you reach middle age and realize that life hasn’t gone according to plan. The novel’s conclusion is bittersweet. There are no easy answers, no neatly tied-up endings. Instead, Espach leaves us with a sense of hope, tempered by the knowledge that life is messy and unpredictable. 

If you like stories that are both entertaining and thought-provoking, filled with memorable characters and sharp observations about life this one’s for you. 

The Examiner by author Janice Hallett is set in England. Six adult students sign up for a university multimedia art class for various reasons and are of various ages, to enhance their skills in the art world or to use what they learn in their current line of work. Most of the interaction takes place electronically, via the university's student communication portal, direct messages, texts or emails. The students and their course instructor are the main characters. We rarely see them connect in person in the art lab. The reader needs to pay attention as to which group or person is speaking. Liking this format of writing, I found the use of it to be an effective and interesting way to move the story forward. 

We quickly find out something is not right as the Examiner, usual a team who ensures a certain quality control standard is maintained within a degreed program, pores over the students' online conversations and then further inserts himself into the culmination of the course's final project that will take place at a commercial business. 

There are twists, turns, a mystery, a murder, an unexpected revelation about one of the student's abilities, a reflection (maybe even a satirical outlook) on the competitive nature of collegiate coursework and the disappearance of a student - but which one? 

Pick up a copy of this book to find out what happens. This book is for fans of this author and her epistolary writing style. In reading this story, I feel those who have read Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher, another epistolary novel set in the academic world but with a different level of drama, might enjoy this one.

Weaving several different storylines together, Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty asks the question, what would you do if you knew when and how you’d die? Would you make any changes? Are you truly happy with the life you’re living now? 

On a flight from Sydney to Hobart, a woman stands and begins predicting each passenger’s date and cause of death. Some are far in the future from natural causes while others are rather close and from less natural and more traumatic causes. These six unlucky passengers must disembark and decide whether they believe the ‘Death Lady’ as she’s soon called. As some of her predictions begin to come true, the hunt for the Death Lady begins. 

An unremarkable everywoman, the Death Lady has a story of her own, which is brilliantly woven into the story of these six strangers (Who might not be as far removed from one another as they thought). Is she a real psychic? Why was she on that flight that day? So many questions, but just as many answers with a poignant and satisfying end. 

Grimm Curiosities by Sharon Lynn Fisher is a historical supernatural Christmas romantasy set in mid-nineteenth century York, England. After her father's sudden passing from diabetes complications and her mother falling catatonic after a seance, young Lizzy Grimm runs the family curio store on her own. As Lizzy struggles to make ends meet and repay her family's mounting debts, she encounters two men who will change her life forever: Ambrose Stoke, who has a strangely intense interest in some mysterious old books in the shop, and Antony Carlisle, a lord-to-be whose younger sister bears an uncanny resemblance to the condition of Lizzy's mother. In this novel that is part ghost story, part mystery, and has a generous helping of romance, Lizzy must save her family, her livelihood, and her heart's desire, all before Christmas. Really, with all that going on, what's a girl to do?

A note: Despite the title, the novel has no connection to the Brothers Grimm fairy tales, except for the fact that Lizzy's paternal relatives originally hail from Bavaria. The book actually draws upon Yule lore, perfect for a supernatural Christmas/Yuletide read.

Something I very much enjoyed about the book is Fisher's use of location-specific terminology. Research is very important to Fisher, and she includes both a glossary at the beginning of the book to introduce York-specific vocabulary (ex. 'ginnel' and 'snicket'), as well as a list of research references in the acknowledgements for readers who want to learn more about York and its fascinating history. Similarly, Fisher is very good at creating a sense of place. The descriptions of alleys, interior spaces, and fantastical landscapes are easily imagined from her writing, and remain the best-remembered aspects of the novel, along with the visual descriptions of ghosts and folkloric creatures, such as the mythological 'printer's devil.'

The romance aspect is very much a slow-burn, and the pacing picks up once Croft & Croft is introduced. Charlie Croft is one of my personal favorite characters in this novel. Perhaps if Fisher makes this into a series, there can be a book about Charlie next? Those who enjoy C.S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia, Holly Black and Sarah Rees Brennan's tales of the fae, Jane Austen's literary works, The Legend of Holly Claus by Brittney Ryan, and/or Silver in the Wood by Emily Tesh may also enjoy this novel.

A Vile Season by David Ferraro is a period vampire story with a twist. Often, these novels tend to follow a human encountering or trying to become a vampire, or, more recently, vampires who become curious about the humans they devour--not to mention the entire vampire sub-genre of paranormal romances. While all of these elements are indeed included in this book, the vampire protagonist Count Lucian Cross has a rather different problem. After being chased from his castle by an angry mob of vampire hunters, he makes a deal with the vampire god, Vrykolakas, to save his hide: Lucian will become human again in order to go undercover on a mission for vampire-kind--he is to find the identities of his attackers and win the hand of Ambrose Harclay, the eldest son and heir to the ailing Duke Harclay. In return, Vrykolakas will not only make Lucian a vampire once more, Lucian will will be even more powerful than before. However, a mission that should have been simple quickly becomes complicated as Lucian is beset by former soured relations, becomes embroiled in the mystery of Ambrose's missing middle brother, Emmett, and finds himself increasingly drawn to the youngest Harclay brother, Maxwell... What do you mean, there are consequences for one's actions?

Set in fantasy England during an unspecified historical time period, this novel combines mystery and the paranormal with a well-balanced ratio of romantic subplot. Referencing classic vampire tropes, such as shape-shifting, a sensitivity to garlic and crosses, and a fatal allergy to the sun, Ferraro pays homage to the original Gothic vampire tales readers know and love while putting his own spin on the genre. He adds colorful balls and game-show-esque challenges to the competition to become Ambrose's betrothed. This is not to say that there aren't also mysterious crypts, ghostly cemeteries, hidden passageways, and secret societies--there's plenty of those, too! This well-paced and adventurous novel, with its quirky cast of characters, will keep the reader engaged from dramatic start to happy end. This was an overall quite entertaining read! I will likely seek out Ferraro's other work in the future.

Readers interested in other vampire tales may enjoy Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice, Dracula by Bram Stoker, Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu, When I Arrived at the Castle by Emily Carroll, and Renfield (dir. Chris McKay). For those interested in neo-Gothic works, try Crimson Peak (dir. Guillermo del Toro) and Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. For another new LGBTQIA+ fantasy mystery, try Voyage of the Damned by Frances White.

What is a Sociopath? Do you know? Are you sure? Thanks to Sociopath by Patric Gagne, I’ve now learned what I thought it was and what it is, isn’t entirely correct. And that there are some major but also subtle differences between clinical diagnosis and pop culture portrayals. Which is the main reason Gagne wrote this book. 

Sociopath is a memoir that follows the life of Patric Gagne, the daughter of a high-powered music executive, as she struggles with her lack of ‘normal’ emotional responses. It’s also the story of her path to getting a true diagnosis for sociopathy at a time when none really existed. 

As a person with high anxiety and a lot of emotions, I found this book incredibly fascinating.

Water, a drop to be exact, begins this captivating novel. Elif Shafak takes us from the River Tigress to the Thames, from Mesopotamia to the present. She ties together the importance of water in so many lives throughout the centuries. It begins with King Ashurbanipal in the ancient kingdom of Nineveh, then moves onto a baby named Arthur, born in the slums along the Thames in 1840's London. Modern day stories intertwine with ancient tales with Narin, a young Yazidi girl in Turkey as well as Zaleekah a professor in London. These characters all seem to be struggling with their past as well as their futures, but each one has a relationship to the waterways that surround them. There are Rivers in the Sky intricately weaves together the way water connects us all through our histories and memories. And, it all begins with one drop. 

If you love a grand, epic tale that spans centuries, you will love this book. I certainly did.

 It is a compelling story but the spiritual journey of several of main characters towards acceptance is beautifully portrayed and not at all heavy handed or preachy. Once I started reading, I could not stop until I finished. Krueger does an excellent job in a few sentences of reminding the reader of who the main characters are and the back story without rehashing the previous stories. He also weaves in the tragedy of missing Native women and the destruction wrought by the greed of the oil industry. This is book 20 in the Cork O'Connor series.

After the tragic death of her dear friend, Sadie Green upends her life in Chicago by purchasing a bicycling touring company in France. Owning this type of business is a dream they both once shared. By following through, Sadie feels she is honoring her friend. But nothing is ever smooth on the road to starting a new enterprise, moving to a new country or learning a new language, or organizing a trek. Sadie and her tour participants quickly encounter the death of one of the cyclists . . . and so the mystery begins.

The tour has a diverse cast of characters including Sadie’s former colleagues from Chicago, her current employees and a man who poses as an incognito travel reviewer who all provide an interesting backdrop to how events unfold. Descriptions of picturesque countryside and famous landmarks had me looking at online maps to see where they were traveling. There is no need to be a cyclist to enjoy reading A Cyclists Guide to Crime & Croissants – just have a sense of adventure and want to try to figure out what happened.

This is the first book in the Cyclist’s Guide Mystery series. The second book is expected to be released in May 2025. Pick up a copy if you’re looking for a new cozy mystery to read, have visited France (or want to) or if you’ve enjoyed author Ann Claire’s Christie Bookshop Mysteries.