Christian Fiction
Alliott, Catherine. A rural affair. [ROMANCE]
Great Britain
Anshaw, Carol, Carry the one.
When a car of inebriated guests from Carmen’s wedding hits and kills a girl on a country road, Carmen and the people involved in the accident connect, disconnect, and reconnect throughout twenty-five subsequent years of marriage, parenthood, holidays, and tragedies. For Jonathan Franzen fans.
Avery, Ellis. The last nude.
“A stunning story of love, sexual obsession, treachery, and tragedy, about an artist and her most famous muse in Paris between the world wars. By the author of The Teahouse Fire.
Baker, Tiffany. The Gilly salt sisters.
Sisters on MA shore
Bell, Ted. Phantom. [SUSPENSE]
Counterspy Alex Hawke hunts a madman about to unleash a new super weapon- -one powered by artificial intelligence.
Box, C. J. Force of nature. [MYSTERY]
Having hidden the truth about a past colleague’s violation, former Special Forces agent Nate Romanowski is targeted by a determined killer who threatens Joe Pickett’s life as part of a violent plot. Bk.12
Bradford, Barbara Taylor. Letter from a stranger.
When award-winning film maker Justine Nolan returns to her beautiful childhood home, she is intrigued by an envelope she finds in her absent mother’s post. But the letter inside contains a shocking revelation. If genuine it will change everything she believes about her family’s recent history, her mother and her adored grandmother, Gabriele.
Brockmann, Suzanne. Born to darkness. [SUSPENSE]
Michelle “Mac” Mackenzie, a super-human “Greater-Than” with unique abilities, teams up with a former Navy SEAL Shane Laughlin to stop the spread of a highly addictive drug called Destiny, which gives anyone the same abilities as a “Greater-Than.”
Brothers, Caroline. Hinterland.
The unforgettable story of two Afghan brothers and a perilous trek across continents in search of a place to build a life, based on the real-life
experiences for the lost boys.–publisher.
Caplan, Thomas. The spy who jumped off the screen. [SUSPENSE]
Recruited on a clandestine mission to thwart the transfer of nuclear warheads into rogue hands, covert operative turned A-list movie star Ty Hunter uses all his skills as a spy, soldier, and actor to match wits with an enigmatic billionaire.
Carlson, Melody. Here’s to friends.
The four Lindas; bk. 4. “Once upon a time in a little town on the Oregon coast lived four Lindas- -all in the same first-grade classroom. So they decided to go by their middle names. And form a club. And be friends forever. Decades later, they’re all back home in Clifden and reinventing their lives, but the holidays bring a whole new set of challenges. Abby’s new B&B is getting bad reviews and husband Paul is acting strange. Still grieving for her mom, Caroline is remodeling the family home, but boyfriend Mitch keeps pressuring her to go away with him. Artist Marley, distracted by a friend’s family drama (and a touch of jealousy), can’t find her creative groove. And Janie’s drug-addicted daughter has just appeared up on her doorstep! When a long-planned New Year’s cruise turns into a bumpy ride, they learn once again that, in your fifties, friends aren’t just for fun–they’re a necessity!”– P. [4] of cover.
Clifford, Alicia. The affair.
Adultery
Clipston, Amy. A gift of grace.
When Rebecca Kauffman’s sister Grace, who left the Amish behind years earlier, is killed in an accident, it is up to Rebecca and her husband Daniel to raise Grace’s two teenage English daughters in their Old Order Amish community. Kauffman Amish bakery series; bk. 1 followed by:
—.A promise of hope. An Amish widow with newborn twins discovers her deceased husband had disturbing secrets. As she tries to come to grips with the past, she considers a loveless marriage to ensure stability for her young family … with her faith in God hanging in the balance. bk.2
—. A place of peace. Miriam Lapp returns to the Amish community she once belonged to when she hears of her mother’s death. Amidst her grief and some painful lies from her past, she is forced to face the people who rejected her. Losing her once fiance and being shunned by her father becomes an excruciating test of her faith. bk.3
—. A life of joy. When she returns for an extended visit to her hometown in Virginia, eighteen-year-old Lindsay Bedford reconnects with old friends and faces family pressures as she tries to decide whether or not to stay in her Amish community. bk.4
Coben, Harlan, Stay close. [SUSPENSE]
Three people–a suburban housewife, a talented documentary photographer, and a detective–living lives they never wanted, hiding secrets that even those closest to them would never suspect, will find that the past doesn’t recede …and that desperation and hunger can lurk behind even the prettiest facades.
Cooper, Mike, Clawback. [MYSTERY]
Wall Street hijinks
Coughlin, Jack & Donald A. Davis. Running the maze. [SUSPENSE]
Marine Gunnery Sergeant Kyle Swanson is sent into Pakistan, where an international team of medical workers has been executed in order to cover up a deadly terrorist secret. Sniper novel; bk. 5
D’Agostino, Kris, The Sleepy Hollow family almanac.
Young man Coming-of-age
Dau, Stephen. The book of Jonas.
War refugees
Dermont, Amber. The starboard sea.
Devastated by the suicide of his prep-school roommate and disdaining the trappings of his affluent Manhattan life, Jason transfers to another school and bonds with a troubled classmate whose subsequent death compels Jason to uncover the truth, in a tale set against a backdrop of the 1987 stock market collapse.
Donatich, John. The variations.
Faith
Donohue, Meg. How to eat a cupcake. [SMART FUNNY WOMEN]
When childhood friends Annie Quintana and Julia St. Clair reconnect as adults and decide to open a cupcakery, they must overcome old betrayals, first loves, and a dangerous threat.
Dorgan, Byron L. & Brian Hagberg. Blowout. [SUSPENSE]
Oil industry terrorism
Dryden, Alex. The blind spy. [SUSPENSE]
Russia’s attempts to destabilize Ukraine’s fledgling democracy are countered by Cougar–a private intelligence company enlisted by the CIA– in whose employ ex-KGB officer Anna Resnikov risks danger to rid her homeland of a resurgence of Russian influence. Series; bk.3
Eastland, Sam. Archive 17: a novel of suspense.
It’s 1939. Russia teeters on the verge of war with Germany. It is also on the brink of bankruptcy. To preserve his regime, Stalin orders a search for the
legendary missing gold of Tsar Nicholas II. For this task, he chooses Pekkala, the former investigator for the Tsar. To accomplish his mission, Pekkala will go undercover, returning to Siberia and the nightmare of his own past, where he was once a prisoner in the notorious Gulag known as Borodok and where he must infiltrate a gang of convicts still loyal to the Tsar.
Englander, Nathan. What we talk about when we talk about Anne Frank.
“The author of the sensational national best seller For the Relief of Unbearable Urges returns with a commanding new collection of short stories: What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank establishes Nathan Englander beyond all doubt as the heir to Roth, Malamud, and Babel. A tour de force. The title story, inspired by Carver’s masterpiece, is a comic classic, a provocative portrait of two marriages in which the holocaust is played out as a devastating parlor game. “Camp Sundown” is an outlandishly dark story of vigilante justice undertaken by a troop of geriatric campers in a bucolic summer enclave who recognize a fellow vacationer as a former Nazi guard. “Free Fruit for Young Widows” is a small, sharp study in evil. “Sister Hills” chronicles the history of the Israeli settlements from the eve of the Yom Kippur war through the present, a political story constructed around the tale of two mothers who strike a terrible bargain to save a child. A great leap forward from one of our most audacious and important writers, and a sensational literary event”– Provided by publisher.
Fabry, Chris, Not in the heart.
Christian Fiction
Gebbie, Vanessa. The coward’s tale.
When nine-year old Laddy Merridew goes to live with his grandmother in a small Welsh town, he befriends the town beggar-storyteller, Ianto and learns
about the Kindly Lights coal mine collapse that had a profound effect on the
lives of subsequent generations of townspeople.
Giraldi, William. Busy monsters.
MA Author–What would you do for love?
Glass, Matthew, Trigger point. [SUSPENSE]
Gray, Amelia, Threats. [MYSTERY]
Devastated by the death of his wife in the middle of winter, David discovers a complex series of notes threatening his wife and is introduced by a
detective to people who do not appear to have his best interests in mind.
Gray, Shelley Shepard. Missing. [MYSTERY]
When Perry Borntrager, an inhabitant of the quiet Amish town of Crittenden, Kentucky, is found dead, Perry’s former girlfriend and his best friend, suspects in the crime, are drawn together as they try to prove their innocence. The secrets of Crittenden County; bk. 1
Green, Jane, Another piece of my heart.
A woman marries into a ready-made family and learns the true meaning of motherhood.
Groff, Lauren. Arcadia.
The lyrical and haunting story of a great American dream–the progress of a utopian community and its lasting impact on a gifted young man.
Gutcheon, Beth Richardson. Gossip.
This novel follows the friendship and support among a group of five women on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. “Did you know that the origin of the word gossip in English is ‘god-sibling’? It is the talk between people who are godparents to the same child, people who have a legitimate loving interest in the person they talk about. It is talk that weaves a net of support and connection beneath the people you want to protect.” This is a novel about all the ways we talk about one another, the sometimes fine line between showing concern and doing damage, and the difficulty of knowing the true obligations of friendship.”
Hawley, Noah. The good father. [SUSPENSE]
An intense, psychological novel about one doctor’s suspense-filled quest to unlock the mind of a suspected political assassin: his 20-year old son.
Kerouac, Jack, The sea is my brother.
“In the spring of 1943, during a stint in the Merchant Marine, twenty-one -year old Jack Kerouac set out to write his first novel. Now, nearly seventy years later, its long-awaited publication provides fascinating details and insight into the early life and development of an American literary icon. “–from cover, p. [2].
Kingsbury, Karen. Loving.
In the fourth and final chapter of the series, Bailey’s planning her dream wedding to Brandon Paul in Los Angeles, but doubts are wracking her mind. Did she make the right choice in choosing Brandon, or should she return home to Bloomington, Indiana, and be with Cody Coleman, her first love? Bailey Flanigan series; bk. 4
Kunzru, Hari, Gods without men.
Jaz and Lisa Matharu are plunged into a surreal public hell after their son, Raj, vanishes during a family vacation in the California desert. However, the Mojave is a place of strange power, and before Raj reappears inexplicably unharmed–but not unchanged–the fate of this young family will intersect with that of many others, echoing the stories of all those who have traveled before them. Driven by the energy and cunning of Coyote, the mythic, shape-shifting trickster, Gods Without Men is full of big ideas, but centered on flesh-and-blood characters who converge at an odd, remote town in the shadow of a rock formation called the Pinnacles. Viscerally gripping and intellectually engaging, it is, above all, a heartfelt exploration of the search for pattern and meaning in a chaotic universe.
Lansdale, Joe R., Edge of dark water.
Trying to escape her worthless life leads to unexpected and disastrous consequences when Sue Ellen steals money and a raft and embarks on a journey to dig up her best friend’s body, burn it, and sprinkle the ashes in Hollywood.
Laukkanen, Owen. The professionals. [SUSPENSE]
Kidnapping
Liparulo, Robert. The 13th tribe. [SUSPENSE]
An Immortal Files novel
Mallon, Thomas, Watergate. [HISTORICAL FICTION]
A retelling of the Watergate scandal, as seen through a kaleidoscope of its colorful perpetrators and investigators.
Margolin, Phillip. Capitol murder: a novel of suspense.
Private investigator Dana Cutler and attorney Brad Miller rush to uncover a terrorist cell’s plot to destroy a packed professional football stadium in one of the biggest attacks on American soil.
McCall Smith, Alexander, The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection.
“Precious Ramotswe is back and, as usual, her plate is full! She’s called in to tackle a mysterious disciplinary problem at her adopted daughter’s school…Her infinitely trustworthy assistant, Grace Makutsi, is having trouble adjusting to wedded bliss, a problem to test even the formidable talents of Mma Ramotswe…And the estimable Clovis Andersen, author of The Principles of Private Investigation–the No. 1 Ladies’ prized manual–has arrived, right there, in Botswana, on a case of his own. Bush tea anyone?”– Provided by publisher. No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series; Bk.13
Mills, Mark, House of the hunted. [SUSPENSE]
Political prisoners–Soviet Union
Patterson, James & David Ellis. Guilty wives. [SUSPENSE]
“No husbands allowed. Only minutes after Abbie Elliot and her three best friends step off of a private helicopter, they enter the most luxurious, sumptuous, sensually pampering hotel they have ever been to. Their lavish presidential suite overlooks Monte Carlo, and they surrender: to the sun and pool, to the sashimi and sake, to the Bruno Paillard champagne. For four days they’re free to live someone else’s life. As the weekend brings pulsating discos, high-stakes casinos, and more, Abbie is transported to the greatest pleasure and release she has ever known. What happened last night? In the morning’s harsh light, Abbie awakens on a yacht, surrounded by police. Something awful has happened–something impossible, unthinkable. Abbie, Winnie, Serena, and Bryah are arrested and accused of the foulest crime imaginable. And now the vacation of a lifetime becomes the fight of a lifetime–for survival. Guilty wives is the ultimate indulgence, the kind of nonstop joy-ride of excess, friendship, betrayal, and danger that only James Patterson can create”– Dust jacket.
Pavone, Chris. The expats. [SUSPENSE]
“An international spy thriller about a former CIA agent who moves with her family to Luxembourg where everything is suspicious and nothing is as it
seems”–Provided by publisher.
Pawlik, Tom, Beckon. [SUSPENSE]
College students
Peretti, Frank E. Illusion.
A grieving husband encounters a teen identical to his dead wife–in face, name, and magical skills.
Perrine, Jane Myers. The welcome committee of Butternut Creek.
Upon his arrival, Butternut Creek Christian Church’s newly-minted minister is met by a welcome committee led by Miss Birdie and her friend Mercedes, a.k.a. “the Widows.” Their first order of business, to educate him on how things should be done, quickly gives way to a campaign to find him a wife.
When their matchmaking efforts fizzle, the Widows turn to another new bachelor. Amputee and Afghan vet Sam simply wants to be left alone– a desire that’s as good as a red flag to the Widows! Soon they’re scheming to pair him up with Willow, his beautiful physical therapist, a divorced mother of two who is afraid of commitment.–publisher.
Renner, James, The man from Primrose Lane. [SUSPENSE]
Twenty-four-year-old Edward Warren, has been living in Thailand for five years, a prodigal son who left his family after an irreparable fight with his
father, Luke. But he gets a frantic phone call: his dad lies comatose, gravely injured in the same accident that has also injured his younger sister Cara. With her father’s chances for recovery dwindling, Cara wants to wait for a miracle. But Edward wants to terminate life support and donate his father’s organs. Is he motivated by altruism or revenge?
Rose, M. J.The book of lost fragrances. [SUSPENSE]
A sweeping and suspenseful tale of secrets, intrigue, and lovers separated by time, all connected through the mystical qualities of a perfume created in the days of Cleopatra–and lost for 2,000 years.
Rossiter, Nan Parson. Words get in the way. [ROMANCE]
Ruff, Matt. The mirage. [SUSPENSE]
Middle East
Satran, Pamela Redmond. The possibility of you.
“As three women search for identity and belonging, each faces a very personal decision that will reverberate across generations, tearing apart
families, real and imaginary, perfect and flawed, but ultimately bringing them together again.”–from publisher’s description.
Schulman, Audrey, Three weeks in December.
This novel interweaves the perspectives of Jeremy, an engineer who leaves small-town Maine in 1899 to oversee the construction of a railroad across East Africa, and finds himself the reluctant hunter of two lions killing his men in nightly attacks; and Max, an American ethnobotanist who travels to Rwanda in 2000 in search of an obscure vine that could become a lifesaving pharmaceutical, but finds herself shadowing a family of gorillas whose survival is threatened by a violent rebel group from nearby Congo.
Steel, Danielle. Betrayal.
A renowned film director confronts an act of unimaginable treachery.
Steel, Jack. The Titanic secret. [SUSPENSE]
Shortly after midnight in April 1912 on Wilhelmstrasse in Berlin, mere yards from the British Embassy, an English spy is shot after a clandestine meeting with a German government official. The spy utters three cryptic words to a sentry, then dies. Gunther Voss, a German financier, is attempting to commit America to join forces with Germany against Great Britain so that Voss can secure for himself the invaluable South African mining concessions. Alex Tremayne of Britain’s Secret Service Bureau and Maria Weston, and American agent currently working in Berlin attempt to neutralize Voss’ plan before it reaches the States. Will they survive their voyage on the Titanic as they follow Voss?
Steinhauer, Olen. An American spy. [SUSPENSE]
Milo Weaver, a reluctant spy, is unwillingly drawn into his bosses’ plans for revenge against the Chinese agent who orchestrated the deaths of 33 tourists. Milo Weaver trilogy; bk. 3
Stock, Jon. Games traitors play. [SUSPENSE]
Daniel Marchant; Bk. 2
Vachss, Andrew H. That’s how I roll. [SUSPENSE]
Waiting on death row after confessing to several homicides, a master assassin writes his life story to protect his younger brother, a process during which he remembers their murderously violent father. After pleading guilty to a series of homicides, Esau Till sits on death row, writing his life story. But his memoir is his one last chance to protect his brother. When the genetic cards were dealt, Esau drew a genius IQ, and a crippled body. His brother Tory drew a slow mind, and almost superhuman strength. Very early on, Esau learned that the only way to guarantee his brother’s safety was to make himself indispensable, so he became the top hired killer for both rival local mobs. As the state gets ready to take his life, Esau plots going all-in on the last hand he will ever play.
Walsh, Courtney, A Sweethaven summer.
“Campbell Carter has come to Sweethaven in search of answers about her mother’s history. Just before losing a battle with cancer, Suzanne Carter sent letters to childhood friends from her hometown of Sweethaven, Michigan. Suzanne’s three friends — Lila, Jane, and Meghan — haven’t spoken in years, yet each has pieces of a scrapbook they made together as girls. The letters have lured them all back to the idyllic lakeside town, where they meet Suzanne’s daughter, Campbell, and begin to remember what was so special about their long Sweethaven summers. With the help of a handsome man and her mother’s three friends, Campbell hopes to finally uncover her mother’s twenty-five-year-old secret. In the process, she discovers a family she never knew she had and the home she’s always wanted. As the women reconnect over the pages of the old scrapbook, wounds are mended, lives are changed, and friendships are restored –just as Suzanne intended”–P. [4] of cover.
White, Randy Wayne. Chasing midnight. [MYSTERY]
Sneaking an underwater look at a notorious Russian black marketeer’s fancy yacht, Doc Ford emerges to discover that the marketeer’s private island has been taken over by environmental extremists who threaten to kill a hostage every hour until their demands are met.
Wilson, Susan, The dog who danced.
Justine Meade takes a cross-country journey to find her lost dog, and discover herself.
Woods, Stuart.D.C. dead. [SUSPENSE]
“Stone Barrington, his former NYPD partner Dino Bachetti and CIA agent Holly Barker investigate a possible serial killer with ties to the White House”– Provided by publisher. Bk.22.
Categories: Book Buzz,Booklists,New Fiction
