Good Reads & Views

Eight Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson
Fiction

What it's about: Bookseller and blogger Malcolm is contacted by the FBI, seeking his help. Years ago he created a list of literature's most perfect murders, and now someone seems to be using Malcolm's list as a playbook for unsolved killings. Twists and turns galore, and if you actually figure out the killer early on (I did not), then kudos to you.

Reviewers say: "Swanson will keep most readers guessing until the end. Classic whodunit fans will be in heaven" (Publishers Weekly); "The perfect gift for well-read mystery mavens who complain that they don't write them like they used to" (Kirkus).

Author Notes: Swanson is the author of six novels including The Kind Worth Killing for which he won the New England Society Book Award and Her Every Fear, which was an NPR book of the year.

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Ghosts of Harvard by Francesca Serritella
Fiction  

Author Alert: Ghosts of Harvard is her first novel.

Reviewers say: “Every time I thought I knew where Ghosts of Harvard was heading, I turned out to be wrong. Part mystery, part ghost story, part psychological thriller, this novel is all entertainment” (#1 New York Times bestselling author Jodi Picoult).

You might also like: Someone Knows by Lisa Scottoline or Let me Lie by Clare Mackintosh.

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Conviction by Denise Mina
Fiction

What it’s about: True-crime fan Anna MacDonald’s quiet life as a housewife implodes when her husband leaves her for her best friend, Estelle. Grieving over the betrayal, she sets out on a wild adventure to uncover the real story behind a new true-crime podcast, which may have connections to her own secret past. She is joined by Estelle’s has-been rock-star husband Fin on a wild, fast-moving road trip.

Why you might like it: Good storytelling features a pair of reluctant heroes whose give-and-take relationship adds humor and heart. Anna is tough and endearing, and her back story is compelling and relevant to today’s “me too” movement.

You might also like: The intricately plotted and suspenseful thriller, Let Me Lie, by Clare Mackintosh, also stars a strong female character trying to solve a crime. Humor marks Olga Tokarczuk’s mystery, Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead, in which a woman fixates on a mysterious death.

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The Mausoleum by David Mark
Fiction

What it’s about: The year is 2010. Two old women are waiting for a dying old man to wake up so they can find out what he knows. The women’s story is told in alternating narratives and skips back to 1967 when the women first met in the graveyard of an isolated village by the Scottish border. WWII, espionage, POWs, Nazis, betrayal, they are all part of the story.

Reviewers say: “Deft writing, a plot filled with strange and unexpected twists, vivid characters, and a constant feeling of foreboding make this a gripping and unusual read” (Booklist). “Mark is writing at the top of his game” (Publishers Weekly).

Author notes: Mark is also the author of an excellent series of police procedurals, starting with The Dark Winter, which introduces DS Aector McAvoy.

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The Driver by Hart Hanson
Fiction

Read it for: The intensely sympathetic portrait of a band of wounded Afghanistan veterans struggling to readjust to civilian life while recovering from harrowing war experiences, as well for the rapid pace storytelling, which is suspenseful, blunt, and funny.

What it’s about: In this debut thriller, former Special Forces sergeant and current limo driver Michael Skellig foils an assassination attempt on his client, Bismark Avila, but in the process a bodyguard is killed and Skellig is suspected in the death. Avila blackmails Skellig into becoming his permanent driver by helping to exonerate him. While working for Avila, Skellig and his “team”—his former Afghan interpreter and two other wounded vets—become embroiled in a violent race to locate some mysterious barrels.

Reviewers say: “Readers of Scott Turow and Harlan Coben will appreciate the intricate plot and rich character development. Although there is a fair amount of violence, loyalty and "doing the right thing" are the main themes of this novel.”—Library Journal.

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The Outsider by Stephen King
Fiction

Starring: Ralph Anderson, Flint City detective, and Holly Gibney, former assistant to Bill Hodges of Mr. Mercedes fame.

What it’s about: It looks like an open and shut case when Terry Maitland, local coach and all-around great guy, is arrested for the brutal murder of an 11-yr old boy. There were reliable witnesses who saw Maitland, and his DNA and fingerprints are all over the evidence. Ralph Anderson is sure he has the right guy and arrests him at a public event. But then Maitland produces an iron-clad alibi that has witnesses and DNA evidence putting him in a different place when the murder was committed. The contradictory evidence is grounds to bring in investigator Holly Gibney, who played a crucial part in King’s Bill Hodges trilogy. This being Stephen King, the supernatural eventually finds its way into the plot and if you have a phobia about worms you may want to let someone else recap the last part for you.

Audio note: This is a great experience on audio; Will Patton does an excellent job voicing all the characters, with much emotion and expertise, as he did for King’s Bill Hodges trilogy.>

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Whispers of the Dead by Spencer Kope
Fiction

Starring: FBI agent Jimmy Donovan, who has a knack for profiling, and Magnus “Steps” Craig, Donovan’s partner, who has the special ability of seeing an individual’s “shine” – a unique color and texture signature specific to each person. Both work for the FBI’s Special Tracking Unit and first appeared in Collecting the Dead.

What it’s about: Jimmy and Steps investigate after a styrofoam ice box containing a pair of severed feet is left at the house of a federal judge. The “ice box killer” leaves behind a trail of ice blue “shine” for Steps to follow when more severed feet show up.

Reviewers say: “Thriller devotees will devour this unpredictable mystery, wanting more from Steps and Jimmy” (Library Journal). “With its deadpan banter and gritty narrative, Kope's second case has a Dirty Harry vibe and finds a sweet noir groove” (Kirkus).

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Don’t Go by Lisa Scottoline
Fiction

Lisa Scottoline delivers another suspenseful story about Dr. Michael Scanlon, who after returning to Afghanistan after a visit home learns that his wife has died in a freak household accident. He returns to plan her funeral and try to figure out how and why she died. His new baby girl is being taken care of by his wife’s sister and her husband. After the funeral he reenlists and is injured in an attack. He loses his arm and must figure out how to function in society while still mourning the death of his wife, getting to know his daughter and learning about his wife’s other life and the secrets she kept from everyone. Another good stand-alone title from the best-selling author. The audiobook is narrated by Jeremy Davidson.

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Before the Fall by Noah Hawley
Fiction

A private corporate jet crashes into the ocean shortly after take-off from Martha’s Vineyard. The only two survivors are J.J.,  the 4-year old son of a media millionaire, and Scott, an artist who was an acquaintance of the boy’s mom and a last-minute passenger. Scott manages to swim to shore with the boy and is at first hailed as a hero, but then some in the media start hounding him and he comes under federal suspicion as the crash is being investigated. Each passenger’s back story is told in flashbacks as the investigation proceeds. In a starred review, Publishers Weekly called it “a gritty tale of a man overwhelmed by unwelcome notoriety, with a stunning, thoroughly satisfying conclusion.”

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Redemption Road by John Hart
Fiction

Detective Elizabeth Black is facing possible suspension for use of excessive force during the rescue of a rape and kidnapping victim, but she is more concerned about the release of Adrian Wall, a former cop being released from prison for murder. Wall maintains his innocence, and Elizabeth believes him—she is also in love with him. Meanwhile, Gideon Strange, the 14-year-old son of the victim, whom Elizabeth has been mentoring since the death of his mother, waits for Wall with a gun. When a grisly murder occurs in an abandoned church, and all clues point to Adrian, Elizabeth must make a choice that risks both her career and her life. A nail-biting page-turner that races to an explosive end, followed by a touching epilogue.

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