Thrillers and Suspense
May 2023

Thrilling Events @ Your Library!
MURDER, MYSTERY & MAYHEM MONTH
May 1st- 31st
Bethany Library
6700 NW 35th St
Calling all true crime, thriller, and mystery fans! Bethany Library is hosting Murder, Mystery, & MAYhem. Join us all month for themed events that will get your heart racing. Programs include: author visits, presentations from podcasters, a real-life forensics specialist, Live Action Clue, escape rooms, a murder mystery party, and more!
 
GENEALOGY 101
Saturday, May 20, 2023
Del City Library at 10 am
4330 SE 15th Street
Looking for clues as to your ancestry? Come put our genealogical databases and print resources through their paces to learn about the places and faces of your family's past. Our resident Genealogical genius will give you the tools which you need to branch out your family tree for free.
 
FORENSIC OSTEOLOGY: HUMAN SKULLS WITH MUSEUM OF OSTEOLOGY
June 3rd at 2:30 pm
Bethany Library
6700 NW 35th St
The Forensic Osteology class introduces students to forensic science and osteology. Students will learn what information specialists can learn by examining human osteological remains and careers related to forensic science. Students will examine different trauma signatures on the human skull and dentition caused by blunt force trauma, sharp force trauma, and gunshot wounds. Students will learn how to read these trauma signatures and how to differentiate between healed injuries and those injuries that were sustained at the time of death. Discretion is advised. Please note that the information covered in the class does include information from real homicides and images of human bone.
Recent Releases
Someone Else's Life
by Lyn Liao Butler

The setup: Hoping for a fresh start, troubled Annie Lin has recently moved to Kauai with her husband Brody and their son Finn. 

What goes wrong: A nosy neighbor, a severe storm, and a stranger in need all begin chipping away at Annie's perception of reality, dredging up reminders of a past that she can't quite recall but that nonetheless fills her with dread.

Who it's for:
readers who like unreliable narrators, fraught family dynamics, and Hitchcockian world building.
Such Pretty Flowers
by K.L. Cerra

What it is: an intricately plotted and atmospheric mix of psychological suspense and Southern Gothic.

Starring: Holly, a young librarian reeling from her brother Dane's apparent suicide, which she (unfairly) blames herself for not preventing;
Dane's mysterious and beguiling girlfriend Maura, who invites Holly to temporarily stay in her luxurious Savannah townhouse.

For fans of: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt; Just Like the Other Girls by Claire Douglas.


Digital editions: Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook using the Libby app from OverDrive.
How I'll Kill You
by Ren DeStefano

What it's about: Twisted sisters Iris, Sissy, and Moody, who have made a family business out of seduction-based serial murder.

Read if you liked: My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite. 

Reviewers say: How I'll Kill You is "a novel that will stun readers" with its "cleverly crafted plot that delivers ingenious twists" (Library Journal).


Digital editions: Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook using the Libby app from OverDrive.
Black Wolf
by Kathleen Kent

What it is: the action-packed, richly detailed story of an undercover CIA agent sent behind the crumbling Iron Curtain to keep Soviet nuclear weapons from falling into the wrong hands once the Cold War ends. 

What makes her unique: Protagonist Melvina Donleavy is a "super recognizer" who never forgets a face.

About the author: Though Kathleen Kent first made her mark with historical novels like The Heretic's Daughter and The Outcasts, she is also known for her Edgar Award-nominated police procedural The Burn.


Digital editions: Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook using the Libby app from OverDrive.
The Donut Legion
by Joe R. Lansdale

What it's about: East Texas writer and former P.I. Charlie Garner takes on "one last job" after the disappearance of his ex-wife Meg and her new husband, who had ties to a strange local cult. 

Read it for: Hap and Leonard series author Joe. R. Landsdale's trademark combination of offbeat humor, intricately plotted suspense, and a strong sense of place.


Digital editions: Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook using the Libby app from OverDrive.
Moscow Exile
by John Lawton

Series alert: Moscow Exile is the 4th entry in the series of Cold War spy novels starring flawed Brit Joe Wilderness.

This time: Joe has been captured by the KGB, and his release in a prisoner exchange has surprising ties to the actions of two unlikely, seemingly unrelated British spies based in Washington D.C.

Read it for: the atmospheric tone, witty writing, and examination of what draws people into the espionage business.


Digital editions: Available as an eBook using the Libby app from OverDrive and always available as an eBook via Hoopla.
The Housemate
by Sarah Bailey

What it's about: A decade after covering the "Housemate Homicide" story in-depth, Australian journalist Olive Groves is once again assigned to the case when a body is discovered, dredging up unpleasant truths for both the reporter and her subjects.  

Reviewers say: Author Sarah Bailey's "sophisticated, multilayered plot will have readers longing for more books about this intriguing new leading lady" (Booklist).

Digital editions: Available as an eBook using the Libby app from OverDrive and always available as an eAudiobook via Hoopla.
Sisters of the Lost Nation
by Nick Medina

What it is: a richly detailed and atmospheric horror-thriller that grapples with the real-life issue of missing indigenous women in the U.S. and Canada. 

Starring: high schooler Anna Horn, who has a hunch that the disappearances of young women on the reservation are tied to the VIP suites at her tribe's casino, where she works part time as a cleaner.   


For fans of: Cherie Dimaline, Stephen Graham Jones, and Erika T. Wurth.


Digital editions: Available as an eBook and an eAudiobook using the Libby app from OverDrive.
eResources for Your Research & Reference!
Fold3
Provides access to historic U.S. military records, including the stories, photos and personal documents of the men and women who served. You can also search archives for African Americans, Native Americans and the U.S. Bureau of Investigation case files, historical newspapers, historical documents, U.S. Census records, U.S. naturalization records, and city directories.
Hobbies & Crafts Reference Center
Offers detailed how-to instructions and creative ideas to meet the interests of virtually every hobby enthusiast. Topics include beer and wine making, model building, scrapbooking, gardening, genealogy, and much more. Full text is provided from leading hobby and craft magazines, including Bead & Button, Creative Knitting, FineScale Modeler, Quilter's World, and more.
Summer Reading is Right Around the Corner!
Summer Reading Program
Our Summer Reading Program (June 1-July 31) is open to ALL ages, from pre-readers to adults. Registration is open now, so sign up for a chance to win some great prizes this summer!
Contact your librarian for more great books!