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Where They Found Her
by Kimberly McCreight
An anonymous infant girl is found dead in the woods. New reporter Molly Sanderson, still reeling from the recent stillbirth of her own child, is assigned to cover the story. As she investigates amid her own pain, the truth of the crime threatens the stability of the small university town. Decades old secrets about four women unwind as Molly, local mother Barbara, and teenager Sandy tell their stories. This character-driven and intricately plotted novel builds its suspense with multiple points of view while telling its story through transcripts and journal entries as well as more traditional storytelling.
Criminal Spines will be discussing this book on January 14, 2016.
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The Innocent
by David Baldacci
Will Robie is an assassin for the U.S. government. He has killed a lot of people, but things start to go wrong when he refuses to kill a target. As he flees the scene, he gets on a bus and sees a teenage girl who is about to be killed. He decides to intervene but before he can, the girl saves herself. Shortly after both he and the girl get off the bus, it blows up. Now Robie doesn’t know if the bus exploded to kill him or 14-year-old Julie Getty. Although the street-wise girl says she doesn’t need help, he finds himself drawn to help her even as he must help himself. When it turns out the assignment he refused wasn’t actually sanctioned, Robie finds himself in charge of hunting rogue agents while simultaneously trying to keep the two of them alive. This is a fast action, thrilling novel in Baldacci’s best vein.
Criminal Spines will be discussing this book on February 11, 2016.
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The Secret History of the Pink Carnation
by Lauren Willig
Lauren Willig launches a series mixing an espionage theme with historical romance all set into a modern chick-lit(erature) frame, with humor interwoven in both time frames.
American graduate student Eloise Kelly is working on her dissertation which focuses on the British flower named spies of the Napoleonic war, à la The Scarlet Pimpernel. She is desperate to get her hands on the treasure trove of documents that have been passed down to Colin Selwick. As Eloise digs through the papers, she discovers the elusive spy who "single-handedly" saved England from an invasion -- The Pink Carnation. She also uncovers The Purple Gentian. Fans of Napoleonic espionage stories, such as Patrick O'Brian's Jack Aubrey-Stephen Maturin series, will find much to intrigue them.
Criminal Spines will be discussing this book March 10, 2016. (A craft will be available for those interested.)
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Presumed Innocent
In 1990, Harrison Ford starred in this movie version of Scott Turow's breakthrough novel. Rusty Sabich is a prosecuting attorney and has been a faithful husband for many years. But he becomes obsessed and has a brief affair with one of the deputies in his office, Carolyn. Months after she dumps him, Carolyn is found dead in her apartment. Rusty is investigating the murder until the evidence starts to point to him as the perpetrator. Who, of the many possibilities, could be framing him? There are lots of twists and turns, even after the case against Rusty is thrown out.
Criminal Spines will be watching this movie on April 13, 2016. We will then be discussing the sequel novel Innocent on April 14, 2016.
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Innocent
by Scott Turow
Rusty Sabich again stars in seventh Kindle County novel. Twenty years after the events in Presumed Innocent, Rusty, now a judge, once again does battle with Prosecutor Tommy Molto when Rusty's wife dies. Because Rusty told no one of her death for 24-hours, he is once again Molto's prime suspect. The family dynamics once again entangle Rusty and cast doubt on his innocence, although Molto is as much persecutor as prosecutor. Chicago lawyer Turow's own courtroom experience once again shines through in the realistic drama and suspense he creates. Booklist calls Innocent "a clever reprise" of Turow's first (and breakthrough novel) Presumed Innocent.
Criminal Spines will be discussing this book April 14, 2016. Join us for a viewing of Presumed Innocent on April 13, 2016.
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The Whites
by Harry Brandt
Sergeant Billy Graves had a bright future with the NYPD as a member of the "Wild Geese" anti-crime unit, until his bullet missed the crook and injured a child instead. Now Billy is part of Manhattan's Night Watch, whose detectives handle felonies between 1 a.m. and 8 a.m. However, each of his former partners in the "Wild Geese" have a "white" (as in Melville's great white whale): that one criminal they could never bring to justice. Then, the whites start dying, and Billy feels compelled to act. Multiple crime threads interweave with Billy's personal life to create a wonderful tapestry reminiscent of a Greek tragedy. Brandt doesn't attempt to provide definitive answers to questions about justice, but focuses on the issues and events through his character's eyes. Bringing in their personal lives and a dose of dark humor, Brandt examines each person as well as the wounds crime have left on them, and the price their sins accrue.
Criminal Spines will be discussing this book May 12, 2016.
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Devil in a Blue Dress
Denzel Washington brings Easy Rawins to life in this 1995 movie which won multiple Film Critic awards. Decorated World War II veteran Rawlins becomes a private eye and has exposed the nasty underbelly of Los Angeles in 1950s. Rawlins' LA isn't bright lights, beautiful people, and high fashion. Instead, African-American Rawlins is hired to go where white detectives couldn't and find a woman. This femme-fatale leads Rawlins deeper into a world of political corruption, scandal, bigotry, and self-destruction.
Criminal Spines will be watching this movie on June 8, 2016. We will be discussing the book (and movie) the following evening, June 9th.
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Devil in a Blue Dress
by Walter Mosley
In 1948, Ezekiel “Easy” Rawlins is having a drink in a small bar when Mr. DeWitt Albright, who specializes in doing jobs for people with money and power, approaches him. Currently, Albright needs to find a girl, Daphne Monet, who “has a predilection for the company of Negroes.” However, Watts is not a community that the white Mr. Albright can search himself. Having recently lost his job, Easy is interested in the money Albright offers, but he is not interested in messing with the law or the business of powerful white men. Easy can tell Mr. Albright is a dangerous man with a killer’s soul, but he loves his house and the mortgage will soon be due. Plus, it is a point of pride not to be afraid, despite what his good common sense might be telling him. When he finds Daphne, life gets more complicated and lethal.
Criminal Spines will be discussing this book on June 9, 2016. Join us for a viewing of Devil in a Blue Dress starring Denzel Washington on June 8, 2016. (A craft will be available for those interested.)
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Trust No One
by Paul Cleave
Jerry Grey, who writes as Henry Cutter, knows how to use crime to keep people on the edge of their seats. Cutter's stories are violent, with karma dealing only the most ruthless kind of justice. However, when he is diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's at age 49, Jerry's writing days are ended. As dementia begins to meld his real life with the lives of the character he has created, Jerry starts forget what is real, what never happened, and what may have happened. Jerry uses his Madness Journal to try to separate realities. However, he finds himself confessing to committing crimes he actually wrote as Henry. But what about the crimes Jerry committed? As Jerry, and Henry, become lost in Alzheimer's, the sense of dread, confusion, and mystery build into a nightmare reality where you can trust no one, not even yourself.
Criminal Spines will be discussing this book July 14, 2016.
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Still Life
by Louise Penny
A cozy Canadian village is rocked by the discovery of a local's body in the woods. Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his team descend upon Three Pines, Quebec to determine if the death was accidental or homicide. As the clues mount, Gamache reveals even small towns have dark secrets buried in their past. Penny adds a Canadian flare to this almost-cozy police procedural starring Gamache but involving an interesting cast of townsfolk and secondary investigators. Penny's deft and graceful hand with language makes her Three Pines series a stand-out, and a favorite amongst Naper Blvd. Adult Services staff.
Criminal Spines will be discussing this book August 11, 2016.
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Deadline
by John Sandford
John Sandford's spin-off series from his famous Lucas Davenport series which stars Virgil Flowers is becoming every bit as popular as the original. With more humor and less darkness, but just as much action, the Virgil Flowers series is a great entry point for readers new to Sandford.
In the eighth novel of the series, Agent Virgil Flowers of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension agrees to help a friend determine if Trippton, Minnesota's rash of dognappings is in fact caused by the hillbillies in Orly's Creek. While trying to prevent open warfare between dog lovers and the meth cooking bikers,Virgil stirs up more trouble. The Buchanan County Consolidated School Board is sure he is there for them and votes unanimously to kill a reporter in a bid to cover their butts. Virgil is assigned to solve both crimes and naturally finds more help from locals than from the government officials. Amidst political intrigue, disgraceful behavior, and general insanity, Virgil keeps his cool and remains an ironic, folksy, "surfer dude." (Only, since it's Minnesota, he never actually surfs but fishes instead.)
Criminal Spines will be discussing this book September 8, 2016.
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Dead Wake: The last crossing of the Lusitania
by Erik Larson
Larson is well-known for having created the type of story that mixes history, science, and true crime after his breakthrough The Devil in the White City. In Dead Wake, Larson explores the events leading up to and climaxing in the 1915 sinking of the RMS Lusitania by a German U-boat off the coast of Ireland during World War I. As usual, Larson expertly interweaves science, technology, politics, and espionage with interesting historical events and captivating characters to create a narrative nonfiction thriller. This book is sure to be another hit with Larson fans.
Criminal Spines will be discussing this book October 13, 2016.
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Child 44
In 2015, Tom Rob Smith's first Leo Demidov novel, Child 44,, was adapted for the big screen starring Tom Hardy, Noomi Rapace, and Gary Oldman. The movie is loosely based upon the case of serial killer Andrei Chikatilo, which was also depicted in Citizen X.
When it was released, the Russian film distributor announced Child 44 would be withdrawn from all cinemas in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan because of it's depiction of the Ministry of State Security (MGB) and Stalinist Russia.
During Stalin's reign in 1950s USSR, Leo Demidov, an MGB agent (akin to FBI), begins to investigate a series of death all involving children. When he determines they are murders, and the killer touches close to home, Leo insists on investigating despite demotion, political backlash, and physical threats.
Criminal Spines will be watching this movie on November 9, 2016. We will be discussing the book (and movie) the following evening, November 10th.
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Child 44
by Tom Rob Smith
In Stalin's USSR, crime does not exist. Murder is caused by capitalism, so there are no killers -- let alone serial killers. Thus when Leo Demidov, a Ministry of State Security agent, begins to investigate a series of deaths all involving children, his logical connection of the cases cause major political ramifications and repercussions. Even ignoring his new status as "enemy of the state," it's hard to be a murder cop when people are terrified of the secret police for whom Leo works. When the killer threatens those close to him, Leo must decide what path to follow. Exactly who are the good guys and who are the bad guys is inherently ambiguous at this time in this place.
Smith intimately captures the conflict and paranoia of the era. He brings to life the common man's existence under Stalinist rule -- how good men are torn and the line between right and wrong blurs. (Smith was inspired by the crimes of Andrei Chikatilo, the Rostov Butcher, who was active between 1978 and 1990.) Leo Demidov's crime fighting story continues in The Secret Speech and Agent 6.
Criminal Spines will be discussing this book (and the movie) on November 10, 2016. Join us for a viewing of the movie version the previous evening, November 9th.
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I Hunt Killers
by Barry Lyga
As the son of infamous serial killer Billy Dent, Jasper "Jazz" Dent knows a lot more about murder than the average seventeen-year-old. His father trained him to be the best serial killer ever -- à la television's Dexter. But Jazz is determined to prove he is not like his father, despite his conditioning. Jazz thinks he might be a sociopath, but he is determined to do good and atone for the sins of his father. Four years after his father's incarceration, another serial killer plagues Jazz's small home town committing murders with his father's signature. Using knowledge learned at his father's knee, Jazz helps the local sheriff find the killer. While written for a teen audience, I Hunt Killers is full of tension, atrocities, and carnage. And hearing Billy's voice and training replaying in Jazz's head is sure to make your skin crawl. Jazz's story continues in Game and Blood of My Blood as well as multiple short stories. (Warner Brothers is poised to launch a TV series based on this trilogy of novels.)
Criminal Spines will be discussing this book December 8, 2016.
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