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A terrible beauty : a Lady Emily mystery
by Tasha Alexander
Organizing a holiday in Greece to distract a heartbroken Jeremy, Lady Emily is shocked when a man from her past, believed long dead, greets the party and reveals he is being stalked by a murderous antiques trader. By the New York Times best-selling author of The Counterfeit Heiress. (suspense).
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The fifth petal : a novel
by Brunonia Barry
The best-selling author of The Lace Reader returns to otherworldly Salem as chief of police John Rafferty, now married to lace reader Towner Whitney, investigates a 25-year-old triple homicide involving three descendants of Salem Witch Trial victims.
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| Conviction by Julia DahlMystery. Ambitious Rebekah Roberts writes for a New York City tabloid, but longs for a more prestigious byline. So when she learns of an inmate who claims that his murder confession -- given as a teen -- was coerced, it could be a career-making story. As she digs deeper, she realizes she knows one of the original cops and that the case's prosecutor is set to be the new hotshot D.A. But no one wants to talk about the 1992 Brooklyn crime, which happened amid simmering racial tensions between Jewish and black neighbors. Featuring neat plotting, well-done characterization, and a fascinating look at tight-knit communities, this stellar 3rd in a series can be read on its own; if you want Rebekah's background details, start with the 1st book, Invisible City. |
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| A Fever of the Blood by Oscar de MurielHistorical Mystery. An inmate, Lord Ardglass, escapes from Edinburgh's lunatic asylum, leaving a behind a fatally injured nurse before heading to town and attacking his elderly mother. Tracking down the escapee are eccentric Scot Adolphus "Nine-Nails" McGray and London dandy Ian Frey. The two mismatched investigators venture through the worst blizzard in memory while examining links between the Ardglass family and rumors of witches and black magic. A Fever of the Blood, the atmospheric follow-up to The Strings of Murder, is a "mad romp" (New York Times). Fans of Alex Grecian's Murder Squad books who've been looking for a gritty new Victorian mystery series peopled with fascinating characters will want to try these books. |
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The trapped girl
by Robert Dugoni
When a woman’s body is discovered submerged in a crab pot in the chilly waters of Puget Sound, Detective Tracy Crosswhite finds herself with a tough case to untangle. Original.
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Ill met by murder
by Elizabeth J Duncan
When a murder disrupts the Catskill Shakespeare Theater Company's annual fundraising performance at a wealthy widow's estate, costume designer Charlotte Fairfax is enlisted to investigate discreetly only to be embroiled in a shady business deal, a dog's disappearance and long-buried family secrets.
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| Reservations by Gwen FlorioMystery. Though she's been a war correspondent, Lola Wicks now works for a small-town Montana newspaper. Together with her Blackfeet husband, Charlie, and her seven-year-old daughter, she visits Charlie's lawyer brother, who married a Navajo woman and lives with his family on an Arizona reservation. But a local coal mine's proposed expansion has everyone on the rez on edge, and then an eco-terrorist sets a bomb that accidentally kills a Navajo elder. From this set-up, things just get more intense as Lola faces her most difficult challenges yet. This timely 4th in the Lola Wicks series offers compelling plotting and realistic characters. Those who appreciate Tony and Anne Hillerman's compelling, richly detailed mysteries that focus on Native Americans will want to check out Reservations. |
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The dry
by Jane Harper
Receiving a sinister anonymous note after his best friend's suspicious death, federal agent Aaron Falk is forced to confront the fallout of a twenty-year-old false alibi against a backdrop of the worst drought Melbourne has seen in a century
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Fever in the dark
by Ellen Hart
When a video of their engagement goes viral on the heels of the Supreme Court's decision to legalize gay marriage, Fiona and Annie turn for help to private investigator Jane Lawless to safeguard a secret from Annie's past. By the award-winning author of The Grave Soul.
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Unlucky charms
by Linda O Johnston
After a local real estate agent is found murdered and one of the good-luck items from her boutique is found by the body, owner Rory Chasen investigates the killing, but needs all the luck she can get to avoid becoming the next victim
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| Blue Light Yokohama by Nicolás ObregónPolice Procedural. This notable debut novel by a British-Spanish writer introduces insomniac Tokyo police Inspector Iwata. Freshly reinstated as a cop, Iwata's new to the city and to its homicide department, where he's partnered with Sakai, a no-nonsense female officer who previously worked missing persons. A pair of outcasts, they are given a hot-potato of a case: a Korean family has been brutally murdered, with the father's heart removed and a strange black sun symbol left on a ceiling. Oh, and the experienced cop who was in charge of the case committed suicide four days earlier. With dark humor and atmosphere to spare, this slow-burning, gritty, layered whodunit should appeal to hard-boiled readers and fans of Keigo Higashino's Detective Galileo. |
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The angels' share : a novel
by James Markert
"Some believed he was the second coming of Christ. William wasn't so sure. But when that drifter was buried next to the family distillery, everything changed. Now that Prohibition has ended, what the townspeople of Twisted Tree, Kentucky, need most is the revival of the Old Sam Bourbon distillery. But William McFee knows it'll take a miracle to convince his father, Barley, to once more fill his family's aging house with barrels full of bourbon. When a drifter recently buried near the distillery begins todraw crowds of pilgrims, the McFees are dubious, but miracles seem to come to those who once interacted with the deceased and to those now praying at his grave. As people descend on the town to visit the "Potter's Field Christ," William seeks to find theconnection between the tragic death of his younger brother and the mysterious drifter. But as news spreads about the miracles at the Potter's Field, the publicity threatens to bring the depth of Barley's secret past to light and put the entire McFee family in jeopardy. The Angels' Shareis a story of fathers and sons, of young romance, of revenge and redemption, and the mystery of miracles"
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Burning bright
by Nicholas Petrie
When his restful vacation among the northern California redwoods is hampered by claustrophobia and a grizzly that forces him to retreat up a tree, war veteran Peter Ash discovers a hanging platform where a journalist who has escaped a kidnapping is hiding from gun-toting captors.
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| The Violated by Bill PronziniMystery. Using multiple points of view, this "masterly stand-alone novel" (Library Journal) by veteran author Bill Pronzini tells what happens to a small town when a registered sex offender -- thought to be responsible for four recent rapes -- is murdered. Though Martin Torrey had no prior assaults on his record, and no evidence linked him directly to the rapes, the police in Santa Rita, California thought he was their guy. Now, in addition to officially solving the rapes, police chief Griffin Kells (whom the power-hungry mayor is actively trying to get rid of) and brusque detective Robert Ortiz need to solve a murder, too -- but that's hampered when their tangled case grows even more complex in this fast-paced story that thoughtfully examines how crime impacts everyone it touches. |
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The Secrets of Wishtide: A Laetitia Rodd Mystery
by Kate Saunders
Historical Mystery. In 1850 England, 52-year-old Laetitia Rodd finds herself in reduced circumstances after the death of her archdeacon husband. Living with a friend in Hampstead, she pays her bills by occasionally acting as a private investigator for her barrister brother. It's just such a case that sends her to Wishtide, the home of Lord Calderstone in Lincolnshire, to work undercover as a governess and ferret out information about the mysterious fiancée of the nobleman's son -- but before long, she's also trying to solve a murder. This well-plotted 1st entry in a new series features a charming main character and is perfect for readers who'd like a Victorian-era novel with a Golden-Age mystery feel.
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Beloved Poison
by E.S. Thomson
Historical Mystery. In this well-researched debut novel set in 1850s London, young Jem Flockhart has a secret: in order to work as an apothecary alongside her ill father, she has been pretending to be a man. It's been fine, but when the large infirmary she works at is slated to be torn down to make way for a railway, she finds herself with one of the young architects, Will Quartermain, for a roommate. Since Will is nice enough, Jem helps him with his work, during which the two find six tiny coffins holding dolls and flowers in the centuries-old infirmary's chapel. Jem and Will search for answers, and find much more than they bargained for, especially when murders occur. With a strong sense of place that captures the grim realities of life in a 19th-century infirmary as well as a cemetery relocation, Beloved Poison is a good choice for non-squeamish historical mystery readers.
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Night of Fire
by Colin Thubron
A house fire threatens the existences of six tenants and their shadowy landlord, whose fates become intertwined as they evaluate their respective lives through intimate, poetic memories. By the award-winning author of Shadow of the Silk Road.
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A Deadly Thaw : A Mystery
by Sarah Ward
When a man whose wife was convicted for his murder 15 years earlier is found newly dead, Detective Inspector Francis Sadler and his Derbyshire team follow leads to uncover what really happened and why the wife lied about the identity of the first victim.
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| A Welcome Murder: A Novel by Robin YocumMystery. Meet Johnny Earl, a washed-up former professional baseball player and ex-con who is the best athlete Steubenville, Ohio has ever produced. He'd like to find the drug money he's hidden there and get out of town, but a Neo Nazi also wants the money...and the high-school friend and FBI informant who sent Johnny up the river has been murdered. Johnny's a suspect, of course, but he's not the only one. Turns out plenty of people are happy Rayce Daubner is dead, including Johnny Earl's high-school girlfriend, her current husband, the local sheriff, and his unhappy wife. Told from the first-person point of view of several people, this lively, violent, funny novel provides an intimate look at an eccentric cast of memorable characters. |
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If You Like: Nancy Atherton
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| The Tale of Holly How: The Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter by Susan Wittig AlbertHistorical Cozy. In July 1906, Beatrix Potter lives in England's bucolic Lake District and works on getting Hill Top Farm, which she purchased a year earlier, up and running again. In The Tale of Holly How, the 2nd in a series, she also must make time to solve the murder of a well-liked local shepherd, who's found dead in a field. Nancy Atherton fans will find much to like here -- The Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter offer a delightful blend of the supernatural (it features charming animals who talk among themselves), richly described settings, small-town intrigues, and a chaste but developing romance between Potter and her solicitor Will Heelis. |
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| The Real Macaw by Donna AndrewsHumorous Mystery. What the mother of infant twins needs is sleep, not a living room full of stolen animals -- but that's what Virginia blacksmith Meg Langslow finds after a 2 a.m. feeding! And along with cats, dogs, hamsters, etc., she finds her animal-loving father, zoologist grandfather, helpful brother, and the local veterinarian. They've liberated the animals from the local shelter, which has repealed its no-kill policy -- but the fifth gang member, the one who was supposed to take custody of the critters, didn't show up. They're upset with him...until the chief of police shows up wondering why they've been calling the cell phone of his newest murder victim for hours. The Real Macaw is the 13th in this entertaining series, and Aunt Dimity fans will enjoy the family-centric tales and small town charm. |
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| Death of a Gentle Lady by M.C. BeatonCozy Mystery. What's in a name? In Mrs. Gentle's case, it's an apt description of how the lady presents herself, but that's it. Scottish policeman Hamish MacBeth tries to tell his friends and neighbors this, but they think Lochdubh's newest resident is quite agreeable. However, Ayesha, Mrs. Gentle's Russian maid, knows the truth, since she's being threatened with deportation by her boss. Swayed by Ayesha's beauty and plight, perpetual bachelor Hamish asks her to marry him -- but before the nuptials can occur, Ayesha disappears...and Mrs. Gentle is murdered. Death of a Gentle Lady, the 24th in M.C. Beaton's popular series, includes a delightful look at village life as well as likable characters. |
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| Ghost in Trouble by Carolyn HartCozy Mystery. Heaven -- in the ghostly form of Department of Good Intentions emissary (and rule-breaker) Bailey Ruth Raeburn -- must help headstrong Kay Clark stay alive. After years away, Kay's former boyfriend has come home to Adelaide, Oklahoma and died in what appeared to be an accident. But did someone push him down the long stairway at his family's mansion? Kay thinks so -- and now she's in danger. Readers who enjoy Nancy Atherton's Aunt Dimity series may want to try this funny and heartwarming supernatural series that's set in a small town. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Manatee County Public Library System 1301 Barcarrota Boulevard West Bradenton, Florida 34205 (941) 748-5555www.mymanatee.org/library |
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