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New Fiction - January 2021
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All Through the Night
by Tara Johnson
Set in the early years of the Civil War, a young female hospital volunteer and a doctor operating undercover as an abolitionist develop a strong attraction as they work together to stop the plans of a secret society so vile, the course of their lives, and the war, could be altered forever
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At the Edge of the Haight
by Katherine Seligman
Witnessing a murder that threatens her already precarious existence, a young homeless woman is pressured to return to her family in tech-driven, race-torn San Francisco.
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Beauty Among Ruins
by J'nell Ciesielski
Nursing the wounded at a convalescent home in World War I Scotland, an American socialite unexpectedly partners with a wounded Scottish laird to defeat a common enemy.
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Better Luck Next Time
by Julia Claiborne Johnson
A follow-up to the best-selling Be Frank with Me follows the experiences of a former Yale student whose life at a 1930s Reno divorce ranch is upended by a shy woman and a thrice-divorced pilot.
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Black Buck
by Mateo Askaripour
An unambitious college graduate accepts a job at Sumwun, the hottest NYC startup, and reimagines himself as “Buck” a ruthless salesman and begins to hatch a plan to help young people of color infiltrate America’s sales force.
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Bride of the Buddha
by Barbara McHugh
This is the story of Yasodhara, the abandoned wife of the Buddha. Facing society's challenges, she transforms her rage into devotion to the path of liberation.
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Burnt Sugar
by Avni Doshi
Shortlisted for the 2020 Booker Prize, a literary debut novel set in India is about mothers and daughters, obsession and betrayal.
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Cathedral
by Ben Hopkins
The 12th- and 13th-century construction of Hagenburg’s Cathedral and its related depravities shape the religious, political and economic lives of diverse characters, from the local bishop and his treasurer to regional stonecutters and Jewish denizens.
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The Center of Everything
by Jamie Harrison
Recuperating from a head injury that has scrambled her perception of time, a Montana native attends a family reunion before the disappearance of a beloved friend dredges up painful memories.
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The Charmed Wife
by Olga Grushin
Thirteen years after marrying Prince Charming and having two children, a dissatisfied Cinderella sneaks out to obtain the services of a witch known to provide love potions to disgruntled housewives, but instead of rekindled romance, she wants her husband dead.
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The Children's Blizzard
by Melanie Benjamin
The best-selling author draws on oral histories of the Great Plains blizzard of 1888 to depict the experiences of two teachers, a servant and a reporter who risk everything to protect the children of immigrant homesteaders.
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The Children's Train
by Viola Ardone
A tale based on true events follows the experiences of a boy in post-World War II Italy, who joins thousands of other children from the south to live with adoptive families in the less-desperate north.
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The City of Tears
by Kate Mosse
A continuation of the story that began in The Burning Chambers is set in Paris, London and Amsterdam and follows the failed efforts of a royal marriage to end a decade-long religious conflict.
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To Cook a Bear
by Mikael Niemi
A fantastic tale set in the far north of Sweden in 1852 following a runaway Sami boy and his mentor, the revivalist preacher Laestadius, as they investigate a murder in their village along with the some of the great philosophical mysteries of life.
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The Dangers of Smoking in Bed
by Mariana Enriquez
Written against a backdrop of the sociopolitical dynamics of contemporary Argentina, a collection of stories that follows the experiences of sophisticated and macabre protagonists, from obsessed fangirls to a morally challenged neighborhood.
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Dear Miss Kopp
by Amy Stewart
While Constance pursues suspected German spies and Fleurette performs for the troops as America enters World War I, Army Signal Corps pigeon-project manager Norma investigates a theft of medical supplies to clear a field hospital nurse’s name.
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Detransition, Baby
by Torrey Peters
A trans woman, her detransitioned ex and his cisgender lover build an unconventional family together in the wake of heartbreak and an unplanned pregnancy.
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The Effort
by Claire Holroyde
A comet called UD3 threatens to wipe out the human race, and a ragtag team of scientists from all over the world rushes to find a way to knock it off course in this novel of love and sacrifice.
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Endless Mercy
by Tracie Peterson
In 1891, when Madysen Powell's supposedly dead father shows up, her gift for forgiveness is tested and she's left searching for answers.
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Faye, Faraway
by Helen Fisher
A debut novel examines loss, faith, and love as it follows a grown woman who travels back in time to be reunited with the mother she lost when she was a child.
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Find Me in Havana
by Serena Burdick
Based on the true story of Estelita Rodriguez, follows a young woman’s effort to retrace her late mother’s extraordinary life from Cuba to Hollywood.
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The Fortunate Ones
by Ed Tarkington
Exposed to the privileges and depravity of wealth when his mother’s connections gain him entry into an elite Nashville boarding school, Charlie faces a difficult choice years later while supporting a friend’s morally questionable political campaign.
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The Gates of Athens
by Conn Iggulden
A historical epic inspired by the ancient world’s Battle of Marathon and the Last Stand at Thermopylae follows the unlikely Greek victory against Darius the Great’s invading Persian army 10 years before Athens succumbed to factionalism and betrayal.
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Hades, Argentina
by Daniel Loedel
A medical student in Buenos Aires must decide how far he’s willing to go for his childhood crush and the group of insurgents she’s joined as more and more people like her are disappeared by an oppressive military junta.
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The Hare
by Melanie Finn
Raised to be obedient by a stern grandmother, a 1980s art student has an affair with a worldly con man before finding herself abandoned and struggling for survival. This resilient heroine embodies the evolution of feminism in a male-dominant society, making this a poignant story for our time.
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Joint Custody
by Lauren Baratz-Logsted
The Art of Racing in the Rain meets The Parent Trap in this offbeat romantic comedy about a mischievous dog determined to do whatever it takes to get his owners back together.
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The Last Garden in England
by Julia Kelly
A poignant and unforgettable tale of five women living across three different times whose lives are all connected by one very special garden.
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Life Among the Terranauts
by Caitlin Horrocks
A much-anticipated story collection that move boldly between the real and the surreal, exploding our notions of what a story can do and where it can take us.
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Meet Me in Bombay
by Jenny Ashcroft
A man is desperately in search of a woman, but first he must remember who she is.
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The Narrowboat Summer
by Anne Youngson
Abandoning their previous lives, two friends agree to drive a third friend’s narrowboat through the canals of England while she awaits a life-saving operation, drawing them all together to forge a new path forward.
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Neighbors
by Danielle Steel
Opening her home to neighbors in the aftermath of a devastating earthquake, a reclusive woman inadvertently triggers events that reveal secrets, divide relationships and forge new bonds among strangers.
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Our Darkest Night
by Jennifer Robson
Hiding from the Nazis in the guise of a Christian farmer’s wife, a Jewish woman is met with suspicion by a Nazi official who harbors a vendetta against the former seminary student posing as her husband.
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Our Italian Summer
by Jennifer Probst
A concerned grandmother convinces her workaholic daughter and rebellious teen granddaughter to reconnect with family during a trip to the rolling hills and historical sites of Italy, where a seminary student imparts lessons in acceptance, healing and love.
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Outlawed
by Anna North
A riveting adventure story features a fugitive girl, a mysterious gang of robbers, and their dangerous mission to transform the Wild West.
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The Prophets
by Robert Jones, Jr.
Two enslaved young men on a Deep South plantation find refuge in each other while transforming a quiet shed into a haven for their fellow slaves, before an enslaved preacher declares their bond sinful.
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The Push
by Ashley Audrain
A devoted mother with a painful past gradually realizes that something is very wrong with her daughter, a fear that is complicated by her husband’s dismissive views and the birth of a healthy son.
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The Rib King
by Ladee Hubbard
Exploited by the white family that took him in as a servant 15 years earlier, a Black orphan becomes tragically enraged by how his employers mindlessly profit from the talents of a hired black cook.
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The Revolution According to Raymundo Mata
by Gina Apostol
A sight-impaired, avid reader traces his Manila childhood and revolutionary activities at the side of Filipino nationalist Jose Rizal against a backdrop of Spanish colonial-era violence.
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Siri, Who Am I?
by Sam Tschida
Waking from a coma with no memory of who she is, a wealthy millennial tries to piece together her identity through her social-media activity before following leads to a billionaire’s home and the site of a suspicious accident.
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Spin
by Patricia Daniels Cornwell
Captain Calli Chase races against time to thwart a plot that leaves the fate of humanity hanging in the balance.
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A Splendid Ruin
by Megan Chance
A mesmerizing novel of dark family secrets and a young woman's rise and revenge set against the backdrop of the devastating 1906 San Francisco earthquake.
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The Swallowed Man
by Edward Carey
A reimagining of Carlo Collodi’s classic Pinocchio story depicts a lonely woodcarver whose life in a Tuscan village is upended by a marionette he is compelled to carve that comes frighteningly to life and torments his existence with rebellious lies.
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Tropic of Stupid
by Tim Dorsey
Embarking on a Sunshine State road trip to meet long-lost family members, Serge Storms discovers that he may be related to a notorious serial killer before encountering a park ranger with her own mysterious agenda.
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We Could Be Heroes
by Mike Chen
Two superpowered individuals who have lost all memory of their real identities use their respective powers to commit or fight crime before teaming up together to stop the mad scientist behind a devastating medical conspiracy.
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What Could Be Saved
by Liese O'Halloran Schwarz
Alternating between past and present as all of the secrets are revealed, this novel is about a family shattered by loss and betrayal, and the beauty that can exist even in the midst of brokenness.
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Yellow Wife
by Sadeqa Johnson
Born on a plantation, but set apart from the others by her mother’s position as a medicine woman, a young slave is forced to leave home at 18 and unexpectedly finds herself in an infamously cruel jail.
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American Traitor
by Brad Taylor
Assisting a witness’ flight from murderous foreign agents, Pike Logan and Jennifer Cahill uncover a plot to trigger a war between China and Taiwan by destabilizing the latter’s government and digital defenses.
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Before She Disappeared
by Lisa Gardner
Investigating the cold-case disappearance of a Haitian teen in a gritty Boston neighborhood, Frankie Elkin navigates resident and police resistance as well as the challenges of her own sobriety before risking her life to uncover the truth.
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Before the Ruins
by Victoria Gosling
A multilayered debut by the founder of The Reader Berlin finds a woman forced to confront a haunting summer from the past shaped by a stolen diamond necklace, a man on the run and a devastating betrayal.
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Bone Canyon
by Lee Goldberg
A sequel to Lost Hills finds Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department homicide detective Eve Ronin investigating the cold-case disappearance and death of a woman whose remains are found in the aftermath of a Santa Monica Mountains fire.
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The Breaker
by Nick Petrie
Interrupting a shooting in a crowded marketplace, Peter Ash is approached by an old associate who offers him a clean record in exchange for help tracking down the gunman and the intended victim.
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The Broken Spine
by Dorothy St. James
Rescuing hundreds of precious books from her newly digitized library, spunky librarian Trudell Becket is forced to prove her innocence when the politician behind the library's demolition is murdered.
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The Butterfly House
by Katrine Engberg
Detectives Jeppe Karner and Anette Werner race to solve a series of sordid murders linked to some of the most vulnerable patients in a Danish hospital.
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City of Schemes
by Victoria Thompson
After the Great War, Elizabeth Miles and Gideon Bates plan their wedding and welcome home old friends now discharged from the army, and must come to the aid of their friend Archie who may be the victim of a con-woman while fending off their worst enemy.
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Cold Wind
by Paige Shelton
A sequel to Thin Ice finds Beth investigating the discovery of a trapper’s secluded home in the woods near Benedict, Alaska, where a murder victim is linked to the owner of the local mercantile.
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Crime of the Ancient Marinara
by Stephanie Cole
Hoping for a fresh start in Tuscany, Italy, farm-to-table cooking school owner Nell Valenti finds her new business in danger when a visitor is poisoned by the top secret marinara recipe of a famous chef.
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A Curious Incident
by Vicki Delany
After Gemma helps a little girl find her lost cat, the child returns seeking further assistance when her mother is accused of killing her garden club rival.
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Death Comes to the Rectory
by Catherine Lloyd
When her father, the rector, is implicated in the death of his wife’s son-in-law, a very disagreeable man, Lady Lucy Kurland, with her daughter’s christening marred by murder, must clear his name and expose the real culprit.
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Deep Into the Dark
by P. J. Tracy
Framed for the murder of a friend’s abusive ex, war veteran Sam Easton turns for help to up-and-coming LAPD detective Margaret Nolan, a fallen soldier’s sister who would prove Sam’s innocence.
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Egg Shooters
by Laura Childs
Interrupting an emergency room shooter at the local hospital, Cackleberry Club Café owner Suzanne teams up with Petra and Toni to find the escaped killer before he tracks them down.
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Every Waking Hour
by Joanna Schaffhausen
Abduction survivor and rookie Boston detective Ellery Hathaway has old wounds reopened after she is assigned to investigate the disappearance of a 12-year old girl, in the fourth novel of the series.
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A Glimmer of Death
by Valerie Wilson Wesley
The first in a new thrilling new series starring a women with an extraordinary psychic gift follows widow Odessa Jones as she, to prove her co-worker’s innocence, investigates the murder of a man who had a lot of enemies.
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A Hanging at Dawn
by Charles Todd
This short novel continues the origin story of Todd's series hero, Bess Crawford, begun in The Maharani’s Pearls. This time the focus is on the period before Bess became a battlefield nurse in WWI.
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House of the Patriarch
by Barbara Hambly
Reluctantly accepting a missing-persons case in New York, Benjamin January navigates religious zealots, human circus shows and kidnapping slavers to solve the mystery of a girl’s baffling disappearance from a crowded steamboat.
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In the Garden of Spite
by Camilla Bruce
A mesmerizing look at the murderous career of the real-life 19th-century serial killer Belle Gunness—and the men who drove her to it.
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Irish Parade Murder
by Leslie Meier
When a brash new reporter is implicated in the murder of a corrections officer, Lucy Stone uncovers a bizarre mystery while interviewing a stranger whose revelations change everything for Lucy’s family.
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Knock Knock
by Anders Roslund
Tells the story of a police inspector and a former criminal informant in a race against time as they attempt to unravel past and present secrets.
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The Last Exit
by Michael Kaufman
The secret to eternal life is closely guarded by people who will do anything to protect it—even if it means destroying everything in their path.
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The Lost Boys
by Faye Kellerman
Detectives Peter Decker and Tyler McAdams link two suspicious disappearances from an assisted living facility to the case of three missing campers, before the reappearance of a foster son’s biological mother upends Decker’s home life.
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Mrs. Jeffries Demands Justice
by Emily Brightwell
Forced by a sense of fairness to investigate daunting allegations against an odious rival, Inspector Witherspoon and Mrs. Jeffries team up for a case involving a murdered key witness and an audacious band of robbers.
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Murder at Mabel's Motel
by G. A. McKevett
When a notorious gang leader is found poisoned in small-town McGill, Georgia, Stella “Granny” Reid investigates a flood of suspects who reveal dark secrets about the victim and several respected locals.
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The Other Couple
by Louise Candlish
When a millennial and a Gen X couple fall into an obsessive friendship, things get dangerous in this addictive novel of suspense by the international bestselling and award-winning author.
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Bryant & May: Oranges and Lemons
by Christopher Fowler
Investigating the bizarre death of a high-profile politician, senior detectives Arthur Bryand and John May overcome insurmountable odds to reunite the Peculiar Crimes Unit and stop a dangerous plot against London's churches.
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People Like Her
by Ellery Lloyd
A successful media influencer’s morally questionable relationship with the truth exposes deep psychological cracks in her marriage at the same time her family is targeted by a violently obsessed fan.
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Picnic in the Ruins
by Todd Robert Petersen
When she crosses paths with two small-time criminals, who have been hired to steal maps from a “collector” of Native American artifacts, anthropologist Sophia Shepard embarks on a madcap caper across the RV-strewn vacation lands of southern Utah to put her theories to the test.
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Prodigal Son
by Gregg Andrew Hurwitz
Retiring from his Nowhere Man activities in exchange for an unofficial pardon, former government assassin Evan Smoak is entreated by a unlikely client to help rescue a fellow orphan from a dangerous foster home.
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The Russian
by James Patterson
Investigating a trio of horrifying murders in three major U.S. cities against a backdrop of his impending nuptials, Detective Michael Bennett risks getting caught in a deadly trap set by a particularly elusive killer.
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The Scorpion's Tail
by Douglas J. Preston
A sequel to Old Bones finds FBI agent Corrie Swanson and Santa Fe archaeologist Nora Kelly investigating the mummified corpse of a long-dead victim who died in agony while holding a mysterious 16th-century gold cross.
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Shanghai Secrets
by Sulari Gentill
1935 Shanghai, Rowland Sinclair, under strict instructions to keep a low profile, finds that nearly impossible when he is accused of murdering a beautiful Russian taxi girl and must find the truth in a foreign city determined to ruin him.
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Shiver
by Allie Reynolds
A reunion weekend in the French Alps turns deadly when five friends discover that someone has deliberately stranded them at a remote mountaintop resort during a snowstorm, where ominous things begin to happen.
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A Sinister Service
by Alyssa Maxwell
Lady Phoebe Renshaw investigates the murder of an illustrious china manufacturer with the aid of her lady’s maid, Eva, who goes undercover at the ceramic works, in the newest novel of the series.
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Sleep Well, My Lady
by Kwei Quartey
PI Emma Djan investigates the death of a Ghanaian fashion icon and social media celebrity, Lady Araba.
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Someone to Watch Over Me
by Ace Atkins
When his apprentice Mattie’s childhood friend from the South Boston housing projects is murdered, Spenser traces the victim’s demise to an international sex-trafficking ring that has been operating with impunity under the protection of a well-connected billionaire.
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A Stranger at the Door
by Jason Pinter
A sequel to Hide Away finds Rachel Marin investigating the brutal murder of a local teacher only to be thwarted by a figure from her past and a shadowy businessman who targets her son.
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Twenty
by James Grippando
A nightmarish shooting at their daughter’s school finds Jack Swyteck and his law-enforcement officer wife, Andie, investigating a chief suspect’s alleged ties to Al Qaeda amid growing anti-Muslim fervor.
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Waiting for the Night Song
by Julie Carrick Dalton
Cadie returns to her childhood home to confront her estranged best friend and the dark secret they both share and must decide what she is willing to sacrifice to protect the people and the land she loves.
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Driven
by Rebecca Zanetti
On the hunt for a serial killer called “the Surgeon,” Angus Force is teamed up with Deep Ops Unit psychiatrist Nari Zhang and the attraction between them is as dangerous as the killer.
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The Ex Talk
by Rachel Lynn Solomon
An experienced public radio producer and a newcomer with a master’s degree clashing over the disparate advice they administer during an unexpectedly popular radio show.
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The Forever Girl
by Jill Shalvis
Returning to her hometown to attend an estranged friend’s wedding, Maze navigates unexpected secrets with her childhood circle of friends while discovering that she still has feelings for a long-ago crush.
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Georgana's Secret
by Arlem Hawks
Having spent her early life at sea in the guise of her father’s cabin boy, a young woman falls in love with a Royal Navy lieutenant who challenges her pessimism about finding a respectable husband.
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Happy Singles Day
by Ann Marie Walker
Sparks fly when a Type A professional organizer ends up at a B&B run by a grumpy single dad in this sparkling, heartfelt rom-com.
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Across the Green Grass Fields
by Seanan McGuire
A stand-alone entry in the award-winning series finds Regan passing through a mysterious doorway before entering a fantastical world of magical equines who expect humans to step up as heroes.
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All the Colors of Night
by Jayne Ann Krentz
A sequel to The Vanishing finds a young man with rare crystal-energy abilities partnering with a disgraced paranormal artifacts finder to track down a mysterious relic that may be tied to a parent’s sudden coma.
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Dealbreaker
by L. X. Beckett
Neuromancer meets Star Trek in a thrilling sequel to Gamechanger.
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The Frozen Crown
by Greta Kelly
Fleeing to her allies in the south when her realm is overrun by the forces of a mad emperor, a young heiress is embroiled in labyrinthine political games that threaten to expose her secret magical nature.
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Knight's Ransom
by Jeff Wheeler
Ensnared in courtly intrigue, Ransom must make his own way in the world as he journeys along the path to knighthood and, along the way, interrupts an abduction plot that earns him a position serving the son of the Queen of Ceredigion, making him a target.
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Into the Light
by David Weber
In a follow-up to Out of the Dark, the survivors of a conquered Earth rapidly rebuild using left-behind technology, including a powerful spaceship that vengeful blood drinkers commandeer with intent to destroy the Shongairi homeworld.
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St Charles Public Library Temporary Address: 305 S. 9th Street. St Charles, Illinois 60174 630-584-0076http://www.scpld.org/ |
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