Winter Reading Club Begins Today


The weather outside might be frightful, but curling up with a good book sounds delightful! 


Registration for our Winter Reading Club starts today at 6:30 p.m. Register online at www.communitylibrary.org and stop by the Adult Information Desk to pick up your Reading Club goodie bag. 

You are also invited to join us for our Winter Reading Kick-off Party "A SNOW BALL" tonight, January 31, from 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. We'll have carnival games, snow cones, snow globes cupcakes you make yourself, crafts, music and more while you sign up for one of our reading programs.

And that's not all. . . you'll also get a chance to win raffle prizes each week. Simply enter in the books you read online. Each book read counts as one raffle entry for prizes each week. The more you read the better your chance of winning! Raffle drawings will take place on Thursdays February 13, 20, 27 and March 6, 13, 20.

Start reading today!

Family, Justice and the Choices We Make

Once Upon a Lie by Maggie Barbieri
In Maggie Barbieri's new book Once Upon a Lie, Maeve Conlon's life is coming apart at the seams. Her bakery is barely making ends meet, and one of her daughters spends as much time grounded as the other does studying. Her ex-husband has a new wife, a new baby, and a look of pity for Maeve that's absolutely infuriating. Her father insists he's still independent, but he's slowly and obviously succumbing to Alzheimer's. And now, her cousin Sean Donovan has been found dead, sitting in his car in a public park in quiet Farringville, New York, shot through the head.

There was never much love lost between Maeve and Sean and she's not exactly devastated by his death, but suddenly the police are poking around asking the family questions. It's just one more hassle Maeve doesn't have time for, until she realizes that her father, whose memory and judgment are unreliable at best, is a suspect in the murder. Maeve is determined to clear his name, but is she prepared to cope with the dark memories and long-hidden secrets that doing so might dredge up?

"Barbieri skillfully avoids tipping her hand until the last possible moment, leaving readers both breathless and unnerved by the novel's conclusion." (Publishers Weekly Reviews)

Book to Movie Alert - 'Winter's Tale'

Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin
The 1983 book Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin has been made into a movie with the same title starring Colin Farrell, Jessica Brown Findlay, Russell Crowe and Jennifer Connelly and arrives in theaters just in time for Valentine's Day on February 14, 2014.

Winter's Tale tells the story of Peter Lake, a master mechanic who attempts to rob a mansion on the Upper West Side but is caught by young Beverly Penn, the terminally ill daughter of the house. Their subsequent love sends Peter on a desperate personal journey through time.

"Set in a fairy tale version of New York City, the novel is about a great many things and meanders through vast amounts of time, but it is notable in large part for its lush blend of fantasy and romance, vibrant and lyrically imaginative sensibility, and gorgeous and atmospheric prose. As the story develops, Helprin's portraits of the city suffering apocalyptic winters and the fantastical icy climes of other locations become dreamlike in their intensity." (Library Journal Reviews)

Want to read the book before seeing the movie? Click here to place your hold.

Watch the movie trailer below (or click here for trailer):




A Star for Mrs. Blake

A Star for Mrs. Blake by April Smith
The United States Congress in 1929 passed legislation to fund travel for mothers of the fallen soldiers of World War I to visit their sons’ graves in France. Over the next three years, 6,693 Gold Star Mothers made the trip. In A Star for Mrs. Blake, April Smith (author of the Ana Grey mystery series) breathes life into a unique moment in American history, imagining the experience of five of these women.

They are strangers at the start, but their lives will become inextricably intertwined, altered in indelible ways. These very different Gold Star Mothers (an Irish maid, a chicken farmer's wife, a Boston socialite, a former tennis star and a librarian) travel to the Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery to say final good-byes to their sons and come together along the way to face the unexpected: a death, a scandal, and a secret revealed. 

Fly Fishing Detective Returns

Dead Man's Fancy by Keith McCafferty
Sean Stranahan and Sheriff Martha Ettinger return in the new mystery Dead Man's Fancy by Keith Mcafferty. Stumbling across the dead body of a smitten client while searching for the missing Nanika Martinelli, a missing red-haired river guide better known as the Fly Fishing Venus, Sheriff Martha Ettinger, assisted by sometimes private detective Sean Stranahan, follow clues that point to an animal rights group called Clan of the Three-Clawed Wolf and their pagan master.

In their most dangerous adventure yet, Stranahan and Ettinger find themselves in the crossfire of wolf lovers, wolf haters, and a sister bent on revenge, and on the trail of an alpha male gone terribly wrong.


For more of McCafferty's Sean Stranahan and Martha Ettinger mysteries, check out the first books in the series:

The Royal Wulff Murders by Keith McCafferty
In McCafferty's compelling debut, a young man is found dead with a Royal Wulff trout fly stuck through his lip. Sheriff Martha Ettinger's investigation leads her to cross paths with fly fisher, painter, and has-been private detective Sean Stranahan. As the water temperature rises, the clues point them both toward Montana's big business: fly fishing. Where there's money, there's bound to be crime.

The Gray Ghost Murders by Keith McCafferty
A follow-up to 'The Royal Wulff Murders' finds fly fisherman and private detective Sean Stranahan tackling two assignments including the theft of a valuable fly and the murders of two men who have been found on Sphinx Mountain, cases with possible ties to local superstitions and powerful adversaries.

If You Like 'Doctor Sleep' You May Also Like...

Doctor Sleep by Stephen King
In Doctor Sleep, Stephen King returns to the character and territory of one of his most popular novels ever, The Shining, in this instantly riveting novel about the now middle-aged Dan Torrance and the very special twelve-year-old girl he must save from a tribe of murderous paranormals. 

If you like Doctor Sleep you may also like the following books:

The Ritual by Adam Nevill
The Ritual by Adam Nevill:
Unexpectedly clashing with his three old University friends while hiking in the Scandinavian wilderness of the Arctic Circle, Luke takes a shortcut that leads the group to an ancient pagan sacrificial site where they are hunted by a bestial predator.


The Broken Ones by Stephen M. Irwin
The Broken Ones by Stephen M. Irwin:
When everyone in the world finds themselves suddenly accompanied by a personal ghost that only the haunted can see, the situation throws society into chaos and creates complications for homicide detective Oscar Mariani.

The Abominable by Dan Simmons
The Abominable by Dan Simmons
Four climbers travel to Mount Everest in 1924 in an attempt to recover the body of a missing adventurer but find themselves being pursued by someone. . . or something. This nightmare becomes a matter of life and death at 28,000 feet - but what is pursuing them? And what is the truth behind the disappearances on Everest? As they fight their way to the top of the world, the friends uncover a secret far more abominable than any mythical creature could ever be. 


To find more books like these, visit our display in the Fiction section of the library or stop by the reference desk on the first floor.

Dangerous Women

Dangerous Women edited by George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois
The cross-genre anthology Dangerous Women edited by George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois is a collection of twenty-one short stories celebrating dangerous women, both heroines and villains, and includes a  new “Outlander” story by Diana Gabaldon, a tale of Harry Dresden’s world by Jim Butcher, a story from Lev Grossman set in the world of "The Magicians," and a novella by George R. R. Martin about the "Dance of the Dragons," the vast civil war that tore Westeros apart nearly two centuries before the events of "A Game of Thrones."

Also included are original stories of heroines and villains alike by Brandon Sanderson, Joe Abercrombie, Sherilynn Kenyon, Lawrence Block, Carrie Vaughn, S. M. Stirling, Sharon Kay Penman, and many others.

"This meaty collection delivers something for nearly every reader's taste as it explores the heights that brave women can reach and the depths that depraved ones can plumb." (Publishers Weekly Reviews)

Mirth, Magic and Inspiration

Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen
Suley, Georgia, is home to Lost Lake Cottages and not much else. Which is why it's the perfect place for newly-widowed Kate and her eccentric eight-year-old daughter Devin to heal. Kate spent one memorable childhood summer at Lost Lake, had her first almost-kiss at Lost Lake, and met a boy named Wes at Lost Lake. It was a place for dreaming. But Kate doesn't believe in dreams anymore, and her Aunt Eby, Lost Lake's owner, wants to sell the place and move on. Lost Lake's magic is gone. 

As Kate discovers that time has a way of standing still at Lost Lake can she bring the cottages--and her heart--back to life? Because sometimes the things you love have a funny way of turning up again. And sometimes you never even know they were lost . . . until they are found.

Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen received a starred review from Booklist: "A surefire star of feel-good fiction, Allen always manages to nimbly mask her potent messages of inspiration and romance beneath her trademark touches of mirth and magic, but this endearing tale of surprising second chances may just be her wisest work yet."(Booklist Reviews)

Not Your Typical Hero

In his debut novel, ranging from the offices of Wall Street to the casinos of Vegas to the back roads of the Chinese countryside, Drew Chapman introduces readers to a new kind of action hero: one uniquely skilled to fight a new kind of war in The Ascendant.

Hidden deep within the figures tracking the ups and downs of the stock market lies a terrifying truth: America is under attack. Our government . . . our economy . . . our very way of life are in the crosshairs of a ruthless enemy . . . and no one knows. Except Garrett Reilly. He has a knack for numbers. He sees patterns no one else can. His gift has made him a rising star on Wall Street. But when he notices that two hundred billion dollars’ worth of U.S. Treasury bonds are being sold off at a terrifying rate, his gift makes him the most wanted man alive. 

The U.S. military wants him for his extraordinary abilities. They need someone to lead a crack squad of rogue soldiers to act as the last line of defense in a war that could mean the end of everything America holds dear. And everyone else? They just want him dead. 

The Housemaid's Daughter

When Cathleen Harrington leaves her home in Ireland in 1919 to travel to South Africa, she knows that she does not love the man she is to marry there. Isolated and estranged in a small town in the harsh Karoo desert, her only real companions are her diary and her housemaid, and later the housemaid's daughter, Ada. 

When Ada is born, Cathleen recognizes in her someone she can love and respond to in a way that she cannot with her own family. Under Cathleen’s tutelage, Ada grows into an accomplished pianist and a reader who cannot resist turning the pages of the diary, discovering the secrets Cathleen sought to hide. As they grow closer, Ada sees new possibilities in front of her—a new horizon.

But in one night, everything changes, and Cathleen comes home from a trip to find that Ada has disappeared, scorned by her own community. Cathleen must make a choice: should she conform to society, or search for the girl who has become closer to her than her own daughter?

The Housemaid's Daughter by Barbara Mutch received a starred review from Booklist: "Mutch conveys the joys of dancing and music, the exultation of hope and courage, and the pain of being ostracized for one's skin color. Rich in detail and subtle in its politics, this affecting novel tells a poignant, inspiring story." (Booklist Reviews)

City of Lost Dreams


City of Lost Dreams by Magnus FlyteIn City of Lost Dreams by Magnus Flyte, (sequel to City of Dark Magic), we find musicologist Sarah Weston in Vienna in search of a cure for her friend Pollina, who is now gravely ill and who may not have much time left. Meanwhile, Nicolas Pertusato, in London in search of an ancient alchemical cure for the girl, discovers an old enemy is one step ahead of him. In Prague, Prince Max tries to unravel the strange reappearance of a long dead saint while being pursued by a seductive red-headed historian with dark motives of her own.

In the city of Beethoven, Mozart, and Freud, Sarah becomes the target in a deadly web of intrigue that involves a scientist on the run, stolen art, seductive pastries, a few surprises from long-dead alchemists, a distractingly attractive horseman who’s more than a little bloodthirsty, and a trail of secrets and lies. But nothing will be more dangerous than the brilliant and vindictive villain who seeks to bend time itself. Sarah must travel deep into an ancient mystery to save the people she loves.

"Trying to assign this book to a genre would probably result in a headache, so just think of it as a blend of urban fantasy, romantic comedy, and time-travel adventure, with an extra twist of weirdness. Flyte—a pseudonym for the team of novelist Meg Howrey and TV writer Christina Lynch—keeps things moving at a brisk clip, not giving us a chance to pick at any loose threads. Lots of fun." (Booklist Reviews)

Perfect by Rachel Joyce

Perfect by Rachel Joyce tells the story of a young boy who is thrown into the murky, difficult realities of the adult world with far-reaching consequences.

Perfect by Rachel Joyce
Byron Hemmings wakes to a morning that looks like any other: his school uniform draped over his wooden desk chair, his sister arguing over the breakfast cereal, the click of his mother’s heels as she crosses the kitchen. But when the three of them leave home, driving into a dense summer fog, the morning takes an unmistakable turn. In one terrible moment, something happens, something completely unexpected and at odds with life as Byron understands it. While his mother seems not to have noticed, eleven-year-old Byron understands that from now on nothing can be the same. What happened and who is to blame? Over the days and weeks that follow, Byron’s perfect world is shattered. Unable to trust his parents, he confides in his best friend, James, and together they concoct a plan. . . .

Perfect is listed at Amazon.com as an Editor's Pick for January in Literature and Fiction. 

A Fallen Woman Shares Her Secrets

Belle Cora by Phillip Margulies is the story of a good girl who became a bad woman. 

At the old homestead her name is never spoken and her picture is turned to the wall, but in the vast world beyond everyone remembers her as the celebrated madam of the finest parlor house in San Francisco. 

Now, at the end of her life, after half a century of successfully hiding the details of her scarlet past, Belle has decided to reveal all her secrets.

"Weaving an evocative tale in a nonlinear, flashback-style narrative, Belle Cora will captivate readers from start to finish, evoking a bittersweet blend of compassion and contempt for a heroine who defies tradition, and often pays a heavy price." (BookPage Reviews)

New Christian Fiction Titles

Here are a few new Christian Fiction titles that can be found at the library:

Born of Persuasion by Jessica DottaBorn of Persuasion by Jessica Dotta: It is 1838, and seventeen-year-old Julia Elliston is orphaned and unmarried in a time when women are legal property of their fathers or husbands. A titled dowager offers to introduce Julia into society and a realm of possibilities opens. However, treachery and deception are a part of society, and Julia finds herself a pawn in a deadly game between two of the most powerful men. With no laws to protect her, she must unravel the secrets of the past on her own, but sometimes knowledge is deadly.


The Miner's Lady by Tracie Peterson
The Miner's Lady by Tracie Peterson:  When Chantel Panetta's younger sister falls in love with Orlando Calarco, Chantel knows there is no hope. The Panettas and Calarcos have been sworn enemies for decades.Unable to resist Isabella's pleas, Chantel agrees to help her sister which leads to a romance of her own with Orlando's older brother. This third book in the series Land of Shining Water finds star-crossed lovers trying to overcome family hatred and misunderstandings.


All for a Story by Allison Pittman
All for a Story by Allison Pittman: Monica Bisbaine loves being a modern girl in the Roaring Twenties. Her job as a gossip writer takes her to the best speakeasies in Washington, DC, where she can dance the night away—and find fodder for her next column. That is until new owner Max Moore takes over the tabloid newspaper and plans to revamp the newspaper with positive, uplifting stories. Monica is willing to give Max’s ideas a try. But she’s not prepared for the way Max’s challenges—and his uncomplicated faith—threaten to unravel the very fabric of her life.

Prequel to Great Expectations

Havisham by Ronald Frame
As a prelude to Charles Dickens' classic Great Expectations, Havisham by Ronald Frame brings us the backstory and the psychological trauma that made young Catherine into Dickens' Miss Havisham and cursed her to a life alone, roaming the halls of the mansion in the tatters of the dress she wore for the wedding she was never to have.

Frame's Catherine is a spry, imperious young woman with dreams in front of her. She is the daughter of a wealthy brewer but she is never far from the smell of hops and the arresting letters on the brewhouse wall—HAVISHAM—a reminder of all she owes to the family name and the family business.

Sent by her father to stay with the Chadwycks, Catherine discovers elegant pastimes to remove the taint of her family's new money. But for all her growing sophistication, Catherine is anything but worldly, and when a charismatic stranger pays her attention, everything—her heart, her future, the very Havisham name—is vulnerable.

A Kirkus Reviews Best Fiction Book of 2013

Psychological Suspence

The Sleep Room by Frank Tallis
In author Frank Tallis' The Sleep Room, promising young psychiatrist James Richardson is offered the job opportunity of a lifetime by the charismatic Dr. Hugh Maitland. Setting off to take up his post at Wyldehope Hall in deepest Suffolk, England,  Richardson doesn’t look back. One of his tasks is to manage Maitland’s most controversial project—a pioneering therapy in which extremely disturbed patients are kept asleep for months. If this radical and potentially dangerous procedure is successful, it could mean professional glory for both doctors.

As Richardson settles into his new life, he begins to sense something uncanny about the sleeping patients—six women, forsaken by society. Why is Maitland unwilling to discuss their past lives? Why is the trainee nurse so on edge when she spends nights alone with them? And what can it mean when all the sleepers start dreaming at the same time? In this atmospheric reinvention of the ghost story, Richardson finds himself questioning everything he knows about the human mind, as he attempts to uncover the shocking secrets of The Sleep Room.

"Layering several familiar elements expertly, Tallis (Death and the Maiden, 2012, etc.) creates a deliciously creepy mood of neogothic suspense." (Kirkus Reviews)

Beatlemania - 50th Anniversary

January 2014 marks the 50th anniversary of the release of the Beatles first album in the United States and the release of Bob Dylan's album "The Times They are A'changin'." Visit our display on the main floor of the library for books about this musical experience including:

Beatles vs. Stones by John McMillianBeatles vs. Stones by John McMillian: In the 1960s the two biggest bands in the world—the lovable Beatles and the bad-boy Rolling Stones—waged an epic battle. “The Beatles want to hold your hand,” wrote Tom Wolfe, “but the Stones want to burn down your town.” Both groups liked to maintain that they weren’t really “rivals”—that was just a media myth, they politely said—but on both sides of the Atlantic, they plainly competed for commercial success and aesthetic credibility. In Beatles vs. Stones, John McMillian gets to the truth behind the ultimate rock ’n’ roll debate.

When They Were Boys: The True Story of the Beatles' Rise to the Top by Larry KaneWhen They Were Boys: The True Story of the Beatles' Rise to the Top by Larry Kane: This is the story of the Beatles’ harrowing rise to fame: focusing on that seven-year stretch from the time the boys met as teenagers to early 1964, when the Fab Four made their momentous first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. From the boys’ humble beginnings in Liverpool, to the cellars of Hamburg, When They Were Boys includes stories never before told, including the heartbreaks and the lucky breaks.

Tune In: The Beatles: All These Years, Volume 1 by Mark LewisohnTune In: The Beatles: All These Years, Volume 1 by Mark Lewisohn: Mark Lewisohn uses his unprecedented archival access and hundreds of new interviews to construct the full story of the lives and work of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr. This first volume of a planned trilogy documents lesser-known aspects of their early years in Liverpool and Hamburg, the role of American music in shaping their ambitions and the establishment of their early careers.

Stones for Bread

Stones for Bread by Christa Parrish
Stones for Bread by Christa Parrish: Liesl McNamara’s life can be described in one word: bread. From her earliest memory, her mother and grandmother passed down the mystery of baking and the importance of this deceptively simple food. And now, as the owner of Wild Rise bake house, Liesl spends every day up to her elbows in dough, nourishing and perfecting her craft.

But the simple life she has cultivated is becoming quite complicated and when Wild Rise is featured on television and long-hidden family secrets are revealed, her quiet existence appears a thing of the past. With her precious heritage crumbling around her, Liesl must make a choice: allow herself to be buried in detachment and remorse, or take a leap of faith into a new life.

"In Parrish's (The Air We Breathe, 2012) beautifully written novel, the vitality of close relationships is powerfully depicted in Liesl's struggle to let go of her past and embrace the future right in front of her. Readers will definitely relate to her struggle of faith and confidence." (Booklist Reviews)

Hope and Horror - Post War Life in Sierre Leone

Radiance of Tomorrow by Ishmael BeahAt the center of Ishmael Beah's first novel Radiance of Tomorrow are Benjamin and Bockarie, two longtime friends who return to their hometown, Imperi, after the civil war in Sierra Leone. The village is in ruins, the ground covered in bones. As more villagers begin to come back, Benjamin and Bockarie try to forge a new community by taking up their former posts as teachers, but they’re beset by obstacles: a scarcity of food; a rash of murders, thievery, rape, and retaliation; and the depredations of a foreign mining company intent on sullying the town’s water supply and blocking its paths with electric wires. As Benjamin and Bockarie search for a way to restore order, they’re forced to reckon with the uncertainty of their past and future alike.

"Beah, who broke our hearts with the haunting memoir of his life as a boy soldier (A Long Way Gone), will render readers speechless with the radiance of his storytelling in this novel of grace, forgiveness, and a vision of a tomorrow without conflict." (Library Journal Reviews)

If You Like Sycamore Row You May Also Like . . .

Sycamore Row by John Grisham
Sycamore Row, the legal thriller by John Grisham, brings back A Time To Kill lawyer Jack Brigance who finds himself once again embroiled in a controversial trial that will expose old racial tensions and force Ford County to confront its tortured history. 

This popular book has been on the New York Times bestseller list since its debut in October and is frequently checked out by our library patrons. Have you already read it and are are you looking for more books just like it?

If so then you may like one, or all, of these titles recommended by NoveList, our book database dedicated to reader's advisory:

A Certain Justice by John T. Lescroart
A Certain Justice by Lescroart, John T.
Set in San Francisco, A Certain Justice is about justice denied in a most violent fashion, and the ultimately heroic actions of a so-called common man, Kevin Shea, who becomes involved with the law to the extent that he is hunted, hounded and nearly destroyed for an act he never committed.

Man in the Middle by Brian Haig
Man in the Middle by Haig, Brian
Investigating the suicide of one of Washington, D.C.'s most influential defense officials, military lawyer Sean Drummond and his female partner find themselves in the middle of a political struggle between the region's most influential power brokers and his own allegiance to the soldiers fighting in the Iraqi war. 

Turning Angel by Greg Iles
Turning Angel by Iles, Greg
When the body of Kate Townsend turns up near the Mississippi River and his close friend, physician Drew Elliott, admits to a love affair with the murdered girl, attorney Penn Cage once again tangles with the dark side of his hometown of Natchez, Mississippi, to investigate the secret world of an elite nearby high school, teenage sex, drugs, and violence. 

The Summons by John Grisham
The Summons by Grisham, John
Ray Atlee and his brother, Forrest, receive a letter from their father, a reclusive, retired judge, instructing them to return home to Clanton, Mississippi, to discuss his estate, but the judge dies before his sons arrive, leaving behind a secret known only to Ray. 

The Appeal by Grisham, John
When a judge returns a shocking verdict against a chemical company accused of dumping toxic waste in a small Mississippi town, the company's billionaire owner seeks to influence the appeal process by using his money to "buy" a seat on the state Supreme Court.


Third in Scandinavian Crime Series

Death of a Nightingale by Lene Kaaberbol and Agnete Friis
Scandinavian crime series featuring Red Cross nurse Nina Borg continues with Death of a Nightingale by Lene Kaaberbol and Agnete Friis,

Natasha Doroshenko, a Ukrainian mail-order bride who has been convicted of the attempted murder of her Danish fiance, escapes custody on her way to an interrogation in Copenhagen's police headquarters. That night, the frozen, tortured body of the fiance is found in a car, and the manhunt for Natasha escalates. The police aren't the only ones on her trail; Natasha's past has finally caught up to her and she is being pursued by the Danish Secret Service, Ukrainian Special Agents and a shadowy underworld figure known to her only as "The Witch."


In case you missed them, here are the first two books in this series which are available at the library:

The Boy in the Suitcase by Lene Kaaberbøl and Agnete Friis
The Boy in the Suitcase (2011)
Red Cross nurse Nina Borg is drawn into Copenhagen's brutal underworld when she becomes the unwitting caretaker of a three-year-old boy who may be a victim of child trafficking.

Invisible Murder by Lene Kaaberbøl and Agnete Friis
Invisible Murder (2012)
Red Cross nurse Nina Borg risks her marriage to assist her friend Peter at a camp of mysteriously ill Roma refugee children whose circumstances prove more complicated and dangerous than originally believed.

Morning Glory

Morning Glory by Sarah Jio
In Morning Glory author Sarah Jio imagines life on Boat Street, a floating community on Seattle’s Lake Union - home to people of artistic spirit who for decades protect the dark secret of one startling night in 1959.

Fleeing an East Coast life marred by tragedy, Ada Santorini takes up residence on houseboat number seven on Boat Street. She discovers a trunk left behind by Penny Wentworth, a young newlywed who lived on the boat half a century earlier. Ada longs to know her predecessor’s fate, but little suspects that Penny’s mysterious past and her own clouded future are destined to converge.

"Jio blends romance and mystery in a novel told from the alternating points of view of two women separated by decades but connected by place and circumstances." (Kirkus Reviews)

New Noir Detective Story

Something More Than Night by Ian Tregillis
Ian Tregillis's Something More Than Night is a Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler inspired murder mystery set in Thomas Aquinas’s vision of Heaven.

Somebody has murdered the angel Gabriel. Worse, the Jericho Trumpet has gone missing, putting Heaven on the brink of a truly cosmic crisis. But the twisty plot that unfolds from the murder investigation leads to something much bigger: a con job one billion years in the making. Because this is no mere murder. A small band of angels has decided to break out of heaven, but they need a human patsy to make their plan work.

Much of the story is told from the point of view of Bayliss, a cynical fallen angel who has modeled himself on Philip Marlowe. The yarn he spins follows the progression of a Marlowe novel—the mysterious dame who needs his help, getting grilled by the bulls, finding a stiff, getting slipped a mickey. Angels and gunsels, dames with eyes like fire, and a grand maguffin, Something More Than Night is a murder mystery for the cosmos.

Warm Up With a Little Romance

As the temperatures drop, curl up with one of these new historical romances . . .

A Midsummer Bride by Amanda Forester
 A Midsummer Bride by Amanda Forester:
Miss Harriet Burton, a horrendously rich American heiress, laughs too loud, states her opinion directly, and even conducts science experiments. Her uncle is desperate to get her off his hands and is offering a king's ransom to anyone able to arrange a suitable marriage that comes with a title. To avoid marriage, Harriet swears off all men, until she meets Duncan Maclachlan, Earl of Thornton. But when Thornton is falsely accused of being a traitor, Harriet must use her knowledge of chemistry to find the real culprit and spark true romance.

   
No Good Duke Goes Unpunished by Sarah MacLean
 No Good Duke Goes Unpunished by Sarah MacLean:
He is the Killer Duke, accused of murdering Mara Lowe on the eve of her wedding. With no memory of that fateful night, Temple has reigned over the darkest of London’s corners for twelve years, wealthy and powerful, but beyond redemption. Until one night, Mara resurfaces, offering the one thing he’s dreamed of . . . absolution. This is the third book in the best-selling author's Rule of Scoundrels series.


In Love with a Wicked Man by Liz Carlyle
 In Love with a Wicked Man by Liz Carlyle:
What does it matter if Kate, Lady d'Allenay, has absolutely no marriage prospects? She has a castle to tend, an estate to run, and a sister to watch over, which means she is never, ever reckless. Until an accident brings a handsome, virile stranger to Bellecombe Castle, and Kate finds herself tempted to surrender to her houseguest's wicked kisses. Disowned by his aristocratic family, Lord Edward Quartermaine has turned his gifted mind to ruthless survival. Feared and vilified as proprietor of London's most notorious gaming salon, he now struggles to regain his memory, certain of only one thing: he wants all Kate is offering and more. But when Edward's memory returns, he and Kate realize how much they have wagered on a scandalous passion that could be her ruin, but perhaps his salvation. 

Another Heartwarming Tale by Fannie Flagg

The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion by Fannie Flagg Fans of Fannie Flagg, author of  Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe, will rejoice with her new title The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion, a hilarious new mystery that, spanning decades, generations and America in the 1940s and today, centers around five women who worked in a Phillips 66 gas station during the WWII years.

Summary: Mrs. Sookie Poole of Point Clear, Alabama, has just married off the last of her daughters and is looking forward to relaxing and perhaps traveling with her husband, Earle. The only thing left to contend with is her mother, the formidable Lenore Simmons Krackenberry. Lenore may be a lot of fun for other people, but is, for the most part, an overbearing presence for her daughter. Then one day, quite by accident, Sookie discovers a secret about her mother’s past that knocks her for a loop and suddenly calls into question everything she ever thought she knew about herself, her family, and her future.

Gothic Tale of Lies

The White Lie by Andrea Gillies
The White Lie by Andrea Gillies is a gothic tale of a declining aristocratic Scottish family, their dilapidated mansion in the Scottish highlands, and the poisonous effects of the secrets and tragedies it holds. 

The Salter family orbits around Peattie House, their crumbling Scottish estate filled with threadbare furniture, patrician memories, and all the secrets that go with them. While they are gathered for their grandmother's seventieth birthday, someone breaks the silence. The web begins to unravel. But what is the white lie? How many others are built upon it? How many lives have been changed because of it? Only one person knows the whole truth. From beyond the grave, Michael loops back into the past until we see, beyond perception and memory, how deeply our decisions resound, and just what is the place, and price, of grandeur. 

Getting Fit 2014

Happy New Year!

Are you looking for some resources to help you keep your New Year's resolution to lose weight and get fit? If so here are a few new titles that can help you get started. Place your holds today!

The Doctor's Diet by Travis Stork, M.D.
The Doctor's Diet : Dr. Travis Stork's STAT Program to Help You Lose Weight, Restore Optimal Health, Prevent Disease, and Add Years to Your Life by Travis Stork, M.D. Travis Stork, M.D., one of the doctors on "The Doctors" TV show has created a flexible and workable diet plan that will help readers lose weight, restore health, prevent disease and ultimately add years to their lives. Click here to place your hold for this book.
The 3-1-2-1 diet: eat and cheat your way to weight loss--up to 10 pounds in 21 days by Dolvett Quince.The 3-1-2-1 Diet: Eat and Cheat Your Way to Weight Loss--Up to 10 Pounds in 21 Days by Dolvett Quince. Fitness guru and trainer from the TV show The Biggest Loser, Dolvett Quince, explains his diet and fitness program which combines eating plans that allow for cheat days and meals with fast workouts to help you lose weight and transform yourself. Click here to place your hold.
Eat to live cookbook: 200 delicious nutrient-rich recipes for fast and sustained weight loss, reversing disease, and lifelong health by Joel FuhrmanEat to Live Cookbook: 200 Delicious Nutrient-Rich Recipes for Fast and Sustained Weight Loss, Reversing Disease, and Lifelong Health by Joel Fuhrman.  A cookbook companion to the Eat to Live diet includes the latest nutritional science, success stories and meals for every occasion. Click here to place your hold.