Title: Bent Road

Author: Lori Roy

Publisher: Penguin Group, March 2011

Summary: It’s 1967 and the Detroit race riots, among other things, have convinced Arthur Scott that it’s time to move his family back to Kansas and the town he fled more than 20 years before. Arthur and his older daughter, Elaine, adapt easily to life in the rural town of Arthur’s childhood, but his wife Celia and children Daniel and especially Evie have a more difficult time. Maybe it’s because Evie looks so much like Arthur’s dead sister Eve, for whom Evie was named. It seems the whole town is still haunted by the memory of Eve and her unsolved murder, even though 20 years have passed. When a little girl goes missing soon after the Scott’s arrival, fingers again point to Eve’s fiancé at the time of her death. The missing girl, Julianne Robison, looks strikingly similar to both Eve and Evie- a coincidence that does not go unnoticed by the townspeople. Are the two crimes related? Everyone seems to think so. Celia fears for her family, especially little Evie, since the prime suspect, now married to Arthur’s sister Ruth, is becoming more and more unhinged. Told from the point of view of different characters, sometimes without warning, the plot twists and turns while leading to a final, explosive showdown.

Who Might Like This?: Anyone who likes family drama with twists, turns, and some thrills thrown in.

If you like this, try this: Mudbound by Hillary Jordan

Recommended by: Sue B, Circulation Coordinator

Does this look like a book you’d like to read? Visit our catalog here, where you can check availability and place a hold

Title: A Friend of the Family

Author:  Lauren Grodstein

Publisher: Algonquin Books, November 2009

Summary:  Dr. Peter Dizinoff seemingly has everything anyone could hope for.  He has a successful practice, a beautiful, loving wife and an adopted son who he adores.  Peter is devoted to his son Alec, now 20 years old, and has pinned all his hopes and dreams on his son’s future.  Unfortunately, Alec drops out of college after just 3 semesters and moves into an apartment above his parents’ garage hoping to pursue his passion which is art.  

The drama starts when Alec becomes infatuated with the older daughter of his father’s best friend.  The problem is, when Laura Stern was a teenager, she was accused of murdering her newborn baby upon birth.  

Peter Dizinoff becomes so distracted with his son’s relationship with Laura that his personal life, as well as his practice, begin to spin out of control. 

 This is a compelling story which shows how far a parent will go to protect his child.  But…Dr. Peter Dizinoff suffers the consequences in the end.

Recommended by: Beverly, Circulation Coordinator

Look interesting? Visit our catalog and put a hold on it by here

Title: The Poacher’s Son

Author:  Paul Doiron

Publisher: St. Martin’s Minotaur, May 2010

Summary:  Mike Bowditch is a game warden for the state of Maine. Perhaps he chose this career to make amends for his father’s criminal acts. His father, Jack, is a Vietnam vet who has been divorced from Mike’s mother for several years. Since the divorce, Jack has tried to live as far from people as possible, living off the land and poaching game.

When two men are gunned down in an ambush, all evidence leads to Jack. One of the dead men is a Sheriff’s deputy and the other is a representative from Wendigo Timberlands, a company that has recently purchased close to half a million acres of forestland. Included in the purchase was land that had been used for privately owned camps and sporting lodges, one of the camps belonging to Jack  As a child,  Mike suffered from abuse and neglect at the hands of his father, but he cannot believe his father is capable of murder and sets out to prove his innocence.

The wilderness setting and the added family drama make “The Poacher’s Son” a compelling story. As an animal lover, however, I could have done without the descriptions of Jack’s hunting and trapping practices. In fact, I had to skim over the graphic details. Other than that, I really enjoyed this story and hope to hear more about Mike Bowditch in the future.

Who will like this book? Mystery fans and hunters, anglers, and outdoor enthusiasts.

Recommended by: Sue, Circulation Coordinator

Title: The Interpretation of Murder

Author: Jed Rubenfeld

Publisher: Picador, May 2007

Summary:  The year is 1909 and Sigmund Freud has arrived in the United States with his protégé Carl Jung for a series of lectures at Clark University.  The same day of Freud’s arrival a young heiress is murdered, apparently by a serial killer. Another wealthy young socialite is suffering from amnesia after a second attack by the same criminal.

 Dr. Stratham Younger, a thirty-three-year-old Harvard graduate teaches at Clark University.  He  is in New York to accompany Dr. Freud back to Clark.  Younger finds himself caught up in the murder mystery, being consulted about the use psychoanalysis to help the young woman recall the attack.   

 The plot is multileveled and intricate and includes a rivalry between Jung and Freud, a conspiracy theory against Freud’s teachings, a fascinating episode on the construction of the Manhattan Bridge, and corruption in the New York city police force. I found the story riveting and the details of that period in New York’s history to be fascinating.

  Recommended by: Barbara, Head of Children’s Services

Title: Collusion

Author:  Stuart Neville

Publisher: Soho Press, October 2010

Summary: Stuart Neville, author of GHOSTS OF BELFAST, does it again with this new novel set in New York and Northern Ireland. Ex IRA hit-man Gerry Fegan has sworn to protect Marie and her young daughter Ellen. Marie knows that Gerry is a murderer, that he’s dangerous, and that he’s more than a little crazy. She also knows he would exchange his life for theirs, and so she trusts him above all others. When Marie and Ellen are threatened by the evil from their past, Gerry must team up with Ellen’s estranged father, Jack Lennon, to save them. It is a chance for Jack to redeem himself and for Gerry to finish what he started. Action packed and riveting, this should be on everyone’s to-read list, but read GHOSTS OF BELFAST first.

Who will like this book? Fans of thrillers and crime novels.

Recommended by: Sue, Circulation Coordinator

Title: The Information Officer

Author:  Mark Mills

Publisher: Random House ,February 2010

Summary:    It’s the summer of 1942 and Malta is quickly becoming the most bombed place on earth. The strategic location of the island, between Europe and Africa, has increased its value to both the Germans who are bombing it, and the Allies who are stationed there. The residents fear a German invasion, but the lack of protection against the constant air raids has weakened their loyalty to the Allies.

British officer Max Chadwick has been given the position of Information Officer. His assignment is to manipulate the news coming in to Malta to buoy the spirits of the troops and the island residents. What the Maltese do not know is that a psychopath walks among them, killing young women and leaving their bodies out in the open to appear as if they were killed during a bomb strike. When another young woman is found dead Freddie, a friend of Max’s and a doctor at the local hospital, discovers the true cause of death. He confides in Max that this is the third murdered woman who has come into the morgue recently. This time, though, a shoulder patch from a British officer’s uniform is found in the dead woman’s clenched hand. Max knows that if this news is released to the public, Maltese loyalty to the Allies may finally be shattered.

The Information Officer is both a love story and a murder mystery, with occasional glimpses into the mind of the killer. The crucial role that Malta played during the war may not be common knowledge, and will certainly appeal to readers of historical fiction. Mills is masterful at expressing a sense of place, with his descriptions fueling the reader’s imagination.

Who will like this book? Fans of  historical fiction and suspense novels.

Recommended By: Sue, Circulation Coordinator

Title: Abandoned

Author:  Cody McFadyen

Publisher: Bantam, October 2009

Summary: Smoky Barrett is a special agent with the FBI, leading a team that specializes in hunting down and capturing serial killers. While Smoky and several other agents are attending the wedding of one of their own, a woman is pushed from a vehicle in full view of the guests. The victim looks ghostly with a shaved head, pasty white skin, and an undernourished body. Staggering into the wedding party, she lets out a wail and doesn’t stop. The victim is Heather Hollister, missing for more than 7 years – just long enough to be declared dead. As details of Heather’s abduction and captivity are revealed, Smoky realizes they are hunting a killer more cold and calculating than any they’ve seen before.

Abandoned is the fourth in the series by Cody McFadyen, though this is the first that I’ve read. When I started this book, I thought it was a little over-the-top with more sex and violence than needed. Not Quentin Tarantino over-the-top, just a few more details than necessary. As I continued to read, and yes, I continued to read, I found myself drawn into this story and the lives of its characters. I started to believe that it was possible, probable even, that every member of Smoky’s team had a loved one murdered by a serial killer. I realized that it wasn’t really too far-fetched that not only was Smoky’s first husband and daughter murdered in front of her eyes, but she was now raising the daughter of her best friend who was also a victim of murder. In other words, after the first few chapters of this book I was hooked and no longer questioned whether it was realistic or not. I just wanted Smoky to catch the monster before anyone else was killed or, “gulp”, lobotomized. If you like your thrillers with a little more blood and guts than usual, you’ll like Abandoned.

Who will like this book? Fans of  thrillers and suspense novels.

Recommended by: Sue, Circulation Coordinator

Title: Evil at Heart

Author:  Chelsea Cain

Publisher: Minotaur, September 2009

Summary:  This is the third book featuring detective Archie Sheridan and serial killer Gretchen Lowell. Gretchen, also known as the Beauty Killer, is on the loose. Archie is in a mental health facility attempting to recover from the physical and psychological wounds she has inflicted on him. The media has glamorized the vicious murderer and now Beauty Killer fan clubs are springing up left and right. When body parts start turning up at previous murder sites, Archie is called upon to help capture Gretchen once and for all. Is it really Gretchen leaving these gruesome calling cards? After all, she did promise Archie she wouldn’t kill again, right? If you can’t trust a serial killing psychopath to keep their word, who can you trust?

Evil at Heart is a thrilling cat and mouse chase, although you’re never really sure who the cat is and who is the mouse. From eyeballs to spleens, no part of the anatomy is safe from this scalpel wielding lunatic so you might want to read this on an empty stomach, unless you’re a seasoned veteran of grisly thrillers like me. Fast-paced with page turning suspense, this is a great book.

Who will like this book? Fans of  thrillers and suspense novels.

Recommended by: Sue, Circulation Coordinator

Title: Sworn to Silence

Author:  Linda Castillo

Publisher: Minotaur, June 2009

Summary:   Painters Mill, Ohio - Amish Country. Not your typical setting for a serial murder thriller, but it works in this exciting new novel. The backdrop of a quaint, rural town makes the viciousness of the murders seem even more heinous. Kate Burkholder, the new chief of police, is painfully aware that violent crimes can happen anywhere. Sixteen years ago, Kate was a young Amish girl in this very town when it was being terrorized by the “Slaughterhouse Killer”. I think his name says it all, except for his habit of keeping a running tally of his victims by numbering them with Roman numerals carved into their flesh. Now it seems that the Slaughterhouse killer has returned after 16 years, but according to the numbers on his newest victims, he has been busy elsewhere. To find the killer, Kate must look into her past and revisit the terrible event that changed her life forever.

Sworn to Silence is an engrossing, hard hitting, and fast-paced thriller. The characters are realistic, with faults and flaws like everyone else.  

Who will like this book? Fans of thrillers and suspense novels.

Recommended by: Sue, Circulation Coordinator

Title: Columbine

Author: Dave Cullen

Summary: On April 20, 1999, two boys entered their high school and proceeded to unleash the most unforgettable school shooting of the modern era. Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold were troubled outcasts in black trench coats, picked on by jocks and preps, who, after years of listening to angry music and playing violent video games, finally snapped.

Or were they? Actually, none of these accepted facts about the young killers are true. In this absorbing book, a reporter who was on the scene that day and followed the story long after the tragedy of school shootings became seemingly commonplace, dispels the myths behind the shooting, its perpetrators, and even its victims. Everyone knows what you mean when you say ‘Columbine,’ but not one of us has ever heard the whole story until now.

Who will like this book: True crime readers. Anyone who remembers that day would be benefited by reading this important book.

If you like this, try this: In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. A fictional work that deals, in part, with Columbine and it’s aftermath, The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb.

Recommended by: Nicole, Teen Librarian