strange and random happenstance

The Burial Witch by Cari Thomas
Published by: Voyager
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 144 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the Sunday Times bestselling author of Threadneedle comes this enchanting new novella.

"The unopenable box. A mythical object that appears in fairy tales and folklore across all cultures around the world. Sometimes the box can only be opened by the right person at the right time, such a rightful heir, and in other tales it is considered a warning. A test given to the protagonist who are typically forbidden from opening the box. When they eventually succumb, what they unleash cannot be put back in."

At home one memorable summer, Miranda unearths a mysterious suitcase in her attic that once belonged to her late grandmother. Inside, she finds a strange and unopenable wooden box.

Determined to discover what's inside, she ends up enlisting the help of Maya, the owner of a local spiritualist shop, and is drawn into a world of witchcraft, magic and temptation.

As she tries to keep up appearances as the perfect daughter, her discovery threatens to tear everything apart, putting everyone around her in danger.

Can she find a way to stay in control or would the box have been better left buried?

Taking place before events in Threadneedle and Shadowstitch, this is a perfect read for not just fans of the series, but for anyone who loves to be transported by magical fantasy."

I've been so looking forward to this novella to tide me over until the next book in the series that I ordered if from England months ago. I just couldn't wait!

The Midnight Hour by Eve Chase
Published by: Ballantine Books
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In this thrilling, richly woven novel that spans from bustling London streets to the boulevards of Paris, a woman with a dark family secret tries to turn back the hands of time before it's too late.

Notting Hill, London: One May evening, seventeen-year-old Maggie Parker's mother walks out of their front door and doesn't return. With her little brother in tow, desperate to find their mother, Maggie is drawn into a labyrinthine world of secondhand shops and shadowy figures, far from the grand townhouses in her comfortable neighborhood.

As Maggie struggles to maintain a stable life for herself and her brother, she befriends Wolf, another young person also living on his wits alone. But can he help solve the mystery of her mother's disappearance - or will her growing feelings for him just cause her further pain, upending her life even more? When she discovers that her beloved house now holds a dangerous new secret, and Wolf is involved, Maggie, heartbroken, makes her escape.

Twenty-one years later, in her Paris apartment, Maggie gets a phone call that shatters her hard-won new life. While in London, the incoming owner of the Parkers' old Notting Hill house is excavating the basement, unaware of what might lie beneath - and the clock starts ticking on buried secrets."

It's never good to have secrets buried in a basement...

The Bell Witches by Lindsey Kelk
Published by: Magpie (UK)
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 448 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The new Gothic fantasy sensation from Sunday Times bestseller Lindsey Kelk. PRE-ORDER NOW!

YOU'LL WANT TO BE ONE. UNTIL YOU KNOW THEIR SECRETS.

After sixteen-year-old Emily's father tragically dies, she is forced to live with the only family she has left, an aunt and grandmother in the heart of Savannah, Georgia in a house as beautiful as it is mysterious.

But all is not what it seems with the Bell family; they're hiding a magical secret.

When Emily meets the alluring Wyn, she forms a connection that feels like it was always meant to be. As the spark between them grows more powerful, her life takes an exhilarating and terrifying turn; but every step closer to him, takes her a step further away from her family.

Emily will find out that blood is always thicker than water...

THERE'S NO BOND GREATER THAN MAGIC."

I have been "patiently" awaiting this book. I mean, that cover alone makes me need to posses it. 

Verity Vox and the Curse of the Foxfire by Don Martin
Published by: Page Street YA
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"WELCOME TO FOXFIRE

The rules here are simple:

Don't look in the trees.

Don't whistle in the woods at night.

Don't answer if you hear your name called.

And remember...everything wants.

Verity Vox is a witch-in-training who has never met a problem her spells can't solve. But when a cryptic plea for help sends her to the forgotten coal mining town of Foxfire, she soon learns even magic has its limits.

Verity discovers a curse was laid years ago by a traveling magician who vanished into the ancient Appalachian hills to seek greater power. Crops won't grow. Bellies go hungry. Even treasured possessions fall apart. What's worse, people have gone missing amidst rumors that they've sought out the magician who is lying in wait for those foolish or desperate enough to strike a deal with him.

The witch must break the curse, find a missing girl, and solve the mystery of what's really under the mountain before the town falls forever into the clutches of the monster lurking in the hills."

It's August, which means it's time to get your fall reading lined up. This should be top of your list.

The Hounding by Xenobe Purvis
Published by: Henry Holt and Co.
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 240 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The Crucible meets The Virgin Suicides in this haunting debut about five sisters in a small village in eighteenth-century England whose neighbors are convinced they're turning into dogs.

Even before the rumors about the Mansfield girls begin, Little Nettlebed is a village steeped in the uncanny, from strange creatures that wash up on the riverbank to portentous ravens gathering on the roofs of people about to die. But when the villagers start to hear barking, and one claims to see the Mansfield sisters transform before his very eyes, the allegations spark fascination and fear like nothing has before.

The truth is that though the inhabitants of Little Nettlebed have never much liked the Mansfield girls - a little odd, think some; a little high on themselves, perhaps - they've always had plenty to say about them. As the rotating perspectives of five villagers quickly make clear, now is no exception. Even if local belief in witchcraft is waning, an aversion to difference is as widespread as ever, and these conflicting narratives all point to the same ultimate conclusion: Something isn't right in Little Nettlebed, and the sisters will be the ones to pay for it.

A richly atmospheric parable of the pleasures and perils of female defiance, The Hounding considers whether in any age it might be safer to be a dog than an unusual young girl."

Trust me, it is safer to be a dog.

House of the Beast by Michelle Wong
Published by: Harper Voyager
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 464 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Step into the House of the Beast in this dark fantasy debut from The Legend of Korra graphic novel illustrator Michelle Wong, about a young woman who strikes a deal with a mysterious and alluring god to seek revenge on her aristocratic family - featuring illustrations throughout by the author.

Born out of wedlock and shunned by society, Alma learned to make her peace with solitude, so long as she had her mother by her side. When her mother becomes gravely ill, Alma discovers a clue about her estranged father and writes a message begging for help. Little does she know that she is a bastard of House Avera, one of the four noble families that serve the gods and are imbued with their powers - and her father is a vessel of the Dread Beast, the most frightening god of all, a harbinger of death.

In a desperate exchange for her mother's medicine, Alma agrees to sacrifice her left arm to the Beast in a ceremony that will bind her forever to the House and its deity. Regardless, her mother soon passes, leaving Alma trapped inside the Avera's grand estate, despised by her relatives and nothing but a pawn in her father’s schemes.

Now vengeance is the only thing that keeps Alma going. That, and the strange connection she has with her god - a monster who is constantly by her side, an eldritch being taking the form of a beautiful prince with starlit hair that only she can see. He tells Alma that she has been chosen to bring change upon their world, and with his help, Alma plots a perilous journey to destroy the House that stole everything from her.

A gripping coming-of-age fantasy novel marked by divine rituals, intense combat, and twisted romance, House of the Beast is a tale of revenge, resilience, and the power of love to see us through the darkness."

I'd possibly give up a leg but NEVER an arm.

The Magician of Tiger Castle by Louis Sachar
Published by: Ace
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The beloved author of Holes presents his first adult novel, a modern fantasy classic of forbidden love, a crumbling kingdom, and the unexpected magic all around us.

Long ago and far away (and somewhere south of France) lies the kingdom of Esquaveta. There, Princess Tullia is in nearly as much peril as her struggling kingdom. Esquaveta desperately needs to forge an alliance, and to that end, Tullia's father has arranged a marriage between her and an odious prince. However, one month before the "wedding of the century," Tullia falls in love with a lowly apprentice scribe.

The king turns to Anatole, his much-maligned magician. Seventeen years earlier, when Anatole first came to the castle, he was regarded as something of a prodigy. But after a long series of failures - the latest being an attempt to transform sand into gold - he has become the object of contempt and ridicule. The only one who still believes in him is the princess.

When the king orders Anatole to brew a potion that will ensure Tullia agrees to the wedding, Anatole is faced with an impossible choice. With one chance to save the marriage, the kingdom, and, of most importance to him, his reputation, will he betray the princess - or risk ruin?"

Anatole's choice isn't that impossible in my mind.

A Tale of Mirth and Magic by Kristen Vale
Published by: Forever
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 288 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A maker of magical jewelry finds her life turned upside down when she ends up on the run with a half-giant in this spicy and cozy fantasy romance - perfect for fans of Legends and Lattes and The Spellshop.

Elikki may not have a family, but she has her fierce independence, boundless charm, and enough talent as a jewelry artisan to make a living on the road. Unfortunately for some, she also can't yet manage to control her chaotic magic...and her temper. Sweet, soft Barra lives a quiet life with his mas and three sisters, managing the books for his family's business. All he wants is to blend in and not make waves - a bit tricky, as a nearly eight-foot-tall purple half-giant.

When Elikki lands in hot water after dealing with a particularly rude customer, Barra finds himself helping her flee the constables. With a bounty on her back - and a severe crush forming on his end - they decide to travel together to the next town. So begins a journey filled with cozy inns, delicious meals, heaps of excellent sex, and a sprinkling of danger. As their adventures bring them closer together and the threat of capture rises they find themselves changing in surprising ways. He's given up on finding love. She's always refused to try. But traveling together, they may discover unexpected, powerful romance and stronger self-identities - if the bounty hunters don't get them first."

Because we all need something to hold us over until the next Travis Baldree or Sarah Beth Durst book comes out and this could be a new favorite...

Accomplice to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer
Published by: Entangled: Red Tower Books
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 368 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Once Upon a Time meets The Office in Hannah Nicole Maehrer's laugh-out-loud viral TikTok series turned novel, about the sunshine assistant to an Evil Villain…and their unexpected romance.

REWARD OFFERED: Apprentice to The Villain wanted for treason (light), magical property damage (alleged), and one incident involving a weaponized scone (accurate). Frequently seen with a grumpy frog (crowned, judgmental). Answers to "Evie" or "Stop that."

Evie Sage didn't mean to become the right-hand woman to the kingdom's most terrifying villain. One minute, she was applying for an entry-level position that promised "light paperwork and occasional beheadings," and the next, she was knee-deep in magical mayhem, murder plots, and an entirely inappropriate crush on her brooding, sharp-jawed, walking disaster of a boss.

Now, with a magical prophecy unraveling, assassins showing up in the break room, and a suspicious amount of frogs wearing crowns, Evie has to figure out how to survive her job without setting the kingdom on fire - or her dignity, which is hanging by a very sarcastic thread.

Being evil-adjacent was never part of the five-year plan. But then again...neither was falling for The Villain.

A magical office comedy with grumpy bosses, snarky frogs, and definitely-not-feelings."

Sometimes evil-adjacent just happens.

Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz
Published by: Tordotcom
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 176 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A cozy near-future novella about a crew of leftover robots opening their very own noodle shop, from acclaimed sci-fi author Annalee Newitz.

You don't have to eat food to know the way to a city's heart is through its stomach. So when a group of deactivated robots come back online in an abandoned ghost kitchen, they decide to make their own way doing what they know: making food - the tastiest hand-pulled noodles around - for the humans of San Francisco, who are recovering from a devastating war.

But when their robot-run business starts causing a stir, a targeted wave of one-star reviews threatens to boil over into a crisis. To keep their doors open, they'll have to call on their customers, their community, and each other - and find a way to survive and thrive in a world that wasn't built for them."

Because cozy means something different to everyone.

The Blonde Who Came In from the Cold by Ally Carter
Published by: Avon
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"An action-packed, second-chance rom-com about two rival spies who must join forces in order to stay alive, from New York Times bestselling author Ally Carter.

Ten years ago, they joined the CIA.

Six years ago, he left the game.

Five years ago, they fell in love.

One year ago, she ran out into the cold with absolutely no intention of ever coming back.

And two minutes ago, they woke up, bloody and bruised and handcuffed together in the dark.

They don't know where they are. They don't know how they got there. And they have absolutely no idea who is after them or what this nameless, faceless villain wants.

The only thing that's clear is that, after ten years of covers and chemistry, secrets and lies, these two rival spies have been sucked into their greatest mission yet, and now they're going to have to team up to stay alive. (If they don't kill each other first.)"

But not killing your partner despite the desire to is the spice of life!

Departure 37 by Scott Carson
Published by: Atria/Emily Bestler Books
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Horror meets coming-of-age in this thrilling novel in which forgotten Cold War mysteries make a terrifying reappearance, from a writer Stephen King has called "a master."

On a clear October day, the American skies empty after hundreds of pilots refuse to fly, triggering a complete ground stop as authorities seek to explain an act of baffling coordination that the pilots insist was anything but planned. The pilots received disturbing, middle-of-the-night calls from their mothers, and each mother had a simple and urgent request: do not fly today.

There are a few concerning elements to the calls. None of the mothers remember making them - and some of the mothers are dead.

While the nation's military chiefs and artificial intelligence experts mobilize in search of answers, a sixteen-year-old girl named Charlie on the coast of Maine watches a strange, silvery balloon drift across the water and toward her home - a place she loathes. Her father's dream of opening a craft brewery on an old airfield has been a disaster, and all she wants is an escape back to Brooklyn.

She's about to get much more than that.

Her new home is ground zero for a story that begins at a remote naval base in Indiana during the winter of 1962, when a physicist named Martin Hazelton discovered something extraordinary - and deadly. All Hazelton wanted was time to seek an explanation, but pressure from both American and Russian actors forced him into a perilous race.

Moving between the two characters and timelines, Scott Carson deftly weaves Cold War espionage with contemporary terror in a story that explains why #1 New York Times bestseller Joe Hill has declared himself "a fan for life.""

The real mystery is all these pilots actually listening to their mothers. 

The Understudy by Morgan Richter
Published by: Knopf
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"An opera singer uncovers the dark secrets of her cruel and alluring understudy when a murder disrupts her disciplined world.

"The first time my understudy tried to kill me was on the day we met. We got off on the wrong foot, Yolanda and I, and while most of that was due to Yolanda being a very...complicated individual, some of the blame lies with me..."

After years of rigorous instruction and ensemble work, Kit finally gets her big break when she's hired to play the lead role in a new opera based on the 1960s cult classic film Barbarella. Entrusted with playing the beautiful and seductive titular role, Kit is on her way to the top of the highly competitive world of New York City opera. But then she walks into rehearsal and meets her understudy. Stunning, suggestive, and bursting with the unbridled confidence of a novice, Yolanda is physically everything Barbarella is meant to be. At first, Kit isn't threatened by the neophyte, until Yolanda reveals that she wants the role - and will do anything to get it.

As Yolanda's schemes become increasingly more reckless, she draws an unwitting Kit into her orbit. But when a brutal murder destabilizes the company and threatens her role, Kit discovers that Yolanda's glamorous veneer conceals something much more sinister. Hunting down the betrayed friends and discarded lovers from Yolanda's past and unearthing secrets she's worked hard to bury, Kit realizes just how far Yolanda is willing to go to get what she wants, and the number of enemies she made in the process."

I mean, isn't a killer attitude what you want in a Barbarella? 

Death of a Ghostwriter by Gaynor Torrance
Published by: Joffe Books Crime Thriller and Cozy Mystery
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Kindle, 248 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"They say sharing is caring, but sharing a husband? That's a grave mistake.

And Hell hath no fury like three widows with a murder to solve...

Albert Franklynn's sudden and mysterious death leaves everyone in the pretty village of Monksworthy in shock - especially his wife Sylvie, who runs the local tearoom.

But the real surprise comes at the mortuary, where not one, but three grieving widows show up to identify his body.

It turns out that Albert wasn't just a devoted husband to Sylvie.... He had two other wives as well.

As everyone reels from the revelation of Albert's double - or triple - life, three widows reluctantly team up to investigate a mystery more tangled than the village's gaudy bunting: who killed Albert - and why.

It turns out Albert's list of enemies is longer than the village bake sale sign-up sheet. Can these three unlikely sleuths resolve their differences to become partners in crime-solving...before the killer writes them out of the story for good?

The start of an unmissable cosy crime series, this gripping mystery about murder, mayhem and marital mischief is perfect for fans of Faith Martin, the Reverend Richard Coles, Kristen Perrin, Veronica Heley or Fiona Leitch."

The real mystery to me is how anyone would have the energy to have multiple lives and wives.

Hunter's Heart Ridge by Sarah Stewart Taylor
Published by: Minotaur Booksr
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In this sequel to Taylor's lyrical series debut, Agony Hill, Detective Frank Warren and his formerly CIA-connected neighbor Alice Bellows return to investigate the death of a diplomat.

It's November of 1965 and the second weekend of Vermont's regular deer season when Vermont State Police detective Franklin Warren is called out to what looks like an accidental shooting at The Ridge Club, an exclusive men's hunting and fishing club for congressmen, diplomats, judges, and titans of industry: a former ambassador has been shot while out hunting. With the war in Vietnam picking up speed on the other side of the world, Warren quickly realizes that many of the club's members are powerful men who may have ulterior motives and connections in high places.

While Warren's suspicions about the club members build, his neighbor Alice Bellows is throwing a dinner party, preparing for Thanksgiving, and worrying about her pregnant friend and fellow widow, Sylvie Weber, whose due date is coming up. When Alice's old handler and friend, Arthur Crannock, unexpectedly shows up in Bethany, Alice begins to wonder whether his presence has anything to do with the death at the hunting club.

As an early season snowstorm bears down on Bethany, knocking out power and phone lines and blocking the roads, Warren and his assistant, Trooper Pinky Goodrich, are trapped at the Ridge Club, likely along with a killer, and Alice, increasingly fearful that her past in the intelligence world is no longer in the past, will have to act fast to save Sylvie and her baby.

Sarah Stewart Taylor's historical series combines the intricacy of a satisfying mystery with keen observation of a time and place during great transformation and upheaval."

And a great snowstorm!

The Lost Girl of Astor Street by Stephanie Morrill
Published by: Blink
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"To most people, Piper Sail looks like a rich girl with little potential, but she surprises everyone, including herself, when she starts investigating her best friend's disappearance. Perfect for fans of Agatha Christie and Maureen Johnson, The Lost Girl of Astor Street combines the allure of Jazz Age Chicago with a twisting mystery that will keep you guessing until the very end.

Lydia has vanished. Lydia, who's never broken any rules, except falling in love with the wrong boy. Lydia, who's been Piper's best friend since they were children. Lydia, who never even said goodbye.

Convinced the police are looking in all the wrong places, eighteen-year-old Piper Sail begins her own investigation into Lydia's disappearance. With the reluctant help of a handsome young detective, Piper searches for answers in the dark underbelly of 1924 Chicago. Did Lydia get abducted by one of the city's most notorious gangsters? Or does the trail lead back to their own affluent neighborhood?

Piper must decide if she's willing to risk her life to find out the truth."

This series would be right up my grandma's alley.

The Secret Investigator of Astor Street by Stephanie Morrill
Published by: Blink
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"After high school graduation, Piper Sail isn't quite sure what her future holds - until a possible murder case lands in her lap. Filled with both the glitz and glamor of high society and the dark mafia underbelly of 1920s Chicago, The Secret Investigator of Astor Street is perfect for fans of Agatha Christie and Maureen Johnson.

Piper Sail knows what she wants: to become a detective. After all, she already solved the case of her missing best friend, and there's no shortage of crime in 1920s Chicago. But for an eighteen-year-old society girl - even one who's currently dating a police investigator - it simply isn't done.

That is, until a girl asks her to dig into her brother's recent death. The police ruled it a suicide, but she's convinced it was murder. And she wants Piper to help her prove it.

In this companion to The Lost Girl of Astor Street, Piper once again grabs her notebook and plunges into the underworld of mafia-controlled Chicago. But she'll need all her wits and courage if she wants to become The Secret Investigator of Astor Street."

And if you fell for Piper Sail, good news, here's book two already! 

A Beautiful and Terrible Murder by Claire M. Andrews
Published by: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 432 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Perfect for fans of Stalking Jack the Ripper, this historical murder mystery follows the cunning Irene Adler as she teams up with the mysterious Sherlock Holmes to discover who is murdering Oxford's elite students in the All Souls class.

Irene Adler is no ordinary young lady. She's at the top of the ranks in the All Souls cohort, a competitive preparatory class reserved for Oxford's brightest minds. But her peers and professors don't know she's a lady at all. To them, she is Isaac Holland.

Keeping up her disguise gets trickier when All Souls students start dying, one by one. Determined to find out who's responsible for the deaths, Irene - as Isaac - teams up with fellow classmate and roommate Sherlock Holmes to track down clues. Their mission grows more dangerous by the day as someone tries to frame Isaac for the murders, and Irene's own father, Dean Moriarty, begins to threaten her seat in school.

Readers will love following these classic and beloved characters through the twists and turns in the dark halls of Oxford, and discovering what secret lies behind the glitz and glamor of the elite."

Someone oversaturated Irene's hair in Photoshop... Yikes. 

Whispers of Shadowbrook House by Rebecca Anderson
Published by: Shadow Mountain
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In the crumbling Shadowbrook House, governess Pearl Ellicott and heir Oliver Waverly unravel a haunting mystery while confronting their growing forbidden love.

Hampshire, 1880
Pearl Ellicott dreams of falling in love and having a family of her own. Until that happens, she is content working as a governess for young Maxwell, tending to his education and fragile health. Together, they explore the mansion's empty rooms and secret passageways in search of the haunting violin music that seems to come from nowhere.

Oliver Waverley is young and independent, with plans to sell the run-down mansion once he inherits. But his strained relationship with his reclusive uncle, Arthur Ravenscroft, complicates matters when Ravenscroft refuses to relinquish Shadowbrook House without explanation.

As they spend more time together, Oliver slowly becomes enchanted by Pearl's wit and love for Maxwell, and Pearl finds herself irresistibly drawn to Oliver's passion and resolve. However, the social gap between the heir and the governess makes pursuing a relationship difficult.

Oliver must decide whether to follow his heart or adhere to his family's expectations, while Pearl grapples with her fear that if Shadowbrook House is sold, she will lose her job, her found family, and her chance for long-lasting love. Will the lovers part ways or choose to be together despite the odds? The answer lies within the walls of Shadowbrook House and the echoes of its haunting past."

Choose to be together despite the odds and everything else will fall into place! This is fiction after all.

The Art of a Lie by Laura Shepherd-Robinson
Published by: Atria Books
Publication Date: August 5th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In 18th-century England, a widowed confectioner is drawn into a web of love, betrayal, and intrigue and a battle of wits in this masterful historical novel from the author of the "delicious puzzle-box of a novel" (The New York Times) and USA TODAY bestseller The Square of Sevens.

Following the murder of her husband in what looks like a violent street robbery, Hannah Cole is struggling to keep her head above water. Her confectionary shop on Piccadilly is barely turning a profit, her suppliers conspiring to put her out of business because they don't like women in trade. Henry Fielding, the famous author-turned-magistrate, is threatening to confiscate the money in her husband's bank account because he believes it might have been illicitly acquired. And even those who claim to be Hannah's friends have darker intent.

Only William Devereux seems different. A friend of her late husband, Devereux helps Hannah unravel some of the mysteries surrounding his death. He also tells her about an Italian delicacy called iced cream, an innovation she is convinced will transform the fortunes of her shop. But their friendship opens Hannah to speculation and gossip and draws Henry Fielding's attention her way, locking her into a battle of wits more devastating than anything she can imagine."

Love the Henry Fielding angle! 

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Ally Carter, Annalee Newitz, Cari Thomas, Don Martin, Eve Chase, Gaynor Torrance, Hannah Nicole Maehrer, Kristen Vale, Lindsey Kelk, Louis Sachar, Michelle Wong, Morgan Richter, Sarah Stewart Taylor, Scott Carson, Xenobe Purvis

The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter
Published by: Avon Books
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
Rating: ★★
To Buy

Maggie Chase has been having a hell of a year. Not only did she find out that her husband was cheating on her with her best friend but he was able to worm his way into a "legitimate" claim as co-writer of her cozy mysteries. He took everything. And she gets the consolation prize of overhearing her fellow authors discuss her downfall at her publisher's Christmas party. What's worse is the eager listener is none other than Ethan Wyatt, Leather Jacket Guy. One of her least favorite things in the world and he just happens to be a number one New York Times bestselling author. Her other two least favorite things are Christmas and parties. She knew she should have stayed home. But her editor Deborah insisted. Back in her office she hands Maggie an envelope. Maggie has been invited to the home of one of her biggest fans in England for Christmas. This is a nightmare. She was lured to one party to invite her to another. Deborah insists that this is legit and that something very big might be coming Maggie's way if she just gets on that plane. What Deborah didn't tell her was that Ethan Wyatt would also be on that plane. He would be there, calling her Marcie, and just being all leather clad and in her face. Though perhaps it's worth it as they cross the stone bridge and approach the palace made of stone and glass and centuries. They have arrived at Mistletoe Manor. Ethan is sure that someone wants to hunt them for sport and Maggie insists that that's the plot to an Eleanor Ashley novel. The author who has been with her as a guiding light her entire life who Ethan claims to have never heard of. Maggie's frayed paperbacks are nothing compared to the wall of first editions at her publisher's office. That's why she signed with Killhaven Books, because they're Eleanor's publisher. And then all the pieces click into place and she realizes that her host for Christmas is none other than Eleanor Ashley. Well, that and the fact that Eleanor is standing right behind her. She will be spending Christmas with the Duchess of Death. And her family. All of whom have ulterior motives. Eleanor is a wealthy woman, and where there is wealth there are those wanting to separate you from it. Even if you are related to them by blood. But as a storm moves in Eleanor disappears from a locked room. Is this stunt? Is she in danger? Cut off from the outside world Maggie and Ethan are the only ones capable of investigating what has happened to Eleanor and revealing all the secrets held in Mistletoe Manor. Even their own.

This is a book I was determined to love. I mean, even if it wasn't great anything was better than the cover. Seriously, that artwork, those horrid fonts, who designed this and where do they live!?! And there are aspects of the book I love, the leads have chemistry, there's incisive observations on what it's like to be gaslit and how that seeps into your every single decision, plus Thrombey level relatives. But there are two things I can't get past. Maggie and Ethan have wonderful snarky banter when she's under the misapprehension that they are each other's nemesis. And then halfway through the book her eyes are opened as Ethan comes in as a second narrator and the book stagnates. Now it's not that they aren't the perfect couple, because there are swoonworthy moments, it's that the pacing and the mystery of Eleanor Ashley are forgotten and it's more important for them to make out next to the entrance to the secret tunnel than to explore said secret tunnel. It was so...damn...glacial. I raced through the first half of the book and then limped to the finish line. That is not a momentum you should strive for in your storytelling. Yet, that could have been forgiven and forgotten. Because, as I've said, they are a perfect couple who I might have wished stayed more snarky than Nick and Nora once they hooked up, but then Ally Carter ruined it in the end. How you ask? Well, that requires spoilers, which I'm totally about to drop. You have been warned. So Ally Carter got the idea for this novel after learning about Agatha Christie's disappearance. This is a mystery that will endure forever. Where was she for those eleven days? Was it a mental break? Was it a PR stunt? Was she undercover solving a mystery? Was it giant alien space wasps? And yes, these are all theories that have been posited. Obviously one on Doctor Who, so that one probably isn't accurate. Or is it? So here's the fictional Eleanor Ashley, key FICTIONAL. She magics herself away from a locked room and the answer for how she did it is that she's Eleanor Ashley. That is a freakin' cop out of the highest magnitude. This is fiction, fiction is for resolution, not for giving us yet another unsolved mystery. This just enraged me. I was strongly reminded of the book Cartwheel by Jennifer duBois which was a fictionalized account of the Amanda Knox case. Again, fictional. And we got no resolution. None. And in the case of Cartwheel it has the EXACT SAME setup only for the answers to life's greatest mysteries to be what? Ineffable? Give me the answers or get out of my face. Which means that Ally Carter can still save this book with an additional epilogue for the paperback release. Let's make it so.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Agatha Christie, Ally Carter, Amanda Knox, Cartwheel, Christmas, Eleanor Ashley, Ethan Wyatt, Fictional, Jennifer DuBois, Maggie Chase, Murder Most Foul, Resolution, The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year

Death by Misadventure by Tasha Alexander
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In the latest installment of Tasha Alexander's New York Times bestselling series, Lady Emily must solve a string of high stakes "accidents" while trapped in a lavish villa in the Bavarian Alps.

In the winter of 1906, Lady Emily and husband Colin are invited to the opulent home of Baroness Ursula von Duchtel in the Bavarian alps. Outside is a mountainous winter wonderland with a view of Mad King Ludwig's fairy tale castle. Inside, the villa hosts a magnificent but eclectic art collection - as well as an equally eclectic collection of fellow guests, among them a musician, an art dealer, a coquette from the demi-monde, and Kaspar, the Baroness' boorish son-in-law, whom, it begins to appear, someone wants dead. Almost forty years earlier, Niels, a young German lord, sings to himself in the forest surrounding those same alps, capturing the attention of a not-yet-mad King Ludwig. Niels and the king become fast friends, their relationship deepening into something more as their time together stretches on. But while King Ludwig is content to live out a fantasy where their responsibilities don't matter and the outside world doesn't affect them, Niels knows that their bliss cannot last forever...

Decades later, Emily continues to investigate Kaspar's increasingly lethal "mishaps" when tragedy strikes, ensnaring the guests in a web of fear and suspicion. It's up to Emily to sift through old secrets and motivations, some stretching far into the past, to unmask the killer."

You all know I worship and adore Tasha and Lady Emily, but this one has something very special, something very Agatha Christie about it. You will devour it just like I did.

Murder at King's Crossing by Andrea Penrose
Published by: Kensington Publishing Corporation
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 368 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"When the murder of a scientific genius on the verge of a momentous discovery upsets the wedding of their dear friends, Wrexford and Charlotte must risk all they hold dear to deconstruct a sinister conspiracy in the latest installment of Andrea Penrose's USA Today bestselling Wrexford and Sloane Mysteries.

Celebration is in the air at Wrexford and Charlotte's country estate as they host the nuptials of their friends, Christopher Sheffield and Lady Cordelia Mansfield. But on the afternoon of the wedding, the festivities are interrupted when the local authorities arrive with news that a murdered man has been discovered at the bridge over King's Crossing, his only identification an invitation to the wedding. Lady Cordelia is horrified when the victim is identified as Jasper Milton, her childhood friend and a brilliant engineer who is rumored to have discovered a revolutionary technological innovation in bridge design. That he had the invitation meant for her cousin Oliver, who never showed up for the wedding, stirs a number of unsettling questions.

Both men were involved in the Revolutions-Per-Minute Society, a scientific group dedicated to making radical improvements in the speed and cost of transportation throughout Britain. Is someone plotting to steal Milton's designs? And why has her cousin disappeared?

Wrexford and Charlotte were looking forward to spending a peaceful interlude in the country, but when Lady Cordelia resolves to solve the mystery, they offer their help, along with that of the Weasels and their unconventional inner circle of friends. The investigation turns tangled and soon all of them are caught up in a treacherous web of greed, ambition, and dangerous secrets. And when the trail takes a shocking turn, Wrexford and Charlotte must decide what risks they are willing to take with their family to bring the villains to justice..."

Seriously, this week is made for those who love their Historical Murder Mysteries. In fact, just take the week off, you'll need it to read all these fabulous books.

The Case of the Purloined Pages by Patricia Rice
Published by: Book View Cafe Publishing Cooperative
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Paperback, 312 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Death stalks the library...

Bestselling author Patricia Rice brings you another haunting country house mystery in Regency England...

Minerva Peniston, intrepid spinster and booklover, is determined to capture the villain who tried to shoot a duke at a book auction - imperiling her father's position and the only home she's ever known. And now the same wealthy bibliophiles are gathering at Wycliffe Manor...

Paul Upton, over-educated and impoverished curate, has volunteered to assist the residents of Wycliffe Manor in preparing for a book auction to save the village and the manor's future. When an intriguing wallflower drags him into aiding her quest to find a potential killer, he agrees for her safety, and to keep trouble from upending the long-awaited nuptials of the manor's owner.

Despite their efforts, Minerva's chatty book-collecting friend is strangled before the auction begins. A killer on the loose threatens to upend both sale and wedding. Paul and Minerva must determine what secrets the garrulous victim revealed...and to whom...before the murderer strikes again.

With valuable manuscripts at risk and a half dozen more potential victims on hand, only an unlikely white-knight and mousy spinster can save the auction and the wedding. As much as Minerva adores books, even she knows they aren't worth dying for."

Wait, books aren't worth dying for? Um, I disagree, save the books let the people perish!

Murder in Berkeley Square by Vanessa Riley
Published by: Kensington Publishing Corporation
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Embracing the true diversity of the Regency era, award-winning author Vanessa Riley brings readers a vibrant historical mystery starring an engaging heroine with an independent streak, a notorious past, and a decided talent for sleuthing in Murder in Berkley Square the latest novel in her Lady Worthing Mystery series.

A marriage of convenience saved Lady Abigail Worthing's family from disgrace, but she's finding her absent husband's endless conditions increasingly repressive. Unable to stay at their London home during the oncoming winter, she accepts a ride to the country from her neighbor, Stapleton Henderson. However, she's less than delighted that she's his excuse to avoid a dinner held by Lord Charles Duncan, one of London's most powerful - and relentless - magistrates. More irritating, women are decidedly unwelcome at the evening's prestigious discussion of criminality - even though Abigail and Stapleton have solved several cases together...

Then an unexpected blizzard strands them at Lord Duncan's with his now-houseguests. Suddenly, an evening of fine dining, fine brandy, and insightful debate becomes an inescapable - and deadly - ordeal. The ultimate test for Abigial's skill. One of the dinner guests is found dead in front of the Berkley Square mansion. And when another party is murdered, Abigail discovers each had received a taunting, prophetic nursery rhyme...coincidence, or clues left by a killer on the loose?

Through deft interrogation, she learns everyone present is connected to Lord Duncan's greatest failure in the courts: the conviction of a Martinique plantation informant for a murder he didn't commit. But as Abigail races to find who was really responsible for the miscarriage of justice, she'll be forced to put her own and Stapleton's lives at risk in a gambit that will alter their fates forever - or end them permanently."

I love love love it when blizzards trap people with killers. Especially in lush English homes.

A Cure for Sorrow by Jen Wheeler
Published by: Lake Union Publishing
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Paperback, 431 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the author of The Light on Farallon Island comes a haunting novel about the power of science, the nature of love, and the enigma of the supernatural.

Convention-flouting Nora Harris is a determined young medical student in Gilded Age Manhattan. A surgeon's daughter, she always leads with her head - until her father's latest protégé, Euan Colquhoun, steals her heart. Love and logic bind the newly betrothed couple together, but a tragic accident cuts their bright future short.

Grief-stricken, Nora finds surprising comfort in corresponding with Euan's older brother, Malcolm. She decides to forsake her ambitions to retreat to the Colquhoun family farm deep in the tangled woods of upstate New York.

There, her longed-for peace is threatened by a suspicion that the whole family harbors haunting secrets. When she starts to see things that science can't explain, Nora fears for her sanity - and when she gives in to dangerous temptations, she fears for her immortal soul."

A country estate with things that "science can't explain" I need to know more!

The Cold Light of Day by Anna Lee Huber
Published by: Kensington Publishing Corporation
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Paperback, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Remarkable heroine Verity Kent must follow the leads of a dangerous investigation that will pull her into a conspiracy spilling dangerously out onto the streets of Interwar Dublin, Ireland in the next installment of this highly acclaimed series.

June 1920, Ireland: The streets of Dublin seethe with revolution as the Irish Republican Army clashes with British authorities. Roving assassination squads mean nowhere is truly safe, particularly for Verity Kent and her war hero husband, Sidney. Given their celebrity as society darlings and intrepid sleuths, they must tread carefully to go unnoticed - nearly impossible when they are called upon to search for Verity's fellow spy and friend...

Captain Alec Xavier has seemingly vanished after traveling to Dublin to infiltrate the IRA at its highest levels. Doing her best to maintain a modicum of normalcy and stay under the radar of both the rebels and British Intelligence, Verity works undercover by day and waltzes through the city's elite social scene by night. Still, she fears the worst for Alec - until shocking evidence mounts that not only is he alive, but that he has switched sides...

Already disillusioned with the British government, the news leaves Verity and Sidney reeling. Worse, they learn of a conspiracy within Dublin Castle, where personal vendettas are being carried out and sanctioned by British Intelligence under the cover of revolution. With the distinction between friend and foe never more blurred - or the margin for error narrower - Verity and Sidney cannot turn a blind eye. Especially when a familiar adversary appears, bringing a threat almost too terrifying to confront - even in the cold light of day..."

It's always important to hold those nearest you accountable.

A Front-Page Murder by Fiona Veitch Smith
Published by: Embla Books
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Kindle, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"London, 1920. Starry-eyed aspiring reporter Poppy Denby emerges from the steam of the Edinburgh-London train onto the platform at King's Cross with nothing but a trunk of old notebooks and a heart full of dreams. She swaps her quiet northern hometown for the Big Smoke to act as companion for her ailing (but ever-sharp) Aunt Dot, a pioneering Suffragette and former West End leading lady.

She may only be twenty-two, but Miss Denby knows what she wants and quickly lands a job at the Daily Globe. She expects she's going to have to pull up her stockings and work twice as hard as her male colleagues, but what she is not ready to deal with is murder.

It's only Poppy's first day on Fleet Street when one of the Globe's senior reporters falls to his death from the highest staircase - just moments after receiving a mysterious note. Poppy is tasked with finishing his article involving the mysterious death of a suffragette seven years earlier, about which some powerful people would prefer nothing to be said. Did old Bert Isaacs get too close to a scoop?

As Poppy investigates, she is thrown into a world of hard-drinking newspapermen, flappers and jazz clubs, and learns she must tread very carefully indeed. Luckily, she has her new-found friendship with the terribly dashing Globe photographer Daniel Rokeby who seems terribly eager to lend a helping hand..."

The real mystery here is isn't her job supposed to be companion not working at the Daily Globe?

Murder on the Nile by Verity Bright
Published by: Bookouture
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Paperback, 298 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A cruise down the Nile, a camel ride around the pyramids, lunch in the shadow of the Sphinx...And a very dead body!

1924. Lady Eleanor Swift and her butler Clifford are touring the great, ancient sights of Egypt on a much-anticipated extended vacation. But when the pair arrive at the docks in Cairo expecting to board the luxurious paddle steamer advertised in their brochure, they are baffled by the crumbling old cruiser waiting for them. And things only go from bad to worse as death stalks the decks of the SS Cleopatra...

Two days into the trip one of their fellow passengers, Lieutenant Baxter, is found shot dead in his locked cabin. Immediately suspicious and desperate to see justice done, Eleanor discovers a half-finished note addressed to her hidden in Baxter's travelling trunk. In it he asks her to deliver a vitally important letter to the authorities at their next stop down river: a priceless treasure worthy of a king has been stolen and an innocent man's life hangs in the balance.

But before the sands of time wipe away all evidence on board, Eleanor must uncover who among the other travellers wanted Baxter dead. Was it the anxious archaeologist who doesn't have an alibi, the reptile expert with a passion for the murderous Nile crocodile or the art dealer with a devious secret?

With the killer readying to strike again much closer to home, can Eleanor dig up the truth before she's trapped in a tomb under the pyramids forever?

A gripping and twisty 1920s murder mystery set in Egypt, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey and Lee Strauss!"

And fans of Elizabeth Peters. Obviously.

A Deadly Discovery by Ciar Byrne
Published by: Headline Accent
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Kindle, 350 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Book 1 in a gripping new bookish cosy crime series - perfect for fans of The Three Dahlias, The Mitford Murders and golden age crime.

In the shadow of Lewes castle lies buried an ancient tablet. Hours after discovering it, dashing local archaeologist Gideon Rivers is dead.

Writer Virginia Woolf and her artist sister, Vanessa, both know firsthand that it doesn't take much to cause a stir in town. And when Gideon returned home from a dig in Syria with a glamourous Parisian heiress on his arm, all eyes were on him.

But who would have conspired to murder such a charming young man? There are more suspects in his circle than it first seems: an ambitious fiancée, a jealous best friend, and a string of scorned former lovers.

With the police chasing false leads and the murderer hunting down a second victim  - one far closer to home - Ginny and Nessa are forced to take investigations into their own hands.

Solving this mystery calls for a little creativity..."

The Stephen sisters are on the case! Damn how I love writers becoming sleuths! 

Seven Lively Suspects by Katy Watson
Published by: Mobius
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 368 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"It's been five years since Dahlia fan Scott Baker was arrested for a murder that had eerie echoes of one of Lettice Davenport's books. But now a true crime podcast is convinced that the police got it wrong - and they want the three Dahlias to help them prove it.

The murder of aspiring crime writer Victoria Denby created a sensation at the time. The public's imagination was hooked by the detail of a paper dahlia placed beside the body, just like in one of Dahlia Lively's fictional cases. Was there a copycat killer at large in the peaceful town of Market Foxleigh?

Despite the tabloids' fearmongering, the police quickly arrested Victoria's friend and fellow writer, Scott Baker, and when it emerged that he had also been accused of stalking Dahlia actress Caro Hooper, it seemed like an open and shut case.

Five years on most people have forgotten the case. But this baking hot summer, a crime writing festival is being staged in Market Foxleigh - and the guests of honor are the Three Dahlias themselves - Rosalind, Caro and Posy. At the same time, a true crime podcast wants to reopen the cold case, convinced that the police got the wrong man... and they're determined to enlist the help of the Three Dahlias to help prove them right - and find the real killer."

And speaking of The Three Dahlias...

Tiny Threads by Lilliam Rivera
Published by: Del Rey Books
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 256 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Fashion-obsessed Samara finally has the life she's always dreamed of: A high-powered job with legendary designer Antonio Mota. A new home in sunny California, far away from those drab Jersey winters. And an intriguing love interest, Brandon, a wealthy investor in Mota's fashion line.

But it's not long before Samara's dream life begins to turn into a living nightmare as Mota's big fashion show approaches and the pressure on her turns crushing. Perhaps that's why she begins hearing voices in her room at night - and seeing strange things that can't be explained away by stress or anxiety or the number of drinks she's been consuming.

And it may not be just Samara imagining things as her psyche unravels, because she soon discovers hints that her new city - and the House of Mota - may be built on a foundation of secrets and lies. Now Samara must uncover what hideous truths lurk in the shadows of this illusory world of glamour and beauty before those shadows claim her."

I love the dark underbelly of fashion. So many people rarely get it right though.

The Serial Killer Guide to San Francisco by Michelle Chouinard
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In Michelle Chouinard's clever mystery The Serial Killer Guide to San Francisco, the granddaughter of a serial killer shows readers another side of the beloved city.

Welcome to San Francisco, a city with killer charm.

The chill of a San Francisco summer can be deadly. No one knows this better than Capri Sanzio, who makes her living giving serial killer tours of the city. Capri has been interested in the topic since she was a kid, when she discovered she's the granddaughter of serial killer William 'Overkill Bill' Sanzio. She's always believed in his innocence, though she's never taken the leap to fully dive into the case.

But now an Overkill Bill copycat has struck in San Francisco. And Capri's former mother-in-law, Sylvia, just cut off Capri's daughter's tuition payments. Needing cash, Capri wonders if this is the time to exonerate her grandfather. The case is back in the news and the police will be looking to understand the past to catch a present-day killer. Capri could finally uncover the truth about Overkill Bill - documenting the process with a podcast and a book - and hopefully earn some money.

Before Capri can get very far, the cops discover the copycat's latest victim: Sylvia. Capri soon finds herself at the heart of the police's investigation for an entirely different reason. She and her daughter are prime suspects."

I'm just saying, wouldn't debunking your grandfather when you do serial killer tours kind of put a dent in your business?

The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter
Published by: Avon Books
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Knives Out gets a holiday rom-com twist in this rivals-to-lovers romance-mystery from New York Times bestselling author Ally Carter.

The bridge is out. The phones are down. And the most famous mystery writer in the world just disappeared out of a locked room two days before Christmas.

Meet Maggie Chase and Ethan Wyatt:

She's the new Queen of the Cozy Mystery.

He's Mr. Big-time Thriller Guy.

She hates his guts.

He thinks her name is Marcie (no matter how many times she's told him otherwise.)

But when they both accept a cryptic invitation to attend a Christmas house party at the English estate of a reclusive fan, neither is expecting their host to be the most powerful author in the world: Eleanor Ashley, the Duchess of Death herself.

That night, the weather turns, and the next morning Eleanor is gone.

She vanished from a locked room, and Maggie has to wonder: Is Eleanor in danger? Or is it all some kind of test? Is Ethan the competition? Or is he the only person in that snowbound mansion she can trust?

As the snow gets deeper and the stakes get higher, every clue will bring Maggie and Ethan closer to the truth - and each other. Because, this Christmas, these two rivals are going to have to become allies (and maybe more) if they have any hope of saving Eleanor.

Assuming they don't kill each other first."

Me, oh I can't wait to add the new Ally Carter to my bookshelf! Me, oh dear lord, that cover is horrible, I think I can just get a digital copy...

A Jingle Bell Mingle by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone
Published by: Avon Books
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From #1 New York Times bestselling author Julie Murphy and USA Today bestselling author Sierra Simone who gave us A Merry Little Meet Cute comes a new holiday rom-com - 'tis the season for second chances!

What happens when there's no room at the inn and you and your potentially demonic cat become roommates with your grumpy one-night stand?

Part-time adult film actress/one-time adult film director/makeup artist Sunny Palmer has accidentally sold her very first screenplay to the Hope Channel. That was six months ago. Fast forward to a looming deadline, an uninspired Sunny has returned to the source of her inspiration in Christmas Notch, Vermont, to immerse herself in the local Christmas miracle on which her fever dream of a movie pitch was based.

Isaac Kelly, former boy band heartthrob and the saddest boy in the music biz, is the latest owner of the town's historic mansion. After his years of heartbreak following his young wife's death, Isaac's record label is done waiting for new music. What better place to attempt his first holiday album than a snow-covered mansion where he can become a hermit in peace?

But after their best friends' wedding leads to them waking up together in a freezing motel room with questionable wiring and a broken shower, Isaac takes a chance and asks Sunny to stay with him at his home. Surely the place is big enough that he'll hardly see her or her unhinged cat. But when the two discover they're both creatively blocked, they make a handshake deal: Isaac will help Sunny hunt down the truth behind the local lore, and Sunny will find Isaac a new muse.

And with these two opposites under one roof, there's no way this jingle bell mingle could go off script...right?"

I really wonder how the PR people at the "Hope" Channel will spin Sunny's past...

Hex and Hexability by Kate Johnson
Published by: One More Chapter
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Paperback, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Bridgerton meets The Ex Hex this witchy season with this oh so spicy romantasy Regency romcom!

'Do you want to see what witches can do?'

Lady Tiffany Worthington has always had a special talent for making the world around her come to life - whether she wants it to or not - but it's only with the arrival of her mysterious great aunt Esme on the eve of the Battle of Waterloo that she learns she's a witch...and that the magic she's long feared is actually a gift to be embraced.

Now, as she's exposed to a side of London she never knew existed, one with sea creatures, magical portals, time travel, and a handsome duke from a faraway land with a dashing scar that makes him look like a pirate, Lady Tiffany discovers that despite what the ton might decree, there is no limit to what she can do...or who she can be."

REGENCY MAGIC! MUPPET ARM FLAIL!

Queen Macbeath by Val McDermid
Published by: Atlantic Monthly Press
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 144 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Shakespeare created the myth of the Macbeths as indefensible murderous conspirators. But now internationally bestselling author Val McDermid drags the truth out of the shadows, exposing the patriarchal prejudices of history.

Britain's reigning "Queen of Crime" (The Scotsman), Val McDermid has ensnared audiences worldwide for over thirty years with her thrilling and masterfully plotted crime oeuvre. A radical, rip-roaring counternarrative drawing on the historical record, Queen Macbeth delivers an illuminating portrait of Shakespeare's most famous villain, and the treacherous pursuit of ambition that made her legendary.

A thousand years ago in an ancient Scottish landscape, a woman is on the run with her three companions - a healer, a weaver, and a seer. The men hunting her will kill her - because she is the only one who stands between them and their violent ambition. She is no lady: she is the first queen of Scotland, married to a king called Macbeth. As the net closes in, what unfurls is a tale of passion, forced marriage, bloody massacre, and the harsh realities of medieval Scotland. At the heart of it is one strong, charismatic woman, who survived loss and jeopardy to outwit the endless plotting of a string of ruthless and power-hungry men. Her struggle won her a country. But now it could cost her life.

Immersive and utterly riveting, Queen Macbeth is an electric reimagining of one of Shakespeare's most celebrated tragedies and reaffirms McDermid as one of the preeminent writers of our day."

Because I know, like me, you've always wondered about the truth of Lady Macbeth...

This Fatal Kiss by Alicia Jasinska
Published by: Peachtree Teen
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 416 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Spirit away with a whimsical fantasy filled with dark magic and flirty, polyamorous romance.

Cursed to haunt the river running through the magical spa town where she drowned, Gisela is a water nymph who dreams of returning to the living world and the family she left behind. All it takes to regain her humanity is a kiss from a mortal...but everyone sees her as a monster.

And then there's Kazik, the brooding, interfering, spirit-hunting grandson of a local witch. He's determined to rid the world of unholy creatures like Gisela. After Kazik botches Gisela's exorcism, she strikes up a deal. She won't tell the other spirits that he's losing his magic, if he agrees to play matchmaker and helps her get a kiss. But Gisela's plan goes awry when Kazik also falls for the devilishly handsome young man that she sets her heart on - someone who could be linked to Gisela's troubled past.

Finely crafted with a magical setting, this delectable quest through the spirit world is an enchanting read for fairy tale enthusiasts and YA fans of queer romantasy."

And come on, look at that lush cover! I want to live in it.

Necrology by Meg Ripley
Published by: Creature Publishing, LLC
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Paerback, 380 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
""It's amazing what the spirit can cope with to preserve the body. My spirit is a mighty oak that just won't fall."

In a fantastical aftermath of the Salem witch trials, magical women known as the Dirty have signed a contract swearing off their innate magic in exchange for freedom from violence by non-magical Freemen. Two hundred years later, in a Catskills orphanage, headmistress Whitetail has sprouted antlers - proof of a violated contract. When her wealthy benefactor visits, proposing marriage, her appearance sparks abuse. Rushing to her teacher's defense, eight-year-old Rabbit curses the Beard dead, and Whitetail's arrested on trumped-up charges.

As Whitetail awaits her trial and execution, Rabbit is groomed as the Freemen's star witness and learns of the terrifying reality to which they aspire. With her magic at stake and a loose tooth in her mouth, Rabbit has little left to lose. And a revolution to gain."

The real question, how much magic can she wield with that tooth?

What We Sacrifice for Magic by Andrea Jo DeWerd
Published by: Alcove Press
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Paperback, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Perfect for fans of Practical Magic and The Lager Queen of Minnesota a coming-of-age novel following three generations of witches in the 1960s, this enchanting and heartwarming debut explores the importance of family and the delight and heartbreak of discovering who you truly are.

It's 1968, and the Watry-Ridder family is feared and respected in equal measure. The local farmers seek out their water charms, and the teenagers, their love spells. The family's charms and spells, passed down through generations of witches descending from the Black Forest, have long served the small town of Friedrich, Minnesota.

Eldest daughter Elisabeth has just graduated high school - she is expected to hone her supernatural abilities to take over for her grandmother, the indomitable Magda. She's also expected to marry her high school sweetheart and live the rest of her life in Friedrich. But all she can ask is, why her? Why is her path set in stone, and what else might be out there for her?

She soon discovers that magic isn't the only thing inherited in her family. That magic also comes with a great price - and a big family secret. The more she digs, the more questions she has, and the less she trusts the grandmother she thought she knew. Who is Elisabeth without her family? She must ultimately decide what she's willing to sacrifice for her family, for their secrets and their magic, or risk it all to pave her own way.

Navigating the bittersweet tension between self-discovery and living up to familial expectations, What We Sacrifice for Magic is a touching look at coming into one's own."

And also, who constitutes our chosen family...

The Naming Song by Jedediah Berry
Published by: Tor Books
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A gorgeously imaginative fantasy in the spirit of Hayao Miyazaki and Guillermo del Toro.

There's nothing more dangerous than an unnamed thing.

When the words went away, the world changed.

All meaning was lost, and every border fell. Monsters slipped from dreams to haunt the waking while ghosts wandered the land in futile reveries. Only with the rise of the committees of the named - Maps, Ghosts, Dreams, and Names - could the people stand against the terrors of the nameless wilds. They built borders around their world and within their minds, shackled ghosts and hunted monsters, and went to war against the unknown.

For one unnamed courier of the Names Committee, the task of delivering new words preserves her place in a world that fears her. But after a series of monstrous attacks on the named, she is forced to flee her committee and seek her long-lost sister. Accompanied by a patchwork ghost, a fretful monster, and a nameless animal who prowls the shadows, her search for the truth of her past opens the door to a revolutionary future - for the words she carries will reshape the world.

The Naming Song is a book of deep secrets and marvelous discoveries, strange adventures and dangerous truths. It's the story of a world locked in a battle over meaning. Most of all, it's the perfect fantasy for anyone who's ever dreamed of a stranger, freer, more magical world."

The power of names, of language, is the greatest power of all.

Space Oddity by Catherynne M. Valente
Published by: S and s/Saga Press
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Return to the greatest contest in the galaxy in the sequel to the hilarious USA Today bestseller Space Opera from New York Times bestselling author and finalist for the Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, and Ursula K. Le Guin awards.

The Metagalactic Grand Prix - part gladiatorial contest, part beauty pageant, part concert extravaganza, and part continuation of the wars of the past returns and the fate of the Earth is once again threatened. The civilizations opposed to humanity have been plotting and want to take down the upstarts. Can humanity rise again in this sequel to the beloved Hugo- Award-nominated national bestselling Space Opera by New York Times bestselling author Catherynne M. Valente?"

The most important thing about this sequel is that Cat named it after a David Bowie song.

Carl's Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman
Published by: Ace Books
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Join Carl and his ex-girlfriend's cat, Princess Donut, as they fight fantastical creatures and deadly mobs to make it to the next level and build the kind of fan following the dungeon masters can't ignore in the second book in the smash-hit Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman - now with bonus material exclusive to this print edition.

"Greetings, Crawlers! The training levels have concluded. Now the games may truly begin."

The aliens have come, and they've transformed Earth into a multilevel, video game-like dungeon. It's the newest season of the galaxy's most watched game show, Dungeon Crawler World. Now on the third floor, Carl and Donut have to fight harder than ever. They've already proven that a Coast Guard vet and once-and-forever feline royalty are an almost unstoppable team. Their ratings are off the charts. Viewers can't get enough. But the dungeon gets more dangerous each day, and now there's a whole new problem to deal with: Quests.

They call it the Over City. A sprawling, once-thriving metropolis devastated by a mysterious calamity. But these streets are far from abandoned. An undead circus trawls the ruins. Murdered women rain from the sky. An ancient spell is finally ready to reveal its dark purpose. Can Carl and Donut solve the mystery in time?

And can Carl finally find some pants?

Includes part two of the exclusive bonus story "Backstage at the Pineapple Cabaret.""

OMG, I can't handle that the twist is Quests! I just can't. So epic.

Shikaree by M.J. Oelkers
Published by: Arnstead Press
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Paperback, 3404 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The eldest child of four, Chandra Pattal has no shortage of work on her plate.

Her time under the sun is stretched between working the family orchards, selling produce in the markets of Arnstead, and caring for her siblings in place of her dearly departed mother. Looming over Chandra's hectic life is her father's debt to the Orland Bank. The family stands one poor harvest from a life in the streets, and interest rates only ever seem to climb.

To balance her family's precarious situation, Chandra moonlights as a Shikaree. A treasure hunter who delves into the dark places of the World Below. Ancient bits and baubles call to Chandra with promises of comfort and stability. Small offerings to throw atop the debt that crushes her family.

When Chandra finds a map to greater riches, she bets her life on one great expedition to secure her family's future. A journey through darkness and horror that guarantees danger. The World Below teems with ravenous varmints eager to prey on lone adventurers. Otherworldly terrors conceal themselves in crevices and around corners. Perhaps the most terrifying threats of all are the fellow Shikaree who would kill to stake their claim.

Shikaree is a dark fantasy tale of trust and determination, where Chandra Pattal risks all that she has to find what she truly desires. Just how far will Chandra go to protect her family from an uncaring world?"

When an orchard isn't enough you risk it all.

Sweetest Darkness by Leslie Lutz
Published by: Holiday House
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A teenage psychic is drawn deep into the honeycomb of an abandoned hotel - and into a cat-and-mouse game with a predatory entity - in this riveting new supernatural horror novel.

Everyone in Gypsum, Texas knows the Hotel Alvarado changes at night - especially Quinn. A teenage clairvoyant, he's been having dreams about it... dreams that call him to its dark, abandoned halls. The hotel is a monument to the town's more prosperous past, when celebrities flocked to the mineral spas and films were shot in the desert. The Great Depression killed all of that, it killed the Alvarado, and frankly it killed Gypsum, too. Now, when the sun goes down, things no longer living stir deep within its creaking depths.

But the dreams are relentless. When Quinn braves the hotel's darkness with his best friend June and unrequited love Selena, looking for answers, he gets only one: ghosts aren't the scariest thing lurking inside the Alvarado (although they're there, cold and restless and angry).

No. He's been called by something worse: a predatory, inhuman entity that threatens to wipe Gypsum off the map, along with everyone in it. And wrongly - accidentally - he's let it out. It takes the shape of a handsome young man. It walks. It talks. It laughs. It can even make you laugh. But its appetite for death can never be sated. Quinn has always had the power to see the future... can he find the power to change it?"

People who are psychic should never go into old hotels. Period.

Devils Kill Devils by Johnny Compton
Published by: Tor Nightfire
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 288 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Devils Kill Devils is perfect for fans of Silvia Moreno-Garcia's Certain Dark Things and Southern Gothic horror. Johnny Compton brings his trademark terror and dread that readers fell in love with in The Spite House to a new roster of monsters - angels, devils, vampires - and a heart-pounding race to save the world.

When all hell breaks loose, you need a devil on your side.

Sarita has been watched over by a guardian angel her entire life. She calls him Angelo, and keeps him a secret. But secrets can't stay buried forever...

When Angelo murders someone she loves, Sarita begins to see what's really been lurking in the shadows surrounding her. And she will have to embrace the evil within if she hopes to make it out alive.

Johnny Compton, critically acclaimed author of The Spite House and master of dread, takes you on a terrifying race of one woman against the hordes of hell."

I LOVE Southern Gothic Horror!

Graveyard Shift by M.L. Rio
Published by: Flatiron Books
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Paperback, 144 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The author of sales sensation If We Were Villains returns with a story about a ragtag group of night shift workers who meet in the local cemetery to unearth the secrets lurking in an open grave.

Every night, in the college's ancient cemetery, five people cross paths as they work the late shift: a bartender, a rideshare driver, a hotel receptionist, the steward of the derelict church that looms over them, and the editor-in-chief of the college paper, always in search of a story.

One dark October evening in the defunct churchyard, they find a hole that wasn't there before. A fresh, open grave where no grave should be. But who dug it, and for whom?

Before they go their separate ways, the gravedigger returns. As they trail him through the night, they realize he may be the key to a string of strange happenings around town that have made headlines for the last few weeks - and that they may be closer to the mystery than they thought.

Atmospheric and eerie, with the ensemble cast her fans love and a delightfully familiar academic backdrop, Graveyard Shift is a modern Gothic tale in If We Were Villains author M. L. Rio's inimitable style."

Is it wrong I kind of want to hang out with this gang?

The Darkest Night edited by Lindy Ryan
Published by: Crooked Lane Books
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Paperback, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From some of the biggest names in horror comes an Advent calendar of short holiday horror stories perfect for the darkest nights of the year.

Edited by award-winning author and anthologist Lindy Ryan and with contributions from masters of horror like Josh Malerman, Eric LaRocca, and Clay McLeod Chapman, this horrific anthology will chill you to the bone.

From New York Times bestselling author of Bird Box, Josh Malerman, comes a story of a dark Christmas past in "Children Aren't the Only Ones Who Know Where the Presents Are Hidden."

From national bestselling author Rachel Harrison, in "Thaw," a couple spends their first Christmas together in a cabin - but are they alone, or does something else watch them from the tree line?

New York Times bestselling authors Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon's "Wintry Blue" sets an innocent child on the road with a strange and monstrous creature.

From the Bram Stoker Award-winning screenwriter of Netflix's Haunting of Bly Manor and The Fall of the House of Usher, in Jamie Flanagan's "Bruiser," something sinister stalks the chilling hallways of a nursing home at night.

Author of Such a Pretty Smile, Kristi DeMeester, tells a tale of "Eggnog" a Christmas party, an overfriendly female coworker, and an angry wife are the recipe for a deadly cocktail party.

Plus stories by Nat Cassidy, Darcy Coates, Clay McLeod Chapman, Tim Waggoner, and many more, with an introduction by George C. Romero and art by renowned British horror artist Mister Sam Shearon."

I mean, I was sold at Christopher Golden, but Jamie Flanagan!?! Hell yes!

The Hitchcock Hotel by Stephanie Wrobel
Published by: Berkley Books
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A Hitchcock fanatic with an agenda invites old friends for a weekend stay at his secluded themed hotel in this fiendishly clever, suspenseful new novel from the international bestselling author of Darling Rose Gold.

Alfred Smettle is not your average Hitchcock fan. He is the founder, owner, and manager of The Hitchcock Hotel, a sprawling Victorian house in the White Mountains dedicated to the Master of Suspense. There, Alfred offers his guests round-the-clock film screenings, movie props and memorabilia in every room, plus an aviary with fifty crows.

To celebrate the hotel's first anniversary, he invites his former best friends from his college Film Club for a reunion. He hasn't spoken to any of them in sixteen years, not after what happened.

But who better than them to appreciate Alfred's creation? And to help him finish it.

After all, no Hitchcock set is complete without a body."

As a devotee of Hitchcock, we share the same birthday afterall, this is a must read. And oddly, maybe, I think I need to recreate the experience too...

The Midnight Club by Margot Harrison
Published by: Graydon House
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 368 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A twisty, nostalgic, emotionally thrilling novel about a group of estranged college friends who experiment with a secret substance that allows them to re-live their memories - and the fallout when they uncover startling truths about a dark event from their past.

"How could you leave the past undisturbed when it was hiding parts of you from yourself?"

It's been twenty-five years since The Midnight Club last convened. A tight-knit group of college friends bonded by late nights at the campus literary magazine, they're also bonded by something darker: the death of their brilliant friend Jennet junior year. But now, decades later, a mysterious invitation has pulled them back to the pine-shrouded Vermont town where it all began.

As the estranged friends gather for a weeklong campus reunion, they soon learn that their host has an ulterior motive: she wants them to uncover the truth about the night Jennet died, and she's provided them with an extraordinary method - a secret substance that helps them not only remember but relive the past.

But each one of the friends has something to hide. And the more they question each other, the deeper they dive into their own memories, the more they understand that nothing they thought they knew about their college years, and that fateful night, is true.

The Midnight Club explores that innate desire to revisit our first loves, our biggest mistakes, and the gulf between who we are and who we hoped we'd be."

I mean... Couldn't the book have picked a less well known title? Unless they named themselves after the Christopher Pike book, then that's fine. Confusing but fine.

Dying Inside by Pete Wentz
Published by: Headshell
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Paperback, 224 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Scott Pilgrim and Wednesday combine into a teenaged Fleabag in Dying Inside, a supernatural, emo-fantasy thriller from the minds of Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz, Hannah Klein, and Lisa Sterle!

Immortality is entirely overrated.

From Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz, Hannah Klein (Everything's Fine), and Lisa Sterle (The Modern Witch Tarot, Witchblood) comes the graphic novel about a chronically depressed girl who's tired of fighting for her...death.

Today is Ash's big finale. And by finale, of course, she means exiting the stage permanently.

Ash is a sixteen-year-old girl with more angst than Ian Curtis and Elliott Smith combined (her two idols). She's apathetic and therefore believes death is the easiest route to relief. But nothing is more embarrassing than a lame death. Unfortunately, her meticulous plans - which include the perfect outfit, soundtrack, and method - are all ruined when the beautiful knife she buys off a webstore turns out to be charmed with a protection spell. Now, Ash has to track down the witch who turned her clocking out attempt into the worst gift imaginable: immortality. Turns out, the witch responsible is another sixteen-year-old-girl named (get this) Liv. The two vow to undo the charm together and fight for Ash's death... even as things get increasingly entangled with a strange new antidepressant called Somnia and her mom's gross boyfriend, Greg.

Dying Inside is a musically immersive experience, featuring QR codes that lead the reader to:
-original lyrics and poetry from Pete Wentz
-an integrated playlist from Pete Wentz and Hannah Klein
-never-before-heard music from Daisy Grenade
-and more!

For fans of: It's Lonely at the Centre of the Earth (Zoe Thorogood), Squad (Maggie Tokuda-Hall and Lisa Sterle), Light as a Feather (Zoe Aarsen), Book of Shadows (M. Verano), The Secret Circle (L.J. Smith), Heart-Shaped Box (Joe Hill), the Shadow and Bone Trilogy (Leigh Bardugo), Vicious (V.E. Schwab), Bunny (Mona Awad), The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (graphic novels, prose novels), the Practical Magic series (Alice Hoffman), Anya's Ghost (Vera Brosgol), the series Charmed, and the films The Craft, Booksmart, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, Easy A, and Jennifer's Body."

Easy there, no need to draw so many correlations! I was sold from the preview from Free Comic Book Day.

The Mythmakers by John Hendrix
Published by: Abrams Fanfare
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 224 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From New York Times bestselling, award-winning creator John Hendrix comes The Mythmakers, a graphic novel biography of two literary lions - C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien - following the remarkable story of their friendship and creative fellowship, and how each came to write their masterworks.

Through narrative and comic panels, Hendrix chronicles Lewis and Tolkien's near-idyllic childhoods, then moves on to both men's horrific tour of the trenches of World War I to their first meeting at Oxford in 1929, and then the foreshadowing, action, and aftermath of World War II. He reveals the shared story of their friendship, in all its ups and downs, that gave them confidence to venture beyond academic concerns (fantasy wasn't considered suitable for adult reading, but the domain of children), shaped major story/theme ideas, and shifted their ideas about the potential of mythology and faith.

The Mythmakers also shows the camaraderie and the importance of the social/literary circle of friends called the Inklings, and how the friendship of these two great men fell apart and came together again. Hendrix concludes describing how the writings of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien had re-enchanted the 20th century, after two World Wars. In writing aimed at scholars, adults, and young people, these two tweedy academics altered the course of storytelling and embraced the concept that fantasy writing for an adult audience was an accepted form of literature.

The format is similar to The Faithful Spy: prose interspersed with images and narrative comics. The narration is often conversations between a knowledgeable wizard and a comical lion. Through brisk conversation between these two friends, they explain some of the bigger ideas in an approachable and entertaining way. Throughout the story, there are "gateways" that lead readers to the back matter where certain themes, such as how myth/fantasy evolved or the art of world-building, are discussed more fully. This device keeps the main story flowing quickly and smoothly for those readers not interested in the more academic ideas behind the narrative. Among the ideas covered in the narrative and back matter:
- Tolkien's world-building
- The "Theology of Creation" linking their faith to their writings
- The meaning of real friendship
- Notions of modernity and mythology
- The value of fantasy
- The power of a creative community
- An exploration of the different kinds of storytelling in Narnia and The Lord of the Rings, both relying on "the Myth" as a storytelling device, but differing in the use of allegory vs. symbolism
- The creative differences of Lewis and Tolkien: the high standards of Tolkien's fiction and the faster and more immediate approach of Lewis's
- Logos vs. Mythos: Lewis created from images, Tolkien created from language
- The mixing of mythologies

Also included are an author's note, endnotes, bibliography and index."

That's a LOT for 224 pages to deliver...

The Best Mystery Stories of the Year edited by Anthony Horowitz
Published by: Mysterious Press
Publication Date: September 24th, 2024
Format: Hardcover, 512 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From a pool of over 3,000 considered stories published last year - anything that touched on crime, mystery, and suspense, from venues as disparate as The Strand Magazine, Dark Yonder, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, The Bellevue Literary Review, and more - these are the very best, selected by series editor Otto Penzler and guest editor Anthony Horowitz.

The tales included cover a range of styles, highlighting the diversity of subjects and forms comprising the genre we call mystery fiction. Featuring a mixture of household names, masters of the short form, and newcomers to the field, the collection offers a variety that promises something for every reader. And it's all capped off by a vintage story from the first half of the previous century, sourced directly from the rare book room at the Mysterious Bookshop, the oldest mystery fiction specialty store in the world.

Authors include:
-Ace Atkins
-Michael Bracken
-Fleur Bradley
-Shelley Costa
-Doug Crandell
-Jeffery Deaver
-John Floyd
-Nils Gilbertson
-Peter Hayes
-Shells Legoullon
-Victor Methos
-Leonardo Padura
-Dan Pope
-Annie Reed
-Cameron Sanders
-Anna Scotti
-Archer Sullivan
-Andrew Welsh-Huggins
-Stacy Woodson"

I wonder if Otto gave like Anthony a long list that he had to shorten or does Anthony read that much?

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Ally Carter, Andrea Penrose, Anna Lee Huber, Catherynne M. Valente, Fiona Veitch Smith, Johnny Compton, Katy Watson, Matt Dinniman, Patricia Rice, Tasha Alexander, Val McDermid, Vanessa Riley, Verity Bright