strange and random happenstance

The Christmas Cracker Killer by Alexadra Benedict
Published by: Simon and Schuster UK
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: eBook, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"IT'S THE MOST MURDEROUS TIME OF THE YEAR...

Puzzle compiler and former Christmas sceptic Edie O'Sullivan returns in the newest seasonal mystery from bestselling author and 'Queen of the Christmas Mystery' Alexandra Benedict.

When Edie O'Sullivan wins a two-day Christmas break in a hotel on a remote Scottish island, she's looking forward to a picture-perfect Christmas full of winter walks, roaring fires, good books and even better whisky.

But when a guest dies under mysterious circumstances, Edie realises that there is a killer amongst them. As more guests begin to die, it's up to her to solve the strange riddles found in the victims' Christmas crackers and stop the killing spree. But as she gets closer to the truth, she puts herself in the way of a devious and clever murderer.

Can Edie solve these Christmas killings before she becomes the next victim?"

Cantankerous Edie O'Sullivan is Alexadra Benedict's breakout star. I'm so excited she decided to bring her back for another adventure instead of a different story in this shared universe. Here's hoping she survives another day. 

Withe Friends Like These by Alissa Lee
Published by: Atria/Emily Bestler Books
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 240 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A group of Harvard alums have played a secret game for decades but as the stakes rise, deadly consequences emerge from old lies. An unputdownable debut thriller for readers of the suspenseful novels of Julia Bartz and Katy Hays.

Harvard promised them everything.

Ambitious futures, peers who pushed each other toward their absolute best, and an education that would open doors for the rest of their lives. And though they started out as roommates, Sara, Bee, Dina, Allie, Wesley, and Claudine soon became family. They had their whole bright lives ahead of them - until their senior year, when a shocking tragedy changed everything.

Twenty years later, five of the roommates still indulge in a secret tradition they've kept alive since their campus days: the Circus, a harmless elimination-style "killing" game played across the private rooms and hidden alleys of New York City. The game is a nod to their younger selves and a tribute to the sixth roommate they lost too young. But this year, Sara wants out of the game - until she discovers there is a small fortune awaiting the winner of this final round.

As the Circus unfolds, Sara begins to suspect that the others aren't playing by the rules, and as the danger turns real and the old friends start pointing fingers, she discovers that even those closest to her harbor secrets of their own…secrets that could kill."

Oh, and when money is involved, those who need it, will do anything to obtain it. 

The Devil in Oxford by Jess Armstrong
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Set after the Great War, Jess Armstrong's USA Today bestselling and award-winning series is historical gothic murder mystery at its best, and Ruby Vaughn returns in The Devil in Oxford.

If someone were to ask American heiress Ruby Vaughn how exactly the occult came to play such a large role in her life, she would immediately point to her octogenarian housemate and employer, Mr. Owen. Together, the pair run a rare book shop in Exeter. Mr. Owen's penchant for arcane, unusual - and occasionally illegal - books has been known to get Ruby into her fair share of trouble. And after the last year, she is looking forward to spending a quiet holiday in picturesque Oxford while Mr. Owen attends the annual meeting of his antiquarian society. Secretly, Ruby is also looking for a holiday from her confounding feelings for Ruan Kivell, the intriguing folk healer Pellar that she met in Cornwall.

When Mr. Owen secures two tickets to an upcoming exhibition of artifacts amassed by disgraced scholar Julius Harker, Ruby reluctantly agrees to attend. The evening turns out to be more eventful than either of them bargained for. Harker's dead body is discovered amongst the collection, his business partner is hastily arrested, and Ruan arrives...wanting to speak with Ruby. It seems both the arcane and her Pellar have followed Ruby to Oxford.

The murder case is suspicious at best, but the last thing Ruby wants is another investigation. That is, until an old friend comes begging for Ruby's help. It soon becomes painfully clear that there is more going on in Oxford than meets the eye. Ruby and Ruan will have to uncover the dark secrets of the competitive world of antiquities while trying to understand the peculiar force that keeps drawing them back together."

There's always more than meets the eye going on in Oxford and it's almost always murderous!

The Burning Court by John Dickson Carr
Published by: American Mystery Classics
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 312 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"When Edward Stevens, an editor at Herald and Son's publishing house, learns of the mysterious events that befell his neighbor's rich uncle, he shrugs off their seemingly supernatural circumstances. He's a logical man and doesn't give much credence to claims of a ghostly figure visiting the man before his death, or the witch's ladder discovered under his pillow after he passed.

But as suspicions of strange murder begin to creep in, it becomes harder for Stevens to ignore their eerie potential. His neighbor breaks into the cement-sealed crypt where his uncle is buried, only to learn that the corpse has vanished. Witness testimony further implicates the intrusion of the spirit world into the affair of the murdered uncle, and unsettling echoes of the past into the present push things even further past Stevens' understanding of reality.

Will the events be logically explained, or is there something unexplainable at work? The answer lies in the pages of this atmospheric and haunting puzzler, which finds Carr, the master of the locked room mystery, operating at the peak of his powers."

I've read John Dickson Carr under his rather obvious pseudonym, Carter Dickson, and this man can do spooky supernatural and I can't wait to read The Burning Court! Just because Halloween is over doesn't mean spooky season is!

The Improbable Tales of Baskerville Hall: The Valley of Lies by Ali Standish
Published by: HarperCollins
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In the thrilling and exciting conclusion to the middle grade adventure that is the Improbable Tales of Baskerville Hall trilogy, Arthur travels to the Lakes, a place more mysterious than the enchanting Baskerville Hall itself, and must do the unthinkable: betray his friends and Sherlock Holmes or pay the ultimate price. Perfect for fans of the Winterborne Home for Vengeance and Valor series and the Mysterious Benedict Society series.

Arthur should be happier than ever. Professor Sherlock Holmes has accepted him into the esteemed Circle of Light, and his friendships are stronger than ever. However, Dinah Grey's ominous letter and her dangerous hold over his little sister, Mary, have left Arthur riddled with anxiety. After the annual first-year retreat to the storied Lake District is announced, another letter arrives and makes the key to Mary's salvation clear: Arthur needs to insert himself in Sherlock's upcoming investigation...as Dinah's spy.

While sticking close to Holmes on the trip, Arthur meets George Rankin, one in a long line of protectors of the Brazen Head, a powerful relic whose wearer can ask any question and have it answered. But there are more eyes on Sherlock and the relic than just Grey's. Arthur will have to walk the thin line between truth and deception in order to save his sister, but it might cost him more than he realizes."

I rather melancholy that this series is coming to an end. Perhaps some time spent in the Lake District taking the air would help?

The Best of The Strand Magazine edited by Andrew F. Gulli and Lamia J. Gulli
Published by: Blackstone Publishing
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 468 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Twenty-five stories from twenty-five years of The Strand Magazine, featuring a star-studded line-up of internationally bestselling mystery authors.

The Strand Magazine is a quarterly publication which offers the best of both worlds: publishing previously unpublished works by literary masters such as Shirley Jackson, P.G. Wodehouse, Tennessee Williams, and H.G. Wells, as well as new works of fiction by today's bestselling authors including Ruth Ware, Alexander McCall Smith, Michael Connelly, and Jo Nesbø.

This anthology serves as a celebration of The Strand's rich legacy, bringing together a selection of its most unforgettable tales, including stories by Walter Mosley, Charles Todd, Joyce Carol Oates, R.L. Stine, James Lee Burke, Jeffery Deaver, and Ray Bradbury among others, with an introduction by bestselling author Alexander McCall Smith."

Speaking of Sherlock Holmes...

The Hidden City by Charles Finch
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 288 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Against the vividly drawn backdrop of Victorian London, amateur sleuth Charles Lenox must unlock a mystery concealed in the architecture of the city itself, in this new novel from acclaimed author Charles Finch.

It's 1879, and Lenox is convalescing from the violent events of his last investigation. But a desperate letter from an old servant forces him to pick up the trail of a cold case: the murder of an apothecary seven years before, whose only clue is an odd emblem carved into the doorway of the building where the man was killed. When Lenox finds a similar mark at the site of another murder, he begins to piece together a hidden pattern which leads him into the corridors of Parliament, the slums of East London, and ultimately the very heart of the British upper class.

At the same time, Lenox must contend with the complexities of his personal life: a surprising tension with his steadfast wife, Lady Jane, over her public support of the early movement for women's suffrage; the arrival of Angela Lenox, a mysterious young cousin from India, with an unexpected companion; the dizzying ascent of his brother, Sir Edmund Lenox, to one of the highest political posts in the land; the growing family of his young partners in detection, Polly and Dallington; and the return of the problems that have long bedeviled one of his closest friends, the dashing Scottish physician Thomas McConnell.

Featuring a beloved cast of characters, a top-notch puzzle, and Finch's trademark humor and richness of historical detail, The Hidden City is a novel by a master at the top of his form."

I want to weep with joy for the proper use of suffrage versus suffragette! 

Where There's Room for Us by Hayley Kiyoko
Published by: Wednesday Books
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In Where There's Room for Us, #1 New York Times bestselling author Hayley Kiyoko brings us a young adult novel set in a reimagined 1880s Victorian England where everyone is free to love whoever they choose.

When her brother unexpectedly inherits an English estate, the outspoken and infamously daring poet, Ivy, swaps her lively New York life for the prim and proper world of high society, and quickly faces the challenges of its revered traditions - especially once she meets the most sought-after socialite of the courting season: Freya Tallon.

Freya's life has always been mapped out for her: marry a wealthy lord, produce heirs, and protect the family's noble status. But when she unexpectedly takes her sister's place on a date with Ivy, everything changes. For the first time, she feels the kind of spark she's always dreamed of.

As Ivy and Freya's connection deepens, both are caught between desire and duty. How much are they willing to risk to be true to themselves - and to each other?

Inspired by Hayley Kiyoko's own experiences and classic favorites like Little Women and Pride and Prejudice, Where There's Room for Us is a romance set in a world where society's expectations are everything - but love is so much more."

I love the tension between being allowed to love whoever you choose and yet inheritance law is still the same so you need heirs and thus a "traditional" marriage. 

These Violet Delights by Madeleine Roux
Published by: Dell
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Can a star-crossed pair overcome a simmering family feud for a chance at love, in this stunning Regency romance from New York Times bestselling author Madeleine Roux?

Violet Arden is a burgeoning painter who insists on a life of passion, but scandal is heaped on humiliation at her artistic debut in London. It would be one thing to withstand withering critiques, but the night goes from bad to worse when an illicit affair with her art instructor is exposed. She flees the London limelight to her cousin Emilia Graddock's country estate, where she plans to leave all thoughts of love in the past where they belong...until she comes face-to-face with the man who scorned her paintings in front of her friends and family, Alasdair Kerr.

Alasdair has recently set aside his life of travel to return to his family's estate - the site of a tragic fire that claimed his cherished father's life. He’s finally ready to rebuild the home that was lost and step into his role as man of the house. But his rakish younger brother Freddie can't seem to leave the off-limits Graddock woman alone, and his mother has brought an overbearing clergyman into their home who appears keen to stick around.

Violet is determined to ignore Alasdair, which shouldn't be difficult considering that their families have been in a long-standing feud...if only their attempts to end Emilia and Freddie's secret relationship would stop bringing them together. And when new fires threaten their safety, Violet and Alasdair reluctantly join forces to uncover the identity of the arsonist. But can they ignore the feelings kindling between them, which are but an ember away from igniting into a full blaze?"

Don't be so cliched as to have an affair with your art instructor!

Introducing Mrs. Collins by Rachel Parris
Published by: Little Brown and Company
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a woman deserves to be the heroine of her own story.

Charlotte Lucas has never been a romantic. Practical to a fault, she accepted Mr. Collins's proposal with clear eyes and a steady heart, trading passion for security. Life at Hunsford Parsonage may be quiet and predictable, but it is hers to manage - and she's determined to make the best of it, whatever her friend Elizabeth Bennet may think.

That is, until an unexpected guest at nearby Rosings Park turns Charlotte's careful world on its head. He sees her, challenges her, and a spark is lit.

Torn between what she must do and what she truly desires, Charlotte finds herself at the center of a story she never expected to be hers. A tale of love, loss, and second chances, Introducing Mrs. Collins is for anyone who wondered if there was more to the sensible character we met in Pride and Prejudice. It is the story of a woman who had written herself out of her own life and is only now daring to want more."

I've always been cheering on Charlotte Lucas from the shadows!

Ladies in Waiting by Adriana Trigiani, Sarah MacLean, Eloisa James, Elinor Lipman, Audrey Bellezza, Karen Dukess, Emily Harding, Nikki Payne, and Diana Quincy
Published by: Gallery Books
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Celebrate Jane Austen's classic novels with this short story anthology starring forgotten characters as they experience their own happy endings.

In honor of her 250th birthday, eight authors have come together with wildly imaginative reboots of the lives of several of Jane Austen's minor characters. Written with plenty of love and wit, these clever stories star everyone from Pride and Prejudice's snobbish Caroline Bingley to the modern descendant of Sense and Sensibility's Eliza Williams and much more. Blurring genres and taking us across the oceans, Ladies in Waiting is a heartfelt celebration of Jane Austen and her timeless masterpieces."

Just look at that list of authors and you can see why this is a must for any Janeite's bookshelf! 

The Lady on Esplanade by Karen White
Published by: Berkley
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 416 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"People and secrets from the past threaten to disrupt Nola Trenholm's new life in New Orleans in the third novel of the Royal Street series by New York Times bestselling author Karen White.

Nola is ready to focus on starting over in the Big Easy. She wants to get back to work on the renovations of her Creole cottage, and she is eager to launch a new murder-house-flipping business with contractor, closet psychic, and part-time nemesis Beau Ryan. After a near-death ghostly encounter and the return of Beau's missing sister, they are confident that the ghost of his mother can finally rest.

Nola believes the shotgun house on famed Esplanade Avenue is a prime fixer-upper for her first project. It may have been the site of a woman's murder and the disappearance of an entire family, but the house will be perfect for new-to-town Cooper Ravenel - who happens to have caused Nola's first heartbreak.

That's the least of Nola's worries, though. In addition to the elusive spirit of an angry young woman who accompanied Cooper to New Orleans, the house on Esplanade has its own ghosts, including one that is becoming increasingly dangerous as he tries to hide his dark secrets. And the wet footprints from the spirit of Beau's mother have returned to let them know there is still unfinished business before she can rest. Spectral danger is headed toward them, and it's up to Nola to convince Beau to help before it's too late...."

After reading some Anne Rice recently I very much want to read more books set in New Orleans definitely not written by Anne Rice. Praise be for Karen White!

Days at the Torunka Café by Satoshi Yagisawa
Published by: Harper Perennial
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 240 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the internationally bestselling author of the Morisaki Bookshop novels comes a charming and poignant story set at a quiet Tokyo café where customers find unexpected connection and experience everyday miracles.

Tucked away on a narrow side street in Tokyo is the Torunka Café, a neighborhood nook where the passersby are as likely to be local cats as tourists. Its regulars include Chinatsu Yukimura, a mysterious young woman who always leaves behind a napkin folded into the shape of a ballerina; Hiroyuki Numata, a middle-aged man who's returned to the neighborhood searching for the happy life he once gave up; and Shizuku, the café owner's teenage daughter, who is still coming to terms with her sister's death as she falls in love for the first time.

While Café Torunka serves up a perfect cup of coffee, it provides these sundry souls with nourishment far more lasting. Satoshi Yagisawa brilliantly illuminates the periods in our lives where we feel lost - and how we find our way again."

I think I need to go here. I'm feeling lost and I would love the local cats passing by. 

A Time Traveler's History of Tomorrow by Kendall Kulper
Published by: Holiday House
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A time-bending love story between a prickly young woman and a carefree stranger, who are tasked with saving the universe - after accidentally destroying it in the first place.

Genevieve Newhouse and Ash Hargreaves weren't supposed to meet like this. Unless it was always meant to be...

Gen is a fastidious science prodigy with a chip on her shoulder, and she can turn herself invisible.

Happy-go-lucky Ash has just escaped a sheltered (read: cultish) childhood, and he can manipulate time.

The gifted eighteen-year-olds cross paths at the 1934 Chicago World's Fair, where Genevieve's experimental physics project causes an apocalyptic explosion. Ash tries to avert catastrophe by gallantly rewinding time a few minutes, but instead, he transports them back to 1893. The duo finds themselves trapped in an unfamiliar, unwelcoming era, with no idea how to return to their own time - or if their own time even exists. Their cataclysmic leap across decades might have destroyed the world as they know it...

Fate and free will intertwine in this page turning historical romance that sets two irresistible strangers down a chaotic, potentially apocalyptic path. "Will they or won't they" takes on a whole new meaning as Gen and Ash fight for survival while falling in love.

Hand to fans of Immortal Longings and Anatomy: A Love Story, and don’t miss companion novels Murder for the Modern Girl and A Starlet's Secret to a Sensational Afterlife."

Also for those craving more Loki.

The Ivory City by Emily Bain Murphy
Published by: Union Square and Co.
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The Devil in the White City meets Pride and Prejudice in this romantic historical murder mystery set at the 1904 World's Fair.

The St. Louis World's Fair, 1904:

A miniature city of palaces and pavilions that becomes a backdrop for romance, betrayal - and murder.

Cousins Grace and Lillie have been best friends since birth, despite Grace's vastly inferior social status ever since her mother married for love instead of wealth. When Lillie invites Grace to the biggest event of the century - the legendary World's Fair, also known as "The Ivory City" - Grace hopes her fortunes might be about to change.

But when a member of their party is brutally killed at the fair, and suspicion falls on Lillie's brother Oliver, Grace must prove Oliver's innocence before her beloved cousins' family is ruined forever. Along the way, she'll discover that the city's wealthy elite - including Oliver's handsome but irritable friend Theodore - aren't quite who they appear to be. And amidst the glitz, glamor, and magic of the Ivory City lurks a danger that just may claim her life."

Why don't we have these kinds of fairs anymore? Were there really just too many serial killers? Because I'd say at least half of those are just fictional. Possibly. 

The Fault Mirror by Catherine Fearns
Published by: Quill and Crow Publishing House
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 264 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Everyone sees the house they want to see...

Paris, 1900: Amidst the decadence of the Belle Époque, American heiress Lydia Temple falls in love with ethereal aristocrat Séraphine de Valleiry, and builds her a whimsical castle in the Swiss mountains. The Chateau des Miroirs becomes a bastion of spiritualism until it is taken over by sinister forces during the First World War. And then it disappears. Or did it ever really exist?

Oxford, 2035: Elderly professor Cyrus Field is rapidly losing his sight and his will to live, when student Haydn Young presents him with a collection of letters previously lost to history. These letters may contain the answer to the philosophical problem that has been his life's work. But does he really want to know the truth? With war closing in, Cyrus and Haydn must decide whether to risk everything in the quest for knowledge. The mystery of the Chateau des Miroirs reverberates through the generations, connecting two souls that are destined to find each other."

I mean, a disappearing castle where spiritualism reigned? Go find that place and tell me all about it because I am so not going because it's haunted as hell.

The Great Work by Sheldon Costa
Published by: Quirk Books
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"An alchemist and his teenage nephew hunt down a legend in this profound and unsettling speculative Western, for fans of Karen Russell and Victor LaValle.

Alone in a frontier town in the nineteenth-century Pacific Northwest, Gentle Montgomery is grieving his best friend. Liam was an alchemist, killed when he tried to capture a creature that shouldn't exist: a giant salamander that drives men mad. When Gentle's nephew, Kitt, arrives at his doorstep, the two set out together to track the monster down so they can use its blood in an alchemical formula that will bring Liam back to life.

It's a hard and haunted journey. The salamander produces surreal nightmares and waking dreams of a blighted, burning future. And Gentle and Kitt soon find themselves pursued by a bloodthirsty hunter, a sadistic judge, and a doomsday cult, all of whom have their own plans for the river monster. Armed with nothing but Liam's alchemical notebooks, they must not only find the salamander but learn to understand it - and the terrifying visions it causes - before it's too late. And as Gentle struggles to comprehend this harrowing experience, it becomes clear that the Great Work of the alchemists may pale in comparison to the small work of human connection.

Sheldon Costa's dark, vivid, and strangely hopeful debut novel is a supernatural adventure through the wilderness of friendship and the rotten heart of the early American empire."

Ever since I first read of this book in a weekly newsletter from Waterstones I have been desperate for it's release. Now it's finally here!

The House Saphir by Marissa Meyer
Published by: Feiwel and Friends
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 432 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The "Queen of Fairytale Retellings" is back! #1 New York Times bestselling author Marissa Meyer weaves the tale of Bluebeard as it's never been told before. This is a thrilling romantasy and murder mystery, perfect for fans Meyer's Cinder and Heartless.

Mallory Fontaine is a fraud. Though she comes from a long line of witches, the only magic she possesses is the ability to see ghosts, which is rarely as useful as one would think. She and her sister have maintained the family business, eking out a paltry living by selling bogus spells to gullible buyers and conducting tours of the infamous mansion where the first of the Saphir murders took place.

Mallory is a self-proclaimed expert on Count Bastien Saphir - otherwise known as Monsieur Le Bleu - who brutally killed three of his wives more than a century ago. But she never expected to meet Bastien's great-great grandson and heir to the Saphir estate. Armand is handsome, wealthy, and convinced that the Fontaine Sisters are as talented as they claim. The perfect mark. When he offers Mallory a large sum of money to rid his ancestral home of Le Bleu's ghost, she can't resist. A paid vacation at Armand's country manor? It's practically a dream come true, never mind the ghosts of murdered wives and the monsters that are as common as household pests.

But when murder again comes to the House Saphir, Mallory finds herself at the center of the investigation - and she is almost certain the killer is mortal. If she has any hope of cashing in on the payment she was promised, she'll have to solve the murder and banish the ghost, all while upholding the illusion of witchcraft.

But that all sounds relatively easy compared to her biggest challenge: learning to trust her heart. Especially when the person her heart wants the most might be a murderer himself."

I mean, I'm here for everything Marissa Meyer, but Bluebeard and ghosts!?! This is more than I could ever have hoped for!

Throne in the Dark by A.K. Caggiano
Published by: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Publication Date: November 4th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 512 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"For fans of Kimberly Lemming and The Princess Bride comes the first book in A.K. Caggiano's Villains & Virtues series, following the son of a demon on his way to fulfill his dark legacy, and the blonde pickpocket he accidentally magically links to him along the way.

Dark lord, demon spawn, prophesied realm destroyer.

With a demon for a father, Damien Maleficus Bloodthorne's destiny could be nothing short of nefarious. On the cusp of fulfilling the evil inevitability his dark life has led to, all it will take to solidify world domination is the completion of his most vicious spell yet.

But then, her. Bubbly, obnoxious, blonde.

Harboring secrets of her own, a tiny yet troublesome thief calling herself Amma completely upsets Damien's malevolent plans when she mistakenly gets chained to his side through magic. Forced to drag her across the realm on his unholy crusade, Damien knows that killing her would fix things, of course, but the nauseatingly sweet Amma somehow begins to prove herself useful. And worse yet, she then proves herself the source of something even more sinister: feelings.

Torn between his villainous birthright and the virtue Amma insists on inspiring, Damien will have to decide if he will help the tender thorn in his side or cut it out at the heart."

Catching feelings are the worst when you're a dark lord!

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: A.K. Caggiano, Alexadra Benedict, Ali Standish, Charles Finch, Jane Austen, Jess Armstrong, John Dickson Carr, Karen White, Kendall Kulper, Madeleine Roux, Marissa Meyer, Satoshi Yagisawa, Sheldon Costa, The Strand

With a Vengeance by Riley Sager
Published by: Dutton
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"One train. No stops. A deadly game of survival and revenge.

In 1942, six people destroyed Anna Matheson's family. Twelve years later, she's ready for retribution.

Under false pretenses, Anna has lured those responsible for her family's downfall onto a luxury train from Philadelphia to Chicago, an overnight journey of thirteen hours. Her goal? Confront the people who've wronged her, get them to confess their crimes, and deliver them into the hands of authorities waiting at the end of the line. Justice will at last be served.

But Anna's plan is quickly derailed by the murder of one of the passengers. As the train barrels through the night, it becomes clear that someone else on board is enacting their own form of revenge - and that they won't stop until everyone else is dead.

With time running out before the train reaches its destination, Anna is forced to hunt the killer in their midst while protecting the people she hates the most. In order to destroy her enemies, she must first save them - even though it means putting her own life at risk."

The new Riley Sager book is out, which means summer is FINALLY here!

A Botanist's Guide to Rituals and Revenge by Kate Khavari
Published by: Crooked Lane Books
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Brilliant botanist Saffron Everleigh faces her hardest challenge yet when she returns to her childhood home in the fourth book in the charming Saffron Everleigh mystery series.

Saffron Everleigh returns to Ellington Manor after her grandfather suffers a heart attack. Back in her childhood home for the first time in years, Saffron faces tense family relationships made worse by the presence of the enigmatic Bill Wyatt, hired on as a doctor to the ailing Lord Easting. But the man is no doctor - in reality, he is a mysterious figure involved in the trafficking of dangerous government secrets, and his presence at Ellington can only mean trouble.

When their neighbors, the Hales, invite a spiritual medium into the village who starts angling for Saffron's mother's attention, Saffron realizes that there is more afoot in her hometown than she originally thought. Not to mention inviting Alexander to Ellington has put their budding relationship under her family's microscope.

As tensions rise at Ellington, Bill demands that Saffron hand over old research documents belonging to her late father. With her relatives under his power as their 'doctor,' Saffron fears she may be forced to surrender the files along with her hopes of ever understanding her father's obscure legacy. Nothing and no one is as they seem at Ellington. It's through the perfumed haze of the séance's smoke that Saffron must search for the truth before it's too late."

SPIRITUAL MEDIUM! YAS!

London Particular by Christianna Brand
Published by: Poisoned Pen Press
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 288 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"First published in 1952, London Particular was Christianna Brand's favorite among her own books, and it remains a fast-paced and witty masterpiece of the genre, showing off the author's signature flair for the ruthless twist. This edition includes an introduction by CWA Diamond Dagger and Edgar(R) Award-winning author Martin Edwards.

Night falls in the capital, and a "London particular" pea-souper fog envelops the city. In Maida Vale, Rose and her family doctor Tedward struggle through the dark after a man has telephoned from Rose's house, claiming to have been attacked. By the time they arrive, the victim, Raoul Vernet, is dead. The news he brought from Switzerland for Rose's mother has died with him.

Arriving to the scene, Inspector Cockrill faces a fiendish case with seven suspects who could have murdered their guest - family members and friends with alibis muddled by the suffocating fog and motives wrapped in mystery. Now, the race is on to find the truth before the killer strikes again."

She sure had wit to name here characters Tedward and Cockrill!

The English Masterpiece by Katherine Reay
Published by: Harper Muse
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Set in the art world of 1970s London, The English Masterpiece is a fast-paced read to the end, full of glamour and secrets, tensions and lies, as one young woman races against the clock to uncover the truth about a Picasso masterpiece. Perfect for fans of Kate Quinn and Ariel Lawhon.

As the recently promoted assistant to the Tate's Modern Collections keeper Diana Gilden, Lily helps plan a world-class Picasso exhibit to honor the passing of the great artist - and she's waited her whole life for this moment. The opening is beyond anyone's expectations - the lighting, the champagne, the glittering crowd, and the international acclaim - until Lily does the unthinkable. She stops in front of a masterpiece and hears her own voice say, "It's a forgery." The gallery falls silent.

Lily's boss, Diana, is polished perfection, schooled in art, and descends from European high society. She's worked hard to become the trusted voice in London's modern art scene and respected across the Continent. The Tate's Picasso Commemorative is to be her crowning achievement, featuring not only the artist's most iconic and intimate works, but a newly discovered painting - one she advised an investor to purchase. But when Lily makes her outrageous declaration, suspicion and scandal threaten everything Diana has achieved, as museums and collectors across Europe, already doubting most post-war acquisitions, fall into chaos and rumors of a world-wide forgery run wild.

All Lily has ever wanted is to follow in Diana's footsteps and take the art world by storm in her own right. Yet one comment puts not only her own career at risk but also her mentor's. Unless...Was she right? With the clock ticking and the clues starting to pile up against her, Lily must uncover the truth behind the Picasso before she loses not only the career she's always wanted, but her freedom.

Block off your calendar and lose yourself in The English Masterpiece, a thrilling read that will keep you on the edge of your seat till the very end from the author who brought you The London House and The Berlin Letters."

Art world, check. Forgeries, check. Period drama, check!

A Murder for Miss Hortense by Mel Pennant
Published by: Pantheon
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Retired nurse, avid gardener, and renowned cake maker Miss Hortense has lived in Bigglesweigh, a quiet suburb of Birmingham, England, since she emigrated from Jamaica in 1960. She takes great pride in her home, starching her lace curtains bright white, and she can tell if she's being shortchanged on turmeric before she's taken her first bite of a beef patty. A career in nursing has also left her afraid of nobody, whether an interfering priest or a local drug dealer, and she's an expert in deciphering other people's secrets with just a glance.

Miss Hortense once used her skills to benefit the Pardner network - a local group of Black investors that she helped found. Until, that is, she was unceremoniously ousted from its ranks, severing her ties to the majority of her friends and community. That was thirty years ago. Now, as a new millennium dawns, an unidentified man has been found dead in the home of one of the Pardner members, a Bible quote written on a note beside his body. Suddenly, Miss Hortense finds her long-buried past rushing back, bringing memories of the worst moment of her life - and secrets behind an unsolved crime that has haunted her for decades.

It is finally time for Miss Hortense to solve a mystery that will see her and the community she loves pushed to their limits. The first novel from a bold, brilliant new voice, A Murder for Miss Hortense introduces a fear-less sleuth whom readers will never forget."

Trust me, this will be a television series before long. Read it now!

Death at the White Hart by Chris Chibnall
Published by: Pamela Dorman Books
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the internationally award-winning creator of Broadchurch comes a brilliant new detective story following one man's death and the secrets that unravel in a coastal English village.

Nothing keeps a village together like secrets.

The villagers of Fleetcombe like to think of it as one of the most picturesque spots on England's coast.

But now, it's a disturbingly macabre crime scene.

A man is found dead, tied to a chair in the middle of the road, a stag's antlers on his head. The gruesome scene stuns the town, especially when the victim is identified: Jim Tiernan, who ran the White Hart pub. Tiernan's pub is at the center of village life and he knew everyone's secrets.

Detective Nicola Bridge grew up in Fleetcombe and has now returned, for the good of her family, from a life away in Liverpool. DC Harry Ward is ten years younger and, despite his newcomer status, determined to earn Nicola's trust. Because they don't have long to crack the storybook façade and find out just what the people of Fleetcombe have to hide.

And now, in the place she thought she knew so well, Detective Nicola Bridge is asking questions. Is she ready for what she's about to find?"

Remember when simply everyone was obsessed with Broadchurch? You will be well obsessed with this, only you won't to wait for weekly installments, how quickly you finish is up to you and how fast you can read.

Welcome to Murder Week by Karen Dukess
Published by: Gallery/Scout Press
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In this delightfully funny and heartfelt new novel from the author of the "bittersweet page-turner" (The New York Times) The Last Book Party, an American woman travels to the English countryside when she discovers tickets her late mother had purchased for a murder mystery simulation in a small British town.

When thirty-four-year-old Cath loses her mostly absentee mother, she is ambivalent. With days of quiet, unassuming routine in Buffalo, New York, Cath consciously avoids the impulsive, thrill-seeking lifestyle that her mother once led. But when she's forced to go through her mother's things one afternoon, Cath is perplexed to find tickets for an upcoming "murder week" in England's Peak District: a whole town has come together to stage a fake murder mystery to attract tourism to their quaint hamlet. Baffled but helplessly intrigued by her mother's secret purchase, Cath decides to go on the trip herself - and begins a journey she never could have anticipated.

Teaming up with her two cottage-mates, both ardent mystery lovers - Wyatt Green, forty, who works unhappily in his husband's birding store, and Amity Clark, fifty, a divorced romance writer struggling with her novels - Cath sets about solving the "crime" and begins to unravel shocking truths about her mother along the way. Amidst a fling - or something more - with the handsome local maker of artisanal gin, Cath and her irresistibly charming fellow sleuths will find this week of fake murder may help them face up to a very real crossroads in their own lives.

Witty, wise, and deliciously escapist, Welcome to Murder Week is a fresh, inventive twist on the murder mystery and a touching portrayal of one daughter's reckoning with her grief, her past - and her own budding sense of adventure."

But, what if it was also a culling of the tourists dumb enough to come?

Kill You Darlings by Peter Swanson
Published by: William Morrow
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 288 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the New York Times bestselling author of The Kind Worth Killing and Eight Perfect Murders comes an inventive, utterly propulsive murder-mystery in reverse, tracing a marriage back in time to uncover the dark secret at its heart.

Thom and Wendy Graves have been married for over twenty-five years. They live in a beautiful Victorian on the north shore of Massachusetts. Wendy is a published poet and Thom teaches English literature at a nearby university. Their son, Jason, is all grown up. All is well…except that Wendy wants to murder her husband.

What happens next has everything to do with what happened before. The story of Wendy and Thom's marriage is told in reverse, moving backward through time to witness key moments from the couple's lives - their fiftieth birthday party, buying their home, Jason's birth, the mysterious death of a work colleague - all painting a portrait of a marriage defined by a single terrible act they plotted together many years ago.

Eventually we learn the details of what Thom and Wendy did in their early twenties, a secret that has kept them bound together through the length of their marriage. But its power over them is fraying, and each of them begins to wonder if they would be better off making sure their spouse carries their secrets to the grave."

Murder looming as trust frays? Oh yes.

A Most Puzzling Murder by Bianca Marais
Published by: Mira Books
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 480 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"How do you solve a murder that hasn't happened yet?

Destiny Whip is a former child prodigy, world-renowned enigmatologist and very, very alone. A life filled with loss has made her a recluse, an existence she's content to endure until a letter arrives inviting her to interview for the position of Scruffmore family historian. Not only does an internet search for the name yield almost nothing, it's a role she never applied to in the first place!

She decodes the invitation's hidden message with ease, and its promise to reveal her family secrets proves too powerful a draw for the orphaned Destiny, who soon finds herself on Eerie Island. It's a place whose inhabitants are almost as inhospitable as the tempestuous weather. The Scruffmores themselves turn out to be not much better, a snarled mess of secrets and motives connected by their mistrust for one another.

Their newly arrived guest proves to be just as much an enigma to them as they are to her. While Destiny slowly works to unravel the mysteries hidden throughout the ominous castle, she struggles to interpret disturbing nightly visions of what is to come. In the midst of cryptic ciphers, hidden passages, and the family's magical line of succession, Destiny is certain of two things: one of the Scruffmores is going to die and she's running out of time to stop it.

Interspersed with riddles and puzzles that both Destiny and the reader must solve, A Most Puzzling Murder is a one-of-a-kind mystery that will leave you guessing and gasping until the very last page!"

I'm all for working to solve the crime!

The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Scream meets The Guest List in this wickedly compelling and compulsively page-turning thriller of friendship and murder from the author of The Lost Village, Camilla Sten.

On a remote island nestled off the coast of Sweden, four friends - Tilly, Anna, Linnea, and Evelina - meet every year. Best friends since childhood, the idea is to drink beer, dance by the water, and shake off the weight of life's expectations. The location of the island is a secret to everyone but them. One night of reckless fun and secret-sharing, and then they return to their normal lives.

Ten Years Later. Ever since she was a teenager, Tessa Nilsson has been consumed by the story of four friends who disappeared. As her true crime fervor turned into a wildly popular podcast, Tessa covered Sweden's most gruesome cases, but could never find the answers behind what happened to these women who disappeared. Now Tessa's podcast has crashed and burned, any chance she had at uncovering the truth vanishing with it.

Anneliese is Tessa's best friend, and before she walks down the aisle, she wants to have a bachelorette party. The destination: Baltic Vinyasa, a sleek, sophisticated yoga retreat on a small island off the coast - one with such similar characteristics to the tragedy years ago that it raises the hair on Tessa's neck. The idea is to drink gallons of cava, do sunrise yoga, and get in their last chance to bond with the bride. Tessa will not pass this up. It's her last chance to find out what happened to the four women, once and for all.

And it's someone else's last chance to get revenge."

Oh, mysterious spa of death!

Foreclosure Gothic by Harris Lahti
Published by: Astra House
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 240 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A multigenerational and deeply autobiographical Gothic tale of Hollywood dreams and upstate New York reality.

Foreclosure Gothic reimagines the American Gothic against the backdrop of today's Hudson Valley. The story tells of ex-Hollywood actor Vic Greener as he falls in love with the elusive Heather Roswell and the couple, following in the footsteps of Vic's father, resolves to make a life restoring one foreclosed home after another. Then comes the uncanny, destabilizing arrival of new tenants in their duplex, and the Greener's shocking discovery upon their departure.

With evocative and unsettling black and white photos throughout, this debut novel is at once a skewed portrait of three generations of Greener men, an intimate look at both childhood and parenthood and an examination of the friction between chasing one's dream and working to make money."

The title alone is so evocative of today's America. 

We Can Never Leave by H.E. Edgmon
Published by: Wednesday Books
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Sweet Tooth meets The Raven Boys in this queer young adult contemporary fantasy about what it means to belong from H.E. Edgmon.

You can never go home...

Every day, all across the world, inhuman creatures are waking up with no memory of who they are or where they came from - and the Caravan exists to help them. The traveling community is made up of these very creatures and their families who've acclimated to this new existence by finding refuge in each other. That is, until the morning five teenage travelers wake to find their community has disappeared overnight.

Those left: a half-human who only just ran back to the Caravan with their tail between their legs, two brothers - one who can't seem to stay out of trouble and the other who's never been brave enough to get in it, a venomous girl with blood on her hands and a heart of gold, and the Caravan's newest addition, a disquieting shadow in the shape of a boy. They'll have to work together to figure out what happened the night of the disappearance, but each one of the forsaken five is white-knuckling their own secrets. And with each truth forced to light, it becomes clear this isn't really about what happened to their people - it's about what happened to them."

But keep in mind, what happened to their people could be what's about to happen to them...

A Girl Walks into the Forest by Madeleine Roux
Published by: Quill Tree Books
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Midsommar meets The Shadows Between Us in this alluring mash-up of horror and fairy tale from New York Times bestselling author Madeleine Roux, where a girl must embark on a harrowing journey through a deadly forest filled with otherworldly creatures, supernatural forces, and one maniacal villain who will stop at nothing to bring her down.

For as long as she can remember, Valla's been told her beauty would give her a life most people only dreamed of. So when the mysterious Count Leonid calls on her to be his betrothed, Valla jumps at the chance to leave her small, bleak village. The only thing standing in her way? The journey through the dangerous Gottyar Wood that many don't survive.

Filled with deadly and cunning creatures, the Gottyar immediately delivers on its reputation with an attack that leaves Valla injured; her face torn to shreds. Barely making it to the castle in one piece, Valla is relieved to finally be safe. But things have changed. Valla's face is no longer beautiful. And the Count is not happy...Valla thought making it through the Gottyar was a victory, but when she sees what awaits beyond the palace walls, the true battle begins.

In this ruthlessly female-forward narrative that borrows from the best of horror, fairy tales, and folklore, a chewed-up-and-spit-out heroine must lean on the brutality of nature and her biggest fears in order to win back what's she's been robbed of: her life."

Time for a little fairy tale female empowerment. 

The House of Two Sisters by Rachel Louise Driscoll
Published by: Ballantine Books
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A young Victorian Egyptologist traverses the Nile River on a mission to undo a curse that may have befallen her family in this spellbinding novel.

Essex, 1887. Clementine's ability to read hieroglyphs makes her invaluable at her father's Egyptian relic parties, which have become the talk of the town. But at one such party, the words she interprets from an unusual amulet strike fear into her heart. As her childhood games about Isis and Nephthys - sister goddesses who protect the dead - take on a devastating resonance in her life, and tragedy slowly consumes her loved ones, she wonders what she and her father may have unleashed.

Five years later, Clemmie arrives in Cairo desperate to save what remains of her family back home. There, she meets a motley crew of unwitting English travelers about to set sail down the Nile - including an adventurer with secrets of his own - and joins them on a mission to reach Denderah, a revered religious site, where she hopes to return the amulet and atone for her sins.

With each passing day, she is further engulfed in a life she's yearned for all along. But as long-buried secrets and betrayals rise to the surface, Clemmie must reconcile the impossibility of living in the light while her past keeps her anchored to the darkness."

I mean, obviously I'm over the moon, because Egypt! But also, I'm oddly drawn by the Essex of it all.

The Palace of Illusions by Rowenna Miller
Published by: Redhook
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 480 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The Palace of Illusions brings readers to a Paris breathless with excitement at the dawn of the twentieth century, where for a select few there is a second, secret Paris where the magic of the City of Light is very real in this enchanting and atmospheric fantasy from the author of The Fairy Bargains of Prospect Hill.

In the run up to the 1900s World's Fair Paris is abuzz with creative energy and innovation. Audiences are spellbound by the Lumiere brothers' moving pictures and Loie Fuller's serpentine dance fusing art and technology. But for Clara Ironwood, a talented and pragmatic clockworker, nothing compares to the magic of her godfather's mechanical creations, and she'd rather spend her days working on the Palace of Illusions, an intricate hall of mirrors that is one of the centerpieces of the world's fair.

When her godfather sends Clara a hideous nutcracker for Christmas, she is puzzled until she finds a hidden compartment that unlocks a mirror-world Paris where the Seine is musical, fountains spout lemonade, and mechanical ballerinas move with human grace. The magic of her godfather's toys was real.

As Clara explores this other Paris and begins to imbue her own creations with its magic, she soon discovers a darker side to innovation. Suspicious men begin to approach her outside of work, and she could swear a shadow is following her. There's no ignoring the danger she's in, but Clara doesn't know who to trust. The magic of the two Parises are colliding and Clara must find the strength within herself to save them both."

A World's Fair is catnip to me, through in some Nutcracker magic, and I'm so in.

The Lamplighter's Bookshop by Sophie Austin
Published by: HarperCollins
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 368 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Every book tells a story. Every heart hides a secret.

In the shadowy aisles of the Lamplighter's Bookshop, secrets lie as thick as the dust...

When Evelyn Seaton answers an advertisement for an assistant at a forgotten bookshop in York, she is not the only one with something to hide.

There she meets the enigmatic and prickly William Morton, an aspiring writer keeping secrets of his own. But when the walls that Evelyn has built around herself start to crumble, there is only one person she can turn to.

As the layers are brushed away, can Evelyn and William find the courage to write the next chapter of their story?

The Lost Bookshop meets The Lost Apothecary in a beguiling novel full of secrets..."

I will always read book set in York because of it's connection to Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell.

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab
Published by: Tor Books
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 544 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From V. E. Schwab, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue: a new genre-defying novel about immortality and hunger.

This is a story about hunger.
1532. Santo Domingo de la Calzada.
A young girl grows up wild and wily - her beauty is only outmatched by her dreams of escape. But María knows she can only ever be a prize, or a pawn, in the games played by men. When an alluring stranger offers an alternate path, María makes a desperate choice. She vows to have no regrets.

This is a story about love.
1827. London.
A young woman lives an idyllic but cloistered life on her family's estate, until a moment of forbidden intimacy sees her shipped off to London. Charlotte's tender heart and seemingly impossible wishes are swept away by an invitation from a beautiful widow - but the price of freedom is higher than she could have imagined.

This is a story about rage.
2019. Boston.
College was supposed to be her chance to be someone new. That's why Alice moved halfway across the world, leaving her old life behind. But after an out-of-character one-night stand leaves her questioning her past, her present, and her future, Alice throws herself into the hunt for answers...and revenge.

This is a story about life -
how it ends, and how it starts."

Make sure to order now because ALL first editions are signed!

Doctor Who Icons: Shirley Jackson and the Chaos Box by Kalynn Bayron
Published by: Penguin Group UK
Publication Date: June 10th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 160 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The best stories should never be unwritten...

When a strange signal echoes through time to the heart of the TARDIS, the Doctor follows it to the home of Shirley Jackson. But the strangeness deepens when they find a sinister figure sowing chaos and discord with the use of a glowing box - encouraging a crowd to murderous deeds.

Catapulted back to Shirley Jackson's own era by the TARDIS, the Doctor (with the help of the time-struck author) must discover the origins of the box, and the terrible power that it wields..."

Wait, The Doctor meets Shirley Jackson!?! In a book meant for eight to twelve-year-olds? What the actual fuck.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Bianca Marais, Camilla Sten, Chris Chibnall, Doctor Who, H.E. Edgmon, Harris Lahti, Kate Khavari, Madeleine Roux, Peter Swanson, Rachel Louise Driscoll, Riley Sager, Rowenna Miller, Sophie Austin, V.E. Schwab

Beautiful on the Outside by Adam Rippon
Published by: Grand Central Publishing
Publication Date: October 15th, 2019
Format: Hardcover, 256 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Former Olympic figure skater and self-professed America's Sweetheart Adam Rippon shares his underdog journey from beautiful mess to outrageous success in this hilarious, big-hearted memoir.

Your mom probably told you it's what on the inside that counts. Well, then she was never a competitive figure skater. Olympic medalist Adam Rippon has been making it pretty for the judges even when, just below the surface, everything was an absolute mess. From traveling to practices on the Greyhound bus next to ex convicts to being so poor he could only afford to eat the free apples at his gym, Rippon got through the toughest times with a smile on his face, a glint in his eye, and quip ready for anyone listening. Beautiful on the Outside looks at his journey from a homeschooled kid in Scranton, Pennsylvania, to a self-professed American sweetheart on the world stage and all the disasters and self-delusions it took to get him there. Yeah, it may be what's on the inside that counts, but life is so much better when it's beautiful on the outside."

Adam is one of the authors coming to the Wisconsin Book Festival this year and for me is not only it's highlight, but the entire reason there's a festival this year!

Dear Girls by Ali Wong
Published by: Random House
Publication Date: October 15th, 2019
Format: Hardcover, 240 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Ali Wong’s heartfelt and hilarious letters to her daughters (the two she put to work while they were still in utero) cover everything they need to know in life, like the unpleasant details of dating, how to be a working mom in a male-dominated profession, and how she trapped their dad.

In her hit Netflix comedy special Baby Cobra, an eight-month pregnant Ali Wong resonated so strongly that she even became a popular Halloween costume. Wong told the world her remarkably unfiltered thoughts on marriage, sex, Asian culture, working women, and why you never see new mom comics on stage but you sure see plenty of new dads.

The sharp insights and humor are even more personal in this completely original collection. She shares the wisdom she’s learned from a life in comedy and reveals stories from her life off stage, including the brutal single life in New York (i.e. the inevitable confrontation with erectile dysfunction), reconnecting with her roots (and drinking snake blood) in Vietnam, tales of being a wild child growing up in San Francisco, and parenting war stories. Though addressed to her daughters, Ali Wong’s letters are absurdly funny, surprisingly moving, and enlightening (and gross) for all."

Hopefully all those ignorant of Ali Wong's genius have come on board since Always Be My Maybe and will have their love of her confirmed by this book, which she is sadly not touring for! Two stops!?! What about the Midwest!?!

The Man That Got Away by Lynne Truss
Published by: Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication Date: October 15th, 2019
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A wryly entertaining new crime caper from Lynne Truss, author of “the funniest crime novel of 2018” (Wall Street Journal) and the New York Times bestseller Eats, Shoots and Leaves.

1957: In the beach town of Brighton, music is playing and guests are sunning themselves, when a young man is found dead, dripping blood, in a deck chair.

Constable Twitten of the Brighton Police Force has a hunch that the fiendish murder may be connected to a notorious nightspot, but his captain and his colleagues are-as ever-busy with other more important issues. Inspector Steine is being conned into paying for the honor of being featured at the Museum of Wax, and Sergeant Brunswick is trying (and failing) to get the attention of the distraught Brighton Belles who found the body. As the case twists and turns, Constable Twitten must find the murderer and convince his colleagues that there's an evil mastermind behind Brighton's climbing crime rate.

Our incomparable team of detectives are back for another outing in the second installment of Lynne Truss's joyfully quirky crime series."

I am SO glad Lynne Truss is putting her prodigious talent to use writing these comic capers. Also, you can be sure they're grammatically correct, a rarity with the scarcity of good editors out there.

The Absinthe Earl by Sharon Lynn Fisher
Published by: Blackstone Publishing
Publication Date: October 15th, 2019
Format: Paperback, 288 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"They crossed centuries to find each other. Their love will shatter worlds.

Miss Ada Quicksilver, a student of London's Lovelace Academy for Promising Young Women, is spending her holiday in Ireland to pursue her anthropological study of fairies. She visits Dublin's absinthe bars to investigate a supposed association between the bittersweet spirit and fairy sightings.

One night a handsome Irishman approaches her, introducing himself as Edward Donoghue. Edward takes absinthe to relieve his sleepwalking, and she is eager to hear whether he has experience with fairies. Instead, she discovers that he's the earl of Meath, and that he will soon visit a mysterious ruin at Newgrange on the orders of his cousin, the beautiful, half-mad Queen Isolde. On learning about Ada's area of study, he invites her to accompany him.

Ada is torn between a sensible fear of becoming entangled with the clearly troubled gentleman and her compelling desire to ease his suffering. Finally she accepts his invitation, and they arrive in time for the winter solstice. That night, the secret of Edward's affliction is revealed: he is, in fact, a lord in two worlds and can no longer suppress his shadow self.

Little does either of them realize that their blossoming friendship and slowly kindling passion will lead to discoveries that wrench open a door sealed for centuries, throwing them into a war that will change Ireland forever."

I love how reality and folklore are so entwined in Ireland, and this book makes a good case for that to continue.

Ivory Apples by Lisa Goldstein
Published by: Tachyon Publications
Publication Date: October 15th, 2019
Format: Paperback, 288 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Ivy and her sisters have a secret: their reclusive Great-Aunt is actually Adela Martin, inspired author of the fantasy classic, Ivory Apples. Generations of obsessive fans have searched for Adela, poring over her letters, sharing their theories online, and gathering at book conventions. It is just a matter of time before one fan gets too close.

So when the seemingly-perfect Kate Burden appears at the local park, Ivy knows that something isn’t right. Kate has charmed the entire family, but she is suspiciously curious about Ivory Apples. And Ivy must protect what she and her Great-Aunt share: magic that is real, untamable, and - despite anyone’s desire - always prefers choosing its own vessel."

Books within books and the passion that drives fans are favorite tropes of mine!

Salvaged by Madeleine Roux
Published by: Ace
Publication Date: October 15th, 2019
Format: Paperback, 368 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A WOMAN ON THE RUN. A CAPTAIN ADRIFT IN SPACE. ONE OF THEM IS INFECTED WITH AN ALIEN PARASITE.

In this dark science fiction thriller, a young woman must confront her past so the human race will have a future.

Rosalyn Devar is on the run from her famous family, the bioengineering job she's come to hate, and her messed-up life. She's run all the way to outer space, where she's taken a position as a "space janitor," cleaning up ill-fated research expeditions. But no matter how far she goes, Rosalyn can't escape herself. After too many mistakes on the job, she's given one last chance: take care of salvaging the Brigantine, a research vessel that has gone dark, with all crew aboard thought dead.

But the Brigantine's crew are very much alive - if not entirely human. Now Rosalyn is trapped on board, alone with a crew infected by a mysterious parasitic alien. The captain, Edison Aries, seems to still maintain some control over himself and the crew, but he won't be able to keep fighting much longer. Rosalyn and Edison must find a way to stop the parasite's onslaught...or it may take over the entire human race."

I like the Alien of it all...

Critical Role Vox Machina: Origins by Matthew Mercer, Matthew Colville, Olivia Samson, and Chris Northrop
Published by: Dark Horse Books
Publication Date: October 15th, 2019
Format: Paperback, 168 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the creators of the hit show "Critical Role" comes Vox Machina's origin story! Writers Matthew Mercer and Matthew Colville team with artist extraordinaire Olivia Samson and colorist Chris Northrop to bring you the story of where the heroes' journey began.

The band of adventurers known as Vox Machina will save the world. Eventually. But even they have to start somewhere.

Six would-be heroes on seemingly different jobs find their paths intertwined as they investigate shady business in the swamp town of Stilben. They'll need to put their heads-- and weapons--together to figure out what's going on...and keep from being killed in the process. Even then, whether or not they can overcome what truly lurks at the bottom of the town's travails remains to be seen!

Collects Critical Role Vox Machina: Origins comics issues #1-6, one of the best selling digital comics ever!"

For my friends Janice and Aaron, the biggest fans of "Critical Role" out there!

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Adam Rippon, Ali Wong, Beautiful on the Outside, Critical Role, Dear Girls, Ivory Apples, Lisa Goldstein, Lynne Truss, Madeleine Roux, Salvaged, Sharon Lynn Fisher, The Absinthe Earl, Wisconsin Book Festival