Around the World in 80 Days
Wednesday, September 7, 2022
Monday, April 25, 2022
Tuesday Tomorrow
Published by: Celadon Books
Publication Date: April 26th, 2022
Format: Hardcover, 288 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"From the detective who found the Golden State Killer, a memoir of investigating America’s toughest cold cases and the rewards - and toll - of a life solving crime.
I order another bourbon, neat. This is the drink that will flip the switch. I don’t even know how I got here, to this place, to this point. Something is happening to me lately. I’m drinking too much. My sheets are soaking wet when I wake up from nightmares of decaying corpses. I order another drink and swig it, trying to forget about the latest case I can’t shake.
Crime solving for me is more complex than the challenge of the hunt, or the process of piecing together a scientific puzzle. The thought of good people suffering drives me, for better or worse, to the point of obsession. People always ask how I am able to detach from the horrors of my work. Part of it is an innate capacity to compartmentalize; the rest is experience and exposure, and I’ve had plenty of both. But I have always taken pride in the fact that I can keep my feelings locked up to get the job done. It’s only been recently that it feels like all that suppressed darkness is beginning to seep out.
When I look back at my long career, there is a lot I am proud of. I have caught some of the most notorious killers of the twenty-first century and brought justice and closure for their victims and families. I want to tell you about a lifetime solving these cold cases, from Laci Peterson to Jaycee Dugard to the Pittsburg homicides to, yes, my twenty-year-long hunt for the Golden State Killer.
But a deeper question eats at me as I ask myself, at what cost? I have sacrificed relationships, joy - even fatherhood - because the pursuit of evil always came first. Did I make the right choice? It’s something I grapple with every day. Yet as I stand in the spot where a young girl took her last breath, as I look into the eyes of her family, I know that, for me, there has never been a choice. "I don’t know if I can solve your case," I whisper. "But I promise I will do my best."
It is a promise I know I can keep."
I am a total fangirl of Paul Holes because of the Golden State Killer, therefore this book isn't just on my to buy list, I'm getting a signed first edition!
Published by: Berkley
Publication Date: April 26th, 2022
Format: Paperback, 336 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"An exciting novel based on the fearless reporter Nellie Bly, who would stop at nothing to expose injustices against women in early 19th century New York, even at the risk of her own life and freedom.
In 1887 New York City, Nellie Bly has ambitions beyond writing for the ladies pages, but all the editors on Newspaper Row think women are too emotional, respectable and delicate to do the job. But then the New York World challenges her to an assignment she'd be mad to accept and mad to refuse: go undercover as a patient at Blackwell's Island Insane Asylum for Women.
For months, rumors have been swirling about deplorable conditions at Blackwell’s, but no reporter can get in - that is, until Nellie feigns insanity, gets committed and attempts to survive ten days in the madhouse. Inside, she discovers horrors beyond comprehension. It's an investigation that could make her career - if she can get out to tell it before two rival reporters scoop her story.
From USA Today bestselling author Maya Rodale comes a rollicking historical adventure series about the outrageous intrigues and bold flirtations of the most famous female reporter - and a groundbreaking rebel - of New York City’s Gilded Age."
As I have been saying, Nellie Bly is the It Girl of the moment!
Published by: Gallery/Scout Press
Publication Date: April 26th, 2022
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"From the New York Times bestselling author of The Drowning Kind comes a genre-defying new novel, inspired by Mary Shelley’s masterpiece Frankenstein, that brilliantly explores the eerie mysteries of childhood and the evils perpetrated by the monsters among us.
1978: At her renowned treatment center in picturesque Vermont, the brilliant psychiatrist, Dr. Helen Hildreth, is acclaimed for her compassionate work with the mentally ill. But when she’s home with her cherished grandchildren, Vi and Eric, she’s just Gran - teaching them how to take care of their pets, preparing them home-cooked meals, providing them with care and attention and love.
Then one day Gran brings home a child to stay with the family. Iris - silent, hollow-eyed, skittish, and feral - does not behave like a normal girl.
Still, Violet is thrilled to have a new playmate. She and Eric invite Iris to join their Monster Club, where they catalogue all kinds of monsters and dream up ways to defeat them. Before long, Iris begins to come out of her shell. She and Vi and Eric do everything together: ride their bicycles, go to the drive-in, meet at their clubhouse in secret to hunt monsters. Because, as Vi explains, monsters are everywhere.
2019: Lizzy Shelley, the host of the popular podcast Monsters Among Us, is traveling to Vermont, where a young girl has been abducted, and a monster sighting has the town in an uproar. She’s determined to hunt it down, because Lizzy knows better than anyone that monsters are real - and one of them is her very own sister.
A haunting, vividly suspenseful page-turner from the “literary descendant of Shirley Jackson” (Chris Bohjalian, author of The Flight Attendant), The Children on the Hill takes us on a breathless journey to face the primal fears that lurk within us all."
If I hadn't already been sold with the Frankenstein vibe, name checking Shirley Jackson put the nail in the coffin.
Published by: Kensington
Publication Date: April 26th, 2022
Format: Paperback, 320 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"At the height of the Civil Rights Movement amidst an America convulsed by the 1960s, a pregnant young woman and her brash, profane aunt embark upon an audacious road trip from Chicago to Los Angeles to confront a decades-old mystery from 1920’s Black Hollywood in this haunting novel of historical fiction from the author of Wild Women and the Blues.
A lime-gold Ford Mustang is parked outside my building. Unmistakable. My Aunt Daisy, the driver, is an audacious woman that no one in our family actually speaks to. They only speak about her - and not glowingly. Still, she is part of my escape plan...
1928, Los Angeles: The newly-built Hotel Somerville is the hotspot for the city's glittering African-American elite. It embodies prosperity and dreams of equality for all - especially Daisy Washington. An up-and-coming journalist, Daisy anonymously chronicles fierce activism and behind-the-scenes Hollywood scandals in order to save her family from poverty. But power in the City of Angels is also fueled by racism, greed, and betrayal. And even the most determined young woman can play too many secrets too far...
1968, Chicago: For Frankie Saunders, fleeing across America is her only escape from an abusive husband. But her rescuer is her reckless, profane Aunt Daisy, still reeling from her own shattered past. Frankie doesn't want to know what her aunt is up to so long as Daisy can get her to LA—and safety. But Frankie finds there’s no hiding from long-held secrets—or her own surprising strength.
Daisy will do whatever it takes to settle old scores and resolve the past - no matter the damage. And Frankie will come up against hard choices in the face of unexpected passion. Both must come to grips with what they need, what they’ve left behind - and all that lies ahead..."
An old Hollywood mystery? Yes please!
Published by: Hodder and Stoughton
Publication Date: April 26th, 2022
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"A sparkling celebration of our much-loved Queen Elizabeth II for her Platinum Jubilee including special writings and illuminating insights around key moments in her 70-year reign, introduced and edited by her biggest fan Joanna Lumley.
In 2022 Queen Elizabeth II celebrates seventy years as Queen and Head of the Commonwealth. She is Britain's longest reigning monarch and the very first to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee.
A Queen For All Seasons, edited and introduced by Joanna Lumley, is a perceptive, touching and engaging tribute to this unique woman. A treasure chest of first-hand writings, insights and snapshots of the Queen during key moments of her reign to form a vibrant portrait of the woman herself and the extraordinary role she plays.
Joanna Lumley guides us as we meet Princess Elizabeth in 1952, aged just twenty-five, and about to become Queen, and brings us through to the present day when, as our matriarch, the Queen keeps the national ship steady, including in moments of crisis and suffering. Here are unique perspectives into some of the most fascinating aspects of the Queen's life - her role as head of state at home and abroad, her private passions and public interests and a bird's-eye look at key events that have held the nation together and the Queen in our affection throughout Britain and beyond.
This book is a special and unique portrait of our constant Queen in an ever-changing world."
The obligatory anglophile Platinum Jubilee book post. With 100% more Joanna Lumley!
Published by: Orbit
Publication Date: April 26th, 2022
Format: Paperback, 464 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"Welcome back to the streets of Sunder City, a darkly imagined world perfect for readers of Ben Aaronovitch and Jim Butcher.
In a city that lost its magic, an angel falls in a downtown street. His wings are feathered, whole - undeniably magical - the man clearly flew, because he left one hell of a mess when he plummeted into the sidewalk.
But what sent him up? What brought him down? And will the answers help Fetch bring the magic back for good?
Working alongside necromancers, genies, and shadowy secret societies, through the wildest forests and dingiest dive bars, this case will leave its mark on Fetch's body, his soul, and the fate of the world."
Luke Arnold should be gleeful for the Aaronovitch comparison, and not just in cover design.
Published by: Wednesday Books
Publication Date: April 26th, 2022
Format: Hardcover, 400 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"Dylan Farrow's Veil is the thrilling sequel to Hush, one of the most talked about YA fantasies of 2020.
Shae’s entire world has been turned upside down, and everything she’s ever believed is a lie. More determined than ever, she sets out to the mysterious land of Gondal - a place forbidden to mention and resigned to myth - in search of a dangerous magical book that could alter the fabric of the world.
Following the trail of Ravod, the boy she thought she knew and trusted, Shae discovers there is far more to the young man who stole the Book of Days than she ever realized. Together, with her friends, Mads and Fiona, and a newfound ally in her fierce former trainer, Kennan, Shae crosses the borders of the only home she’s ever had and into a world ruled not by magic, but technology and industry - one fraught with perils of its own.
In a world shrouded in lies, Shae is desperate for answers and to restore peace, but who will lift the veil?"
Most talked about for a good reason!
Published by: IDW Publishing
Publication Date: April 26th, 2022
Format: Hardcover, 264 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"The beloved graphic novel series turned Netflix hit continues!
Take a trip through the past and unlock moments from Keyhouse's long history that expand the saga of the Locke family in this collection of stories including the crossover with Neil Gaiman's Sandman Universe!
Contains three prequel short stories, "Small World," "Open the Moon," and, collected for the first time, "Face the Music," leading into the gut-wrenching tour de force that begins with ...In Pale Battalions Go... and culminates with the Sandman Universe crossover Hell and Gone.
Each of these individual stories takes a glimpse into the lives of the Locke family ancestors from the early 20th century as they use the keys to fight battles big and small. From the killing fields of Europe during WWI to the depths of Hell, the Lockes struggle desperately to keep the dark forces of their world at bay."
Wait, they didn't say that "Open the Moon" will also have you balling your eyes out!
Monday, April 18, 2022
Tuesday Tomorrow
Published by: Gallery / Saga Press
Publication Date: April 19th, 2022
Format: Hardcover, 400 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"Return to The Meridian with New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Roanhorse’s sequel to the most critically hailed epic fantasy of 2020 Black Sun - finalist for the Hugo, Nebula, Lambda, and Locus awards.
There are no tides more treacherous than those of the heart. -Teek saying
The great city of Tova is shattered. The sun is held within the smothering grip of the Crow God’s eclipse, but a comet that marks the death of a ruler and heralds the rise of a new order is imminent.
The Meridian: a land where magic has been codified and the worship of gods suppressed. How do you live when legends come to life, and the faith you had is rewarded?
As sea captain Xiala is swept up in the chaos and currents of change, she finds an unexpected ally in the former Priest of Knives. For the Clan Matriarchs of Tova, tense alliances form as far-flung enemies gather and the war in the heavens is reflected upon the earth.
And for Serapio and Naranpa, both now living avatars, the struggle for free will and personhood in the face of destiny rages. How will Serapio stay human when he is steeped in prophecy and surrounded by those who desire only his power? Is there a future for Naranpa in a transformed Tova without her total destruction?
Welcome back to the fantasy series of the decade in Fevered Star - book two of Between Earth and Sky."
The sample chapter from Fevered Star at the end of Black Sun was better than the whole Game of Thrones ripoff with no jeopardy that came before. Now if only the cover wasn't so horrific...
Published by: Ballantine Books
Publication Date: April 19th, 2022
Format: Hardcover, 384 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"An embattled actress becomes entangled in a dark conspiracy at a spiritual retreat - and starts a true crime podcast to try to break the case - in this chilling novel about fame, violence, and our morbid fascination with murder, from the acclaimed author of Dead Letters.
Olivia Reed needs a break. She doesn’t want to think about her name plastered on tabloids or be reminded of her recent meltdown on a Manhattan street. Her micromanaging publicist has just the thing in mind: a remote retreat in upstate New York - the House of Light. It’s not rehab; it’s a Spiritual Center, a site for seeking realignment and personal growth. There will be yoga and morning meditation, soft bamboo-blend fabrics and no shortage of crystals to cleanse her energy.
But Liv will soon find that the House of Light is filled with darkness. A prickly local, Ava, informs her that something twisted is lurking behind the Light’s veneer. There have been a series of mysterious suicides committed by women caught in the Light’s web, and no matter who Ava talks to, no one believes the Center is involved. To find out what’s really happened and put her celebrity to good use, Liv starts a podcast, seeking to connect the dots and expose the Light’s true intentions. Because beneath the glowing skin of the Light’s inhabitants lie rotten souls, and Liv starts to wonder if anything - even her own life - is how it appears.
Caite Dolan-Leach brings her tantalizing voice, her gift for atmosphere, and a cast of delightfully devious and absorbing characters to this riveting novel of suspense."
True crime podcast arising from a murder and a spiritual retreat? This sounds like the Only Murders in the Building/Midsomer Murders crossover I've dreamed of!
Published by: Gallery 13
Publication Date: April 19th, 2022
Format: Paperback, 160 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"Beautifully adapted and rendered through piercing illustrations by acclaimed creators Brad Ricca and Courtney Sieh, Nellie Bly’s complete, true-to-life 19th-century investigation of Blackwell Asylum captures a groundbreaking moment in history and reveals a haunting and timely glimpse at the starting point for conversations on mental health.
"I said I could and I would. And I did."
While working for Joseph Pulitzer’s newspaper in 1887, Nellie Bly began an undercover investigation into the local Women’s Lunatic Asylum on Blackwell Island. Intent on seeing what life was like on the inside, Bly fooled trained physicians into thinking she was insane - a task too easily achieved - and had herself committed. In her ten days at the asylum, Bly witnessed horrifying conditions: the food was inedible, the women were forced into labor for the staff, the nurses and doctors were cruel or indifferent, and many of the women held there had no mental disorder of any kind.
Now adapted into graphic novel form by Brad Ricca and vividly rendered with beautiful and haunting illustrations by Courtney Sieh, Bly’s bold venture is given new life and meaning. Her fearless investigation into the living conditions at the Blackwell Asylum forever changed the field of journalism. A timely reminder to take notice of forgotten populations, Ten Days in a Mad-House warns us what happens when we look away."
Nellie Bly is literally everywhere these days, so why not find out more with this beautiful graphic novel adaptation of what she was most famous for.
Published by: Berkley
Publication Date: April 19th, 2022
Format: Paperback, 400 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"An all-new historical mystery in this USA Today bestselling series featuring beloved inquiry agents Lady Kiera Darby and her dashing husband, Sebastian Gage.
Argyll, Scotland. July 1832. After a trying few months in Edinburgh, Kiera and her husband and investigative partner, Sebastian Gage, are eager to escape to the Highlands with their three-month-old child. Kiera is overjoyed for her cousin Rye and her detractor-turned-friend Charlotte who are being wed in a private ceremony at the estate of Rye’s great-uncle, the Marquess of Barbreck, in what seems to be the perfect wedding party.
But when Kiera is invited to peruse Barbreck’s extensive art collection, she is disturbed to discover that one of his most priceless paintings seems to be a forgery. The marquess’s furious reaction when she dares to mention it leaves her shaken and the entire house shocked. For it turns out that this is not the first time the word forgery has been uttered in connection with the Barbreck household.
Matters turn more ominous when a maid from a neighboring estate is found murdered where the forged painting hangs. Is her death connected to the forgeries, perhaps a grisly warning of what awaits those who dare to probe deeper? With unknown entities aligned against them, Kiera and Gage are forced to confront the fact that they may have underestimated their opponent. For they are swiftly made to realize that Charlotte’s and Rye’s future happiness is not the only issue at stake, and this stealthy game of cat and mouse could prove to have deadly consequences."
I know you all have been waiting for some more Lady Kiera Darby and Sebastian Gage, well today is your lucky day!
Published by: Constable
Publication Date: April 19th, 2022
Format: Paperback, 320 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"When a body found on the Honeychurch Hall estate proves to be that of a villager who had supposedly moved to Ireland years earlier, tongues start wagging and theories abound. Charlie Green had always been a rogue.
Although Charlie's demise happened well before Kat's arrival, Kat is drawn into the mystery when she finds two rare miniature portraits hidden inside a custom-made dollhouse of Honeychurch Hall. And then Charlie's aunt suffers a mysterious fatal fall and suspicion lands on a stranger who is holidaying in the newly installed shepherd's hut in the walled garden - one of Lady Lavinia's latest hare-brained moneymaking schemes. Although there is something off about the tourist, Kat believes the culprit is fellow antique dealer.
With tales of blackmail, infidelity and greed gripping the small community, past and present collide and Kat realises that the miniatures harbour a vital secret that one particular person is willing to kill for."
Just because you get a pull quote from M.C. Beaton doesn't mean you redesign the bookcovers to look like hers. I loved how they looked before!
Published by: Bookouture
Publication Date: April 19th, 2022
Format: Kindle, 320 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"The scent of roses is in the air while romance blooms in this gorgeously escapist Scottish-set love story, about finding your way back to the one you’ve never forgotten...Sure to capture the hearts of readers who love Debbie Macomber, Carolyn Brown and Fern Michaels.
When Caro Swanson applies for a job in a remote part of Scotland - which involves living on a beautiful, crumbling country estate - she can’t help but remember a dream-like night that changed her life, nearly two decades before.
A night on a Greek island, where she met a boy named Alec McLeod. With his soulful eyes and gorgeous Scottish burr, she’s never forgotten him, or how they talked about the beautiful place where he grew up.
Surely he can’t still live there though? At least, that’s what she’s telling herself. But, two decades later, as she walks up the drive to the ‘big hoose’ in the picturesque loch-side village of Glen Liddell, she is about to find the man who once captured her heart. And as soon as her eyes meet Alec’s, it’s as if no time has passed at all.
Unsure if he even recognizes her, Caro’s heart can’t help but race. And, as the weather gets warmer and the garden blooms, soon Caro finds herself falling in love with everything about her new home. Especially the man she always believed was the one who got away, as they discover a shared passion for fragrance.
Things aren’t straightforward though. As secrets and hidden passions find their way to the surface, Caro realizes that the estate is in dire financial straits. And if she’s going to stay there, and have a chance of the happy-ever-after she’s been dreaming of, she knows it’s down to her to save it.
So begins a magical summer, one that will take Caro from Scotland to London and the south of France, in search of a classic rose petal perfume that might just restore all their fortunes..."
With the seasons changing and summer just around the corner there's one author I always think of for my summer to be read pile, and that's Katie Fforde!
Published by: Bellevue Literary Press
Publication Date: April 19th, 2022
Format: Paperback, 320 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"A young woman discovers what lurks beneath the system that anointed her among the best and brightest of her generation.
Laura, a student from a modest background, escapes her small town to join the ranks of the academic elite on a Weatherfield fellowship to study at Oxford University. She enthusiastically throws herself into her coursework, yet she is never able to escape a feeling of unease and dislocation among her fellow chosen "students of promise and ambition."
Years later, back in the United States with a PhD and dissertation on Henry James, she loses her job as an adjunct professor and reconnects with the Weatherfield Foundation. Commissioned to write a history for its centennial, she becomes obsessed by the Gilded Age origins of the Weatherfield fortune, rooted in the exploitation and misery of sugar production. As she is lured back into abandoned friendships within the glimmering group, she discovers hidden aspects of herself and others that point the way to a terrifying freedom.
Benefit is a vivid debut novel of personal awakening that offers a withering critique of toxic philanthropy and the American meritocracy."
You had me before you even got toe toxic philanthropy, which is a hot issue right now!
Published by: Image Comics
Publication Date: April 19th, 2022
Format: Hardcover, 144 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"The fourth book in the best-selling Reckless series is here.
Bestselling crime noir masters Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips bring us yet another original graphic novel starring troublemaker-for-hire Ethan Reckless.
Except this time it's the winter of 1989 and Ethan is out of town, so Anna must tackle this job on her own. When a movie scream queen asks her to prove the mansion she's renovating isn't haunted, Anna will stumble into the decades-long mystery of one of Hollywood's most-infamous murder houses... a place with many dark secrets, some of which might just kill her.
Another hit from the award-winning creators of Reckless, Pulp, My Heroes Have Always Been Junkies, Criminal, and Kill or Be Killed - and a must-have for all Brubaker and Phillips fans."
The one good thing that has come out of the pandemic is that we are getting a lot more Brubaker and Phillips content than we usually do.
