Ages 18+
Nora wakes up in a hospital bed and is confused as to how she ended up there, and why she is so badly bruised. Then it starts coming back to her: she was invited to her friend Clare’s hen party (what the British call a bachelorette party). The thing is, she hasn’t seen Clare in ten years, and wonders why she was even invited. The book gets even more suspenseful when Nora finds out that Clare’s fiance is murdered and she’s a suspect. This book was hard to put down!
Category: Mystery
Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
Ages 18+
From the author of the Wayward Pines trilogy comes the eerie tale of Professor Jason Dessen. He has an adoring wife, Daniela, and a fifteen-old-son, Charlie who he loves very much. His life was perfect…until he wakes up naked and tied to a gurney, surrounded by people in lab coats. He quickly learns he was abducted but remembers little else. Jason fears he will never see his family again. Fans of Gone Girl will eat this one up!
Thanks to Penguin Random House for a review copy of this book.
I Woke Up Dead at the Mall by Judy Sheehan
Grades 9-12
Sixteen-year-old Sarah is dead. And she’s at the mall. The first person she meets is Bertha, who claims to be her Death Coach. She tells Sarah that she has been murdered; poisoned to be exact. Sarah is in a limbo of sorts, and Bertha tells her that her mission is not to get to heaven or hell, but to simply move on and finish her unfinished business. She is only sixteen, after all, and had her whole life ahead of her. Now she has no choice but to make the best of her situation. Readers are taken on a non-stop ride as Sarah becomes acquainted with the after-world and tries to figure out who murdered her, and why.
The Black Hour by Lori Rader-Day
Ages 18+
Professor Amelia Emmet was shot by a student she never even met. And he shot himself too. Now Amelia is back at work, and has a new assistant. His name is Nathaniel, or Nath, as he come to be known. Read The Black Hour to find out how Amelia deals with her life, forever changed by the actions of one person.
The Haunting of Maddy Clare by Simone St. James
Grades 9-12
A winner of the RITA Award, The Haunting of Maddy Clare is a novel about a young woman, Sarah Piper, who is placed by her temp agency to work along side a ghost hunter, Alistair Gellis. The ghost? A nineteen-year-old young maid who was thought to have committed suicide. Read this intriguing novel to find out what became of Maddy Clare.
In A Small Town by Marc A. Di Giacomo
Ages 18+
The main character of this intense novel is a detective named Matt Longo who works in a small town, responding to various calls in his jurisdiction. Matt has recently been shot on the job, and is home recuperating. He has many vivid dreams of what his life was like when he first became a police officer, his days in the academy, and his new partner, Donny Mello, who quickly becomes his best friend. This book is packed with action and drama from beginning to end. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series, Back In Town!
Top Secret Twenty One by Janet Evanovich
Ages 18+
Stephanie Plum is a cool chick. She has a hamster named Rex. A cop boyfriend named Moretti. And a cousin named Vinnie. She normally works for said cousin as a bail bondsman, but this time she’s moonlighting for her friend Carlos Manoso, AKA Ranger. The FTA (failure to appear) is Jimmy Poletti, a used car salesman who sells cars full of contraband. Will Stephanie catch him before it’s too late? This book is Janet Evanovich’s twenty-first installment of the Stephanie Plum series. It’s not your average mystery because it’s funny and not always about gruesome murders…it’s about the chase. Evanovich never disappoints!
Smells Like Dog by Suzanne Selfors
Grades 4-6
If you’re looking for a great mystery with a little bit of funk, Smells Like Dog is it. Meet Homer Pudding, a farm boy who loves hunting treasure, just like his Uncle Drake. Everything is perfect in Homer’s world until Uncle Drake disappears into thin air, and Homer is left with his prized possession, his dog, Dog. Can Homer continue his uncle’s legacy and find the most coveted pirate treasure in the world? Read Smells Like Dog to find out.
Justice for Jessica by Alretha Thomas
Ages 18+
Justice for Jessica is the classic case of whodunit. Jessica James is dead and Detective Rachel Storme is sure as hell going to find out who murdered her. The list of suspects is quite extensive. Was it Jessica’s husband? Her own sister? Several people listed “murders for hire” have also made the list. Read Justice for Jessica to find out who really did kill her, and why.
Thanks to Netgalley.com for a review copy of this book.
Michelle’s Bookish Life 