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July 17, 2013

20SomethingReads.com Newsletter July 17, 2013
Books So Good, It's a Crime
20SomethingReads.com's Second Annual Beach Bag of Books Contest Ends THIS Thursday! Have You Entered?
What's NEW on 20SomethingReads.com?
20SomethingReads.com's Latest Bookshelf: Mafia Memories: Organized Crime on American Soil and Beyond
Coming up on 20SomethingReads.com...
Young Adult Reviews
Adult Reviews
Books So Good, It's a Crime

Hope you all had a great holiday weekend (which seems like it happened a month ago) and reveled in all kinds of personal liberties.

We're not proud of it, but we took advantage of America's greatest freedom --- being lazy bums (Nikki has the sunburn to prove it). Since then, we've been getting creative as we brave the current heatwave in NYC: eating plenty of popsicles, seeing as many movies as we can afford and chilling in the fan section of Bed Bath & Beyond (email Emily for an uptown-to-downtown map of all the AC hotspots in NYC). If this keeps up, we may even consider bowling.

Bottom line, we're spending as much time as possible indoors. Know who else is spending a lot of time indoors? Little baby Nori West! WHERE ARE THEY KEEPING HER? And is it just us, or is it totally obvious that Nori and the as-yet-unborn future king (or queen) of England would be the PERFECT couple? (Obviously this judgment is not based on facts). By the way, Kate M.'s been pregnant for so long it seems we might as well have our own grandkids already. We swear we're not baby crazy, we're just killing a lot of time watching E! News.

We also had the chance to catch the indie thriller flick, The East, co-written by superwoman 20Something Brit Marling, who stars alongside the sexy A. Skars and the not-pregnant Ellen Page --- who may or may not be dating IRL (half smile, half cry). The film's about an operative for an elite private investigation firm (Marling) who goes undercover to infiltrate a group of radical eco-terrorists (led by a charismatic, vulnerable and mostly shirtless Skarsgård). There are some disturbing twists and turns, and obviously *spoiler alert* sexiness ensues. Seriously though, the movie is a pretty frank social commentary on the dangers of extreme eco-abuse. If you're trying to avoid The Lone Ranger this summer, head East.

Bookreporter.com Editorial Director Tom Donadio and Teenreads.com Content Coordinator Liz Kossnar headed south of our offices last Friday to the NYU Summer Publishing Institute career fair. Much to Emily's dismay, they came back with no cotton candy...but they did have a whole bunch of impressive resumes and some great reader feedback. So shout-out and thanks to all of you who are keeping up with us --- it's the fans who make this all worthwhile (and, of course, the books). We know we don't have to tell you this, but hey, it's summer and it's hot, which can make one forgetful. Share the site and newsletter with your friends, families, neighbors, grocers --- anyone who might like 20Something books and 20Something stuff.

Everybody loves free stuff, 20Somethings most of all. There are LESS THAN 36 HOURS LEFT to enter our 20SomethingReads Beach Bag of Books giveaway. You can be one of five SUPERFLY winners. You'll be the envy of all your friends with 20 HOT reads, some sunscreen and a spankin' new beach towel, all packed up in a beach bag. Click here to enter. Plus, each book is a great conversation starter to flag down the literary hotties and Baywatch babes. Wear protection.

We have another special feature and contest starting today at NOON for THE LOVE AFFAIRS OF NATHANIEL P. by Adelle Waldman, which will run until Wednesday, July 31st at noon ET. This hot-off-the-press debut novel (released yesterday) follows 30Something Nate, a Brooklyn writer, as he navigates the NYC dating scene and toys with, plays and pulls girls' heartstrings. Along with the contest, we will be featuring our 20SomethingReads.com interview with author Adelle Waldman. AND...stay tuned for our weekly NYC dating blogs covering all sorts of topics, from IRL dating to online dating (OKCupid!, Tinder and Match.com) and the pitfalls of falling for your best friend. We've seen it all --- basically, we're dating dating.

Think one book is sweet? How about a whole shelf of 'em? In memorium of "The Sopranos" star James Gandolfini, we've put together a bookshelf of 20 can't-miss mafia-inspired books --- MAFIA MEMORIES: Organized Crime on American Soil and Beyond. Want to indulge your inner Scarface? Do it "on the books," and check out our well-rounded compilation of reads about organized crime. We've included masterpieces like THE GODFATHER and DONNIE BRASCO, as well as cult classics like THE ICE MAN: Confessions of a Mafia Contract Killer, all of which inspired noteworthy film adaptations. America's most beloved TV boss would be proud. Fade to black.

From crime lords to drug lords, TV's giving illegal activity the royal treatment. "Orange is the New Black," now available instantly on Netflix, is a new show from "Weeds" creator and writer Jenji Kohan, about Piper Chapman's 15-month stint in an all-women's prison. It's based on the book memoir of the same name that we are both currently reading...and loving. We can't wait to finish it and start watching. Knowing our voracious media appetites, we expect to be done with both by the end of the upcoming weekend. Ceck back next week for a review. We are also anxiously waiting for the August return and final season of AMC's "Breaking Bad" about our favorite chem teacher turned meth kingpin, Walter White. The upshot: Be cool, stay in school.

In case you haven't noticed, for the past month we've been participating in our own version of #TBT --- Throwback Thursday: Books Edition! Each week, we and a group of our 20Something staffers reminisce on the books that meant the most to us when we were kids. We know you're a sucker for some good, old-fashioned nostalgia, so take a walk with us down memory lane.

Until next time,

Norbert Stonehenge and Edward Hevercastle

J.K.! You've been Rowling'd! It's been Nikki and Emily all along!

Happy Reading!

--- Nicole Sherman ([email protected]) and Emily Hoenig ([email protected])

20SomethingReads.com's Second Annual Beach Bag of Books Contest Ends THIS Thursday! Have You Entered?

We are in the middle of summer and that means you still might be looking for some epic seasonal reads. It wouldn't be summer without sun, surf and great reading. You supply the beach chair, and we'll provide the fantastic fiction in our Second Annual 20SomethingReads.com Beach Bag of Books Contest.

You have until THIS Thursday, July 18th at noon ET to enter to win the following 20 books in a beach bag filled with sunscreen and a beach towel!

THE BUTTERFLY SISTER by Amy Gail Hansen
CLAUDIA SILVER TO THE RESCUE by Kathy Ebel
CONFESSIONS OF A HATER by Caprice Crane
GAMEBOARD OF THE GODS by Richelle Mead
GORGEOUS by Paul Rudnick
HOW TO LOVE by Katie Cotugno
LOVE WITH A CHANCE OF DROWNING by Torre DeRoche
THE LOVEBIRD by Natalie Brown
NIGHT TERRORS: Sex, Dating, Puberty and Other Alarming Things by Ashley Cardiff
THE PEOPLE OF FOREVER ARE NOT AFRAID by Shani Boianjiu
THE PINK HOTEL by Anna Stothard
ROGUE TOUCH by Christine Woodward
THE SHE-HULK DIARIES by Marta Acosta
SHOUT HER LOVELY NAME by Natalie Serber
SOMEDAY SOMEDAY MAYBE by Lauren Graham
STARGAZEY POINT by Shelley Noble
TELL THE WOLVES I'M HOME by Carol Rifka Brunt
TWINMAKER by Sean Williams
WINDS OF SALEM: A Witches of East End Novel by Melissa de la Cruz
THE YEAR OF THE GADFLY by Jennifer Miller

Click here to enter the contest.
 
What's NEW on 20SomethingReads.com?

BLOG: Telling It Like It Is: FAHRENHEIT 451 by Ray Bradbury
Emily Hoenig gets HOT over this classic in her ongoing blog feature.

BLOG: Booksellering: It's a Verb
Maggie Tokuda-Hall, the Children's Department Director for Books Inc., gives us the inside scoop on a term you may not have heard of before, but is super important for all book lovers.

BLOG: Throwback Thursday: Sex, Love...and a Hatchet?
20SomethingReads.com staffers have a soft spot for literary nostalgia.

BLOG: Starry Eyes for TIGER EYES
Intern Carla Roman watches the movie based on the famed Judy Blume book.

BLOG: Telling It Like It Is: GREAT EXPECTATIONS by Charles Dickens
Emily Hoenig gets in touch with her romantic side over this classic in our ongoing blog feature.

BLOG: Don't Look Behind You!: Meghan Reviews PARANOIA
Intern Meghan Riley reviews PARANOIA and discusses the film adaptation hitting the big screen in August. The movie tie-in version is available on July 30th.

20SomethingReads.com's Latest Bookshelf: Mafia Memories: Organized Crime on American Soil and Beyond

We’ve all experienced heartbreak now and again...and we felt personally crushed when news broke that James Gandolfini had passed. Not only did the world lose what we heard was a caring and loving husband and father, but Hollywood lost one of the greatest of all time --- THE BOSS of primetime television.

As 20Somethings, the critically-acclaimed, award-winning HBO series “The Sopranos” began when we were still just innocent babes, but it remains a ground-breaking series that spearheaded a transformation in high-quality television programming, and paved the way for more recent hits like “The Wire” and “Breaking Bad.” Sure, there have been plenty of previous dramas that detailed the plight of the American family, but “The Sopranos” really broke TV ground with its unsentimental writing and hard-hitting psychological realism.

We must give credit where credit is due to its brilliant ensemble cast, led, of course, by Gandolfini himself. So we put together 20 mafia-inspired books in our Mafia Memories: Organized Crime on American Soil and Beyond bookshelf.

By the way, HBO will be re-running each season of “The Sopranos” over the next six months on HBO On Demand. The seasons will run for one month each, in consecutive, chronological order.

Coming up on 20SomethingReads.com...
Playing with Form: Experimental Novels

In some of our more "eccentric" English college classes, we read books that break literary conventions. Recently released, ELECTRICO W is one that falls into this category and AuthorsOnTheWeb.com staffer Josh Mallory jumped on the chance to read and review it. Click here to see what he has to say. When the staff was brainstorming one day, we realized that there were so many more --- some English titles and lots of international ones. Be on the lookout for a bookshelf coming in late July that showcases 20 books that all push the boundaries, in more ways than one.

 

 

Young Adult Reviews

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S SCREAM by R. L. Stine (Horror)
It was a horror movie that turned into real horror --- three young actors lost their lives while the camera rolled. Production stopped, and people claimed that the movie was cursed. Sixty years later, new actors are venturing onto the haunted set. In a desperate attempt to revive their failing studio, Claire's dad has green-lit a remake of Mayhem Manor ---and Claire and her friends are dying to be involved. When shooting starts, though, the set is plagued by a series of horrible accidents --- could history be repeating itself? Reviewed by Christine M. Irvin.

RIGHT OF WAY by Lauren Barnholdt (Fiction)
Here are Peyton and Jace, broken up but thrown together on a road trip. One of them is lying about the destination. One of them is pretending not to be leaving something behind. And neither of them is prepared for what’s coming on the road ahead. Reviewed by Amanda P.

IMPERFECT SPIRAL by Debbie Levy (Romance)
Danielle Snyder's summer job as a babysitter takes a tragic turn when Humphrey, the five-year-old boy she's watching, runs in front of oncoming traffic to chase down his football. Wanting only to mourn Humphrey, the sweet kid she had a surprisingly strong friendship with, Danielle tries to avoid the world around her. It's time for Danielle to face reality, but when the truth brings so much pain, can she find a way to do right by Humphrey's memory and forgive herself for his death? Reviewed by Kate F.

Adult Reviews

ALWAYS WATCHING by Chevy Stevens (Psychological Thriller)
When a distraught woman is brought into the Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit after a suicide attempt, Dr. Nadine Lavoie gently coaxes her story out of her --- and learns of some troubling parallels with her own life. Digging deeper, Nadine is forced to confront her traumatic childhood, and the damage that began when she and her brother were brought by their mother to a remote commune on Vancouver Island. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.

THE ARRIVALS by Melissa Marr (Fantasy/Adventure)
Chloe walks into a bar and blows five years of sobriety. When she wakes, she finds herself in an unfamiliar world, The Wasteland. She discovers that people from all times and places have also arrived there, including a brother and sister from the Wild West, a prohibition bootlegger, a one-time hippie, a mentally unbalanced 1950s housewife, and a former carnival artist. None know why they arrived there --- or if there is a way out of a world populated by monsters and filled with corruption. Reviewed by Sarah Rachel Egelman.

BEAUTIFUL DAY by Elin Hilderbrand (Fiction)
The Carmichaels and the Grahams have gathered on Nantucket for a wedding. Plans are being made according to the wishes of the bride's late mother, who left behind The Notebook: specific instructions for every detail of her youngest daughter's future nuptials. Everything should be falling into place for the beautiful event --- but in reality, things are far from perfect. Reviewed by Jennifer Romanello.

CLOSE MY EYES by Sophie McKenzie (Psychological Thriller)
When Geniver Loxley lost her daughter at birth, her world stopped turning. But then a stranger shows up on their doorstep, telling Gen that Beth is still out there somewhere, alive and waiting to be found. As Gen delves into the darkest parts of her past, she starts to realize that finding the answers might open the door to something even worse. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.

CRAZY RICH ASIANS by Kevin Kwan (Fiction)
When Rachel Chu's boyfriend, Nicholas Young, invites her to accompany him to his family home in Singapore to attend the most talked-about wedding of the summer, she makes a number of startling discoveries about him, including the fact that he is among the most eligible bachelors from one of Southeast Asia's richest families. Reviewed by Amie Taylor.

CRIME OF PRIVILEGE by Walter Walker (Thriller/Mystery)
Years have passed since a young woman was found brutally slain at an exclusive Cape Cod golf club, and no one has ever been charged. Cornered by her father, lawyer George Becket can’t explain why certain leads were never explored --- leads that point in the direction of a single family --- and he agrees to look into it. Despite threats at every turn, George is driven to reconstruct the victim’s last hours while searching not only for a killer but for his own redemption. Reviewed by Kate Ayers.

THE CURIOSITY by Stephen P. Kiernan (Science Fiction/Thriller)
Dr. Kate Philo and her scientific exploration team make a breathtaking discovery in the Arctic: the body of a man buried deep in the ice. Remarkably, the frozen man is brought back to the lab and successfully reanimated. Kate and the man, who turns out to be Judge Jeremiah Rice, grow closer. But the clock is ticking and Jeremiah’s new life is slipping away...and all too soon, Kate must decide how far she is willing to go to protect the man she has come to love. Reviewed by Norah Piehl.

THE EXECUTION OF NOA P. SINGLETON by Elizabeth L. Silver (Psychological Suspense)
Noa P. Singleton was found guilty of first-degree murder 10 years ago. Now, just six months away from her execution date, Noa is visited by Marlene Dixon, an attorney who is also the heartbroken mother of the woman Noa was imprisoned for killing. She tells Noa that she has had a change of heart and will do everything in her power to convince the governor to commute the sentence to life in prison -- if Noa will finally reveal what led her to commit her crime. Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon.

EYE FOR AN EYE: A Dewey Andreas Novel by Ben Coes (Thriller)
When Dewey Andreas uncovers the identity of a mole embedded at a high level in Israel’s Mossad, it triggers a larger, more dangerous plot. The mole was the most important asset of Chinese Intelligence, and Fao Bhang, head of China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS), responds to the discovery and brutal elimination of the mole, by immediately placing a kill order on the man responsible --- Dewey Andreas. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.

THE FIRE WITNESS by Lars Kepler (Mystery/Thriller)
Flora Hansen calls herself a medium and makes a living by pretending to commune with the dead. But after a gruesome murder at a rural home for wayward girls, Hansen begins to suffer visions that are all too real. The only member of the police force who believes her is Detective Inspector Joona Linna. The case seems obvious at first, but as Linna refuses to accept easy answers, his search leads him into darker, more violent territory, and finally to a shocking confrontation with a figure from his past. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.

FIVE STAR BILLIONAIRE by Tash Aw (Fiction)
Phoebe is a factory girl who has come to Shanghai with the promise of a job. Gary is a country boy turned pop star who is spinning out of control. Justin is in Shanghai to expand his family’s real estate empire. He has long harbored a crush on Yinghui, who has reinvented herself as a successful Shanghai businesswoman. Yinghui is about to make a deal with Walter Chao, the five star billionaire of the novel, who has a hand in the lives of each of the characters. Reviewed by Roz Shea.

THE HEIST by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg (Adventure/Humor)
FBI Special Agent Kate Winslow is determined to put the slippery conman known as Danny Cole behind bars. But Danny is quick-witted, charming and distractingly good looking, and is known the world over for being able to pull off some of the most dangerous, high-profile cons with seeming ease. In a dark twist of fate, Kate discovers that her next mission just might include partnering up with her nemesis in the hunt to take down big-league crime. Reviewed by Judy Gigstad.

HER LAST BREATH by Linda Castillo (Thriller/Mystery)
Evidence emerges that there was nothing accidental about a supposed car accident that killed an Amish deacon and two of his children. Kate Burkholder begins to suspect that she is on the trail of a cold-blooded killer. It is a search that takes her on a chilling journey into the darkest reaches of the human heart and makes her question everything she has ever believed about the Amish culture into which she was born. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.

I WEAR THE BLACK HAT: Grappling with Villains (Real and Imagined) by Chuck Klosterman (Popular Culture/Essays)
In I WEAR THE BLACK HAT, Chuck Klosterman questions the modern understanding of villainy. What was so Machiavellian about Machiavelli? Why don’t we see Bernhard Goetz the same way we see Batman? Who is more worthy of our vitriol --- Bill Clinton or Don Henley? What was O. J. Simpson’s second-worst decision? And why is Klosterman still haunted by some kid he knew for one week in 1985? Reviewed by Stuart Shiffman.

THE LEMON ORCHARD by Luanne Rice (Romance)
Julia’s life has been turned upside down by her daughter’s death. While she expects to find nothing more than peace and solitude as she house-sits, she finds herself drawn to the handsome man who oversees the lemon orchard. Roberto reveals to Julia the heartbreaking story of his own loss --- yet, unlike Julia, his daughter was lost but never found. Despite the odds, he cannot bear to give up hope. Reviewed by Amie Taylor.

LETTERS FROM SKYE by Jessica Brockmole (Historical Fiction)
When was the last time you wrote a letter? Not an email or a Facebook message, but an actual handwritten letter sent through the mail? If it's been a while, then LETTERS FROM SKYE might just convince you to put pen to paper again. Jessica Brockmole's debut novel, an epistolary romance that spans several decades and two world wars, is a testament to the power of love to overcome great adversity. Reviewed by Norah Piehl.

THE LIGHT IN THE RUINS by Chris Bohjalian (Historical Thriller/Romance)
It's 1943 and the Rosatis, an Italian family of noble lineage, believe that the walls of their ancient villa will keep them safe from the war raging across Europe. Twelve years later, Serafina Bettini, an investigator with the Florence police department, is assigned to a gruesome case --- a serial killer targeting the Rosatis, murdering the remnants of the family one-by-one in cold blood. She finds herself digging into a past that involves both the victims and her own tragic history. Reviewed by Ray Palen.

THE LONG WAR by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter (Fantasy/Science Fiction)
A generation after the events of THE LONG EARTH, humankind has spread across the new worlds opened up by “stepping.” A new “America” --- Valhalla --- is emerging more than a million steps from Datum, our Earth. Valhalla is growing restless under the controlling long arm of the Datum government. Soon Joshua Valiente is summoned by Lobsang to deal with a building crisis that threatens to plunge the Long Earth into a war unlike any humankind has waged before. Reviewed by Roz Shea.

MICKEY AND WILLIE: Mantle and Mays, the Parallel Lives of Baseball's Golden Age by Allen Barra (Sports Biography)
Culturally, Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays were light-years apart. Yet they were nearly the same age and almost the same size, and they came to New York at the same time. They were both products of generations of baseball-playing families, for whom the game was the only escape from a lifetime of brutal manual labor. These two men shared a close personal friendship, and each was the only man who could truly understand the other's experience. Reviewed by Ron Kaplan.

MY ISL@M: How Fundamentalism Stole My Mind --- and Doubt Freed My Soul by Amir Ahmad Nasr (Memoir)
Part memoir, part passionate call for liberty, reason and doing work that matters, MY ISL@M tells the tale of how the Internet opened the eyes and heart of a once fearful young Muslim to a world beyond the dogmatism of his upbringing, and recounts his transformation into a defiant digital activist. Reviewed by Barbara Bamberger Scott.

THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE by Neil Gaiman (Fantasy)
Once upon a time in a rural English town, an 11-year-old girl named Lettie Hempstock shows a little boy the most marvelous, dangerous and outrageous things beyond his darkest imagination. But an ancient power has been disturbed, and now invasive creatures from beyond the known world are set loose. There is primal horror here, and menace unleashed --- within the boy's family and from the forces that have gathered to consume it. Reviewed by Stephen Hubbard.

OUT OF RANGE by Hank Steinberg (Thriller)
Six years ago in Uzbekistan, journalist Charlie Davis was wounded when the government fired on a group of protestors he was covering on assignment. He and his pregnant wife, Julie, barely escaped with their lives. On a trip to Disneyland with their children, Julie vanishes. As Charlie soon discovers, this isn’t a random abduction. The further he goes to find her, the more it becomes clear that Julie isn’t quite the person she seems to be. Reviewed by Kate Ayers.

PLEASE DON’T TELL by Elizabeth Adler (Thriller)
Fen Dexter’s quiet life on the idyllic California coast is interrupted one stormy night when a blood-covered man shows up on her doorstep, claiming to have had a car accident. He tells her that he is on his way to San Francisco to help the police solve the murder of his fiancé. Who is this mysterious stranger? What does he want with Fen and her family? And will they live long enough to uncover the truth? Reviewed by Amy Gwiazdowski.

THE RECIPE BOX by Sandra Lee (Fiction)
Grace D’Angelo is a woman at her wits' end, barely managing her job, her rebellious teenager, and the horrifying fact that her lifelong best friend, Leeza, is dying of cancer. When Leeza succumbs to her illness, Grace realizes she must take drastic action to get her life back on track and repair her most precious relationships. She and her daughter move back to their hometown, where she comes to terms with the past, rediscovers the healing power of cooking, and connects with friends old and new. Reviewed by Bronwyn Miller.

THE ROAD TO BURGUNDY: The Unlikely Story of an American Making Wine and a New Life in France by Ray Walker (Memoir)
Native Californian Ray Walker was studying to become a securities representative at Merrill Lynch but found the work unfulfilling. He had a wife and, soon, a baby daughter, and felt he needed to be responsible and live the corporate life. But Ray had a dream: to make Burgundy wine in France. THE ROAD TO BURGUNDY is Walker’s charming account of the stumbles and serendipity that led to his transformation from corporate drone to vigneron. Reviewed by Michael Magras.

RUN, BROTHER, RUN: A Memoir of a Murder in My Family by David Berg (Memoir)
In 1968, David Berg’s brother, Alan, was murdered by Charles Harrelson, a notorious hit man and father of actor Woody Harrelson. Alan was only 31 when he disappeared; six months later, his remains were found in a ditch in Texas. RUN, BROTHER, RUN is Berg’s story of the murder. But it is also his account of the psychic destruction of the Berg family by the author’s father, who allowed a grievous blunder at the age of 23 to define his life. Reviewed by Barbara Bamberger Scott.

SECOND HONEYMOON by James Patterson and Howard Roughan (Thriller)
A newlywed couple steps into the sauna in their deluxe honeymoon suite --- and never steps out again. When another couple is killed while boarding their honeymoon flight to Rome, it becomes clear that someone is targeting honeymooners. FBI Agent John O'Hara is deep into solving the case, while Special Agent Sarah Brubaker is hunting another ingenious serial killer, whose victims all have one chilling thing in common. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.

THE SHADOW TRACER by Meg Gardiner (Thriller)
Sarah Keller is a skip tracer, an expert in tracking people who have gone on the lam. When a school bus accident sends her young daughter Zoe to the ER, their quiet life explodes. Zoe’s medical tests reveal that Zoe is not her daughter. Zoe’s biological mother --- Sarah’s sister, Beth --- was murdered shortly after the child’s birth. And Zoe’s father is missing and presumed dead. With no way to prove her innocence, Sarah must abandon her carefully constructed life and go on the run. Reviewed by Ray Palen.

SISTERLAND by Curtis Sittenfeld (Fiction)
Kate and her identical twin sister, Violet, were born with innate psychic abilities concerning future events and other people’s secrets. Now, years later, their different paths have led them both back to their hometown of St. Louis. When a minor earthquake hits in the middle of the night, the normal life Kate has always wished for begins to shift. She is ultimately forced to reconcile her fraught relationship with her sister and to face truths about herself she has long tried to deny. Reviewed by Jennifer Romanello.

TRAINS AND LOVERS by Alexander McCall Smith (Fiction)
The rocking motion of the train as it speeds along, the sound of its wheels on the rails. There’s something special about this form of travel that makes for easy conversation, which is just what happens to the four strangers who meet in TRAINS AND LOVERS. As they journey by rail from Edinburgh to London, the four travelers pass the time by sharing tales of trains that have changed their lives. Reviewed by Roz Shea.

TELL ME by Lisa Jackson (Thriller)
When convicted murderer and Southern stunner Blondell O'Henry may be released from prison due to new evidence in her 20-year-old case, it's up to newspaper reporter and true-crime author Nikki Gillette to get to the bottom of this mystery that not only shook her hometown of Savannah, but took her best friend away from her as well. Reviewed by Amie Taylor.

UNSEEN by Karin Slaughter (Thriller)
Will Trent is a Georgia Bureau of Investigation agent whose latest case has him posing as Bill Black, a scary ex-con who rides a motorcycle around Macon, Georgia, and trails an air of violence wherever he goes. The cover has worked, and he has caught the eye of a wiry little drug dealer who thinks he might be a useful ally. But undercover and cut off from the support of the woman he loves, Sara Linton, Will finds his demons catching up with him. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.

THE YONAHLOSSEE RIDING CAMP FOR GIRLS by Anton DiSclafani (Historical Fiction)
It is 1930 in the midst of the Great Depression. After her mysterious role in a family tragedy, Thea Atwell has been cast out of her Florida home, exiled to an equestrienne boarding school for Southern debutantes. As Thea grapples with her responsibility for the events of the past year that led her to the Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls, she finds herself enmeshed in a new order --- one that will change her sense of what is possible for herself, her family and her country. Reviewed by Norah Piehl.

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