Staff Picks Adult Fiction

Where the Crawdads Sing

by Delia Owens

Kya Clark is a young woman who has lived essentially her entire life alone in the wild marshes of Barkley Cove, a small coastal community in North Carolina. The residents of the area call her “Marsh Girl” and treat her like an outcast, showing no kindness toward her. Kya watched her mother walk out the door of their cabin one day because she could no longer stand the beatings by her abusive husband. Kya’s father and siblings abandon her as well, and it is she who must fend for herself in the marshes and wilderness. Over the years, Kya befriends Tate who shares Kya’s love of the wildlife and teaches her how to read. When Tate leaves for college, Kya meets Chase, the town’s popular quarterback, who betrays her and breaks her heart. Now someone has killed Chase and Kya becomes the prime suspect who must convince the entire town she is innocent.

The author weaves the beautiful nature of the North Carolina marshes with love, mystery and compassion throughout her debut novel.

Recommended by: Mary Adamowski, Assistant Library Director

Posted in: Adult Fiction

An Anonymous Girl

by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

Jessica Farris, looking for a quick way to make some easy money, sneaks into a psychological study on ethics and morality conducted by Dr. Lydia Shields.

Told in the alternating voices of Dr. Shields and Jessica, the story unfolds as Jessica unwittingly becomes Dr. Shields pawn as she tries to catch her husband in a tangle of lies and infidelity.

Dr. Shields’ stranglehold on Jessica intensifies as she realizes that the doctor is obsessed with truthfulness and good morals, and she will stop at nothing until she has them. This psychological thriller will leave you questioning who you can trust in your own life!

Check out The Wife Between Us, another thriller co-written by Hendricks and Pekkanen.

Recommended by: Mary Adamowski, Assistant Library Director

Posted in: Adult Fiction

How to Invent Everything: A Survival Guide for the Stranded Time Traveler

by Ryan North

The bad news: your time machine has broken down, stranding you in the early days of humanity.

The good news: this easy-to-read reference guide will show you how to invent all the comforts of civilization, from the wheel and farming to world-wide navigation and water-powered computers.

Ryan North clearly and briefly explains the discoveries and inventions that got humans to where they are now, so that you, the stranded time traveler, can recreate them instead of waiting around for someone else to invent the printing press or the electric dynamo.

Recommended by: Peter Tew, Reference Librarian

Posted in: Adult Fiction

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

by Taylor Jenkins Reid

An exciting and must read book about the glamorous and infamous Hollywood star, Evelyn Hugo, who chooses Monique, a struggling unknown journalist to write her final interview. Monique knows that publishing this book under her name is a career opportunity of a lifetime, and it is a mystery as to why she was chosen by Evelyn who has become reclusive. The end is shocking and unexpected.  According to the author, this fictional book parallels the life of Elizabeth Taylor, who also had seven husbands.

Recommended by: Deborah Oedzes, Reference Librarian

Posted in: Adult Fiction

The Silent Wife

by A. S. A. Harrison

Living affluently in a Chicago condo, Jodi believes that her life will remain intact without change, and has no concern about her age of 45, relationship of 20 years with her partner Todd whom she takes care of, or career as a therapist.  When her life unfolds in an unexpected way and she realizes that Todd is not the person she thought but a cheater, she believes that she has nothing to lose in committing an unthinkable act.  This is a gripping, well written book about denial and the unpredictable twists and turns in life.

Recommended by: Deborah Oedzes, Reference Librarian

Posted in: Adult Fiction

Norse Mythology

by Neil Gaiman

In this book, Neil Gaiman retells several Norse stories taking pieces from the original tales to complete each chapter in his own unique and recognizable writing style. Listening to the book, which was narrated by Gaiman himself,  gave me the feeling as though I was hearing each short story told by my grandfather around a campfire. Gaiman’s genuine storytelling abilities can be heard through the different array of unique voices he created for each character. I would recommend this book to anyone who hasn’t read any Norse myths before as it is a great introduction for fans of Thor, Odin, and Loki; the characters you have read about in the comics or saw in the movies.

Recommended by: Kristen Holding, Graphic Artist 

Posted in: Adult Fiction

Binti

by Nnedi Okorafor

Binti is one of the best mathematicians in her village, and she jumps at the chance to travel to the best university in the galaxy. Sure, she has to sneak out because her family disapproves, and she may never see her family again, but that is a risk she is willing to take to improve the lives of her people. The only obstacle in her path is her spaceship being attacked by an alien race-what could possibly go wrong?

Recommended by: Nicole Suhm, Human Resource Generalist

Posted in: Adult Fiction

Happily and Madly

by Alexis Bass

Maris Brown only knows to things about her destiny. One is that she will fall happily and madly in love the second thing is that she could be dead before her eighteenth birthday. The summer leading up to that fateful birthday Maris spends time with her estranged father and his new family the Duvals in a wealthy beach town. And along with that comes Edison. Maris knows she shouldn’t fall for him but she can’t help it. He makes her so happy. But Edison has his share of secrets. Ones that should make Maris stay far away from him.

Great suspense and a real page turner.

Recommended by: Holly Balasa, Youth Services Shelver

Posted in: Adult Fiction

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

by Gail Honeyman

A funny yet heartbreaking story of an unconventional single woman who chooses to isolate and has a bizarre relationship with her mother (“mummy”) who pressures her to find Prince Charming.  However,  she meets a poorly dressed coworker, Raymond,  with manners below her standards, who brings Eleanor out of her shell and together they help a man who had an accident and is in poor health.  Eleanor becomes closer to Raymond, and realizes that you can’t judge a book by it’s cover.  This captivating book will make you laugh yet emotional!

Recommended by:  Deborah Oedzes, Reference Librarian

Posted in: Adult Fiction

The Most Fun We Ever Had

by Claire Lombardo

Wonderfully complex, well written debut novel by an author who was born and raised in Oak Park, Illinois. Joyful and sad at the same time! Highly recommend!

Recommended by: Carol Maresh, Cataloger II

Posted in: Adult Fiction