Staff Picks Adult Fiction

Ninth House

by Leigh Bardugo

Alex Stern has a secret skill.  She can see ghosts.  For a while when she was a kid, she didn’t realize others couldn’t see the gray-tinted people roaming around.  It got her in trouble and made her an outcast.  Now her special skills are a perfect fit to join the Lethe, a group of people set to monitor the rituals of the secret society houses of Yale.  The disappearance of her mentor, a suspicious murder, and a well-known ghost pull her deep into a world of magic, horror, and secrets.  Bardugo is well-known for her YA novels in the Grisha universe, but this is her first novel for adults.  Ninth House is a hefty first book in a series, but worth the read.

Recommended by: Brandi Smits, Youth Services Manager

Posted in: Adult Fiction

The Engineer’s Wife: a Novel

by Tracey Enerson Wood

Emily Warren marries Washington Roebling in the 1860s and her life becomes not what she planned. When Wash was put in charge of building the Brooklyn Bridge, the next 15 years of her life is consumed by that task. With the equipment available at the time and the depth the towers had to go into the ground, many of the workers suffered from what is now known as “the bends”, Wash became debilitated. Emily took over as the go between Wash and the site engineers. She became the acting chief engineer and project manager She studied engineering books and made suggestions to overcome obstacles. Many people did not trust a bridge “made” by a woman, so P.T. Barnum had his circus cross the bridge including Jumbo the elephant. Throughout her life, Emily stood up for her husband and herself. She later became involved in the women’s right to vote movement. This book has romance, intrigue, death, and suspense all wrapped up as tightly as the cables that hold the bridge.

Recommended by: Joan Stoiber, Youth Services Librarian I

Posted in: Adult Fiction

Memories of Glass

by Melanie Dobson

During WW II in Holland, friends Josie van Rees and Eliese Linden work with others to rescue hundreds of Jewish children from going to concentration camps with their families. The daring actions and courage displayed makes this book a page-turner. Alternating with present day America and Uganda, Ava Drake begins to suspect that her great-grandfather, William Kingston, had other activities in Holland during the war that were more than glass making. Working with Landon, a man she met in Uganda when she went to represent the Kingston Foundation, they try to uncover a family secret that some in the family will kill to keep hidden. An amazing story with an ending that is as heartwarming as it is heartbreaking. Available on Hoopla.

Recommended by: Joan Stoiber, Youth Reference Librarian I

Posted in: Adult Fiction

Three Wishes

by Liane Moriarty

Fans of Big Little Lies, The Husband’s Secret, or Nine Strangers may want to read this first novel written by the author. A funny, madcap, and sometimes sad story about three sisters, who are triplets, and their lives and loves right before their 34th birthday. This book will have you laughing and crying, so it is a perfect summer read. Also available on Hoopla and OverDrive.

Recommended by: Joan Stoiber, Youth Reference Librarian I

Posted in: Adult Fiction

I Will Judge You by Your Bookshelf

by Grant Snider

Posted in: Adult Fiction

In Five Years

by Rebecca Serle

When I picked up In Five Years, I thought this would be a quick romantic comedy.  Rebecca Serle delivers so much more than that.   Our main character Dannie has a premonitory dream that fast forwards her into a very different 5 year plan, that makes her doubt everything.  Dannie & best friend Bella will warm your heart with their friendship.  Their love & respect for each other far outshines their relationships with their boyfriends/fiances.    A wonderful page turner that will leave you wanting to give your childhood best friend a call. Also available on OverDrive.

Recommended by: Theresa Hildebrand, Patron Services Manager

Posted in: Adult Fiction

The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires

by Grady Hendrix

It’s the 1990’s. Patricia is your normal southern housewife who has an obsession with true crime books. James Harris is Patricia’s new neighbor. Being a good southern hostess and neighbor, Patricia invites James into her home and introduces him to her family. Soon after, she begins to notice strange things about James. Sunshine and bright lights hurt his eyes and his body reacts strangely to the southern heat. At times he seems deathly ill, other times he seems fit and healthy. Patricia eventually goes to her friends at book club with her suspicions. She tells them that James is their worst fear….he is a drug dealer selling to their children. Wouldn’t that explain the recent deaths of a few local children? What Patricia can’t say is that James is much worse…he is a vampire….and the book club women must come together to battle an unthinkable evil. Can the women succeed or will James divide and conquer? Author Grady Hendrix has created a dark, suspenseful, and mature horror/thriller in this story, but he never forgets it’s about the ladies and their book club.  Hendrix easily weaves their book club selections into witty conversations and the overall story.  This is a great read for 2020. Also available on OverDrive.

Recommended by: Michelle Przekwas, Adult Services Shelver

Posted in: Adult Fiction

The Break

by Katherena Vermette

This is not an uplifting book. Be forewarned. It has a trigger warning stating the book is about recovering and healing from violence. That being said, the author, of Metis heritage, gives us a look inside this Canadian culture. The book begins with an extensive family tree which is helpful as the story shifts between narratives. Pick this book if you like multigenerational family stories with drama and mystery. 

Recommended by: Becky McCormack, Youth Services Assistant Manager

Posted in: Adult Fiction

Death Overdue: A Haunted Library Mystery

by Allison Brook

Carrie has recently taken on the position of programs and events director at a library in Connecticut. When one of her first programs abruptly ends with the guest speaker’s death, Carrie wonders if she should have even taken the job. Who could have wanted the speaker, a former police detective, dead? As a murder investigation begins, Carrie must deal with library politics, learn to manage her support staff, handle date nights with a cute guy, and his complicated family as well as look into the suspicious death of a former library aide. And if that isn’t enough on Carrie’s plate, there is also a library ghost! Thank goodness it’s a friendly one! Fans of Victoria Gilbert or Jenn McKinlay might like this ghostly cozy mystery. Also available on OverDrive.

Recommended by: Michelle Przekwas, Adult Services Shelver

Posted in: Adult Fiction

A Cry in the Dark (Carly Moore: Book 1)

by Denise Grover Swank

Carly, a young woman with a brand new identity, is on the run from a family mired down in shady business dealings. But while on the road to a new town, her car breaks down. Carly then meets a handsome tow-truck driver, takes on a part-time job, witnesses a murder and then becomes the target of those murderers. A few bad people, in this small, forgotten town in the Smoky Mountains, think she’s someone she’s not. So she’ll have to solve a murder to prove them wrong. And while all this goes on around her, she worries that someone may recognize her. Will she find the chance to get back on the road before her father finds her? If you enjoy suspense with some light romance, this might be the series for you. Available on OverDrive.

Recommended by: Michelle Przekwas, Adult Services Shelver

Posted in: Adult Fiction