Ig Publishing 2/21/2023. New paperback. Store pick: I?m always interested in a good memoir about religious experience. God?s Ex-Girlfriend did not disappoint. Amodeo?s time with Cru (Campus Crusade for Christ) was full of revelations about how the movement can trap young people at their most vulnerable time: college and the days beyond. Amodeo seriously adopted the evangelical ideas, but found it wasn?t the support she needed to find her true self. A real eye-opener! -Linda H., store volunteer View More...
St. Martin's Press 5/2/2023. New hardcover. in Brand New jacket. Store pick: If you love reading and recognize the power of books, you will love this new novel by Erica Bauermeister. She starts with Alice, whose brother?s traumatic past inspires her to write a book. Then she take us on a journey with some of the readers of Theo, Alice?s novel, and explores how the book touches each of their lives. Bauermeister?s way of subtly linking the stories together is brilliant. Each unforgettable character stood out in their own way. No Two Persons is a fast read that I couldn?t put down! -Linda H., s... View More...
Bantam 12/27/2022. New paperback. Store pick: Melanie Benjamin is at her best in this historical fiction account of the terrifying blizzard of 1888. It seemingly came out of nowhere and caught the residents of the Midwest by surprise, especially the children and teachers who were preparing to go home for the day. Benjamin looks at the lives of two sisters--both teachers at different schools--and how their decisions that day meant life or death for their students. I spent several late nights on this one! -Linda H., store volunteer View More...
Minotaur Books 7/11/2023. New hardcover. in Brand New jacket. On sale 7/11/23. Pre-order today! Store pick: Kate Burkholder is stunned at the brutal death by crossbow of a young Amish man. Well respected in the community and essentially promised to the daughter of another Amish family his life seemed on a steady path. But being killed, probably at close range, with a crossbow suggests otherwise. Kate is going to have to work incredibly hard to penetrate the wall that separates the Amish in Painters Mill to bring justice for the murdered. The path she travels is filled with discoveries that wi... View More...
St. Martin's Press 7/19/2022. New hardcover. First Edition, First Printing. in Brand New jacket. Store pick: Hannah's job as an executive protection agent (aka, a bodyguard) means she spends a lot of time blending into the background. Which is fine, that's how she likes it, and it's what she wants, especially after her mom's death and her boyfriend breaking up with her (the day after the funeral!) have left her feeling adrift. What she absolutely does not want is to pretend to be sexiest-man-alive actor Jack Stapleton's girlfriend. But she's not given a choice, so she does it...and Jack's act... View More...
St. Martin's Griffin 6/13/2023. New paperback. On sale 6/13/23. Pre-order today! Store pick: Hannah's job as an executive protection agent (aka, a bodyguard) means she spends a lot of time blending into the background. Which is fine, that's how she likes it, and it's what she wants, especially after her mom's death and her boyfriend breaking up with her (the day after the funeral!) have left her feeling adrift. What she absolutely does not want is to pretend to be sexiest-man-alive actor Jack Stapleton's girlfriend. But she's not given a choice, so she does it...and Jack's acting abilities mu... View More...
St. Martin's Griffin 7/14/2020. New paperback. Store pick: You will cheer for tough-as-nails firefighter Cassie Hanwell, cry for her, mentally will her on, and celebrate with her at the end. Things You Save in a Fire effortlessly captures the realities of modern American women while at the same time radiating a contagious positivity. Reading Katherine Center is your pleasurable antidote for the daily news cycle. -Jill Hendrix, store owner (seconded by Linda H., store volunteer, and Melissa O., store employee) View More...
Henry Holt and Company 2/1/2022. New paperback. Store pick: This powerful novel is about the journey of one woman, Lydia, and her young son as they try to escape to the US from their home in Mexico. Their treacherous journey to get away from an angry drug lord mirrors the stories of other migrants they meet along the way. Jeanine Cummins has written an excellent novel on the difficult paths of the migrants and their reasons for heading north. A real page-turner! -Linda H., store volunteer (seconded by Melissa O., store employee) View More...
Avon 4/25/2023. New paperback. Store pick: If you are looking for a quirky little story about a dysfunctional family, this is your book. Laugh-out-loud funny at times, occasionally heartfelt, HelenKay Dimon?s novel is a great reprieve for a slow day. The Moorewoods consider vice and deception the family business. Can they ever go legal? When Jillian Moorewood is released from prison, she intends to find out. It doesn?t hurt that she is assigned a hunky bodyguard that wants to help. An entertaining read! -Linda H., store volunteer View More...
Kensington 1/23/2024. New paperback. On sale 1/23/24. Pre-order today! Store pick: In When the Jessamine Grows, Donna Everhart takes a complicated issue?neutrality during the Civil War?and gives an empathetic portrait of a family that tries to maintain it. Joetta McBride doesn?t care about the war, she just wants her family to continue growing their own food and minding their own business. Joetta soon finds that not getting involved carries its own risks, such as the alienation of her sons and neighbors. As her own husband and son go to war, she learns to do what she can to survive. But Joett... View More...
William Morrow 4/11/2023. New paperback. Store pick: Juliette Fay, how could you do this to me? Get me so emotionally invested your novel, The Half of It, that I think about Helen and Cal, the main characters, constantly? It didn?t help that like Helen and Cal, I also came of age in the early 80s. Their chance meeting 40 years later gives them an opportunity to correct some things from the past and decide if they want to go in another direction. But how those adult children can interfere! Add grandkids to the mix to make a fine family drama and love story that was hard for me to put down. And... View More...
William Morrow 6/6/2023. New hardcover. in Brand New jacket. Store pick: My Magnolia Summer is a beautiful ode to Victoria Benton Frank?s mother, Dorothea. It is apparent in the grace, style, and humor that the younger Frank has sprinkled through this novel about a Sullivan?s Island native who comes home to help out the family during a crisis. Delightful characters and sweet love scenes abound. A great summer read! -Linda H., store volunteer View More...
University of South Carolina Press 5/24/2022. New paperback. Store pick: In her lovely memoir, Judy Goldman reflects on what it was like to be a young Jewish girl raised by a Black nanny in the 1940s and 50s south. Mattie Culp became a part of the Kurtz family: sleeping in young Judy?s bedroom, using the family bathroom, celebrating holidays with them?things unheard of in the Jim Crow south. Now in her 80s, Goldman reflects on what Mattie had to give up?including her own child?in order to make the Kurtz family?s life so much easier. -Linda H., store volunteer View More...
Atria Books 6/6/2023. New hardcover. in Brand New jacket. Store pick: Kathleen Grissom is a master storyteller! Crow Mary had me from the beginning, pulling for the title character and her adjustment to the white man?s world. Mary can never abandon her Crow heritage, much to the dismay of her husband, Farwell. Her bravery and resolve carries her through the good times and bad. Grissom?s imagery makes the buffalo and western trails come alive. Based on a true story, Crow Mary is an amazing account of life for the Crow and Yellow Eyes in the late 1800s. A treasure of a novel for book clubs! -L... View More...
St. Martin's Griffin 9/24/2019. New paperback. Store pick: The Allbright family has barely managed to survive since Ernt returned from a prisoner of war camp in Viet Nam. 13 year old Leni loves her mother Cora unconditionally and she tries really hard to love her father but she doesn?t understand why her mother accepts the abuse and the cruelty her father dishes out when one of ?his moods? comes on. In a last attempt to fit into society in a post Viet Nam era the family moves to what is at the time the wilderness of Alaska. They are totally unprepared for what they are about to endure but wit... View More...
Crooked Lane Books 5/2/2023. New hardcover. in Brand New jacket. Store pick: This book is enthralling from the first chapter. You know evil is present and active from the first crime scene. DCI Adam Bishop is an incredible solver of complicated situations and a very tortured individual. The life of an inspector/detective during a horrific crime is brought to life in every detail: lack of food, sleep, and anything routine. He may be brilliant, but sometimes the criminals are also brilliant. They also can think along perverted paths most minds would never explore. As Adam's professional life co... View More...
Scribner 11/29/2022. New hardcover. in Brand New jacket. Store pick: Loneliness and grief?and how we deal with it?are at the center of this new novel by Ethan Joella. Three seemingly unrelated people are trying desperately to keep their heads above water in a sea of grief. Chuck is mourning his wife?s death to cancer, Ella is anguished after her daughter?s kidnapping, and Kirsten misses her dad who was senselessly murdered. Yes, it?s a sad novel, but the sadness brings kindness and beauty as the characters? lives interweave in unexpected ways. Perfect for fans of Anne Tyler and Ann Patchett. ... View More...
Scribner 11/21/2023. New paperback. On sale 11/21/23. Pre-order today! Store pick: Loneliness and grief?and how we deal with it?are at the center of this new novel by Ethan Joella. Three seemingly unrelated people are trying desperately to keep their heads above water in a sea of grief. Chuck is mourning his wife?s death to cancer, Ella is anguished after her daughter?s kidnapping, and Kirsten misses her dad who was senselessly murdered. Yes, it?s a sad novel, but the sadness brings kindness and beauty as the characters? lives interweave in unexpected ways. Perfect for fans of Anne Tyler and ... View More...
Atria Books 5/26/2020. New paperback. Store pick: This Tender Land is the story of four orphans and the twisted journey they take to escape their terrible orphanage in 1932. They meet many people on their journey, including both the noble and the dishonorable. The main character, Odie, learns about trust, love, and forgiveness. In fact, forgiveness is a theme throughout the novel that Kreuger explores. It isn't until each character experiences it that their journey is complete. -Linda H., store volunteer (seconded by Brent B., store volunteer) View More...
Celadon Books 8/1/2023. New hardcover. in Brand New jacket. On sale 8/1/23. Pre-order today! Store pick: Tara Connelly finds it hard to adjust to being back with her family after a stint in jail. Her sister Geraldine is controlling and her brother Eddie is dealing with a traumatic brain injury, but luckily his son Conor keeps everyone on track with the jokes he tells. Tracey Lange?s latest novel showcases a family that has been through heartache and has made mistakes. But as it unfolds you learn the why, the how, and the love that somehow keeps the Connellys going. The thrilling ending had me... View More...
