April 12, 2024
New Fiction
Tourist Season by Brenda Novak – Ismay Chalmers is ready for a relaxing summer reconnecting with her fiancé at his family’s luxurious beachfront cottage. But before Remy can join her, a hurricane bears down on Mariners Island. Alone in the large house, Ismay makes a disturbing discovery in Remy’s childhood closet. She’s not sure what to make of it, but is relieved when the property’s caretaker, Bo, checks in on her. Bo’s home is damaged, so they temporarily shelter together, and Ismay is comforted by his quiet strength. But the unannounced arrival of a family member puts Bo back at his place and changes Ismay’s summer into something other than what she wants – or ever expected. With so many reasons to feel unsettled, Ismay finds herself turning to Bo, who gives her more than a sense of security; there’s something about him that makes her feel alive, stirring her to wonder what life might be like if she chose a different path. As Ismay grows closer to Bo, she begins to hope the reclusive caretaker might eventually let down his guard. But when she finds out that he has secrets, too, she begins to question how well she knows any of the men in her life – and how well she can trust her own heart.
First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston – The identity comes first: Evie Porter. Once she’s given a name and location by her mysterious boss, Mr. Smith, she learns everything there is to know about the town and the people in it. Then the mark: Ryan Summer. The last piece of the puzzle is the job. Evie isn’t privy to Mr. Smiths real identity, but she knows this job isn’t like the others. Ryan has gotten under her skin, and she’s starting to envision a different sort of life for herself. But Evie can’t make any mistakes – especially after what happened last time. Evie Porter must stay one step ahead of her past while making sure there’ still a future in front of her. The stakes couldn’t be higher-but then, Evie has always like a challenge.
The Waters by Bonnie Jo Campbell – On an island in the Great Massasauga Swamp – an area known as “The Waters” to the residents of nearby Whiteheart, Michigan – herbalist and eccentric Hermine “Herself” Zook has healed the local women of their ailments for generations. As stubborn as her tonics are powerful, Herself inspires reverence and fear in the people of Whiteheart, and even in her own three estranged daughters. The youngest-the beautiful, inscrutable, and lazy Rose Thorn-has left her own daughter, eleven year old Dorothy ”Donkey” Zook, to grow up wild. Donkey spends her days searching for truths in the lush landscape and in her math books, waiting for her wayward mother and longing for a father, unaware that family secrets, passionate love, and violent men will flood through the swamp and upend her idyllic childhood. Rage simmers below the surface of this divided community, and those on both sides of the divide have closed their doors against the enemy. The only bridge across the waters is Rose Thorn.
She’s Not Sorry by Mary Kubica – Meghan Michaels is trying to find balance between being a single mom to a teenage daughter and working as a full-time nurse. While Meghan is on duty at the hospital one day, a patient named Caitlin arrives in a coma with a traumatic brain injury, after jumping from a bridge and plunging over twenty feet to the train tracks below. But when a witness comes forward with shocking details about the fall, it calls everything they know into question. Was Caitlin pushed, and if so, by whom? And why? Meghan has always tried to stay emotionally detached from her patients, but this time, she mistakenly lets herself get too close until she’s deeply entangled in Caitlin’s life. Only when it’s too late does she realize that she and her daughter could be the next victims.