July 1, 2022
New Fiction
A Botanist’s Guide to Parties and Poisons by Kate Khavari – Newly minted research assistant Saffron Everleigh is determined to blaze a new trail at the University College London, but with her colleagues’ beliefs about women’s academic inabilities and not so subtle hints that her deceased father’s reputation paved her way into the botany department, she feels stymied at every turn. When she attends a dinner party for the school, she expects to engage in conversations about the university’s large expedition to the Amazon. What she doesn’t expect is for Mrs. Henry, one of the professor’s wives, to drop to the floor poisoned by an unknown toxin. Dr. Maxwell, Saffron’s mentor, is the main suspect, and evidence quickly mounts. Joined by fellow researcher – and potential romantic interest – Alexander Ashton, Saffron uses her knowledge of botany as she explores steamy greenhouses, dark gardens, and deadly poisons to clear Maxwell’s name. Will she be able to uncover the truth or will her investigation land her on the murderer’s list?
A Face to Die For by Iris Johansen – Archaeologist Riley Smith has been obsessed with Helen of Troy since she was a small girl, trailing her professor father all over the world seeking the tomb of the world’s most beautiful woman. Professor Smith had put his life on the line to prove that, instead of a myth, Helen had been a living, breathing queen. Riley seeks the help of forensic sculptor Eve Duncan, who has the unusual skills necessary to re-create the face that launched a thousand ships – revealing Helen’s true appearance for the first time in history. But convincing Eve to take on the challenge will be difficult because her efforts could come at great personal risk to her and her family. Tomb raiders have murdered Riley’s father, and now she is more determined than ever to reach the burial site, avenge his death, and enlist Eve’s aid. Also on hand to help is dashing fixer and treasure hunter Michael Cade, but could he have his own secret agenda when it comes to finding Helen? Now both Riley and Eve are in danger and in a race across one of the most remote parts of the world. All they have is their trust in each other and their belief in a dream as they hunt for Helen.
The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand – Fresh off a bad breakup with a longtime boyfriend, Nantucket sweetheart Lizbet Keaton is desperately seeking a second act. When she’s named the general manager of the newly renovated Hotel Nantucket, a Gilded Age gem rescued from neglect. She hopes that her local expertise and charismatic staff can win the favor of their London billionaire owner, Xavier Darling, as well as that of Shelly Carpenter, the wildly popular Instagram tastemaker who can help put them back on the map. And while the Hotel Nantucket appears to be a blissful paradise, complete with a celebrity chef – run restaurant and an idyllic wellness centre – there’s a lot of drama behind closed doors. The staff (and guests) have complicated pasts, and the hotel can’t seem to overcome the bad reputation it earned in 1922 when a tragic fire killed nineteen-year-old chambermaid Grace Hadley. With Grace gleefully haunting the halls, a staff harbouring all kinds of secrets, and Lizbet’s own romantic uncertainty, is the Hotel Nantucket destined for success or doom?
Local Gone Missing by Fiona Barton – Elise King is a successful and ambitious detective – or she was before a medical leave left her unsure if she’d ever return to work. She now spends most days watching the growing tensions in her small seaside town of Ebbing – the weekenders renovating old bungalows into luxury homes, and the locals resentful of the changes. Elise can only guess what really happens behind closed doors. But Dee Eastwood, her house cleaner, often knows. She’s an invisible presence in many of the houses in town, and she sees and hears everything. The conflicts boil over when a newcomer who wants to put the town on the map throws a giant music festival, and two teenagers overdose on drugs while attending. After a man disappears the first night of the festival, Elise is drawn back into her detective work and starts digging for answers. Ebbing is a small town, but it’s full of secrets and hidden connections that run deeper and darker than Elise could have ever imagined.