Skip to main content

Editorial Content for The Christmas Guest

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Ray Palen

This wonderful new novella from Peter Swanson meets the needs of both Halloween and Christmas. Despite the holiday setting, THE CHRISTMAS GUEST involves much darker subject matter and is purely a psychological thriller from start to finish. Read More

Teaser

Ashley Smith, an American art student in London for her junior year, was planning on spending Christmas alone. But a last-minute invitation from fellow student Emma Chapman brings her to Starvewood Hall, the country residence of the Chapman family. Ashley is mesmerized by the cozy, firelit house, the large family, and the charming village of Clevemoor, but also by Adam Chapman, Emma’s aloof and handsome brother. But Adam is being investigated by the local police over the recent brutal slaying of a girl from the village, and there is a mysterious stranger who haunts the woodland path between Starvewood Hall and the local pub. Ashley begins to wonder what kind of story she is actually inhabiting. Over 30 years later, the events of that horrific week are revisited, along with a diary from that time.

Promo

Ashley Smith, an American art student in London for her junior year, was planning on spending Christmas alone. But a last-minute invitation from fellow student Emma Chapman brings her to Starvewood Hall, the country residence of the Chapman family. Ashley is mesmerized by the cozy, firelit house, the large family, and the charming village of Clevemoor, but also by Adam Chapman, Emma’s aloof and handsome brother. But Adam is being investigated by the local police over the recent brutal slaying of a girl from the village, and there is a mysterious stranger who haunts the woodland path between Starvewood Hall and the local pub. Ashley begins to wonder what kind of story she is actually inhabiting. Over 30 years later, the events of that horrific week are revisited, along with a diary from that time.

About the Book

New York Times bestselling author Peter Swanson pens a spectacularly spine-chilling novella in which an American art student in London is invited to join a classmate for the holidays at Starvewood Hall, her family’s Cotswold manor house. But behind the holly and pine boughs, secrets are about to unravel, revealing this seemingly charming English village’s grim history.

Ashley Smith, an American art student in London for her junior year, was planning on spending Christmas alone, but a last-minute invitation from fellow student Emma Chapman brings her to Starvewood Hall, country residence of the Chapman family. The Cotswold manor house, festooned in pine boughs and crammed with guests for Christmas week, is a dream come true for Ashley. She is mesmerized by the cozy, firelit house, the large family and the charming village of Clevemoor, but also by Adam Chapman, Emma’s aloof and handsome brother.

But Adam is being investigated by the local police over the recent brutal slaying of a girl from the village, and there is a mysterious stranger who haunts the woodland path between Starvewood Hall and the local pub. Ashley begins to wonder what kind of story she is actually inhabiting. Is she in a grand romance? A gothic tale? Or has she wandered into something far more sinister and terrifying than she’d ever imagined?

Over 30 years later, the events of that horrific week are revisited, along with a diary from that time. What began in a small English village in 1989 reaches its ghostly conclusion in modern-day New York, many Christmas seasons later.

Audiobook available, read by Esther Wane

Editorial Content for A Traitor in Whitehall: An Evelyne Redfern Mystery

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Pamela Kramer

Julia Kelly is known to those who have read her previous books as someone who not only does meticulous research, but also writes compelling historical fiction about fascinating moments in time with a style that is both engaging and thrilling, and always thoughtful. Read More

Teaser

1940, England: Evelyne Redfern, known as “The Parisian Orphan” as a child, is working on the line at a munitions factory in wartime London. When Mr. Fletcher, one of her father’s old friends, spots Evelyne on a night out, Evelyne finds herself plunged into the world of Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s cabinet war rooms. However, shortly after she settles into her new role as a secretary, one of the girls at work is murdered, and Evelyne must use all of her amateur sleuthing expertise to find the killer. But doing so puts her right in the path of David Poole, a cagey minister’s aide who seems determined to thwart her investigations. That is, until Evelyne finds out that David’s real mission is to root out a mole selling government secrets to Britain’s enemies, and the pair begrudgingly team up.

Promo

1940, England: Evelyne Redfern, known as “The Parisian Orphan” as a child, is working on the line at a munitions factory in wartime London. When Mr. Fletcher, one of her father’s old friends, spots Evelyne on a night out, Evelyne finds herself plunged into the world of Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s cabinet war rooms. However, shortly after she settles into her new role as a secretary, one of the girls at work is murdered, and Evelyne must use all of her amateur sleuthing expertise to find the killer. But doing so puts her right in the path of David Poole, a cagey minister’s aide who seems determined to thwart her investigations. That is, until Evelyne finds out that David’s real mission is to root out a mole selling government secrets to Britain’s enemies, and the pair begrudgingly team up.

About the Book

From Julia Kelly, internationally bestselling author of THE LAST DANCE OF THE DEBUTANTE, comes the first in the mysterious and immersive Evelyne Redfern series, A TRAITOR IN WHITEHALL.

1940, England: Evelyne Redfern, known as “The Parisian Orphan” as a child, is working on the line at a munitions factory in wartime London. When Mr. Fletcher, one of her father’s old friends, spots Evelyne on a night out, Evelyne finds herself plunged into the world of Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s cabinet war rooms.

However, shortly after she settles into her new role as a secretary, one of the girls at work is murdered, and Evelyne must use all of her amateur sleuthing expertise to find the killer. But doing so puts her right in the path of David Poole, a cagey minister’s aide who seems determined to thwart her investigations. That is, until Evelyne finds out that David’s real mission is to root out a mole selling government secrets to Britain’s enemies, and the pair begrudgingly team up.

With her quick wit, sharp eyes and determination, will Evelyne be able to find out who’s been selling England’s secrets and catch a killer, all while battling her growing attraction to David?

Audiobook available, read by Marisa Calin

Editorial Content for Move Like Water: My Story of the Sea

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Pauline Finch

According to the National Geographic Society, there are no fewer than 50 bodies of salt water on Earth that are currently named as seas. Some are landlocked, but most are connected, encircling all the continents of our planet.

While each sea has its differences of size, depth, subterranean geology and climatic features, Hannah Stowe, in her captivating memoir, seems to engage with the sea as a vast singular entity with infinitely varied yet connected moods, textures and challenges --- a borderless experience that literally does move through her psyche like water. Read More

Teaser

As a young girl, Hannah Stowe was raised at the tide’s edge on the Pembrokeshire coast of Wales, falling asleep to the sweep of the lighthouse beam. Now in her mid-20s, working as a marine biologist and sailor, Stowe draws on her professional experiences sailing tens of thousands of miles in the North Sea, North Atlantic, Mediterranean, Celtic Sea and the Caribbean to explore the human relationship with wild waters. Why is it, she asks, that she and so many others have been drawn to life at sea --- and what might the water around us be able to teach us? In MOVE LIKE WATER, Stowe invites readers to fall in love, as she has, with the sea and those that call it home, and to discover the majesty, wonder and vulnerability of the underwater world.

Promo

As a young girl, Hannah Stowe was raised at the tide’s edge on the Pembrokeshire coast of Wales, falling asleep to the sweep of the lighthouse beam. Now in her mid-20s, working as a marine biologist and sailor, Stowe draws on her professional experiences sailing tens of thousands of miles in the North Sea, North Atlantic, Mediterranean, Celtic Sea and the Caribbean to explore the human relationship with wild waters. Why is it, she asks, that she and so many others have been drawn to life at sea --- and what might the water around us be able to teach us? In MOVE LIKE WATER, Stowe invites readers to fall in love, as she has, with the sea and those that call it home, and to discover the majesty, wonder and vulnerability of the underwater world.

About the Book

A book to sweep you away from the shore, into a wild world of water, whale, storm and starlight --- to experience what it’s like to sail for weeks at a time with life set to a new rhythm.

As a young girl, Hannah Stowe was raised at the tide’s edge on the Pembrokeshire coast of Wales, falling asleep to the sweep of the lighthouse beam. Now in her mid-20s, working as a marine biologist and sailor, Stowe draws on her professional experiences sailing tens of thousands of miles in the North Sea, North Atlantic, Mediterranean, Celtic Sea and the Caribbean to explore the human relationship with wild waters. Why is it, she asks, that she and so many others have been drawn to life at sea --- and what might the water around us be able to teach us?

Braiding her powerful and deeply personal narrative and illustrations with stories of six keystone marine creatures --- the fire crow, sperm whale, wandering albatross, humpback whale, shearwater and the barnacle --- Stowe invites readers to fall in love, as she has, with the sea and those that call it home, and to discover the majesty, wonder and vulnerability of the underwater world.

For fans of Rachel Carson and Annie Dillard, MOVE LIKE WATER is an inspiring, heartfelt hymn to the sea, a testament to finding and following a dream, and an unforgettable introduction to a deeply gifted nature writer of a new generation.

Audiobook available, read by Anna Rust

Editorial Content for Last to Leave the Room

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Sarah Rachel Egelman

Some works of horror defy easy categorization, and that is certainly the case with LAST TO LEAVE THE ROOM. Caitlin Starling doesn’t simply rehash old horror tropes and gags but plays with the genre. She creates something more akin to a simmering speculative thriller with a creeping sense of dread and rooted in some expected but compelling doppelgänger themes. Read More

Teaser

The city of San Siroco is sinking. The basement of Dr. Tamsin Rivers, the arrogant, selfish head of the research team assigned to find the source of the subsidence, is sinking faster. As Tamsin grows obsessed with the distorting dimensions of the room at the bottom of the stairs, she finds a door that didn’t exist before --- and one night, it opens to reveal an exact physical copy of her. This doppelgänger appears fully, terribly human, passing every test Tamsin can devise. But the longer the double exists, the more Tamsin begins to forget pieces of her life, lose track of time and grow terrified of the outside world. As her employer grows increasingly suspicious, Tamsin must try to hold herself together long enough to figure out what her double wants from her, and just where the mysterious door leads.

Promo

The city of San Siroco is sinking. The basement of Dr. Tamsin Rivers, the arrogant, selfish head of the research team assigned to find the source of the subsidence, is sinking faster. As Tamsin grows obsessed with the distorting dimensions of the room at the bottom of the stairs, she finds a door that didn’t exist before --- and one night, it opens to reveal an exact physical copy of her. This doppelgänger appears fully, terribly human, passing every test Tamsin can devise. But the longer the double exists, the more Tamsin begins to forget pieces of her life, lose track of time and grow terrified of the outside world. With her employer growing increasingly suspicious, Tamsin must try to hold herself together long enough to figure out what her double wants from her, and just where the mysterious door leads.

About the Book

LAST TO LEAVE THE ROOM is a new novel of genre-busting speculative horror from Caitlin Starling, the acclaimed author of THE DEATH OF JANE LAWRENCE.

The city of San Siroco is sinking. The basement of Dr. Tamsin Rivers, the arrogant, selfish head of the research team assigned to find the source of the subsidence, is sinking faster. 

As Tamsin grows obsessed with the distorting dimensions of the room at the bottom of the stairs, she finds a door that didn’t exist before --- and one night, it opens to reveal an exact physical copy of her. This doppelgänger is sweet and biddable where Tamsin is calculating and cruel. It appears fully, terribly human, passing every test Tamsin can devise. But the longer the double exists, the more Tamsin begins to forget pieces of her life, to lose track of time, to grow terrified of the outside world. 

With her employer growing increasingly suspicious, Tamsin must try to hold herself together long enough to figure out what her double wants from her, and just where the mysterious door leads.

Audiobook available, read by Xe Sands

Editorial Content for A Lonesome Blood-Red Sun: A Bone Detective Novel

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

L. Dean Murphy

A LONESOME BLOOD-RED SUN, the second entry in the Bone Detective series, follows 2022’s A FEARSOME MOONLIGHT BLACK and once again features Detective Dave Beckett. The author, David Putnam, may be best known for his Bruno Johnson novels. At first glance, this book appears to be somewhat in the vein of Carol O’Connell’s BONE BY BONE, but there are more thriller overtones than psychological suspense.

"Overused terms like ratchet, rollercoaster, gripping and action-packed all fail to adequately describe this phenomenal thriller."

Teaser

Dave Beckett, a homicide detective who doesn't color within the lines, is regulated to the lowest job in the division and is known by his peers as The Bone Dick. He handles all "bag of bone" cases found in San Bernardino County's 20,000 square miles, at present count 256 pending unsolved. It's a boring, mundane job...until it isn't. In A LONESOME BLOOD-RED SUN, Beckett is called to a house far out in the desert where a dog has brought a bone to the back door. Beckett investigates and discovers that the victim, two years dead, is someone he knows. With his usual verve and colorful methods, Beckett tracks the killer. The trail leads through a warren of dead ends until he discovers a most unlikely suspect hiding in plain sight.

Promo

Dave Beckett, a homicide detective who doesn't color within the lines, is regulated to the lowest job in the division and is known by his peers as The Bone Dick. He handles all "bag of bone" cases found in San Bernardino County's 20,000 square miles, at present count 256 pending unsolved. It's a boring, mundane job...until it isn't. In A LONESOME BLOOD-RED SUN, Beckett is called to a house far out in the desert where a dog has brought a bone to the back door. Beckett investigates and discovers that the victim, two years dead, is someone he knows. With his usual verve and colorful methods, Beckett tracks the killer. The trail leads through a warren of dead ends until he discovers a most unlikely suspect hiding in plain sight.

About the Book

Dave Beckett, a homicide detective who doesn't color within the lines, is regulated to the lowest job in the division and is known by his peers as The Bone Dick. He handles all "bag of bone" cases found in San Bernardino County's 20,000 square miles, at present count 256 pending unsolved. It's a boring, mundane job...until it isn't.

In A LONESOME BLOOD-RED SUN, Beckett is called to a house far out in the desert where a dog has brought a bone to the back door. Beckett investigates and discovers that the victim, two years dead, is someone he knows. With his usual verve and colorful methods, Beckett tracks the killer. The trail leads through a warren of dead ends until he discovers a most unlikely suspect hiding in plain sight.

A LONESOME BLOOD-RED SUN is fiction melded with true-life incidents that makes for a non-stop thriller of the first order.

Editorial Content for At What Cost, Silence?: The Texian Trilogy, Book 1

Reviewer (text)

Barbara Bamberger Scott

Set in pre-Civil War Texas and featuring a large cast of dynamic characters, AT WHAT COST, SILENCE? is the first entry in Karen Lynne Klink’s Texian Trilogy. History and mystery pervade this fascinating saga, leading to the division of a nation and the separation of friends and lovers. Read More

Teaser

Adrien Villere suspects he is not like other boys. For years, he desperately locks away his feelings and fears --- but eventually, tragedy and loss drive him to seek solace from his mentor, young neighbor Jacob Hart. However, Jacob’s betrayal of Adrien’s trust results in secret abuse, setting off a chain of actions from which neither Adrien’s wise sister, Bernadette, nor his closest friend, Isaac, can turn him. AT WHAT COST, SILENCE? presents two contrasting plantation families in a society where strict rules of belief and behavior are clear, and public opinion can shape an entire life.

Promo

Adrien Villere suspects he is not like other boys. For years, he desperately locks away his feelings and fears --- but eventually, tragedy and loss drive him to seek solace from his mentor, young neighbor Jacob Hart. However, Jacob’s betrayal of Adrien’s trust results in secret abuse, setting off a chain of actions from which neither Adrien’s wise sister, Bernadette, nor his closest friend, Isaac, can turn him. AT WHAT COST, SILENCE? presents two contrasting plantation families in a society where strict rules of belief and behavior are clear, and public opinion can shape an entire life.

About the Book

Adrien Villere suspects he is not like other boys. For years, he desperately locks away his feelings and fears --- but eventually, tragedy and loss drive him to seek solace from his mentor, young neighbor Jacob Hart. However, Jacob’s betrayal of Adrien’s trust results in secret abuse, setting off a chain of actions from which neither Adrien’s wise sister, Bernadette, nor his closest friend, Isaac, can turn him.

AT WHAT COST, SILENCE? presents two contrasting plantation families in a society where strict rules of belief and behavior are clear, and public opinion can shape an entire life. Centerstage are the Villeres, a family less brutal than the Harts, but no less divisive. Often-absent Papa Paien Villere guards several secrets he has kept from everyone --- including one that could destroy his entire family. Years after Jacob’s betrayal, Adrien falls hopelessly in love with his former mentor’s erotically precocious and beautiful young sister, Lily --- whose father has affianced her to a wealthy older man.

What will happen if Lily’s violent brother learns of Adrien and Lily’s clandestine affair? Will Adrien aid in freeing Isaac --- an enslaved Black man --- as promised? Will Bernadette find the unconventional life she seeks? Or will their entire world end as states secede and war creeps ever closer?

The Leftover Woman by Jean Kwok

October 2023

Jean Kwok’s THE LEFTOVER WOMAN is the story of two women and one child. In China, Jasmine Yang had a baby girl. Her husband told her the infant died, but instead he had their girl given up for adoption. The One Child Policy was in place in China, and he wanted a son, not a daughter. Jasmine later learns what happened and heads to New York to find her child. To get there, she sells her wedding ring and entrusts her safe passage to snakeheads, to whom she owes a huge financial debt.

Veil of Doubt by Sharon Virts

October 2023

VEIL OF DOUBT, Sharon Virts’ second novel, is a historical mystery set in 1872. In it, Maud, the three-year-old daughter of Emily Lloyd, has died after a short illness, from which she seemed to be rebounding. This would be tragic enough if the other three children in the family and her husband had not died previously under mysterious circumstances. Emily is accused of poisoning Maud and quickly is charged with murder. Powell Harrison and his brother, Matthew, take on what appears to be an unwinnable case. Powell has experienced a personal loss recently and watches Emily, projecting some of how he feels onto her. But he is convinced that something is not ringing right. She does not seem capable of murder, yet the child is dead, as are the other family members.

Which of the following recently released or soon-to-be-released nonfiction titles have you read or are you planning to read? Please check all that apply.

October 20, 2023, 528 voters

October 20, 2023 - November 3, 2023

Here are reading recommendations with your comments and a rating of 1 to 5 stars for the contest period of October 20 - November 3.