Need some ideas on what to read as the weather gets warmer? We've compiled some of our favorite reads of the year (so far), which features everything from thrillers to memoirs to historical fiction. All titles are linked to our catalog, but don't hesitate to stop by the Adult Reference Desk to request a book from this list. Happy reading!
Fantastic Fiction
This is the story of an opportunity to start over at midlife, a chance to save a struggling convent in the Eternal City, and the dramatic re-emergence of an old flame . . . Meet Claire: fifty-two, desperate to do something new and get a fresh start. A look at faith, in oneself as much as a higher power, and love, romantic and familial, lost and found, this is the thoroughly charming story of one woman who sets out to rewrite her past and future, only to be surprised by the plot twists life plants . . . when in Rome.
The Family Chao by Lan Samantha Chang
An ingenious and cunning reboot of Dostoyevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov. Set in Haven, Wisconsin, this is the story of a Chinese American family grappling with the dark undercurrents of a seemingly pleasant town. This is a literary mystery that explores family, betrayal, passion, race, culture and the American Dream.
The Trackers by Charles Frazier
A stunning new novel that paints a vivid portrait of life in the Great Depression. Hurtling past the downtrodden communities of Depression-era America, painter Val Welch travels westward to the rural town of Dawes, Wyoming to paint a mural for the small town’s post office. With the keen perceptions of humanity and transcendent storytelling that have made him beloved for decades, Frazier has created a powerful and timeless new classic.
Code Name Sapphire by Pam Jenoff
A woman must rescue her cousin's family from a train bound for Auschwitz in this riveting tale of bravery and resistance, from the bestselling author of The Lost Girls of Paris. Inspired by real characters from the Sapphire Line, a WWII secret resistance network, this is a powerful novel about love, family and the unshakable resilience of women in even the hardest of times.
The Three Lives of Alix St. Pierre by Natasha Lester
In 1943, with WWII raging and men headed overseas to fight, Alix St. Pierre lands a publicity job to recruit women into the workforce. Her skills catch the attention of the U.S. government, and she finds herself with an even bigger assignment sent to Switzerland as a spy. After an Allied victory, Alix moves to Paris, ready to immerse herself in a new position as director of publicity for the yet-to-be-launched House of Dior. This is an unforgettable and fascinating tale of an orphan turned WWII spy turned fashion icon in Paris.
The Chinese Groove by Kathryn Ma
Eighteen-year-old Shelley, living in the shadow of his widowed father’s grief, dreams of bigger things. Buoyed by an exuberant heart and tall tales about the United States, Shelley heads to San Francisco to claim his destiny. This is a buoyant, good-hearted, and sharply written novel about a blithely optimistic immigrant with big dreams, dire prospects, and a fractured extended family in need of his help—even if they don't know it yet.
I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai
Makkai has crafted her most irresistible novel yet: a stirring investigation into collective memory and a deeply felt examination of one woman’s reckoning with her past, with a transfixing mystery at its heart. Timely, hypnotic, and populated with a cast of unforgettable characters, this is at once a compulsive page-turner and a literary triumph set at a New Hampshire boarding school.
An epic novel that spans generations, this novel asks what we would do for those we love, and how we protect the lies we tell. It explores the power of motherhood, the corrosive effects of tightly held secrets, and the healing nature of truth. Above all, it is a beguiling and immensely satisfying novel by one of the finest writers working today.
Homestead by Melinda Moustakis
Set in 1956 in Anchorage Alaska, part wilderness adventure, part family saga, in prose both elegant and resonant, this novel tells of a broken, bitter man and an impulsive girl who fight to stake their claim on this wild land.
Someone Else’s Shoes by Jojo Moyes
A story of mix-ups, mess-ups and making the most of second chances, this is the new novel from bestselling author Jojo Moyes, author of Me Before You and The Giver of Stars. Full of Moyes’ signature humor, brilliant storytelling, and warmth, this is a story about how just one little thing can suddenly change everything.
This is a story of sign language and lip-reading, disability and civil rights, isolation and injustice, first love and loss, and, above all, great persistence, daring, and joy. Absorbing and assured, idiosyncratic and relatable, this is an unforgettable journey into the Deaf community and a universal celebration of human connection.
Stars in an Italian Sky by Jill Santopolo
This is a sweeping story of two star-crossed lovers in post-World War II Italy, and a blossoming relationship generations later that will reveal a long-buried family secret. Years later in modern-day New York, Cassandra and Luca are in love. Although neither quite fits with the other's family, Cass and Luca have always felt like a perfect match for each other. But when Luca, an artist, convinces his grandfather and Cass’s grandmother to pose for a painting, past and present collide and reveal a secret that changes everything.
An epic tale of good versus evil, the story twists and turns until its monumental showdown. Readers will be transported to the dramatic and ruggedly beautiful island of Sicily, the jewel of the Mediterranean, where lush lemon groves and mouth-watering cuisine contrast with a turbulent history of colonization and corruption. Scottoline brings her decades of thriller writing to historical fiction, creating a singular novel that no reader will be able to put down.
From the bestselling author of Child 44 comes a suspenseful and fast-paced novel about an Antarctic colony of global apocalypse survivors seeking to reinvent civilization under the most extreme conditions imaginable. Can they build a new society in the sub-zero cold? Original and imaginative, as profoundly intimate as it is grand in scope, this dystopian novel is a masterful and unforgettable epic.
Pandora by Susan Stokes-Chapman
Steeped in mystery and rich in imagination, this is an exhilarating historical novel set in Georgian London where the discovery of a mysterious ancient Greek vase sets in motion conspiracies, revelations, and romance. A story of myth and mystery, secrets and deception, fate and hope, this is an enchanting work of historical fiction that blends reality with mythology.
Thrills and Chills
You Will Never Be Found (The High Coast Series, 2) by Tove Alsterdale
Detective Eira Sjodin, introduced in the electrifying Swedish crime thriller We Know You Remember, races to solve a disappearance that hits chillingly close to home. In this dramatic second installment of the High Coast Series, Eira Sjödin finds herself at the mercy of an elusive perpetrator—and of a love she can no longer deny.
All Hallows by Christopher Golden
Massachusetts, Halloween night in 1984. Secrets are being revealed, and all the while, mixed in with the trick-or-treaters of all ages, four children who do not belong are walking door to door, merging with the kids of Parmenter Road. These odd children claim that The Cunning Man is coming for them...and they want the local kids to protect them. But with families falling apart and the neighborhood splintered by bitterness, who will save the children of Parmenter Road?
Federal Investigator Aaron Falk is on his way to a small town in Australia for the christening of an old friend's baby. As Falk soaks up life in the lush valley, he is welcomed into the tight-knit circle of Kim’s friends. But the group may be more fractured than it seems. Between Falk’s closest friend, the missing mother, and a woman he’s drawn to, questions linger as truths begin to emerge. What would make a mother abandon her child? What happened to Kim Gillespie?
The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth
Gabe and Pippa’s dream home is in a sleepy coastal town. But their perfect house hides something sinister. The tall cliffs have become a popular spot for people to end their lives. Night after night Gabe comes to their rescue, literally talking them off the ledge. Until he doesn’t. As the perfect facade of their marriage begins to crack, the deepest and darkest secrets begin to unravel.
You’re Invited by Amanda Jayatissa
What could be worse than your ex-boyfriend marrying your childhood best friend? Getting accused of her murder… From the award-winning author of My Sweet Girl comes a dangerously addictive new thriller about a lavish Sri Lankan wedding celebration that not everyone will survive.
Just the Nicest Couple by Mary Kubica
From the author of domestic thrillers comes a riveting one about two couples, two close friends, and one missing husband. Rich with detail and a mounting, almost suffocating sense of dread, this is a dark and twisted exploration of loyalty, family, and how far we’ll go to protect the ones we love.
From the bestselling author of The Whisper Man and The Shadows comes a dark, suspenseful new thriller about the mysteries of fate, the unbreakable bond of siblings, and a notorious serial killer who was said to know the future. Everything in this story is connected in ways the reader can’t begin to imagine until a series of stunning parallels and revelations are disclosed.
You Must Remember This by Kate Rosenfield
An immersive Gothic mystery, with a long-ago love affair, icy death, and a rich family gone bad reminiscent of Knives Out. On Christmas Eve, eighty-five-year-old Miriam Caravasios steps onto the ice that surrounds her seaside estate in Maine. Her mind clouded by dementia, doesn’t hear the snap of thin ice until it’s too late. Was it an accident? Or did someone lure the old woman to her death?
Everyone in My Family has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson
No one in the Cunningham family is innocent, they've done their share of bribing, stealing, and even murdering. This obviously makes for a very uncomfortable family reunion at the ski resort. It's made even more awkward when the protagonist's brother is released from prison and shows up at the same time as a dead body. Together, the family must solve the murder or run the risk of exposing their darkest secret yet.
A riveting legal thriller in which a reckless private detective is embroiled in a fraught police scandal. Filled with colorful courtroom scenes and drama, the suspense and intrigue build as the chapters progress, culminating in a breathtaking finale.
All the Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham
It's been one year since Isabelle Drake's toddler was taken from her in the middle of the night. Although she was cleared by the police, her neighbors and now-estranged husband don't trust her. Isabelle believes that the police are not doing everything in their power to find her son, so she embarks on her own investigation, but uncovers secrets about herself she'd rather not remember in the process.
True Stories
Paris and Her Cathedrals by R. Howard Bloch
Animating the past with evocations of architectural splendor, Bloch contextualizes the cathedrals within the annals of French history. Here thrilling tales of kingly intrigue and audacious abbots are interspersed with anecdotes about the meeting of aristocratic and everyday life, culminating in “a rich, colorful narrative that clearly but expertly explains the history and symbolism of some of the world’s most magnificent buildings”.
All the Beauty in the World: The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Me by Patrick Bringley
A fascinating, revelatory portrait of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and its treasures by a former New Yorker staffer who spent a decade as a museum guard. This is a surprising, inspiring portrait of a great museum, its hidden treasures, and the people who make it tick, by one of its most intimate observers.
The Declassification Engine: What History Reveals About America's Top Secrets by Matthew Connelly
A captivating study of US state secrecy that examines how officials use it to hoard power and prevent meaningful public oversight. Using the latest techniques in data science, historian Matthew Connelly analyzes the millions of state documents both accessible to the public and still under review to unearth not only what the government does not want us to know, but what it says about the very authority we bequeath to our leaders.
Capote's Women: A True Story of Love, Betrayal, and a Swan Song for an Era by Laurence Leamer
Barbara “Babe” Paley, Gloria Guinness, Marella Agnelli, Slim Hayward, Pamela Churchill, C. Z. Guest, and Lee Radziwill (Jackie Kennedy’s sister) were the toast of midcentury New York. Capote befriended them, received their deepest confidence, and ingratiated himself into their lives. Then, in one fell swoop, he betrayed them in the most surprising and startling way possible.
A true story filled with daring rescues, body doubles, and political intrigue, this work of nonfiction details FDR’s pivotal meeting in Tehran and the deadly Nazi plot against the heads of state of the three major Allied powers who attended it. With all the hallmarks of a Brad Meltzer and Josh Mensch page-turner, it explores the great political minds of the twentieth century, investigating the pivotal years of the war in gripping detail.
One: Simple One-Pan Wonders by Jamie Oliver
Quick and easy meals are even simpler when you cook with just one pot, pan or tray. And with each recipe using eight ingredients or fewer, requiring minimal prep (and washing up), they offer maximum convenience. With over 100 recipes that'll teach you simple one-pan techniques there are plenty of no-fuss, tasty recipes that make this a must-have for every kitchen.
A first-person tour through the days and nights of American policing. These patrol officers and K9 handlers, sheriffs and detectives, reveal what it’s really like to wear the uniform and to carry the weight of the responsibility they’ve been given. Policing is a calling in as much as it is a job. With numerous stories and firsthand accounts, there is no right, no left, just cops telling their stories.
An Indian Among Los Indígenas: A Native Travel Memoir by Ursula Pike
Pike’s memoir upends a canon of travel memoirs that has historically been dominated by white writers. It is a sharp, honest, and unnerving examination of the shadows that colonial history casts over even the most well-intentioned attempts at cross-cultural solidarity. It is also the debut of an exceptionally astute writer with a mastery of deadpan wit.
The incredible true story of Ana Montes, the most damaging female spy in US history, drawing upon never-before-seen material and to be published upon her release from prison. This is a thrilling detective tale, an insider’s look at the clandestine world of espionage, and an intimate exploration of the dark side of betrayal.
An extensively illustrated tribute to the 70-year reign of Queen Elizabeth II and to the British Royal Family from the pages of British Vogue. Four monarchs (crowned and uncrowned); one abdication; one royal investiture; a jewel box of jubilees and many, many royal marriages... This is "special royal salute" to the longest-serving monarch and her "assured and unwavering" presence in the lives of a nation.
A deliciously entertaining collection of 101 fascinating and funny anecdotes about Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother—one for each year of her life. Featuring new revelations and colorful anecdotes about the woman Cecil Beaton, the high society photographer, once summarized as “a marshmallow made on a welding machine,” this is a delightful celebration of one of the most consistently popular members of the royal family.
This breezy book features easy-to-follow advice on what to look and listen for, how to use field guides and birding apps, the best equipment to start with, and ways to engage with other birders around the world. Filled with fun facts and seasoned advice, this useful book will help you attract birds to your backyard, master bird identification, name a bird by its song, and witness the magic of migration.