My LINKcat AccountAs we approach the end of the month of October, we will at last – if the weather forecasts are correct—be seeing the end of the growing season, with overnight temperatures looking to be in the low 30s. But you have to admit, when the sun was shining last weekend we certainly had some
gorgeous fall days. There were blue skies with wisps of white clouds. And all along my route to work there were trees in a rainbow assortment of colors. Burgundy, scarlet, mahogany, crimson, neon, and fire-engine red. There were greens turning to yellow. And the oranges! Tangerine, apricot, and a neon orange that glowed with the sunlight. What pretty days we’ve had mixed in with the windy, gray, days that provide contrast.
The countdown to the Haunted Library is definitely underway. October 29th is only a day away. I hope you will join us. It should be spooktacular! Below you will note that another countdown—I’m talking about Christmas, here—is also underway. It is 59 days away. I am only mentioning this because some of the titles listed below have definite Christmas themes in their titles. Whether or not you want to rush the yuletide season or not, I’m sure you’ll find a title below to whet for reading appetite. Enjoy!
New Non-Fiction
“George Harrison: The Reluctant Beatle” by Phillip Norman. Offers a rare and revealing portrait of George Harrison, the most misunderstood and mysterious Beatle, based on decades-long research and unparalleled access to inside sources.
“Hunting the Falcon: Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, and the Marriage That Shook Europe” by John Guy & Julia Fox. A groundbreaking, freshly-researched examination of one of the most dramatic and consequential marriages in history: Henry VIII’s long courtship, short union and brutal execution of Anne Boleyn.
“If You Would Have Told Me” by John Stamos. A noted star of the beloved sitcom “Full House” chronicles the ups and downs of his life.
“Tupac Shakur: The Authorized Biography” by Staci Robinson. More than a quarter of a century after his tragic death in 1996, this first-and-only Estate-authorized biography tells the powerful story of the one of the greatest and most controversial artists of all time whose unapologetic lyrics continue to inspire his fans around the world
“The Woman in Me” by Brittany Spears. The noted pop star offers a moving story about freedom, fame, motherhood, survival, faith, and hope.
New Fiction
“Julia” by Sandra Newman. An imaginative, feminist, and relevant-to-today retelling of
George Orwell’s “1984”, from the point of view of Winston Smith’s lover, Julia.
“A Christmas to Remember (Blessing)” by Beverly Jenkins. When their long-awaited walk down the aisle to say “I do” hits a speed bump that could derail everything, Bernadine and Mal discover their relationship isn’t the only one being tested as Preston Mays gets his heart broken and Reverend Paula Grant asks God to send her someone to share her life.
“The Unsettled” by Ayana Mathis. In a multi-generational novel set in the 1980s in racially and politically turbulent Philadelphia and in the tiny town of Bonaparte, Alabama, a mother fights for her sanity and survival.
“Let Us Descend” by Jesmyn Ward. In the years before the Civil War, Annis, sold south by the white enslaver who fathered her, struggles through the miles-long march, seeks comfort from memories of her mother and stories of her African warrior grandmother, opening herself to a world beyond this world.
“Sisters Under the Rising Sun” by Heather Morris. Prisoners of war in 1942, Australian nurse Nesta James and Norah Chambers, held in the notorious Camp Palembang, deep in the jungle of Sumatra, battle disease, starvation and unimaginable brutality meted out by Japanese soldiers, but found, in themselves and in each other, the courage and resourcefulness to survive.
“Jane and the Final Mystery, No. 15 (Being a Jane Austen Mystery)” by Stephanie Barron. In this final volume of the critically acclaimed mystery series, Jane Austen, with her health in slow decline, will let nothing stop her from investigating the murder of a Winchester College student—a crime her dear friend’s son is accused of.
“The Twelve Books of Christmas (Bibliophile Mystery)” by Kate Carlisle. Arriving in Loch Ness, Scotland, to attend the New Year’s Day wedding of their dearest friends, Brooklyn Wainwright and Derek Stone discover murder is in attendance when two guests and must catch the culprit, who may also have stolen 12 rare books, before their friends’ bright and happy future turns deadly.
“Up on the Woof Top, No. 14 (A Cher & Bernie Mystery)” by Spencer Quinn. When bestselling author Dame When bestselling author Dame Ariadne Carlisle’s lead reindeer Rudy—and her good luck charm, goes missing, Chet the dog and his human partner Bernie, while searching for Rudy, find their seemingly simple case turning into a murder investigation when Dame Ariadne’s personal assistant plunges to her death.
“Second Act” by Danielle Steel. Out of a job and humiliated, Andy Westfield, the head of a prestigious movie studio, flees to a tiny, forgotten coastal town in England where he hires a former journalist to help get his affairs in order and in a surprising turn of events, finds a miracle that could change both their lives.