Behind Closed Doors by B. A. Paris FIC Par

This is a debut novel.  The problem with debut novels is that when you read a good one you can't run back to the library to check out others by the author!  Oh well, I'll wait.  This is a 'psychological thriller' which I love to read.  Grace and Jack seem like the perfect couple.  Jack is always solicitous of his wife.  He is always praising her.  He seems eager to welcome Grace's down-syndrome sister into their home when she finishes her schooling.  And the home?  It's a beautiful house in a wonderful  location.  Everyone is envious.

But behind closed doors not everything is perfect. A fast read that will keep you interested and wondering how this will end.  I was reminded of the movie "Sleeping with the Enemy" - but on steroids!

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The Book That Matters Most by Ann Hood FIC Hoo

I loved this book as I have other books by Hood.  Ava Tucker had a lot of trauma in her childhood.   She married a guy named Jim and they had two children Will and Maggie.  Will was an easy kid to raise. Maggie wasn't.  She was a wild child into trouble all the time.  When Maggie finally survives to the fringes of adulthood things seem to be okay and Ava feels confident that Maggie will be okay studying in Italy for the next year.  Will is off doing good works in Africa.  And Ava finds herself alone - because Jim has left her for another woman. Desperate for some social life she bugs her librarian friend, Cate, to let her join the book club when an opening is available.  (Only ten are allowed!).  This year the theme is "the book that matters most". Members are supposed to come to the next meeting with their selection.  Except that Ava forgets and under pressure she blurts out the name of a book that she read and reread after the deaths of her sister and then her mother.

The books flips back and forth between Ava's story and the horrific adventures of Maggie in Europe.  I loved reading the parts about the book club meetings when they discussed their books and how they were influenced by them.  A good read!

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Don't You Cry by Mary Kubica FIC Kub

       

I enjoyed this book although it was a bit hard to follow sometimes because it flips between two stories - but it might just have been my brain that was the problem!   One part of the book is focused on Quinn Collins.  She has been working in downtown Chicago for a year and was fortunate enough to answer an ad that led to an affordable shared apartment.  Her roommate is Esther and they have developed a great friendship.  One Saturday night Esther begs off going to a new bar because she thinks she is coming down with something.  On her own, Quinn ends up bringing a man back to her room.  It isn't until the next day that she realizes Esther is missing.

An hour from Chicago there is another story unfolding.  Alex is 18.  His childhood has been horrible.  At the moment he is earning money by working in a coffee shop.  One day he sees this mysterious woman.  When he finally gets to talk to her he is completely smitten.  But 'true love never runs smooth' to quote Gene Pitney (for those of you who are old enough to know who he is!).

Everyone is keeping secrets.  Not everyone will survive the next week!

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Hope For A Cool Pillow by Margaret Overton 362.175

  

It is the autumn of the year and for some of us, or maybe for someone we love, it is the autumn of our lives.  Dr. Overton wrote this book because she is an advocate of planning for end-of-life care.  This may sound like a dry subject but she has written a great book.  She writes about it from different points of views - financial, emotional and physical.  Interspersed is the story of her life and how she dealt with the deaths of her parents.  Her father died of cancer.  Several years later her mother is suffering from dementia when she finally dies.  Two ways of dying and each has its own challenges.

It won't take you long to read this book but I think what you read will stay with you and maybe start a dialogue that everyone needs to have.

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The Secrets of Wishtide by Kate Saunders MYS Sau

At 52, Laetitia Rood has been widowed for two years.  Faced with reduced circumstances and with few options available to her in London in 1850, she lives with her landlady and confidante, Mrs. Bentley, and earns additional money as a highly discreet private investigator.

Her most recent case involves an investigation for her brother, Frederick, who is a successful criminal barrister.  The son of his client is determined to marry a very unsuitable woman.  Laetitia moves into the family home as governess to investigate the love interest and to decide if the rumors about her (that she is still married) are true.

It soon becomes obvious that this simple case is far from it.  In relatively short time, Laetitia is investigating a series of murders that are all somehow tied into the family's past.

Written in the first person and in a conversational style, this mystery kept me guessing.  Laetitia is a sympathetic character who relies on her instincts and good sense to solve cases.  Her brother is also likable and the relationship between them fun to observe.  This is the first in a series.

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A Good Killing by Allison Leotta FIC Leo

Anna and Jody Curtis are sisters.  The older of the two, Anna, has left their hometown in Michigan, attended law school, and is now working as a prosecutor in Washington D.C.  Her life was perfect as she planned her wedding to Jack and looked forward to a life with Jack and his daughter.  Then Jack's ex-wife decided she wanted to try again.  Her anger and grief over this situation is interrupted when she gets a call from a friend of Jody's begging her to come home because Jody has been arrested.  She was charged with the murder of Owen Fowler - normally called Coach and one of the most popular men in town.

Anna immediately goes to Michigan and prepares to help Jody with the aid of a high school friend named Cooper.  There are lots of secrets being kept in that town and soon they are all going to come out!  Can any killing be a good one?

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Truly Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty FIC Mor

Three couples - Sam and Clementine who are parents of two little girls; Oliver and Erika - oldest friend of Clementine; Vid and Tiffany who live next door to Oliver and Erika.   Erika and Clementine have a friendship with a lot of baggage and from the opening pages you will notice the strain between them.  A spur-of-the-moment invitation is extended by Vid for everyone to come for a barbecue.  Later everyone will regret going.

This isn't a story that begins at the beginning and goes straight through to the conclusion.  What happened at the barbecue is revealed in very small pieces for most of the book.  The friendship between the women is explained as we learn about Clementine's childhood - again in small snippets.

The reviews of this book are not as good as for her previous books but I was entertained enough to read it in two sittings!

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