New Book Releases, January 2020
Sorted By Genre
Sorted By Genre
New Books are typically released on Tuesdays
Historical Fiction
Turn To Stone is Book 7 in The Ellie Stone series by James W. Ziskin. Historical fiction, Turn To Stone is a locked room mystery, set in Italy in the 1960s. I'm not sure how I have never heard of this series before, but I really look forward to reading it. The books all review well on Goodreads, with a style compared to Agatha Christie. https://amzn.to/36bvN7m
The Words I Never Wrote by Jane Thynne "A chance discovery inside a vintage typewriter case reveals the gripping story of two sisters on opposite sides of World War II in this captivating novel for readers of Lilac Girls and The Women in the Castle." https://amzn.to/2ReGJwx
The Vineyards Of Champagne by Juliet Blackwell. This is a dual time line book, switching between current day, and WWII. During WWII, a group of women hid in the caves below a vineyard, to hide from the bombing and "shellfire" from above. In present day, Rosalyn Acosta has recently lost her husband, and is sent to the vineyard by her employer, to select wines. "Rosalyn finds it a challenge to enjoy anything at all. But as she reads through a precious cache of WWI letters and retraces the lives lived in the limestone tunnels, Rosalyn will unravel a mystery hidden for decades...and find a way to savor her own life again." https://amzn.to/2RA8UVW
Find a full list of this months cozy mystery releases here:
https://www.cozy-mystery.com/blog/soon-to-be-released-mysteries
Horror
Humor
Heart Of Junk By Luke Geddes "A hilarious debut novel about an eclectic group of merchants at a Kansas antique mall who become implicated in the kidnapping of a local beauty pageant star." "Equally comical and suspenseful, Heart of Junk is also a biting commentary on our current Marie Kondo era. It examines why certain objects resonate with us so deeply, rebukes Kondo’s philosophy of wholesale purging, and argues that “junk” can have great value—connecting us not only to our personal pasts but to our shared human history" https://amzn.to/2TIXTUJ
Turn To Stone is Book 7 in The Ellie Stone series by James W. Ziskin. Historical fiction, Turn To Stone is a locked room mystery, set in Italy in the 1960s. I'm not sure how I have never heard of this series before, but I really look forward to reading it. The books all review well on Goodreads, with a style compared to Agatha Christie. https://amzn.to/36bvN7m
The Words I Never Wrote by Jane Thynne "A chance discovery inside a vintage typewriter case reveals the gripping story of two sisters on opposite sides of World War II in this captivating novel for readers of Lilac Girls and The Women in the Castle." https://amzn.to/2ReGJwx
The Vineyards Of Champagne by Juliet Blackwell. This is a dual time line book, switching between current day, and WWII. During WWII, a group of women hid in the caves below a vineyard, to hide from the bombing and "shellfire" from above. In present day, Rosalyn Acosta has recently lost her husband, and is sent to the vineyard by her employer, to select wines. "Rosalyn finds it a challenge to enjoy anything at all. But as she reads through a precious cache of WWI letters and retraces the lives lived in the limestone tunnels, Rosalyn will unravel a mystery hidden for decades...and find a way to savor her own life again." https://amzn.to/2RA8UVW
Remembrance, By Rita Woods, is described an incredibly unique. It appears to cover 4 time lines, telling a story of women from Haiti to the US, with the themes of slavery, and a bit of paranormal/spiritual abilities. Some reviews mention that it is "Historical Fiction Meets Fantasy".
"Remembrance…It’s a rumor, a whisper passed in the fields and veiled behind sheets of laundry. A hidden stop on the underground road to freedom, a safe haven protected by more than secrecy…if you can make it there.
Ohio, present day. An elderly woman who is more than she seems warns against rising racism as a young woman grapples with her life.
Haiti, 1791, on the brink of revolution. When the slave Abigail is forced from her children to take her mistress to safety, she discovers New Orleans has its own powers.
1857 New Orleans―a city of unrest: Following tragedy, house girl Margot is sold just before her 18th birthday and her promised freedom. Desperate, she escapes and chases a whisper.... Remembrance." https://amzn.to/38sQwVH
See also -
The Mitford Murders by Jessica Fellowes. (In Cozy Mysteries)
One Good Deed by David Baldacci. (In mysteries & Thrillers)
Earlier This Month:
All the ways We Said Goodbye - By Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, & Karen White. Taking place after WWII, into the 1960s, it is about the lives of three women with broken hearts who take refuge in the Paris Ritz Hotel.
Mysteries & Thrillers:
No Mercy by Joanna Schauffhausen, is the follow up to Vanishing Season. In Vanishing season we met Ellery Hathaway, a survivor of a serial killer who is now a police officer, and the FBI agent who had saved her 17 years earlier. In No Mercy, the two return, tackling two dangerous new mysteries.
The Nowhere Child by Christian White was Christian White's first book, about an Australian teacher who learns she was in fact a child born in Kentucky and kidnapped as a child. https://amzn.to/2TJNWGx It appears to have been picked up by a new publisher, and shows the same release date as his new novel, The Wife & The Widow.
The Wife & The Widow by Christian White - "Set against the backdrop of an eerie island town in the dead of winter, The Wife and The Widow is an unsettling thriller told from two perspectives: Kate, a widow whose grief is compounded by what she learns about her dead husband’s secret life; and Abby, an island local whose world is turned upside when she’s forced to confront the evidence of her husband’s guilt. But nothing on this island is quite as it seems, and only when these women come together can they discover the whole story about the men in their lives." https://amzn.to/38pCzrx
One Good Deed by David Baldacci. "In this fast-paced historical thriller, #1 New York Times bestselling author David Baldacci introduces Archer, a WWII veteran forced to investigate a small-town murder -- or risk returning to prison." https://amzn.to/37gdjUm (Baldacci & Patterson are two of the notable exceptions to the rule that books are released on Tuesdays. One Good Deed is due to be released Thursday the 23rd)
The Blaze, by Chad Dundus. "One man knows the connection between two extraordinary acts of arson, fifteen years apart, in his Montana hometown--if only he could remember it.
Having lost much of his memory from a traumatic brain injury sustained in Iraq, army veteran Matthew Rose is called back to Montana after his father's death to settle his affairs, and hopefully to settle the past as well. It's not only a blank to him, but a mystery. Why as a teen did he suddenly become sullen and vacant, abandoning the activities and people that had meant most to him? How did he, the son of hippy activists, wind up enlisting in the first place?" https://amzn.to/36ahLTv
Devil, Darling, Spy By Matt Killeen -" In this utterly gripping thriller, Sarah, the fearless heroine of indie bestseller Orphan Monster Spy, hunts a rogue German doctor in Central Africa who might be a serial murderer." https://amzn.to/2NKGLub
All Fall Down By James Brabazon is book two in a British Spy Thriller series. https://amzn.to/2G8j8ar
House On Fire by Joseph Finder is book 4 in the Nick Heller private investigrator series. "Nick Heller is tough, smart, and stubborn. And in his line of work, it's essential. Trained in the Special Forces, Nick is a high-powered intelligence investigator--exposing secrets that powerful people would rather keep hidden" https://amzn.to/2RfPC92
Kidnapped on Safari by Peter Riva . "The third book in the Mbuno & Pero series pulls terror from headlines to create a gripping international thriller for readers of John le Carré, Daniel Silva, and Iris Johansen. Expert safari guide Mbuno and wildlife television producer Pero Baltazar are filming on Lake Rudolf in Northern Kenya, East Africa, when they receive news that Mbuno’s son, himself an expert guide, has been kidnapped while on a safari five hundred miles away in Tanzania. After gathering the clues and resources needed to trek through the wilderness, they trace the kidnappers back to an illegal logging operation clear-cutting national park forests, manned by sinister Boko Haram mercenaries. There, they find not only Mbuno's son but also a shocking revelation that has terrifying and far-reaching consequences." https://amzn.to/3axRul8
Released January 28 2020
Hindsight - Book 7 in the Kendra Michaels Series by Iris Johanson & Roy Johanson https://amzn.to/38rvJld
The Better Liar by Tanen Jones - "An electric, twisted portrait of sisterhood and the ties that bind, The Better Liar is a stunning debut with a heart-stopping, twist-after-twist finale that will beg the question: How far would you go to get what’s yours?"
The Tenant by Karen Endberg -" An electrifying work of literary suspense from international bestselling author Katrine Engberg, this stunning debut introduces two police detectives struggling to solve a shocking murder and stop a killer hell-bent on revenge."
Cozy Mysteries:
Careless Whiskers by Miranda James - book 12 in the Cat In The Stacks series, about librarian Charlie Harris, and his maine coon cat. https://amzn.to/2TJT7WZ
Naked Came The Florida Man by Tim Dorsey - Book 23 in the humorous Serge Storm series https://amzn.to/2RFVaJd
The Mitford Murders by Jessica Fellowes. The Mitford Murders Book 3. "In the third book in the Mitford Murders series, lady's maid Louisa Cannon accompanies Diana Mitford into a turbulent late 1920s Europe." https://amzn.to/38sEcoe
There's Murder A Foot By Vicki Delaney - Book 5 in the Sherlock Holmes BookShop Series https://amzn.to/2TI2d6D
Come Homicide Or High Water by Denise Swanson - Book 3 in the Scumble River Series
A Field Guide To Murder by Lyn Cahoon - Cat Latimer Book 6
https://www.cozy-mystery.com/blog/soon-to-be-released-mysteries
Horror
Richard Chizmar and Stephen King cowrote a novella titled "Gwendy's Button Box". This book, Gwendy's Magic Feather, is the sequel, written by Chizmar. Gwendy's Magic Feather - by Richard Chizmar.
Humor
See also - Naked Came The Florida Man by Tim Dorsey , in Cozy Mysteries
I put this between humor and fiction, because from the reviews, it's pretty hard to describe.
Eoin Colfer wrote the wildly popular Artemis Fowl books, so when I heard his new book was about a dragon, I assumed this would be another YA book. But apparently it is not. It's described as hysterically funny fantasy. And did I mention it's about a dragon?
Fiction
Wife After Wife by Olivia Hayfield - A modern retelling of the trials and tribulations of the most infamous historical playboy of them all, Henry VIII. https://amzn.to/37hfKpL
Recipe For A Perfect Wife by Karma Brown - "In this captivating dual narrative novel, a modern-day woman finds inspiration in hidden notes left by her home’s previous owner, a quintessential 1950s housewife. As she discovers remarkable parallels between this woman’s life and her own, it causes her to question the foundation of her own relationship with her husband--and what it means to be a wife fighting for her place in a patriarchal society." https://amzn.to/36die7n
The Oysterville Sewing Circle - By Susan Wiggs https://amzn.to/2RgBOLH
American Dirt by Jeanine Cummings is the book being talked about everywhere right now. One reviewer called it "The Where The Crawdads Sing" of 2020 - and yet there is no similarity between the stories, only the popularity. "American Dirt is the harrowing story of a mother and child fleeing Mexico after 16 members of their family have been slaughtered. " https://amzn.to/30RfKKZ I've read the descrtption, and this is not something I would normally choose. Then I saw it was an Oprah's Book Club pick - and I almost never like anything Oprah chooses - we have very different taste in books. And yet the reviews on this, and the people talking about it, are so intriguing, that despite all of that, I just may make time for this one this year.
Follow Me To Ground by Sue Rainsford has been touted as one of the most anticipated releases of 2020 - and it has reviewed well by those who received advance copies. But no one seems to know exactly how to describe the book. Fantasy? Romance? Horror? All everyone can seem to agree with is that it was gripping. https://amzn.to/2vaniMZ
The Majesties - by Tiffany Tsao. "Traveling from the luxurious world of the rich and powerful in Indonesia to the most spectacular shows at Paris Fashion Week, from the sunny coasts of California to the melting pot of Melbourne’s university scene, The Majesties is a haunting and deeply evocative novel about the dark secrets that can build a family empire—and also bring it crashing down." https://amzn.to/37jzV6w
Earlier This Month -
This Is Not How It Ends by Rachel Weinstein. A story of a woman torn between two love stories.
Dear Edward by Ann Napilatano. (A New York Times Bestseller) A novel about a young boy who is the only survivor of an airplane crash, and how he finds his place in the world.
Young Adult
The Will And The Wilds by Charlie N. Holmberg - A spellbinding story of truce and trickery from the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Paper Magician series.
The Conference Of Birds - by Ransom Riggs. Book 5 in the Miss Peregine's Peculiar Children Series
Tweet Cute by Emma Lord. A witty romantic comedy. https://amzn.to/2GnmJBX
What I Carry by Jennifer Longo - About a girl about to age out of the foster care system.
Earlier this month - One Of Us Is Next, The Sequel to One Of Us is Lying, by Karen McManus
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Coming Next Month: (All Genres)
