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Death in a Strange Country
by Donna Leon
Commissario Brunetti investigates the murder of a young American soldier in Venice, uncovering corruption and secrets in the process.
Early one morning Brunetti is confronted with the body of a young American serviceman fished out of a fetid Venetian canal. All clues point to a mugging, but robbery seems too convenient a motive. ... (Wikipedia)
Death at La Fenice
by Donna Leon
A Venetian detective investigates a murder at the La Fenice opera house.
A world-famous German opera conductor has died at La Fenice , and Commissario (Detective) Guido Brunetti pursues what appears to be a murder investigation without leads. Leon, who completed a ... (Wikipedia)
Dressed for Death
by Donna Leon
A Venetian detective investigates a murder with a complicated web of suspects and motives.
Venetian Commissario Guido Brunetti’s hopes of escaping the sweltering heat of Venice in August for a refreshing family holiday in the mountains are dashed when a gruesome discovery is made in a ... (Barnes & Noble)
Maisie Dobbs
by Jacqueline Winspear
Detective story set in post-WWI London, investigating a mysterious disappearance.
Maisie Dobbs, Psychologist and Investigator, began her working life at the age of thirteen as a servant in a Belgravia mansion, only to be discovered reading in the library by her employer, Lady ... (Goodreads)
With No One as Witness
by Elizabeth George
A serial killer is on the loose in London, targeting black boys. Detective Lynley and Havers race against time to catch the killer.
The police never suspected a serial killer was at large until they found the third murdered boy, the first white victim, his body draped over a tomb in a London graveyard. Suddenly a series of crimes ... (Goodreads)
The Friday Night Knitting Club
by Kate Jacobs
A group of women come together to support one another and find strength in friendship.
Once a week, an eclectic group of women comes together at a New York City yarn shop to work on their latest projects - and share the stories of their lives... At the center of Walker and Daughter is ... (Goodreads)
V is for Vengeance
by Sue Grafton
A private detective investigates a cold case leading her to uncover a sinister plot.
For the fourth straight novel in the Alphabet Mystery series, the viewpoint alternates between Millhone and other characters, principally Nora Vogelsang and Lorenzo Dante. The opening chapter, ... (Wikipedia)
The Imperfectionists
by Tom Rachman
A story of interconnected lives, exploring the fragility of human relationships.
Set against the gorgeous backdrop of Rome, Tom Rachman’s wry, vibrant debut follows the topsy-turvy private lives of the reporters, editors, and executives of an international English language ... (Goodreads)
The Leftovers
by Tom Perrotta
A family struggles to cope with the mysterious disappearance of loved ones in a post-apocalyptic world.
Several years after a rapture-like event in which millions of people worldwide suddenly vanish without explanation, the citizens of Mapleton, Ohio are still struggling to cope with the massive loss ... (Wikipedia)
The Cellist of Sarajevo
by Steven Galloway
A story of resilience and courage in the midst of a war-torn city.
This brilliant novel with universal resonance, set during the 1990s Siege of Sarajevo, tells the story of three people trying to survive in a city rife with the extreme fear of desperate times, and ... (Goodreads)
An Instance of the Fingerpost
by Iain Pears
A murder mystery spanning four centuries and four perspectives, uncovering secrets of the past.
An ingenious tour de force: an utterly compelling historical mystery with a plot that twists and turns and keeps the reader guessing until the very last page. We are in England in the 1660s. Charles ... (Goodreads)
Nutshell
by Ian McEwan
A unique retelling of Shakespeare's Hamlet, from the perspective of an unborn child.
Nutshell is a classic story of murder and deceit, told by a narrator with a perspective and voice unlike any in recent literature. A bravura performance, it is the finest recent work from a true ... (Goodreads)
Straight Man
by Richard Russo
A university professor's humorous journey of self-discovery as he navigates campus politics.
William Henry Devereaux, Jr., spiritually suited to playing left field but forced by a bad hamstring to try first base, is the unlikely chairman of the English department at West Central Pennsylvania ... (Goodreads)
The Keeper of Lost Causes
by Jussi Adler-Olsen
A police detective investigates a mysterious disappearance, uncovering a sinister conspiracy.
Carl Mørck is demoted to Department Q, the cold case unit, after a raid goes wrong. One case, a suspected suicide, piques his interest. His investigations suggest that the woman, a rising politician, ... (Wikipedia)
Still Alice
by Lisa Genova
A woman's struggle to hold on to her identity in the face of a devastating diagnosis of early-onset Alzheimer's disease.
Still Alice is a compelling debut novel about a 50-year-old woman's sudden descent into early onset Alzheimer's disease, written by first-time author Lisa Genova, who holds a Ph. D in neuroscience ... (Goodreads)
The Children Act
by Ian McEwan
A family court judge must make a difficult decision between the law and her conscience.
Fiona Maye is a respected High Court Judge specialising in Family Law and living in Gray's Inn Square. While reviewing a case, she is approached by her husband, Jack, who tells her that because of ... (Wikipedia)
Beautiful Ruins
by Jess Walter
A romantic story of fate, secrets, and destiny, spanning from Italy in the 1960s to present day.
"The best novel of the year." — Maureen Corrigan, NPR's Fresh Air A #1 New York Times bestseller, this “absolute masterpiece” (Richard Russo) is the story of an almost-love affair that begins on the ... (Goodreads)
How the Light Gets In
by Louise Penny
Detective Armand Gamache investigates a murder in a small Canadian town, uncovering secrets and lies.
Christmas is approaching, and in Québec it's a time of dazzling snowfalls, bright lights, and gatherings with friends in front of blazing hearths. But shadows are falling on the usually festive ... (Goodreads)
The Language of Flowers
by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
A young woman's journey of healing and redemption through the power of flowers.
The Victorian language of flowers was used to convey romantic expressions: honeysuckle for devotion, asters for patience, and red roses for love. But for Victoria Jones, it’s been more useful in ... (Goodreads)
Baltimore Blues
by Laura Lippman
Private investigator Tess Monaghan investigates the disappearance of a wealthy businessman's mistress in Baltimore.
In a city where someone is murdered almost every day, attorney Michael Abramowitz's death should be just another statistic. But the slain lawyer's notoriety—and his taste for illicit midday ... (Goodreads)
Breakfast at Tiffany's and Three Stories
by Truman Capote
Collection of stories, exploring the lives of eccentric individuals in New York City.
In autumn 1943, the unnamed narrator befriends Holly Golightly. The two are tenants in a brownstone apartment in Manhattan 's Upper East Side . Holly (age 18–19) is a country girl turned New York ... (Wikipedia)
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
by John le Carré
A retired spy is called back into action to uncover a mole in the British Secret Service.
Control , chief of the Circus, suspects one of the five senior intelligence officers at the Circus to be a long-standing Soviet mole and assigns code names with the intention that should his agent ... (Wikipedia)
The Shipping News
by Annie Proulx
A man's attempt to rebuild his life in a small Newfoundland town, discovering compassion and joy.
The story centers around Quoyle, a newspaper reporter from upstate New York , whose father had emigrated from Newfoundland . Shortly after his parents' joint suicide, Quoyle's unfaithful and abusive ... (Wikipedia)
First to Kill
by Andrew Peterson
A former Marine sniper is recruited by a secret government agency to take down a dangerous terrorist. Fast-paced action and suspense ensue.
Ten years ago, a botched mission in Nicaragua ended covert ops specialist Nathan McBride’s CIA career. Now he utilizes his unique skill set in the private sector—until the night Frank Ortega, former ... (Goodreads)
Giovanni's Room
by James Baldwin
A man's struggle for identity and acceptance amidst a tumultuous romantic relationship.
David, a young American man whose girlfriend has gone off to Spain to contemplate marriage, is left alone in Paris and begins an affair with an Italian man, Giovanni. The entire story is narrated by ... (Wikipedia)
Two Steps Forward
by Graeme Simsion
Two strangers with different backgrounds embark on a journey of self-discovery while walking the Camino de Santiago.
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Rosie Project comes a story of taking chances and learning to love again as two people, one mourning her husband and the other recovering from ... (Goodreads)
Shantaram
by Gregory David Roberts
An Australian convict escapes to India and embarks on a journey of self-discovery.
In 1978, Roberts was sentenced to a 19-year imprisonment in Australia after being convicted of a series of armed robberies of building society branches, credit unions , and shops. In July 1980, he ... (Wikipedia)
Orphan Train
by Christina Baker Kline
A story of two women's intertwined lives, spanning generations and crossing continents.
The #1 New York Times Bestseller “A lovely novel about the search for family that also happens to illuminate a fascinating and forgotten chapter of America’s history. Beautiful.”—Ann Packer Moving ... (Barnes & Noble)
The Senator's Wife
by Sue Miller
A story of two women, one married to a senator and the other her neighbor, whose lives become intertwined in unexpected ways.
Once again Sue Miller takes us deep into the private lives of women with this mesmerizing portrait of two marriages exposed in all their shame and imperfection, and in their obdurate, unyielding ... (Goodreads)
The Best Laid Plans
by Terry Fallis
A political satire about a hapless engineer who becomes a Member of Parliament. Hilarity ensues as he tries to navigate the world of politics.
A burnt-out political aide quits just before an election — but is forced to run a hopeless campaign on the way out. He makes a deal with a crusty old Scot, Angus McLintock — an engineering professor ... (Goodreads)
