I've got 5 books planned for December and 2 others I would also like to make the time to read.
Reading for book club-
Rivers of London (Rivers of London #1) by Ben Aaronovitch
My name is Peter Grant and until January I was
just probationary constable in that mighty army for justice known to all
right-thinking people as the Metropolitan Police Service (and as the
Filth to everybody else). My only concerns in life were how to avoid a
transfer to the Case Progression Unit - we do paperwork so real coppers
don't have to - and finding a way to climb into the panties of the
outrageously perky WPC Leslie May. Then one night, in pursuance of a
murder inquiry, I tried to take a witness statement from someone who was
dead but disturbingly voluable, and that brought me to the attention of
Inspector Nightingale, the last wizard in England.
Now I'm a
Detective Constable and a trainee wizard, the first apprentice in fifty
years, and my world has become somewhat more complicated: nests of
vampires in Purley, negotiating a truce between the warring god and
goddess of the Thames, and digging up graves in Covent Garden ... and
there's something festering at the heart of the city I love, a malicious
vengeful spirit that takes ordinary Londoners and twists them into
grotesque mannequins to act out its drama of violence and despair.
The spirit of riot and rebellion has awakened in the city, and it's falling to me to bring order out of chaos - or die trying.
Reading with the mystery book club-
Those Girls by Chevy Stevens
Life has never been easy for the three Campbell
sisters. Jess, Courtney, and Dani live on a remote ranch in Western
Canada where they work hard and try to stay out of the way of their
father’s fists. One night, a fight gets out of hand and the sisters are
forced to go on the run, only to get caught in an even worse nightmare
when their truck breaks down in a small town. Events spiral out of
control and a chance encounter with the wrong people leaves them in a
horrific and desperate situation. They are left with no choice but to
change their names and create new lives.
Eighteen years later,
they are still trying to forget what happened that summer when one of
the sisters goes missing and they are pulled back into their past.
This time there’s nowhere left to run.
As
much of a thriller as it is a deep exploration of the bonds among
sisters, THOSE GIRLS is an unforgettable portrait of desperation,
loyalty, and evil.
Constancy (Magic of Wyldefen #1) by Tilly Wallace
Dragons love longest, even when hope is gone…
As
a young woman, Moire Tobin fell hopelessly in love with a brave, loyal,
and handsome young naval officer. Nothing, not even her family, could
persuade her to spurn the young man. But fate had other ideas. Even when
Oliver broke off their engagement, her tattered heart refused to stop
loving. Every beat carried with it the promise of hope.
Eight
years later, Captain Oliver Hartford returns to the quiet corner of
rural Wyldefen. Having amassed a fortune, he is determined to find a
wife. Any one would do, so long as it’s not Moire—the quiet,
intelligent, and kind woman who still haunts his dreams and who is the
sole reason he was returned to Wyldefen (if only he would admit it).
Fate,
it seems, has had a change of heart and has decided to throw the couple
together. This could be their second chance at love. Dragons might
prove the salve that eases old wounds, or they might be the irrevocable
wedge that forever drives them apart…
A second chance fantasy romance inspired by Jane Austen’s Persuasion…but with more dragons.
The Icarus Needle (The Icarus Saga #5) by Timothy Zahn
Ten thousand years ago, a mysterious people
known as the Icari vanished from the Spiral, leaving behind a network of
portals that can instantaneously transport passengers hundreds or
thousands of light-years across the stars.
Gregory Roarke and his
Kadolian partner Selene have been tasked with seeking out these alien
artifacts and bringing them under the control of the Icarus Group. But
the Group’s leadership has changed, and Roarke soon finds himself at
serious odds with the new director’s plans.
The a counter-plan
that lands Roarke and Selene on a distant world with a broken city, a
dozen portals, and a group of aliens called the Ammei who dream of using
the portals to bring back their own glory days.
But their
ambitions will be costly, and not just for themselves. Roarke and Selene
must put together the scattered clues and solve the riddle of the Ammei
and their plans, while at the same time fending off the Patth and their
bid to claim the city and portals for themselves.
Because the Icari are gone . . . aren’t they?
Pick it for me book-
A Noise Downstairs by Linwood Barclay
College professor Paul Davis is a normal guy
with a normal life. Until, driving along a deserted road late one night,
he surprises a murderer disposing of a couple of bodies. That’s when
Paul’s "normal" existence is turned upside down. After nearly losing his
own life in that encounter, he finds himself battling PTSD, depression,
and severe problems at work. His wife, Charlotte, desperate to cheer
him up, brings home a vintage typewriter—complete with ink ribbons and
heavy round keys—to encourage him to get started on that novel he’s
always intended to write.
However, the typewriter itself is a
problem. Paul swears it’s possessed and types by itself at night. But
only Paul can hear the noise coming from downstairs; Charlotte doesn’t
hear a thing. And she worries he’s going off the rails.
Paul
believes the typewriter is somehow connected to the murderer he
discovered nearly a year ago. The killer had made his victims type
apologies to him before ending their lives. Has another sick twist of
fate entwined his life with the killer—could this be the same
machine? Increasingly tormented but determined to discover the truth and
confront his nightmare, Paul begins investigating the deaths himself.
But
that may not be the best thing to do. Maybe Paul should just take the
typewriter back to where his wife found it. Maybe he should stop asking
questions and simply walk away while he can. . . .
Other books I want to read-
An Honorable Deception (The Imposters #3) by Roseanna M. White
As the leader of elite private investigative
firm the Imposters, Lord Yates Fairfax has made an art of concealing his
identity. But when his newest client, the beautiful Lady Alethia
Barremore, is shot while leaving their meeting, he throws caution to the
wind and rushes to her aid. Though Lady Alethia thought she was only
looking for her missing former nanny, she has clearly stumbled upon
dangerous secrets.
Lady Lavinia Hemming suspects there's more to
her oldest friends than they're willing to admit, and when she stumbles
upon the truth that they're the Imposters, she recruits herself into
the firm. Happy as she is for the distraction of an investigation,
Lavinia's own family secrets continue to haunt her. And the one thing to
bring laughter back into her life--her friendship with Yates--lands her
squarely on the bad side of her best friend, his sister.
Tormented
by a past that she doesn't dare to voice aloud, Lady Alethia does what
she can to help her handsome host, her new friends, and the
investigators. But as clues lead them deeper into the darkest of
society's secrets, Alethia, Yates, and Lavinia soon learn anew that the
gentry isn't always noble . . . and truth isn't always honorable.
A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher
Fourteen-year-old Mona isn’t like the wizards
charged with defending the city. She can’t control lightning or speak to
water. Her familiar is a sourdough starter and her magic only works on
bread. She has a comfortable life in her aunt’s bakery making
gingerbread men dance.
But Mona’s life is turned upside down when
she finds a dead body on the bakery floor. An assassin is stalking the
streets of Mona’s city, preying on magic folk, and it appears that Mona
is his next target. And in an embattled city suddenly bereft of wizards,
the assassin may be the least of Mona’s worries…
