Witness 8 (Eddie Flynn #8) by Steve Cavanagh

I have a short list of authors whose books I buy on pre-order, irrespective of the title or book description. Steve Cavanagh is on that list, together with Liane Moriarty, Joshilyn Jackson, Lee Child and Harlan Coben.for some reason, though (and I blame Amazon's Audible Books for this), I missed the publication of "Witness 8" by a whole month. 

It took me ten seconds to get it from the library and one day to read. It's awesome. If you aren't familiar with the Eddie Flynn series, you can start with "Witness 8", the eighth book, but you might pick up on spoilers for some characters' story arcs. The series is definitely worth reading, but if you don't want to commit, start with this book or "Thirteen". You will fall in love with the main characters (and their dog), you will keep turning the pages as the plot sweeps you along. And when you finish "Witness 8", you will reach to read or re-read the earlier books.

Blurb:

Ruby Johnson is a nanny and maid to wealthy families in Manhattan's West 74th Street.

She knows their routines. Their secrets.

One night, on her way home, Ruby witnesses a neighbour's murder.

She knows the victim. She knows the killer.

She makes an anonymous call to the police and names the murderer.

But Ruby didn't tell the truth...

Because there's something wrong with Ruby Johnson.

Eddie Flynn, conman turned trial lawyer, must defend an innocent man accused of this terrible crime.

As Ruby's deadly game begins, one thing is certain.

It won't be the last murder this witness is involved in...

The Quiet At The End of The World

 Wow. Five out of five stars for "The Quiet At The End of The World" by Lauren James. Here's what I loved:

• It's SF utopian / distopian, and we honestly need more novels in this genre.
• It's YA without the horror of The Hunger Games. I mean, I love The Hunger Games, but I struggle that ten-year olds read it.
• It's YA but also for adults.
• The book is incredibly well-written. The action starts on page one. The world feels real. The characters are loveable. All in all: unputdownable.
• There is no antagonist. Instead of the all-too-common man-versus-man, this is man-versus-environment. Or, in this case, two teeneagers trying to stop the end of the world as they know it.
• Best of all, it's one of those books that make you think about what it means to be alive.

Blurb:

Lowrie and Shen are the youngest people on the planet after a virus caused global infertility. Closeted in a pocket of London and doted upon by a small, ageing community, the pair spend their days mudlarking for artefacts from history and looking for treasure in their once-opulent mansion.

Their idyllic life is torn apart when a secret is uncovered that threatens not only their family but humanity’s entire existence. Lowrie and Shen face an impossible choice: in the quiet at the end of the world, they must decide who to save and who to sacrifice . . .

Remarkably Bright Creatures

"Remarkably Bright Creatures" by Shelby Van Pelt is a remarkable book, pun intended. It's "that octopus book" as people refer to it, but it's not about an octopus - not only about an octopus. It's about people finding themselves, finding each other, finding happiness. It's a gentle, hopeful, uplifting bok.

I can't wait for the sequel, which will be set in the same smaal town.

Exerpt:

After Tova Sullivan's husband died, she began working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. Keeping busy has always helped her cope, which she's been doing since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound over thirty years ago.

Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn't dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors--until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova.

Ever the detective, Marcellus deduces what happened the night Tova's son disappeared. And now Marcellus must use every trick his old invertebrate body can muster to unearth the truth for her before it's too late.

"Family Family" by Laurie Frankel

Where do I even start? I feel like I know these characters, I believe the story is true to the letter, and I refuse to accept it's fiction and that I won't be able to meet India Allwood in real life.

What a book! 5 stars out of 5 for plotting, pacing, author's voice and beautiful writing. And thank you, Laurie, for tackling the important issue of adoption.

This book is not about adoption, though. It's about what makes a family. And what makes a family - family.

Blurb:

“Not all stories of adoption are stories of pain and regret. Not even most of them. Why don’t we ever get that movie?”

India Allwood grew up wanting to be an actor. Armed with a stack of index cards (for research/line memorization/make-shift confetti), she goes from awkward sixteen-year-old to Broadway ingenue to TV superhero.

Her new movie is a prestige picture about adoption, but its spin is the same old tired story of tragedy. India is an adoptive mom in real life though. She wants everyone to know there’s more to her family than pain and regret. So she does something you should never do—she tells a journalist the truth: it’s a bad movie.

Soon she’s at the center of a media storm, battling accusations from the press and the paparazzi, from protesters on the right and advocates on the left. Her twin ten-year-olds know they need help–and who better to call than family? But that’s where it gets really messy because India’s not just an adoptive mother…

The one thing she knows for sure is what makes a family isn’t blood. And it isn’t love. No matter how they’re formed, the truth about family is this: it's complicated.

"The Wrong Girl" featured in the Writers' News

Click here to buy

 

The New Couple in 5B by Lisa Unger

"The New Couple in 5B" by Lisa Unger is - yes, naturally a thriller - but also something else. Something more. Or different. There's a mood to the book that's absent from the author's other works. The setting is a periodic piece of a historic apartment building in New York, potentially plagued by ghosts and definitely plagued by weird neighbours and weirder paranormal social gatherings.

Definitely a must-read. Oh, and incidentally, the author has recently won the International Thriller Writers Thriller Award for Best Short Story with her work "Unknown Caller". Well deserved, it's brilliant!

Blurb:

Rosie and Chad Lowan are barely making ends meet in New York City when they receive life-changing news: Chad’s late uncle has left them his luxury apartment at the historic Windermere in glamorous Murray Hill. With its prewar elegance and impeccably uniformed doorman, the building is the epitome of old New York charm. One would almost never suspect the dark history lurking behind its perfectly maintained facade.

At first, the building and its eclectic tenants couldn’t feel more welcoming. But as the Lowans settle into their new home, Rosie starts to suspect that there’s more to the Windermere than meets the eye. Why is the doorman ever-present? Why are there cameras everywhere? And why have so many gruesome crimes occurred there throughout the years? When one of the neighbors turns up dead, Rosie must get to the truth about the Windermere before she, too, falls under its dangerous spell.

Still See You Everywhere by Lisa Gardner

"Still See You Everywhere" by Lisa Gardner is the third book in the Frankie Elkin series. This one is set on a tropical island. I love Lisa, I love Frankie, and I love islands. That would have been enough to persuade me to read it, except that everything by Lisa Gardner is on my preorder list by default anyway. 

If you still need convincing, here's a list:

• a cool setting
• super quirky characters
• relentless pace.

Blurb:

A lifetime missing. Just three weeks to find her. The brand new thriller from the New York Times no. 1 bestselling author. A remote tropical island. Countless dangerous secrets. No way to call help. 

Missing persons specialist Frankie Elkin is on an isolated island off the coast of Hawaii. Her mission- to find Lani, the missing sister of a Death Row serial killer known as the Beautiful Butcher who is awaiting execution in just three weeks' time. According to the Beautiful Butcher's sources, Lani is being held captive by her millionaire ex-boyfriend on the island. The only way to gain access is for Frankie to go undercover. 

But can Frankie really trust the word of a serial killer? Plus, this island is no paradise with deadly creatures and suspicious co-workers at every turn, and an incoming tropical storm about to cut her off from the outside world. Could this be Frankie Elkin's most dangerous case yet?