Hi everyone, here are our five suggested reads of the week!
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The Brothers McKay by Craig Johnson
Solving the murder of the most hated man in Absaroka County, Wyoming, is no easy case for Sheriff Walt Longmire. Wealthy landowner Pepper McKay is found dead in a trout stream on his O-Kay Ranch. Did he slip and hit his head on a rock, or was he murdered? Pepper was an indifferent parent, an alcoholic, a womanizer, and a rapist. He had three sons from his marriage–David, Ian, and Alan, who were all at the ranch for a family meeting the night before Pepper’s body was found–and another, Manx Henenoka, the product of an affair with a Shoshone cook who worked at the ranch. They all hated Pepper to varying degrees. Manx’s story is the best example of Johnson’s deep dives into characterization. Different in every way from his half brothers, he lives at the ranch, where he was raised by foreman Gary Lyman and his wife, Lynn, after his mother died, and expects nothing of Pepper. Manx wins Walt’s admiration for his blunt answers to questions and his skill training a mule named Borax. Two sets of boot prints at the scene hint at murder, delighting Walt’s undersheriff and fiancée, Victoria Moretti. Even Walt has a motive for the crime: Years ago, Pepper tried to rape his now late-wife. In addition to the murder case, there are several dangers: Wildfires threaten the ranch, and Walt is stuck acting as parole officer for Maxim Sidorov, an erudite Russian spy who once tried to kill him. Both Pepper and David were once involved with a woman named Paetra Agirra, whose hot-tempered uncle has already killed three men. Unlike the average lawman, Walt has a philosophical bent, lives by his own code, and reads voraciously. But it’s Maxim who points out the similarities between Pepper’s family and The Brothers Karamazov that could crack the case. A complex, cerebral mystery with a plethora of suspects that demands out-of-the-box thinking and help from a heroic mule. — Kirkus Review
Reader’s Note: The Brothers McKay is the twenty-second book in the Longmire Mystery Series. If you’d like to start reading from the beginning of the series, check out book one: The Cold Dish.
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Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monaghan
Dolly Brick and Stewart Whitfield were never meant to be together, but when Stewart needs a reputation reset in order to get a job promotion, Dolly happens to be in the right place at the right time and agrees to a fake-dating arrangement–complete with a payment plan and a clause about no touching or PDA. Single mom Dolly is only in town for the summer, helping her family repair their house after a fire, and the money Stewart has agreed to pay her will provide a new roof. Galas and company dinners aside, Stewart starts inviting Dolly on sunset boat rides and to explore caves–among other, more personal get-togethers. The two become close, and before they know it, sparks begin to ignite. This slow burn is heartfelt, weaving a story of prior neglect and abandonment into one of acceptance and hope.
VERDICT Monaghan (It’s a Love Story) offers a beautiful read in which two unlikely characters come together and learn the meaning of love and acceptance in times of need.–Library Journal Review
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Final Target by Nora Roberts
Debut author Arden Bowie is thrilled yet nervous about her first book signing. One of the attendees is Dustin, who seems like just an aspiring writer looking for advice. But Dustin starts showing up when Arden least expects him, and her attempts to be kind only feed his obsession. When Dustin’s infatuation with Arden turns violent, she survives his terrible assault (the physical and sexual violence is graphically described in the novel) but fears that she might never feel safe again. Time does heal wounds, though, and with the love and support of her family, Arden embarks on a new life in Oregon, buying a home, meeting new friends, and finding unexpected romance with Gideon Riley, a talented woodworker who is also a seasoned, if disillusioned ex-detective. But Arden’s happiness might be short-lived; Dustin has been given early release from prison, where he spent five years honing his obsession with her. Now he aims to claim the woman whom he thinks is rightfully his.
VERDICT This romantic suspense is perfect for Roberts’s many fans, as well as avid readers of Lisa Gardner and Freida McFadden.–Library Journal Review
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The Land And Its People by David Sedaris
Sedaris can take the most mundane task, like buying new underwear, and make it seem like the most momentous endeavor anyone could hope to pursue. Even walking down the street and encountering a passing dog is cause for–pick one–wonder, outrage, delight, all of the above. In his latest essay collection, following Happy-Go-Lucky (2022), Sedaris embraces new travel adventures (lions pooping in Africa) and revisits old emotional upheavals (mom, dad, neighbors, boyfriends). He rises to the occasion of caregiver, reluctantly in some cases, extravagantly in others. Strangers both charm and confound him. Ditto celebrities and authors he encounters both in real life and on the page. What makes Sedaris so engaging as an essayist is his elevation of the commonplace to a state of exoticism. With his laconic delivery, Sedaris lures the reader into believing that the topic under discussion might be unremarkable, a you-and-me-in-this-together moment. But then, given Sedaris’ worldview and world weariness, eventually a knotty twist or spicy dash is delivered with the realization that Sedaris’ land is unparalleled, and its people are peerless.
HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Sedaris fans will be queuing for this, craving new expressions of his signature wit and frankness. –Booklist Review
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Midnight Train by Matt Haig
Beloved book-club favorite Haig (The Life Impossible, 2024) returns with a novel that looks back on one man’s life and how it might have gone wrong–or right. After he dies at 81, Wilbur Budd finds himself at a mysterious train station just after midnight. He encounters Agnes Bagdale, the proprietor of a bookshop where he spent his young life reading. Agnes tells him he’s on his way to eternity, but he must relive his life through the train’s windows. The train stops at important spots so he can join his younger self as a Ghost. Wilbur regrets many things, from the death of his brother to his obsession with work, but he most regrets losing his wife, Maggie. While stopped at their honeymoon in Venice, the Ghost wonders if there is a way to save their relationship, even if it means he will cease to exist. While this is not a direct sequel to The Midnight Library (2020), it is a sequel in spirit: written in the space between life and death, both novels consider the impossible ways a person might start over. –Booklist Review
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Happy reading!
Linda Reimer, SSCL
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Weekly Suggested Reading Five postings are usually published on Wednesdays, unless Monday is a holiday and then they are published later in the week.
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Note: Book summaries are from the respective publishers unless otherwise specified.
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Information on the four library catalogs
The Digital Catalog aka Libby: https://stls.overdrive.com/
The Digital Catalog, is an online catalog containing eBooks, eAudiobooks, and digital magazines. You can use your library card and checkout content on a PC; you can also use the companion app, Libby, to access titles on your mobile devices; so you can enjoy eBooks and eAudiobooks on the go!
All card holders of all Southern Tier Library System member libraries can check out items from the Digital Catalog.
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Hoopla Catalog: https://www.hoopladigital.com/
The Hoopla Catalog features on demand checkouts of eBooks, eAudiobooks, comic books, albums, movies and TV shows. Patron check out limit is 10 items per month.
Hoopla is a Southeast Steuben County Library service available to all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders.
The Hoopla companion app, also called Hoopla is available for mobile devices, smart TVs & media streaming players.
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Kanopy Catalog: https://www.kanopy.com/en
The Kanopy Catalog features thousands of streaming videos available on demand.
The Kanopy Catalog is available for all Southern Tier Library System member library card holders, including all Southeast Steuben County Library card holders!
You can access the Kanopy Catalog through a web browser, or download the app to your phone, tablet or media streaming player (i.e. Roku, Google or Fire TV).
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StarCat: The catalog of physical/traditional library materials: https://starcat.stls.org
Card holders of all Southern Tier Library System member libraries can access StarCat to search for and request materials available at libraries through out the Southern Tier Library System.
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Have questions about how to access Internet based content (i.e. eBooks, eAudios)? Feel free to drop by the Reference Desk or call the library and we will assist you! The library’s telephone number is: 607-936-3713.
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Tech & Book Talk is a Southeast Steuben County Library blog.
Tech & Book Talk at SSCL 