Readers Advisory – Page 2 – Tech & Book Talk at SSCL

Suggested Reading Five: January 8, 2025

January 8, 2025December 26, 2024 Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, here are our five suggested reads of the week!

Weekly Suggested Reading Five postings are usually published on Wednesdays, unless Monday is a holiday and then they are published later in the week.

And the next Suggested Reading posting will be published on Wednesday, January 15, 2025.

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Holmes Is Missing by James Patterson 

The second in bestselling Patterson and frequent collaborator Sitts’s “Holmes, Margaret & Poe” series (starring Auguste Poe, Margaret Marple, and Brendan Holmes) sees the three detectives involved in an abduction case: not only have six children gone missing but so has Holmes and a number of A-listers. It will be up to Poe and Marple to put together the clues. – Library Journal Review

Reader’s Note: As noted, this is the second book in the Holmes, Margaret & Poe series, if you’d like to start reading the series from the beginning check out book one: Holmes, Marple & Poe.

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The Life of Herod the Great by Zora Neale Hurston 

Zora Neale Hurston aficionados are in for a surprise, a historical novel inspired by Herod the Great. Though widely known as the evil king who ordered the Massacre of the Innocents at the time of Jesus’ birth, Hurston explains in her lengthy preface that Herod was actually a popular and extremely capable ruler. Having fictionalized the Exodus story in Moses, Man of the Mountain, Hurston planned her Herod novel as a sequel. But it was rejected by her publishers, and her original manuscript was badly damaged in a fire. Recovered and edited by scholar Plant, Hurston’s tale of the Judean king emphasizes the conflict between East and West, “palace and priesthood,” modernity and resistance to change, conflicts she believed had risen anew in the Cold War between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Her villains are not the conquering Romans and the westernized, assimilated Judeans, but the sly, devious Hasmoneans, descendants of the Maccabees, who are determined to remain in power. Herod, his noble father Antipater, and his brother Phasaelus are continually beset and threatened by the cravenly high priest Hyrcanus and his scheming relatives; even after Herod marries into the family, he is not safe from their schemes. Full of adventure, glamour, and historical figures, including Herod’s close friends Julius Caesar and Marc Antony, this is a fascinating addition to the Hurston canon.

HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Another resurrected Hurston work, this portrait reframing a ruler of old is sure to inspire requests and discussion. – Starred Booklist Review

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The Note by Alafair Burke 

In the latest stand-alone from Burke (Find Me), a girls’ weekend in the Hamptons, a stolen parking space, and a note left on a windshield put into motion a series of events that leave one man dead and a trio of friends embroiled in a murder investigation. When the three friends learn of the disappearance of the man who took their parking spot, May, the nosy do-gooder of the group, wants to call the police, but Lauren and Kelsey convince her not to get involved. Hoping to determine whether she made the right decision, May takes it upon herself to make sure the parking-spot thief and the missing man were one and the same. It’s a decision that lands her and her friends on a detective’s radar. Then the missing-person case becomes a murder investigation, and Kelsey’s relationship with the deceased comes to light. The novel gets off to a slow start but builds gradually, gaining momentum in the second half. Multiple perspectives and timeline shifts dribble out details that add context to the friendship as well as offering clues about the killer. VERDICT Burke’s trademark style creates tension and suspense, but the deeply flawed protagonists might turn off some readers. – Publishers Weekly Review

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A Sea of Unspoken Things by Adrienne Young 

Bestselling Young’s (The Unmaking of June Farrow) newest features a set of twins. James has always been deeply connected to her brother Johnny, to the point that she can feel what he feels. Upon his death, she travels to California to settle his estate; there she meets again the only man she has ever loved and dives into a web of secrets. – Library Journal Review

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See How They Hide by Allison Brennan 

No matter how far you run, some pasts never let you go…

Two people were murdered—at the exact same time, in the same gruesome manner, bodies covered in the same red poppies…but on opposite sides of the country.

With Detective Kara Quinn investigating in Oregon and Special Agent Matt Costa in Virginia, the Mobile Response Team digs deep to uncover more about each victim. What is the link between the two, and why were they targeted?

Yet their search unearths more questions than answers—until they meet Riley Pierce, the only person still alive who might be able to help them find the killers.

Soon, it becomes clear this case is nothing like they’ve seen before as their investigation leads them to the hallowed grounds of Havenwood—an eerily beautiful place rooted in a terrifying past.

As more bodies turn up, all tied to the same community, Kara and Matt are desperate to piece the puzzle together before Havenwood’s leader sacrifices everything to keep her secrets buried.

A Quinn & Costa Thriller

Book 1: The Third to Die

Book 2: Tell No Lies

Book 3: The Wrong Victim

Book 4: Seven Girls Gone

Book 5: The Missing Witness

Book 6: See How They Hide

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Happy reading!

Linda Reimer, SSCL

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Note: Book summaries are from the respective publishers unless otherwise specified.

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Information on the three library catalogs

The Digital Catalog: 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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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.

Suggested Reading Five: January 1, 2025

January 1, 2025December 26, 2024 Linda Reimer

Hi everyone, Happy New Year!

And here are our five suggested reads of the week!

Weekly Suggested Reading Five postings are usually published on Wednesdays, unless Monday is a holiday and then they are published later in the week.

And the next Suggested Reading posting will be published on Wednesday, January 8, 2025.

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The Champagne Letters by Kate Macintosh 

Goaded by the insulting presumptions of her unfaithful ex-husband, Natalie leaves the final details of the sale of their house to him and hops a plane to Paris. Last-minute plans leave her in a posh boutique hotel, with a verbal misstep giving the impression that she’s a widow, not divorced. At a bouquiniste along the Seine, she finds a copy of a book with letters in both French and English from the widowed Barbe-Nicole Clicquot (of Veuve Clicquot champagne fame) to her great-granddaughter. Though their lives are not parallel, the widow inspires Natalie to expand her conservative life, accepting the flirtatious companionship of a handsome wine merchant and the friendship of one of the hotel employees. The letters tell the story of a woman defying convention during the Napoleonic era, coping and plotting to ensure the success of her champagne venture. Readers will see danger for Natalie long before she does, but both women succeed in the end. The combination of history and contemporary narrative makes for a compelling read worthy of relationship-fiction collections. – Booklist Review

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How to Steal a Galaxy by Beth Revis 

Picking up where Full Speed to a Crash Landing left off, this rollicking second installment of Revis’s intergalactic trilogy will keep readers glued to the page. Space looter Ada Lamarr infiltrates a Met Gala–esque fundraising event on a secret mission assigned to her by a mysterious rebel group—while also pursuing a hidden agenda of her own. There to intercept her is handsome bureaucrat Rian White, who readers will be delighted to see return. As before, Ada and Rian disagree over effective methods of enacting change while Rian works to stop Ada from putting into motion her secret plot, the details of which remain hidden from both Rian and the reader for much of the novel. The result is an un-put-downable page-turner helmed by a lovable heroine who is clever and passionate beneath her armor of sarcastic quips. Readers will need to come back for the concluding volume to fully understand all of Ada’s behind-the-scenes machinations—and to witness the culmination of Ada and Rian’s roller-coaster, cat-and-mouse romance. Revis makes the anticipation delicious. – Publishers Weekly Review

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Inheriting Magic: My Journey Through Grief, Joy, Celebration, and Making Every Day Magical by Jennifer Love Hewitt 

When she lost her mother to cancer, everything changed for Jennifer Love Hewitt.

In the pages of Inheriting Magic, she recounts her journey, sharing memories, photographs, recipes, and the magic-making ethos of a self-proclaimed “Holiday Junkie.”

A heartfelt, candid chronicle that charts a course from sorrow to celebration, this unique memoir includes: 

• Never-seen-before family photos and vintage snapshots 

• Jennifer’s favorite recipes, from her grandmother’s chicken and dumplings to her husband’s holiday cocktail 

• An explosion of festive plans, including images, sure to inspire your decorating plans for Halloween, Christmas, Easter, birthdays, and a whole year’s worth of holidays 

• Foolproof strategies for adding magic to your family’s everyday routine, such as moon water, baskets of joy, glowing dinners, and more

Inheriting Magic is about how grief, being a mom of three, having a deep love for party planning, and being passionate about the holidays turned what could have been an ordinary life into something enchanting. Through it, Jennifer inspires all readers to add more love, light, and the making of core memories into their everyday lives.

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Sisters in Science: How Four Women Physicists Escaped Nazi Germany and Made Scientific History by Olivia Campbell 

Campbell has crafted an enthralling narrative about four female scientists who managed to escape the Nazis but were never truly recognized for their work. Hedwig Kohn, Lise Meitner, Hertha Sponer, and Hildegard Stücklen were all distinguished researchers in Germany, yet their sex often hindered their progress in a male-dominated field. Once the Nazis came to power, being Jewish or anti-Nazi posed even greater obstacles. Kohn, Sponer, and Stücklen managed to make their way to the United States, where they continued their academic careers and made significant contributions to the field of physics through research and teaching. Meitner moved to Sweden, where she played a crucial role in the discovery of nuclear fission, a discovery that eventually led to the development of the atomic bomb. Despite her groundbreaking work, the Nobel Prize was instead awarded to her male colleague. The gripping story of the women’s experiences in Germany and their escape from the Nazis is remarkable. It’s unfortunate that their significant role in science was not widely recognized, but through this book, they finally receive their deserved acclaim. – Booklist Review

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Where the Library Hides by Isabel Ibañez 

A young woman pursues a dangerous quest in late-1800s Egypt in this sequel to What the River Knows (2023). After Inez Olivera was nearly murdered while assisting with her uncle’s archaeological expedition in Egypt, Tío Ricardo is eager to ship her home to safety in Argentina. But Inez burns with the need to stay and make sure that those who committed crimes against her family are held responsible. Unfortunately, the law precludes Inez, as a young unmarried woman, from accessing her inheritance (needed to fund her quest for justice) without her guardian uncle’s permission. Whitford Hayes, a former British soldier and her tio’s aide-de-camp, proposes marriage, which could solve her problems. But can Inez trust the secretive Whit? More danger and intrigue lurk at every turn in this exciting duology closer, which fully addresses the first entry’s jaw-dropping cliffhanger. The well-paced plot encompasses many fresh, new adventures and betrayals in this reimagined historical setting in which ancient magic abounds and not everyone or everything is what it seems. Even more captivating, however, is the complicated, nuanced love story between Whit and Inez. Their chemistry sizzles, but their relationship is achingly layered with both profound loyalty and deep deception. As their journey unearths new enemies and priceless archaeological finds, the duo must try to trust each other enough to survive. A thrilling, beautifully written page-turner. – Starred Kirkus Review