Agony Hill by Sarah Stewart Taylor

 

 

Agony Hill: A Mystery by Sarah Stewart Taylor. Minotaur Books, 2024. Adult fiction. Mystery.

When Franklin Warren moves to the village of Bethany, Vermont in the 1960's, he is immediately thrust into his work as detective. A fire up on Agony Hill has burned a barn and a body is found inside. Warren has moved to the area after finding his own wife in Boston murdered and has had little time to process her death. With the help of a neighbor, Alice Bellows, he begins to learn about the community and its residents. Suddenly, there is another fire. Can Warren figure out what is going on?

The time period is crucial to the story. The Vietnam War is raging. The interstate highway is about to change life in Vermont. Police work is becoming more organized and advanced. The setting is beautifully described. As an author of other mystery series books, Taylor surely has written what will become the first in a new series featuring Franklin Warren, a likeable character. 

After Oz: A Novel by Gordon McAlpine

  After Oz: A Novel by Gordon McAlpine. Crooked Lane Books, 2024. Adult fiction.

Most people know the story of young Dorothy Gale from Kansas who was swept up to the Yellow Brick Road after a twister carried her away. Although she eventually returns to the farm, she tells magnificent tales of a wizard, witches, flying monkeys, and talking creatures.

There Gorgon McAlpine picks up the L. Frank Baum tale and adds his own story. The townspeople in 1896 Sunbonnet, Kansas have searched for days for Dorothy. Just after Dorothy's homecoming, the town spinster, age 51 and named Alina Clough appears to have been killed by lye. Dorothy has confessed she melted "a witch". Is the child guilty of Alvina's murder?

They can hardly believe Dorothy's stories and think she must be mad. They hold a community meeting to decide what to do. Uncle Henry and Aunt Em's farm has been destroyed and is no place for a young girl. A newspaper reporter in Chicago tells his sister back East about it all.

The sister, Dr. Evelyn Grace Wilford, is a doctor, a psychologist, who arrives in the area to examine Dorothy. She interviews Henry and Em, Reverend Richter and his wife, Elizabeth, Sheriff Hutchins, Dr. Ward, and Mayor Watt-Smith. She writes about her musings in extensive letters to her mentor, Dr. James, and tries to solve both the murder and to help Dorothy.

Is the Topeka Insane Asylum destined to be Dorothy's home? Is it true as Dorothy said, "There's no place like home." OR is another famous author correct in saying "You can't go home again."?

This a story that readers will think about long after turning the last page. 

 

Work: Interviews with People Doing Jobs They Love by Shana Feinberg. Illustrated by Julia Rothman.

 

Work: Interviews with People Doing Jobs They Love by Shana Feinberg. Illustrated by Julia Rothman. Candlewick Press, 2024. Children's picture book. Nonfiction.

In a series of interviews with people from around the world, the author and illustrator let the workers tell of their interesting jobs. This is NOT your average doctor, lawyer, nurse, teacher set of jobs either! Vegan butchers, alpaca farmers, muralists, surfers, candlestick makers, and bagel makers are among the twenty-eight interviewees. The author and illustrator even include themselves! The oversized book features full color, double paged spreads with realistic illustrations. It is indexed and has questions that lead young readers to think more deeply about themselves. While it might date the book, the only thing missing is a contact page in case readers would like to purchase handmade items or visit shops of the workers.

The Last Romantics: A Novel by Tara Conklin

 

 The Last Romantics: A Novel by Tara Conklin. William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2019. Adult fiction. Literary fiction. 

 If you like family dramas, meet the Skinner family. Older sister, Renee, is smart and strong; sister Caroline loves her high school sweetheart; brother Joe is the golden athlete; and little Fiona sets the stage as a grown up poet in 2079 as the family's story spools out. When they are children, a death in the family causes their mother, Noni, to take to her bed...literally she does nothing for these Connecticut children and they cover for her. As grown ups, they deal with their own strengths and weaknesses and are fiercely loyal to one another...up to a point. As in Patchett's Tom Lake, their sibling bonds and the well crafted tale will keep readers going.

The Lions of Fifth Avvenue: A Novel by Fiona Davis

 

 

 The Lions of Fifth Avenue: A Novel by Fiona Davis.Dutton, 2020. Adult fiction. Historical fiction.

 In 1913, Laura Lyons and her husband and two children actually live in an apartment in the New York Public Library. The home is a perk of Laura's husband's job as Superintendent of the Library.  She longs to be a journalist herself. The family is upended and suspect as valuable items go missing from the library.

 In 1995, Sadie Donovan is a curator at the New York Public Library and grand daughter of the famous essayist Laura Lyons. Her life has been rather topsy-turvy and she longs to find out more about her grandmother's life and her own family. The situation gets really sticky when items go missing from a display that Sadie is planning.

 The two voices merge as clues are found about the thefts and modern police get involved. Sadie is no longer incognito in her position. Readers will enjoy the details about the library itself and how the pieces are put together to solve the puzzle. They will root for Sadie! 

The Lindbergh Nanny by Mariah Fredericks

 

 The Lindbergh Nanny: A Novel by Mariah Fredericks. Minotaur Books, 2022. Adult fiction. Historical fiction.

     Its no secret that in March, 1932, the toddler son of Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh was kidnapped from his bedroom. The incident became a world wide event in the press. Police and detectives everywhere followed clues and tried to find the child. Horrifically, the boy was found dead near the Lindbergh home. A massive trial followed with a conviction. 

     This novel's main character is the young Scottish woman, Berry Gow, who was the little boy's nanny. The cook, the chauffeur, the maids and other staff all figure into this tale. The world will probably never know if any of them were involved in the kidnapping, but the author builds tension as readers discover details about the family and their situation. The book is not so much a "Who Done it?" as "How could this happen?" It certainly will have interested readers scurrying to find photographs and news of the time.

The Last One: A Novel by Will Dean

 

  The Last One: A Novel by Will Dean. Emily Bestler Books, Atria, Simon & Schuster 2023. Adult mystery/thriller.

   When Caroline Ripley and her partner board the HMS Atlantica in Southampton, England for a week's cruise to New York, she has no idea that her adventure will take a deadly turn. After a delicious dinner the first night, Caroline (Caz) wakes up to find that she is alone. As she searches the ship, three other people do turn up: Frannie, a younger woman; Danny, a Korean American whose handyman knowledge becomes helpful; and Smith, an older gentleman who can be rather critical and snide. 

   Not to give away too much, let's just say that the adventure takes off as the group find they should cooperate in order to contact land and get themselves off the ship. Nothing is as it seems. Even in the very last chapter, the author has tricks up his sleeve!