Recommended Reads: The Lock Artist

Recommended Reads: The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton MYS/HAM

When Michael was 8 years old, he suffered a tragedy that the author only alludes to throughout most of the story. Because of that horrific incident, he no longer speaks. As a troubled and isolated loner growing up, he develops a hobby of picking locks, and later, the ability to open safes by touch. While in high school, he falls in love with a fellow artist and for the first time ever, he feels that he has found the person with whom he wants to share his dark story. However, the girl's father, in debt to some shady people and fearing for his life, traps him into using his boxman skills for his own gain and leads him into a life on the run. The details of how he picks locks and breaks into safes is interesting, but becomes a little repetitive towards the end.

Recommended Reads: When Will There Be Good News?

Recommended Reads: When Will There Be Good News? by Kate Atkinson (FIC ATK)

When Will There Be Good News? is a perfect blend of character study and suspense novel. The novel opens with the brutal murder of a mother and two of her three children. The action quickly shifts to the present day as the lives of four characters soon become the focus: Dr. Joanna Hunter (who survived the murder of her mother and siblings), 16 year old Reggie Chase (who works as a nanny for Dr. Hunter), private investigator Jackson Brodie, and Detective Chief Inspector Louise Monroe of the Edinburgh police. Dr. Hunter mysteriously disappears and the lives of the characters swiftly begin to intersect. More than just a thriller, this novel offers penetrating insights into loneliness and the struggle to do the right thing in a confusing world.

Recommended Reads: House Rules by Jodi Picoult

Recommended Reads: House Rules by Jodi Picoult (FIC PIC)

This is the story of a family of two brothers and a single mother, and the daily challenges they face due to the older brother’s Aspergers (an Autism Spectrum Disorder). We get a glimpse of what it is like to live with someone who has Aspergers - the highly rigid schedules, the lack of social interaction, the strict adherence to "food color days" such as all-blue Tuesday, etc. This challenge becomes exacerbated when Jacob, a high-schooler, is accused of murdering his social skills tutor. The chapters alternate between the point of view of the various characters, and Jodi Picoult is a master at leaving the reader wondering until the very end about whether Jacob is innocent or guilty.

Recommend Reads: A Friend of the Family

Recommended Reads: A Friend of the Family by Lauren Grodstein

A Friend of the Family traces the disintegration of a wealthy New Jersey suburban family. This suspenseful novel is narrated by Pete Dizinoff, a successful family doctor with a wife, a son, and close friends. Jumping back and forth in time between the idyllic past, where Pete and his wife built a life with their beloved son Alec, and the present day, where Pete is estranged from his family and being sued for malpractice, this dark family story traces how a perfect suburban life can so easily shatter. Pete is incensed to learn that his treasured only child is dating Laura, the daughter of his best friends Joe and Iris, who is not only older than Alec but has a criminal past. Pete's efforts to end Alec and Laura's relationship will turn out to have tragic consequences. Grodstein does a brilliant job of getting inside the mind of a middle-aged Jewish doctor and evoking the suburban New Jersey milieu. A sense of dread consumes the story and you'll read on wanting to find out what horrible incident occurs to estrange Pete from his family and friends.

Recommended Reads: After

Recommended Reads: After by Amy Efaw (Y EFA)

After centers on 15 year old Devon Davenport, a straight A student and star soccer player who is arrested and charged with murder after she gives birth and throws the infant in the trash. Devon is sent to a juvenile detention center where she claims she didn't know she was pregnant. A sympathetic lawyer is assigned to Devon's case and the plot hinges on whether Devon will remain in the juvenile system or be tried as an adult (where she could face a life sentence for attempted murder). The book is a swiftly paced page turner that deals compassionately with the horrible phenomenon of "dumpster babies."

Recommended Reads: The Thirteenth Tale

Recommended Reads: The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield (FIC SET)

With the nights growing colder and longer, November is a perfect time to spend time indoors with The Thirteenth Tale. Book lover Margaret Lea works in her father's antiquarian bookstore and occasionally writes biographies of obscure writers. One day she receives a letter from famous author Vida Winter inviting Margaret to her crumbling mansion to write her biography. Vida has told many outrageous stories about her past but now she is prepared to tell the truth. As Vida spins her gothic tale of crazy family members, ghosts, and evil twins, Margaret is driven to confront the ghosts of her own past. Reminiscent of romantic ghost stories, like Daphne DuMaurier's Rebecca or Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre, this suspensful story will keep readers riveted until the last page.