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Thrillers

Review

I Think We Should Kill Other People.

by Brian Kenney

Love Synced is a new type of reality show in which a sophisticated AI pulls the participants together, eventually creating a database of their behavior and providing recommendations for what they should do to survive. When the show is down to two participants—Hazel, who has had a rough and tumble life growing up, and Marc, who oozes wealth—the two are ready for “I Do.” But it turns out they aren’t. Or at least Hazel can’t do it. Meanwhile, a huge storm is moving in, and cast and crew become stranded in a tiny airport off the coast of Norway along with several of Marc’s relatives, who are, as one might expect, absolutely livid. The small group had a successful day, more or less getting along, but when one of the participants is discovered dead, seated in the men’s room, a Toblerone shoved down his throat, the stakes have greatly increased. A sleek, fast ride sure to be enjoyed by many.—Brian Kenney

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Review

My Name Was Gerry Sass.

by Willy Williams

“It’s a life.” This is a phrase that 43-year-old Gerry Sass, a mob hitman who masquerades as a successful radio station owner in Mystic, Iowa, often repeats to himself, and he does it again on the morning of November 26, 1986, to stem his growing sense of dread. He’s under criminal investigation for money laundering, and there are rumors in the underworld that Gerry is going to flip. Unfortunately, his fear becomes reality when two masked men run Gerry off the road, march him into the woods, and shoot him in the head. While the newly deceased Gerry plunges into purgatory to ruminate on his late life, his friend, a timorous Catholic priest named Father Dan, hides unseen in a hunting blind, witnessing the killing but doing nothing to stop it. Instead, he drives to Gerry’s farm to tell Early, Gerry’s college dropout daughter, about her father’s death. Grief-stricken and enraged, Early hops into Gerry’s prized Mustang and embarks on an intense quest to avenge his killing. Along the way, the determined young woman discovers that she is more like Gerry than she had ever imagined. Alternating the high-speed narrative among her three well-drawn protagonists, WNYC on-air host Hanssen makes a kickass debut with this darkly funny, beautifully written, and highly original tale of murder, revenge, and family ties. Most importantly, she has written a moving story about the love between a father and a daughter that abides even after death.—Willy Williams

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Review

January and July

by Jeff Ayers

January Holte works for an intelligence agency nicknamed the Annex. An op in Paris crashes and burns, and she’s deemed responsible. Now back home and trying to make amends, she secretly sets out to uncover someone in the Annex who’s selling secrets. The clues lead her to a small town in Texas and a possible suspect named Bill Connors. July Whitlock begins a job as a bodyguard-for-hire, and his first client, Bill Connors, convinces him to wait outside while he meets with someone for a few minutes. Bill vanishes, and feeling guilty for leaving his side, July goes searching. His investigation takes him to a small town in Texas. January and July might not find Bill, but they do find deception, animosity, and their lives threatened. Abbott has crafted two terrific characters in January and July, and readers will quickly become invested in how things work out for them, even though they might be on opposite sides. The pacing is lightning-fast, the mysteries are complex and hard to decipher, and the story begs for a sequel featuring more of their adventures.—Jeff Ayers

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Review

Good Girls Die Bored

by Henrietta Thornton

Working security at an LA stripper club should be an easy gig for Juno Hardwick after time as a marine in Afghanistan when her friend was killed, a loss that haunts Juno. But her surveillance background means she can’t take it easy and that she’s soon back with military colleagues, this time in the high-end security business. From the start, her gig as part of a team guarding journalist Maelle Ruiz—think the crack investigation skills of Ronan Farrow, with a mark on her back from uncovering corruption. Maelle won’t reveal details of exactly why she needs protection at an upcoming celebrity-packed gala, and the team leaders are also less than forthcoming. Secrecy heightens the thrills as Juno moves from one exciting chase to another and ends up in a how-can-she-escape trap as the book closes, with twists thrown in to keep readers’ heads spinning. Juno is a character with guts and flaws to spare, with the several women surrounding her in this breakneck-speed tale equally complicated and interesting. One for lovers of women-led espionage.—Henrietta Thornton

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Review

Murder Like Clockwork

by Dodie Ownes

Full of twists and turns and characters whom readers will both love and hate, Murder Like Clockwork is the second title in Whyte’s 10 Marchfield Square series—and if you didn’t read the first, don’t worry! You can still drop right into this delightful mystery that’s set in the Belgravia area of London, overseen by grande dame Celeste. Audrey is a housecleaner, and Anton Petrov’s apartment is a special case. She cannot arrive early, or leave late. And then there are the dozens of antique clocks that must be wound every week. And, it never seems like anyone has been there between her weekly visits. One frigid day, she arrives early and discovers a body neatly placed on a plastic sheet. When the police finally get there, they go inside to find…nothing. No body, no blood. When Audrey consults with co-sleuth Lewis, who hates his job as a recruiter and would rather be a mystery writer, the hunt to find the murderer takes off. Whyte delights readers with characters eccentric and homey, willingly ignorant and intensely involved. Was it revenge? A contract kill? A money grab? Audrey and Lewis slowly but surely unravel the mystery and offer a completely satisfying wrap-up. Here’s hoping that Whyte keeps this recruiter and cleaner and their clever banter busy for many more titles.—Dodie Ownes

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Review

The Watch

by Jeff Ayers

For the past ten years, Kaya has lived with her adopted brother, Wes, in a compound called Attica, with no memory of her past before arriving at the sanctuary. They live with a bunch of other survivors who escaped the plague, and leaving is mostly forbidden for fear of becoming infected, though Wes is allowed to leave with a couple of others from time to time on scavenging missions to gather supplies. After a recent run, Wes returns and starts acting strangely, then one of the others on that trip develops the disease and is dispatched before they can infect anyone else. The leaders of their community continue to maintain order by strict rules that seem odd to Kaya, but they have kept the folks in Attica alive for decades. When Kaya is chosen to be bonded with someone she hardly knows, she starts to have questions, and when she begins to have visions of a man from her life before Attica, she wonders whether her memories are returning. If she’s smart, she’ll not want to know the truth. Smith reveals a fascinating society behind the walls. That, and Kaya’s journey to find answers, will have readers completely enthralled from the first page to the last. Suspense, horror, and many surprises await.—Jeff Ayers

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Review

Murder at the Hotel Orient

by Brian Kenney

It may claim to be set in contemporary Vienna, but this novel reverberates far more with hotels–and their staff—from years ago. Visitors arrive at the Hotel Orient for many reasons, but the most likely are to enjoy a sexual tryst, appreciate a real good dalliance of yore, or just to hide their secrets. Cameras, along with all technology newer since the lightbulb, are banned. And guests are expected to adopt an alias, whether for three hours or 30 days. At the center of the hotel is American Sterling Lockwood, the cool, queer concierge and “keeper of the secrets.” She is ready to make every visit memorable no matter what it takes, as is Fernando, her best friend and bellhop. But, shockingly, the unmanageable happens: a double murder is discovered one morning, a first in the Orient’s history. Without technology and with a ledger full of falsehoods there is no way to decipher who the victim was or where they were going. What can be determined is that Fernando and Sterling must become  detectives, if only to save their own skins.—Brian Kenney  

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Review

Whidbey

by Dodie Ownes

In her fiction debut, Madden gifts readers with a complex psychological story that explores the lasting effects of violence and who controls the narrative of trauma. The novel unfolds from the alternating perspectives of three women whose lives are linked by one man, Calvin, who has just been murdered. They are Birdie Chang, a woman who was sexually abused by Calvin and is now on the run from him; Linzie King, another victim of Calvin’s, a former reality-TV star who has published a bestselling memoir about her experience; and Mary-Beth, Calvin’s devoted mother, who fiercely defended him throughout his legal troubles and struggles to reconcile the son she loves with the person capable of such actions. Moving across their voices and time, from Whidbey Island’s lush cool green to a sticky, tacky North Pole gas station in Florida, each woman examines what part she played in Calvin’s actions. A cast of secondary characters fills in the blanks. There’s Syl, Mary-Beth’s sister, who wonders why she ever allowed Cal into her home, which put her twin daughters in danger. And Rich, who meets Birdie on the ferry to Whidbey and offers to “take care of” Calvin for her, as well as Trace, Birdie’s girlfriend, who travels to Florida to do that herself. Madden masterfully captures the haze of lost and found memories, the urges to take revenge, and the regrets of those who knew, but did nothing.—Dodie Ownes

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Review

Scorched Line

by Danise Hoover

It can be nearly impossible and certainly annoying to jump into a well-established series, a category that fits this title exactly, however, Baker is skilled at telling her story with sufficient detail to bring a new reader into the picture without bogging down the rest of the novel. Kate is faced with multiple family issues. She’s one of nine siblings and there are always issues, but these seem more intense than most. Their mother, someone with a nefarious past, disappeared three years ago, and strange clues seem to indicate her return. The FBI agent with a personal stake in capturing the fugitive is back in town; items of Kate’s clothes disappear from her house; and feathers, the mother’s signature, show up in odd places. Some of Kate’s siblings are willing to do anything to help their mother, others want her to turn herself in to the authorities. The landscape and cultural quirks of the Nebraska sand hills play an important part in the story, as do the family’s strong personalities, all of which contribute to the tumultuous ending. A really solid read.—Danise Hoover

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Review

The Neighbors Are Watching

by Henrietta Thornton

Eastbrook is the Right Kind of Town with the Right Kind of People. The parents are dual-income DC professionals, the kids are off to Georgetown and Princeton, and it’s graduation season, when everything is “just so.” Nobody wants blow-in Finn to keep papering local lampposts with flyers about the nanny who was shot dead in Eastbrook last summer. Ancient history, best forgotten, right? But things start to come further apart at the seams when a local mom, Caren, collapses on the way home from a block party. The next day, she can’t remember where she spent the night and has an injury to the back of her head. That story alternates with that of Tori, who’s new to the town and struggling to adjust. Local teen behaviors make their way in, too, with all combining to give a stealthy look at domestic turmoil and what rich people find important, with their priorities and desperation hit by twists more than once. Thompson’s spot-on language and characterization puts the suburbs under a microscope and will leave readers wanting more.—Henrietta Thornton

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