Suspense
The London Séance Society
Sarah Penner
FICTION Penner Sarah
Mystery, Historical Fiction, Suspense
"1873. At an abandoned château on the outskirts of Paris, a dark šance is about to take place, led by acclaimed spiritualist Vaudeline D'Allaire. Known worldwide for her talent in conjuring the spirits of murder victims to ascertain the identities of the people who killed them, she is highly sought after by widows and investigators alike. Lenna Wickes has come to Paris to find answers about her sister's death, but to do so, she must embrace the unknown and overcome her own logic-driven bias against the occult. When Vaudeline is beckoned to England to solve a high-profile murder, Lenna accompanies her as an understudy. But as the women team up with the powerful men of London's exclusive Šance Society to solve the mystery, they begin to suspect that they are not merely out to solve a crime, but perhaps entangled in one themselves..."--
The Cloisters: A Novel
Katy Hays
OverDrive Audiobook
Suspense, Fiction
When Ann Stilwell arrives in New York City, she expects to spend her summer working as a curatorial associate at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Instead, she finds herself assigned to The Cloisters, a gothic museum and garden renowned for its medieval art collection and its group of enigmatic researchers studying the history of divination. Desperate to escape her painful past, Ann is happy to indulge the researchers' more outlandish theories about the history of fortune telling. But what begins as academic curiosity quickly turns into obsession when Ann discovers a hidden 15th-century deck of tarot cards that might hold the key to predicting the future. When the dangerous game of power, seduction, and ambition at The Cloisters turns deadly, Ann becomes locked in a race for answers as the line between the arcane and the modern blurs. A haunting and magical blend of genres, The Cloisters is a gripping debut that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
If you are looking for a fun, fast read, I recommend The Cloisters. It is somewhat a mystery and a thriller with elements of dark academia. -Anne M
No One Goes Alone: A Novel
Erik Larson
OverDrive Audiobook
Suspense, Fiction, Historical Fiction
A group of researchers sets sail for the Isle of Dorn in the North Atlantic in 1905 to explore the cause of several mysterious disappearances, most notably a family of four who vanished without a trace after a week-long holiday on the island. Led by Professor James, a prominent member of the Society for Psychical Research, they begin to explore the island’s sole cottage and surrounding landscape in search of a logical explanation. The idyllic setting belies an undercurrent of danger and treachery, with raging storms and unnerving discoveries adding to the sense of menace. As increasingly unexplainable events unfold, the now-stranded investigators are unsure whether they can trust their own eyes, their instincts, one another—or even themselves. Erik Larson has written a terrifying tale of suspense, underpinned with actual people and events. Created specifically to entertain audio listeners, this eerie blend of the ghostly and the real will keep listeners captivated till the blood-chilling end.
Need a good story for a dark winter's night? Here is one. Erik Larson's latest, only available in audiobook is worth the listen. The premise is familiar, a group of individuals stay at an old manor in an isolated place. Strange events occur, suspicions arise, and everyone is afraid. However, this group of individuals expected came here for exactly this purpose. They are a group of 19th century scientists, experts, and scholars there to prove--or more likely disprove--that the house is haunted. But can they? I love Erik Larson's histories. All of his skills as a writer: ability to tell a story, have you deeply care about the individual's involved, and keep you rapt as the events unfold, translated easily to fiction. -Anne M
Ace of spades
Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
YOUNG ADULT FICTION Abike-Iyimide, Faridah
Young Adult, Thriller, Suspense, LGBTQ+
At Niveus Private Academy, Devon and Chiamaka are the only students chosen to be Senior Prefects who are also black, which makes them targets for a series of anonymous texts revealing their secrets to the entire student body. Both students were on track toward valedictorian and bright college futures, but this prank quickly turns into a very dangerous game and they are at more than one disadvantage as it looks like things could turn deadly.
This is a fantastic page-turner with a delectable plot, well-developed characters and an overall killer debut! Fans of One of Us is Lying, Get Out and Gossip Girl will delight in this read. -Victoria
The ethical assassin : a novel
David Liss
FICTION Liss, David
Suspense
A 2006 novel written by David Liss that revolves around Lem Atlick, a door to door encyclopedia salesman who is caught in the middle of an assassination and becomes a sole witness.
A compelling story that dives into the ethics of activism and murder after a young man meets a surprisingly pleasant assassin. -Mykle
The girl on the train : a novel
Paula Hawkins
FICTION Hawkins Paula
Suspense
Rachel catches the same commuter train every morning. She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens. She’s even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the houses. “Jess and Jason,” she calls them. Their life—as she sees it—is perfect. If only Rachel could be that happy. And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Now Rachel has a chance to become a part of the lives she’s only watched from afar. Now they’ll see; she’s much more than just the girl on the train...
Added by Beth
We are all the same in the dark : a novel
A seasoned cop's interest in a mysterious one-eyed girl takes her back to the worst night of her life in this fast-paced thriller from the internationally bestselling author of Black-Eyed Susans. They call her Angel. Found on the side of a remote highway, half-dead and blowing wishes in a field of dandelions, the young girl refuses to speak. No one knows who she is or where she came from--only that she fell from the sky. It's Wyatt who finds her and takes her home to nurse her back to health, setting into motion the town's rumor mill. A pariah, Wyatt still believes he can still communicate with his long-gone sister, and he might be the only one left who knows the truth about the night of her disappearance. The night that Wyatt's cousin, Odette Tucker, also lost something important: her leg. Now a cop, uninhibited by her prosthetic, Odette must reenter Wyatt's ghost-ridden world. In Angel's case and her beautiful green eye, she sees her once-broken self and all the things she was told she'd never do. As she begins to coax Angel into speaking and slowly pieces together her identity, Odette is ignited to reopen the cold case that has haunted her. Soon she is ensnared in a lethal game of cat and mouse with someone who doesn't want that night revisited. The night that inspired her to become a cop, the night her friend disappeared and they both exploded into a small Texas town's dark, violent mythology.
A gritty, violent thriller set in Texas with a new mystery sparked by an old one. Odette Tucker follows in her cop father's footsteps after a decade old disappearance of a small town's homecoming queen and sweetheart, Trumanell on a night that changes Odette's life forever. Trumanell's brother Wyatt, the town's outcast, picks up a young girl with a missing eye, and Odette rushes to action and brings the young girl, whom Wyatt dubs Angel, to keep her safe. I quickly devoured this gut-wrenching and suspenseful story. -Mari
One of Us is Next
Karen M. McManus
YOUNG ADULT FICTION McManus, Karen
Mystery, Suspense, Young Adult
A year after the Bayview four were cleared of Simon Kelleher's death a ton of copycat gossip apps have popped up, but no one's been able to fill the gossip void quite like he could. Now a game with dangerous consequences is targeting students at Bayview-- and if the creator isn't found soon, dangerous could prove deadly. If you choose not to play, it's a truth. And Phoebe is the first target. Maeve is next. By the time Knox is tagged, the dares have become deadly. -- adapted from jacket
If you enjoyed One of us is Lying, you won't be disappointed with the sequel. 14+ -Victoria
Rebecca
Daphne Du Maurier
FICTION DuMaurier, Daphne
Classics, Suspense
A young girl becomes the second Mrs. Max de Winter, only to find that she is not the mistress of Manderley. Instead the house and its occupants are dominated by the memory of Rebecca, her predecessor.
I saw that this book was getting adapted for the screen via Netflix and felt regret that I hadn't read it. Luckily it was available on Libby and I was done with it roughly 24 hours later. What a read! So much mystery and shroud with a couple good twists and wonderful descriptions. It's hard to believe this was written almost a century ago, it feels ahead of its time and contends with all of the suspense books written more recently. I am a firm believer in reading the book first and this was a great read, and while I am excited to watch it on screen, I doubt it will live up to it's expectations of the book. -Mari
The Sun Down Motel
Simone St. James
FICTION St. James, Simone
Mystery, Thriller, Suspense
"The secrets lurking in a rundown roadside motel ensnare a young woman, just as they did her aunt thirty-five years before, in this new atmospheric suspense novel from the national bestselling and award-winning author of The Broken Girls. Upstate NY, 1982. Every small town like Fell, New York, has a place like the Sun Down Motel. Some customers are from out of town, passing through on their way to someplace better. Some are locals, trying to hide their secrets. Viv Delaney works as the night clerk to pay for her move to New York City. But something isn't right at the Sun Down, and before long she's determined to uncover all of the secrets hidden there. Upstate NY, 2017. Carly Kirk has always been fascinated by her aunt Viv who disappeared from the Sun Down before Carly was born. Using a small inheritance from when her mom dies, Carly leaves college to go to Fell to figure out what happened to her aunt thirty-five years ago. Soon, Carly is mirroring her aunt's life, working as the night clerk at the motel, which hasn't changed since 1982. The guest book is still handwritten, the rooms still have actual keys, and a haunting presence still lingers. Carly discovers that Viv had been trying to unravel mysteries of her own--including a possible serial killer working in Fell. If Carly can find the answers Viv was searching for, she might be able to solve the mystery that has haunted her family for years"--
I'll admit I placed this book on hold without reading the description solely because I was intrigued by the cover. It ended up being a little different than what I expected, which I think was probably a little like the movie Bad Times at the El Royale, but while it did leave some to be desired in the category of character development, it was an intriguing story with ghosts, detective work, and female empowerment. -Mari
Penner offers up another mystery tale involving murder and desperate circumstances for the protagonists. Although not as engaging a tale as her The Lost Apothecary was (a little too much revisiting of things already established for my tastes and a sense of it being rushed) she really develops a pretty detailed slice of Victorian England life, featuring good twists, turns and revelations, and a collection of interesting characters, both major and minor. -Paul