Category: Audio Books

Best Sellers Club October Authors: Stuart Woods & Susan Mallery

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Want the hottest new release from your favorite author? Want to stay current with a celebrity book club? Love nonfiction? You should join the Best Sellers Club. Choose any author, celebrity pick, and/or nonfiction pick and the Davenport Public Library will put the latest title on hold for you automatically. Select as many as you want! If you still have questions, please check out our list of FAQs.

New month means new highlighted authors from the Best Sellers Club! October’s authors are Stuart Woods for fiction and Susan Mallery for romance.

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Our October fiction author is Stuart Woods. Woods is most well-known for his Stone Barrington series. He has written more than seventy-five novels, but began his writing career in the advertising industry. His debut novel, Chiefs, was released in 1981 and won the Edgar Award.

Woods’ latest book is Criminal Mischief, which will be published in December 2021. Criminal Mischief is book 60 in the Stone Barrington series.

Curious what this book is about? Check out the following description provided by the publisher:

In this exhilarating new thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Stuart Woods, Stone Barrington goes up against an enemy on the run.

After a dangerous adventure has him traveling up and down the coast, Stone Barrington is looking forward to some down time at his Manhattan abode. But when an acquaintance alerts him to a hinky plot being hatched across the city, he finds himself eager to pursue justice.

After the mastermind behind it all proves more evasive than anyone was expecting, Stone sets out on an international chase to places he’s never gone before. With the help of old friends—and alluring new ones—Stone is determined to see the pursuit through to the end, even if it means going up against a foe more unpredictable than he has ever faced…

This book is also available in the following formats:

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Our October romance author is Susan Mallery. Mallery is a New York Times bestselling author who specializes in writing novels about the relationships that define women’s lives – family, friendship, and romance. 40 million copies of her books have been sold worldwide and have been published in 28 languages.

Mallery’s latest book is The Summer Getaway, which will be published in March 2022.

Curious what this book is about? Below is a description provided by the publisher.

One woman discovers the beauty in chaos in this poignant and heartwarming story about the threads that hold family together from #1 New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery.

With her divorce settlement about to run out and a mortgage she can’t afford, Robyn Caldwell needs a plan for her future. She nurtured her family and neglected herself. But how’s she supposed to think when her daughter has become the most demanding bride ever, her son won’t even consider college, her best friend is on the brink of marital disaster and her ex is making a monumentally bad decision that could bring everything crashing down on Robyn’s head? So when her great-aunt Lillian invites her to Santa Barbara for the summer, Robyn hops on the first plane.

But it’s hard to run away when you’re the heart of the family. One by one, everyone she left behind follows her across the country. Somehow, their baggage doesn’t feel as heavy in the sun-drenched, mishmash mansion. The more time Robyn spends with free-spirited Lillian, the more she sees the appeal in taking chances—on dreams, on love, on family. Life is meant to be lived on purpose. All she has to do is muster the courage to take a chance on herself.

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

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Alex Michaelides’ debut novel The Silent Patient pulled me in from the start with the story of a woman’s shocking act of violence against her husband and her subsequent silence. It’s a topic that had not been covered in any previous novel I had read, so I was curious to see how Michaelides would weave the story together, especially with a silent main character.

Alicia Berenson has the perfect life. As a famous painter married to popular fashion photographer Gabriel, she spends her days doing exactly what she wants: painting. Alicia and Gabriel live in a large gorgeous house with big windows that let in a lot of light. Living in one of London’s most desirable areas means that they pay for the view, but said view is stunning and overlooks one of London’s parks.

They have all they could ever want until one night when Alicia does the unthinkable. Gabriel returns home late one evening from a fashion shoot. Alicia shoots him five times in the face. She never speaks again.

The media and the police are equally confused. Alicia’s refusal to speak or give any type of explanation leaves ample room for speculation, none of which is in Alicia’s favor. This case becomes the number one thing talked and speculated about in the public and amongst investigators. Alicia is also catapulted into notoriety. The prices of her previous artworks skyrocket. Once Alicia’s case is settled, she is taken away to the Grove, a secure forensic unit hidden away in North London. Away from prying eyes, the therapists at the Grove have high hopes that Alicia will open up and share her motives for why she killed her husband. Those hopes are quickly dashed as Alicia proves unresponsive to any kind of therapy.

Enter criminal psychotherapist Theo Faber. New to the Grove, Theo believes that he holds the key to unlocking Alicia’s speech. He has been waiting a very long time to work with Alicia. He is determined to get the bottom of the mystery of why Alicia shot her husband. Theo’s motivations become muddled the more he works with Alicia and begin to consume him. All the while, Alicia sits silently.

This book is also available in the following formats:

October’s Celebrity Book Club Picks

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It’s a new month which means that Oprah Winfrey, Jenna Bush Hager, and Reese Witherspoon have picked new books for their book clubs! Reminder that if you join our Best Sellers Club, these titles will automatically be put on hold for you.

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Oprah Winfrey has selected Bewilderment by Richard Powers.

Curious what Bewilderment is about? Check out the following description provided by the publisher:

The astrobiologist Theo Byrne searches for life throughout the cosmos while single-handedly raising his unusual nine-year-old, Robin, following the death of his wife. Robin is a warm, kind boy who spends hours painting elaborate pictures of endangered animals. He’s also about to be expelled from third grade for smashing his friend in the face. As his son grows more troubled, Theo hopes to keep him off psychoactive drugs. He learns of an experimental neurofeedback treatment to bolster Robin’s emotional control, one that involves training the boy on the recorded patterns of his mother’s brain….

With its soaring descriptions of the natural world, its tantalizing vision of life beyond, and its account of a father and son’s ferocious love, Bewilderment marks Richard Powers’s most intimate and moving novel. At its heart lies the question: How can we tell our children the truth about this beautiful, imperiled planet?

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Jenna Bush Hager has selected The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles.

Curious what The Lincoln Highway is about? Check out the following description provided by the publisher.

The bestselling author of A Gentleman in Moscow and Rules of Civility and master of absorbing, sophisticated fiction returns with a stylish and propulsive novel set in 1950s America

In June, 1954, eighteen-year-old Emmett Watson is driven home to Nebraska by the warden of the work farm where he has just served a year for involuntary manslaughter. His mother long gone, his father recently deceased, and the family farm foreclosed upon by the bank, Emmett’s intention is to pick up his eight-year-old brother and head west where they can start their lives anew. But when the warden drives away, Emmett discovers that two friends from the work farm have hidden themselves in the trunk of the warden’s car. Together, they have hatched an altogether different plan for Emmett’s future.

Spanning just ten days and told from multiple points of view, Towles’s third novel will satisfy fans of his multi-layered literary styling while providing them an array of new and richly imagined settings, characters, and themes.

This book is also available in the following formats:

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Reese Witherspoon has selected Sankofa by Chibundu Onuzo.

Curious what Sankofa is about? Check out the following description provided by the publisher.

Masterful in its examination of freedom, prejudice, and personal and public inheritance, Sankofa is a story for anyone who has ever gone looking for a clear identity or home, and found something more complex in its place.

Anna is at a stage of her life when she’s beginning to wonder who she really is. She has separated from her husband, her daughter is all grown up, and her mother—the only parent who raised her—is dead.

Searching through her mother’s belongings one day, Anna finds clues about the African father she never knew. His student diaries chronicle his involvement in radical politics in 1970s London. Anna discovers that he eventually became the president—some would say dictator—of a small nation in West Africa. And he is still alive…

When Anna decides to track her father down, a journey begins that is disarmingly moving, funny, and fascinating. Like the metaphorical bird that gives the novel its name, Sankofa expresses the importance of reaching back to knowledge gained in the past and bringing it into the present to address universal questions of race and belonging, the overseas experience for the African diaspora, and the search for a family’s hidden roots.

Join our Best Sellers Club to have Oprah, Jenna, and Reese’s adult selections automatically put on hold for you!

Careful What You Wish For by Hallie Ephron

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Hallie Ephron is known for writing mystery and suspense novels. Her newest novel Careful What You Wish For is her latest offering.

Emily Harlow is a professional organizer. She loves to help people declutter their lives which is a bit ironic because Emily’s own life is a complete mess. Her husband is a hoarder. He has filled their basement, attic, and garage with all of the treasures that he has found at different yard and estate sales. Emily and her husband have an understanding though that she will not touch his finds. This marriage compromise is slowly making Emily’s life more stressful as his belongings spread throughout more of the house.

Desperate to get back to some sort of normalcy, Emily is relieved when she has two new clients sign up. One is an elderly widow finally ready to clear out her house of any reminder of her husband. Said husband also left behind a storage unit that the wife had no idea existed. Emily’s other new client is a young wife who wants to get rid of all of her belongings that have been sitting in the garage ever since she moved in with her husband. You see, her husband didn’t allow any of her belongings into the house. At all.

After the initial meetings, Emily discovers that both of her new clients are hiding something. The mess Emily finds herself in has the power to destroy her life. She must get creative in order to find her way out or she may lose her marriage, her job, or even her life.

This book is also available in the following formats:

What You Wish For by Katherine Center

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Katherine Center’s newest novel What You Wish For is fast-paced, engaging, and whimsical. Even though it deals with heavy topics, Center manages to share the message that choosing joy in the midst of difficult and painful times will help you heal.

Samantha Casey is a school librarian. She has been in Galveston, Texas for only a couple of years, but in this short time she has managed to carve out a life that makes her happy. Sam loves her job, the kids that come to visit her in the library, and her school family. Her new school fits the new Sam: colorful, fun, engaging, and full of personality. After disaster strikes the school, Sam finds herself floundering. The new school year has been thrown into chaos, but with the hiring of Duncan Carpenter, Sam is hopeful that the school will begin to heal.

Sam knows Duncan. Well, she knew the old Duncan. The new Duncan is rigid. He lives by rules and regulations. He believes that he needs to upgrade the school because the way it is now is only asking for bad things to happen. The old Duncan did not care about rules. He was the cool teacher, the one who juggled, wore funny clothes, and advocated for anything and everything fun. Sam had the biggest crush on lovable old Duncan, but the old Sam was too timid. She has changed so much in just a couple years and is hopeful that she can turn Duncan back into the fun-loving man she remembered from before.

Sam and Duncan couldn’t be more different now. Duncan only wants to protect the school even if that means that he has to destroy it. Desperate to save the school, Sam and some other teachers work to remind Duncan of the joy he used to feel. While helping Duncan remember who he used to be, Sam finds herself wanting to know him again.

This book is also available in the following formats:

Dial A for Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto

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Jesse Q. Sutanto has written a deliciously entertaining story that covers a wide variety of topics in her latest book Dial A for Aunties. Combining comedy, drama, murder, and culture, Dial A for Aunties tells the story of a Chinese-Indonesian family stuck in a humorous, yet deadly, situation.

Meddelin Chan loves her family. They may drive her slightly crazy, but they are always there for her. Her mother and three meddling aunts never hesitate to come whenever Meddy calls, which is something that she both loves and doesn’t fully appreciate. This loyalty comes in handy when Meddy suddenly finds herself with a dead body. Her aunties and mother quickly come to her aid to help her with this disastrous situation.

This couldn’t come at a more desperate time for the family though as it is the weekend of the biggest wedding job their family has ever had. Truly a family business, one aunt handles the cake, another is the singer, another the makeup and hair, her mother the flowers, and Meddy herself as the wedding photographer. Together they are responsible for an incredibly expensive and over-the-top billionaire’s wedding that is taking place at a brand new island resort on the California coast. Just as Meddy and her family think they have found a solution, something goes awry, leaving them scrambling to divert major disaster.

To make matters worse, Meddy’s greatest love, and her biggest heartbreak, shows up in the middle of this complete disaster. Can Meddy hide the body, divert the police’s attention, pull off this career-making wedding, AND get her ex back? With the help of her aunties, Meddy may be able to get everything she ever wanted.

This book is also available in the following formats:

September’s Celebrity Book Club Picks

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It’s the beginning of the month which means that Oprah Winfrey, Jenna Bush Hager, and Reese Witherspoon have picked new books for their book clubs! Reminder that if you join our Best Sellers Club, these titles will automatically be put on hold for you.

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Oprah Winfrey has selected The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois by Honorée Fanonne Jeffers.

Curious what The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois is about? Check out the following description provided by the publisher:

The 2020 National Book Award–nominated poet makes her fiction debut with this magisterial epic—an intimate yet sweeping novel with all the luminescence and force of Homegoing; Sing, Unburied, Sing; and The Water Dancer—that chronicles the journey of one American family, from the centuries of the colonial slave trade through the Civil War to our own tumultuous era.

The great scholar, W. E. B. Du Bois, once wrote about the Problem of race in America, and what he called “Double Consciousness,” a sensitivity that every African American possesses in order to survive. Since childhood, Ailey Pearl Garfield has understood Du Bois’s words all too well. Bearing the names of two formidable Black Americans—the revered choreographer Alvin Ailey and her great grandmother Pearl, the descendant of enslaved Georgians and tenant farmers—Ailey carries Du Bois’s Problem on her shoulders.

Ailey is reared in the north in the City but spends summers in the small Georgia town of Chicasetta, where her mother’s family has lived since their ancestors arrived from Africa in bondage. From an early age, Ailey fights a battle for belonging that’s made all the more difficult by a hovering trauma, as well as the whispers of women—her mother, Belle, her sister, Lydia, and a maternal line reaching back two centuries—that urge Ailey to succeed in their stead.

To come to terms with her own identity, Ailey embarks on a journey through her family’s past, uncovering the shocking tales of generations of ancestors—Indigenous, Black, and white—in the deep South. In doing so Ailey must learn to embrace her full heritage, a legacy of oppression and resistance, bondage and independence, cruelty and resilience that is the story—and the song—of America itself.

This book is also available in the following formats:

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Jenna Bush Hager has selected Beautiful Country: A Memoir by Qian Julie Wang.

Curious what is about? Check out the following description provided by the publisher.

An incandescent memoir from an astonishing new talent, Beautiful Country puts readers in the shoes of an undocumented child living in poverty in the richest country in the world.

In Chinese, the word for America, Mei Guo, translates directly to “beautiful country.” Yet when seven-year-old Qian arrives in New York City in 1994 full of curiosity, she is overwhelmed by crushing fear and scarcity. In China, Qian’s parents were professors; in America, her family is “illegal” and it will require all the determination and small joys they can muster to survive.

In Chinatown, Qian’s parents labor in sweatshops. Instead of laughing at her jokes, they fight constantly, taking out the stress of their new life on one another. Shunned by her classmates and teachers for her limited English, Qian takes refuge in the library and masters the language through books, coming to think of The Berenstain Bears as her first American friends. And where there is delight to be found, Qian relishes it: her first bite of gloriously greasy pizza, weekly “shopping days,” when Qian finds small treasures in the trash lining Brooklyn’s streets, and a magical Christmas visit to Rockefeller Center—confirmation that the New York City she saw in movies does exist after all.

But then Qian’s headstrong Ma Ma collapses, revealing an illness that she has kept secret for months for fear of the cost and scrutiny of a doctor’s visit. As Ba Ba retreats further inward, Qian has little to hold onto beyond his constant refrain: Whatever happens, say that you were born here, that you’ve always lived here.

Inhabiting her childhood perspective with exquisite lyric clarity and unforgettable charm and strength, Qian Julie Wang has penned an essential American story about a family fracturing under the weight of invisibility, and a girl coming of age in the shadows, who never stops seeking the light.

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Reese Witherspoon has selected L.A. Weather by María Amparo Escandón.

Curious what is about? Check out the following description provided by the publisher.

FORECAST: Storm clouds are on the horizon in this fun, fast-paced novel of an affluent Mexican-American family from the author of the #1 Los Angeles Times bestseller Esperanza’s Box of Saints.

L.A. is parched, dry as a bone, and all Oscar, the weather-obsessed patriarch of the Alvarado family, desperately wants is a little rain. He’s harboring a costly secret that distracts him from everything else. His wife, Keila, desperate for a life with a little more intimacy and a little less Weather Channel, feels she has no choice but to end their marriage. Their three daughters—Claudia, a television chef with a hard-hearted attitude; Olivia, a successful architect who suffers from gentrification guilt; and Patricia, a social media wizard who has an uncanny knack for connecting with audiences but not with her lovers—are blindsided and left questioning everything they know. Each will have to take a critical look at her own relationships and make some tough decisions along the way.

With quick wit and humor, Maria Amparo Escandón follows the Alvarado family as they wrestle with impending evacuations, secrets, deception, and betrayal, and their toughest decision yet: whether to stick together or burn it all down.

This book is also available in the following format:

Join our Best Sellers Club to have Oprah, Jenna, and Reese’s adult selections automatically put on hold for you!

Of Women and Salt by Gabriela Garcia

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Told through flashbacks to various family members throughout the years, Gabriela Garcia has written a novel of fierce familial pride in her debut work, Of Women and Salt. Five generations of women are linked through blood and the love of story as they each navigate life.

1866, Cuba: Maria is the only woman employed at a local cigar factory. Each day, a man comes in and reads to them from various books. The current book he reads is by Victor Hugo. Dangerous political times rock her life. As Maria realizes that she won’t be able to escape her current life without getting married and starting a family, war descends on them all.

1959, Cuba: Dolores is often stuck at home feeding and caring for her daughter while her husband disappears for long stretches of time. Her husband is a supporter of Fidel Castro and frequently heads to the mountains in order to answer Castro’s call to arms. Dependent on what little money her husband brings home and with his income drying up with him gone, Dolores knows that in order to survive she will do whatever it takes. What she decides to do may end up destroying her daughter Carmen’s life as well as her own, but she is hopeful that in the long run, they will be able to survive.

2016, Miami: Carmen is struggling. Her feelings of displacement have never completely evaporated. When her daughter Jeanette tells Carmen that she will be traveling to Cuba to visit her grandmother Dolores, Carmen is shocked and confused. Why would Jeanette want to travel? What will Dolores tell her? Carmen and her mother Dolores have a very complicated relationship that she has had to wrestle with for years. Meanwhile, Carmen and Jeanette also have a rocky relationship, something that Carmen has been working through while trying to keep her wayward daughter from going too far off-track. All Jeanette wants is to understand her family’s histories. The best way to do so she believes is to travel to Cuba and visit with her grandma. The secrets in her grandma’s house hold the power to give her answers while also destroying the fragility of the past.

This book is also available in the following formats:

Best Sellers Club September Authors: Harlan Coben and C.J. Box

- Stephanie Leave a comment

Want the hottest new release from your favorite author? Want to stay current with a celebrity book club? Love nonfiction? You should join the Best Sellers Club. Choose any author, celebrity pick, and/or nonfiction pick and the Davenport Public Library will put the latest title on hold for you automatically. Select as many as you want! If you still have questions, please check out our list of FAQs.

New month means new highlighted authors from the Best Sellers Club! September’s authors are Harlan Coben for fiction and C.J. Box for mystery.

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Our September fiction author is Harlan Coben. With books published in 45 languages around the world and over 75 million books in print worldwide, Harlan Coven is a #1 New York Times author of over thirty novels. In addition to those novels, Coben is also the creator and executive producer of several Netflix television dramas. He has won the Edgar Award, Shamus Award, and Anthony Award – the first author to win all three. Coben is most well-known for his Myron Bolitar series, a sports agent. He has written essays and columns for the New York Times, Parade Magazine, and Bloomburg Views. Fun facts: Coben was inducted into Little League Baseball’s Hall of Excellence in 2013. He is also a member of the New England Basketball Hall of Fame as a result of his playing days at Amherst College.

Coben’s latest book is Win, the first book in the Windsor Horne Lockwood III series. This book was published on March 16, 2021.

Curious what this book is about? Check out the following description provided by the publisher:

From a #1 New York Times bestselling author comes this thrilling story that shows what happens when a dead man’s secrets fall into the hands of vigilante antihero—drawing him down a dangerous road.

Over twenty years ago, the heiress Patricia Lockwood was abducted during a robbery of her family’s estate, then locked inside an isolated cabin for months. Patricia escaped, but so did her captors — and the items stolen from her family were never recovered.

Until now. On the Upper West Side, a recluse is found murdered in his penthouse apartment, alongside two objects of note: a stolen Vermeer painting and a leather suitcase bearing the initials WHL3. For the first time in years, the authorities have a lead — not only on Patricia’s kidnapping, but also on another FBI cold case — with the suitcase and painting both pointing them toward one man.

Windsor Horne Lockwood III — or Win, as his few friends call him — doesn’t know how his suitcase and his family’s stolen painting ended up with a dead man. But his interest is piqued, especially when the FBI tells him that the man who kidnapped his cousin was also behind an act of domestic terrorism — and that the conspirators may still be at large. The two cases have baffled the FBI for decades, but Win has three things the FBI doesn’t: a personal connection to the case; an ungodly fortune; and his own unique brand of justice.

This book is also available in the following formats:

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Our September mystery author is C.J. Box. A bestselling author of over thirty novels, Box is most well-known for his Joe Pickett series, the story of Wyoming game warden Pickett, an unlikely hero. Over ten million copies of Box’s novels have been sold worldwide, while they have been translated into 27 languages. Box is also the executive producer for two television series based on his novels that are currently in production.

Box’s latest book is Dark Sky, book 21 in the Joe Pickett series. This book was published on March 2, 2021.

Curious what this book is about? Below is a description provided by the publisher.

Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett must accompany a Silicon Valley CEO on a hunting trip – but soon learns that he himself may be the hunted…

#1 New York Times bestseller C.J. Box returns with a new Joe Pickett novel.

THE TIME HAS COME

It’s a crisp October morning in Wyoming’s Twelve Sleep County, and game warden Joe Pickett should be keeping watch over his patch. Instead, the state governor has roped him into leading Silicon Valley billionaire Steven Price on a hunting trip. The department is facing major budget cuts and Price’s social media empire could bring serious business into the state – if someone can persuade him of Wyoming’s charms.

It looks like a straightforward job, but unbeknownst to Joe, there is a hunter hot on their heels, one with a different manner of prey in mind.

When Joe’s daughter Sheridan and his closest friend Nate Romanowksi learn of the threat, they head out to rescue Joe and his charge. To get out of the woods alive, they will all have to draw on their wits and knowledge of the outdoors as they confront the worst man – and nature – can throw at them.

This book is also available in the following format:

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

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What would you do if you knew who was behind a violent crime yet no one believed you? Alex Michaelides discusses this topic in his latest novel, The Maidens.

Mariana knows the truth, but she can’t understand why no one believes her. She knows that Edward Fosca is a murderer. It’s so obvious to her that he’s behind this string of horrible events, but the problem is that Edward Fosca is untouchable. A beloved Greek Tragedy professor at Cambridge University who is handsome and adored by staff and students, Fosca is shielded by his politeness, mystique, and charisma. Mariana just knows he did it.

Flashback to when Mariana first saw Fosca. After being called to Cambridge University by her niece Zoe, Mariana finds herself overwhelmed. One of Zoe’s friends has been found brutally murdered in Cambridge. As a group therapist, Mariana places herself in the middle of a secret society of female students known as The Maidens to figure out what happened. After all, the murdered girl was a member of The Maidens. As she starts exploring, Mariana realizes that Edward Fosca is the man in charge of the group. His relationship with The Maidens concerns her. He seems to have complete control over his students who worship him.

The more Mariana dives into this mystery, the more she suspects that behind the beauty of the Cambridge campus and its intricate traditions something incredibly more sinister lurks. She believes that Edward Fosca is to blame for everything even though he has an alibi. Marina quickly spirals out of control when another body is found in Cambridge. With her credibility at stake and her relationships floundering, Mariana must stop the killer at any cost.

This book is also available in the following formats: