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Tag Archives: suspense
Reading Recommendations from Just Desserts members – April 2023
Hey, mystery fans! Looking for something good to read?
At the April 2023 Just Desserts meeting, 18 group members and guests participated in our discussion of the 2023 One Book One Nebraska selection, The Mystery of Hunting’s End by Mignon Good Eberhart.
Following the “assigned reading” portion of the meeting, we held our monthly round robin in which attendees shared recommendations of what other books they’ve been reading recently, with an emphasis on mysteries/suspense/thrillers. We continued a new policy this month that began in February, to make sure everyone got a turn in the Round Robin – everyone could share a single title during their verbal recommendations, but could share additional titles on a paper form – ALL titles recommended are shared below, but those that were specifically talked about in the Round Robin have an * next to them.
Here’s the list of mystery, thriller and suspense books recommended by Just Desserts members in April 2023:
- finishing the Joe Pickett series by C.J. Box * – past author selection for Just Desserts
- finishing the Inspector Gamache series by Louise Penny * – past author selection for Just Desserts
- The Fourth Enemy by Anne Perry * (not really a recommendation – not one of her best) – past author selection for Just Desserts
- The Late Scholar by Jill Paton Walsh (based on Dorothy Sayers’ characters)
- Bleeding Heart Yard by Elly Griffiths – past author selection for Just Desserts
- Small Game by Blair Braverman
- Murder at Black Oaks by Phillip Margolin – past author selection for Just Desserts
- The Zero Night by Brian Freeman
- All the Dark Places by Teri Parlato
- A Killing of Innocents by Deborah Crombie * – past author selection for Just Desserts
- Back to the Garden by Laurie King * – past author selection for Just Desserts
- The Twyford Code by Janice Hallett *
- The Murder Book by Thomas Perry *
- Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson
- The Peter Fallon adventure series by William Martin
- The Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald * – past author selection for Just Desserts
- Zero Day by David Baldacci * – past author selection for Just Desserts
- Quilt City Murders by Bruce Leonard * (not in libraries’ collection)
- Collateral Damage by J.A. Jance * – past author selection for Just Desserts
- Dead End Detective by Amanda Flower
- Edge of Dusk by Colleen Coble
- The Last House Guest by Megan Miranda
- Rosemary Remembered by Susan Wittig Albert * – past author selection for Just Desserts
- White Shell Woman by James Doss – past author selection for Just Desserts
- Dark Objects by Simon Toyne
- End of Days by Brad Taylor
- The Zero Night by Brian Freeman
- Wolf Trap by Connor Sullivan
- More Than Meets the Eye by Iris Johansen and Roy Johansen
- Exiles by Jane Harper – past author selection for Just Desserts
- Desert Star by Michael Connelly (as an audiobook-on-cd) – past author selection for Just Desserts
- The Huntsman by Morgan Brice (as a Hoopla audiobook)
And here were some non-mystery titles some group members also recommended in April 2023:
- Trailed: One Woman’s Quest to Solve the Shenandoah Murders by Kathryn Miles *
- The Chili Queen by Sandra Dallas *
- Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather *
- Some Tame Gazelle by Barbara Pym
- Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
- Her Last Words: A Novel of Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley by Stephanie Marie Thornton
- The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music by Dave Grohl
- Haven by Emma Donoghue
- Good Boy: My Life in Seven Dogs by Jennifer Finney Boylan
- The Diplomat’s Wife by Pam Jenoff
- The Bookwoman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson
- The Love of My Life by Rosie Walsh
- The Mitford Affair by Marie Benedict
- Someone Else’s Shoes by Jojo Moyes
- Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
- Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
- Blind Your Ponies by Stanley Gordon West
- True Grit by Charles Portis
- The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah
- Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus *
- Atomic Habits: Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results: An Easy and Prove Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones by James Clear
- Revenge of the Librarians by Tom Gauld (two readers)
- Varina by Charles Frazier *
- Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis
- Brief Encounters: Conversations, Magic Moments, and Assorted Hijinks by Dick Cavett * (as an audiobook-on-cd)
What mysteries have you been reading lately that you’d recommend?
Reading Recommendations from Just Desserts members – March 2023
Hey, mystery fans! Looking for something good to read?
At the March 2023 Just Desserts meeting, 15 group members participated in our discussion of the genre cross-over trend of mysteries in a science fiction or fantasy setting.
Following the “assigned reading” portion of the meeting, we held our monthly round robin in which group members shared recommendations of what other books they’ve been reading recently, with an emphasis on mysteries/suspense/thrillers. We continued a new policy this month that began in February, to make sure everyone got a turn in the Round Robin – everyone could share a single title during their verbal recommendations, but could share additional titles on a paper form – ALL titles recommended are shared below, but those that were specifically talked about in the Round Robin have an * next to them.
Here’s the list of mystery, thriller and suspense books recommended by Just Desserts members in March 2023:
- Blood Orange by Susan Wittig Albert – past author selection for Just Desserts
- Desert Star by Michael Connelly) – past author selection for Just Desserts
- The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager *
- A Caribbean Mystery and Three Act Tragedy by Agatha Christie – past author selection for Just Desserts
- Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch – also read for this month’s discussion
- A Dangerous Business by Jane Smiley
- Three Hours in Paris by Cara Black
- The Enigma of Room 622 by Joel Dicker *
- One of the Girls by Lucy Clarke
- The Lying Game by Ruth Ware – past author selection for Just Desserts
- Murder at an Irish Wedding by Carlene O’Conner
- The Quinn Colson series by Ace Atkins
- The 6:20 Man (two readers), the Atlee Pine series and Zero Day by David Baldacci – past author selection for Just Desserts
- The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn
- The Samaritan by Mason Cross
- The Caves of Steel by Isaac Asimov – also read for this month’s discussion
- An Elderly Lady is Up to No Good by Helen Tursten
- Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson *
- Places in the Darkness by Chris Brookmyre – also read for this month’s discussion
- Secrets of the Nile by Tasha Alexander *
- The Retreat by Sarah Pearse
- The Reunion by Guillaume Musso
- Unnatural History by Jonathan Kellerman – past author selection for Just Desserts
- Dashing Through the Snowbirds by Donna Andrews – past author selection for Just Desserts
- The Girl From Widow Hills by Megan Miranda *
- What Lies in the Woods by Katie Alice Marshall
- A Stranger in the House by Shari Lapena
- The Road to Gandolfo by Robert Ludlum
- Extreme Measures and Act of Treason by Vince Flynn
- The Scholar by Dervla McTiernan
- A Curious Beginning by ???
- Acqua Alta by Donna Leon – past author selection for Just Desserts
- Because I Could Not Stop For Death by Amanda Flower *
- Third to Die by Allison Brennan *
- The Cabinet of Dr. Leng by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
- Loyalty by Lisa Scottoline – past author selection for Just Desserts
- Judas 62 by Charles Cummins
And here were some non-mystery titles some group members also recommended in March 2023:
- A Spindle Splintered and A Mirror Mended by Alix E. Harrow *
- Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiaverini
- Circe by Madeline Miller
- The Betrayal of Anne Frank by Rosemary Sullivan
- The Book of Two Ways by Jodi Picoult
- The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
- The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray *
- Beach Read by Emily Henry
- The Mercy Thompson Urban Fantasy series by Patricia Briggs
- The Hollows Urban Fantasy series by Kim Harrison *
- The Kate Daniels Urban Fantasy series by Ilona Andrews
- The Jane Yellowrock Urban Fantasy series by Faith Hunter
- The Incryptid Urban Fantasy series by Seanan McGuire
- Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
- It Ends With Us, It Starts With Us and Verity all by Colleen Hoover
- How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix
- Noor by Nnedi Okorafor
What mysteries have you been reading lately that you’d recommend?
Join the discussion on the first three novels of S.A. Cosby
Hey, mystery fans! Looking for something good to read?
At the February 2023 Just Desserts meeting, 13 group members participated in a discussion of the first three novels by American mystery/suspense author S.A. (Sean) Cosby — My Darkest Prayer (2019), Blacktop Wasteland (2020) and Razorblade Tears (2021).
Absolutely no-one in the Just Desserts group disliked whichever of the novels they had read — and the entire group agreed that Cosby is an incredibly good writer. However, several group members indicated that the levels of violence and coarse language in Cosby’s novels would preclude them from reading anything further by this author. On the other hand, several group members look forward to tracking down all of his works, not to mention future books by this author.
So…What did you think of the works of S.A. Cosby? Which have you read?
Just Desserts returns on March 30th, with another grab bag theme — “Science Fiction & Fantasy Murder Mysteries”. We hope to see you there!
What was your favorite Mystery/Thriller/Suspense novel you read in 2022?
Hey, mystery fans and members of the libraries’ Just Desserts mystery fiction discussion group…
We’re in the final few days of 2022, and we’re curious — what was your favorite Mystery/Suspense/Thriller read in 2022?
It doesn’t have to have been a “new” release this year, it could just be an older comfort read. But what Mystery or Suspense or Thriller stood out the most for you among all the books you read (or listened to) this past year?
Bonus points if it was one of our Just Desserts reading selections!
Leave a comment here, in response to this Just Desserts Blog post, with your favorite genre read in 2022. Who knows — your selection may be considered for one of our Just Desserts group reads in 2023?
NOTE: The Just Desserts Blog is a moderated blog — there will be a delay before your comment may appear.
Join the discussion of John Grisham’s “Camino Island” and “Camino Winds”
The Just Desserts mystery fiction discussion group held its August 2022 meeting in person, this past Thursday evening. Nineteen attendees discussed John Grisham’s two connected novels, Camino Island (2017) and Camino Winds (2020). If you have read either of these novels, and would like to contribute your comments about it, please do so as a reply comment to this blog post, below.
For reminders about upcoming Just Desserts meetings and/or other announcements of interest to mystery fans, don’t forget to sign up for the Just Desserts e-mail list. Or, now that in-person meetings are possible again, if you’re logged into your account on Facebook, you can visit the Events page for the Lincoln City Libraries, and mark whether or not you plan to attend upcoming sessions of Just Desserts – this is a great way for you to help us promote this engaging discussion group!
So…What did you think of Camino Island and Camino Winds? How do they compare to other Grisham works? Are you a Grisham fan?
On September 29th, the members of Just Desserts will be discussing Nita Prose’s 2022 debut novel, The Maid, at the downtown library. We hope to see many of you then!