Children's, Fantasy, Magical, Middle Grade, Mystery, New Releases, Teens, Young Adult

New From Penguin Random House

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

I recently received a lovely package of upcoming middle grade and young adult books from Penguin Random House and thought I’d give you all a taste of what’s to come!

The Winterton Deception #1: Final Word by Janet Sumner Johnson

In this twisty middle grade mystery for fans of Knives Out, The Inheritance Game, and The Westing Game, thirteen-year-old twins Hope and Gordon enter a spelling bee in a last-ditch effort to save their family from financial ruin, only to find themselves in a cut-throat competition to uncover a fortune and dark secrets about the wealthy relations they’ve never known. Coming October 24, 2023.

The Curious Vanishing of Beatrice Willoughby by G.Z. Schmidt

When six-year-old Beatrice Willoughby vanished at the Amadeuses’ annual All Hallows Eve party, people in the tiny mountain town of Nevermore were quick to whisper: They were always odd. Their house is full of dark magic. And when Mort Amadeus was pegged for the crime, the Amadeuses, once the center of society, retreated. They closed their doors, disappeared from life. People almost forgot. Until thirteen years later, when six envelopes land at the doorstep of six households in town: We cordially invite you to a celebration on the 31st of October this Saturday evening at the Amadeus household. So begins the mystery of who was really responsible for the missing girl thirteen years ago. Coming September 5, 2023.

Dawnbreaker by Jodi Meadows

The thin membrane of magic separating the human and demonic planes has been destroyed. Nightrender, the immortal warrior of the gods, must find a way to rebuild it, but Hanne—the serpent girl, always too cunning to be trusted, too hungry for power—has become High Queen, and is too consumed with ambition to cooperate. Meanwhile, Rune—married to Hanne, but in love with Nightrender—is lost in the realm of demons after a disastrous battle, wandering alone in a  twisted landscape of mercury seas, black-glass spires, and winds blowing ash … In this second and final installment of the Nightrender duology, the circle will close, and the world will be saved—or burnt to a cinder. Coming November 7, 2023.

Plotting the Stars: Seagarden by Michelle A. Barry

Forced to hide her new-found magic or risk imprisonment or worse, Myra enrolls in an interplanetary academy exchange program to dig up more about the government’s many conspiracies, but instead uproots even darker secrets that could drown everything she’s grown to trust. The second book in the searing STEAM-inspired Plotting the Stars middle grade series perfect for fans of The City of Ember and Divergent. Coming October 3, 2023.

Nightspark by Michael Mann

Michael Mann returns for the riveting sequel to Ghostcloud! Several months after the ghosts freed the children of Battersea and uncovered Tabatha Margate’s sinister experimentation on ghostclouds and cloudghouls, Luke Smith-Sharma struggles to divide his time between learning the ropes of being a ghostcloud and studying to become a detective. But not everyone made it out of the power station, and as he tries to adjust to “normal” life by pursuing his dreams, the guilt over his friends left behind is eating Luke alive. Coming October 10, 2023.

Before the Devil Knows You’re Here by Autumn Krause 

Part folkloric fantasy, part journey into the bizarre, this delicious blending of tall tales and Latin American surrealism will haunt you as you devour it! It’s 1836, Wisconsin. Catalina lives with her pa and brother in a ramshackle cabin on the edge of the wilderness. Mamá died years ago, and the harsh winters have brought the family to the brink of starvation. Catalina has replaced her poet’s soul with an unyielding determination to keep Pa and her brother alive, period. Coming October 3, 2023.

I have been so impressed by the quality of middle grade fiction coming out in the last couple of years. The authors represented here by PRH are fantastic, and I’ll add some other favorites: B.B. Alston, Angie Thomas, Lora Senf, Nic Stone, Katherine Arden, Jess Redman, MarcyKate Connelly, and Kenneth Oppel. If you have middle grade readers in your life, check out these authors!

Folktales, Ghosties, Historical

The Lady in White: a Tale Set in Rochester by Zachary Finn

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

In the fall of 2015, PhD candidate Jason Green made his way to the decrepit Hotel Celeste hoping to conduct an interview of disgraced historian Richard Dawdson, an academic with once unlimited prospects who had disappeared from the tenure track with enough drama to have become an urban legend himself within the department.

The conversation that followed would not be cited in any dissertation, but here, for your consideration, is the tale Dr. Dawdson told that evening.

This is her story.

My Thoughts

Anyone who has lived in Rochester NY certainly knows the local legend of The Lady In White who haunts Duran Eastman Park. Legends and stories about ghostly “White Ladies” abound in local folklore all over the world. Rochester’s White Lady is a grieving and vengeful mother looking for the men who murdered her daughter. Accompanied by ghostly hounds (another common trope in world folklore), she roams Durand Eastman Park on the south shore of Lake Ontario, looking for revenge.

Zachary Finn has taken that old legend and fleshed it out with a well-researched and imaginative story that draws on quite a bit of Genesee Valley and Rochester history. He imagines what happened to Mary Browncroft, the aforementioned daughter, leading up to the event that essentially resurrected the spirit of her mother.

Finn immerses the reader in mid-19th century Rochester when the Spiritualism Movement was at its height and the Fox Sisters were demonstrating their psychic abilities on stages all over the region. Our protagonist, Mary, eagerly attends these sessions, hoping to make a connection with her departed mother. At one of the events, Mary’s own psychic abilities come forth when a murdered boy talks to her from beyond the grave and identifies his killers. Mary passes this information on to the law, which results in a series of events that end very tragically.

Finn starts and ends the story in the present time, with the present day protagonist seeking out a disgraced scholar who holds the key to this story. Both time periods are knitted together to form a cracking good ghost story. Rochester natives will recognize lots of landmarks and names, and will certainly know the White Lady legend.

Highly recommended for fans of local lore and legends.

Historical, Mystery, Suspense, Women

Woman in the Castello by Kelsie James

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

Set in 1960s Italy, this stylish, atmospheric debut spins a bewitching web of ruthless ambition, family secrets, and the consequences of forbidden love, as an ambitious American actress snags the starring role in a mysterious horror movie shooting on location in a crumbling medieval castle outside Rome…

Rome, 1965: Aspiring actress Silvia Whitford arrives at Rome’s famed Cinecittà Studios from Los Angeles, ready for her big break and a taste of la dolce vita. Instead, she learns that the movie in which she was cast has been canceled. Desperate for money, Silvia has only one choice: seek out the Italian aunt she has never met.

Gabriella Conti lives in a crumbling castello on the edge of a volcanic lake. Silvia’s mother refuses to explain the rift that drove the sisters apart, but Silvia is fascinated by Gabriella, a once-famous actress who still radiates charisma. And the eerie castle inspires Silvia’s second chance when it becomes the location for a new horror movie, aptly named The Revenge of the Lake Witch—and she lands a starring role.

Silvia immerses herself in the part of an ingenue tormented by the ghost of her beautiful, seductive ancestor. But when Gabriella abruptly vanishes, the movie’s make-believe terrors seep into reality. No one else on set seems to share Silvia’s suspicions. Yet as she delves into Gabriella’s disappearance, she triggers a chain of events that illuminate dark secrets in the past—and a growing menace in the present . . .

My Thoughts

2023 is shaping up to be an awesome year for books and this one is no exception. A riveting and rambunctious historical mystery set in a dilapidated castle in 1960s Italy, it has everything – a resourceful but flawed heroine, a sick mother, a feisty and mysterious aunt, a handsome leading man, and a boatload of family secrets.

The writing is neat and engrossing, with plenty of attention to descriptive narrative that beautifully evokes the eeriness and creepiness of the castello, and the character development is spot on. Silvia is a strong, resourceful, realistic protagonist and immensely likable. Her tenaciousness is admirable! The relationship between Silvia’s mother and aunt is also fraught with tension and emotion. Such a good story! Add this one to your summer reading pile.

Advance Praise

“The 1960s in Rome, a crumbling Italian castle on the edge of a volcanic lake, a glamorous aunt she’s never met, and a starring role in a horror movie that begins to feel a bit too real…Kelsey James’s debut novel is a delicious Gothic filled with atmosphere, twists, romance, and dark secrets. Readers will devour it.” – Megan Chance, bestselling author of A Splendid Ruin

“Cinematic and spooky…Readers will be swept up in the glamorous—and sometimes grungy—1960s movie scene” – Nicole Baart, bestselling author of Everything We Didn’t Say

“Like Jess Walters’s Beautiful Ruins, the glamour and heady indulgence of the era take center stage in this captivating, multilayered story.” – Susan Wiggs, # 1 New York Times bestselling author

Publication Date: July 25, 2023
Published By: Kensington Books
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy

Books About Books, Magical, Magical Realism, Mystery, Reading, Romance, Time Slip, Women

The Invisible Hour by Alice Hoffman

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

From the beloved New York Times bestselling author of The Marriage of Opposites and the Practical Magic series comes an enchanting novel about love, heartbreak, self-discovery, and the enduring magic of books.

One brilliant June day when Mia Jacob can no longer see a way to survive, the power of words saves her. The Scarlet Letter was written almost two hundred years earlier, but it seems to tell the story of Mia’s mother, Ivy, and their life inside the Community—an oppressive cult in western Massachusetts where contact with the outside world is forbidden, and books are considered evil. But how could this be? How could Nathaniel Hawthorne have so perfectly captured the pain and loss that Mia carries inside her?

Through a journey of heartbreak, love, and time, Mia must abandon the rules she was raised with at the Community. As she does, she realizes that reading can transport you to other worlds or bring them to you, and that readers and writers affect one another in mysterious ways. She learns that time is more fluid than she can imagine, and that love is stronger than any chains that bind you.

As a girl Mia fell in love with a book. Now as a young woman she falls in love with a brilliant writer as she makes her way back in time. But what if Nathaniel Hawthorne never wrote The Scarlet Letter? And what if Mia Jacob never found it on the day she planned to die?

Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote: “A single dream is more powerful than a thousand realities.”

This is the story of one woman’s dream. For a little while it came true.

My Thoughts

Here is another gentle, lovely experience from Alice Hoffman who has an uncanny ability to build resilient, evocative female characters with whom I really want to be friends in real life!

Mia is such a complex character who shifts easily between worlds. Hoffman’s imagining of a true timeslip based on books is breathtaking for this lifelong reader/librarian. And what a story she spins here! I was a little skeptical at first because of the Scarlet Letter and Nathaniel Hawthorne connection because my recollection from learning about Hawthorne in school was that he was kind of a jerk, and I have not enjoyed most of his work. I remember being so angry at the injustice while reading The Scarlet Letter when I was teen.

The irony here is that Mia (and her mother) in the present time are far more controlled and restrained by a man than Mia is when she moves backwards in time to Nathaniel Hawthorne’s world. The juxtaposition of Mia’s experiences are startling and evocative.

Hoffman takes the Scarlet Letter premise and successfully applies it to both time periods, effectively demonstrating the destructive power one man can have over a woman but also giving her a way out.

Alice Hoffman is a true treasure of an author. Every single one of her books is a gift. This is one for my bookshelves.

Highly recommended.

Publication Date: August 15, 2023
Published By: Atria Books
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy

Mystery

Nonna Maria & the Stolen Necklace by Lorenzo Carcaterra

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

Nonna Maria, “one of the most charming amateur sleuths ever created” according to Tess Gerritsen, sets out to clear her goddaughter’s name and uncover the checkered past of an unidentifiable victim in this delightful mystery from #1 New York Times bestselling author Lorenzo Carcaterra.

Nonna Maria has a lot on her plate—and it’s not just fresh pasta. Two crimes have rocked the sun-drenched island of Ischia, and once again, the island’s denizens have called upon the espresso-brewing, sage-counsel-giving sleuth.

A wealthy woman alleges that a valuable necklace has been stolen from her hotel room. The necklace, she claims, has been in her family for decades. She blames one of the young women working on the cleaning crew as the most likely suspect—a young woman who turns out to be Nonna Maria’s goddaughter. She takes the heat, but privately she proclaims her innocence.

Nearby, the body of a woman is found on a curved road near the borough of Barano. The woman is not known to anyone on the island. She has no purse, no identification. The one potential suspect is a young friend of Nonna Maria’s who drove by the area that very night and thinks that he might have hit something—a pothole, or an animal, or maybe the woman in question.

It turns out that this woman has a history on the island, having left Ischia decades ago. But why did she return, and more important, who killed her? Like the links of a beautiful, missing necklace, it’s up to Nonna Maria to string together the clues and solve these two mysteries before death comes to Ischia again.

My Thoughts

Nonna Maria and the people of Ischia are some of my favorite characters in mystery literature these days and this new adventure is a fabulous follow up to the first in the series.

The close knit community combined with Nonna Maria’s quick with and cunning mind put me in mind of an Italian Miss Marple, where a deep knowledge of human nature and logical thinking pave the way for solutions to the problems. Here, Nonna works out the life story of an unidentified woman found dead on the roadside, but also saves her goddaughter from a bogus charge of theft. In both instances, Nonna knows the human compulsions and foibles that form the basis for both murder and fraud, and she uses that knowledge to flush out the guilty parties.

Mystery readers looking for a Marple-esque series for the 21st century will enjoy Carcaterra’s series.

Recommended.

Publication Date: May 2, 2023
Published By: Random House Publishing; Bantam & Ballantine
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy

Detective, Mystery, Women

No Time To Breathe by Lori Duffy Foster

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

Journalist Lisa Jamison wants to blow off some steam after an argument with her boyfriend, so she heads to her friend Ricky’s kickboxing studio for an early morning workout. She expects to find Ricky alone, setting up for his first class of the day, but someone was there before Lisa, uninvited. Ricky is dead, shot only moments before she arrived, and now Lisa is a suspect in his murder. Lisa wants two things: to clear her name and seek justice for Ricky. But the deeper she digs, the more the danger mounts. Can she find Ricky’s killer before the killer eliminates the last obstacle, silencing Lisa for good? 

My Thoughts

This another solid entry in Duffy Foster’s Lisa Jamison series. The author’s experience as a crime reporter shines through in her intricate and realistic plots. There is some really great character development here – Lisa grows more interesting with each book. She’s smart, capable, vulnerable, and empathetic but also tough as nails.

I continue to enjoy her work and will keep recommending it to mystery readers.

Publication Date: April 11, 2023
Published By: Level Best Books
Thanks to Netgalley & the author for the review copy

Reader Profiles, Women

Reader Profile – Grace Engelbrecht

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Grace Engelbrecht is a public librarian whose home library as a child was the Gates Public Library. Outside of reading, Grace plays co-ed softball, enjoys movies, trivia and board games, and values relaxing days with her husband and son. She loves a good snack, especially popcorn on nights in at home or out at the movies. Grace hopes to finish writing her romance novel someday. Until then…

How do you treat the books you read? Do you make notes in them? Dog-ear the pages? Keep every page (and the spine!) pristine?

I treat my books well; no dog-earring for me! Recently for the first time, I highlighted and annotated a fiction book, which felt wrong and unusual, but I think when I want to peruse through it later, I’ll have notes of what stood out to me. 

Do you ever judge a book by its cover? What attracts you to a cover?  

Absolutely! I think it’s hard not to. I love covers that are colorful or cutesy or things with bold text. I don’t tend to gravitate towards darker covers.

Where do you get your book recommendations?

I am part of the ‘Bookstagram’ community, bookish posters on Instagram and that’s a lot of fun. I see a lot of great books that I’m interested in, and people are so great about sharing indie recommendations that maybe I wouldn’t have come across otherwise.

What is something you dislike in a book?

I would say the most annoying would be lack of quotation marks on dialogue. In college, we were assigned The Waves by Virginia Woolf, which is a stream of consciousness novel, so the lack of quotation marks makes sense, however the stream would jump from character to character without any text change and I just couldn’t get through it. 

What is the funniest book you ever read?  

When I was a teenager, I read a British series called The Confessions of Georgia Nicolson by Louise Rennison. She was a highschooler with many mishaps and embarrassing moments and I remember laughing and snorting out loud when I was reading during homeroom or lunch. I’m not sure if the humor would hold up now, but I really enjoyed those at the time. 

You’re on a dating app and all your matches are literary characters. Who do you select?  

The ‘classic’ choice would probably be Mr. Darcy from Pride & Prejudice. Most recently, I enjoyed Daniel Grant from Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez and Leon from The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary.  I love a supportive and sweet book boyfriend.

What book marks a major milestone in your life?  

The Doll People by Ann M. Martin and Laura Godwin is very special to me. It was really the first time I remember reading a chapter book by myself, while being so engrossed in a magical and adventurous story. I read that book five or six times. 

Do you have a favorite picture book? What and why?  

My favorite picture book as a child was Roxaboxen by Alice McLerran, illustrated by Barbara Cooney. It was read to me in school, then I asked for a copy at home. It captures childhood imagination and nostalgia so beautifully. Now, reading to my son, one of my favorites is You Are My I Love You by Maryann K. Cusimano, illustrated by Satome Ichikawa. It’s a poignant rhyming story of a parent and child’s relationship: “I am your water wings; you are my deep. I am your open arms; you are my running leap” is one example of the couplets in that book.

Is there an author or a book that you think is highly overrated? Why?  

I think the ‘it’ contemporary author right now is Colleen Hoover. I have listened to two of her books and liked them. However, the obsession going on right now, I don’t quite understand. There are many contemporary romances that are just as well-written, if not more so. I don’t think Hoover is the superstar of romance above all others. She is good, but I wasn’t blown away. 

What book would you recommend to heal a broken heart?  

This is a tough one. There is some heartbreak in The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams, but the story is hopeful and uplifting. It’s insightfulness into human connection was striking.

What is a favorite quote from a book?

My favorite book is Me Before You by Jojo Moyes, so if I were to pick something from that, it would be from Will’s letter: “Live boldy…Push yourself. Don’t settle…Just live well. Just live.” I think given the story, Louisa really needed those words and she was inspired by them. To me, it’s a gentle reminder to make special the ordinary, dive into experiences when I can, and breath into the rest.

Mystery, Psychological, Suspense

Killing Me by Michelle Gagnon

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

She escaped a serial killer. Then things got weird.

Amber Jamison can’t believe she’s about to become the latest victim of a serial killer. She’s savvy and street smart, so when she gets pushed into, of all things, a white windowless van, she is more angry than afraid. Things get even weirder when she’s miraculously saved by a mysterious woman . . . who promptly disappears. Who was she? And why is she hunting serial killers?

You’d think escaping one psychopath would be enough, but Amber’s problems are just beginning. Her close call has law enforcement circling a past she’s tried to outrun. She’s forced to flee across the country, ending up at a seedy motel in Las Vegas with a noir-obsessed manager and a sex worker as her unlikely companions . . . and danger right behind. She’s landed in the cross hairs of the world’s most prolific killer, caught up in a deadly game that’s been going on for years. To survive, she is forced to dust off her old playbook and partner with someone she can’t trust. The odds are against her, but sometimes you just have to roll the dice.

My Thoughts

This is the latest selection in Jenny Lawson’s Fantastic Strangelings Book Club and it is a doozy! Crime readers who enjoy quirky, damaged-but-strong female leads will not be able to put this one down.

The first 30 pages of this book are so wild that I was worried the rest would be a let-down, but that is most certainly not the case. Amber, who is caught by a serial killer in the beginning and is so disappointed and angry that she got caught, is the model of a survivor. Her “saviour,” Grace, is also a survivor but of a different sort. Both light up the pages of this unusual story, along with a cast of endearing and colorful characters.

I immediately passed this book on to my daughter, the true-crime fanatic.

What I love about Lawson’s book club is the eclectic selection of titles. I can always count on Lawson to select something that I likely would never pick up on my own, and the reading experience is always worth it. Grab this one for an engrossing read this summer!

Utterly original and wildly entertaining, Killing Me is a laugh-loud-loud thriller with a protagonist whose life is a total mess.

Books About Books, British, Historical, Makes You Think, Reading, Women

The Little Wartime Library by Kate Thompson

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

An uplifting and inspiring novel based on the true story of a librarian who created an underground shelter during World War II, perfect for readers of The Paris Library or The Last Bookshop in London. 

London, 1944. Clara Button is no ordinary librarian. While the world remains at war, in East London, Clara has created the country’s only underground library, built over the tracks in the unused Bethnal Green tube station. Down here, a whole community thrives with thousands of bunk beds, a nursery, a café, and a theatre offering shelter, solace, and protection from the bombs that fall above.

Along with her glamorous best friend and library assistant Ruby Munroe, Clara ensures the library is the beating heart of life underground. But as the war rages on, the women’s determination to remain strong in the face of adversity is tested to the limits when it seems it may come at the price of keeping those closest to them alive.

My Thoughts

This delightful book will give you ALL the feelings. Part romance, part mystery, part feel-good story, it’s got everything. Character development is nicely done, and paired with a sometimes startling and lovely descriptive narrative.

The importance of books is underscored here in a more serious side to the story. History has shown us that, in wartime, libraries and books are often one of the first targets for destruction. Books are dangerous to fascists, despots, and tyrants because they contain ideas and stories of the good and the different and the beauty in the human race, which is a threat to those who wish to conquer.

For the people in this story, books were a lifeline to a country and lifestyle they hoped would not be destroyed, and one they desperately wanted back.

A beautiful reminder of the power of story.

Published By: Grand Central Publishing
Publication Date: February 21, 2023
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy

Reader Profiles

Reader Profile – Timothy Ryan

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Timothy M. Ryan, MLS, MSJ: Timothy has been the Director of the East Rochester Public Library since 2020. Prior to ER, he worked at the Seymour Library in Brockport, and the Lincoln and Sully branches of the Rochester Public Library. He is a recipient of the American Library Association’s 2017 I Love My Librarian award. Timothy grew up in Brockport, but currently resides in Greece with his wife Ty, sons Preston, Hayden, and Lawson, step-daughter Ellie, and step-son Romeo.

What character or author would be the librarian in your personal literary paradise?

Dennis Williams. Author of Tree People & Parker’s Problem

What was the first book you read by yourself as a child?

The Twits by Roald Dahl – It may not actually be the first book I read by myself, but it’s the first that I can remember. I must have read it over and over at least 10 times in 2nd grade.

Is there a book you’ve read that you wish you didn’t?

Just about every book the school system ever assigned me to read, but The Indian in the Cupboard and The Scarlet Letter are two that I wish I could have the time back from reading.

What book marks a major milestone in your life?

God, Art, and Other Random Thoughts by Timothy Ryan because it was the first book I had ever published. (Available for purchase on Amazon or to borrow in the MCLS catalog at https://libraryweb.org).

Do you have a favorite picture book? What and why?

Sylvester and the Magic Pebble – This is my favorite picture book because it’s the first book that I can remember being read aloud to me as a child by both my mother & father. It’s also the first book that evoked an emotional response from me that I still can remember to this day.

What was the last book you read that challenged your world view?

Capital in the Twenty-First Century by Thomas Piketty

Is there an author or a book that you think is highly overrated? Why?

Anything by James Patterson……. predictable.

What is a favorite quote from a book?

“We are but shadows and dust (Pulvis et umbra sumus)” – (Horace, The Odes)

If you had a Narnia closet, what literary world would it lead to and what’s the first thing you would do there?

Middle Earth……smoke a pipe with Gandalf.

You’re on a dating app and all your matches are literacy characters. Who do you select?

Saeko Busujima – High School of the Dead