The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty
A captivating novel
about the woman who chaperoned an irreverent Louise Brooks to New York
City in 1922, and the summer that would change them both. Only a few
years before becoming a famous actress and an icon for her generation, a
fifteen-year-old Louise Brooks leaves Wichita to make it big in New
York. Much to her annoyance, she is accompanied by a thirty-six-year-old
chaperone who is neither mother nor friend. Cora Carlisle is a
complicated but traditional woman with her own reasons for making the
trip. She has no idea what she's in for: Young Louise, already
stunningly beautiful and sporting her famous blunt bangs and black bob,
is known for her arrogance and her lack of respect for convention.
Ultimately, the five weeks they spend together will change their lives
forever. For Cora, New York holds the promise of discovery that might
prove an answer to the question at the center of her being, and even as
she does her best to watch over Louise in a strange and bustling city,
she embarks on her own mission. And while what she finds isn't what she
anticipated, it liberates her in a way she could not have imagined. Over
the course of the summer, Cora's eyes are opened to the promise of the
twentieth century and a new understanding of the possibilities for being
fully alive.
Little Night by Luanne Rice
Clare Burke’s life took a
devastating turn when she tried to protect her sister, Anne, from an
abusive and controlling husband and ended up serving prison time for
assault. The verdict largely hinged on Anne’s defense of her spouse—all
lies—and the sisters have been estranged ever since. Nearly twenty years
later, Clare is living a quiet life in Manhattan as an urban birder and
nature blogger, when her niece, Grit, turns up on her doorstep.
The
two long for a relationship with each other, but they’ll have to dig
deep into their family’s difficult past in order to build one. Together
they face the wounds inflicted by Anne and find in their new connection a
place of healing. When Clare begins to suspect her sister might be in
New York, she and her niece hold out hope for a long-awaited reunion
with her.
Johannes Cabal: the Detective by Jonathan Howard
In this genre-twisting
novel, infamous necromancer Johannes Cabal, after beating the Devil and
being reunited with his soul, leads us on another raucous journey in a
little-known corner of the world. This time he’s on the run from the
local government.
Stealing the identity of a minor bureaucrat, Cabal takes passage on the Princess Hortense,
a passenger aeroship that is leaving the country. The deception seems
perfect, and Cabal looks forward to a quiet trip and a clean escape,
until he comes face-to-face with Leonie Barrow, an enemy from the old
days who could blow his cover. But when a fellow passenger throws
himself to his death, or at least that is how it appears, Cabal begins
to investigate out of curiosity. His minor efforts result in a vicious
attempt on his own life—and then the gloves come off.
Cabal and
Leonie—the only woman to ever match wits with him—reluctantly team up
to discover the murderer. Before they are done, there will be more
narrow escapes, involving sword fighting and newfangled flying machines.
There will be massive destruction, not to mention resurrected dead . . .
Johannes Cabal: the Necromancer by Jonathan Howard
Johannes Cabal sold his
soul years ago in order to learn the laws of necromancy. Now he wants it
back. Amused and slightly bored, Satan proposes a little wager:
Johannes has to persuade one hundred people to sign over their souls or
he will be damned forever. This time for real. Accepting the bargain,
Jonathan is given one calendar year and a traveling carnival to complete
his task.
With little time to waste, Johannes raises a motley crew from
the dead and enlists his brother, Horst, a charismatic vampire to help
him run his nefarious road show, resulting in mayhem at every turn.