It’s becoming a tradition for me to put together an end-of-the-year list of books I recommend. This is not a best-of list. I’m not a fan of those since there’s no way people can read everything. So how can they declare some books the best? Not that I don’t admire the books that make those lists. I do. It’s simply that those big names and big successes get plenty of ink elsewhere, so I try to shine a light on excellent books and fine authors I enjoy instead. They may not be household names yet, and their books might not be on the New York Times bestsellers list—yet—but these are wonderful novels. I highly recommend them. Go on. Give them a chance.
Happy holidays!
First, my dear friend Lynne Raimondo passed away suddenly a few weeks ago. I’m heartbroken over her loss. But I cherish her memory and her books. You can’t go wrong with this fiercely complex and intelligent series, featuring blind psychiatrist Mark Angelotti.
And here are some great books I’ve read in the past year. You can’t go wrong with these. I loved them all. Click on the covers for links to buy.
Alice Henderson’s A Solitude of Wolverines
Daco Auffenorde’s Cover Your Tracks
Liz Milliron’s The Enemy We Don’t Know
Alexia Gordon’s Execution in E
Keenan Powell’s Hell and High Water
Erica Miner’s Staged for Murder
Mark Pryor’s The French Widow
Steve Goble’s Pieces of Eight
Brian Thornton’s Suicide Blonde
And, of course, here are the latest books from my fellow 7 Criminal Minds. I’m so proud to be one of them.
Cathy Ace’s Corpse with The Crystal Skull (Cait Morgan)
Brenda Chapman’s Closing Time
Dietrich Kalteis’s Cradle of the Deep
Paul D. Marks’s The Blues Don’t Care
Catriona McPherson’s The Turning Tide (Dandy Gilver #14)
Abir Mukherjee’s Death in the East
Terry Shames’s A Risky Undertaking for Loretta Singletary (Samuel Craddock)
Frank Zafiro and Colin Conway’s Code Four
Some of these are already on my list, and others I've made a note of — and thanks very much for the nod, Jim.
ReplyDeleteAll the very best to you and yours for the holidays.
Lynne's death has been a shock. I read her first two, but not the third. Will check it out in the new year, thanks. A way to hear her distinctive voice one more time. I've read some of the books on your list and have others stacked in the TBR section of my work space. The Minds authors - and that includes you - are a pretty impressive bunch. Thanks for the recommendations.
ReplyDeleteI'm reading Liz Milliron's book 2 in the Home Front mysteries right now - as an ARC, to blurb - and have asked for the first one from Santa. So good!
ReplyDeletethanks Jim - some good recommendations for future reading. Happy Holidays!
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