Book List Archives - Page 7 of 13 -

The Edgar Awards – 2021

Book List, Debut Author, Featured, Mystery, Nominated for Award, Non-fiction, Readers Under 12, Suspense, Thriller, True Crime, Young Adult/Teen

Mystery Writers of America has announced the winners of the 2021 Edgar Allan Poe Awards, honoring the best in mystery fiction, non-fiction and television published or produced in 2020. A diverse group of judges selected the nominees and from among those lists, selected the winners, revealed on April 29, 2021. The winners are indicated in red.

BEST NOVEL

Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line by Deepa Anappara
Before She Was Helen by Caroline B. Cooney
Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
These Women by Ivy Pochoda
The Missing American by Kwei Quartey
The Distant Dead by Heather Young

BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR

Murder in Old Bombay by Nev March
Please See Us by Caitlin Mullen
Catherine House by Elisabeth Thomas
Winter Counts by David Heska Wanbli Weiden
Darling Rose Gold by Stephanie Wrobel

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole
The Deep, Deep Snow by Brian Freeman
Unspeakable Things by Jess Lourey
The Keeper by Jessica Moor
East of Hounslow by Khurrum Rahman

BEST FACT CRIME

Blood Runs Coal: The Yablonski Murders and the Battle for the United Mine Workers of America by Mark A. Bradley

The Third Rainbow Girl: The Long Life of a Double Murder in Appalachia by Emma Copley Eisenberg

Death in Mud Lick: A Coal Country Fight Against the Drug Companies that Delivered the Opioid Epidemic by Eric Eyre

Yellow Bird: Oil, Murder, and a Woman’s Search for Justice in Indian Country by Sierra Crane Murdoch

Veritas: A Harvard Professor, a Con Man, and the Gospel of Jesus’s Wife by Ariel Sabar

BEST JUVENILE

Premeditated Myrtle by Elizabeth C. Bunce
Me and Banksy by Tanya Lloyd Kyi
From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
Ikenga by Nnedi Okorafor
Nessie Quest by Melissa Savage
Coop Knows the Scoop by Taryn Souders

THE SIMON & SCHUSTER MARY HIGGINS CLARK AWARD

Death of an American Beauty by Mariah Fredericks
The Cabinets of Barnaby Mayne by Elsa Hart
The Lucky One by Lori Rader-Day
The First to Lie by Hank Phillippi Ryan
Cold Wind by Paige Shelton

THE G.P. PUTNAM’S SONS SUE GRAFTON MEMORIAL AWARD

The Burn by Kathleen Kent
Riviera Gold by Laurie R. King
Vera Kelly is Not a Mystery by Rosalie Knecht
Dead Land by Sara Paretsky
The Sleeping Nymph by Ilaria Tuti
Turn to Stone by James W. Ziskin

The GRAND MASTERS:

Jeffery Deaver
Charlaine Harris

The RAVEN AWARD:

Malice Domestic

Please visit https://mysterywriters.org/mwa-announces-2021-edgar-allan-poe-award-nominations/ for the recipient of The Ellery Queen Award, as well as the nominees in the categories of Best Critical/Biographical, Best Short Story, Best YA, and Best Television Episode Teleplay.

Congratulations to all the nominees, winners, and recipients of the special awards!

The Edgar Awards – 2021 Read More »

2021 – Irish Fiction & Mysteries

Book List, Cozy, Crime, Featured, Fiction, General, Holidays, Mystery, Suspense

St. Patrick’s Day will be here soon! For those of you that focus your reading on holiday/cultural themed books, the list below features Irish writers, mysteries/suspense set in Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day murders, or titles with Irish characters central to the plot. Some are modern classics, some are newbies, but all are entertaining reads. You’re sure to find a story in the updated list of 40 Irish Fiction & Mysteries – 2021 that you will want to read again and again. (Links included for bold titles)

Lisa Alber: “Path into Darkness”
Maeve Binchy: “Chestnut Street”
Furlong-Bollinger: “Paddy Whacked”
Declan Burke: “The Lost and the Blind”

Steve Cavanagh: “Th1rt3en”
Sheila Connolly: “Fatal Roots”
Kathy Cranston: “Apple Seeds and Murderous Deeds”
Sinead Crowley: “One Bad Turn”

Kathi Daley: “Shamrock Shenanigans”
Frank Delaney: “The Last Storyteller“
Nelson Demille: “Cathedral”
Patricia Falvey: “The Yellow House”
Lucy Foley: “The Guest List”
Tana French: “The Searcher”

Alexia Gordon: “Murder in G Major”
Andrew Greeley: “The Bishop at the Lake”

Jane Haddam: “A Great Day for the Deadly”
Lyn Hamilton: “The Celtic Riddle”
Lee Harris: “The St. Patrick’s Day Murder”
Erin Hart: “The Book of Killowen”
Jonathan Harrington: “A Great Day for Dying”

Mary Anne Kelly: “Twillyweed”
Amanda Lee: “The Long Stitch Good Night”

Dan Mahoney: “Once in, Never Out”
Caimh McDonnell: “A Man with One of Those Faces”
Brian McGilloway: “The Last Crossing”
Adrian McKinty: “The Chain”
Ralph M. McInerny: “The Green Revolution”
Leslie Meier: “Irish Parade Murder”

Stuart Neville: “So Say the Fallen”
Carlene O’Connor: “Murder in an Irish Bookshop”
Sister Carol Anne O’Marie: “Death Takes Up a Collection”
Helen Page: “Equal of God”
Louise Phillips: “The Doll’s House”
J.M. Poole “Case of the Shady Shamrock”

Janet Elaine Smith: “In St. Patrick’s Custody”
Jo Spain: “Beneath the Surface”
Patrick Taylor: “An Irish Country Family”
Peter Tremayne: “Blood in Eden”
Kathy Hogan Trochek: “Irish Eyes”

If your favorite Irish Fiction & Mysteries titles are not on the list, let me know and I’ll add them! Happy choosing and reading!

2021 – Irish Fiction & Mysteries Read More »

2021 Valentine’s Day Mysteries and Fiction

2 Comments / Book List, Cozy, Crime, Featured, Mystery, Romance, Short Stories/Collection

Are you a fan of holiday themed reading? Published between 2016 and 2021, here is an updated list of twenty-six novels, novellas, and short stories centered around Valentine’s Day. Be prepared to swoon, or laugh, or be delighted by the selection. Click on the titles to discover more about the books and enjoy!

Jennifer S. Alderson Death by Baguette

Carolyn Arnold Valentine’s Day is Murder

Patti Benning Tall, Dark, and Deadly

Bellamy Bloom & Addison Moore Murder Bites

Franky A. Brown What Happened to Romance?

Susan Carroll The Valentine’s Day Ball

Cherry Christensen Secret Valentine

Sylvia Damsell A Valentine Wish

Steve Demaree A Valentine Murder

Liz Dodwell Valentine’s Day: a Polly Parrett Pet-Sitter Cozy

Jessica L. Elliott Operation: Romance

Tammy Falkner A Valentine’s Day Miracle

Deborah Garner A Flair for Truffles

Patricia Gligor Marnie Malone

Holly Hepburn Valentine’s Day at the Star and Sixpence

Liwen Y. Ho Romantically Ever After

June McCrary Jacobs Handmade Hearts

Libby Klein Theater Nights Are Murder

Jackie Lau A Big Surprise for Valentine’s Day

Lia London Love from A to Z

Ava Mallory & nine more authors Stirring Up Love & Mystery

Leslie Meier Valentine Candy Murder

Mobile Writers Guild Valentine’s Day Pieces (Anthology)

Addison Moore & Bellamy Bloom Sealed with a Hiss

Summer Prescott A Blossom of Murder

Amy M. Reade Be My Valencrime

Happy Reading!

2021 Valentine’s Day Mysteries and Fiction Read More »

“New York Times Best Fiction & Nonfiction of 2020”

Award Winner, Book List, Debut Author, Fiction, General, Historical, Inspirational, Nominated for Award, Non-fiction, Wartime, Women's Fiction

The editors of The Times Book Review chose the best fiction and nonfiction titles of 2020, from among the titles they had reviewed. The titles are a mix of bestsellers and wannabes, from debut and/or international writers, but more importantly, the NYT Book Review editors fell in love with the story or the writing.

Listed in alphabetical order by author. Click on the titles to read the reviews and learn more about the books.

FICTION

“Homeland Elegies” by Ayad Akhtar

“The Vanishing Half” by Brit Bennett

“Deacon King Kong” by James McBride

“A Children’s Bible” by Lydia Millet

“Hamnet” by Maggie O’Farrell

NONFICTION

“Hidden Valley Road” by Robert Kolker

“War” by Margaret MacMillan

“A Promised Land” by Barack Obama

“Shakespeare in a Divided America” by James Shapiro

“Uncanny Valley” by Anna Wiener

“New York Times Best Fiction & Nonfiction of 2020” Read More »

Mari Barnes’ “Best of Books for Children Under 12”

Award Winner, Book List, Fiction, Nominated for Award, Readers Under 12, Reviews

Mari Barnes is our first guest author on Nightstand Book Reviews! I ‘met’ her on Facebook because of our mutual love of mystery shows, but realized as I followed her posts that she also has a shared avid interest in developing literacy for young people and their families. She is a member of our NBR community and the perfect person to ask for her ‘Best of’ book list for children under 12. Welcome, Mari. 🙂

I’m Mari Barnes and I’m a big fan of children’s books. I share them with my own family and the children who participate in the literacy programs I facilitate. The following books are only SOME of the many great books I’ve enjoyed with children under the age of twelve. They range from silly to sweet to serious. If I didn’t list a favorite of yours, I hope you’ll find time to sample one or two…or all ten!

Frog and Toad Are Friends by Arnold Lobel
The perfect first chapter book for new readers. These two characters show us what friendship looks like in five adorable short stories.

Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willem
This reader favorite is about a bus driver who has to leave so he asks the reader to not allow the pigeon to drive the bus. A great read-aloud book!

8. The Composer Is Dead by Lemony Snicket
This book/CD is a clever and silly whodunnit about an orchestra. It’s fun for adults and kids won’t care that they’re learning about orchestras and classical music.

7. I Can’t Said the Ant by Polly Cameron A story told in rhyme that is about what happens to the denizens of a kitchen when an ant tries to help a fallen teapot.

6. Little Red Gliding Hood by Tara Lazar
There are laughs a plenty in this new spin on fairy tales. Little Red Riding Hood needs to find a partner to help her win a new pair of skates. But finding one isn’t easy.

Sweet T and the North Wind by Cat Michaels
Tara, or Sweet T as her grandmother calls her, finds out that there really is magic in the North Wind. This story is about the love of family told with charm and whimsy.

4. Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis
For older or more developed readers. Set in the Depression and told in Bud’s own unique voice, we follow his humorous, scary, sad and uplifting travels to find the man who just might be his father.

I Don’t Want to Be a Frog by Dev Petty
Frog would rather be ANYTHING else. Until he finds out that being a frog is the best thing he could ever be. A great lesson is hidden in lots of laughs.

2. Ada Twist, Scientist by Andrea Beaty
Kid scientist Ada has to use all of her science skills to find out why her house is filled with a terrible smell. But her experiments lead to even more trouble in the winning tale of imagination and determination.

1. Brimsby’s Hats by Andrew Prahin
A charming little fable about friendship and problem-solving, this is one of my all-time favorites. And it’s got a surprise twist. A terrific bedtime story.

Mari Lumpkin Barnes writes for children under the pen name of Mari Lumpkin and for adults as ML Barnes. Mari owns Flying Turtle Publishing and has spent many years working with experts in child development, creating and implementing children’s literacy programs. The latest is Adventures in Reading, literacy programming for Chicagoland and northwest Indiana families.

https://aireading.org

https://www.flyingturtlepublishing.com/

Many thanks to Mari Barnes for her photos and for sharing the wonderful list! 🙂

Enjoy!

Mari Barnes’ “Best of Books for Children Under 12” Read More »

2020 Barnes & Noble Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy List

Book List, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

The Barnes and Noble editors cull their ‘best of’ books from publications like the NYTimes, B&N customer feedback, and their own reading to create the “B&N Best of…” lists. Many of the Nightstand Book Reviews readers (including me) enjoy a Sci-Fi or Fantasy title in their own reading, so as requested, here’s the B&N 2020 list:

(Click on the book titles to learn more about the books.)

The Last Druid by Terry Brooks

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline

The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow

The City We Became by N. K. Jemisin

House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas

A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars… by Christopher Paolini

Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab

Enjoy!

*Photo by Patti Phillips taken in Braga, Portugal

2020 Barnes & Noble Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy List Read More »

Christmas Themed Mysteries – 2020

4 Comments / Book List, Cozy, Featured, Holidays, Inspirational, Mystery, Short Stories/Collection

Christmas seems to be the most popular holiday topic for mysteries. Surprising to me at least, there were hundreds to choose from. Yes, hundreds. Do the writers deliver a way for us to fantasize about doing in the dastardly boyfriend/cousin/landlord? Or do they have a secret, but sweet, way to resolve a pesky problem? Only you and your active imagination know for sure. 😉

If you are a fan of Christmas themed fiction, then this updated 2020 list of forty-seven novels, novellas, and short stories is for you. The books were recommended by avid cozy booksellers, as well as NBR subscribers. Click on the titles to find out more about the books, then snuggle up with a great Christmas read.

Susan Wittig Albert: “The Darling Dahlias & the Poinsettia Puzzle”

Gretchen Archer: “Double Deck the Halls”

Donna Andrews: “The Gift of the Magpie”

Mary Angela: “Very Merry Murder”

Joy Avon: “In Peppermint Peril”

Laurien Berenson “Here Comes Santa Paws”

Laura Bradford “A Killer Carol“

Leslie Budewitz “As the Christmas Cookie Crumbles”

Ellen Byron “A Cajun Christmas Killing”

Lynn Cahoon “A Stocking Full of Murder”

Nancy Coco “Have Yourself a Fudgy Little Christmas”

Cate Conte “A Whisker of a Doubt”