The Nothing Man by Catherine Howard Ryan

MeganLeave a comment

Eve Black was twelve years old when her family-mother, father, and little sister-were murdered in their home. It was only chance that spared Eve. She spent the rest of her childhood with her grandmother never speaking of the events that destroyed their lives. As an adult, Eve became determined to find the serial killer known as the Nothing Man. A college assignment turned into her true-crime memoir, the first step on her journey. Now, she’s on a book tour that takes her back to the scene of the crime and seemingly everyone is reading about her trauma, everyone including the Nothing Man himself. With every page he reads his rage and panic grows. His only loose end has come back to haunt him.

This book ticks all my boxes!

  • A book within a book
  • A true crime “memoir”
  • Pursuit of justice
  • Surprise twists
  • A potentially unreliable narrator
  • An Irish setting and Irish audiobook narrators

The story of the Nothing Man is told from two perspectives. Readers experience Eve’s memoir along side Jim Doyle, the sixty-something store security guard who killed the Black family nearly two decades ago. The memoir portion reads as an homage to Michelle McNamara and her quest for the Golden State Killer, while Jim’s unraveling ratchets up the tension. This is a must read for fans of true crime and psychological thrillers.

Thanks to Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for an advanced audio copy of this book.

~Megan

New Books Tuesday @ RRPL

semanurLeave a comment

There are tons of new releases that come to our shelves every week. Here are some books we picked out for you!

Good Dogs Don’t Make It to the South Pole by Hans-Olav Thyvold & Marie Otsby – A heartwarming tale of aging, friendship and death is told from the perspective of a grumpy mutt who bonds with his late master’s widow during walks to the library, before their home is threatened by impatient relatives.

Atomic Love by Jennie Fields – Recruited by the FBI to spy on her former lover, a guilt-riddled Manhattan Project physicist becomes torn between lingering feelings for her ex and her growing attraction to a special agent, a former prisoner of war.

The Less Dead by Denise Mina – Navigating burnout, an unfaithful ex and a relative’s recent death, Margo reaches out to her birth family before discovering that her biological mother was murdered years earlier by a killer who begins sending her threatening letters.

The Jackal by J. R. Ward – The award-winning author of the Fallen Angels series presents a debut entry in a new Black Dagger Brotherhood spin-off set in an underground prison that is populated by thieving and murderous beings.

Royal by Danielle Steel – Sent into hiding during World War II, headstrong 17-year-old Princess Charlotte assumes an alias and enjoys the freedoms of a normal life in Yorkshire before her ill-fated romance with her guardians’ son leads to the orphaning of a royal infant.

Seven Days in Summer by Marcia Willett – A shared annual beach vacation tests family bonds as a father-in-law becomes torn between the past and future by an unexpected guest and a husband who remained behind tries to figure out an old friend’s agenda.

Little Disasters by Sarah Vaughan – A pediatrician makes unsettling discoveries when her best friend arrives in the emergency room with her infant daughter and a story that does not quite add up. By the best-selling author of Anatomy of a Scandal.

Ordinary Hazards by Anna Bruno – An award-winning debut finds a powerhouse businesswoman settling down with a motley crew of locals at a hometown bar where a series of decisions over the course of a single night changes their lives forever.

The Heatwave by Kate Riordan – Returning to the Southern France childhood home she would rather forget, Sylvie endeavors to protect her youngest daughter from a growing threat and toxic family dynamics linked to the death of her enigmatic firstborn.

The Queen of Tuesday: A Lucille Ball Story by Darin Strauss – From the award-winning, best-selling author of Chang & Eng and Half a Life, comes a new novel about Lucille Ball, a thrilling love story starring Hollywood’s first true media mogul, and an epic multi-layered look at America’s most fascinating era.

The Glass Kingdom by Lawrence Osborne – Fleeing to Bangkok with a suitcase of money to hide in plain sight in a luxury high-rise, Sarah bonds with a circle of ex-pat women before political chaos and military coup attempts turn the apartment’s residents against each other.

The Second Wife by Rebecca Fleet – A man still mourning the death of his first wife faces an impossible choice when his family home burns down and his daughter and second wife give different accounts of what happened. By the author of The House Swap.

Jackie and Maria: A Novel of Jackie Kennedy & Maria Callas by Gill Paul – From the #1 bestselling author of The Secret Wife comes a story of love, passion, and tragedy as the lives of Jackie Kennedy and Maria Callas are intertwined, and they become the ultimate rivals, in love with the same man.

The Dazzling Truth by Helen Cullen – A perfect combination of deeply felt tragedy with great hopefulness. One Irish family. Three decades. One dazzling story.

~Semanur

Imagine Your Story@ RRPL

MaryLeave a comment

Title details for Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker - Wait list

Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker

WOW, what a book.   It took me about a week to finish this book, but each time I put it down, I could not stop thinking about it.  In fact, if I was reading it before going to bed, several times I ended up dreaming about it – it was that good, that thought provoking, that well written, that emotional.  As you can see by the cover, this book is one of Oprah’s Book Club picks, so you have confidence going into the book that it should be a good one.  Fair warning, it’s a gut wrencher but well worth your time.

The Galvin family consisted of 12 children, 6 of them developed schizophrenia.  It was like a row of dominoes, Donald, the oldest , with his all american good looks & athleticism, during college, began a steep and steady descent into madness, with five of his brothers following in his footsteps. Kolker takes the reader right into the home of the Galvins to experience the chaos and confusion about what was happening to them. While 6 of the children have no mental illness, not one family member walks away from their home unscathed.  Kolker also explores the scientific piece of schizophrenia, mostly in laymen terms, so the reader has better knowledge of  schizophrenia as a disease without getting lost in the extensive history of the brain.  The matriarch of the family, Mimi Galvin, is one of the  survivors of this brutal truth, until her death late in life, and she is not to go unnoticed.  Despite every obstacle and roadblock thrown at her, she remained steadfastly committed to the care and support of her sick sons, even at the expense of losing her well children. Imagine if you were once a healthy young man, facing down the terrifying consequences of schizophrenia. Imagine if you were not mentally ill, surrounded by siblings struggling with mental illness and worrying, will you be next. Imagine being a mother to both and trying so very hard to protect them all.

Imagine Your Story – Books

carolLeave a comment

I recently finished Friends and Strangers by J. Courtney Sullivan, and I am still digesting this novel that focuses on the relationship between Elizabeth, a writer, and Sam, the college-aged young woman who Elizabeth has hired to watch her baby Gil.

friends and strangers

Elizabeth has moved from Brooklyn to a small university town to be closer to her husband’s parents and is unhappy. Although she loves their new baby, she is beginning to resent her husband for wanting more kids, for quitting his job to try to become an inventor, and especially, for moving her away from her friends.

A published writer, Elizabeth is struggling after an unsuccessful second book to find inspiration and is under pressure to return to work in order to write a third, due to her husbands (aforementioned) unemployment status and because she’s loaned her life savings to her unreliable sister. At her wits’ end and feeling alone in the world, Elizabeth begins take a bit too much interest in the personal life of her nanny Sam, and the line between employer and employee begins to blur.

After several weekend dinners over wine, secrets are spilled, and Elizabeth begins to think that she knows what is best for Sam’s future. Despite good intentions, there is overstepping of boundaries and eventual betrayal in this new-found friendship.

Friends and Strangers would be a perfect choice for a book club to discuss, as it explores a myriad of topics—class and privilege, motherhood, coming of age, and the dangers of assuming that a person’s experiences are just like your own. I found myself struggling to put this book down until its satisfying conclusion.  ~Carol

Imagine your Story – Books

EmmaLeave a comment

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Liberation

by Imogen Kealey

 

I thoroughly enjoyed Liberation, a joint venture between screenwriter Darby Kealy and novelist Imogen Robertson. Australian-born Nancy Wake, nickednamed “The White Mouse” by the Germans, is the subject of the novel. Major Bohm, a Gestapo agent, has captured Nancy’s husband Henri Fiocca. Henri is tortured assuming he will eventually give up information about his wife who joined Britain’s Special Operations Executive. Nancy quickly rose to the top of the organization training others to undermine the Nazis in France. The Gestapo wants her stopped.

After reading this novel I look forward to reading Nancy Wake’s autobiography The White Mouse. Nancy Grace August Wake died on August 7, 2011 at age 98.

~Emma

 

 

Check out our updated Cowan Pottery Museum Page!

GregLeave a comment

Our Library’s webpage for the Cowan Pottery Museum has been updated! Go to https://rrpl.org/cowan/ to see a gallery of highlights from our collections and stay up to date on all the Museum offers. Right now we are featuring the activities we have planned this month to celebrate 100 years of Cowan in Rocky River.

Make sure to check back this up coming Monday August 17th when the Museum’s first virtual exhibitions go live! These two exhibits feature a selection of historic photos from the Museum’s archives and give viewers the chance to see how these pieces were made and marketed.

The Studio on Lake
Cowan Pottery Studio in Rocky River

Cowan Style
The Photos that Sold Cowan Pottery

Book Review- The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones

NicoleLeave a comment

I recently finished Stephen Graham Jones’ latest novel, The Only Good Indians, and haven’t been able to stop thinking about it. The book is amazing, and unlike anything I’ve read. Teetering along a fine line between literary horror (yes, there is some disagreement as to whether that exists but I strongly support the notion that it does), a straight-up revenge story, and multi-faceted narratives of various Native American experiences, it delivers some serious gore alongside real emotional pain. It’s wildly atmospheric and to put it plainly, weird. Weird in the very best way, of course.

The revenge plot centers on four Native American men getting their just deserts after disrespecting the sacredness of an elk herd while hunting on elder tribal lands. The group’s excessive spray of bullets decimates an elk herd that includes a pregnant elk, who struggles with every thing she has to survive for her calf. She succumbs to her wounds and the Blackfeet reservation’s game warden discovers their trespass which results in them being forced to leave all the elk meat behind, except for the cow who fought so hard. The four pals are banned from hunting on the reservation for ten years as further punishment, but their real punishment arrives years later.

Without spoiling too much of the story, because there are indeed some surprising twists and turns, I can say this moment of carelessness and disregard results in very serious repercussions for the four men, their friends and family, and even their pets. In the beginning readers increasingly question what is real and what is being told to us by an unreliable narrator. Eventually, through a very clever shift in perspective, readers see the truth of what is happening and the story really picks up speed as we hurtle towards a conclusion.

The Only Good Indians is a stellar example of how horror can also be literary, as Jones has crafted a deeply felt look at cycles of violence, identity and the price of breaking away from tradition, and perhaps most surprisingly, the power of forgiveness and hope. I can’t promise it will all make sense in a neat, tidy way in the end but it doesn’t really need to honestly. A #ownvoices title that is highly recommended reading for fans of horror, literary fiction, strong character writing, and twisty plots.

Trigger warning: When I say there is gore in this, I am not exaggerating. It does include some brutal ends for specifically dogs. I assure you, the book overall is worth reading and you can breeze past some of the grisly paragraphs if need be.

Check out the ebook here or request the print copy here.

The Only Good Indians is the November selection for Novel Scares book club, my book club devoted to all things horror. Please join us for a lively discussion on Zoom November 12th @ 7 pm! Registration for fall programs begins September 1st and you can register for Novel Scares here. This program is also part of the county wide One Community Reads, taking place now through September, inviting you to read and reflect about race, injustice, history, and a better future.

Happy reading and stay safe!

Imagine Your Story – Movie Review

Ryan DickersonLeave a comment
Logan Lerman, Brandon T. Jackson, and Alexandra Daddario in Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (2013)

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters is the sequel to Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief. This film seems to take a different tone from the last one. While the last film could have been a self-contained adventure, this film works on world building to expand the Percy Jackson universe. There isn’t a third film though despite there being a third book called The Titan’s Curse, but there is also an announcement that Disney will make a series for their streaming service. I still found this film enjoyable though and it made me want more. However, I do feel like certain character growth regresses in this film.

The film starts off with a flashback to demigods fleeing from cyclopes. One girl gets struck down, and so Zeus turns her into a tree to protect the demigod camp. We then see that years later Chiron (Anthony Head) and Mr. D (Stanley Tucci) are surprised by a new demigod who made it past the barrier. When they ask if he knows who their parent is, he points to an image of Poseidon one of the big three gods. We then see that Percy Jackson (Logan Lerman) is struggling on an obstacle course against his rival Clarisse (Leven Rambin). Clarisse ends up winning, and we learn Percy has been doubting himself in comparison to Clarisse.

Percy gets called into Mr. D’s office and learns that he has a half-brother who is half cyclops called Tyson (Douglas Smith). Percy starts showing Tyson around when suddenly the barrier around the camp is attacked. A metallic bull breaks through and with help from others is defeated by Percy. Luke (Jake Abel) shows up explaining he survived the fight before and he is still seeking to overthrow the gods. Luke explains he poisoned the tree that creates the barrier around the camp and leaves. Annabeth (Alexandra Daddario) figures out the only way to cure the tree is by finding the Golden Fleece which can heal anything. Clarisse gets chosen to go on this quest, but Percy and his friends decide to go on the same quest separately worried about the consequences of failure.

This film seems to develop many areas at once. One area that particularly bothers me is the introduction of Clarisse in respect to Annabeth. Annabeth was supposed to be the star at the camp, and Clarisse seems to take that role from her relegating Annabeth to mostly be support. The film does have several interesting scenes and keeps the idea of being an adventure with multiple locations used. With the introduction of two new characters, the franchise seems to be gaining momentum here. Which is the reason the ending almost feels too soon. While they resolve their main conflict, they strongly suggest there will be greater adventures to come. Rated PG.

Ryan

Strange Times, New Skills

MeganLeave a comment

It’s been a while since I wrote a pandemic post and since I am tried of writing book reviews I thought I’d muse on the strangeness of the times again. I don’t need to tell any of you that things have changed. Our lives are so different today and I have to say, it’s not all bad. Social distancing has forced us at the library to reimagine how we offer programs to our patrons. It’s been challenging and at times uncomfortable, but reframe that discomfort as part of the growth process, you are now talking about professional development! I have picked up some new skills and gotten to think outside the box a lot over these past months. Here are a few things I am especially proud of:

Pre-Covid we had an in person cooking club, but I figured out how to make that a no-contact program. Cooking kits! Each kit included all the ingredients, a recipe, and instructions on how to properly use a knife to cut the onion and pepper. I am currently brainstorming a fall cooking kit. Any suggestions?

Pre-Covid my colleague and I had a True Crime Book Discussion Group. Early on offered to have a Zoom meeting with our regular attendees. They were not keen on the idea, but we were so excited about our book that we decided to talk about it ourselves! Interested in our discussion of Israel Keyes? Here’s the video! https://youtu.be/rXxloWLfKHA

We also created a new Facebook Group. It’s been a lot of fun interacting with patrons in this way. Feel free to join us! https://www.facebook.com/groups/riverinos/about/

Finally, the project that took the most time to complete and required me to learn new skills is my virtual escape room. I had planned to offer an in-person, after-hours escape room for our teens this summer. Instead, I had to make it all online. If you are up for a challenge, please give it a try. You can find it on the teen page of our website.

What new skills have you acquired during this pandemic?

~Megan

New Books Tuesday @ RRPL

semanurLeave a comment

Here some of the new exciting releases for you to take a look at this week!

A Traveler at the Gates of Wisdom by John Boyne – From the award-winning, best-selling author of The Heart’s Invisible Furies comes an epic tale of humanity, a novel that aims to tell the story of all of us. Imaginative, unique, heartbreaking, this is John Boyne at his most creative and compelling.

No Offense by Meg Cabot – A sequel to No Judgments finds a broken-hearted Molly relocating to a library in the Florida Keys before the discovery of an abandoned newborn leads to an unexpected partnership with an arrogant town sheriff.

Choppy Water by Stuart Woods – When his Maine vacation is interrupted by extreme weather that a menacing adversary uses as cover to target a close friend, Stone Barrington uncovers a massive scheme with corrupt ties spanning New York City through Key West.

Lone Jack Trail by Owen Laukkanen – A veteran Marine and an ex-convict find themselves on opposite sides of the law, in a new thriller from the best-selling author of Deception Cove.

We Are All the Same in the Dark by Julia Heaberlin – The discovery of an unknown girl found by the side of the road a decade after an unsolved disappearance compels a young police officer’s investigation into dangerous local and personal secrets. By the best-selling author of Black-Eyed Susans.

The Midwife Murders by James Patterson & Richard DiLallo – When two kidnappings and a stabbing occur on her watch in a Manhattan university hospital, a fearless senior midwife teams up with a skeptical NYPD detective to investigate rumors that shift from the Russian Mafia to an underground adoption network.

Microbes: The Life-changing Story of Germs by Phillip K. Peterson & Michael T. Osterholm – With straight-forward and engaging writing, infectious diseases physician Phillip Peterson surveys how our understanding of viruses has changed throughout history, from early plagues and pandemics to more recent outbreaks like HIV/AIDS, Ebola, Zika, and Coronavirus.

Then She Vanished by T. Jefferson Parker – Helping a rising politician whose wife has gone missing amid an inexplicable series of bombings, private investigator Roland Ford investigates the activities of a mysterious group before uncovering sinister ties to a kidnapping that threatens an entire city.

Finding Freedom: Harry and Meghan and the Making of a Modern Royal Family by Omid Scobie & Carolyn Durand – With unique access and written with the participation of those closest to the couple, the insider authors offer an honest, up-close and disarming portrait of a confident, influential and forward-thinking couple who are unafraid to break with tradition, determined to create a new path away from the spotlight, and dedicated to building a humanitarian legacy that will make a profound difference in the world.

Olive the Lionheart: Lost Love, Imperial Spies, and One Woman’s Journey into the Heart of Africa by Brad Ricca – Draws on personal writings in an account of Olive MacLeod’s search for her missing fiancé, naturalist Boyd Alexander, in 1910 Africa, a quest shaped by dangerous natural elements, a murderous leopard cult and two adorable lion cubs.

Last Call on Decatur Street by Iris Martin Cohen – Working as a Crescent City burlesque dancer after college pressures and a drinking problem lead to her expulsion, Rosemary interweaves her pain into seductive performances before resolving to go sober on a transformative night.

Via Negativa by Daniel Hornsby – Dismissed by his conservative diocese for his eccentric insubordination, a homeless Father Dan transforms his car into a mobile monk cell and embarks on a spiritual road trip marked by an injured coyote and other offbeat travelers.

Making Sense: Conversations on Consciousness, Morality, and the Future of Humanity by Sam Harris – The best-selling neuroscientist and author of The End of Faith shares transcripts of 12 top-selected conversations from his controversial podcast to explore such topics as the nature of consciousness, free will, political extremism and ethical living.

Little Scratch by Rebecca Watson – A debut novel written in the style of a woman’s thoughts on a deceptively ordinary day traces her growing perturbation of mind as she moves through a routine marked by self-doubt, impatience, philosophical development and personal neuroses.

Houseplants for All: How to Fill Any Home With Happy Plants by Danae Horst – A beautiful guide to selecting and growing the right plants for your home, with a plant profile quiz.

Help Yourself: A Guide to Gut Health for People Who Love Delicious Food by Lindsay Maitland Hunt & Linda Pugliese – More than 125 gut-friendly recipes plus science-backed advice for wellness in body and mind. This game-changing cookbook will make you rethink how you eat.

Operation Vengeance: The Astonishing Aerial Ambush That Changed World War II by Dan Hampton – The best-selling author of Viper Pilot presents a narrative account of America’s secret World War II mission to assassinate Isoroku Yamamoto, the Japanese commander who masterminded the Pearl Harbor attacks.

Evil Geniuses: The Unmaking of America: A Recent History by Kurt Andersen – The best-selling author of Fantasyland presents a deeply researched history of America’s 20th-century transition toward government-sanctioned, normalized inequalities that favor big business and resist progressive change while rendering everyday workers increasingly powerless.

~Semanur