Set against the blood-stained backdrop of the French Revolution, Charles Dickens’s sweeping epic brings to life two cities—London and Paris—bound together by destiny as the shadow of the Guillotine lengthens over France, and the lives of a peaceful London family become inextricably linked to the chaos of the Reign of Terror. Charles Dickens delivers classic story where at the heart of the novel is the physician Dr. Manette, recalled to life after eighteen years of unjust imprisonment in the Bastille—his daughter, Lucie, and the noble Charles Darnay seek a quiet life in England, but the sins of the past and the vengeance of the French peasantry, personified by the chilling Madame Defarge, refuse to be forgotten. ⚔️Witness the transformation of Sydney Carton, the cynical, dissipated lawyer who finds a higher purpose in his unrequited love for Lucie—his journey from self-loathing to heroic sacrifice remains one of the most powerful character arcs ever written. Dickens explores what happens when London families become linked to French Revolution chaos through destiny and Bastille imprisonment, examining how A Tale of Two Cities is a profound meditation on the cycle of violence, the power of resurrection, and the endurance of the human spirit. 📖
The author delivers classic story where eighteen years of unjust imprisonment leads to recalled-to-life reunions until sins of the past and French peasantry vengeance refuse being forgotten, proving that sometimes the greatest sacrifice in literature comes from cynical dissipated lawyers finding higher purpose in unrequited love. Dickens writes transformation from self-loathing to far, far better things creating one of literature’s most powerful character arcs. The classic asks whether human spirit endures when violence cycles and resurrection powers clash. 🗝️
What makes this essential: Classic story where set against the blood-stained backdrop of the French Revolution, Charles Dickens’s sweeping epic brings to life two cities—London and Paris—bound together by destiny as the shadow of the Guillotine lengthens over France and the lives of a peaceful London family become inextricably linked to the chaos of the Reign of Terror—at the heart of the novel is physician Dr. Manette recalled to life after eighteen years of unjust imprisonment in the Bastille with his daughter Lucie and noble Charles Darnay seeking a quiet life in England, but the sins of the past and the vengeance of the French peasantry personified by chilling Madame Defarge refuse to be forgotten—witness the transformation of Sydney Carton, the cynical dissipated lawyer who finds a higher purpose in his unrequited love for Lucie with his journey from self-loathing remaining one of the most powerful character arcs ever written as A Tale of Two Cities is a profound meditation on the cycle of violence, the power of resurrection, and the endurance of the human spirit.
The snow is dropping in Berry Springs, and so are the bodies—on a pitch-black wintry night, Detective Dean Walker finds a man in the middle of an icy road, with a bullet between his eyes, a murder that is eerily similar to his father’s, which was never solved. Amanda McKinney delivers Berry Springs novel with small town romantic suspense where coincidence? No, Dean doesn’t believe in coincidences, and he also doesn’t believe in love at first sight, until he meets the victim’s wife—psychologist Heidi Novak is hardly settling into her new mansion in the small, country town of Berry Springs when she receives a late-night visit by the handsome Dean Walker, and seconds after learning that her husband has been murdered, gunshots explode around her and it becomes apparent that she is the next target. ❄️With a massive winter storm looming, Dean races to find the killer and keep Heidi safe, while facing a long list of suspects, including Heidi’s arrogant sister-in-law and a local, crusty cowboy—as the evidence mounts, Dean becomes more convinced than ever that his father’s murder is connected to the death of Heidi’s husband. McKinney explores what happens when detectives find icy road murders eerily similar to their fathers’ unsolved cases, examining how and he can’t help but think, will Heidi be the second love he loses to the ice-cold killer? 😱
The author delivers small town romantic suspense where pitch-black wintry nights produce bullet-between-eyes victims on icy roads, proving that sometimes not believing in coincidences means believing your father’s murder connects to victim’s wives who become next targets. McKinney writes a detective whose love-at-first-sight with psychologist widow happens seconds before gunshots explode making her the target. The Berry Springs novel asks whether you can keep her safe when massive winter storms loom and evidence connects present murders to past. 💔
Why I’m including this: Small town romantic suspense Berry Springs novel where the snow is dropping in Berry Springs and so are the bodies—on a pitch-black wintry night Detective Dean Walker finds a man in the middle of an icy road with a bullet between his eyes, a murder eerily similar to his father’s which was never solved—coincidence? No, Dean doesn’t believe in coincidences and he also doesn’t believe in love at first sight until he meets the victim’s wife—psychologist Heidi Novak is hardly settling into her new mansion in the small country town of Berry Springs when she receives a late-night visit by handsome Dean Walker, and seconds after learning that her husband has been murdered gunshots explode around her and it becomes apparent she is the next target—with a massive winter storm looming Dean races to find the killer and keep Heidi safe while facing a long list of suspects including Heidi’s arrogant sister-in-law and a local crusty cowboy, with as the evidence mounts Dean becoming more convinced than ever that his father’s murder is connected to the death of Heidi’s husband, and he can’t help but think will Heidi be the second love he loses to the ice-cold killer?
Seventeen-year-old Mica is a determined aspiring actress living with her parents in Romania as Nicolae Ceausescu begins his reign—her parents are covertly political and influential, which makes them a perfect target for the Secret Police, and they’re soon arrested. Roberta Seret launches Transylvanian Trilogy with historical mystery, thriller and suspense where Mica flees the country with her father’s rare and possibly cursed diamonds—with her parents imprisoned, it’s up to Mica to investigate the terrorism involving Ceausescu and his nuclear business partners. 💎Seret explores what happens when aspiring actresses’ covertly political parents get arrested by Secret Police forcing daughters to flee Romania with rare possibly-cursed diamonds, examining how seventeen-year-olds must investigate terrorism involving Ceausescu and nuclear business partners when parents are imprisoned. The author balances historical Romania during Ceausescu’s reign with family targeting by Secret Police, creating stakes where fleeing with father’s diamonds means investigating nuclear terrorism alone. 😱
The launch delivers historical mystery, thriller and suspense where determined aspiring actresses become investigators when parents’ political influence makes them Secret Police targets, proving that sometimes rare diamonds are both escape funds and possible curses when Ceausescu’s reign begins. Seret writes a seventeen-year-old whose acting dreams pause when terrorism investigation becomes survival requirement. The first Transylvanian Trilogy novel asks whether you can investigate nuclear business partners when you’re seventeen and fleeing with cursed diamonds. 🎭
What makes this compelling: Historical mystery, thriller and suspense launching Transylvanian Trilogy where seventeen-year-old Mica is a determined aspiring actress living with her parents in Romania as Nicolae Ceausescu begins his reign—her parents are covertly political and influential which makes them a perfect target for the Secret Police and they’re soon arrested—Mica flees the country with her father’s rare and possibly cursed diamonds, and with her parents imprisoned it’s up to Mica to investigate the terrorism involving Ceausescu and his nuclear business partners.
Resurrecting Bart: A Deep Past Novel
An animal with near magical powers is brought back from extinction, but at what cost?—anthropologist Claire Knowland discovers DNA from a species the world has never seen before, and now she faces an unprecedented opportunity: resurrecting an extinct elephant with near-supernatural abilities. Eugene Linden delivers Deep Past novel with hard science fiction where but the project spirals into an ethical minefield as her team realizes the world may not be ready for this animal’s very different form of intelligence, and that they have an obligation to protect him from those who covet his powers. 🐘Bringing ancient beings back to life attracts dangerous attention—as powerful forces conspire to seize control of their extraordinary creation, Claire and her team must defend the elephant, affably nicknamed Bart, who never asked to be reborn into the chaos of the twenty-first century. Linden explores what happens when anthropologists discover never-before-seen species DNA then resurrection projects spiral into ethical minefields, examining how enemies conspire to use the de-extinct species’ powers for their own gain as ultimately, circumstances force Bart to become aware of the perils of his situation, and his preternatural powers turn out to be the key to saving those around him, and his taking control of his destiny. 😱
The author delivers hard science fiction where resurrecting extinct elephants with near-supernatural abilities creates unprecedented opportunities and ethical obligations protecting them from power-coveting forces, proving that sometimes bringing ancient beings back to life attracts dangerous attention requiring defense of creations who never asked for twenty-first century chaos. Linden writes an anthropologist whose DNA discovery becomes responsibility when Bart’s preternatural powers make him target and savior. The Deep Past novel asks whether you can protect de-extinct species when powerful forces conspire seizing control. ✨
What makes this compelling: Hard science fiction Deep Past novel where an animal with near magical powers is brought back from extinction but at what cost?—anthropologist Claire Knowland discovers DNA from a species the world has never seen before and now she faces an unprecedented opportunity: resurrecting an extinct elephant with near-supernatural abilities—but the project spirals into an ethical minefield as her team realizes the world may not be ready for this animal’s very different form of intelligence and that they have an obligation to protect him from those who covet his powers—bringing ancient beings back to life attracts dangerous attention as powerful forces conspire to seize control of their extraordinary creation, with Claire and her team defending the elephant affably nicknamed Bart who never asked to be reborn into the chaos of the twenty-first century—enemies conspire to use the de-extinct species’ powers for their own gain, and ultimately circumstances force Bart to become aware of the perils of his situation with his preternatural powers turning out to be the key to saving those around him and his taking control of his destiny.
When a driven businesswoman from Boston collides with a free-spirited artist on a Vermont mountainside, they share a memorable and steamy night, but life soon pits them against each other over the fate of a family business. Rachel Lacey delivers LGBTQ+ romance where Emily Janssen prefers to play it safe—at thirty-five, she’s still working at the inn her grandmothers own while dreaming of a day when she’s able to support herself fully with her art, and while her friends have all hiked to the summit of the mountain in their hometown of Crescent Falls, Vermont, something has always held Emily back. 🏔️Diana Devlin has already made it to the top—well, almost, as she’s this close to securing the promotion that will put her in line to take over as CEO of her family’s hotel chain when her father retires, and everything is going to plan until an unexpected run-in with an alluring artist on a mountainside throws Diana off course, resulting in one of the hottest nights either she or Emily have ever experienced. Lacey explores what happens when driven businesswomen collide with free-spirited artists on Vermont mountainsides creating memorable steamy nights, examining how Emily walks away from their rendezvous feeling inspired to channel some of Diana’s confidence and finally chase her dreams, and for Diana, it’s a reminder that with the right woman, she is capable of wanting more than one night. 💕
The author delivers LGBTQ+ romance where Boston businesswomen colliding with Vermont artists on mountainsides create hottest nights until family business fates pit them against each other, proving that sometimes playing it safe at thirty-five means working at grandmothers’ inns until mountainside collisions inspire chasing dreams. Lacey writes protagonists whose memorable night becomes complicated when CEO promotions require decisions affecting artists’ families. The novel asks whether you can want more than one night when life pits you against each other. 🎨
Why I’m including this: LGBTQ+ romance where when a driven businesswoman from Boston collides with a free-spirited artist on a Vermont mountainside they share a memorable and steamy night, but life soon pits them against each other over the fate of a family business—Emily Janssen prefers to play it safe as at thirty-five she’s still working at the inn her grandmothers own while dreaming of a day when she’s able to support herself fully with her art, and while her friends have all hiked to the summit of the mountain in their hometown of Crescent Falls, Vermont, something has always held Emily back—Diana Devlin has already made it to the top, well almost, as she’s this close to securing the promotion that will put her in line to take over as CEO of her family’s hotel chain when her father retires, and everything is going to plan until an unexpected run-in with an alluring artist on a mountainside throws Diana off course resulting in one of the hottest nights either she or Emily have ever experienced—Emily walks away from their rendezvous feeling inspired to channel some of Diana’s confidence and finally chase her dreams, and for Diana it’s a reminder that with the right woman she is capable of wanting more than one night.
In the first decades of the 21st century, the world is convulsing, its governments mired in gridlock while a patient but unrelenting ecological crisis looms—America is in upheaval, battered by violent weather and extreme politics. Stephen Markley delivers dystopian science fiction where in California in 2013, Tony Pietrus, a scientist studying deposits of undersea methane, receives a death threat, and his fate will become bound to a stunning cast of characters: a broken drug addict, a star advertising strategist, a neurodivergent mathematician, a cunning eco-terrorist, an actor turned religious zealot, and a brazen young activist named Kate Morris, who, in the mountains of Wyoming, begins a project that will alter the course of the decades to come. 🌍From the Gulf Coast to Los Angeles, the Midwest to Washington, DC, their intertwined odysseys unfold against a stark backdrop of accelerating chaos as they summon courage, galvanize a nation, fall to their own fear, and find wild hope in the face of staggering odds—as their stories hurtle toward a spectacular climax, each faces a reckoning: what will they sacrifice to salvage humanity’s last chance at a future? Markley explores what happens when 21st century governments mired in gridlock face patient unrelenting ecological crises while undersea methane scientists receive death threats, examining how a singular achievement, The Deluge is a once-in-a-generation novel that meets the moment as few works of art ever have. 😱
The author delivers dystopian science fiction where convulsing worlds and violent weather create upheaval binding scientists’ fates to stunning casts including drug addicts, advertising strategists, neurodivergent mathematicians, and eco-terrorists, proving that sometimes humanity’s last chance at a future requires summoning courage galvanizing nations despite falling to your own fear. Markley writes intertwined odysseys whose spectacular climax reckonings ask what you’ll sacrifice salvaging futures. The novel asks whether wild hope survives staggering odds when accelerating chaos unfolds. 💔
What makes this essential: Dystopian science fiction where in the first decades of the 21st century the world is convulsing with its governments mired in gridlock while a patient but unrelenting ecological crisis looms—America is in upheaval battered by violent weather and extreme politics—in California in 2013 Tony Pietrus, a scientist studying deposits of undersea methane, receives a death threat and his fate will become bound to a stunning cast of characters: a broken drug addict, a star advertising strategist, a neurodivergent mathematician, a cunning eco-terrorist, an actor turned religious zealot, and a brazen young activist named Kate Morris who in the mountains of Wyoming begins a project that will alter the course of the decades to come—from the Gulf Coast to Los Angeles, the Midwest to Washington DC, their intertwined odysseys unfold against a stark backdrop of accelerating chaos as they summon courage, galvanize a nation, fall to their own fear, and find wild hope in the face of staggering odds—as their stories hurtle toward a spectacular climax each faces a reckoning: what will they sacrifice to salvage humanity’s last chance at a future?
… See the rest of today ‘s Book Picks here on page 3Page 3





