“Termination Shock” by Neal Stephenson – Mother Earth's Final Straw

 

Short Summary

Neal Stephenson seems quite keen on warning us about the potential doom we're bringing on ourselves, at least if his latest novel, Termination Shock, is anything to go by. In it, he tells a story spanning multiple continents and following people of different cultures as they all have to contend with the many ravages brought on by global warming. Meanwhile, a visionary billionaire comes up with a solution to reverse the process, but its consequences might be too much for humanity to bear.

“The Consequences of Fear” by Jacqueline Winspear – The Interred Motive

 

Short Summary

Jacqueline Winspear has forced Maisie Dobbs through a number of war-time trials and murder investigations, cementing her as the best detective in Occupied Europe. In the latest novel of the Maisie Dobbs series, The Consequences of Fear, Maisie is pushed to investigate a dangerous murderer with deep-seated motivations going all the way back to the First World War.

“Crossroads” by Jonathan Franzen – Stitches for Family Relations

 

Short Summary

Jonathan Franzen has, over the years, become a prominent voice in literature when it comes to the exploration, and even dissection of contemporary America. In his latest novel Crossroads he transports us back to 1971 and takes us a on a stationary odyssey examining two generations of the Hildebrandt family, threatening to come apart at the seams. All of its members have ideas of their own about life ought to be lived and where to find happiness, and over the course of a single day everything will be decided.

“Hell Divers” by Nicholas Sansbury Smith – A New Home in the Skies

 

Short Summary

Nicholas Sansbury Smith has joined the ranks of many other authors who imagine a hopeless and post-apocalyptic future for humanity when he published The Hell Divers series, with the first novel aptly-titled Hell Divers. It takes us into a world where the remnants of humanity are forced to live on airships, centuries after the Earth was poisoned through World War III. 

The Hell Divers are the ones keeping it all afloat, risking the plunge back on the surface to scavenge for essentials, and the story follows one such team landing in a zone with tremendous discoveries awaiting them.

“The American Agent” by Jacqueline Winspear – The Silenced Correspondent

 

Jacqueline Winspear has sent Maisie Dobbs chasing after many threads connecting to the Second World War over the course of the series, and in the fifteenth novel, The American Agent, she investigates the strange murder of an American war correspondent during the Blitz in London. 

Though the act is concealed by British authorities, the case finds its way into Maisie's lap, and with the help of an agent from the US Department of Justice, they try to unravel the mystery as death rains upon the country in the form of German bombers.

“The 9th Judgment” by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro – An Internal Strife

 

James Patterson and Maxine Paetro have put the Women's Murder Club through many ordeals, but the one they're facing in The 9th Judgment might just tear them apart. Tracking down two killers – a thief whose plans turned for the worse, and the perpetrator of a heinous shooting – Lindsay Boxer calls upon her club to help her solve cryptic cases lacking in evidence, but it seems someone on the inside is leaking information to the press.

“Arrival” by Jasper T. Scott – Warring Visitors

 

Jasper T. Scott has evidently dedicated a large amount of time to thinking about and exploring many pressing topics in the realm of science-fiction, and in his novel Arrival, he takes us to the midst of a sudden alien invasion. More precisely, we follow the Randall family in their hopeless attempts to find a safe haven as a giant, gravity-defying ship appears from the clouds and sets its course straight for LA.

“The Trust” by Ronald H. Balson – Rotten Family Tree

 

Ronald H. Balson has dragged Liam Taggart through a number of sordid cases, but none hit as close to home as the one he is faced with in The Trust. In this fourth novel of the Liam Taggart and Catherine Lockhart series, the private investigator returns to his childhood home upon his uncle's passing, only to learn the man predicted his own murder and decreed in his last will to postpone the distribution of the inheritance until the killer is found.

“To Die but Once” by Jacqueline Winspear – Profiteers in the Dark

 

Jacqueline Winspear has certainly turned Maisie Dobbs into a recognizable landmark in the modern detective genre, and in the fourteenth book of the series, titled To Die but Once, the beloved heroine returns to action in the months following Britain's declaration of war on Germany. This time she is tasked with tracing the disappearance of a young apprentice who happened to be working on a very sensitive government contract.

“The 8th Confession” by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro – No Safety in Riches nor Poverty

 

James Patterson and Maxine Paetro never seem to run short on ways to test the Women's Murder Club, and in The 8th Confession, they're subjected it to the trials of love sending the ladies after two separate killers. The first one is targeting the wealthiest people in the city, while the second one has murdered a street preacher who might not be nearly as saintly as everyone around him expected.

“The Great Unexpected” by Dan Mooney – No Age Limit on Living

 

Dan Mooney seems to have the rare gift nowadays of being able to look at the brighter side of life, at least if his books are to be trusted. In his novel titled The Great Unexpected, he tells the story of two old men living in a nursing home, who, despite a troublesome start, end up forging a great friendship. They formulate a grand plan to make the perfect escape, and in the process see life as they never did before.

“The Locked Door” by Freida McFadden – Roots of a Lost Innocence

 

Freida McFadden has been quietly writing some exciting and original thrillers in her spare time from being a practicing physician, and The Locked Door is one of her latest offering in the genre. 

It tells the story of Nora, a surgeon and daughter of a serial killer now in jail, who sees her life assaulted from the dark as someone begins to recreate her father's work with the exact same signature.