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Week of October 20, 2019

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THE WATER DANCER
Ta-Nehisi Coates
Cover of THE WATER DANCER

THE WATER DANCER

by Ta-Nehisi Coates · One World

2 wks at #1 · 2 on list

"Young Hiram Walker was born into bondage--and lost his mother and all memory of her when he was a child--but he is also gifted with a mysterious power. Hiram almost drowns when he crashes a carriage into a river, but is saved from the depths by a force he doesn't understand, a blue light that lifts him up and lands him a mile away. This strange brush with death forces a new urgency on Hiram's private rebellion. Spurred on by his improvised plantation family, Thena, his chosen mother, a woman of few words and many secrets, and Sophia, a young woman fighting her own war even as she and Hiram fall in love, he becomes determined to escape the only home he's ever known. So begins an unexpected journey into the covert war on slavery that takes Hiram from the corrupt grandeur of Virginia's proud plantations to desperate guerrilla cells in the wilderness, from the coffin of the deep South to dangerously utopic movements in the North. Even as he's enlisted in the underground war between slavers and the enslaved, all Hiram wants is to return to the Walker Plantation to free the family he left behind--but to do so, he must first master his magical gift and reconstruct the story of his greatest loss. This is a bracingly original vision of the world of slavery, written with the narrative force of a great adventure. Driven by the author's bold imagination and striking ability to bring readers deep into the interior lives of his brilliantly rendered characters, The Water Dancer is the story of America's oldest struggle--the struggle to tell the truth--from one of our most exciting thinkers and beautiful writers"--

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THE INSTITUTE
Stephen King
Cover of THE INSTITUTE

THE INSTITUTE

by Stephen King · Scribner

4 wks on list

SOON TO BE A MAJOR SERIES FROM MGM + NO ONE HAS EVER ESCAPED FROM THE INSTITUTE. Luke Ellis, a super-smart twelve-year-old with an exceptional gift, is the latest in a long line of kids abducted and taken to a secret government facility, hidden deep in the forest in Maine. Here, kids with special talents - telekinesis and telepathy - like Luke's new friends Kalisha, Nick and Iris, are subjected to a series of experiments. There seems to be no hope of escape. Until Luke teams up with an even younger boy whose powers of telepathy are off the scale. Meanwhile, far away in a small town in South Carolina, former cop Tim Jamieson, looking for the quiet life, has taken a job working for the local sheriff. He doesn't know he's about to take on the biggest case of his career . . . THERE'S ONLY ONE WAY OUT. 'It does everything you'd expect of a masterpiece - and it is one' Sunday Express 'Hums and crackles with delicious unease' Independent 'Captivating' The Sunday Times 'An absorbing thriller' Mail on Sunday 'An epic tale of childhood betrayal and hope regained... an immersive tale full of suspense and thrills that will keep readers up late at night racing towards a heartbreaking yet glorious finale... a dazzling achievement' Daily Express

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WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING
Delia Owens
Cover of WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING

WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING

by Delia Owens · Putnam

57 wks on list

NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE—The #1 New York Times bestselling worldwide sensation with more than 18 million copies sold, hailed by The New York Times Book Review as “a painfully beautiful first novel that is at once a murder mystery, a coming-of-age narrative and a celebration of nature.” New York Times Readers Pick: 100 Best Books of the 21st Century For years, rumors of the “Marsh Girl” have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life—until the unthinkable happens. Where the Crawdads Sing is at once an exquisite ode to the natural world, a heartbreaking coming-of-age story, and a surprising tale of possible murder. Owens reminds us that we are forever shaped by the children we once were, and that we are all subject to the beautiful and violent secrets that nature keeps.

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BLOODY GENIUS
John Sandford
Cover of BLOODY GENIUS

BLOODY GENIUS

by John Sandford · Putnam

1 wks on list

Virgil Flowers will have to watch his back – and his mouth – as he investigates a culture war turned deadly in this tense page-turner from the master of pulse-pounding thrillers. At the local state university, renowned Professor Quill goes to the library one night – and winds up dead. With no suspects, no prints, no murder weapon – not even a time of death – Virgil Flowers is brought in to investigate. Flowers discovers that, prior to his death, Quill had sparked a feud between two departments at the university. Each side carries their views to extremes, and Flowers soon realises he's dealing with people who, on this particular issue, are functionally crazy. Somewhere among this group of diametrically opposed zealots lurks a murderer. But with no leads, little evidence and the media breathing down his neck, can Flowers find him before he kills again? * * * Praise for John Sandford and the Virgil Flowers novels * * * 'John Sandford knows all there is to know about detonating the gut-level shocks of a good thriller' The New York Times Book Review 'Sandford has always been at the top of any list of great mystery writers. His writing and the appeal of his lead character are as fresh as ever' The Huffington Post 'Sandford is consistently brilliant' Cleveland Plain Dealer ‘Along the way to the satisfying ending, Virgil displays the rough humor and rough justice that make him such an appealing character’ Publishers Weekly on Deep Freeze ‘A knowing portrait of small-town life layered into a very well plotted mystery. Virgil understands that, in small towns, no one ever outgrows high school... One of the very best novels in a superior series’ Booklist (starred review) on Deep Freeze ‘Add a gripping storyline, a generous helping of exquisitely conceived characters and laugh-out-loud humor that produce explosive guffaws, not muted chuckles, and you’re in for the usual late-night, don’t-even-think-of-stopping treat when Flowers hits town’ Richmond Times-Dispatch on Deep Freeze ‘An outstanding novel’ Publishers Weekly (starred review) on Escape Clause ‘Perfect entertainment’ Kirkus Reviews on Escape Clause

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THE TESTAMENTS
Margaret Atwood
Cover of THE TESTAMENTS

THE TESTAMENTS

by Margaret Atwood · Nan A. Talese/Doubleday

4 wks on list

En esta brillante secuela de El cuento de la criada, la aclamada autora Margaret Atwood responde a las preguntas que han cautivado a los lectores durante décadas. Novela ganadora del Man Booker Prize 2019 Subo y penetro en la oscuridad del interior; o en la luz.» Cuando las puertas de la furgoneta se cerraron de golpe tras Offred al final de El cuento de la criada, los lectores no tenían forma de saber cuál iba a ser su futuro: la libertad, la prisión o la muerte. Con la publicación de Los testamentos, la espera ha terminado. Margaret Atwood recupera la historia quince años después de que Offred se adentrara en lo desconocido, con los testimonios asombrosos de tres narradoras del mundo de Gilead. «Queridos lectores y lectoras: vuestras preguntas sobre Gilead y su funcionamiento interno han sido la fuente de inspiración de este libro. ¡Bueno, casi todo! La otra es el mundo en el que vivimos.»- Margaret Atwood ENGLISH DESCRIPTION #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER WINNER OF THE BOOKER PRIZE The Testaments is a modern masterpiece, a powerful novel that can be read on its own or as a companion to Margaret Atwood’s classic, The Handmaid’s Tale. More than fifteen years after the events of The Handmaid's Tale, the theocratic regime of the Republic of Gilead maintains its grip on power, but there are signs it is beginning to rot from within. At this crucial moment, the lives of three radically different women converge, with potentially explosive results. Two have grown up as part of the first generation to come of age in the new order. The testimonies of these two young women are joined by a third: Aunt Lydia. Her complex past and uncertain future unfold in surprising and pivotal ways. With The Testaments, Margaret Atwood opens up the innermost workings of Gilead, as each woman is forced to come to terms with who she is, and how far she will go for what she believes.

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VINCE FLYNN: LETHAL AGENT
Kyle Mills
Cover of VINCE FLYNN: LETHAL AGENT

VINCE FLYNN: LETHAL AGENT

by Kyle Mills · Emily Bestler/Atria

2 wks on list

In the next Mitch Rapp thriller, a bioterrorist threat threatens an America already weakened by internal divisions. The head of ISIS, Sayid Halabi, survived Mitch Rapp’s attack on him, but while he convalesced, he plotted. Once healed, Halabi kidnaps a brilliant Yemeni microbiologist and forces him to produce anthrax. ISIS releases videos of his progress and uses them to stir up hysteria in the States in the midst of an extremely divisive presidential election. ISIS contracts with a Mexican drug cartel to smuggle the anthrax into the US, but the anthrax is really just a feint. Unknown to anyone but Halabi’s team, he also kidnapped people infected with the virus with the plan to use the drug cartels’ human trafficking capability to smuggle these infected people into the US. If he succeeds, it would trigger a pandemic that would kill untold millions. Mitch and Irene Kennedy are, of course, on the case. But their ability to act is weakened by the fact that the man who is likely to be the next president despises them. When the DEA stumbles upon a shipment of anthrax coming into California, though, the current president has no choice but to give Mitch carte blanche to go after both the smugglers and ISIS. Mitch must infiltrate the drug cartel that has partnered with Halabi in a black ops mission compromised by political maneuvers and threatened by an unprecedented bioterrorism attack. *Praise for RED WAR* 'Outstanding . . . Mills is writing at the top of his game in this nail-biter' Publishers Weekly (starred review) 'Kyle Mills continues his impressive run of must-read thrillers with RED WAR, a timely, explosive novel that shows yet again why Mitch Rapp is the best hero the thriller genre has to offer. . . and why Mills is the only writer capable of filling the enormous void left by Vince Flynn' The Real Book Spy 'Events lead to a dramatic, you-got-your-money's-worth conclusion. Good, escapist fun' Kirkus Reviews 'All action from start to finish . . . a page-turner all the way up to the climatic finale that you just can’t put down' Red Carpet Crash

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CILKA'S JOURNEY
Heather Morris
Cover of CILKA'S JOURNEY

CILKA'S JOURNEY

by Heather Morris · St. Martin's

1 wks on list

Cilka's Journey is the million copy bestselling sequel to the phenomenon The Tattooist of Auschwitz. Don't miss the conclusion to The Tattooist of Auschwitz Trilogy, Three Sisters. Available now. 'She was the bravest person I ever met' Lale Sokolov, The Tattooist of Auschwitz In 1942 Cilka Klein is just sixteen years old when she is taken to Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp. The Commandant at Birkenau, Schwarzhuber, notices her long beautiful hair, and forces her separation from the other women prisoners. Cilka learns quickly that power, even unwillingly given, equals survival. After liberation, Cilka is charged as a collaborator by the Russians and sent to a desolate, brutal prison camp in Siberia known as Vorkuta, inside the Arctic Circle. Innocent, imprisoned once again, Cilka faces challenges both new and horribly familiar, each day a battle for survival. Cilka befriends a woman doctor, and learns to nurse the ill in the camp, struggling to care for them under unimaginable conditions. And when she tends to a man called Alexandr, Cilka finds that despite everything, there is room in her heart for love. Cilka's Journey is a powerful testament to the triumph of the human will. It will move you to tears, but it will also leave you astonished and uplifted by one woman's fierce determination to survive, against all odds. - - - - - - - - 'Her truly incredible story is one to be read by everyone.' Sun 'Cilka's extraordinary courage in the face of evil and her determination to survive against the odds will stay with you long after you've finished reading this heartrending book.' Sunday Express 'Her courage and determination to survive makes for a heartrending read.' Daily Mirror

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FULL THROTTLE
Joe Hill
Cover of FULL THROTTLE

FULL THROTTLE

by Joe Hill · Morrow

1 wks on list

In this masterful collection of short fiction, Joe Hill dissects timeless human struggles in thirteen relentless tales of supernatural suspense, including "In The Tall Grass," one of two stories co-written with Stephen King, basis for the terrifying feature film from Netflix. A little door that opens to a world of fairy tale wonders becomes the blood-drenched stomping ground for a gang of hunters in "Faun." A grief-stricken librarian climbs behind the wheel of an antique Bookmobile to deliver fresh reads to the dead in "Late Returns." In "By the Silver Water of Lake Champlain," two young friends stumble on the corpse of a plesiosaur at the water's edge, a discovery that forces them to confront the inescapable truth of their own mortality . . . and other horrors that lurk in the water's shivery depths. And tension shimmers in the sweltering heat of the Nevada desert as a faceless trucker finds himself caught in a sinister dance with a tribe of motorcycle outlaws in "Throttle," co-written with Stephen King. Featuring two previously unpublished stories, and a brace of shocking chillers, Full Throttle is a darkly imagined odyssey through the complexities of the human psyche. Hypnotic and disquieting, it mines our tormented secrets, hidden vulnerabilities, and basest fears, and demonstrates this exceptional talent at his very best.

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IMAGINARY FRIEND
Stephen Chbosky
Cover of IMAGINARY FRIEND

IMAGINARY FRIEND

by Stephen Chbosky · Grand Central

1 wks on list

'Astonishing ... Genius ... A masterpiece' EMMA WATSON 'Haunting and thrilling' JOHN GREEN, author of THE FAULT IN OUR STARS * * * * * IMAGINE... Leaving your house in the middle of the night. Knowing your mother is doing her best, but she's just as scared as you. IMAGINE... Starting a new school, making friends. Seeing how happy it makes your mother. Hearing a voice, calling out to you. IMAGINE... Following the signs, into the woods. Going missing for six days. Remembering nothing about what happened. IMAGINE... Something that will change everything... And having to save everyone you love. * * * * * 'Unputdownable ... You'll fall in love with these characters. That's why they stay with you, like a haunting.' R. J. PALACIO, author of WONDER 'An extraordinary book. The pages practically turn themselves.' GREER HENDRICKS & SARAH PEKKANEN, authors of THE WIFE BETWEEN US 'A fearsome, remarkably ambitious novel that breaks through the boundaries of the genre to become epic - in all the best senses of the word." LINCOLN CHILD, #1 New York Times bestseller 'A simply extraordinary reading experience. Utterly unique. A tremendous read, every bit worth the wait.' BLAKE CROUCH, author of DARK MATTER

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A MRS. MIRACLE CHRISTMAS
Debbie Macomber
Cover of A MRS. MIRACLE CHRISTMAS

A MRS. MIRACLE CHRISTMAS

by Debbie Macomber · Ballantine

1 wks on list

NOW A HALLMARK CHRISTMAS MOVIE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Mrs. Miracle shows an ordinary family that they are blessed beyond belief in this uplifting holiday tale from Debbie Macomber, the queen of Christmas stories. As the holiday season begins, Laurel McCullough could use some good news. She and her husband, Zach, have been praying for a baby that seems more and more like an impossible dream, and they’ve had to move in with her beloved grandmother, Helen, who’s having trouble taking care of herself. But when Laurel contacts a local home-care organization for help, there are no caregivers available. Then Mrs. Miracle appears at the door. No stranger to lending a helping hand to a family in need, Mrs. Miracle reveals herself to be nothing short of a godsend. Helen’s even convinced she’s an angel! And Laurel can’t help but notice that with Mrs. Miracle’s companionship, Helen is noticeably happier and more engaged, decorating the family Christmas tree and setting up the nativity. In the meantime, Laurel and Zach encounter curious signs, all pointing toward the arrival of a special baby. As Christmas approaches, there appears to be even more to Mrs. Miracle than meets the eye. In a classic tale of Debbie Macomber’s signature seasonal magic, Laurel, Zach, and Helen experience a holiday of heavenly proportions.

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THE GIRL WHO LIVED TWICE
David Lagercrantz
Cover of THE GIRL WHO LIVED TWICE

THE GIRL WHO LIVED TWICE

by David Lagercrantz · Knopf

6 wks on list

The sixth DRAGON TATTOO story--more than 90 million copies sold worldwide--the crime-fiction phenomenon featuring Lisbeth Salander. Book four in the series, The Girl in the Spider's Web, is now a major film from Sony Pictures starring Claire Foy--out in November 2018. "Rest easy, Lisbeth Salander fans--our punk hacker heroine is in good hands." --Patrick Ryan, USA Today "Salander and Blomkvist are just as compelling as ever." --Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times "Not only do the matter-of-fact style and intricate plotting and sexy, chilling atmosphere feel very true to the original novels, but Lagercrantz transcends the source material." --Benjamin Percy, Esquire "Elegantly paced, slickly executed, and properly thrilling." --Alison Flood, The Observer

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THE ORACLE
Jonathan Cahn
Cover of THE ORACLE

THE ORACLE

by Jonathan Cahn · Front Line

5 wks on list

New York Times and USA Today Best Seller! Discover the amazing secret of the ages...and the mystery of your life! The Oracle will reveal the mystery behind everything...the past, the present, current events, even what is yet to come! Open the seven doors of revelation—and prepare to be blown away! Jonathan Cahn, author of the New York Times best sellers The Harbinger, The Mystery of the Shemitah, The Book of Mysteries, and The Paradigm, now unveils The Oracle, in which he opens up the Jubilean mysteries and a revelation so big that it lies behind everything from the rise and fall of nations and empires (even America), to the current events of our day, to the future, to end-time prophecy, and much more. Could an ancient prophecy and a mysterious ordinance given in a Middle Eastern desert over three thousand years ago be determining the events of our day? Could some of the most famous people of modern history and current events be secretly linked to this mystery-even a modern president of the United States? Could this ancient revelation pinpoint the events of our times down to the year, month, and day of their occurring? Could a mysterious phenomenon be manifesting on the world stage on an exact timetable determined from ancient times? Could these manifestations have altered-and now be altering-the course of world events? Jonathan Cahn takes the reader on a journey to find the man called the Oracle. One by one each of the Jubilean mysteries will be revealed through the giving of a vision. The Oracle will uncover the mysteries of The Stranger, The Lost City, The Man With the Measuring Line, The Land of Seven Wells, The Birds, The Number of the End, The Man in the Black Robe, The Prophet's Song, The Matrix of Years, The Day of the Lions, The Awakening of the Dragon, and much more. The reader will discover the ancient scrolls that contain the appointed words that have determined the course of world history from the onset of modern times up to our day. The revelation is so big that it will involve and open up the mysteries of everything and everyone from Mark Twain to Moses, from King Nebuchadnezzar to Donald Trump, from the fall of empires to the rise of America, from a mystery hidden in a desert cave to another in an ancient scroll, from the palace of the Persian Empire to the US Senate, from the Summer of Love to the Code of Babylon, and much, much more. Ultimately the Oracle will reveal the secret that lies behind end-time prophecy and the mystery of the end of the age. As with The Harbinger and The Book of Mysteries, Cahn reveals the mysteries through a narrative. A traveler is given seven keys; each will open up one of seven doors. Behind each door lies a stream of mysteries. The reader will be taken on a journey of angels and prophetic revelations waiting to be discovered behind each of the seven doors-the ancient secrets that lie behind the world-changing events of modern times-and revelations of what is yet to come. Hailed as a mind-blowing masterpiece, The Oracle will reveal mysteries that are absolutely real, amazing, stunning, mind-blowing, and life-changing. Prepare to be blown away. Also Available in Spanish ISBN-13: 978-1-62999-267-9 E-Book ISBN: 978-1-62999-268-6

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RED AT THE BONE
Jacqueline Woodson
Cover of RED AT THE BONE

RED AT THE BONE

by Jacqueline Woodson · Riverhead

3 wks on list

THE TIMES '100 BEST SUMMER READS' NEW YORK TIMES TOP 10 BESTSELLER LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE 2020 'Sublime' Candice Carty-Williams 'An epic in miniature' Tayari Jones 'A banger' Ta-Nehisi Coates 'Generous and big-hearted' Brit Bennett 'A true spell of a book' Ocean Vuong 'A proclamation' R.O. Kwon 'A little masterpiece' Paula Hawkins 'I adored this book' Elizabeth MacNeal 'Pure poetry' Observer 'A sharply focused gem' Sunday Times 'Will remind you why you love reading' Stylist 'Haunting' Guardian 'A wonderful, tragic, inspiring story' Metro 'Prose that sings off the page... Gorgeous' Mail on Sunday 'A nuanced portrait of shifting family relationships' Financial Times 'As seductive as a Prince bop' O, The Oprah Magazine 'Razor-sharp' Vanity Fair 'Dazzling... With urgent, vital insights into questions of class, gender, race, history, queerness and sex' New York Times An unexpected teenage pregnancy brings together two families from different social classes, and exposes the private hopes, disappointments and longings that can bind or divide us. From the New York Times-bestselling and National Book Award-winning author of Another Brooklyn and Brown Girl Dreaming. Brooklyn, 2001. It is the evening of sixteen-year-old Melody's coming of age ceremony in her grandparents' brownstone. Watched lovingly by her relatives and friends, making her entrance to the music of Prince, she wears a special custom-made dress - the very same dress that was sewn for a different wearer, Melody's mother, for a celebration that ultimately never took place. Unfurling the history of Melody's family - from the 1921 Tulsa race massacre to post 9/11 New York - Red at the Bone explores sexual desire, identity, class, and the life-altering facts of parenthood, as it looks at the ways in which young people must so often make fateful decisions about their lives before they have even begun to figure out who they are and what they want to be. *** ONE OF THE BOOKS OF THE YEAR FOR: New York Times; Washington Post; Time; USA Today; O, The Oprah Magazine; Elle; Good Housekeeping; Esquire; NPR; New York Public Library; Library Journal; Kirkus; BookRiot; She Reads; The Undefeated ***

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THE SECRETS WE KEPT
Lara Prescott
Cover of THE SECRETS WE KEPT

THE SECRETS WE KEPT

by Lara Prescott · Knopf

A thrilling tale of secretaries turned spies, of love and duty, and of sacrifice--inspired by the true story of the CIA plot to infiltrate the hearts and minds of Soviet Russia, not with propaganda, but with the greatest love story of the twentieth century: Doctor Zhivago. At the height of the Cold War, two secretaries are pulled out of the typing pool at the CIA and given the assignment of a lifetime. Their mission: to smuggle Doctor Zhivago out of the USSR, where no one dare publish it, and help Pasternak's magnum opus make its way into print around the world. Glamorous and sophisticated Sally Forrester is a seasoned spy who has honed her gift for deceit all over the world--using her magnetism and charm to pry secrets out of powerful men. Irina is a complete novice, and under Sally's tutelage quickly learns how to blend in, make drops, and invisibly ferry classified documents. The Secrets We Kept combines a legendary literary love story--the decades-long affair between Pasternak and his mistress and muse, Olga Ivinskaya, who was sent to the Gulag and inspired Zhivago's heroine, Lara--with a narrative about two women empowered to lead lives of extraordinary intrigue and risk. From Pasternak's country estate outside Moscow to the brutalities of the Gulag, from Washington, D.C. to Paris and Milan, The Secrets We Kept captures a watershed moment in the history of literature--told with soaring emotional intensity and captivating historical detail. And at the center of this unforgettable debut is the powerful belief that a piece of art can change the world.

Historical bestseller data sourced from the New York Times Book Review, archived by Hawes Publications.