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Best Sellers

Hardcover Fiction

Week of December 27, 2020

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READY PLAYER TWO
Ernest Cline
Cover of READY PLAYER TWO

READY PLAYER TWO

by Ernest Cline · Ballantine

3 wks at #1 · 3 on list

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The thrilling sequel to the beloved worldwide bestseller Ready Player One, the near-future adventure that inspired the blockbuster Steven Spielberg film. NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE WASHINGTON POST • “The game is on again. . . . A great mix of exciting fantasy and threatening fact.”—The Wall Street Journal AN UNEXPECTED QUEST. TWO WORLDS AT STAKE. ARE YOU READY? Days after winning OASIS founder James Halliday’s contest, Wade Watts makes a discovery that changes everything. Hidden within Halliday’s vaults, waiting for his heir to find, lies a technological advancement that will once again change the world and make the OASIS a thousand times more wondrous—and addictive—than even Wade dreamed possible. With it comes a new riddle, and a new quest—a last Easter egg from Halliday, hinting at a mysterious prize. And an unexpected, impossibly powerful, and dangerous new rival awaits, one who’ll kill millions to get what he wants. Wade’s life and the future of the OASIS are again at stake, but this time the fate of humanity also hangs in the balance. Lovingly nostalgic and wildly original as only Ernest Cline could conceive it, Ready Player Two takes us on another imaginative, fun, action-packed adventure through his beloved virtual universe, and jolts us thrillingly into the future once again.

2
A TIME FOR MERCY
John Grisham

A TIME FOR MERCY

by John Grisham · Doubleday

9 wks on list

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A disgraced corporate attorney ventures into a potentially lethal jungle, on a job no one wants, in this “entertaining page-turner” (USA Today) from the master of the legal thriller. In a plush Virginia office, a rich, angry old man is furiously rewriting his will. With his death just hours away, Troy Phelan wants to send a message to his children, his ex-wives, and his minions—a message that will touch off a vicious legal battle and transform dozens of lives. Because Troy Phelan’s new will names a sole surprise heir to his eleven-billion-dollar fortune: a mysterious woman named Rachel Lane, a missionary living deep in the jungles of Brazil. Enter the lawyers. Nate O’Riley is fresh out of rehab, handpicked for his last job: to find Rachel Lane at any cost. As Phelan’s family circles like vultures in D.C., Nate goes crashing through the Brazilian jungle, entering a world where money means nothing, where death is just one misstep away, and where a woman—pursued by enemies and friends alike—holds a stunning surprise of her own.

3
DEADLY CROSS
James Patterson
Cover of DEADLY CROSS

DEADLY CROSS

by James Patterson · Little, Brown

3 wks on list

NOW THE INSPIRATION FOR THE ORIGINAL SERIES 'CROSS' ON PRIME VIDEO _______________________________________ The twenty-eighth novel in the bestselling Alex Cross series ______________________________ 'No one gets this big without amazing natural storytelling talent - which is what Jim has, in spades. The Alex Cross series proves it.' LEE CHILD, international bestselling author of the Jack Reacher series ______________________________ A scandalous double homicide opens the psychological case files on Alex Cross... When a glamorous socialite and a high school principal are found murdered, the shocking double homicide dominates tabloid headlines. Detective Alex Cross knew both victims well, especially Kay who had been his patient once. And maybe more. Alex's former Metro Homicide Partner tracks the slain principal's final movements to Alabama where Alex investigates Kay's past. They discover that although she had many enemies, all of them needed her alive. The more the investigators push, the more resistance they find, and Alex is left facing a desperate choice between breaking trust and losing his way.

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THE RETURN
Nicholas Sparks
Cover of THE RETURN

THE RETURN

by Nicholas Sparks · Grand Central

11 wks on list

A house full of love. A house full of secrets. #1 New York Times bestselling author Nicholas Sparks is back with his best novel yet. * Trevor Benson never intended to return to North Carolina. But here he is, back where it all began. Trevor found himself unable to resist the call home when he inherited a tumbledown cabin from his grandfather. He's come back to live the simple life but nothing here is simple. There's Callie, the sullen local teenager who seems to know more than she should about Trevor's grandfather's death. And there's Natalie, the deputy sheriff intent on making a point and lingering in Trevor's mind long after she's left his porch. In a bid to unravel Natalie and Callie's secrets and to find out what really happened to his grandfather, Trevor is about to learn more than he's bargained for - that sometimes, in order to move forward, we have to return to the place where it all began. Praise for Nicholas Sparks: 'A fiercely romantic and touching tale' Heat 'An A-grade romantic read' OK! 'Pulls at the heartstrings' Sunday Times 'An absorbing page-turner' Daily Mail 'This one won't leave a dry eye' Daily Mirror

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THE VANISHING HALF
Brit Bennett
Cover of THE VANISHING HALF

THE VANISHING HALF

by Brit Bennett · Riverhead

28 wks on list

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ONE OF BARACK OBAMA'S FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE YEAR NAMED A BEST BOOK OF 2020 BY THE NEW YORK TIMES • THE WASHINGTON POST • NPR • PEOPLE • TIME MAGAZINE • VANITY FAIR • GLAMOUR New York Times Readers Pick: 100 Best Books of the 21st Century 2021 WOMEN'S PRIZE FINALIST “Bennett’s tone and style recalls James Baldwin and Jacqueline Woodson, but it’s especially reminiscent of Toni Morrison’s 1970 debut novel, The Bluest Eye.” —Kiley Reid, Wall Street Journal “A story of absolute, universal timelessness . . . For any era, it's an accomplished, affecting novel. For this moment, it’s piercing, subtly wending its way toward questions about who we are and who we want to be….” – Entertainment Weekly From The New York Times-bestselling author of The Mothers, a stunning new novel about twin sisters, inseparable as children, who ultimately choose to live in two very different worlds, one black and one white. The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical. But after growing up together in a small, southern black community and running away at age sixteen, it's not just the shape of their daily lives that is different as adults, it's everything: their families, their communities, their racial identities. Many years later, one sister lives with her black daughter in the same southern town she once tried to escape. The other secretly passes for white, and her white husband knows nothing of her past. Still, even separated by so many miles and just as many lies, the fates of the twins remain intertwined. What will happen to the next generation, when their own daughters' storylines intersect? Weaving together multiple strands and generations of this family, from the Deep South to California, from the 1950s to the 1990s, Brit Bennett produces a story that is at once a riveting, emotional family story and a brilliant exploration of the American history of passing. Looking well beyond issues of race, The Vanishing Half considers the lasting influence of the past as it shapes a person's decisions, desires, and expectations, and explores some of the multiple reasons and realms in which people sometimes feel pulled to live as something other than their origins. As with her New York Times-bestselling debut The Mothers, Brit Bennett offers an engrossing page-turner about family and relationships that is immersive and provocative, compassionate and wise.

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DAYLIGHT
David Baldacci
Cover of DAYLIGHT

DAYLIGHT

by David Baldacci · Grand Central

4 wks on list

In this gripping mystery, an FBI Agent’s search for her sister clashes with a military investigator's high-stakes case, leading them both deep into a global conspiracy—from which neither of them will escape unscathed. For many long years, Atlee Pine was tormented by uncertainty after her twin sister, Mercy, was abducted at the age of six and never seen again. Now, just as Atlee is pressured to end her investigation into Mercy's disappearance, she finally gets her most promising breakthrough yet: the identity of her sister's kidnapper, Ito Vincenzo. With time running out, Atlee and her assistant Carol Blum race to Vincenzo's last known location in Trenton, New Jersey—and unknowingly stumble straight into John Puller's case, blowing his arrest during a drug ring investigation involving a military installation. Stunningly, Pine and Puller's joint investigation uncovers a connection between Vincenzo's family and a breathtaking scheme that strikes at the very heart of global democracy. Peeling back the layers of deceit, lies and cover-ups, Atlee finally discovers the truth about what happened to Mercy. And that truth will shock Pine to her very core.

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

WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING

by Delia Owens · Putnam

119 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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THE LAW OF INNOCENCE
Michael Connelly
Cover of THE LAW OF INNOCENCE

THE LAW OF INNOCENCE

by Michael Connelly · Little, Brown

5 wks on list

For the first time in one volume, the three novels that introduced the Lincoln Lawyer, Mickey Haller, who learns that "There is no client as scary as an innocent man." The Lincoln Lawyer For Mickey Haller, the law is rarely about guilt or innocence, it's about negotiation and manipulation. When he gets hired by a Beverly Hills rich boy arrested for assault, Mickey sees a franchise case: a long, expensive trial with maximum billable hours-until it puts him face-to-face with pure evil and with a man who may truly be innocent. For a lawyer who has always gone for the easy score, getting justice means risking everything. The Brass Verdict When a former colleague is murdered, Mickey inherits his biggest case yet: defending a Hollywood producer accused of killing his wife and her lover. Haller scrambles to prepare for trial, and learns that the killer may be coming for him next. Enter LAPD Detective Harry Bosch, who will do whatever it takes to crack the case, including using Mickey as bait. As danger quickly mounts, these two loners realize that their only chance is to work together. The Reversal Mickey is recruited to prosecute the high-profile retrial of Jason Jessup, a convicted child killer, exonerated after twenty-four years by new DNA evidence. Convinced Jessup is guilty, Haller brings in Harry Bosch as his investigator. With their key witness missing, and the odds and evidence against them, Bosch and Haller must nail a sadistic killer before he kills again. Together, these three exhilarating, fiercely paced novels show that "Connelly is a master...once he has you on board, turning pages, you won't want to climb off" (Boston Globe).

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THE AWAKENING
Nora Roberts
Cover of THE AWAKENING

THE AWAKENING

by Nora Roberts · St. Martin's

3 wks on list

#1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts begins a new trilogy of adventure, romance, and magick in The Awakening. In the realm of Talamh, a teenage warrior named Keegan emerges from a lake holding a sword—representing both power and the terrifying responsibility to protect the Fey. In another realm known as Philadelphia, a young woman has just discovered she possesses a treasure of her own... When Breen Kelly was a girl, her father would tell her stories of magical places. Now she’s an anxious twentysomething mired in student debt and working a job she hates. But one day she stumbles upon a shocking discovery: her mother has been hiding an investment account in her name. It has been funded by her long-lost father—and it’s worth nearly four million dollars. This newfound fortune would be life-changing for anyone. But little does Breen know that when she uses some of the money to journey to Ireland, it will unlock mysteries she couldn’t have imagined. Here, she will begin to understand why she kept seeing that silver-haired, elusive man, why she imagined his voice in her head saying Come home, Breen Siobhan. It’s time you came home. Why she dreamed of dragons. And where her true destiny lies—through a portal in Galway that takes her to a land of faeries and mermaids, to a man named Keegan, and to the courage in her own heart that will guide her through a powerful, dangerous destiny...

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THE SENTINEL
Lee Child and Andrew Child
Cover of THE SENTINEL

THE SENTINEL

by Lee Child and Andrew Child · Delacorte Press

7 wks on list

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Don’t miss the hit streaming series Reacher! Jack Reacher is back! The “utterly addictive” (The New York Times) series continues as acclaimed author Lee Child teams up with his brother, Andrew Child, fellow thriller writer extraordinaire. “One of the many great things about Jack Reacher is that he’s larger than life while remaining relatable and believable. The Sentinel shows that two Childs are even better than one.”—James Patterson As always, Reacher has no particular place to go, and all the time in the world to get there. One morning he ends up in a town near Pleasantville, Tennessee. But there’s nothing pleasant about the place. In broad daylight Reacher spots a hapless soul walking into an ambush. “It was four against one” . . . so Reacher intervenes, with his own trademark brand of conflict resolution. The man he saves is Rusty Rutherford, an unassuming IT manager, recently fired after a cyberattack locked up the town’s data, records, information . . . and secrets. Rutherford wants to stay put, look innocent, and clear his name. Reacher is intrigued. There’s more to the story. The bad guys who jumped Rutherford are part of something serious and deadly, involving a conspiracy, a cover-up, and murder—all centered on a mousy little guy in a coffee-stained shirt who has no idea what he’s up against. Rule one: if you don’t know the trouble you’re in, keep Reacher by your side.

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FORTUNE AND GLORY
Janet Evanovich
Cover of FORTUNE AND GLORY

FORTUNE AND GLORY

by Janet Evanovich · Atria

6 wks on list

Fortune and Glory is the highly anticipated 27th book in Janet Evanovich's No.1 New York Times bestselling Stephanie Plum series!

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ANXIOUS PEOPLE
Fredrik Backman
Cover of ANXIOUS PEOPLE

ANXIOUS PEOPLE

by Fredrik Backman · Atria

14 wks on list

#1 New York Times bestseller From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove and “writer of astonishing depth” (The Washington Times) comes a poignant comedy about a crime that never took place, a would-be bank robber who disappears into thin air, and eight extremely anxious strangers who find they have more in common than they ever imagined. Viewing an apartment normally doesn’t turn into a life-or-death situation, but this particular open house becomes just that when a failed bank robber bursts in and takes everyone in the apartment hostage. As the pressure mounts, the eight strangers begin slowly opening up to one another and reveal long-hidden truths. First is Zara, a wealthy bank director who has been too busy to care about anyone else until tragedy changed her life. Now, she’s obsessed with visiting open houses to see how ordinary people live—and, perhaps, to set an old wrong to right. Then there’s Roger and Anna-Lena, an Ikea-addicted retired couple who are on a never-ending hunt for fixer-uppers to hide the fact that they don’t know how to fix their own failing marriage. Julia and Ro are a young lesbian couple and soon-to-be parents who are nervous about their chances for a successful life together since they can’t agree on anything. And there’s Estelle, an eighty-year-old woman who has lived long enough to be unimpressed by a masked bank robber waving a gun in her face. And despite the story she tells them all, Estelle hasn’t really come to the apartment to view it for her daughter, and her husband really isn’t outside parking the car. As police surround the premises and television channels broadcast the hostage situation live, the tension mounts and even deeper secrets are slowly revealed. Before long, the robber must decide which is the more terrifying prospect: going out to face the police, or staying in the apartment with this group of impossible people. Rich with Fredrik Backman’s “pitch-perfect dialogue and an unparalleled understanding of human nature” (Shelf Awareness), Anxious People’s whimsical plot serves up unforgettable insights into the human condition and a gentle reminder to be compassionate to all the anxious people we encounter every day.

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THE MIDNIGHT LIBRARY
Matt Haig
Cover of THE MIDNIGHT LIBRARY

THE MIDNIGHT LIBRARY

by Matt Haig · Viking Press

3 wks on list

Between life and death there is a library. When Nora Seed finds herself in the Midnight Library, she has a chance to make things right. Up until now, her life has been full of misery and regret. She feels she has let everyone down, including herself. But things are about to change. The books in the Midnight Library enable Nora to live as if she had done things differently. With the help of an old friend, she can now undo every one of her regrets as she tries to work out her perfect life. But things aren’t always what she imagined they’d be, and soon her choices place the library and herself in extreme danger. Before time runs out, she must answer the ultimate question: what is the best way to live?

14
NEW
HAMNET
Maggie O'Farrell
Cover of HAMNET

HAMNET

by Maggie O'Farrell · Knopf

1 wks on list
15
NEW
THE EVENING AND THE MORNING
Ken Follett

THE EVENING AND THE MORNING

by Ken Follett · Viking Press

International No.1 bestseller Ken Follett returns with The Evening and The Morning, a thrilling and addictive novel from the master of historical fiction. It is 997 CE, the end of the Dark Ages, and in England one man's ambition to make his abbey a centre of learning will take the reader on an epic journey into a historical past rich with ambition and rivalry, death and birth, love and hate. Thirty years ago, Ken Follett published his most popular novel, The Pillars of The Earth, which has sold over 27 million copies worldwide. Now, this novel, the prequel, will take the readers on an epic journey that will end where The Pillars of The Earth begins . . .

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