GORGEOUSLY ATMOSPHERIC, SPOOKY novel from Graham Joyce. Is it existential mystery? Horror? A gem no matter what. B PLUS

THE SILENT LAND
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
2011

JUICY 16TH-CENTURY ROYALTY saga; not the Tudors for a change, but Juana of Castile. Great characterizations! B PLUS

REIGN OF MADNESS
Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated
2011

INTRIGUING ALTERNATE HISTORY posits a world in which the Hitler-Chamberlain peace talks went differently. SOLID B

WORLD WAR TWO WILL NOT TAKE PLACE
Severn House Publishers Ltd
2011

LATEST FLAVIA DE LUCE mystery: the best yet! A must for fans of edgy 11-year-old heroines, English manor houses. B PLUS

A RED HERRING WITHOUT MUSTARD
Delacorte Press
2011

WELL-CRAFTED CAMPUS THRILLER with glitz: GOSSIP GIRL meets THE SECRET HISTORY, maybe? Readable, engaging. B PLUS

THE SIXES
Harper
2011

FAMOUSLY RECLUSIVE J.D. Salinger’s biography attempted; not much personality, but interesting military stuff. SOLID B

J. D. SALINGER: A LIFE
Random House Publishing Group
2011

DISTINGUISHED BIBLICAL SCHOLAR Bart Ehrman’s evidence-based challenge to the Christian canon’s authenticity.

SCREAMINGLY FUNNY ESSAYS, cute and goofy drawings, and other offbeat humor from comedian Demetri Martin. B PLUS

THIS IS A BOOK
Grand Central Publishing
2011

OLD-SCHOOL ENGLISH MANOR-HOUSE family saga done with deftness and punch. Break out the bonbons and Kleenex! SOLID B

THE LEGACY
HarperCollins Publishers
2011

JAYCEE DUGARD’S MEMOIR of her abduction and 18 years of captivity is terrifyingly candid, tough to read. SOLID B

A STOLEN LIFE: A MEMOIR
Simon & Schuster
2011