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MURDER IN GREASEPAINT by Whiskey Leavins

August 29, 2022

HOMICIDE AT A CLOWN COLLEGE sets police detective Rock Cobbler on a hunt for a killer, and on a deep dive into clowndom’s deadly secrets. Great combo of quirky comedy and a tightly plotted mystery. B PLUS

MURDER IN GREASEPAINT: A ROCK COBBLER CASE
Whiskey Leavins
2022

Grade: B PLUS

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CALLING FOR A BLANKET DANCE by Oscar Hokeah

August 27, 2022

AN EXTENDED KIOWA/COMANCHE/MEXICAN FAMILY finds ways to mend its rifts and build a future in this extraordinary, engrossing novel. Told in a chorus of unforgettable voices, it spins a powerful story of Indigenous life in Oklahoma. SOLID A

CALLING FOR A BLANKET DANCE
Algonquin Books
2022

Grade: SOLID A

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THE SLEEPLESS by Victor Manibo

August 25, 2022

POWERFUL NEAR-FUTURE NOIR thriller works both as a tightly paced mystery and an absorbing vision of a 2040s world where, after an inexplicable pandemic, a quarter of the population never sleeps. You won’t want to put this one down! A MINUS

THE SLEEPLESS
Erewhon
2022

Grade: A MINUS

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TREACHERY by Bernie Ziegner

August 22, 2022

A STRING OF MOB-RELATED MURDERS brings a private investigator and a police detective together to seek justice for the victims and untangle a web of violence and betrayal. Interesting premise, a bit unpolished. B MINUS

TREACHERY
Bernie Ziegner
2022

Grade: B MINUS

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BROTHER ALIVE by Zain Khalid

August 20, 2022

A WILDLY ORIGINAL, EPIC novel takes on the biggest questions—love and faith and science and art and technology and power—in an intricate blend of science fiction, magic realism, and psychological thriller. B PLUS

BROTHER ALIVE
Grove Press
2022

Grade: B PLUS

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DIRTBAG, MASSACHUSETTS by Isaac Fitzgerald

August 18, 2022

ALWAYS OPEN-HEARTED, SOMETIMES UNCOMFORTABLE, generously candid memoir in essays of a life lived in stories—from a hardscrabble Massachusetts childhood, years of wandering (literally and metaphorically), to a deep home in the literary community. A MINUS

DIRTBAG, MASSACHUSETTS
Bloomsbury Publishing
2022

Grade: A MINUS

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SHUTTER by Ramona Emerson

August 13, 2022

STUNNING DEBUT THRILLER mixes police procedural and the paranormal. Evocative settings in New Mexico and on the Navajo Nation add even more depth to a powerful story. A MINUS

SHUTTER
Soho Crime
2022

Grade: A MINUS

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A HUNDRED OTHER GIRLS by Iman Hariri-Kia

August 11, 2022

A FIERCE WORKPLACE BATTLE at a high-profile magazine is no place for a brand new assistant like aspiring writer Noora, but here she is propping up her brilliant hot mess of a boss. Fun novel is journalism’s The Devil Wears Prada! B PLUS

A HUNDRED OTHER GIRLS
Sourcebooks Landmark
2022

Grade: B PLUS

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THE ICE BARN by Ian Pateman

August 8, 2022

ATMOSPHERIC HISTORICAL THRILLER follows currents of greed, corruption, and vice in a far-north mining community at the tail end of the gold rush. Rich in detail, and in subtle characterization. SOLID B

THE ICE BARN
Anywhere Books
2022

Grade: SOLID B

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THE CATCH by Alison Fairbrother

August 6, 2022

A FATHER’S UNEXPECTED DEATH sends a young woman on a journey to understand him—and herself—better. Pitch-perfect evocation of an overachieving twenty-something life of share houses, late nights at work, and reckless choices. A MINUS

THE CATCH
Random House
2022

Grade: A MINUS

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