Then a newly acquired manuscript goes missing, and Liesl’s leadership and decisions are questioned. “When the director of the Department of Rare Books and Special Collections suffers a stroke, Liesl is put in charge. The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections by Eva Jurczyk (Poisoned Pen)Īppeared on the January 2022 LibraryReads list The fictional story of an author writing about another writer with messy, complicated friendships and suspicion is an innovative literary mystery.- Reviewed by Lesa Holstine

VERDICTNed Kelly Award winner Gentill ( Crossing the Lines) presents a complex, riveting story within a story. At the same time, Hannah’s communication from the FBI allows the reader a glimpse into the life of a writer with a fanatical correspondent. Freddie’s account of trying to discover which of her new friends is a killer is an engrossing mystery. The story within a story alternates Hannah’s writing with letters written to her by a wannabe author, Leo, who suggests changes to Hannah’s plot and characters. But Hannah Tignone, a best-selling Australian author, is actually writing the story of Freddie and her new friends. The subsequent story is Freddie’s account of her growing friendship with those three, attacks on two of them, and the growing awareness that one is attacking the others. Writer Freddie Kincaid studies the people sharing her table at the Boston Public Library, naming them “Freud Girl,” “Heroic Chin,” and “Handsome Man.” They hear a scream and learn that a woman has been murdered-that’s when Freddie says one of them is a killer. LibraryReads and Library Journal offer read-alikes for patrons waiting to read this buzziest book. The Woman in the Library, by Sulari Gentill (Poisoned Pen LJ starred review), is the top holds title of the week (6/6/22).

The woman in the library sulari gentill