Heathcliff Pigs Out by George Gately, 144 pages

 Just a little something I picked up for Renee at a garage sale.

Another Scandal in Bohemia by Carole Nelson Douglas, 467 pages

 The ever-irresistible Irene Adler, her dashing barrister husband, Godfrey Norton, and the indomitable Miss Nell Huxleigh have arrived at last as their French cottage-having survived dastardly plots, Russian spies, pistol-wielding criminals, and the occasional cobra. The happy trio seeks nothing but rest and peace-but Irene has always chafed under idle conditions, and Paris, she says, "is pretty and urbane, but hardly a center of excitement." So when Charles Frederick Worth, the Parisian king of couture, invites Irene to become his "mannequin de ville," to wear the fabulous worth creations to stimulate his trade, Irene leaps at the chance.

But what was a joyous lark soon turns into a journey that can lead to disgrace, dishonor, and death when Irene, Nell, and Godfrey are drawn into a series of events that will compel Irene to the one place that she daren't go and the one man she must not confront-Prague and the King of Bohemia.

The Best New True Crime Stories: Serial Killers by Mitzi Szereto, 287 pages

 Serial Killer—Your Neighbor, Friend, Even Your Spouse?

Serial killers. Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy and Jeffrey Dahmer are often the first names that spring to mind. Many people assume serial killers are primarily an American phenomenon that came about in the latter part of the twentieth century. But such assumptions are far from the truth. Serial killers have been around for a very long time and can be found in every corner of the globe—and they’re not just limited to the male gender either. Some of them have been caught and brought to justice whereas others have never been found, let alone identified. Serial killers can be anywhere. And scarier still, they can be anyone.

Edited by acclaimed author and anthologist Mitzi Szereto, The Best New True Crime Stories: Serial Killers features the very best all-new accounts of serial killers from the contemporary to the historic. The international list of contributors includes award-winning crime writers, true-crime podcasters, journalists and experts in the dark crimes such as Martin Edwards, Lee Mellor, Danuta Kot, Craig Pittman, Richard O Jones, Marcie Rendon, Mike Browne and Vicki Hendricks.

If you are a fan of true crime books such as I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, Serial Killers: The Method and Madness of Monsters, Mindhunter, or Devil in the White City, you will want to read The Best New True Crime Stories: Serial Killers. This book will leave you wondering if it’s ever really possible to know who’s behind the mask you’re allowed to see. 

The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict & Victoria Christopher Murray, 341 pages

In her twenties, Belle da Costa Greene is hired by J. P. Morgan to curate a collection of rare manuscripts, books, and artwork for his newly built Pierpont Morgan Library. Belle becomes a fixture on the New York society scene and one of the most powerful people in the art and book world, known for her impeccable taste and shrewd negotiating for critical works as she helps build a world-class collection.

But Belle has a secret, one she must protect at all costs. She was born not Belle da Costa Greene but Belle Marion Greener. She is the daughter of Richard Greener, the first Black graduate of Harvard and a well-known advocate for equality. Belle's complexion isn't dark because of her alleged Portuguese heritage that lets her pass as white--her complexion is dark because she is African American.

The Personal Librarian tells the story of an extraordinary woman, famous for her intellect, style, and wit, and shares the lengths to which she must go--for the protection of her family and her legacy--to preserve her carefully crafted white identity in the racist world in which she lives.

Oranges by John McPhee, 149 pages

 A classic of reportage, Oranges was first conceived as a short magazine article about oranges and orange juice, but the author kept encountering so much irresistible information that he eventually found that he had in fact written a book. It contains sketches of orange growers, orange botanists, orange pickers, orange packers, early settlers on Florida's Indian River, the first orange barons, modern concentrate makers, and a fascinating profile of Ben Hill Griffin of Frostproof, Florida who may be the last of the individual orange barons. McPhee's astonishing book has an almost narrative progression, is immensely readable, and is frequently amusing. Louis XIV hung tapestries of oranges in the halls of Versailles, because oranges and orange trees were the symbols of his nature and his reign. This book, in a sense, is a tapestry of oranges, too—with elements in it that range from the great orangeries of European monarchs to a custom of people in the modern Caribbean who split oranges and clean floors with them, one half in each hand.

The Bungalow Mystery by Carolyn Keene, 180 pages

 Nancy and Helen are trapped in a violent lake storm and rescued by young orphan, Laura Pendleton. Upon meeting Laura's guardian, Jacob Aborn, the girls are disturbed by Mr. Aborn's odd and crass behaviors. Soon Laura confides in Nancy about Mr. Aborn's mistreatment toward her. While trying to help Laura, Nancy has a perilous experience in and around a deserted bungalow at the hands of a crafty villain.

Like a Wolf With a Bone by Shelly Laurenston, 152 pages

 Quiet little Darla Lewis doesn’t know what to think when the most-feared member of the South’s rowdiest wolf pack kidnaps her. Does he want to protect her or kill her? It could be either! Everyone knows about Egbert Ray Smith and how dangerous he is. Every pack avoids him, and the U.S. military uses him as their own killing machine. And Darla is just a nice girl who likes to bake and occasionally follow the Grateful Dead around. She doesn’t have time for this sort of foolishness. And yet . . . there is something about Eggie Ray. He just doesn’t seem as bad as everyone says. In fact, the more she gets to know him, the cuddlier he seems.

Something her overprotective family is not going to be happy to hear . . .