Stacking the Shelves #13

Stacking the Shelves is a meme co-hosted by Tynga at Tynga’s Reviews and Marlene at Reading Reality, where you share the books you’ve added to your shelves in the past week. You can include books you buy, books you borrow, review books, gifts, and ebooks.

I added six books to my shelves this week. Several others initially intrigued me, but didn’t produce that “Oh my God, I HAVE to read this!” feeling… so I decided it was probably better if I walked away from those titles.

Genres added this week:

• Psychological Thriller (2)
• Memoir (1)
• Historical Fiction (1),
• History (1)
• Dystopia (1)

The short summaries given for each book (in bold italicized text) are highlights selected, pieced together, and/or reworded by me. To read the book descriptions provided by the publishers, please click the title link to be taken to Goodreads.

They Did Bad Things by Lauren A. Forry

Six university students move in together. One is found dead after a party, and even though it’s ruled an accidental death, the remaining five know it wasn’t an accident. 12 years later, they are lured to a secluded mansion, trapped inside, and given one choice: confess to their crimes… or die.

Confess or die? As soon as I saw that, I knew I wanted to read this book. I can’t wait to see how this story unfolds… and I suspect at least one of the five won’t make it out of there of there alive. I have a very good feeling about this book, and hope it will prove to be a great read!

American Daughter by Stephanie Thornton Plymale

A troubled mother-daughter relationship. A childhood marked by poverty, neglect, and worse. An estrangement from a mentally ill mother whose past she knew little about. Everything changed with a phone call, a journey of discovery, and a series of shocking revelations that forced her to revise the meaning of almost every aspect of her childhood.

I tend to be drawn to memoirs that deal with poverty and other distressing issues. I expect this will be difficult to read at times, but also deeply moving, and I’m looking forward to reading it.

The Lions of Fifth Avenue by Fiona Davis

1913: Laura Lyons lives in an apartment within the NY Public Library building. Valuable books are stolen, threatening her home and the institution she loves. 1993: Sadie Donovan is a curator at NYPL.  Rare items disappear from the library, and Sadie discovers unwelcome truths about her own family heritage that shed new light on the biggest tragedy in the library’s history.

I really liked The Address, so when I saw Davis’ name on the cover, I was already excited about this book. The setting and mentions of theft and tragedy sealed the deal for me. I know nothing about the NYPL (other than its existence), so I’m looking forward to discovering all the facts available in this novel.

The Truth Hurts by Rebecca Reid

After a whirlwind romance, Poppy married Drew, who insisted on one rule: We don’t talk about the past. He never seemed to wonder why she agreed to it so easily, and what’s the harm in letting him believe she was simply swept away? Then Poppy begins to wonder what happened in his past that is so terrible, and what he might have done. She may be forced to confront the dark truth that there are sins far more dangerous than the sin of omission…

Well, obviously, there’s a reason he’s insisting on not talking about the past. The question is, why? I’m feeling fairly confident that it’s to do with something sinister… and I can’t wait to find out if I’m right!

A Hidden History of the Tower of London: England’s Most Notorious Prisoners by John Paul Davis

Famed as the ultimate penalty for traitors, heretics and royalty alike, being sent to the Tower is known to have been experienced by no less than 8,000 unfortunate souls. Many of those who were imprisoned in the Tower never returned to civilisation and those who did, often did so without their head! It is hardly surprising that the Tower has earned itself a reputation among the most infamous buildings on the planet.

The title alone was enough to make me want to read this book. I don’t recall ever having read a book that focused on the Tower itself.  I’m very excited to read this book, and look forward to learning things I didn’t know!

Deal with the Devil (Mercenary Librarians #1) by Kit Rocha

The United States went belly up 45 years ago when our power grid was wiped out. Nina is an information broker with a mission: to bring hope to the darkest corners of Atlanta. She and her team of mercenary librarians use their knowledge to help those in need. But altruism doesn’t pay the bills—raiding vaults and collecting sensitive data is where the real money is.

Mercenary librarians?! Okay… that totally hooked me. And yes, I know… you’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover. You’re supposed to find out what it’s about first, and the image on the cover does not matter.

But come on… books in one hand, gun in the other? It’s like it’s saying “Don’t f*** with a librarian!” So, yeah… totally judging the cover, and it’s awesome. Fingers crossed that the book will prove to be awesome, as well!

That’s All Folks!

That wraps up another entry in Stacking the Shelves. I thought I’d change it up a bit this week, and share the books I added in a different way. It definitely took more time, but (hopefully) it made things a bit more interesting. 🙂 I had fun writing it up this way, although I’m not sure it’s something I’ll want to do for weeks that I add more books than this.

Until next time…