Murder, love and secrets in summer’s best reads
Dark secrets in an Australian wine town, broody heroes and a woman who fell from the sky … are you ready for a Christmas feast of mystery, drama and inspiration?
Dark secrets in an Australian wine town, broody heroes and a woman who fell from the sky … are you ready for a Christmas feast of mystery, drama and inspiration?
Our time is precious, and we don’t always get a chance to unwind and take a break.
Reading is such a good way to relax, and we have you covered with 10 great books to pick up over the summer holidays.
From murder and intrigue to finding love without an algorithm – there’s something for everyone.
All the books listed can be loaned from Sunshine Coast Libraries. If you’re not a member join today for free! If eBooks or eAudiobooks are more your style, download these titles for free through the eLibrary.
10 books to read this summer:
Rosie Royce is trying to live her best life. Really, she is. But it seems like life hasn't gotten the memo. It's been six years since childhood sweetheart Wes Preston jumped on a plane and never looked back, and Rosie spends most nights spooning her laptop. Her new job comes with a handsome but infuriating co-host, Dr Markus Abrahams, while a school reunion brings Wes back into her orbit. When Rosie's work whisks her to vibrant, chaotic India - well and truly out of her comfort zone - a world of possibility opens up. Does 'never ever' really have to be forever?
1992. Two strangers bring a hospital patient a list of names. They ask him for one more, but it's a question the patient can't answer. Minutes later he is dispatched through the 12th floor window. His death generates some unexpected attention. Jack Reacher is assigned as the Army's representative. Reacher may be an exceptional soldier, but sweeping other people's secrets under the carpet isn't part of his skill set. As he races to find the killer, he must navigate around the ulterior motives of his new 'partners'. The question is: will Reacher bring the bad guys to justice the official way ... or his way?
Two people meet in the Art Institute by chance. Prior to their encounter, he is a doctoral student who manages his destructive thoughts with compulsive calculations about time travel; she is a bipolar counterfeit artist, undergoing court-ordered psychotherapy. By the end of the story, these things will still be true. But this is not a story about endings.
Welcome back to Knockemout, Virginia, where the heroes are broody, the heroines are sassy, and everyone's got a secret. Nash Morgan, chief of police is recovering from being shot and his Southern charm has been overshadowed by panic attacks and nightmares. Nash isn't about to let anyone in his life know he's struggling. But his new next-door neighbour, smart and sexy Lina, sees his shadows. The physical connection between them is incendiary, grounding him and making her wonder if exploring it is worth the risk. And once Nash decides to make Lina his, he's not about to be dissuaded...even if it means facing the danger that nearly killed him.
On a bitter-cold day, in the December of his junior year at Harvard, Sam Masur exits a subway car and sees, amid the hordes of people waiting on the platform, Sadie Green. He calls her name. For a moment, she pretends she hasn't heard him, but then, she turns, and a game begins: a legendary collaboration that will launch them to stardom.
From a terrible accident that left her paraplegic, Emma Carey has become an inspiration for hundreds of thousands online to live life to the fullest and remind us that if we can, we must. This heartfelt book is more than a memoir, it's a call to action that reminds us not to take our lives and abilities for granted - to live every day like it could be our last.
At a busy festival site on a warm spring night, a baby lies alone in her pram, her mother vanishing into the crowds. A year on, Kim Gillespie's absence casts a long shadow as her friends and loved ones gather deep in the heart of South Australian wine country to welcome a new addition to the family. Joining the celebrations is federal investigator Aaron Falk. Between Falk's closest friend, a missing mother, and a woman he's drawn to, dark questions linger as long-ago truths begin to emerge.
History is turning. In only a few short decades, we have come a long way from Francis Fukuyama's declaration of the 'end of history' and the triumph of liberal democracy in 1989. Now, with the inexorable rise of China, the ascendancy of authoritarianism and the retreat of democracy, the world stands at a moment of crisis. Stan Grant is one of our foremost observers and chroniclers of the world in crisis. Weaving his personal experiences of reporting from the front lines of the world's flashpoints, together with his deep understanding of politics, history and philosophy, he explores what is driving the world to crisis and how it might be averted.
As kids, Emily and Chess were inseparable, but their bond has been strained by the demands of their adult lives. So when Chess suggests a girls’ trip to Italy, Emily jumps at the chance to reconnect with her best friend. Villa Aestas in Orvieto is breathtaking, but it has a dark past: in 1974 it was rented by a notorious rock star, who was joined by up-and-coming musician Pierce Sheldon and his girlfriend, Mari. By the end of the holiday Pierce is dead, and Mari goes on to write one of the greatest horror novels of all time.
Like the circles of a Venn diagram, Mimi and Art Brotherton have always come as a pair. Devoted siblings, they're bound together in their childhood home by the tragic death of their parents. Art believes that people - including his sister - are incapable of making sensible decisions when it comes to love. That's what algorithms are for.