This fascinating book fleshes out the life of Johannes Faust, and brings him and his alchemy to the modern world.  Caution:  magic may be dangerous!  There's a lot of set-up in the beginning but patience pays off! --Sandi

Totally fun and entertaining!  An interesting look at life in Victorian England.  By the author of The Tower, the Zoo and the Tortoise. --Sandi

The second in this most awesome mystery series!  Department Q is facing another cold case suddenly heating up.  LOTS of action and a remarkable cast of characters.  Don't miss this one!  --Sandi

Another intriguing and suspenseful ghost story by the author of Haunting of Maddy Clare.  A young woman is called upon to identify the body of her estranged uncle and to sort through the belongings he left behind.  Her investigation into the mysterious death not only changes her life but may end it.  Awesome!  --Sandi

OK all you Julia Child fans. Finally a biography worthy of its wonderful subject.  The writing is lively and fun--somehow you end up feeling Julia would have approved.  If you've wanted to know more about this wonderful woman, here's your chance.  --Cam

These stories, most of them set in academia, are each told by a different first-person narrator; yet they are strung together and related by the brilliant sensibility of their common narrator--Rebecca Lee.  Her perception and acuity mixed with her precise, masterful use of language make each story seem to contain a novel's worth of life.  I haven't been this dazzled by a writer in a long time. --Georgiana

New in Paperback!   With emotional depth, humor, and a warm understanding of human frailties, Jess Walter tells the intertwined tales of Pasquale, Dee, and a cast of supporting characters--even the actor Richard Burton makes a cameo!  Set in both Italy's Cinque Terre in the 1960s and modern day Hollywood, the story is absorbing and entertaining, and the characters are real.  Walter humorously skewers the entertainment industry, all while showing us characters working towards redemption...or not.  A great read!  --Amy

Police in 1889 London had a dangeous and under-appreciated job.  Jack the Ripper was never caught, and the citizens had little faith in their law enforcers.  Then a member of the Metropolitan Police Murder Squad was murdered.....   and he wasn't the only one.  The remaining detectives have to scramble to solve it all.  --Debbie

One of the most unusual, quirky, fun books I've read in a long time!  Part sci-fi, part James Bond--with a kick-ass heroine and a C.S. Lewis-eque cast of characters.  I want MORE from Daniel O'Malley!  --Sandi

This is a terrific book!  Leslie Helm invites us to accompany him on his emotional and physical odyssey as he researches his family's connection to Japan - from Great Grandfather Julius' arrival in Yokohama in 1869, to the present.  Plus, Mr. Helm is a local author so there's a Seattle connection too. --Debbie

Yes, it's about hiking the Pacific Crest Trail; but this book is far more than that, and way more gripping, exciting, and satisfying than you'd imagine.  Cheryl Strayed is a rare person, wise beyond her years and impressively capable of many things as well as dealing with things she CAN'T do; and I could not put this book down.   Just released in paperback!  --Georgiana

Lovely and lyrical, this is a quiet book that will sneak up on you.  Harold Fry is an older man somewhat set in his ways, who makes an impulsive decision that will change his life for the better, though the happy ending takes a while. --Cam

NOW IN PAPERBACK! A quietly beautiful book, set in eastern Washington at the turn of the century.  William Talmadge, a quiet and gentle man, lives alone tending and selling his fruit. One day he notices two feral teenage girls, visibly pregnant, squatting in his orchard.  This is the story of how Talmadge cares for them, and all that happens after (as the bookjacket so wonderfully phrases it) "he opens his heart and lets the world in." --Georgiana

This was fabulous!  The second in the series, following Now you See Me.  S.J. Bolton just gets better and better; but she is one twisted story teller and I LOVE her.  Be prepared to be scared! --Sandi

Historical fiction at its suspenseful best.  Set in late Victorian-era London, the story focuses on a member of parliament and the secret, sordid past of his beautiful, exotic wife.  Will she be exposed?  Great writing to get to the answer! --Amy

Loved Gone Girl?  Here is another outstanding multi-layered, double crossing novel that keeps you on tenterhooks all the way through to the very end.  Ex-CIA agent Kate Moore, her husband and sons relocate to Luxembourg, starting a new life as expats; however, a secret she has been hiding for years appears to be threatening her new life and she finds they are enmeshed in a tale of lies, secrets and betrayals.  Great debut novel. -- Kate

For lovers of Downton Abbey!!  The Passing Bells trilogy was first published in the 1970s and recently reissued.  The life and times of the Greville family, their ancestral home - Abingdon Pryory, their friends and associates.  As with Downton Abbey, the trilogy takes place before, during and after WWI.  Great storytelling, historical accuracy:- three great reads. --Kate

The main characters start off, separately, in Tokyo in 1984.  Inadvertently, they enter 1Q84, an alternate world where time and logic function differently than in the "real" world.  After many twists, turns, and dangerous events, they end up where they want to be.   Or do they?

I really liked this book--don't be alarmed by the size of it! --Debbie

Extraordinary debut novel by a young writer.  Abruptly confronted by the horror of WWII, a small isolated Romanian village takes an unusual approach to protecting themselves.  Remarkable in every way. --Cam

Finally, a book as good as Atonement from Ian McEwan.  It's about Serena Frome, a young woman who falls into a job with the British intelligence services in 1972.  She is a compulsive reader, so she is sent on a mission that brings her into the literary world of a young writer, whom she comes to love.  McEwan's graceful writing and the marvelous twists and turns of the plot make for a great and satifsying story. --Georgiana

A wonderfully spooky ghost story that kept me turning pages when i should have been sleeping!  A professional ghost hunter and his male assistant hire another assistant--a female--to investigate a violent haunting.  While the ghost indeed creates mayhem, the characters are each haunted by events in their pasts. --Sandi

The magical story of a couple homesteading in Alaska in the 1920's.  They are inexperienced and growing apart, yet they slowly learn to survive in a landscape that's harsh and brutal, yet filled also with wonder and beauty.  As they become accustomed to this new world, their lives are enriched by the mysterious appearance of a little girl who becomes a part of their family, as she comes and goes between their house and the wilderness and grows to young womanhood.  This is a haunting story, sad but filled with joy. --Georgiana

Now out in paperback!!!! Whether you are a fan of Jane Austen or just love a great mystery, you MUST read this book!  Intelligent, fast-paced and witty--I hated for it to end.  Fans of Pride & Prejudice will LOVE this!  I believe the marvelous Ms. Austen herself would be delighted with this book and glad to have occasionned it's creation. --Sandi

This was so much fun to read!  A mysterious book store, an ancient secret society, possible immortality, a puzzle being decoded by patient elderly readers, and a Google genius!  I liked the book store, the people, the events, and the author's style. --Debbie

Shortlisted for the Man Booker prize, this book is both lyrical and gritty, offering a glimpse of a region of the world and a set of circumstances unknown to most of us.  I was intrigued and moved from beginning to end.  Will definitely transport you out of Seattle! --Cam 

A delightful combination of Jane Austen and magic!  The art of "glamour" is a much-desired talent, along the lines of musical ability and landscape painting.  But gamour can be used with malicious intent, adding a new wrinkle to literature about Regency England! --Sandi

Wonderful book!  It's the absorbing story of Bit, born to a couple who are members of a commune in upstate New York in the 60's.  It's strong both as a clear-eyed view of the joys and pitfalls of the utopian dreams of communal living, and as a look at the way Bit's youth in the free and verdant country of his childhood informs his adult life in the far different world of the city. --Georgiana

This is a wonderful story for story's sake alone, but it is a fantastic allegory as well.  It teaches the importance of looking beneath a person's veneer and accepting that we are all more than we appear to be. --Sandi

Really great stand-alone story that just gets better if you're a fan of Jane Eyre.  Deft characterizations and a heroine you really root for.  --Cam

Infused with the spirit of an English estate just after WWI.  A young man brings Cecil, his Cambridge schoolmate, to his family's home, and both he and his sister fall in love with him.  Cecil is a charismatic artist, and the book weaves together several stories of the consequences -- to the family and the nation -- of the tragic love triangle. --Georgiana

The story opens with a Brown University graduation ceremony in the early 1980s and follows three classmates forwards and backwards from there.  A brilliant and absorbing snapshot of university life and of the leap into real life thereafter, with many layers of Eugenides' signature compelling detail and insight.  --Georgiana

Although the subject matter of this book is heartbreaking and at times unfathomable in its reality, you will meet two characters -- Erik and Izzy -- who will remain with you long after you have finished this book.  These two intelligent, humorous, loveable men will touch your emotions and win your heart.  Not an easy read, but a must read.  --Nance

The story of Lula, a recent transplant from Albania to N.Y.C, and her quest for a better life in America.  She leaves her waitress job to care for a wealthy, suburban high school student whose mother has left the family; and her relationship with this family and some Albanian mobsters are the framework for Lula's open-eyed and open-minded observations and conclusions about Americans and her new life here.  Funny, engaging and very good writing. --Georgiana

ATTENTION STIEG LARSSON FANS!!  This is your new favorite book!  An action-packed, heart pounding mystery!  I found myself shouting at the characters and holding my breath.  We have GOT to get the other books in the series translated STAT! --Sandi

For everyone who loves Jacqueline Winspear, Charles Finch, Elly Griffiths and other wonderful mystery writers!!  An action-packed whodunnit.  The main character is a young nurse serving in WWI who gets entangled in a family tragedy.  A MUST READ! --Sandi

A captivating story--told in Ondaatje's clear and magical prose--of an 11 year old boy's journey across the Indian Ocean to England.  He, often teamed up wtih 2 other boys, makes the ship his playground and his world to observe and conquer; and this is the account of all the (often mysterious) people and situations he encounters, and how these live on in his memory as he grows older.  Beautiful. --Georgiana

Truly remarkable and incredibly powerful imagining of the events at Masada where a community of 900 Jewish men, women and children held out against the advancing Roman army.  Told from the points of view of four very different women.  Highly recommended.  --Cam

The original spymasters -- Francis Walsingham and John Dee take center stage with renegade monk Giordano Bruno in this fast-paced thriller.  Someone is murdering the Queen's maids and the evidence points to English Catholics who are conspiring to assassinate Elizabeth and put Mary, Queen of Scots on the throne, returning England to a Papal State.  Excellent! --Sandi

Another intriguing novel from the author of the French Gardener.  Two stories, two generations and two locations wrapped into a story of love and drama, with twists and turns to keep you hooked.  A great summer read. --Kate

Just out in paper!  This is a dazzlingly original novel set in San Francisco's Buena Vista Park, the secret home of Titania and Oberon, rulers of the Faerie Kingdom.  Three heart-broken people happen to be wandering the park at dusk on midsummer eve in 2008, and this is the story of how their lives are changed by an upheaval in the Faerie Kingdom that night.  It may sound a little too crazy, but it's brilliant and engaging; and you will be so enmeshed that you don't notice or care HOW crazy...  I loved this book. --Georgiana

This author is one of my favorites.  She's twisted, sadistic, and AWESOME!  This is her latest, and the first in a new series.  Bolton has a gift for blending history with current events, and I always learn something from her stories.  In this one, Jack the Ripper and a young female detective come together in a gut-wrenching story that will leave you breathless and wanting more! --Sandi

The best book I've read in months.  A fantastic plot, but MUCH more than that.  Erin Morgenstern transmits a state of wonder directly and cleanly, yet suffused with magic.  WOW.  I didn't want it to end; it left me in a state of blissful yet aching emptiness...  --Georgiana

And another:  This is the best book I have read this year, hands down.  The writing style is spare but incredibly evocative.  It sort of lures you along, until all of a sudden you realize you are utterly entranced, certain the Night Circus itself must exist somewhere and you want to go!  Lovely, lovely. --Cam

I love this author!  She seamlessly blends historical fact and entertainment.  I have met her and had lunch with her!  She is passionate about presenting her characters as historically accurate as possible, while fleshing them out as real human beings in extraordinary times.  This is an unusual look at Elizabeth I, focusing on the latter half of her reign; her quest to present herself as the perpetual Virgin Queen while defying her own mortality. A MUST for Elizabeth fans.  --Sandi 

Set in Italy at the beginning of WWII, this is a beautiful novel comprised of the converging stories of Alice, a wealthy young British expat who marries an Italian farmer and moves with him to his crumbling villa in Tuscany; and Kristin, a young art restorer in Rome. Filled with romance, intrigue, history and deep feeling for the country--wholly satisfying and transporting! --Georgiana

Tina Fey's description of her life and experiences is hilarious.  You can hear her voice coming through; whether it be describing her dates during college, her days doing improv or her Sarah Palin impressions.  A fun read. --Kate

Bryson in his usual humorous, inquisitive way takes us for a delighful excursion through the history of his English home--room by room.  Each room, its layout, contents, etymology and usage is amazingly defined by what has happened in the rest of the world. An interesting and fun history lesson illlustrating how simple to complex discoveries have influenced our habitats since the 1700s.  Enjoy --Nance

This is a fascinating rumination on family, ancestry and the effect of history on both.  De Waal is a beautiful writer with an artist's sensibility--he brings his family's history alive! --Amy

For all us Downton Abbey fans!!  An absolutely remarkable book about the real family of Highclere Castle.  This was an eye-opening story of how one woman and her husband saved the lives of countless British servicemen during WWI, made the greatest archeological discover in Egyptian history and secured their beautiful family estate for the present generation.  Fabulous! --Sandi

Bavarian life in the 1600s was harsh.  The people were harsh too, and maybe too eager to let the local midwife be named a witch responsible for the deaths of local orphans.  The hangman, charged with torturing the "truth" out of the midwife, doubts her guilt.  He, his daughter and a young physician try to find the real culprit, putting themselves at great risk.  --Debbie

One of my favorite books of the year!!!  History, romance, mystery, action and MAGIC!  The author is an academic historian so her research is impeccable.  Add characters who are flawed and so REAL, a rip-roarin' storyline and you'll be hooked too!!  This is the first in a planned trilogy and I can't WAIT for the next!  --Sandi

Sequel to "Crossing Places" - another intriguing archeological thriller from Ms. Griffiths.  Set in the far reaches of England, the main character is a wonderfully brilliant and loveable young woman who finds herself mired in mystery and danger. -- Sandi

Love Sherlock Holmes?  Read this story of Arthur Conan Doyle's missing journals, concurrent with the modern day murder of a Sherlock Holmes fan.  Was Doyle also a detective?  Can crimes be solved by analyzing them?  This was a lot of fun to read. --Debbie

I LOVED the setting - Scotland!! Beautiful, accurate description of life in a small Highland town with quirky characters, mysterious twists and turns and local dialect!!  Set in the 1950s.  Good debut novel and follow-up from A.D. Scott --Kate

This is a wonderful story--perhaps for the older, young adult reader--I'd recommend 15 and older.  An unusual story peopled with very unusual characters.  Really well written; the story is mystery, magic, romance and action. It will break your heart, yet leave you hoping ..... --Sandi

The second in the Beautiful Blue Death series and a very worthy sequel!  What I love about historical fiction is learning so much while being totally entertained and this is no exception.  Charles Lenox returns to his alma mater - Oxford - to solve the murder of a young student with ties to colonial India. We are treated to a lively history of the university while unravelling the mystery and falling more in love with the characters. --Sandi

A completely twisted & demented murder mystery!  The characters are totally real - they annoyed me but I cared about them.  It killed me that I couldn't warn them about what I knew would happen, but then it didn't - something else would blindside me & leave me crying "What?!" out loud!  Hold onto your hats - it's a bumpy ride. --Sandi

Amazing debut novel by a young author I can't wait to hear more from.  Modern realism combined with a folk tale that illuminates the contemporary element.  Set in a part of the worrld we don't read much about in fiction. First rate all the way. --Cam

Okay all you history buffs--ready for your fall to winter read?  Settle in with Ron Chernow's splendid biography of George Washington.  Well balanced throughout and absolutely fascinating.  History and Bio at its best! --Cam

While this book has been out for several years, I just read it and REALLY enjoyed it.  Sherlockian in style, with wonderful plot and characters.  Set in Victorian England, it offers a wonderful view into the British upper class, and what happens to those who defy their rules. --Sandi

A wonderful, magical adventure!  Three kids find themselves in a fantastical situation: they must save the world from nuclear war!  Warning: You MUST allow for the possibility! --Sandi

This is one of the most charming and delightful novels I've read since Major Pettigrew!  Set in and around the Tower of London, it features the most quirky characters both human and animal.  Your heart will ache; you'll laugh and cry out loud!  I LOVED IT.  --Sandi

Anglophiles, Guernsey Society and Major Pettigrew fans--this is your next novel.  Jack is determined to become a proper Englishman, according to a list of observations he has created and follows religiously.  He moves to a rural English village to build the greatest golf course in England.   Pranks, superstitions and misunderstandings ensue in this insightful and humorous and enchanting tale. --Nance

A very funny, thought-provoking novel set in a Dublin prep school.  Skippy and his friends and foes comprise an interesting cross section of 14-year-old boys, with all the usual joys and angst, as well as a more unlikely obsession (catalyzed by the resident genius) with opening a portal into a parallel universe using string theory.  This sprawling story involves the whole school and myriad plot strands; and I loved the humor, intelligence, and insight of the writing. --Georgiana

The main character, Erlendur, is rather gloomy--with good reason. He's a good, thorough detective who sticks with a case of suicide (or was it?), and with cold cases decades old, to finally get to get to the bottom of things.  Enjoy this police procedural set in Iceland. --Debbie

A powerful story of two men--one black, one white--who form a boyhood friendship that is torn apart by a tragedy that victimizes one man throughout his life.   The book explores the different ways in which suspicion,  race and class issues affect the town's residents.  You'll remember these characters long after you've closed the book on the last page.  --Nance

The first-person narrative of a young woman who is growing up too fast. She's a brilliant narrator of her perceptions and the events of her final year of high school and the first years of her life thereafter, and thus provides a finely wrought portrait of a young american girl inthe early 80's. Her writing is very detailed, which put me off a little at first (ONLY at first), but I soon succumbed to its insightful genius and originality, and was rewarded by the satisfactions of a wonderful story told well --Georgiana

The richly woven story of two sisters--one making it big in Silicon Valley, and the other an activist, antiquarian bookseller and graduate student in Berkeley--and their very different lives and loves. I loved being in the worlds Goodman drew me into completely with her deft, spell-binding storytelling --Georgiana

This book was SO intriguing.  You think it's a series of short stories until you begin to see where the author is going.  A bit of journalistic insight about the way news is presented and the history and organization of a newspaper all rolled into one, each chapter building upon the last, for intrigue and insight.  Enjoy. --Nance

Yet another AWESOME book by Ms. Bolton! A creepy mystery that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Don't even try to figure it out--just enjoy the ride! I LOVE this author! --Sandi

An urban girl meets the original earthman, and together they decide to start an organic farm in upstate New York. This is their story, told with brutal honesty and great wit, by the urban girl, Kristin Kimball. It's a great love story, in several dimensions: that between urban girl and earth man, and that between the couple and their farm and their community. --Georgiana

This book is so interesting!  Have angels been among us forever?  What powers does the Lyre of Orpheus have, and why do so many people want to get it?  Can humankind win the day?  Lots to enjoy here! --Debbie

A beguiling mix of love, intrigue, history, and Shakespeare. A descriptive, multi-layered tapestry of stories and eras (it shifts back and forth between medieval Siena and current times), with twists and turns to keep you hooked. --Kate

Amazing and troublesome look at medical research and rights of individuals, revealed as Skloot explores Henrietta Lacks' life. Both fascinating and frustrating, it will spark questions about research, consent, and the Lacks' family dilemma. Excellent book group selection for discussion. --Nance

What a lovely, lovely book. It glow, like a pearl. If you're an Austen fan and see the Sense and Sensibility parallels, fine. But if not, no problem. Wonderful characters, humor, and insight--this book has it all. I loved it! --Cam

This book is a genre-buster. It starts out a scientific thriller and ends up a futuristic meditation on what it means to be human and survive. Along the way, it's a first-rate page turner. Looking for your rock-the-summer read? Look no further! --Cam

A series of interlocking stories that all circle back to Bennie, an aging former rocker and current recording industry bigwig, and Sasha, a young woman who works for him. Through the lives of these people and their circles of friends and family, the stories involve you in the world of cutting edge popular music over the past 20 or so years. Egan wrote The Keep, another of my favorite books. She's a superb writer --Georgiana

"You can't go home again"--or maybe you just don't want to. But Frank is forced to reunite with his truly dysfunctional family in order to solve a mystery: the disappearance of his first love many years ago. As a detective, solving this mystery is his job; as a man, it's his mission. Another hit by Ms. French (read her earlier books too!). --Sandi

This is an awesome true story of a man who dedicated his life to rescuing stolen treasures from around the world. Undercover operations, stings, forgeries, and the black market make this read like a "007" thriller! --Sandi

This can be somewhat compared to Brave New World, or 1984, but it has the added attraction of being rich with British wit. After an unspecified "something" happened, life on Earth goes on--but who you are in life depends on the colors you can see. And Eddie starts to realize that's not fair.... I loved this --Debbie

While this book is part of a long-running series, this could be a stand-alone novel. A gripping, fast-paced thriller, though not lacking in its portraits of humanity. A last Rembrandt, a stolen treasure, and charismatic characters make for a breath-taking read! Of course we can easily get all the previous novels in the series for you too! --Sandi

Percy (70 years old) has been a widower for 30 years. He has raised his two daughters on his small rural New Englad estate, and has just retired. But a local school persuades him to allow them the use of his barn, and this is the story of his re-involvement in aspects of his life long-forgotten. He's a prickly, entertainingly quirky character, as are many of the people with whom he (sometimes reluctantly) becomes involved, and Julia Glass always tells a good story --Georgiana

Brady Udall is a remarkable writer. In this book, he takes a character and situation you think will feel foreign to you, and then helps you take them to heart. Funny, painful, wise, but not ever glib. I love his writing. --Cam

For you WWII enthusiasts, this is a great read. True tale of how the use of a corpse mislead the Nazis, but it reads like a novel with many characters--mistrust and jealousy abound. The absurd situations make you wonder how this plan succeeded --Nance

You will LOVE Major Pettigrew and this whole cast of characters! The author does a marvelous job of re-evaluating prejudices and racism in this funny, very touching novel. --Sandi