Finally, your holiday shopping is done. Well, except for…um, and for…and okay, you’re not really done. Everybody, you included, has that one certain person on the gift list who’s hard to buy for and another certain person who’s really fussy, and a Grandma who has everything. You know who they are. Some of these great new books might be matches for your list or even ones to reward you at the end of a long, stressful day.
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Mystery fans who know their A-B-Cs obviously know Sue Grafton. This year’s Kinsey Millhone mystery, “Y is for Yesterday” begins with a nearly 40-year-old crime and a former criminal who may not be so “former” after all. Wrap this book up for the biggest smile next to the tree. Also look for “Odd Child Out” by Gilly Macmillan. It’s the story of two best friends and one possible murder.
The person on your list who often says she’d like to “chuck it all and run away” will love reading “The Runaway Midwife” by Patricia Harman. It’s the story of a midwife who does just that—she leaves behind a life, friends and trouble and heads to Canada to start over. But it’s difficult to always be on-guard, especially when you know you can’t hide forever. Wrap it up with “The Art of Keeping Secrets” by Rachael Johns, a novel of friendship, being yourself, trust and knowing when to keep quiet sometimes.
Who loves a good gaslighter? Your giftee, that’s who, and “How I Lost You” by Jenny Blackhurst is a great book to wrap. It’s the tale of a woman who killed her infant son—or did she? Once she’s released from psychiatric treatment, she has reason to wonder. Wrap it up with “Without Merit” by Colleen Hoover, a novel of secrets, truth and its consequences.
For the person who loves novels of international intrigue, “Act of Betrayal” by Matthew Dunn may make a great gift. This thriller involves assassination, conspiracy and CIA operatives. Need I say more?
For the romantic on your list, “Lilac Lane” by Sherryl Woods will be the best gift this year. It’s the story of a grieving woman and the townspeople that wrap their arms around her. Is it possible to find love again? Wrap it up with “I, Eliza Hamilton” by Susan Holloway Scott, a romance-y novel set in historical times.
If you’ve got a novel lover on your list, “The Stolen Marriage” by Diane Chamberlain will make her smile. It’s the story of a woman stuck in a loveless marriage to a man who everyone loves but few know him, obviously, as well as she does. But how well does she know her husband, really? Wrap it up with “Savage Country” by Robert Olmstead, a brutal novel of legacy and hardship, set in 1873.