A look at eight new book releases this month including a centuries old prophecy that involves a Mayan apocalypse, a furniture dealer who finds himself pulled back into the criminal underworld, and a spy on a mission to track down the world’s most valuable missing painting.
SILVER NITRATE BY SILVIA MORENO-GARCIA
Montserrat, a sound editor, struggles to make her mark in the Mexico City’s film industry. Meanwhile, her childhood friend Tristan, who used to be a promising actor, is nowadays stuck recording voiceovers.
After Tristan moves to a new apartment, he discovers that his neighbour Abel Urueta, a former horror film director whose career took a nosedive after his project was left unfinished.
Abel believes he is cursed, and sought the help from Montserrat and Tristan to help lift the curse by filming a missing scene from his project.
Neither of them believe in the curse at first, but Montserrat soon notices a dark presence following her, and Tristan begins seeing the ghost of his ex-girlfriend.
THE BONES OF THE STORY BY CAROL GOODMAN
Twenty-five years has passed since the tragedy at Briarwood College, which involved the disappearance of a student and the death of a professor.
To honour the victims, the college president brings together the faculty, donors and alumni on a cold December weekend.
When a snowstorm hits, the guests begin to leave and only the professor’s former students remain.
The group reminisces about their writing projects back in the college days, including stories they wrote about their greatest fears.
What follows is a series of murders among the group, strikingly similar to what they wrote in the past.
CROOK MANIFESTO BY COLSON WHITEHEAD
Set in 1970s New York, Crook Manifesto is split into three parts with the first featuring Ray Carney who tries to live an honest life after leaving behind his days of moving stolen goods around the city.
To get concert tickets for his daughter, Ray reaches out to an old police contact and finds himself pulled back into the criminal underworld.
The second part of the book features Ray’s partner-in-crime Pepper who is hired as a security guard on a film set.
In the third part, one of Ray’s tenants is injured in a fire incident and he enlists pepper to investigate the case. Crook Manifesto is a sequel to Harlem Shuffle in a planned trilogy.
HER LITTLE FLOWERS BY SHANNON MORGAN
For 55 years, Francine Thwaite has lived in her family’s ancestral home with no one but ghosts to keep her company, most notably Bree who has been by her side since childhood.
Francine enjoys a quiet life until her estranged sister Madeline returns to the manor with a story about their family’s past.
EVERYONE HERE IS LYING BY SHARI LAPENA
William Wooler is a well-respected doctor with a wife and two children. His affair with one of the hospital volunteers has just ended, and he gets home to find his nine-year-old daughter Avery alone when she’s supposed to be at school.
Avery normally waits for her brother but she has been sent home early for misbehaving.
William loses his temper with Avery and leaves the house, then hours later Avery is reported missing. The blame shifts around the neighbourhood as witnesses come forward.
THE COLLECTOR BY DANIEL SILVA
In the villa of a murdered shipping tycoon is a secret vault which contains an empty frame and stretcher that matches dimensions of the world’s most valuable missing painting.
Legendary art restorer and spy Gabriel Allon embarks on a mission to track down the painting before the trail goes cold.
The painting is part of an illicit billion-dollar business deal, and Gabriel finds himself in a race to prevent conflict between Russia and the West.
DOOMSDAY MATCH BY JEFF WHEELER
When the Roth family accepts their neighbours’ invitation to a luxury retreat in Cozumel, they find their lives at risk as they become part of an ancient ritual designed to bring about a Mayan apocalypse.
Trapped in a jungle with nowhere to flee, two families are pitted against each other to determine who will be sacrificed and realise a prophecy to bring down civilisation.
DEAD OF WINTER BY DARCY COATES
Christa and Kiernan join a tour group heading deep into the snowy expanse of the Rocky Mountains. In the midst of a snowstorm, the group takes shelter in a remote cabin and waits for the weather to clear.
The next day, their tour guide is found dead and the storm shows no signs of subsiding anytime soon. – Aqilah Rahman
