01 A Star Is Bored
Author Byron Lane was Carrie Fisher's personal assistant in real life, and in his novel, main protagonist Charlie is assistant to the sci-fi-blockbuster-famous actress who played Priestess Talara. Kathi Kannon is a woman with a big, wacky personality who is also Hollywood royalty.
I love picturing Carrie Fisher as Kannon in this funny, zany, bighearted story. Charlie is searching for meaning and direction, and Kathi could use a friend in this crazy life of hers. This is fun and great escapism so far.
02 The Last Confession of Autumn Casterly
In Meredith Tate's newest book, Ivy and her gloriously nerdy friends play in the school band and love board games. But her older sister Autumn is involved in a darker scene, and when Autumn is abducted by people connected to a drug ring, Ivy must plunge into the sinister underbelly of her sister's life to try to save her.
If Ivy can unravel the snarl of dangerous clues and uncover the secrets Autumn's been keeping, maybe she'll be able to help her sister survive.
This title was listed in the Greedy Reading List Six Newish Young Adult Mysteries I Want to Read.
03 Trust No One (Devlin & Falco #1)
Detective Kerri Devlin is stuck with a new partner with a reputation as a loose cannon; the pair is thrust into a homicide case that's turning out to be more layered and complicated than it first seemed; and Devlin can't seem to keep her teenage daughter happy or her ex-husband off her case.
Webb provides multiple mysteriously missing persons, mixed motivations, naive characters ruined by sinister people in power, and an occasional first-person narrator who isn't what they first seemed. The beauty of the complementary, mismatched partnership between Devlin and Falco is my favorite aspect so far.
Webb has written 150 novels. One hundred and fifty. But this is the first book I've read of hers, courtesy of NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer.
What are you reading now?
I'm alternating between a fictionalized celebrity story with heart; a young adult mystery with a nerdy heroine and a dark plot twist; and a prolific mystery author's first in a series, where almost everyone is a potential suspect. I kind of love reading such different books at one time--a book for every mood.
What books are you reading and liking now?