The Books I'm Reading Now
I'm reading A Flicker in the Dark, Stacy Willingham's recent mystery about the disappearances of young women and seeking justice; I'm listening to Kal Penn's memoir You Can't Be Serious, which takes on his acting journey as well as his political career; and I'm reading my first book from John Lescroart, the upcoming (to be published tomorrow!) legal thriller The Missing Piece.
What are you reading and enjoying these days, bookworms?
01 A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham
The summer Chloe Davis was twelve, six girls went missing in her rural Louisiana community. By the end of that summer, Chloe's father had confessed to the crimes of killing those girls, convicted as a serial killer, and put in jail for the rest of his life.
Twenty years later, Chloe has more good days than bad. She's a Baton Rouge psychologist who's preparing for her wedding, and she can mostly keep the terrors and trauma of the past at bay.
But when a local girl goes missing, Chloe panics. As another girl disappears, the psychologist wonders if she's imagining connections to the crimes of decades earlier--or if she's about to help identify another killer who preys on young women.
This thriller has been optioned by actress Emma Stone to be produced as a limited television series.
02 You Can't Be Serious by Kal Penn
I'm in for memoirs, and lately I've been drawn to memoirs by funny people in particular.
Kal Penn's smart, fun You Can't Be Serious explores his early struggles to make it in Hollywood as he straddles humorous roles and dramatic opportunities; attempts to deflect casting and writers' racism; and digs in to try to be one of what he hopes will be the ever-increasing number of diverse faces on television and movie screens.
But Penn pulls his memoir into another gear when he adds the fascinating layer of accidental political activism that becomes a passion and, ultimately, a career, one for which he takes a sabbatical from his steady acting job, his hard-fought role on House.
I'm listening to Penn read You Can't Be Serious as an audiobook.
03 The Missing Piece by John Lescroart
John Lescroart's upcoming (to be published tomorrow!) twisty mystery The Missing Piece continues his popular Dismas Hardy series. I haven't read the others in this series, but I'm confident Lescroart is going to orient me properly so I can keep up.
San Francisco DA Wes Farrell helped send Paul Riley to prison years ago when Riley was convicted of the rape and murder of his girlfriend. But The Exoneration Initiative discovers evidence indicating that Riley didn't commit those grisly crimes, and he's released amid an uproar.
Riley is murdered after gaining his freedom, which makes those involved in the case wonder: if Riley was innocent, who would want him dead? As one theory and suspect after another emerge, Farrell, Hardy, and PI Abe Glitsky must unravel what's really going on--before more people end up dead.
I received a prepublication digital galley of this book (to be published March 29) courtesy of NetGalley and Atria Books.