Here are the top 20 books checked out at the Library in 2014.
How many have you read?
The Longest Ride by, Nicholas Sparks--Ira Levinson
is in trouble. At ninety-one years old, in poor health and alone in the world,
he finds himself stranded on an isolated embankment after a car crash.
Suffering multiple injuries, he struggles to retain consciousness until a
blurry image materializes and comes into focus beside him: his beloved wife
Ruth, who passed away nine years ago. Urging him to hang on, she forces him to
remain alert by recounting the stories of their lifetime together – how they
met, the precious paintings they collected together, the dark days of WWII and
its effect on them and their families. Ira knows that Ruth can’t possibly be in
the car with him, but he clings to her words and his memories, reliving the
sorrows and everyday joys that defined their marriage.
A few miles
away, at a local rodeo, a Wake Forest College senior’s life is about to change.
Recovering from a recent break-up, Sophia Danko meets a young cowboy named
Luke, who bears little resemblance to the privileged frat boys she has
encountered at school. Through Luke, Sophia is introduced to a world in which
the stakes of survival and success, ruin and reward -- even life and death –
loom large in everyday life. As she and Luke fall in love, Sophia finds herself
imagining a future far removed from her plans -- a future that Luke has the
power to rewrite . . . if the secret he’s keeping doesn’t destroy it first.
Ira and
Ruth. Sophia and Luke. Two couples who have little in common, and who are
separated by years and experience. Yet their lives will converge with
unexpected poignancy, reminding us all that even the most difficult decisions
can yield extraordinary journeys: beyond despair, beyond death, to the farthest
reaches of the human heart.
Missing You by, Harlan Coben--It's a
profile, like all the others on the online dating site. But as NYPD Detective
Kat Donovan focuses on the accompanying picture, she feels her whole world
explode, as emotions she’s ignored for decades come crashing down on her.
Staring back at her is her ex-fiancé Jeff, the man who shattered her heart—and
who she hasn’t seen in 18 years.
Kat feels a
spark, wondering if this might be the moment when past tragedies recede and a
new world opens up to her. But when she reaches out to the man in the profile,
her reawakened hope quickly darkens into suspicion and then terror as an
unspeakable conspiracy comes to light, in which monsters prey upon the most
vulnerable.
As the body
count mounts and Kat's hope for a second chance with Jeff grows more and more
elusive, she is consumed by an investigation that challenges her feelings about
everyone she ever loved—her former fiancé, her mother, and even her father,
whose cruel murder so long ago has never been fully explained. With lives on
the line, including her own, Kat must venture deeper into the darkness than she
ever has before, and discover if she has the strength to survive what she finds
there.
Orphan Train by, Christina Baker Kline-- Nearly eighteen, Molly Ayer knows she
has one last chance. Just months from "aging out" of the child
welfare system, and close to being kicked out of her foster home, a community
service position helping an elderly woman clean out her home is the only thing
keeping her out of juvie and worse. Vivian Daly has lived a quiet life on the
coast of Maine. But in her attic, hidden in trunks, are vestiges of a turbulent
past. As she helps Vivian sort through her possessions and memories, Molly
discovers that she and Vivian aren't as different as they seem to be. A young
Irish immigrant orphaned in New York City, Vivian was put on a train to the
Midwest with hundreds of other children whose destinies would be determined by
luck and chance.
The closer
Molly grows to Vivian, the more she discovers parallels to her own life. A
Penobscot Indian, she, too, is an outsider being raised by strangers, and she,
too, has unanswered questions about the past. As her emotional barriers begin
to crumble, Molly discovers that she has the power to help Vivian find answers
to mysteries that have haunted her for her entire life - answers that will
ultimately free them both.
Rich in
detail and epic in scope, Orphan Train is a powerful novel of upheaval and resilience,
of second chances, of unexpected friendship, and of the secrets we carry that
keep us from finding out who we are.
Unlucky 13 by, James Patterson-- San Francisco Detective Lindsay Boxer is loving her
life as a new mother. With an attentive husband, a job she loves, plus best
friends who can talk about anything from sex to murder, things couldn't be
better.
Then the FBI
sends Lindsay a photo of a killer from her past, and her happy world is
shattered. The picture captures a beautiful woman at a stoplight. But all
Lindsay sees is the psychopath behind those seductive eyes: Mackie Morales, the
most deranged and dangerous mind the Women's Murder Club has ever encountered.
In this
pulse-racing, emotionally charged novel by James Patterson, the Women's Murder
Club must find a killer--before she finds them first.
Lost Lake by, Sarah Addison Allen--- Suley, Georgia, is home to Lost Lake Cottages and not
much else. Which is why it's the perfect place for newly-widowed Kate and her
eccentric eight-year-old daughter Devin to heal. Kate spent one memorable
childhood summer at Lost Lake, had her first almost-kiss at Lost Lake, and met
a boy named Wes at Lost Lake. It was a place for dreaming. But Kate doesn't
believe in dreams anymore, and her Aunt Eby, Lost Lake's owner, wants to sell
the place and move on. Lost Lake's magic is gone. As Kate discovers that time
has a way of standing still at Lost Lake can she bring the cottages—and her heart—back
to life?
Sometimes
lost loves aren't really lost. They're right where you left them, waiting for
you to find them again.
Power Play by, Danielle Steel--- Would you sacrifice your family to have it all?
Fiona Carson
has proven herself as CEO of a multibillion-dollar high-tech company, but she
still has to meet the challenges of her world every day. Devoted single mother,
world-class strategist, and tough negotiator, Fiona weighs every move she makes
and reserves any personal time for her children. Isolation and constant
pressure are givens for her as a woman in a man's world.
Meanwhile,
Marshall Weston basks in the fruits of his achievements. At his side is his
wife Liz - the perfect, supportive corporate spouse - who has gladly sacrificed
her own law career to raise their three children. Smooth, shrewd, and
irreproachable, Marshall is a model chief executive, and the power he wields
only enhances his charisma. And to maintain his position, he harbors secrets
that could destroy his life at any moment.
Both must
face their own demons, and fight off those who are jealous of their success.
Their lives as CEOs of major companies come at a high price. But just how high
a price are they willing to pay? Who are they willing to sacrifice to stay on
top? Those they love, or themselves?
Sycamore Row by, John Grisham--- Seth Hubbard is a wealthy man dying of lung cancer. He
trusts no one. Before he hangs himself from a sycamore tree, Hubbard leaves a
new, handwritten, will. It is an act that drags his adult children, his black
maid, and Jake into a conflict as riveting and dramatic as the murder trial
that made Brigance one of Ford County's most notorious citizens, just three
years earlier.
The second
will raises far more questions than it answers. Why would Hubbard leave nearly
all of his fortune to his maid? Had chemotherapy and painkillers affected his
ability to think clearly? And what does it all have to do with a piece of land
once known as Sycamore Row?
Keep Quiet by, Lisa Scottoline--- New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award winning
author Lisa Scottoline is loved by millions of readers for her suspenseful
novels about family and justice. Scottoline delivers once again with Keep
Quiet, an emotionally gripping and complex story about one man’s split-second
decision to protect his son - and the devastating consequences that follow.
Jake Buckman’s relationship with his sixteen-year-old son Ryan is not an easy
one, so at the urging of his loving wife, Pam, Jake goes alone to pick up Ryan
at their suburban movie theater. On the way home, Ryan asks to drive on a
deserted road, and Jake sees it as a chance to make a connection. However, what
starts as a father-son bonding opportunity instantly turns into a nightmare.
Tragedy strikes, and with Ryan’s entire future hanging in the balance, Jake is
forced to make a split-second decision that plunges them both into a world of
guilt and lies. Without ever meaning to, Jake and Ryan find themselves living
under the crushing weight of their secret, which threatens to tear their family
to shreds and ruin them all. Powerful and dramatic, Keep Quiet will have
readers and book clubs debating what it means to be a parent and how far you
can, and should, go to protect those you love.
The fault in our stars by, John Green--- Despite the tumor-shrinking medical
miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but
terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot
twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group,
Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.
Insightful,
bold, irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is award-winning author John
Green's most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the
funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love.
The Hunger Games by, Suzanne Collins--- Winning will make you famous. Losing
means certain death.
The nation
of Panem, formed from a post-apocalyptic North America, is a country that
consists of a wealthy Capitol region surrounded by 12 poorer districts. Early
in its history, a rebellion led by a 13th district against the Capitol resulted
in its destruction and the creation of an annual televised event known as the
Hunger Games. In punishment, and as a reminder of the power and grace of the
Capitol, each district must yield one boy and one girl between the ages of 12
and 18 through a lottery system to participate in the games. The 'tributes' are
chosen during the annual Reaping and are forced to fight to the death, leaving
only one survivor to claim victory.
When
16-year-old Katniss's younger sister, Prim, is selected as District 12's female
representative, Katniss volunteers to take her place. She and her male
counterpart Peeta, are pitted against bigger, stronger representatives, some of
whom have trained for this their whole lives. , she sees it as a death
sentence. But Katniss has been close to death before. For her, survival is
second nature.
Allegiant by,Veronica Roth--- The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is
shattered—fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and
betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she’s
known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a
simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and
painful memories. But Tris’s new reality
is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly
rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she
loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend the complexities of human
nature—and of herself—while facing impossible choices about courage,
allegiance, sacrifice, and love.
Top Secret Twenty-one by, Janet Evanovich--- Catch a professional assassin: top
priority. Find a failure-to-appear and collect big bucks: top score. How she’ll
pull it all off: top secret. Trenton, New Jersey’s favorite used-car dealer,
Jimmy Poletti, was caught selling a lot more than used cars out of his
dealerships. Now he’s out on bail and has missed his date in court, and bounty
hunter Stephanie Plum is looking to bring him in. Leads are quickly turning
into dead ends, and all too frequently into dead bodies. Even Joe Morelli, the
city’s hottest cop, is struggling to find a clue to the suspected killer’s
whereabouts. These are desperate times, and they call for desperate measures.
So Stephanie is going to have to do something she really doesn’t want to do:
protect former hospital security guard and general pain in her behind Randy
Briggs. Briggs was picking up quick cash as Poletti’s bookkeeper and knows all
his boss’s dirty secrets. Now Briggs is next on Poletti’s list of people to put
six feet under.
To top
things off, Ranger—resident security expert and Stephanie’s greatest
temptation—has been the target of an assassination plot. He’s dodged the bullet
this time, but if Ranger wants to survive the next attempt on his life, he’ll
have to enlist Stephanie’s help and reveal a bit more of his mysterious past.
Death
threats, highly trained assassins, highly untrained assassins, and Stark Street
being overrun by a pack of feral Chihuahuas are all in a day’s work for
Stephanie Plum. The real challenge is dealing with her Grandma Mazur’s wild
bucket list. A boob job and getting revenge on Joe Morelli’s Grandma Bella can
barely hold a candle to what’s number one on the list—but that’s top secret.
Unfit by, Lara Clevland Torgeson--- Chrissy Rollings has a mountain of troubles to
overcome, one that would crush most other girls her age. She was born in a
small North Carolina town in 1952, into a poor but happy and loving family that
always managed to scrape by each month... until the night her father died in a
car crash, plunging the family into poverty. Chrissy’s mother is forced to take
low-paying jobs to supplement her meager welfare checks, leaving Chrissy to
raise her five siblings. But even these sacrifices are not enough.
North
Carolina was among the states to practice eugenics — forcing sterilization
procedures on thousands of people deemed “unfit” to reproduce. When Chrissy’s
mother was faced with the choice of having 14-year-old Chrissy sterilized or
losing her welfare check, she makes the only choice she feels she can and signs
the consent form. That act of survival sets into motion a series of events that
shape the course of Chrissy’s life forever.
The Husband’s Secret by, Liane Moriarty-- At the heart of The Husband’s Secret
is a letter that’s not meant to be read
My darling
Cecilia, if you’re reading this, then I’ve died...
Imagine that
your husband wrote you a letter, to be opened after his death. Imagine, too,
that the letter contains his deepest, darkest secret—something with the
potential to destroy not just the life you built together, but the lives of
others as well. Imagine, then, that you stumble across that letter while your
husband is still very much alive. . . .Cecilia Fitzpatrick has achieved it
all—she’s an incredibly successful businesswoman, a pillar of her small
community, and a devoted wife and mother. Her life is as orderly and spotless as
her home. But that letter is about to change everything, and not just for her:
Rachel and Tess barely know Cecilia—or each other—but they too are about to
feel the earth-shattering repercussions of her husband’s secret.
Acclaimed
author Liane Moriarty has written a gripping, thought-provoking novel about how
well it is really possible to know our spouses—and, ultimately, ourselves.
The Winter People by, Jennifer McMahon--- West Hall, Vermont, has always been a
town of strange disappearances and old legends. The most mysterious is that of
Sara Harrison Shea, who, in 1908, was found dead in the field behind her house
just months after the tragic death of her daughter, Gertie. Now, in present
day, nineteen-year-old Ruthie lives in Sara's farmhouse with her mother, Alice,
and her younger sister, Fawn. Alice has always insisted that they live off the
grid, a decision that suddenly proves perilous when Ruthie wakes up one morning
to find that Alice has vanished without a trace. Searching for clues, she is
startled to find a copy of Sara Harrison Shea's diary hidden beneath the
floorboards of her mother's bedroom. As Ruthie gets sucked deeper into the
mystery of Sara's fate, she discovers that she's not the only person who's
desperately looking for someone that they've lost. But she may be the only one
who can stop history from repeating itself.
The whole enchilada by, Diana Mott Davidson--- Goldy Schulz knows her food is to die
for, but she never expects one of her best friends to actually keel over when
she's leaving a birthday party Goldy has catered. At first, everyone assumes
that all the fun and excitement of the party, not to mention the rich fare, did
her in.
But what looks
like a coronary turns out to be a generous serving of cold-blooded murder. And
the clever culprit is just getting cooking.
When a
colleague—a woman who resembles Goldy—is stabbed, and Goldy is attacked outside
her house, it becomes clear that the popular caterer is the main course on a
killer menu. With time running out, Goldy must roll up her sleeves, sharpen her
knives, and make a meal out of a devious murderer, before that killer can serve
her up cold.
Empty Mansions : the mysterious life of Huguette Clark and
the spending of a great American fortune by, Bill Dedman--- When Pulitzer Prize-winning
journalist Bill Dedman noticed in 2009 a grand home for sale, unoccupied for
nearly sixty years, he stumbled through a surprising portal into American
history. Empty Mansions is a rich mystery of wealth and loss, connecting the
Gilded Age opulence of the nineteenth century with a twenty-first-century
battle over a $300 million inheritance. At its heart is a reclusive heiress named
Huguette Clark, a woman so secretive that, at the time of her death at age 104,
no new photograph of her had been seen in decades. Though she owned palatial
homes in California, New York, and Connecticut, why had she lived for twenty
years in a simple hospital room, despite being in excellent health? Why were
her valuables being sold off? Was she in control of her fortune, or controlled
by those managing her money?
Dedman has
collaborated with Huguette Clark’s cousin, Paul Clark Newell, Jr., one of the
few relatives to have frequent conversations with her. Dedman and Newell tell a
fairy tale in reverse: the bright, talented daughter, born into a family of
extreme wealth and privilege, who secrets herself away from the outside world.
Huguette was
the daughter of self-made copper industrialist W. A. Clark, nearly as rich as
Rockefeller in his day, a controversial senator, railroad builder, and founder
of Las Vegas. She grew up in the largest house in New York City, a remarkable
dwelling with 121 rooms for a family of four. She owned paintings by Degas and
Renoir, a world-renowned Stradivarius violin, a vast collection of antique
dolls. But wanting more than treasures, she devoted her wealth to buying gifts
for friends and strangers alike, to quietly pursuing her own work as an artist,
and to guarding the privacy she valued above all else. The Clark family story
spans nearly all of American history in three generations, from a log cabin in
Pennsylvania to mining camps in the Montana gold rush, from backdoor politics
in Washington to a distress call from an elegant Fifth Avenue apartment. The
same Huguette who was touched by the terror attacks of 9/11 held a ticket nine
decades earlier for a first-class stateroom on the second voyage of the
Titanic.
Empty
Mansions reveals a complex portrait of the mysterious Huguette and her intimate
circle. We meet her extravagant father, her publicity-shy mother, her
star-crossed sister, her French boyfriend, her nurse who received more than $30
million in gifts, and the relatives fighting to inherit Huguette’s copper
fortune. Richly illustrated with more than seventy photographs, Empty Mansions
is an enthralling story of an eccentric of the highest order, a last jewel of
the Gilded Age who lived life on her own terms.
I've got you under my skin by, Mary Higgins Clark--- When Laurie Moran's husband was
brutally murdered, only three-year-old Timmy saw the face of his father's
killer. Five years later his piercing blue eyes still haunt Timmy's dreams.
Laurie is haunted by more: the killer's threat to her son as he fled the scene:
Tell your mother she's next, then it's your turn . . .
Now Laurie
is dealing with murder again, this time as the producer of a true-crime,
cold-case television show. The series will launch with the twenty-year-old
unsolved murder of Betsy Powell. Betsy, a socialite, was found suffocated in
her bed after a gala celebrating the graduation of her daughter and three friends.
The sensational murder was news nationwide. Reopening the case in its lavish
setting and with the cooperation of the surviving guests that night, Laurie is
sure to have a hit on her hands. But when the estranged friends begin filming,
it becomes clear each is hiding secrets . . . small and large.
And a pair
of blue eyes is watching events unfold, too . . .
The first phone call from heaven : a novel by, Mitch Albom---
The First Phone Call from
Heaven tells the story of a small town on Lake Michigan that gets worldwide
attention when its citizens start receiving phone calls from the afterlife. Is
it the greatest miracle ever or a massive hoax? Sully Harding, a grief-stricken
single father, is determined to find out. An allegory about the power of
belief--and a page-turner that will touch your soul--Albom's masterful
storytelling has never been so moving and unexpected. Readers of The Five
People You Meet in Heaven will recognize the warmth and emotion so redolent of
Albom's writing, and those who haven't yet enjoyed the power of his
storytelling, will thrill at the discovery of one of the best-loved writers of
our time.
Fifteen Minutes by, Karen Kingsbury--- Overnight, Zack is the nation’s most
popular contestant, a country singer with the looks and voice of a young Elvis.
As his star rises, Zack is asked to compromise and quiet his beliefs, and also
something more. Just as America is falling in love with Zack, just as he’s on
the verge of winning it all, his choices lead him to the brink of personal
disaster.At the same time, Reese Weatherly, a therapeutic horse instructor, is
no longer sure about her relationship with Zack, or the wedding they had
dreamed about. While Zack advances from one round of the competition to the
next, an offer comes to Reese--one that will take her to a home halfway around
the world.
Then Chandra
Olson--reigning diva pop star and one of the Fifteen Minutes
judges--intervenes. Chandra has suffered so much public pain and private agony
since her days as a Fifteen Minutes contestant. Now she wants just one thing:
meaning.
Can
Chandra's private losses help Zack find his way, or will his fifteen minutes of
fame cause him to lose the life he once loved? Fifteen Minutes is a story of
character, compromise, and the cost of having it all. A story that raises the
question: Who are the real winners?
