All Booked | Back on the Thriller Train

By Emily Lee Wed Jan 17, 2024 | 11:48am

The original version of this newsletter was sent out on Tuesday, January 16

Sign up for All Booked, our bi-monthly newsletter exclusively for book lovers.

Hello, book lovelies!

I have been on a reading kick lately. I’m not sure if it’s the new year energy or the fact that I’m intentionally keeping my calendar blank this month, but I’ve been flying through books. I’m currently on my fourth book of the year, and I’ve loved everything I’ve picked up so far. If you’ve been with me for a couple of years now, you will know that I used to read (almost) exclusively mysteries and thrillers. When my daughter was born, I took a break from reading those types of books and gravitated toward lighter genres like cozy mysteries, contemporary, and romance. Well, some of you may be happy to learn that I have been dipping my toe back into the thriller and mystery world. In fact, it’s all I’ve been reading as of late. I’m still reading a range of mystery and thrillers from light and cozy to dark and (sometimes) scary. Below, you will find the three books I’ve read so far this year in order of the lightest to heaviest.

I am a big believer in going into a book knowing as little as possible. I try not to read too much of the synopses or reviews, since most of them over-share. My pitches below are short and sweet just for that reason.

Grab a cup of tea and settle in for one of the loveliest stories I’ve read in a while.

Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers by Jesse Q. Sutanto was such a delight to read. It made me feel all the emotions. I guessed half of the reveal, which in my world is the perfect scenario, because it means I was on the right track but I was also surprised.

In this book, we follow Vera Wong, an older woman who runs a less-than-popular tea shop. One morning, Vera comes down from her living quarters and finds a dead body in her tea shop. In her eyes, the police are useless, and so she sets off to find the murderer on her own. On her journey, Vera develops friendships and finds purpose in her life again.

Getting a little bit darker, up next we have The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill. This book ended up taking a totally different direction that I was expecting. We follow Winifred (Freddie), who is at the Boston Public Library working on her novel when she hears a scream. While waiting for the all-clear, Freddie and the three strangers sitting at her table strike up a conversation. Friendships are made, but little do they know, one of them is a murderer.

This book had me guessing and guessing until the very end. I liked the reveal and found the journey of getting there enjoyable.

Finally, the darkest and possibly my favorite one on the list is Dark Corners by Megan Goldin. I talked about this book as an anticipated read about a year ago, and I finally picked it up. Megan Goldin wrote one of my favorite thrillers of all time, The Night Swim. Dark Corners is the next installment in the series, although I don’t think you need to have read The Night Swim to enjoy Dark Corners.

In Dark Corners, we follow Rachel Krall, who is the host of a true crime podcast while she gets pulled in to help with an FBI investigation. I really don’t want to say any more than that. If you love true crime and podcasts, the audiobook is a must!

As always, I would love to hear from you. What have you been reading this year? Do you have any mystery or thriller recommendations for me? Let me know!

Your smitten bookworm, Emily

UPCOMING BOOK EVENTS

Below, you will find a few bookish events coming up in Santa Barbara. If you are hosting a bookish event in Santa Barbara, be sure to submit the event to our online events calendar.

Book Talk with Local Author Arwen Mohun
Wednesday, January 17, 6pm | Chaucer’s Books

Local Author Book Talk with Joshua Schimel
Thursday, January 18, 6pm | Chaucer’s Books

Mama’s Love Language Book Reading
Saturday, January 20, 3pm | Tecolote Book Shop

Can We Talk with the Animals, Especially Dolphins?
Saturday, January 20, 3pm | Tecolote Book Shop

Local Kids’ Book Author Reading
Sunday, January 21, 3pm | Chaucer’s Books

Book Signing with Local Author Dr. Bella DePaulo
Tuesday, January 23, 6pm | Chaucer’s Books

LOCAL BOOK SPOTLIGHT

We at the Independent get many books sent to us by local authors, sometimes too many! It’s practically impossible for us to read and review them all, but just because we are busy bees does not mean that they aren’t worth the attention. In an attempt to not completely drop the ball, we have compiled a list of books here that have a local spin. They are all either written by a local author, feature someone in our community, or have another tie to Santa Barbara. I urge you to look through this list. Perhaps you will find your new favorite read!

The following are the most recent titles that have been sent to us. Click here for a more comprehensive list.

Final Notice by Van Fleisher

Anyone But Me by Bruce Kirkpatrick

The Hardest Year: A Love Story in Letters During the Vietnam War by Carole Wagener and William Wagener

If you are a local author and would like us to feature your book in this section, please email allbooked@independent.com with the subject line “Local Author Spotlight.”