Dark Places by Gillian Flynn,  was hard to get into when I first started reading it.  It is pretty depressing but as the plot thickens you really get hooked and want to figure out what really happened.  The book focuses on Libby Day, a young woman who survived when her mom and sisters were killed 20+ years ago.  Her brother was arrested and convicted of the crime but there are people who think he is innocent.  The book alternates between present day and the past and does a nice job of building your interest.  Like drama and suspense?  This is your book.  Touchy stomach?  This book might not be for you...

This book is available in Infosoup in print, large print and ebook.

My first Diane Chamberlain book and it was great! I thought it would be formulaic but happily this book was very complicated and the author has a talent for writing very good description which enhanced the narrative. Two sisters,Rebecca and Maya, are doctors in adulthood, but lost their parents in a shocking crime when they were teens. Rebecca's temperament is to be bold and wild and offer her doctoring services in disaster relief situations. Maya is a pediatrician craving order, balance, and safety. Maya is married to another doctor, Adam, and he is convinced to join Rebecca with relief efforts after a hurricane has hit North Carolina.

Soon after Maya follows. Unfortunately, Maya goes missing for a while and Rebecca and Adam find that they care for each other. Maya is on a tangent of her own that will change her entire life. You will have to read the book to find out what that was! There are really good questions raised in this book about what exactly connotes family, how do we grow within our families, and how do we overcome the hurdles of violence in the many forms in which it may rear itself in our lives? Also, as the title implies, lies won't get you anywhere and are destructive. (I think I could accurately recommend this author to Jodi Picoult fans.)

Sally O'Malley, the protagonist in this book, is a girl blossoming into young adulthood. She is exuberant and funny and in her innocence is still taking many concepts literally. In the story, both the adults and the kids are being careful and watchful in their neighborhood because there is a serial killer in their midst who is killing girls who are the age of Sally O'Malley. The author sets a tone of summer, lightheartedness and a carefree time (late 50s). Because the author does this, the murderer/molester is not as frightening as he could be. The way that Sally deals with and wonders about adults reminded me a lot of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. I loved this book and I loved the resolutions at the end of it.

Flavia de Luce is back! This 11-year-old genius with a penchant for poisons is plunged into a double mystery when a traveling puppet show makes an unscheduled visit. An uncanny resemblance of one of the marionettes to a victim of an unsolved murder causes her to venture to Gibbet Hill and discover events that the local constables have been unable to unravel. The eccentric characters and unwinding of the plot provide an engrossing mystery. The audio version is wonderful, with Jane Entwhistle providing a spot-on voice for Flavia, as she did in the first book The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie.