The following review was published or updated in several Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia newspapers and magazines in November and December 2024:

Booking a full year of reading

Review by Tom Mayer

If only us readers could just spend our days … reading. What would a year look like? Here, the editors of Home for the Holidays present their yearlong list of books, culled from the past 12 months of reading and reviewing. A few of the titles you’ll immediately recognize, and you’ll likely have more than few in your own library. But just in case you missed a title or two, we’re showcasing the whole year’s worth of books that we’ve read and reviewed, month by month.

Except for the first title, the list is simply a list. To find the reviews of many of these titles, visit our newspaper parent, The (Athens) News Courier at enewscourier.com — with a slight caveat. Our newspaper webmasters are currently working overtime to improve our content management system, the foundation of any website, and while many of our archives are now found there, it may be a few weeks before everything is fully re-uploaded — including the most recent editions of Limestone Life and Home for the Holidays. For now, though, enjoy our literary stroll through 2024.

And about that first title: Not every college professor can make statistical analysis approachable, let along interesting to their students and the general population, but Athens State University emeritus professor of psychology Mark Durm is not every college professor. After spending nearly five decades teaching thousands of students, the “ol’ psychology professor” decided that he’d best get around to writing the one book out of his nearly 100 published pieces that’s he always wanted to write. Call it a legacy piece, but what it really is is a “best of” Durm’s peer-reviewed, book reviews, non-peer reviewed and magazine articles from his 47 years in higher education.

The result is “Professional Publications of an Ol’ Psychology Professor” (Dorrance) with full previously published articles ranging from studies on the effects of glasses on a child’s self-esteem to his ever-popular parapsychology pieces, Durm presents his internationally recognized efforts with a twist.

“It’s a different kind of book because it doesn’t talk about the research, it presents the research,” the professor says from his second-career office at Durm Properties in Athens, about a half-mile from where he first presented that research in person. “I’ve spent hours on all of these articles, especially in the peer-reviewed journal articles.”

And so, articles on divorce, sex, religion and other topics now populate the pages of Durm’s most recent book in an effort to both continue his teaching and satisfy what has been a lifelong wonderment.

“You know, most people don’t understand statistics, so it’s all in there,” Durm said. “What I’m trying to do is a more critical approach to ‘just don’t believe everything you’re told.’ … It’s things that were in my life that I wanted to see if they were so, by using a psychological analysis.”

And like any good professor, Durm didn’t do that research on his own — or take all of the credit. Among the co-authors of many of his articles in the book were students — many of who he’s lost touch with, but all of whom who he credits by name in his acknowledgements and for each of who, if they look up their ol’ mentor, he has a signed book ready to hand over. For the rest of us, you can find the book at any online bookseller — just as you can with the remainder of our list, presented by the month in which the book was published, read and reviewed.

JANUARY

Unbound (Blackstone) by Christy Healy NG/F

The Devil’s Daughter by Gordon Greisman NG/ARC

FEBRUARY

Almost Surely Dead (Mindy’s Book Studio) by Amina Akhtar NG

The Chaos Agent (Gray Man 13) (Berkley) by Mark Greaney NG

The Lady in Glass and Other Stories (Ace) by Anne Bishop ARC

A Haunting in the Arctic (Berkley paperback) by C.J. Cooke NG

Ghost Island (Berkley) by Max Seeck

MARCH

Hello, Alabama (Arcadia) by Martha Day Zschock

The Unquiet Bones (Montlake) by Loreth Anne White

I am Rome: A novel of Julius Caesar (Ballantine Books by Santiago PosteguilloMarch 5: Murder Road (Berkley) by Simone St. James

The Luminous Life of Lucy Landry (Holiday House) by Anna Rose Johnson

Ferris (Candlewick) by Kate DiCamillo

After Annie (Random House, Feb. 27) by Anna Quindlen

Crocodile Tears Didn't Cause the Flood (Montag Press) by Bradley Sides The #1 Lawyer (Little, Brown and Company) by James Patterson, Nancy Allen

Lilith (Blackstone) by Eric Rickstad

Life: My Story Through History (Harper One) by Pope Francis

APRIL

Matterhorn (Thomas & Mercer) by Christopher Reich

Friends in Napa (Mindy’s Book Studio) by Sheila Yasmin Marikar

City in Ruins (William Morrow) by Don Winslow

The House on Biscayne Bay (Berkley) by Chanel Cleeton

Two Friends, One Dog, and a Very Unusual Week (Peachtree) by Sarah L. Thomson

For Worse (Blackstone) by L.K. Bowen

A Killing on the Hill (Thomas & Mercer) by Robert Dugoini

The Clock Struck Murder (Poisoned Pen Press) by Betty Webb

The Book That Broke the World (Ace) by Mark Lawrence

The Forgetters (Heyday Books) by Greg Sarris

Lost to Dune Road (Thomas & Mercer) by Kara Thomas

Warrior on the Mound (Holiday House/Peachtree) by Sandra Headed

Pictures of Time (Silver Street Media) by David AlexanderBare Knuckle (Blackstone Publishing) by Stayton Bonner

Murder on Demand (Blackstone Publishing) by Al Roker

Home is Where the Bodies Are (Blackstone) by Jeneva Rose

MAY

Matterhorn by Christopher Reich

The Hunter's Daughter (Berkley) by Nicola Solvinic

The House That Horror Built (Berkley) by Christina Henry

In our stars (Berkley) by Jack Campbell

Freeset (book 2) (Blackstone) by Sarina Dahlan

Southern Man (William Morrow) by Greg Iles

Camino Ghosts (Doubleday) by John Grisham

JUNE

Specter of Betrayal by Rick DeStefanis

Lake County (Thomas & Mercer) by Lori Roy

Serendipity (Dutton) by Becky Chalsen

Shelterwood (Ballantine) by Lisa Wingate

The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra’s Needle (Holiday House) by Dan Gutman

Jackpot (Penguin) by Elysa Friedland

The Helper (Blackstone) by M.M. Dewil

Winter Lost (Ace) by Patricia Briggs

Shadow Heart (Blackstone) by Meg Gardiner

Lake Country (Thomas & Mercer) by Lori Roy

The Out-of-Town Lawyer (Blackstone) by Robert Rotten

Love Letter to a Serial Killer (Berkley) by Tasha Coryell

Sentinel Berkley) by Mark Greaney

JULY

Three Kings: Race, Class, and the Barrier-Breaking Rivals Who Redefined Sports and Launched the Modern Olympic Age (Blackstone) by Todd Balf

The Night Ends with Fire (Berkley) by K.X. Song

Echo Road (Montlake) by Melinda Leigh

It’s Elementary (Berkley) by Elise Bryant

You Shouldn’t Be Here (Thomas & Mercer) by Lauren Thoman

Back In Black (Blackstone) edited by Don Bruns

The Recruiter (Blackstone) by Gregg Podolski

AUGUST

You Shouldn’t Be Here (Thomas & Mercer) by Lauren Thoman ARC

Not What She Seems (Thomas & Mercer) by Yasmin Angoe NG

Fatal Intrusion by Jeff Deaver/Isabella Maldonado

Death at Morning House (HARPERTeen) by Maureen Johnson

Fire and Bones (Scribner) by Kathy Reichs

Some Nightmares Are Real (University of Alabama Press) by Kelly Kazoo

The Brothers Kenny (Blackstone) by Adam Mitzner

Blind to Midnight (Blackstone) by Reed Farrel Coleman

The Wayside (Blackstone) by Carolina Wolff

Enemy of the State (Blackstone) by Robert Smartwood

You Will Never Be Me (Berkley) by Jesse Q. Sutanto

On Settler Colonialism: Ideology, Violence, and Justice (W.W. Norton) by Adam Kirsch

We Love the Nightlife (Berkley) by Rachel Koller Croft

Talking To Strangers (Berkley) by Fiona Barton

An Honorable Assassin (Blackstone) by Steve Hamilton possible interview see email

Dungeon Crawler Carl (1 of 6 but see next two months) (Ace) by Matt Dinniman

SEPTEMBER

Fatal Intrusion (Thomas & Mercer) by Jeffrey Deaver and Isabella Maldonado

When They Last Saw Her (Penguin) by Marcie Rendon

American Ghoul (Blackstone) by Michelle McGill-Vargas

First Do No Harm (Blackstone) by Steve Hamilton

A Quiet Life: A Novel (Arcade) by William Cooper and Michael McKinley

One More From the Top (Mariner) by Emily Layden

No Address (Forefront Books) by Ken Abraham.

Tiger’s Tale (Blackstone) by Colleen Houck

An Academy for Liars (Ace) by Alexis Henderson

Rewitched (Berkley) by Lucy Jane Wood

Gaslight (Blackstone) by Sara Shepard and Miles Joris-Peyrafitte

Counting Miracles (Random House) by Nicholas Sparks

The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society (Ace) by C.M. Waggoner

The Hitchcock Hotel (Berkley) by Stephanie Wrobel

In the Garden of Monsters by Crystal King

Carl’s Doomsday Scenario (2 of 6 see next month also) (Ace) by Matt Dinniman

OCTOBER

The Hushed (Blackstone) by K.R. Blair NG

A Grim Reaper’s Guide to Catching a Killer (Berkley) by Maxie Dara

On Settler Colonialism: Ideology, Violence, and Justice (Norton) by WSJ Weekend review editor Adam Kirsch

Framed (Doubleday) by John Grisham and Jim McCloskey

This Cursed House (Penguin) by Del Sandeen

The Puzzle Box (Random House) by Danielle Trussoni

Two Good Men (Blackstone) by S.E. Redfearn

Dark Space (Blackstone) by Rob Hart and Alex Segura

This Cursed House (Berkley’s open submission)by Del Sandeen

Vindicating Trump (Regnery) by Dinesh D’Souza

The Book of Witching (Berkley) by C.J. Cooke

The World Walk (Skyhorse) by Tom Turcich

The Waiting Game by Michael Connelly  ARC, possible interview see email

Beyond Reasonable Doubt (Thomas & Mercer) by Robert Dugoni

Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook (3 of 6, with bonus material) (Ace) by Matt Dinniman

Frozen Lives (Blackstone) by Jennifer Graeser Fronbush NG

Vincent, Starry Starry Night (Meteor 17 Books) intro by Don McLean

Paris in Winter: An Illustrated Memoir (PowerHouse Books) by David Coggins

NOVEMBER

The Waiting (Little, Brown) by Michael Connelly

The Teller of Small Fortunes (Penguin) by Julie Long

Shadow Lab (Blackstone) by Brendan Deneen

Trial by Ambush (Thomas & Mercer) by Marcia Clark

Devil Take It (Heresy Press) by Daniel Debs Nossiter

SerVant of Earth (Ace) by Sarah Hawley

All the other me (Blackstone) by Jody Holford

The Perfect Marriage (Blackstone reissue re-edit) by Jenny Rose

DECEMBER

Trial By Ambush (Thomas & Mercer) by Marcia Clark

The Close-Up (Gallery Books) by Pip Drysdale

The Silent Watcher (Thomas & Mercer) by Victor Methos

Leviathan (Lividian Trade HC) by Robert McCammon

The Silent Watcher (Thomas & Mercer) by Victor Method

Assume Nothing (Thomas & Mercer) by Joshua Corin

One example link:
https://enewscourier.com/2024/11/29/in-review-booking-a-full-year-of-reading/

An excellent second installment in Fiona Barton’s detective Elise King series. A woman is found dead in the woods and Elise, along with reporter Kiki Nunn investigate many leads to find the killer. There are many characters and alternating perspectives which make this a page-turner. The twist at the end was completely unexpected. I look forward to the next in this series.

Great read! I filled all this out and my internet crashed and wiped everything out. I highly recommend reading this. Characters Kiki is a relentless reporter, digging for the truth with great people skills. Detective Elise is recovering cancer Struggling to be normal again, A murder or two, rape, lies and tons of suspects to make solving this a great story.

This was one of those sequels that I ended up liking a bit more than book 1 in the series. I like our MC, Detective Elise King, and the way she has to get at the heart of mysteries. I was happy to see Niki Nunn, fearless journalist, and constant annoyance for Elise make a reappearance in this series too. The answers to the mysteries were rather predictable for the most part, just like in the first book. Despite this, if Elise and Niki star in the next book in the series, I'll still pick it up for sure. I really enjoy the push and pull, sometimes friends but sometimes at odds dynamic.

A huge thank you to the author and the publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to be able to read and review this book!

Spooky and fun.

Another superbly plotted and well-paced crime thriller.

This is a slow burner that kept me intrigued and guessing until the epilogue with its shocking finish. Basically, it's a mystery centered on two different murders that are inexplicably intertwined. The story was told in alternating points of view with the primary characters being DI Elise King and reporter Kiki Nunn.

A single, middle-aged woman just wants to have fun. Karen Simmons likes her dating apps and often swipes right. She meets and hooks up with the wrong guy late on Valentine's Day night. DI Elise King and her team investigate with many possible suspects to interview. Kiki Nunn is trying to make a living working for a local online news agency and decides to use the murder of Karen Simmons to do her own little deep dive into the online dating scene and the danger of strangers. And she definitely puts herself in it with a very bad guy -- could he be the one who also murdered Karen?

Lots of suspects and solid police techniques make for a slow process as they wade through witness statements and scant evidence. It's only when they also start looking at the death of a young child years earlier in the same woods where Karen's body was found that they start to narrow their focus.

I was able to listen to the audiobook while also following along in the e-book ARC provided by the publisher. I usually enjoy the narrators, but I really was put off by the voice of Jayne Entwistle who voiced Kiki. She sounded like an elderly woman and didn't fit the character in my mind. The other female narrator and the male's voice were satisfactory and matched their parts.

I look forward to reading the next in this series.

Talking to Strangers is Book 2 in Fiona Barton's Elise King series, and, although it technically can be read as a standalone, I wouldn't. I would start with Local Gone Missing and prepare to love this series. Fiona Barton is the master at slowing dropping clues, crafting her web, until she has you completely ensnare, before completely dropping a surprise reveal at the end. The multiple narrators really work, and I'm already excited for the next installment.

The narrative is gripping, with well-developed characters and a plot that keeps you guessing until the very end. Barton's writing style is engaging, making it easy to get lost in the story. It's a great read for anyone who enjoys suspenseful and thought-provoking novels.

Thriller readers like things dark. Whether it’s mystery, suspense, or speculative, we expect bad things to happen to good people, for death and despair. But Fiona Barton’s latest, Talking to Strangers, may be the bleakest thriller I’ve ever read. Barton, British author of The Widow (reviewed here) and The Child (reviewed here) creates strong female protagonists and puts them in tough situations. In Talking to Strangers, she implies there’s no real escape.

When 45-year-old single hairdresser Karen Simmons is murdered on Valentine’s Day in the woods of the British hamlet of Ebbing, the case lands with detective Elise King. (Elise and Ebbing were also featured in Barton’s Local Gone Missing.) On her own after being dumped for another woman, and still recovering from a cancer fight, Elise thinks Karen’s murder is related to her use of dating apps and running a local singles group. Reporter Kiki Nunn, a single mother with a teenage daughter, thinks the murder is her chance to make a name for herself on the web site she reports for, and tries to infiltrate the dating scene to find the killer. And Annie Curtis, who used to live in Ebbing, is haunted by memories of her son Archie, who was killed 15 years ago in those same woods. The young man accused of killing Archie committed suicide, but what if he was actually innocent?

At first, Talking to Strangers reminded me of Mary Higgins Clark’s take on dating strangers: Loves Music, Loves to Dance. But as the book unfolded, the similarities waned. The singles in Ebbing seem more interested in the hook-up culture than in meeting a partner, and Elise and Kiki find a private chat room run by men celebrating their conquests. Could one of them have murdered Karen? Many in Ebbing believe she “asked for it” by having one-night stands. Even the men in her singles group look down on her.

The book overflows with suspects, and both Elise and Kiki are in danger as they investigate all the men who could have killed Karen. Elise, overworked and scared that her cancer treatment has dulled her instincts, finds comfort in a new male neighbor, while Kiki is drawn into the same apps that seduced Karen. The women’s vulnerability and loneliness is heartbreaking. And as Annie reinvestigates her son’s murder, it slowly becomes clear that her husband might have a connection to Karen’s death as well.

The women in Ebbing are surrounded by men who are killers, cheaters, liars, misogynists, or perverts. The wives cannot trust their own husbands; the single women are prey. These men clearly hate women, and their disgust is apparent on every page. (A speech by a man who blames his cheating on his wife’s love for their children is particularly loathsome.) The book ends on an especially dispiriting note, implying that the behavior is passed on and worsens through the generations.

Elise King is a strong protagonist, and she’s well supported by characters like Kiki and other (female) locals who populate Ebbing. I hope that if Clark decides to continue Elise’s story, she shines a light on some of the brighter corners of Ebbing as well.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review an advanced copy of this novel. I highly enjoyed it and will be recommending it.

In “Talking to Strangers,” Fiona Barton brings back Detective Elise King from “Local Gone Missing” and pairs her with reporter Kiki Nunn, now reduced to writing for an online tabloid with an editor half her age.

(“’We’ve got a body!’ Miles shouts, bouncing on his chair as if he’s won the lottery. I stand up from behind my computer screen and try not to hate him. My news editor is twenty-four and skinny, and his crazy hair makes his head appear too big for his body.”)

Elise is back from treatment for breast cancer and feeling shaky. Kiki is trying to work her way back into legitimate journalism with a probe of mature women venturing into online dating. “Your Desperate Housewives thing,” the kid editor calls it.

The murder of a woman Kiki had just interviewed plunges her into an investigation that Elise wants her to stay out of. Enter the mother of a little boy killed years before and left in the same wooded area. Could the crimes be connected?

Women do risky, stupid things in “Talking to Strangers,” even — especially — our protagonists. If Barton intended this as a cautionary tale, she succeeded. You’ll keep turning pages, but the big reveal at the end isn’t particularly surprising or satisfying.

Talking to Strangers is a deep dive into a dark world. This is book two in the series, but I read it as a standalone without issue. I really loved two of the three POVs. I found the addition of the third from Annie to be more than was needed. The plot is well developed and the writing smooth. The topics covered may be triggers for some readers.

Thank you to Berkley Books and PRH Audio for the copies to review.

I have enjoyed Barton’s books in the past, and I love a procedural, so as this is the second book in the D.I. Elise King series I was very excited to read it and thought this was very well done. I really enjoyed reporter Kiki Nunn also trying to solve the case in order to further her career, and how she sometimes worked in tandem with Detective Elise King but mostly went rogue to get the story first. This obviously does not help either Nunn or King, and we are slowly learning facets of the crime while these two are trying to get to the bottom of what really happened. The intensity is building up to a crazy ending, and neither will come out of this unscathed, one of them more so than the other.

I don’t want to spoil anything so I will stop there, but I definitely recommend this one, and thought the audio was excellent as well, as the narrators did a wonderful job with this story. This can be read as a standalone, but I enjoyed the first book so much I do recommend reading that one first.

Talking to Strangers by Fiona Barton follows the murder of a local hairdresser over a period of days from the viewpoint of several of the main characters. I liked how the various storylines of the main characters eventually intertwined to make the story more complex. I found part of it to be a little slow for my liking. I guessed part of the end but not all of it, which is always a good sign in a mystery.

Okay this book is DARK. I hated the ending and I am kind of mad that it couldn't be included as a trigger warning without spoiling the whole book because I never would have read it (it's my ONE trigger that terrifies me). If you are in for something dark, this is a perfectly crafted story with so many twists and wonderful writing. I loved getting to know both MCs. Usually when a reporter is included in this type of story they are nosey, rude, and annoying and you want to throttle them for getting in the way. This reporter was actually more endearing and lively than the detective and I was was more invested in her story. This story explores the double standards and dangers of just being a woman, which is perfectly timely as this never seems to get better. It was tough and heartbreaking and dark, but also I love how the women support each other and how everything comes together.

Note: I listened to the audiobook and the dual narration was amazing!

Thanks to the publishers for a free copy of this book; my review and thoughts are my own.

I totally missed that this was a sequel/spin off but it also worked as a stand alone (although now I have to go read Local Gone Missing). Ive heard Fiona Barton’s name thrown around in mystery/thriller groups and decided to give this one a try and I’m so happy I did!! Huge thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me this opportunity to read this book and find a new author to add to my favorites.
I loved the short chapters, multiple POV’s and the of course the twists!

Thank you @berkleypub and @netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
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Sometimes I just really enjoy a good detective drama and this fit the bill! Book two in the Elise King series is a solid procedural. I love a multiple pov and this worked great for this one.
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I really liked The Child and The Suspect by this author. Last year's Local Gone Missing was just okay, and this book, a sequel to last year's was better, but not great. I followed along with the story and enjoyed it, but it won't be something that I'll rave about. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks #partner Berkley Pub for my #gifted copies!

Talking to Strangers is the second installment in the Elise King series, but can easily be enjoyed on its own.

Detective Elise King faces challenges in her investigation of the Karen Simmons’ Valentine’s Day murder, particularly from reporter Kiki Nunn, who is eager to pursue her own leads. As the townspeople question whether Karen’s online dating played a role in her death, Kiki sees this as an opportunity to revitalize her career, unafraid to confront both Elise and the murderer.

This gripping investigative thriller explores themes of trust, secrets, and the complexities of human relationships. Told from multiple POVs, Barton weaves a captivating tale of mystery and tension! With exceptional character development, brisk pacing, and an engaging plot, Talking to Strangers is a must-read thriller I can easily recommend!

Fans of Karin Slaughter will want to pick this up!

Note: TWs - rape, misogyny and violence against women.

This one started a little slow for me, but man did that extra time build a quite complex and interwoven story. I connected and sympathized with Elise in Local Gone Missing. She leads a little bit of a sad life, but is one tough cookie in her personal and professional lives.

I liked that this is told by three women when the theme is sexual predators. It makes a statement without being blatant. And don't be put off by that as it didn't really hit me until I finished, so there isn't any off putting preaching through the story.

I can't really say either of the other two main characters are likable. but I wanted to know how their stories intersected. A woman still overcome by grief from the death of her young son and a reporter investigating the death of a friend. Their experiences drive them to know more about these deaths and take them to dark places.

I'm not much for slow burns, but this mystery heats up part way through and the pace increased. I wasn't surprised by the ending as I started to suspect what had happened but I wasn't sure until the end and I must point out that it was the journey through the complicated story that really grabbed me.
There is something about the author's writing that really keeps me invested. I can't wait to read her next book.