Madigan Library Popular Collection: January 2025

Twenty-three-year-old Michael "Mitt" Fuller starts his surgical residency with great anticipation at the nearly three-hundred-year-old, iconic Bellevue Hospital, following in the footsteps of four previous, celebrated Fuller generations. The pressure is on for this newly minted doctor, and to his advantage he's always had a secret sixth sense, a sensitivity to the nonphysical. But quickly one patient after another assigned to his care begin to die from mysterious causes. As he tries to juggle these inexplicable deaths with the demands of being a first-year resident, things rapidly spiral out of control. Visions begin to plague Mitt--visions of a little girl in a bloodstained dress, bloodcurdling screams in the distance, and worse. As bodies mount and Mitt's stress level rises, he finds himself drawn to the monumental, abandoned Bellevue Psychopathic Hospital building, which to his astonishment has somehow defied the wrecking-ball and still stands a few doors north of the modern Bellevue Hospital high-rise. Forcing an unauthorized entry into this storied but foreboding structure, Mitt discovers he's more closely tied to the sins of the past than he ever thought possible.

In this atmospheric southern cozy debut, Madeline Brimley returns to the bookstore she inherited, discovering that small towns hold deadly secrets. Madeline Brimley left small town Georgia many years ago to go to college and pursue her dreams on the stage. Her dramatic escapades are many but success has eluded her, leaving her at loose ends. But then she gets word that not only has her beloved, eccentric Aunt Rose passed, but she's left Madeline her equally eccentric bookstore housed in an old Victorian mansion in the small college town of Enigma. But when she arrives in her beat-up Fiat to claim The Old Juniper Bookstore, and restart her life, Madeline is faced with unexpected challenges. The gazebo in the back yard is set ablaze and a late night caller threatens to burn the whole store down if she doesn't leave immediately. But Madeline Brimley, not one to be intimidated, ignores the threats and soldiers on. Until there's another fire and a murder in the store itself. Now with a cloud of suspicion falling over her, it's up to Madeline to untangle the skein of secrets and find the killer before she herself is the next victim.

Chicago, 1898. Rough-around-the-edges Harriet Morrow has long been drawn to the idea of whizzing around the city on her bicycle as a professional detective, solving crimes for a living without having to take a husband. Just twenty-one with a younger brother to support, she seizes the chance when the prestigious Prescott Agency hires her as its first woman operative. The move sparks controversy--with skeptical male colleagues, a high-strung office secretary, and her boss, Mr. Theodore Prescott, all waiting for her to unravel under the pressure . . . Only an hour into the job, Harriet has an assignment: Discover the whereabouts of a missing maid from one of the most extravagant mansions on Prairie Avenue. Owner Pearl Bartlett has a reputation for sending operatives on wild goose chases around her grand estate, but Harriet believes the stunningly beautiful Agnes Wozniak has indeed vanished under mysterious circumstances--possibly a victim of kidnapping, possibly a victim of something worse . . . With Mr. Prescott pushing a hard deadline, Harriet's burgeoning career depends on working through a labyrinth of eccentric characters and murky motives in a race to discover who made Agnes disappear. When her search leads to Chicago's Polish community and a new friendship in Agnes's charming older sister, Barbara, clues scattered across the city slowly reveal just how much depends on Harriet's inexperienced investigation for answers . . . and the deep danger that awaits once she learns the truth.

Perfect for fans of bubbly wine and Kristin Harmel, this historical fiction novel follows Mme. Clicquot as she builds her legacy, and the modern divorcée who looks to her letters for inspiration. Reims, France, 1805: Barbe-Nicole Clicquot has just lost her beloved husband but is determined to pursue their dream of creating the premier champagne house in France, now named for her new identity as a widow: Veuve Clicquot. With the Russians poised to invade, competitors fighting for her customers, and the Napoleonic court politics complicating matters she must set herself apart quickly and permanently if she, and her business, are to survive. In present day Chicago, broken from her divorce, Natalie Taylor runs away to Paris. In a book stall by the Seine, Natalie finds a collection of the Widow Clicquot's published letters and uses them as inspiration to step out of her comfort zone and create a new, empowered life for herself. But when her Parisian escape takes a shocking and unexpected turn, she's forced to make a choice. Should she accept her losses and return home, or fight for the future she's only dreamed about? What would the widow do?

When Zoe Ann Weiss moves to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of becoming a writer, her whole future is wide open. But then Zach, the bartender and aspiring actor she's falling for, ghosts her. Her debut novel, a thriller, fails. And she has writer's block worse than ever before. Now, three years later, Zach is famous and Zoe is...not. She's facing her thirtieth birthday, a dead-end job at a flower shop, and a demanding agent, terrified she'll never get her life back on track. But when she goes to make a flower delivery and Zach is at the address, it's like no time has passed at all. They start casually dating in secret, her writer's block disappears, and Zoe begins to wonder: Zach inspired her first novel, so why can't he inspire her second? But then the inevitable happens and photos are leaked, landing Zoe in the press. Her first novel goes viral, and now everyone seems to know her name. Except the problem with everyone knowing your name is that everyone knows your name--including the mysterious stalker obsessed with Zach. A stalker who begins reenacting violent events from Zoe's book, step by step, against her...

Peyton Collard was a good man once, but his life changed after a horrific car accident. Divorced, drunk, and severely damaged, Peyton is offered a life-changing sum of money to kill an evil man. But as he goes on a vigilante journey that leaves a trail of bodies across California, Peyton wonders about the identity of his anonymous patron. Soon, his questions become an obsession, and he embarks on a tense and potentially deadly investigation to discover the truth about the murders he's committed.

On the run from his shady past, Lynch has just arrived in London, still looking over his shoulder to make sure he isn't being followed. His phone is dead, he has no money, no contacts, no one at all. Until he runs into a young woman named Bobbie who mistakes him for her brother, Heydon Pierce, who disappeared five years ago without a trace. At Bobbie's suggestion, Lynch goes to the Pierce family home, posing as Heydon to try and con some money out of them. But far from tricking them, his subterfuge is instantly discovered. He strikes the devil's bargain with them - their silence for his cooperation in finding out what really happened to Heydon. But Lynch's investigation goes too deep and uncovers the fact that Heydon Pierce was tangled up with some dangerous and powerful people in London. Everyone has their own motives to keep Heydon well buried in the past. In such a conspiracy of mirrors, there's only one thing Lynch know for certain: the only person he can trust is himself.

The Maid meets Knives Out with a dash of Top Chef in the debut locked room culinary mystery set in a London cooking school by MasterChef semi-finalist and cookbook writer Orlando Murrin. "Some people are natural dancers, others marvelous in bed, but--not wishing to boast--I'm good with a knife. Most chefs are." The Chester Square Cookery School in the heart of London offers students a refined setting in which to master the fine art of choux pastry and hone their hollandaise. True, the ornate mansion doesn't quite sparkle the way it used to--a feeling chef Paul Delamare is familiar with these days. Worn out and newly broke, he'd be tempted to turn down the request to fill in as teacher for a week-long residential course, if anyone other than Christian Wagner were asking. Christian is one of Paul's oldest friends, as well as the former recipient of two Michelin stars and host of Pass the Gravy! Thanks to a broken arm, he's unable to teach the upcoming session himself, and recruits Paul as stand-in. The students are a motley crew, most of whom seem more interested in ogling the surroundings (including handsome Christian) than learning the best ways to temper chocolate. Yet despite his misgivings, Paul starts to enjoy imparting his extensive knowledge to the recruits--until someone turns up dead, murdered with a cleaver Paul used earlier that day to prep a pair of squabs. Did one of his students take the lesson on knife techniques too much to heart, or was this the result of a long-simmering grudge? In between clearing his own name and teaching his class how to perfectly poach a chicken, he'll have to figure out who's the killer, and avoid being the next one to get butchered . . .

Tragedy strikes the renowned de Rolo family of Whitestone when they re massacred by the vicious Briarwoods. Luckily for Dr. Anna Ripley, the bloodshed and regime change presents the perfect opportunity for her to further her own dark plans in service to Whitestone s new ruling family. But just how much of her loyalty lies with the family, when compared to her work?

It is the summer of 2015, and Lila De is on the verge of a breakthrough in her career at a prestigious New York publishing house. But when she gets a call from her mother in India, informing her that she's inherited her family's sprawling estate, she must confront the legacy of an extended family that she thought she left behind sixteen years ago.    Returning to Kolkata reunites Lila with her mother after a decade of estrangement, and then there are her grandmother, aunts, uncles, and cousins, all of whom still live in the house, all of whom resent her sudden inheritance. To make matters more complicated, her first boyfriend seeks her out when she arrives, and her star author--and occasional lover--is suddenly determined to make things serious.     As Lila tries to come to terms with both past and present, long-suppressed secrets from her family emerge, culminating in an act of shocking violence, and she must finally reckon with her inherited custom of keeping everything under the surface.  

Beth Rivers needs to disappear. Her one-time kidnapper, Travis, is on his way to her town in Alaska, and she's losing time to get out quickly. The perfect spot for Beth and her boyfriend, Tex, to hide, presents itself in a camp in the woods, away from Benedict. But when their trip takes them by Blue Mine, a small community that has seen tragedy over the last couple months, plans get diverted. Beth and Tex bring the widow of a recently murdered man back to Benedict, for Police Chief Gril to investigate, only to find that nothing is quite what it seems. When the woman vanishes, Beth must be on the alert for further danger. Who knows what further unwelcome disappearances--or appearances--might be lurking in the unforgiving Alaska storms.

Most days, Andrea Walters doesn't know whether she wants to kiss Tanner Hammond or punch him in the gut. He's been hot since the day they met, with insane bedroom eyes and that firefighter's body of his--but he's also a major player, and the two of them have never been able to get along for more than a handful of minutes at a time. Tanner knows he and Andrea are infamous for their love/hate relationship, but lately, he's found himself wanting more love than hate from her. He wants her, period. But the more he gets to know the girl behind the fiery mask, the more it becomes obvious that Andrea has a problem. She's teetering on the edge of disaster, and every time he tries to catch her, she slips through his fingers. Between her drinking and the demons beneath it, Andrea's life is spiraling out of control, and it doesn't matter that Tanner wants to save her--because when everything falls apart and she's speeding toward rock bottom, only she can save herself.

American heiress Ruby Vaughn still hasn't entirely forgiven her octogenarian employer and housemate Mr. Owen for bringing the occult into their lives during her recent trip to Cornwall. He claims their journey to Manhurst Castle in the Scottish Borders is simply to appraise and acquire illuminated manuscripts for their rare books shop, however when Ruby discovers there are no manuscripts and receives news of a séance to be held that very night, she begins to grow suspicious about the true reason why they have come. The Great War left grieving families willing to sacrifice anything for the chance to say goodbye to a lost loved one. Mr. Owen is no exception. He is desperate to speak to his son, but he doesn't want to face the spirits alone. When the séance--hosted by a trio of mediums billing themselves as The Three Fates--goes awry, Mr. Owen's secrets begin to unravel, threatening to reveal a history that he has been running from for half his life. Something Ruby knows all too well how to do. When Ruby finds one of the Three Fates murdered the night of the seance, she and Mr. Owen quickly become the prime suspects. To clear their names, Ruby enlists the help of Ruan Kivell, the folk healer Pellar who helped her weeks before in Cornwall. As their investigation progresses Ruby and Ruan realize someone is determined to prevent them from uncovering the truth about what happened to the dead medium.

It's 1964 and Eliza Kratke is mostly content. Married thirty years, she is long settled in Bayard, Texas with two grown children, a nice house, a little dog, and a routine. But her husband has a secret, and Eliza has not been brave enough to demand to know what it is.   So when her husband dies suddenly, the ground doesn't just shift under Eliza's feet--it falls away entirely, revealing that she has known nothing true about her life. How should she come to terms with all that has been a lie?   What emerges from this wreckage is a profoundly compelling portrait of a wonderfully nuanced woman, worn down like a gemstone to a core of durability and self-reliance as she fights for her own path forward. By taking business classes and moving into a hotel filled with aspiring young people, The Sweet Vidalia, Eliza gathers new friends and new possibilities. But with each of these, she finds that it isn't so simple to leave the past behind. Sweet Vidalia not only explores what it means to be honest with ourselves and with one another, but asks: what will we do with the truth when we find it?

Lifelong friends Basem, Mustafa, and Aarfah have carved out a place for themselves in their corner of Muqadas, where they dream of climbing from their place in the city's lowest level, above the limb-snatching, disease-infested waters, to the very top of their vertical city. Young inventors who've seen firsthand the havoc the Habar infection causes set out to dazzle the masses with their innovative prosthetics and escape the dangers of Lake Saha. When their inventions catch the eye of a scout who is on the hunt for new talent to bring to the higher tiers, their dreams are suddenly within reach. But as the wonders of the upper tiers enchant, Basem, Mustafa, and Aarfah begin to question why the bounty of Muqadas falls short of reaching Lake Saha's inhabitants. Behind the beauty of the city's upper tiers lie dark and dangerous secrets--ones that threaten not only everything they've worked for but everyone they love. And when Mustafa and Aarfah are cast away for their allegiance to Lake Saha, Basem is faced with the difficult choice: Fight to bring justice to all of Muqadas Or abandon his friends and fall in line to achieve everything he's ever dreamed of

For decades, Taiwan has been a thorn in the side of the Chinese government. An independent nation to the rest of the world, it is considered a rogue province by the PRC. Previous governments have tried to conquer the island using economic force and diplomatic pressure, but new Chinese President Li Jian Jun is done fooling around. He's devised a secret military operation to take the island. Only one man knows how to stop Li's mad and bloody plan for reunification and that's Minister of Defense Qin Haiyu. Fearing for his life and the safety of his family, Qin covertly makes contact with the CIA in Beijing and signals his desire to defect to the West.   To get Qin out, John Clark creates an international task force reminiscent of Rainbow Six and goes undercover in mainland China. Meanwhile, Lt. Commander Katie Ryan is deployed to the tip of the spear on the destroyer USS Jason Dunham to defend Taiwan. Threatened by an encircling Chinese armada, she's under pressure to find a flaw in the invaders' plan for her father to exploit.   For his part, President Jack Ryan may have the power of the entire US military at his disposal, but what he really needs are Li's secret plans from Defense Minister Qin so he can stave off a war. Because America's Defense Protocol could lead to a game of mutual destruction that could cost the lives of thousands of young soldiers, sailors, special operators as well as his daughter.

Many miles from anywhere in the middle of Lake Erie, Trouble Island serves as a stop-off for gangsters as they run between America and Canada. The remote isle is also the permanent home to two women: Aurelia Escalante, who serves as a maid to Rosita, lady of the mansion and wife to the notorious prohibition gangster, Eddie McGee. In the freezing winter of 1932, the women anticipate the arrival of Eddie and his strange coterie: his right-hand man, a doctor, a cousin, a famous actor, and a rival gangster who Rosita believes murdered their only son. Aurelia wants nothing more than to escape Trouble Island, but she is hiding a secret of her own. She is in fact not a maid, but a gangster's wife in hiding, as she runs from the murder she committed five years ago. Her friend Rosita took her in under this guise, but it has become clear that Rosita wants to keep Aurelia right where she is. Shortly after the group of criminals, celebrities, and scoundrels arrive, Rosita suddenly disappears. Aurelia plans her getaway, going to the shore to retrieve her box of hidden treasures, but instead finds Rosita's body in the water. Someone has made sure Aurelia was the one to find her. An ice storm makes unexpected landfall, cutting Trouble Island off from both mainlands, and with more than one murderer among them.

With a number of hit titles and a highly anticipated movie tie-in, celebrated novelist Columbia Jones is at the top of her game. Fans around the world adore her. But on the final night of her latest book tour, one face in the crowd makes the author collapse. And by the next morning, she's lying dead in a pool of blood. Columbia's death shocks the world and leaves Darian, her daughter and publicist, reeling. The police have nothing to go on--at first. But then details emerge, pointing to the author's illicit past. Turns out many people had motive to kill Columbia. And with a hungry reporter and frustrated cop on the trail, her secrets won't stay buried long. But how many lives will they shatter as the truth comes out?

Pat Barker has crafted the latest in a brilliant reimagining of Greek mythology, and The Voyage Home is the work of a writer at the height of her powers. In this third outing, she follows the young Ritsa and the unpredictable Cassandra on their perilous return journey to Mycenae. Cassandra has acquired the powers of prophecy from the kiss of Apollo, but the very same god has taken away the people's belief in her abilities. Though she warns of the carnage that awaits the Greek warrior king Agamemnon--who numbs himself with alcohol on the storm-plagued trip home--her shipmates disregard her. While Cassandra's prophecies fall on deaf ears, Ritsa instead remains focused on surviving once they make land. When a mysterious young girl begins to shadow them, and Agamemnon's cruelty takes a new turn, Ritsa must find a safe place for Cassandra, whose mood alternates between cruelty and frenzy. But it's the ongoing ire between Queen Clytemnestra and Agamemnon that could prove fatal for everyone. In The Voyage Home, Barker elevates myth and legend and asks us to examine the stories we hold dear through a feminist lens, and in doing so she has crafted a tale that upholds her legacy as one of our finest contemporary novelists.

Amid the depths of a bleak Boston winter, a recently married couple find their lives and their relationship unraveling after a series of deadly accidents, in this brilliantly twisting domestic thriller perfect for fans of Stacy Willingham, Greer Hendricks, and Megan Miranda. Accidents happen, no matter how careful or well-intentioned you are. Psychiatrist Eve Thayer frequently reassures her patients of that fact. There are even times when accidents have good consequences--like when Eve met her now-husband, Nathan, at his collision shop after another car ran her off the road. After a whirlwind courtship, Nathan and Eve have settled into domestic life. They have a lovely home on a quiet street, a beautiful baby girl, and even the perfect babysitter to care for her. And yet, something isn't quite right. The stress in Eva's life is mounting, both professionally and personally. Though the clinic where she works has been remodeled since its notorious days as an institution for the criminally insane, she feels increasingly uneasy there. And in her own neighborhood, a break-in at a nearby empty house hasn't helped, either.   Detective Rita Myers hasn't yet figured out whether Eve is a target or a suspect, but every disturbing discovery in this usually peaceful neighborhood seems to revolve around her. Only as a deadly ice storm crashes through does it become clear just how far from perfect Eve and Nathan's lives really are. And as the cracks in the surface come to light, so do the sinister secrets that lie beneath . . .

Can coming home bring redemption? Or at least a measure of peace? Recently released from prison, Blake Alvares returns to the only place she ever felt safe, the now derelict Maine town in which she harbored as a teen. Determined to conceal her secrets and losses, she soon finds herself dragged into others' lives when she takes a job on a boat owned by a notorious young lobsterman. Leland Savard is nearly broke, trying to support himself and 9-year-old Quinnie as he wrestles with a dangerous family legacy. Though his choice to hire Blake raises local eyebrows, Leland and those around Blake are quickly surprised and jarred by how much they come to rely on her. At the same time, Blake stumbles into love from unexpected places. When Leland's rash actions place her and Quinnie in peril, Blake feels forced to run again-only to discover the past is never more than a few steps behind her. On her quest for home, Blake must confront a daunting question: where does she belong?

Enola is approaching 30 and everything feels like a lot. The boxes aren't ticked and she feels adrift in a way she thought she would have beaten by now. She wants to be a writer but can't finish a first draft; she romanticizes her childhood but won't speak to her mother; she has never been in a serious relationship but yearns to be one half of a couple that DIYs together at the weekends. Enter: enigmatic writer. Enola falls in love and starts to dream about their perfect future: the wedding, the publishing deals, the house in Stoke Newington. But the reality is far from perfect. He's distant. But she's a Cool Girl, she doesn't need to hear from him every day. He hangs out with his ex. But she's a Cool Girl, she's not insecure. Is she? He has dark moods. But he's a creative, that's part of his 'process'. Her best friend begs her to end it, but Enola can't. She's a Cool Girl. She might feel like she's going crazy at times, but she wants him. She needs him. She would die without him...That's what love is, isn't it? Over the next twenty-four hours (and two years), everything that Enola thinks she knows is about to unravel, and she has to think again about how she sees love, family, and friendship and--most importantly--herself.

Dr. Richmond Dougherty is a renowned pediatric surgeon, an infamous tragedy survivor, and a national hero. He's also very dead--thanks to a fall down the stairs. His neighbors angrily point a finger at the newest Ms. Dougherty, Addison. The sudden marriage to the mysterious young woman only lasted ninety-seven days, and he'd had two suspicious "accidents" during that time. Now Addison is a very rich widow. As law enforcement starts to circle in on Addison and people in town become increasingly hostile, sides are chosen with Kathryn, Richmond's high school sweetheart, wife number one, and the mother of his children, leading the fray. Despite rising tensions, Addison is even more driven to forge ahead on the path she charted years ago... Determined at all costs to unravel Richmond's legacy, she soon becomes a target--with a shocking note left on her bedroom wall: You will pay. But it will take a lot more than faceless threats to stop Addison. Her plan to marry Richmond then ruin him may have been derailed by his unexpected death, but she's not done with him yet.

Madison Bettencourt has tried to assemble all the pieces of a perfect life, but nothing fits quite the way it should. She's moved back home to Montana to care for her grandmother, who is slipping further and further away. And she's called off her wedding, and worries her dreams of a family are fading with it. As Madison rattles around her family home, childhood memories come flooding back. Bliss Morgan transformed eight-year-old Madison with her loyalty, and for a while, the two girls were as close as can be. But Madison never understood why Bliss suddenly vanished, leaving only a friendship bracelet and a message etched into a matchbook. Before she can begin again, Madison must uncover what happened to Bliss, and Liam McKettrick--a widowed dad trying to repair his relationship with his two children--becomes her unlikely ally. He, too, understands the pang of regret. Yet there are mysteries that Madison hesitates to explore with anyone, and strange energies in Bettencourt Hall that blur the lines between past and present.    Poignant and utterly captivating, Where the Creek Bends shows that finding yourself begins with following your heart, no matter where it leads. Perfect for fans of: Second Chances Family Drama Small Town settings Susan Mallery, Nicolas Sparks and Ashley Poston

As a Black woman, Jasmine Marie knows the impact that intergenerational trauma and systemic racism have had-and continue to have-on her community. Those experiences, along with her own journey through chronic stress, are why she created black girls breathing®, a movement dedicated to helping Black women understand the power of the mind‑body connection and its impact on their holistic health, one breath at a time. In Black Girls Breathing, Jasmine Marie offers you the power of breathwork, and the revolutionary nature of slowing down and turning inward. With each intentional breath, you'll learn how to sink deeper into your body to begin to undo the trauma that's long been stored. Sharing exercises from her unique somatic philosophies proven by data and utilized by tens of thousands of participants to date, Jasmine Marie will also help you: - Connect more fully to your body - Give yourself permission to rest - Heal the chronic stress you carry in your body and nervous system - Address emotional pain - Rebuild your sense of self and your community This is a long-overdue resource for every Strong Black Woman-the woman ready to break cycles of trauma, heal the internalized beliefs of perfectionism and conditional self‑worth, and follow the wisdom of her inner voice.

"Valiant and timely ... 'The Cure for Women' reintroduces its subject as a hero for this moment." --The New York Times How Victorian male doctors used false science to argue that women were unfit for anything but motherhood--and the brilliant doctor who defied them After Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman to graduate from medical school, more women demanded a chance to study medicine. Barred entrance to universities like Harvard, women built their own first-rate medical schools and hospitals. Their success spurred a chilling backlash from elite, white male physicians who were obsessed with eugenics and the propagation of the white race. Distorting Darwin's evolution theory, these haughty physicians proclaimed in bestselling books that women should never be allowed to attend college or enter a profession because their menstrual cycles made them perpetually sick. Motherhood was their constitution and duty. Into the midst of this turmoil marched tiny, dynamic Mary Putnam Jacobi, daughter of New York publisher George Palmer Putnam and the first woman to be accepted into the world-renowned Sorbonne medical school in Paris. As one of the best-educated doctors in the world, she returned to New York for the fight of her life. Aided by other prominent women physicians and suffragists, Jacobi conducted the first-ever data-backed, scientific research on women's reproductive biology. The results of her studies shook the foundations of medical science and higher education. Full of larger than life characters and cinematically written, The Cure for Women documents the birth of a sexist science still haunting us today as the fight for control of women's bodies and lives continues.

Whether you want to taste the wines of Napa Valley, learn about craft beer brewing in Michigan, or explore the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, the local Fodor's travel experts across the United States are here to help! Fodor's American Spirits: Exploring the Best Wineries, Breweries, and Distilleries in the USA guidebook is packed with maps, carefully curated recommendations, and everything else you need to simplify your trip-planning process and make the most of your time. This brand new title has been designed with an easy-to-read layout, fresh information, and beautiful color photos. Fodor's American Spirits travel guide includes: EXPERT RECOMMENDATIONS for the best places to learn about and taste the best wines, beers, ciders, and spirits produced in the USA DETAILED TRAVEL GUIDANCE including hotel and restaurant recommendations, for featured areas like Napa Valley; New York's Finger Lakes; and Louisville, Kentucky AN ILLUSTRATED ULTIMATE EXPERIENCES GUIDE to the top destinations and tours MORE THAN 30 DETAILED MAPS to help you navigate confidently COLOR PHOTOS throughout to spark your wanderlust--and thirst! HONEST RECOMMENDATIONS FROM LOCALS on the best wineries, breweries, distilleries, restaurants, nightlife, activities, and more PHOTO-FILLED "BEST OF" FEATURES on "Best U.S. Wineries," "Best U.S. Breweries," and "Best Distillery Tours" TRIP-PLANNING TOOLS AND PRACTICAL TIPS including when to go, getting around, beating the crowds, and saving time and money LOCAL WRITERS to help you find the under-the-radar gems.

From true-crime legend T. J. English, the epic, behind-the-scenes saga of "Los Muchachos," one of the most successful cocaine trafficking organizations in American history--a story of glitz, glamour, and organized crime set against 1980's Miami. Despite what Scarface might lead one to believe, violence was not the dominant characteristic of the cocaine business. It was corruption: the dirty cops, agents, lawyers, judges, and politicians who made the drug world go round. And no one managed that carousel of dangerous players better than Willy Falcon. A Cuban exile whose family escaped Fidel Castro's Cuba when he was eleven years old, Falcon, as a teenager, became active in the anti-Castro movement. He began smuggling cocaine into the U.S. as a way to raise money to buy arms for the Contras in Central America. This counter-revolutionary activity led directly to Willy's genesis as a narco. He and his partners built an extraordinary international organization from the ground up. Los Muchachos, the syndicate founded by Falcon, thrived as a major cocaine distribution network in the U.S. from the late 1970's into the early 1990's. At their height, Los Muchachos made more than a hundred million dollars a year. At the same time, Willy, his brother Tavy Falcon, and partner Sal Magluta became famous as championship powerboat racers. Cocaine, used by everyone from A-list celebrities to lawyers and people in law enforcement, came to define an era, and for a time, Willy Falcon and those like him--major suppliers, of whom there were only a few--became stars in their own right. They were the deliverers of good times, at least until the downside of persistent cocaine use became apparent: delusions of grandeur, psychological addiction, financial ruin. Thus, the War on Drugs was born, and federal authorities came after Falcon and his crew with a vengeance. Willy found himself on the run, his marriage and family life in shambles, the halcyon days of boat races and lavish trips to Vegas and parties at the Mutiny night club seemingly a distant memory. T. J. English has been granted unprecedented access to the inner workings of Los Muchachos, sitting down with Willy Falcon and his associates for many lengthy interviews, and revealing never-before-understood details about drug trafficking. A classic of true-crime writing from a master of the genre, The Last Kilo traces the rise and fall of a true cocaine empire--and the lives left in its wake.

Movingly written by her own daughter, this captivating and intimate biography chronicles the astonishing courage Andrée Griotteray, a teenage girl in Nazi-occupied Paris who would become a hero of the French Resistance through her harrowing work as an underground intelligence courier. For readers of Three Ordinary Girls, A Woman of No Importance, Lis Parisiennes, The Girls Who Stepped Out of Line, and the many other untold stories of WWII's "hidden figures." Andrée Griotteray was just 19 when the Germans invaded France and occupied Paris, where she worked as a clerk in the passport office. When her younger brother, Alain, created a resistance network named Orion, Andrée joined his efforts, secretly typing up and printing copies of an underground newspaper, and stealing I.D. cards which allowed scores of Jewish citizens to escape persecution. Charming and pretty, Andrée nimbly avoided the unwanted attentions of German officers, even as she secretly began working as an undercover courier. Displaying fearlessness in the face of immense pressure, she traveled throughout the county delivering vital intelligence destined for France's allies--until the day she was betrayed and arrested. Throughout her ordeal, Andrée stayed composed, refusing to inform on her comrades. Before she was set free, she even duped her interrogators into revealing who had betrayed Orion, and continued her underground activities until France's liberation. Weaving in diary entries, letters, and conversations, Andrée's daughter, Francelle, brings a uniquely personal slant to her mother's story. The Paris Girl reveals the narrow escapes and moments of terror, the daily acts of bravery and defiance, and the extraordinary courage displayed by Andrée and so many of her contemporaries, that helped turned the tide of war.

The extraordinary true story of four women pioneers in physics during World War II and their daring escape out of Nazi Germany In the 1930s, Germany was a hotbed of scientific thought. But after the Nazis took power, Jewish and female citizens were forced out of their academic positions. Hedwig Kohn, Lise Meitner, Hertha Sponer and Hildegard Stücklen were eminent in their fields, but they had no choice but to flee due to their Jewish ancestry or anti-Nazi sentiments. Their harrowing journey out of Germany became a life-and-death situation that required Herculean efforts of friends and other prominent scientists. Lise fled to Sweden, where she made a groundbreaking discovery in nuclear physics, and the others fled to the United States, where they brought advanced physics to American universities. No matter their destination, each woman revolutionized the field of physics when all odds were stacked against them, galvanizing young women to do the same. Well researched and written with cinematic prose, Sisters in Science brings these trailblazing women to life and shows us how sisterhood and scientific curiosity can transcend borders and persist--flourish, even--in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.

In this dramatic true account about the power of sensationalized crime, one woman's case is exposed for its sexism, flagrant disregard for the truth, and, ultimately, the dangers posed by an unbridled prosecution. Unwanted and neglected from birth, Barbara Graham had to overcome the odds just to survive. Her beauty was both a blessing and a curse--offering her too many options of all the wrong kind. Her innate sensitivity left her vulnerable to the harsh realities of the street, where she was left to fend for herself before she reached double digits. Her record of petty crimes spoke to a life that constantly teetered on the brink of disaster. But in 1953, a catastrophic twist of fate would catapult her out of obscurity and into the headlines. When a robbery spiraled out of control and escalated into a brutal murder, Barbara became the centerpiece of a media circus. Her beauty enraptured the press, and they were quick to portray her as a villainous femme fatale despite abundant evidence to the contrary--a fiction the prosecution eagerly promoted. The frenzy of public interest and willful distortion paved a treacherous path for Barbara Graham. In Trial by Ambush, author and criminal lawyer Marcia Clark investigates the case exposing the fallacies in the demonizing picture they painted and the critical evidence that was never revealed.

The "gripping and astonishing story" (Douglas Preston) of the Cinta Larga, a tribe that had no contact with the West until the 1960s and came to run an illegal diamond mine in the Amazon.  Growing up in a remote corner of the world's largest rainforest, Pio, Maria, and Oita learned to hunt wild pigs and tapirs, and gathered Brazil nuts and açaí berries from centuries-old trees. The first highway pierced through in 1960. Ranchers, loggers, and prospectors invaded, and the kids lost their families to terrible new weapons and diseases. Pushed by the government to assimilate, they struggled to figure out their new, capitalist reality, discovering its wonders--cars, refrigerators, TV sets, phones--as well as a way to acquire them: by selling the natural riches of their own forest home. They had to partner with the white men who'd hunted them, but their wealth grew legendary, the envy of the nation--until decades of suppressed trauma erupted into a massacre, bloody retribution that made headlines across the globe. Based on six years of immersive reporting and research, When We Sold God's Eye tells a unique kind of adventure story, one that begins with a river journey by Theodore Roosevelt and ends with smugglers from New York City's Diamond District. It's a story of survival against all odds; of the temptations of wealth and the dream of prosperity; of an ecosystem threatened by our hunger for resources; of genocide and revenge. It's a tragedy as old as the first European encounters with Indigenous people, playing out in the present day. But most of all, it's the moving saga of a few audacious individuals--Pio, Maria, Oita, and their friends--and their attempts to adapt and even thrive in the most unlikely circumstances.