What to Read Next
As a staff dedicated to fostering the pure enjoyment of reading and the pursuit of knowledge, we’re eager to help you find exactly what you’re looking for at the library. From personalized book lists and programs designed to connect readers with their favorite authors, to providing a wide array of online resources designed to assist in exploring the book world at large, the library is here to get you connected.
The library offers help with discovering new titles by your favorite authors as well as exploring new titles to enjoy. We can also assist with placing holds on items and navigating our digital collections ready for check out via OverDrive/Libby and Hoopla.
Library Staff Picks
Looking for what to read next? Check out this list of what library staff are reading, watching and listening to, and enjoying. We love to share!
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Force of Nature
A beautiful and hopeful story of how a young impassioned naturalist grows up to change the world. For everyone who cares about our fragile planet.
"An absolute joy to read." --Book Riot
"Gracefully written...pleasing to the eye and ear." --Kirkus Reviews
Rachel was a girl who loved
science and the sea,
books and writing
and all the creatures of the world.
Rachel was quiet,
a listener by nature.
But when she saw problems,
she could not remain silent.
Some people thought girls
shouldn't be scientists.
They thought girls
shouldn't use their voices
to question or challenge,
even to protect
all the creatures of the world.
Luckily Rachel didn't listen
to them.
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A Novel Love Story
Most Anticipated by Parade · Buzzfeed · Harper’s Bazaar · Elle · She Reads · The Seattle Times · BookRiot and more!
A professor of literature finds herself caught up in a work of fiction…literally, from the New York Times bestselling author of The Seven Year Slip and The Dead Romantics.
Eileen Merriweather loves to get lost in a good happily-ever-after. The fictional kind, anyway. Because at least imaginary men don’t leave you at the altar. She feels safe in a book. At home. Which might be why she’s so set on going her annual book club retreat this year—she needs good friends, cheap wine, and grand romantic gestures—no matter what.
But when her car unexpectedly breaks down on the way, she finds herself stranded in a quaint town that feels like it’s right out of a novel…
Because it is.
This place can’t be real, and yet… she’s here, in Eloraton, the town of her favorite romance series, where the candy store’s honey taffy is always sweet, the local bar’s burgers are always a little burnt, and rain always comes in the afternoon. It feels like home. It’s perfect—and perfectly frozen, trapped in the late author’s last unfinished story.
Elsy is sure that’s why she must be here: to help bring the town to its storybook ending.
Except there is a character in Eloraton that she can’t place—a grumpy bookstore owner with mint-green eyes, an irritatingly sexy mouth and impeccable taste in novels. And he does not want her finishing this book.
Which is a problem because Elsy is beginning to think the town’s happily-ever-after might just be intertwined with her own. -
More Than You'll Ever Know
NATIONAL BESTSELLER * A GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK
"Fantastic . . . A sweeping novel, unflinching and evocative in its engrossing study of love, motherhood, sex, Mexico, journalism and more." -- WASHINGTON POST
"Masterful . . . Elegance, darkness, even fear are deftly intertwined . . . A wonderful read." -- LUIS ALBERTO URREA, Pulitzer Prize finalist and bestselling author of The House of Broken Angels
Recommended by New York Times Book Review * Los Angeles Times * Washington Post * Parade * Good Housekeeping * NBC News * Today.com * Goodreads * Audible * The Millions * Popsugar * Tribeza * CrimeReads * Library Reads * She Reads * and more!
An evocative drama about a woman caught leading a double life after one husband murders the other, and the true-crime writer who becomes obsessed with telling her story--this masterful work of literary suspense marks the debut of an extraordinary new writer
The dance becomes an affair, which becomes a marriage, which becomes a murder...
In 1985, Lore Rivera marries Andres Russo in Mexico City, even though she is already married to Fabian Rivera in Laredo, Texas, and they share twin sons. Through her career as an international banker, Lore splits her time between two countries and two families--until the truth is revealed and one husband is arrested for murdering the other.
In 2017, while trawling the internet for the latest, most sensational news reports, struggling true-crime writer Cassie Bowman encounters an article detailing that tragic final act. Cassie is immediately enticed by what is not explored: Why would a woman--a mother--risk everything for a secret double marriage? Cassie sees an opportunity--she'll track Lore down and capture the full picture, the choices, the deceptions that led to disaster. But the more time she spends with Lore, the more Cassie questions the facts surrounding the murder itself. Soon, her determination to uncover the truth could threaten to derail Lore's now quiet life--and expose the many secrets both women are hiding.
Told through alternating timelines, More Than You'll Ever Know is both a gripping mystery and a wrenching family drama. Presenting a window into the hearts of two very different women, it explores the many conflicting demands of marriage and motherhood, and the impossibility of ever truly knowing someone--especially those we love.
"A seductive, urgent tale about desire, family, the pursuit of truth, and the art of storytelling, More Than You'll Ever Know will astonish readers with its vastness, romance, tragedy, and abundant heart. I didn't want this book to ever end." -- JESSAMINE CHAN, New York Times bestselling author of The School for Good Mothers
"A gripping and thoughtful exploration of motherhood and marriage, the complexity of female desire, and the consequence of our obsession with true crime . . . One of the best suspenseful dramas I've read in years. An exceptional, stunning debut--I absolutely loved it." -- ASHLEY AUDRAIN, New York Times bestselling author of The Push
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Fridge Love
A one-of-a-kind guide to organizing your fridge--including practical tips for meal prep and storage, plus more than 100 recipes--that makes it easier to eat better, save money, and get the most out of your food
Practicing "fridge love" is a roadmap to eating healthier, saving money, and reducing food waste while enjoying a beautiful and harder-working fridge. This book--part organizational guide and part food-prep handbook--is your guide. Author Kristen Hong adopted a nutrient-dense, plant-based diet in an effort to lose weight and improve her health. But amidst the demands of day-to-day life and a busy family, she found it impossible to stick to. The solution? A smarter, better-organized fridge that served her real-life needs. In this invaluable resource, you will discover how a beautifully organized fridge can make your life--including healthy eating for the whole family--easier. It covers general fridge organization (for all models and configurations) as well as shopping tips, storage guidelines, the best meal-prep containers, and more than 100 easy plant-based recipes made for meal prepping.
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Darling Girls
"Get ready for another twisty domestic thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of THE SOULMATE. From the outside, Alicia, Jessica and Norah might seem like ordinary women you'd meet on the street any day of the week. Sure, Jessica has a little OCD and Norah has some anger issues. And Alicia has low self-esteem that manifests itself in surprising ways. But these three have a bond that no one can fully understand. It's a bond that takes them back decades, to when they were girls, and they lived on a farm with a foster mother named Miss Fairchild. Miss Fairchild had rules. Miss Fairchild could be unpredictable. And Miss Fairchild was never, ever to be crossed. In a moment of desperation, the three broke away from Miss Fairchild, and they thought they were free. But the reach of someone with such power is long, and even though they never saw her again, she was always somewhere in the shadows of their minds. When bones are discovered buried under the farmhouse of their childhood, they are called in by the police to tell what they know. Against their will, they are brought back to the past, and to Miss Fairchild herself. DARLING GIRLS asks the questions: what are we capable of when in a desperate place? How much can we hide the demons inside us? And can the past ever truly be buried?"--
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I Must Betray You
#1 New York Times Bestseller and winner of the Carnegie Medal!
A gut-wrenching, startling historical thriller about communist Romania and the citizen spy network that devastated a nation, from the #1 New York Times bestselling, award-winning author of Salt to the Sea and Between Shades of Gray.
Romania, 1989. Communist regimes are crumbling across Europe. Seventeen-year-old Cristian Florescu dreams of becoming a writer, but Romanians aren’t free to dream; they are bound by rules and force.
Amidst the tyrannical dictatorship of Nicolae Ceaușescu in a country governed by isolation and fear, Cristian is blackmailed by the secret police to become an informer. He’s left with only two choices: betray everyone and everything he loves—or use his position to creatively undermine the most notoriously evil dictator in Eastern Europe.
Cristian risks everything to unmask the truth behind the regime, give voice to fellow Romanians, and expose to the world what is happening in his country. He eagerly joins the revolution to fight for change when the time arrives. But what is the cost of freedom?
Master storyteller Ruta Sepetys is back with a historical thriller that examines the little-known history of a nation defined by silence, pain, and the unwavering conviction of the human spirit.
Praise for I Must Betray You:
“As educational as it is thrilling...[T]he power of I Must Betray You [is] it doesn’t just describe the destabilizing effects of being spied on; it will make you experience them too.” –New York Times Book Review
“A historical heart-pounder…Ms. Sepetys, across her body of work, has become a tribune of the unsung historical moment and a humane voice of moral clarity.” –The Wall Street Journal
* "Sepetys brilliantly blends a staggering amount of research with heart, craft, and insight in a way very few writers can. Compulsively readable and brilliant." –Kirkus Reviews, starred review
* "Sepetys once again masterfully portrays a dark, forgotten corner of history." –Booklist, starred review
* "Sepetys’s latest book maintains the caliber readers have come to expect from an author whose focus on hidden histories has made her a YA powerhouse of historical fiction…Sepetys is a formidable writer, and her stories declare the need to write about global issues of social injustice. For that reason and her attention to detail, this is a must-read." –School Library Journal, starred review
* "Cristian’s tense first-person narrative foregrounds stark historical realities, unflinchingly confronting deprivations and cruelty while balancing them with perseverance and hope as Romania hurtles toward political change." –Publishers Weekly, starred review
“Sepetys keeps readers riveted to this vivid, heartbreaking and compelling novel, locked into every meticulously researched detail. I Must Betray You demands a full investment from its audience--through poetic writing, sympathetic characters, revolutionary plot and pacing, it grips the heart and soul and leaves one breathless.” –Shelf Awareness, starred review
"A master class in pacing and atmosphere." –BookPage -
Hideaway
"Reading Hideaway is like a mini vacation, as Roberts transports you from the sun-drenched mountains of Big Sur to the rolling hills of Ireland to the bustling streets of New York City." - Associated Press
A family ranch in Big Sur country and a legacy of Hollywood royalty set the stage for Nora Roberts’ emotional new suspense novel, Hideaway.
Caitlyn Sullivan had come from a long line of Hollywood royalty, stretching back to her Irish immigrant great-grandfather. At nine, she was already a star—yet still an innocent child who loved to play hide and seek with her cousins at the family home in Big Sur. It was during one of those games that she disappeared.
Some may have considered her a pampered princess, but Cate was in fact a smart, scrappy fighter, and she managed to escape her abductors. Dillon Cooper was shocked to find the bloodied, exhausted girl huddled in his house—but when the teenager and his family heard her story they provided refuge, reuniting her with her loved ones.
Cate’s ordeal, though, was far from over. First came the discovery of a shocking betrayal that would send someone she’d trusted to prison. Then there were years spent away in western Ireland, peaceful and protected but with restlessness growing in her soul.
Finally, she would return to Los Angeles, gathering the courage to act again and get past the trauma that had derailed her life. What she didn’t yet know was that two seeds had been planted that long-ago night—one of a great love, and one of a terrible vengeance... -
Heartless Hunter
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!
"A steamy game of cat and mouse between witch and witch-hunter, played out against a backdrop of opulence, secrets, and bloody history. I couldn't look away." - Kendare Blake, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Champion of Fate
Enemies-to-lovers doesn't get more high stakes than a witch and a witch hunter falling in love in bestselling author Kristen Ciccarelli's latest romantic fantasy.
On the night Rune’s life changed forever, blood ran in the streets. Now, in the aftermath of a devastating revolution, witches have been diminished from powerful rulers to outcasts ruthlessly hunted due to their waning magic, and Rune must hide what she is.
Spending her days pretending to be nothing more than a vapid young socialite, Rune spends her nights as the Crimson Moth, a witch vigilante who rescues her kind from being purged. When a rescue goes wrong, she decides to throw the witch hunters off her scent and gain the intel she desperately needs by courting the handsome Gideon Sharpe - a notorious and unforgiving witch hunter loyal to the revolution - who she can't help but find herself falling for.
Gideon loathes the decadence and superficiality Rune represents, but when he learns the Crimson Moth has been using Rune’s merchant ships to smuggle renegade witches out of the republic, he inserts himself into her social circles by pretending to court her right back. He soon realizes that beneath her beauty and shallow façade, is someone fiercely intelligent and tender who feels like his perfect match. Except, what if she’s the very villain he’s been hunting?
Kristen Ciccarelli’s Heartless Hunter is the thrilling start to The Crimson Moth duology, a romantic fantasy series where the only thing more treacherous than being a witch...is falling in love.
“Enchanting and deeply romantic, Heartless Hunter drew me in with the first sentence and left me breathless by the last. A story that unfolds like a spell, and one that is destined to capture your heart.” - Rebecca Ross, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Divine Rivals -
The Agathas
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Who killed Brooke Donovan? It’s the biggest mystery of the summer, and everyone in Castle Cove thinks they know what happened. But they're wrong. Two unlikely friends come together to solve the case in this fast-paced, fun, modern Agatha Christie inspired thriller.
"Part Agatha Christie, part Veronica Mars, and completely entertaining." —Karen M. McManus, #1 New York Times bestselling author of One Of Us Is Lying
A PEOPLE MAGAZINE BEST BOOK OF SUMMER
Last summer, Alice Ogilvie’s basketball-star boyfriend Steve dumped her. Then she disappeared for five days. She's not talking, so where she went and what happened to her is the biggest mystery in Castle Cove. Or it was, at least. But now, another one of Steve’s girlfriends has vanished: Brooke Donovan, Alice’s ex–best friend. And it doesn’t look like Brooke will be coming back. . .
Enter Iris Adams, Alice’s tutor. Iris has her own reasons for wanting to disappear, though unlike Alice, she doesn’t have the money or the means. That could be changed by the hefty reward Brooke’s grandmother is offering to anyone who can share information about her granddaughter’s whereabouts. The police are convinced Steve is the culprit, but Alice isn’t so sure, and with Iris on her side, she just might be able to prove her theory.
In order to get the reward and prove Steve’s innocence, they need to figure out who killed Brooke Donovan. And luckily Alice has exactly what they need—the complete works of Agatha Christie. If there’s anyone that can teach the girls how to solve a mystery it’s the master herself. But the town of Castle Cove holds many secrets, and Alice and Iris have no idea how much danger they're about to walk into. -
What Really Happens in Vegas
What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas--until now. James Patterson shows the real Vegas in a dazzling journey through "lively tales of those who labor and dream in Sin City" (Kirkus).
"Wild and wonderful...The magic of Sin City doesn't just happen. Patterson and Seal tell its secrets in beautifully presented snippets that often overlap not just surprisingly, but charmingly too." --Telegraph (UK)
- Las Vegas is on Luxury Standard Time: every clock in the airport is a Rolex.
- No dream is too big, no wish is too small--the VIP hosts in Vegas fulfill guests' every (legal) desire.
- Jackpots hit when least expected. The Nevada Gaming Control Board has days to find a man who unknowingly won over $200,000 at the slots.
- "I love love": the inventor of the Elvis impersonator wedding and the drive-thru wedding has performed hundreds of marriages--and believes in them all.
- Glamorous yogis take a helicopter across the desert to the Valley of Fire, where they perform sun salutations to the glory of Las Vegas.
- A gambling VIP "whale" loses $1 million at the casinos, yet still leaves saying, "Had a great time. I'll be back."
In What Really Happens in Vegas, full of surprises for both newcomers and Las Vegas regulars, James Patterson and Vanity Fair contributing editor Mark Seal transport readers from the thrill of adrenaline-fueled vice to the glitter of A-list celebrity and entertainment.
Book & Author Programs
A special book club for food lovers! Join us as we talk food & cooking and how it brings us all together. Check out a copy of Half Baked Harvest Super Simple before selecting a recipe or two to try making at home.
Join us at the library as we discuss Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke
Books are available at the Adult Help Desk
Join us as we discuss A Woman Is No Man by Etaf Rum.
Books are available at the Adult Help Desk.
About the book:
Join us to discuss this month's Beyond Fiction Book Club selection, The Art Thief: A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession by Michael Finkel. Books will be available to check out at the Adult Help Desk. 
If you love to talk about books, but don't want to commit to a monthly meeting, our quarterly book club is just the place for you! There are no assigned titles or genres. Read any books you like.
Read Online
Digital Library of Illinois (Libby)
Powered by Libby (formerly known as Overdrive), we have combined our exclusive e-content titles with other libraries to provide a much larger selection of materials to choose from, while still maintaining first dibs on titles we will continue to add regularly.
Freegal Music
The Freegal® Music service allows patrons to access a collection spanning over 15 million songs, music videos and audiobooks from more than 40,000 music labels worldwide including Sony Music, Epic, RCA, and Columbia. Freegal® Music also offers a completely rebuilt mobile app and website which utilizes modern application practices to ensure an easy-to-use and enjoyable experience.
Hoopla
Stream & download movies, music, audiobooks, ebooks, comics and TV shows to enjoy on most any device.
Kanopy
Stream full-length independent, foreign, classic & documentary films for free, brought to you by your public library. Over 30,000 films are offered.
KanopyKids
Browse educational and engaging videos for children of all ages that promote positive social and emotional development and inspire creativity in young minds.
NoveList Plus K-8
Great for kids, parents and teachers! Browse recommended reads by age, get book discussion guides as well search titles, authors, plot summaries, and series. Includes lexile scoring for both fiction and non-fiction titles.