In the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly, regular columnist and author Stephen King offers his picks on the top 10 books of the year. I’m not a big fan of his fiction genre (with the exceptions of Stand By Me, Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile) but I rather enjoy his writing in the magazine. He advocates reading over going to the movies because it is a better bang for your buck. Following is his list, including his pertinent comments in quotes. I haven’t read any of these but offer up the list in case you are looking for some new mysteries to check out.
1. The novels of Robert Goddard: a British mystery/suspense novelist. He has written 15 novels full of “more twists than a box of macaroni.”
2. “The Garden of Last Days” by Andre Dubus III. “Terrifying, unputdownable, and the best novel so far about 9/11."
3. When Will There Be Good News by Kate Atkinson. Third novel featuring private eye Jackson Brodie. “You can’t believe all the tangled threads are going to come together, but they do.”
4. The Tenderness of Wolves by Stef Penney. “If you liked Life of Pi and The Secret Life of Bees, this is for you.”
5. Nixonland by Rick Perlstein. Nonfiction… “It’s the best history of the turbulent ‘60s I’ve ever read.”
6. Heartsick/Sweetheart by Chelsea Cain. “We’ve been down Hannibal Lecter Avenue many times, and these two books shouldn’t work… but they do.”
7. Hollywood Crows by Joseph Wambaugh. Sequel to Hollywood Station. “A fine, funky read with an all too believable murder plot.”
8. The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. Mystery about a decades-old crime. “The good news is that Larsson delivered two more novels with this one. The bad news is that he died of a heart attack shortly after doing so.”
9. Old Flames by Jack Ketchum. “Remember Glenn Close… in Fatal Attraction? Raise that to the 10th power and you get Dora Welles, the crazy ex-girlfriend in this short chiller.”
10. The Good Guy by Dean Koontz. “This is Koontz at his Hitchcockiest: nice guy is mistaken for contract killer, mayhem ensues.”
Happy reading!
