WEEK 3 FOR DECEMBER’S NEW BOOKS!
WEEK 3
BOOK 1
THE CORSICAN SHADOW
In May 1940, as the German army blitzes Europe and Parisians flee their city, the chief curator of the Musée de l’Armée is ordered to get a mysterious piece of cargo out of the country. When he arrives at the port of Le Havre and learns that his intended ship has been sunk, he places the object on a decrepit steamer that sails out under German fire.
In the present day, National Underwater and Marine Agency Director Dirk Pitt is on a diving expedition in the English Channel when he discovers a cache of uncut diamonds on a shipwreck. When the diamonds are stolen, Pitt and the NUMA agency find themselves up against a murderous cabal that soon reveals far more destructive plans than mere theft. Vital water treatment facilities around the globe are being targeted—placing the world’s population in grave peril.
From the shadow of the Eiffel Tower to the depths of the Irish Sea to the islands of the Caribbean, only Dirk Pitt and his children, Summer and Dirk Jr., can locate the treasure that will preserve the soul of a nation…and save the world from catastrophe.
When CIA operative Jenny Silkwell is murdered in rural Maine, government officials have immediate concerns over national security. Her laptop and phone were full of state secrets that, in the wrong hands, endanger the lives of countless operatives. In need of someone who can solve the murder quickly and retrieve the missing information, the U.S. government knows just the chameleon they can call on.
Ex-Army Ranger Travis Devine spent his time in the military preparing to take on any scenario, followed by his short-lived business career chasing shadows in the deepest halls of power, so his analytical mind makes him particularly well-suited for complex, high-stakes tasks. Taking down the world’s largest financial conspiracy proved his value, and in comparison, this case looks straightforward. Except small towns hold secrets and Devine finds himself an outsider again.
Devine must ingratiate himself with locals who have trusted each other their whole lives, and who distrust outsiders just as much. Dak, Jenny’s brother, who’s working to revitalize the town. Earl, the retired lobsterman who found Jenny’s body. And Alex, Jenny’s sister with a dark past of her own. As Devine gets to know the residents of Putnam, Maine, answers seem to appear and then transform into more questions. There’s a long history of secrets and those who will stop at nothing to keep them from being exposed. Leaving Devine with no idea who he can trust… and who wants him dead.
Do you know about your family’s before years — their lives before you?
Elsie and Willis Masterson have been married 69 years when he passes away. Before he dies Willis encourages Elsie to make sure the family knows about her life. She’s always been his biggest supporter, bragging about him, pushing her own life into the background.
Now it’s her turn to shine. And share.
The notion of talking about herself is foreign to Elsie. Yet as she copes with widowhood, she gets an idea: why not create treasure hunts for her family—for all three generations? She’ll hand out personalized clues that will lead them into her past, into the moments that changed her. Into moments that might change them.
As they share Elsie’s undiscovered life her family finds that some experiences are timeless. Some memories are priceless.
And some lessons are eternal.
A strange man goes around town delivering unusual invitations. The recipients are invited to visit an odd-sounding place called the Discovery Room. Why? So they can be enlightened and discover their full potential. The whole notion sounds lofty and a bit pretentious, but it’s also too intriguing to resist. Some are eager. Some are nervous. Yet once they enter the Room, all are amazed and changed.
In the Discovery Room invitees are shown scenes from their past. Choices—taken and not taken—are highlighted to help them understand how they ended up where they are now. Yet in the Room they also discover how things could have been if only they’d been aware and willing to follow God’s lead. If not for this . . . and this . . . and this . . . their lives could have been different. Above all they learn it’s never too late to open their eyes, their minds, and their hearts to fully see.
Four people who get an invitation to the Discovery Room:
Tony Amato: Forty-year-old Tony has made a mess of his life since one regrettable teenaged choice. He’s in a rut, letting the past mistake taint every good thing that comes his way. He’s got a huge chip on his shoulder and is wary and defensive. Facing the truth and discovering a path to a new beginning isn’t possible. Or is it?
Minnie McLaughlin: Minnie is a college sophomore getting a business degree—her father’s choice, not hers. During the eight years since her parents’ divorce, Minnie learned to bend to the will of others rather than make her own choices. Keeping the peace was her goal. Yet sometimes “the peace” needs to be stirred up a bit.
Lydia Brogdon: Lydia and her husband are empty nesters. Lydia used to be a high school mentor, but when things went wrong with one of her students she lost her confidence, struggled, and finally called it quits. In an effort to end the mental blame-game, she gets a job in data entry, hoping the computer-focused job will mean she won’t have to think so much. She has no idea the job will offer a key that will unlock everything.
Gracie Sturgeon: Gracie is the receptionist at the Discovery Room, yet she is hesitant to take a turn inside. What good can come from revisiting past choices? She never had choices. For fourteen of her thirty-two years she’s been stuck in the family home taking care of her ailing parents. Now, with them both gone, she has no idea how to live a normal life, what a normal life is, or if it’s even possible. She’s used to existing in survival mode and taking one day at a time. Will she be brave enough to take a leap of faith and enter the Room?
Join in these life-changing discoveries—and know that you too are invited.
The bestselling author of Twenty Years Later and master of modern suspense is back with a brilliantly twisting, skillfully plotted thriller perfect for fans of Jeneva Rose and Colleen Hoover’s Verity.
Alex Armstrong has changed everything about herself—her name, her appearance, her backstory. She’s no longer the terrified teenager a rapt audience saw on television, emerging in handcuffs from the quiet suburban home the night her family was massacred. That girl, Alexandra Quinlan, nicknamed Empty Eyes by the media, was accused of the killings, fought to clear her name, and later took the stand during her highly publicized defamation lawsuit that captured the attention of the nation.
It’s been ten years since, and Alex hasn’t stopped searching for answers about the night her family was killed, even as she continues to hide her real identity from true crime fanatics and grasping reporters still desperate to locate her. As a legal investigator, she works tirelessly to secure justice for others, too. People like Matthew Claymore, who’s under suspicion in the disappearance of his girlfriend, a student journalist named Laura McAllister.
Laura was about to break a major story about rape and cover-ups on her college campus. Alex believes Matthew is innocent, and unearths stunning revelations about the university’s faculty, fraternity members, and powerful parents willing to do anything to protect their children.
Most shocking of all—as Alex digs into Laura’s disappearance, she realizes there are unexpected connections to the murder of her own family. For as different as the crimes may seem, they each hinge on one sinister truth: no one is quite who they seem to be . . .