Spydus Search Results - Recently reviewed titles

The book of doors / Gareth Brown.

Bookseller Cassie Andrews is living an unassuming life when she is given a gift by a favourite customer - an unusual book, full of strange writing and mysterious drawings. And at the very front there's a handwritten message to Cassie, telling her that this is the Book of Doors. What Cassie is about to discover is that the Book of Doors is a special book that bestows extraordinary powers on whoever possesses it, and soon she and her best friend Izzy are exploring all that the Book of Doors can do, swept away from their quiet lives by the possibilities of travelling to anywhere they want. But the Book of Doors is not the only magical book in the world. There are other books that can do wondrous and dreadful things when wielded by dangerous and ruthless individuals - individuals who crave what Cassie now possesses. Can Drummond Fox, a man fleeing his own demons, help them?
Author: Brown, Gareth
Published: London : Bantam Press, 2024.
407 pages ; 24 cm
Average rating: (1 review)

South West Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Fiction Hardback - F - Onloan - Due: 04 Jun 2024 - 34106006858893

The mind of a murderer / Michael Wood.

Dr Olivia Winter is a forensic psychologist whose job is to understand the minds of serial killers. There's only one monster she can't understand, her father. Notorious and brutal, he held a reign of terror until he was caught. His nine-year-old daughter was supposed to be his last victim, but she survived. A serial killer is stalking the streets of London. As the body count rises, the police need Olivia's help to profile him before he can strike again. But to do so, she will need to confront her own demons.
Author: Wood, Michael
Published: London : One More Chapter, 2024.
394 pages ; 20 cm.
Dr Olivia Winter thriller
Average rating: (1 review)

Central Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Fiction Paperback - F - Onloan - Due: 28 May 2024 - 34106006862390

The stolen heir : a novel of Elfhame / Holly Black.

Author Holly Black returns to the opulent world of Elfhame in the first book in a duology, following Jude's brother Oak, and the changeling queen, Suren. A reluctant prince. A runaway queen. And a quest that may destroy them both.
Author: Black, Holly
Published: London : Hot Key Books, 2024.
356 pages : map (black and white) ; 20 cm.
Folk of the air series
The folk of the air series ; 1
Average rating: (1 review)

Central Library - (Inverclyde) - Young Adult - T - Available - 34106006861152
Gourock Library - (Inverclyde) - Young Adult - T - Available - 34106006861145

The prisoner's throne : a novel of Elfhame / Holly Black.

Prince Oak is paying for his betrayal. Imprisoned in the icy north and bound to the will of a monstrous new queen, he must rely on charm and calculation to survive. With High King Cardan and High Queen Jude ready to use any means necessary to retrieve their stolen heir, should Oak attempt to regain the trust of the girl he's always loved, or remain loyal to Elfhame and hand over the means to end her reign - even if it means ending Wren, too. With war looming and treachery lurking in every corner, neither Oak's guile nor his wit will be enough to keep everyone he loves alive. He will have some terrible choices to make.
Author: Black, Holly
Published: London : Hot Key Books, 2024.
356 pages : illustrations (black and white) ; 24 cm.
Folk of the air series
The folk of the air series ; 2
Average rating: (1 review)

Central Library - (Inverclyde) - Young Adult - T - Available - 34106006861137
Gourock Library - (Inverclyde) - Young Adult - T - Available - 34106006861129

Cult / Camilla Lackberg & Henrik Fexeus ; translated from the Swedish by Ian Giles.

A young child is snatched in broad daylight outside his nursery. Nobody in charge sees a thing, but the other children say a woman is the culprit. Detective Mina Dabiri calls on her close friend Vincent to untangle the puzzle that surrounds the kidnapped boy. As he finds a link between the boy and others who have gone missing, it becomes clear that time is running out for everyone involved. Meanwhile, Mina's estranged daughter gets caught up in the secretive world of Epicura, a shadowy organisation that claims to be a centre for leadership development. Can Mina protect her child - a child who doesn't even know she exists?
Author: Läckberg, Camilla, 1974-
Published: London : HarperCollinsPublishers, 2023.
586 pages : map (black and white) ; 25 cm
Average rating: (1 review)

Central Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Fiction Hardback - F - Onloan - Due: 10 May 2024 - 34106006832005

Study for obedience / Sarah Bernstein.

A woman moves from the place of her birth to a remote northern country to be housekeeper to her brother, whose wife has just left him. The youngest child of many siblings - more than she cares to remember - from earliest childhood she has attended to their every desire, smoothed away the slightest discomfort with perfect obedience, with the highest degree of devotion. The country, it transpires, is the country of their family's ancestors, an obscure though reviled people. Soon after she arrives, a series of unfortunate events occurs - collective bovine hysteria; a local dog's phantom pregnancy; the containment of domestic fowl; a potato blight. She notices that the local suspicion about incomers in general seems to be directed particularly in her case. What is clear is that she is being accused of wrongdoing, but in a language she cannot understand and so cannot address.
Author: Bernstein, Sarah (Literature teacher)
Published: London : Granta, 2023.
192 pages ; 20 cm
Average rating: (1 review)

Gourock Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Fiction Hardback - F - Kept Aside (Set: 19 Feb 2024) - 34106006838978

Resurrection walk / Michael Connelly.

Defense attorney Mickey Haller is back, taking the long shot cases, where the chances of winning are one in a million. He agrees to represent a woman in prison for killing her husband, a sheriff's deputy. Despite her conviction four years earlier, she still maintains her innocence. Haller enlists his half brother, retired LAPD Detective Harry Bosch, as investigator. Reviewing the case, Bosch sees something that doesn't add up, and a sheriff's department intent on bringing a quick search for justice in the killing of one of its own. The path to justice for both the lawyer and his investigator is fraught with danger from those who don't want the case reopened. And they will stop at nothing to keep the Haller-Bosch dream team from uncovering what the deputy's killing was really about.
Author: Connelly, Michael, 1956-
Published: London : Orion, 2023.
405 pages ; 25 cm
Lincoln lawyer novel
A Lincoln lawyer novel ; 7
Average rating: (1 review)

Central Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Fiction Hardback - F - Onloan - Due: 22 May 2024 - 34106006844786
Gourock Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Fiction Hardback - F - Onloan - Due: 15 Jun 2024 - 34106006844778
Port Glasgow Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Fiction Hardback - F - Available - 34106006844794

The mirror man / Lars Kepler.

Seventeen-year-old Jenny is abducted in broad daylight and taken to a dilapidated, isolated house where she is chained and caged along with several other girls. Their captor is unpredictable, and as wily as he is cruel: he foils every one of their desperate attempts to escape - and once caught they rarely survive their punishment. Five years later, Jenny is found dead in a public park, and the police are scrambling to find a lead among the scant evidence. But Detective Joona Linna realizes that this murder has an eerie connection to a death that was declared a suicide years before. And now when Mia, a seventeen-year-old orphan, goes missing, it becomes clear to Joona that they are dealing with a serial killer - and the murderous rampage has just begun.
Author: Kepler, Lars
Published: London : Zaffre, 2022.
567 pages ; 24 cm
Average rating: (1 review)

Central Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Fiction Hardback - F - Onloan - Due: 10 May 2024 - 34106000216536

Marple : twelve new stories / Naomi Alderman [and eleven others] ; based on characters created by Agatha Christie.

A brand new collection of short stories featuring the Queen of Crime's legendary detective Jane Marple, penned by twelve remarkable bestselling and acclaimed authors.
Published: London : HarperCollinsPublishers, 2022.
372 pages ; 24 cm
Average rating: (1 review)
1 reserve

Central Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Fiction Hardback - F - Available - 34106006814979
Gourock Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Fiction Hardback - F - On reserve shelf at South West Library - 34106007023554

Friends, lovers and the big terrible thing : a memoir / Matthew Perry.

In an extraordinary story that only he could tell, Matthew Perry takes readers onto the soundstage of the most successful sitcom of all time while opening up about his private struggles with addiction. Candid, self-aware, and told with his trademark humour, Perry vividly details his lifelong battle with the disease and what fuelled it despite seemingly having it all. 'Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing' is an unforgettable memoir that shares the most intimate details of the love Perry lost, his darkest days, and his greatest friends.
Author: Perry, Matthew, 1969-
Published: London : Headline, 2022.
xii, 266 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (black and white, and colour) ; 24 cm
Average rating: (1 review)

Kilmacolm Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Non Fiction - 920 PER - In-transit from South West Library to Kilmacolm Library (Set: 08 May 2024) - 34106007052876
Port Glasgow Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Non Fiction - 920 PER - Available - 34106007014686

Bunny vs Monkey and the human invasion! / adaptation and interior design by Laura Bentley ; additional artwork and colours by Sammy Borras.

Since he crash landed to Earth in a rocket, Monkey has been causing absolute mayhem! Bunny and the gang (Squirrel, Pig, Action Beaver, and Skunky the Inventor) have almost had enough. In this rollicking comic extravaganza, the pint-sized friend must tackle a helliphant, rocket-powered hot air balloons, and the most mind-boggling creatures of all - hewmans.
Author: Smart, Jamie
Published: Oxford : David Fickling Books, 2021.
247 pages : chiefly illustrations (colour) ; 21 cm.
Jamie Smart's Bunny vs Monkey
Phoenix presents
Jamie Smart's Bunny vs Monkey ; 8
Average rating: (1 review)

Central Library - (Inverclyde) - Junior Graphic Novels - JG - Onloan - Due: 08 Jan 2024 - 34106006812528
Gourock Library - (Inverclyde) - Junior Graphic Novels - JG - Onloan - Due: 10 Apr 2024 - 34106006812601
Inverkip & Wemyss Bay Library - (Inverclyde) - Junior Graphic Novels - JG - Available - 34106007021988
South West Library - (Inverclyde) - Junior Graphic Novels - JG - Onloan - Due: 02 May 2024 - 34106006838044

The comfort book / Matt Haig.

'The Comfort Book' is a collection of little islands of hope. It gathers consolations and stories that give new ways of seeing ourselves and the world. Matt Haig's mix of philosophy, memoir and self-reflection builds on the wisdom of philosophers and survivors through the ages, from Marcus Aurelius to Nellie Bly, Emily Dickinson to James Baldwin. This is the book to pick up when you need the wisdom of a friend, the comfort of a hug or just to celebrate the messy miracle of being alive.
Author: Haig, Matt, 1975-
Published: Edinburgh : Canongate, 2021.
x, 256 pages ; 23 cm
Average rating: (2 reviews)

Gourock Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Non Fiction - 158 - Available - 34106006777614

The Midnight Library / Matt Haig.

When Nora Seed finds herself in the Midnight Library, she has a chance to make things right. Up until now, her life has been full of misery and regret. She feels she has let everyone down, including herself. But things are about to change. The books in the Midnight Library enable Nora to live as if she had done things differently. With the help of an old friend, she can now undo every one of her regrets as she tries to work out her perfect life. But things aren't always what she imagined they'd be, and soon her choices place the library and herself in extreme danger. Before time runs out, she must answer the ultimate question: what is the best way to live?
Author: Haig, Matt, 1975-
Published: Edinburgh : Canongate, 2020.
288 pages ; 23 cm
Average rating: (2 reviews)

Gourock Library - (Inverclyde) - Bookgroup - F - Available - 34106006765916
Kilmacolm Library - (Inverclyde) - Bookgroup - F - Available - 34106006765973
Library Store - (Inverclyde) - Bookgroup - F - Available - 34106006744069
Library Store - (Inverclyde) - Bookgroup - F - Available - 34106006765957
Library Store - (Inverclyde) - Bookgroup - F - Available - 34106006765965
Port Glasgow Library - (Inverclyde) - Bookgroup - F - Available - 34106006765999
Port Glasgow Library - (Inverclyde) - Bookgroup - F - Available - 34106006766005
South West Library - (Inverclyde) - Bookgroup - F - Available - 34106006765932
South West Library - (Inverclyde) - Bookgroup - F - Available - 34106006765940

Shuggie Bain / Douglas Stuart.

It is 1981. Glasgow is dying and good families must grift to survive. Agnes Bain has always expected more from life. She dreams of greater things: a house with its own front door and a life bought and paid for outright (like her perfect, but false, teeth). But Agnes is abandoned by her philandering husband, and soon she and her three children find themselves trapped in a decimated mining town. As she descends deeper into drink, the children try their best to save her, yet one by one they must abandon her to save themselves. It is her son Shuggie who holds out hope the longest. Shuggie is different. Fastidious and fussy, he shares his mother's sense of snobbish propriety. The miners' children pick on him and adults condemn him as no' right. But Shuggie believes that if he tries his hardest, he can be normal like the other boys and help his mother escape this hopeless place.
Author: Stuart, Douglas, 1976-
Published: London : Picador, 2020.
430 pages ; 24 cm
Average rating: (3 reviews)

12 copies

Single / K.L. Slater.

When single mother Darcy's son falls from a rope bridge at a local playground, life stands still. She clutches his small, limp body, frozen, until a pair of strong hands push her aside, and she watches as George, a local doctor, saves her son's life. George is a single parent too, and with his twinkling hazel eyes, easy charm, and lack of wedding band is almost too good to be true, but coffee becomes lunch, lunch becomes dinner, and soon they can't go an evening without seeing each other. When he invites her to move into his beautiful home with its sprawling garden for her boys, Darcy doesn't hesitate. But as Darcy is settling in, she receives a bunch of flowers with a chilling message. George says they're from an obsessed ex-girlfriend, Opal, and days later Opal turns up at Darcy's son's football match. She claims to have shocking information that could threaten everything.
Author: Slater, K. L. (Kim L.)
Published: London : Sphere, 2020.
343 pages ; 20 cm
Average rating: (1 review)

Library Store - (Inverclyde) - Adult Fiction Paperback - F - Available - 34106006758010

Uprooted / Naomi Novik.

Agnieszka loves her valley home, her quiet village, the forests and the bright shining river. But the corrupted Wood stands on the border, full of malevolent power, and its shadow lies over her life. Her people rely on the cold, driven wizard known only as the Dragon to keep its powers at bay. But he demands a terrible price for his help: one young woman handed over to serve him for ten years, a fate almost as terrible as falling to the Wood. The next choosing is fast approaching, and Agnieszka is afraid. She knows - everyone knows - that the Dragon will take Kasia: beautiful, graceful, brave Kasia, all the things Agnieszka isn't, and her dearest friend in the world. And there is no way to save her. But Agnieszka fears the wrong things. For when the Dragon comes, it is not Kasia he will choose.
Author: Novik, Naomi
Published: London : Pan Books, 2016.
438 pages ; 20 cm
Average rating: (1 review)

Port Glasgow Library - (Inverclyde) - Adult Fiction Paperback - F - Available - 34106006821883

Paris for one / Jojo Moyes.

Nell is twenty-six and has never been to Paris. She has never even been on a weekend away with her boyfriend. Everyone knows she is just not the adventurous type. But, when her boyfriend doesn't turn up for their romantic mini-break, Nell has the chance to prove everyone wrong. Alone in Paris, Nell meets the mysterious moped-riding Fabien and his group of carefree friends. Could this turn out to be the most adventurous weekend of her life?
Author: Moyes, Jojo, 1969-
Published: London : Penguin, 2014.
Published: London : Michael Joseph, 2015.
208 pages ; 20 cm.
Quick reads
Average rating: (1 review)

Gourock Library - (Inverclyde) - Quick Reads - F - Available - 34106003282048
Inverkip & Wemyss Bay Library - (Inverclyde) - Quick Reads - F - Available - 34106003285256
Kilmacolm Library - (Inverclyde) - Quick Reads - F - Available - 34106003282022
Library Store - (Inverclyde) - Quick Reads - F - Available - 34106003282030
Port Glasgow Library - (Inverclyde) - Quick Reads - F - Available - 34106003282014