On the shelves - Dec. 11

The following books are available for checkout at:

Clovis-Carver Public Library

Someone Always Knows by Marcia Muller delivers an intense and intricate plot as Sharon McCone and her husband, Hy manage to successfully merge their investigative and security companies. But while Hy is off on a hush-hush assignment for the government, a former business partner of his shows up leaving McCone to uncover why this shady troublemaker has returned, what is he after, and what does it have to do with what seemed like a simple investigation of a vacant house, now threatening to destroy her life?

The Winter Crown by Elizabeth Chadwick travels to the winter of 1154 where Eleanor, Queen of England, is biding her time. While King Henry II battles for land across the channel, Eleanor fulfils her duty as acting ruler and bearer of royal children, but desires to be more than this - if only Henry would let her. Instead, Henry belittles and excludes her, falling for a young mistress and leaving Eleanor sidelined and angry. Frustrated at Henry's hoarding of power, Eleanor is forced into a rebellion of devastating consequences.

Sunrise Canyon by Janet Dailey takes place in the heart of Arizona's Sonora Desert, finding Jake O'Reilly reluctant to expose his little girl to the man war has turned him into. Persuaded to work on the ranch where his daughter is living, Jake meets Kira, his late wife's cousin, who runs a horse therapy program for troubled teens. Though Jake doesn't want any complications in his life, he finds himself impossibly drawn to the tough Kira and begins to feel his wounds finally start to heal.

But What if We're Wrong by Chuck Klosterman asks questions that are profound in their simplicity: How certain are we about our understanding of gravity, or time? Are all sports destined for extinction? Is it possible that we overrate democracy? And perhaps most disturbing, have we reached the end of knowledge? Interviews with today's creative thinkers weave humor and analysis to visualize the contemporary world as it may appear to those who will perceive it as the distant past; to view things we cannot know, explained as if we did.

The Invisibles by Jesse J. Holland chronicles the African American presence inside the White House from its beginnings in 1782 until 1862, when President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, and slaves were the only African Americans to whom the most powerful men in the United States were exposed on a daily, and familiar, basis. Views of various presidents about class and race in American society are revealed, and how slaves contributed not only to the life and comforts of the presidents they served, but to America as a whole.

Modern Dog Parenting by Sarah Hodgson is a cornucopia of information, wisdom, insight, humor and common sense which at once reassures, motivates and inspires us in the training - and loving - of our dogs. Rejecting dominance-based training, learn to communicate with and understand the signs your dog is giving you, have fun while teaching manners, and fit your beloved family member into your lifestyle.

Portales Public Library

When All the Girls Have Gone by Jayne Ann Krentz

When Charlotte Sawyer discovers that her stepsister Jocelyn's best friend, Louise, was found dead, she tries to call Jocelyn to notify her, but finds out that Jocelyn is missing. Louise and Jocelyn were both members of a secret Seattle internet investment club, and Charlotte begins to suspect that their club may be at the crux of their respective death and disappearance, and desperate for help, she hires Max Cutler, a private investigator who recently moved to town after he lost his job as a criminal profiler. Max needs the money and the experience, so he takes the job, pitting both of them together in a chase to find Jocelyn alive-if she isn't already dead-and to find answers to how deep the dangers of the club runs, while getting closer to each other in ways they never expected.

The Fever Code by James Dashner

In the fifth book of James Dashner's best-selling Maze Runner series, this prequel continues the story after the destruction of the human race due to the earth being scorched by the sun and the rise of the Flare virus that was detailed in The Kill Order. Finally, Dashner reveals how WICKED found and selected the Gladers, who Thomas and Teresa really are and what side they were on, who Group B is, and how the Maze was built. Told from Thomas's point of view, the story leads directly into the events told in The Maze Runner, with Thomas's personality, intents and loyalties fully fleshed out and explained. Here we meet the real Newt, Chuck, Minho, Alby, Gally and Teresa for the first time, before their minds were wiped and they were sent into the Maze with the other Gladers, and we discover who was friends with who and who were enemies from the start. Most of all, the question of WICKED's ethics-or lack thereof-will finally be answered.

The Whole Town's Talking by Fannie Flagg

In this sprawling narrative of the town Elmwood Spring, Missouri, Fannie Flagg's newest novel follows the town from its creation in 1889, to the present day, to the future in the mid-twenty-first century. Founded by Swedish immigrant Lordor Nordstrom and his mail-order bride, Katrina, the story recounts the early years of the first townspeople, their families, and their descendants, as well as people in other places outside of Elmwood Spring, including St. Louis, New York, Chicago and Sweden. Throughout the years, various famous events and people crop up in how significant they are to the towns' history, such as the invention of airplanes, the Depression, the moon landing, and even Bonnie and Clyde. The most interesting thing about Elmwood Spring, however, is the town's cemetery, where strange and mysterious things have been happening, causing the whole town-across the years-to talk.

— Summaries by library staff