On the shelves - Dec. 1

The books listed below are now available for checkout at the Clovis-Carver Public Library. The library is open to the public, but patrons can still visit the online catalog at cloviscarverpl.booksys.net/opac/ccpl or call 575-769-7840 to request a specific item for curbside pickup.

“Meddling with Mistletoe” by Liz Johnson. Whitney Garrett is preparing to enter culinary school in the spring, but first she has to sell enough homemade pies at the local Christmas markets to pay her tuition. When her oven breaks, Whitney asks Marie Sloan, proprietor of the Red Door Inn, if she can use the inn’s kitchen to keep up with her orders. Marie agrees, with a catch: Whitney has to watch the three Sloan children and cook breakfasts for the Red Door in return. The inn is busy with holiday guests--including Aretha Franklin Sloan’s perpetually single nephew Daniel and Ruby, a businesswoman in town to purchase Aretha’s antiques store. Intent on making a Christmas match for the two, Aretha enlists Whitney’s help in her schemes. But the deeper Whitney gets, the more she realizes that Ruby is definitely not the right woman for Daniel--and the more she thinks that she just might be his perfect match.

“Murder on the Page” by Daryl Wood Gerber. It’s a truth universally acknowledged that a top-notch party must be in want of a theme. Allie Catt, caterer in Asheville, North Carolina, has devised a winning formula by using her clients’ favorite books as inspiration. Her first themed event is based on Pride and Prejudice, and it’s so popular that soon she has grand ideas for future parties. But there’s a sting in the tale when the aunt of Allie’s best friend, Tegan, is murdered. Tegan is the victim’s sole heir, and becomes the main suspect. Allie has no doubts about his innocence, but how to prove it? Once again, her love of literature comes to the rescue, and with some guidance from her favorite fictional detectives, Allie sifts through the clues. With a little luck, she may be able to stop a killer from serving up a second course of murder.

“Nora Goes Off Script” by Annabel Monaghan. Romance screenwriter Nora Hamilton knows the formula for love better than anyone. But when her too-good-to-work husband leaves her and their two kids, Nora turns her marriage’s collapse into cash, writing the best script of her life. When it’s picked up for the big screen and set to film at her home with former Sexiest Man Alive, Leo Vance, cast as -her ex-husband, Nora’s life will never be the same. After shooting wraps, Nora finds Leo on her porch with a half-empty bottle of tequila and a proposition. He’ll pay a thousand dollars a day to stay for a week. She could use the money, but it’s the need in his eyes that makes her say yes. Seven days: it’s the blink of an eye or an eternity depending on how you look at it. Enough time to fall in love. Enough time to break your heart.

“The Elements of Marie Curie” by Dava Sobel. With the consummate skill that made bestsellers of Longitude and Galileo’s Daughter, and the appreciation for women in science at the heart of her most recent The Glass Universe, Dava Sobel has crafted a radiant biography and a masterpiece of storytelling, illuminating the life and enduring influence of one of the most consequential figures of our time.

“What Time is Noon” by Chip Leighton. When sharing the funny, weird, crazy things his kids said and texted, he quickly learned he was not alone. Since launching, his channel has become the go-to support group for adults who have teenagers in their lives―wholly confirming that teens everywhere say the darndest things. In this debut collection, Leighton showcases these gems, along with tongue-in-cheek advice, charts and graphs, and silly quizzes.

“Alfred Hitchcock All the Films” by Bernard Benoliel. Spanning more than six decades, this book details the creative processes that resulted in numerous classic films like Vertigo, The Birds, Psycho, and To Catch a Thief (to name a few). The director’s classic TV series are also covered extensively along with original release dates, lesser-known short films, box office totals, and other insider scoops that will keep fans and students alike turning pages.

— Summaries provided by library staff