This was meant to be a summer reading list. Shows what I know. I figured I would put the finishing touches on The Medusa Coin and Pathways in the Dark and take some much needed time off – for the family, for myself. It didn’t happen. So what was once a summer list has now turned into a insanely desired fall reading list.

Will I read them all? That is my vow and I stand by it – at least until it completely falls apart…

Fall Reading List 2017

Stephen King – Duma Key

From the back cover – Edgar leaves Minnesota for a rented house on Duma Key, a stunningly beautiful, eerily undeveloped splinter of the Florida coast. The sun setting into the Gulf of Mexico and the tidal rattling of shells on the beach call out to him, and Edgar draws. A visit from Ilse, the daughter he dotes on, starts his movement out of solitude. He meets a kindred spirit in Wireman, a man reluctant to reveal his own wounds, and then Elizabeth Eastlake, a sick old woman whose roots are tangled deep in Duma Key. Now Edgar paints, sometimes feverishly, his exploding talent both a wonder and a weapon. Many of his paintings have a power that cannot be controlled. When Elizabeth’s past unfolds and the ghosts of her childhood begin to appear, the damage of which they are capable is truly devastating.

Why it made the list – Some of these are going to be easy answers. I’ve had this particular King novel on my shelf since 2008. Time to see if it deserved prime placement for the last decade…

Greg Rucka – A Fistful of Rain

From the back cover – Mim Bracca is riding the fast lane straight off the end of the world. Now she’s coming home without a job, without a future, and without a prayer—and only one last chance to get her feet under her, or go down forever. But home has its own terrors, including a past Mim has done everything possible to leave behind.

Now that past is coming back with the shocking speed and deadly intent of a sniper’s bullet, aimed to destroy her once and for all. When Mim suffers her first blackout, waking up dazed and bloodied, she’s certain she’s hit rock bottom.

She’s wrong. She’s only just begun to fall.

The photos are invasive, obscene, and all over the Internet for anyone to see. How they got there, where and when they were shot, and by whom, Mim has no idea. And before the investigation into the matter even begins, a brutal murder makes it clear that whatever Mim thinks her life has been up to now, she’s about to learn it’s all a lie.

The kind of lie that will kill.

Why it made the list – I love Greg Rucka novels. He has an affinity for a strong female lead and writes the hell out of each and every one of them. This is one of the few he’s written that stands alone so I am looking forward to it.

Stuart Jaffe – Southern Bound

From the back cover – When Max Porter discovers his office is haunted by the ghost of a 1940s detective, he does the only sensible thing … he starts a detective agency!

Thrust neck-deep into a world of old mysteries and dangerous enemies, he will face ghosts, witches, and curses. He will discover a world in which survival might be the easiest challenge. And he will do anything necessary to keep his wife and his life from falling away.

Why it made the list – This one comes from one of my readers and it definitely jumped out at me as something I would enjoy. The right mix of detective story and freaky supernatural elements.

Special thanks to Debbie for the recommendation!

Dean Wilson – Coilhunter

From the back cover – Welcome to the Wild North, a desolate wasteland where criminals go to hide—if they can outlast the drought and the dangers of the desert. Or the dangers of something else.

Meet Nox, the Coilhunter. A mechanic and toymaker by trade, a bounty hunter by circumstance. He isn’t in it for the money. He’s in it for justice, and there’s a lot of justice that needs to be paid.

Between each kill, he’s looking for someone who has kept out of his crosshairs for quite a while—the person who murdered his wife and children. The trail has long gone cold, but there are changes happening, the kind of changes that uncover footprints and spent bullet casings.

Plagued by nightmares, he’s made himself into a living one, the kind the criminals and conmen fear.

So, welcome, fair folk, to the Wild North. If the land doesn’t get you, the Coilhunter will.

Why it made the list – Dean Wilson is a stand up guy that does a ton of outreach on behalf of other authors. That alone deserves the recommendation but here’s the thing – the guy can write. A LOT. His back catalog is extensive. Why this one for me? A sci-fi western? Pretty much had me there.

L.A. Frederick – The Rain

From the back cover – New Hampton is bloodthirsty. The streets are a cesspool. Greed and corporate necessity rule the overcrowded city.

A mysterious doctor, his young protégé and a monstrous enforcer are playing gods, their wanton destruction going unchecked. The city’s Mayor seeks vengeance and believes the doctor’s work is the key to achieving redemption. These men will change the city forever, for better or worse remains to be seen. 

Crime is rife on the streets and only a few brave, have-a-go heroes, seem willing to plunge themselves into the depths of depravity to intervene and, ultimately, save the city from forces it is seemingly oblivious to. 

A handful of extraordinary individuals must decide where they fit in within the changing landscape of the indomitable city of New Hampton. Run? Hide? Fight? The ramifications of their decisions will echo throughout the city.

New Hamptoners look out for number one, slaves to the omnipresent man. Can the city survive this maelstrom or will the meddling powers-that-be doom everyone…

Why it made the list – L.A. reached out to me a few weeks back to cross-promote our work and I fell for the concept of the Government Rain Mysteries immediately. I can’t wait to see where this one goes.

Ian Rankin – Strip Jack

From the back cover – Gregor Jack has it all: young, wealthy, and charming, he’s a highly respected member of Parliament, with a beautiful wife–and a closet bursting with skeletons. When he’s caught in a police raid on an Edinburgh brothel, his house of cards begins to topple. Enter Detective John Rebus: he smells a set-up. When Jack’s flamboyant wife Elizabeth disappears, Rebus uncovers a full-house of orgies, drunken parties, an incestuous “Pack” of deceitful chums…and ultimately Elizabeth’s badly beaten body. Now Rebus is on a new quest–to find a killer who holds all the cards.

Why it made the list – In 2016, I told myself it was time to binge on the Inspector Rebus series. I love the character and it is definitely reflected in Greg Loren’s sarcasm and natural ability to piss off his superiors. As you can tell I didn’t get too far – this is only book 4. At least I can get one more off the list this autumn.

What’s on your list? Ever read any of the above?

I have a few others I’m hoping to add so there may be an addendum to this list. Some other great reader recommendations as well as some books that have been hanging around my Kindle since 2011.

Time to get reading!