Are you looking for your next great read? Check out Kansas Talking Books most recent staff picks, where we highlight books our staff have recently read (or re-read) and enjoyed. Maybe one of them will be your next fantastic adventure!
Michael Lang, Director
DB 104755 The gunslinger: Dark tower, book 1 by Stephen King
His evil nemesis, the "man in black," creates many problems for the gunslinger as the gunslinger travels through time, seeking vengeance for the death of his father and the dishonoring of his mother. Violence, strong language, and descriptions of sex. Commercial audiobook. 1982.
DB 104715 The drawing of the three: Dark tower, book 2 by Stephen King
Roland the gunslinger continues his search for the Dark Tower in a tale of horror, during which he cohabits three lives in New York City: a heroin addict, The Prisoner; a schizophrenic woman, The Lady of Shadows; and a murderer, Death. Violence and strong language. Commercial audiobook. 1987.
Natalia Renfro, Machine Clerk
DB 108069 Season fears: Alchemical journeys, book 2 by Seanan McGuire
Melanie has a destiny, though it isn't the one everyone assumes it to be. Meanwhile, Harry doesn't want to believe in destiny, because that means accepting the loss of the one person who gives his life meaning. When a new road is laid out in front of them, walking down it seems to be the only option. Sequel to Middlegame (DB 95164). Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2022.
Troy Arndt, Circulation Clerk
DB 110577 The other name: Septology, books 1-2 by Jon Fosse, translated by Damion Searls
"The Other Name follows the lives of two men living close to each other on the west coast of Norway. The year is coming to a close and Asle, an aging painter and widower, is reminiscing about his life. He lives alone, his only friends being his neighbor, Åsleik, a bachelor and traditional Norwegian fisherman-farmer, and Beyer, a gallerist who lives in Bjørgvin, a couple hours' drive south of Dylgja, where he lives. There, in Bjørgvin, lives another Asle, also a painter. He and the narrator are doppelgangers--two versions of the same person, two versions of the same life. Written in hypnotic prose that shifts between the first and third person, The Other Name calls into question concrete notions around subjectivity and the self. What makes us who we are? And why do we lead one life and not another? Through flashbacks, Fosse deftly explores the convergences and divergences in the lives of both Asles, slowly building towards a decisive encounter between them both. A writer at the zenith of his career, with The Other Name, the first two volumes in his Septology, Fosse presents us with an indelible and poignant exploration of the human condition that will endure as his masterpiece." -- Provided by publisher. -- Translated from the 2019 Norwegian edition. Some strong language.
DB 116597 The September house by Carissa Orlando
"A thrilling psychological horror debut about a woman who is determined to stay in her dream home even after it becomes haunted, no matter the cost... You can survive anything. That's what Margaret tells herself when the walls of her house start to drip blood every September. She's learned how to live with it...and the other terrifying apparitions that have made the sprawling Victorian house she and her husband bought four years ago turn from a dream home into a living nightmare. But she can outlast all of it. Hal felt differently, though. Her husband couldn't take the hauntings anymore, and he left. But now he's not returning calls, and their daughter Katherine arrives, intent on looking for her missing father, convinced something grim has happened to him. With every desperate attempt Katherine makes at finding Hal, the hauntings at the September House grow more harrowing, because there are some secrets the house needs to keep." -- Provided by publisher. -- Strong language, violence. Commercial audiobook.
DB 88447 Final girls by Riley Sager
A decade ago, while vacationing at a cabin with fellow college students, Quincy Carpenter was the only one to escape a killer's rampage. In recovery, she met another "final girl." Now, after a frantic call to Quincy, that woman has been killed. Violence, strong language, and some explicit descriptions of sex. Commercial audiobook. 2017.
Dylan Calhoon, Patron Services Manager
DB 88608 Kings of the wyld: Band, book 1 by Nicholas Eames
Long past their days of glory, the mercenary band once led by Clay Cooper gets back together for one more mission to help a friend whose daughter is in trouble. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2017.
Maggie Witte, Outreach Librarian/Lead Readers' Advisor
DB 125859 Under the oak tree: the comic. 1 by Suji Kim
"Most fairytales end with a wedding and a happily-ever-after--but this is no fairytale. When stuttering Lady Maximilian is forced to marry Sir Riftan, a lowborn knight caught in one of her father's schemes, her stumbling communication and his gruff manner sour their relationship before it can begin. Riftan leaves for war the morning after their disastrous wedding night, and it's three years until Maxi sees him again. Now the husband she barely knows is a war hero. And when he comes home to claim her, Maxi will need to master her own bewildering desire--and Riftan's--before she can hope to become the true mistress of their enormous castle estate. That task will demand courage from Maxi, even as she struggles to find her own voice."-- From publisher. -- Unrated. Commercial audiobook. Bestseller.
DB 121696 How to become the Dark Lord and die trying by Django Wexler
"Davi has done this all before. She's tried to be the hero and take down the all-powerful Dark Lord. A hundred times she's rallied humanity and made the final charge. But the time loop always gets her in the end. Sometimes she's killed quickly. Sometimes it takes a while. But she's been defeated every time. This time? She's done being the hero and done being stuck in this endless time loop. If the Dark Lord always wins, then maybe that's who she needs to be. It's Davi's turn to play on the winning side"-- Provided by publisher. -- Unrated. Commercial audiobook.
DB 119351 The king's captive: Gate of myth and power, book 1 by K. M. Shea
"I can turn into a housecat. It's a fun magic, except in a world filled with vampires and werewolves, it doesn't exactly make me a powerhouse. Instead, the supernatural community has classified me as an outcast, which means one thing: Picking on me is open season all day, every day. The local fae are the worst of all, and it's during one of their regular "capture the cat-girl" sessions that I shift into my cat form and meet HIM for the first time. Noctus is so powerful his magic radiates off him like a sun, and my fae captors can barely look in his general direction. And then my life gets even more terrifying when Noctus decides to take me with him. As a pet. Why did he pick today to "adopt don't shop" a cat?"--Goodreads. Some violence and some strong language.
DB 119352 The king's shadow: Gate of myth and power, book 2 by K. M. Shea
"I just spent the last month pretending to be the pet cat of an elf king. Today, I discovered we're enemies. In a supernatural society filled with vampires, werewolves, and wizards, I've always been an outcast with my ability to turn into a housecat. No one knew what I was. Turns out, I'm a shadow a race of supernaturals that were wiped out by the elves centuries ago. Who explains this to me? Noctus, the elf king I've been staying with while pretending to be his pet "cat," not knowing I'm the archenemy of his people. Talk about the most awkward ancestry results ever. Now I'm stuck staying with Noctus because he can't let me go thanks to all of his secrets I unwillingly learned as a cat. At least he hasn't killed me. Yet..."--Goodreads. -- Some violence and some descriptions of sex.
DB 119353 The king's queen: Gate of myth and power, book 3 by K. M. Shea
"When the elven king of death released me even though my existence is a threat to his kingdom, I took the opportunity to run. There is just one problem. I also fell in love with him. Nothing like a little doomed love to add a dash of intrigue to life, right? Unfortunately, that's not even the worst of it. I'm a worrier on my best days, but with a psycho tracking my every move because he's obsessed with killing me, I've graduated to the level of paranoid lunatic. Even if I could forget about the tracker not happening since he's figured out the fastest way to get to me is to attack my adopted family my regular life is also anxiety-inducing as the city of Magiford is brewing with trouble. Someone is setting off increasingly powerful magical spells downtown, upsetting all the humans. The supernatural community is desperate to find the perpetrator, and the top leaders are convinced the psychotic tracker chasing me is in on it. Their solution? Use me to capture the tracker for questioning."--Goodreads. -- Some violence and some descriptions of sex.
DB 125304 We kept her in the cellar by W. R. Gorman
"Eunice follows three strict rules in life: treat Cinderella as family, prevent her from accessing rats or mice, and never look at her between midnight and 3 a.m. Cinderella, possessing dark powers, is cared for by Eunice, who keeps the family's secret. Eunice's life has been filled with nightmares and close encounters with the monster in the cellar. Upon befriending Prince Credence and securing a ball invitation, Eunice sees a chance for freedom. However, Cinderella escapes, wreaking havoc at the ball and captivating the prince. Eunice must now decide what she's willing to sacrifice to stop her stepsister."-- From publisher. -- Unrated. Commercial audiobook.
DB 64445 His majesty's dragon by Naomi Novik
English naval captain Will Laurence discovers a dragon egg aboard a captured French frigate. Once the creature, Temeraire, hatches, Will harnesses it and bonds immediately and irrevocably with it. The pair trains in the art of airborne combat before joining the Aerial Corps to battle Napoleon's forces. Commercial audiobook. 2006.
DB 124632 My vampire plus-one: My vampire, book 2 by Jenna Levine
"Amelia Collins is by definition successful. She would even go so far as to say successfully single, but not according to her family. She's tired of the constant questions about her nonexistent dating life. When an invitation to yet another family wedding arrives, she decides to get everyone off her back once and for all by finding someone, anyone, to pose as her date. After a chance encounter with Reginald Cleaves, Amelia decides he's perfect for her purposes. He's a bit strange, but that's fine--it'll discourage tough questions from her family. For centuries-old vampire Reggie, posing as her plus-one sounds like the ultimate fun"-- Provided by publisher. -- Unrated. Commercial audiobook.
DB 115655 The Heaven & Earth Grocery store by James McBride
"In 1972, when workers in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, were digging the foundations for a new development, the last thing they expected to find was a skeleton at the bottom of a well. Who the skeleton was and how it got there were two of the long-held secrets kept by the residents of Chicken Hill, the dilapidated neighborhood where immigrant Jews and African Americans lived side by side and shared ambitions and sorrows. Chicken Hill was where Moshe and Chona Ludlow lived when Moshe integrated his theater and where Chona ran the Heaven & Earth Grocery Store. When the state came looking for a deaf boy to institutionalize him, it was Chona and Nate Timblin, the Black janitor at Moshe's theater and the unofficial leader of the Black community on Chicken Hill, who worked together to keep the boy safe. As these characters' stories overlap and deepen, it becomes clear how much the people who live on the margins of white, Christian America struggle and what they must do to survive. When the truth is finally revealed about what happened on Chicken Hill and the part the town's white establishment played in it, McBride shows us that even in dark times, it is love and community-heaven and earth-that sustain us." -- Provided by publisher. -- Unrated. Commercial audiobook. Bestseller.