Around here, there are few things that we love discussing more than books, and if you've ever stopped by our shop in Beach Haven, there's a good chance we struck up a conversation about our latest favorite reads. But when asked what books we recommend, naming just one is not our forte. That's the beauty of books: if you find a story you love, there's always one with a similar style just waiting for you to read the first page.
With that in mind, welcome to Book Playlists! Just like your favorite music playlist, here we will round up our favorite selections from The Bookshop, all based on a theme. Our goal is to take the hard work out of finding your next favorite book.
With Halloween right around the corner, it only felt right for our first Book Playlist to center around the spooky holiday, and nothing says Halloween quite like a heart-racing novel. Each of these books will have you on the edge of your seat, itching to uncover what the author has yet to divulge.
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas
Due to the overthrow of the Mexican government, Beatriz’s life becomes significantly more complicated. Alone after her father’s execution, Beatriz accepts Don Rodolfo Solórzano’s proposal choosing security and a home–despite the rumors of his first wife’s demise. After settling into a routine, Beatriz’s sleep is disrupted by visions and imaginary eyes following her every move. She clings to her newfound ally Padre Andrés to uncover the haunting presence in the hacienda.
More Than You’ll Ever Know by Katie Gutierrez
In 1985, Lore Rivera marries Andres Russo in Mexico City, even though she is already married to Fabian Rivera in Laredo, Texas, and they share twin sons. Through her career as an international banker, Lore splits her time between two countries and two families—until the truth is revealed and one husband is arrested for murdering the other. Told between alternating timelines between 1985 and 2017, true crime writer, Cassie Bowman, is determined to uncover the truth of the deadly love triangle.
This Might Hurt by Stephanie Wrobel
Natalie Collins hasn’t heard from her sister in more than half a year. Last time they spoke Kit was working a mundane job in search of more. And then she found Wisewood. Here, guests commit to six month stays on a private island prohibited from contact with the outside world. Kit, despite her sister’s reservations, voluntarily disappears off the grid. Six months later Natalie receives a menacing message threatening to reveal a family secret. Panicked, hurries to Wisewood, and she’s about to learn that Wisewood won’t let either of them go without a fight.
Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman
Erin is a documentary filmmaker on the brink of a professional breakthrough, Mark a handsome investment banker with big plans. Passionately in love, they embark on a dream honeymoon to the tropical island of Bora Bora, where they enjoy the sun, the sand, and each other. Then, while scuba diving in the crystal blue sea, they find something in the water...
The Institute by Stephen King
In the middle of the night, intruders silently murder Luke Ellis’s parents and load him into a black SUV. Luke will wake up at The Institute, in a room that looks just like his own, except there’s no window. And outside his door are other doors, behind which are other kids with special talents. The incarcerated children are expected to serve. As more victims disappear to the Back Half, Luke is desperate for a way out- despite no one ever escaping the Institute.
All That’s Left Unsaid by Tracey Lien
In the wake of her brother’s murder, Ky Tran returns home. Ky learns that the police are stumped by her brother’s case, and she becomes determines for answers. She tracks down the witnesses in order to gain better perspective of the fateful night. With each conversation she peels back another layer of the event and of her community that shaped her and her brother.
The House Party by Rita Cameron
Maja Jensen is smart, stylish, and careful, the type of woman who considers every detail when building her dream home in the suburbs of Philadelphia. The perfect house that would compensate for her failure to have a child, the house that was going to save her marriage. But when a group of reckless teenagers trash the newly built home just weeks before she moves in, her plans are shattered. What should have been the party of the year will have repercussions that will put Maja's marriage to the ultimate test, jeopardize the futures of those "good kids," and divide the town over questions of privilege and responsibility.
The Enigma of Room 622 by Joël Dicker
A writer named Joël, Switzerland’s most prominent novelist, flees to the Hôtel de Verbier, a luxury resort in the Swiss Alps. Disheartened over a recent breakup and his longtime publisher’s death, Joël hopes to rest. However, his plans quickly go awry. It all starts with a seemingly innocuous detail: at the Verbier, there is no room 622. Before long, Joël and fellow guest Scarlett uncover a long-unsolved murder that transpired in the hotel's room 622.