The following review was published or updated in several Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia newspapers and magazines in November and December 2024:

Booking a full year of reading

Review by Tom Mayer

If only us readers could just spend our days … reading. What would a year look like? Here, the editors of Home for the Holidays present their yearlong list of books, culled from the past 12 months of reading and reviewing. A few of the titles you’ll immediately recognize, and you’ll likely have more than few in your own library. But just in case you missed a title or two, we’re showcasing the whole year’s worth of books that we’ve read and reviewed, month by month.

Except for the first title, the list is simply a list. To find the reviews of many of these titles, visit our newspaper parent, The (Athens) News Courier at enewscourier.com — with a slight caveat. Our newspaper webmasters are currently working overtime to improve our content management system, the foundation of any website, and while many of our archives are now found there, it may be a few weeks before everything is fully re-uploaded — including the most recent editions of Limestone Life and Home for the Holidays. For now, though, enjoy our literary stroll through 2024.

And about that first title: Not every college professor can make statistical analysis approachable, let along interesting to their students and the general population, but Athens State University emeritus professor of psychology Mark Durm is not every college professor. After spending nearly five decades teaching thousands of students, the “ol’ psychology professor” decided that he’d best get around to writing the one book out of his nearly 100 published pieces that’s he always wanted to write. Call it a legacy piece, but what it really is is a “best of” Durm’s peer-reviewed, book reviews, non-peer reviewed and magazine articles from his 47 years in higher education.

The result is “Professional Publications of an Ol’ Psychology Professor” (Dorrance) with full previously published articles ranging from studies on the effects of glasses on a child’s self-esteem to his ever-popular parapsychology pieces, Durm presents his internationally recognized efforts with a twist.

“It’s a different kind of book because it doesn’t talk about the research, it presents the research,” the professor says from his second-career office at Durm Properties in Athens, about a half-mile from where he first presented that research in person. “I’ve spent hours on all of these articles, especially in the peer-reviewed journal articles.”

And so, articles on divorce, sex, religion and other topics now populate the pages of Durm’s most recent book in an effort to both continue his teaching and satisfy what has been a lifelong wonderment.

“You know, most people don’t understand statistics, so it’s all in there,” Durm said. “What I’m trying to do is a more critical approach to ‘just don’t believe everything you’re told.’ … It’s things that were in my life that I wanted to see if they were so, by using a psychological analysis.”

And like any good professor, Durm didn’t do that research on his own — or take all of the credit. Among the co-authors of many of his articles in the book were students — many of who he’s lost touch with, but all of whom who he credits by name in his acknowledgements and for each of who, if they look up their ol’ mentor, he has a signed book ready to hand over. For the rest of us, you can find the book at any online bookseller — just as you can with the remainder of our list, presented by the month in which the book was published, read and reviewed.

JANUARY

Unbound (Blackstone) by Christy Healy NG/F

The Devil’s Daughter by Gordon Greisman NG/ARC

FEBRUARY

Almost Surely Dead (Mindy’s Book Studio) by Amina Akhtar NG

The Chaos Agent (Gray Man 13) (Berkley) by Mark Greaney NG

The Lady in Glass and Other Stories (Ace) by Anne Bishop ARC

A Haunting in the Arctic (Berkley paperback) by C.J. Cooke NG

Ghost Island (Berkley) by Max Seeck

MARCH

Hello, Alabama (Arcadia) by Martha Day Zschock

The Unquiet Bones (Montlake) by Loreth Anne White

I am Rome: A novel of Julius Caesar (Ballantine Books by Santiago PosteguilloMarch 5: Murder Road (Berkley) by Simone St. James

The Luminous Life of Lucy Landry (Holiday House) by Anna Rose Johnson

Ferris (Candlewick) by Kate DiCamillo

After Annie (Random House, Feb. 27) by Anna Quindlen

Crocodile Tears Didn't Cause the Flood (Montag Press) by Bradley Sides The #1 Lawyer (Little, Brown and Company) by James Patterson, Nancy Allen

Lilith (Blackstone) by Eric Rickstad

Life: My Story Through History (Harper One) by Pope Francis

APRIL

Matterhorn (Thomas & Mercer) by Christopher Reich

Friends in Napa (Mindy’s Book Studio) by Sheila Yasmin Marikar

City in Ruins (William Morrow) by Don Winslow

The House on Biscayne Bay (Berkley) by Chanel Cleeton

Two Friends, One Dog, and a Very Unusual Week (Peachtree) by Sarah L. Thomson

For Worse (Blackstone) by L.K. Bowen

A Killing on the Hill (Thomas & Mercer) by Robert Dugoini

The Clock Struck Murder (Poisoned Pen Press) by Betty Webb

The Book That Broke the World (Ace) by Mark Lawrence

The Forgetters (Heyday Books) by Greg Sarris

Lost to Dune Road (Thomas & Mercer) by Kara Thomas

Warrior on the Mound (Holiday House/Peachtree) by Sandra Headed

Pictures of Time (Silver Street Media) by David AlexanderBare Knuckle (Blackstone Publishing) by Stayton Bonner

Murder on Demand (Blackstone Publishing) by Al Roker

Home is Where the Bodies Are (Blackstone) by Jeneva Rose

MAY

Matterhorn by Christopher Reich

The Hunter's Daughter (Berkley) by Nicola Solvinic

The House That Horror Built (Berkley) by Christina Henry

In our stars (Berkley) by Jack Campbell

Freeset (book 2) (Blackstone) by Sarina Dahlan

Southern Man (William Morrow) by Greg Iles

Camino Ghosts (Doubleday) by John Grisham

JUNE

Specter of Betrayal by Rick DeStefanis

Lake County (Thomas & Mercer) by Lori Roy

Serendipity (Dutton) by Becky Chalsen

Shelterwood (Ballantine) by Lisa Wingate

The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra’s Needle (Holiday House) by Dan Gutman

Jackpot (Penguin) by Elysa Friedland

The Helper (Blackstone) by M.M. Dewil

Winter Lost (Ace) by Patricia Briggs

Shadow Heart (Blackstone) by Meg Gardiner

Lake Country (Thomas & Mercer) by Lori Roy

The Out-of-Town Lawyer (Blackstone) by Robert Rotten

Love Letter to a Serial Killer (Berkley) by Tasha Coryell

Sentinel Berkley) by Mark Greaney

JULY

Three Kings: Race, Class, and the Barrier-Breaking Rivals Who Redefined Sports and Launched the Modern Olympic Age (Blackstone) by Todd Balf

The Night Ends with Fire (Berkley) by K.X. Song

Echo Road (Montlake) by Melinda Leigh

It’s Elementary (Berkley) by Elise Bryant

You Shouldn’t Be Here (Thomas & Mercer) by Lauren Thoman

Back In Black (Blackstone) edited by Don Bruns

The Recruiter (Blackstone) by Gregg Podolski

AUGUST

You Shouldn’t Be Here (Thomas & Mercer) by Lauren Thoman ARC

Not What She Seems (Thomas & Mercer) by Yasmin Angoe NG

Fatal Intrusion by Jeff Deaver/Isabella Maldonado

Death at Morning House (HARPERTeen) by Maureen Johnson

Fire and Bones (Scribner) by Kathy Reichs

Some Nightmares Are Real (University of Alabama Press) by Kelly Kazoo

The Brothers Kenny (Blackstone) by Adam Mitzner

Blind to Midnight (Blackstone) by Reed Farrel Coleman

The Wayside (Blackstone) by Carolina Wolff

Enemy of the State (Blackstone) by Robert Smartwood

You Will Never Be Me (Berkley) by Jesse Q. Sutanto

On Settler Colonialism: Ideology, Violence, and Justice (W.W. Norton) by Adam Kirsch

We Love the Nightlife (Berkley) by Rachel Koller Croft

Talking To Strangers (Berkley) by Fiona Barton

An Honorable Assassin (Blackstone) by Steve Hamilton possible interview see email

Dungeon Crawler Carl (1 of 6 but see next two months) (Ace) by Matt Dinniman

SEPTEMBER

Fatal Intrusion (Thomas & Mercer) by Jeffrey Deaver and Isabella Maldonado

When They Last Saw Her (Penguin) by Marcie Rendon

American Ghoul (Blackstone) by Michelle McGill-Vargas

First Do No Harm (Blackstone) by Steve Hamilton

A Quiet Life: A Novel (Arcade) by William Cooper and Michael McKinley

One More From the Top (Mariner) by Emily Layden

No Address (Forefront Books) by Ken Abraham.

Tiger’s Tale (Blackstone) by Colleen Houck

An Academy for Liars (Ace) by Alexis Henderson

Rewitched (Berkley) by Lucy Jane Wood

Gaslight (Blackstone) by Sara Shepard and Miles Joris-Peyrafitte

Counting Miracles (Random House) by Nicholas Sparks

The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society (Ace) by C.M. Waggoner

The Hitchcock Hotel (Berkley) by Stephanie Wrobel

In the Garden of Monsters by Crystal King

Carl’s Doomsday Scenario (2 of 6 see next month also) (Ace) by Matt Dinniman

OCTOBER

The Hushed (Blackstone) by K.R. Blair NG

A Grim Reaper’s Guide to Catching a Killer (Berkley) by Maxie Dara

On Settler Colonialism: Ideology, Violence, and Justice (Norton) by WSJ Weekend review editor Adam Kirsch

Framed (Doubleday) by John Grisham and Jim McCloskey

This Cursed House (Penguin) by Del Sandeen

The Puzzle Box (Random House) by Danielle Trussoni

Two Good Men (Blackstone) by S.E. Redfearn

Dark Space (Blackstone) by Rob Hart and Alex Segura

This Cursed House (Berkley’s open submission)by Del Sandeen

Vindicating Trump (Regnery) by Dinesh D’Souza

The Book of Witching (Berkley) by C.J. Cooke

The World Walk (Skyhorse) by Tom Turcich

The Waiting Game by Michael Connelly  ARC, possible interview see email

Beyond Reasonable Doubt (Thomas & Mercer) by Robert Dugoni

Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook (3 of 6, with bonus material) (Ace) by Matt Dinniman

Frozen Lives (Blackstone) by Jennifer Graeser Fronbush NG

Vincent, Starry Starry Night (Meteor 17 Books) intro by Don McLean

Paris in Winter: An Illustrated Memoir (PowerHouse Books) by David Coggins

NOVEMBER

The Waiting (Little, Brown) by Michael Connelly

The Teller of Small Fortunes (Penguin) by Julie Long

Shadow Lab (Blackstone) by Brendan Deneen

Trial by Ambush (Thomas & Mercer) by Marcia Clark

Devil Take It (Heresy Press) by Daniel Debs Nossiter

SerVant of Earth (Ace) by Sarah Hawley

All the other me (Blackstone) by Jody Holford

The Perfect Marriage (Blackstone reissue re-edit) by Jenny Rose

DECEMBER

Trial By Ambush (Thomas & Mercer) by Marcia Clark

The Close-Up (Gallery Books) by Pip Drysdale

The Silent Watcher (Thomas & Mercer) by Victor Methos

Leviathan (Lividian Trade HC) by Robert McCammon

The Silent Watcher (Thomas & Mercer) by Victor Method

Assume Nothing (Thomas & Mercer) by Joshua Corin

One example link:
https://enewscourier.com/2024/11/29/in-review-booking-a-full-year-of-reading/

I've always been apprehensive to read anthology books because they're a hodgepodge of stories. but when i saw this one, with the association to the great AC/DC i had to request it. so thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the approval.

overall this book was a fun read. the theming didn't detract from any of the soties and to be able to get a new Reacher story from Lee Child was a gift unto itself. that was, without a doubt, my favorite story in the entire anthology.

If you're a fan of murder mysteries and AC/DC, or one or the other, i recommend checking this one out.

A fun assortment of novellas and fiction. Mainly got it for the Reacher story that was included, but found some other authors to keep an eye on by reading this one. Not all of them are hits, but still had fun with it.

I received an e-galley from the publisher through NetGalley,

Inspired by songs from the bestselling AC/DC album, Back in Black: An Anthology of New Mystery Short Stories, is the resulting anthology. The book features short stories by ten authors all of who are major names. Billed as third in the Music and Murder Mystery Series, music rarely goes beyond the song title used as the story title.

The book opens with “Shake A Leg” by Rick Bleiweiss. In this multi chapter tale, Walker is on the run in Maui after he escaped from killers sent to take out the premier New York City hitman. He takes the time to save a teenage girl from a Hawaiian gang who killed her parents and are hunting her. Where the two go from there is the point of the tale.

Being a hitman and being good at it is the idea of “Let Me Put My Love Into You” by Editor Don Bruns. Ginger Gallagher is dressed to meld into a crowd. That is a good idea when you are going after Tito Tarantino. It is a job and he is good at it.

“You Shook Me All Night Long” by Andrew Child features Jack Reacher. Joe Reacher, espionage, and cold war stuff. Major William Hunt is trying to defect and take a briefcase full of secrets with him to Russia. The Reacher brothers, and others, want to stop that and plug the intelligence leak.

Carl lives out in the desert and is at his adobe when the dog shows up carrying a human body part. The dog has been hanging around the last several days. But, this body part in his mouth thing is new in “Givin The Dog A Bone” by Dave Bruns begins. Carl follows him and finds the rest of the body in a crashed plane. He also finds a lot more. Now he has to figure out what to do.

Candace Stone is a life coach on the radio. She gives out advice to callers who often just are not ready to hear what she is telling them. What is a normal boring shift becomes high stakes when a shooter opens fire and is looking for her in “Rock and Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution” by Tori Eldridge.

“Back In Black” by Sandra Balzo comes next takes the readers to a ship in the Tasman Sea. The boat is headed to Auckland, New Zealand. While on a smoke break, Leo overhears a snippet of conversation among several tourists. Minutes later a couple has gone overboard and things are set in motion.

A Story from Reed Farrel Coleman is always a treat. “Shoot To Thrill: A Tale From Gun Church” recounts how one boy, picked on for years, is befriended by others and taught a lot of things. Carter McMillian and Leeza had their own agenda for befriending him. Deceit to your face is way worse than obvious hostility.

A serial killer is working the Los Angeles area and the media is in a frenzy. Conner Marley, ex-marine, assures April, that their place in San Diego means they are safe and not in the killer’s hunting ground. Are they really safe? One wonders, as does April, in “Hell’s Bells” by Heather Graham.

Charles Todd takes readers to the western front in April 1916 in “Have A Drink On Me” by Charles Todd. Rutledge is trying to protect his men as they fight in the trenches. Sergeant Sullivan is making promises that he may not be able to keep.

“What Do You Do For Money Honey” by Ward Larsen is the final story. Thomas Driscol is a tech mogul and has been using the services of Burt Torkelson as an investigator and more for five years. The latest subject is Maricia Dahl in this complicated tale of cross and double cross.

The book closes with short bios of the various authors.

Back in Black: An Anthology of New Mystery Short Stories is an interesting read of crime and mystery short stories even though the music that inspired it nearly always does not reach beyond the use of story titles. Lots of big names are at work in this playground and the read is worth a look.

My reading copy was an ARC via the publisher, Blackstone Publishing, through NetGalley with no promise of a review.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2024

Maybe it's because AC/DC was one of my favorite bands as a teenager, but I loved this theme, where each author contributed a short story named after an AC/DC song. I'm familiar with most of the authors already, and I enjoyed their work. These stories have something else in common, or at least I thought so -- there was an interesting twist or outcome that left me particularly satisfied.
If you enjoy fun mystery collections, you may enjoy this as much as I did. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

I enjoy old time radio mystery shows, this book was like reading some of those shows. It is a book filled with various mystery type stories. Each story is different and can stand alone. If you enjoyed Johnny Dollar or The Whistler, you’re going to love this book.

One of the most monotonous books I've ever read. Despite containing stories from several authors, everything read the same and I found myself skimming the remaining stories.
Overall, I don't think I've discovered anyone that I'm in a hurry to read from again, unfortunately.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

Thank you NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for this sneak peek. Publication date is July 16, 2024. Unfortunately I was unable to finish this book before the archive date. I was disappointed in myself because I love anthologies. This anthology contains ten murder mysteries from ten bestselling writers.

Inspired by songs from AC/DC's bestselling album, Back in Black is an anthology containing ten murder mysteries from ten bestselling writers.
The third collection in the Music and Murder Mystery Series, Back in Black features one story for each song from the seminal hard rock album of the same name. This book showcases ten mystery writers at the top of their game, including Reed Farrel Coleman, Heather Graham, Tori Eldridge, Ward Larsen, and Andrew Child, among others. Chilling and unexpected, Back in Black has a mystery for everyone.
This was a fast read for me with ten mysteries. Some were more interesting than others. It was just ok for me. Nothing stood out to me. Just an ok read. I gave this 3 stars.

This series of collections themed on an album and its track list from editor Don Bruns is so cleverly conceived and continues to be a successful endeavor in its third installment.

This time we’re doing AC/DC’s Back in Black. I thought the selection of authors and stories was slightly better in Thriller (the preceding collection) but this installment felt truer to the songs themselves, and it includes plenty of good offerings.

Best of the collection: Give the Dog a Bone, Back in Black, Shoot to Thrill: A Tale from Gun Church, and What Do You Do for Money Honey.

I hope Bruns keeps going with these. I’m eager to see which album he chooses next.

Back in Black (aside from being an excellent album that brings me back to my younger years, lol) is the 3rd book in the Music and Murder Mystery Series. It’s an anthology where each story titled around the tracks from AC/DC’s classic Back in Black album. I absolutely love this series and recommend also checking out the previous entires: Hotel California and Thriller. Featured authors include Don Bruns, Heather Graham, and Andrew Childs, just to name a few. And just FYI, Child’s contribution is a new Reacher story! These anthologies are a clever concept that could easily just be seen as a gimmick, but it’s no gimmick. The included stories are thoroughly enjoyable. Obviously as with any story collection some stories with be better than other but overall it’s a fun collections. Though I must admit Hotel California remains my favorite book from the series thus far. And one last thing, a personal request to the publisher; I’d love a similar anthology series but with the stories being horror based! Please make that happen. 4,5 stars (rounded up) I’d like to thank Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of Back in Black.

https://www.amazon.com/review/R2BRO7N26M2066/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_SRTC0204BT_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

This is a collection of short stories inspired by songs from AC/DC’s bestselling album, Back in Black. I would call this a very loose description. All of the stories titles are indeed a song title from the album, however I found very few of the stories to have anything other than a mention of the song title. This is a clever idea for a short story anthology and of the ten stories included, I really liked 'Givin the Dog a Bone' by Dave Bruns, and 'Hells Bells' by Heather Graham.

Thank you NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I love the unique premise of this collection of short mystery stories. Each of the ten stories in this collection was inspired by songs from AC/DC's bestselling album, Back in Black. I’m not a superfan of the group, but am familiar with their most popular songs and love the idea of mystery stories that are inspired by rock songs. The stories are from a wide variety of authors and like any collection of stories, I of course had my favorites.

I've never read a full-length novel in the series, but I enjoyed the new Jack Reacher story by Andrew Child. I also liked Rock and Roll Ain't Noise Pollution by Tori Eldridge. This story is a suspenseful story about a radio psychologist who has to face a shooter who has broken into the studio.

Heather Graham’s contribution to the collection is a good one, but my favorite story in the book is Sandra Bolzo's Back in Black. She has such a clever take on the phrase/song title and how it relates to the main character in this story. Cate is a newlywed who goes on a cruise to Auckland, but seems to have an agenda that has nothing to do with the tour itinerary.

I enjoyed some of the stories more than others, but that’s the beauty of a collection like this - there is something for everyone in this fun volume of short mystery stories.

I received an advance copy of this ebook at no cost from NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing. My review is voluntary and unbiased.

Back in Black is an interesting collection of previously unpublished short fiction by some top-shelf authors, arranged to coordinate with the songs of the iconic AC/DC album, edited by Don Bruns. Due out 16th July 2024 from Blackstone, it's 242 pages and will be available in hardcover, paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links.

A glance at the story contributors on the cover will provide most readers of mystery/thriller fiction with enough motivation to pick up and give the anthology a try. Readers should be aware that although listed as mystery, there are only a couple of stories which really fit the mystery mold, they are mostly thriller and non-mystery fiction selections. There are 10 stories, one to correspond with each of the songs on the album.

As with any anthology, some stories hit better than others depending on readers' moods, but they're all from well known authors writing at a high level of competency. One good thing about short fiction anthologies is that if a story doesn't grab the reader, there's another story in just a few pages.

Four stars. Well written and thrilling. The stories generally have only the very loosest connection to the eponymous song tracks.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

“Back in Black” is an anthology of mystery short stories edited by Don Bruns, each story is based on a song title from the “Back In Black” album by AC/DC. Being a mystery fan and a teen in the 1980’s, I was looking forward to seeing how one of the seminal albums of my youth played out as inspiration for some mysteries. As is the case in any collection, some were better than others, but overall it was quite an enjoyable read.

“Shake A Leg” by Rick Bleiweiss: an ex-hitman in Hawaii decides to become a “white knight” and help others in need, a nice quick story.
“Let Me Put My Love Into You” by Don Bruns: a hitman goes after a New York small time seller of counterfeit luxury goods, but someone beats him to the hit. Great sets of double-crosses.
“You Shook Me All Night Long” by Andrew Child: during the cold war, the Reacher brothers deal with a defector trying to get to the KGB. Great use of the song lyrics in the story.
“Givin The Dog A Bone” by Dave Bruns: a dog leads Carl to a grisly discovery and a chance for revenge.
“Rock And Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution” by Tori Eldridge: Candace offers advice on her late night radio show, but a disgruntled husband decides to take his revenge on her for his wife’s leaving.
“Back In Black” by Sandra Balzo: a woman who might have helped her parents shuffle off their mortal coils has an interesting experience in the jungle with her new husband.
“Shoot To Thrill: A Tale From Gun Church” by Reed Farrel Coleman: a bully’s victim joins the cool kids playing with guns.
“Hells Bells” by Heather Graham: a woman starts to have doubts about her significant other while a serial killer is on the loose.
“Have A Drink On Me” by Charles Todd: Rutledge takes up an offer for a drink two years after the end of the war.
“What Do You Do For Money Honey” by Ward Larsen: A terminally ill rich man hires a PI who finds a long lost sister, or does he?

I just noticed that this was the third book in the series, all of which are based on album titles, and something I will have to find and enjoy.

I requested and received a free advanced electronic copy from Blackstone Publishing via NetGalley. Thank you!

What could be better than a book of really great mysteries by some of the best mystery/thriller authors out there? Nothing! I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Each story is unique and titled after an AC/DC song. After reading the first one, I was hooked and couldn’t wait to get to the next. The creativity that went into each story was impressive and fun to read.

A must-read for rock and roll lovers and mystery lovers alike.

Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for the ARC of this book.

Back in Black is an anthology inspired by the AC/DC album, with each story based on one of the album's tracks. It's subtitled as being mystery stories, which is highly inaccurate, as there is really one, maybe two entries that resemble mysteries; the rest are outright thrillers or generic fiction. And only two or three seem genuinely inspired by their corresponding album track, namely "Givin the Dog a Bone," "Have a Drink on Me" and, beating the reader over the head with the title, "Hells Bells." A couple stories lazily include the name of the track once, then pretty much forget about the concept, while several of the others barely seem to consider their inspiration at all. The best story by far is Andrew Child's Jack Reacher story "You Shook Me All Night Long," while "Givin the Dog a Bone" was the only other fairly solid one, though it borrows a bit much from No Country for Old Men and A Simple Plan. The other stories read like a mediocre episode of some 80s "Equalizer"-ish TV show or other blase potboiler. Pretty disappointing book altogether.

"I thought this was really well written and I look forward to reading more from this author in the future. I think it will find readers at our library, so we will definitely be purchasing for the collection.