arts book roundup
40 denverlifemagazine.com | APRIL 2019
THE OUTSIDER, Stephen King (May 2018) The inexhaustible King has, once again, knocked it out of the park.
Terry Maitland’s fingerprints are found on the corpse of an 11-year-old boy, and he is promptly arrested. But
when the investigation uncovers a more troubling truth, we’re left wondering whom we can really trust.FANS OF THE FAST-PACED AND TWISTY-TURNY: THESE ARE THE THRILLERS TO HAVE ON
YOUR SHELF THIS SEASON, AS SELECTED BY WEST SIDE BOOKS. BY SHANNON WHEELERWEST SIDE BOOKS
3434 W. 32nd Ave.
303.480.0220
westsidebooks.comTHE TAKING OF PELHAM
ONE TWO THREE, John
Godey (1973) The New
York subway system is
scary enough on a nor-
mal day; try being inside
while it’s being hijacked.
Four gunmen hold a car
of 17 people hostage, and
there’s no easy way out.
Adapted into two films,
in 1974 and 1998, this bril-
liantly paced nail-biter has
been a favorite among
thriller fans for decades.THE ALIENIST, Caleb Carr (1994) It’s 1896 in New York City, and
newspaper reporter John Schuyler Moore has been called upon to
solve the mystery of a murdered young boy. He and Dr. Laszlo Krei-
zler, a well-known alienist, begin to uncover the identity of a danger-
ous killer, winding their way through a plot that includes appearanc-
es from historical figures like J.P. Morgan and Theodore Roosevelt.KINGDOM OF THE BLIND,
Louise Penny (November
2018) Three unsuspecting
people are named executors
of a stranger’s will, an old
woman they’ve never met.
The bizarre circumstance
calls the woman’s sanity
into question—that is, until
a body is found. One of
Kirkus Reviews’ best novels
of 2018.HOPE NEVER DIES,
Andrew Shaffer (July 2018)
Silly, clever, and totally
off-the-wall. Fictionalized
versions of Joe Biden and
Barack Obama team up as a
crime-solving duo to
unravel the mysterious
death of Joe’s favorite
railroad conductor.THE NAME OF THE ROSE,
Umberto Eco (1980)
An obvious predecessor
to more recent hits like The
Da Vinci Code, this classic
thriller takes place in 1327 in
an Italian monastery, where
seven peculiar deaths occur
out of nowhere. It’s up to
Brother William of Basker-
ville to investigate, breaking
codes and deciphering sym-
bols along the way.Thrills and chills