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Air date: Oct. 17, 2025
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JESSICA:
Hi, this is Jessica Russell. I’m the assistant director of collection services at Sno-Isle Libraries. And welcome to Book Buzz.
Today's reading recommendations are two terrifying tales, one about ghosts seeking justice and the other involves a dark family legacy.
First, we’re going to hear from Celeste, library associate for Library on Wheels, for a supernatural crime thriller. Over to you, Celeste.
CELESTE:
Looking for a thriller that will hook you and keep you flipping the pages? Then pick up “Ask for Andrea” by Noelle W. Ihli.
While not reading the blurb and just going in based on hype will make this book more enjoyable, I’ll tease you a little bit so that you’ll grab this one the next time you visit the local library.
Three women share something in common; they were all killed by the same man. Each of them met the same Chris Hemsworth look-alike predator using a dating app, MatchStrike, but because of being in different states, their murders are never connected. Now, they are working together to help the next potential victim. Add in a detective that can’t give up on solving the mystery and you have a team set on justice! The killer is so smug thinking he’ll never get caught, but he doesn’t know the women are coming for him. If he can’t get a new victim, will he find another target?
This unique point of view, cycling between the three women, felt refreshing in a genre with known tropes. A gripping, wild ride of a book that perfectly blends psychological suspense and paranormal horror. At just under 300 pages, “Ask for Andrea” by Noelle W. Ihli is the perfect weekend read to devour!
JESSICA:
Thanks, Celeste! A revenge thriller told from the dead victims' perspective sounds wonderfully creepy.
Next, let’s hear about a house full of family memories and more, from Abby, librarian at the Arlington Library. Go ahead, Abby.
ABBY:
Are you a fan of cheesy horror movie tropes remixed in terrifyingly clever ways? Do you love campy tales of haunted houses, creepy dolls, and zombie squirrels? If so, “How to Sell a Haunted House” by Grady Hendrix should absolutely be on your to-read pile.
The story begins with a family tragedy as the first of our two sibling narrators, Louise, gets a call from her semi-estranged brother Mark, informing her that her parents have died suddenly in a car accident. Devastated, Louise leaves her young daughter with her ex-husband to fly to her childhood home and help her brother clean out her parents’ house. Figuring out what to do with her professional puppeteer mother’s extensive collection of bespoke dolls and puppets could be a challenge for anyone, but as Louise begins to dive into the work of cleaning out the house, unsettling activities make her worry that her sense of reality is cracking under the pressure of confronting their family’s inherited trauma and loss. Can she keep it together and finish this horrible task? Can she make peace with her brother before it’s too late for them both?
Grady Hendrix has a uniquely dark sense of humor that casts a comedic glow over the whole tale, but it does not relieve the real moments of creatively creepy horror that he conjures up with his visceral word choices. For all those adults who grew up devouring “Goosebumps” books, pick up a copy of Grady Hendrix’s “How to Sell a Haunted House” today.
JESSICA:
Thanks, Abby! You had me at “creepy dolls and zombie squirrels.” I’ve read this one, too, and it’s a winner.
Our recommendations this week are: “Ask for Andrea” by Noelle W. Ihli and “How to Sell a Haunted House” by Grady Hendrix.
Join us next time, when we’ll explore more great reading recommendations — interesting books you can find at your favorite local bookstore or at your local library.
Until then, I’m Jessica Russell from Sno-Isle Libraries.
Thanks for joining us for Book Buzz on KSER.
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