Lake Silence: The World of the Others, Book 6

The sixth installment of Bishop’s paranormal series (after 2017’s Etched in Bone), set in an alternate upstate New York, constitutes a fresh take on a series concept that had been stalling. It is a standalone thriller, set near a village called Sproing in the Finger Lakes. New to the cast is narrator Vicki DeVine, who, unlike past protagonists, is an ordinary human woman. Recently divorced from an abusive wheeler-dealer, she has come to Lake Silence to renovate the property that constituted her settlement. The Jumble is exactly that: a dilapidated sprawl of buildings, abandoned by humans but not by the world’s supernatural predators, the Others. Vicki plans to reopen it as a modest resort until a body is discovered on her land. Abruptly, this unassuming, hesitant woman must cope with a police investigation as well as a conspiracy by developers to seize the Jumble. Many core elements of prior plots are intact, notably the Others’ inevitable dominance, which dampens the tension. But the pleasures of these books have always lain in worldbuilding and character growth. Centering these on a woman liberating herself (personally and professionally) from abuse makes this episode unexpectedly timely. Agent: Jennifer Jackson, Donald Maass Literary. (Mar.)