Name: Amateur Writer's Guild
Start: 2024-05-20T18:00:00-05:00
End: 2024-05-20T19:00:00-05:00
Location: Lincoln Library

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Red, White & Royal Blue

* Instant NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY bestseller *
* GOODREADS CHOICE AWARD WINNER for BEST DEBUT and BEST ROMANCE of 2019 *
* BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR* for VOGUE, NPR, VANITY FAIR, and more! *

What happens when America's First Son falls in love with the Prince of Wales?

When his mother became President, Alex Claremont-Diaz was promptly cast as the American equivalent of a young royal. Handsome, charismatic, genius—his image is pure millennial-marketing gold for the White House. There's only one problem: Alex has a beef with the actual prince, Henry, across the pond. And when the tabloids get hold of a photo involving an Alex-Henry altercation, U.S./British relations take a turn for the worse.

Heads of family, state, and other handlers devise a plan for damage control: staging a truce between the two rivals. What at first begins as a fake, Instragramable friendship grows deeper, and more dangerous, than either Alex or Henry could have imagined. Soon Alex finds himself hurtling into a secret romance with a surprisingly unstuffy Henry that could derail the campaign and upend two nations and begs the question: Can love save the world after all? Where do we find the courage, and the power, to be the people we are meant to be? And how can we learn to let our true colors shine through? Casey McQuiston's Red, White & Royal Blue proves: true love isn't always diplomatic.

"I took this with me wherever I went and stole every second I had to read! Absorbing, hilarious, tender, sexy—this book had everything I crave. I’m jealous of all the readers out there who still get to experience Red, White & Royal Blue for the first time!" - Christina Lauren, New York Times bestselling author of The Unhoneymooners

"Red, White & Royal Blue is outrageously fun. It is romantic, sexy, witty, and thrilling. I loved every second." - Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones & The Six
This Is How You Lose the Time War

Two time-traveling agents from warring futures, working their way through the past, begin to exchange letters—and fall in love in this thrilling and romantic book from award-winning authors Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone.

In the ashes of a dying world, Red finds a letter marked “Burn before reading. Signed, Blue.”

So begins an unlikely correspondence between two rival agents in a war that stretches through the vast reaches of time and space.

Red belongs to the Agency, a post-singularity technotopia. Blue belongs to Garden, a single vast consciousness embedded in all organic matter. Their pasts are bloody and their futures mutually exclusive. They have nothing in common—save that they’re the best, and they’re alone.

Now what began as a battlefield boast grows into a dangerous game, one both Red and Blue are determined to win. Because winning’s what you do in war. Isn’t it?

A tour de force collaboration from two powerhouse writers that spans the whole of time and space.
The Final Child

A stunning psychological thriller from the author of After the Eclipse, for readers of Ruth Ware and S.K. Tremeyne.

He won’t forget her...

Erin and her brother Alex were the last children abducted by ‘the Father’, a serial killer who only ever took pairs of siblings. She escaped, but her brother was never seen again. Traumatised, Erin couldn’t remember anything about her ordeal, and the Father was never caught.

Eighteen years later, Erin has done her best to put the past behind her. But then she meets Harriet. Harriet’s young cousins were the Father’s first victims and, haunted by their deaths, she is writing a book about the disappearances and is desperate for an interview with the only survivor. At first, Erin wants nothing to do with her. But then she starts receiving sinister gifts, her house is broken into, and she can’t shake the feeling that she’s being watched. After all these years, Erin believed that the Father was gone, but now she begins to wonder if he was only waiting...

A tense and emotive thriller, The Final Child is a powerful tale of a survivor being forced to confront her painful past.
Legends and Lattes

An Instant New York Times Bestseller
A Barnes & Noble Best Book of 2022
A Library Reads Pick
An Indie Next Pick
A Goodreads Best Fantasy Choice Award Nominee

The much-beloved BookTok sensation, Travis Baldree's novel of high fantasy and low stakes.

*This new edition includes a very special, never-before-seen bonus story, 'Pages to Fill.'*

After a lifetime of bounties and bloodshed, Viv is hanging up her sword for the last time.

The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success — not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is.

If Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won't be able to go it alone.

But the true rewards of the uncharted path are the travelers you meet along the way. And whether drawn together by ancient magic, flaky pastry, or a freshly brewed cup, they may become partners, family, and something deeper than she ever could have dreamed.

“Take a break from epic battles and saving the world. Legends & Lattes is a low-stakes fantasy that delivers exactly what's advertised: a wholesome, cozy novel that feels like a warm hug. This is my new comfort read.”—Genevieve Gornichec, author of The Witch's Heart
A Psalm for the Wild-Built

Winner of the Hugo Award!

In A Psalm for the Wild-Built, bestselling Becky Chambers's delightful new Monk and Robot series, gives us hope for the future.

It's been centuries since the robots of Panga gained self-awareness and laid down their tools; centuries since they wandered, en masse, into the wilderness, never to be seen again; centuries since they faded into myth and urban legend.

One day, the life of a tea monk is upended by the arrival of a robot, there to honor the old promise of checking in. The robot cannot go back until the question of "what do people need?" is answered.

But the answer to that question depends on who you ask, and how.

They're going to need to ask it a lot.

Becky Chambers's new series asks: in a world where people have what they want, does having more matter?
After Anna

The real nightmare starts when her daughter is returned...

A girl is missing. Five years old, taken from outside her school. She has vanished, traceless.

The police are at a loss; her parents are beyond grief. Their daughter is lost forever, perhaps dead, perhaps enslaved.

But the biggest mystery is yet to come: one week after she was abducted, their daughter is returned.

She has no memory of where she has been. And this, for her mother, is just the beginning of the nightmare.
The Diamond Throne (The Elenium Trilogy, Book 1)

After a long exile, Pandion Knight Sparhawk returns to his native land to find his young queen grievously ill.

Ehlana has been poisoned and will die unless a cure can be found within a year. The life force of twelve of her sworn knights is all that sustains her; but one knight will be lost within the passing of each month if the antidote isn’t found.

To save his queen, his comrades, and the stability of the kingdom, Sparhawk begins the search for the cure, only to discover a greater and more pervasive evil than he could ever have imagined.
Young Jane Young

This is the story of five women . . .

Meet Rachel Grossman.
She’ll stop at nothing to protect her daughter, Aviva, even if it ends up costing her everything.

Meet Jane Young.
She’s disrupting a quiet life with her daughter, Ruby, to seek political office for the first time.

Meet Ruby Young.
She thinks her mom has a secret. She’s right.

Meet Embeth Levin.
She’s made a career of cleaning up her congressman husband’s messes.

Meet Aviva Grossman.
The Internet won’t let her or anyone else forget her past transgressions.

This is the story of five women . . .
. . . and the sex scandal that binds them together.
John Dies at the End

STOP. You should not have touched this flyer with your bare hands. NO, don't put it down. It's too late. They're watching you. My name is David. My best friend is John. Those names are fake. You might want to change yours. You may not want to know about the things you'll read on these pages, about the sauce, about Korrok, about the invasion, and the future. But it's too late. You touched the book. You're in the game. You're under the eye. The only defense is knowledge. You need to read this book, to the end. Even the part with the bratwurst. Why? You just have to trust me.

The important thing is this: The sauce is a drug, and it gives users a window into another dimension. John and I never had the chance to say no. You still do. I'm sorry to have involved you in this, I really am. But as you read about these terrible events and the very dark epoch the world is about to enter as a result, it is crucial you keep one thing in mind: None of this was my fault.
Open and Shut

Whether dueling with new forensics or the local old boys' network, irreverent defense attorney Andy Carpenter always leaves them awed with his biting wit and winning fourth-quarter game plan. But Andy prefers the company of his best friend, Tara, to the people he encounters in the courtroom. Tara, a golden retriever, is clearly smarter than half the lawyers who clog the courts of PassaicCounty. However, just as it seems Andy has everything figured out, his dad, New Jersey's legendary ex-D.A., drops dead in front of him at a game in Yankee Stadium. The shocks pile on as he discovers his dad left him with two unexpected legacies: a fortune of $22 million that Andy never knew existed . . . and a murder case with enough racial tinder to burn down City Hall. Struggling to serve justice and bring honor to his father, Andy must dig up some explosive political skeletons--and an astonishing family secret that can close his case (and his mouth) for good.
I'd Know You Anywhere LP

Eliza Benedict cherishes her peaceful, ordinary suburban life with her successful husband and children, thirteen-year-old Iso and eight-year-old Albie. But her tranquillity is shattered when she receives a letter from the last person she ever expects—or wants—to hear from: Walter Bowman. There was your photo, in a magazine. Of course, you are older now. Still, I'd know you anywhere.

In the summer of 1985, when she was fifteen, Eliza was kidnapped by Walter and held hostage for almost six weeks. He had killed at least one girl and Eliza always suspected he had other victims as well. Now on death row in Virginia for the rape and murder of his final victim, Walter seems to be making a heartfelt act of contrition as his execution nears. Though Eliza wants nothing to do with him, she's never forgotten that Walter was most unpredictable when ignored. Desperate to shelter her children from this undisclosed trauma in her past, she cautiously makes contact with Walter. She's always wondered why Walter let her live, and perhaps now he'll tell her—and share the truth about his other victims.

Yet as Walter presses her for more and deeper contact, it becomes clear that he is after something greater than forgiveness. He wants Eliza to remember what really happened that long-ago summer. He wants her to save his life. And Eliza, who has worked hard for her comfortable, cocooned life, will do anything to protect it—even if it means finally facing the events of that horrifying summer and the terrible truth she's kept buried inside.

An edgy, utterly gripping tale of psychological manipulation that will leave readers racing to the final page, I'd Know You Anywhere is a virtuoso performance from acclaimed, award-winning author Laura Lippman that is sure to be her biggest hit yet.
I Was Anastasia

Countless others have rendered their verdict. Now it is your turn.

Russia, July 17, 1918: Under direct orders from Vladimir Lenin, Bolshevik secret police force Anastasia Romanov, along with the entire imperial family, into a damp basement in Siberia, where they face a merciless firing squad. None survive. At least that is what the executioners have always claimed.

Germany, February 17, 1920: A young woman bearing an uncanny resemblance to Anastasia Romanov is pulled shivering and senseless from a canal. Refusing to explain her presence in the freezing water or even acknowledge her rescuers, she is taken to the hospital where an examination reveals that her body is riddled with countless horrific scars. When she finally does speak, this frightened, mysterious young woman claims to be the Russian grand duchess.
As rumors begin to circulate through European society that the youngest Romanov daughter has survived the massacre at Ekaterinburg, old enemies and new threats are awakened. The question of who Anna Anderson is and what actually happened to Anastasia Romanov spans fifty years and touches three continents. This thrilling saga is every bit as moving and momentous as it is harrowing and twisted.
Confess

At age twenty-one, Auburn Reed has already lost everything important to her. In her fight to rebuild her shattered life, she has her goals in sight and there is no room for mistakes. But when she walks into a Dallas art studio in search of a job, she doesn’t expect to find a deep attraction to the enigmatic artist who works there, Owen Gentry.

For once, Auburn takes a chance and puts her heart in control, only to discover that Owen is keeping a major secret from coming out. The magnitude of his past threatens to destroy everything important to Auburn, and the only way to get her life back on track is to cut Owen out of it.

To save their relationship, all Owen needs to do is confess. But in this case, the confession could be much more destructive than the actual sin.
The Magicians

Quentin Coldwater is brilliant but miserable. A high school math genius, he’s secretly fascinated with a series of children’s fantasy novels set in a magical land called Fillory, and real life is disappointing by comparison. When Quentin is unexpectedly admitted to an elite, secret college of magic, it looks like his wildest dreams have come true. But his newfound powers lead him down a rabbit hole of hedonism and disillusionment, and ultimately to the dark secret behind the story of Fillory. The land of his childhood fantasies turns out to be much darker and more dangerous than he ever could have imagined. . . .
Caraval

Scarlett has never left the tiny island where she and her beloved sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval, the far-away, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show, are over.

But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.

Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. But she nevertheless becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic with the other players in the game. And whether Caraval is real or not, she must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over, a dangerous domino effect of consequences is set off, and her sister disappears forever.

Welcome, welcome to Caraval . . . beware of getting swept too far away.
The Ghost Manuscript

Rare book authenticator Carys Jones wanted nothing more than to be left alone to pursue her obsession with ancient manuscripts. But when her biggest client is committed to an asylum, he gives Carys an offer she cannot refuse. In exchange for his entire library of priceless, Dark Age manuscripts, Carys must track the clues hidden in a previously unknown journal, clues that lead to a tomb that could rewrite the history of Western civilization.

But there are people who would do anything to stop Carys from finding what she seeks—for reasons both noble and evil. The hunt takes Carys to places she never thought she’d go, physically and emotionally; first to Wales, her estranged father’s homeland, then to bed with Dafydd, a mysterious Welshman who agrees to help her with the search, and finally, deep inside her own psyche, when the monk who wrote the journal 1,500 years ago appears and assists her in her search.
The Girl Who Slept with God

Set in Arco, Idaho, in 1970, Val Brelinski's powerfully affecting first novel tells the story of three sisters: young Frances, gregarious and strong-willed Jory, and moral-minded Grace. Their father, Oren, is a respected member of the community and science professor at the local college. Yet their mother's depression and Grace's religious fervor threaten the seemingly perfect family, whose world is upended when Grace returns from a missionary trip to Mexico and discovers she's pregnant with--she believes--the child of God.

Distraught, Oren sends Jory and Grace to an isolated home at the edge of the town. There, they prepare for the much-awaited arrival of the baby while building a makeshift family that includes an elderly eccentric neighbor and a tattooed social outcast who drives an ice cream truck.
Aunt Dimity's Death

Lori Shepherd's fondest childhood memories are of her mother telling countless fascinating stories about a character named Aunt Dimity. Now an adult, Lori receives quite a shock when she learns Aunt Dimity was a real person and has recently died. Summoned to an eccentric law office, Lori's bewilderment grows when informed that Dimity has left a complicated task for her -- and a handsome reward upon completion.
Magic Bites

Kate Daniels is a down-on-her-luck mercenary who makes her living cleaning up magical problems. But when Kate’s guardian is murdered, her quest for justice draws her into a power struggle between two strong factions within Atlanta’s magic circles. Pressured by both sides to find the killer, Kate realizes she’s way out of her league—but she wouldn’t want it any other way...
Under Her Skin

Will she be strong enough to fight for what she wants?

'Old hag in need of live-in helper to abuse. Nothing kinky.'

When Uma Crane answers the ad, she's alone in the world, desperate, with no choice but to take the job. She's also got a secret: under her clothes, her body is covered in tattoos, etched into her skin against her will by the powerful man who ruined her life--and who continues to hunt for her. In Blackwood, Virginia Uma hopes to get the ink removed before disappearing into anonymity forever.

To keep his latent rage at bay, big, rough ex-convict Ivan Shifflett fights and pounds metal. He's also a sucker for strays. So, when Uma marches into town, damaged but proud, Ivan can't stop thinking about her--and wondering who's got her so scared.

Uma won't bare her body; she can't. She's been branded by another man. But, with Ivan, she embarks on a game of give and take--a blindfolded power play fueled by fear, but leading to something sweeter, headier, and full of hope. While the looming threat of her ex draws closer, Uma finds that she no longer wants to run, but is she strong enough to fight for what she wants?
The Book of Tomorrow

Bestselling author Cecelia Ahern follows The Gift and P.S. I Love You with the mesmerizing story of a teenaged girl coming face-to-face with grief, growth, and magic in the Irish countryside, after a mysterious book begins to reveal her own memories from one day in the future. Perfect for long-time fans of Ahern, as well as for younger readers coming to her for the first time, The Book of Tomorrow’s strong voice and sophisticated storytelling mark an instant new classic from this already beloved author.
Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency Box Set

The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul

When a check-in desk at London’s Heathrow Airport disappears in a ball of orange flame, the event is said to be an act of God. But which god, wonders holistic detective Dirk Gently. And how is this connected to Dirk’s battle with his cleaning lady over his filthy refrigerator…or to the murder of his latest client? Or are these events just another stretch of coincidences in the life of the world’s most off-kilter private investigator?

Pride Reads

Events for Adults

Amateur Writer's Guild

6:00pm - 7:00pm

Multipurpose Room

Registration

Library Branch: Lincoln Library

Room: Multipurpose Room

Age Group: Adults

Program Type: Discussion

Registration Required

Seats Remaining: 9

Event Details:

Come together with other writers for feedback on anything you have written, or answers to questions you might have!

Join via Zoom here

Black Authors Series Book Club

5:30pm - 7:00pm

Bicentennial Room

Registration

Library Branch: Lincoln Library

Room: Bicentennial Room

Age Group: Adults

Program Type: Book Club

Registration Required

Seats Remaining: 14

Event Details:

Join us for our book club, discussing books by Black authors. We are creating this space for Black readers to talk about their experiences and books that reflect them.

Movie Matinee: A League of Their Own

2:00pm - 4:00pm

Carnegie North

Library Branch: Lincoln Library

Room: Carnegie North

Age Group: Teens, Adults

Program Type: Movie

Movie

Enjoy a movie with digital surround sound at the Lincoln Library.

Event Details:

In celebration of of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League and Springfield's very own Springfield Sallies, the Lincoln Library is proud to present Penny Marshall's 1992 movie, A League of Their Own! In 1943, a washed-up

Sewing Class: Simple Tote Bag

2:00pm - 4:30pm

Registration

Library Branch: Lincoln Library

Age Group: Children, Tweens, Teens, Adults

Program Type: CoLab

Registration Required

Seats Remaining: 0

Workshop

Get hands-on and learn a new skill at the Lincoln Library.

Event Details:

Learn how to sew a simple tote bag using the sewing machines in the CoLab! This class is suitable for all skill levels; if you've never used a sewing machine before, making a tote bag is an easy project for beginners!

Cricut Class: Layered Vinyl Decal

3:00pm - 5:30pm

Collaboratory

Registration

Library Branch: Lincoln Library

Room: Collaboratory

Age Group: Tweens, Teens, Adults

Program Type: CoLab

Registration Required

Seats Remaining: 0

Workshop

Get hands-on and learn a new skill at the Lincoln Library.

Event Details:

Learn the basics of using the Cricut Design Space software to create your own projects for cutting with the Library's Cricut cutting machines!

Walk with Pride: A Tour of Springfield's LGBT+ History

9:00am - 10:30am

Library Plaza

Registration

Library Branch: Lincoln Library

Room: Library Plaza

Age Group: All Ages

Program Type: Summer Reading Program, Lecture Series

Registration Required

Seats Remaining: 14

Lecture Series

Enjoy a local expert discussing a topic of interest.

Event Details:

This Pride Month, join Lincoln Library’s Sangamon Valley Collection for a free walking tour of historic LGBT+ sites in Downtown Springfield. From Ethel Mars to Smokey’s Den to The Prairie Flame to PrideFest, we have a lot to be proud of.

The Gathering of the Bookalos: A Silent Book Club

2:00pm - 3:30pm

Registration

Offsite Event

Library Branch: Off Site

Age Group: Adults

Program Type: Book Club

Registration Required

Seats Remaining: 12

Event Details:

Want to carve out time to read but don't want the pressure to finish and discuss a specific book? Want to learn what others are reading and low-key socialize? It sounds to us like you may be a Bookalo.

Movie Monday - Wonka (PG)

2:00pm - 4:00pm

Carnegie North

Library Branch: Lincoln Library

Room: Carnegie North

Age Group: All Ages

Program Type: Summer Reading Program, Movie

Movie

Enjoy a movie with digital surround sound at the Lincoln Library.

Event Details:

Hey, kids, escape the heat! Come on in for our weekly Monday Movie Matinee! We'll bring the popcorn!

Wonka (PG)

Richard Landry and Snowball!

2:00pm - 3:00pm

Carnegie North

Library Branch: Lincoln Library

Room: Carnegie North

Age Group: All Ages

Program Type: Summer Reading Program, Performance

Performance

Enjoy a free performance at the library.

Event Details:

Let's kick off Summer Reading 2024 with our favorite magical guests - Richard Landry and Snowball!

Lincoln Library

Adults

Staff Picks

Red, White & Royal Blue

This Is How You Lose the Time War

The Final Child

Legends and Lattes

A Psalm for the Wild-Built

After Anna

The Diamond Throne (The Elenium Trilogy, Book 1)

Young Jane Young

John Dies at the End

Open and Shut

I'd Know You Anywhere LP

I Was Anastasia

Confess

The Magicians

Caraval

The Ghost Manuscript

The Girl Who Slept with God

Aunt Dimity's Death

Magic Bites

Under Her Skin

The Book of Tomorrow

Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency Box Set

Pride Reads

Me Inside

Retirement Plan

Behind the Scenes

A Fighting Chance

A Class Act

The Traitor Baru Cormorant

Every Heart a Doorway

Red, White & Royal Blue

This Is How You Lose the Time War

Gideon the Ninth

The Final Child

Legends and Lattes

A Psalm for the Wild-Built

Beowulf for Cretins

Yerba Buena

Bluebird

The Priory of the Orange Tree

She Who Became the Sun

Concerning My Daughter

We Are Satellites

Under the Rainbow

With Teeth

Our Wives Under the Sea

Longshadow

Season of Love

The Four Profound Weaves

The Romantic Agenda

Manywhere

By Way of Sorrow

The House of Impossible Beauties

The Bennet Women

Rainbow Rainbow

Dead Collections

A Lady for a Duke

Light From Uncommon Stars

Future Feeling

Bad Girls

A Safe Girl to Love

Little Fish

Didn't Nobody Give a Shit what Happened to Carlotta

This Is How It Always Is

Detransition, Baby

Chef's Kiss

Milk Fed

Infamous

Book Boyfriend

I'm Not Hungry But I Could Eat

Invisible Life

Old Enough

Tipping the Velvet

The Queer Principles of Kit Webb

Sizzle Reel

The Mars House

A Dash of Salt and Pepper