The Fifth Assassin -- Brad Meltzer

From John Wilkes Booth to Lee Harvey Oswald, there have been more than two dozen assassination attempts on the President of the United States.
 
Four have been successful.
 
But now, Beecher White--the hero of the #1 New York Times bestseller The Inner Circle--discovers a killer in Washington, D.C., who's meticulously re-creating the crimes of these four men. Historians have branded them as four lone wolves. But what if they were wrong?
 
Beecher is about to discover the truth: that during the course of a hundred years, all four assassins were secretly working together. What was their purpose? For whom do they really work? And why are they planning to kill the current President?
 
Beecher's about to find out. And most terrifyingly, he's about to come face-to-face with the fifth assassin.

Fascinating details and insight into the workings of our country, background and history of the presidential assassinations, and how easy it could be to recreate in the warped mind of someone hellbent on destruction. I haven't read the previous books in the series but this one compelled me enough to keep reading that I likely will read the others.

Especially compelling to political junkies.  

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The Daisy Chain -- Heather B. Moore

Welcome to the Aliso Creek Novella Series

Liz, Gemma, Arie, Jess, and Drew have been best friends since creating “the Five” at Aliso Creek High School. But that was over ten years ago, and each is still trying to find that perfect someone…if perfect is even possible.

Actually, Jess Giles does find her perfect match, but since Charlie’s several years older than she, they never have a moment of harmony from his adult kids who protest the marriage. When Charlie dies in a tragic accident, his kids add insult to injury and sue Jess for her share of the inheritance. The only person Jess trusts for financial advice is Charlie’s financial planner, Preston Michaels. Just talking to Preston on the phone makes Jess feel flustered, yet strangely comfortable at the same time, so she puts off meeting him for as long as possible. When Jess has to attend the formal hearing, she’s about to find out if the man she’s been talking to over the phone for several months lives up to the voice that she’s grown attached to.

Like with the other novellas in the series, I was  immediately interested in meeting Jess and discovering how her romance would evolve, especially since we learn that she is a widow, only a year apart from her beloved husband. How can her romance already have ended when the story has only begun? But that's where Moore brings readers the perfect balance.

Jess learns that her friendships can support her, no matter how difficult her loss, and her step-children have made life for her this past year. And she also discovers that "the five" and not her only friends.Even though she has never met Preston Michaels in person, Jess has come to rely on his advice, but there's so much more. She loves just talking to him, even though she's afraid their "relationship" will change if they actually meet. When the day comes that she feels forced to attend a court meeting with Charlie's grown children, Jess feels torn--should so attend, or should she make one more excuse not to meet Preston in person.It's a romance, so we all know what will happen, but that doesn't stop us from worrying how it will all work out for Jess.

I highly recommend the entire Aliso Creek novella series for those looking for short, clean romance.