Usually, between Thanksgiving and the end of December, there is not a lot of publishing activity. I think they believe we are all too busy with preparations to spend much time reading. This year, however, we do have some relatively big names who are coming out with titles in this time frame.
Edgar award winner novelist James W. Hall gives us the 13th in his Thorn series, Going Dark on December 3rd. Thorn jumps in to save his newly discovered son when his son unknowingly becomes involved with a radical organization that is planning to cause a radioactive catastrophe with the takeover of a nuclear plant.
Karen Robards comes out with Hunted on December 10th. A model cop turned renegade takes over an elite Christmas party in a lakefront mansion in New Orleans to try to find the truth about a police cover up. The hostage negotiator happens to be a woman who has had an emotional attachment to the cop since she was a teenager.
Michael Connelly has The Gods of Guilt which comes out on December 2nd. Defense attorney Mickey Haller is back in his fifth book (starting with "The Lincoln Lawyer"). A former client who Haller thought he had saved from a life of prostitution is found dead. Haller is hired to defend her pimp who is accused of her murder. Typical Connelly, which is to say, really really good.
Hazardous Duty by W.E.B. Giffin comes out on December 31st. Col. Charley Castillo is back, or at least the President wants him back after forcing him into retirement. There are Somali pirates and Mexican drug cartels to fight and some say that the President has gone crazy. Griffin's usual fare.
There are 3 more titles that I am just going to mention because they will probably only interest those who have read previously in the series.
Anne Perry comes out with her usual Christmas mystery in The Christmas Hope on November 12th.
Andriana Trigiani comes out with the third in her Valentine Roncalli series, The Supreme Macaroni Company on November 26th.
Finally, Fay Weldon gives us the third in her Love and Inheritance Trilogy, The New Countess on December 17th.
All are in the catalog if you want to get your name on the list.
Friday, October 25, 2013
Monday, October 21, 2013
November LibraryReads
Here is the list for books coming out in November that librarians countrywide think will be popular. I think there are several in here that will interest readers here in Georgia.
The top vote getter this time is Bellman and Black by Diane Setterfield. I blogged about this one before back when I was covering the books that come out Nov 5th. I said "If you liked The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield, her new one after 7 years will be published. Bellman and Black is a dark Gothic mystery as was her first work. William as a young boy, kills a bird while playing with friends. The act is quickly forgotten but when we meet him as a successful family man later in life, we find things about to change." The reviewer called it beautifully written ....that will have you entwined in its arms until the end."
The other 9 titles are below:
Through the Evil Days: A Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne Mystery - Julia Spencer-Fleming's series with the Reverend Clare and Police Chief Russ. Apparently, she introduces a dog into this mystery.
The Death of Santini: The Story of a Father and His Son by Pat Conroy. Conroy's look at his relationship with his father who had been the model for Conroy's novel - The Great Santini. Although their relationship had not always been close, this is said to be a lesson about how redemptive the powers of love and humor can be.
Someone Else's Love Story by Joshilyn Jackson. If you liked herGods in Alabama, you will need to read this funny and endearing Southern novel. A young single mother is rescued during a robbery and she decides she needs to find out about the mother of her brilliant 3 year old.
The Valley of Amazement by Amy Tan. Any Tan novel is worth reading but one of the reviewers I really admire says this is a powerful story of love, family, courage and history.
Lies You Wanted to Hear by James Whitfield Thomson explores the course of a failed marriage.
The Cartographer of No Man's Land by P.S. Duffy.An artist takes up a naval career because of the expectations of his father. Suddenly he finds himself on the front lines in France during World War I.
The Raven's Eye: A Brock and Kolla Mystery by Barry Maitland. A really well written British police procedural for fans of Ruth Rendell and Deborah Crombie.
Death of a Nightingale by Lene Kaaberbol and Agnete Friis. This is by the same authors that penned The Boy in the Suitcase. This one is for mystery lovers who like to explore social justice and morality.
Parasite by Mira Grant. Grant just finished up a medical based dystopian series. Now she starts on another one. This one involves a genetically engineered tapeworm that protect most of the human populace from illness, boost every one's immune system, and even secrete designer drugs. Unfortunately, it begins to change and wants out of human bodies they occupy.
All titles will be available at the library when they are published and all are currently available for holds now. Enjoy.
The top vote getter this time is Bellman and Black by Diane Setterfield. I blogged about this one before back when I was covering the books that come out Nov 5th. I said "If you liked The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield, her new one after 7 years will be published. Bellman and Black is a dark Gothic mystery as was her first work. William as a young boy, kills a bird while playing with friends. The act is quickly forgotten but when we meet him as a successful family man later in life, we find things about to change." The reviewer called it beautifully written ....that will have you entwined in its arms until the end."
The other 9 titles are below:
Through the Evil Days: A Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne Mystery - Julia Spencer-Fleming's series with the Reverend Clare and Police Chief Russ. Apparently, she introduces a dog into this mystery.
The Death of Santini: The Story of a Father and His Son by Pat Conroy. Conroy's look at his relationship with his father who had been the model for Conroy's novel - The Great Santini. Although their relationship had not always been close, this is said to be a lesson about how redemptive the powers of love and humor can be.
Someone Else's Love Story by Joshilyn Jackson. If you liked herGods in Alabama, you will need to read this funny and endearing Southern novel. A young single mother is rescued during a robbery and she decides she needs to find out about the mother of her brilliant 3 year old.
The Valley of Amazement by Amy Tan. Any Tan novel is worth reading but one of the reviewers I really admire says this is a powerful story of love, family, courage and history.
Lies You Wanted to Hear by James Whitfield Thomson explores the course of a failed marriage.
The Cartographer of No Man's Land by P.S. Duffy.An artist takes up a naval career because of the expectations of his father. Suddenly he finds himself on the front lines in France during World War I.
The Raven's Eye: A Brock and Kolla Mystery by Barry Maitland. A really well written British police procedural for fans of Ruth Rendell and Deborah Crombie.
Death of a Nightingale by Lene Kaaberbol and Agnete Friis. This is by the same authors that penned The Boy in the Suitcase. This one is for mystery lovers who like to explore social justice and morality.
Parasite by Mira Grant. Grant just finished up a medical based dystopian series. Now she starts on another one. This one involves a genetically engineered tapeworm that protect most of the human populace from illness, boost every one's immune system, and even secrete designer drugs. Unfortunately, it begins to change and wants out of human bodies they occupy.
All titles will be available at the library when they are published and all are currently available for holds now. Enjoy.
If you like Nicholas Sparks
Nicholas Sparks' The Longest Ride has spent the last month on the best sellers' list and has been very popular locally. If you like Sparks and want to read something similar while waiting for his next title, you might try one of the ones listed below.
Nicholas Sparks is a master of poignant love stories. In his novels there is no great love without some loss and his characters frequently are faced with a difficult challenge before proving they are worthy of true love. Sparks' characters are honorable and loyal, and they place a lot of importance on family and sometimes religious faith. The pace of his stories is leisurely, quickening for rapid action and dialogue.
Kristin Hannah also has sympathetic characters that she guides to romance. True Colors has a man coming in between two sisters and might be a good place to start.
Nicholas Evans' concentrates on the bittersweet and sometimes even the best intentions end badly but all also offer hope and redemption. His first and most popular title was The Horse Whisperer about a girl and a horse who have both suffered a horrible accident.
Richard Paul Evans also writes gentle love stories. Evans usually writes with a more spiritual emphasis than Sparks does, but many of his books match the storyline and tone of a Sparks novel. Try starting with Promise Me, in which a woman named Beth struggles with the aftermath of a bad marriage and the mysterious illness that plagues her daughter.
J. Lynne Hinton is another author Spark lovers might enjoy.Hinton's novels are full of folksy spirituality and funny tender moments. A good introduction is Friendship Cake, the first in a series. In this title, women come together to gather recipes for a church cookbook and learn each other's weaknesses.
Lastly, there is Luanne Rice. Not all of her characters find happily ever after but all do find inner strength and emotional growth. The prolific Rice has many novels that will appeal to Sparks' fans; perhaps start by meeting the three McCarthy sisters in The Silver Boat. When they reunite at Martha’s Vineyard, the discovery of some old letters sheds light on their current troubled relationships.
Nicholas Sparks is a master of poignant love stories. In his novels there is no great love without some loss and his characters frequently are faced with a difficult challenge before proving they are worthy of true love. Sparks' characters are honorable and loyal, and they place a lot of importance on family and sometimes religious faith. The pace of his stories is leisurely, quickening for rapid action and dialogue.
Kristin Hannah also has sympathetic characters that she guides to romance. True Colors has a man coming in between two sisters and might be a good place to start.
Nicholas Evans' concentrates on the bittersweet and sometimes even the best intentions end badly but all also offer hope and redemption. His first and most popular title was The Horse Whisperer about a girl and a horse who have both suffered a horrible accident.
Richard Paul Evans also writes gentle love stories. Evans usually writes with a more spiritual emphasis than Sparks does, but many of his books match the storyline and tone of a Sparks novel. Try starting with Promise Me, in which a woman named Beth struggles with the aftermath of a bad marriage and the mysterious illness that plagues her daughter.
J. Lynne Hinton is another author Spark lovers might enjoy.Hinton's novels are full of folksy spirituality and funny tender moments. A good introduction is Friendship Cake, the first in a series. In this title, women come together to gather recipes for a church cookbook and learn each other's weaknesses.
Lastly, there is Luanne Rice. Not all of her characters find happily ever after but all do find inner strength and emotional growth. The prolific Rice has many novels that will appeal to Sparks' fans; perhaps start by meeting the three McCarthy sisters in The Silver Boat. When they reunite at Martha’s Vineyard, the discovery of some old letters sheds light on their current troubled relationships.
Friday, October 4, 2013
Anthony Award Winners
The Anthony Awards were announced a week or so ago at the Bouchercon Convention. I've been meaning to post the winners and some of the nominees and this is the time.
I'm surprised and yet I'm not surprised. Up for Best Novel were both Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn which spent weeks on the bestseller lists and The Beautiful Mystery by perennial winner Louise Penny. I really thought that Flynn had a chance to unseat Penny who I believe has won several years in a row. She didn't. Perhaps Flynn's work was not quite enough of a mystery, I don't know. Penny's work is wonderful and I definitely read the Inspector Gamache series but really this makes the fourth time in a row. She must have a stack of them in her home. Penny has come out with another highly regarded mystery this year, How the Light Gets In, and I wonder if she will be going for a fifth win. If you haven't read Penny's series yet, the order is:
Still Life where she introduces the Canadian village of Three Pines - 2006
A Fatal Grace - from 2007
The Cruelest Month from 2008
A Rule Against Murder from 2009
The Brutal Telling from 2009 and her first Anthony Best Novel
Bury Your Dead from 2010 and her second Anthony
A Trick of Light from 2011 and the third Anthony
The Beautiful Mystery from 2012 which won the most recent Anthony
I have actually heard Louise Penny speak and she is humorous and delightful - her mysteries are quite complex though.
Best First Novel was not much of a surprise. A personal favorite of mine, Don't Ever Get Old by Daniel Friedman, did not win but the winner had been very strongly reviewed and was quite popular here, TheExpats by Chris Pavone. The story about an ex-CIA wife who follows her husband for a new job in Luxembourg and starts questioning her surroundings, their new friends and her husband.
Finally, the Best Paperback Original went to Big Maria by Johnny Shaw. Big Maria is a mine and three down and outers decide to go and find the lost gold that is hidden there. The problem is that Big Maria is right in the middle of a U.S. Army Artillery Range. Humor and suspense. I love that idea. Others that had been up for the award are listed below:
Whiplash River by Lou Berney
Murder for Choir by Joelle Charbonneau
And She Was by Alison Gaylin
Blessed are the Dead by Malla Nunn
All are available at the library. Enjoy!
I'm surprised and yet I'm not surprised. Up for Best Novel were both Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn which spent weeks on the bestseller lists and The Beautiful Mystery by perennial winner Louise Penny. I really thought that Flynn had a chance to unseat Penny who I believe has won several years in a row. She didn't. Perhaps Flynn's work was not quite enough of a mystery, I don't know. Penny's work is wonderful and I definitely read the Inspector Gamache series but really this makes the fourth time in a row. She must have a stack of them in her home. Penny has come out with another highly regarded mystery this year, How the Light Gets In, and I wonder if she will be going for a fifth win. If you haven't read Penny's series yet, the order is:
Still Life where she introduces the Canadian village of Three Pines - 2006
A Fatal Grace - from 2007
The Cruelest Month from 2008
A Rule Against Murder from 2009
The Brutal Telling from 2009 and her first Anthony Best Novel
Bury Your Dead from 2010 and her second Anthony
A Trick of Light from 2011 and the third Anthony
The Beautiful Mystery from 2012 which won the most recent Anthony
I have actually heard Louise Penny speak and she is humorous and delightful - her mysteries are quite complex though.
Best First Novel was not much of a surprise. A personal favorite of mine, Don't Ever Get Old by Daniel Friedman, did not win but the winner had been very strongly reviewed and was quite popular here, TheExpats by Chris Pavone. The story about an ex-CIA wife who follows her husband for a new job in Luxembourg and starts questioning her surroundings, their new friends and her husband.
Finally, the Best Paperback Original went to Big Maria by Johnny Shaw. Big Maria is a mine and three down and outers decide to go and find the lost gold that is hidden there. The problem is that Big Maria is right in the middle of a U.S. Army Artillery Range. Humor and suspense. I love that idea. Others that had been up for the award are listed below:
Whiplash River by Lou Berney
Murder for Choir by Joelle Charbonneau
And She Was by Alison Gaylin
Blessed are the Dead by Malla Nunn
All are available at the library. Enjoy!
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