I have left too many books for this last entry in 2015 for January titles. My remedy is to shorten my descriptions and give you as many titles as possible for your choice. It is going to be quite a month.
Tawni O'Dell has Angels Burning coming out on January 5. O'Dell writes charter driven, psychological suspense novels and this one is no different. The coal mining area of PA is a frequent place setting. In this story a teenage girl goes missing and the man imprisoned for killing Police Chief Dove Carnahan's mother is released. All lead Dove to face some dark issues in her past.
Benjamin Black has Even the Dead: A Quirke Novel coming out on January 12. When John Banville writes mysteries, he assumes the name of Benjamin Black and this is the seventh in his Quirke series. Quirke is a pathologist with severe problems of his own. In this one, Quirke is experience hallucinations and blackouts while investigating a suspicious death. Then his daughter asks for his help in finding a missing pregnant woman. Quickly, he is pulled into a dark mystery. Beautiful writing.
After the Crash by Michel Bussi has been on the best seller list in France for two years. On January 5, it moves to the US. The plot line is very interesting.In the days before DNA, a plane crashes into the Swiss Alps. There is only one survivor out of 169 people. - a 3 month old girl. There were 2 girls of the same age on the plane and no one knows which family has the surviving infant. 18 years later, the private detective on the case from the beginning, is completing his case files. His intention is to present them to the young girl herself before killing himself. Then, suddenly, he finds a revelation and then is killed before he can say anything. Hmmmm - sounds good.
If you like historical fiction, and I do, then Bernard Cornwell is an author you follow. Warriors of the Storm, the ninth in the Saxon Stories or The Last Kingdom series, comes out on January 19. The BBC is creating a television series from these titles. This title focuses on the fight for Northumbria as Uhtred tries to fight off the Vikings and the Irish who have bonded to take over that part of England.
Reed Farrel Coleman has Where It Hurts coming out on January 26. Coleman is a gritty, hard boiled mystery author kind of like Dennis Lehane or Robert Crais. Here he starts a new series about a retired Suffolk County cop who lost everything when his son died. He now is a courtesy van driver for a run down hotel where he lives. An ex-con he knows, asks him to find out who beat the con's son to death and the investigation begins.
Sarah Graves has The Girls She Left Behind coming out on January 12. This is the second of Graves' Lizzie Snow series - a much darker series than her previous Home Repair is Homicide series. This one is intricately plotted and very atmospheric - kind of like Chevy Stevens or perhaps a little like Laura Lippman. Anyway, Snow has left Boston to take a job as deputy sheriff in Bearkill Maine.
Her long missing niece may have been spotted in the area. when a teen aged girl goes missing and Henry Gemerle, a sociopath who locked three young girls in a basement for years escapes a mental hospital AND Jane Crimmins who was one of Gemerle's prisoners before escaping comes to town, things heat up in Maine.
Lastly, Thomas Perry has Forty Thieves coming on January 8. Perry writes dark and disturbing suspense stories kind of like Jeffrey Deaver or Don Winslow - maybe even Andrew Klavan. In this title a husband and wife detective team (Sid and Ronnie Abel) take on a husband and wife assassins for hire (Ed and Nicole Hoyt) when the police can find the killer of a middle aged research scientist and someone wants to make sure that the Abels can't find the answer.
OK - there you go for January. I think there is enough for me to keep reading next month. How about you?
Wednesday, December 30, 2015
Friday, December 18, 2015
More January Titles
While preparing for the holidays, you can't help but be attracted by some of the holiday titles. However, here, we are talking about January titles to get us ready for next month. I will not post next week, however, I will try to post between Christmas and New Years so...be on the lookout. OK - for some more January titles.....
If you read W.E.B. Griffin, he has The Hunting Trip under his real name, William E. Butterworth III, on December 29. That is almost January. This title is not in his usual category but contains quite a bit of humor and is kind of autobiographical although he says it is not an autobiography. It tells the story of Philip W. Williams III who becomes a special agent and best selling novelist and describes some raucous adventures across Europe and the US.
Carla Buckley has The Good Goodbye coming out on January 12. Buckley writes psychological suspense and this one really pulls the heart strings. Arden and Rory are cousins who are as close as sisters. Arden's mother and Rory's father own a restaurant together that recently has had financial problems because of a bad investment made by Rory's father. When they can't go to the schools of their dreams, they end up at a low tier state university. Then, a tragedy occurs. There is a fire in the dorm room and both girls are in the ICU and a boy is dead. The families were in turmoil before the incident and now the stress makes it much worse. The story investigates what was really happening behind the outward scene and secrets are revealed. Reviewers say it is compelling and emotional.
Carol Goodman also writes psychological suspense and if you have read Kimberly McCreight (Reconstructing Amelia) or Tana French (The Likeness) - give her a try. River Road comes out on January 19 and it is a compelling, character-driven work. Nan Lewis is a creative writing professor who hits a deer on the way home from a holiday party on the same stretch of road where her 4 year old daughter was killed by a hit and run driver. The next morning, the body of her favorite student is found in the same spot. Police have her as a primary suspect. What happened that night?
Ann Morgan has Beside Myself coming out on January 12. I've been waiting for this one ...it sounds very interesting. I would compare it to S.J. Watson's Before I Go To Sleep or Mary Kubica's The Good Girl. This story focuses on two twins, Helen - the stronger, favored twin and Ellie, slower, quieter. One day, Helen convinces Ellie to change their clothes and hair and teaches her how to use Helen's mannerisms. They think it will be fun to see how long it takes people to notice. Well, no one does notice and when Helen is ready to give up and change back, Ellie refuses. What was suppose to be a funny joke turned into a life long nightmare for the real Helen. Will she ever be able to be the person she was born to be? Is she really Helen? Just the kind of thing I have to read and find out.
A debut novelist is the last suggestion. Nicholas Petrie has The Drifter coming out on January 12. As a debut author, I can't really tell you to who I would compare him. I can tell you that he won an award for short fiction while an undergraduate at the University of Michigan. I can tell you that he has an MFA from the University of Washington. I can tell you that he won an award for a short story he wrote, This story is about a veteran with PTSD, Peter Ash. He has spent a year roaming the woods because he is severely claustrophobic when around people. Ash, however, comes to the aid of the family of a veteran friend who committed suicide. While she tries to fix up her house, he discovers a huge, ugly, vicious dog under the porch and a suitcase full of money and plastic explosives. As he investigates, danger moves closer. This appears to be the first in a series. All reviewers say it is hard to put down and the characterizations are really, really good.
Hope you find one of these that strikes your fancy. Enjoy!
If you read W.E.B. Griffin, he has The Hunting Trip under his real name, William E. Butterworth III, on December 29. That is almost January. This title is not in his usual category but contains quite a bit of humor and is kind of autobiographical although he says it is not an autobiography. It tells the story of Philip W. Williams III who becomes a special agent and best selling novelist and describes some raucous adventures across Europe and the US.
Carla Buckley has The Good Goodbye coming out on January 12. Buckley writes psychological suspense and this one really pulls the heart strings. Arden and Rory are cousins who are as close as sisters. Arden's mother and Rory's father own a restaurant together that recently has had financial problems because of a bad investment made by Rory's father. When they can't go to the schools of their dreams, they end up at a low tier state university. Then, a tragedy occurs. There is a fire in the dorm room and both girls are in the ICU and a boy is dead. The families were in turmoil before the incident and now the stress makes it much worse. The story investigates what was really happening behind the outward scene and secrets are revealed. Reviewers say it is compelling and emotional.
Carol Goodman also writes psychological suspense and if you have read Kimberly McCreight (Reconstructing Amelia) or Tana French (The Likeness) - give her a try. River Road comes out on January 19 and it is a compelling, character-driven work. Nan Lewis is a creative writing professor who hits a deer on the way home from a holiday party on the same stretch of road where her 4 year old daughter was killed by a hit and run driver. The next morning, the body of her favorite student is found in the same spot. Police have her as a primary suspect. What happened that night?
Ann Morgan has Beside Myself coming out on January 12. I've been waiting for this one ...it sounds very interesting. I would compare it to S.J. Watson's Before I Go To Sleep or Mary Kubica's The Good Girl. This story focuses on two twins, Helen - the stronger, favored twin and Ellie, slower, quieter. One day, Helen convinces Ellie to change their clothes and hair and teaches her how to use Helen's mannerisms. They think it will be fun to see how long it takes people to notice. Well, no one does notice and when Helen is ready to give up and change back, Ellie refuses. What was suppose to be a funny joke turned into a life long nightmare for the real Helen. Will she ever be able to be the person she was born to be? Is she really Helen? Just the kind of thing I have to read and find out.
A debut novelist is the last suggestion. Nicholas Petrie has The Drifter coming out on January 12. As a debut author, I can't really tell you to who I would compare him. I can tell you that he won an award for short fiction while an undergraduate at the University of Michigan. I can tell you that he has an MFA from the University of Washington. I can tell you that he won an award for a short story he wrote, This story is about a veteran with PTSD, Peter Ash. He has spent a year roaming the woods because he is severely claustrophobic when around people. Ash, however, comes to the aid of the family of a veteran friend who committed suicide. While she tries to fix up her house, he discovers a huge, ugly, vicious dog under the porch and a suitcase full of money and plastic explosives. As he investigates, danger moves closer. This appears to be the first in a series. All reviewers say it is hard to put down and the characterizations are really, really good.
Hope you find one of these that strikes your fancy. Enjoy!
Thursday, December 10, 2015
LibraryReads for January
The LibraryReads list for January came out today. Three of them are titles I have already put on request for me. Let's see what you think.
Number one vote getter for January is Elizabeth Strout's My Name is Lucy Barton. Strout writes emotional literary fiction with complex characters. Her plots tend to be slow paced and the mood reflective. If I was comparing her to someone, it might be Ron Rash or Geraldine Brooks. In this tale, Lucy Barton recalls her 9 week stay in the hospital after what was suppose to be a routine operation. Her husband sent for her long estranged mother. Lucy and her mother talked about everything but what had caused the estrangement. Having been raised in poverty, Lucy escaped and became an author. Truly, this is about family relationships and how they form us.
The next is The Readers of Broken Wheel by Katarina Bivald. This is a translated Swedish novel that features a Swedish girl names Sara that goes to visit her older American pen pal, Amy, in a small town in Iowa, called Broken Wheel. Sara and Amy had written each other with book recommendations and viewpoints. When Sara arrives, she finds that Amy had died. The people of Broken Wheel though know all about Sara and welcome her with open arms. When she decides to stay, she realizes that no one else in Broken Wheel actually cares about books so she opens a small bookstore. Of course librarians are going to love a book about the power of books and reading and that is what this is.
Next comes, The Swans of Fifth Avenue by Melanie Benjamin. She generally writes historical, literary fiction like Louise Erdrich or Barbara Kingsolver. This story takes us to the 1960's in Manhattan and the friendship between Truman Capote and Babe Paley.Babe made the mistake of confiding in Truman and when he wrote about the secrets.....they were friends no more. Throughout the story though, the descriptions and stories of the 'in' crowd in the Manhattan of that time, are fascinating.
Then we have Ashley Bell by Dean Koontz. I don't think I have to tell you all what his books are like. He has been popular for horror/thrillers for many many years. This story features Bibi Blair who at 22 is diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. Two days later, she has been cured and is convinced she was cured because she is suppose to save someone named Ashley Bell. Her search to find Ashley Bell lead her to mystery and crime.
Next come short stories by Helen Ellis, American Housewife. All the stories have to do with American woman at home. What she reveals is not always pretty, is often humorous and sometimes scary. Her stories are David Sedaris-like. Some of the titles are: What I Do All Day; The Wainscoting War; Dumpster Diving With the Stars and Southern Lady Code. Some reviewers have loved it and thought it hilarious while others have not cared for it. If you like Sedaris, give Ellis a try and see what you think.
OK - NOW - this is one I have on my list. I love Bill Bryson and have read everything he has written. I find his humor, my type of humor. His new title, The Road to Little Dribbling: Adventures of an American in Britain made my list as well as this list. The first book of his I read was Notes on a Small Island. It reported on a walk he took around England before moving back to the US with his wife. Well, he wrote several more books over here and then, several years ago, he moved back to England with his wife and children. This is a repeat at the walking travelogue. I can't wait. Everyone of his books had me laughing out loud.
Next we have Sally Hepworth's The Things We Keep. Hepworth is an Australian author who generally writes emotional stories - what might be defined as 'women's fiction'. I would compare her to Kristen Hannah or Emily Giffin. This story is about a woman with early-onset Alzheimer's who voluntarily moves into a residential facility. There she meets a man about the same age with a different form of dementia. They develop a relationship. There is a second story which takes place about 18 months later where a single mother becomes the cook at the facility and we meet her 7 year old daughter. We get to see both residents through new eyes. Very very touching - sad but also uplifting. I have this on my list also.
Jane K. Cleland's Ornaments of Death is on the list although it actually is out already. Hummm. Oh well - it is the 10th in the Josie Prescott Antiques Mystery series. Josie prepares for her annual Christmas Party and the arrival of a relative. After the party, Ian, the cousin, goes missing with two valuable seventeenth century miniatures. Cleland writes gentle, cozy, mysteries so you know that Josie must investigate.
Then we have Ian Rankin who writes police procedurals with a strong sense of place (Scotland)
. If you read Denise Mina or George Pelacanos - you might give Rankin a try. Even Dogs in the Wild is the 20th in the Inspector Rebus series. Rebus is now retired but he gets called into a crime being investigated by Siobhan Clarke - the murder of a former Lord Advocate. Also involved is a potshot taken at Rebus' nemesis - Big Ger Cafferty - a semi retired gangster. Rebus is the only person Cafferty will trust. The plot is complex but the dialogue filled with one lines is both menacing and a dark humor. Rebus has his fans for his hilarious one liners and his well earned wisdom.
Lastly is another one that I am waiting for - What She Knew by Gilly Macmillan. This one is also already out and Macmillan is a debut author but the plot sounds great. Rachel Jenner is recently divorced and she and her eight year old son, Ben, are walking in the park. After running ahead, he disappears. Rachel is distraught. Days pass with no word or sign.Eventually, even Rachel becomes a suspect. Where is Ben?!? Reviewers say it is gripping, suspenseful and hard to put down. Sounds really good!
Hope you find something tempting above. Some January some December but if they sound good - who cares. Enjoy.
Number one vote getter for January is Elizabeth Strout's My Name is Lucy Barton. Strout writes emotional literary fiction with complex characters. Her plots tend to be slow paced and the mood reflective. If I was comparing her to someone, it might be Ron Rash or Geraldine Brooks. In this tale, Lucy Barton recalls her 9 week stay in the hospital after what was suppose to be a routine operation. Her husband sent for her long estranged mother. Lucy and her mother talked about everything but what had caused the estrangement. Having been raised in poverty, Lucy escaped and became an author. Truly, this is about family relationships and how they form us.
The next is The Readers of Broken Wheel by Katarina Bivald. This is a translated Swedish novel that features a Swedish girl names Sara that goes to visit her older American pen pal, Amy, in a small town in Iowa, called Broken Wheel. Sara and Amy had written each other with book recommendations and viewpoints. When Sara arrives, she finds that Amy had died. The people of Broken Wheel though know all about Sara and welcome her with open arms. When she decides to stay, she realizes that no one else in Broken Wheel actually cares about books so she opens a small bookstore. Of course librarians are going to love a book about the power of books and reading and that is what this is.
Next comes, The Swans of Fifth Avenue by Melanie Benjamin. She generally writes historical, literary fiction like Louise Erdrich or Barbara Kingsolver. This story takes us to the 1960's in Manhattan and the friendship between Truman Capote and Babe Paley.Babe made the mistake of confiding in Truman and when he wrote about the secrets.....they were friends no more. Throughout the story though, the descriptions and stories of the 'in' crowd in the Manhattan of that time, are fascinating.
Then we have Ashley Bell by Dean Koontz. I don't think I have to tell you all what his books are like. He has been popular for horror/thrillers for many many years. This story features Bibi Blair who at 22 is diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. Two days later, she has been cured and is convinced she was cured because she is suppose to save someone named Ashley Bell. Her search to find Ashley Bell lead her to mystery and crime.
Next come short stories by Helen Ellis, American Housewife. All the stories have to do with American woman at home. What she reveals is not always pretty, is often humorous and sometimes scary. Her stories are David Sedaris-like. Some of the titles are: What I Do All Day; The Wainscoting War; Dumpster Diving With the Stars and Southern Lady Code. Some reviewers have loved it and thought it hilarious while others have not cared for it. If you like Sedaris, give Ellis a try and see what you think.
OK - NOW - this is one I have on my list. I love Bill Bryson and have read everything he has written. I find his humor, my type of humor. His new title, The Road to Little Dribbling: Adventures of an American in Britain made my list as well as this list. The first book of his I read was Notes on a Small Island. It reported on a walk he took around England before moving back to the US with his wife. Well, he wrote several more books over here and then, several years ago, he moved back to England with his wife and children. This is a repeat at the walking travelogue. I can't wait. Everyone of his books had me laughing out loud.
Next we have Sally Hepworth's The Things We Keep. Hepworth is an Australian author who generally writes emotional stories - what might be defined as 'women's fiction'. I would compare her to Kristen Hannah or Emily Giffin. This story is about a woman with early-onset Alzheimer's who voluntarily moves into a residential facility. There she meets a man about the same age with a different form of dementia. They develop a relationship. There is a second story which takes place about 18 months later where a single mother becomes the cook at the facility and we meet her 7 year old daughter. We get to see both residents through new eyes. Very very touching - sad but also uplifting. I have this on my list also.
Jane K. Cleland's Ornaments of Death is on the list although it actually is out already. Hummm. Oh well - it is the 10th in the Josie Prescott Antiques Mystery series. Josie prepares for her annual Christmas Party and the arrival of a relative. After the party, Ian, the cousin, goes missing with two valuable seventeenth century miniatures. Cleland writes gentle, cozy, mysteries so you know that Josie must investigate.
Then we have Ian Rankin who writes police procedurals with a strong sense of place (Scotland)
. If you read Denise Mina or George Pelacanos - you might give Rankin a try. Even Dogs in the Wild is the 20th in the Inspector Rebus series. Rebus is now retired but he gets called into a crime being investigated by Siobhan Clarke - the murder of a former Lord Advocate. Also involved is a potshot taken at Rebus' nemesis - Big Ger Cafferty - a semi retired gangster. Rebus is the only person Cafferty will trust. The plot is complex but the dialogue filled with one lines is both menacing and a dark humor. Rebus has his fans for his hilarious one liners and his well earned wisdom.
Lastly is another one that I am waiting for - What She Knew by Gilly Macmillan. This one is also already out and Macmillan is a debut author but the plot sounds great. Rachel Jenner is recently divorced and she and her eight year old son, Ben, are walking in the park. After running ahead, he disappears. Rachel is distraught. Days pass with no word or sign.Eventually, even Rachel becomes a suspect. Where is Ben?!? Reviewers say it is gripping, suspenseful and hard to put down. Sounds really good!
Hope you find something tempting above. Some January some December but if they sound good - who cares. Enjoy.
Thursday, December 3, 2015
Not Too Many Big Names This Month
I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday and have started your holiday shopping. I, in fact, have only done the shopping for the grandchild but....that is why gift cards come in handy for the others. OK - when you start out looking at who is coming out with books this month - and you have trouble finding A list author's - you realize that maybe some of the others might be ready to move up. Let's see.
The only real blockbuster name for January is Stuart Woods. He has Scandalous Behavior coming out on January 12. This is the 36th in the Stone Barrington series. Stone, weary from all of his adventures, goes to a quiet English country town. However, if there is one thing we all know, it is that it won't be quiet for long.
Jeff Abbott might be ready to move up with his Sam Capra series. He has The First Order coming out on January 5. I read Abbott back in 1994 when he wrote almost cozy mysteries about Jordan Poteet. His last one in this series was published in 1996 with a suggestion from his publisher that he turn toward harder mysteries. Since then he has gone through mysteries to suspense to almost adventure suspense with the Sam Capra series. This series reads like Robert Ludlum's Bourne series or Vince Flynn's. work. Sam is an ex-CIA agent who owns a bar in Miami. He watched his brother be executed by extremists in an online video but was he really? Apparently not, and when Sam discovers his brother is plotting a murder - Sam needs to stop him.
Alafair Burke has The Ex coming out on January 26. Burke is an interesting person. She graduated from Stanford Law School, was the assistant district attorney for Portland, Oregon and is now a Professor of Law at Hofstra University in NY. Quite a background for the author of legal thrillers. Her work has been compared to Lisa Scottoline, Lisa Fairstein and Phillip Margolin. This story has a top criminal defense lawyer, Olivia Randall, defending an ex-fiancee, Jack Harris, who is being charged with a triple murder. This could be Burke's breakout - some reviewers say it is better than Grisham.
Tim Dorsey has Coconut Cowboy also coming out on January 26. I love the Serge A. Storms series and this is the 19th one. Storms is a lovable serial killer that only kills the people who really need to be kills. Kind of like a happy Dexter. His cohort, Coleman, is a drug addled, happy go lucky, laid back to the extreme, type of guy. They decide on a motorcycle tour where one towns speed trap leads them to uncover unbridled corruption. Oh oh - Storms knows how to handle that. No one writes like Dorsey - well perhaps Dave Barry a little but Barry is more preachy about things than Dorsey. Dorsey is straight out humor.
The Bitter Season by Tami Hoag comes out on January 12. If I was going to compare Hoag to any other authors, it would probably be Lisa Gardner or maybe Tess Gerritsen. This one brings back Nikki Liska and Sam Kovac, the fifth in the series, although Nikki is now working on cold cases so she can spend more time with her sons. They both miss each other - Nikki because of the boredom of her new case and Sam because of the stress of training a new partner on a double murder investigation. Strangely and gradually, their two cases are drawn together. Hoag's work is really plot driven and fast paced. If you try this one, you will be in for a ride.
OK - I'll be back with more of these 'second tier' authors next week. Hope you find something here that tempts you.
The only real blockbuster name for January is Stuart Woods. He has Scandalous Behavior coming out on January 12. This is the 36th in the Stone Barrington series. Stone, weary from all of his adventures, goes to a quiet English country town. However, if there is one thing we all know, it is that it won't be quiet for long.
Jeff Abbott might be ready to move up with his Sam Capra series. He has The First Order coming out on January 5. I read Abbott back in 1994 when he wrote almost cozy mysteries about Jordan Poteet. His last one in this series was published in 1996 with a suggestion from his publisher that he turn toward harder mysteries. Since then he has gone through mysteries to suspense to almost adventure suspense with the Sam Capra series. This series reads like Robert Ludlum's Bourne series or Vince Flynn's. work. Sam is an ex-CIA agent who owns a bar in Miami. He watched his brother be executed by extremists in an online video but was he really? Apparently not, and when Sam discovers his brother is plotting a murder - Sam needs to stop him.
Alafair Burke has The Ex coming out on January 26. Burke is an interesting person. She graduated from Stanford Law School, was the assistant district attorney for Portland, Oregon and is now a Professor of Law at Hofstra University in NY. Quite a background for the author of legal thrillers. Her work has been compared to Lisa Scottoline, Lisa Fairstein and Phillip Margolin. This story has a top criminal defense lawyer, Olivia Randall, defending an ex-fiancee, Jack Harris, who is being charged with a triple murder. This could be Burke's breakout - some reviewers say it is better than Grisham.
Tim Dorsey has Coconut Cowboy also coming out on January 26. I love the Serge A. Storms series and this is the 19th one. Storms is a lovable serial killer that only kills the people who really need to be kills. Kind of like a happy Dexter. His cohort, Coleman, is a drug addled, happy go lucky, laid back to the extreme, type of guy. They decide on a motorcycle tour where one towns speed trap leads them to uncover unbridled corruption. Oh oh - Storms knows how to handle that. No one writes like Dorsey - well perhaps Dave Barry a little but Barry is more preachy about things than Dorsey. Dorsey is straight out humor.
The Bitter Season by Tami Hoag comes out on January 12. If I was going to compare Hoag to any other authors, it would probably be Lisa Gardner or maybe Tess Gerritsen. This one brings back Nikki Liska and Sam Kovac, the fifth in the series, although Nikki is now working on cold cases so she can spend more time with her sons. They both miss each other - Nikki because of the boredom of her new case and Sam because of the stress of training a new partner on a double murder investigation. Strangely and gradually, their two cases are drawn together. Hoag's work is really plot driven and fast paced. If you try this one, you will be in for a ride.
OK - I'll be back with more of these 'second tier' authors next week. Hope you find something here that tempts you.
Friday, November 20, 2015
Continuing with December Titles
There are still several titles out in December which seem to be interesting. Because of the holiday next week, I probably will not be posting. Therefore, I will have moved on to January titles in my next post. How could I ignore these?
Christopher Buckley, who's been called "the funniest writer in the English language" by Tom Wolfe has a change of pace, The Relic Master, coming out on December 8. Buckley usually writes political satire but here he has penned a work of historical fiction which is still funny. Dismas is a relic hunter who works for some high ranking patrons. He had developed a reputation as finding genuine things but then he discovers his banker has been embezzling his funds and his friend talks him into a scheme to sell a fake shroud. When his scheme is revealed, he is forced to tray and steal the 'Shroud of Chambery - later known as the Shroud of Turin. Will he find a way and live to tell about it?
Marina Fiorato has Beatrice and Benedick coming out on December 1. Fiorato is a Shakespearean scholar who take two characters from Much Ado About Nothing and imagines who they met and how they began their war of words. In 1588, Beatrice comes to her uncle's home to be a companion to his daughter. Also, Don Pedro is visiting for a month with his regiment and the young soldier Benedick. Benedick and Beatrice meet and fall in love but then are separated by natural disaster and misunderstanding. 10 years later, they meet again in Shakespeare's play. Said to be an entertaining but dark historical romance.
If you are a coffee fan, you might want to know that Cleo Coyle has the 15th in her Coffeehouse series, Dead To The Last Drop coming out on December 1. Clare is in DC and meets the First Lady and her daughter. However, when a State Department employee collapses in her coffeehouse and the President's daughter goes missing, Clare ends up as an enemy of the state and is on the run with her NYPD detective boyfriend. Can they find out the truth before they are captured?
Thomas Perry has Forty Thieves coming out on December 15. Sid and Ronnie Abel are ex-LA cops that now run their own private investigation firm. They are hired to look into a murder from one year ago that has not been solved. The Hoyt's are two assassins who have been paid to kill the Abels because someone does not want the murder to be solved. The Forty thieves are a European jewelry theft group who have expanded their operation to California. How do these all come together? Do the Abels survive? Reviewers have really enjoyed this well written mystery. He writes fast paced suspense that is tightly plotted and if you like John Sandford or Edna Buchanan, give him a try.
Tipping Point by David Poyer comes out on December 8. Poyer, a U.S. Naval Academy graduate, writes naval based action.-suspense with a series featuring Dan Lanson. In this work, Dan's experiencing political pressure on his career for some past decisions and commanding the first anti ballistic missile capable cruiser which is sailing off East Africa. When tensions between India and Pakistan rise to the point of nuclear war, Lanson takes the ship to the region. Suddenly the ship is targeted by an unknown predator who is assaulting female crew members. This action-packed, utterly authentic story of duty, war and the stress of command is highly reviewed. If you like Tom Clancy or Larry Bond - try some of David Poyer.
Lastly, Andrew Grant has the first book of a series, False Positive, coming out on December 29. Detective Cooper Devereaux is the main hero, a flawed police detective who has been suspended multiple times for excessive force. Devereaux is called in particularly to find a missing 6 year old child. Devereaux, himself had been a foster child and is haunted by his experience. Questions about Devereaux arise when his Porsche, penthouse and summer cabin have people questioning his motives. He is assigned a temporary partner, Jan Loflin, who is just as tough. Reviewers have praised this fast paced, intricately plotted, twisty and totally unpredictable mystery. If you like Dennis Lehane, George Pelecanos or Martin Cruz Smith. Give Andrew Grant a try.
OK - I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving and that you find something that looks interesting for you.
Christopher Buckley, who's been called "the funniest writer in the English language" by Tom Wolfe has a change of pace, The Relic Master, coming out on December 8. Buckley usually writes political satire but here he has penned a work of historical fiction which is still funny. Dismas is a relic hunter who works for some high ranking patrons. He had developed a reputation as finding genuine things but then he discovers his banker has been embezzling his funds and his friend talks him into a scheme to sell a fake shroud. When his scheme is revealed, he is forced to tray and steal the 'Shroud of Chambery - later known as the Shroud of Turin. Will he find a way and live to tell about it?
Marina Fiorato has Beatrice and Benedick coming out on December 1. Fiorato is a Shakespearean scholar who take two characters from Much Ado About Nothing and imagines who they met and how they began their war of words. In 1588, Beatrice comes to her uncle's home to be a companion to his daughter. Also, Don Pedro is visiting for a month with his regiment and the young soldier Benedick. Benedick and Beatrice meet and fall in love but then are separated by natural disaster and misunderstanding. 10 years later, they meet again in Shakespeare's play. Said to be an entertaining but dark historical romance.
If you are a coffee fan, you might want to know that Cleo Coyle has the 15th in her Coffeehouse series, Dead To The Last Drop coming out on December 1. Clare is in DC and meets the First Lady and her daughter. However, when a State Department employee collapses in her coffeehouse and the President's daughter goes missing, Clare ends up as an enemy of the state and is on the run with her NYPD detective boyfriend. Can they find out the truth before they are captured?
Thomas Perry has Forty Thieves coming out on December 15. Sid and Ronnie Abel are ex-LA cops that now run their own private investigation firm. They are hired to look into a murder from one year ago that has not been solved. The Hoyt's are two assassins who have been paid to kill the Abels because someone does not want the murder to be solved. The Forty thieves are a European jewelry theft group who have expanded their operation to California. How do these all come together? Do the Abels survive? Reviewers have really enjoyed this well written mystery. He writes fast paced suspense that is tightly plotted and if you like John Sandford or Edna Buchanan, give him a try.
Tipping Point by David Poyer comes out on December 8. Poyer, a U.S. Naval Academy graduate, writes naval based action.-suspense with a series featuring Dan Lanson. In this work, Dan's experiencing political pressure on his career for some past decisions and commanding the first anti ballistic missile capable cruiser which is sailing off East Africa. When tensions between India and Pakistan rise to the point of nuclear war, Lanson takes the ship to the region. Suddenly the ship is targeted by an unknown predator who is assaulting female crew members. This action-packed, utterly authentic story of duty, war and the stress of command is highly reviewed. If you like Tom Clancy or Larry Bond - try some of David Poyer.
Lastly, Andrew Grant has the first book of a series, False Positive, coming out on December 29. Detective Cooper Devereaux is the main hero, a flawed police detective who has been suspended multiple times for excessive force. Devereaux is called in particularly to find a missing 6 year old child. Devereaux, himself had been a foster child and is haunted by his experience. Questions about Devereaux arise when his Porsche, penthouse and summer cabin have people questioning his motives. He is assigned a temporary partner, Jan Loflin, who is just as tough. Reviewers have praised this fast paced, intricately plotted, twisty and totally unpredictable mystery. If you like Dennis Lehane, George Pelecanos or Martin Cruz Smith. Give Andrew Grant a try.
OK - I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving and that you find something that looks interesting for you.
Wednesday, November 18, 2015
Kirkus Best Popular Fiction of 2015
This is the time when many of the 'Best of 2015' lists are published. Kirkus is a monthly magazine that is dedicated to reviewing books before they are published. They get together with all their reviewers and come up with several different lists. What I have included below are the Top 10 Popular Fiction Titles from 2015. All are available at the library. Here we go.
Spy Games by Adam Brookes. This was Brookes' second published novel. He writes spy fiction. His stories are fast paced and intricately plotted. Both titles feature journalist Philip Mangan. Mangan's cover was blown in Brookes's work and he is hiding in Ethiopia from Chinese agents. Unfortunately, a terrorist bombing puts in in the middle of a cyclone. If you like up to date spy fiction, give this one a try. Both of his titles (the first is Night Heron) have been very highly reviewed.
The Stranger by Harlan Coben. Coben is my favorite author so I talk about him a lot. His characters are ordinary people placed in extraordinary circumstances. The stories are fast paced and suspenseful. In this story, Adam Price has a good job, a beautiful wife and two sons when a stranger comes and whispers in his ear that Corinne, his wife, faked their first pregnancy. When confronted by Adam, Corinne disappears leaving Adam a text to take care of the children but not to try to contact her. Of course, he has to try. Did he ever really know her?
X by Sue Grafton. Grafton's 24th in the series and she is only up to 1989. David Baldacci says she has "created in Kinsey Milhone one of the greatest fictional detectives of all time. In this entry a serial killer is doing his thing and leaving no trace of his crime. Kinsey quickly identified him but can she prove it before she becomes his next victim.
The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins. This is Hawkins' first thriller and she really got her money's worth. It has remained on the best seller list for months and months. Really, I thought I would like it but when I started it ...I found the lead person so unattractive I could not finish it. Anyway, Rachel Watson is a divorced alcoholic who still loves her ex-husband. She rides a train to work each day and has fantasied about a particular couple who she always sees. When she loses her job and the female turns up missing, she is drawn to investigate what happened. Suspenseful and compelling but not compelling enough for me to finish (of course there were lots of people who told me what happened.)
The Nature of the Beast by Louise Penny. Penny is a perennial award winner. Her pace is leisurely, her characters introspective and the mysteries quirky and complex. I think I like her for her descriptiveness. This is the 11th in the series of Armand Gamache, former head of homicide at the Surete du Quebec. Gamache has moved to the central place in the series, Three Pines, and is learning to enjoy retirement. In town, there is a 9 year old boy who is known for crying wolf - aliens in the forest, dinosaurs, etc. When he turns up missing - the town's people wonder if one of this stories was true.
The Blondes by Emily Schultz. Schultz's fiction has flawed characters, fast pace and are suspenseful with perhaps some satire thrown in. Hazel Hayes (no relation to me) discovers she is pregnant by her married professor on her first day in New York City. She also sees a business woman drag a young girl to her death and then she dies her hair orange. An infection is running rampant and blondes (natural, dyed, or highlighted) are filling the streets, killing people. Hazel escapes across the border back to Canada looking for the professor's wife. This may sound like a B-movie but on reading appears to be a wry political commentary.
Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter. Slaughter's stories are suspenseful, character-driven and gritty. She has written a popular series but this is her second stand alone. In this, a teenage girl disappeared 20 years ago and her body was never found. That act destroyed her family. 20 years later, Lydia is a single mother estranged from her sister Claire, due to accusations Lydia made against Claire's wealthy husband Paul. Paul has been murdered and Claire has found snuff films featuring the torture and murder of young girls on his computer. Lydia and Claire come together to determine just what kind of man Paul was.
Dietland by Sarai Walker. This is Walker's debut novel and could be described as funny, moving mainstream fiction. Plum Kettle is a advice columnist for a popular teen girls' magazine but she is biding her time till she saves up for weight-loss surgery so her 'real life' can begin. She finds herself involved with a dangerous guerrilla group called "Jennifer" that is beginning to terrorize a world that mistreats women.
Along the Infinite Sea by Beatriz Williams. Williams writes historical, character driven fiction with a strong sense of place. I am a sucker for a strong sense of place so this is a must read for me. The story takes place in 1966 focused on Pepper Schuyler. She is on the run from a powerful politician trying to protect her unborn child. She sells her newly restored vintage Mercedes at auction and the new owner takes Pepper under her wing. Then she discovers the provenance of the car while the father of her unborn baby tracks to down to a remote town in coastal Georgia.
OK - there you go. The 10 top works of popular fiction in 2015. There are some good ones up there. Hope you find something that interests you.
Spy Games by Adam Brookes. This was Brookes' second published novel. He writes spy fiction. His stories are fast paced and intricately plotted. Both titles feature journalist Philip Mangan. Mangan's cover was blown in Brookes's work and he is hiding in Ethiopia from Chinese agents. Unfortunately, a terrorist bombing puts in in the middle of a cyclone. If you like up to date spy fiction, give this one a try. Both of his titles (the first is Night Heron) have been very highly reviewed.
The Stranger by Harlan Coben. Coben is my favorite author so I talk about him a lot. His characters are ordinary people placed in extraordinary circumstances. The stories are fast paced and suspenseful. In this story, Adam Price has a good job, a beautiful wife and two sons when a stranger comes and whispers in his ear that Corinne, his wife, faked their first pregnancy. When confronted by Adam, Corinne disappears leaving Adam a text to take care of the children but not to try to contact her. Of course, he has to try. Did he ever really know her?
X by Sue Grafton. Grafton's 24th in the series and she is only up to 1989. David Baldacci says she has "created in Kinsey Milhone one of the greatest fictional detectives of all time. In this entry a serial killer is doing his thing and leaving no trace of his crime. Kinsey quickly identified him but can she prove it before she becomes his next victim.
The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins. This is Hawkins' first thriller and she really got her money's worth. It has remained on the best seller list for months and months. Really, I thought I would like it but when I started it ...I found the lead person so unattractive I could not finish it. Anyway, Rachel Watson is a divorced alcoholic who still loves her ex-husband. She rides a train to work each day and has fantasied about a particular couple who she always sees. When she loses her job and the female turns up missing, she is drawn to investigate what happened. Suspenseful and compelling but not compelling enough for me to finish (of course there were lots of people who told me what happened.)
The Nature of the Beast by Louise Penny. Penny is a perennial award winner. Her pace is leisurely, her characters introspective and the mysteries quirky and complex. I think I like her for her descriptiveness. This is the 11th in the series of Armand Gamache, former head of homicide at the Surete du Quebec. Gamache has moved to the central place in the series, Three Pines, and is learning to enjoy retirement. In town, there is a 9 year old boy who is known for crying wolf - aliens in the forest, dinosaurs, etc. When he turns up missing - the town's people wonder if one of this stories was true.
The Blondes by Emily Schultz. Schultz's fiction has flawed characters, fast pace and are suspenseful with perhaps some satire thrown in. Hazel Hayes (no relation to me) discovers she is pregnant by her married professor on her first day in New York City. She also sees a business woman drag a young girl to her death and then she dies her hair orange. An infection is running rampant and blondes (natural, dyed, or highlighted) are filling the streets, killing people. Hazel escapes across the border back to Canada looking for the professor's wife. This may sound like a B-movie but on reading appears to be a wry political commentary.
Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter. Slaughter's stories are suspenseful, character-driven and gritty. She has written a popular series but this is her second stand alone. In this, a teenage girl disappeared 20 years ago and her body was never found. That act destroyed her family. 20 years later, Lydia is a single mother estranged from her sister Claire, due to accusations Lydia made against Claire's wealthy husband Paul. Paul has been murdered and Claire has found snuff films featuring the torture and murder of young girls on his computer. Lydia and Claire come together to determine just what kind of man Paul was.
Dietland by Sarai Walker. This is Walker's debut novel and could be described as funny, moving mainstream fiction. Plum Kettle is a advice columnist for a popular teen girls' magazine but she is biding her time till she saves up for weight-loss surgery so her 'real life' can begin. She finds herself involved with a dangerous guerrilla group called "Jennifer" that is beginning to terrorize a world that mistreats women.
My Sunshine Away by M. O. Walsh. This is Walsh's debut work so it's kind of hard to say he writes a certain age. What we can say is that this is a coming of age story with flawed characters and a touch of Southern Gothic thrown in. I heard Walsh interviewed and he said that the title came from the traditional song " You are my sunshine, my only sunshine". What I always thought of as a happy song, he thought of as threatening because of the last verse "I'll always love you and make you happy If you will only say the same But if you leave me to love another, You'll regret it all one day." I am not even sure I knew that verse existed. In this work, Walsh describes an upper class Baton Rouge neighborhood in 1989. Everything changes when a 15 year old beautiful golden private school track star was brutally raped. Four suspects emerge, including the nameless narrator, who leaves the reading wondering how reliable the information is.
Along the Infinite Sea by Beatriz Williams. Williams writes historical, character driven fiction with a strong sense of place. I am a sucker for a strong sense of place so this is a must read for me. The story takes place in 1966 focused on Pepper Schuyler. She is on the run from a powerful politician trying to protect her unborn child. She sells her newly restored vintage Mercedes at auction and the new owner takes Pepper under her wing. Then she discovers the provenance of the car while the father of her unborn baby tracks to down to a remote town in coastal Georgia.
OK - there you go. The 10 top works of popular fiction in 2015. There are some good ones up there. Hope you find something that interests you.
Thursday, November 12, 2015
More December Titles
Well I am back from my sister's son's wedding. It was in Charleston, SC and I have to say that Charleston is one of the most beautiful cities for weddings. Seems they cater to that group in hopes of drawing 'destination weddings'. It was impressive. And it didn't even rain until the next day so all was perfect for the occasion. Now that I have returned, I will get back to the offerings in December.
Susan Cox is a former South Florida journalist who also lived and worked in San Francisco for more than 20 years before returning to South Florida. She won the Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel award and her debut mystery, The Man on the Washing Machine will be published on December 15. Theophania Bogart, a former party girl and society photographer, flees to San Francisco after a high-profile family tragedy. Suddenly, she becomes somehow involved in a series of murders and she struggles to find the killer before she becomes the next victim. Said to be a good read for people who like Evanovich.
Denise Mina has Blood, Salt, Water: An Alex Morrow Novel coming out on December 1. If you haven't read Mina before, she is a Scottish novelist whose books tend to be dark and moody. The stories are intricately plotted but the crimes can be very violent and her heroes will be flawed. For instance, the star of this title, Detective Sergeant Alex Morrow is a smart, sad woman with a bad marriage and a dead son. In this, the sixth in the series, Roxanna Fuentecilla has been under surveillance by the police as she is suspected of laundering money. Roxanna is reported missing and her cellphone records say she was in Helensburgh. Morrow and her partner Detective Constable Howard McGrain pretend to be Missing Persons officers and go to Helensburgh to investigate. When the dead body that surfaces in a local lake turns out to be someone else, Alex realizes there is more going on that she realized.
James Rollins has The Bone Labyrinth: A Sigma Force Novel coming out on December 15. Rollins books are fast paced and suspenseful. Kind of a blend of adventure and suspense and sort of like Clive Cussler but perhaps with a touch more history and science. In this title, Commander Gray Pierce is asked to investigate an attack on a group of scientists exploring a massive cave in the mountains of Croatia. They are investigating the origin of human intelligence before several of them are kidnapped. There are several parallel plots involving ancient petroglyphs, mysterious keys and underground cities. Can Pierce find the answer?
Next comes Brad Taylor and his latest, The Forgotten Soldier: A Pike Logan Thriller, which arrives on December 29. Taylor's works are fast-paced political thrillers which follow an elite team of American agents as the travel across the globe on action-packed missions. His works are often compared to Vince Flynn, Daniel Silva or Brad Thor. In this, the ninth of the Pike Logan series, a Special Forces soldier is killed in Afghanistan and because a high government official is involved, the US wants to sweep it under a rug. One Taskforce member happens to be the murdered soldier's brother and he goes out for revenge. Pike is charged with finding him and stopping what could lead to a catastrophe. He must choose between friendship and loyalty to his country.
Lastly, we have Joel C. Rosenberg's The First Hostage which arrives on December 29. Rosenberg worked in a variety of jobs prior to becoming an author - he was a political consultant, a communications expert and a presidential campaign strategist. Now he is the author of political thrillers and political nonfiction and draws on his knowledge about terrorism and the Middle East. He is an evangelical Christian so his suspense titles are Christian suspense. They are however, violent and gritty. In this first in a series, J.B. Collins is a New York Times foreign correspondent when he hears rumors that ISIS has captured some chemical weapons inside Syria. When he follows some leads, he discovers and reports from the scene of an attack by terrorists in Amman, Jordan that the leaders of Israel and Palestine are critically injured, Jordan's king is fighting for his life and the U.S. President is missing. The world is in chaos and Collins tries to keep the world informed while searching for the President.
Hope there is something in these 5 that strikes you as interesting. We have more to cover next week.
Susan Cox is a former South Florida journalist who also lived and worked in San Francisco for more than 20 years before returning to South Florida. She won the Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel award and her debut mystery, The Man on the Washing Machine will be published on December 15. Theophania Bogart, a former party girl and society photographer, flees to San Francisco after a high-profile family tragedy. Suddenly, she becomes somehow involved in a series of murders and she struggles to find the killer before she becomes the next victim. Said to be a good read for people who like Evanovich.
Denise Mina has Blood, Salt, Water: An Alex Morrow Novel coming out on December 1. If you haven't read Mina before, she is a Scottish novelist whose books tend to be dark and moody. The stories are intricately plotted but the crimes can be very violent and her heroes will be flawed. For instance, the star of this title, Detective Sergeant Alex Morrow is a smart, sad woman with a bad marriage and a dead son. In this, the sixth in the series, Roxanna Fuentecilla has been under surveillance by the police as she is suspected of laundering money. Roxanna is reported missing and her cellphone records say she was in Helensburgh. Morrow and her partner Detective Constable Howard McGrain pretend to be Missing Persons officers and go to Helensburgh to investigate. When the dead body that surfaces in a local lake turns out to be someone else, Alex realizes there is more going on that she realized.
James Rollins has The Bone Labyrinth: A Sigma Force Novel coming out on December 15. Rollins books are fast paced and suspenseful. Kind of a blend of adventure and suspense and sort of like Clive Cussler but perhaps with a touch more history and science. In this title, Commander Gray Pierce is asked to investigate an attack on a group of scientists exploring a massive cave in the mountains of Croatia. They are investigating the origin of human intelligence before several of them are kidnapped. There are several parallel plots involving ancient petroglyphs, mysterious keys and underground cities. Can Pierce find the answer?
Next comes Brad Taylor and his latest, The Forgotten Soldier: A Pike Logan Thriller, which arrives on December 29. Taylor's works are fast-paced political thrillers which follow an elite team of American agents as the travel across the globe on action-packed missions. His works are often compared to Vince Flynn, Daniel Silva or Brad Thor. In this, the ninth of the Pike Logan series, a Special Forces soldier is killed in Afghanistan and because a high government official is involved, the US wants to sweep it under a rug. One Taskforce member happens to be the murdered soldier's brother and he goes out for revenge. Pike is charged with finding him and stopping what could lead to a catastrophe. He must choose between friendship and loyalty to his country.
Lastly, we have Joel C. Rosenberg's The First Hostage which arrives on December 29. Rosenberg worked in a variety of jobs prior to becoming an author - he was a political consultant, a communications expert and a presidential campaign strategist. Now he is the author of political thrillers and political nonfiction and draws on his knowledge about terrorism and the Middle East. He is an evangelical Christian so his suspense titles are Christian suspense. They are however, violent and gritty. In this first in a series, J.B. Collins is a New York Times foreign correspondent when he hears rumors that ISIS has captured some chemical weapons inside Syria. When he follows some leads, he discovers and reports from the scene of an attack by terrorists in Amman, Jordan that the leaders of Israel and Palestine are critically injured, Jordan's king is fighting for his life and the U.S. President is missing. The world is in chaos and Collins tries to keep the world informed while searching for the President.
Hope there is something in these 5 that strikes you as interesting. We have more to cover next week.
Wednesday, November 4, 2015
December Titles
This post is early and it will be a quick one I am afraid. I am on my way out of town but wanted to get started on December's entries that perhaps don't have the name value yet.
First, is Ann Cleeves and Harbour Street: A Vera Stanhope Mystery which comes out on Dec 1. Cleeves writes British police procedural and this series is set in northeast England. Her story lines are intricately plotted and her writing is compelling. This series has been made into a very popular Netflix television series. Vera Stanhope is a Detective Inspector who by her own account is fat, ugly, and drinks too much. She has a sharp tongue and an abrasive manner. This title is the sixth title in the series. In this work, an older woman is stabbed and killed on a crowded train just before the holiday season. No one has seen it happen. Vera and her partner Detective Joe Ashworth start the investigation when another woman dies. The trail leads to Harbour Street where no one wants to talk. Cleeves is an award winning author who deserves a bigger following in the states.
Christopher Fowler is another British author who deserves a greater following in the US. He has Bryant & May and the Burning Man coming out on December 15. The Bryant and May mysteries are historical (beginning during the Blitz and ending in 21st century London) with a Gothic feel and really seemingly impossible crimes. Both Bryant and May are older members of Scotland Yard's Peculiar Crimes Unit and in this work, they are following leads to determine who is setting men on fire. This work is the 12th in the series. It is darkly funny (do those two words really belong together?) and suspenseful.
Now we have Jenn McKinlay who has moved into hardback from paperback for A Likely Story, the sixth in the Library Lover's Mystery series. McKinlay writes mysteries with a strong sense of place - usually cozy mysteries. This series features Lindsey Norris, the director of the Briar Creek Public Library. Norris is an amateur sleuth and the town has lots of murders to investigate. In this work, Lindsey must solve a murder and a missing person's case involving two reclusive brothers.How could I not love a series called 'Library Lover's' and McKinlay was a librarian too so she knows what she is talking about from a library point of view.
One more to keep you busy while I am gone, Douglas Schofield's debut mystery, Time of Departure which comes out on December 1. Even critics who did not enjoy the work say that Schofield can write but the fans definitely outweigh the one or two who did not care for it. This mystery is intricately plotted and suspenseful. The lead is a strong female character. Claire Talbot, a Florida state prosecutor, is promoted to Felony Division chief. Many do not trust her because of her youth and gender. When a highway construction crew unearths two skeletons, she must reopen the investigation into abductions that took place before she was born. This work had at least 6 five star reviews to every 2 or 3 star review. Reviewers stayed up late to finish it and many said it is impossible to put down.
OK - only 4 to choose from this week. I'll do better when I am back - I promise. See if one of these will tide you over.
First, is Ann Cleeves and Harbour Street: A Vera Stanhope Mystery which comes out on Dec 1. Cleeves writes British police procedural and this series is set in northeast England. Her story lines are intricately plotted and her writing is compelling. This series has been made into a very popular Netflix television series. Vera Stanhope is a Detective Inspector who by her own account is fat, ugly, and drinks too much. She has a sharp tongue and an abrasive manner. This title is the sixth title in the series. In this work, an older woman is stabbed and killed on a crowded train just before the holiday season. No one has seen it happen. Vera and her partner Detective Joe Ashworth start the investigation when another woman dies. The trail leads to Harbour Street where no one wants to talk. Cleeves is an award winning author who deserves a bigger following in the states.
Christopher Fowler is another British author who deserves a greater following in the US. He has Bryant & May and the Burning Man coming out on December 15. The Bryant and May mysteries are historical (beginning during the Blitz and ending in 21st century London) with a Gothic feel and really seemingly impossible crimes. Both Bryant and May are older members of Scotland Yard's Peculiar Crimes Unit and in this work, they are following leads to determine who is setting men on fire. This work is the 12th in the series. It is darkly funny (do those two words really belong together?) and suspenseful.
Now we have Jenn McKinlay who has moved into hardback from paperback for A Likely Story, the sixth in the Library Lover's Mystery series. McKinlay writes mysteries with a strong sense of place - usually cozy mysteries. This series features Lindsey Norris, the director of the Briar Creek Public Library. Norris is an amateur sleuth and the town has lots of murders to investigate. In this work, Lindsey must solve a murder and a missing person's case involving two reclusive brothers.How could I not love a series called 'Library Lover's' and McKinlay was a librarian too so she knows what she is talking about from a library point of view.
One more to keep you busy while I am gone, Douglas Schofield's debut mystery, Time of Departure which comes out on December 1. Even critics who did not enjoy the work say that Schofield can write but the fans definitely outweigh the one or two who did not care for it. This mystery is intricately plotted and suspenseful. The lead is a strong female character. Claire Talbot, a Florida state prosecutor, is promoted to Felony Division chief. Many do not trust her because of her youth and gender. When a highway construction crew unearths two skeletons, she must reopen the investigation into abductions that took place before she was born. This work had at least 6 five star reviews to every 2 or 3 star review. Reviewers stayed up late to finish it and many said it is impossible to put down.
OK - only 4 to choose from this week. I'll do better when I am back - I promise. See if one of these will tide you over.
Saturday, October 31, 2015
Starting December Titles
OK - here we go with December titles - not usually a big publishing month. There are several titles coming from fairly well known authors though so I will start with those.
Dean Koontz as Ashley Bell coming out on December 8. Koontz has been writing for a while. I have read quite a few of his works but his last few titles have not grabbed me. This one has a very interesting premise but many of the readers are drastically divided (some loving it/some hating it). Bibi Blair is a 22 year old author who is diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. She slips into a coma and awakes completely cured and convinced that she was spared so she could save Ashley Bell. Who is Ashley Bell? Bibi doesn't know but takes on this new mission with gusto. Some reviews have praised it saying it was lyrical and suspenseful and other found it repetitive and slow. From the comments I've read, it's hard to believe they were reading the same book but see what you think.
Mark Greaney is not that well known but he was Tom Clancy's co-author and is taking over the Jack Ryan series. Tom Clancy Commander-in-Chief comes out on December 1. The Russian president, Valeri Volodin, tries deflecting the state of the Russian economy but creating chaos in the world at large and lining up countries against the US. President Jack Ryan understands the hand being the chaos and works hard to cut him off. Always very popular
Danielle Steel has Precious Gifts coming out on December 1. This is her fourth new hardcover in 2015. She either had these stories in her head for a long time or is able to write really fast. Peter Parker left his second wife and three daughters to leave a carefree single life. His daughters are very different people but they are all working to succeed in life. Parker dies and leaves them all individual bequests that are designed to free them to pursue their dreams. He left his wife a secret from his past that leaves his wife hunting the original owner. If you read Steel, then this will be a must read.
James Lee Burke has House of the Rising Sun arriving on December 1. Burke has always been slotted with the mystery-suspense authors in my mind because of the Robicheaux series, this work though seems more in the line of historical or maybe even literary. The main character, Texas Ranger Hackberry Holland, is trying to meet up with his son, Ishmael, to reconcile with him. Ismael is with the U. S Army. On the way, he has a bloody clash that leaves 4 Mexicans dead and Hackberry on the run with an artifact that is reported to be the Holy Grail. One description of it says "From it's opening scene in revolutionary Mexico to the Battle of the Marne in 1918, and on to the bordellos and saloons of San Antonio during the reign of the Hole in the Wall Gang,....is an epic tale of love, loss, betrayal, vengeance and retribution.". That doesn't sound like a mystery to me but it sounds pretty good.
OK - next and last is some romantic suspense with Jayne Ann Krentz. Secret Sisters comes out on December 8. Madeline and Daphne were once best friends but then Madeline was attacked at her grandmother's hotel and both girls moved away. 20 years later, when Madeline's grandmother dies, she comes back to the hotel. Both girls thought they knew what had happened to the original attacker but they were mistaken. The two must call on Jack Raynor, the security expert for the hotels and his brother, a technical wiz, to help figure out what is happening. Said to be a page turner with wonderful character development.
OK - that is it till next week. It will probably be early next week as I am headed out of town for a wedding. Besides, I am excited about possibly bringing you some authors you haven't read yet.
Dean Koontz as Ashley Bell coming out on December 8. Koontz has been writing for a while. I have read quite a few of his works but his last few titles have not grabbed me. This one has a very interesting premise but many of the readers are drastically divided (some loving it/some hating it). Bibi Blair is a 22 year old author who is diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. She slips into a coma and awakes completely cured and convinced that she was spared so she could save Ashley Bell. Who is Ashley Bell? Bibi doesn't know but takes on this new mission with gusto. Some reviews have praised it saying it was lyrical and suspenseful and other found it repetitive and slow. From the comments I've read, it's hard to believe they were reading the same book but see what you think.
Mark Greaney is not that well known but he was Tom Clancy's co-author and is taking over the Jack Ryan series. Tom Clancy Commander-in-Chief comes out on December 1. The Russian president, Valeri Volodin, tries deflecting the state of the Russian economy but creating chaos in the world at large and lining up countries against the US. President Jack Ryan understands the hand being the chaos and works hard to cut him off. Always very popular
Danielle Steel has Precious Gifts coming out on December 1. This is her fourth new hardcover in 2015. She either had these stories in her head for a long time or is able to write really fast. Peter Parker left his second wife and three daughters to leave a carefree single life. His daughters are very different people but they are all working to succeed in life. Parker dies and leaves them all individual bequests that are designed to free them to pursue their dreams. He left his wife a secret from his past that leaves his wife hunting the original owner. If you read Steel, then this will be a must read.
James Lee Burke has House of the Rising Sun arriving on December 1. Burke has always been slotted with the mystery-suspense authors in my mind because of the Robicheaux series, this work though seems more in the line of historical or maybe even literary. The main character, Texas Ranger Hackberry Holland, is trying to meet up with his son, Ishmael, to reconcile with him. Ismael is with the U. S Army. On the way, he has a bloody clash that leaves 4 Mexicans dead and Hackberry on the run with an artifact that is reported to be the Holy Grail. One description of it says "From it's opening scene in revolutionary Mexico to the Battle of the Marne in 1918, and on to the bordellos and saloons of San Antonio during the reign of the Hole in the Wall Gang,....is an epic tale of love, loss, betrayal, vengeance and retribution.". That doesn't sound like a mystery to me but it sounds pretty good.
OK - next and last is some romantic suspense with Jayne Ann Krentz. Secret Sisters comes out on December 8. Madeline and Daphne were once best friends but then Madeline was attacked at her grandmother's hotel and both girls moved away. 20 years later, when Madeline's grandmother dies, she comes back to the hotel. Both girls thought they knew what had happened to the original attacker but they were mistaken. The two must call on Jack Raynor, the security expert for the hotels and his brother, a technical wiz, to help figure out what is happening. Said to be a page turner with wonderful character development.
OK - that is it till next week. It will probably be early next week as I am headed out of town for a wedding. Besides, I am excited about possibly bringing you some authors you haven't read yet.
Thursday, October 22, 2015
The Last Week for November Books
There are a few more titles coming out in November that in my opinion, might be interesting. You can see if you agree.
Sally Andrews has Recipes for Love and Murder: A Tannie Maria Mystery coming out on November 3. Andrews lives in a nature preserve in South Africa. Her first novel is similar to an Alexander McCall Smith with cooking and recipes thrown in. In this, Tannie Maria is a widow (her abusive husband came to an early end) who lives peacefully on a small farm in South Africa. She also writes an advice and cooking column for the local paper. When an abused woman who sought her advice ends up dead, Tannie feels she must investigate.
It must be nice to be Ben Sanders. He is a New Zealand author who wrote 3 books were written while he was studying at a university and all became New Zealand bestsellers. He graduated and wrote the above - his American debut - which had its film rights sold to Warner Bros and Bradley Cooper is attached to star and produce. Talk about an early star!!!! This American debut - American Blood - comes out on November 17. Marshall Grade, an ex-NYPD officer who was put in witness protection after a botched undercover operation, is drawn into an investigation into a local woman named Alyce Ray. He is suppose to keep a low profile as the mob wants him dead and have hired a contract killer names Dallas Man to track him down and put him away. I can see Bradley Cooper playing Marshall - how about you?
Also on November 17, Kevin Barry has Beatlebon arriving. Barry is an award winning Irish author and this is his first big American push. It takes place in 1978 and features John Lennon who is escaping New York City to find peace and hopefully his creative edge again. Nine years before, he had purchased a small island off the coast of Ireland and he put himself in the hands of a shape-shifting driver to take him there. Is it any surprise that the trip is not direct? The writing is said to be magical.
Ethan Hawk - yes the movie star Ethan Hawk - is also an author. On November 10, his third novel is being published, Rules for a Knight. Cornish knight Sir Thomas Lemuel Hawke is going off to a battle and he does not expect to return. Before leaving, he writes a book for his children. Each chapter is about 20 virtues that will help them lead a noble life. For each virtue, there is a parable. Ethan Hawk's wife provided the artwork for the book. Said to be both inspirational by some and boring by others. I guess you have to be in the mood.
Lastly, on November 10, Mitch Albom brings us his next work, The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto. Albom is a songwriter and a lyricist - who knew that? He actually started out in the music field, later turning to journalism and then to fiction. This work tells the story of Frankie Presto, the greatest guitar player ever. He was abandoned as an infant and raised by a music teacher in Spain. When he was 9, he was sent to America to avoid the chaos of the Spanish war. At that time, his only possession was an old guitar and 6 magic blue strings. When he realizes that he can change lives with those magic strings, he vanishes but then reappears to change one last life. Reviewers say that this novel really sings.
OK-there are the last titles coming out in November. I think there should be something for almost anyone. See if there is one you like.
Sally Andrews has Recipes for Love and Murder: A Tannie Maria Mystery coming out on November 3. Andrews lives in a nature preserve in South Africa. Her first novel is similar to an Alexander McCall Smith with cooking and recipes thrown in. In this, Tannie Maria is a widow (her abusive husband came to an early end) who lives peacefully on a small farm in South Africa. She also writes an advice and cooking column for the local paper. When an abused woman who sought her advice ends up dead, Tannie feels she must investigate.
It must be nice to be Ben Sanders. He is a New Zealand author who wrote 3 books were written while he was studying at a university and all became New Zealand bestsellers. He graduated and wrote the above - his American debut - which had its film rights sold to Warner Bros and Bradley Cooper is attached to star and produce. Talk about an early star!!!! This American debut - American Blood - comes out on November 17. Marshall Grade, an ex-NYPD officer who was put in witness protection after a botched undercover operation, is drawn into an investigation into a local woman named Alyce Ray. He is suppose to keep a low profile as the mob wants him dead and have hired a contract killer names Dallas Man to track him down and put him away. I can see Bradley Cooper playing Marshall - how about you?
Also on November 17, Kevin Barry has Beatlebon arriving. Barry is an award winning Irish author and this is his first big American push. It takes place in 1978 and features John Lennon who is escaping New York City to find peace and hopefully his creative edge again. Nine years before, he had purchased a small island off the coast of Ireland and he put himself in the hands of a shape-shifting driver to take him there. Is it any surprise that the trip is not direct? The writing is said to be magical.
Ethan Hawk - yes the movie star Ethan Hawk - is also an author. On November 10, his third novel is being published, Rules for a Knight. Cornish knight Sir Thomas Lemuel Hawke is going off to a battle and he does not expect to return. Before leaving, he writes a book for his children. Each chapter is about 20 virtues that will help them lead a noble life. For each virtue, there is a parable. Ethan Hawk's wife provided the artwork for the book. Said to be both inspirational by some and boring by others. I guess you have to be in the mood.
Lastly, on November 10, Mitch Albom brings us his next work, The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto. Albom is a songwriter and a lyricist - who knew that? He actually started out in the music field, later turning to journalism and then to fiction. This work tells the story of Frankie Presto, the greatest guitar player ever. He was abandoned as an infant and raised by a music teacher in Spain. When he was 9, he was sent to America to avoid the chaos of the Spanish war. At that time, his only possession was an old guitar and 6 magic blue strings. When he realizes that he can change lives with those magic strings, he vanishes but then reappears to change one last life. Reviewers say that this novel really sings.
OK-there are the last titles coming out in November. I think there should be something for almost anyone. See if there is one you like.
Friday, October 16, 2015
LibraryReads for November
The new LibraryReads list came out for November. There are 3 titles penned by pretty well known authors and the others are up and coming authors in their genre.
Leading the list is Isabel Allende's The Japanese Lover. Allende has long been a popular literary author. Here, she has crafted a multigeneraltional epic love story. Alma Belasco's parents send her to live with an aunt and uncle in San Francisco when the Nazis rose to power in Poland. Here she meets the son of the Japanese gardener, Ichimei Fukuda. They form a friendship and then love affair which is interrupted when all Japanese are sent to an internment camp. The two meet again but are always torn apart. Decades later, Alma is living with her grandson, Seth, when she hires Irina Bazili to help her put her life in order. Irina herself has a troubled past. Irina and Seth become fascinated with Alma's past life and the mysterious gifts that arrive. Really, more than a love story but move about how fate impacts our lives and how we really find ourselves.
Next on the list is The Improbability of Love by Hannah Rothschild. Annie McDee was a personal chef for art dealers when she purchases an old painting in a junk shop as a birthday gift for a boyfriend. When the boyfriend stands her up, the painting becomes hers. Much of the story is told through the eyes of the painting and since it is a missing, old, famous painting - it has seen a lot. Many are looking for this painting so intrigue and adventure ensues. This appears to be Rothschild first novel and reviewers have praised the writing.
Then, Little Victories: Perfect Rules for Imperfect Living by Jason Gay. Gay is a sports columnist for Wall Street Journal and he has come up with the self help book for today. Gay himself has said it is "a book that hopefully makes you think and laugh about family, work, travel, holidays, relationships, sports and pets." Reviewers universally call it laugh out loud funny and warm and winning.
Now the next well known author's offering, Crimson Shore. by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child. I spoke about this one in my last post. Pendergast and Constance Greene investigate the theft of a wine collection when they discover a bricked in niche that has a few bones from a skeleton remaining. The 15th installment in the Pendergast series.
B.A. Shapiro has The Muralist on the list. This story is told in 2 time periods - during World War II and in the present day. Alizee Benoit is an artist employed by the WPA - friends with Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner and Mark Rothko and also Eleanor Roosevelt. Alizee is trying frantically to get the rest of her family still living in France into the US and away from the Nazis. During this time period she disappears. The other theme centers on Danielle Abrams, Alizee's great niece. While working at Christies auction house, she uncovers some paintings hidden behind famous Abstract Expressionist artist. They are similar to works of her aunt's. Now she becomes obsessed with finding out what happened to her aunt. All reviewers say they learned a lot about abstract art and the WPA.
M.H. Boroson also make the list with The Girl with Ghost Eyes. This title is a fantasy filled with Chinese folklore and mythology. It takes place during the 1800's in San Francisco. The main character is Li-lin, young widow with 'yin' eyes - she can see the spirit world. A sorcerer cripples her father and sets terrible plans in motion that will burn Chinatown to the ground. Li-lin is the only one who can stop them. All the reviewers loved this book and say it is hard to put down.
Next comes Beatriz Williams' Along the Infinite Sea. This will complete Williams' semi trilogy of the three Schuyler sisters. It focuses on Pepper Schuyler who ran away to a small coastal Georgia town because she was pregnant. She fixes up and vintage Mercedes and sells it at an auction. The new owner is Annabelle Dommerich - who had driven the car out of Nazi Germany during WWII. Again, a story in 2 time periods - Annabelle's and Pepper's flight - one in the 1940's and one in the 1960's. When the father of her unborn baby tracks Pepper down, the two women must bond together.
A mystery of the cozy variety, A Likely Story by Jenn McKinlay is the 6th in the Library Lover's Mystery series. In this one, library director Lindsey Norris is delivering books to Stewart and Peter Rosen, two elderly brothers who live on an island off the coast of Connecticut. One of them always greets her at the dock when she arrives on the water taxi but when they don't show up, Norris decides to go to their home and finds one of them dead and one missing. Of course, she has to investigate.
Now Dear Mr. You by Mary-Louise Parker, the award winning actress, is on the list. This is a type of memoir that Parker penned as a series of letters to important men in her life. She has written articles for Esquire so it should not be a surprise that this is deeply thought out and almost poetic.
Lastly, the last author you may recognize. Michael Cunningham has A Wild Swan and Other Tales illustrated by Yuko Shimizu. These are continuations of the old fairy tales - what happens after - made for adults. Some are set in the modern world. A quick read for sure by this Pulitzer winning author.
OK - there you go with this months LibraryReads - the titles recommended by library employees country wide. Hope there is something in here for you.
Leading the list is Isabel Allende's The Japanese Lover. Allende has long been a popular literary author. Here, she has crafted a multigeneraltional epic love story. Alma Belasco's parents send her to live with an aunt and uncle in San Francisco when the Nazis rose to power in Poland. Here she meets the son of the Japanese gardener, Ichimei Fukuda. They form a friendship and then love affair which is interrupted when all Japanese are sent to an internment camp. The two meet again but are always torn apart. Decades later, Alma is living with her grandson, Seth, when she hires Irina Bazili to help her put her life in order. Irina herself has a troubled past. Irina and Seth become fascinated with Alma's past life and the mysterious gifts that arrive. Really, more than a love story but move about how fate impacts our lives and how we really find ourselves.
Next on the list is The Improbability of Love by Hannah Rothschild. Annie McDee was a personal chef for art dealers when she purchases an old painting in a junk shop as a birthday gift for a boyfriend. When the boyfriend stands her up, the painting becomes hers. Much of the story is told through the eyes of the painting and since it is a missing, old, famous painting - it has seen a lot. Many are looking for this painting so intrigue and adventure ensues. This appears to be Rothschild first novel and reviewers have praised the writing.
Then, Little Victories: Perfect Rules for Imperfect Living by Jason Gay. Gay is a sports columnist for Wall Street Journal and he has come up with the self help book for today. Gay himself has said it is "a book that hopefully makes you think and laugh about family, work, travel, holidays, relationships, sports and pets." Reviewers universally call it laugh out loud funny and warm and winning.
Now the next well known author's offering, Crimson Shore. by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child. I spoke about this one in my last post. Pendergast and Constance Greene investigate the theft of a wine collection when they discover a bricked in niche that has a few bones from a skeleton remaining. The 15th installment in the Pendergast series.
B.A. Shapiro has The Muralist on the list. This story is told in 2 time periods - during World War II and in the present day. Alizee Benoit is an artist employed by the WPA - friends with Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner and Mark Rothko and also Eleanor Roosevelt. Alizee is trying frantically to get the rest of her family still living in France into the US and away from the Nazis. During this time period she disappears. The other theme centers on Danielle Abrams, Alizee's great niece. While working at Christies auction house, she uncovers some paintings hidden behind famous Abstract Expressionist artist. They are similar to works of her aunt's. Now she becomes obsessed with finding out what happened to her aunt. All reviewers say they learned a lot about abstract art and the WPA.
M.H. Boroson also make the list with The Girl with Ghost Eyes. This title is a fantasy filled with Chinese folklore and mythology. It takes place during the 1800's in San Francisco. The main character is Li-lin, young widow with 'yin' eyes - she can see the spirit world. A sorcerer cripples her father and sets terrible plans in motion that will burn Chinatown to the ground. Li-lin is the only one who can stop them. All the reviewers loved this book and say it is hard to put down.
Next comes Beatriz Williams' Along the Infinite Sea. This will complete Williams' semi trilogy of the three Schuyler sisters. It focuses on Pepper Schuyler who ran away to a small coastal Georgia town because she was pregnant. She fixes up and vintage Mercedes and sells it at an auction. The new owner is Annabelle Dommerich - who had driven the car out of Nazi Germany during WWII. Again, a story in 2 time periods - Annabelle's and Pepper's flight - one in the 1940's and one in the 1960's. When the father of her unborn baby tracks Pepper down, the two women must bond together.
A mystery of the cozy variety, A Likely Story by Jenn McKinlay is the 6th in the Library Lover's Mystery series. In this one, library director Lindsey Norris is delivering books to Stewart and Peter Rosen, two elderly brothers who live on an island off the coast of Connecticut. One of them always greets her at the dock when she arrives on the water taxi but when they don't show up, Norris decides to go to their home and finds one of them dead and one missing. Of course, she has to investigate.
Now Dear Mr. You by Mary-Louise Parker, the award winning actress, is on the list. This is a type of memoir that Parker penned as a series of letters to important men in her life. She has written articles for Esquire so it should not be a surprise that this is deeply thought out and almost poetic.
Lastly, the last author you may recognize. Michael Cunningham has A Wild Swan and Other Tales illustrated by Yuko Shimizu. These are continuations of the old fairy tales - what happens after - made for adults. Some are set in the modern world. A quick read for sure by this Pulitzer winning author.
OK - there you go with this months LibraryReads - the titles recommended by library employees country wide. Hope there is something in here for you.
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
More November Titles
I am off on vacation for a week but wanted to get another blog entry done before leaving. Some of these are even Christmas themed.
Rhys Bowen has Away in a Manger coming out on November 17. This is from her Molly Murphy Sullivan series. Molly now has a family and they are out listening to carolers in 1905 New York when she hears a little girl singing Away in a Manger in a doorway. Dirty and unwashed, the little girl is yet well spoken and along with an older brother, is living with a nasty aunt. Molly has to investigate, doesn't she?
Charles Finch has the ninth in the Charles Lenox series coming out on November 17, Home by Nightfall. Lenox has two cases he is working on for his thriving detective agency. A famous foreign pianist has disappeared and numerous small crimes around his brother's home in Sussex. When visiting his brother, Lenox realizes just how strange these small crimes are. He is racing before either investigation turns deadly.
Richard Paul Evans has the second in his holiday love story Mistletoe Collection, The Mistletoe Inn, scheduled for release on November 17. Kimberly Rossetti has had two broken engagements and a divorce and is ready to fulfill at least one dream when she signs up for a 9 day romance writing workshop in Savannah, GA. There she meets Zeke, another aspiring romance writer, and together they begin to realize what is holding them back both in writing and personally.
Sherrilyn Kenyon has Born of Betrayal coming on November 3. Kenyon is a very popular urban fantasy or paranormal romance author. Her first series, Dark Hunter, was overwhelmingly popular. This is the 10th in her The League series.These are slightly more fantasy romance than paranormal. I would suggest reading the whole series in order as if you jump into the middle, you will not have the background on the characters. Fain Hauk has left his military career, planet and fiancee behind for the sake of his family. He has made a life for himself but the past is catching up to him.
Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child get together again for the number 15 in the Pendergast series, Crimson Shore, which comes out on November 10. Investigating the theft of a wine collection in the seaside village of Exmouth, MA, Pendergast and his ward Constance Greene discover a bricked-up niche that once held a crumbling skeleton.They know this because of the shackles and an overlooked finger bone. Can he possibly not investigate? Of course he has to.
Hopefully this will hold you till next week. Hope the rain has gone away for now.
Rhys Bowen has Away in a Manger coming out on November 17. This is from her Molly Murphy Sullivan series. Molly now has a family and they are out listening to carolers in 1905 New York when she hears a little girl singing Away in a Manger in a doorway. Dirty and unwashed, the little girl is yet well spoken and along with an older brother, is living with a nasty aunt. Molly has to investigate, doesn't she?
Charles Finch has the ninth in the Charles Lenox series coming out on November 17, Home by Nightfall. Lenox has two cases he is working on for his thriving detective agency. A famous foreign pianist has disappeared and numerous small crimes around his brother's home in Sussex. When visiting his brother, Lenox realizes just how strange these small crimes are. He is racing before either investigation turns deadly.
Richard Paul Evans has the second in his holiday love story Mistletoe Collection, The Mistletoe Inn, scheduled for release on November 17. Kimberly Rossetti has had two broken engagements and a divorce and is ready to fulfill at least one dream when she signs up for a 9 day romance writing workshop in Savannah, GA. There she meets Zeke, another aspiring romance writer, and together they begin to realize what is holding them back both in writing and personally.
Sherrilyn Kenyon has Born of Betrayal coming on November 3. Kenyon is a very popular urban fantasy or paranormal romance author. Her first series, Dark Hunter, was overwhelmingly popular. This is the 10th in her The League series.These are slightly more fantasy romance than paranormal. I would suggest reading the whole series in order as if you jump into the middle, you will not have the background on the characters. Fain Hauk has left his military career, planet and fiancee behind for the sake of his family. He has made a life for himself but the past is catching up to him.
Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child get together again for the number 15 in the Pendergast series, Crimson Shore, which comes out on November 10. Investigating the theft of a wine collection in the seaside village of Exmouth, MA, Pendergast and his ward Constance Greene discover a bricked-up niche that once held a crumbling skeleton.They know this because of the shackles and an overlooked finger bone. Can he possibly not investigate? Of course he has to.
Hopefully this will hold you till next week. Hope the rain has gone away for now.
Saturday, October 3, 2015
November Big Names - and There Are A Lot!
Wow - there are a lot of major authors coming out with new works this month. I am going to try to cover most of them but there will be other weeks to do the rest so....I will do as many as I can.
First off, David Baldacci has The Guilty coming out on November 17. This is the fourth in the Will Robie series. Will Robie left his hometown after high school and never looked back. Now, his father, a town judge, has been charged with murder. Robie returns to try to help but meets resistance on all sides, including his father. Can he find out if his father is really guilty? What possibly deadly secrets will he discover?
Michael Connelly has The Crossing coming out on November 3. Harry Bosch is retired from the LAPD but can't seem to stay out of trouble. His half-brother who is a defense attorney wants his help in clearing a client of murder. When he starts investigating, he starts drawing bullets. Hmmm. Can he make it through this time?
Everyone's favorite, Stephanie Plum, is back with Tricky Twenty-Two by Janet Evanovich on November 17. Stephanie is assigned the case of Ken Globovic who was arrested for beating up the dean of students at Kiltman College and then missed his court date. People have seen him on campus but no one is talking.When the person Ranger was hired to protect is killed in his backyard and then Joe Morelli is assigned the case, Stephanie has a dilemma. All she wast is the cash prize.
Mary Higgins Clark has her second in the Under Suspicion series coming on November 17, All Dressed in White. Laurie Moran decides to take on a case of a missing bride as a cold case for her investigative TV series. Amanda Pierce disappeared 5 years ago at The Breakers in Palm Beach just before her wedding. Moran brings her whole crew down to The Breakers to reenact the event in hopes on new clues being found. Danger is the result.
James Patterson brings back Alex Cross with Cross Justice on November 23. Cross goes back to his North Carolina hometown after 30 years to defend a cousin. In the process, Alex discovers a deadly family secret which might kill him. Now he is looking for the killer and the truth.
Lastly for this week, Stephen King has a work of short stories coming on November 3, The Bazaar if Bad Dreams. King has always been a great short story author and has won awards for it. This is a collection of some previously published in magazines or online and some brand new stories. Each is prefaced with notes on its origins, themes or motivations. King has said "Feel free to examine them, but please be careful. The best of them have teeth." I personally, can't wait. I've always loved King's work - maybe not his Carrie or The Shining - but his real 'morality tales' like The Stand or Insomnia or 11/22/63.
Hope you find something you want to read above. Probably you have already put your name on most if you liked the author. However, next week we hit ones you might not know about.
First off, David Baldacci has The Guilty coming out on November 17. This is the fourth in the Will Robie series. Will Robie left his hometown after high school and never looked back. Now, his father, a town judge, has been charged with murder. Robie returns to try to help but meets resistance on all sides, including his father. Can he find out if his father is really guilty? What possibly deadly secrets will he discover?
Michael Connelly has The Crossing coming out on November 3. Harry Bosch is retired from the LAPD but can't seem to stay out of trouble. His half-brother who is a defense attorney wants his help in clearing a client of murder. When he starts investigating, he starts drawing bullets. Hmmm. Can he make it through this time?
Everyone's favorite, Stephanie Plum, is back with Tricky Twenty-Two by Janet Evanovich on November 17. Stephanie is assigned the case of Ken Globovic who was arrested for beating up the dean of students at Kiltman College and then missed his court date. People have seen him on campus but no one is talking.When the person Ranger was hired to protect is killed in his backyard and then Joe Morelli is assigned the case, Stephanie has a dilemma. All she wast is the cash prize.
Mary Higgins Clark has her second in the Under Suspicion series coming on November 17, All Dressed in White. Laurie Moran decides to take on a case of a missing bride as a cold case for her investigative TV series. Amanda Pierce disappeared 5 years ago at The Breakers in Palm Beach just before her wedding. Moran brings her whole crew down to The Breakers to reenact the event in hopes on new clues being found. Danger is the result.
James Patterson brings back Alex Cross with Cross Justice on November 23. Cross goes back to his North Carolina hometown after 30 years to defend a cousin. In the process, Alex discovers a deadly family secret which might kill him. Now he is looking for the killer and the truth.
Lastly for this week, Stephen King has a work of short stories coming on November 3, The Bazaar if Bad Dreams. King has always been a great short story author and has won awards for it. This is a collection of some previously published in magazines or online and some brand new stories. Each is prefaced with notes on its origins, themes or motivations. King has said "Feel free to examine them, but please be careful. The best of them have teeth." I personally, can't wait. I've always loved King's work - maybe not his Carrie or The Shining - but his real 'morality tales' like The Stand or Insomnia or 11/22/63.
Hope you find something you want to read above. Probably you have already put your name on most if you liked the author. However, next week we hit ones you might not know about.
Monday, September 28, 2015
More October Titles
Here are the next few titles that I personally am looking forward to reading.
Adriana Trigiani has All the Stars in the Heavens coming out on October 13. After her Big Stone Gap series, she heads to the Hollywood of the 1930's and the real-life love affair of Loretta Young and Clark Gable. With this background the story focuses on Young's personal assistant - a young woman names Alda who had been studying to become a nun. How she deals with Hollywood while trying to maintain her high ideals is a struggle.
Faye Kellerman has The Theory of Death coming out on October 27. This is the 23rd in the Peter Decker series. Decker is now Chief of police in quiet Greenbury in upstate NY. It has been over a year since the last murder in town and he is enjoying the quiet pace. Then, the nude body of a man is found in the woods near town. It appears to be a suicide but with no personal items near the body, Decker has a hard time finding out who he is. An old friend, Tyler McAdams, shows up and both men start an investigation. Can they solve the twisted crime?
Mike Maden writes a series about high tech warfare. His third in the Troy Pearce series, Drone Command, arrives on October 16. Pearce and his high tech team is called in to diffuse a conflict between China and Japan. China claimed some waters in the East China Seas and Japan is willing to fight to have them remain open. Political intrigue from Maden who holds a PhD. in political science.
Sloane Crosley has penned her first novel, The Clasp arrives on October 6. Three friends in their late 20's meet at a college friend's wedding. The groom's mother tells one of them about a necklace that vanished in Nazi-occupied France. The three friends are off on a hunt for the necklace. It's hard for the three to meld the way they did in college with life having changed each. Told with heartfelt humor and suspense.
Kate Morton has The Lake House coming on October 22. Morton tells the story in two time periods starting in 1933 when a couple lived in a large lake estate with their 3 daughters and 11 month old son and other relatives. During a large midsummer party, the son disappears and is never found. Seventy years later, Sadie Sparrow is put on disciplinary leave from the London police department when she can not let a case go. She visits her grandfather in Cornwall and stumbles on the vacant, deserted house and learns about the disappearance. She investigate to occupy herself. One of the 1933 daughters has become a mystery author and now lives in an elegant Hampstead home. Sadie arrives with questions and brings the past back with all of its secrets.
Hope there is something here for you. Next time we start with November.
Adriana Trigiani has All the Stars in the Heavens coming out on October 13. After her Big Stone Gap series, she heads to the Hollywood of the 1930's and the real-life love affair of Loretta Young and Clark Gable. With this background the story focuses on Young's personal assistant - a young woman names Alda who had been studying to become a nun. How she deals with Hollywood while trying to maintain her high ideals is a struggle.
Faye Kellerman has The Theory of Death coming out on October 27. This is the 23rd in the Peter Decker series. Decker is now Chief of police in quiet Greenbury in upstate NY. It has been over a year since the last murder in town and he is enjoying the quiet pace. Then, the nude body of a man is found in the woods near town. It appears to be a suicide but with no personal items near the body, Decker has a hard time finding out who he is. An old friend, Tyler McAdams, shows up and both men start an investigation. Can they solve the twisted crime?
Mike Maden writes a series about high tech warfare. His third in the Troy Pearce series, Drone Command, arrives on October 16. Pearce and his high tech team is called in to diffuse a conflict between China and Japan. China claimed some waters in the East China Seas and Japan is willing to fight to have them remain open. Political intrigue from Maden who holds a PhD. in political science.
Sloane Crosley has penned her first novel, The Clasp arrives on October 6. Three friends in their late 20's meet at a college friend's wedding. The groom's mother tells one of them about a necklace that vanished in Nazi-occupied France. The three friends are off on a hunt for the necklace. It's hard for the three to meld the way they did in college with life having changed each. Told with heartfelt humor and suspense.
Kate Morton has The Lake House coming on October 22. Morton tells the story in two time periods starting in 1933 when a couple lived in a large lake estate with their 3 daughters and 11 month old son and other relatives. During a large midsummer party, the son disappears and is never found. Seventy years later, Sadie Sparrow is put on disciplinary leave from the London police department when she can not let a case go. She visits her grandfather in Cornwall and stumbles on the vacant, deserted house and learns about the disappearance. She investigate to occupy herself. One of the 1933 daughters has become a mystery author and now lives in an elegant Hampstead home. Sadie arrives with questions and brings the past back with all of its secrets.
Hope there is something here for you. Next time we start with November.
Friday, September 18, 2015
October Titles
Our Children's Book Festival is tomorrow so I am busy and will be working tomorrow at the festival. Therefore, today's post will be short and not cover as much as I might like. Maybe I will have a chance next week to add to it.
Gregory Maguire, the author that has taken on the Wizard of Oz with his Wicked series, has taken on Alice's Adventures in Wonderland with After Alice which comes out on October 27. Alice's friend who was briefly mentioned in the original tale, here take a starring role as she goes after Alice and also slides down the rabbit hole. Can she find Alice? What does she think about the happenings down in Wonderland? Read and find out.
John Katzenback has The Dead Student coming on October 6. Timothy Warner (a.k.a. Moth) is a PhD student and an alcoholic who has lost his license and is working toward sobriety attending AA meetings. His uncle Ed, who also attends meetings, doesn't show up and Moth goes to his office and finds him dead, shot in the head with a gun by his fingers. The police decide it is suicide but Moth does not believe that. Moth goes to an ex-girl friend to ask for help (someone has to drive) and investigates. There are more deaths. Can Moth make it out alive?
Felix Francis is following in his father's footsteps after assisting and even co-authoring on the last few titles. Front Runner is coming out on October 13. Jefferson Hinkley, an undercover investigator for the British Horseracing Authority, was introduced in Francis' Damage. Jeff is back in this title and in severe danger after a jockey comes to him confidentially about losing races on purpose. Strangely, the jockey is shortly found dead of an apparent suicide and there is an attempt on Hinkley's life. Of course he must investigate and, of course, someone wants to stop it.
Tess Gerritsen has Playing with Fire coming out on October 27. She has stepped outside of the Rizzoli & Isles series for this stand alone. Julia Ansdell is a violinist who while playing with a group in Rome picks up an old piece of sheet music, The Incendio Waltz. She returns home to her husband and 3 year old daughter and while playing the music, she blacks out and when awakening finds her daughter changed and very violent. When she expresses that her 3 year old is trying to kill her, her husband wants to commit her but she escapes to Venice, to find out about the music. Is she going crazy? Read and find out. Reviewers LOVED it.
Lastly, Deon Meyer has Icarus coming out on October 6. Meyer's has been described as the Ed McBain of South African crime. This title is the 5th in his Captain Benny Griessel series. Griessel is called to the scene of a multiple homicide involving a former colleague and after 4 years of sobriety, Griessel goes on a bender. When he emerges, he tries to quit the forc3e but instead is assigned to the murder of the tech person for MyAlibi, an Internet service that provides unfaithful partners with cover stories. Before long, an connection to a leading family winery is found and Griessel is again on the line.
OK - sorry for the short post but there are some pretty good titles above. Hope one is a keeper for you.
Gregory Maguire, the author that has taken on the Wizard of Oz with his Wicked series, has taken on Alice's Adventures in Wonderland with After Alice which comes out on October 27. Alice's friend who was briefly mentioned in the original tale, here take a starring role as she goes after Alice and also slides down the rabbit hole. Can she find Alice? What does she think about the happenings down in Wonderland? Read and find out.
John Katzenback has The Dead Student coming on October 6. Timothy Warner (a.k.a. Moth) is a PhD student and an alcoholic who has lost his license and is working toward sobriety attending AA meetings. His uncle Ed, who also attends meetings, doesn't show up and Moth goes to his office and finds him dead, shot in the head with a gun by his fingers. The police decide it is suicide but Moth does not believe that. Moth goes to an ex-girl friend to ask for help (someone has to drive) and investigates. There are more deaths. Can Moth make it out alive?
Felix Francis is following in his father's footsteps after assisting and even co-authoring on the last few titles. Front Runner is coming out on October 13. Jefferson Hinkley, an undercover investigator for the British Horseracing Authority, was introduced in Francis' Damage. Jeff is back in this title and in severe danger after a jockey comes to him confidentially about losing races on purpose. Strangely, the jockey is shortly found dead of an apparent suicide and there is an attempt on Hinkley's life. Of course he must investigate and, of course, someone wants to stop it.
Tess Gerritsen has Playing with Fire coming out on October 27. She has stepped outside of the Rizzoli & Isles series for this stand alone. Julia Ansdell is a violinist who while playing with a group in Rome picks up an old piece of sheet music, The Incendio Waltz. She returns home to her husband and 3 year old daughter and while playing the music, she blacks out and when awakening finds her daughter changed and very violent. When she expresses that her 3 year old is trying to kill her, her husband wants to commit her but she escapes to Venice, to find out about the music. Is she going crazy? Read and find out. Reviewers LOVED it.
Lastly, Deon Meyer has Icarus coming out on October 6. Meyer's has been described as the Ed McBain of South African crime. This title is the 5th in his Captain Benny Griessel series. Griessel is called to the scene of a multiple homicide involving a former colleague and after 4 years of sobriety, Griessel goes on a bender. When he emerges, he tries to quit the forc3e but instead is assigned to the murder of the tech person for MyAlibi, an Internet service that provides unfaithful partners with cover stories. Before long, an connection to a leading family winery is found and Griessel is again on the line.
OK - sorry for the short post but there are some pretty good titles above. Hope one is a keeper for you.
Saturday, September 12, 2015
LibraryReads for October
They announced the LibraryReads for October yesterday and most of these are ones I would pick so I am excited about them. There are a couple of nonfiction that I might not have chosen but that is because I don't really read much nonfiction. So....the biggest vote getting this month was - - -
City on Fire by Garth Risk Hallberg. This is Hallberg's first novel and people in the know say it could be the book of the year. It begins with a killing in Central Park on New Year's Eve; follows a large cast of characters in New York City; meanders from 1959 to 1977; and culminates in the blackout of July of 1977. It is more than a mystery but at over 900 pages, it better be. All the characters are connected by the killing and by the blackout but go their own way and develop stories of their own. People have complained that it is overwritten and people have called the writing smooth and enthralling. If you want to read 'the possible book of the year' - this one is for you.
Next up, Jojo Moyes' After You. If you read Me Before You, then you have to read this one because it is the continuing story. I talked about this title last month because it actually comes out in September. As a reminder, it carries on with Louisa Clark who is forced to return home after an accident. She is trying to move on after loosing Will Traynor. One that makes you laugh and cry.
Elizabeth George is next with a Lynley and Havers novel, A Banquet of Consequences. This is the 19th in the series and is said to be better than the last few. If you have read her before, you will want this one. Once again Havers is definitely the more active investigator and Lynley is the brains behind the action. Havers has been disciplined and is trying hard to toe the line and Lynley is coming out of mourning for his wife and unborn child's death. Quite literary in tone and maybe more novel than police procedural. If you like her, you will like it.
If you read The Bone Clocks, you can not miss Slade House by David Mitchell as it takes place in the same world. Every nine years, Slade House appears in a grungy alley in London and every year, someone goes in it and goes missing. The book progress in 9 years leaps starting at Halloween 1979 and ending at Halloween 2015. Fantasy, haunted house or horror - you can decide. It is much shorter than The Bone Clocks so there is that. Said to be deeply satisfying for those who read TBC.
Next comes Margaret Atwood's The Heart Goes Last. This is another one that I spoke about with the September books as it comes out on September 29. Atwood is an award winning Canadian author. The Handmaid's Tale has become a modern classic. This one is a reworking of her online Positron stories. Amazingly, some reviews have hated it but I think it is a must read for those who have loved her prior works. A young couple, Carmaine and Stan, are living out of their car when they find out about Consilience. This is a social experiment where people live in a comfortable home of their own
in the suburbs for one month and switch every other month with living in a jail cell. They begin to obsess about who is living in their home while they are gone. Some hate it / some love it. If you love her, you need to give it a try.
From Pulitzer prize winning author, Geraldine Brooks, comes A Secret Chord. This is a fictionalized account of the life of King David. The story is told mainly for other people's viewpoint. Reviewers are saying the writing is wonderful, the character's complex, and she really takes you back to living in that time. If you like t
Next comes a novel born from a series of twice-monthly podcasts in the style of a community update for a small desert town. Welcome to Night Vale by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor is the story of 19 year old pawn shop owned Jackie Fierro and a mysterious man in a tan jacket who gives her a paper that she can't seem to put down. Described as weird and funny, only you can decide if you have to read it.
Now for the last fiction before taking aim at the 2 nonfiction books, Sarah Ward has the British mystery In Bitter Chill. A small town in Derbyshire, England is traumatised when 2 young girls are kidnapped in 1978. One of the girls is found but the other remained missing. When the mother of the still missing girl commits suicide over 30 years later, the case again attracts attention. The girl who was found can not remember a thing about what happened but since the suicide has brought press attention, she realizes that she needs to find out what happened years ago.
Then Comes Marriage: United States v. Windsor and the Defeat of DOMA by Roberta Kaplan with Lisa Dickery. The attorney who argued before the Supreme Court for the plaintiff in this case relates the story behind the news.
Lastly, We Were Brothers: A Memoir by Barry Moser. 2 brothers born of the same parents in a small Tennessee town were so different, right from the beginning, that they did not really care too much for each other. One was reflective and artistic and one was aggressive, outspoken and a racist. Barry left Tennessee and became and artist. For years, they did not speak to each other. This is Barry's story of growing up and eventually overcoming to find his brother again.
See if any of these sound interesting to you.
City on Fire by Garth Risk Hallberg. This is Hallberg's first novel and people in the know say it could be the book of the year. It begins with a killing in Central Park on New Year's Eve; follows a large cast of characters in New York City; meanders from 1959 to 1977; and culminates in the blackout of July of 1977. It is more than a mystery but at over 900 pages, it better be. All the characters are connected by the killing and by the blackout but go their own way and develop stories of their own. People have complained that it is overwritten and people have called the writing smooth and enthralling. If you want to read 'the possible book of the year' - this one is for you.
Next up, Jojo Moyes' After You. If you read Me Before You, then you have to read this one because it is the continuing story. I talked about this title last month because it actually comes out in September. As a reminder, it carries on with Louisa Clark who is forced to return home after an accident. She is trying to move on after loosing Will Traynor. One that makes you laugh and cry.
Elizabeth George is next with a Lynley and Havers novel, A Banquet of Consequences. This is the 19th in the series and is said to be better than the last few. If you have read her before, you will want this one. Once again Havers is definitely the more active investigator and Lynley is the brains behind the action. Havers has been disciplined and is trying hard to toe the line and Lynley is coming out of mourning for his wife and unborn child's death. Quite literary in tone and maybe more novel than police procedural. If you like her, you will like it.
If you read The Bone Clocks, you can not miss Slade House by David Mitchell as it takes place in the same world. Every nine years, Slade House appears in a grungy alley in London and every year, someone goes in it and goes missing. The book progress in 9 years leaps starting at Halloween 1979 and ending at Halloween 2015. Fantasy, haunted house or horror - you can decide. It is much shorter than The Bone Clocks so there is that. Said to be deeply satisfying for those who read TBC.
Next comes Margaret Atwood's The Heart Goes Last. This is another one that I spoke about with the September books as it comes out on September 29. Atwood is an award winning Canadian author. The Handmaid's Tale has become a modern classic. This one is a reworking of her online Positron stories. Amazingly, some reviews have hated it but I think it is a must read for those who have loved her prior works. A young couple, Carmaine and Stan, are living out of their car when they find out about Consilience. This is a social experiment where people live in a comfortable home of their own
in the suburbs for one month and switch every other month with living in a jail cell. They begin to obsess about who is living in their home while they are gone. Some hate it / some love it. If you love her, you need to give it a try.
From Pulitzer prize winning author, Geraldine Brooks, comes A Secret Chord. This is a fictionalized account of the life of King David. The story is told mainly for other people's viewpoint. Reviewers are saying the writing is wonderful, the character's complex, and she really takes you back to living in that time. If you like t
Next comes a novel born from a series of twice-monthly podcasts in the style of a community update for a small desert town. Welcome to Night Vale by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor is the story of 19 year old pawn shop owned Jackie Fierro and a mysterious man in a tan jacket who gives her a paper that she can't seem to put down. Described as weird and funny, only you can decide if you have to read it.
Now for the last fiction before taking aim at the 2 nonfiction books, Sarah Ward has the British mystery In Bitter Chill. A small town in Derbyshire, England is traumatised when 2 young girls are kidnapped in 1978. One of the girls is found but the other remained missing. When the mother of the still missing girl commits suicide over 30 years later, the case again attracts attention. The girl who was found can not remember a thing about what happened but since the suicide has brought press attention, she realizes that she needs to find out what happened years ago.
Then Comes Marriage: United States v. Windsor and the Defeat of DOMA by Roberta Kaplan with Lisa Dickery. The attorney who argued before the Supreme Court for the plaintiff in this case relates the story behind the news.
Lastly, We Were Brothers: A Memoir by Barry Moser. 2 brothers born of the same parents in a small Tennessee town were so different, right from the beginning, that they did not really care too much for each other. One was reflective and artistic and one was aggressive, outspoken and a racist. Barry left Tennessee and became and artist. For years, they did not speak to each other. This is Barry's story of growing up and eventually overcoming to find his brother again.
See if any of these sound interesting to you.
Saturday, September 5, 2015
October's Big Names
There are several very popular authors who are publishing titles in October. I think there is probably something here for everyone. Take a look.
Robin Cook has Host coming out on October 20. Cook is known for his medical thrillers and this one is no different. When a 4th year medical student's boyfriend's routine surgery, ends up with him being brain dead, Lynn Peirce must investigate. What she uncovers results in death threats. Can she and her lab partner find the answers before two big medical companies close their mouths forever? It is truly a desperate race.
Before Vince Flynn died, he was said to be co-authoring a book with Brian Haig. Unfortunately, that has not yet come to fruition. Instead, Flynn's estate has asked Kyle Mills to continue the Mitch Rapp series. I have always enjoyed Mills' own work so I think they put it in good hands. The Survivor comes out on October 6. Vince had written the first 2 chapters of this work before passing so Mills had something to start with. His own work is not dissimilar to Flynn's but with a touch more sarcasms so I will be interested in seeing if Rapp's personality changes at all. This work follows the event in The Last Man. Joseph "Rick" Rickman stole a massive amount of top secret data and offered it to Pakistani secret forces. Now he is dead but no one knows where the info is. Rapp must find Rickman's accomplices and the data which is being slowly leaked to the world. Let's see how Mills does.
The ever popular John Grisham has Rogue Lawyer coming out on October 20. Because I haven't read Grisham for a while and I don't expect I will read this one, I am going to quote from the Kirkus review. "Another by-the-numbers legal procedural, at once gritty and lethargic, by longtime practitioner Grisham.Sebastian Rudd, the rogue lawyer, carries a gun, works out of his car, and sleeps in a different hotel room every week, precisely because he runs up against so many bad guys who mean him harm. Some of them are cops. Why? Because Sebastian, though jaded and cynical, as literary lawyers are required to be, apparently still believes in justice Rudd finds himself in a Podunk burg where a client is fighting for his life against the charge that he's brutally murdered two little girls in a spectacularly gruesome crime. Indirection and misdirection abound, with lots of talky exposition, the requisite maverick-y norm-flouting and the usual sarcastic world-weariness Unfortunately, the reader can see most of the mystery coming from a long way off, making the yarn less effective than most. .(Kirkus Reviews, August 15, 2015). If you like Grisham, you will read it anyway.
Debbie Macomber has a Christmas novel coming out on October 6. We can start the holiday season with Dashing Through the Snow, the story of a graduate student and a former army intelligence officer who are forced to share a rental car to Seattle so one can visit with family and the other can get to a job interview. Within the confines of the car, they open up to each other and start to develop feelings. Let's just say that the ride is not without it's share of mishaps and adventures. Will they make it to Seattle in time?
George R. R. Martin has A Knight for Seven Kingdoms coming on October 6. This is the first US edition of the first 3 official prequel novellas to A Song of Ice and Fire. They recount the time when the Targaryen line still held the throne and the memory of the last dragon was fresh on their minds. For all those who are having trouble waiting for the next volume in the series.
John Sandford has an entirely new type of book coming out on October 6, Saturn Run. Sandford wrote this work with Ctein, who I am going to assume is an engineer. This story is about a space age rush between the US and the Chinese to reach Saturn where a space ship is noticed by Caltech intern. The US tried to keep it secret but when the Chinese find out, the race is on. Who will be the first to reach Saturn. This takes place in 2066 so I'm not fooling you when I say it is different than his others. Kind of a science fiction thriller with lots of technical information.
Lastly, Stuart Woods has a new Stone Barrington work , Foreign Affairs, coming on October 13. Stone is informed at the last minute about a mandatory meeting in Europe. When he rushes off, his trip seems to be cursed because it is plagued by suspicious accidents. When Stone investigates to see what the source of these 'accidents' are, the adventure begins. Who will scare who off?
Many different types of novels here. Hope you find one to love.
Robin Cook has Host coming out on October 20. Cook is known for his medical thrillers and this one is no different. When a 4th year medical student's boyfriend's routine surgery, ends up with him being brain dead, Lynn Peirce must investigate. What she uncovers results in death threats. Can she and her lab partner find the answers before two big medical companies close their mouths forever? It is truly a desperate race.
Before Vince Flynn died, he was said to be co-authoring a book with Brian Haig. Unfortunately, that has not yet come to fruition. Instead, Flynn's estate has asked Kyle Mills to continue the Mitch Rapp series. I have always enjoyed Mills' own work so I think they put it in good hands. The Survivor comes out on October 6. Vince had written the first 2 chapters of this work before passing so Mills had something to start with. His own work is not dissimilar to Flynn's but with a touch more sarcasms so I will be interested in seeing if Rapp's personality changes at all. This work follows the event in The Last Man. Joseph "Rick" Rickman stole a massive amount of top secret data and offered it to Pakistani secret forces. Now he is dead but no one knows where the info is. Rapp must find Rickman's accomplices and the data which is being slowly leaked to the world. Let's see how Mills does.
The ever popular John Grisham has Rogue Lawyer coming out on October 20. Because I haven't read Grisham for a while and I don't expect I will read this one, I am going to quote from the Kirkus review. "Another by-the-numbers legal procedural, at once gritty and lethargic, by longtime practitioner Grisham.Sebastian Rudd, the rogue lawyer, carries a gun, works out of his car, and sleeps in a different hotel room every week, precisely because he runs up against so many bad guys who mean him harm. Some of them are cops. Why? Because Sebastian, though jaded and cynical, as literary lawyers are required to be, apparently still believes in justice Rudd finds himself in a Podunk burg where a client is fighting for his life against the charge that he's brutally murdered two little girls in a spectacularly gruesome crime. Indirection and misdirection abound, with lots of talky exposition, the requisite maverick-y norm-flouting and the usual sarcastic world-weariness Unfortunately, the reader can see most of the mystery coming from a long way off, making the yarn less effective than most. .(Kirkus Reviews, August 15, 2015). If you like Grisham, you will read it anyway.
Debbie Macomber has a Christmas novel coming out on October 6. We can start the holiday season with Dashing Through the Snow, the story of a graduate student and a former army intelligence officer who are forced to share a rental car to Seattle so one can visit with family and the other can get to a job interview. Within the confines of the car, they open up to each other and start to develop feelings. Let's just say that the ride is not without it's share of mishaps and adventures. Will they make it to Seattle in time?
George R. R. Martin has A Knight for Seven Kingdoms coming on October 6. This is the first US edition of the first 3 official prequel novellas to A Song of Ice and Fire. They recount the time when the Targaryen line still held the throne and the memory of the last dragon was fresh on their minds. For all those who are having trouble waiting for the next volume in the series.
John Sandford has an entirely new type of book coming out on October 6, Saturn Run. Sandford wrote this work with Ctein, who I am going to assume is an engineer. This story is about a space age rush between the US and the Chinese to reach Saturn where a space ship is noticed by Caltech intern. The US tried to keep it secret but when the Chinese find out, the race is on. Who will be the first to reach Saturn. This takes place in 2066 so I'm not fooling you when I say it is different than his others. Kind of a science fiction thriller with lots of technical information.
Lastly, Stuart Woods has a new Stone Barrington work , Foreign Affairs, coming on October 13. Stone is informed at the last minute about a mandatory meeting in Europe. When he rushes off, his trip seems to be cursed because it is plagued by suspicious accidents. When Stone investigates to see what the source of these 'accidents' are, the adventure begins. Who will scare who off?
Many different types of novels here. Hope you find one to love.
Friday, August 28, 2015
Finishing Up September Books
August is coming to a close and next week, I move on to October titles so I need to finish up with what I think are the interesting ones coming out in September.
M. C. Beaton has the 26th Agatha Raisin cozy coming out on September 15th, Dishing the Dirt. A new therapist comes to town and starts by romancing Agatha's ex husband and dropping hints about Agatha coming from the slums. Unfortunately, Agatha gets mad enough to proclaim "I'm going to kill you!" a day or two before someone kills the therapist. Guess who the main suspect is.
Elsa Hart has Jade Dragon Mountain arriving on September 1. I always enjoy a story that transports you to the time and place where it takes place. This is one of those. It takes place in China during the 1700's. The main character is Li Du - an imperial librarian who was exiled. When a Jesuit astronomer is murdered - Li Du is drawn into the investigation. Hart, a debut novelist, wrote this novel while living in Japan.
A Girl Without A Name by Sandra Block comes out on September 8. Psychiatrist Zoe Goldman is back after her outing in Little Black Lies. A young African American girl (around 12 or 13) appears on the streets in a catatonic state. She arrives at the institution when Zoe is put on the case. The girl does not remember her name and Zoe becomes obsessed with finding out who she is. The young girl is in greater danger than Zoe can imagine and she puts herself in danger trying to find out what happened.
Stephen Dobyns is an award winning poet who sometimes dips into the mystery/thriller genre. On September 1, he has Is Fat Bob Dead Yet arriving. This work has been called a mix of Richard Russo and Tim Dorsey. As you can probably tell from the title, there is a lot of comedy in this one. A hopeless loser, Connor Raposo, witnesses a motorcycle accident and is somehow drawn into a mob like comedy. If you need a laugh, try this one.
Next, Chris Holm, an award winning short story author, has The Killing Kind coming on September 15. Michael Hendrick was thought dead after the secretive military unit he was with had a mission end up bad. However, he actually left everything from his past life behind and became a hit man - a very well paid hit man. He only took cases where he killed other hit men which was a sure way to have people after him.
David Lagercrantz was asked to continue Stieg Larsson's sequel to the series featuring Lisbeth Salander and journalist Mikael Blomkvist by Larsson's estate. The result is The Girl in the Spider's Web which arrives on September 1. Blomkvist receives a phone call from a source who says he has info vital to the US.Blomkvist turns to Salander. Not too much has been released about the plot.
Do you like fast paced, plot driven adventure novels? Do you like the Bond novels? Give Ted Bell a chance. His 9th Alex Hawke novel is arriving on September 15. Patriot has Hawke taking on Russian President Vladimir Putin when Putin gets a hold of a powerful new weapon. Hawke, an MI6 officer, is out to stop him.
Iris Johansen has the 19th Eve Duncan novel coming on September 29th. Shadow Play has Duncan reconstructing the skull of a 9 year old girl who had been buried for 8 years. When the ghost of the girl speaks to her, Duncan becomes determined to find the killer and bring the girl peace. Unfortunately, the killer knows she is after him.
OK, certainly there must be something among these that strikes you as interesting. Decide what you want to read now and be the first to get it. We will move on to October next week.
M. C. Beaton has the 26th Agatha Raisin cozy coming out on September 15th, Dishing the Dirt. A new therapist comes to town and starts by romancing Agatha's ex husband and dropping hints about Agatha coming from the slums. Unfortunately, Agatha gets mad enough to proclaim "I'm going to kill you!" a day or two before someone kills the therapist. Guess who the main suspect is.
Elsa Hart has Jade Dragon Mountain arriving on September 1. I always enjoy a story that transports you to the time and place where it takes place. This is one of those. It takes place in China during the 1700's. The main character is Li Du - an imperial librarian who was exiled. When a Jesuit astronomer is murdered - Li Du is drawn into the investigation. Hart, a debut novelist, wrote this novel while living in Japan.
A Girl Without A Name by Sandra Block comes out on September 8. Psychiatrist Zoe Goldman is back after her outing in Little Black Lies. A young African American girl (around 12 or 13) appears on the streets in a catatonic state. She arrives at the institution when Zoe is put on the case. The girl does not remember her name and Zoe becomes obsessed with finding out who she is. The young girl is in greater danger than Zoe can imagine and she puts herself in danger trying to find out what happened.
Stephen Dobyns is an award winning poet who sometimes dips into the mystery/thriller genre. On September 1, he has Is Fat Bob Dead Yet arriving. This work has been called a mix of Richard Russo and Tim Dorsey. As you can probably tell from the title, there is a lot of comedy in this one. A hopeless loser, Connor Raposo, witnesses a motorcycle accident and is somehow drawn into a mob like comedy. If you need a laugh, try this one.
Next, Chris Holm, an award winning short story author, has The Killing Kind coming on September 15. Michael Hendrick was thought dead after the secretive military unit he was with had a mission end up bad. However, he actually left everything from his past life behind and became a hit man - a very well paid hit man. He only took cases where he killed other hit men which was a sure way to have people after him.
David Lagercrantz was asked to continue Stieg Larsson's sequel to the series featuring Lisbeth Salander and journalist Mikael Blomkvist by Larsson's estate. The result is The Girl in the Spider's Web which arrives on September 1. Blomkvist receives a phone call from a source who says he has info vital to the US.Blomkvist turns to Salander. Not too much has been released about the plot.
Do you like fast paced, plot driven adventure novels? Do you like the Bond novels? Give Ted Bell a chance. His 9th Alex Hawke novel is arriving on September 15. Patriot has Hawke taking on Russian President Vladimir Putin when Putin gets a hold of a powerful new weapon. Hawke, an MI6 officer, is out to stop him.
Iris Johansen has the 19th Eve Duncan novel coming on September 29th. Shadow Play has Duncan reconstructing the skull of a 9 year old girl who had been buried for 8 years. When the ghost of the girl speaks to her, Duncan becomes determined to find the killer and bring the girl peace. Unfortunately, the killer knows she is after him.
OK, certainly there must be something among these that strikes you as interesting. Decide what you want to read now and be the first to get it. We will move on to October next week.
Saturday, August 22, 2015
Some more for September
I have spent the entire week transferring many of our downloadable audio books from one vendor to another. I think I now need new glasses from close reading of fine lines. Anyway, that doesn't mean we don't have more September titles to talk about because we definitely do. Here I go:
Sandra Dallas has The Last Midwife coming on September 29. Dallas' specialty is writing about women in the historical west. Here, Gracy Brookens is the only midwife in town and has delivered hundreds of babies. Now, she is accused of killing one. Really well reviewed.
Christina Dodd brings us Obsession Falls on September 8. This is the second novel set in the town of Virtue Falls. Taylor Summers tries to rescue a kidnapped boy and somehow ends up as the one police think is the kidnapper. She escapes and eventually comes to Virtue Falls with a changed name and history. Will her past catch up to her? Advertised as romantic suspense but it is definitely more suspense than romance. Good characters and great plot.
Shelley Shepard Gray returns with her third book in her Amish Brides of Pinecraft series with A Wedding at the Orange Blossom Inn on September 15. This is really an Amish Brady Bunch. 2 widowers, Emma Keim with her 3 daughters and Jay Hilty with his 3 sons, become friends even though Emma's parents are not pleased. Can it become more than friendship? Gray has a devoted following and they have LOVED this series and this title in particular.
JoJo Moyes has After You coming on September 29. This is the sequel to the very popular Me Before You. Louisa Clark is trying to learn to go on without Will Traynor from the previous novel when an accident forces her to move back home. She joins a support group and meets Sam Fielding. Can she move on? A novel that makes you laugh and cry.
On September 1, Jonathan Frazen, THE literary author of our time, has Purity arriving. Once again, Frazen begins with a family but in this book, he travels the world and uses connected plots to infuse his story with the major issues of the day. Never really displaying mothers as perfect characters, in this one Purity - nicknamed Pip, has a mother who won't help her financially, won't tell her who her father is, and is definition of the word manipulative. Pip has over $130,000 worth of education debt and is squatting with anarchists in foreclosed homes in Oakland, Ca. She takes a job with the Sunlight Project which tries to use the Internet to unearth the world's secrets. The overall theme of the title is purity but surprise - no one is really 'pure'. The reviewer in the Washington Post says "Franzen writes with a perfectly balanced fluency that has sometimes eluded him in the past." A hefty novel at almost 600 pages, if you are in for some literary reading discussing the web and privacy and today's social media, this is definitely the book for you.
OK - that's it for now. Hope you all find something good here.
Sandra Dallas has The Last Midwife coming on September 29. Dallas' specialty is writing about women in the historical west. Here, Gracy Brookens is the only midwife in town and has delivered hundreds of babies. Now, she is accused of killing one. Really well reviewed.
Christina Dodd brings us Obsession Falls on September 8. This is the second novel set in the town of Virtue Falls. Taylor Summers tries to rescue a kidnapped boy and somehow ends up as the one police think is the kidnapper. She escapes and eventually comes to Virtue Falls with a changed name and history. Will her past catch up to her? Advertised as romantic suspense but it is definitely more suspense than romance. Good characters and great plot.
Shelley Shepard Gray returns with her third book in her Amish Brides of Pinecraft series with A Wedding at the Orange Blossom Inn on September 15. This is really an Amish Brady Bunch. 2 widowers, Emma Keim with her 3 daughters and Jay Hilty with his 3 sons, become friends even though Emma's parents are not pleased. Can it become more than friendship? Gray has a devoted following and they have LOVED this series and this title in particular.
JoJo Moyes has After You coming on September 29. This is the sequel to the very popular Me Before You. Louisa Clark is trying to learn to go on without Will Traynor from the previous novel when an accident forces her to move back home. She joins a support group and meets Sam Fielding. Can she move on? A novel that makes you laugh and cry.
On September 1, Jonathan Frazen, THE literary author of our time, has Purity arriving. Once again, Frazen begins with a family but in this book, he travels the world and uses connected plots to infuse his story with the major issues of the day. Never really displaying mothers as perfect characters, in this one Purity - nicknamed Pip, has a mother who won't help her financially, won't tell her who her father is, and is definition of the word manipulative. Pip has over $130,000 worth of education debt and is squatting with anarchists in foreclosed homes in Oakland, Ca. She takes a job with the Sunlight Project which tries to use the Internet to unearth the world's secrets. The overall theme of the title is purity but surprise - no one is really 'pure'. The reviewer in the Washington Post says "Franzen writes with a perfectly balanced fluency that has sometimes eluded him in the past." A hefty novel at almost 600 pages, if you are in for some literary reading discussing the web and privacy and today's social media, this is definitely the book for you.
OK - that's it for now. Hope you all find something good here.
Saturday, August 15, 2015
LibraryReads for September
The new LibraryReads list just came out. All are available to reserve in the library however, obviously, they won't be here until sometime in September. Lots of choices though so I will get started.
Gathering the most votes this month is The Art of Crash Landing by Melissa DeCarlo. DeCarlo is a debut author who has certainly found her voice. This is, at heart, a sad story of a young woman who has always made the wrong decision and ends up broke and pregnant. She returns to her dead mother's (a broken alcoholic) home town when she is notified she was left her grandmothers home. She finds that her mother had been a lovely bubbly teen when she disappeared from town and goes on a mission to find out what happened to her. This book is written in a way that has you laughing even while you know it is a pitiful situation.
Now for the rest:
Lee Child's new Jack Reacher title, Make Me, is on the list. I talked about this book last week. There are lost of Reacher fans out there but people say, even if you haven't read him before, this is a good place to start.
House of Thieves by Charles Belfoure is on the list. For those readers of historical mysteries or suspense, this will be a must read. New York City in the late 1800's is one of my favorite time periods. Belfoure, himself, is an architect involved with historic preservation so he has an educated opinion on this tale. John Cross is a respected architect with fragile ties to high society when he learns of his oldest son's large gambling debts. If he does not pay them back, his son will be killed and his family's reputation destroyed. The gang leader wants Cross' inside knowledge of the homes of the wealthy and Cross is forced into a life of crime. Interesting time, place and plot.
Lauren Groff has Fates and Furies on the list. This is really an investigation of a marriage. The first half of the work centers on Lotto Satterwhite - the husband. It is done in the third person but really shows the marriage from Lotto's point of view. The second half of the work centers on Mathilde, the wife, and shows the marriage from her point of view. Both are extremely different. Groff writes beautifully and although this is not a work that you will finish in one sitting, you will look back on it as an enjoyable read.
Bill Clegg has Did You Ever Have a Family on the list. This is Clegg's debut as a novelist. He did write 2 terribly affecting memoirs (Portrait of an Addict as a Young Man and Ninety Days: a Memoir of Recovery) but his first novel is elegant but heartrending. It is the story of June Reid whose whole world was gone in one day leaving her as the sole survivor. The day before her daughter's wedding, her daughter's fiance, her ex-husband, and her boyfriend were gone. June wanders aimlessly and settles eventually at a motel on the Pacific Ocean. The story follows everyone who was touched by the tragedy. Sad - very sad - but a story of the creation of a family in the end.
The Gates of Evangeline by Hester Young, another debut novelist, made the list. If you are in the mood for some Southern Gothic mysteries - this is for you. Charlie Cates is mourning the death of her son when she beings having nightmares about children. She soon realizes it isn't related to grief but is a psychic gift. A magazine offers her an article investigating a 30 year old disappearance of a 3 year old from the Evangeline plantation near New Orleans. The atmosphere is gloomy and swampy and the family has deep dark secrets. Does that entice you?
I would read this next book because of it's cover. I LOVE it's cover! Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things by Jenny Lawson. This is a memoir with hilarious stories of Lawson's depression. Wait a minute - how is this possible? I don't know - but she is able to do it.
This Is Your Life, Harriet Chance! by Jonathan Evison is on the list. Evison is a really good author. He has penned several quite popular works. This one is about Harriet Chance, a widow in her late 70's. Her husband had died 2 years ago and she discovers that he had entered a contest and won an Alaskan cruise. Harriet decides to go. Her close friend gives her a letter and tells her to open it once she is on the ship. The contents of the letter cause Harriet to examine her whole life. In addition, her estranged daughter arrives on the cruise also. Harriet discovers that she was not totally innocent for how her life turned out nor was she totally to blame. Evison is able to treat his characters with authentic emotions but humor also.
Girl Waits With Gun by Amy Stewart made it to the list. This story is based on one of the nation's first female deputy sheriffs, Constance Kopp. The Kopp sister's live by themselves on a farm and one day the local factory owner, Henry Kaufman, crashes his car into the Kopp sisters' buggy. Constance asks that he reimburses them for damages but Kaufman laughs them off. Constance continues her demands and Kaufman tries intimidation, even shooting at their home. The sheriff asked for their help in bringing Kaufman to justice. This is set in New Jersey in 1914-15. It is historically accurate and the atmosphere is great. For those who like historical mystery adventures.
Lastly, The Scribe by Matthew Guinn. Another historical mystery for your consideration. Thomas Canby was an Atlanta detective who was run out of the city in disgrace. He is called back to investigate a serial murderer who appears to be targeting the wealthy black business men in town. The organization known as 'the Ring', want this murderer brought to justice before the 1881 Cotton Exposition is threatened. Canby is partnered with Atlanta's first African American policeman. Can they find the murderer and can Canby win back his damaged reputation? Read it to find out.
Hope there is something here that interests you. I'll continue with September titles next week.
Gathering the most votes this month is The Art of Crash Landing by Melissa DeCarlo. DeCarlo is a debut author who has certainly found her voice. This is, at heart, a sad story of a young woman who has always made the wrong decision and ends up broke and pregnant. She returns to her dead mother's (a broken alcoholic) home town when she is notified she was left her grandmothers home. She finds that her mother had been a lovely bubbly teen when she disappeared from town and goes on a mission to find out what happened to her. This book is written in a way that has you laughing even while you know it is a pitiful situation.
Now for the rest:
Lee Child's new Jack Reacher title, Make Me, is on the list. I talked about this book last week. There are lost of Reacher fans out there but people say, even if you haven't read him before, this is a good place to start.
House of Thieves by Charles Belfoure is on the list. For those readers of historical mysteries or suspense, this will be a must read. New York City in the late 1800's is one of my favorite time periods. Belfoure, himself, is an architect involved with historic preservation so he has an educated opinion on this tale. John Cross is a respected architect with fragile ties to high society when he learns of his oldest son's large gambling debts. If he does not pay them back, his son will be killed and his family's reputation destroyed. The gang leader wants Cross' inside knowledge of the homes of the wealthy and Cross is forced into a life of crime. Interesting time, place and plot.
Lauren Groff has Fates and Furies on the list. This is really an investigation of a marriage. The first half of the work centers on Lotto Satterwhite - the husband. It is done in the third person but really shows the marriage from Lotto's point of view. The second half of the work centers on Mathilde, the wife, and shows the marriage from her point of view. Both are extremely different. Groff writes beautifully and although this is not a work that you will finish in one sitting, you will look back on it as an enjoyable read.
Bill Clegg has Did You Ever Have a Family on the list. This is Clegg's debut as a novelist. He did write 2 terribly affecting memoirs (Portrait of an Addict as a Young Man and Ninety Days: a Memoir of Recovery) but his first novel is elegant but heartrending. It is the story of June Reid whose whole world was gone in one day leaving her as the sole survivor. The day before her daughter's wedding, her daughter's fiance, her ex-husband, and her boyfriend were gone. June wanders aimlessly and settles eventually at a motel on the Pacific Ocean. The story follows everyone who was touched by the tragedy. Sad - very sad - but a story of the creation of a family in the end.
The Gates of Evangeline by Hester Young, another debut novelist, made the list. If you are in the mood for some Southern Gothic mysteries - this is for you. Charlie Cates is mourning the death of her son when she beings having nightmares about children. She soon realizes it isn't related to grief but is a psychic gift. A magazine offers her an article investigating a 30 year old disappearance of a 3 year old from the Evangeline plantation near New Orleans. The atmosphere is gloomy and swampy and the family has deep dark secrets. Does that entice you?
I would read this next book because of it's cover. I LOVE it's cover! Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things by Jenny Lawson. This is a memoir with hilarious stories of Lawson's depression. Wait a minute - how is this possible? I don't know - but she is able to do it.
This Is Your Life, Harriet Chance! by Jonathan Evison is on the list. Evison is a really good author. He has penned several quite popular works. This one is about Harriet Chance, a widow in her late 70's. Her husband had died 2 years ago and she discovers that he had entered a contest and won an Alaskan cruise. Harriet decides to go. Her close friend gives her a letter and tells her to open it once she is on the ship. The contents of the letter cause Harriet to examine her whole life. In addition, her estranged daughter arrives on the cruise also. Harriet discovers that she was not totally innocent for how her life turned out nor was she totally to blame. Evison is able to treat his characters with authentic emotions but humor also.
Girl Waits With Gun by Amy Stewart made it to the list. This story is based on one of the nation's first female deputy sheriffs, Constance Kopp. The Kopp sister's live by themselves on a farm and one day the local factory owner, Henry Kaufman, crashes his car into the Kopp sisters' buggy. Constance asks that he reimburses them for damages but Kaufman laughs them off. Constance continues her demands and Kaufman tries intimidation, even shooting at their home. The sheriff asked for their help in bringing Kaufman to justice. This is set in New Jersey in 1914-15. It is historically accurate and the atmosphere is great. For those who like historical mystery adventures.
Lastly, The Scribe by Matthew Guinn. Another historical mystery for your consideration. Thomas Canby was an Atlanta detective who was run out of the city in disgrace. He is called back to investigate a serial murderer who appears to be targeting the wealthy black business men in town. The organization known as 'the Ring', want this murderer brought to justice before the 1881 Cotton Exposition is threatened. Canby is partnered with Atlanta's first African American policeman. Can they find the murderer and can Canby win back his damaged reputation? Read it to find out.
Hope there is something here that interests you. I'll continue with September titles next week.
Friday, August 7, 2015
September's Big Names
Another month has gone so we move on to titles coming out in September. There are some authors that have big names that might not be 'popular' genre authors. I am going to start with one of those this time.
Margaret Atwood is an award winning Canadian author. Most of her titles do extremely well. Her The Handmaid's Tale has become a modern classic. She has The Heart Goes Last coming out on September 29th. This is a reworking of her online Positron stories. Amazingly, some reviews have hated it but I think it is a must read for those who have loved her prior works. A young couple, Charmaine and Stan, are living out of their car when they find out about Consilience. Consilience is a social experiment where people live in a comfortable home of their own in the suburbs for one month and switch every other month with living in a jail cell. They begin to obsess about who is living in their home while they are gone. Interesting premise.
Anthony Horowitz, perhaps not the best known author, has been selected by the Ian Fleming Estate to write a new James Bond title with notes found from Fleming. Trigger Mortis comes out on September 8. James Bond returns to London after his Goldfinger incident with no other than Pussy Galore. He then becomes involved in a Soviet plot that is being helped along by a Korean millionaire. Sounds quite James Bondy to me.
Reed Farrel Coleman has Robert B. Parker's The Devil Wins coming out on September 8 also. Coleman continues the Jesse Stone series. After a storm in Paradise, MA, three bodies are discovered - a recently murdered man and the skeleton's of two girls who disappeared years ago. When one of the dead girls' mother comes to bury her daughter, she too is murdered. Jesse Stone is on the trail.
Jan Karon's Mitford series has always been very popular. She has Come Rain or Come Shine arriving on September 22. Father Timothy's adopted son, Dooley, has graduated from vet school and is opening a practice in town. He is also getting married. Sure to be popular with Mitford fans.
Danielle Steel has yet another title coming out. Undercover is arriving on September 1. While still firmly in the romance genre, she is moving slightly to suspense with this one. DEA Special Agent Marshall Everett's arm is basically useless since being shot in the shoulder. No more undercover work for him and he doesn't know what to do with himself. Enter Ariana Gregory, an ambassador's daughter who had been kidnapped and brainwashed. There are still people after her. Can Marshall save her and himself?
Lee Child has his next Reacher title, Make Me, coming out on September 8. Traveling no where, Reacher stops in the town of Mother's Rest. He only wonders how it got it's name but ends up involved in a life and death struggle. No unusual for Reacher. After a short stop, he meets Michelle Chang who is looking for a missing private investigator. When he teams up with her, he finds himself racing around the country and dealing with thugs and assassins.
Lastly, Catherine Coulter and JT Ellison have teamed up for another Brit in the FBI title, The End Game, which comes out on September 15. Nicolas Drummond teams up with Mike Caine to investigate a violent environmental group that has targeted energy companies. They join in with a counter terrorism expert, Vanessa Grace, who had just infiltrated the organization. Coulter fun as usual.
There are more, but I will finish next week. Enjoy thinking about which of these you want to read while you are waiting.
Margaret Atwood is an award winning Canadian author. Most of her titles do extremely well. Her The Handmaid's Tale has become a modern classic. She has The Heart Goes Last coming out on September 29th. This is a reworking of her online Positron stories. Amazingly, some reviews have hated it but I think it is a must read for those who have loved her prior works. A young couple, Charmaine and Stan, are living out of their car when they find out about Consilience. Consilience is a social experiment where people live in a comfortable home of their own in the suburbs for one month and switch every other month with living in a jail cell. They begin to obsess about who is living in their home while they are gone. Interesting premise.
Anthony Horowitz, perhaps not the best known author, has been selected by the Ian Fleming Estate to write a new James Bond title with notes found from Fleming. Trigger Mortis comes out on September 8. James Bond returns to London after his Goldfinger incident with no other than Pussy Galore. He then becomes involved in a Soviet plot that is being helped along by a Korean millionaire. Sounds quite James Bondy to me.
Reed Farrel Coleman has Robert B. Parker's The Devil Wins coming out on September 8 also. Coleman continues the Jesse Stone series. After a storm in Paradise, MA, three bodies are discovered - a recently murdered man and the skeleton's of two girls who disappeared years ago. When one of the dead girls' mother comes to bury her daughter, she too is murdered. Jesse Stone is on the trail.
Jan Karon's Mitford series has always been very popular. She has Come Rain or Come Shine arriving on September 22. Father Timothy's adopted son, Dooley, has graduated from vet school and is opening a practice in town. He is also getting married. Sure to be popular with Mitford fans.
Danielle Steel has yet another title coming out. Undercover is arriving on September 1. While still firmly in the romance genre, she is moving slightly to suspense with this one. DEA Special Agent Marshall Everett's arm is basically useless since being shot in the shoulder. No more undercover work for him and he doesn't know what to do with himself. Enter Ariana Gregory, an ambassador's daughter who had been kidnapped and brainwashed. There are still people after her. Can Marshall save her and himself?
Lee Child has his next Reacher title, Make Me, coming out on September 8. Traveling no where, Reacher stops in the town of Mother's Rest. He only wonders how it got it's name but ends up involved in a life and death struggle. No unusual for Reacher. After a short stop, he meets Michelle Chang who is looking for a missing private investigator. When he teams up with her, he finds himself racing around the country and dealing with thugs and assassins.
Lastly, Catherine Coulter and JT Ellison have teamed up for another Brit in the FBI title, The End Game, which comes out on September 15. Nicolas Drummond teams up with Mike Caine to investigate a violent environmental group that has targeted energy companies. They join in with a counter terrorism expert, Vanessa Grace, who had just infiltrated the organization. Coulter fun as usual.
There are more, but I will finish next week. Enjoy thinking about which of these you want to read while you are waiting.
Thursday, July 30, 2015
Last of the August Titles
Sorry, life has a way of getting in the way of all plans. I had to have some oral surgery and was not able to post last week. I therefore need to put a bunch of titles in this week post so I won't do too much description. Things will get better - at least that is what I am telling myself.
Ian Rankin has The Beat Goes On: The Complete Rebus Stories coming on August 11. This is a collection of ALL of the John Rebus short stories - 2 of them having never been published. If you like the Rebus series, this will be a must read.
Sophie Hannah has Woman with a Secret coming out on August 4. Nicki Clements has secrets to hide. None the less, she was waiting patiently in a line of cars being searched by police - that is she was until she saw the policeman in charged of the searching. Then she did a hasty u-turn to escape. Her reckless maneuver was noticed and the police come to question her about a murder. She might not be guilty of murder but she is not innocent either.
Michael Koryta has Last Words coming on August 18th. Mark Novak was still mourning his wife who had died 2 years previously when his company sends him to the caves of southern Indiana to investigate the possible killing of a young girl whose body was found in the caves. When Mark arrives, he finds distrust and hostility. What is going on?
Jennifer McMahon has Night Sister coming out on August 4. An empty frightening motel and 3 young girls spent a summer playing in it's rooms. A secret that they uncover, breaks them apart and they end up in 3 separate places. Now adults, Piper receives a call from Margot about Amy, the third one, being accused of a horrible crime. Almost sounds like horror, doesn't it?
Margaret Maron has the 20th Deborah Knott title coming out on August 11th - Long Upon the Land.
Deborah's father finds the body of a man on a far corner of his farm. Her husband, Sheriff's Deputy Dwight Bryant, discovers that her family (father and brothers) had a long standing feud with the dead man. The local paper implies that Dwight is trying to protect Deborah's family. Unfortunately, Deborah can only think about protecting them herself.
Bill Syken has a debut mystery coming out on August 18, Hangman's Game. Syken was a staff reporter and editor for Sports Illustrated. It should come as no surprise that his first novel has Nick Gallow, a star quarterback until a shoulder injury made him into a punter, as his main character. When a top ranked draft pick is murdered, Nick stay out of it but when there is a second attack - he has to investigate. Said to be more than a football story but a well written mystery also.
Fausto Brizzi has the US version of his best selling Italian novel, 100 Days of Happiness, coming on August 11. Lucio Battistini has been a womanizing, selfish character all his life until he gets the news that he has inoperable cancer and 100 days left to live. He decides to become the person he should have been all along and really live for each moment. Told in 100 short chapters about each day, it is wistful and funny and makes you realize the preciousness of life.
Hope there is something here for you.
Ian Rankin has The Beat Goes On: The Complete Rebus Stories coming on August 11. This is a collection of ALL of the John Rebus short stories - 2 of them having never been published. If you like the Rebus series, this will be a must read.
Sophie Hannah has Woman with a Secret coming out on August 4. Nicki Clements has secrets to hide. None the less, she was waiting patiently in a line of cars being searched by police - that is she was until she saw the policeman in charged of the searching. Then she did a hasty u-turn to escape. Her reckless maneuver was noticed and the police come to question her about a murder. She might not be guilty of murder but she is not innocent either.
Michael Koryta has Last Words coming on August 18th. Mark Novak was still mourning his wife who had died 2 years previously when his company sends him to the caves of southern Indiana to investigate the possible killing of a young girl whose body was found in the caves. When Mark arrives, he finds distrust and hostility. What is going on?
Jennifer McMahon has Night Sister coming out on August 4. An empty frightening motel and 3 young girls spent a summer playing in it's rooms. A secret that they uncover, breaks them apart and they end up in 3 separate places. Now adults, Piper receives a call from Margot about Amy, the third one, being accused of a horrible crime. Almost sounds like horror, doesn't it?
Margaret Maron has the 20th Deborah Knott title coming out on August 11th - Long Upon the Land.
Deborah's father finds the body of a man on a far corner of his farm. Her husband, Sheriff's Deputy Dwight Bryant, discovers that her family (father and brothers) had a long standing feud with the dead man. The local paper implies that Dwight is trying to protect Deborah's family. Unfortunately, Deborah can only think about protecting them herself.
Bill Syken has a debut mystery coming out on August 18, Hangman's Game. Syken was a staff reporter and editor for Sports Illustrated. It should come as no surprise that his first novel has Nick Gallow, a star quarterback until a shoulder injury made him into a punter, as his main character. When a top ranked draft pick is murdered, Nick stay out of it but when there is a second attack - he has to investigate. Said to be more than a football story but a well written mystery also.
Fausto Brizzi has the US version of his best selling Italian novel, 100 Days of Happiness, coming on August 11. Lucio Battistini has been a womanizing, selfish character all his life until he gets the news that he has inoperable cancer and 100 days left to live. He decides to become the person he should have been all along and really live for each moment. Told in 100 short chapters about each day, it is wistful and funny and makes you realize the preciousness of life.
Hope there is something here for you.
Saturday, July 18, 2015
More August Titles
I am currently looking at titles coming out in October so I need some reviewing on these August titles. There are some popular authors that write in - kind of different genres, that have titles coming out in August.
Kelley Armstrong who writes the popular Cainsville series has the third one, Deceptions, coming out on August 20th. Olivia Taylor has learned that both of her biological parents were serial killers and retreated to the town of Cainesville. In prior books in the series, she begins to suspect that her parents were innocent and partially clears them. She develops a relationship with a lawyer in town and has realized that she has a sixth sense that allows her to anticipate danger. In this title, she is trying to understand an ancient manuscript that might explain her relationship to different me. She is also being haunted by omens. She must decide who she can really trust and who is really on her side. Kind of a mixture of urban fantasy and mystery.
Paula Brackston who wrote the popular The Silver Witch, now turns her sights on a young Merlin in Lamp Black, Wolf Grey which arrives on August 4th. Artist Laura Matthews and her husband leave London behind for the Welsh countryside. They hope that this new beginning may help them to start the family they have been dreaming of. Laura finds the wilds of her new home enchanting. The veil between the past and present seems to be very thin and Laura begins to see or imagines she sees Merlin as a young man, with his companion, a grey wolf. This is a love story between Merlin and Megan and the Lord that Megan works for who wants to control both of them.
W. Bruce Cameron, the emotional author of extraordinary dogs, has The Dog Master coming out on August 4th.This is the story of the first dog. He travels back to the prehistoric age where a she-wolf learns that humans will share food. If you liked A Dog's Purpose and A Dog's Journey you will need to read this one for sure.
Robin Hobb, my favorite fantasy author (I don't read a lot of fantasy anymore), has Fool's Quest coming of August 11th. This is the 2nd in the Fitz and The Fool series although it is really a continuation of The Assassin series I think. Fitz has narrowly managed to avoid killing his old friend, the Fool, but his daughter has been kidnapped in the first book in this series. Fitz, as the former King's Assassin, goes after her. Hmmmmm. I can hardly wait.
I am going to finish up with a title that I tried to read in advanced reader's copy form, wanted to very badly read it, but couldn't. So beware. Paul Cleave has Trust No One coming out on August 4th. I have already told you that sometimes I get too emotionally involved with the characters. This is one of those. Jerry Grey has written 12 very popular bloody crime novels. Unfortunately at 49 he develops early onset Alzheimer's. The opening scene finds him at a police station confessing to the person he thinks is a female detective to a bloody crime. Eventually, you learn that the female is his daughter and he is confessing to the plot of his first novel. He was happily married and had a great daughter but somehow, now - he finds himself living in a home, his wife is divorcing him and his daughter calls him by his first name. There are hints that he may actually be going out and committing murders during his escapes from the home when he takes on the persona of one of his creations. He was so confused. I was so depressed for him but I really wanted to know if he was guilty of murder or not. Someone is going to have to tell me because I couldn't finish it. Send me a reply if you do.
Hope there is something here for you to read.
Kelley Armstrong who writes the popular Cainsville series has the third one, Deceptions, coming out on August 20th. Olivia Taylor has learned that both of her biological parents were serial killers and retreated to the town of Cainesville. In prior books in the series, she begins to suspect that her parents were innocent and partially clears them. She develops a relationship with a lawyer in town and has realized that she has a sixth sense that allows her to anticipate danger. In this title, she is trying to understand an ancient manuscript that might explain her relationship to different me. She is also being haunted by omens. She must decide who she can really trust and who is really on her side. Kind of a mixture of urban fantasy and mystery.
Paula Brackston who wrote the popular The Silver Witch, now turns her sights on a young Merlin in Lamp Black, Wolf Grey which arrives on August 4th. Artist Laura Matthews and her husband leave London behind for the Welsh countryside. They hope that this new beginning may help them to start the family they have been dreaming of. Laura finds the wilds of her new home enchanting. The veil between the past and present seems to be very thin and Laura begins to see or imagines she sees Merlin as a young man, with his companion, a grey wolf. This is a love story between Merlin and Megan and the Lord that Megan works for who wants to control both of them.
W. Bruce Cameron, the emotional author of extraordinary dogs, has The Dog Master coming out on August 4th.This is the story of the first dog. He travels back to the prehistoric age where a she-wolf learns that humans will share food. If you liked A Dog's Purpose and A Dog's Journey you will need to read this one for sure.
Robin Hobb, my favorite fantasy author (I don't read a lot of fantasy anymore), has Fool's Quest coming of August 11th. This is the 2nd in the Fitz and The Fool series although it is really a continuation of The Assassin series I think. Fitz has narrowly managed to avoid killing his old friend, the Fool, but his daughter has been kidnapped in the first book in this series. Fitz, as the former King's Assassin, goes after her. Hmmmmm. I can hardly wait.
I am going to finish up with a title that I tried to read in advanced reader's copy form, wanted to very badly read it, but couldn't. So beware. Paul Cleave has Trust No One coming out on August 4th. I have already told you that sometimes I get too emotionally involved with the characters. This is one of those. Jerry Grey has written 12 very popular bloody crime novels. Unfortunately at 49 he develops early onset Alzheimer's. The opening scene finds him at a police station confessing to the person he thinks is a female detective to a bloody crime. Eventually, you learn that the female is his daughter and he is confessing to the plot of his first novel. He was happily married and had a great daughter but somehow, now - he finds himself living in a home, his wife is divorcing him and his daughter calls him by his first name. There are hints that he may actually be going out and committing murders during his escapes from the home when he takes on the persona of one of his creations. He was so confused. I was so depressed for him but I really wanted to know if he was guilty of murder or not. Someone is going to have to tell me because I couldn't finish it. Send me a reply if you do.
Hope there is something here for you to read.
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