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Bookreporter.com Newsletter |
October 26, 2007
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Ghosts and Witches On the Move...Will They Carry Books?
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Last weekend in Miami/Coral Gables was just lovely. I still am dreaming of the pool at the Biltmore --- all 80 meters of it. I had a room overlooking it, and when I opened my drapes the water was my view --- perfect! I lounged when not doing laps, though my pool reading was not typical resort fare.
I spent Friday with BLUE SKIES, NO FENCES by Lynne Cheney, which is her memoir of growing up in Casper, Wyoming. Reading formal history has never been my thing, but I love oral history and reading stories about the past and family traditions through the years. Cheney chronicles a much simpler time filled with innocence, which is such a contrast to today's busy, busy, busy world. I enjoyed tracing her heritage. For myself and many of my friends here in the East, our ancestors came from Europe, thus reading about a family who can trace a long American history on both sides was interesting. Also, I love the west, so reading of life set there was great fun.
Saturday I picked up MY GRANDFATHER'S SON by Clarence Thomas and read his story of growing up in the South and the strong influence his grandfather had on him. Reading his thoughts on segregation and growing up black in a white world when he was going to school, as well as his thoughts on why he opposes bussing and de-segregation, were enlightening. Readers of this newsletter know that I am not political on these pages, nor am I in life. Thus I read both these books for the stories that they shared, but I will say that when I see either person portrayed in the media in the years to come, I will see the pictures and stories from these books as part of them.
In between reading and swimming I had a blast celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Books & Books (when I was at their party Saturday night there must have been 1,000 people there) and participating in their Book Club Twister Mixer. Hail hail great readers of South Florida.
Monday night I was at the Quill Awards where the publishing world gathered in black tie to celebrate the winners. You can see the list of nominees and winners here. The Awards show is being broadcast on NBC on Saturday night in ten markets --- NY, LA, San Francisco, San Diego, Dallas, Chicago, Washington DC, Miami, Hartford and Philadelphia. In New York the show airs from 7-8PM. In other cities, check your local listings.
Our latest Suspense/Thriller author is New York Times bestseller Kyle Mills, author of DARKNESS FALLS. In this book, Erin Neal discovers that a strange contagion eating away at the Arabian oil wells could escalate into a global nightmare. We have 20 copies of DARKNESS FALLS to give away to readers who would like to preview the book and comment about it. If you are interested, please fill out this form by Friday, November 9th.
For those who are wondering, the turquoise cowboy boots arrived. They are a tad darker than I thought they would be, more teal than turquoise, but they are just fabulous and they DO fit. The thought of wearing them probably is the ONLY reason I am loving the cooler weather! My younger son is set to be a ghost for Halloween. He has been asking for this as a costume for many years, but I thought it was not creative enough. Tomorrow we are off to buy a cheap white sheet. Remember when ALL sheets were white? Ah...another memory for MY memoir. My friend Cathy and I are going to accompany Cory and his friends (from an appropriate distance so we do not look like we are with them, of course) in our witch costumes. I think we are more excited than he is!
Do NOT set your clocks back this weekend. Hold that thought for NEXT weekend as we abide by the new daylight savings time law. Also, our thoughts have been with our readers in Southern California as we watched the fires burning all week.
Around my house this weekend there will be shopping for our Holiday Cheer promotion, which kicks off next week. I know this is a favorite of yours, so be sure to check back next week to see the prizes we will have in store. My older son is writing his college essays. His best line of the week: "Will a misplaced semi-colon stand between me and the college of my dreams?" Remember, reading is better than raking...pass it on. Have a great week.
Carol Fitzgerald ([email protected])
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Now in Stores: EXIT GHOST by Philip Roth
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EXIT GHOST by Philip Roth (Fiction)
What does it feel like to lose everything, to have the constituents of a life bleed into the atmosphere until there is nothing left to hold them together? E.I. Lonoff, Nathan Zuckerman’s literary hero, claims, “The end is so immense, it is its own poetry. It requires little rhetoric. Just state it plainly.” Philip Roth does so for Zuckerman, which makes for a stark and penetrating novel. Reviewed by Max Falkowitz.
-Click here to read an excerpt from EXIT GHOST.
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Click here to read a review of EXIT GHOST.
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New Featured Suspense/Thriller Author: Kyle Mills, Author of DARKNESS FALLS
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From the New York Times bestselling author of THE SECOND HORSEMAN and FADE, DARKNESS FALLS --- which is now available in stores --- is Kyle Mills’s most provocative and riveting thriller yet. When a bizarre contagion begins to infiltrate Arabian petroleum reserves, the Department of Homeland Security sends Erin Neal to investigate. As the threat escalates, Erin realizes that the bacteria couldn’t possibly have evolved on its own.
We have 20 copies of DARKNESS FALLS to give away to readers who would like to preview the book and comment about it. If you are interested, please fill out this form by Friday, November 9th.
-Click here to read Kyle Mills’s bio.
-Visit the author’s official website, www.KyleMills.com.
More about DARKNESS FALLS:
When a deadly bacteria begins threatening the world’s oil reserves, Erin Neal is sent in to investigate. It soon becomes clear that if this contagion isn’t stopped, it will infiltrate the world’s petroleum reserves, cutting the industrial world off from the energy that provides the heat, food and transportation necessary for survival.
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Click here to read more about Kyle Mills and DARKNESS FALLS.
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2007 Fall Baseball Roundup
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The Colorado Rockies are making their first appearance in the World Series. The Boston Red Sox hope to avoid another 86-year-gap between championships. After their 2004 victory in the Fall Classic, more than 20 titles hit the bookstores. In the meantime, Ron Kaplan has some suggestions to get you through the weather delays and pitching changes.
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Click here to read our roundup of fall baseball books.
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Don't Miss: THE HISTORY OF THE HOBBIT by John D. Rateliff
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THE HISTORY OF THE HOBBIT by John D. Rateliff
First published in 1938, THE HOBBIT is a story that “grew in the telling,” and many characters and events in the published book are completely different from what J.R.R. Tolkien first wrote to read aloud to his young sons as part of their “fireside reads.” For the first time, THE HISTORY OF THE HOBBIT reproduces the original version of one of literature’s most famous stories, and includes a number of little-known illustrations and previously unpublished maps for THE HOBBIT created by Tolkien himself.
These two volumes are boxed together with a new edition of THE HOBBIT with a short introduction by Christopher Tolkien, a reset text incorporating the most up-to-date corrections, and all of Tolkien’s own drawings and color illustrations. Reviewed by Stephen Hubbard.
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Click here to read a review of THE HISTORY OF THE HOBBIT.
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Featured Suspense/Thriller Author: John Lutz, Author of IN FOR THE KILL
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Edgar and Shamus Award-winning author John Lutz has written over 40 books, including SWF SEEKS SAME, which became the film Single White Female, and THE EX, a critically acclaimed feature for HBO. Lutz's newest thriller, IN FOR THE KILL, is set to release on November 6th. After making his first appearance in DARKER THAN NIGHT, Detective Frank Quinn returns to face his toughest --- and most personal --- case yet. Hunting down killers is what he does best. But this time, Quinn is up against a psychopath who will test him as never before.
-Click here to read fast facts about John Lutz.
-Click here to read John Lutz’s bio.
-Click here to see John Lutz's backlist.
-Click here to see our advance copy winners.
More about IN FOR THE KILL:
A madman is stalking women in the city. By the time his victims are found, they’ve been dismembered with careful precision. Accustomed to working on the most grisly homicides, detective Frank Quinn’s nerves don’t rattle easily. But when the last names of a serial killer’s victims spell out “Q-u-i-n-n,” the veteran cop feels a chill run down his spine. When one of the victims is linked to a woman he desires, Quinn realizes that he will be tested as never before.
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Click here to read more about John Lutz and IN FOR THE KILL.
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Featured Suspense/Thriller Author: J.D. Robb Celebrates the Release of the 25th Book in Her In Death Series |
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J.D. Robb, aka Nora Roberts, has written over 100 books in her illustrious career. On November 6th, CREATION IN DEATH, the 25th installment in her bestselling In Death series, will be released. As Eve Dallas --- a lieutenant in the New York Police and Security Department --- hunts for a killer known as “The Groom,” who plagued the city nine years earlier, she realizes that this new wave of attacks is becoming alarmingly personal.
-Click here to read a second excerpt from CREATION IN DEATH.
-Click here to read fast facts about J.D. Robb.
-Click here to read J.D. Robb’s bio.
-Click here to see J.D. Robb's backlist.
-Visit the author’s official website, www.JDRobb.com.
-Click here to see our advance copy winners.
More about CREATION IN DEATH:
NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas keeps the streets of a near-future New York City safe in this extraordinary series. But even she makes mistakes, and is haunted by those she couldn't save --- and the killers she couldn't capture. When the body of a young brunette is found in East River Park, artfully positioned and marked by signs of prolonged and painful torture, Eve is catapulted back to a case nine years earlier. When it becomes apparent that a gruesome killer known as “The Groom” has returned, Eve is determined to finish him once and for all.
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Click here to read more about J.D. Robb and CREATION IN DEATH.
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Featured One to Watch Author: Marie Bostwick, Author of ON WINGS OF THE MORNING
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Marie Bostwick’s FIELDS OF GOLD introduced readers to Eva Glennon, the young woman from Oklahoma who finds love while America fights a great war. In her new book, ON WINGS OF THE MORNING (which hits stores on October 30th), Bostwick tells the story of Eva’s son Morgan and delivers a captivating tale about love while the country faces its greatest challenge --- World War II.
-Click here to read a second excerpt from ON WINGS OF THE MORNING.
-Click here to read Marie Bostwick’s bio.
-Click here to see Marie Bostwick's backlist.
-Click here to read critical praise for Marie Bostwick.
-Visit the author’s official website, www.MarieBostwick.com.
-Click here to see our advance copy winners.
More about ON WINGS OF THE MORNING:
Morgan Glennon always dreamed of being a pilot like his father. Soon after he enlists as a Navy pilot, America goes to war. Watching his friends fall in battle robs Morgan of the joy he always felt in the air. It will take one very unusual woman to help him get it back...
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Click here to read more about Marie Bostwick and ON WINGS OF THE MORNING.
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October's Books into Movies |
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The films in October's Books into Movies feature aren't of the haunted-house or slasher-fest variety that you'd expect so close to Halloween, but this month’s lineup still packs quite a treat for moviegoers of all ages and interests, ranging from the profound history of O Jerusalem! to the bizarrely uplifting dramedy of Wristcutters: A Love Story.
Provoking goose bumps for entirely different reasons than your typical Hollywood serial killers and supernatural creatures, The Girl Next Door --- based on Jack Ketchum's nonfiction account of the same name --- details the shocking and cringe-worthy true events of a young girl’s torture at the hands of a foster parent gone mad. Much less graphic but equally as heart-wrenching are the gritty police procedural Gone Baby Gone --- about the abduction of a four-year-old girl in one of the toughest neighborhoods in Boston --- and the dark drama Reservation Road, a film that captures every parent's worst fear as two families are irrevocably changed after a hit-and-run accident.
For lighter fare, take the kids to see The Seeker, which brings Susan Cooper's YA novel THE DARK IS RISING to the big screen. This sci-fi/fantasy adventure promises a breathtaking battle of epic proportions between the forces of good and evil in the tradition of The Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia.
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Click here to read our Books into Movies feature.
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New in Paperback for October
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October’s roundup of New in Paperback fiction titles includes THE CASTLE IN THE FOREST, Norman Mailer’s first major work of fiction in more than a decade, which explores the evil of Adolf Hitler; BROTHER ODD, the third installment in Dean Koontz’s psychological suspense series about a short order cook who can see and talk with the dead; WILD FIRE by Nelson DeMille, which marks the return of federal agent John Corey as he joins forces with his FBI agent wife to stop a frightening and all-too-plausible plot; THE THIRTEENTH TALE, in which Diane Setterfield weaves together a tale of twins and ghosts when an aging bestselling author invites an obscure biographer to her creepy old home to write the true story of her life; FAMILY TREE, a powerful novel from Barbara Delinsky that asks penetrating questions about family and the choices people make in times of crisis; and HOME TO BIG STONE GAP, which returns to the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia for the fourth installment in Adriana Trigiani’s Big Stone Gap series.
Among our nonfiction highlights are MY LIFE IN FRANCE, a love letter from Julia Child to her husband, friends, France and --- of course --- cooking and food; POINT TO POINT NAVIGATION, a follow-up to Gore Vidal’s bestselling PALIMPSEST, in which the celebrated novelist, essayist and critic reflects on his remarkable life; WALT DISNEY: The Triumph of the American Imagination, Neal Gabler's meticulously researched biography of one of America's iconic figures; and I SHOULDN'T EVEN BE DOING THIS!, a New York Times bestseller by Bob Newhart, who offers his take on everything from his early days as a mild-mannered accountant to his glory days as an actor and a stand-up comedian.
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Click here to read our New in Paperback roundup for October.
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Starting Next Week: Our Holiday Basket of Cheer Contest on Bookreporter.com!
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One of your favorite contests is back next week. Each week from November 2nd through December 14th we will spotlight a different title in our Holiday Basket of Cheer feature, and five readers will have the chance to win a holiday basket filled with winter-themed items as well as two copies of the featured book. Why two? One is to keep, of course, and one is for someone on your holiday gift list. We will also include festive wrapping paper and a ribbon to make the gift-giving hassle-free. Be sure to check back next week to see our featured titles!
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This Week's Reviews and Features
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BOOK OF THE DEAD by Patricia Cornwell (Mystery)
Kay Scarpetta and her regular crew take center stage in BOOK OF THE DEAD, Patricia Cornwell's 15th novel to feature the forensic pathologist. A series of bizarre murders in both the U.S. and Italy challenges the insights and technology that the group brings to the investigation. Reviewed by Barbara Lipkien Gershenbaum.
-Click here to read an excerpt from BOOK OF THE DEAD.
DEAD HEAT by Dick Francis and Felix Francis (Thriller)
The plots in Dick Francis's books have revolved around fast horses and criminals with some sort of get-rich-quick scheme or revenge. DEAD HEAT contains all of these elements but with a culinary twist. The inclusion of Felix Francis, Dick's son, as his writing partner adds freshness to the theme. Reviewed by Marge Fletcher.
ODD MOM OUT by Jane Porter (Fiction)
Marta Zinsser will never be confused with the picture-perfect, Stepford moms in her Seattle neighborhood, and normally she relishes the differences. But when her preteen daughter is struggling to fit in, Marta tries to find a way to assimilate and be herself at the same time. Reviewed by Bronwyn Miller.
CAN'T BUY ME LOVE: The Beatles, Britain, and America by Jonathan Gould (Biography)
"There they were in America, all getting house-trained for adulthood with their indisputable principle of life: short hair equals men; long hair equals women. Well, we got rid of that little convention for them." Thus said Paul McCartney, and this remark goes to the heart of CAN'T BUY ME LOVE, Jonathan Gould's sweeping analysis of the mopheads, their music and the culture --- the culture they were born into and the culture they undeniably created. Reviewed by Barbara Bamberger Scott.
GHOST by Alan Lightman (Fiction)
A funeral home employee's sighting of a spectral being provides the backdrop for this engaging novel's exploration of the conflict between rational thought and belief in the supernatural. In the hands of physicist and humanities professor Alan Lightman, it's a rewarding, and often moving, journey. Reviewed by Harvey Freedenberg.
TOKYO YEAR ZERO by David Peace (Historical Mystery)
TOKYO YEAR ZERO is an electrifying novel that revisits a series of shocking crimes committed in post-World War II, bombed-out, American-occupied Tokyo. Narrated by the irreverent, despairing yet determined Detective Minami of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police, it tells a fictionalized story of the real-life hunt for "the Japanese Bluebeard" --- a decorated Imperial soldier who raped and murdered at least 10 women amid the bleak turmoil of post-war Japan. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
THE TENTH MUSE: My Life in Food by Judith Jones (Memoir)
In this delicious memoir, Judith Jones --- author and editor of numerous classic cookbooks such as Julia Child's MASTERING THE ART OF FRENCH COOKING --- tells of her lifelong passion for food. Her story is a well-paced, fascinating page-turner that may well inspire readers to cook and eat with a heightened sense of adventure and joy. Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon.
SLIDE by Ken Bruen and Jason Starr (Thriller)
Max Fisher used to run a computer company; Angela Petrakos was his assistant and mistress. But that was last year. Now Max is reinventing himself as a hip-hop crack dealer and Angela is back in Ireland, hooking up with a would-be record-setter...in the field of serial killing. Will their paths cross again? Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
MIDNIGHT RAMBLER by James Swain (Thriller)
When Jack Carpenter busted the notorious serial killer Simon Skell --- aka the Midnight Rambler --- he sacrificed his badge and marriage in the process. Now the body of one of the Midnight Rambler's victims has just been uncovered --- and forensic evidence suggests that Carpenter jailed the wrong man. With Skell just days away from release, the former cop must reopen the case that shattered his life and the lives of eight murdered women. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
VOICES by Arnaldur Indridason (Thriller)
From the far reaches of frozen Iceland, Arnaldur Indridason proves again that his superior talent and "get to the point" style serve him well. His police detectives have distinctive personalities and work together as a formidable team. VOICES, now translated into English, has its share of dead bodies, choirboys and deeply fascinating psychological insights. Reviewed by Barbara Lipkien Gershenbaum.
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Read this week's reviews and features here.
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Poll and Question of the Week: The Length of a Book
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Poll:
Does the length of a book factor into your decision to read it?
I do not like to read long books.
I will read a long book, but only when I know I have a lot of time to complete it.
I will read a long book regardless of how long it might take to complete it.
I am not sure how I feel about this.
-Click here to answer our poll.
Question:
What was the longest book that you ever read?
-Click here to answer our question of the week.
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Word of Mouth: Tell Us What You're Reading --- THREE Prizes
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Tell us what books YOU are reading and loving --- or even those you don't.
This week we have three great prizes: FIVE readers each will win a copy of MY GRANDFATHER'S SON: A Memoir by Clarence Thomas, PROTECT AND DEFEND by Vince Flynn and THE RACE by Richard North Patterson. Tell us what you are reading and rate the titles 1-5 by noon on November 2nd to ensure that you are in the running to win these books.
Please note that our next Word of Mouth update will be on November 2nd.
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Need more details about Word of Mouth? Click here.
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As always, here are a few housekeeping notes. If you are seeing this newsletter in a text version, and would prefer to see the graphics, you can either read it online or change your preferences below.
Those of you who wish to send mail to Bookreporter.com, please see the form on the Write to Us page. If you would like to reach me, please write [email protected]. Writing any of the respond buttons below will not get to us.
Those who are subscribed to the Bookreporter.com newsletter by October 31, 2007 automatically are entered in our Monthly Newsletter Contest. This month one winner will be selected to win the following five books: BOOK OF THE DEAD by Patricia Cornwell, EXIT GHOST by Philip Roth, NOW AND THEN: A Spenser Novel by Robert B. Parker, PANDORA'S DAUGHTER by Iris Johansen and PROTECT AND DEFEND by Vince Flynn. Jo from Makakilo, HI was last month's newsletter winner. She won THE BONE GARDEN by Tess Gerritsen, THE CHOICE by Nicholas Sparks, PLAYING FOR PIZZA by John Grisham, RUN by Ann Patchett and YOU'VE BEEN WARNED by James Patterson and Howard Roughan.
Happy reading! Don't forget to forward this newsletter to a friend or to visit our other websites from TheBookReportNetwork.com: ReadingGroupGuides.com, AuthorsOnTheWeb.com, FaithfulReader.com, AuthorYellowPages.com, Teenreads.com, and Kidsreads.com.
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