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Week of January 14, 2019

New in Paperback

Week of January 14, 2019

Paperback releases for the week of January 14th include LOVE AND RUIN, in which Paula McLain brings to life the story of Martha Gellhorn --- a fiercely independent, ambitious woman ahead of her time, who would become one of the greatest war correspondents of the 20th century; NO TIME TO SPARE, the collected best of Ursula K. Le Guin's blog that presents perfectly crystallized dispatches on what mattered to her late in life, her concerns with the world and her wonder at it; THE RECOVERING by Leslie Jamison, which turns our understanding of the traditional addiction narrative on its head, demonstrating that the story of recovery can be every bit as electrifying as the train wreck itself; and Sara Shepard's debut novel for adults, THE ELIZAS, a Hitchcockian double narrative composed of lies, false memories and a protagonist who must uncover the truth for survival.

The Accidental Further Adventures of the 100-Year-Old Man by Jonas Jonasson - Fiction/Humor

January 15, 2019

It all begins with a hot air balloon trip and three bottles of champagne. Allan Karlsson and Julius are ready for some spectacular views, but they’re not expecting to land in the sea and be rescued by a North Korean ship, and they never could have imagined that the captain of the ship would be harboring a suitcase full of contraband uranium, on a nuclear weapons mission for Kim Jong-un. Yikes! Soon Allan and Julius are at the center of a complex diplomatic crisis involving world figures from the Swedish foreign minister to Angela Merkel and President Trump. Needless to say, things are about to get very, very complicated.

Adèle written by Leila Slimani, translated by Sam Taylor - Fiction

January 15, 2019

Adèle appears to have the perfect life: She is a successful journalist in Paris who lives in a beautiful apartment with her surgeon husband and their young son. But underneath the surface, she is bored --- and consumed by an insatiable need for sex. Driven less by pleasure than compulsion, Adèle organizes her day around her extramarital affairs, arriving late to work and lying to her husband about where she's been, until she becomes ensnared in a trap of her own making.

The Elizas by Sara Shepard - Psychological Thriller

January 15, 2019

When Eliza Fontaine is rescued from the bottom of a hotel pool just a few weeks before her first novel is going to be published, her family assumes that it’s another failed suicide attempt. But Eliza swears she was pushed. The problem is she remembers little of that night, a result of the large quantity of alcohol she consumed and a worsening struggle with memory loss due to a brain tumor. As she searches for answers, something very peculiar begins to happen: The people closest to her start to confuse the events in her novel with those in her real life. The dividing line between fact and fiction seems to be dissolving, and even Eliza is becoming uncertain about where her protagonist’s story ends and hers begins.

Everything Here Is Beautiful by Mira T. Lee - Fiction

January 15, 2019

Two Chinese-American sisters --- Miranda, the older, responsible one, always her younger sister’s protector; Lucia, the headstrong, unpredictable one, whose impulses are huge and, often, life-changing. When Lucia starts hearing voices, it is Miranda who must find a way to reach her sister. Lucia impetuously plows ahead, but the bitter constant is that she is, in fact, mentally ill. Lucia lives life on a grand scale, until, inevitably, she crashes to earth. Miranda leaves her own self-contained life in Switzerland to rescue her sister again --- but only Lucia can decide if she wants to be saved. The bonds of sisterly devotion stretch across oceans --- but what does it take to break them?

The Legacy by Yrsa Sigurdardottir - Mystery/Thriller

January 15, 2019

The only person who might have the answers to a baffling murder case is the victim’s seven-year-old daughter, found hiding in the room where her mother died. And she’s not talking. Newly promoted, out of his depth, detective Huldar turns to Freyja, a psychologist, for her expertise with traumatized young people. Freyja, who distrusts the police in general and Huldar in particular, isn’t best pleased. But she’s determined to keep little Margret safe. It may prove tricky. The killer is leaving them strange clues, but can they crack the code? And if they do, will they be next?

The Liar's Room by Simon Lelic - Psychological Thriller/Mystery

January 15, 2019

Susanna Fenton has a secret. Fourteen years ago she left her identity behind, reinventing herself as a therapist and starting a new life. It was the only way to keep her daughter safe. But when a young man, Adam Geraghty, walks into her office, claiming he needs Susanna's help but asking unsettling questions, she begins to fear that her secret has been discovered. Who is Adam, really? What does he intend to do to Susanna? And what has he done to her daughter?

Love and Ruin by Paula McLain - Historical Fiction

January 15, 2019

In 1937, 28-year-old Martha Gellhorn travels alone to Madrid to report on the atrocities of the Spanish Civil War and becomes drawn to the stories of ordinary people caught in the devastating conflict. It’s the adventure she’s been looking for and her chance to prove herself a worthy journalist in a field dominated by men. But she also finds herself unexpectedly falling in love with Ernest Hemingway, a man on his way to becoming a legend. When Ernest publishes the biggest literary success of his career, FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS, they are no longer equals, and Martha must make a choice: surrender to the confining demands of being a famous man’s wife, or risk losing Ernest by forging a path as her own woman and writer.

Madness Is Better Than Defeat by Ned Beauman - Historical/Literary Thriller

January 15, 2019

In 1938, two rival expeditions descend on an ancient temple recently discovered in the jungles of Honduras --- one intending to shoot a screwball comedy on location there, the other to disassemble the temple and ship it back to New York. A seemingly endless stalemate ensues, and 20 years later a rogue CIA agent sets out to exploit it for his own ends, unaware that the temple is a locus of conspiracies far grander than anyone could have ever guessed.

The Milk Lady of Bangalore: An Unexpected Adventure by Shoba Narayan - Memoir

January 15, 2019

When Shoba Narayan --- who has just returned to India with her husband and two daughters after years in the United States --- asks whether a cow she sees in her elevator might bless her apartment, it is the beginning of a beautiful friendship between our author and the cow’s owner, Sarala, who also sells fresh milk right across the street from that thoroughly modern apartment building. The two women connect over not only cows but also family, food and life. When Shoba agrees to buy Sarala a new cow, they set off looking for just the right heifer, and what was at first a simple economic transaction becomes something much deeper, though never without a hint of slapstick.

No Time to Spare: Thinking About What Matters by Ursula K. Le Guin - Essays

January 15, 2019

Ursula K. Le Guin took readers to imaginary worlds for decades. In the last great frontier of life, old age, she explored a new literary territory: the blog, a forum where she shined. The collected best of Ursula’s blog, NO TIME TO SPARE presents perfectly crystallized dispatches on what mattered to her late in life, her concerns with the world, and her wonder at it: “How rich we are in knowledge, and in all that lies around us yet to learn. Billionaires, all of us.”

Oliver Loving by Stefan Merrill Block - Fiction

January 15, 2019

A shy boy named Oliver Loving attends his school’s annual dance, hoping for a glimpse of the object of his unrequited affections, Rebekkah Sterling. But as the music plays, a troubled young man sneaks in through the school’s back door. The dire choices this man makes that evening will tear the town of Bliss, Texas apart. Nearly 10 years later, Oliver still lies wordless and paralyzed at an assisted care facility. Orbiting the stillpoint of his hospital bed is a family transformed. And then there is Rebekkah, who left Texas long ago and still refuses to speak about her own part in that tragic night. When a new medical test promises a key to unlock Oliver’s trapped mind, the town’s unanswered questions resurface with new urgency.

Paris by the Book by Liam Callanan - Fiction

January 15, 2019

When eccentric novelist Robert Eady abruptly vanishes, he leaves behind his wife, Leah, their daughters, and, hidden in an unexpected spot, plane tickets to Paris. Hoping to uncover clues --- and her husband --- Leah sets off for France with her girls. Upon their arrival, she discovers an unfinished manuscript, one Robert had been writing without her knowledge…and that he had set in Paris. The Eady women follow the path of the manuscript to a small, floundering English-language bookstore whose weary proprietor is eager to sell. But a series of startling discoveries forces Leah to consider that she may not be ready for what solving this mystery might do to her family --- and the Paris she thought she knew.

The Recovering: Intoxication and Its Aftermath by Leslie Jamison - Memoir/Cultural History

January 15, 2019

Leslie Jamison deftly excavates the stories we tell about addiction --- both her own and others' --- and examines what we want these stories to do and what happens when they fail us. All the while, she offers a fascinating look at the larger history of the recovery movement, and at the complicated bearing that race and class have on our understanding of who is criminal and who is ill. At the heart of the book is Jamison's ongoing conversation with literary and artistic geniuses whose lives and works were shaped by alcoholism and substance dependence --- including Raymond Carver, Denis Johnson and David Foster Wallace --- as well as brilliant lesser-known figures, lost to obscurity but newly illuminated here.

Take-Out: And Other Tales of Culinary Crime by Rob Hart - Crime Fiction/Short Stories

January 15, 2019

In TAKE-OUT, Rob Hart has collected 16 stories of culinary crime and noir that will have you savoring every deadly bite. In the title story, a gambler falls into debt with the enigmatic owner of a Chinatown gambling parlor, and must run odd --- and sometimes dangerous --- deliveries to clear his ledger. In "How to Make the Perfect New York Bagel," the owner of one of New York City's last old-school bagel shops has to defend his storefront --- in the past, from the mob, and in the present, from a bank. In "Creampuff," a bakery with the hottest pastry in town has to hire a bouncer to control the unruly line, with tragic results.

This Messy Magnificent Life: A Field Guide by Geneen Roth - Self-Help/Motivational

January 15, 2019

With an introduction by Anne Lamott, THIS MESSY MAGNIFICENT LIFE is a personal and exhilarating read on freeing ourselves from daily anxiety, lack and discontent. It’s a deep dive into what lies behind our self-criticism, whether it is about the size of our thighs, the expression of our thoughts or the shape of our ambitions. And it’s about stopping the search to fix ourselves by realizing that on the other side of the “Me Project” is spaciousness, peace, and the capacity to reclaim one’s power and joy.

Vindication: A Matt Royal Mystery by H. Terrell Griffin - Mystery

January 15, 2019

Matt Royal, the retired lawyer-turned-beach-bum, is called back into the courtroom to defend his girlfriend J.D. Duncan's Aunt Esther. A bestselling author has been murdered after a book signing, and Aunt Esther has been arrested. Matt reluctantly suits up for the courtroom, and J.D. takes a leave from the police department to go undercover. A bizarre specter from the past haunts their investigation every step of the way. As they delve further into the case, the pieces of the puzzle refuse to fall into any kind of coherent pattern. Jock Algren arrives with his special skill set to expose the real murderer and free Aunt Esther, but to no avail. Not until the case goes to trial and the evidence is revealed does the truth emerge --- and a strange kind of justice prevails.

The Woman in the Water: A Prequel to the Charles Lenox Series by Charles Finch - Historical Mystery

January 15, 2019

London, 1850: A young Charles Lenox struggles to make a name for himself as a detective…without a single case. But when an anonymous writer sends a letter to the paper claiming to have committed the perfect crime --- and promising to kill again --- Lenox is convinced that this is his chance to prove himself. The writer’s first victim is a young woman whose body is found in a naval trunk. With few clues to go on, Lenox endeavors to solve the crime before another innocent life is lost. When the killer’s sights are turned toward those whom Lenox holds most dear, the stakes are raised and Lenox is trapped in a desperate game of cat and mouse.