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20SomethingReads.com Newsletter |
August 24, 2012 |
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Last Gasp of Summer Means It's Time for....Fall Preview: Books, Movies and More!
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One more week of summer since we all know once the long Labor Day ends, no matter what the calendar says, it's fall.
By then most people will have returned from vacation, some will have headed back to school and others back to a full work week after "Summer Fridays." It's one of the biggest seasons in the book world as many books release in anticipation of the holidays.
First up this month, we have a Books on Screen bookshelf featuring 20 upcoming movie adaptations of your favorite books; consider it a heads up on what you want to start reading (or re-reading) now. For all of you Harry Potter fans, Emma Watson will be undertaking another popular role in the adaptation of THE PERKS OF BEING OF A WALLFLOWER, which is one of the most buzzed-about films of the season. Some of the other big films this season include THE HOBBIT, which will now be a trilogy, along with THE LIFE OF PI, CLOUD ATLAS, and many more!
There are some big books to look out for too. Junot Diaz, author of THE BRIEF WONDROUS LIFE OF OSCAR WAO returns with THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE HER, on-sale September 11th, and J. K. Rowling (remember her?) is leaving the wizards behind in her first book for adults, THE CASUAL VACANCY, which releases on September 27th. For other great books coming out soon, check out our Fall Preview feature on Bookreporter.com here.
New this month, we have blogs from two favorite authors who we want to be sure are on your radar: Lisa M. Stasse, author THE FORSAKEN questions whether there really is "dystopian fatigue" and Julianna Baggott shares the inspiration behind her dystopian novel, PURE, and we have info about a pretty wild Party Pack for those of you who want to read PURE with your book club. Dare you to read this book and ever look at a doll's head the same way again! 20SomethingReads contributor, Emma Carbone also has a new blog that discussses steampunk, providing some great books to get you started if you're looking to spread your wings beyond dystopian novels.
And we have a new bookshelf of 20 Stand Alone Fantasy Titles, to keep you entertained while dreaming of far off magical lands brought to you by our contributor, Steve Hubbard. This is a companion bookshelf to our collection of 20 Must-Read Fantasy Series from June. Whether you are a true fan of this genre --- or just know it a bit (after all, if you read Harry Potter you've read fantasy) --- Steve has a list worth noting.
As the lazy days of summer come to an end, we want to thank you all for making our first annual Summer Beach Bag of Books contest a huge success! Five lucky readers each received a beach bag with sunscreen, a beach towel and five beach-perfect titles: GHOST CROWN by J. Gabriel Gates and Charlene Keel, RULES OF CIVILITY by Amor Towles, SPRING FEVER by Mary Kay Andrews, TO BE SUNG UNDERWATER by Tom McNeal and WHERE WE BELONG by Emily Giffin. We look forward to bringing this contest back next year, and hope you enjoy our upcoming Holiday Cheer promotion just as much!
The Olympics may be over, but they left us with some real gems to tide us over until Rio: A Spice Girls reunion (you know you wanted it), Ryan Lochte's budding entertainment career (hopefully he hires a media coach, so we don't ever have to watch interviews like these again!), and a Tumblr page to remind us mere mortals that no matter what we do, McKayla Maroney will never be impressed by us (sigh).
Another time-sucking Tumblr to keep your eye on is Suri's Burn Book, in which the celebrity child of TomKat (as played by author Allie Hagan) voices her opinions on celebrity parents and their children. It's being turned into a real, tangible book as well, and will be on-sale September 4th.
We hope your summer was filled with fun in the sun, great books, and a parody or two of Call Me Maybe (or not!). Here's to an exciting fall season, complete with books, movies, and some answers to your burning questions from the finales of your favorite tv shows!
---Maureen Linehan ([email protected])
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Still Ongoing on 20SomethingReads.com
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Bookshelf: Top Fantasy Series - Our sci-fi and fantasy expert, Stephen Hubbard had his work cut out for him when creating a bookshelf of quintessential fantasy titles. At one point he had 80 titles on his list! After trying to narrow it down to just 20 titles, which seemed to be impossible, he opted to break his winnowed down list into two bookshelves --- Top Fantasy Series and Best Stand-Alone Fantasy Novels.
This bookshelf features several classic fantasy series, as well as a group of current fantasy writers you'll want to note.
Bookshelf: 20 Great Thrillers - Looking for books that keep you on the edge of your seat? You know, the kind of book that will keep you up all night. We asked our resident thriller reviewer Joe Hartlaub for a list of his favorite recently published thrillers --- and he shared the 20 titles below. If you are up reading all night, you can blame Joe! |
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What's Coming Up on 20SomethingReads.com?
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New Bookshelf: 20 Book Club Books --- Ones to Get a Book Club Started (September)
New Bookshelf: 20 Spooky Reads (October)
Books On Screen: Anna Karenina, Lincoln, Breaking Dawn, Life of Pi, Silver Linings Playbook (November)
New Bookshelf: Downton Abbey-Themed Bookshelf (December)
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This Week's Reviews...And Some Others You Might Have Missed
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DEEP DOWN: A Jack Reacher Story by Lee Child (Thriller)
An eBook Short Story Exclusive
When vital details regarding a new, state-of-the-art sniper rifle for U.S. forces begin leaking from the Capitol into potentially the hands of unidentified foreign arms dealers, Military Intelligence summons Jack Reacher to Washington, D.C. Reacher must go undercover to infiltrate four high-powered female Army officers who are the target suspects. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
THE ST. ZITA SOCIETY by Ruth Rendell (Mystery)
Life for the residents and servants of Hexam Place appears placid and orderly on the outside: drivers take their employers to and from work, dogs are walked, flowers are planted in gardens, and Christmas candles lit uniformly in windows. But beneath this tranquil veneer, the upstairs-downstairs relationships are set to combust. Reviewed by Barbara Lipkien Gershenbaum.
VENGEANCE by Benjamin Black (Mystery)
Victor Delahaye, one of Ireland's most successful businessmen, kills himself while sailing with his partner's son. Detective Inspector Hackett calls upon the services of his sometime partner Quirke, consultant pathologist at the Hospital of the Holy Family. But when a second death occurs, this one even more shocking than the first, it quickly becomes apparent that a terrible secret threatens to destroy the lives and reputations of several members of Dublin's elite. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
THY NEIGHBOR by Norah Vincent (Suspense)
Obsessed with understanding the circumstances surrounding his parents’ deaths and deranged by his relentless sorrow, Nick Walsh begins a campaign of spying on his neighbors via hidden cameras and microphones he has covertly installed in their houses. As he observes all the things that his neighbors do to themselves and to one another, and as he learns that he himself is being stalked, he begins to slowly unravel the shocking truth about how and why his parents died. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
MONSTER: A Novel of Frankenstein by Dave Zeltserman (Supernatural Thriller/Horror)
In 19th-century Germany, one young man counts down the days until he can marry his beloved...until she is found brutally murdered, and the young man is accused of the crime. Broken on the wheel and left for dead, he awakens on a lab table, transformed into an abomination. Friedrich must go far to take his revenge --- only to find his tormentor, Victor Frankenstein, in league with the Marquis de Sade, creating something much more sinister deep in the mountains. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
THE FEAR ARTIST: A Poke Rafferty Thriller by Timothy Hallinan (Thriller)
An accidental collision on a Bangkok sidewalk goes very wrong when the man who ran into Poke Rafferty dies in his arms, but not before saying three words: Helen Eckersley. Cheyenne. Little does Rafferty know that he's about to be caught on the margins of the war on terror, and that his opponent is a virtuoso artist whose medium is fear. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
WHIPLASH RIVER by Lou Berney (Thriller)
Former getaway driver Charles “Shake” Bouchon has finally realized his dream of owning a restaurant in Belize. Unfortunately, to do so, he has to go deep in debt to a murderous local drug lord named Baby Jesus. Things go from bad to worse quickly when Shake’s restaurant goes up in flames and suddenly he finds himself on the run from Baby Jesus, two freelance assassins, and a beautiful but ferocious FBI agent. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
Previous Reviews:
IN THE SHADOW OF THE BANYAN by Vaddey Ratner (Historical Fiction)
For seven-year-old Raami, the shattering end of childhood begins the night her father comes home bringing details of the civil war that has overwhelmed the streets of Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital. Over the next four years, as she endures the deaths of family members, starvation, and brutal forced labor, Raami clings to the remaining vestige of childhood --- the mythical legends and poems her father told her. Reviewed by Alexis Burling.
WHERE WE BELONG by Emily Giffin (Fiction)
Marian Caldwell is a 36-year-old television producer, living her dream in New York City. With a fulfilling career and satisfying relationship, she has convinced everyone, including herself, that her life is just as she wants it to be. But one night, Marian answers a knock on the door...only to find Kirby Rose, an 18-year-old girl with a key to a past that Marian thought she had sealed off forever. From the moment Kirby appears on her doorstep, Marian’s perfectly constructed world --- and her very identity --- will be shaken to its core, resurrecting ghosts and memories of a passionate young love affair that threaten everything that has come to define her.
THE LIGHT BETWEEN OCEANS by M. L. Stedman (Historical Fiction)
Tom Sherbourne takes a job as the lighthouse keeper on a remote and isolated island when a boat carrying a dead man and a living baby hit his shore. His wife, Isabel, has already suffered several miscarriages, and even though Tom’s conscience is telling him otherwise, they keep the little girl. Two years later, they return to the mainland and are reminded that there is someone out there desperate to find her lost baby. Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon.
DARE ME by Megan Abbott (Psychological Thriller)
Addy Hanlon and Beth Cassidy are the cheerleaders all the other girls fear and admire, but everything changes when the new coach arrives. Coach Colette French instantly overturns the girls’ pecking order and gains their fierce alliance --- until a shocking event shakes their fragile peace. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
KILL YOU TWICE by Chelsea Cain (Psychological Thriller)
Portland detective Archie Sheridan gets a message from serial killer Gretchen Lowell, who claims to have inside knowledge about the grisly murder of a man who was found gagged, skinned, and hanging by his wrists from a tree. Archie agrees to visit Gretchen because he can’t risk losing his only lead in the case. But the ties between Archie and Gretchen have always been stronger, deeper and more complex than he’s willing to admit. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
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