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March 16, 2021

This Bookreporter.com Special Newsletter spotlights a book that we know people will be talking about this spring. Read more about it, and enter our Spring Preview Contest by Wednesday, March 17th at noon ET for a chance to win one of five copies of AFTERSHOCKS: A Memoir by Nadia Owusu, which is now available. Please note that each contest is only open for 24 hours, so you will need to act quickly!

Alexander Pope

Some people will never learn anything because they understand everything too soon.

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Alexander Pope

March 15, 2021

This Bookreporter.com Special Newsletter spotlights a book that we know people will be talking about this spring. Read more about it, and enter our Spring Preview Contest by Tuesday, March 16th at noon ET for a chance to win one of five copies of SPARKS LIKE STARS by Nadia Hashimi, which is now available. Please note that each contest is only open for 24 hours, so you will need to act quickly!

Claudia Jewett Jarrett

The best way to learn to be an honest, responsible adult is to live with adults who act honestly and responsibly.

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Claudia Jewett Jarrett, ADOPTING THE OLDER CHILD

Jackie Mason

I have enough money to last me the rest of my life, unless I buy something.

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Jackie Mason

Al Capp

Success is following the pattern of life one enjoys most.

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Al Capp

March 12, 2021

The weather warmed up this week, so the snow on the front walk melted. Yes, I guess Tom was right, we did not have to shovel. There was no need to use the front walk for the last few weeks, right?

Last weekend, I had a wonderful time (virtually) at the Tucson Festival of Books, where I moderated two events. The first featured Lisa See, who talked about her latest bestseller, THE ISLAND OF SEA WOMEN, and her prolific writing career. I then chatted with Susie Yang and Francesca Serritella about their debut novels, WHITE IVY and GHOSTS OF HARVARD. If you missed these events and would like to check them out, you’re in luck! All of Tucson’s sessions were recorded and are available to view on their website. Click here for step-by-step instructions on how to watch these replays. For your convenience, the Crowdcast links for my events are here for Lisa and here for Susie and Francesca. Also, Lisa was the recipient of the Festival’s Founder’s Award, and there was a lovely ceremony honoring her last Friday night. You can see that here.

Editorial Content for Dark Sky: A Joe Pickett Novel

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Joe Hartlaub

C. J. Box has been gradually aging Joe Pickett, his understated iconic protagonist, for 20 years. Both enter their third decade together with DARK SKY, a simple yet ambitious tale that hints of significant conclusions and portentous beginnings. Read More

Teaser

The governor of Wyoming gives Joe Pickett the thankless assignment of taking a tech baron on an elk-hunting trip. Unbeknownst to them, as they trek farther into the wilderness, a manhunter is hot on their heels. Finding himself without a weapon, a horse or a way to communicate, Joe must rely on his wits and his knowledge of the outdoors to protect himself and his charge. Meanwhile, when Joe's closest friend, Nate Romanowski, and his own daughter Sheridan learn of the threat to his life, they follow him into the woods to try and rescue him before it's too late.

Promo

The governor of Wyoming gives Joe Pickett the thankless assignment of taking a tech baron on an elk-hunting trip. Unbeknownst to them, as they trek farther into the wilderness, a manhunter is hot on their heels. Finding himself without a weapon, a horse or a way to communicate, Joe must rely on his wits and his knowledge of the outdoors to protect himself and his charge. Meanwhile, when Joe's closest friend, Nate Romanowski, and his own daughter Sheridan learn of the threat to his life, they follow him into the woods to try and rescue him before it's too late.

About the Book

Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett must accompany a Silicon Valley CEO on a hunting trip --- but soon learns that he himself may be the hunted --- in the thrilling new novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author C. J. Box.

The governor of Wyoming gives Joe the thankless assignment of taking a tech baron on an elk-hunting trip. Unbeknownst to them, as they trek farther into the wilderness, a manhunter is hot on their heels. Finding himself without a weapon, a horse or a way to communicate, Joe must rely on his wits and his knowledge of the outdoors to protect himself and his charge. Meanwhile, when Joe's closest friend, Nate Romanowski, and his own daughter Sheridan learn of the threat to his life, they follow him into the woods to try and rescue him before it's too late.

Audiobook available, read by David Chandler

Editorial Content for The Lost Apothecary

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Kayla Provencher

In present day, a woman finds herself alone in London on what was meant to be a 10-year anniversary gift wading through the murky water of the Thames and examining a curious blue vial.

In 1791, a 12-year-old girl commits a murder and looks for a magical solution to rid her of the ghost that haunts her in its aftermath.

Although these storylines are separated by nearly two centuries, they are inextricably wound together by burdens women share and perhaps by fate itself. Read More

Teaser

Hidden in the depths of 18th-century London, a secret apothecary shop caters to an unusual kind of clientele. Women across the city whisper of a mysterious figure named Nella, who sells well-disguised poisons to use against the oppressive men in their lives. But the apothecary’s fate is jeopardized when her newest patron, a precocious 12-year-old, makes a fatal mistake, sparking a string of consequences that echo through the centuries. Meanwhile, in present-day London, aspiring historian Caroline Parcewell spends her 10th wedding anniversary alone, running from her own demons. When she stumbles upon a clue to the unsolved apothecary murders that haunted London 200 years ago, her life collides with the apothecary’s in a stunning twist of fate --- and not everyone will survive.

Promo

Hidden in the depths of 18th-century London, a secret apothecary shop caters to an unusual kind of clientele. Women across the city whisper of a mysterious figure named Nella, who sells well-disguised poisons to use against the oppressive men in their lives. But the apothecary’s fate is jeopardized when her newest patron, a precocious 12-year-old, makes a fatal mistake, sparking a string of consequences that echo through the centuries. Meanwhile, in present-day London, aspiring historian Caroline Parcewell spends her 10th wedding anniversary alone, running from her own demons. When she stumbles upon a clue to the unsolved apothecary murders that haunted London 200 years ago, her life collides with the apothecary’s in a stunning twist of fate --- and not everyone will survive.

About the Book

Hidden in the depths of 18th-century London, a secret apothecary shop caters to an unusual kind of clientele. Women across the city whisper of a mysterious figure named Nella who sells well-disguised poisons to use against the oppressive men in their lives. But the apothecary’s fate is jeopardized when her newest patron, a precocious 12-year-old, makes a fatal mistake, sparking a string of consequences that echo through the centuries.

Meanwhile, in present-day London, aspiring historian Caroline Parcewell spends her 10th wedding anniversary alone, running from her own demons. When she stumbles upon a clue to the unsolved apothecary murders that haunted London 200 years ago, her life collides with the apothecary’s in a stunning twist of fate --- and not everyone will survive.

With crackling suspense, unforgettable characters and searing insight, THE LOST APOTHECARY is a subversive and intoxicating debut novel of secrets, vengeance, and the remarkable ways women can save each other despite the barrier of time.

Audiobook available; read by Lorna Bennett, Lauren Anthony and Lauren Irwin

Editorial Content for Transient Desires: A Commissario Guido Brunetti Mystery

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Joe Hartlaub

TRANSIENT DESIRES probably should have a “satisfaction guaranteed” legend imprinted on the cover. This newly published work is the 30th entry in Donna Leon’s series featuring Guido Brunetti, the quiet and understated commissario of the Italian State Police stationed in Venice. Read More

Teaser

Two young American women have been badly injured in a boating accident, joy riding in the Laguna with two young Italians. However, Commissario Guido Brunetti’s curiosity is aroused by the behavior of the young men, who abandoned the victims after taking them to the hospital. He and his colleague, Claudia Griffoni, discover that one of the young men works for a man rumored to be involved in more sinister nighttime activities in the Laguna. As a result, Brunetti enlists the help of both the Carabinieri and the Guardia di Costiera. Determining how much trust he and Griffoni can put in these unfamiliar colleagues adds to the difficulty of solving a peculiarly horrible crime whose perpetrators are technologically brilliant and ruthlessly organized.

Promo

Two young American women have been badly injured in a boating accident, joy riding in the Laguna with two young Italians. However, Commissario Guido Brunetti’s curiosity is aroused by the behavior of the young men, who abandoned the victims after taking them to the hospital. He and his colleague, Claudia Griffoni, discover that one of the young men works for a man rumored to be involved in more sinister nighttime activities in the Laguna. As a result, Brunetti enlists the help of both the Carabinieri and the Guardia di Costiera. Determining how much trust he and Griffoni can put in these unfamiliar colleagues adds to the difficulty of solving a peculiarly horrible crime whose perpetrators are technologically brilliant and ruthlessly organized.

About the Book

In his many years as a commissario, Guido Brunetti has seen all manner of crime and known intuitively how to navigate the various pathways in his native city, Venice, to discover the person responsible. Now, in TRANSIENT DESIRES, the 30th novel in Donna Leon’s masterful series, he faces a heinous crime committed outside his jurisdiction. He is drawn in innocently enough: two young American women have been badly injured in a boating accident, joy riding in the Laguna with two young Italians. However, Brunetti’s curiosity is aroused by the behavior of the young men, who abandoned the victims after taking them to the hospital. If the injuries were the result of an accident, why did they want to avoid association with it?

As Brunetti and his colleague, Claudia Griffoni, investigate the incident, they discover that one of the young men works for a man rumored to be involved in more sinister nighttime activities in the Laguna. To get to the bottom of what proves to be a gut-wrenching case, Brunetti needs to enlist the help of both the Carabinieri and the Guardia di Costiera. Determining how much trust he and Griffoni can put in these unfamiliar colleagues adds to the difficulty of solving a peculiarly horrible crime whose perpetrators are technologically brilliant and ruthlessly organized.

Donna Leon’s TRANSIENT DESIRES is as powerful as any novel she has written, testing Brunetti to his limits and forcing him to listen very carefully for the truth.

Audiobook available, read by David Colacci