Malcolm Gladwell
If we are to learn to improve the quality of the decisions we make, we need to accept the mysterious nature of our snap judgments.
Attribution
February 23, 2021
In this newsletter, you will find books releasing the weeks of February 22nd and March 1st that we think will be of interest to Bookreporter.com readers, along with Bonus News, where we call out a contest, feature or review that we want to let you know about so you have it on your radar.
This week, we are calling attention to our "What's Your Book Group Reading This Month?" contest on ReadingGroupGuides.com, where three book groups will win 12 copies of Julia Kelly's latest novel, THE LAST GARDEN IN ENGLAND. Fellow bestselling author Fiona Davis says that the book "encompasses everything I love in historical fiction: a dramatic setting depicted so vividly I could’ve sworn I was strolling through the gardens of Highbury House as I turned the pages, and a series of stories that intertwine each other effortlessly, echoing the theme of love lost and found. A delight." The deadline for your entries is Wednesday, March 3rd at noon ET. THE LAST GARDEN IN ENGLAND was one of the top five most anticipated books from readers who attended our “Bookaccino Live” event in January.
Also, we are sharing Carol's latest "Bookreporter Talks To" interview with Jane Harper, who joined us from Australia to talk about her new thriller, THE SURVIVORS, which is an upcoming Bookreporter.com Bets On pick. Setting has a strong influence on Jane's work, and she talked about exploring Tasmania as part of her research process. Humorously, the setting had Carol looking at maps as she confessed to having no idea where Tasmania sat in reference to Australia and New Zealand. Jane also discussed how she develops her plot and characters, the survivor statues that figure in the book, and the movie adaptation of THE DRY, which was recently released in Australia. Click here to watch the video and here to listen to the podcast.
Finally, on Monday, March 1st at 8pm ET, Carol will be moderating a Women’s History Month Extravaganza with author guests Lauren Willig (BAND OF SISTERS), Marie Benedict (THE MYSTERY OF MRS. CHRISTIE), Kristin Harmel (THE BOOK OF LOST NAMES), and Vanessa Riley (ISLAND QUEEN). Click here for more info about the event and how to get a ticket.
Lady Mary Wortley Montagu
You can be pleased with nothing when you are not pleased with yourself.
Attribution
George Washington
True friendship is a plant of slow growth, and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to the appellation.
Attribution
Patricia Sampson
Self-reliance is the only road to true freedom, and being one's own person is its ultimate reward.
Attribution
Herm Albright
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort.
Attribution
February 19, 2021
I think we need more three-day weekends. Just saying. I got so much done --- and had free time. Imagine that combo, which is rarely seen.
Since the recording studio for our podcasts and videos is in my home office, we needed soundproofing in there. For a while this has been really piecemeal, literally with foam arranged around me. Recently, we got an idea on how to create something to work for this, which also was visually terrific. We inherited this triptych when our friend, Cathy, was moving. On one side I matted and framed a stunning series of cards with flowers that were made by another friend, Cathy Gerardi; she had given them to me for my birthday through the years. And then we added the soundproofing materials to the other side. Since I feel like I live in this office these days, the way it looks matters…a lot.
Editorial Content for Never Far Away
Book
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
When I pick up a new book, I typically like to take in the cover, check out the blurbs, and read the plot summary on the inside flap. For some reason, I chose not to do any of that with Michael Koryta’s latest novel, NEVER FAR AWAY, and it ended up being the right call. The story kicks off with an episode from the past that will not make total sense for a while until the present-day narrative starts filling in the puzzle pieces. This made the anticipation for the secrets that were to be revealed that much more satisfying as they worked their way into the plot. Read More
Teaser
Nina Morgan’s bloodstained car was found a decade ago on a lonely Florida road. Forensic evidence suggested she’d been murdered, although her body was never found. Her disappearance left her infant children to the care of their father. A witness to a gruesome crime, Nina had to flee her old life to save her family. She reinvented herself as Leah Trenton, a guide in the Allagash Wilderness in northern Maine. She never expected to see her children again, but now tragedy has returned them to her --- only they have no idea that she’s their mother --- and delivered all of them back into danger. “Aunt Leah” will need some help, and an old ally has a suggestion: an enigmatic young hitman named Dax Blackwell.
Promo
Nina Morgan’s bloodstained car was found a decade ago on a lonely Florida road. Forensic evidence suggested she’d been murdered, although her body was never found. Her disappearance left her infant children to the care of their father. A witness to a gruesome crime, Nina had to flee her old life to save her family. She reinvented herself as Leah Trenton, a guide in the Allagash Wilderness in northern Maine. She never expected to see her children again, but now tragedy has returned them to her --- only they have no idea that she’s their mother --- and delivered all of them back into danger. “Aunt Leah” will need some help, and an old ally has a suggestion: an enigmatic young hitman named Dax Blackwell.
About the Book
The New York Times bestselling "master" (Stephen King) of American thriller writing returns with an electrifying new novel about a mother seeking to reconnect with her children after a terrible trial tears their family apart.
Nina Morgan’s bloodstained car was found a decade ago on a lonely Florida road. Forensic evidence suggested she’d been murdered, although her body was never found. Her disappearance left her infant children to the care of their father.
Once a pilot, mother, wife and witness to a gruesome crime, Nina had to flee her old life to save her family. She reinvented herself as Leah Trenton, a guide in the Allagash Wilderness in northern Maine. She never expected to see her children again, but now tragedy has returned them to her --- only they have no idea that she’s their mother --- and delivered all of them back into danger. “Aunt Leah” will need some help, and an old ally has a suggestion: an enigmatic young hitman named Dax Blackwell.
NEVER FAR AWAY is a thrilling collision between old sins and new dreams, where the wills and ingenuity of a broken family will be tested against all odds.
Audiobook available, read by Robert Petkoff
Editorial Content for An Extravagant Death: A Charles Lenox Mystery
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
The year is 1878. London’s most prominent detective, Charles Lenox, has just succeeded in solving one of England’s most scandalous crimes by uncovering shattering corruption in Scotland Yard. Read More
Teaser
London, 1878. With faith in Scotland Yard shattered after a damning corruption investigation, Charles Lenox's detective agency is rapidly expanding. The gentleman sleuth has all the work he can handle, two children and an intriguing new murder case. But when Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli offers him the opportunity to undertake a diplomatic mission for the Queen, Lenox welcomes the chance to satisfy an unfulfilled yearning: to travel to America. Arriving in New York, he begins to receive introductions into both its old Knickerbocker society and its new robber baron splendor. Then a shock: the death of the season's most beautiful debutante, who appears to have thrown herself from a cliff. Or was it a suicide?
Promo
London, 1878. With faith in Scotland Yard shattered after a damning corruption investigation, Charles Lenox's detective agency is rapidly expanding. The gentleman sleuth has all the work he can handle, two children and an intriguing new murder case. But when Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli offers him the opportunity to undertake a diplomatic mission for the Queen, Lenox welcomes the chance to satisfy an unfulfilled yearning: to travel to America. Arriving in New York, he begins to receive introductions into both its old Knickerbocker society and its new robber baron splendor. Then a shock: the death of the season's most beautiful debutante, who appears to have thrown herself from a cliff. Or was it a suicide?
About the Book
In what promises to be a breakout in Charles Finch's bestselling series, Charles Lenox travels to the New York and Newport of the dawning Gilded Age to investigate the death of a beautiful socialite.
London, 1878. With faith in Scotland Yard shattered after a damning corruption investigation, Charles Lenox's detective agency is rapidly expanding. The gentleman sleuth has all the work he can handle, two children and an intriguing new murder case.
But when Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli offers him the opportunity to undertake a diplomatic mission for the Queen, Lenox welcomes the chance to satisfy an unfulfilled yearning: to travel to America. Arriving in New York, he begins to receive introductions into both its old Knickerbocker society and its new robber baron splendor. Then a shock: the death of the season's most beautiful debutante, who appears to have thrown herself from a cliff. Or was it a suicide? Lenox’s reputation has preceded him to the States, and he is summoned to a magnificent Newport mansion to investigate the mysterious death. What ensues is a fiendish game of cat and mouse.
Witty, complex and tender, AN EXTRAVAGANT DEATH is Charles Finch's triumphant return to the main storyline of his beloved Charles Lenox series --- a devilish mystery, a social drama and an unforgettable first trip for an Englishman coming to America.
Audiobook available, read by James Langton
Editorial Content for Dark Horses
Book
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
From debut novelist Susan Mihalic comes DARK HORSES, a gripping and unflinching story of a teenage girl’s determined and courageous fight to reclaim her life from the man who controls her. Read More
Teaser
Fifteen-year-old equestrian prodigy Roan Montgomery has only ever known two worlds: inside the riding arena, and outside of it. Both, for as long as she can remember, have been ruled by her father, who demands strict obedience in all areas of her life. The warped power dynamic of coach and rider extends far beyond the stables, and Roan's relationship with her father has long been inappropriate. She has been able to compartmentalize that dark aspect of her life, ruthlessly focusing on her ambitions as a rider heading for the Olympics, just as her father had done. However, her developing relationship with Will Howard, a boy her own age, broadens the scope of her vision.
Promo
Fifteen-year-old equestrian prodigy Roan Montgomery has only ever known two worlds: inside the riding arena, and outside of it. Both, for as long as she can remember, have been ruled by her father, who demands strict obedience in all areas of her life. The warped power dynamic of coach and rider extends far beyond the stables, and Roan's relationship with her father has long been inappropriate. She has been able to compartmentalize that dark aspect of her life, ruthlessly focusing on her ambitions as a rider heading for the Olympics, just as her father had done. However, her developing relationship with Will Howard, a boy her own age, broadens the scope of her vision.
About the Book
A “sweeping and raw story of courage, resilience, and clear-eyed grace” (Sara Gruen, #1 New York Times bestselling author) about a teenage girl’s fierce struggle to reclaim her life from her abusive father in the vein of MY ABSOLUTE DARLING and ROOM.
Fifteen-year-old equestrian prodigy Roan Montgomery has only ever known two worlds: inside the riding arena, and outside of it. Both, for as long as she can remember, have been ruled by her father, who demands strict obedience in all areas of her life. The warped power dynamic of coach and rider extends far beyond the stables, and Roan's relationship with her father has long been inappropriate. She has been able to compartmentalize that dark aspect of her life, ruthlessly focusing on her ambitions as a rider heading for the Olympics, just as her father had done. However, her developing relationship with Will Howard, a boy her own age, broadens the scope of her vision.
“[A] heart-pounding, can’t-take-your-eyes-off-it debut novel” (O, The Oprah Magazine), DARK HORSES explores the themes of abuse and resilience in a way that will leave you transfixed. This is “a provoking and needed book” (Booklist, starred review).
Audiobook available, read by Alex Allwine





