Harper

Gone, Baby, Gone by Dennis Lehane (Harper 01 October 2007 / $7.99) - From back of book: The tough neighborhood of Dorchester is no place for the innocent or the weak. A territory defined by hard heads and even harder luck, its streets are littered with the detritus of broken families, hearts, dreams. Now, one of its youngest is missing. Private investigators Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro don't want the case. But after pleas from the child's aunt, they open an investigation that will ultimately risk everything--their relationship, their sanity, and even their lives--to find a little girl lost.

Me Tanner, You Jane by Lawrence Block (Harper 01 October 2007 / $7.99) - Book Description: It's a jungle out there. Literally. At least for Evan Tanner, eternally sleepless sometime superspy, who finds himself in Africa on the trail of the AWOL ruler of tiny Modonoland. It seems the petty despot's gone missing, and he's taken the state treasury along with him.

No stranger to impossible missions and international peril, Tanner's been in over his head before. This time, however, he's in imminent danger of being buried alive. And it all has to do with the CIA, white supremacists, moderate revolutionaries . . . and a blond jungle bombshell named (no joke!) Sheena. Tanner's always been a sucker for a pretty face and a curvaceous body, especially one that's wrapped in leopard skin. But this red hot renegade daughter of a local missionary is a maneater. Which means this time Tanner's goose is well and truly cooked.

Tanner On Ice by Lawrence Block (Harper 01 October 2007 / $7.99) - Amazon.com: Evan Tanner, the spy who never sleeps, was placed in cold storage at the end of the Cold War--literally and figuratively. But in Tanner on Ice Block defrosts one of his earliest and best series heroes and sends him to Burma to stir up the guerrillas, destabilize the country's authoritarian regime, and incidentally assassinate the Nobel Peace Prize-winning daughter of the country's national hero. Before long, Tanner's been set up for murder, drug smuggling, and blowing up Burma's most sacred shrine. Accompanied by a beautiful Russian/French/Vietnamese woman who wants out of Myanmar for her own reasons and has a dwindling cache of precious rubies to pay her way, he snakes through Burma disguised as a monk. Along their journey the two dodge SLORC trackers, insurgent Shan tribesmen, and the henchman of Tanner's mysterious spymaster. In Block's skilled hands, the much anticipated return of Tanner is a perfect summer hammock read. --Jane Adams (see review)

The Missing by Sarah Langan (Harper 01 October 2007 / $6.99) - Book Description:

A remote and affluent Maine community, Corpus Christi was untouched by the environmental catastrophe that destroyed the neighboring blue-collar town of Bedford. But all that will change in a heartbeat . . .

The nightmare is awakened when third-grade schoolteacher Lois Larkin takes the children on a field trip to Bedford. There in the abandoned woods, a small, cruel boy unearths an ancient horror—a contagious plague that transforms its victims into something violent, hungry . . . and inhuman.

The long, dark night is just beginning. And all hope must die as the contagion feeds—for the malevolence will not rest until it has devoured every living soul in Corpus Christi . . . and beyond.

L&L Dreamspell

Deadly Sins - Deadly Secrets by Sylvia, Dickey Smith (L&L Dreamspell 18 October 2007 / $16.95) - Book Description: Rookie PI Sidra Smart thinks she knows where she's headed. She's divorced her preacher-husband, she's inherited a private detective business, and she's solved her first case. But then she moves into a ghost active house and discovers that the past holds the key not only to her future, but the to the lives of innocent people trapped in an unholy web of deception that spans decades. This mystery/suspense novel is set in a small Texas town where everyone knows everything about the other-or at least think they do-until the sins of the past catch up with the secrets of the present. Where yesterday's lighthouses, yellow fever, and Civil War skirmishes play a significant role in uncovering the sins of today. When Sid's second case requires she clear the name of a dead man, she finds herself confounded by clues that lead nowhere. She battles her own prejudice, a burned-out office, the disappearance of a local preacher's wife, and a midnight trip through a murky swamp before clues begin to fall in place. Then, with assistance from a seemingly unknown and perhaps ghostly force, Sid learns something about herself-when the cause is right she never retreats. The interaction between Sid and her client, a tobacco-spitting, chair-rocking old codger more interested in the shine on his shoes than the dust on his furniture, once again brings small-town America to life.

Memento Mori Mysteries - Avocet Press Inc

Green Water Ghost by Glynn Marsh Alam (Memento Mori Mysteries - Avocet Press Inc 01 October 2007 / $12.95) - Product Description: It's Halloween in the north Florida woods and Luanne Fogarty finds brand-new bones along with the old in an abandoned slave graveyard. An antebellum discord simmers into the present day and Luanne's college students are up to ghoulish tricks. She dives in slime-covered ponds and navigates folk legends with the help of forensics. The Southern past rarely stays buried long in the swamp. This is the sixth in the Luanne Fogarty series of spine-tingling swamp noir mysteries set in the springs and underwater caves of northern Florida where Luanne, a linguistics professor, serves as adjunct scuba diver for the sheriff's department. (see review)

MIDNIGHT INK

Black Widow Agency: The Black Widow Agency by Felicia Donovan (MIDNIGHT INK 01 October 2007 / $12.95) - Product Description: Strong, sexy, smart, and stealthy! The ladies at the Black Widow Agency aim to bring justice to wronged women like themselves, using a lethal blend of computer forensics, surveillance technology, and women's intuition. The owner is ex-cop Katie Mahoney, a natural at undercover work. Her competent staff includes Alexandria, the mysterious, black-clad cybergoddess who keeps a pet tarantula; Margo, the crafty office manager, who's not afraid to don a leather bustier for the cause; and Jane, who crunches numbers amid hot flashes. The four Black Widows form a tight sisterhood–depending on each other for emotional support, laughter, and frequent doses of chocolate.

When the Black Widows hear Amber Gordon's heartbreaking story of sexual harassment, ending in a ruined career and lost custody of her daughter, they vow to spin a trap for the sexist automotive company run by Amber's former father-in-law.

NAL

Mr. Monk in Outer Space by Lee Goldberg (NAL 30 October 2007 / $19.95) - Book Description: An all-new novel starring the obsessively beloved TV detective who has no patience for the crooked... Adrian Monk has journeyed into the realm of the cult science fiction show Beyond Earth, where he meets fans just as obsessive-compulsive as he is. Though he's not preoccupied with the program, Monk can understand where they're coming from. Who wouldn't want to live in an imaginary world?

But despite his sympathies, the reason Monk is at the convention is that there may be akiller lurking in the Beyond Earth community: Someone in a starship uniform has very publically gunned down the show's legendary creator, Conrad Stipe. Could a fan be that furious at him for selling out to an exploitative Hollywood producer? Or is there more going on behind the scenes in Stipes life?

Luckily, Monk's agoraphobic brother, Ambrose, is a prominent expert on the TV Series, and together they'll search the earth and beyond to find the murderer. That is, if Ambrose can bring himself to leave the house... (see review)

Night Shade Books

The Sword-Edged Blonde by Alex Bledsoe (Night Shade Books 01 October 2007 / $24.95) - Product Description: It should have been a case like any other: a missing princess, a king willing to pay in gold for her return. But before he realizes it, private investigator Eddie LaCrosse, a slightly shopworn sword jockey with a talent for discretion and detection, is swept up in a web of mystery and deceit involving a brutally murdered royal heir, a queen accused of an unspeakable crime and the tragic past he thought he'd left behind.
First in a series of hard-boiled fantasy detective novels, in the vein of Glen Cook's Garrett series.

Oak Tree Press

A Lesson in Murder by Augustus Cileone (Oak Tree Press 21 October 2007 / $12.95) - Product Description: When a wealthy benefactor and alumnus of Eastern Friends School in Pennsylvania is found murdered, details at the scene prompt Lt. Frank DiSalvo to introduce himself at a faculty meeting. There he meets Maxwell Hunter, an English teacher who likes to lecture about the mysteries of literature. At first, DiSalvo brushes off Hunter s offer of help, but when the second EFS-connected murder is discovered, he changes his mind. With his sharp eye for detail, and uncanny ability to assemble the pieces of the picture, Hunter identifies the literary modus operandi... but can he predict the next attack time to prevent another murder?

Putnam Adult

Book of the Dead by Patricia Cornwell (Putnam Adult 23 October 2007 / $26.95) - Book Description: From America's #1 bestselling crime writer comes the extraordinary new Dr. Kay Scarpetta novel. The "book of the dead" is the morgue log, the ledger in which all cases are entered by hand. For Kay Scarpetta, however, it is about to have a new meaning.

Fresh from her bruising battle with a psychopath in Florida, Scarpetta decides it's time for a change of pace-not only personally and professionally, but geographically. Moving to the historic city of Charleston, South Carolina, she opens a unique private forensic pathology practice, one in which she and her colleagues-including Pete Marino and her niece, Lucy-offer expert crime-scene investigation and autopsies to communities that lack local access to competent death investigation and modern technology. It seems like an ideal situation, until the new battles start-with local politicians, with entrenched interests, with someone whose covert attempts at sabotage are clearly meant to run her out of town. And that's even before the murders and other violent deaths begin.

A young man from a well-known family jumps off a water tower. A woman is found ritualistically murdered in her multi-million-dollar beach home. The body of an abused young boy is discovered dumped in a desolate marsh. Meanwhile, in distant New England, problems with a prominent patient at a Harvard-affiliated psychiatric hospital begin to hint at interconnections that are as hard to imagine as they are horrible. Scarpetta has dealt with many brutal and unusual crimes before, but never a string of them as baffling, or as terrifying, as the ones that face her now. Before she is through, that book of the dead will contain many names-and the pen may be poised to write her own.

Signet

Dying to Be Thin: A Fat City Mystery by Kathryn Lilley (Signet 02 October 2007 / $6.99) - Book Description: The first course in a sleuth series sure to satisfy.
In just a week, plus-sized TV producer Kate Gallagher has been laid off because of her weight and dumped by her boyfriend. So she enrolls in a weight loss clinic in Durham, NC. Soon, Kate's ready to sell her soul for some sweets. But when a diet guru turns up dead with fondue forks where his eyes were, Kate loses her appetite-and has a breaking story on her hands...

Sisters On the Case: Celebrating Twenty Years of Sisters in Crime by (Signet 02 October 2007 / $7.99) - Book Description: The latest: an anniversary anthology of 25 short stories by today's best women mystery writers: Sara Paretsky, Sue Henry, Sue Dunlap, P.M. Carlson, Rochelle Krich, Linda Grant,Carolyn Hart, Libby Fischer Hellman, Nancy Pickard, Kate Grilley, Medora Sale, Barbara D'Amato, Claire Carmichael McNab, Charlotte MacLeod, Annette Meyers, Kate Flora, Eve K. Sandstrom, Patricia Sprinkle, Margaret Maron, Dorothy Salisbury Davis, And more!

Spellbinder Press

The Sex Club by L. J. Sellers (Spellbinder Press 01 October 2007 / $8.50) - Product Description: A pipe bomb explodes outside a birth-control clinic and a young client turns up naked dead in a dumpster. Detective Jackson gets involved in both cases, but are they connected? While Kera the clinic nurse discovers that the dead girl's Bible group is really a sexual free-for-all, one of the parents plots to blow up the clinic. Can Jackson uncover the killer's shocking identity in time to stop the slaughter? The prestigious Seattle Mystery Bookshop calls this a Must Read!

St. Martin's

Chasing Eden by S.L. Linnea (St. Martin's October 2007 / $6.99) - Book Description: Modern-day Iraq: During a raging sandstorm in a war zone, army chaplain Jaime Richards is shocked to be reunited with her old friend Adara Dunbar—and devastated when, in the midst of an ambush, a black-robed man murders Adara in cold blood. But not before she delivers a final message to Jaime—one important enough to die for...and obviously to kill for. Why Adara? And how did her assassin know Jaime's name?

Jaime's quest for answers will lead her into danger beyond anything she's experienced on the battlefield. At an ancient site, she meets a stranger who reveals astounding truths about Adara's mission—and the war itself—that are impossible to ignore. For the roots of this war reach back to a time and place fixed in the history of civilization. Many have searched for the Garden of Eden before, because to find it is to unlock a power beyond human comprehension. Now, for Jaime, the chase is on—and the fate of the world hangs in the balance... (see review)

St. Martin's Minotaur

Down River by John Hart (St. Martin's Minotaur 02 October 2007 / $24.95) - Book Description: Adam Chase has a violent streak, and not without reason. As a boy, he saw things that no child should see, suffered wounds that cut to the core and scarred thin. The trauma left him passionate and misunderstood--a fighter. After being narrowly acquitted of a murder charge, Adam is hounded out of the only home he's ever known, exiled for a sin he did not commit. For five long years he disappears, fades into the faceless gray of New York City. Now he's back and nobody knows why, not his family or the cops, not the enemies he left behind.

But Adam has his reasons. Within hours of his return, he is beaten and accosted, confronted by his family and the women he still holds dear. No one knows what to make of Adam's return, but when bodies start turning up, the small town rises against him and Adam again finds himself embroiled in the fight of his life, not just to prove his own innocence, but to reclaim the only life he's ever wanted.

False Witness (A Sister Agatha Mystery) by Aimee Thurlo (St. Martin's Minotaur 16 October 2007 / $23.95) - From publicity material: Our Lady of Hope Monastery can't catch a break. Situated in rural New Mexico, the cloistered monastery squeaks by on donations and various craft and skilled jobs suited to their cloistered, contemplative life. But when a stolen SUV crashes through their outside walls, they are faced with financial demands that far exceed their means. So when a major donor offers a great deal of money for what seems a simple task, they are quick to accept. The very ill John Gutierrez is looking for his estranged niece, believed to be in the area, and having heard of Sister Agatha, the extern nun, and her investigative skills, he turns to them for help. All Sister Agatha has to do is track down the woman, and the monastery's financial worries will be over.

But nothing is ever as simple as it seems. Sister Agatha's investigation quickly lands her in the midst of a deadly situation, and it's up to her to uncover the truth before it all takes a deadly turn for everyone involved. (see review)

Kissing Christmas Goodbye (Agatha Raisin Mysteries) by M.C. Beaton (St. Martin's Minotaur 02 October 2007 / $23.95) - Book Description: Agatha Raisin is bored. Her detective agency in the Cotswolds is thriving, but she'll scream if she has to deal with another missing cat or dog. Only two things seem to offer potential excitement: the upcoming Christmas festivities and her ex, James Lacey. This year she is sure that if she invites James to a really splendid, old-fashioned Christmas dinner, their love will rekindle like a warm Yule log.

When a wealthy widow hires Agatha because she's convinced a member of her family is trying to kill her, Agatha is intrigued---especially when the widow drops dead after high tea at the manor house. Who in this rather sterile house, complete with fake family portraits, could have hated the old lady enough to poison her?

Agatha sets out to find the murderer, all the while managing a pretty, teenage trainee who makes her feel old and planning for a picture-perfect Christmas, with James, all the trimmings, and perhaps even snow. (see review)

Pyres by Derek Nikitas (St. Martin's Minotaur 16 October 2007 / $24.95) - Book Description: In PYRES, 15 year old Lucia Moberg lifts a CD out of a store in a shopping mall—and when she and her dad get into their car, there is a tap at the window. The next second her father's brains are on the dashboard. So begins the story of the ruin of her mother, whose home life is shrouded in darkness, a mysterious and menacing motorcycle gang, the real-to-life female cop out to crack the case, who is facing her own family's collapse, and the struggle for Lucia to piece together some semblance of a normal teenage life. The writing is hard and crisp, and wholly multi-dimensional, while the story moves along at a nail-biting pace with twists, turns, literary allusions, and the engaging plight of several fascinating, memorable, and fully rounded characters.

Spider Trap: A Brock and Kolla Mystery by Barry Maitland (St. Martin's Minotaur 02 October 2007 / $24.95) - From publicity material: When human bones are discovered in Cockpit Lane, a poor area of inner south London, D.C.I. David Brock and D.S. Kathy Kolla of Scotland Yard are called in to investigate. Brock and Kolla learn that the victims died on the day of the Brixton riots, over twenty years before, and the case leads them on a dangerous journey into the heart of the West Indian community in London. Making matters worse, a formidable old antagonist, Spider Roach, returns, weaving together past and present in an intricate web of deception and intrigue. Now the two have to uncover the truth of those long ago deaths, and be able to prove it, in order to prevent the violence of the past from revisiting itself on them.

The Last Striptease by Michael Wiley (St. Martin's Minotaur 16 October 2007 / $23.95) - Book Description: In his impressive and confident debut, Michael Wiley delivers a thrilling tale about how greed and revenge play out on the streets of Chicago.

Private eye Joe Kozmarski has just been asked to clear his childhood friend Bob Piedras of murder. Bob's latest girlfriend, a young Vietnamese-American beauty, has turned up dead in an airport hotel. No one's very surprised. She had a taste for hard liquor, drugs, and stripping in front of a camera. And Bob has a history of violence. But Bob's boss, retired judge Peter Rifkin, is convinced Bob is innocent and he thinks Joe is the one to find the real killer.

But Joe's life is complicated. He hasn't spoken to Rifkin for fifteen years---ever since his father, now dead, found out that the judge had double-crossed him. The dead woman's brothers, a pair of tough guys, are bent on being the first to find and punish her murderer. On top of that, Joe and his wife have separated and his mother has dropped his eleven-year-old nephew on him. But the more obstacles Joe encounters, the more determined he becomes to see this case through. (see review)

The Snow Empress: A Thriller (Sano Ichiro Novels) by Laura Joh Rowland (St. Martin's Minotaur 30 October 2007 / $24.95) - Book Description: Japan, 1699. On a moonlit night in Ezogashima, the northernmost island of Japan, a woman is running through the forest when an arrow zooms out of the darkness to strike her dead. Meanwhile, a world away in the city of Edo, the eight-year-old son of Sano Ichiro, the samurai detective who has risen to power and influence in the shogun's court, vanishes during a moon-watching party.

When Sano's political rival, Lord Matsudaira, hints that the boy may be in Ezogashima, Sano's wife, Reiko, insists on accompanying him on the desperate journey. After an eleven-day voyage through cold and treacherous waters, they arrive at Ezogashima, only to find that Lord Matsumae, distraught at the murder of his mistress, is holding the whole province hostage until someone confesses to the crime. No one is allowed in or out of Ezogashima, and although Matsumae tells Sano his son is there, he refuses to release him.

Sano strikes a deal: He will solve the murder of Matsumae's mistress if Lord Matsumae will free the hostages and return their son. Soon, however, he and Reiko find themselves caught up in a dangerous scheme that includes clan warfare, jealous husbands, and murderous betrayal.

Three Sisters (Charlie Moon Mysteries) by James D. Doss (St. Martin's Minotaur 30 October 2007 / $24.95) - Book Description: Colorado rancher and tribal investigator Charlie Moon is taking a night off to play some poker with his best friend, Scott Parris, Granite Creek's chief of police, when Scott's dispatcher cuts in with an emergency call. It seems a man was on the phone with his wife when their call was interrupted by a bloodcurdling scream and the most gruesome noises he'd ever heard. Would they mind checking it out?

Arriving on scene, they discover that the man's wife, one of three daughters of a wealthy and powerful rancher, has been mauled beyond recognition.

Even after her two sisters---one of whom is a popular TV psychic who on that very night's show reported "seeing" the real-time murder of one of her fans---turn up at the DA's office, demanding answers, the smart money and forensic experts are still laying blame on a hungry bear. But once the wheels of justice are turning and the ratings for Cassandra Sees are going through the roof, the surviving sisters are awfully quick to move on in all kinds of ways.

With eyebrows and suspicions raised, Charlie and his irascible aunt Daisy, a Ute shaman whose investigative talents rely heavily on help from the spirit world, set out to track down a killer.

Voices: A Reykjavik Thriller by Arnaldur Indridason (St. Martin's Minotaur 02 October 2007 / $23.95) - Book Description: Arnaldur Indridason took the international crime fiction scene by storm after winning England's CWA Gold Dagger Award for Silence of the Grave. Now, with the highly anticipated Voices, this world-class sensation treats American readers to another extraordinary Inspector Erlendur Sveinsson thriller.

The Christmas rush is at its peak in a grand Reykjavík hotel when Inspector Erlendur Sveinsson is called in to investigate a murder. The hotel Santa has been stabbed, and Erlendur and his detective colleagues have no shortage of suspects between hotel staff and the international travelers staying for the holidays.

But then a shocking secret surfaces. As Christmas Day approaches, Erlendur must deal with his difficult daughter, pursue a possible romantic interest, and untangle a long-buried web of malice and greed to find the murderer. (see review)

Swimming Kangaroo

Ditzy and Champion by Jack Adler (Swimming Kangaroo 31 October 2007 / $11.99) - Book Description: Welcome to the chat room A place to talk about relationships. A place to make connections. A place to... meet your stalker? Faye joins the chat room to relax and make friends. She ends up getting more than she bargained for when one of her chat buddies steps off the computer screen and into her office. Ray thinks he might just be the man of Fay's dreams, but instead Faye and her husband find themselves in a nightmare.

William Morrow

Last Rituals: An Icelandic Novel of Secret Symbols, Medieval Witchcraft, and Modern Murder by Yrsa Sigurdardottir (William Morrow 01 October 2007 / $23.95) - Book Description:

The spellbinding debut and international sensation being published in thirty countries featuring Thóra Gudmundsdóttir, a smart, sexy lawyer and investigator whose hunt for a modern murderer points to a very odd—and evil—chapter in Iceland's past

It's not long before Thóra and Matthew Reich, her new associate, discover something unusual about the deceased student: He had been obsessed with the country's grisly history of torture, execution, and witch hunts—a topic made all the more peculiar by the fact that unlike witch hunts in other countries, those in Iceland had targeted men . . . not women.

As Thóra and Matthew dig deeper, they make the connection between long-bygone customs and the student's murder. But the shadow of dark traditions conceals secrets in both the past and the present, and the investigators soon realize that nothing is as it seems . . . and that no one can be trusted.

Missing Witness by Gordon Campbell (William Morrow 01 October 2007 / $24.95) - Book Description: In this electrifying debut thriller, a brilliant defense lawyer takes on a murder case with ingenious twists.

Phoenix, Arizona, 1973. A beautiful woman, armed with a gun and accompanied by her twelve-year-old daughter, enters a house. Shots are fired. The woman and her daughter leave the house. Inside, her husband lies dead. The case seems open and shut. The cops, the attorney general's office, and the media are certain the woman is guilty. The only witness to the shooting is in a catatonic state and cannot testify. But the murdered man's wealthy father believes he owes the woman something and hires Dan Morgan, the best lawyer in Phoenix, to defend her.

When the legendary criminal attorney takes on a case it's to win, no matter what the odds. But for Morgan and his young protégé, Doug McKenzie, there are no easy answers, only mysteries, and the question of innocence and guilt take on profound new meaning.

Worldwide Library

Murder on the Mind: A Jeff Resnick Mystery by L.L. Bartlett (Worldwide Library October 2007 / ) - From back of book: After a mugging in Manhattan leaves him with a broken arm and fractured skull, insurance investigator Jeff Resnick reluctantly agrees to recover at the home of his estranged half brother, Richard. At first, Jeff believes his graphic nightmares of murder are just the workings of his traumatized mind. But when a local banker is found dead, Jeff believes the attack has left him with a sixth sense--an ability to see murder before it happens.

Piecing together clues he saw in his dreams, Jeff attempts to solve the crime. His brother Richard is skeptical, but unsettling developments begin to forge a tentative bond. Soon, things that couldn't be explained by premonition come to light, and Jeff finds himself probing into dangerous secrets that touch is own traumatic past in wintry Buffalo--where a filler is ready to darken Jeff's visions permanently.

Return to Index With a few exceptions, books sent get listed, and possibly even commented on.
With fewer exceptions, books not sent don't.
Send books to: Gayle Surrette / Editor c/o Gumshoe 16440 Baden Westwood Road Brandywine, MD 20613

US Books Received- 10/2007  Next Month / Last Month In order to provide timely reviews, we prefer to receive Advance Reader Copies of books when possible. Send books to Gayle Surrette / Editor c/o Gumshoe 16440 Baden Westwood Road Brandywine, MD 20613 Ace Hardcover Halting State by Charles Stross (Ace Hardcover 02 October 2007 / $24.95) - Book Description: In the year 2018, Sergeant Sue Smith of the Edinburgh constabulary is called in on a special case. A daring bank robbery has taken place at Hayek Associates, a dot-com startup company that's just been floated on the London stock exchange. The suspects are a band of marauding orcs, with a dragon in tow for fire support, and the bank is located within the virtual reality land of Avalon Four. For Smith, the investigation seems pointless. But she soon realizes that the virtual world may have a devastating effect in the real one-and that someone is about to launch an attack upon both... Aflame Books Hornets' Nest by Edyr Augusto (Aflame Books 01 October 2007 / $14.00) - Book Description: Breaking with traditional narrative form by using all the various voices of its diverse characters, this tense thriller mixes family, political scandal, revenge, and stars in the Amazon jungle. Ever since the day her father was assaulted and made an invalid, Isabela Pastir has watched the attacker rise to power as the governor of the state of Pará and one of the most significant drug dealers in the Amazon region. In an effort to get close to him and learn his secrets, she becomes his lover and suddenly finds herself pregnant. Now her brother, who has been attempting to repress the family tragedy, finds himself abandoning his life in the United States to travel back to his hometown in search of his sister—and to seek the vengeance for that which he was unable to leave behind. (see review) Avon Sins of the Fathers (Family Tree) by Patricia Sprinkle (Avon 01 October 2007 / $6.99) - Book Description: Always ready to help a friend, Katharine Murray has made her way to Bayard Island off the coast of Georgia with Dr. Flo Gadney, to attend to an unsavory errand. Burch Bayard, local patriarch and greedy landowner, has a nefarious plan to build McMansions up and down the island—and over graves that may belong to Dr. Flo's ancestors! The friends set to work to make sure that Dr. Flo's family tree has its roots in the old cemetery, a task made very difficult by the lack of Southern hospitality from the island's inhabitants. One old woman even tries to shoot them! But when that woman later turns up dead, Katharine and Flo realize there's more than bodies buried on that land. And if they keep unearthing the island's secrets, they might be digging their own graves. (see review) Tombs of Endearment (Pepper Martin Mysteries) by Casey Daniels (Avon 01 October 2007 / $6.99) - Book Description: Cemetery tour guide Pepper Martin never imagined she'd get to meet rock legend Damon Curtis, the bad boy poet who made millions of teenage girls scream. After all, he kicked the bucket years before she was born. But thanks to her newfound ability to chat up the dead, Pepper's got a front row seat perfect for swooning over the still-sexy Damon's latest lyrics. He's convinced that his former bandmate Vinnie Pallucci murdered him back in `71, and he's promised Pepper she won't get any rest or peace until she helps him prove it. But when Pepper goes behind the music, she finds Vinnie with a knife in his heart and the rest of the band members running for their lives. And if Pepper doesn't snare the killer soon, Damon's next hit from the great beyond might be her swan song. (see review) Ballantine Books Murder at the Opera: A Capital Crimes Novel by Margaret Truman (Ballantine Books 30 October 2007 / $7.99) - Book Description: Margaret Truman, who knows where all the bodies are buried inside the Beltway, has written her most thrilling novel of suspense yet. Murder at the Opera features the popular crime-fighting couple Mac Smith and his wife, Annabel Reed-Smith, as they navigate the glitz, glamour, and grime that is Washington, D.C. It ain't over till the fat lady sings . . . but the show hasn't even started yet when a diva is found dead. The soprano in question, a petite young Asian Canadian named Charise Lee, was scarcely a star at the Washington National Opera. But when the aspiring singer is stabbed in the heart backstage during rehearsals, she suddenly takes center stage. Georgetown law professor Mac Smith thought he'd just be carrying a rapier in Tosca as a favor for his beloved Annabel, but now they're both being pressured by the panicked theater board to unmask a killer. Providing accompaniment will be former homicide detective, current P.I., and eternal opera fan Raymond Pawkins. Soon the Smiths find themselves dangerously improvising among an expanding cast of suspects with all sorts of scores to settle. What they uncover is an increasingly complex case reaching far beyond Washington to a dark world of informers and terror alerts in Iraq, and climaxing on a fateful night at the opera attended by none other than the President himself. (see review) Murder on K Street: A Capital Crimes Novel by Margaret Truman (Ballantine Books 30 October 2007 / $24.95) - Another title in the Capital Crime series by Margaret Truman. As a resident of the Greater Washington DC area, I find her books interesting and informative about the history, society, and culture of the area -- and the murders are usually well-plotted and suspenseful. I look forward to getting a chance to review this new book. -- GS Berkley Frill Kill: A Scrapbooking Mystery (Scrapbooking Mysteries) by Laura Childs (Berkley 02 October 2007 / $22.95) - Book Description: This Halloween, the bestselling mystery author makes New Orleans even spookier than usual. Carmela's friend Ava is having a Halloween bash at her scrapbooking store, and she hires a sexy Tarot reader named Giovanni to work the crowd. What he doesn't foretell is that on her way home Carmela will find the body of a beautiful model behind a Dumpster, and be attacked herself. But he's the one who appears to save her-or was he already there? Giovanni's the number one suspect, but Ava is determined to stand by her employee...even if he does have a way of dodging questions. Ava and Carmela have plenty of other strange leads to follow up, like the tooth marks around the victim's neck, and the non-human hairs found at the scene. As the witching hour draws closer, Carmela must discover what's lurking in the shadows of the French Quarter-or the only thing left to scrapbook will be her death certificate. (see review) Mrs. Jeffries and the Feast of St. Stephen by Emily Brightwell (Berkley 02 October 2007 / $22.95) - Book Description: The case is an unexpected bother for Inspector Witherspoon's household, already abuzz with plans for the holidays, but Scotland Yard wants this crime solved before Christmas. Now the busy sleuths must rally in support of their Inspector-especially since the clues are harder to find than a silver sixpence in a plum pudding... Some Like It Hot-Buttered by Jeffrey Cohen (Berkley 02 October 2007 / $6.99) - Book Description: Elliot Freed, a recovering writer and husband, socked all his savings-and the alimony from his ex-wife-into the Comedy Tonight movie theater, never suspecting it would become a crime scene... Poisoned popcorn killed the dead guy in Row S, Seat 18, and to the chagrin of the local police, Elliot starts his own investigation, one that may put the theater-and Elliot-on the cutting room floor. Tapped Out: A Jenny T. Partridge Dance Mystery by Natalie M. Roberts (Berkley 02 October 2007 / $6.99) - Book Description: Jenny thinks filling in as a dance instructor on the Hollywood StarMakers Tour will be easy money-until someone makes it clear that they want her to shuffle off to Buffalo. When other instructors start disappearing, Jenny, with the very attractive Detective Tate spotting her, vows that the show will go on. The Fright of the Iguana: A Kendra Ballantyne, Pet-Sitter Mystery by Linda O. Johnston (Berkley 02 October 2007 / $6.99) - Book Description: The petnapping of a puppy and an iguana leads Kendra Ballantyne to her Southern California pet-sitting club, where she learns of other foul play. Then a fellow pet-sitter turns up bludgeoned to death. Kendra has her suspicions, but it soon appears she's barking up the wrong tree. Bloomsbury USA Children's Books Kiki Strike: The Empress's Tomb by Kirsten Miller (Bloomsbury USA Children's Books 02 October 2007 / $16.95) - Book Description: What's happening in New York City? Giant Squirrels. A Haunted Mansion. Six fierce friends with fiercer secrets. Ananka is in danger of being sent to a remote boarding school; Kiki's life (as always) is in danger, Betty seems to have found love in all the wrong places, and Oona….well, Oona's the one in the most serious trouble of all. From Chinatown to Fifth Avenue, whether they are rescuing kidnapped children or resuscitating an ancient Empress at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Irregulars have a knack for finding trouble, and putting it out of its misery. (Ages: 10-14) (see review) Farrar, Straus and Giroux Gomorrah by Roberto Saviano (Farrar, Straus and Giroux 30 October 2007 / $25.00) - Book Description: A groundbreaking major bestseller in Italy, Gomorrah is Roberto Saviano's gripping nonfiction account of the decline of Naples under the rule of the Camorra, an organized crime network with a large international reach and stakes in construction, high fashion, illicit drugs, and toxic-waste disposal. Known by insiders as "the System," the Camorra affects cities and villages along the Neapolitan coast, and is the deciding factor in why Campania, for instance, has the highest murder rate in all of Europe and whycancer levels there have skyrocketed in recent years. Saviano tells of huge cargoes of Chinese goods that are shipped to Naples and then quickly distributed unchecked across Europe. He investigates the Camorra's control of thousands of Chinese factories contracted to manufacture fashion goods, legally and illegally, for distribution around the world, and relates the chilling details of how the abusive handling of toxic waste is causing devastating pollution not only for Naples but also China and Somalia. In pursuit of his subject, Saviano worked as an assistant at a Chinese textile manufacturer, a waiter at a Camorra wedding, and on a construction site. A native of the region, he recalls seeing his first murder at the age of fourteen, and how his own father, a doctor, suffered a brutal beating for trying to aid an eighteen-year-old victim who had been left for dead in the street. Gomorrah is a bold and important work of investigative writing that holds global significance, one heroic young man's impassioned story of a place under the rule of a murderous organization. Forge American Gangster by Max Allan Collins (Forge 02 October 2007 / $7.99) - Book Description: The novelization of the major motion picture from Universal Pictures about Frank Lucas, drug czar of Harlem. The film stars Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe, and is directed by Ridley Scott. For decades the Mafia controlled the flow of heroin onto the streets of Harlem. Frank Lucas changed all that. Born in rural North Carolina, he came to New York and rose to power under notorious mobster Bumpy Johnson. When Bumpy died, Frank moved to take over the drug business. Caught in a squeeze play between the Mafia and the street dealers, Frank got creative. Instead of being a tool of the mob, he went straight to the source—Cambodia—and set up his own unique distribution system. Using his brothers as his lieutenants and selling "quality" heroin in trademark blue plastic bags, Frank Lucas and his "Country Boys" became the kings of One Hundred Twenty-Fifth Street. Frank had it made. He was rich, successful, and untouchable. . . . . . . until Richie Roberts came along. Roberts, the Eliot Ness of drug enforcement, became a pariah among other detectives in the NYPD when he turned in the million dollars in cash he found in the trunk of a dealer's car. His personal life was a mess—his wife left him, and his son hardly knew him anymore—but on the job, Roberts was all business, and his business, heading up a Federal Narcotics Squad, was busting big-time dealers. His next target? Frank Lucas. This violent, action-filled chronicle of a uniquely American family.is based on Ridley Scott's film, itself based on a New York magazine profile, "The Return of Superfly" by Mark Jacobson. (see review) Spyware by R.J. Pineiro (Forge 02 October 2007 / $7.99) - Book Description: Mac Savage, a former CIA officer; Marie Kovacs, a former nanotechnology scientist turned missionary; and Kate Chavez, a Texas Ranger investigating a murder, join forces to unravel a global conspiracy that starts with the diamond industry and ends with a plan to eliminate the human race. The Donovan Group, a high-powered global conglomerate, has used diamond-based technology to create an overarching artificial intelligence, known as ANN. Using spyware nanotechnology implants, the group's members have interfaced their brains with this super-intelligent AI. They have become virtual super geniuses and physical extensions of ANN. With each wired-in member ANNE becomes smarter and more powerful. She has one ultimate goal: to save the planet Earth by eliminating the disease that is consuming it—the human race. Tapping the world's digital backbone to manipulate its millions of loyal disciples, this AI-god turns ordinary citizens into fanatical soldiers. Her deadly agenda will propel Savage, Kovacs, and Chavez to the center of a battle for the survival of our species. (see review) Suspense and Sensibility or, First Impressions Revisited: A Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery (Mr. and Mrs. Darcy Mysteries) by Carrie Bebris (Forge 30 October 2007 / $12.95) - Book Description: Fresh from the curious and unsettling matter of Caroline Bingley (as related in Pride and Prescience), Mr. and Mrs. Darcy have every intention of enjoying their still newlywed status at Pemberly until they are confronted with another mysterious situation, one of... Suspense and Sensibility Elizabeth Darcy and her beloved husband Fitzwilliam are taking on the responsibility of finding a suitable suitor for Elizabeth's younger sister Kitty, thereby assuring her a proper place in society. The angels smile on the young and a perfect match is found, and wedding plans are soon under way. Suddenly a change in personality occurs in Kitty's soon to be model husband--a change so striking as to jeopardize not just the Darcys' social standing, but their lives as well. A mysterious mirror, an insidious reprobate from the past, and matters far beyond the social circles around Pemberly all come into play in a dangerous puzzle, where the consequences may be the exchange of a soul for a soul. Once again the Darcys take center stage as the Regency era's answer to The Thin Man's Nick and Nora, searching for truth between tea times, amid the social whirl of Jane Austen's England. (see review) Grand Central Publishing Nature Girl by Carl Hiaasen (Grand Central Publishing 30 October 2007 / $13.99) - Book Description: From "the funniest important writer in America" (Miami Herald) comes a tale that is gleefully zany and incisively sharp and now available in trade paperback for the first time. Having missed this book the first time out, we're hoping to get a chance now that it's coming out in paperback. "Sick Puppy" had me laughing so hard it was difficult to read through the tears -- and let's not even talk about trying to read it in public. Hiaasen has got to be one of the funniest writers around dealing with some serious environmental topics in an off-the-wall context with zany but somehow believable charactes. Hard Crime Case Dead Street (Hard Case Crime) by Mickey Spillane (Hard Crime Case 30 October 2007 / $6.99) - THE FINAL CRIME NOVEL FROM THE KING OF PULP FICTION For 20 years, former NYPD cop Jack Stang has lived with the memory of his girlfriend's death in an attempted abduction. But what if she weren't actually dead? What if she somehow secretly survived—but lost her sight, and her memory, and everything else she had...except her enemies? Now Jack has a second chance to save the only woman he ever loved—or to lose her for good... First publication anywhere! Entertainment Weekly gives DEAD STREET their highest grade ('A'): "Tough guy detective novelist Mickey Spillane's posthumous novel brings all the pleasures of his best work back to life...A crackerjack coda." Mickey Spillane is the legendary creator of Mike Hammer and the best-selling author of dozens of classic hardboiled novels such as I, The Jury and Kiss Me, Deadly Prepared for publication by Max Allan Collins, who also contributed a moving afterword New York Post on DEAD STREET: "It's a great diversion...[one of] Fall's best hardboiled mysteries." Pulp Fiction Reviews on DEAD STREET: "A terrific farewell from one hell of a pulp writer." Dave Zeltserman on DEAD STREET: "All the classic Spillane elements—paranoia, toughness, violence, honor and payback...as good or better than any crime pulp books out there." Library Journal on DEAD STREET: "Those old guys...can still tell a good story. The many Spillane fans out there have a lot to look forward to." Acclaim for Mickey Spillane... "Spillane is a master in compelling you to always turn the next page." — New York Times "A rough-hewn charm that's as refreshing as it is rare." — Entertainment Weekly "One of the all-time greats." — Denver Rocky Mountain News

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