January New Books in Meeteetse
Feb 4th, 2008 by laura
Well, I know it’s February now–just think of these as January’s books just a little bit late.
Fiction
Afterimage by Kathleen George–Colleen Greer has just joined the Pittsburgh homicide squad when they are faced with a double murder: a woman and child Colleen once knew.
A Version of the Truth by Jennifer Kaufman and Karen Mack–A high school drop out fakes her resume and talks her way into a job as an office assistant at a university. When she gets there, she realizes that she loves learning and that she’s interested in a professor in the department, but as she becomes more entangled, the lies she’s told grow and become harder to maintain.
Last Call by James Grippando–A return to the Jack Swyteck series. Booklist calls this “a solidly plotted thriller, with plenty of breaks for romance, most notably Jack’s renewed interest in FBI agent Andie Henning, and some colorful backstory on the Knight family’s longtime interest in Miami’s jazz scene.”
Death Song by Michael McGarrity–Another new kid on the squad, Deputy Sheriff Tim Riley, is killed by a shotgun blast to the face, and his fellow deputies and
A Pale Horse: An Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery by Charles Todd–A historical whodunit set in England after World War I.
The Crazy School by Cornelia Read–I once considered becoming a teacher at a boarding school, but had I not already decided against it, this book would probably have convinced me. Madeline Dare takes a job at a boarding school for troubled teens. Two of them look to Dare for help and soon after that turn up dead. The book is described as a comedy as well as a mystery, though I’m not sure I’ve been able to convey the comedy aspect in this blurb.
This Is a Bust by Ed Lin–This is sort of like Taxi Driver turned into a mystery novel but with Robert De Niro’s part played by a Chinese American.
The Senator’s Wife by Sue Miller–Meri and her professor husband have been married only ten months when they move to a new place and buy a house–actually half of a duplex. The other side is occupied by a Kennedyesque former senator and his wife. As they get to know each other, the two couples’ lives start to intersect and overlap, particularly those of Meri and Delia Naughton, the senator’s wife.
Salt River by James Sallis–John Turner has been a policeman, a convict, a soldier, and a therapist. Now he’s the sheriff of a small rural community outside Memphis. His lover was murdered two years ago, and now his long-lost son and an old friend who may have killed someone show up in town. A sequel to Cripple Creek.
Go With Me by Castle Freeman–In a dying Vermont mill town, a group of old men spend their time drinking and reminiscing, until one day a woman named Lillian shows up seeking their help and protection from a man who seems to be after her.
Beverly Hills Dead by Stuart Woods–A crime novel set in 1940s Hollywood, where the battle to save the arts from the House Un-American Activities Committee is sometimes just as dangerous as the mean streets.
The Fault Tree by Louise Ure–A blind auto mechanic is able to diagnose and fix cars just by listening to them. Now her skill is required to solve a chain of brutal murders that have struck her Tucson, Arizona home.
Blasphemy by Douglas Preston–You’ve got a group of scientists building a supercollider in the desert which will, in theory, explain the Big Bang. You’ve got a powerful televangelist preaching against the project. And then you’ve got CIA agent Wyman Ford, who is sent to try to figure out what exactly is going on. Oh, and yeah, you’ve got a murder by the time he gets there.
Harriet and Isabella by Patricia O’Brian–Henry Ward Beecher was the most famous preacher of 19th century America. His daughter Harriet (author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin) and his sister Isabella come to tend to him on his death bed, calling forth old tensions caused by Henry’s adultery trial some twelve years earlier and the opposing positions the two women took.
Desert Cut by Betty Webb–Girls have been disappearing at an alarming rate when cop turned PI Lena Jones find the desiccated body of a young girl while hiking in the desert with her film director boyfriend. (Don’t you love the jobs people have in books? “Oh, I’m just a PI with a film director boyfriend.”)
Now You See Him by Eli Gottlieb–Rob Castor wrote a widely acclaimed book of short stories a dozen years ago or so and then faded somewhat from view until now, when he shot himself and his girlfriend, also a writer, to death. His childhood friend Nick Framingham, whose marriage and life are faltering somewhat, becomes fascinated by the murder-suicide, and starts to dig into Castor’s past, where all sorts of ghosts emerge.
Hand of Evil by Judith A. Jance–The third outing for former LA news producer Ali Reynolds, brought to you, by yours truly’s mistake, in large print. If you’re willing to wait, we can get a normal sized version from Cody or Powell.
At the City’s Edge by Marcus Sakey–Another troubled army vet comes home from war to find troubles at home. In this case, the war is the Iraq War, the vet is Jason Palmer, and the troubles (aside from the usual booze and women) are that his brother has been murdered and the culprits seem to be after his son, Jason’s nephew. Library Journal says “recommend this to all your George Pelecanos fans,” and so I do.
Death Was the Other Woman by Linda L. Richards–It’s 1931, and crime is on the move, followed not, as one would expect, by PI Dex Theroux but by his secretary, Kitty Pangborn.
Dangerous Admissions: Secrets of a Closet Sleuth by Jane O’Connor–Private school murder cases is another theme for this month. In O’Connor’s take, though, the murder takes place at a posh Manhattan school, and recently hired single-mom-copy-editor-turned-school-employee Rannie’s son Nate is one of the suspects.
The Great Man by Kate Christensen–Oscar Feldman famously painted nudes in a time awash with abstract expressionism. Now, five years after his death, biographers are trying to piece together his life by talking to the women in it: his wife, mother of an autistic son; his mistress, mother of two daughters; and his sister, a good but lesser known painter herself.
L.A. Outlaws by T. Jefferson Parker–School teacher by day, Robin Hood by night. By day, Suzanne Jones teaches school in LA. By night, Allison Murietta robs from the rich to give to the poor. The double life has worked fine until Murietta gets caught in the midst of a gang deal gone bad.
Chillwater Cove by Thomas Lakeman–FBI Agent Peggy Weaver came from a small town in the South, which, as southern places do, has continued to haunt her. When she and her childhood friend Samantha get an e-mail with pornographic pictures of Samantha, age 10, Peggy finds her past and present collide as she is drawn back home to find the culprit.
Stranger in Paradise by Robert B. Parker–The latest in Parker’s series about Jesse Stone, police chief of Paradise, Massachusetts.
Gas City by Loren D. Estleman–A killer run rampant, a police chief caught in a power struggle with a mob boss, an out of control media, and Amos Walker, a “gumshoe with an attitude,” according to Elmore Leonard.
My Enemy’s Cradle by Sara Young–In WWII Germany, 19 year old Cyrla is pregnant, and her only chance for survival seems to be to enter the Lebensborn program by impersonating her dead cousin. The program feeds and nourishes women who are giving birth to “racially pure” children. Cyrla looks like her cousin, but in fact she is half Jewish. Find out what happens in Young’s first book for adults (she’s also written children’s books under the name Sara Pennypacker).
Duma Key by Stephen King–After a traumatic accident ruins a man’s job and his marriage, he decides to start over again in the remote Florida Keys, where he starts to draw and to become well known for his paintings and drawings, which seem to have powers of their own. This being a Stephen King novel, supernatural elements now make their appearance. An Amazon.com editorial review gives it high praise and says this is the King to try if you’ve always wanted to try him but haven’t known where to start. (I’d recommend The Eyes of the Dragon, myself, but that’s just me.)
Nonfiction
Don’t Throw It Out: Recycle, Renew and Reuse to Make Things Last by Lori Baird–Since recent reports indicate that our landfills are filling up quickly, it seems like just the time for this book of tips on maintaining and transforming the stuff in your house. Learn how to keep appliances running longer, whether and how to fix them if they break, and how to turn them into something else when they no longer serve their original purpose.
The Sneaky Chef: Simple Strategies for Hiding Healthy Foods in Kids’ Favorite Meals by Missy Chase Lapine–One of two cookbooks that have come out recently that promote sliding vegetables into meals where kids least expect them. The other, Deceptively Delicious, is by Jessica Seinfeld. Lapine is now suing Seinfeld. I just innocently ordered the book, unaware of the controversy.
Can’t Buy Me Love: The Beatles, Britain, and America by Jonathan Gould–I thought it a shame that the library didn’t contain a single book about the Beatles, especially since such books are legion, so when I saw this well-reviewed title, I snatched it up.
Your Inner Fish: A Journey into the 3.5 Billion-Year History of the Human Body by Neil Shubin–a paleontologist at the University of Chicago discusses how finding a 375-million-year-old fossil with finger, toe, ankle, and wrist bones led to the development of land-based creatures and, eventually, to human beings.
Swallow the Ocean: A Memoir by Laura M. Flynn–It was the 1970s in San Francisco–not a time or a place noted for sobriety and reason. But Laura Flynn and her sisters were confronted with even more chaos than was provided by the world outside: they had a mother with schizophrenia. Flynn’s memoir traces her childhood through her mother’s decline, her father’s leaving, and her sisters supporting each other as they grew up.
The Next Rodeo: New and Selected Essays by William Kittredge–Kittredge is one of our foremost western writers, and this collection comes from one of my favorite small presses. Enjoy both!
The Tenth Muse: My Life in Food–Judith Jones was for many years an editor and Knopf and is credited with discovering Julia Child and publishing Mastering the Art of French Cooking. (She shows up, briefly, in last year’s Julie & Julia, Julie Powell’s book about the year she cooked her way through Child’s masterpiece.) Here Jones recounts the years she spent finding and encouraging food writers and recounts various escapades, including learning how to de-tendon a goose, which, according to reviews, apparently requires a broom handle.
Punk House: Anarchist Interiors photos by Abby Banks edited by Thurston Moore–Someone at the Cody library said, “This will make anyone feel good about their house decorating.”
