New Books in December!

 

Armitage, Rebecca  The Heir Apparent

Arnaldur, Indridason  The Quiet Mother (Det. Konrad)

Atkins, Ace  Everybody Wants to Rule the World

Battles, Brett  Stuart Woods’ Blown Away (Teddy Fay)

Black, Cara  Huguette

Clipston, Amy  The Lighthouse at the Cove

Cornwell, Bernard  Sharpe’s Storm:  Richard Sharpe and the Invasion of Southern France, 1813

Kingfisher, T. The Snake-Eater

Klassen, Julie  Whispers at Painswick Court

Ledwidge, Michael Closing Time (Michael Gannon)

McDermid, Val  Silent Bones (Karen Pirie)

Mitchard, Jacquellyn  The Birdwatcher

Munier, Paula The Snow Lies Deep  (Mercy Carr)

Nelson, P.J.  All My Bones (Old Juniper Bookshop Mystery)

Patrick, Phaedra The Time Hop Coffee Shop

Patterson, James  The Last Days of Marilyn Monroe: A Thriller

Pearl, Matthew  The Award

Sanderson, Brandon Tailored Realities  (short fiction)

Snelling, Lauraine At Morning’s Light (Home to Green Creek)

Stewart, Jack  W.E.B. Griffin Direct Action (Presidential Agents)

Van Dyken, Rachel  Fallen Gods

 

Nonfiction

Amen, Daniel G. Change Your Brain, Change Your Pain:  Breaking the Doom Loop to Heal Chronic Physical and Emotional Pain

Weir, Alison  Queens at War:  England’s Medieval Queens

What's Hot for March!

Once again, we're going to highlight the most requested books at the Bristol Public Library.  These are the ones with the most reserves for Main and Avoca, not for the system as a whole so that we're listing what local folk really want.  As usual, there are some repeats from last month's listing, but most are new-- with at least one surprise entry. Here's the countdown:
 
11. Unnatural Acts:  A Stone Barrington Novel by Stuart Woods has Stone being hired to help steer a billionaire's son toward a better path.  Naturally, things don't go quite as planned.  This book will be released in April.

10.  Stay Close by Harlan Coben is a standalone thriller by one of the best writers in the genre.  A seventeen year old murder comes back to haunt the cop who failed to solve the case, and a woman who thought she'd left her past in the past. 

9.  Rainshadow Road by Lisa Kleypas is the first in a trilogy by this up and coming contemporary romance writer. Lucy was doubly betrayed:  not only did her fiance dump her, but his new lover is Lucy's own sister.  Sam, a local vineyard owner, strikes up a friendship with her but just as Lucy begins to believe she has feelings for Sam, she makes a devastating discovery.

8.  Unwritten Laws by Greg Iles is now slated to be published in December, 2012.  This sequel to The Devil's Punchbowl was delayed when Iles was injured in an accident.

7.  Death Comes to Pemberley by P.D. James continues the story of Elizabeth Bennett and Fitzwilliam Darcy.  Austen fans and James fans are lined up for this one!

6.  The Adventures of Tintin is a collection of three of the comic books by Belgian artist Georges Remi who wrote under the name Herge.  Tintin has been a European star for decades--the stories began in the late 1920s and continued until Remi's death in 1986-- but many Americans weren't aware of his existence until the recent Spielberg film. Tintin is a young reporter who travels the world with his dog, Snowy, and becomes involved in numerous exotic adventures.

5.  11th Hour by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro is the newest title in the Women's Murder Club series. It's due out in May.

4.  Lone Wolf by Jodi Picoult is the latest best selling book from an author who takes contemporary issues and frames them as unforgettable family dramas.

3. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins is the third and final volume in the enormously popular "Hunger Games" series.  You do need to read these in order, so start with Hunger Games and then Mockingjay before reading this one.

2.  Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris is the newest book in the Sookie Stackhouse series.  It will be out in May.

And the number one book on reserve is:

1.  Guilty Wives by James Patterson and David Ellis is a non-series thriller.  Patterson's winning streak continues unabated!

Nevermore: Believing the Lie, Gilead, D.C. Dead, Rules of Civility

The Nevermore Book Club discussion opened with Jud discussing Gilead by Marilynne Robinson which he described as an “American Gothic.”  An elderly minister is writing his memoir for his young son, so that the boy will know more about the person his father is and the forces which shaped him.  He describes his parents and grandparents as well, so the tale covers three generations and a wide swath of American history but does so in a quiet way.  This isn’t a sweeping epic but more of a meditation and consideration of a life. Several members of the club had read this book and all agreed it was a fine read.

Believing the Lie by Elizabeth George has Inspector Lynley called in to investigate the death of a drowning victim. He in turn calls in Simon and Deborah St. James who set about investigating the deceased’s family. Our critic felt that the book had too many plot threads—some four different plot lines running through the same book-- and was too wordy. Also, the author separated some of the usual characters, which meant a certain lack of interaction.  The book just bogged down under the weight of all the stories and characters.  She added that while the book was still called “An Inspector Lynley Mystery,” she felt there really wasn’t enough Lynley.

The latest Stuart Woods novel, D.C. Dead, has Stone being summoned to Washington by President Will Lee to undertake an operation that can’t be entrusted to a government agency.  Holly Barker returns as well.  Our reviewer said the book got off to a good start but that he didn’t buy the ending. 

Rules of Civility  by Amor Towles  follows the fortunes of three young people in 1930s New York.  Katey, the daughter of Russian immigrant parents, is determined to work her way up in society, while Eve is a free spirit. Tinker Grey is a banker with a somewhat mysterious background.  The book was praised for the way it portrays the glittering New York scene of the time, with nightclubs, jazz, witty conversations, and sophistication.  Our reviewer compared it to The Great Gatsby, and thought it a wonderful book.

What's Hot for 2012!

As in an earlier column, we're going to list the most requested books at Bristol Public Library and our Avoca Branch Library.  If you don't already have these on reserve, you can either call the library or put the books on reserve yourself through our website.

10.  Sleepwalker by Karen Robards

A policeman and a female thief find themselves running for their lives in this novel that mixes romance and suspense.

9.  Next Always by Nora Roberts

This is the first in a trilogy involving the restoration of an old house as a bed and breakfast.  Architect Beckett Montgomery comes back home to help his mother and brother with renovations, and discovers he's still attracted to his high school crush.  

8. Longing by Karen Kingsbury

 This is the third book in the Bailey Flannagan series which started with Leaving.  The fourth book, Loving, is scheduled to be published in  March. Fans of Christian author Kingsbury will want to start at the beginning.

7.  Locked In by Tom Clancy with Mark Greaney

Jack Ryan has decided to run for president again when a close friend is threatened by an unknown enemy.

6. Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris

This twelfth book in the Sookie Stackhouse series won't be published until May, 2012 but that hasn't stopped people putting it on reserve!

5. Unwritten Laws by Greg Iles

This sequel to The Devil's Punchbowl features the return of Penn Cage.  Unfortunately, Iles was severely injured in a traffic accident and so the book has been delayed until some time in 2012.  This book is subtitled "The Bone Tree;" volume two of Unwritten Laws  may also come out in 2012.

 

   

4. Kill Shot by Vince Flynn

Mitch Rapp has been working his way through the list of men responsible for the PanAm Lockerbie attack, but his next target proves to be a trap. Due to Vince Flynn's illness, the book was delayed but now Kill Shot is scheduled to come out on February 7, 2012.

3.Guilty Wives by James Patterson and David Ellis

Four women friends are invited on the vacation of a lifetime, to revel in luxury and indulge in whatever they please.  Then the police show up, accusing them of a shocking crime.

2. D.C. Dead by Stuart Woods

Stone Barrington is called to Washington to solve a murder-suicide, an job that reunites him with Holly Barker.

1.  Inheritance:  Or, the Vault of Souls by Christopher Paolini

The long-awaited conclusion to the Eragon saga-- enough said!

     

Kiss and Tell

Kisser by Stuart Woods (Main and Avoca, F Woo)
Reviewed by Doris

Kisser, the newest Stuart Woods book, continues the exploits of Stone Barrington, the NYPD detective turned attorney. Stone works for a major, prestigious law firm in New York handling cases that come under the heading of “discretion necessary.” Most of his cases are the kind the tabloids love, but with which the high-powered law firm does not want to be publicly associated. This time the client is a major art dealer whose twenty-three years old daughter has fallen into the hands of a drug-dealing Svengali. Stone’s job is to get rid of the boy friend any way he can, short of murder. With the help of his buddy Dino who is still a NYPD detective lieutenant and another contact within the police department, Stone sets motion a sting that will take down the Bernie Madoff-wannabee. As the scenario plays out, Stone realizes the police have their own agenda and the young woman he is trying to extricate from the situation is at risk of arrest or being killed. He has to play the ends against the middle to save the girl and the situation from becoming deadly and while avoiding the clutches of a former lover who happens to be the U. A. Attorney handling the case.

Meanwhile, Stone picks up an actress who has come to New York to become a Broadway star. Carrie is gorgeous, talented, cunning, and just maybe a pathological liar. She is also being stalked by her ex-husband who took her leaving him with most of his fortune in tow a bit hard. Trying to protect Carrie while finding out if she is telling him the truth, and handling the two other women with whom he finds himself in bed just exhausts the poor Stone.

Adding to the complications for Stone is the re-emergence of his ex-wife, the crazy Dolce. Daughter of a Mafia don, Dolce tried to slash Stone’s throat. Her daddy has kept her under lock and key for years since the attempted murder, but a new doctor thinks Dolce needs to get out more. Dolce’s idea of getting out is stalking Stone one more time. Filled with a sense of déjà vu, Stone knows it is only a matter of time until she tries to kill him again.

The plot involving the young woman and the drug dealing con man is actually interesting. The subplot of Stone becoming intimately involved with the female detective working the case and the female assistant to the art dealer father is overdone and distracting. Except for a little twist that comes at the end which I saw coming a couple of chapters before, the outcome is predictable. The touches of evil that waft off the crazy ex-wife are tantalizing—I was kind of cheering for her and her knife by the end of the book. As for the actress, Stone turns out to be a man easily manipulated by a beautiful woman, especially if she is smarter than he is. In this book, all the women are smarter than he is.

Stuart Woods is a very popular author with our patrons, and I have enjoyed a number of his books. His newest release Kisser just does not make the grade though. Filled with gratuitous sex scenes that detract from any plot, it took less than three hours to read because it is merely a couple of hundred pages of scenes set like a bad TV show.

If you are a devoted Stuart Woods fan, read Kisser. It won’t take long, and it won’t leave much of an impression. If you aren’t a big fan, wait. He will have a better book out soon.