Book News: Craig Johnson, Pat Conroy, Margaret Maron & More!

Catherine Coulter is teaming up with writer J.T. Ellison for a new thriller series about a British agent with the FBI.  The first title is Final Cut and is due out in September.  Coulter is best known for her FBI series with Savich and Sherlock, while Ellison has had a successful thriller paperback series featuring an FBI profiler.

Paranoia, a nifty thriller by Joseph Finder, is now a movie starring Liam Helmsworth, Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman and Richard Dreyfuss.  Finder spent part of his childhood abroad (including some time in Afghanistan) and majored in Russian studies at Harvard and Yale, so it should come as no surprise that his books move in international circles.  If you haven’t read Finder, give him a try—preferably before you see the movie!

Craig Johnson, author of Longmire series, will have a novella out in October which will involve Walt’s predecessor, Lucian Connally. We’ll also get a look at a young Walt.  The title is Spirit of Steamboat and it’s described as a holiday-themed book.

Pat Conroy has a new memoir coming out in late October!  It’s called The Death of Santini: The Story of a Father and His Son. According to Conroy’s blog, his father loathed the novel The Great Santini—so much so that he became a changed man and a beloved one to his son.  It sounds like an incredible book.  You may want to re-read The Great Santini before you read this one, or at least watch the DVD version.  Robert Duvall was excellent as usual as Santini.

Lee Smith’s new book, Guests on Earth, features none other than Zelda Fitzgerald in a supporting role.  It’s the story of a young girl from New Orleans who is sent to live in a mental hospital in North Carolina where Zelda is a patient. It’s due out in October.

Margaret Maron’s 19th Deborah Knott mystery is tentatively titled Designated Daughter, and will be out in 2014.

Spider Woman’s Daughter is new book with Navajo policemen Leaphorn and Chee, but this one is written by Anne Hillerman, Tony's daughter.  She uses Bernadette Manuelito, Chee’s girlfriend and a policewoman in her own right, as the central character.  The book is due out on October 1, and Hillerman is under contract for a second book.

Finally, we bid a sad farewell to Elmore Leonard who passed away this week.  He was a former advertising copy editor who started writing Western short stories and then novels before turning his pen to mystery and crime.  Some of the stories became well-known movies, including Hombre, 3:10 to Yuma, Get Shorty, The Big Bounce, and Killshot. The TV show Justified is based some of his stories. Leonard was known for his gritty stories, realistic dialog, and memorable characters.

Book into Film: Fiction

The summer movie season is heating up and as usual a number of the films are based on books.  Here are some of the most anticipated books-to-film:

“The Host” is based on the book of the same name by Stephenie Meyer—yes, THAT Stephenie Meyer, author of the immensely popular Twilight series books which spawned the equally popular movie series.  The Host  isn’t about vampires, though, but an alien invasion in which the aliens take over human bodies. Melanie isn’t about to let her consciousness go so easily.  Can she fight back and save those she loves? The movie opens March 29.  In pre-movie interviews, Meyer has said she’s writing a sequel.

Of course, there if aliens aren’t your thing but zombies are, then you’ll want to pick up World War Z by Max Brooks.  Brooks, author of The Zombie Survival Guide, sets the book up as an oral history from survivors, giving him a chance to give many different views of the disaster.  The movie stars Brad Pitt as a UN employee going to various places around the world as different areas try to hold off the undead and is scheduled for a June release.  (By the way, Max Brooks is the son of Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft.)

If you’d rather have a story about non-alien, non-zombie characters, there are some interesting choices available.  “Admission” stars Tina Fey as a college admissions office at Princeton who is challenged by a young man who shouldn’t quite measure up to Princeton standards, but who makes her question some of her past choices.  Paul Rudd also stars.  The movie is based on the book Admission  by Jean Hanff Korelitz.

Hollywood isn’t neglecting the classics, either.  A new version of “The Great Gatsby” is scheduled for a May 10 release.  Leonardo DiCaprio stars as Jay Gatsby and Tobey Maguire is Nick.  If it’s been awhile, this might be a good time to pick up F. Scott Fitzgerald’s original novel just to get in the mood. I have to say that the costumes and automobiles look fabulous!


James Thurber’s story, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, was first made into a movie starring Danny Kaye back in 1947, so it’s no surprise some think it’s due for an update.  Ben Stiller will be starring in the new version, due out in December 2013.

If thrillers are more your genre, look for Paranoia by Joseph Finder.  A young man is caught manipulating his company’s system.  He’s given a choice:  go to jail, or spy on a competing corporation.  He chooses the latter option and soon is on the fast track at his new place of employment, living the life of his dreams in a job he loves—and soon he’s going to have to betray everyone there. The movie "Paranoia"stars Liam Helmsworth, Gary Oldman, and Harrison Ford, and is scheduled for an October release.

Other anticipated films from books are:

• "Catching Fire," the second installment of Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games trilogy, scheduled for November 2013

• "Divergent", another YA dystopian adventure, based on the book of the same title by Veronica Roth, due out in 2014
  

• "City of Bones", adapted from the first book in Cassandra Clare’s Mortal Instruments series, in which a teenage girl suddenly develops the ability to see demons

• "The Hobbit:  The Desolation of Smaug," the second movie in the Hobbit trilogy, is from J.R.R. Tolkein’s book The Hobbit and is scheduled to be out in December 2013.