Highlights Newsletter

  The weekly newsletter, now available each week on this page, brings complete information on upcoming author events, coming attractions for future months, new signed first editions, and other features, such as announcements of our monthly 'Signed & Selected' picks.
  To order any book or inquire about an event, simply email the store, or telephone during business hours (store info at bottom of this page).
  If you would like to receive a brief weekly email notice each time we post a new edition, click here info@mformystery.com , and simply write "add me to mailing list" in the subject line.
  To review one of our previous newsletters, click on the date: Highlights Newsletter June 23, 2008 / Highlights Newsletter June 16, 2008 / Highlights Newsletter June 9, 2008 / Highlights Newsletter June 3, 2008

TOMORROW, TUESDAY, JULY 1st at 7:00 PM, come enjoy a glass of champagne at a Royal Tea that also features a prize for best hat, as RHYS BOWEN presents A Royal Pain (Penguin, $23.95). Kirkus praised: "A royal relative turns sleuth when murder haunts her household. Lady Georgiana Rannoch, who lives in her impoverished brother's London house, survives by doing occasional light cleaning jobs. Although dead broke, she is 34th in line to the throne and at the beck and call of the Queen, who's thought up a scheme to scuttle the highly unsuitable romance between her son David and the married American Wallis Simpson... A pre-World War II mystery with a touch of romance that adds another winner to Bowen's accomplishments." And Publishers Weekly called it "Agatha-winner Bowen's enchanting second mystery set in 1930s England (after 2007's Her Royal Spyness)... Fans will welcome the return of this spunky heroine..." ALSO: Buy one or more of the following from the Molly Murphy series, PLUS the new one, and take 10% OFF ALL! -- Tell Me, Pretty Maiden (St. Martin's Minotaur, 2008, $23.95) SIGNED, as new. -- In Dublin's Fair City (St. Martin's Minotaur, 2007, $23.95) SIGNED, as new.

-- The Last Oracle (William Morrow, $26.95). What if you could bioengineer the next great world prophet: scientifically produce the next Buddha, the next Muhammad, or the next Jesus? Would it mark the Second Coming or initiate a chain reaction with disastrous consequences? James Rollins brings back SIGMA Force to battle a group of rogue scientists who've unleashed a bioengineering project that could bring about the extinction of humankind. In Washington, D.C., a homeless man dies in Commander Gray Pierce's arms, shot by an assassin's bullet. But the death leaves behind a greater mystery: a bloody coin found clutched in the dead man's hand, an ancient relic that can be traced back to the Greek Oracle of Delphi.

-- Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (Random House, $26.00). "The name is Jones. Indiana Jones." He’s back. Everyone’s favorite globe-trotting, tomb-raiding, wisecracking archaeologist is finally at it again-hurtling headfirst into high adventure and relying on his wits, his fists, and his trusty bullwhip to get him out of deep trouble. Now it’s 1957, the atomic age is in full swing, and McCarthy-era paranoia has the nation on edge. But for Indiana Jones, the Cold War really heats up when his latest expedition is crashed by a ruthless squad of Russian soldiers.

DENISE HAMILTON: The Last Embrace (Scribner,$26.00; and simultaneously, $14.00, trade paperback). "Departing from her award-winning Eve Diamond crime series (Prisoner of Memory; Last Lullaby), Hamilton sets this stand-alone novel in 1949 Hollywood. Former stenographer and OSS spy Lily Kessler returns to Los Angeles as a favor to her late fiancé's mother. She agrees to search for her fiancé's sister, Kitty, who moved to Hollywood for a movie career and has disappeared... The atmosphere of postwar Hollywood and Hamilton's edgy noir style are spot-on. Her reputation for Chandleresque dialog and impeccable historical detail is strongly supported in this highly readable and entertaining story. Highly recommended..." said Library Journal. And Publishers Weekly concluded: "this torrid, down-and-dirty exposé of the postwar entertainment industry includes enough special effects to make all that glitter look-temporarily-like 24-carat gold."

The store will be OPEN on FRIDAY, JULY 4th, from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM.
Come experience FIREWORKS -- between the covers of our books!
HAPPY FOURTH!!

SUNDAY the 6th brings a rare appearance, this one from THOMAS H. COOK, at 1:30 PM (NOTE somewhat early start time for event). He will talk about and sign Master of the Delta (Harcourt, $24.00). Publishers Weekly starred: "Edgar-winner Cook (Red Leaves) examines the slow collapse of a prominent Southern family in this magnificent tale of suspense set in 1954. Jack Branch, who's returned to his hometown of Lakeland, Mississippi, and taken a job at the same high school where his father once taught, is dismayed to learn that one of his students in his class on historical evil is the son of the town's infamous Coed Killer. Eddie Miller's father confessed to torturing and killing a local girl when Eddie was five, but died in jail before he could stand trial. Hoping to help Eddie step out of his father's shadow, Jack proposes that the boy write a research paper on the Coed Killer... Excerpts from transcripts of an old trial that slowly unfolds alongside Jack and Eddie's story heighten the drama." -- ALSO: The Murmur of Stones (U.K.: Quercus, 2006, $49.00) SIGNED, VF/ VF, as new.

Either Monday the 7th or Tuesday the 8th, we will have a drop-by from DAVID WROBLEWSKI, signing The Story of Edgar Sawtelle (Ecco, $25.95). [NOTE: We are down to our very last few, so don't delay ordering!] Publishers Weekly starred: "A literary thriller with commercial legs, this stunning debut is bound to be a bestseller. In the backwoods of Wisconsin, the Sawtelle family -- Gar, Trudy and their young son, Edgar -- carry on the family business of breeding and training dogs. Edgar, born mute, has developed a special relationship and a unique means of communicating with Almondine, one of the Sawtelle dogs. ...a classic coming-of-age story with an ironic twist. Sustained by a momentum that has the crushing inevitability of fate, the propulsive narrative will have readers sucked in all the way through the breathtaking final scenes." Kirkus called it "A stately, wonderfully written debut novel... An auspicious debut: a boon for dog lovers, and for fans of storytelling that eschews flash. Highly recommended." And Janet Maslin in the New York Times called it "...the most enchanting debut novel of the summer. Written over a decade by the heretofore unknown David Wroblewski and arriving as a bolt from the blue, this is a great, big, mesmerizing read, audaciously envisioned as classic Americana."

'S&S' III: BILL FITZHUGH - The Adventures of Slim & Howdy (Center Street, $22.99) by KIX BROOKS & RONNIE DUNN, "written with" BILL FITZHUGH. The duo of Brooks & Dunn have sold more than 30 million records and won more Country Music Association awards and Academy of Country Music awards than any other act in history. Perhaps not surprisingly, their first novel follows the trail of two fledgling country songsters. "...the duo, along with novelist Fitzhugh, bash out a comic caper that has enough plot twists and nutty one-liners to hook even twang-haters. The book follows lanky, laconic Slim and romantic, goofy Howdy as the two troubadours ramble around the Texas honky-tonk circuit... It's like a particularly good episode of The Dukes of Hazzard: corny as hell, but heaps of fun," said Publishers Weekly. Fitzhugh is the author of Pest Control, Organ Grinders, Fender Benders, etc. -- ALSO: Cross Dressing (William Morrow, 2000, $11.00) SIGNED, F/F (except for remainder mark on lower page edges).

'MYSTORICAL': SALMAN RUSHDIE: The Enchantress of Florence (Random House, $26.00). Publishers Weekly said: "Renaissance Florence's artistic zenith and Mughal India's cultural summit -- reached the following century, at Emperor Akbar's court in Sikri -- are the twin beacons of Rushdie's ingenious latest, a dense but sparkling return to form..." Booklist called it "Entertainment of the highest literary order" in their starred review. And Library Journal concluded: "...Rushdie's lushly evocative creation of the mysteries and intrigues of a medieval world and his enchanting and seductive stories captivate and transport us in ways reminiscent of his early novels like Midnight's Children and The Satanic Verses. Highly recommended."

LAWRENCE BLOCK: Hit and Run (William Morrow, $24.95) SIGNED. Kirkus raved: "John Keller -- the philosophical hit man who's brightened the pages of many a short story and a quasi-novel cobbled together from stories (Hit Parade, 2006) -- finally gets a proper novel of his own. The assignment, set up by a client named Al who paid cash in advance, seems routine: Fly to Des Moines, wait for the high sign to kill Gregory Dowling, go back to New York. But the days pass without Keller being turned loose... Block treats both his unlikely hero's initial flight and his attempt to establish a new identity in such painstaking detail that they become riveting... From the first, Keller assumes this hit will be his last case. Readers can only hope it isn't so." And Library Journal concluded: "...the old guys (both Keller and Block) show they've still got what it takes to teach the youngsters a thing or two in this brisk, suspenseful, and funny romp. A sure bet..." (ALSO in stock: Hit Man and Hit Parade in mass market.)

JAMES LEE BURKE: Swan Peak (Simon & Schuster, $25.95) SIGNED. [Expected early this week.] "Dave Robicheaux and his former partner, Clete Purcel, find trouble in western Montana in bestseller Burke's fine 17th novel to feature the New Iberia, Louisiana, sheriff's deputy. When two security men for Texas oil millionaire Ridley Wellstone deliberately drive over Clete's fishing gear after Clete inadvertently fishes on Wellstone's private land, Clete recognizes one of them as a former associate of a mob boss who died in a plane crash years before... Lyrical passages describing the Montana landscape contrast with the subtle but intense way Burke depicts the violence and perversity lurking in his characters' hearts. But despite all the nastiness, love and redemption retain the power to heal some very wounded souls in a surprising denouement," said Publishers Weekly.

DANEIL JUDSON: The Water's Edge (St. Martin's Minotaur, $24.95) SIGNED. [Expected early this week.] "Two mutilated bodies hung from a bridge in the Hamptons on Long Island, NY, seem to be an obvious message but to whom? Jake Bechet, a former boxer and reformed enforcer for a South American gangster, is made to investigate (if he doesn't, severe harm will come to his friends). Tommy Miller, a retired PI, discovers that his former lover somehow is connected to one of the slain men and begins searching for her... As in his previous suspense novels set in the Hamptons (e.g., The Darkest Place), Judson here makes precise use of street and village names, which reflects an insider's knowledge of the dark underside of the glittering Hamptons. With the setting and weather functioning like additional characters, the suspense builds relentlessly over a mere 24 hours to a climax that offers no simple resolution but possible redemption," said Library Journal.

JOSEPH O'NEILL: Netherland (Pantheon, $23.95) SIGNED and dated; third and fourth printings only. The New York Times called it "...the wittiest, angriest, most exacting and most desolate work of fiction we've yet had about life in New York and London after the World Trade Center fell... On a macro level, it's about nearly everything: family, politics, identity. ...[O'Neill] seems incapable of composing a boring sentence or thinking an uninteresting thought." And Kirkus said: "Novelist and memoirist O'Neill (Blood-Dark Track: A Family History, 2001, etc.), born in Ireland and raised in Holland, goes for broke in this challenging novel set largely in post-9/11 New York City... This love story about a friendship, a place and a marriage is not easy to read, but it's even harder to stop thinking about."

THOMAS PERRY: Fidelity (Harcourt, $25.00) SIGNED. [Expected early this week.] "In this high-energy thriller, Emily Kramer tries to find out why her husband, Phil, was shot dead and discovers he'd been keeping secrets from her... A spunky but believable heroine, an emotionally conflicted killer, a plot whose twists you will not anticipate - what more could a reader want from a piece of escapist fiction? Fidelity is a winner. But, then, Perry has never written a bad novel in his life," said Library Journal. And Publishers Weekly concluded: "...Perry intrigues as always with spare, intelligent prose." ALSO: -- Silence (Harcourt, 2007, $25.00) SIGNED, as new. -- Shadow Woman (Random House, 1997, $19.00) SIGNED. F/F. First Jane Whitefield novel.

MICHELLE RICHMOND: No One You Know (Delacorte, $23.00) SIGNED. Booklist starred: "Thoroughly riveting ... explores family dynamics, the ripple effects of tragedy, and the importance of the stories we tell." And Publishers Weekly said: "Richmond (The Year of Fog) returns to San Francisco for another enjoyable blend of mystery and domestic fiction. Twenty years ago, Ellie Enderlin's sister, Lila, a mathematical prodigy, was murdered, and Andrew Thorpe, Ellie's English professor and a friend, exploited the family's grief with a true-crime bestseller that claimed Peter McConnell, Lila's married lover and colleague, was the killer... Vivid descriptions and loving explanations of the city and intelligent forays into the sciences of coffee and mathematics enhance Richmond's quietly captivating novel."

ANTHONY NEIL SMITH: Yellow Medicine (Big Earth, $24.95) SIGNED. [NEW! Coming soon: the 'Evidence Collection' limited edition of this book ($45.00), SIGNED and dated on a special booking sheet.] Deputy Billy Lafitte is not unfamiliar with the law -- he just prefers to enforce it, rather than abide by it. But his rule-bending and bribe-taking have gotten him kicked off the force in Gulfport, Mississippi, and he's been given a second chance -- in the desolate, Siberian wastelands of rural Minnesota. Now Billy's only got the local girls and local booze to keep him company.Until one of the local girls -- cute little Drew, bassist for a psychobilly band -- asks Billy for help with her boyfriend. Something about the drugs Ian's been selling, some product he may have lost, and the men who are threatening him because of it. Billy agrees to look into it, and before long he's speeding down a snowy road, tracking a cell of terrorists, with a severed head in his truck's cab. And that's only the start.

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