Our booth is full of galleys and posters all for YOU! Come visit us in booth #1438 and stay tuned for daily conference updates. See you soon!
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See you in San Antonio!
Our bags are packed and we’re looking forward to ridiculously nice weather and good times at TxLA! Safe travels and see you all in booth #1438 soon!
XOXO – Talia & Anne
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Stars for COMPLICIT!
We loooooved the Morris Award-winning CHARM & STRANGE by Stephanie Kuehn and now she's made us fans for life with her second book, COMPLICIT.
Two years ago, sixteen-year-old Jamie Henry breathed a sigh of relief when a judge sentenced his older sister Crazy Cate Henry to juvenile detention for burning down their neighbor’s fancy horse barn. The whole town did. But now Cate's out and she’s coming back for Jamie. Because more than anything, Cate Henry needs her little brother to know this one simple truth: She’s not the crazy one and never has been.
COMPLICIT has already received three rave starred reviews:
“Kuehn’s second novel, after her Morris Award–winning CHARM & STRANGE, powerfully examines how mental illness can turn into family tragedy that ripples far and wide beyond a single event. The prose is as hallucinatory as the madness Jamie seeks to uncover in a novel that’s tense and ambiguous from start to finish.” — Publishers Weekly, starred review
“Kuehn writes with the fleetness of a trained thriller author, blending past and present (not to mention psychology and action) with the same fluidity as in her Morris Award–winning debut CHARM & STRANGE. Her confidence is what’s so invigorating: every page makes a firm, surprising choice, whether you like it or not. Cate, naturally, is the main event, the alternatingly irrational, gentle, explosive, and enigmatic center of this fast, black whirlpool of a novel.” — Booklist, starred review
“Alternating between past and present, Kuehn sustains the tension through first-person narration and revealing flashbacks. COMPLICIT ensnares readers from the first page with its surprising twists and revelations. Recommend it to fans of psychological thrillers.” — School Library Journal, starred review
Are you hooked yet? Get whitelisted and download the e-galley.
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Thriller Thursday bonus: DECODED
HOT TITLE ALERT! We want to make sure this gripping debut novel is on your radar: DECODED by multi-award-winning author Mai Jia.
One of China's bestselling novels, it reveals the mysterious world of Unit 701, a top-secret Chinese intelligence agency whose sole purpose is counterespionage and code breaking. Brilliantly combining the mystery and tension of a spy thriller with the psychological nuance of an intimate character study and the magical qualities of a Chinese fable, DECODED discovers in cryptography the key to the human heart.
The New York Times jumped on DECODED early and ran an interview with Jia on their Sinosphere Blog and reviews have been outstanding:
“Told by a shadowy narrator who draws on interview transcripts and declassified documents, the book ranges in style from mythic fairy tale to spy story to epistemological speculation. Within this fantastic framework unfolds the saga of Rong Jinzhen, a youngster of illegitimate origin and odd upbringing whose phenomenal success in his non-chosen field leads to international counterespionage.” — The Wall Street Journal
“Finally, a great Chinese novel. It stands out among Chinese novels for its pace, liveliness and the sheer novelty of the tale it tells. It grips from the first page… [Jia] offers a beguiling and magical mystery tour of China. It is an absolute joy to read.” — The Economist
“An espionage novelist who navigates the top-secret world of cryptography, Mai has been hailed as China’s Dan Brown. DECODED quite blithely—and deliberately—defies the genre expectations.” — The New Republic
“Readers skate the line separating insanity from genius in Mai Jia’s riveting tale of cryptographic warfare. A denouement at once heartbreaking and thought-provoking leaves readers pondering the collective sanity of a world shrouding knowledge in enigmas. Gifted translators bring English-speaking readers a Chinese literary treasure.” — Booklist, starred review
“Mai’s careful attention to pacing and the folklore-inspired narration make for a fascinating story, neatly interwoven with complex mathematical theory.”
— Publishers Weekly
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Thriller Thursday (4/3/14 Edition)
Happy #ThrillerThursday! Today we're celebrating two new books from New York Times bestselling writers:
KEEP QUIET by Lisa Scottoline
Jake Whitmore is enjoying a rare bonding moment with his sixteen-year-old son, Ryan, when they get in a terrible car accident that threatens to derail Ryan’s future. Jake makes a split-second decision that plunges them both into a world of guilt, lies, and secrecy. When a malevolent outsider comes forward with the power to expose them, Jake must do anything he can to prevent the further unraveling of his family. “Scottoline keeps the tension high while portraying a family in turmoil. A heck of a twist ending wraps everything up neatly...and caps a satisfying, suspenseful read. This blend of domestic drama and criminal suspense from bestselling Scottoline is sure to hit the holds lists and may even find her a new audience among fans of issue-driven women’s fiction.” — Booklist
DESTROYER ANGEL by Nevada Barr
In the next book in Barr's Anna Pigeon series, a camping trip in Minnesota goes harrowingly wrong when Anna's friends are taken hostage by armed thugs. “Once again, Barr lays down a riveting mystery and permeates the pages with scrupulous descriptions of Anna's struggle with the cold, with the night, and with the terror and fear of not rescuing her friends.”
— Library Journal, starred review
What are you reading this #ThrillerThursday? Share your picks with us @MacmillanLib.
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Happy National Poetry Month!
Happy National Poetry Month! We're fortunate to have an abundance of great poetry books—so many, that we've created an Edelweiss collection for you. Here are a few that we're loving:
CARIBOU by Charles Wright
Charles Wright’s truth—the truth of nature, of man’s yearning for the divine, of aging—is at the heart of the renowned poet’s latest collection. “Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, National Book Critics Circle Award, National Book Award, among other honors, Wright offers up a spare, no-nonsense approach that serves his subjects well, enabling a kind of spiritual poetry for those who resist spirituality. Pointed as ever, his work continues to engage and explore life's unsolvable mysteries.” — Library Journal, starred review
DIRECTING HERBERT WHITE by James Franco
The debut poetry collection by the multi-talented James Franco (yes, THAT James Franco), has Hollywood—fame, celebrity, the promise of becoming an artist—at its center. “Franco’s bold and magnetic examination of life in the mirrored hall of make-believe and fame taps deeply into our collective mythology.” — Booklist
METAPHYSICAL DOG by Frank Bidart
Bidart's collection was a finalist for the National Book Award and recently won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry. “The poems of METAPHYSICAL DOG are at once emotionally bracing and full of intellectual reward. Bidart is widely admired by other influential poets; he seems in line for even more attention than he has received.” — Publishers Weekly, starred review
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#BookBday Bonus: THE EMPATHY EXAMS
We've got another special Book Birthday this week: THE EMPATHY EXAMS by Leslie Jamison, a riveting collection of essays from the winner of the Graywolf Press Nonfiction Prize, an April Indie Next Pick and a Publishers Weekly Top 10 Essay Collection and Most Anticipated Book of Spring 2014!
Beginning with her experience as a medical actor who was paid to act out symptoms for medical students to diagnose, Jamison’s visceral and revealing essays ask essential questions about our basic understanding of others. By confronting pain—real and imagined, her own and others’—Jamison uncovers a personal and cultural urgency to feel.
“A heady and unsparing examination of pain and how it allows us to understand others, and ourselves.... Jamison is ever-probing and always sensitive. Reporting is never the point; instead, her observations of people, reality TV, music, film, and literature serve as a starting point for unconventional metaphysical inquiries into poverty, tourism, prison time, random acts of violence, abortion, HBO’s Girls, bad romance, and stereotypes of the damaged woman artist.”
— Publishers Weekly, starred and boxed review
“Gutsy essays.... A tough, intrepid, scouring observer and vigilant thinker, [Jamison] generates startling and sparking extrapolations and analysis. On the prowl for truth and intimate with pain, Jamison carries forward the fierce and empathic essayistic tradition as practiced by writers she names as mentors, most resonantly James Agee and Joan Didion.” — Booklist, starred review
“Jamison writes with such originality and humor, and delivers such scalpel-sharp insights, that it's more like a rush of pleasure.” — Entertainment Weekly
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Happy #BookBday (4/1/14 Edition)
Today we’re excited to wish a very happy #BookBday to:
SEDITION by Katharine Grant
In this "...witty, dark, and sophisticated tale" (Publishers Weekly, starred review), four nouveau rich fathers make their five marriageable daughters learn to play the piano in an effort to attract men and marry well. "[A] fun, lascivious gambol through the lives of women and men with decidedly carnal appetites... Suggest to fans of Sarah Dunant and Sarah Waters." — Booklist
MIMI MALLOY, AT LAST! by Julia MacDonnell
An April 2014 Indie Next pick! "MacDonnell captures perfectly the family dynamics between sisters, mothers, and daughters, as if she were sitting in on their gab sessions, taking copious notes. For readers who enjoy Maeve Binchy and Rosamunde Pilcher, this is a highly engaging family chronicle, with a healthy dose of Irish history laced in as well." — Booklist
THE VENETIAN BARGAIN by Marina Fiorato
An unforgettable love story set in sixteenth century Venice by the bestselling author of THE GLASSBLOWER OF MURANO. "Headstrong, smart, and likable, Feyra is a heroine who will resonate with most readers. Captivating language, intricate details, and a very dramatic story line combine to entice anyone interested in historical fiction and timeless tales." — Booklist
And in honor of April Fool’s Day, don’t forget to visit the Free Library of Philadelphia’s innovative new 'Cat'alog. #meow
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Audio All-Stars
Downton Abbey. Homeland. Sex and the City. What do these popular television shows have in common with our friends at Macmillan Audio? Our favorite actors from each will soon be narrating our audio books too!
Ron Livingston, best known for his roles in Office Space, Band of Brothers and Sex and the City, will be narrating Lisa Scottoline's KEEP QUIET.
Click here to listen to a clip of Livingston’s narration.
Claire Danes, currently starring as Carrie Matheson on Homeland, is also known for her roles in My So-Called Life, Romeo & Juliet, and HBO’s Temple Grandin. She'll be narrating Michael Cunningham's THE SNOW QUEEN. Entertainment Weekly's Shelf Life blog did a feature with an exclusive clip of Danes’s narration. (Fun fact: Danes’s husband, Hugh Dancy, narrated Cunningham's last audiobook, BY NIGHTFALL!)
Dan Stevens, best known for his role on Downton Abbey, is doing double-duty by narrating a couple of Homer's classics: THE ILIAD and THE ODYSSEY. Once again, EW's Shelf Life was on the case with a feature story.
Click here to listen to a clip from THE ODYSSEY.
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Stars for THE SNOW QUEEN!
When a new Michael Cunningham book comes out, it's an event. We love the Pulitzer Prize-winning author's latest novel, THE SNOW QUEEN, which examines the complex dynamics between a brother and a couple (much like his last book, BY NIGHTFALL).
Barrett Meeks sees a celestial light in the sky above Central Park and has a quasi-religious experience he knows means something big. Meanwhile, Barrett's brother Tyler is struggling to write a song for his dying fiancée, Beth.
“Tender, funny, and sorrowful, Cunningham’s beautiful novel is as radiant and shimmering as Barrett’s mysterious light in the sky, gently illuminating the gossamer web of memories, feelings, and hopes that mysteriously connect us to each other as the planet spins its way round and round the sun.” — Booklist, starred review
“In concise yet descriptive language, Cunningham weaves the secret of transcendence through the mundane occurrences of everyday life. Those who enjoyed his Pulitzer Prize-winning THE HOURS will be pleased to see similar themes emerging in his newest novel.” — Library Journal, starred review
Get whitelisted and download the e-galley.
Read it and loved it? It's not too late to nominate it for the May LibraryReads list! (nominations are due April 1)
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