Friends, we’re a bit obsessed with Gwendolen Womack’s THE MEMORY PAINTER. This riveting debut novel is a taut thriller and a timeless love story spanning six continents and 10,000 years of history that stems from this idea: What if neuroscientists accidentally unlocked the secret to reincarnation with a drug? It’s an Indie Next pick for […]
Tag: adventure
We heart Douglas Preston!
When we want a great thriller packed with big ideas, science, and action Douglas Preston is our go-to guy. We love his Wyman Ford series and the most recent book, THE KRAKEN PROJECT, was praised in a starred and boxed review from Booklist: “Preston’s latest solo novel takes a wildly implausible premise and turns it […]
Happy #BookBday (5/6/14 Edition)
What a lovely day for a #BookBday! Today we celebrate:
THE SNOW QUEEN by Michael Cunningham
The Pulitzer Prize-winning author's latest novel about the complex dynamics between a couple and a brother and a mysterious light in the sky received two starred reviews and “at its heart...is about family, and how we reconcile our closest human relationships with our innermost thoughts, hopes, and fears.” (Publishers Weekly)
ALIAS HOOK by Lisa Jensen
In this retelling of the Captain Hook story from Peter Pan, the villain’s one hope for redemption comes in the form of Stella Parrish, a grown woman who dreams her way to the Neverland in defiance of Pan’s rules. “Following in the footsteps of Gregory Maguire, Carolyn Turgeon, and Frank Beddor, Jensen offers a humanized take on Captain Hook that will be sure to entertain fans of the fairy tale-retelling genre.” — Library Journal
THE WATER RAT OF WANCHAI by Ian Hamilton
In this prequel to the series, we find out how forensic accountant and martial arts expert Ava Lee got her start working for the mysterious businessman, Uncle, as they globetrot to track down large sums of money that have disappeared. “[Ava Lee] is sort of a cross between James Bond and Sara Paretsky’s V. I. Warshawski. The action zooms from Toronto to Hong Kong, Bangkok, Guyana, and the British Virgin Islands, from five-star hotels to back alleys. Terrific fun.” — Booklist. Check out the whole Ava Lee series!
[...]
Thriller Thursday (4/24/14 Edition)
Happy #ThrillerThursday! Here are the latest mysteries keeping us up well beyond bedtime:
FROM THE CHARRED REMAINS by Susanna Calkins
In Calkins' next mystery with “rich, historical detail” (Publishers Weekly), chambermaid Lucy Campion must learn how a dead body discovered in the wreckage of the Great Fire of London actually perished.
DON'T EVER LOOK BACK by Daniel Friedman
In Friedman's “fine sequel and a must-buy!” (Library Journal), feisty octogenarian Buck Schatz has unfinished business from his past to take care of. “Edgar-finalist Friedman injects a darker tone into his alternately humorous and moving sequel to 2012’s DON'T EVER GET OLD. The howdunit of the 1965 crime will please Golden Age puzzle fans.” — Publishers Weekly, starred review
THE POOR BOY'S GAME by Dennis Tafoya
A former U.S. Marshal's life turns upside down when the most dangerous criminal she's ever faced—her father—escapes from prison. “Tafoya delivers a gut-wrenching crime thriller as gritty and harsh as a Philadelphia winter. The equation seems simple, but Tafoya does a superb job keeping the reader guessing to the surprise end.” — Publishers Weekly, starred review
THE FURIES by Mark Alpert
A shadowy clan with an ancient history has discovered a medical miracle—and will kill to keep it secret. “Alpert has a knack for making unbelievable things seem not only plausible but also completely real. Alpert’s carefully constructed alternate history of witchcraft—and sorcery, too—is very clever. Good stuff.” — Booklist
THE BLOOD OF ALEXANDER by Tom Wilde
A modern Indiana Jones steals a relic of Alexander the Great in this thrilling debut novel. “Two of my favorite topics—the lost tomb of Alexander the Great and Napoleon Bonaparte—joined in a rip-roaring, across-the-globe adventure. A superb debut by an exciting new voice in the thriller genre.” — New York Times bestselling author Steve Berry
Share your reads with us @MacmillanLib this #ThrillerThursday. [...]
Maximum Shelf: THE PLOVER
“I must have wanted to write a sea novel for years—I just adored Stevenson and Kipling and Conrad and Jack London and voyage-logs and sea stories and KON-TIKI as a boy.”
— Brian Doyle on his inspiration for THE PLOVER
We're very excited about THE PLOVER by Brian Doyle, which continues the story of Declan O Donnell from one of Doyle's previous novels, MINK RIVER. It's an April Indie Next pick, and is this week's Maximum Shelf Awareness feature (we're pretty crazy about it, too).
“THE PLOVER is a fun ride with meaning and heart, lots of it, as well as jokes, scares, storms at sea, surprises, magic, absurdity—and humanity, exuberant joyful humanity.” — Shelf Awareness
See the full summary, review and interview with Brian Doyle on Shelf-Awareness.com.
Get whitelisted and download your e-galley on Edelweiss.
Praise for THE PLOVER:
“Doyle has written a novel in the adventurous style of Jack London and Robert Louis Stevenson but with a gentle mocking of their valorization of the individual as absolute. Readers will enjoy this bracing and euphoric ode to the vastness of the ocean and the unexpectedness of life.”
— Library Journal, starred review
“In near stream of consciousness, wave upon wave of words tumbles out in long, beautifully rendered, description-packed sentences... A rare and unusual book and a brilliant, mystical exploration of the human spirit.”
— Kirkus Reviews, starred review
“A jack of all literary trades, Doyle augments his impressive oeuvre with this whimsical dreamscape of a nautical adventure about desolation and friendship. A joyous journey of discovery.” — Booklist
“Every sentence Doyle writes about the ocean smacks of authenticity...”
— Publishers Weekly
[...]
Books From Days of Yore
Hear ye, hear ye! Feast your eyes upon these books set in days long ago:
HILD by Nicola Griffith
Award-winning author Griffith's story of a girl named Hild who becomes St. Hilda’s of Whitby is "A book that deserves a place alongside T.H. White, to say nothing of Ellis Peters." — Kirkus Reviews. "Griffith expertly blends an exploration of seventh-century court life and a detailed character study of Hild as she balances a need for acceptance, love, and friendship and a desire to escape the strict gender roles of her time. In short, Griffith triumphs with this intelligent, beautifully written, and meticulously researched novel." — Booklist, starred review
Award-winning author Griffith's story of a girl named Hild who becomes St. Hilda’s of Whitby is "A book that deserves a place alongside T.H. White, to say nothing of Ellis Peters." — Kirkus Reviews. "Griffith expertly blends an exploration of seventh-century court life and a detailed character study of Hild as she balances a need for acceptance, love, and friendship and a desire to escape the strict gender roles of her time. In short, Griffith triumphs with this intelligent, beautifully written, and meticulously researched novel." — Booklist, starred review
WARLORD: A Novel of Robin Hood by Angus Donald
In the fourth installment in the Robin Hood series, King Richard I, the Lionheart, is engaged in a bloody war to drive the French out of Normandy. Aided in his struggle are the outlaw Robin Hood, and Sir Alan Dale, his loyal friend who is also attempting to discover the identity the man who ordered his father's death ten years earlier. "This book is a bloodcurdling tale of medieval greed, cruelty and honor. A fast-paced and exciting story unsuitable for the squeamish." — Kirkus Reviews, starred review
HAVISHAM by Ronald Frame
Frame's prelude to Charles Dickens's classic GREAT EXPECTATIONS imagines the life of Catherine Havisham before she was cursed to a solitary life, roaming the halls of the mansion in the tatters of the dress she was never able to wear at her wedding. Everyone is simply mad for it—read more (and watch the book trailer) here.
Fare thee well, friends! [...]
Thriller Thursday (10/24/13 Edition)
Our #ThrillerThursday picks are a bit cozier this week (it's getting cold out!), but enjoyable all the same:
ACCUSED by Lisa Scottoline
The ladies from the Rosato & Associates law firm are back! Mary DiNunzio is now a partner(!) and engaged(!!) and has an unexpected new client: thirteen-year-old Allegra Gardner, who believes the man accused of her sister's murder is innocent. "This is a long-awaited, solid entry into a terrific series that should appeal to fans of Sheldon Siegel, Rose Connors, and Steve Martini." — Booklist
OUTLAW by Mark Sullivan
This high-stakes thriller continues the adventures of former CIA operative and master thief Robin Monarch (after ROGUE), who must rescue the U.S. Secretary of State and foreign ministers from China and India, who have been kidnapped. "Sullivan has created a fine adventure-thriller hero in Monarch, who fits perfectly into the Ludlum or Vince Flynn mode. The action and the surprises are nonstop. Readers will demand the next one in the series, pronto." — Booklist
NEVER LAUGH AS A HEARSE GOES BY by Elizabeth Duncan
Who can resist a mystery involving libraries?!! Duncan's fifth book in the Penny Brannigan series "is a pleasing update of the 'body in the library' standard. In the time-honored tradition of village cozies, Duncan provides structure, subtle clues, rampant gossip, and a satisfying conclusion." — Library Journal, starred review
DUCK THE HALLS by Donna Andrews
In Meg Langslow's 16th mystery, she's tasked with finding an alternate venue for her church's holiday events while simultaneously finding a killer after a series of escalating pranks leaves another church member dead. "Andrews leavens the action with her trademark humor, including dueling Christmas dinners and an extravagant—and extravagantly funny—live nativity scene." —Publishers Weekly
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