starred review - Macmillan Library

Ali Gets (The) Weird

Posted on May 22, 2012 by Ali Fisher

Talia's at the Boston Book Buzz and most of the Academic Marketing Department is out today, so I'm creeping around the 21st floor like a moody sphinx in a defunct labyrinth and/or a manticore demon looking for someone to chat with between circles seven and eight (violence and fraud, respectively) of the Inferno/breakroom.

Won't someone come talk to me about something? ...Anything?! I can make you coffee! I’m better at making up riddles than Bilbo! I have things to say about the weather! Time-sensitive things!!

Do I sound familiar? If you’re smiling and shaking your head right now thinking, "Been there, girl," well then have I got the compendium for you: THE WEIRD edited by Ann and Jeff VanderMeer!

This anthology of peculiar short stories is here to keep you (and, more urgently, me) occupied over those dreary co-worker-less lunches and solitary afternoon coffee breaks. In the strange company of Franz Kafka, Neil Gaiman, Michael Chabon, Daphne Du Maurier, Algernon Blackwood, George R.R. Martin, and so many more, you may not feel more human, but you will feel less isolated... or will you?!

Seriously, someone come say hi. I'm losing it up here.

Not convinced by my manticorian ramblings? Publishers Weekly gave THE WEIRD a starred review and said,

"Ambitious in the extreme, the Vandermeers’ latest genre-blurring endeavor, which compiles 110 weird stories from the past century, is one of the most far-reaching and inclusive speculative anthologies to ever see print."

They also called it "a deeply affectionate and respectful history of speculative fiction’s blurry edges, and its stunning diversity, excellent quality, and extremely reasonable price point [...] will entice a wide variety of readers—including those who think they don’t like 'weird.'"

And how did the editors pick these delightful tales of strange and dark deeds?

We read over 6 million words in order to select the stories for The Weird. #torchat

— Ann VanderMeer (@AnnVanderMeer) May 16, 2012

Whoa! And what was the—how should I put this?—main thread of interior weird?

@WmHenryMorris Yes, Kafka is the main thread of interior weird in our antho. Stories where you r already embedded. #TORCHAT

— Jeff VanderMeer (@jeffvandermeer) May 16, 2012

I have goose bumps already!

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Starred Review for Redshirts

Posted on May 18, 2012 by Ali Fisher

If you notice any of your patrons loitering around the stacks wearing something like this or this or definitely this, stop them at once and give them REDSHIRTS! It's what they're looking for anyway.

It's the future and Ensign Andrew Dahl has just been assigned to the prestigious Universal Union Capital Ship Intrepid. Andrew is thrilled with the assignment... that is, until he discovers that low ranking crew members such as himself have an suspiciously high mortality rate during away missions. If he doesn't figure out what's causing the deaths and stop it, he might be the next to die!

Booklist gave REDSHIRTS a starred review and said, "Scalzi takes the reality-versus-fiction idea in a new and decidedly mind-bending direction. It’s hard to imagine a reader who wouldn’t enjoy this one."

Library Journal called it "humorous and thought-provoking" and said it will "appeal to fans of sf (especially Star Trek devotees) who like a good laugh along with their big ideas and space action."

Sound like something you want to start now? Download the first four chapters for free!

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Starred Review for This Is How

Posted on May 4, 2012 by Ali Fisher

Augusten Burroughs' collection of comedic wisdom cleverly masquerading as a self-help book has just been selected for Amazon's Best Books of the Month: May 2012! In THIS IS HOW New York Times bestselling Burroughs offers advice on the following topics:

How to feel like crap!

How to ride an elevator!

How to find love!

How to finish your drink!

...and so much more.

"In this hilarious and searingly straightforward memoir, Burroughs (RUNNING WITH SCISSORS) turns the self-help genre upside down [...] As always, Burroughs is smart and energetically forthright about living and loving." -Publishers Weekly (starred review)

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Starred Reviews for HHhH

Posted on April 13, 2012 by Ali Fisher

HHhH: "Himmlers Hirn heisst Heydrich," or "Himmler’s brain is called Heydrich," is the story of Reinhard Heydrich, a much-feared Nazi known as the Butcher of Prague, and his assassination in broad daylight by two agents of the British secret service.

This international bestseller and winner of the prestigious Prix Goncourt du Premier Roman is a thrilling and intellectually engrossing blend of historical truth, personal memory, and Laurent Binet's remarkable imagination.

"Readers will recognize why this brilliant work won the Prix Goncourt du Premier Roman—and why an English translation was imperative!" -Booklist (starred review)

"Binet demonstrates without a doubt that a self aware, cerebral structure can be deployed in the service of a gripping historical read. A perfect fusion of action and the avante-garde that deserves a place as a great WWII novel." -Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Flavorwire included HHhH in their list of "10 New Must-Reads for April" and called it "a unique and incredibly compelling reading experience."

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Pick of the Week: Dead Scared!

Posted on April 11, 2012 by Ali Fisher

In the March 19th issue, Publishers Weekly selected S. J. Bolton's latest psychological thriller, DEAD SCARED, as their Pick of the Week!

When a rash of suspicious suicides tears through Cambridge University, Detective Lacey Flint goes undercover as a student to investigate. The London police are not convinced that the victims acted alone; they believe that someone might be preying on insecure students. As long as Lacey can play the role of a vulnerable young woman, she may be able to stop these deaths, but with her fragile past, is she drawing out a killer, or being drawn into a deadly game in which she’s the perfect victim?

"Bolton (winner of two Mary Higgins Clark Awards) never eases up the tension; her tightly coiled plot and heroine on the edge work perfectly in tandem. " -Publishers Weekly (starred review, pick of the week)

I also just recommended this book during Library Journal's Spring Adult Book Buzz! See the full list of titles I talked up in this post.

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Starred Reviews for The Fish That Ate the Whale

Posted on April 5, 2012 by Ali Fisher

Rich Cohen’s rich and fast-paced historical profile of the capitalist revolutionary Samuel Zemurray, THE FISH THAT ATE THE WHALE, is getting starred reviews fit for a thriller.

Known as El Amigo, the Gringo, or simply Z, Samuel Zemurray lived one of the great untold stories of the last hundred years. Starting with nothing but a cart of freckled bananas and built a sprawling empire of banana cowboys, Mestizo Indians, soldiers of fortune, Mafia loan-sharks, Honduran peasants and American Presidents. From hustling on the docks to bankrolling private wars, Zemurray emerges as an unforgettable figure.

"[I]t is nearly impossible to put the book down, and that’s something you don’t say about a lot of biographies—and especially biographies of businessmen. For anyone who enjoys a good life story, this one is an absolute must-read."
—Booklist (starred review)

"This is popular history and biography at its best." —Library Journal (starred review)

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Starred Review for The City of Bohane

Posted on April 3, 2012 by Ali Fisher

Forty or so years in the future the once-great city of Bohane on the west coast of Ireland is on its knees, infested by vice and split along tribal lines...

Kevin Barry's dystopic novel, THE CITY OF BOHANE, earned him the cover review on this week's edition of The New York Times Book Review! See the full review here.

"In prose that is both dense and flowing, Barry takes us on a roaring journey, among human beings who are trapped in life its own damned self. Nostalgia grips many of them, even when they slash angrily at sentimentality. None of it is real, yet all of it feels true. This powerful, exuberant fiction is as true as the Macondo of Gabriel García Márquez, the Yoknapatawpha County of William Faulkner and, in a different way, even the Broadway of Damon Runyon." -The New York Times Book Review

"What strange and dangerous glamor first-time novelist Barry of Dublin conjures on the rough streets of the city of Bohane[...] Although Barry has set this bewitching, stylized noir pageant of underworld dynastic upheaval in the grim near-future, it has a timeless air, with spookily beautiful evocations of ancient Irish mythology." -Booklist (starred review)

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Starred Review for Come Home

Posted on March 30, 2012 by Ali Fisher

The incredibly charming Lisa Scottoline is back with COME HOME, a stand-alone thriller about a mother who sacrifices her future for a child from her past.

Jill Farrow has finally gotten her and her daughter's lives back on track after a divorce. But Jill’s life is turned upside down when her ex-stepdaughter, Abby, shows up one night and delivers shocking news: Jill’s ex-husband is dead. Abby insists that he was murdered. Jill reluctantly agrees to make a few inquiries. As she digs deeper, her actions threaten to rip apart her new family, destroy their hard-earned happiness, and even endanger her own life. Yet Jill can’t turn her back on a child she loves and once called her own.

Library Journal gave COME HOME a starred review and said, "This thrilling testament to a mother’s relentless love may well be Scottoline’s best novel to date. Her many fans and other mystery/thriller aficionados will want to read it."

And Booklist said, "Scottoline has been stretching her wings a bit with two stand-alones heavy on domestic drama, but loyal fans of her legal thrillers signed on for SAVE ME and are likely to do the same this time."

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Starred Reviews for A Dark Anatomy

Posted on March 22, 2012 by Ali Fisher

We're delighted to report that yet another one of our thrilling debuts is garnering some serious critical attention! Robin Blake's 18th century forensic crime novel, A DARK ANATOMY, has two starred reviews.

The story:

The year is 1740. In Lancashire, England a squire’s wife lies in the woods above her home, her throat brutally slashed. Called to the scene, Coroner Titus Cragg finds the squire's household awash with rumor and suspicion. He enlists the help of his astute young friend, doctor Luke Fidelis, to throw light on the case.

The reviews:

"This is a fascinating examination of how crimes could have been solved before the nineteenth century gave us the rudiments of forensic science. Cragg and Fidelis make a terrific detecting duo. Unlike many current mysteries that attempt to ape eighteenth-century language by writing floridly, Blake’s writing is direct and crisp. In addition, his knowledge of an eighteenth-century backwater just shaking off medieval superstitions is deep and engaging. A solid winner." -Booklist (starred review)

"British author Blake (Fat Man’s Shadow) makes his mystery debut with an impressive whodunit. [...] Blake turns phrases well, and provides an inventive solution to the murder." -Publishers Weekly (starred review)

A DARK ANATOMY will be available in May from Minotaur Books.

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Starred Reviews for Don’t Ever Get Old

Posted on March 20, 2012 by Ali Fisher

We love debuts. You love debuts. Authors definitely love their debuts. And when reviewers love a debut we get downright giddy.

When DON'T EVER GET OLD, Daniel Friedman's debut Mystery, earned itself two starred reviews right out of the gate we had to pull out the emergency party horns (our buddies in the Academic Marketing Department were not impressed).

Here's the story in a nutshell:

When Buck Schatz, senior citizen and retired Memphis cop, learns that an old adversary may have escaped Germany with a fortune in stolen gold, Buck decides to hunt down the fugitive and claim the loot. But a lot of people want a piece of the stolen treasure, and Buck’s investigation quickly attracts unfriendly attention from a very motley (and murderous) crew.

And here are the reviews:

"In prose as straightforward and tough as old Buck, the plot reveals its secrets with perfect timing. It’s a shock when the killer’s identity is revealed. But, then, we think eventually, who else could it be?" -Booklist (starred review)

"Friedman’s excellent debut introduces a highly unusual hero, 87-year-old, politically incorrect Buck Schatz, a former member of the Memphis PD, who’s become a living legend. Schatz’s memory is less and less reliable, and his physical decline is making his world 'a gradually shrinking circle.' [...] Friedman makes his limited lead plausible, and bolsters the story line with wickedly funny dialogue." -Publishers Weekly (starred review)

UPDATE: DON'T EVER GET OLD now has four(!) starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, Booklist, AND Kirkus Reviews!

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