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Reviews of genre fiction titles, horror, historical, action & aventure, religious & more from Library Journal.
As Lewis Carroll's Alice so aptly points out, "What is the use of a book...without pictures or conversations?" Welcome to RA Crossroads, where books, movies, music, and other media converge, and whole-collection reader's advisory service More...
Bowling for dollars Bouchercon, held September 15?19 in St. Louis, always provides fun opportunities for mystery authors and readers to give back locally. At the stunningly retro Flamingo Bowl, 13 teams of authors, publishers, and More...
In this Article Debut of the Month Series Lineup Quotable Amateur detectives make a strong showing this season, venturing into all sorts of dark corners and evil dens. Of course, these sleuths are professionals More...
Street lit established its roots when writers hand-sold books out of car trunks, in beauty salons, and on street corners. Now librarians can learn all about street lit in an authoritative professional work titled The More...
Finding books to suit a holiday mood is always a great pleasure, and Halloween offers plenty of moody fiction. Here are six titles?from the mysterious and lyrical (just right for reading via jack-o'-lantern light) to More...
In this Article Debut of the Month Mass Market Paperbacks of Note Quotable The Halloween season is upon us, and a plethora of horror novels and stories will go trick-or-treating onto the shelves of bookstores More...
From the Amish to the undead, everybody wants a happy ending for the holidays. Three unconventional Dickensian homages hit the shelves this season?Marley dispatches from the Other Side, Scrooge proves immune to zombieism, and Bob More...
In this Article Debut of the Month Series Lineup Quotable Soundtracks For all you Anglophiles, it?s a banner month for crime fiction, whether historical or contemporary, dark or cozy. Poisoning, knifing, shooting?it?s all fair game More...
In this Article Debut of the Month Mass Markets of Note The Votes are in Variety is the spice, not only of life, but also of imaginative literature. This month's selections display a breadth of More...
They?re everywhere, the zombies. They permeate our popular culture. They?re on our TVs, most notably on AMC?s The Walking Dead, and our movie screens. Next year alone should see the releases of Infected, Night of More...
The leaves are turning, children are back in school, and CF publishers are pulling out the stops with several new series debuts by popular authors. Ted Dekker partners with Tosca Lee to launch their thrilling More...
IMAGE TK In this Article Debut of the Month Going to the Dogs Series Lineup Quotable Criminal motives don?t change significantly over the centuries, as this month?s titles prove. Much to our dismay, contemporary maladies More...
In this Article Debut of the Month Mass Market Paperbacks of Note Since my first contact with my grandfather?s paperback copy of Isaac Asimov?s I, Robot and the library?s copy of Andre Norton?s Star Gate, More...
In this Article Debut of the Month Since my first contact with my grandfather?s paperback copy of Isaac Asimov?s I, Robot and the library?s copy of Andre Norton?s Star Gate, my first choice in reading More...
The trends and titles shaping a vital genre -- featuring 20 core collection titles, SF/Fantasy blogs and sites, and forthcoming works.
There?s an important difference between setting trends and chasing them, and a look at 2011?s crop of fantasy and sf finds publishers on the healthy side of the line. Proud of cases where they?ve been More...
Historical fiction dominates these upcoming titles, from Lynn Austin?s Wonderland C reek to Sandra Byrd?s reimagining of Anne Boleyn (To Die For). Maggie Brendan (Deeply Devoted) examines the role of mail-order brides in the Wild More...
In this Article Debut of the Month Series Lineup Reader Challenge Quotable Illusion and perception haunt this month?s protagonists and permeate their cases. Suffice to say that people do bad things and lie about it. More...
Vampires come in many guises. Most, but not all, are of the neck-biting, blood-sucking variety. They rule the night and sometimes the day. They can be romantic, murderous, or both. The following books will show More...
As the season slowly begins to slip away, grab your lounge chair and claim a few more weeks of summer pleasure. Novels of friendship make for fine beach reading, offering as they do captivating tales More...
You?re likely opening this issue with your new year?s budget in hand?probably smaller than last year?s?and looking to choose carefully. Yes, every title here will work with library readers! I?m hoping you?ll be pleased that More...
At this year's BookExpo America, I had the distinct pleasure of hearing Wendy Bartlett, collection development coordinator of Cuyahoga County Public Library, hold forth on the art and science of buying for demand. That is, More...
Bewere the Night. Prime. Aug. 2011. c.352p. ed. by Ekaterina Sedia. ISBN 9781607012528. pap. $14.95. FANTASY A fox-girl battles the Crow Lords over the spoils of a postapocalyptic world in A.C. Wise?s ?The Thief More...
A pair of memoirs?don?t think of them as street lit per se?are highlighted below. Yet both authors grew up living a street-lit life filled with crime, hip-hop music, sex, familial dysfunction, and more. Ice-T on More...
In March 2010, I wrote "Steampunk: 20 Core Titles" for BookSmack! Since then, more quality steampunk fiction has been published, so it was time for a catch-up article. All 13 of these books will make More...
The savvy members of The Reading List?the RUSA/CODES committee that selects the year's best genre fiction?offer two dozen classic and contemporary heart-pounding thrillers that will give your patrons many sleepless nights.
One of the major recurring events at ThrillerFest is the presentation of the Thriller Awards. The awards ceremony caps the conference with a banquet. For two of the most anticipated categories, here are this year's More...
The International Thriller Writers (ITW) membership includes many of the world?s best-selling authors: David Morrell, Gayle Lynds, Lee Child, Sandra Brown, Clive Cussler, Jeffery Deaver, Tess Gerritsen, and James Patterson, among others. All of these More...
LJ reviewer Jeff Ayers interviewed 2011 ITW lifetime achievement honoree R.L. Stine along with ThrillerFest Spotlight Guests Robert Crais, Diana Gabaldon and John Lescroart for their insights into the thriller genre and their own writing
Not many of us listened to our parents when we were growing up, but we always listened to the words we read in books. I remember my own childhood through the novels I read?Encyclopedia Brown More...
Last spring, best-selling novelist David Morrell (First Blood) joined forces with Hank Wagner to edit Thrillers: 100 Must Reads (which garnered a starred LJ review), which collects the observations of the genre's leading writers on More...
Allston, Aaron. Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi; Conviction. Lucas/Del Rey. Jun. 2011. c.400p. ISBN 9780345509109. $27. SF The exiled Luke Skywalker, his Jedi son, Ben, and Sith apprentice Vestara Khai continue their precarious More...
Grab your beach chair, slap on some sunscreen, and enjoy a summer season of CF series debuts (Mary Connealy?s Out of Control; Kathleen Fuller?s Treasuring Emma; Robin Lee Hatcher?s Belonging) as well as new entries More...
SUMMERTIME SATISFIES Though most of us are year-round readers, there is something about the summer that makes you want to add a few more books to the TBR pile. Maybe it?s the longer days (more More...
The labyrinth?best known as the elaborate maze that imprisoned the bloodthirsty half-man, half-bull Minotaur?has a long history. It was designed to permit no escape?the Minotaur would simply wander its twisting, turning corridors forever, or until More...
As Lewis Carroll's Alice so aptly points out, "What is the use of a book...without pictures or conversations?" Welcome to RA Crossroads, where books, movies, music, and other media converge and whole-collection reader's advisory service More...
Summer's here, and the time might be right for dancing in the streets, but it's also time for some light reading. So no heavy literature this month, just the fun stuff for reading en route More...
Life lessons are valuable, but they rarely come without unpleasant side effects such as self-doubt, regret, worry, and the potential for huge amounts of embarrassment. Wouldn?t it be nice to learn the lesson while avoiding More...
Welcome to a new series that aims to open your eyes to unique, cutting-edge book and author coverage in BookSmack!, LJ?s free semimonthly e-newsletter. Our avid readers tell us it?s both entertaining and informative, especially More...
Correia, Larry. Hard Magic. Baen, dist. by S. & S. (Grimnoir Chronicles, Bk. 1). May 2011. c.400p. ISBN 9781439134344. pap. $15. FANTASY Jake Sullivan, a war hero, private eye, and now an ex-con assisting the More...
Make room in your beach tote for a mix of favorite authors and debut novelists from this year?s crop of summer women?s fiction reads. Ensemble reads?featuring best friends, sisters, or soon-to-be friends?remain popular, while several More...
Summer 2011?s action/adventure thrillers offer readers old friends, some new buddies, and a couple of wannabes who don?t quite measure up. Characters in these stories rely on their friends to help them win or die More...
Get Your Boarding passes ready for a tour around the world this month. Your readers will love the variety of tones and unique voices. Of course, murder clouds all these entries, but that?s another story. More...
Abraham, Daniel. The Dragon?s Path. Orbit: Hachette. (Dagger and the Coin, Bk. 1). Apr. 2011. c.592p. ISBN 9780316080682. pap. $14.99. FANTASY Soldier-turned-mercenary Marcus wants no part of the war looming between the Free Cities More...
Crime fiction is a genre dedicated to exploring the underside of both human psychology and life itself. This year?s crop of summer and fall mysteries and thrillers?and in particular those by debut writers and established More...
Though those of us in the northern states find it hard to believe, spring is just around the corner, and Christian publishing houses are preparing for a new season filled with exciting historical fiction, including More...
IT'S ALL ROMANTIC SUSPENSE In my previous column (LJ 2/15/11, p. 91) I addressed the creep of suspense elements into almost all areas of romance, blurring the various genres and subgenres and creating a delicious More...
I?M NEW TO the LJ Mystery column, and I look forward to sharing a broad spectrum of mysteries to help you build your collections and connect with your readers. My background is in reference, readers? More...
Fiction comes in many different types, which explains why this list of nearly 300 forthcoming first novels (February 1, 2011-August 31, 2011) is divided into nine handy groups.
The Reading List Council, RUSA?s committee to select the best genre titles of the year, identifies books that will please fans and introduce new readers to the pleasures of genre fiction. You can see the More...
Beaulieu, Bradley P. The Winds of Khalakovo. Night Shade. Apr. 2011. c.312p. ISBN 9781597802185. pap. $14.99. FANTASY The archipelago duchy of Khalakovo, a center of trade and the envy of other island duchies, suffers More...
History in mystery More writers are discovering that U.S. history is a rich and fertile ground for crime fiction. In Carol McCleary?s The Illusion of Murder, we join feisty journalist Nellie Bly as she travels More...
Welcome to a new series that aims to open your eyes to unique, cutting-edge book and author coverage in BookSmack!, LJ?s free semimonthly e-newsletter. Our avid readers tell us it?s both entertaining and informative, especially More...
Our Book Review editors highlight an eclectic array of spring offerings ranging from print books to an audiobook to ebook apps; plus, a Prepub Alert Time Line.
Love is in the air this spring, with several CF publishers pulling out all the stops. Some of these love matches also sport suspenseful story lines and twisting plots. Sibella Giorello?s The Mountains Bow Down More...
SMALL-TOWN SETTINGS in romance are all the rage lately. Cities, of course, continue to be in vogue for certain subgenres (e.g., urban romantic fantasy), but for contemporaries in particular it seems as if everyone is More...
FAMILY FEUDS Family troubles are no longer the mainstay of the cozy. Eccentric relatives like those of Janet Evanovich?s Stephanie Plum can also be found in Nancy Martin?s Roxy Abruzzo books (Sticky Fingers) and Maggie More...
CRIME STOPPERS Let?s hear it for enterprising and intelligent female sleuths. Maggie Messina and her Black Sheep knitters are willing to pitch in and work as a team to solve a crime in Anne Canadeo?s More...
Abercrombie, Joe. The Heroes. Orbit: Hachette. Feb. 2011. c.512p. ISBN 9780316044981. $24.99. FANTASY Black Dow, Protector of the North, wages war against the King of the Union as their great armies meet on a More...
Barclay, James. Shadowheart. Pyr: Prometheus. (Legends of the Raven, Bk. 2). Dec. 2010. c.398p. ISBN 9781616142506. pap. $17. FANTASY The elite mercenaries of the Raven go from heroes to fugitives when one of their More...
THE MYSTERY CREEP Have you noticed how elements of mystery and suspense are everywhere, and not just in what is normally labeled mystery/suspense or romantic suspense? This has been going on for some time?all that More...
DAMAGED GOODS Mystery writers looking to make their sleuths more complex and believable often inflict a psychological or physical injury on them. Yet none of these protagonists let this damage prevent them from seeking justice More...
Aaron, Rachel. The Spirit Eater. Orbit: Hachette. Dec. 2010. c.429p. ISBN 9780316069083. pap. $7.99. FANTASY After his latest successful job, professional thief and wizard Eli Monpress seeks only to relax and spend his hard-earned More...
The harvest season means not only hot cocoa and mulled apple cider, hay rides, and pumpkin picking?the crop of books reviewed this month are some of the best CF publishers have to offer. Several, like More...
MORTAL DANGER As history teaches us, life is dangerous. Authors of historicals capitalize on that by navigating their series protagonists through myriad hazards and perils that engage the reader?s imagination while remaining believable and true More...
Bujold, Lois McMaster. Cryoburn. Baen, dist. by S. & S. (Miles Vorkosigan Novels). Oct. 2010. c.352p. ISBN 9781439133941. $25. SF When a company specializing in cryogenics from the planet Kibou-daini seeks to expand into the More...
Anyone who has anything to do with books knows that zombies are a big deal right now, and there are a lot of theories as to why. Some point to the big print successes like More...
?TIS THE SEASON This season?s holiday romances are tempting readers with a delectable assortment of tasty treats in a range of styles: lively or low-key, side-splitting or sober, magical or mundane, sexy or sweet. As More...
Snow may not be on the ground yet (depending on where you are), but holiday- themed fiction will soon be hitting the shelves. Romance, gentle reads, and mysteries abound. Jane Austen fans must have been More...
POLICE PROCEDURALS never go out of season, and this fall heralds a new crop of exciting reads for law-and-order fans. Big city cops are represented in Henry Chang's Manhattan-set Red Jade and Solomon Jones's Philly-focused More...
As any publisher or filmmaker can attest, Jane Austen is a hot literary commodity. Every week seems to bring a new continuation, reimagining, mashup, or modernization of her novels. There is more than one book More...
Bernobich, Beth. Passion Play. Tor. Oct. 2010. c.368p. ISBN 9780765322173. $24.99. FANTASY Fleeing an arranged marriage to a cruel older man, merchant's daughter Ilse Zhalina joins a caravan in the hopes of forging her own More...
Western fiction is unique among the major fiction genres recognized by public libraries (which would include romance, mystery, and sf) in that it is defined principally by its physical setting?the American West (usually anywhere More...
Beagle, Peter S. Return: An Innkeeper's World Story. Subterranean. Sept. 2010. c.104p. ISBN 978-1-59606-309-9. $35. FANTASY Soukyan, a warrior for hire, fends off a trio of assassins, the latest of many who have been More...
Serving as a dramatic backdrop to many historical mysteries, war often plays a major role in sleuths' development. For example, Jacqueline Winspear's Maisie Dobbs, Charles Todd's Ian Rutledge, and Rennie Airth's John Madden all More...
Is This for Real Unreal? A look in any bookstore will tell you that "unreality" is still in and isn't about to be out anytime soon. The most recent Romance Writers of America (RWA) More...
Carrington, Tori. Love Bites. Severn House. Jan. 2011. 192p. ISBN 978-0-7278-6913-5. $28.95. A RITA Award nominee and winner of a Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Award, Carrington-actually, Lori and Tony Karayianni-here brings back Sofie Metropolis. Even More...
As summer winds down, Christian fiction publishers seek to continue the success they enjoyed with their summer blockbusters & The start of the fall publishing season will not disappoint fans of the genre. Whether More...
By Jo Ann Vicarel MURDER IN MAYBERRY Small towns or villages continue to serve as popular settings for mysteries, especially cozies. Chris Cavender?s Pepperoni Pizza Can Be Murder is set in Timber Ridge, NC, where More...
Baker, Kage. The Bird of the River. Tor. Jul. 2010. c.272p. ISBN 978-0-7653-2296-8. $25.99. FANTASY Teenage Eliss and her half-breed brother Alder become part of the crew of a large river barge after the More...
SUMMER BLOCKBUSTERS Movie studios and big publishing houses save their big moneymakers for this season, and Christian fiction publishers are no different. Just in time for that relaxing week at the beach or lake is More...
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Neal Wyatt is a collection development and readers' advisory librarian in Virginia.
Head back toBookSmack!for more storiesIn street lit, stories involving the drug game, the journey from point A to point B, is never a straight line, but one filled with hazards, betrayal, and horrifying violence. When More...
Head back toBookSmack!for more storiesAs Lewis Carroll's Alice so aptly points out, "What is the use of a book...without pictures or conversations?"Welcome to RA Crossroads, where books, movies, music, and other media converge and whole-collection More...
Cemetery Dance. May 2010. c.112p. illus.ISBN 978-1-58767-228-6.$25. FCombining a reminiscent, folksy first-person point of view of a third-base coach now in a retirement home with one of his best forms, the novella, King (Under the More...
Nowhere to Run by C.J. Box (series starts with Open Season) (Putnam)A Murderous Procession by Ariana Franklin (series starts with Mistress of the Art of Death) (Putnam)This Body of Death by Elizabeth George (series starts More...
Mystery and suspense fiction remain as popular as ever for as many reasons as there are readers. In the April 15 cover story, LJ's Wilda Williams tracks the genre's trends and previews the top titles More...
Head back toBookSmack!for more stories This month's selections are brought to you by the letters G and A, which stand for greed and addiction. Michelle Monay's Hood Richest introduces Jayah, a girl who is gifted More...
No matter how hard Sir Arthur Conan Doyle tried to rid the world of his most famous detective (in his short story 'The Final Problem';), there's something about the erudite Holmes that continues to capture More...
Science FictionAnderson, James G. & Mark Sebanc. The Darkling Fields of Arvon. Baen, dist. by S. & S. (Legacy of the Stone Harp, Bk. 2). May 2010. c.400p. ISBN 978-1-4391-3353-8. pap. $14.99. FANTASYAfter Ferabek and More...
In Michael J. Sullivan's Necessary Heartbreak, a single father and his teenage daughter pass through a magic door and are transported back to Jerusalem during the time of Jesus. In Jill Williamson's To Darkness Fled, More...
Mystery and suspense fiction remain as popular as ever for as many reasons as there are readers. 'Those who wish for escape or respite read cozies, historicals, or romance crossovers,'; says Poisoned Pen editor Barbara More...
Random. Jun. 2010. c.288p. ISBN 978-1-4000-6603-2. $26. FIn his intense yet subtle way, Furst (The Spies of Warsaw) takes the reader to the Greek city of Salonika in October 1940, just weeks before the Nazis More...
Head back toBookSmack!for more storiesWilliam Ryan's The Holy Thief will no doubt put your patrons in the mood for more mysteries with Sovietor Russian backdrops. Below, we've selected eight stirring readalikes.Benioff, David. City of Thieves. More...
As a complement to our list of core cozies, we give you a bibliography of 25 forthcoming 2010 cozies, organized by category. Enjoy! CRAFTING MYSTERIES | MYSTERIES FOR DIY ENTHUSIASTS | MYSTERIES FOR PET LOVERS More...
Head back toBookSmack!for more stories April showers bring May flowers- and lots of mystery awards. Librarian and LJ mystery reviewer Terry Jacobsen predicts the winners of this year's Edgar and Agatha Awards. Here's your chance More...
Head back toBookSmack!for more stories Attending my first Left Coast Crime (LCC) convention, held March 11–14, 2010, in Los Angeles, I felt I had entered another world: Bookland, with a touch of Hollywood. Sucked into More...
Head back toBookSmack!for more storiesPolice received the call early in the morning: a report of suspicious activity at the Muskego Public Library It was 8:30 a.m. on a Saturday in Muskego (WI), population 23,000, and More...
Tor. Aug. 2010. c.272p. ISBN 978-0-312-37972-8. $24.99. MYS Set in Civil War torn 1936 Spain, Atkinson again has the 37-year-old Hemingway investigating a friend's murder. Unlike the series' initial volume, Hemingway Deadlights, this is much More...
Head back toBookSmack!for more storiesSteampunk is everywhere, from movies like Sherlock Holmes and Howl's Moving Castle to the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show and an art exhibition at the Museum of the History of Science in More...
Head back toBookSmack!for more storiesFrequently when I get to work, there's been a murder, and they look to me for a solution. Last time, it was a guy in a room where all the doors More...
Holden, Wendy. Beautiful People. Sourcebooks. Apr. 2010. c.432p. ISBN 978-1-4022-3715-7. pap. $14.99. FBritish author Holden (Filthy Rich) deftly weaves several plotlines to an ending in rustic Italy, where Galaxia, a blockbuster Star Wars knockoff, is More...
Crouch, Katie. Men and Dogs. Little, Brown. Apr. 2010. c.288p. ISBN 978-0-316-00213-4. $23.99. FWhen Hannah Legare was a young girl, her father disappeared on a routine fishing trip. Years later, Hannah finally confronts her past More...
Head back toBookSmack!for more storiesThis is going to be my last column, as I have an overflowing plate. In addition to my full-time teaching duties, this year I am writing a readers' advisory guide to More...
Break In (Berkley)Dead Cert (Berkley)Hot Money (Berkley)Nerve (Berkley)Odds Against (Berkley)Neal Wyatt is a collection development and readers' advisory librarian in Virginia. More...
Head back toBookSmack! for more storiesDeciphering the way ahead is a murky affair when a spouse dies. Our protagonists here may wish for oblivion, to give in to grief and curl up in a ball, More...
Berkley Prime Crime. Feb. 2010. c.320p. ISBN 978-0-425-23232-3. $24.95. MIn her fourth Southwestern adventure (after Wild Sorrow, Wild Inferno, and Wild Indigo), Bureau of Land Management agent Jamaica Wild sets out to piece together a More...
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