Tidal Rip
Joe Buff
William Morrow
10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022-5299
www.harpercollins.com 212-207-7000
ISBN 0060009667 $25.95, 450 pgs.
Author Joe Buff, considered an expert in submarines and national defense, is a member of the
U.S. Naval Institute and Life Member of the Naval Submarine League, Navy League of the
United States, and Fellows of the Naval War College. Former novels of submarine warfare
include Crush Depth, Thunder in the Deep, and Deep Sound Channel. It goes without saying that
this author's expertise adds true authenticity to his writings.
TIDAL RIP is a futuristic military thriller that takes place during the year 2012. Commander
Jeffrey Fuller returns in this sequel, at war once more against Korvettenkapitan Ernst Beck,
commander of Imperial Germany's most lethal submarine, the SMS Admiral von Scheer. Fuller
has just received the Congressional Medal of Honor for victories in battle as captain of the USS
Challenger, America's most deadly fast-attack nuclear submarine. Almost immediately, he is sent
to join the Challenger with the mission to find the von Scheer before she can stop an Allied
convoy heading toward Africa.
Fuller learns from intelligence sources that the Berlin-Boer Axis is attempting to bring into
Argentina an American atom bomb. Their plans are to use the bomb against Brazil, then blame the
Americans for the deadly act. Fuller deploys Navy SEALs into South America to stop the
Germans from setting off the bomb, while he meets with the president of Brazil to try to convince
him what the Germans have planned. After a successful meeting, Fuller is back on the Challenger,
stalking the von Scheer. When the submarines meet, the battle becomes a mental one between the
two commanders. But what Beck does not know is that Fuller is determined to stop him at all
costs, even if it means the destruction and ultimate death of his own ship and crew.
TIDAL RIP is a mesmerizing read, full of tension-filled action scenes and intense dialogue. The
action is constant, shifting from the SEALs team and their efforts on land as well as at sea, to the
submariners and their sensational engagements with one another. The characterization is
phenomenal. Buff takes his readers into the minds of the two captains before and during their
conflicts and allows them to understand what motivates the two men. The modern warfare
technologies are explained clearly, and the story realistic to the point of being frightening. Get
ready for one rip-roaring, exciting read with this page-turner. Highly recommended.
Joint Task Force America
David E. Meadows
Berkley Mass Market
375 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014
www.penguinputnam.com 212-366-2153
ISBN 0425194825 $6.99 308 pp.
JOINT TASK FORCE AMERICA is book two in the Joint Task Force series by David E.
Meadows. Meadows is a Captain in the US Navy, serving at the Pentagon on the Joint Staff of
the Joint Chiefs of Staff. His expertise serves to enhance a well-developed sense of drama mixed
with interesting, believable characters and galvanizing action scenes.
Terrorist Abu Alhaul blames US Navy SEAL Commander Tucker Raleigh for the death of his
family and seeks vengeance against him. After an assassination team fails to kill Raleigh, Abu
Alhaul deploys a freighter carrying undisclosed cargo to America. If the freighter reaches
American soil, the devastation will be horrendous and many lives will be lost. International
intelligence is aware of the freighter but not of its destination nor the exact nature of its dangerous
cargo. The Americans, British, and French work together to hunt the freighter, using Raleigh as
bait. When intelligence suspects the freighter is headed for Europe, most of the American fleet
sails in that direction. Raleigh is sent to the Virginia coast, which is being battered by an
approaching hurricane, unaware that the freighter is headed his way.
Strap your seatbelt on and be prepared to stay awhile when you pick up this book. The pace is
exhilarating and the read so compelling you will not want to put it down. Meadows is the master
at creating action scenes packed with tension, dialogue that rings true, and a story line that is so
believable, it's scary. His sense of characterization is outstanding: the terrorists he depicts are
portrayed so well, they become frightening to the reader, and Admiral Holman and Chief of Staff
Leonard Upmann feel like old friends. Meadows offers a welcome touch of romance with this
book, a respite against the horrendous doings of the terrorists. No one can top him at describing
battle scenes, whether in air or, with this one, on the sea. A powerful, thoroughly entertaining
read. Highly recommended.
One Incredible Dog! Lady
Chris Williams, author
Judith Friedman, illustrator
Moo Press, Inc.
6 High Street, 2nd Floor, Warwick, NY 10990-0054
www.MooPress.com 845-987-7750
ISBN: 0972485333 $15.95 32 pp.
ONE INCREDIBLE DOG! LADY is the first book in an early reader series celebrating working
dogs and the services they perform. Lady is an actual dog who was abandoned along the side of
the road in the spring of 2000. She is now a certified Therapy Dog that works with her rescuer,
nursing assistant Kathy Miller, as Kathy's co-partner in nursing as well as volunteering at local
schools, churches, and hospitals in Pennsylvania.
This book is heartwarming and inspiring. It delivers the poignant message of the therapeutic
marvels to be realized from animals. And the fact that this dog was abandoned, then rescued, and
now serves to help so many makes this true story that much more wonderful. The illustrations are
appealing and in harmony with the story, with eye-catching color and detail.
This book would be a valuable addition to any child's personal library, as well as their classroom
and local library system. Highly recommended.
INTERVIEW WITH JOE BUFF
by Christy Tillery French
Joe Buff, admired for his expertise in submarines and national defense, is a Life Member of the
U.S. Naval Institute, the Naval Submarine League, the Navy League of the United States, the
CEC/Seabee Historical Foundation, and the Fellows of the Naval War College. To date, his
novels of submarine warfare include Tidal Rip, Crush Depth, Thunder in the Deep, and Deep
Sound Channel. His next novel, Straits of Power, is scheduled for release in December, 2004.
Joe's publisher is Wm. Morrow/HarperCollins, and his books have been published as hardbacks
and paperbacks. Joe has also authored numerous articles and has won awards for his nonfiction
writings. More information about Joe can be found at his website: www.joebuff.com.
1. When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
There's an old saying among authors that "I didn't pick writing, writing picked me." In my case I
think this is definitely true. In the mid '90s, out of nowhere, I had an idea for - of all things - a
science fiction novel. It gradually grew in my mind, until I couldn't help but try to write it. I did a
ton of research and outlining in spare time, then hit the laptop, hard. Eventually I cranked out a
250,000 word manuscript (I'm a fast writer and a very fast typist). If someone had asked me years
earlier - say while I was in grad school getting a masters in math at MIT, or later when I was
partner in a top-10 global management consulting firm - whether I saw myself some day making a
living as a full-time writer, I'd have thought they were off their rocker. Yet, here I am!
2. You may be considered by some authors to be an anomaly: you had an agent before you had a
marketable manuscript for a novel. Wow! Tell us how that came about.
It started with that SF ms., which was rejected all over the place (including by the guy who
eventually became my agent), until even I had to admit it needed a ton of work. Step One was
that if I wanted to be a writer, I'd better learn how to write. So I took two professionally run
short-story workshops, and a number of one-day weekend classes. Also read everything I could
find about the publishing industry and the writing craft. Eventually I rewrote my SF novel
completely and cut it down to 93,000 words. Then, I started trying to outline a sequel, which by a
twisted rabbit trail led me to think about submarines. Again, I began with research. This quickly
led me to have some ideas and I wrote my first non-fiction article accepted by THE
SUBMARINE REVIEW's editor, a retired submarine captain, in late 1997. A few months later,
John Talbot left the Anita Diamont Agency to form his own literary agency. I resubmitted the SF
novel (Hey, you never know) and mentioned my single professional article credit. In a month,
John got back to me. He said he loved my writing, was amazed by the learning curve I'd shown in
one year, but didn't do SF. He'd been one of Tom Clancy's editors, and did represent
technothrillers. Based on my article, John suggested I write in the submarine military-suspense
genre instead, and if I would agree, then he'd take me on as a client immediately. You don't say no
to an offer like that! I tossed the unpublishable SF ms. into the trash heap, told John the thoughts
I already had for a submarine novel, and we brainstormed from there. The concept for Deep
Sound Channel was born. I took about 9 months to draft it, and then John did a rolling auction
and got me a rather nice first contract: two books, hard/soft, that made the Publishers Weekly
"Hot Deals" column in April, '99.
3. You have some background in nuclear physics and other science, which plays into the subject
matter of your books, and you write with vast knowledge and authenticity about nuclear
submarines. In fact, your latest novel TIDAL RIP got a very strong review from the prestigious
U.S. Naval Institute PROCEEDINGS. At this point two of your non-fiction papers won literary
awards from the Naval Submarine League. Since you were never in the military, Joe, how did you
do it?
"It all began when I was a child." Seriously, before I was born, my father was in the U.S. Navy.
He was very proud of his service in the early Cold War as a Seabee, and this rubbed off on me in a
big way. I've been an avid reader since I was a kid (I'm 50 now), and three topics were always my
favorites: history, science/technology, and the military. I devoured the stuff, reading far above my
grade level - till the teachers told my mother I seemed to be obsessed. Her answer was "So what?
Joey knows what he likes." (She's the only person who's allowed to call me Joey, by the way. To
everyone else, it's Joe, heh heh!!!) Also, one of my uncles was a merchant mariner on the North
Atlantic convoys late in World War II, before being drafted into the U.S. Army for the occupation
of Nazi Germany. So I had just the right sort of parental support and role models to get me
started on what amounted to literally a lifetime of hectic research that I draw on now for my own
writings. I must have read a thousand relevant books, with an emphasis on personal memoirs of
combat over the centuries, biographies of great generals and admirals, and warfighting gadgetry
of all sorts, to the point where it really got in my blood. Once I started to think about writing
technothrillers, I also put into play some skills I'd acquired in my previous business career,
especially networking, except now it was with military folks, particularly submariners. I hit it off
with them right away. Early on, I got to spend several days at sea aboard the Los Angeles-class
fast-attack nuclear sub USS Miami, also I visited at least a dozen other subs (including a modern
German U-boat!) and talked with their crews, and attended conference after conference of the
major military organizations to which I belong. At these I heard speeches from submarine COs,
active duty admirals, WWII diesel boat veterans, military contractors, politicians, the works. I
mingled with them and got to know them as people and became good friends with some of them.
My articles for THE SUBMARINE REVIEW, I think now I have seven out, two of them ran in
two parts, amounted to term papers or take-home exams, great learning tools: original ideas
based upon lateral thinking that I wrote up to be "graded" by tough teachers who practiced
undersea warfare for a living. Four or five active duty or retired submariner officers or chiefs
carefully critique each of my novels for me in chunks as I write them. These guys are very
meticulous and demanding, and I've learned a huge amount from working with them on five
published novels so far (counting the draft of STRAITS OF POWER, which is with my Editor
right now). But I write everything first, after doing my ongoing reading and thinking "homework"
aggressively -- and then the military pros hit me with their none-too-gentle feedback to firm up
each draft. That's one reason I have a saying, "A writer succeeds in a village." I'm proud of this.
You can't do as well on your own. By now you may be wondering, so why did I ever start trying
to write by dabbling in science fiction? Why didn't I do military suspense from the beginning, since
my whole life prepared me so much better for that? It just goes to show, the most obvious things
are sometimes the hardest to see.
4. Can you give us a brief summary of the storyline behind your submarine warfare novels?
In a nutshell, the books depict tactical nuclear war at sea in 2011/2012. (Tactical nuclear war at
sea is a type of warfare specifically recognized by the Pentagon.) The hero of the saga is an
American submarine officer, Jeffrey Fuller, who gradually rises in rank and wins major medals
completing mission after mission during the war - despite his own inner conflicts and human
foibles. The enemy is the Berlin-Boer Axis, i.e. Germany taken over by an ultranationalist
conspiracy within the country's financial-military-industrial complex, allied with South Africa
taken over by Boers and other whites who have restored Apartheid -- secretly, with the
distraction of the Global War on Terror as cover, the conspirators built their own low-yield atom
bombs. The Axis, using the shock value of a couple of tactical nukes set off on land, and an
ambush of a coalition carrier task force out at sea, have overrun continental Europe and big parts
of Africa. America's principal allies are the UK and the British Commonwealth nations. At first
much of the rest of the world stays neutral - Russia pretends to be neutral but supports the
Germans. Then the war gradually spreads, and some other countries choose sides. Things also get
closer and closer to uncontrolled escalation toward a global thermonuclear holocaust. So far that
hasn't happened, and Jeffrey plays a key role in averting disaster, achieving success, and helping in
the march toward (we hope) an eventual Allied victory. But in STRAITS OF POWER, the war
sure isn't over yet! Jeffrey and his friends and shipmates provide a strong ray of courage and hope
amid this very dark scenario. I like to say that I'm not writing comfort food! My intention is to
entertain and educate people, but also scare them like in JAWS or ALIEN, and shake them up
about how the real world works, give them something to think about beyond escapist fiction.
5. The oceanographic facts and seafloor terrain depicted in your books are fascinating to read.
Are these accurate?
All the science and geography in each novel, above and underneath the water, is as entirely
accurate as I can possibly make it. For each book I purchase dozens of detailed nautical charts,
and spend countless hours doing research on the Internet and reading a (rather daunting) pile of
applicable non-fiction books and journals, too. All of the weapons systems depicted in my stories
either exist now for real or in test-prototype, or are in the design phase as announced by the Navy
or the Pentagon, or are completely realistic given science and technology projected on a
timeframe of a decade or so into the future - were funding made available. In fact, in a chapter in
the TIDAL RIP draft about a particular "secret weapon," one of my submariner ms. critiquers
wrote in the margin -- I think only half tongue-in-cheek -- "Where did you get the security
clearance to know about this?" I'm especially proud of my self-study in sonar and undersea
acoustics, based on some of the same textbooks that practicing submariners read. All of the
depicted effects of tactical nuclear weapons, radioactive fallout, etc., are also thoroughly
researched. Nothing is "made up" to fit the story. Actually, writing stories that strictly "fit the
facts" is half the fun of it for me! Where I depict equipment breaking, or new crewmen being
half-clueless, let's just say I have very good reason to know such things do happen in real life.
6. Navy SEALs play a strong role in your books, and it's interesting to read how committed and
tough these men are, as well as versatile in the duties they perform. How did you research the
SEALs?
The same way I researched submariners. After years of reading every book by or about Navy
SEALs that I could find, I started networking at the people level. I was very privileged to be part
of a tour of the SEAL training compound in Coronado, CA. I met a number of SEAL instructors,
and also got to speak to some of the SEAL trainees who had just finished "Hell Week." I visited
the Amphibious Warfare Base nearby, and toured the various types of craft used to conduct
SEAL operations. I also got to attend an annual SEAL reunion in Norfolk, VA, met a number of
other SEALs there, and saw demonstrations of some of their key weapons and tactics and support
aircraft. I even met and spoke with some German combat swimmers, the Kampfschwimmer -
scary guys whom I'd never want to meet in combat, let me tell you! People ask me sometimes if I
made the Kampfschwimmer up. I say, Heck no. The encounters Jeffrey and his SEAL friends have
with them in the war in 2011/2012 are meant to be utterly frightening. One of the nicest
compliments I've ever gotten was from a Navy SEAL who told me he found my novels
impressively realistic, and they kept him up to five in the morning to finish them in one
sitting!
7. You also write a column for Military.com as well as nonfiction articles for THE SUBMARINE
REVIEW. Do you find it easier to write fiction or nonfiction, and do you have a preference?
To me, fiction and non-fiction are different forms of writing that reinforce each other in my work
and my career. I believe that the shorter a piece is in word-count, the more challenging it is to
draft it to retain the reader's interest and make a useful point. When it comes to fiction, I'm
definitely a "marathon man." Short stories are not my milieu, at all. Novels that take a year
full-time to research and outline, then draft and edit, are the sort of fiction writing I most prefer.
The column I write every week or two for Military.com, in their Military Opinion feature,
represents a type of commentary or op-ed writing. Frankly, I really do enjoy this! (I started it in
January, '03, when the president of Military.com's parent company invited me to be a regular
contributor, alongside big-name writers and military experts like Joe Galloway, Oliver North,
David Hackworth, and William Lind.) To me, personally, a mix of long fiction and shorter
non-fiction seems ideal. I can get a nice immediate sense of gratification and closure with each
Military.com piece, 1,000 to 2,000 words long, because it's usually posted on their home page the
same day I submit it. The articles for THE SUBMARINE REVIEW are more "serious" and
technical in tone, run about 3,000 words (or 6,000ish for a two-parter), and often take up to a
year after submittal to appear in print in a quarterly issue. A novel, from first concept to the
hardcover being in the stores, takes up to two years - then add another year to get to the
massmarket paperback edition. So novel writing demands tremendous patience and a hefty dose
of deferred gratification. What's also great about the Military.com column is it's given me a whole
new circle of people to write for, and earned me a new set of e-pals beyond the folks who contact
me about my novels. The hardest part is juggling everything, to do a good job and meet the
contractual or self-imposed deadlines scattered all over my calendar. But I think writing
constantly is crucial to writing well. I often compare it to professionally playing golf or the violin.
You need to practice every day to stay in your groove. Some variety is good, even essential, it
keeps you fresh and builds your craft skills to the utmost.
8. Tell us about your efforts to raise public awareness that the Seabees still exist and are
active.
Speaking of Military.com e-pals, a retired reservist Seabee chief "Stormin' Normand" once
bemoaned to me that most people don't even realize that the Seabees still exist, let alone are as
busy as ever as combat construction workers - with heavy involvement in humanitarian aid efforts
worldwide. (He first contacted me because he saw in my bio that my late father was a Seabee.) I
put on my thinking cap, and suggested we do something practical. So I wrote one essay for my
column called "Seabees Special Forces?" I was instantly deluged by an incredible outpouring of
e-mails from Seabees everywhere, even their parents, spouses, fianc‚es, thanking me for getting
them some long-craved public recognition. Then I suggested to Stormin' that we needed to
name-brand an effort and start getting serious. Thus "OPERATION SEABEES KNOWLEDGE"
was born, a volunteer grassroots effort. One early success was that one of my favorite military
novelists, David E. Meadows, a captain in the U.S. Navy, wrote JOINT TASK FORCE:
FRANCE, which is due out this summer and has modern Seabees as major characters in the story.
I also included Seabees in an action sequence near the beginning of STRAITS OF POWER. Then
I said, hey, we need a website as a cyberspace home and 'Rallying Point" for OPERATION
SEABEES KNOWLEDGE. And so, soon now the new website www.SeabeesInfoHQ.org will be
announced to the public; it might in fact officially go live by the time people read this interview!
9. You have received acclaim from very well-known authors, including Stephen Coonts and Clive
Cussler. Congratulations. Whose opinion do you value the most, above all others?
Of course I'm absolutely delighted to get such praise from Mr. Coonts and Mr. Cussler. But the
positive feedback I cherish most comes from recreational readers who are or used to be in the
armed forces, especially enlisted people. They're the toughest crowd to satisfy, because they've
"been there, done that," they're very pragmatic, and it's impossible to put one over on them about
the realities of combat and life in the military. When they actually thank me for writing my novels,
or for putting into words in my column things they've always felt in their hearts to be true, well,
for me there really is no better feeling. At the other end of that spectrum, praise - direct or indirect
-- from submariner captains and admirals is terrific affirmation that my work is on the right track.
Lastly, there's something very special about hearing from young readers. Once, by snailmail I got
a hand-written fan letter from a boy in seventh grade. Naturally, I responded to it the same day. I
don't think you can put a price tag on the value of this shared sense of participation and belonging
between author and reader.
10. You are an author who is sought out by other authors for endorsement quotes regarding their
books. Do you enjoy doing this and what is it like providing a quote for another author?
Doing endorsement quotes is hard work, in that the request will usually come up suddenly and the
deadline is always tight, and I make it a rule to read every such book from cover to cover. But as
I said above, I believe a writer succeeds best in a village with other writers and editors and agents.
I take a collegial approach to the business, as do most other people I know. Of course, first of all,
it's flattering to be asked, since the editor (the usual source of the request) wouldn't bother if they
didn't feel my endorsement would be valuable. Also, it's kewl to get a free book and have the
reader's copy or bound manuscript sent to me well before the novel hits the stores. And I won't
deny it's a nice bit of extra advertising to see my name with my quote on someone else's book -
but in writing I think you have to give in order to get, in many ways. What can be tricky is coming
up with accurate praise that doesn't start sounding trite, since there are just so many superlatives
in the dictionary. I have to be careful remembering what I said in other blurbs, or I might repeat
myself! This could get embarrassing, if a reader compares two books I gave endorsements for and
sees that by accident I said the same thing twice. Ha! You think I'm joking. But it's harder than it
looks. Yet it's fun and exciting, to see another writer's work just as it's coming together in the
production and marketing stage, and give it a helpful push in the right direction toward being
received well by the sales force, booksellers, and the public.
11. What is your current WIP?
As we do this interview in late February, 2004, I'm about to start editing the delivered manuscript
of STRAITS OF POWER with my editor Mike Shohl at Wm. Morrow. From that I will roll right
into my major project for 2004, which is writing the next book in the Jeffrey Fuller series. Mike
and I have already agreed on the basic concept of this next story, and I'll be delivering that
manuscript around January 1, 2005.
12. What do you like to do in your spare time?
My wife and I live in a hilly rural area and really love nature. We take exercise hikes through the
fields or along the roads with our dog for an hour or more almost every day, regardless of the
weather. We tend to pick up neighbors' dogs as we go, and also often this way informally talk to
people we know whom we see in their yards or who drive by us and stop in their cars. We enjoy
watching primarily two types of TV shows, either animated shows like "Futurama" (my favorite)
or "South Park," or the BBC comedies and police procedurals. "Cops" is also one of our
favorites. We like going out to dinner with other couples, as there are some very good restaurants
within a moderate drive of our house. I'll also relax by listening to music, mostly soft rock or
country.
13. Who are your favorite authors?
Believe it or not my favorite authors are non-fiction naval history writers. Two great ones really
stand out on my bookshelves. One is Samuel Eliot Morison, especially his biographies of
Christopher Columbus and John Paul Jones. Another is Alfred Thayer Mahan, including his
biographies of Farragut and Nelson, but most of all his classic multi-volume THE INFLUENCE
OF SEA POWER series. Dudley Pope is another superb author of very vivid naval history.
Among more modern writers, Norman Friedman is a sea power strategist and commentator
whose works always keep me up into the wee hours. I draw a lot of inspiration from these writers
and their books, because I try to give my action-adventure novels the feel of "real-world naval
history that just hasn't happened yet."
14. I love the pictures of your dog, Dina, at your website. It seems most authors are either dog or
cat lovers. Is she your only "child"?
My wife Sheila and I first met in college in 1972. We decided many years ago that neither of us
wanted children. (We do, so far, have over thirty nieces and nephews.) We both like cats but I'm
allergic to cats. We got our first dog, Dagmar, in early 1986. When she passed away at age 14,
we got Dina. Both of them we adopted from the North Shore Animal League on Long Island. We
don't think of Dina as our child. It's more like she thinks of us as her slaves, heh heh! Dina is
definitely the leader of the pack of all the dogs along our road. She can be very willful and
stubborn, but also is cuddly and affectionate, quite a combination in a dog who weighs seventy
pounds! (Sheila, by the way, is a full-time nonfiction writer, specializing in health, wellness, and
nutrition. She co-authored some of Dr. Atkins's recent books, and has been on the NY TIMES
Bestseller List as a result.)
15. As an author who writes for a living, do you follow a strict writing regimen?
Yes and no. In an overall macro sense, I'm always working on some aspect of something I'm
writing, even if it's just noodling around in the back of my head as I'm watching TV. In a
day-to-day micro sense, I'd have to say I have no specific regimen at all. I seem to be a natural
self-starter, and very much enjoy being self-employed. On the novels especially, each manuscript
tends to pour out of me in spurts. I might write 100 pages in a week, or nothing new on that front
for two weeks, but the story is always busy taking further shape inside my brain. My record so far
is writing 62 pages in one day toward the end of TIDAL RIP, but I'm sure other writers can top
that. I keep a daily tally of how many pages I write, so that by simple arithmetic I make sure I'll
meet the final deadline on time with the target manuscript length. Sometimes when in what I call a
"writing frenzy" I'll jump out of bed before dawn and write non-stop until midnight. Sometimes I'll
sleep to 11, stay up past 2 a.m., and won't physically write at all - but my mind is always going.
(The one thing I make sure to do without fail each day is respond to all incoming e-mails, which is
another form of writing, into which I put great care.) I think all this works for me because I'm
very organized and analytical, even though my schedule habits probably sound like a form of
chaos theory!
Thanks much!
Christy Tillery French
Reviewer
Cynthia Penn's Bookshelf
Stroke of Midnight
Blaze 114
Jamie Denton, Carrie Alexander, and Nancy Warren
Harlequin Retail Inc
PO Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269
ISBN 0373791186 $4.50 249 pp.
Highly recommended. Three of Harlequin's most stunning authors combine their talents for
STROKE OF MIDNIGHT, an anthology readers will not want to miss. New Year's Eve brings
three single women together for a Venetian masquerade ball at the home of famous shoe designer
Rafe Monticello. They agree that if they are all three still single the following New Year's Eve,
they will show up at the party together next year. I confess to a fondness for anthologies that hold
together as well as this one. While each story is unique, the overall effect is a wildly romantic
New Years that heats cold winter nights with delightful passion. Indeed, Denton, Alexander and
Warren dazzle readers with their harmonious offering that both tantalizes and pleases at any time
of year. "Impulsive" by Jamie Denton: Fashion reporter Natalie Trent meets sexy Joe Sebastian,
who simply disappears into the night after a scintillating encounter. At least she gets to take home
a pair of Monticello shoes and set up interviews with the people she meets. Significantly, Natalie
wears an unbuttoned man's tuxedo shirt and shakes a stud from her hair when she meets her new
friends, providing proof of a heated encounter with a man who disappears at midnight and
suddenly reappears at the next New Year's party. "Enticing" by Carrie Alexander: Isabel Parisi
claims to come to the party for the French champagne and the Italian men. As a fabric designer,
she has been working with the Monticellos on the spring line. During the course of the year,
online correspondence leads to a wonderful friendship with Tom Grace. Despite her
proclamations that she does not want to actually meet him, Tom crashed the party hoping to meet
Isabel without destroying their friendship. "Tantalizing" by Nancy Warren: Adrianne Sorenson
attends the party because she is Rafe Monticello's accountant. Despite an endless string of
women, Rafe Monticello wants the one woman who seems immune to his charms. Indeed, her
clueless rejection only made him pursue harder. This year Rafe intends to overcome her reticent
caution with spontaneous passion. Good thing that Adrianne is ready to overthrow her practical
reputation in favor of something wild and unpredictable.
A Perfect Life
Flipside No 11
Dawn Atkins
Harlequin Retail Inc
PO Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269
ISBN 0373441851 $4.50 224 pages
Very highly recommended
The Morning Madness Show announces that Claire Quinn wins their Valentine contest live on the
air. Unfortunately, thousands of listeners bear witness when the disk jockey calls her fianc‚ and
his wife answers. So she decides to get casual about sex and serious about work. Too bad her
mentor prefers in couch time than coaching time, her wardrobe does not match her aspirations,
and her new love interest plays guitar on a street corner. Trip Osborn never stays long in any
place or any job. It was easier for him to think, to learn, to be himself if he kept moving. He audits
classes at the university he happens to be closest to, picking up seasonal and temporary work
when he is not strumming a guitar on a street corner. But his free spirited, out spoken ways
appeal to Claire's need for ice cream and companionship. Too bad that he can never meet her need
for appearances nor she can she match his need for freedom. So the only question is what to do
when dazzling chemistry meets realistic impossibility. Humor keeps the pain at bay in this
delightful comedic romance by Dawn Atkins. With her characteristic flair, A PERFECT LIFE
kept me in stitches. Atkins has a gift for creating believable characters that have a knack for
encounter life's little problems with spirit and sass. Trip teaches Claire to lighten up while she
teaches him what a big heart he does have, and how to connect with others rather than just
moving on. While complete opposites, together they balance a unique and unexpected way that
will delight fans of comedic romance. With a couple of single Chickateers still available, hopefully
readers will find more amusing tales like this one. A PERFECT LIFE comes very highly
recommended.
Rescued by a Rancher
American Romance 1001
Mindy Neff
Harlequin Retail Inc
PO Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269
ISBN 0373750056 $4.75 256 pages
Highly recommended. Tracy Lynn Randolph and her mother planned her future just hours before
her mother succumbed to ovarian cancer. Now she's about to turn thirty, and Tracy chooses to
take destiny in hand since prince charming has yet to appear. But after successfully utilizing a
sperm bank and then proudly announcing the good news to her father, he demands the name of
the father before he keels over with a heart attack. Lincoln Slade witnesses the disastrous
encounter, stepping in and offering his name as father to the baby. Linc then helps with CPR to
help save Tracy's father's life. With her father about to run for the senate and demanding that
things be put right while he's in the hospital, Tracy and Linc find themselves at the justice of the
peace the very next day. Having already lost one parent prematurely, Tracy will do whatever is
necessary. Little does she suspect that Linc's intentions are more than just honorable. Author
Mindy Neff brings together new technology and old fashioned values in RESCUED BY A
RANCHER. Tracy's loss of her mother and fear of loosing her remaining parent provides
powerful motivation for pleasing her father. Linc's noble price-like rescue conceals a heart long
smitten by a girl he did not believe he could ever have. His bad boy background provides the
perfect foil for the mayor's daughter. With a delightful secondary cast, readers will be hoping for
another Texas Sweetheart story soon. RESCUED BY A RANCHER comes highly
recommended.
Craig Legacy
Terry Campbell
LTD Books
200 North Service Rd W., Unit 1, Suite 301, Oakville, Ontario, Canada L6M 2Y1
eBook/Multiple Formats
ISBN Disk: 1553161211; Download $5.00; Disk $6.00
Trade Paperback ISBN 1586970712 $13.95
Highly recommended. Colonel Benjamin Craig only has ten days to get Frankie Matthews through
the time portal to correct history. He refuses to allow scruples to stand in the way of his
correcting the past, returning it to its rightful course with him as the head of the Craig family
legacy rather than his younger brother Noah. Ben had known since he had comforted a sobbing
six-year-old that she would be his salvation. But now he must work quickly or she will turn thirty
and then it will be too late. Craig Hill always beckoned to Frankie, talking to her, calling her in her
dreams. Then she feels lips on the back of her neck, but there is no one there. Some say that Ben
Craig's spirit haunts the homestead because he was not supposed to die. The only thing she can
learn about Ben is that he had been gunned down by three Union deserters while saving the
family. Frankie becomes a believer when he comes to her room and draws her into the past. Now
in the midst of the Civil War, this twenty-first century girl faces the challenges of no email, no
convenient femine supplies, and no running showers. This Ben does not know that she is from the
future, and is engaged to his older brother's widow. Temporarily accepted as visiting family,
Frankie becomes determined to prevent Ben's marriage and to right the wrongs of the past.
Frankie bemoans her situation humorously commenting, "No coffee. No chocolate. No diet cola.
No caffeine. I'm in hell." But she actually survives her time shift with comedic grace even as her
knowledge of the future, her lifestyle, and her lack of ability to function in the eighteen hundreds
conspired to sabotage her every move. While Ben's machinations in bringing her to the past might
appear selfish, his true heart quickly endears him with the reader. Secondary characters likewise
spring vividly to life from the vicious and vindictive Beatrice to the very proper aunt. Emotional
and ethical complexities lend the story surprising depth as Ben and Frankie determinedly revise
history before it's too late. CRAIG'S LEGACY by Terry Campbell comes highly
recommended.
The Wild Child
Harlequin Superromance No 1160
Judith Bowen
Harlequin Retail Inc
ISBN 0373711603 $5.25 256 pages
A Little Secret miniseries - Very highly recommended. Eva Haines comes to isolated Liberty
Island to tidy up the affairs of an eccentric distant relative. Within a week of arrival, she knows
that someone watches, despite the fact that her cousin claimed the island is deserted except for an
ancient donkey named Andy. There had once been a lone resident at the other end of the island,
but Eva has no reason to believe that he is still in residence. So when she spies a child who later
appears in her kitchen, Eva is taken aback. But no more so than when the wild child's father
appears looking for her. The daughter of reclusive Silas Lord, Fanny practically owns the island.
Her brash charm quickly wins Eva's heart. But Eva cannot help wondering why Silas would so
carefully seclude his daughter, not even allowing her to attend school. She has no playmates, but
she does have a fascination for lipstick, jewelry and the contents of refrigerators. Silas has no
appetite for society, but his daughter seems to crave new company, being drawn irresistibly to the
other side of the island. Once she'd broken her father's rules to visit, Fanny cannot seem to stay
away. Silas struggles between giving her a normal upbringing under strange circumstances and
teaching herself with various excursions. Perhaps Eva can even help. As an elementary teacher she
might be sympathetic to the reasons Silas intends to keep his daughter hidden. Sociable, sassy
Fanny threatens to steal the show in THE WILD CHILD, but it is her impetuous enthusiasm that
draws her reclusive father Silas and newcomer Eva together. The island paradise presents the
perfect setting, complete with seclusion, beaches and bathing pools. Indeed, once again author
Judith Bowen displays her dazzling storytelling ability with this tale. Characteristic of all her
books, THE WILD CHILD captures the heart and imagination with flair that makes all of her
books extraordinary. THE WILD CHILD comes very highly recommended. Authors! Promote
your books! Send extra copies to WordWeaving for the monthly contest.
Yours to Seduce
Harlequin Blaze 111
Karen Anders
Harlequin Retail Inc
ISBN 0373791151 $4.50 256 pp.
Women who Dare miniseries - Very highly recommended. It was an unspoken rule that
co-workers Lana Dempsey and Sean O'Neill did not get too close, because the heat between them
would be too much. But a bet with her friends temporarily suspends the rules and Lana needs to
get Sean in bed and obtain a souvenir. While Sean has stalwartly treated her like just another
firefighter - just one of the boys - Lana has seen his occasional looks of undisguised lust.
Firefighters never discuss their fear, especially Lana. It would make her look weak to her
coworkers. But when a dangerous situation results in Lana saving Sean, their carefully controlled
passion erupts into flames. They might have been able to pretend to be friends and pals until they
gave into lust, but sex complicates matters. Further, for a guy who does not mix friends and
lovers, Sean does not quite know what to do with Lana, who is both. Author Karen Anders has
certainly established herself as one of romance's rising stars, especially with YOURS TO
SEDUCE. The premise behind the WOMEN WHO DARE miniseries is hot, with friends who
agree to seduce their sexual interests and obtain proof of their seduction. Such bold features result
in fabulously searing tales. In YOURS TO SEDUCE, Sean is the kind of guy who gives in every
sense of the word. Lana's bold seduction in the firehouse is absolutely scorching. Indeed, the
burning intensity between Sean and Lana makes for a quick but satisfying read that will have
readers scurrying to the bookstore more of this series. YOURS TO SEDUCE comes very highly
recommended.
Mine to Entice
Harlequin Blaze 119
Karen Anders
Harlequin Retail Inc
ISBN 0373791232 $4.50 256 pages
Women who Dare miniseries - Very highly recommended. Forensic investigator Kate Quinn and
deputy district attorney Jericho St. James have worked together for three years. When she's
slightly late to testify and then enters with a new, enticing look, Jericho cannot take his eyes off of
Kate. Unfortunately, rather than voicing his attraction, Jericho admonishes her for tardiness. At
that point, she vows to tease him, to entice him, and when he is hers, to make him beg. Jericho
could control his desire when Kate hid behind a lab coat and glasses. With her transformation, he
warns her that it may hold touch consequences. He knows that her passion has been sleeping, and
much against his better judgement, Jericho would like to be the one to awaken her. He has
certainly known that she wanted him. But only now he realizes just how much he wants her.
Author Karen Anders creates boldly sensual heroines and wildly sensitive heroes for her Women
Who Dare miniseries. Kate's determination to keep Jericho begging exemplifies the power of
sexuality even as the heart holds sway. MINE TO ENTICE especially results in a deliciously
wicked read when contrasting belief and single-minded desire make for difficult bedfellows when
Jericho arrests a man Kate believes to be innocent. As they boarder on the brink of miracles or
disaster, passion flares and need intensifies. Seductive and alluring, MINE TO ENTICE comes
very highly recommended.
Come Summer
Sandra Steffen
Zebra Books
Kensington Publishing Corp.
850 Third Avenue, New York NY 10022
ISBN 082177557X $6.50 320 pages
Very highly recommended. Five years ago artist Liza Cassidy lost her sister Laurel to a
slow-growing brain tumor. During her last months, Laurel left her beloved sister and mother
behind in Nevada to create a new life for herself in Alcott, New Hampshire, where no one knew
that she wad dying. Her letters home did not share the fact that Laurel fell in love with Sheriff
Jack McCall or that they had a son named Tommy. Liza only learned about Jack when she read
her sister's final letter, which instructed her to meet Jack at a lighthouse on a Wednesday, but he
never showed. When Liza called information for his phone number, Jack was easy to locate. But a
woman answered the phone, and Liza hung up. After her mother's death, Liza discovers an
envelope that holds her sister's death certificate that indicates Laurel had had a child. When his
son Tommy claims to have seen his mother, Jack does not believe him. Then he awakens from a
nap in his leather easy chair to find a woman he believes to be Laurel only a kiss away. Torn
between passion and pain, Jack opts for a kiss rather than demands for answers to her
disappearance. But there will eventually be much to answer for on both parts. Author Sandra
Steffen creates a fascinating premise for COME SUMMER. Twin stories might be as common as
shells upon a beach, but in Steffen's hands the plot becomes riveting and unique. With a beginning
that grabs attention to the last satisfying page, Steffen creates an endearing tale of romance and
discovery. Jack is a typical male, unwilling to deal with emotion and blind to the women who has
loved him for years, yet he's a devoted father. Liza's caution juxtaposes her twin's impetuousness,
allowing her less flamboyant ways to charm both the town and the reader. Moreover, COME
SUMMER balances tragedy with unexpected humor for a marvelous read. I couldn't help but be
amused at Liza's mother, whose life was as memorable as her unorthodox death. Secondary
characters sparkle, from the precious Tommy who is recovering from cancer to Eve, whose
unrequited love proves a delightful secondary plot. Steffen's gift for creating delightful characters
results in a read that comes very highly recommended.
Let It Be Me
Libbie Richman
A Serenade Book, a division of Renaissance Alliance Publishing, Inc
Contemporary Romance
ISBN 1932300023 $14.95 256 pages
Recommended. A devoted fan of music star Yale Frye, Lisa Klein has all of his CDs and has
attended many of his concerts. Recently her letters and postcards have gone unanswered or
returned, but Lisa refuses to be discouraged, continuing to write with fervent devotion. Lisa's
husband Ronnie tolerates her fandom, even attending this concert with her. During a standing
ovation, a shot rings out and Lisa puts herself in harms way, taking a bullet. While the police
initially treat her with suspicion, Yale recognizes the sacrifice she made for him. Soon Yale
convinces Lisa to accompany him to his California estate to recuperate where their relationship
develops romantically. Meanwhile, a fanatical group devoted to white supremacy conspires to
complete the job they began. Even as Lisa faces the most difficult decisions of her life, to follow
her heart and remain with Yale or to return to her husband and children, this group plans both her
and Yale's death. Lisa confronts the oral and ethical dilemmas of the heart when her dream comes
true and she must choose between her marriage and her fantasy in LET IT BE ME. In this boldly
sensual tale, Lisa makes unexpected choices that challenge traditional romantic conventions.
While it would be easy to condemn a music star for the turning the head of a woman like Lisa,
Yale comes across and sexy and sympathetic character. The combination of mystery, romance,
madness and murder keeps the plot moving quickly. Although readers may at times identify the
prose as that of a first time author, Lisa's passion and spirit makes for a convincing read. LET IT
ME BE comes recommended.
Why Am I Up, Why Am I Down: Understanding Bipolar Disorder
Roger Granet, M.D., and Elizabeth Ferber
Dell Publishing, a division of Random House
1540 Broadway, New York, NY 10036
ISBN 0440234654 $5.99 244 pages
Recommended. The paradox of bipolar disorder baffles its victims with its manic highs and
depressive lows, plaguing as many as two million Americans. Since bipolar disorder (previously
known as manic depression) has often been misdiagnosed as depression, many patients have had a
difficult if not impossible task of understanding and managing this condition. WHY AM I UP,
WHY AM I DOWN explores the nature of this illness, including who is at risk and where to get
help. In simple terms, this often complex and devastating condition becomes comprehensible and
hopefully manageable. For readers looking for basic information regarding the diagnosis and
treatment of bipolar disorder, WHY AM I UP, WHY AM I DOWN is a useful resource. All the
practical information one needs to begin education oneself is concisely presented in a
question/answer format that reads quickly. However, readers expecting information beyond the
basics will be well advised to continue their search elsewhere. There is little here for those who
wish to live successfully with the illness. Moreover, the dry, clinical tone lends an air of bleakness,
failing to recognize the large number of people diagnosed as bipolar that live healthy, successfully
lives. Nevertheless, for readers seeking a beginner's understanding of mental illness and a guide
through the morass of finding help, WHY AM I UP, WHY AM I DOWN will provide the
practical advise needed to make a start.
Say No to Joe?
Lori Foster
Harlequin Retail Inc
PO Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269
ISBN 0373711921 $6.99 384 pages
Luna Clark may be the only woman to ever say no to the irresistible Joe Winston, which may be
why he wants her so badly. When he is around her, Joe looses control of his wayward tongue, his
better sense and his lust So when Luna seeks him out, Joe will do almost anything for her,
including moving to a small town in North Carolina to help her to protect her young charges.
Besides, disappearing for a while might be a good idea since his last job as a bounty hunter has yet
to be resolved. Indeed, a little recovery time and a lot of time with Luna suits him fine. Free
spirited, bohemian Luna never expected to fall in love with her cousin' s children so quickly. After
seven guardians, they are understandably suspicious and it does seem as if the whole town is out
to get them. For three months she has wanted Joe, dreaming and fantasizing about him. Despite
her ongoing attraction to Joe, she doggedly says no to him because she refuses to play for less
than for keeps. Nevertheless, she needs his help. Besides, despite his tough guy attitude, he knows
a heck of lot more about children than she does. Once again Lori Foster creates a hero no women
can say no to with SAY NO TO JOE? Foster has a gift for creating scintillating tales that curl the
toes and are impossible to put down. Luna is a sultry goddess that finds Joe impossibly tempting.
While she might have a reputation for flighty fancy, she comes through for two troubled children
in need of love and consistency. Fans have been eagerly awaiting Joe's story since his appearance
in WILD. He might start out wishing for a wild fling, but it does not take long for Joe to
recognize his heart's need for both Luna and the children. With plenty of action, comedy,
wonderful secondary characters and a fun plot, SAY NO TO JOE belongs on the keeper shelf,
coming very highly recommended.
The House on the Beach: American Romance No 1008
Linda Barrett
Harlequin Retail Inc
PO Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269
ISBN 0373711921 $5.25 304 pages
From the Pilgrim Cove series -- Highly recommended. Following the death of her mother and in
the wake of her own recovery from breast cancer, Laura McCloud discovers a chance for healing
at Sea View House. Laura returns to the town of Pilgrim, Massachusetts, because her parents had
brought her here for summer vacations for ten years. The last visit, when she was sixteen, was
especially memorable for a stolen kiss under the boardwalk with Matthew Parker. When she
discovers him repairing the Sea View House, Laura remembers him immediately. Matt had been
terribly disappointed when the lovely young Laura had not returned to the cove the summer after
their kiss and he recognizes her right away. Life has brought him many changes since then,
including loosing his wife to cervical cancer and raising two sons alone. But Laura quickly fits
herself into his house full of males. Too bad she has a secret that could disrupt their comfortably
growing romance. Author Linda Barrett captures the struggle for emotional balance in THE
HOUE ON THE BEACH. Laura's rejection following her diagnosis with breast cancer leaves her
more deeply scared than her chest. Likewise, Matthew struggles with his own devastation
following the death of his wife due to cervical cancer. While his sons might be ready for a new
mom, Matt's misgivings are all too real when he has already confronted issues of mortality and
loss. Together, however, Laura and Matthew discover the promise of love and the gifts of
opportunity in ways that provide healing. Barrett's gentle treatment of such serious issues,
carefully balanced with the fun of children and a black cat, make for wonderful reading. THE
HOUSE ON THE BEACH is a terrific beginning to a promising series and comes highly
recommended.
About Last Night...
American Romance No 1008
Michele Dunaway
Harlequin Retail Inc
PO Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269
ISBN 0373750129 $4.75 256 pages
Very highly recommended. The sex was fabulous, the best experience of her life, and he does not
even remember. Now their night together changes everything. Lindy Brinks has loved her boss
Shane Jacobsen for three years-ever since he shared his teen journals with her. As his personal
assistant, Lindy had done everything for Shane, even buying his girlfriend's gifts and getting rid of
them when they turn stalker. Alcohol and painkillers might have affected Shane's memory, but
Lindy recalls every exquisite detail. Now she is moving on out of simple self-preservation. With
missionary parents that left him in the care of expensive nannies, Shane has been a black sheep for
a long time. In his mid twenties, he has never taken anything too seriously, not his job and
certainly not his love affairs. Mistakenly believing that good old Lindy will always be there for
him, Shane takes her for granted until she leaves her job. Then he finds out she is pregnant with
his child in a phone call from his parents who read it in the tabloids. Now it is time for this bad
boy to grow up before the best thing that ever happened to him gets away. Author Michele
Dunaway deftly captures the challenges of transformation and love in ABOUT LAST NIGHT.
Lindy's determination to leave her job and create a life apart from Shane demonstrates the tenacity
and independence that make Dunaway's heroines such a delight. However, her hero departs
radically from the norm. Rather than a mature, wise man with his life together, Shane is a spoiled,
flightily man who must set priorities and radically change his ways if he wants to win Lindy and
their child. Although Shane has a lot of growing up to do, however, he has a heart of gold that
will see him through the greatest challenges of his life. A delightfully fresh tale with unexpected
twists, ABOUT LAST NIGHT comes very highly recommended.
Hung Up on You
Harlequin Flipside
Holly Jacobs
Harlequin Retail Inc
ISBN 0373441835 $4.50 224 pages
Very highly recommended. Adrienne Kelly wants hot, wild, abandoned sex, but she will not be
getting any from her fianc‚, whose focus on a wedding date does not include nooky. When Ari's
graduate thesis, "The Effects of Telephone Answering Systems on Psychological and Physical
Well Being" gets published by Psychology Forum, she should be celebrating. Instead, a rag
magazine picks up the article, transforming it into a slam on the telephone answering machine
industry. As a result, her status conscious fiance decides they should take a break from each other
and her dream job is withdrawn. Then Simon Masterson, owner of SimonSays, a company that
develops business-answering systems, personally takes Ari to task for downgrading the telephone
answering business. His company's latest invention, called Cindy, was expressly designed to
reduce stress and be user friendly, but with bad press like Ari's article, Cindy may be obsolete
before release. So he demands retraction of Ari's theory and attempts to hire her to evaluate his
new system in exchange for helping her out with her latest family crisis. Author Holly Jacob's flair
for creating wildly amusing tales dazzles in HUNG UP ON YOU. Opposites attract with
outrageous fun and hilarity as Jacob creates a cast of characters that will keep the reader in
stitches over their antics, even as the serious undertone will cause readers to identify with the
effect of stress. A wonderful distraction from a frantic day, readers of HUNG UP ON YOU will
be confessing to be hung up on Jacob's sparkling talent for creating witty tales and sizzling
chemistry. Very highly recommended.
Snow Waste
Michael E. Bemis
Writer's Showcase, an imprint of iUniverse, Inc.
1540 Broadway, New York, NY 10036
2021 Pine Lake Road, Suite 100, Lincoln, NE 68512
ISBN 0595264603 $24.95 494 pages
Very highly recommended. With the season's first dipping into freezing temperatures, Joe looks
forward to making snow for a ski resort set deep in the Western Mountains of Maine. Joe looks
forward to a successful season after a record-breaking start. But Joe's innocent view of
snowmaking does not necessarily match management's view. While Joe delights in laying down
snow and providing a successful season for the resort, the owner makes his own plans. Without
enough capitol to expand in the direction he wants to go and with a dearth of investors, the owner
Warren resorts to an illegal deal with a local lumber mill to raise extra capitol. Warren does not
know just how close an environmentalist watches, or how determined he will be in protecting the
mountain and its inhabitants. Meanwhile, others watch as well, leading to unexplained accidents
and destruction of property that brings the scrutiny of law enforcement and the media alike. Three
extremely diverse perspectives expose the dangers of greed, necessity and innocence in author
Michael E. Bemis' SNOW WASTE. While the text is rather dense at times with needful
explanation and exploration of technicalities and legalities, Bemis' elegant prose flows beautifully,
making it easy for those who know the information to scan detail quickly yet keeping the
explanations palatable for the uninitiated - truly a remarkable narrative feat. Indeed, Bemis utilizes
his years in law enforcement and love of the snow to render a tale that is both powerful and
thought provoking. While I often hesitate to review self published work, particularly from
publishers like iUniverse, because of the extensive proofing and editing errors I often find in such
work, Bemis' novel is an absolute delight with remarkably few proofing errors and an exceptional
narrative voice. I can only hope that Bemis continues to pen such remarkable novels. SNOW
WASTE comes very highly recommended.
Cynthia Penn
Reviewer
Donovan's Bookshelf
The World Guide
New Internationalist
55 Rectory Road Oxford OX4 1BW, United Kingdom
0954049977 $39.95
This yearbook provides an alternative reference to the countries of the world offering a 2003/04
edition of details on over two hundred countries. Global maps blend with illustrated graphs and
statistics to cover key global issues from women and health to education and population
expansion. An excellent yearbook for reference collections.
The Hawaii Pet Book
Toni Polancy
Barefoot
32 Uilani Rd., Kehei HI 96753
0966625315 $19.95
Islanders who want to keep a dog or cat in the tropics should consider this a 'must' acquisition for
the home library. Hawaiian pets face many unique problems; from killer toads and aggressive
mongooses to deadly plants and flash floods. This provides an unparalleled pet safety guide which
should not be missed.
Land Beyond the River
Monica Whitlock
St. Martins Press
175 5th Ave., New York, NY 10010
031227727X $27.95
This comprehensive survey of the Mid East/Soviet areas of Central Asia offers the eyewitness
perspective of BBC foreign correspondent Whitlock, who offers a history of the 206th century in
following two central Asian families through social and political changes in their regions. What
evolves is an excellent set of interviews which blends with unpublished letters and diaries from
two families to present a personal account of Central Asia's modern politics and society.
Napa and Sonoma Wine Country
Globe Pequot Press
PO Box 480, Guilford, CT 06437
0762727985 $7.95
This postcard book of California's wine country scenes is the perfect gift for any who would visit
the region and carry back a handy memory. Cards provide some of the most scenic visual displays
of Napa and Sonoma Valley are this booklet is a recommended pick for either a memory book or
for practical mailing.
Hawaii The Big Island Trailblazer
Jerry & Janine Sprout
Diamond Valley Co.
89 Lower Manzanita, Markleeville, CA 96120
0967007259 $15.95
This guide for families and outdoor adventurers surveys all the Big Island's attractions, from hikes
and snorkeling destinations to bike trains and rustic cabins. Add maps, photos, and a 'best of'
section for each activity and you have a handbook filled with take-along pleasure.
Lynne McClure titles
Impact Publications
9104-N Manassas Drive
Manassas Park, VA 20111-5211
$14.95 each www.amazon.com
Two new titles by Dr. McClure provide tips on managing anger in a harsh world: ANGRY MEN
(1-57023-205-9) and ANGRY WOMEN (206-7). Each begins with a questionnaire designed to
help the reader determine the causes of their anger, then surveys the leading causes of anger in
both men and women, respectively. Included also are popular coping mechanisms which offer
skills sets men and women can use to manager their angry impulses.
60 Hikes Within 60 Minutes of San Francisco
Menasha Ridge Press
2204 First Ave. #102, Birmingham, AL 35233
0897325532 $15.95
This outlines trails and hiking opportunities within driving distance of San Francisco: each hike
receives a trail description, map, profiles to help understand altitude gain and loss, and directions
to trailheads. The 'at-a-glance' and 'in brief' color coded pages offer quick reference to any who
would plan a trip with a minimum of time.
Guide to the Human Body
Richard Walker
Firefly Books
155 E. 34 St. #5B, New York, NY 10016
1552978796 $14.95 1-800-387-5085
This handbook provides home users with an affordable, clear reference blending anatomy with an
A-Z encyclopedia of common medical conditions. Over 600 definitions are accompanied by over
two hundred diagrams and color art, from photos to charts, making this a splendid introductory
guide.
Sports Bloopers
Mark Huebner and Brad Wilson
Firefly Books
155 E. 34 St. #5B, New York, NY 10016
1552976270 $19.95 1-800-387-5085
Here's a sports book even fans who shun reading will enjoy: a centerpiece of funny bloopers in all
sports, from boxing and baseball to golf. From the Braves' Andruw Jones running into a wall to
sumo wrestler Konishiki being challenged by a tiny opponent, this is packed with fun color photos
and will delight a wide audience of sports fans who relish memorable moments.
Living Tribes
Colin Prior
Firefly Books
155 E. 34 St. #5B, New York NY 10016
1552977463 $35.00 1-800-387-5085
This blends armchair travel with social examination as author Prior provides a photographic
documentation of 15 of the world' most individual tribes and ethic groups. This offers more
visuals than most, providing close-ups of the people and their culture and offering insights into
how tourism has changed some local customs and habits and economics. The beautiful color
photos make this an engaging title for both students of ethnic cultures and more casual
browsers.
Firefly Books
155 E. 34 St. #5B, New York, NY 10016
1-800-387-5085 www.amazon.com
Robert Kovach and Bill McGuire's GUIDE TO GLOBAL HAZARDS (1-55297-815-X, $14.95)
provides a rich illustrated guide to large-scale natural disasters which affect life on Earth globally
and locally, from volcanoes and drought to earthquakes and diseases. Case histories are
accompanied by maps, charts and diagrams which explain both geologic, social and historical
impacts of disasters. Marco Stoppato and Alfredo Bini's DESERTS (669-6, $24.95) is a richly
illustrated, comprehensive guide to the geology and history of deserts around the world. This also
is a powerful blend of symbols, charts and statistics which offers a survey important to any
student of word geography, from high school to college level readers.
'Complete Natural Medicine Guide' titles
Robert Rose/Firefly Books
155 E. 34 St. #5B, New York, NY 10016
1-800-387-5085 www.amazon.com
Look for two outstanding new medical guides which are based on the most current information
and research culled from the world's leading medical journals. Heather Boon and Michael Smith's
50 MOST COMMON MEDICINAL HERBS (0-7788-0081-4, $19.95) reviews dosages, safety
issues, side effects, drug interactions and more, matching a quick reference guide with a survey of
FDA findings and the latest research on the most popular medicinal herbal treatments. Sat
Dharam Kaur's BREAST CANCER (0080-6, $18.95) provides a manual for prevention and care
alike, offering explanations of influences and causes of breast cancer, self-help detox programs,
and natural medicine strategies which compliment conventional medical treatment options. Both
are useful, important keys to natural medicine's effective use.
Sound and Vision/Firefly Books Dist.
155 E. 34 St. #5B, New York, NY 10016
1-800-387-5085 www.amazon.com
Two new 'quotable' guides will appeal to any who seek a quick and easy quotation handbook.
Geoff Savage's WAR OR PEACE (0-920151-57-4, $17.95) provides quotes from discussions of
war through the ages; from John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King to Churchill and beyond.
Chapters divided into 'war' and 'peace' offer exceptional quotes. Stephen and Nancy Tanner's
OPERA: ARIA READY FOR A LAUGH? (54-X, $16.95) provides quotes from major and minor
opera people, from sopranos and tenors to those who know little about the experience. A fun,
revealing guide.
What Color Is Your Swimming Pool?
Alan E. anderfoot
Storey Publications
210 MassMoca Way, N. Adams, MA 02147
1580173098 $19.95
This updated third edition provides a fine homeowner's guide to maintaining a trouble-free pool,
spa or hot tub. The updated edition has been completely revised and covers everything from water
safety and treatment options to solar heating. Spas and hot tubs are also included in this edition,
making it an excellent, practical owner's guide.
The Vanishing Tiger
Vivek R. Sinha
Salamander/Trafalgar Square
PO Box 257, North Pomfret, VT 05053
1840654414 $29.95 1-800-423-4525
This comprehensive history and guide to the lifestyle of the tiger blends folklore and myths with
over 200 color, specially commissioned photos of the Bengal Tiger, plus images of its
co-predators and prey. Perhaps the most valuable sections of the book lie in its details on the
habitat and range of all tigers in the world. Highly recommended as the definitive tiger guide.
Outlaws of Ennor
Michael Jecks
Trafalgar Square
PO Box 257, Howe Hill Road, North Pomfret, VT 05053-0257
0755301722 $24.95 1-800-423-4525
Fans of this author's Medieval mysteries will be thrilled with yet another: a story of Baldwin and
Simon's shipwreck and Simon's loss of a good friend in its aftermath. When a castle's master
demands Simon investigate the murder of one Robert, a hated tax collector, he must put aside his
grief and finds himself in the middle of a heated battle. Realistic settings and a fast-paced plot
keep this inviting and fresh.
Living to Tell the Tale
Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Alfred A. Knopf
1745 Broadway, 17th fl., NY, NY 10019
1400041341 $26.95 www.amazon.com
This first volume of a planned trilogy should not be missed: here the Nobel-winning writer begins
to tell the story of his life, from birth to the start of his career as a writer. While this is a
biography, the colorful first-person images of family life and stormy relationships reads with all
the action of a novel, and is reviewed here so that prior fans of Marquez will not miss his
invaluable introduction to his life and early influences.
Sioux Quill and Beadwork Designs and Techniques
Carrie A. Lyford
Dover Publications
31 East 2nd Street, Mineola, NY 11501
0486420892 $9.95 1-800-223-3130
This guide to quillwork and its counterpart beadwork was originally published in the 1940s for the
U.S. Dept. of Indian Affairs, and sees new light today thanks to Dover. Craftspeople of all kinds
will find this begins with a short history of Sioux art and patterns to quickly move into the
specifics of creating and sewing quills and using beadwork techniques adapted for Sioux designs.
A special guide to a very specific art.
A Garden of Flowers
Crispin Van De Pass
Dover Publications
31 E. 2nd St., Mineola, NY 11501
0486423050 $19.95 1-800-223-3130
Readers anticipating the usual color in a gardening guide may find these black and white
engravings dull; but the reproduce all 104 engravings from the 1614 Hortus Floridus manual the
greatest of early horticultural works using early engravings and as such, they will appeal to the
avid horticulturalist with a passion for history. A speciality item recommended for any in-depth
gardening history collection.
The Art of Piano Pedaling
Anton Rubinstein & Teresa Carreno
Dover Publications
31 E. 2nd St., Mineola, NY 11501
048642782X $11.95 1-800-223-3130
This provides a combined reprint of GUIDE TO THE PROPER USE OF THE PIANOFORTE
PEDALS and Carreno's POSSIBILITIES OF TONE COLOR BY ARTISTIC USE OF THE
PEDALS: while narrow and specific in focus, it will provide the aspiring pianist with some lovely
techniques and examples by two masters of the art.
Bridges of the World
Charles S. Whitney
Dover Publications
31 E. 2nd St., Mineola, NY 11501
0486429954 $29.95 1-800-223-3130
This reprints a 1929 classic in an unabridged presentation covering the design and construction of
spans around the world, from wooden landmarks and classic restored medieval structures to
covered bridges, stone structures, and modern (up to early 1900s, that is) creations. Chapters
pack in many vintage black and white photos and diagrams to accompany a technical survey of
bridge advancements and construction.
Dover Publications
31 E. 2nd St., Mineola, NY 11501
1-800-223-3130 www.amazon.com
Two reprints of classic travel guides are highly recommended picks. Thomas Wright edits
EARLY TRAVELS IN PALESTINE (0-486-42871-0, $26.95), which republishes an 1848
London edition surveying nine explorers who made their way from England to the Middle East
from the 7th to the 17th centuries. Descriptions throughout provide intriguing cultural and
historical backgrounds. Charles Doughty's TRAVELS IN ARABIA DESERTA: SELECTED
PASSAGES (43158-4, $17.95) republishes PASSAGES, a 1931 original text famous among
scholars of Arab history and culture. Edited down from its original formidable 1,400 pages, this
provides a fine description of the author's attempt to reach Mecca.
Diane C. Donovan
Reviewer
Kaveny's Bookshelf
This month I am featuring two books that deal with the empires; the British and Russian. The first
book is really about one individuals dream of empire.
The Long Recessional: The Imperial Life of Rudyard Kipling
David Gilmour
Farrar Straus & Giroux
1st American Edition
ISBN: 0374187029 $26.00 368 pages
I liked David Gilmour at lot because he kept close to his subject and though his work is both
sympathetic and well written it is not really a literary biography of Rudyard Kipling's it is a literary
idea of Rudyard Kipling's idealogy of imperialism across his half century career.
In a sense it is kind of melancholy book as one sees the dynamic energy develop in the first part of
Rudyard Kipling's life move through several stages. ( Born in Bombay India 1865-1936), first as a
rowdy boy who spent the first six years of his life absorbing the sights sounds, languages, and
culture of British India with his British parents in Bombay. Forced to return with his sister to
England for health reasons, he returned to India as a seventeen-year-old to work as a journalist
with only the secondary school education that his family could afford. In one sense his early years
make one think of the American writer Mark Twain. One thing I liked very much about the book
was that Gilmour brought that the last fact few decades of the 19th Century were not a time when
someone spent their lifetime studying to be something. One simply became something, without
having to spend a decade or perhaps two of post secondary education. I sense that Rudyard
Kipling was at the height of his literary power when he returned to England in 1889 because he
was writing from his senses rather than his memories. In a way years remind more of those of
Joyce or Proust, rather than (J.R.R Tolkien, 1892- 1973 born in South Africa), or even (C.S.
Lewis 1898-1963 born in Ulster Ireland, technically park of the UK, but defacto a colonial
possession). All these writers shared a British Colonial Childhood, all dealt in the fantastic in a
highly successful manner but only Kipling was trapped in his fantasy of an empire, for which he
became a popular spokesman.
This book is not a literary, personal biography it is a kind of an ideological biography which links
the personnel, with the artistic, political, and finally the grand historical narrative of Rudyard
Kipling's life. This is a daunting task but David Gilmore succeeds because he presents the
international geopolitical context 1882-1936 as Rudyard Kipling saw, not as it was rendered after
two generations of historical analysis, after the seals have been broken on the secret documents of
fallen empires,. In the first years of the 21st Century after several visits to the Indian section of
The Royal Armories in Leeds England, and to The Victoria and Albert Museum, and some intense
discussion with military historian specializing in 19th Century British India it seems pretty clear
that the idea of British Cultural superiority Even Rudyard Kipling's construct of The White Mans
Burden, were historical constructions at best. I don't think one could refer to Kipling had an
ideology but rather certain formalized preferences. *** Perhaps the saddest and paradoxically
wonderfully informative part of. The Long Recessional is Gimore's foregrounding of Kipling's
un-relenting hatred of Germany, and the Germans before during and after World War One. Part of
this was of course motivated by the loss of his son lieutenant John Kipling 1897-1915 first missing
in action and then presumed dead, colored all of Kipling's remaining years. It is strange that
combatants often will forgive and associate with each other sensing there essential shared
humanity in a wartime situation, where non-combatants can only scream for revenge. At the same
time one must honor Kipling for the work he did with Imperial Graves Commission, and memorial
design, and inscription and feel a certain resonance with his inconsolable loss for what came
before, particularly in the post 9- 11-01 America as many Americans honestly feel that our only
choice is to pick up the fallen European Colonial Standard.
Yet in the final analysis I like Gilmore work because of the clarity serves the memory of Kipling
very well indeed. n spite of everything it is almost a guilty little pleasure how much we all like
Kipling, at least his early years. Yes we agree he loved the idea of a British Empire, hated and
miss-trusted Winston Churchill as liberal, and yet Churchill un-daunted by Kipling's opinion of
him drew great inspiration from him for his finest hour speeches. Ironically enough the British
people thanked Churchill for his great sacrifice in 1946 by voting him out as his party out as
Prime-Minister. Too bad The Russian could not do that with Stalin.
The Military and Society in Russia: 1450-1917
English Series: History of Warfare. v. 14
Eric Lohr and Marshall Poe, editors
Leiden
Boston, MA: Brill
ISBN: 9004122737 $180.00 550 pg.
This collection of articles addresses nothing less than the life and survival of an empire from its
inception until almost the moment of its death. This makes it a highly relevant work to both the
Russian area specialist in military history and the generalist in a number of areas outside of the
scope of Russian Area Studies. Those potentially interested range from a student of religious
history to economic historians interested in agents of change in a nearly closed socio-economic
system, or to the political scientist specializing in the historical evolution of comparative
government.
But to me the most important reason The Military and Society in Russia is of interest is this: The
concept of an empire seems to be back in fashion on both a popular level as we listen to broadcast
media talk show hosts on both public and commercial broadcast media, and as we gossip over our
morning coffee. The other morning I shared my morning coffee with a retired, local, right-wing
politician in Eau Claire (a sleepy little college town in Western Wisconsin) and after disagreeing
on just about every thing of substance, we both sadly agreed that we missed the stability of the
cold war, when we at least had a very good idea how civilization as we know it might end.
However, that is not the end of it.
Empire also seems to be in the air in the fields of power on highest level of leadership both the
United States and Great Britain, as evidenced by the events of last twelve months in the Middle
East. Therefore this book fills an important function as its scholarly contributors help us try to
understand our present by making a thoughtful and scholarly study of the past "in order to that
fortune does not triumph over virtue" as Niccolo Machiavelli said in The Discourses nearly five
hundred years ago.
As I write this review, I must force myself to look at the concept of empire and imperialism from
a value-neutral position, which is not an easy thing to do. Interestingly enough, empire is a
concept which makes the left and the right very uncomfortable, as evidenced by Ronald Reagan's
damnation of the former Soviet Union as an evil empire. Those of us who were Vietnam Era
protestors must also overcome our abhorrence of the term empire and operationally agree to use
it as a value neutral term which describes a particular historical reality. As much as we might wish
otherwise, this term might in fact generalize to the Third Millennium as well as it has dominated
the last five thousand years of world history.
Yet another problem with the term 'empire' is that it is easy to ascribe the word to the dust bin of
ancient history by linking with such states as Assyria, New Babylonia, Ancient Persia, and Rome,
and ancient China. However, at the same time we must remember that the Byzantine Empire with
its capital in Constantinople survived as a Christian bulwark against successive waves of militarily,
and culturally superior Islamic invaders for the best part of a millennium. Furthermore, if we
simply lengthen our historical memories by three generations, the Ottoman, Chinese, Japanese.
Hapsburg, German, and Russian Empires were all well on their way to becoming modern states
into the first decade of 20th century only to be rent asunder by the cataclysm of "The Great
War"
This collection of articles broadly sweeps across the spectrum of four hundred and sixty-seven
years of Russian History and contains twenty-two topical articles grouped into the following three
broad areas: The Military and Society in Muscovy; The Military and Society in Imperial Russian;
Patriotism, Nationality, Religion and the Military. Though the scope of the articles is mostly
outside of what is commonly though of as medieval history it is nevertheless of interest. Articles
all address the progressive role that the Russian Military had in introducing enough change to
allow for nearly five centuries of Russian national survival and growth. Growth from one of the
weakest states on the peripheral margins of Europe at the start of the period to the position of
great power up to its demise with The October Revolution of 1917.
In order to drive the maxim benefit from this collection of articles it is essential to carefully read
both the preface to this volume. One needs to contextualize it within the broader goals of the
fourteen-volume History of Warfare Series under the general editorship Kelly Devries and its
introduction to "The role of Warfare in Russian Society," by its editors Eric Lohr and Marshall
Poe. Their introduction integrates the twenty-two articles into the theme of this volume. Each of
the contributors is a respected scholar within their areas, doing cutting edge research within their
area of specialization as their research moves from the broadest scope of an emergent Muscovite
national identity to specific nationalities. This progression involved the incorporation of a number
of other nationalities within its structures, according to the findings in Donald Ostrowski 's Troop
mobilization by the Muscovite grand princes (1313-1533). For example. At the level of specifics,
the actuarial data is presented on the granular level of the number of pistols shipped from the
Netherlands to Russia in 1662 in Richard Hellie's "Costs of Muscovite military defense and
expansion. "
While time and space and energy do not allow me to summarize all of the articles in each section,
Peter B. Brown's "Tsar Aleksei Mikhailovich: Muscovite Military Command, Style and Legacy,"
gave a modern cast to the leadership competence of the father of Peter the Great. Brown
presented him almost as a precursor to U.S. Grant in the clarity of instruction he offered his
subordinates while functioning as a twenty-five-year-old field commander during the "Thirteen
years war".
Section II also had a number of fine articles, among them John P. LeDonne's "Grand strategy of
the Russian empire, 1650-1831" LeDonne makes a convincing argument for an evolutionary
grand strategy which moved from a "Fortress Russia " operative system after 'The Time of
Troubles', in the early 17th Century to a "Fortress Empire" by the dawn of the middle third of the
19th Century. One cannot help but wonder if the historical forces which drove Russia during this
one hundred and eighty one year period are still driving her in the early 21st Century. It has
always seemed to me that Western perception of Russian foreign policy has been at least as
important as that policy itself as historical Russia appears to arise phoenix-like from crushing
defeat after crushing defeat.
John W. Steinberg's "Imperial War Games (1898-1906)," was also of interest to me because it
highlighted a number of difficulties encountered by Imperial Russia in implementing changes after
the disastrous results of the first Russo- Japanese War Russo-Japanese War, 1904-1905. This war
dictated that war games must have an instructive purpose on all levels of command, and not
simply function on a historically symbolic level. This article brought to mind a quip by an
eighteenth century general who remarked that he hated war because it messed up the order and
beauty of the army.
Gregory Vitarbo's "Military Aviation, National Identity, and the Imperatives of Modernity in Late
Imperial Russia" is first among equals in quality of articles. It is my favorite because I see the
antecedents of many of the great Communists' successes in the Second World War and the
Korean War evidenced in this article. I believe it was former S.A.C. commander, General Curtis
LeMay who noted that the North Koreans equipped with Russian Mig-15s (and probably Russian)
pilots were able to put an end to day American Strategic using B-29 Bombers.
David Schimmelpenninck van der Oye. -- "To build a great Russia Civil Military Relations in the
Third Duma 1907-1912 ", is a fascinating piece of scholarship focusing on liberal reform and
parliamentary involvement in the restructuring and transformation of the Russian Military during
this crucial period. However he rightly states that this same movement toward reform was
instrumental in dragging Russia into the Great War. I would add that perhaps it was that same
liberal leadership, which came to power in the interim between the fall of the Tsar and The
October Revolution that lead an exhausted and decimated Russia into the disastrous Kerensky
Offensive in the summer of 1917 under the leadership of the Liberal Socialist Russian
Government. One might argue that Lenin followed a more traditional Russian policy by getting
out of the war. For that matter, ten years later, Stalin's policy of Socialism in one country seems
very traditional Great Russian indeed, as does his Non-Aggression Pact with Hitler in 1939 which
lead to a fourth partition of Poland in Sept 1939, and a fifth Russian partition of Poland after the
end of The Second World War.
The articles in Section III: "Patriotism, Nationality, Religion, and the Military," were all up to the
high standards of the first two sections. But, realizing I must leave something to the reader, I will
focus on two of them. Alexander M. Martin's "Response of the Population of Moscow to the
Napoleonic Occupation of 1812," is fascinating to me because of my childhood images from the
1956 production of Tolstoy's "War and Peace," staring Henry Fonda, Audrey Hepburn, and Mel
Ferrer. That film had almost iconographic status to post Word War II American Generation that
was coming of age at that time. I was twelve. Martin using first hand accounts from contemporary
sources makes it clear that "The ideology of The French Revolution was not carried into Moscow
at the points of The Grand Army's Napoleonic bayonets. I was also quite interested one might be
called the thought experiment aspect of Martin's article in that he treats Napoleonic occupation of
Moscow in 1812 as a variable which we can measure other aspects of the structure and stability of
Imperial Russia at the onset of the 19th Century. *** David Goldfrank 's Holy Sepulcher and the
origin of the Crimean War throws new light on the origins of The Crimean War since it contests
the idea that the Crimean War was simply a result of break down in communication among the
belligerents. David Goldfrank links the origins of Europe's most destructive war in the period
1815- 1914 with the idiosyncratic personality of Nicholas I. This premiss at least evokes images
of Imperial Germany's William II in immediate pre- World War One Europe. Some have argued
that Imperial german-National policy objectives became entangled with the needs of his
personality. It is also interesting to note that both leaders had a kind of reverse Midas touch in the
ability to build coalitions against themselves.
The Military and Society in Russia: 1450-1917 is a priority item for college university and
research libraries, and for that matters think tanks whose purpose it is to fathom the depths of
change in the 21st Century. My only regret is that a collection like this was not available when I
took my diplomatic history and foreign policy seminars in the late sixties at University of
Wisconsin Madison, where the Late Michael Boro Petrovich would compare Imperial Russia to in
the 19th to very a powerful 240 pound fourteen year old teenage boy with asthma, I wish
professor Petrovich could have lived to see the end of the cold war and see history repeat
itself.
Philip Kaveny
Reviewer
Klausner's Bookshelf
Black
Ted Dekker
W Publishing
ISBN: 0849917905 $19.99, 400 pp.
Multi-billionaire Valborg Svensson craves becoming the most powerful person on earth. To
accomplish his objective, he finds a serum that will kill its human host in three weeks if left
without a vaccine. Valborg plans to release this weapon of mass destruction on an unsuspecting
world. Any nation that fails to capitulate to his demands will die for the vaccine will be limited to
those who bow down to Valborg. Wannabe writer Thomas Hunter learns about Valborg's
terrorist plot to gain global supremacy. He tries to take control of the vaccine, but Valborg's
agents attack him. As he flees a bullet grazes his head knocking him out. When he awakens,
Thomas remembers in deep detail his fleeing from Valberg's thugs, but he is in some alternate
realm running for his life from demonic creatures while looking for his beloved Rachelle. That
night he goes to sleep only to awaken to a realm in which Valborg wants him dead and Rachelle is
part of his dreams. He questions his sanity as each time he goes to sleep in one world, he wakes
up in the other. BLACK starts off as a medical thriller, but quickly spins into an exhilarating
science fiction tale that spans two worlds reminiscent of Piers Anthony's THE APPRENTICE
ADEPT trilogy, but with more of a psychological hook. The story line is action packed on both
worlds as Thomas struggles with what he perceives is reality vs. a dream fantasy. He is the hero
who makes the duality work as his enemies on both globes seem snidely cartoon characters. Fans
will appreciate this exciting thought provoking novel that shows how precarious reality is when
worlds collide.
Chip and Die
Arlene Sachitano
Zumaya
ISBN 1894942353 $19.00, 288 pp.
Harley Spring is a supervisor at Sil Trac, a Washington state based Manufacturing Corporation
that makes computer chips. They are due to have a certification inspection in four days and the
numbers are not matching up right. One of her team leaders Mike took the papers home and is
working on the problem. When he is due in to work, his brother calls telling the company Mike is
sick. Harley knows there is a problem because Mike has no brother. His girlfriend Rebecca, who
works at the same company, calls Harley to tell her Mike is dead. When she arrives at Mike's
home, the two women sneak out the company papers and a picture of the Black Madonna. Two
more people who work at the company are killed and Harley and the police don't have a clue what
is going on until her genius son and his equally intelligent friend figure out what is happening at
the factory. Now all the authorities and Harley have to do is identify the ringleaders are and catch
them in the act. CHIP AND DIE is an upbeat amateur sleuth mystery that readers will find
amusing, and refreshingly original. The heroine is a delight, beset by problems but still manages to
get the job done. Arlene Sachitano is a terrific writer who excels at characterizations and plotting.
Harley is an intelligent, in-your-face character who does what she wants which is helping the
people she comes to care about deal with their problems. It is hoped that there will be more
novels starring this complex and enchanting character.
The Lady and the Unicorn
Tracy Chevalier
Dutton
ISBN: 0525947671 $23.95, 250 pp.
In 1490, having purchased his way into the aristocracy, French nobleman Jean Le Viste, feeling
self-important, tries to further impress the King and his court on how worthy a person he is. He
commissions artist Nicholas des Innocents to design tapestries for Le Viste. Jean's disappointing
spouse, a failure for begetting three girls and no male heirs, wants unicorns as the stars. However
Nicholas finds his patron's daughter Claude as the inspiration for the work as he and she fall in
love. However, her social climbing father would never allow his daughter to have anything to do
with an artisan. Jean takes the drawings to Brussels where the drawings are converted into six
lush six tapestries depicting a Lady and the Unicorn. On the surface THE LADY AND THE
UNICORN seems like a repeat of the invigorating GIRL WITH A PEARL EARRING that used a
masterpiece to tell the story of the model that posed for the painting, but that is not really the case
here. Though Tracy Chevalier uses the real tapestries hanging in the Museum of the Middle Ages
in Paris, she paints a different story. This time a fabulous romance for the ages serves as a
backdrop to an in-depth look at life in Paris and Brussels for the aristocracy and especially the
artisans and a delightful look at the fifteenth century tapestry industry struggling to meet a tight
time line with a quality product as Ms. Chevalier has done with her pioneering of a historical
sub-genre that does to the arts what Stoppard did to Hamlet.
The Burglar on the Prowl
Lawrence Block
Morrow
ISBN 0060198303 $24.95, 320 pp.
He owns a second hand bookstore in Manhattan and has an antiquarian business on the side but
the job he loves best is the one that is against the law. He's a burglar with a heart of gold who
doesn't believe in violence and even has a policeman, who knows he breaks the law, as a friend.
Over lunch, Marty Gilmartin asks Bernie to rob plastic surgeon Crandall Roundtree Mapes
because his girlfriend dumped him for the doctor. Always happy to do a favor for a friend Bernie
agrees. A couple of days before he plans to break into Mape's safe, Bernie has the urge to pull off
another burglary but before he is through with the job the resident and her date come home.
Bernie hides under the bed while the man is raping the woman who is under the influence of
Roofies. The next day, his policeman friend Marty comes to his store and tells him he was spotted
on security cameras in the area and a block away, a doorman and two tenants of the building were
killed, their safe standing open. There's not enough evidence to hold Bernie and he goes back to
his bookstore where a man pays $1300 for a book that is only worth a few dollars. When he runs
into the street to give the man his money, a car comes along and kills the man and the driver steals
the book. Not long after that Bernie's house is tossed, the thieves obviously looking for
something. Bernie, with the help of a few friends decides to find the perpetrator and bring him to
justice, hopefully without getting killed. What makes THE BURGLAR ON THE PROWL so
exciting is that every crook knows what is being hunted except for Bernie. The protagonist
honestly loves the rush of robbing people but he never uses violence and even during a heist
doesn't take everything that is valuable and transportable. Readers can't help but love Bernie a
criminal with a heart of gold who goes out of his way to help his friends.
Whisker of Evil
Rita Mae Brown & Sneaky Pie Brown
Bantam
ISBN 0553801619 $24.95, 350 pp.
In the small central Virginia town of Crozet, animals speak to each other and understand what
humans say even though those dumb Homo Sapiens can't understand the animals. Mary "Harry"
Haristeen loves her two cats Mrs. Murphy and Pewter and her dog Tee Tucker who she treats as
if they were her children. They feel the same way about her and many a time they saved her life
when she was in the middle of a homicide investigation. One day while Harry is taking a walk in
the woods she comes across horse breeder Barry Monteith, moments away from death, his throat
ripped open. Mrs. Murphy has a feeling that danger is coming. A few days later, Harry is looking
over the crime scene and accidentally walks in the nearby creek and finds a gold ring that
belonged to a horse breeder who disappeared over a quarter of a century ago. The autopsy
reports that Barry had rabies but a human agent cut out his throat. Not to long after these
revelations Barry's partner also dies from rabies and Harry is determined to find out what is really
going on in her once peaceful town. Change is in the air for Harry at work and in her personal life
and she acknowledges to herself that she must make some radical descisionss in her life. Readers
will want to read WHISPER OF EVIL to find out what these changes are and how she once again
finds out who the killer really is. Rita Mae Brown and her co-writer have written the purrfect
who-done-it complete with red herrings and unexpected curves in the storyline.
The Bride Hunt
Jane Feather
Bantam
ISBN: 055358619X $6.99, 400 pp.
While their oldest sister Lady Constance is on her honeymoon, Siblings Prudence and Chastity
Duncan continue to publish The Mayfair Lady. They do so to honor their deceased mother,
founder of the paper, and to bring in money to cover their father's wastrel ways. However,
Falstaff, Harley and Greenwold law firm sues the anonymous owners of the Mayfair for
defamation of character having slandered their client Earl of Barclay. Needing a barrister to
defend them, Pru as the paper's business person, dresses to hide her beauty, visits attorney Gideon
Malvern. He informs her she deserves the libel suit. Angry at his dismissal, Pru lashes out at
Malvern, who sees the beauty and brains hidden behind the spinster garb. As the lawyer and the
client fall in love, he tries to get the case tossed out without the court seeing any of the Duncan
sisters, who cannot afford the scandal of being the authors of the Mayfair. Like the first novel (see
Con's tale, THE BACHELOR'S LIST) the second Mayfair sibling romance is a fun tale starring
delightful assertive females walking a thin line. Malvern is a wonderful protagonist and the trio of
females ganging up on aristocratic England is pleasure to follow. As their father becomes aware
of the fiscal mess he caused, readers will gain immense pleasure from this charmer (in spite of the
back stabbing abhorrent Barclay) and look forward to Chastity closing out the so far terrific
trilogy.
When the Last Magnolia Weeps
Mary Saums
Silver Dagger
ISBN 1570722625 $13.95, 186 pp.
After she was widowed, Willi Taft never thought she would love again but when Sam Robbins
came into her life, she knew he was her second chance. When he died while working a case, he
left Willi his business and in honor of his memory she studied to be a licensed private detective.
She doesn't want to get involved with a man again but when her friend Luanne persuades her to
be David's date at a charity gala, she reluctantly agrees and finds that she is very attracted to him.
David and Luanne's date Ian are giving a concert sponsored by Children First and all the proceeds
will be donated to the Good Shepard Center. Father Michael McDennehy is present to represent
the charity and accept the donation. After the concert, Father Mike works the room while Willi
and David get acquainted. In the middle of the festivities, Father Michael's murdered body is
found outside and the police are leaning towards Ian as the suspect. Willi knows Ian couldn't
murder anyone and she does her best to prove his innocence and almost gets killed by a very
ruthless murderer
Mary Saums has written a delightful private investigative novel that gives readers an inside
glimpse of Nashville. The heroine surprises herself when she finds herself attracted to a man who
is only going to be in the country for a few days but she is even more shocked with what her
investigation of Father Mike reveals. WHEN THE LAST MAGNOLIA WEEPS is a good old
fashioned who-done-it that readers will enjoy immensely.
Jilted By Death
Lynette Hall Hampton
Silver Dagger
ISBN 1570722661 $23.95, 186 pp.
Associate Minister at the First United Methodist Church in Liverpool, North Carolina Willa
Hinshaw is delighted with her new posting because she thinks she will learn a lot under the
tutelage of Reverend Phillip Gallaway. The church is hosting the wedding of Lee Ann Poole to
Claude Renigan until the parents of the bride inform the Reverend and Willa that the nuptials are
cancelled as their daughter eloped with mechanic Justin Swanson. Since Lee Ann comes from a
wealthy family, her father was very much against the match. Lee Ann calls Willa and asks her to
come to the motel where they are staying but by the time the associate minister arrives, the couple
has vanished. A ransom note is delivered to the Pooles supposedly from Justin but a handwriting
comparison proves he didn't write the note. Willa starts asking questioning, but receives a
threatening phone call to butt out and someone keeps breaking into her apartment and looking at
her papers. When Lee Ann's car is found with her and Justin's blood all over it, people start to
give up hope but Willa is sure that they are alive and intends to prove it by rescuing them.
JILTED BY DEATH is an exciting amateur sleuth tale with a very unusual protagonist. She is a
female pastor breaking new ground in a very conservative town but she stays true to her personal
values. Willa is so helpful, kind and selfless that she is winning over the townsfolk as well as the
audience rather easily. Reader's who like a colorful tale without the red of gore well find Lynette
Hall Hampton's who-done-it a pleasant reading experience.
In the Midnight Hour
Brenda Jackson
St. Martin's
ISBN: 0312989970 $6.99, 320 pp.
Five years ago US Marine Captain Sandy Carroll died while on a rescue mission in Haiti. Her
beloved Drake Warren never recovered as he takes on impossible CIA missions that psychiatrists
would say were death wishes. His latest endeavor in Tikrit, Iraq ends with him evacuated
seemingly close to gaining his wish as he totters near death in Bethesda. That night an angel
pretending to be a doctor visits him encouraging him to live. Miraculously Drake recovers. After
being lectured for her nocturnal visit, CIA Agent Tori Green must stay away from Drake, the man
she loves Drake since she barely survived that explosion in Haiti. She knows that Drake and drug
lord Solomon Cross blame each other for the deaths of their respective loved ones and she would
become a pawn if she surfaced on her cherished one's arms. However, five months later, Tori and
Drake are paired off on an assignment, which stuns him because he is attracted to his partner,
which means Solomon will return. IN THE MIDNIGHT HOUR is an exhilarating romantic
suspense tale that also includes elements from a second chance at love tale. The story line is
fast-paced, but belongs to the two males who detest one another, but a "new" female pawn in
Tori ups the stakes to such a degree that the audience knows the final confrontation between them
will leave one dead. Though the logic of keeping Tori and Drake apart for their safety seems
strange, fans will enjoy this terrific tale of intrigue.
The Wedding Night
Barbara Dawson Smith
St. Martin's
ISBN: 0312982305 $6.99, 352 pp.
In 1816 Samuel Firth, illegitimate son of Marquess George Kenyon who spawned him and his
mother, buys fifteen year old Lady Cassandra to be a bride. He chose Cassandra because she is the
perfect blue blood to help him engineer his vengeance against his sire, but he also selected her
because he was hooked when he saw her making angels in the snow. Samuel pays off the
enormous debts that Cassandra's father accumulated. On their wedding night, Samuel expected a
somewhat reticent wife, but he found a frightened child with no idea what to expect waiting in
bed with him. Instead of forcing himself on her, Samuel leaves. He travels the globe for the next
four years looking at his business interests while waiting for his spouse to grow up. Samuel
returns but Cassandra is now an intelligent beautiful woman who has a circle of men paying their
respects to her though she is not a flirt. Samuel informs her he will take his dividend soon, but
instead they fall in love. However, a secret admirer plans to do anything to gain her hand
including murder and abduction. THE WEDDING NIGHT is a fine Regency romance that
showcases the skills of Barbara Dawson Smith to use multiple settings for her tales. The story line
is fun to follow as Samuel and Cassandra battle for "supremacy" in their relationship, a skirmish
that neither can win solo, but both can triumph if they choose to win-win together. Though the
villainous subplot adds suspense and provides a final impetus to bring the heroes in concert, it
takes away from a powerful love story between two obstinate charmers.
Kiss of the Night
Sherrilyn Kenyon
St. Martin's
ISBN: 0312992416 $6.99, 384 pp.
Half Apolloite Cassandra is with her friends and her bodyguard when the Daimons arrive. They
recognize her and go after the kill because they believe that her death will free them from the
curse that has forced them to either die or become vampires. However, Wulf a dark hunter arrives
and kills the Daimons. Afterward he and Cassandra kiss, but he leaves because his curse is that no
one except his blood remembers him five minutes after he leaves. Cassandra forgets Wulf until she
shares exotic dreams with him. She begins to remember the dark hunter who saved her life and the
advice of her deceased mother to avoid that deadly species. To his chagrin the first person outside
his nephew and his peers who remembers him is from a species he has pledged to kill. Making it
worse is that this duo falls in love sharing not only their respective species, but the gods of several
Pantheons. Sherrilyn Kenyon's latest Dark Hunter tales is a superb romantic fantasy that has the
extra twist of the hero's plight that is great for one night stands, but very lonely. The story line is
the ultimate star-crossed lovers theme as a warm loving relationship between the lead couple will
probably result in the wrath of Gods. The support cast, especially his nephew and his New
Orleans based peer and her Amazonian bodyguard, add depth to a fine story. Those sub-genre
readers tasting their first Dark Hunter novel will seek the previous winners.
The Spy
Celeste Bradley
St. Martin's
ISBN: 0312987846 $6.50
In 1813 London, James Cunningham trusts no one ever since his lady love Lavinnia Winchell
kidnapped him to learn the names of the Liars Club members, troublemakers to her patron
Napoleon. James feels guilty because he revealed those names and much of the group died. He
seeks evidence to implicate Lavinnia, but she insists it was a love tryst that went wrong. Phillipa
Atwater remains unsure what to do as she does not know what her missing father Rupert meant
with the missive "watch out for James Cunningham". Dressed as a man, she arrives at James'
home seeking the job of tutor to nine years old Robbie. She hopes to find a clue that will elucidate
her dad's note and rescue him from the French who abducted him. She introduces herself as Phillip
and obtains the position. James goes to the Liar's Club to discuss Rupert, who once was a
cryptograph member, but now turned traitor and is working for Napoleon. They seek his missing
daughter who might break Napoleon's latest codes developed by Rupert. She falls in love with her
employer, but he believes she is "Flip", a weak male though he finds himself looking strangely at
"him". Fans of the Liar's Club novels (see THE PRETENDER and THE IMPOSTER) will
appreciate the return of delightful characters as they add depth to the exciting story line. The lead
female protagonist is a courageous individual whose dilemma of safety vs. falling in love makes
for fun reading. She/"he" make the novel. Though the resolution of James' "guilt" allows the
cleansing of his soul and the tough evil villainess is pathetic, this is a fun tale as the audience will
enjoy the often amusing adventures of Flip.
Best Murder of the Year
Jon P. Bloch
St. Martin's
ISBN: 0312301111 $13.95, 288 pp.
For the seventh year, Hollywood gossip columnist Rick Domino hosts a live pre-show broadcast
of the Academy Awards. Rick has mixed feelings about this year's show because his lover actor
Shane Kirk is up for a Best Actor award. He is proud that Shane received the nomination, but
disappointed that his beloved refuses to come out of the closet and acknowledge that he is gay let
alone in a relationship with Rick. Adding to that insult is the fact that Shane is keeping a straight
image by escorting best actress nominee Tara Perez to the ceremony. Though Rick has to share
the spotlight with predator Mitzie McGuire, their show goes over relatively smoothly though Rick
does less clothing dissing of the attendees than usual as he mopes over Shane. Afterward Rick
looks for Shane only to find his beloved near the corpse of Tara. The police arrive as Shane
shouts his innocence and Rick is nearer to the corpse and holding the murder weapon that he
picked off the ground. Though the police arrest Rick, homicide detective Terry Zane thinks things
are too pat. He and Rick investigate the Hollywood scene as only a veteran police officer and a
catty gossip columnist could do. The who-done-it is fun to follow as the obviously gay Rick and
his new partner the straight Terry make a humorous team who uncover a lot of Hollywood secrets
during their investigation. However what makes THE BEST MURDER OF THE YEAR so
enjoyable is not the homicide or the inquiries, but the satirical look at Hollywood at its most
pompous and even more subtly strips the invincibility of the mystery genre fictional superstars.
The movies that the nominees star in are hilarious and worth the read by themselves. Fans of a
tongue in cheek (not saying which one) will want to read the adventures of Rick Domino in the
world of make believe.
Vertical Coffin
Stephen J. Cannell
St. Martin's
ISBN: 0312304250 $24.95, 400 pp.
Los Angeles Deputy Sheriff Emo Rojas is handing out a routine warrant when Vincent Smiley
kills him. Cops kill Vincent, but that is not the end of the story. The Sheriff's Department is
outraged not because one of them was gunned down. With the amount of ammo stored inside
Smiley's abode, they believe that the Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, and Tobacco knew what their
deceased comrade was walking into, but provided no warning. Not long afterward, AFT Special
Reaction Team member Billy Greenridge lies in a coffin with his compatriots convinced that this
was payback for Emo's death. The only major neutral law enforcement group in Southern
California is LAPD. The brass assigns Sergeant Shane Scully to keep the peace between the
hostile armies by solving the second homicide. Shane alienates not only both bellicose sides but
his wife and other superiors as he defies everyone by investigating Smiley, but not as a "suicide by
cop" victim as his superiors including his wife believe. The latest Scully tale is the best to date as
the key players from both armed camps, several criminal elements, LAPD especially the hero's
wife, his temporary Internal Affairs partner, and Shane seem so real. The tempers flaring make
Shane's endeavor that much more difficult, but as a consequence that is more fun for the audience.
Stephen J. Cannell is at the top of his game with this powerful police procedural that has the Blue
Knights ready to war with one another unless Shane can prove in a rapid response that
Greenridge's death was caused by a third party.
Crave
Darnella Ford
St. Martin's
ISBN: 0312304072 $13.95, 320 pp.
Michael Morgan craves love without strings as her only goal in life. She grew up in a household in
which Mama Bear expected her to be perfect and her dad Papa Bear seemingly ignored his wife's
tirades until he broke, got drunk, and died in a DUI. Michael's only friend over the years is Molly
Wood, who has spent more time in rehab than in her home. Still when it comes to a men or
masturbation, Michael prefers males and freely goes into each relationship naively believing this is
the one. When Lorenzo left her pregnant, he offered sympathy, but nothing else as he fits the
norm of the men in her life. They leave and her heart breaks. She thinks Eddie will have staying
power, but he too dumps her. This hurts more than most as she has no idea what she did wrong.
On the positive side, Michael is beginning to look within perhaps because she is prepared to give
up on her quest to find a lasting love. This is an interesting psychological character study of an
individual in trouble due to her selection in men. Michael's childhood haunts her as she believes
only by behaving "perfectly" can she receive love, but her definition and the men in her lives
definition do not match so they leave like her dad did. Molly is a form of comfort candy, but also
adds to the destructive nature of Michael as they need each other, but are not good for one
another. Superb work by Darnella Ford provides the audience with an intense drama.
What's Wrong with Dorfman?
John Blumenthal
St. Martin's
ISBN: 0312311885 $12.95, 280 pp.
Life is collapsing for Los Angeles screenwriter Martin Dorfman. In his mind the end of days have
arrived as the signs are obvious since film producers ignore his efforts and his agent refuses to
answer his calls or return them. He feels like death as a mysterious disease attacks his body;
neither his doctor, other physicians, an herbalist nor a New Age "chiropractic allergist" can
identify the illness let alone cure it. After paying out thousands of bucks his mentally aching
spouse thinks Martin is a hypochondriac and suggests he visit a psychiatrist. Martin agrees to try
her more radical solution to his physical woes by seeing a psychiatrist. The shrink's diagnosis is
that Martin suffers from screenwriter neuroses bordering on psychosis. If he wants to be cured he
must find new employment. Psychosomatic illnesses may cause pain, but not as much as not
writing scripts even if rejection seems the norm right now. WHAT'S WRONG WITH
DORFMAN is an intelligent very amusing tale starring an intriguing protagonist whose one-liners
would make the novel fun to read, but also provides a serious undertone that catalogues the book
as a not to miss tale. The support cast adds jocular "sincerity" as they stereotype their treatment
of Dorfman. The tale cleverly reflects on inheriting ancestral mental baggage such as Dorfman
knows he has all types of diseases because his father the doctor described the symptoms to him
when he was a child. Fans of an amusing look at childhood environmental impact on the adult will
appreciate WHAT'S WRONG WITH DORFMAN. One warning: don't run to see your doctor
because what Dorman has is contagiously funny.
The Confession
Olen Steinhauer
St. Martin's
ISBN: 0312303289 $24.95, 304 pp.
Now turning thirty, seven years has passed since an idealistic Emil Brod joined the police force as
a Comrade Homicide Detective, but now by 1956 he is like his peers, grim and ever looking over
his shoulders at the KGB representative. Emil has learned survival means trust no one and
gingerly investigate whenever the Party is involved. Meanwhile Police Officer Ferenc Kolyeszar
prefers to be a novelist, but in this small Communist nation getting anything published is
controlled by the Party. Though Ferenc has talent his r‚sum‚ shows one paperback. Now he
writes a book about the depressing world of artists representing Everyman behind the Iron
Curtain. Any creativity typically leads to work camps that even in the post Stalin era remains
dehumanizing and deadly. Besides the censorship that haunts Ferenc, he suffers remorse over a
recent assignment involving college students. As he investigates the murder of a party bureaucrat,
KGB agent Kaminski watches Ferenc looking forward to destroying the wannabe author. This
1950s Communist police procedural is a terrific tale that provides the audience with insight into
life inside a Soviet satellite country just after the death of Stalin. The strong story line surprisingly
relegates the hero of the first novel (BRIDGE OF SIGHS) to a cynical secondary role. This
allows comparison to Ferenc, a tragic Shakespearean character who knows that his latest case will
personally cost him dearly; yet he cannot adapt to the party line especially after he carried out a
recent assignment to bash the heads of protesting college students. This is a great Eastern
European Communist historical police procedural that should provide Owen Steinhauer a strong
fan base.
An Intimate Ghost
Ellen Hart
St. Martin's
ISBN 0312317476 $24.95, 320 pp.
In Evergreen High School in Minneapolis, student Cullen Hegg pulls out a gun in the middle of a
history class but his teacher Alden Clifford manages to talk the sophomore into letting the rest of
the students leave. When it's just the two of them, Alden tries to talk Cullen out of using the gun
but the despondent boy kills himself. The teacher is lauded by the media, the faculty and the other
students from preventing even more bloodshed, but Alden doesn't think of himself as a hero and
avoids publicity. Several months later Jane Lawless, owner of the Lyme House Restaurant and
Pub, caters the wedding ceremony of Alden's son Nick and Lauren Bautel.. However, someone
placed hallucinogens into the food leading to Nick diving into an empty swimming pool and
winding up in Intensive care. Jane identifies the culprit who flavored the food finally makes
contact with him. Jane agrees to meet him at the hotel where he is hiding out. When she arrives,
he is already dead and the murderer got away which means Jane is going to have to approach the
problem from a different angle without getting herself killed. Ellen Hart has written a very
complex and fascinating amateur sleuth novel that has many sub-plots that tie back seamlessly to
original theme. Through the use of flashbacks, readers gradually realize how the crimes of three
decades ago are the catalyst for the dangerous felonies that are happening today. The heroine
gradually pieces together the motivations for the death of her employee and the sprinkling of
drugs in the food at the wedding buffet. INTIMATE GHOST deserves a Lambda Award
consideration.
Desert Spring
Michael Craft
St. Martin's
ISBN: 0312320809 $23.95, 272 pp.
She was a famous Broadway director, well known and respected, who took a sabbatical to write
her own play Traders which won a Tony and was nominated for an Oscar when it was made into
a film. At age fifty-four, she was recruited by Glenn Yeats, who founded and is now president of
Desert Arts college, two hours north of LA, to be the chair of the theatre department. One day
when she went to get her car tinted, she met twenty-six year old Tanner Griffin and immediately
saw his star potential. While she coached him in acting they become lovers and together they put
the college on the map. On the last day of the production of Traders, Claire hosts a cast party and
a going away party for Tanner who has signed up to act in a movie in Hollywood. The party is a
smashing success but when most of the people call it a night, Hollywood producer and
screenwriter Spencer Wallace is found dead in Claire's swimming pool. Tests show he was
poisoned and probably was pushed into the pool and circumstantial evidence points to Claire as
the suspect although there were many other people at the party who wanted him dead. On her
own Claire once again starts her own investigation with the stakes being the restoration of her
good name and finding out who the perpetrator is who is trying to frame her. Michael Craft, the
author of the fascinating Mark Manning series has another winning, although totally different in
tone and content, series to his credit. Claire Gray proves you're never too old for romance or a
career change. She knows her strengths and there is no false modesty about her yet the audience
will notice that at rare and unexpected times, she has moments of vulnerability which makes the
reader like her all the more. DESERT SPRING is a sophisticated and entertaining amateur sleuth
novel.
Deeper Than Desire
Cheryl Holt
St. Martin's
ISBN: 0312992823 $6.99, 384 pp.
In 1813, though she detests the deception and that the target is a much older man, twenty-three
years old Olivia Hopkins knows her extended family needs her to marry Edward, the Earl of
Bristol. While in the Earl's library late at night, Olivia finds an erotica book that entices her until
she is caught by Edward's wrong side of the sheet son Philip Paxton. As her stepmother pushes
Olivia towards Edward, Olivia and Philip have an affair taking pages out of that reference tome
she had found. Soon Olivia falls in love with Philip, but he sees her as a means of revenge for his
sire hiding him from anyone who matters. However, Philip finds revenge is not as sweet as the
love he feels for Olivia, but will the couple find a path to change their illicit affair into a warm
lasting legal relationship? Though the stepmother is too crazy to even heed anything she says,
Regency romance fans will enjoy this erotic tale of forbidden love that feels and is right. The story
line is fun to follow especially when the lead couple is hiding their tryst from everyone especially
his father and her loony stepmother. Readers will enjoy the moment that Philip realizes that his
love is DEEPER THAN DESIRE for vengeance. Cheryl Holt turns up the heat with this superior
historical.
Dream On
Beverly Brandt
St. Martin's
ISBN: 0312994842 $6.99, 352 pp.
Because he wanted to say hello to his mom while touring with his rock and roll star girlfriend, she
dumps country singer Bradley Nelson on the streets of Reno in front of a gorilla. A few seconds
later, all hell breaks loose with casino boss Dickie Swanson chasing after Bradley's mom Harriet
with a gun. She grabs her son and the gorilla. The trio flees the scene. The gorilla is Delphine
Armstrong who knows she lost her job while Bradley's mom explains she stole three million
dollars from the mob who failed to report it on their income tax. Her plan is to give the loot and
evidence to her former boss in the Philadelphia office of the IRS. On the journey east, Bradley and
Delphine fall in love, but the mob follows planning to take back their cash and silence the fleeing
trio. DREAM ON is a wacky romantic suspense that the audience will enjoy due to the antics of
the Nelsons (no comment on mom's name or that the son should have been Rick) and Delphine.
The story line keeps the tension high and the humor lofty, but the book never loses sight that it is
a romance first and foremost. As she did with RECORD TIME, Beverly Brandt will have her fans
dancing to the beat of her wild garden party road show romp.
Deep Pockets
Linda Barnes
St. Martin's
ISBN: 0312282710 $24.95, 320 pp.
Boston area private investigator Carlotta Carlyle noticed the mark trailing her throughout Harvard
Square. She pulls a magician's trick and accosts her tracker. He insists he was not stalking her, but
instead working up the courage to consult with her in a professional capacity. He explains that
"his friend" is being blackmailed and paying failed to end the nightmare. Tenured Harvard
Professor Wilson Chaney admits he had an affair with a freshman student Denali Brinkman.
Realizing that revelation of his taboo indiscretion would end his career Wilson hires Carlotta to
uncover the identity of his blackmailer so he can persuade the person to stop. Though Carlotta
literally (only slightly that is) and figuratively (totally) looks down at her client especially over the
age of his lover, she accepts the case. Carlotta digs deep into the background of her client and his
former teen lover. She searches for threads at the University and in Wilson's personal life, finding
a vehicular death link. Unable to resist, Carlotta goes down the side path that this death takes her
not realizing how dangerous her detour will soon prove as there is much more to this case than
simply a blackmailed cheating husband
In her tenth appearance, Carlotta remains an invigorating private investigator. Her latest case
DEEP POCKETS is a fabulous detective story that starts rather differently, but quite
exhilaratingly before turning into a suspense thriller. Carlotta deals with ethics issues throughout
the tale beginning with her odious client and continuing when she chose a lane that might not be in
the best interest of the professor. This six foot one former police officer still kicks butt as one of
Boston's finest.
Under a Lucky Star
Diane Farr
Signet
ISBN: 0451211707 $6.99, 352 pp.
In 1803, a bored Derek Whittaker wanders around the theater when he meets Lady Cynthia
Fitzwilliam. He rescues her from her suitor Sir James Filey and the two soon share a delightful
kiss before she returns to her family's box. A few days later, Cynthia, the daughter of an Earl,
snubs Derek, a landless secretary. Not long afterward her parents announce that Cynthia and
James will marry. Three yeas later, Derek now owns property. He travels to visit his pregnant
sister, but is distraught to find Cynthia and her mother there. Since James died before she married
him, Cynthia's new target is a young wealthy lord. However, Derek realizes that he still loves
Cynthia and believes she feels the same way. Now if she would only show the backbone to rid
herself of her family of leeches that blame their poverty on her not their gambling father. Regency
romance readers will delight in Diane Farr's UNDER A LUCKY STAR. The story line stars an
atypical female protagonist who seems to reflect the era more than the usual fiery independent in
your face heroine. Instead Cynthia is under the thumb of her mother and is responsible for taking
care of her family by marrying money. Only love and the desperate urging of Derek and her best
friend give Cynthia the courage to go after what she desires while providing sub-genre fans with a
great treat.
Wedded Bliss
Barbara Metzger
Signet
ISBN: 0451208595 $6.99, 352 pp.
During the Napoleonic troubles, widower Viscount Rockford earned the reputation as a great
diplomat, but he will need all his honed skills with his two sons that he rarely sees as he is too
busy saving the country and besides he doubts he even sired either of them. He becomes quite
upset to learn that Alissa Henning, a widow with two children of her own, has kidnapped his five
year old son William. He races to his home from London to rescue his younger child only to find
the lad is quite happy living
