Gina Wohlsdorf writes unusual thrillers. There was last year’s Security, and, now Blood Highway. Blood Highway is the current Hot Book of the Week at the Poisoned Pen. You can orders copies of both of her novels, including signed copies of Blood Highway, through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2vMXYu1

Here’s the summary of Blood Highway.

“A sensational hard-boiled thriller as tough and uncompromising as its main character, Rainy Cain. Don’t miss this.”—Lee Child, bestselling author of The Midnight Line

Meet Rainy Cain, a tough, smart seventeen-year-old whose primary instinct is survival. That instinct is tested when her life is upended by the sudden appearance of her father, Sam, who she thought was long dead, but instead had been in prison for his part in an armored truck robbery gone murderously wrong. Now escaped and on the run, he kidnaps Rainy, who he is convinced knows where the money from the robbery, never recovered, is hidden.

Accompanied by a henchman with secret motives of his own, they set off on a cross-country dash to Big Sur, where Sam suspects his late wife stashed the cash. On their heels is a Minneapolis cop intent on bringing Rainy safely home.

It is an odyssey that will push Rainy to the limits of endurance, and that will keep readers guessing until the very end. What does Rainy really know—and what is she willing to sacrifice in order to live?

I’ve been waiting for a shareable copy of Tina Jordan’s article in The New York Times ever since Poisoned Pen Press author Jeffrey Siger shared a tiny map on Facebook. Siger’s Inspector Kaldis novel, Target: Tinos, is included as the thriller set in Greece in the article, “All the World’s a Crime: Thrillers from Around the Globe.” https://nyti.ms/2OTCALv

You may have met some of the authors on the list at Poisoned Pen events. You may have been introduced to their works through the bookstore. Now, you have a reading list to take you around the world. Check the Web Store for your selected authors and titles. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

Did you miss the event at the Poisoned Pen when Susanna Kearsley, author of Bellewether, was in conversation with Diana Gabaldon and Barbara Peters, owner of the bookstore? You can now watch it on YouTube.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSo9iomJ19s&w=560&h=315]

Don’t forget to order a copy of the book through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2AQkAys

Here’s the summary, including a quote from Diana Gabaldon.

“I’ve loved every one of Susanna’s books! She has bedrock research and a butterfly’s delicate touch with characters—sure recipe for historical fiction that sucks you in and won’t let go!”— DIANA GABALDON, #1 New York Timesbestselling author of Outlander

“The house, when I first saw it, seemed intent on guarding what it knew; but we all learned, by the end of it, that secrets aren’t such easy things to keep.”

It’s late summer, war is raging, and families are torn apart by divided loyalties and deadly secrets. In this complex and dangerous time, a young French Canadian lieutenant is captured and billeted with a Long Island family, an unwilling and unwelcome guest. As he begins to pitch in with the never-ending household tasks and farm chores, Jean-Philippe de Sabran finds himself drawn to the daughter of the house. Slowly, Lydia Wilde comes to lean on Jean-Philippe, true soldier and gentleman, until their lives become inextricably intertwined. Legend has it that the forbidden love between Jean-Philippe and Lydia ended tragically, but centuries later, the clues they left behind slowly unveil the true story.

Part history, part romance, and all kinds of magic, Susanna Kearsley’s latest masterpiece will draw you in and never let you go, even long after you’ve closed the last page.

Praise for A Desperate Fortune:
“Susanna Kearsley just keeps getting better and better!” —Lauren Willig, New York Times bestselling author
“Susanna Kearsley deftly conjures both historical intrigue and a contemporary heroine as unique as she is memorable.” —Deanna Raybourn, New York Times bestselling author
“Enchanting! Beguiling! Gorgeously romantic! A truly brilliant book.” —Kate Forsyth, award-winning author

Praise for The Firebird:
“A lovely and memorable novel.” —Booklist, STARRED Review
“A glittering, bewitching tale.” —Kirkus
“The present and past come together as Kearsley masterfully merges paranormal elements with a wonderful dual story and a fascinating historical setting.”—RT Book Reviews, TOP PICK 4½ Stars

Fiona Davis is the author of three novels set in some of New York City’s iconic buildings. The Dollhouse featured the Barbizon Hotel for Women. In The Address, she writes about the Dakota. Her latest novel, The Masterpiece, takes readers into a lost art school within Grand Central Terminal. All three books are available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2B0fcZL

Davis recently wrote a 7 Sentence Story for Penguin Random House, “Girl on the Bridge”. It might remind you a little of an urban legend. Enjoy!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iCF94ibUjc&w=560&h=315]

The publisher Penguin Random House produces occasional videos to introduce new authors. A recent video features Michael Poore, author of Reincarnation Blues. You can order a copy of Reincarnation Blues through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2MbRI9r

Here’s the summary of Reincarnation Blues.

A wildly imaginative novel about a man who is reincarnated over ten thousand lifetimes to be with his one true love: Death herself.

“Tales of gods and men akin to Neil Gaiman’s Sandman as penned by a kindred spirit of Douglas Adams.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

First we live. Then we die. And then . . . we get another try? 

Ten thousand tries, to be exact. Ten thousand lives to “get it right.” Answer all the Big Questions. Achieve Wisdom. And Become One with Everything.

Milo has had 9,995 chances so far and has just five more lives to earn a place in the cosmic soul. If he doesn’t make the cut, oblivion awaits. But all Milo really wants is to fall forever into the arms of Death. Or Suzie, as he calls her.

More than just Milo’s lover throughout his countless layovers in the Afterlife, Suzie is literally his reason for living—as he dives into one new existence after another, praying for the day he’ll never have to leave her side again.

But Reincarnation Blues is more than a great love story: Every journey from cradle to grave offers Milo more pieces of the great cosmic puzzle—if only he can piece them together in time to finally understand what it means to be part of something bigger than infinity. As darkly enchanting as the works of Neil Gaiman and as wisely hilarious as Kurt Vonnegut’s, Michael Poore’s Reincarnation Blues is the story of everything that makes life profound, beautiful, absurd, and heartbreaking.

Because it’s more than Milo and Suzie’s story. It’s your story, too.

Praise for Reincarnation Blues

“The most fun you’ll have reading about a man who has been killed by both catapult and car accident.”—NPR

“This book made me laugh out loud. And then a page later, it made me sob. Reminiscent of Tom Robbins and Christopher Moore, Poore finds humor in the dark absurdities of life.”—Chicago Review of Books

“Charming . . . surprisingly light and uplifting . . . It reads like a writer having fun.”—New York Journal of Books

*****

You can “meet” Michael Poore in the video from Penguin Random House.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxOCOEUAces&w=560&h=315]

You may have watched some of the Poisoned Pen’s events on Livestream in the past. Times change, and the bookstore filmed a recent event and party for YouTube. Rhys Bowen brought her latest Royal Spyness Mystery, Four Funerals and Maybe a Wedding, to the bookstore, despite the 112 degree heat in Scottsdale, Arizona. To avoid spoilers, Bowen and bookstore owner Barbara Peters discussed threads that have run through the series. You can watch the program on YouTube. https://youtu.be/xNP84XxnFbk

If you haven’t picked up a copy of the new Lady Georgiana Rannoch mystery, you can order a signed copy of Four Funerals and Maybe a Wedding, and other mysteries by Rhys Bowen, through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2LV4U1i

Here’s the summary of Four Funerals and Maybe a Wedding.

In the days leading up to her wedding to Darcy O’Mara, Lady Georgiana Rannoch takes on the responsibilities of a grand estate, but proving she can run a household just may be the death of her in the new Royal Spyness Mystery from the New York Times bestselling author of On Her Majesty’s Frightfully Secret Service.

If only Darcy and I had eloped! What I thought would be a simple wedding has been transformed into a grand affair, thanks to the attendance of the queen, who has offered up the princesses as bridesmaids. Silly me! I thought that withdrawing from the royal line of succession would simplify my life. But before Darcy and I tie the knot in front of queen and country, we have to find a place to live as man and wife…

House hunting turns out to be a pretty grim affair. Just as we start to lose hope, my globetrotting godfather offers us his fully staffed country estate. Mistress of Eynsleigh I shall be! With Darcy off in parts unknown, I head to Eynsleigh alone, only to have my hopes dashed. The grounds are in disarray and the small staff is suspiciously incompetent. Not to mention the gas tap leak in my bedroom, which I can only imagine was an attempt on my life. Something rotten is afoot–and bringing the place up to snuff may put me six feet under before I even get a chance to walk down the aisle…

You may know Joe Hill as the author of Strange Weather or The Fireman, and other bestselling novels. You might know him as Stephen King’s son. (Hill’s books are available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2OpPcJ7)

But, Isaac Stanley-Becker’s recent article in The Washington Post points out that Hill is as curious about cold cases as the rest of us. In “A “˜tantalizing’ theory from Stephen King’s son: Shark thriller “˜Jaws’ holds the clue to an unsolved 1974 murder”, Stanley-Becker discusses Joe Hill’s theory about the identity of a murder victim. https://wapo.st/2OWZaCL

It’s a fascinating article and theory. But, one line did make me laugh. Joe Hill is quoted as saying his father is fascinated about this theory as well. “Everyone in my family likes a good bit of weird,  unsettling Americana,” the writer said.

With Our House, British author Louise Candlish makes her American debut. It’s a story of domestic suspense in which secrets are kept from spouses. It’s available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2LZ1JGI

Candlish recently did an interview for Shelf Awareness. You can read it here. https://bit.ly/2vnktWe

Here’s the summary of Our House, although Candlish summarizes it in one sentence. “It’s about a man who sells the family home without his wife’s knowledge.”

From an internationally acclaimed author, a disturbing and addictive novel of domestic suspense where secrets kept hidden from spouses cause shocking surprises that hit home…

There’s nothing unusual about a new family moving in at 91 Trinity Avenue. Except it’s her house. And she didn’t sell it.

When Fiona Lawson comes home to find strangers moving into her house, she’s sure there’s been a mistake. She and her estranged husband, Bram, have a modern coparenting arrangement: bird’s nest custody, where each parent spends a few nights a week with their two sons at the prized family home to maintain stability for their children. But the system built to protect their family ends up putting them in terrible jeopardy. In a domino effect of crimes and misdemeanors, the nest comes tumbling down.

Now Bram has disappeared and so have Fiona’s children. As events spiral well beyond her control, Fiona will discover just how many lies her husband was weaving and how little they truly knew each other. But Bram’s not the only one with things to hide, and some secrets are best kept to oneself, safe as houses.

Susanna Kearsley’s Bellewether is the current Hot Book of the Week at the Poisoned Pen. You can order a signed copy of it, or copies of Kearsley’s other novels, through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2AQkAys

Of course, you know about the event on Friday evening, August 10, don’t you? At 7 PM that evening, there is a ticketed event at the Poisoned Pen. Kearsley will sign copies of Bellewether. The event is hosted by Diana Gabaldon. Tickets are $20, and they entitle you to a paperback of one of three titles, including Bellewether. Details are available here. https://bit.ly/2OfnjDx

Tickets were going fast, so you must call the bookstore to buy them or find out if there are any left. Here are the numbers – 480 947 2974 or 888 560 9919.

*****

Here’s the summary of Bellewether.

“I’ve loved every one of Susanna’s books! She has bedrock research and a butterfly’s delicate touch with characters—sure recipe for historical fiction that sucks you in and won’t let go!”— DIANA GABALDON, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Outlander

“The house, when I first saw it, seemed intent on guarding what it knew; but we all learned, by the end of it, that secrets aren’t such easy things to keep.”

It’s late summer, war is raging, and families are torn apart by divided loyalties and deadly secrets. In this complex and dangerous time, a young French Canadian lieutenant is captured and billeted with a Long Island family, an unwilling and unwelcome guest. As he begins to pitch in with the never-ending household tasks and farm chores, Jean-Philippe de Sabran finds himself drawn to the daughter of the house. Slowly, Lydia Wilde comes to lean on Jean-Philippe, true soldier and gentleman, until their lives become inextricably intertwined. Legend has it that the forbidden love between Jean-Philippe and Lydia ended tragically, but centuries later, the clues they left behind slowly unveil the true story.

Part history, part romance, and all kinds of magic, Susanna Kearsley’s latest masterpiece will draw you in and never let you go, even long after you’ve closed the last page.

Michael Brandman, author of the second Buddy Steel mystery for Poisoned Pen Press, One on One, returns to the Poisoned Pen on Wednesday, Aug. 8 at 7 PM to discuss this series and sign books. If you can’t make it, you can order a signed copy through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2vlzgAJ

Would you like to know what the critics are saying about One on One? Here’s Elise Cooper’s review at Crimespree Magazine.  https://bit.ly/2M1FfUI

Cooper’s review ends with, “Buddy is a likeable character who uses self-deprecating humor, sometimes acting like an overgrown schoolboy. He is easygoing and can handle people poking fun at him. Being smart, caring, and understanding of people’s emotional pain, Buddy has a moral sense of right versus wrong.

“Readers will enjoy this fast-paced mystery.  With well-developed characters and a plot that takes issues straight from the headlines, this is a good read.”

*****

Here’s the summary of One on One.

When legendary Sheriff Burton Steel summoned his son Buddy home from LAPD Homicide, a reluctant Buddy agreed. Burton is debilitated by ALS, Lou Gehrig’s Disease. While Buddy is to cover his back, not an assignment he wants, the clincher is it’s his last chance to connect with his proud, overbearing parent.

What Buddy didn’t expect was to encounter crime in Freedom, a privileged coastal community a hundred miles north of Los Angeles, as vicious and challenging as that of the city.

One spring morning, the latest challenge erupts. The brutal murder of a prominent Freedom High School sports coach leads Buddy into a clandestine universe of sexual deception, play parties, unwitting athletes, over-privileged youths, treacherous bullies, and shocking malfeasance.

At the same time, a sudden scourge of graffiti is disfiguring both public and private property, despoiling the beauty and serenity of Freedom’s unassuming landscape. Outraged, knowing he has few legal weapons to wield, Buddy is forced to find new and challenging ways to thwart the street artist, or artists, responsible. Irreverent and imaginative, not to say manipulative, Buddy is just the man for the job.

Buddy’s plate is soon full and the stakes are enormous as he sets about bringing resolution to a glut of seemingly irresolute occurrences.

One on One follows Missing Persons, Buddy’s first investigation in Freedom.