Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, recently welcomed John Sandford and Dana Stabenow for the book launch of their latest books. John Sandford’s second Letty Davenport novel is Dark Angel. Dana Stabenow’s 23rd Kate Shugak novel, Not the Ones Dead, is the current Hot Book of the Week at the bookstore. There are signed copies of both titles in the Webstore. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

Here’s the description of Dark Angel.

Letty Davenport, the tough-as-nails adopted daughter of Lucas Davenport, takes on an undercover assignment that brings her across the country and into the crosshairs of a dangerous group of hackers.

Letty Davenport’s days working a desk job at are behind her. Her previous actions at a gunfight in Texas—and her incredible skills with firearms—draw the attention of several branches of the US government, and make her a perfect fit for even more dangerous work. The Department of Homeland Security and the NSA have tasked her with infiltrating a hacker group, known only as Ordinary People, that is intent on wreaking havoc. Letty and her reluctant partner from the NSA pose as free-spirited programmers for hire and embark on a cross country road trip to the group’s California headquarters.

While the two work to make inroads with Ordinary People and uncover their plans, they begin to suspect that the hackers are not their only enemy. Someone within their own circle may have betrayed them, and has ulterior motives that place their mission—and their lives—in grave danger.

---

John Sandford is the pseudonym for the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist John Camp. He is the author of thirty Prey novels; four Kidd novels; twelve Virgil Flowers novels; three YA novels coauthored with his wife, Michele Cook; and three other books.

---

Here’s the summary of Dana Stabenow’s Not the Ones Dead.

The gripping new Kate Shugak novel by New York Times bestselling author Dana Stabenow.

What seems a tragic accident soon becomes a murder investigation as Kate is drawn into a case of political intrigue.

A mid-air collision in the Alaskan wilderness between two small aircraft leaves ten people dead. Was it a bird strike, pilot error… or premeditated murder?

Then an eleventh body is found in the wreckage: a man shot gangland style, twice in the chest and once in the head.

In an investigation that reaches to the highest levels of government, justice may not be served, but Kate Shugak is determined that the truth will out, even at the risk of her life and the lives of those she loves most.

Reviewers on Dana Stabenow’s Kate Shugak series:

‘An antidote to sugary female sleuths: Kate Shugak, the Aleut private investigator’ —New York Times
‘Crime fiction doesn’t get much better than this‘ —Booklist
‘If you are looking for something unique in the field of crime fiction, Kate Shugak is the answer‘ —Michael Connelly

---

Dana Stabenow was born in Anchorage, Alaska and raised on a 75-foot fishing tender. She knew there was a warmer, drier job out there somewhere and found it in writing. Her first book in the bestselling Kate Shugak series, A Cold Day for Murder, received an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America. Follow Dana at stabenow.com

---

Enjoy the discussion with John Sandford and Dana Stabenow.

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, recently welcomed Betty Webb to the bookstore. Webb is kicking off a new series with her latest book, Lost in Paris. There are signed copies of Lost in Paris available in the Webstore. http://bit.ly/43oBLAs Betty provides the background of the series in the discussion with Peters.

Here is the description of Lost in Paris.

“Lovers of post-WWI Paris will have fun.” —Publishers Weekly

“It’s perfectly frothy fun supported by a wealth of tasty historical tidbits.” —Booklist

Pulsing with the glamour and excitement of the Jazz Age, Lost in Paris explores a young woman’s journey to redeem herself from the heartaches of her past, while finding her way forward in tumultuous, unprecedented times.

NO ONE CAN HURT YOU LIKE FAMILY

PARIS, 1922: Zoe Barlow knows the pain of loss. By the age of eighteen, she’d already lost her father to suicide, and her reputation to an ill-fated love affair—not to mention other losses, too devastating for words. Exiled from her home and her beloved younger sister by their stepmother, she was unceremoniously dumped in Paris without a friend to help her find her way.

Four years later, Zoe has forged a new life as a painter amidst fellow artists, expats, and revolutionary thinkers struggling to make sense of the world in the aftermath of war. She’s adopted this Lost Generation as her new family, so when her dear friend Hadley Hemingway loses a valise containing all of her husband Ernest’s writings, Zoe happily volunteers to track it down. But her search for the bag keeps leading to murder victims, and Zoe must again face hard losses—this time among her adopted tribe. If she persists in her reckless quest to find the killer, the next life lost may be her own.

---

As a journalist, Betty Webb interviewed U.S. presidents, astronauts, and Nobel Prize winners, as well as the homeless, dying, and polygamy runaways. The dark Lena Jones mysteries are based on stories she covered as a reporter. Betty’s humorous Gunn Zoo series debuted with the critically acclaimed The Anteater of Death, followed by The Koala of Death. A book reviewer at Mystery Scene Magazine, Betty is a member of National Federation of Press Women, Mystery Writers of America, and the National Organization of Zoo Keepers.

---

Enjoy Betty Webb’s discussion of the book and its background.

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, recently welcomed Joshua Hood, author of Robert Ludlum’s The Treadstone Rendition. Don Bentley was Guest Host for the program. There are signed copies of The Treadstone Rendition available in the Webstore. http://bit.ly/3KD4LwZ

Here’s the description of Robert Ludlum’s The Treadstone Rendition.

The final days of the American presence in Afghanistan bring Adam Hayes a summons he can’t ignore in the latest electrifying thriller from the world of Robert Ludlum.

Adam Hayes has stepped away from the field for the last time. He’s promised his wife that he won’t put his life on the line any more, and there’s nothing that will make him break a promise to his wife. 

Well…almost nothing. With America withdrawing from Afghanistan and the Taliban closing in, Abdul Nassir reached out to his old friend. Ten years ago, he saved the American’s life, and the time has come for repayment. The Afghan is desperate to flee his homeland. Like most of his countrymen, he is petrified by the Taliban takeover, but he also can’t trust the Americans. He’s the only eyewitness to a massacre committed by a rogue team of CIA contractors. Not only can he identify the butcher who directed the bloodbath, he also has photographic proof. He’ll only be safe when those pictures are made public.

Now, there’s just one man he can trust to get him to safety–Adam Hayes.

---

Joshua Hood is the author of Warning Order and Clear by Fire. He graduated from the University of Memphis before joining the military and spending five years in the 82nd Airborne Division. On his return to civilian life he became a sniper team leader on a full-time SWAT team in Memphis. 

Robert Ludlum was the author of twenty-seven novels, each one a New York Times bestseller. There are more than 225 million of his books in print, and they have been translated into thirty-two languages. He is the author of the Jason Bourne series—The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy, and The Bourne Ultimatum—among other novels. Mr. Ludlum passed away in March 2001.

---

Enjoy the conversation.

The Poisoned Pen Bookstore is closed today. Happy Easter to those who celebrate!

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, welcomed lawyer and author Alex Finlay. Finlay’s latest thriller is What Have We Done. There are signed copies of the book in the Webstore. http://bit.ly/3MslzZ6

Here’s the summary of What Have We Done.

In this “top-notch mystery thriller” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) from Alex Finlay, What Have We Done is a tale about the lives we leave behind and the secrets we carry with us forever.

One of the Most Anticipated Books of 2023:• BookPage • BookBub • E! News • Go BookMart • Goodreads • PopSugar • The Every Girl • She Reads • Beyond the Bookends

A stay-at-home mom with a past.
A has-been rock star with a habit.
A reality TV producer with a debt.
Three disparate lives.
One deadly secret.

Twenty five years ago, Jenna, Donnie, and Nico were the best of friends, having forged a bond through the abuse and neglect they endured as residents of Savior House, a group home for parentless teens. When the home was shut down—after the disappearance of several kids—the three were split up.

Though the trauma of their childhood has never left them, each went on to live accomplished—if troubled—lives. They haven’t seen one another since they were teens but now are reunited for a single haunting reason: someone is trying to kill them.

To survive, the group will have to revisit the nightmares of their childhoods and confront their shared past—a past that holds the secret to why someone wants them dead.

It’s a reunion none of them asked for . . . or wanted. But it may be the only way to save all their lives.

What Have We Done is both an edge-of-your-seat thriller and a gut-wrenching coming-of-age story. And it cements Alex Finlay as one of the new leading voices in thrillers today.

---

ALEX FINLAY is the author of the 2021 breakout novel, Every Last Fear, the 2022 Goodreads Choice nominee for Best Mystery and Thriller, The Night Shift, and his latest March 2023 release, Library Reads Hall of Fame recipient, What Have We Done. Alex’s novels are regularly on “best of the year” lists, have been translated into nineteen languages, and Every Last Fear is in development for a series on a major streaming service. What Have We Done also was recently acquired for the screen. Alex lives in Washington, DC and Virginia.

---

Enjoy the discussion of writing and the law with Alex Finlay.

Patrick Millikin from The Poisoned Pen welcomed Eli Cranor back for a virtual event to talk about his latest book. Cranor is the author of Don’t Know Tough. His new book, Ozark Dogs, is the Hot Book of the Week at the bookstore. There are signed copies of Ozark Dogs available in the Webstore. http://bit.ly/3GplyRH

Here’s the description of Ozark Dogs.

In this Southern thriller, two families grapple with the aftermath of a murder in their small Arkansas town.

After his son is convicted of capital murder, Vietnam War veteran Jeremiah Fitzjurls takes over the care of his granddaughter, Joanna, raising her with as much warmth as can be found in an Ozark junkyard outfitted to be an armory. He teaches her how to shoot and fight, but there is not enough training in the world to protect her when the dreaded Ledfords, notorious meth dealers and fanatical white supremacists, come to collect on Joanna as payment for a long-overdue blood debt.

Headed by rancorous patriarch Bunn and smooth-talking, erudite Evail, the Ledfords have never forgotten what the Fitzjurls family did to them, and they will not be satisfied until they have taken an eye for an eye. As they seek revenge, and as Jeremiah desperately searches for his granddaughter, their narratives collide in this immersive story about family and how far some will go to honor, defend—or in some cases, destroy it.

---

Eli Cranor lives and writes from the banks of Lake Dardanelle, a reservoir of the Arkansas River nestled in the heart of True Grit country. His work has won The Greensboro Review’s Robert Watson Literary Prize and been featured in Missouri Review, Oxford American, Ellery Queen, The Strand and others. Eli also pens a weekly column, “Where I’m Writing From” for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, and his craft column, “Shop Talk,” appears monthly at CrimeReads. His critically acclaimed debut novel, Don’t Know Tough, won the Peter Lovesey First Crime Novel Contest.

---

Enjoy the discussion, and the backstory of Cranor’s publication journey.

Barbara Peters, the owner of The Poisoned Pen, recently welcomed authors Sarah Penner and Susan Stokes-Chapman. They first connected because of an interest in Georgian London. Penner’s new book is The London Seance Society, and Stokes-Chapman’s is Pandora. You can order copies of the books through the Webstore. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

Here’s the description of The London Seance Society.

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

From the author of the sensational bestseller The Lost Apothecary comes a spellbinding tale about two daring women who hunt for truth and justice in the perilous art of conjuring the dead.

1873. At an abandoned château on the outskirts of Paris, a dark séance is about to take place, led by acclaimed spiritualist Vaudeline D’Allaire. Known worldwide for her talent in conjuring the spirits of murder victims to ascertain the identities of the people who killed them, she is highly sought after by widows and investigators alike.

Lenna Wickes has come to Paris to find answers about her sister’s death, but to do so, she must embrace the unknown and overcome her own logic-driven bias against the occult. When Vaudeline is beckoned to England to solve a high-profile murder, Lenna accompanies her as an understudy. With shared determination, the women find companionship that perhaps borders on something more. And as they team up with the powerful men of London’s exclusive Séance Society to solve the mystery, they begin to suspect that they are not merely out to solve a crime, but perhaps entangled in one themselves…

Written with intoxicating suspense and sultry prose, The London Séance Society is an entrancing tale that blurs the lines between truth and illusion, and reveals the grave risks women will take to avenge the ones they love.

“Penner brings history to vivid life in this atmospheric and evocative whodunnit.” —Nita Prose, author of The Maid

Named a Most Anticipated book byGood Housekeeping, Washington Post, Bookpage, CrimeReads, Readers Digest, Popsugar, LitHub, E! News, Goodreads, and more.

---

Sarah Penner is the New York Times and internationally bestselling author of The Lost Apothecary which will be translated into forty languages worldwide and is set to be turned into a drama series by Fox. Sarah spent thirteen years in corporate finance and now writes full-time. She and her husband live in Florida. To learn more, visit SarahPenner.com

---

Here’s the summary of Pandora.

#1 Sunday Times Bestseller

“Lush, evocative and utterly irresistible.”—Jennifer Saint, author of Ariadne

Prepare to lift the lid on a lush reimagination of the mythological Pandora….Susan Stokes-Chapman’s atmospheric debut, PANDORA, immerses the reader in the dangerous, mysterious world of ancient antiquities with prose that is elegant and teeming with visceral sensory detail. A marvelous debut—imaginative, ambitious, and begging to be savored.”   — Sarah Penner, New York Times bestselling author of The Last Apothecary

Steeped in mystery and rich in imagination, an exhilarating historical novel set in Georgian London where the discovery of a mysterious ancient Greek vase sets in motion conspiracies, revelations, and romance.

London, 1799. Dora Blake, an aspiring jewelry artist, lives with her odious uncle atop her late parents’ once-famed shop of antiquities. After a mysterious Greek vase is delivered, her uncle begins to act suspiciously, keeping the vase locked in the store’s basement, away from prying eyes—including Dora’s. Intrigued by her uncle’s peculiar behavior, Dora turns to young, ambitious antiquarian scholar Edward Lawrence who eagerly agrees to help. Edward believes the ancient vase is the key that will unlock his academic future; Dora sees it as a chance to establish her own name.

But what Edward discovers about the vase has Dora questioning everything she has believed about her life, her family, and the world as she knows it. As Dora uncovers the truth, she comes to understand that some doors are locked and some mysteries are buried for a reason, while others are closer to the surface than they appear.

A story of myth and mystery, secrets and deception, fate and hope, Pandora is an enchanting work of historical fiction as captivating and evocative as The Song of Achilles, The Essex Serpent, and The Miniaturist.

---

Susan Stokes-Chapman is a writer based in North Wales. She grew up in the Georgian city of Lichfield, before spending four years in the town of Aberystwyth and graduating with a BA in Education and English Literature and an MA in Creative Writing. Her debut novel PANDORA was published in the UK in January 2022 and became an instant #1 bestseller; the novel was previously shortlisted for the 2020 Lucy Cavendish Fiction Prize and longlisted for the Bath Novel Award. Twitter: @SStokesChapman, Instagram: sstokeschapman, www.susanstokeschapman.com

---

If you enjoy British historical fiction, now is your chance to “meet” two authors.

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, recently welcomed Lauren Willig to the bookstore to talk about her latest novel, Two Wars and a Wedding. And, those are not the wars you might expect. Willig deals with the Greco-Turkish War and the Spanish-American War. There are signed copies of the books available in the Webstore. http://bit.ly/3nN65Vj

Here’s the summary of Two Wars and a Wedding.

“Filled with vivid details, shocking truths, and two sly, strong women who bring panache and humor to every scene. I’m simply in awe of the masterful, magical way Lauren Willig makes history come alive.” — Fiona Davis, New York Times bestselling author of The Magnolia Place

From New York Times bestselling author Lauren Willig: a dramatic coming-of-age story with a dual timeline and a single heroine—a bold and adventuring young woman who finds herself caught up in two very different wars on both sides of the Atlantic.

September 1896: An aspiring archaeologist, Smith College graduate Betsy Hayes travels to Athens, desperate to break into the male-dominated field of excavation. In the midst of the heat and dust of Greece she finds an unlikely ally in Charles, Baron de Robecourt, one of the few men who takes her academic passion seriously. But when a simmering conflict between Greece and Turkey erupts into open warfare, Betsy throws herself into the conflict as a nurse, not knowing that the decision will change her life forever—and cause a deep and painful rift with her oldest friend, Ava.

June 1898: Betsy has sworn off war nursing—but when she gets the word that her estranged friend Ava is headed to Cuba with Clara Barton and the Red Cross to patch up the wounded in the Spanish-American War, Betsy determines to stop her the only way she knows how: by joining in her place. Battling heat, disease, and her own demons, Betsy follows Teddy Roosevelt’s Rough Riders straight to the heart of the fighting, where she is forced to confront her greatest fears to save both old friends and new….

Set during an electrifying era of nation-building, idealism, and upheaval, Two Wars and a Wedding is the tale of two remarkable women striving to make their place in a man’s world—an unforgettable saga of friendship, love, and fighting for what is right. 

---

Lauren Willig is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of twenty novels, including The Summer Country, The Ashford Affair, and The English Wife. She lives in New York City with her husband and family.

---

Willig’s description of the background of Two Wars and a Wedding is fascinating. You’ll want to listen.

Okay, I’ll admit I listened to Patrick Millikin’s introduction of Brigadier General A.J. Tata, and did catch one point that wouldn’t mean as much to others. Tata and I both have Master’s Degrees from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. But, Tata is much more of an overachiever than I am. He appeared at The Poisoned Pen to talk about his new book, Total Empire. There are signed copies available in the Webstore. https://store.poisonedpen.com/item/pAG4rDFNcoyfteRI7IEoIQ

Here’s the summary of Total Empire.

General Garrett Sinclair undertakes a rogue mission in the Sahara Desert to thwart an international nuclear threat in Total Empire, an explosive thriller from A. J. Tata.

When Sergeant Major Sylvester “Sly” Morgan is killed on a mission, his daughter, Zoey, tells General Garrett Sinclair that her father’s death wasn’t random. Morgan had recorded a high-level meeting between Chinese, American, and French diplomats as they spoke about a plan for a new global government.

The “Chinese-U.S. Partnership”, or CUSP, intends to combine the world’s two largest economies and militaries to usher in a new era of partnership and leadership. But China’s offer has a deadline and penalties for noncompliance. As a safeguard, China has five high-tech hypersonic glide vehicles armed with nuclear weapons orbiting the earth ready to strike. When Zoey disappears in Africa, seemingly while in pursuit of her father’s killer, Sinclair and Dagger Team are caught off-guard as they scramble to catch up.

Without authorization or support from his government, Sinclair takes his team into the maw of the Saharan death pit, the Eye of Africa. In what will prove to be his most dangerous mission yet, Sinclair must overcome tremendous odds, with the threat of nuclear Armageddon hanging in the balance.

---

A. J. TATA, Brigadier General, U.S. Army (Retired), most recently performed the duties of Under Secretary of Defense for Policy in the Pentagon. He also commanded combat units in the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions and the 10th Mountain Division. His last combat tour was in Afghanistan in 2007 where he earned the Combat Action Badge and Bronze Star Medal. He is the author of numerous national bestselling novels, including books from The Captain Jake Mahegan and Threat Series. He was the National Security Expert for One America News Network and a frequent foreign policy guest commentator on Fox News and CNN.

---

Enjoy A.J. Tata’s discussion of his book, and the background.