Don Winslow’s City on Fire is the current Hot Book of the Week at The Poisoned Pen. Signed copies of the book are available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/3LdQDYZ

As many of you know, Don Winslow just announced his retirement as a writer. The two sequels to City on Fire are already written. He intends to devote his time to politics. He said, “This will be my focus now. “Democrats have better ideas, better candidates, and a better vision for tomorrow. What they don’t have is BETTER MESSAGING and I’m going to try and change that.” I will be paying for everything myself and not accepting any donations. Don Winslow” You can find the rest of his statement online, including on Twitter.

In the meantime, here’s the summary of City on Fire.

From the #1 internationally bestselling author of the Cartel Trilogy (The Power of the Dog, The Cartel, and The Border), The Force, and Broken comes the first novel in an epic new trilogy.

“Superb. City on Fire is exhilarating.” ““ Stephen King

“Epic, ambitious, majestic, City on Fire is The Godfather for our generation.” ““ Adrian McKinty, New York Times bestselling author of The Chain

Two criminal empires together control all of New England.

Until a beautiful woman comes between the Irish and the Italians, launching a war that will see them kill each other, destroy an alliance, and set a city on fire.

Danny Ryan yearns for a more “legit” life and a place in the sun. But as the bloody conflict stacks body on body and brother turns against brother, Danny has to rise above himself. To save the friends he loves like family and the family he has sworn to protect, he becomes a leader, a ruthless strategist, and a master of a treacherous game in which the winners live and the losers die.

From the gritty streets of Providence to the glittering screens of Hollywood to the golden casinos of Las Vegas, two rival crime families ignite a war that will leave only one standing. The winner will forge a dynasty.

Exploring the classic themes of loyalty, betrayal, and honor, City on Fire is a contemporary masterpiece in the tradition of The Godfather, Casino, and Goodfellas—a thrilling saga from Don Winslow, “America’s greatest living crime writer” (Jon Land, Providence Journal).

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Don Winslow is the author of twenty-two acclaimed, award-winning international bestsellers, including the New York Times bestsellers The Force and The Border, the #1 international bestseller The Cartel, The Power of the Dog, Savages, and The Winter of Frankie Machine. Savages was made into a feature film by three-time Oscar-winning writer-director Oliver Stone. The Power of the Dog, The Cartel, and The Border sold to FX to air as a major television series, and The Force is soon to be a major motion picture from 20^th Century Studios. A former investigator, antiterrorist trainer, and trial consultant, Winslow lives in California and Rhode Island.

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The Poisoned Pen hosted Winslow on Monday, April 25. At the time I wrote this, I didn’t have a video to share. I hope there’s one available soon.

Patrick King from The Poisoned Pen recently welcomed fantasy author Rebecca Roanhorse to discuss the second book in her Between Earth and Sky trilogy, Fevered Star. You can order a signed copy of the book through the Webstore. https://bit.ly/3kil18N

Here’s the summary of Fevered Star, the sequel to Black Sun.

Return to The Meridian with New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Roanhorse’s sequel to the most critically hailed epic fantasy of 2020 Black Sun—finalist for the Hugo, Nebula, Lambda, and Locus awards.

There are no tides more treacherous than those of the heart. —Teek saying

The great city of Tova is shattered. The sun is held within the smothering grip of the Crow God’s eclipse, but a comet that marks the death of a ruler and heralds the rise of a new order is imminent.

The Meridian: a land where magic has been codified and the worship of gods suppressed. How do you live when legends come to life, and the faith you had is rewarded?

As sea captain Xiala is swept up in the chaos and currents of change, she finds an unexpected ally in the former Priest of Knives. For the Clan Matriarchs of Tova, tense alliances form as far-flung enemies gather and the war in the heavens is reflected upon the earth.

And for Serapio and Naranpa, both now living avatars, the struggle for free will and personhood in the face of destiny rages. How will Serapio stay human when he is steeped in prophecy and surrounded by those who desire only his power? Is there a future for Naranpa in a transformed Tova without her total destruction?

Welcome back to the fantasy series of the decade in Fevered Star—book two of Between Earth and Sky.

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Rebecca Roanhorse is the New York Times bestselling author of Trail of Lightning, Storm of Locusts, Black Sun, and Star Wars: Resistance Reborn. She has won the Nebula, Hugo, and Locus Awards for her fiction, and was the recipient of the 2018 Astounding Award for Best New Writer. The next book in her Between Earth and Sky series, Fevered Star, is out in April 2022. She lives in New Mexico with her family.

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Enjoy the conversation.

Sascha Rothchild’s Blood Sugar is the April First Mystery of the Month for The Poisoned Pen. Stephanie Wrobel was guest host for the discussion of Rothchild’s debut thriller. There might be a few signed copies still available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/3EIV0sy

Here’s the description of Blood Sugar.

An utterly delicious debut thriller that tells the story of the most likable murderess you will ever meet, perfect for fans of Riley Sager and Jessica Knoll.

“I could just kill you right now!” It’s something we’ve all thought at one time or another. But Ruby has actually acted on it. Three times, to be exact.

Though she may be a murderer, Ruby is not a sociopath. She is an animal-loving therapist with a thriving practice. She’s felt empathy and sympathy. She’s had long-lasting friendships and relationships, and has a husband, Jason, whom she adores. But the homicide detectives at Miami Beach PD are not convinced of her happy marriage. When we meet Ruby, she is in a police interrogation room, being accused of Jason’s murder. Which, ironically, is one murder that she did not commit, though a scandal-obsessed public believes differently. As she undergoes questioning, Ruby’s mind races back to all the details of her life that led her to this exact moment, and to the three dead bodies in her wake. Because though she may not have killed her husband, Ruby certainly isn’t innocent.

Alternating between Ruby’s memories of her past crimes and her present-day fight to clear her name, Blood Sugar is a twisty, clever debut with an unforgettable protagonist who you can’t help but root for—an addicting mixture of sour and sweet.

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Sascha Rothchild is an Emmy-nominated screenwriter, who has written and produced lauded shows such as GLOW, The Bold Type, The Baby-Sitters Club, and The Carrie Diaries. In 2015, she was named one of Variety‘s “10 TV Writers to Watch.” Rothchild has written for LA Weekly, the Los Angeles Times, Elle,  and the Miami Herald, and adapted her article, “How to Get Divorced by 30” into both a memoir and a screenplay for Universal Studios. She graduated from the honors program of Boston College summa cum laude, with a major in theater and screenwriting. Blood Sugar is her debut novel.

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Enjoy the discussion.

Congratulations to the winners of the 2021 Agatha Awards, announced Saturday night at Malice Domestic. The awards were presented in 2022 for books published in 2021. Don’t forget to check the Web Store for copies of the books. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

Best Contemporary Novel

Cajun Kiss of Death by Ellen Byron

Best Historical Novel

Death at Greenway by Lori Rader-Day

Best First Novel

Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala

Best Short Story

“Bay of Reckoning” by Shawn Reilly Simmons (Murder on the Beach)

Best Non-fiction

How to Write a Mystery: A Handbook from Mystery Writers of America by MWA with editors Lee Child and Laurie R. King

Best Children’s/Young Adult

I Play One on TV by Alan Orloff

William Maz’ debut thriller, The Bucharest Dossier, sold out of the signed copies at The Poisoned Pen. You can still order an unsigned copy, though. https://tinyurl.com/4r64bmx6 Barbara Peters, owner of the bookstore welcomed Maz for many reasons, but she’s always happy to introduce readers to a debut author.

Here’s the summary of The Bucharest Dossier.

Chanticleer International Book Awards 2020 Grand Prize Winner in Global Thrillers

Bill Hefflin is a man apart—apart from life, apart from his homeland, apart from love

At the start of the 1989 uprising in Romania, CIA analyst Bill Hefflin—a disillusioned Romanian expat—arrives in Bucharest at the insistence of his KGB asset, code-named Boris. As Hefflin becomes embroiled in an uprising that turns into a brutal revolution, nothing is as it seems, including the search for his childhood love, which has taken on mythical proportions.

With the bloody events unfolding at blinding speed, Hefflin realizes the revolution is manipulated by outside forces, including his own CIA and Boris—the puppeteer who seems to be pulling all the strings of Hefflin’s life.

The Bourne Identity Meets John le Carre’s The Spy Who Came In from the Cold

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Born in Bucharest, Romania, William Maz emigrated to the U.S. as a child. He is a graduate of Harvard University and Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Following a residency in anesthesiology at Yale, he practiced medicine, and during that time, he developed a passion for writing fiction. He studied writing at Harvard, the New School, and The Writer’s Studio in New York City, and is now writing full time. William is married to a surgeon and he divides his time between Pennsylvania and New York City. The Bucharest Dossier is his debut novel.

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Meet William Maz, author of The Bucharest Dossier.

The Poisoned Pen is rounding out April with six more author events, including some live ones. Check out the list of authors. Then, check the Web Store for their books. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

Just look at the authors who are finishing out the month at the bookstore!

Well, there’s a “Dream Team” for you, David Baldacci and Don Winslow. Don Winslow just hosted David Baldacci at The Poisoned Pen for Baldacci to talk about his new book, Dream Town. Dream Town is the third book in the Archer series. You can order signed copies of the book through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/3JZy6yg

Here’s the description of Dream Town.

Private investigator and World War II veteran Aloysius Archer heads to Los Angeles, the city where dreams are made and shattered, and is ensnared in a lethal case in this latest thriller in #1 New York Times bestselling author David Baldacci’s Nero Award-winning series.  

It’s the eve of 1953, and Aloysius Archer is in Los Angeles to ring in the New Year with an old friend, aspiring actress Liberty Callahan, when their evening is interrupted by an acquaintance of Callahan’s: Eleanor Lamb, a screenwriter in dire straits.

After a series of increasingly chilling events—mysterious phone calls, the same blue car loitering outside her house, and a bloody knife left in her sink—Eleanor fears that her life is in danger, and she wants to hire Archer to look into the matter. Archer suspects that Eleanor knows more than she’s saying, but before he can officially take on her case, a dead body turns up inside of Eleanor’s home . . . and Eleanor herself disappears. 

Missing client or not, Archer is dead set on finding both the murderer and Eleanor. With the help of Callahan and his partner Willie Dash, he launches an investigation that will take him from mob-ridden Las Vegas to the glamorous world of Hollywood to the darkest corners of Los Angeles—a city in which beautiful faces are attached to cutthroat schemers, where the cops can be more corrupt than the criminals . . . and where the powerful people responsible for his client’s disappearance will kill without a moment’s hesitation if they catch Archer on their trail. 

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Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, referred to David Baldacci and Don Winslow as “giants”. Enjoy their discussion.

James Rollins recently appeared at The Poisoned Pen to discuss his latest Sigma Force book, Kingdom of Bones. Kingdom of Bones is the twenty-second in the series, and it’s the current Hot Book of the Week at the bookstore. There are copies of signed books available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/3Myph07

Here is the summary of Kingdom of Bones.

From #1 New York Times bestselling author James Rollins, the latest riveting, deeply imaginative thriller in the Sigma Force series, told with his trademark blend of cutting-edge science, historical mystery, and pulse-pounding action.

It begins in Africa . . .

A United Nations relief team in a small village in the Congo makes an alarming discovery. An unknown force is leveling the evolutionary playing field. Men, women, and children have been reduced to a dull, catatonic state. The environment surrounding them—plants and animals—has grown more cunning and predatory, evolving at an exponential pace. The insidious phenomenon is spreading from a cursed site in the jungle — known to locals as the Kingdom of Bones —and sweeping across Africa, threatening the rest of the world.

What has made the biosphere run amok? Is it a natural event? Or more terrifyingly, did someone engineer it?

Commander Gray Pierce and Sigma Force are prepared for the extraordinary and have kept the world safe, vigilance for which they have paid a tragic personal price. Yet, even these brilliant and seasoned scientific warriors do not understand what is behind this frightening development—or know how to stop it. As they race to find answers, the members of Sigma quickly realize they have become the prey.

To head off global catastrophe, Sigma Force must risk their lives to uncover the shattering secret at the heart of the African continent—a truth that will illuminate who we are as a species and where we may be headed . . . sooner than we know.

Mother Nature—red in tooth and claw—is turning against humankind, propelling the entire world into the Kingdom of Bones.

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James Rollins is the author of international thrillers that have been translated into more than forty languages. His Sigma series has been lauded as one of the “top crowd pleasers” (New York Times) and one of the “hottest summer reads” (People magazine). In each novel, acclaimed for its originality, Rollins unveils unseen worlds, scientific breakthroughs, and historical secrets–and he does it all at breakneck speed and with stunning insight. He lives in the Sierra Nevada mountains.

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Enjoy the humor and the conversation between James Rollins and Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen.