Laurie R. King’s Venetian Tea Celebration

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Laurie R. King

I think those of us who missed the Venetian Tea that kicked off the release of Laurie R. King’s latest Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes mystery, Island of the Mad, missed quite a party. You can still order a signed copy of the book through the Web Store, though. https://bit.ly/2l5ND6o

And, we can enjoy the pictures of the audience. Some dressed in costume. Some wore masks. And, some even demonstrated dance moves. It looks like everyone had a good time.

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Laurie King & costumed audience members

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Barbara Peters, owner of the bookstore, in a mask & Laurie King
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Dance Moves

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Tea 12

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The Catcher in the Rye – As Explained by John Green

Are you reading any of the books from PBS’ Great American Read this summer? About a month ago, I posted about the search for America’s favorite book. Not necessarily the best book, or the Great American Novel, but America’s favorite book. https://bit.ly/2y2g3Ym

John Green, author of The Fault in Our Stars, recently did a ten minute episode for PBS. It’s a Crash Course in J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye.

Catcher in the Rye

For those of us who read it twice, and never did understand why it was popular (me), Green is a terrific presenter who makes Holden Caulfield more interesting. Check out the video. https://bit.ly/2HJ8HIU

Then, check the Web Store for John Green’s books or The Catcher in the Ryehttps://store.poisonedpen.com

Hot Book of the Week – Island of the Mad

If you didn’t make it to the Venetian Tea with Laurie R. King the other day, you can still celebrate the publication of Island of the Mad. It’s the current Hot Book of the Week at the Poisoned Pen. You can buy a signed copy of that book, or copies of King’s other books through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2JuI14f

Island of the Mad

Here’s the summary of Island of the Mad.

Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes are back in Laurie R. King’s New York Times bestselling series—”the most sustained feat of imagination in mystery fiction today” (Lee Child).

With Mrs. Hudson gone from their lives and domestic chaos building, the last thing Mary Russell and her husband, Sherlock Holmes, need is to help an old friend with her mad and missing aunt.

Lady Vivian Beaconsfield has spent most of her adult life in one asylum after another, since the loss of her brother and father in the Great War. And although her mental state seemed to be improving, she’s now disappeared after an outing from Bethlem Royal Hospital . . . better known as Bedlam.

Russell wants nothing to do with the case—but she can’t say no. And at least it will get her away from the challenges of housework and back to the familiar business of investigation. To track down the vanished woman, she brings to the fore her deductive instincts and talent for subterfuge—and of course enlists her husband’s legendary prowess. Together, Russell and Holmes travel from the grim confines of Bedlam to the winding canals and sun-drenched Lido cabarets of Venice—only to find the foreboding shadow of Benito Mussolini darkening the fate of a city, an era, and a tormented English lady of privilege.

*****

And, I’m hoping this is going to work. If it does, you can watch the Facebook video of Saturday’s event at the Poisoned Pen. If it doesn’t work, you’ll have to go to the Poisoned Pen’s Facebook page to watch it.

https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2F238297496213972%2Fvideos%2F1825101207533585%2F&show_text=0&width=560

Peng Shepherd, via Livestream

Did you know Laurie R. King wrote a science fiction novel? Because of that, she hosted Peng Shepherd, author of The Book of M, for her appearance at the Poisoned Pen. Shepherd’s book is the science fiction selection of the month at the bookstore. Signed copies are available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2JFE8ci

book of M

Here’s the description of The Book of M.

“Eerie, dark, and compelling, [The Book of M] will not disappoint lovers of The Passage and Station Eleven.” –Booklist

WHAT WOULD YOU GIVE UP TO REMEMBER?

Set in a dangerous near future world, The Book of M tells the captivating story of a group of ordinary people caught in an extraordinary catastrophe who risk everything to save the ones they love. It is a sweeping debut that illuminates the power that memories have not only on the heart, but on the world itself.

One afternoon at an outdoor market in India, a man’s shadow disappears—an occurrence science cannot explain. He is only the first. The phenomenon spreads like a plague, and while those afflicted gain a strange new power, it comes at a horrible price: the loss of all their memories.

Ory and his wife Max have escaped the Forgetting so far by hiding in an abandoned hotel deep in the woods. Their new life feels almost normal, until one day Max’s shadow disappears too.

Knowing that the more she forgets, the more dangerous she will become to Ory, Max runs away. But Ory refuses to give up the time they have left together. Desperate to find Max before her memory disappears completely, he follows her trail across a perilous, unrecognizable world, braving the threat of roaming bandits, the call to a new war being waged on the ruins of the capital, and the rise of a sinister cult that worships the shadowless.

As they journey, each searches for answers: for Ory, about love, about survival, about hope; and for Max, about a new force growing in the south that may hold the cure.

Like The Passage and Station Eleven, this haunting, thought-provoking, and beautiful novel explores fundamental questions of memory, connection, and what it means to be human in a world turned upside down.

*****

King’s interview with Peng Shepherd was filmed for Livestream. You can watch and listen to it here.  https://livestream.com/poisonedpen/events/8241342

 

The September Mystery Conference

A month ago, we published the information about the Poisoned Pen’s September Mystery Conference. It might have been too early for you to make plans. But, it’s June. It’s time to look ahead, and decide if you want to join us. Don’t wait too long! Seats are limited.

The September conference is a two-day conference. Check out the details. Can’t make it? You can always order books by the authors through the Web Store. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

Rankin conference

Guest of Honor: Ian Rankin
Celebrating 30th Years of Publishing in the U.S.
Hosts: Hank Phillippi Ryan, James Sallis & Dana Stabenow!

Date: Sunday Sept. 2nd & Monday Sept. 3rd
To register, call 480-947-2974 or 888-560-9919

Registration Fee: $125 (includes both days)
**Seats are limited! Prepayment required**

There will be a bit of swag for you. And we are importing Ian’s photographic memoir, Rebus’s Scotland, A Personal Journey (price TBA) for sale.

The Panelists
(other than Ian and the Hosts)
James R Benn
Mark De Castrique
Warren Easley
Mary Anna Evans
Mette Ivie Harrison
Annie Hogsett
Stephen Mack Jones
Thomas Kies
Sujata Massey
Francine Mathews
John Straley
David Wagner
Tina Whittle
Reavis Z. Wortham
The Conference Location
Reserving Rooms
For Preferred room rates please go to
https://www.arizonabiltmore.com/ 
 
Use code: 2726435
Rooms: $109 + Tax & Room Fees
The Program
(so far)
Sunday, September 2
9:00 AM Check In 
9:30 -11:15 Panels
11:30-12:15 Dana Stabenow interviews James R. Benn and Francine Mathews
12:15-1:30 Lunch on your own
1:30″“4:30 Panels
4:30 PM An Agatha Christie “Hats and Tea” sponsored by William Morrow with Quizmaster and Host Hank Phillippi Ryan
Quizzes, Prizes, and a Poirot approved treat! We will have Signed copies of the new Sophie Hannah Poirot for sale.

Fancy a Fascinator? Wear a period hat, male or
female, if you wish 

 

 

 

Monday, September 3 
9:30-10:15 Panel
10:30-11:15 Dana Stabenow and John Straley Talk Alaska Mystery
11:30-12:15 Panel

 

12:30-2:00 PM (Lunch included) James Sallis interviews Ian Rankin

2:15-3:45 Ian Rankin Talks His Career, Scottish

Literature….
3:45… Catch any of the authors for chat and signing

Hot Book of the Week – Line of Sight

Jack Ryan, Jr. returns. So does author Mike Maden. Tom Clancy’s Line of Sight is the current Hot Book of the Week. Mike Maden will be here Thursday, June 14 at 7 PM to discuss and sign the new book. Can’t make it? You can still order a signed copy of Line of Sight through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2LnYILl

Line of Sight

Here’s the summary of Line of Sight.

Jack Ryan Jr. finds that the scars of war can last a lifetime in the latest entry in Tom Clancy’s #1 New York Times bestselling series.

Twenty-six years ago, Dr. Cathy Ryan restored the eyesight of a young Bosnian girl who had been injured during an attack in the Bosnian War. Today, her son, Jack Ryan Jr. has agreed to track down the young woman and deliver a letter from his mother. What he finds shocks them both.

The helpless child has grown into a remarkable woman. Aida Curic is a self-possessed beauty with a big heart and an even bigger secret who runs a controversial refugee agency near Sarajevo. Jack finds himself deeply drawn to both her and her country, but soon finds himself in the crosshairs of the seething ethnic tensions and ancient blood feuds of the Balkans, the region of Europe where empires go to die. If Jack can’t navigate the world of secret service agencies, special operators and local mafias to save Aida, Sarajevo will prove the be the fuse that lights the next world war.

Laurie R. King, Island of the Mad & A Venetian Tea

Laurie R King signs Island of the Mad with Venetian Tea!

WHEN:
June 9, 2018 @ 2:00 pm ““ 3:00 pm
WHERE:
The Poisoned Pen Bookstore
4014 N Goldwater Blvd
Scottsdale, AZ 85251
USA
COST:  Free

Join us for Venetian Tea, masks, give-a-ways, prosecco and biscotti!

*Feel free to let your inner Venetian out with attire and masks!

From Laurie:

Yes, my beloved Poisoned Pen Books in Scottsdale is sneaking in a special pre-launch launch party on the Saturday, a whole 3 days early.  And yes, you can get a copy of the hardback that very day, and have me deface it with my signature before you snatch it back to spend the rest of the weekend reading it on the Lido—or rather, by the pool at Scottsdale’s delightfully retro Valley Ho.

I’m not going to BoucherCon this year, so unless you’re going to Left Coast, you may not catch me at all [sad face]. But to tempt you to Scottsdale, we’re making this a biggish do. The Valley Ho offers us a king or double-queen room for just $99 a night (or $119 pool view).  We’ll either do a dinner get-together, or maybe Sunday brunch, more to come when we’ve had a chance to gauge interest.  To get the Ho’s special price for this, phone them at 866-987-2052 and let them know it’s the Poisoned Pen rate.

<<Click here to order a signed copy>>

Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes untangle the slippery threads of insanity and deadly secrets as they investigate a disappearance in the New York Times bestselling series that Lee Child called “the most sustained feat of imagination in mystery fiction today.”

A June summer’s evening, on the Sussex Downs, in 1925. Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes are strolling across their orchard when the telephone rings: an old friend’s beloved aunt has failed to return following a supervised outing from Bedlam. After the previous few weeks”“with a bloody murder, a terrible loss, and startling revelations about Holmes”“Russell is feeling a bit unbalanced herself. The last thing she wants is to deal with the mad, and yet, she can’t say no.

The Lady Vivian Beaconsfield has spent most of her adult life in one asylum after another, yet she seemed to be improving”“or at least, finding a point of balance in her madness. So why did she disappear? Did she take the family’s jewels with her, or did someone else? The Bedlam nurse, perhaps?

The trail leads Russell and Holmes through a lunatic asylum’s stony halls to the warm Venice lagoon, where ethereal beauty is jarred by Mussolini’s Blackshirts, where the gilded Lido set may be tempting a madwoman, and where Cole Porter sits at a piano, playing with ideas…

Mystery Writers of America – June Releases

Here are the June 2018 books by some of Mystery Writers of America’s members, as reported by the organization on their website https://mysterywriters.org/new-books-by-mwa-members-june-2018/ . They may all be found at your local Independent Bookstore.  (If you’re reading this, we hope you consider the Poisoned Pen to be your local independent bookstore..) Check out the Web Store for these books, or others by the authors. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

 

Books

Cara Black, Murder on the Left Bank, Soho Crime
Leslie Budewitz, As the Christmas Cookie Crumbles, Midnight Ink
Kate CarlisleBuried in Books, Berkley
Joelle Charbonneau, Eden Conquered, HarperCollins ““ HarperTeen
Tracy ClarkBroken Places, Kensington
John ConnollyThe Woman in the Woods, Simon & Schuster ““ Atria
Sheila ConnollyMurder at the Mansion, Minotaur
Charlie Donlea, Don’t Believe It, Kensington
Robert Dugoni, A Steep Price, Thomas & Mercer
Jeremy Finley, The Darkest Time of Night, St. Martin’s Press
John GilstrapScorpion Strike, Kensington
Leonard GoldbergA Study in Treason, Minotaur
Matt GoldmanBroken Ice, Forge
Elizabeth GunnBurning Meredith, Severn House
Leigh HearonRunaway Murder, Kensington
Jennifer HillierJar of Hearts, Minotaur
Paddy HirschThe Devil’s Half Mile, Forge Books
David HousewrightLike to Die, Minotaur
Lisa JacksonLiar, Liar, Kensington
Laurie R. King, Island of the Mad, Bantam
Stephen KingThe Outsider, Simon & Schuster ““ Scribner
R.J. KoretoThe Body in the Ballroom, Crooked Lane
Paul Levine, Bum Deal, Thomas & Mercer
Terrence McCauleyThe Fairfax Incident, Polis
James Patterson & Bill Clinton, The President is Missing, Little, Brown
James Patterson, Murder in Paradise, Grand Central
Bryan Reardon, The Real Michael Swann, Dutton
Cynthia Riggs, Widow’s Wreath, Crooked Lane
Charles Rosenberg, The Trial and Execution of George Washington, Hanover Square
Randall SilvisOnly the Rain, Thomas & Mercer
Maggie Toussaint, Confound It, Camel Press
Peggy TownsendSee Her Run, Thomas & Mercer
J.D. TraffordGood Intentions, Thomas & Mercer
James W. Ziskin, A Stone’s Throw, Seventh Street

Robert Dugoni, A Steep Price

Dugoni

Robert Dugoni returns to the Poisoned Pen on Wednesday, June 13 at 7 PM to discuss and sign his latest book, A Steep Price. He’ll be in conversation with Bryan Gruley, author of Starvation Lake. Autographed copies of A Steep Price can be pre-ordered through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2JxAtto

Steep Price

Here’s a summary of A Steep Price.

New York Times bestselling author Robert Dugoni’s thrilling series continues as Seattle homicide detective Tracy Crosswhite is plunged into a case of family secrets and murder…

Called in to consult after a young woman disappears, Tracy Crosswhite has the uneasy feeling that this is no ordinary missing-persons case. When the body turns up in an abandoned well, Tracy’s suspicions are confirmed. Estranged from her family, the victim had balked at an arranged marriage and had planned to attend graduate school. But someone cut her dreams short.

Solving the mystery behind the murder isn’t Tracy’s only challenge. The detective is keeping a secret of her own: she’s pregnant. And now her biggest fear seems to be coming true when a new detective arrives to replace her. Meanwhile, Tracy’s colleague Vic Fazzio is about to take a fall after his investigation into the murder of a local community activist turns violent and leaves an invaluable witness dead.

Two careers are on the line. And when more deadly secrets emerge, jobs might not be the only things at risk.